ObjectiveTo evaluate the clinical efficacy and economic value of the Jiangsu Traditional Chinese Medicine （TCM） Diagnosis and Treatment Protocol for Dominant Diseases （abbreviated as the Diagnosis and Treatment Protocol） in adult patients with non-severe community-acquired pneumonia （CAP） based on real-world clinical data. MethodsA retrospective real-world cohort study was conducted using electronic medical records of adult patients hospitalized for non-severe CAP from September 1st， 2023 to December 31st， 2024 across 10 TCM hospitals in Jiangsu province. Patients were classified into an exposure group and a non-exposure group based on whether they received Chinese herbal medicine （CHM） according to the Diagnosis and Treatment Protocol. The non-exposure group received only conventional western medicine， while the exposure group additionally received differentiated CHM for at least five consecutive days. Outcomes were compared between two patient groups， including cough resolution rate， sputum resolution rate （assessed by volume， color， and consistency）， incidence of abnormal C-reactive protein （CRP）， incidence of abnormal white blood cell （WBC） count， and radiographic resolution rate of pulmonary infiltrates on chest imaging. Multivariable logistic regression was performed to identify factors influencing clinical efficacy. Subgroup analyses were conducted according to age， gender， smoking status， history of hypertension， and pneumonia severity score （CURB-65）， and the efficacy of treatment for cough and sputum was analyzed within each subgroup. Cost-effectiveness analysis was conducted using cough resolution rate as the outcome measure， evaluating the pharmacoeconomics of the two groups. ResultsA total of 1688 patients were included with 1293 in the exposure group and 395 in the non-exposure group. Compared to the non-exposure group， the exposure group demonstrated significantly higher resolution rates of cough， sputum volume， color， and consistency， as well as a significantly lower incidence of abnormal CRP （P＜0.05）. No statistically significant difference was observed between the groups in terms of abnormal WBC count and radiographic resolution rate of pulmonary infiltrates （P＞0.05）. Logistic regression analysis showed that the cough resolution rate in the exposure group was 1.83 times that of the non-exposure group， while the probabilities of resolution in sputum volume， color， and consistency were 1.37， 2.09， and 1.56 times those of the non-exposure group， respectively （P＜0.05）. Subgroup analyses showed that the exposure group achieved significantly higher cough resolution rates across most subgroups except for populations with a CURB-65 score ≥2 or those with a history of hypertension （P＜0.05）. Specifically， among females， patients aged ≥18 and ＜65 years， non-smokers， those without hypertension， and those with a CURB-65 score of 0， the exposure group showed a higher cough resolution rate than the non-exposure group （P＜0.05）. From an economic perspective， total hospitalization cost， length of stay， antibiotic cost， and CHM cost all differed significantly between groups （P＜0.05）. The cost-effectiveness ratio （CER） was 10,788.80 CNY/case in the exposure group， while 22,513.80 CNY/case in the non-exposure group. This implies that， compared with the exposure group， the non-exposure group incurred an additional 17,302.27 CNY to achieve one case of cough resolution. When the willingness-to-pay threshold ranged from 0 to 50,000 CNY， the probability of economic advantage was consistently higher in the exposure group than in the non-exposure group. ConclusionOn the basis of conventional western medicine， the addition of CHM in accordance with the Diagnosis and Treatment Protocol can effectively improve clinical symptoms， reduce inflammatory markers， promote clinical recovery， and is more cost-effective in treating adults with non-severe CAP.

