To explore the advantages of traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） and integrative TCM-Western medicine approaches in the treatment of diabetic microvascular complications （DMC）， refine key pathophysiological insights and treatment principles， and promote academic innovation and strategic research planning in the prevention and treatment of DMC. The 38th session of the Expert Salon on Diseases Responding Specifically to Traditional Chinese Medicine， hosted by the China Association of Chinese Medicine， was held in Beijing， 2024. Experts in TCM， Western medicine， and interdisciplinary fields convened to conduct a systematic discussion on the pathogenesis， diagnostic and treatment challenges， and mechanism research related to DMC， ultimately forming a consensus on key directions. Four major research recommendations were proposed. The first is addressing clinical bottlenecks in the prevention and control of DMC by optimizing TCM-based evidence evaluation systems. The second is refining TCM core pathogenesis across DMC stages and establishing corresponding "disease-pattern-time" framework. The third is innovating mechanism research strategies to facilitate a shift from holistic regulation to targeted intervention in TCM. The fourth is advancing interdisciplinary collaboration to enhance the role of TCM in new drug development， research prioritization， and guideline formulation. TCM and integrative approaches offer distinct advantages in managing DMC. With a focus on the diseases responding specifically to TCM， strengthening evidence-based support and mechanism interpretation and promoting the integration of clinical care and research innovation will provide strong momentum for the modernization of TCM and the advancement of national health strategies.

Objective: This prospective study evaluated the feasibility of chemical exchange saturation transfer (CEST) MRI for assessing disease activity in thyroid-associated ophthalmopathy (TAO). Materials and Methods: A total of 88 patients with active TAO, 76 with inactive TAO, and 30 healthy controls were enrolled. CEST MRI-derived magnetization transfer ratio (MTR) and MTR asymmetry (MTRasym) at 1 ppm, 2 ppm, and 3.5 ppm were calculated. Clinical data, MTR, and MTRasym values for the extraocular muscles (one representative muscle per eye, yielding two measurements per participant) were compared among the groups. Spearman’s correlation was used to examine associations between imaging parameters and the clinical activity score (CAS) in patients with TAO. Logistic regression analysis was used to identify independent associations between imaging parameters and disease activity in patients with TAO (active vs. inactive). Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was conducted to evaluate the diagnostic performance for discriminating active from inactive TAO. Results: Patients with active TAO showed lower MTR values (P < 0.001) and higher MTRasym (1 ppm), MTRasym (2 ppm), and MTRasym (3.5 ppm) (all P < 0.001) compared with those with inactive TAO. MTR was negatively correlated with CAS (r = -0.402; P < 0.001), while MTRasym (1 ppm), MTRasym (2 ppm), and MTRasym (3.5 ppm) were positively correlated with CAS (r = 0.369, 0.350, and 0.349, respectively;all P < 0.001). MTR and MTRasym (1 ppm) were independently associated with TAO activity. The areas under the ROC curve (AUCs) for MTR and MTRasym (1 ppm) in discriminating active from inactive TAO were 0.772 and 0.730, respectively. Combining MTR with MTRasym (1 ppm) significantly improved diagnostic performance compared with either parameter alone, achieving an AUC of 0.805 (P = 0.029 and 0.001). Conclusion MTR and MTRasym (1 ppm) were independently associated with TAO activity. Their combination further enhanced diagnostic performance in distinguishing active from inactive TAO, suggesting their potential as quantitative imaging biomarkers to guide treatment in patients with TAO.

Objective Jejunal interposition is an important option for restoring gastrointestinal continuity in patients with complex esophageal cancer in whom the stomach is unavailable for reconstruction due to previous gastrectomy, tumor involvement, failed gastric conduit, or other constraints. Although the jejunum offers a caliber similar to the esophagus, a rich blood supply, and preserved peristaltic function, anatomical variations in mesenteric length and vascular arcades render long-segment and high-level reconstruction susceptible to excessive tension, mesenteric torsion, venous congestion, and inadequate distal perfusion. This consensus aims to provide standardized recommendations for the application of jejunal interposition in this specific patient population. Methods This consensus was developed in accordance with the WHO Handbook for Guideline Development and Chinese national guideline development standards, with reference to the Appraisal of Guidelines for Research & Evaluation Ⅱ(AGREE Ⅱ), Reporting Items for Practice Guidelines in Healthcare (RIGHT), and Scientific, Transparent and Applicable Rankings (STAR) checklists. The project was registered on the international practice guidelines registry platform (PREPARE-2026CN1384). The working group systematically searched Chinese and English evidence addressing 12 clinical questions. Evidence was graded using the Oxford Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine (OCEBM) 2009 system, with structured appraisal of risk of bias, inconsistency, indirectness, and imprecision. Recommendations were formulated through two rounds of Delphi surveys and a face-to-face consensus meeting, with an agreement threshold of ≥75%. Results The consensus generated 12 recommendations covering indications, selection between jejunum and colon, preoperative assessment, surgical approach and reconstruction route, pedicled jejunal interposition (PJI), supercharged pedicled jejunal interposition (SPJ), indocyanine green (ICG) perfusion assessment, perioperative nutrition, management of anastomotic leakage, long-term follow-up, and special treatment scenarios. Given that the available direct evidence is predominantly derived from single-center retrospective cohorts and case series, recommendations extrapolated from general esophagectomy or other gastrointestinal surgical evidence are deliberately phrased with caution. Conclusion Jejunal interposition is a safe and effective approach for digestive tract reconstruction in patients with complex esophageal cancer in whom the stomach is unavailable. This consensus emphasizes that clinical decision-making should be individualized based on the patient's prior treatment history, reconstruction height, vascular anatomy, technical availability, and institutional experience in the Chinese context.

