OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the dynamic changes of glucocorticoid (GC) dose and the feasibility of GC discontinuation in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients under the background of Chinese medicine (CM). METHODS: This multicenter retrospective cohort study included 1,196 RA patients enrolled in the China Rheumatoid Arthritis Registry of Patients with Chinese Medicine (CERTAIN) from September 1, 2019 to December 4, 2023, who initiated GC therapy. Participants were divided into the Western medicine (WM) and integrative medicine (IM, combination of CM and WM) groups based on medication regimen. Follow-up was performed at least every 3 months to assess dynamic changes in GC dose. Changes in GC dose were analyzed by generalized estimator equation, the probability of GC discontinuation was assessed using Kaplan-Meier curve, and predictors of GC discontinuation were analyzed by Cox regression. Patients with <12 months of follow-up were excluded for the sensitivity analysis. RESULTS: Among 1,196 patients (85.4% female; median age 56.4 years), 880 (73.6%) received IM. Over a median 12-month follow-up, 34.3% (410 cases) discontinued GC, with significantly higher rates in the IM group (40.8% vs. 16.1% in WM; P<0.05). GC dose declined progressively, with IM patients demonstrating faster reductions (median 3.75 mg vs. 5.00 mg in WM at 12 months; P<0.05). Multivariate Cox analysis identified age <60 years [P<0.001, hazard ratios (HR)=2.142, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.523-3.012], IM therapy (P=0.001, HR=2.175, 95% CI: 1.369-3.456), baseline GC dose ⩽7.5 mg (P=0.003, HR=1.637, 95% CI: 1.177-2.275), and absence of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs use (P=0.001, HR=2.546, 95% CI: 1.432-4.527) as significant predictors of GC discontinuation. Sensitivity analysis (545 cases) confirmed these findings. CONCLUSIONS RA patients receiving CM face difficulties in following guideline-recommended GC discontinuation protocols. IM can promote GC discontinuation and is a promising strategy to reduce GC dependency in RA management. (Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov, No. NCT05219214).
Adult ; Aged ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Arthritis, Rheumatoid/drug therapy* ; Glucocorticoids/therapeutic use* ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Retrospective Studies

Objective To observe the early changes of vault after implantation of posterior chamber phakic intraocular lens implantable collamer lens(ICL),and investigate the effect of different implantation axes on the early vault changes.Methods A prospective,parallel cohort study was performed,enrolling a total of 124 eyes of who underwent ICL(V4c)implantation in the refractive clinic.The changes of vault were observed by scheimpflug tomography(Pentacam)and anterior segment optical coherence tomography(CASIA2)at 1 day,1 week and 1 month after surgery.Results The ICL vault declined significantly by approximately(108.2±82.4)μm 1 week after surgery with the proportion of 16.6%±12.1%compared with the values 1 day after surgery(P<0.001),and then remained stable.Within 1 month after surgery,excluding the difference in vault baseline at 1 day after surgery,the proportion of vault decline in the middle vault group(250-749 μm)and the high vault group(≥750 μm)was similar,and there was no statistically significant difference.We analyzed the relationship between ICL axial directions and vault and found that the vault decline of the horizontal ICL group stabilized quickly at 1 week after surgery,and the vault decline of the vertical ICL group was more significant within 1 month after surgery(P<0.05).Conclusion The vault of the ICL shows a downward trend in the early stage after implantation.The middle vault group and ICL in the horizontal position stabilizes faster,and the downward trend of the high vault group or ICL in the vertical position is more obvious.

