Pulpotomy, which belongs to vital pulp therapy, has become a strategy for managing pulpitis in recent decades. This minimally invasive treatment reflects the recognition of preserving healthy dental pulp and optimizing long-term patient-centered outcomes. Pulpotomy is categorized into partial pulpotomy (PP), the removal of a partial segment of the coronal pulp tissue, and full pulpotomy (FP), the removal of whole coronal pulp, which is followed by applying the biomaterials onto the remaining pulp tissue and ultimately restoring the tooth. Procedural decisions for the amount of pulp tissue removal or retention depend on the diagnostic of pulp vitality, the overall treatment plan, the patient's general health status, and pulp inflammation reassessment during operation. This statement represents the consensus of an expert committee convened by the Society of Cariology and Endodontics, Chinese Stomatological Association. It addresses the current evidence to support the application of pulpotomy as a potential alternative to root canal treatment (RCT) on mature permanent teeth with pulpitis from a biological basis, the development of capping biomaterial, and the diagnostic considerations to evidence-based medicine. This expert statement intends to provide a clinical protocol of pulpotomy, which facilitates practitioners in choosing the optimal procedure and increasing their confidence in this rapidly evolving field.
Humans ; Calcium Compounds/therapeutic use* ; Consensus ; Dental Pulp ; Dentition, Permanent ; Oxides/therapeutic use* ; Pulpitis/therapy* ; Pulpotomy/standards*

Objective:To explore the mechanisms of " TongduAnshen " couplet medicines Notopterygii Rhizoma et Radix-Ziziphi Spinosae Semen(TDAS)on chronic unpredictable mild stress(CUMS)model rats.Methods:The rat model of depression were prepared using isolated and CUMS method.The depression-like behavior was detected by sucrose preference test(SPT),the open field test(OFT)and forced swimming test(FST).The pathological changes of hippocampal neurons were observed by HE and Nissl staining.The levels of 5-hydroxytryptamine(5-HT),interleukin 18(IL-18)and interleukin 1 β(IL-1β)were detected by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA).The protein expression of NLRP3,ASC,caspase-1 in hippocampus were determined by Western blot.Results:The depression-like behavior of rats in the TDAS-L,TDAS-M and TDAS-H groups was significantly improved(P＜0.05 orP＜0.01);HE and Nissl staining showed that the neurons were arranged neatly,the number of shrunken cells were reduced,the extent of the injury was reduced;the contents of 5-HT in hippocampus of rats increased(P＜0.05 or P＜0.01),the contents of IL-18 and IL-1β in serum decreased(P＜0.01);the expressions of NLRP3,ASC and caspase-1 in hippocampus were decreased(P＜0.01).Conclusion:TDAS can improve depression-like behavior in chronic unpredictable mild stress rats,and its mechanism may be increase the contents of 5-HT,inhibit the expression of NLRP3 signaling pathway,and reduce the content of inflammatory factors.

Objective:To introduce an innovative concept teaching method called the core case analysis (CCA), to evaluate its application in teaching, and to provide a theoretical basis and practical reference for improving teaching effectiveness and cultivating practical talents.Methods:This paper elaborated the application strategies of CCA in teaching health service management courses. All the students of two undergraduate classes who studied "health service management" and enrolled in 2021 and 2020 at a medical university were selected as the research objects. The students were divided into experimental group and control group according to whether they received the CCA teaching method. A statistical analysis was performed on the scores of single-choice questions designed for concept definition and term explanation questions in the final exam. SPSS 23.0 software was used for t test. A questionnaire survey was conducted in the experimental group to comprehensively evaluate the effectiveness of teaching with the CCA method. Results:The score of the experimental group was significantly higher than that of the control group [(14.00±1.41) vs. (12.05±2.15), P=0.002]. The questionnaire showed that the teaching effectiveness of the CCA method and the students' acceptance of the method were relatively high. Conclusions:Compared with the traditional concept teaching method, the CCA method has advantages and is worthy of promotion and application in related teaching fields. Moreover, several key points of this method in teaching practice are put forward: emphasizing the combined use of multiple teaching methods, cultivating a professional teaching team, and optimizing the concept assessment and evaluation system.