In the process of maintaining the steady state of bone tissue, the transcription network and signal pathway of the body play a vital role. These complex regulatory mechanisms need precise coordination to ensure the balance between bone formation and bone absorption. Once this balance is broken, it may lead to pathological changes of bone and cartilage, and then lead to various bone diseases. Therefore, it is of great significance to understand these regulatory mechanisms for the prevention and treatment of bone diseases. In recent years, with the deepening of research, more and more lncRNA has been found to be closely related to bone health. Among them, nuclear paraspeckle assembly transcript 1 (NEAT1), as an extremely abundant RNA molecule in mammalian nuclei, has attracted extensive attention. NEAT1 is mainly transcribed from a specific site in human chromosome 11 by RNA polymerase II (RNaseP), which can form two different subtypes NEAT1_1 and NEAT1_2. These two subtypes are different in intracellular distribution and function, but they participate in many biological processes together. Studies have shown that NEAT1 plays a specific role in the process of cell growth and stress response. For example, it can regulate the development of osteoblasts (OB), osteoclasts (OC) and chondrocytes by balancing the differentiation of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs), thus maintaining the steady state of bone metabolism. This discovery reveals the important role of NEAT1 in bone development and remodeling. In addition, NEAT1 is closely related to a variety of bone diseases. In patients with bone diseases such as osteoporosis (OP), osteoarthritis (OA) and osteosarcoma (OS), the expression level of NEAT1 is different. These differential expressions may be closely related to the pathogenesis and progression of bone diseases. By regulating the level of NEAT1, it can affect a variety of signal transduction pathways, and then affect the development of bone diseases. For example, some studies show that by regulating the expression level of NEAT1, the activity of osteoclasts can be inhibited, and the proliferation and differentiation of osteoblasts can be promoted, thus improving the symptoms of osteoporosis. It is worth noting that NEAT1 can also be used as a key sensor for the prevention and treatment of bone diseases. When exercising or receiving some natural products, the expression level of NEAT1 will change, thus reflecting the response of bones to external stimuli. This feature makes NEAT1 an important target for studying the prevention and treatment strategies of bone diseases. However, although the role of NEAT1 in bone biology and bone diseases has been initially recognized, its specific mechanism and regulatory relationship are still controversial. For example, the expression level, mode of action and interaction with other molecules of NEAT1 in different bone diseases still need further in-depth study. This paper reviews the role of NEAT1 in maintaining bone and cartilage metabolism, and discusses its expression and function in various bone diseases. By combing the existing research results and controversial points, this paper aims to provide new perspectives and ideas for the prevention and treatment of bone diseases, and provide useful reference and enlightenment for future research.