Objective:To investigate the therapeutic value of visual endoscopic retrograde appendicitis therapy (vERAT) in pediatric patients with acute suppurative appendicitis (ASA).Methods:This was a retrospective cohort study. A total of 55 ASA patients who underwent vERAT at the Pediatric Department of the Tangdu Hospital of Air Force Medical University between November 2023 and January 2025 were selected and divided into groups based on the presence or absence of fecaliths: fecalith group and non-fecalith group. The baseline characteristics, initial treatment success rates, treatment costs, hospital stay duration, procedure time, and recurrence rates between two groups were compared. Mann-Whitney U test and χ2 test were used to evaluate group differences. Results:A total of 55 ASA patients were enrolled, including 38 males and 17 females, with the age of 11.2 (9.2, 13.1) years. Based on the presence of fecaliths, patients were divided into two groups: fecalith group (32 cases) and non-fecalith group (23 cases). No statistically significant differences were observed between the two groups in terms of age, gender, duration of abdominal pain, white blood cell count, neutrophil percentage, diameter of appendix, thickness of appendix clinical symptoms or signs (all P>0.05). The initial treatment success rates were 91% (29/32) in fecalith group and 96% (22/23) in non-fecalith group, with no statistically significant difference ( P=0.632). However, significant differences were noted in stent placement ( χ2=5.85, P=0.026) and procedure time ( Z=4.75, P<0.001). The follow-up duration time was 6.0 (2.0, 12.0) and 7.0 (2.0, 8.5) months for the fecalith and non-fecalith groups, respectively, with no significant difference ( Z=0.05, P=0.962). The recurrence rates were 14% (4/29) in fecalith group and 5% (1/22) in non-fecalith group, with no statistically significant difference ( P=0.375). Conclusions:vERAT can safely and effectively treat pediatric ASA, regardless of the presence or absence of fecaliths. It can provide a new treatment option for ASA.

Objective To observe the early changes of vault after implantation of posterior chamber phakic intraocular lens implantable collamer lens(ICL),and investigate the effect of different implantation axes on the early vault changes.Methods A prospective,parallel cohort study was performed,enrolling a total of 124 eyes of who underwent ICL(V4c)implantation in the refractive clinic.The changes of vault were observed by scheimpflug tomography(Pentacam)and anterior segment optical coherence tomography(CASIA2)at 1 day,1 week and 1 month after surgery.Results The ICL vault declined significantly by approximately(108.2±82.4)μm 1 week after surgery with the proportion of 16.6%±12.1%compared with the values 1 day after surgery(P<0.001),and then remained stable.Within 1 month after surgery,excluding the difference in vault baseline at 1 day after surgery,the proportion of vault decline in the middle vault group(250-749 μm)and the high vault group(≥750 μm)was similar,and there was no statistically significant difference.We analyzed the relationship between ICL axial directions and vault and found that the vault decline of the horizontal ICL group stabilized quickly at 1 week after surgery,and the vault decline of the vertical ICL group was more significant within 1 month after surgery(P<0.05).Conclusion The vault of the ICL shows a downward trend in the early stage after implantation.The middle vault group and ICL in the horizontal position stabilizes faster,and the downward trend of the high vault group or ICL in the vertical position is more obvious.

Objective:To investigate the therapeutic value of visual endoscopic retrograde appendicitis therapy (vERAT) in pediatric patients with acute suppurative appendicitis (ASA).Methods:This was a retrospective cohort study. A total of 55 ASA patients who underwent vERAT at the Pediatric Department of the Tangdu Hospital of Air Force Medical University between November 2023 and January 2025 were selected and divided into groups based on the presence or absence of fecaliths: fecalith group and non-fecalith group. The baseline characteristics, initial treatment success rates, treatment costs, hospital stay duration, procedure time, and recurrence rates between two groups were compared. Mann-Whitney U test and χ2 test were used to evaluate group differences. Results:A total of 55 ASA patients were enrolled, including 38 males and 17 females, with the age of 11.2 (9.2, 13.1) years. Based on the presence of fecaliths, patients were divided into two groups: fecalith group (32 cases) and non-fecalith group (23 cases). No statistically significant differences were observed between the two groups in terms of age, gender, duration of abdominal pain, white blood cell count, neutrophil percentage, diameter of appendix, thickness of appendix clinical symptoms or signs (all P>0.05). The initial treatment success rates were 91% (29/32) in fecalith group and 96% (22/23) in non-fecalith group, with no statistically significant difference ( P=0.632). However, significant differences were noted in stent placement ( χ2=5.85, P=0.026) and procedure time ( Z=4.75, P<0.001). The follow-up duration time was 6.0 (2.0, 12.0) and 7.0 (2.0, 8.5) months for the fecalith and non-fecalith groups, respectively, with no significant difference ( Z=0.05, P=0.962). The recurrence rates were 14% (4/29) in fecalith group and 5% (1/22) in non-fecalith group, with no statistically significant difference ( P=0.375). Conclusions:vERAT can safely and effectively treat pediatric ASA, regardless of the presence or absence of fecaliths. It can provide a new treatment option for ASA.