AIM:To investigate the antiviral effica-cy and mechanism of Qingre Xiaoyanning(QRXYN)in vivo,and provide experimental basis for their prevention and treatment of influenza A virus.METHODS:We constructed a mouse model infect-ed with influenza A H3N2 virus.To evaluate the therapeutic effect of QRXYN on influenza A virus,we measured the body weight changes,pathologi-cal changes in lung tissue,hemagglutination titer,and viral load in mouse.To evaluate the possible mechanism of QRXYN's anti influenza A virus infec-tion,we used the ELISA to measure the levels of TNF-α,IL-1β,IL-4,IFN-γ,and vascular cell adhesion molecule-1(VCAM-1)in mouse bronchoalveolar Ia-vage fluid;used flow cytometry to assess the pro-portions of macrophages(F4/80),helper T lympho-cytes(CD4+T lymphocytes),and natural killer(NK)cells in lung tissue;and used Western blotting to detect the expression of Toll-like receptor 4(TLR4),myeloid differentiation factor 88(MYD88),inhibitor of kappa B kinase-β(IKK-β),NF-kappa-B inhibitor al-pha(IκBα),and phospho-IKB alpha(p-IκBα)in lung tissue.RESULTS:Compared to the model group,both Oseltamivir and QRXYN can alleviate the se-verity of lung tissue lesions in mice,decrease the blood coagulation titer and viral load of mouse lung tissue(P＜0.01),lower the levels of TNF-α,IL-4,and VCAM-1 in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid(P＜0.05,P＜0.01),reduce the proportion of macro-phages(P＜0.05,P＜0.01),and increase the propor-tion of CD4+T lymphocytes and NK cells(P＜0.05,P＜0.01).Additionally,oseltamivir can reduce the ex-pression of MYD88 protein in mouse lungs(P＜0.05),while QRXYN can decrease the expression of IKK-β and P-IκBα proteins in mouse lungs(P＜0.05).CONCLUSION:QRXYN have good in vivo antiviral ef-fects against the influenza A virus,and their mecha-nism may be related to the regulation of the immu-nologic function and NF-κB signal pathway.

Objective:To explore the mechanisms of " TongduAnshen " couplet medicines Notopterygii Rhizoma et Radix-Ziziphi Spinosae Semen(TDAS)on chronic unpredictable mild stress(CUMS)model rats.Methods:The rat model of depression were prepared using isolated and CUMS method.The depression-like behavior was detected by sucrose preference test(SPT),the open field test(OFT)and forced swimming test(FST).The pathological changes of hippocampal neurons were observed by HE and Nissl staining.The levels of 5-hydroxytryptamine(5-HT),interleukin 18(IL-18)and interleukin 1 β(IL-1β)were detected by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA).The protein expression of NLRP3,ASC,caspase-1 in hippocampus were determined by Western blot.Results:The depression-like behavior of rats in the TDAS-L,TDAS-M and TDAS-H groups was significantly improved(P＜0.05 orP＜0.01);HE and Nissl staining showed that the neurons were arranged neatly,the number of shrunken cells were reduced,the extent of the injury was reduced;the contents of 5-HT in hippocampus of rats increased(P＜0.05 or P＜0.01),the contents of IL-18 and IL-1β in serum decreased(P＜0.01);the expressions of NLRP3,ASC and caspase-1 in hippocampus were decreased(P＜0.01).Conclusion:TDAS can improve depression-like behavior in chronic unpredictable mild stress rats,and its mechanism may be increase the contents of 5-HT,inhibit the expression of NLRP3 signaling pathway,and reduce the content of inflammatory factors.

AIM:To investigate the antiviral effica-cy and mechanism of Qingre Xiaoyanning(QRXYN)in vivo,and provide experimental basis for their prevention and treatment of influenza A virus.METHODS:We constructed a mouse model infect-ed with influenza A H3N2 virus.To evaluate the therapeutic effect of QRXYN on influenza A virus,we measured the body weight changes,pathologi-cal changes in lung tissue,hemagglutination titer,and viral load in mouse.To evaluate the possible mechanism of QRXYN's anti influenza A virus infec-tion,we used the ELISA to measure the levels of TNF-α,IL-1β,IL-4,IFN-γ,and vascular cell adhesion molecule-1(VCAM-1)in mouse bronchoalveolar Ia-vage fluid;used flow cytometry to assess the pro-portions of macrophages(F4/80),helper T lympho-cytes(CD4+T lymphocytes),and natural killer(NK)cells in lung tissue;and used Western blotting to detect the expression of Toll-like receptor 4(TLR4),myeloid differentiation factor 88(MYD88),inhibitor of kappa B kinase-β(IKK-β),NF-kappa-B inhibitor al-pha(IκBα),and phospho-IKB alpha(p-IκBα)in lung tissue.RESULTS:Compared to the model group,both Oseltamivir and QRXYN can alleviate the se-verity of lung tissue lesions in mice,decrease the blood coagulation titer and viral load of mouse lung tissue(P＜0.01),lower the levels of TNF-α,IL-4,and VCAM-1 in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid(P＜0.05,P＜0.01),reduce the proportion of macro-phages(P＜0.05,P＜0.01),and increase the propor-tion of CD4+T lymphocytes and NK cells(P＜0.05,P＜0.01).Additionally,oseltamivir can reduce the ex-pression of MYD88 protein in mouse lungs(P＜0.05),while QRXYN can decrease the expression of IKK-β and P-IκBα proteins in mouse lungs(P＜0.05).CONCLUSION:QRXYN have good in vivo antiviral ef-fects against the influenza A virus,and their mecha-nism may be related to the regulation of the immu-nologic function and NF-κB signal pathway.