Background Asthma poses a serious threat to children's growth, development, and mental health, thus there has been an increasing focus on the control of asthma morbidity in children and the assessment of its risk factors. A growing body of research has found that exposure to ambient air pollutants an significatly increase the risk of childhood asthma. Objective To understand the changes of ambient air pollutant concentrations in Nanjing and asthma outpatient visits to Nanjing Children's Hospital, and to quantitatively analyze the effects of exposure to different ambient air pollutants on children's asthma outpatient visits. Methods Daily data of ambient air pollutants fine particulate matter (PM_2.5), inhalable particle (PM₁₀), sulfur dioxide (SO₂), nitrogen dioxide (NO₂), carbon monoxide (CO), ozone (O₃), meteorological factors (air temperature & relative humidity), and outpatient visits due to asthma in the hospital from January 1, 2019 to December 31, 2023 were collected, and a generalized additive model based on quasi poisson distributions was used to quantitatively analyze the short-term effects of ambient air pollutant exposure on outpatient visits due to asthma in the hospital. Results The annual average concentrations of PM_2.5, PM₁₀, SO₂, and NO₂ in Nanjing from 2019 to 2023 did not exceed the national limits. For single-day lagged effects, the single-pollutant model showed that the effects of PM_2.5, PM₁₀, NO₂, and CO on children's asthma outpatient visits were greatest for every 10 units increase at lag0, with excess risk (ER) of 1.39% (95%CI: 0.65%, 2.14%), 1.46% (95%CI: 0.97%, 1.95%), 5.46% (95%CI: 4.36%, 6.57%), and 0.18% (95%CI: 0.11%, 0.26%), respectively, and SO₂ reached the maximum effect at lag1, with an ER of 23.15% (95%CI: 13.57%, 33.53%) for each 10 units increase in concentration. Different pollutants reached their maximum cumulative lag effects at different time. The PM₁₀, PM_2.5, SO₂, NO₂, and CO showed the largest cumulative lag effects at lag01, lag01, lag02, lag02, and lag03, respectively, with ERs of 1.35% (95%CI: 0.77%, 1.92%), 0.96% (95%CI: 0.10%, 1.83%), 28.50% (95%CI: 15.49%, 42.98%), 6.92% (95%CI: 5.53%, 8.33%), and 0.31% (95%CI: 0.20%, 0.42%), respectively. The influences of PM_2.5 and PM₁₀ on outpatient visits due to asthma in the hospital became more pronounced with advancing age, while the associations with NO₂, SO₂, and CO were weakened as children grew older. Conclusion Ambient air pollutants (PM_2.5, PM₁₀, SO₂, NO₂, CO) can increase childhood asthma visits, and different pollutants have varied effects on the number of asthmatic children's visits at different ages.

Objective To evaluate the changes in postoperative plasma β-endorphin(β-EP)levels in patients who had received perioperative electroacupuncture(EA)treatment in 10 randomized controlled trials(RCTs)and examine the impact of EA on postoperative pain.Methods This meta-analysis evaluated the changes in plasma β-EP levels and visual analog scale(VAS)12,24 and 48 hours after surgery in patients receiving perioperative EA.It also assessed the changes in plasma serotonin(5-hydroxytryptamine,5-HT)and prostaglandin E2(PGE2)levels at 24 hours postsurgery.A comprehensive search was conducted in the China National Knowledge Infrastructure(CNKI),Wanfang,Chongqing VIP database,Chinese Biomedical Database(CBM),Web of Science,and PubMed databases.RCTs on perioperative EA and β-EP published from the inception of the websites up to July 25,2023,were retrieved.Effect size aggregation,literature quality assessment,and bias analysis were performed using RevMan 5.3 software,and sensitivity analysis was conducted via R 4.3.1.Results A total of 10 RCTs involving 706 patients were included.EA in conjunction with conventional anesthesia significantly increased plasma β-EP levels at 12 hours postsurgery[standard mean difference(SMD)=2.79,95%CI(1.85,3.72),Z=5.81,P＜0.00001],24hours postsurgery[SMD=1.87,95%CI(0.9,2.83),Z=3.79,P=0.0001],and 48 hours postsurgery[SMD=2.02,95%CI(1.49,2.54),Z=7.50,P＜0.00001].EA reduced plasma PGE2 levels at 24 hours postsurgery and plasma 5-HT levels at 24 hours postsurgery,and the VAS at 12,24 and 48 hours after surgery also decreased.Conclusion These findings suggest that perioperative EA markedly elevates plasma β-EP levels,reduces pain-inducing factors in plasma,and effectively alleviates acute postoperative pain.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the spatiotemporal patterns and socioeconomic factors influencing the incidence of tuberculosis (TB) in the Guangdong Province between 2010 and 2019. METHOD: Spatial and temporal variations in TB incidence were mapped using heat maps and hierarchical clustering. Socioenvironmental influencing factors were evaluated using a Bayesian spatiotemporal conditional autoregressive (ST-CAR) model. RESULTS: Annual incidence of TB in Guangdong decreased from 91.85/100,000 in 2010 to 53.06/100,000 in 2019. Spatial hotspots were found in northeastern Guangdong, particularly in Heyuan, Shanwei, and Shantou, while Shenzhen, Dongguan, and Foshan had the lowest rates in the Pearl River Delta. The ST-CAR model showed that the TB risk was lower with higher per capita Gross Domestic Product (GDP) [Relative Risk ( RR), 0.91; 95% Confidence Interval ( CI): 0.86-0.98], more the ratio of licensed physicians and physician ( RR, 0.94; 95% CI: 0.90-0.98), and higher per capita public expenditure ( RR, 0.94; 95% CI: 0.90-0.97), with a marginal effect of population density ( RR, 0.86; 95% CI: 0.86-1.00). CONCLUSION The incidence of TB in Guangdong varies spatially and temporally. Areas with poor economic conditions and insufficient healthcare resources are at an increased risk of TB infection. Strategies focusing on equitable health resource distribution and economic development are the key to TB control.
Humans ; China/epidemiology* ; Incidence ; Bayes Theorem ; Spatio-Temporal Analysis ; Tuberculosis/epidemiology* ; Socioeconomic Factors