The patient,a male newborn,was admitted to the hospital 2 hours after birth due to prematurity(gestational age 27+5 weeks)and respiratory distress occurring 2 hours postnatally.After admission,the infant developed fever and elevated C-reactive protein levels.On the fourth day after birth,metagenomic next-generation sequencing of cerebrospinal fluid indicated a positive result for Mycoplasma hominis(9 898 reads).On the eighth day,a retest of cerebrospinal fluid metagenomics confirmed Mycoplasma hominis(56 806 reads).The diagnosis of purulent meningitis caused by Mycoplasma hominis was established,and the antibiotic treatment was switched to moxifloxacin[5 mg/(kg·day)]administered intravenously for a total of 4 weeks.After treatment,the patient's cerebrospinal fluid tests returned to normal,and he was discharged as cured on the 76th day after birth.This article focuses on the diagnosis and treatment of neonatal Mycoplasma hominis purulent meningitis,introducing the multidisciplinary diagnosis and treatment of the condition in extremely preterm infants.[Chinese Journal of Contemporary Pediatrics,2024,26(4):432-436]

Objective To understand the change in distribution and antimicrobial resistance of bacteria isolated from blood specimens of Hunan Province,and provide for the initial diagnosis and treatment of clinical bloodstream infection(BSI).Methods Data reported from member units of Hunan Province Antimicrobial Resistance Survei-llance System from 2012 to 2021 were collected.Bacterial antimicrobial resistance surveillance method was imple-mented according to the technical scheme of China Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance System(CARSS).Bacteria from blood specimens and bacterial antimicrobial susceptibility testing results were analyzed by WHONET 5.6 soft-ware and SPSS 27.0 software.Results A total of 207 054 bacterial strains were isolated from blood specimens from member units in Hunan Province Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance System from 2012 to 2021,including 107 135(51.7％)Gram-positive bacteria and 99 919(48.3％)Gram-negative bacteria.There was no change in the top 6 pathogenic bacteria from 2012 to 2021,with Escherichia coli(n=51 537,24.9％)ranking first,followed by Staphylococcus epidermidis(n=29 115,14.1％),Staphylococcus aureus(n=17 402,8.4％),Klebsiella pneu-moniae(17 325,8.4％),Pseudomonas aeruginosa(n=4 010,1.9％)and Acinetobacter baumannii(n=3 598,1.7％).The detection rate of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus(MRSA)decreased from 30.3％in 2015 to 20.7％in 2021,while the detection rate of methicillin-resistant coagulase-negative Staphylococcus(MRCNS)showed an upward trend year by year(57.9％-66.8％).No Staphylococcus was found to be resistant to vancomy-cin,linezolid,and teicoplanin.Among Gram-negative bacteria,constituent ratios of Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae were 43.9％-53.9％and 14.2％-19.5％,respectively,both showing an upward trend(both P＜0.001).Constituent ratios of Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Acinetobacter baumannii were 3.6％-5.1％and 3.0％-4.5％,respectively,both showing a downward trend year by year(both P＜0.001).From 2012 to 2021,resistance rates of Escherichia coli to imipenem and ertapenem were 1.0％-2.0％and 0.6％-1.1％,respectively;presenting a downward trend(P＜0.001).The resistant rates of Klebsiella pneumoniae to meropenem and ertapenem were 7.4％-13.7％and 4.8％-6.4％,respectively,presenting a downward trend(both P＜0.001).The resistance rates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Acinetobacter baumannii to carbapenem antibiotics were 7.1％-15.6％and 34.7％-45.7％,respectively.The trend of resistance to carbapenem antibiotics was relatively stable,but has de-creased compared with 2012-2016.The resistance rates of Escherichia coli to the third-generation cephalosporins from 2012 to 2021 were 41.0％-65.4％,showing a downward trend year by year.Conclusion The constituent ra-tio of Gram-negative bacillus from blood specimens in Hunan Province has been increasing year by year,while the detection rate of carbapenem-resistant Gram-negative bacillus remained relatively stable in the past 5 years,and the detection rate of coagulase-negative Staphylococcus has shown a downward trend.