Objective:To introduce an innovative concept teaching method called the core case analysis (CCA), to evaluate its application in teaching, and to provide a theoretical basis and practical reference for improving teaching effectiveness and cultivating practical talents.Methods:This paper elaborated the application strategies of CCA in teaching health service management courses. All the students of two undergraduate classes who studied "health service management" and enrolled in 2021 and 2020 at a medical university were selected as the research objects. The students were divided into experimental group and control group according to whether they received the CCA teaching method. A statistical analysis was performed on the scores of single-choice questions designed for concept definition and term explanation questions in the final exam. SPSS 23.0 software was used for t test. A questionnaire survey was conducted in the experimental group to comprehensively evaluate the effectiveness of teaching with the CCA method. Results:The score of the experimental group was significantly higher than that of the control group [(14.00±1.41) vs. (12.05±2.15), P=0.002]. The questionnaire showed that the teaching effectiveness of the CCA method and the students' acceptance of the method were relatively high. Conclusions:Compared with the traditional concept teaching method, the CCA method has advantages and is worthy of promotion and application in related teaching fields. Moreover, several key points of this method in teaching practice are put forward: emphasizing the combined use of multiple teaching methods, cultivating a professional teaching team, and optimizing the concept assessment and evaluation system.

Objective:To evaluate the oncologic outcomes of different laparoscopic radical hysterectomy.Methods:From January 2011 to December 2014, the laparoscopic operation cases of cervical cancer at stage Ⅰb1, Ⅰb2, Ⅱa1 and Ⅱa2, including the histologic subtypes of squamous-cell carcinoma, adenocarcinoma and adenosquamous carcinoma, were collected in five clinical centers. The data were divided into two groups according to the surgical procedures, that is, modified laparoscopic-vaginal radical hysterectomy (mLVRH) and total laparoscopic radical hysterectomy (TLRH). The overall survival rate (OS), disease-free survival rate (DFS) at 5 years were retrospectively analyzed in this study.Results:There were 674 cases in total, including 377 cases of mLVRH, 297 cases of TLRH. (1) The OS at 5 years: the mLVRH was 96.1% and the TLRH was 92.0%, and the mLVRH was higher than that of TLRH （ P=0.010）. Stratify analysis， including stage of disease （Ⅰb1 and Ⅱa1）， histologic subtypes （squamous-cell carcinoma, adenocarcinoma）， lymph node metastasis， revealed that, ① Stage of disease: in stage Ⅰb1, the OS at five years of mLVRH was higher than that in TLRH group （98.6% vs 93.6%, P=0.012）. In stage Ⅱa1, there was significant difference between the two groups, the OS at five years of mLVRH and TLRH were 93.6% and 77.6% （ P=0.007）. ② Histologic subtypes: for the OS at five years of squamous-cell carcinoma, mLVRH and TLRH were 96.1% and 92.3%, and there was significant difference （ P=0.046）； for adenocarcinoma, the OS at five years were 91.0% and 88.6%， and there was no difference between two groups （ P=0.230）. ③ Lymph node metastasis： the mLVRH and TLRH with lymph node metastasis, the OS at five years were 98.6% and 96.4%; the mLVRH and TLRH without lymph node metastasis, the OS at five years were 89.3% and 80.8%. There were no significant differences between the two groups,respectively ( P=0.156， P=0.093）. (2) The DFS at 5 years: there was no significant difference between mLVRH and TLRH (94.1% vs 90.9%, P=0.220). Stratify analysis for stage of disease, the mLVRH group was higher than that in the TLRH group in stage Ⅰb1 (97.0% vs 92.8%, P=0.039). However, for stage Ⅱa1, there was no significant difference between mLVRH and TLRH group （88.2% vs 75.8%, P=0.074）. Conclusions:The results of this retrospective study indicated that different laparoscopy surgical procedures had diverse oncologic outcomes. The OS at 5 years of the mLVRH is superior to the TLRH. The DFS at 5 years in Ⅰb1 stage, the mLVRH is higher than the TLRH. Therefore, the modified laparoscopy is still an alternative surgery for early cervical cancer patients when following the principle of no-tumor-exposure.