AIM To study the chemical constituents from salt-processed Litchi Semen and their antioxidant activities.METHODS The 85％ethanol extract from salt-processed Litchi Semen was isolated and purified by silica gel,Sephadex LH-20,MCI,ODS and semi-preparative HPLC,then the structures of obtained compounds were identified by physicochemical properties and spectral data.DPPH and ABTS+free radical scavenging method were used to evaluate their antioxidant activities.RESULTS Fifteen compounds were isolated and identified as dehydrocostuslactone(1),ananosmoside A(2),funingensin A(3),(2S)-pinocembrin-7-O-(6-O-α-L-rhamnopyranosyl-β-D-glucopyranoside)(4),liquiritienin(5),quercetin(6),rutin(7),isorhamnetin-3-O-β-rutinoside(8),procyanidin A2(9),procyanidin A1(10),ethyl protocatechuate(11),5-hydroxymethylfurfural(12),di(2-ethyl-hexyl)phthalate(13),nicotinamide(14),(10E,15Z)-9,12,13-trihydroxyoctadeca-10,15-dienoic acid(15).Compounds 6-7,9-10 exhibited scavenging activities against DPPH radicals with IC50 values of(12.929±1.232),(14.104±0.946),(10.417±1.736),(6.944±0.030)μmol/L,respectively.Compounds 6-10 exhibited scavenging activities against ABTS+radicals with IC50 values of(21.952±0.577),(25.683±0.625),(22.970±1.336),(20.210±1.435),(18.725±0.324)μmol/L,respectively.CONCLUSION Compounds 1,5,14-15 are isolated from Litchi genus for the first time.Compounds 6-7,9-10 have strong in vitro antioxidant activities.

Objective To compare the capture performance differences between TruSeq? Exome and NimbleGen SeqCap EZ Human Exome kits in children with cerebral palsy(CP),and to provide a technical selection basis for clinical genetic research and diagnosis.Methods Peripheral blood samples from 48 sporadic CP patients were included.Exome libraries were constructed using TruSeq(DNA probes)and NimbleGen(RNA probes),followed by sequencing on the Illumina HiSeq 2000 platform.Bioinformatics analysis was applied to evaluate mapping rate,target region coverage,variant concordance,and clinical relevance based on a CP-related gene set(2 293 genes).The statistical analysis was performed using a paired t-test with a significance threshold of α=0.05.Results The results showed no significant differences between NimbleGen and TruSeq exome capture kits in basic data quality(alignment rate,insert size)and GC content.However,they exhibited complementary characteristics in key performance metrics:NimbleGen demonstrated superior performance in specific depth coverage(1×coverage rate,P=1.84×10-5;20×coverage rate,P=1.49×10-20).TruSeq,on the other hand,showed higher sensitivity in Indel detection(TruSeq vs.NimbleGen:11 371±1 689 vs.11 274±1 670,P=3.24×10-7)and rare variant capture(TruSeq vs.NimbleGen:3 164±766 vs.3 072±774,P=1.20×10-4),successfully identifying all 11 pathogenic variants(including 2 missed by NimbleGen).Conclusion TruSeq,with its superior variant detection rate,is more suitable for clinical diagnostic applications,while NimbleGen's coverage stability may be advantageous for research-oriented projects.

This study explored the current status,hotspots,and research trends in tick-borne encephalitis(TBE)worldwide.The bibliometric analysis and knowledge mapping software,VOSviewer,was used to conduct a comprehensive study of the literature in the field of TBE in the Web of Science database and the CNKI database,and to construct a research framework of the TBE field in order to demonstrate the association between the main keywords,research countries,research institutions and published journals in this field.A total of 2 046 English-language and 582 Chinese-language publications were included in this study,with an increasing trend of publication year by year.Keyword co-occurrence analysis showed that TBE and its viruses were the focus of research,along with infection,epidemiology,pathogen classification,prevalence,transmission,and clinical symptoms.The United States,Germany,and other countries were at the top of the list of publications and citations.Institutions such as the Russian Academy of Sciences and Medical University of Vienna were prominent contributors to TBE research.Journals represented by Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases were in the lead in terms of publications and citations and were important publications for research in this field.TBE research showed wide and vigorous trends worldwide.The study displayed the current status of research and the evolution of hot trends in this field,which provided us with strong support for examining TBE as a public health problem from a broader perspective and was also of great significance for promoting future in-depth research and formulating precise prevention and control strategies.