Objective To evaluation the bioequivalence of telmisartan tablets(80 mg)between test formulation and reference formulation in Chinese healthy subjects.Methods A single-center,randomized,open-label,two-preparations,single administration,partial repeat crossover of three sequences in three postprandial cycles and complete repeat crossover of two sequences in four fasting cycles,bioequivalence test was designed.Chinese healthy subjects were included in the bioequivalence trial,with 33 randomly assigned to the postprandial group and 32 randomly assigned to the fasting group.In each period,blood samples was collected before and after administration.The plasma concentration of the drug was determined by LC-MS/MS,using WinNonlin version 8.3 calculate the pharmacokinetic parameters and perform a statistical analysis using SAS version 9.4.Results The main pharmacokinetic parameters of telmisartan tablets after oral administration of test or reference were as follows.Fasting group Cmax were(556.10±456.06)and(580.99±533.50)ng·mL-1;AUC0-t were(3 475.15±3 785.16)and(3 450.54±3 681.02)ng·mL-1·h;AUC0-∞ were(3 214.06±2 272.06)and(3 194.84±2 187.45)ng·mL-1·h.The 90％confidence intervals of the geometric mean ratio of Cmax,AUC0-t,AUC0-∞ were within the requirements of the equivalent range of bioequivalence(80.00％-125.00％).Postprandial group Cmax were(299.26±124.72)and(291.29±126.34)ng·mL-1;AUC0-t were(3 682.24±2 799.72)and(3 636.71±2 158.42)ng·mL-1·h;AUC0-were(3 544.53±1 553.06)and(3 969.38±2 528.22)ng·mL-1·h.The 90％confidence intervals of the geometric mean ratio of Cmax,AUC0-t,AUC0-∞ were within the requirements of the equivalent range of bioequivalence(80.00％-125.00％).Conclusion Under fasting and fed conditions,two kinds of telmisartan tablets are bioequivalent in Chinese healthy subjects.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the risk factors for neonatal asphyxia in Hubei Enshi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture and establish a nomogram model for predicting the risk of neonatal asphyxia. METHODS: A retrospective study was conducted with 613 cases of neonatal asphyxia treated in 20 cooperative hospitals in Enshi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture from January to December 2019 as the asphyxia group, and 988 randomly selected non-asphyxia neonates born and admitted to the neonatology department of these hospitals during the same period as the control group. Univariate and multivariate analyses were used to identify risk factors for neonatal asphyxia. R software (4.2.2) was used to establish a nomogram model. Receiver operator characteristic curve, calibration curve, and decision curve analysis were used to assess the discrimination, calibration, and clinical usefulness of the model for predicting the risk of neonatal asphyxia, respectively. RESULTS: Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that minority (Tujia), male sex, premature birth, congenital malformations, abnormal fetal position, intrauterine distress, maternal occupation as a farmer, education level below high school, fewer than 9 prenatal check-ups, threatened abortion, abnormal umbilical cord, abnormal amniotic fluid, placenta previa, abruptio placentae, emergency caesarean section, and assisted delivery were independent risk factors for neonatal asphyxia (P<0.05). The area under the curve of the model for predicting the risk of neonatal asphyxia based on these risk factors was 0.748 (95%CI: 0.723-0.772). The calibration curve indicated high accuracy of the model for predicting the risk of neonatal asphyxia. The decision curve analysis showed that the model could provide a higher net benefit for neonates at risk of asphyxia. CONCLUSIONS The risk factors for neonatal asphyxia in Hubei Enshi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture are multifactorial, and the nomogram model based on these factors has good value in predicting the risk of neonatal asphyxia, which can help clinicians identify neonates at high risk of asphyxia early, and reduce the incidence of neonatal asphyxia.
Infant, Newborn ; Humans ; Male ; Pregnancy ; Female ; Nomograms ; Retrospective Studies ; Cesarean Section ; Risk Factors ; Asphyxia Neonatorum/etiology*

Teprotumumab-trbw,a monoclonal antibody that acts on the insulin growth factor-Ⅰ receptor, was approved in 2020 for the treatment of thyroid-associated ophthalmopathy, but little is known about it in China. It is hoped to provide guidance for clinical use through the review of its molecular structure, pharmacokinetics, therapeutic mechanism, clinical research and safety. It inhibits immune inflammation by blocking thyroid-stimulating hormone receptor /insulin growth factor-Ⅰ receptor crosstalk signaling, so as to reduce the production of hyaluronic acid and inflammatory factors in response. It can also promote the apoptosis of retro-orbital fibroblasts/adipocytes and inhibit the expression of genes related to the synthesis of thyroid hormones, thereby significantly improving the clinical symptoms such as exophthalmos and diplopia. The common adverse reactions of Teprotumumab-trbw are muscle spasm, hyperglycemia, hearing loss and so on. Teprotumumab-trbw is effective and durable in the treatment of thyroid-associated ophthalmopathy, and patients with secondary treatment can also benefit from it, which provides a new way and hope for the treatment of thyroid-associated ophthalmopathy.