Objective:To evaluate the nutritional status of elderly inpatients with heart failure, and to analyze risk factors for malnutrition.Methods:A total of 221 patients with heart failure in our hospital from January 2018 to March 2019 were enrolled in the study.The demographic characteristics and medical record data were collected.All patients received Nutritional Risk Screening 2002(NRS-2002)and a questionnaire survey relating to heart failure.We investigated the effects of risk factors on the detection rate of malnutrition by using Mann-Whitney U test or Chi-square test, and the independent risk factors for malnutrition were analyzed by multivariate Logistic regression analysis.Results:The detection rate of nutritional risk was 45.2% in 221 patients.The detection rate of nutritional risk increased along with lower degree of education and worse cardiac function( P<0.05). The detection rate of nutritional risk was higher in patients with peripheral vascular disease and osteoporosis than in patients without them( P<0.05), and in patients with the increased numbers of complication and drugs( P<0.05). Patients with nutritional risk had a higher degree of frailty and a worse quality of activities of daily living( P<0.05). Multivariate Logistic regression analysis indicated that great age, ejection fraction, B-type natriuretic peptide(BNP), NYHA classification, numbers of drugs and diseases, frailty, low quality of life were independent risk factors for nutritional risk, and Digoxin was the independent protective factor for nutritional risk( P<0.05). Conclusions:The great age, severity of heart failure, numbers of drugs and diseases, frailty, low quality of daily life may be the independent risk factors for nutritional risk in elderly patients with heart failure, and oral Digoxin may be the independent protective factor for nutritional risk.

Objective:To evaluate the associations of depression and anxiety statues with serum inflammatory biomarkers in elderly patients with chronic heart failure.Methods:From January 2018 to January 2020, 225 elderly patients with chronic heart failure were enrolled from our hospital. Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS) and Zung Self-Rating Anxiety Scale (SAS) were performed in all patients to determine if the patients were with depression and anxiety statues and evaluate the degrees of depression and anxiety. The differences in demographic and clinical data, geriatric comprehensive assessment indicators, and serum inflammatory markers were compared among patients in the control group (without depression and anxiety), depression group, anxiety group, and depression and anxiety group (with both depression and anxiety). Spearman correlation test was used to analyze the correlation between the levels of serum inflammatory markers and the degrees of depression and anxiety in patients with depression and anxiety. Binary Logistic regression analysis was used to determine the independent influencing factors for depression and anxiety.Results:(1) As compared with those in the control group, patients in the depression group, anxiety group, and depression and anxiety group had significantly increased scores of Chinese version of Tilburg Frailty Indicator, statistically decreased Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) scores, significantly increased Minnesota Living with Heart Failure Questionnaire (MLWHFQ) scores, increased proportions of patients with 2-4 kinds of diseases and those taking 2-4 kinds of drugs, and decreased Basic Activity of Daily Living (BADL) scores ( P<0.05); as compared with those in the depression group and the anxiety group, the changes of the above indicators in the depression and anxiety group were more obvious with significant differences ( P<0.05). As compared with those in the control group, patients in the depression group, anxiety group, and depression and anxiety group had significantly increased serum interleukin (IL)-6 and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels, patients in the anxiety group and depression and anxiety group had statistically elevated serum homocysteine (Hcy) level, and patients in the depression group and depression and anxiety group had significantly increased serum tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) level ( P<0.05); the serum levels of CRP, Hcy and TNF-α in patients from the depression and anxiety group were significantly higher than those in depression group ( P<0.05); the levels of IL-6, CRP, Hcy and TNF-α in the depression and anxiety group were significantly higher than those in the anxiety group ( P<0.05). As compared with that in the control group, the proportion of patients with nutritional risk in the depression and anxiety group was statistically higher ( P<0.05). (2) The serum levels of IL-6, CRP and TNF-α in depression patients were positively correlated with the depression degrees ( P<0.05); the serum levels of IL-6, CRP and Hcy in anxiety patients were positively correlated with the anxiety degrees ( P<0.05). (3) Results of binary Logistic regression analysis showed that IL-6 was an independent risk factor for depression in elderly patients with chronic heart failure ( OR=1.093, 95%CI: 1.049-1.139, P=0.000); Hcy was an independent risk factor for anxiety in elderly patients with chronic heart failure ( OR=1.114, 95%CI: 1.030-1.205, P=0.007); CRP, TNF-α, IL-6 and Hcy were independent risk factors for depression and anxiety in elderly patients with chronic heart failure ( P<0.05). Conclusion:The depression and anxiety degrees and expressions of inflammatory markers in elderly patients with chronic heart failure have synergistic effects.