ObjectiveTo observe the real‑world effectiveness and economic outcomes of Weishi Qingjin Formula （苇石清金方， WQF） in the treatment of adult community‑acquired pneumonia （CAP） with phlegm‑heat obstructing the lung syndrome. MethodsBased on a multicenter， real-world retrospective cohort study， clinical data were collected from hospitalized adult patients diagnosed with non‑severe CAP and phlegm‑heat obstructing the lung syndrome in 10 traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） hospitals in Jiangsu province. Patients were divided into an exposure group （those who received oral WQF） and a non‑exposure group （those who did not）. The following outcomes were compared between the two groups before and after treatment， which were remission rates of clinical symptoms including cough， expectoration （sputum volume， color， consistency）， and chest pain， levels of inflammatory markers including C‑reactive protein （CRP） and white blood cell count （WBC）， and the rate of pulmonary inflammatory absorption on chest CT. Subgroup analyses were performed based on age， gender， smoking status， presence of hypertension， and the severity of community-acquired pneumonia （CURB‑65） score， comparing the two groups in terms of cough remission rate， chest pain remission rate， and chest CT absorption rate. For health economic evaluation， cost‑effectiveness analysis was used to calculate the cost‑effectiveness ratio （CER） and incremental cost‑effectiveness ratio （ICER）. Univariate sensitivity analysis and probabilistic sensitivity analysis were performed to test the robustness of the results. ResultsA total of 647 patients in the exposure group and 1491 patients in the non-exposure group were included in the final statistical analysis. There was no statistically significant difference in length of hospital stay， gender， marital status， smoking history， bronchoscopy history， and comorbidities between the groups （P＞0.05）， but age， CURB-65 score， and antibiotic use. The exposure group had significantly higher remission rates of cough and sputum consistency than the non-exposure group （P＜0.05）. After adjusting for confounders using propensity score matching and logistic regression， the cough remission rate in the exposure group was 1.49 times that of the non-exposure group （P＜0.01）. No significant difference was observed between groups in the reduction rates of CRP and WBC， and in the rate of pulmonary inflammatory absorption on chest CT （P＞0.05）. Subgroup analyses revealed that the cough remission rate in the exposure group was significantly better than that in the non-exposure group except for patients aged ≥65 years， smokers， hypertensive patients， those using other type antibiotics or not using antibiotics， and those with a CURB-65 score ≥1 （P＜0.05）. Among smokers， the chest pain remission rate in the exposure group was 4.38 times that of the non-exposure group （P＜0.01）. No significant difference in chest CT absorption rate was found between groups across subgroups of gender， age， hypertension status， or antibiotic type （P＞0.05）. In terms of economic evaluation， CER was 10,877.60 CNY/case in the exposure group and 16,773.10 CNY/case in the non-exposure group. Compared to the exposure group， the non-exposure group incurred an additional 15,034.26 CNY to achieve one case of cough resolution， indicating a more favorable cost-effectiveness profile. Probabilistic sensitivity analysis yielded results consistent with the cost-effectiveness analysis， confirming the robustness of the findings. ConclusionWQF demonstrates significant efficacy in improving cough symptoms in the treatment of adult CAP with phlegm-heat obstructing the lung syndrome， and also exhibits favorable economic benefits.

ObjectiveTo evaluate the clinical efficacy and economic value of the Jiangsu Traditional Chinese Medicine （TCM） Diagnosis and Treatment Protocol for Dominant Diseases （abbreviated as the Diagnosis and Treatment Protocol） in adult patients with non-severe community-acquired pneumonia （CAP） based on real-world clinical data. MethodsA retrospective real-world cohort study was conducted using electronic medical records of adult patients hospitalized for non-severe CAP from September 1st， 2023 to December 31st， 2024 across 10 TCM hospitals in Jiangsu province. Patients were classified into an exposure group and a non-exposure group based on whether they received Chinese herbal medicine （CHM） according to the Diagnosis and Treatment Protocol. The non-exposure group received only conventional western medicine， while the exposure group additionally received differentiated CHM for at least five consecutive days. Outcomes were compared between two patient groups， including cough resolution rate， sputum resolution rate （assessed by volume， color， and consistency）， incidence of abnormal C-reactive protein （CRP）， incidence of abnormal white blood cell （WBC） count， and radiographic resolution rate of pulmonary infiltrates on chest imaging. Multivariable logistic regression was performed to identify factors influencing clinical efficacy. Subgroup analyses were conducted according to age， gender， smoking status， history of hypertension， and pneumonia severity score （CURB-65）， and the efficacy of treatment for cough and sputum was analyzed within each subgroup. Cost-effectiveness analysis was conducted using cough resolution rate as the outcome measure， evaluating the pharmacoeconomics of the two groups. ResultsA total of 1688 patients were included with 1293 in the exposure group and 395 in the non-exposure group. Compared to the non-exposure group， the exposure group demonstrated significantly higher resolution rates of cough， sputum volume， color， and consistency， as well as a significantly lower incidence of abnormal CRP （P＜0.05）. No statistically significant difference was observed between the groups in terms of abnormal WBC count and radiographic resolution rate of pulmonary infiltrates （P＞0.05）. Logistic regression analysis showed that the cough resolution rate in the exposure group was 1.83 times that of the non-exposure group， while the probabilities of resolution in sputum volume， color， and consistency were 1.37， 2.09， and 1.56 times those of the non-exposure group， respectively （P＜0.05）. Subgroup analyses showed that the exposure group achieved significantly higher cough resolution rates across most subgroups except for populations with a CURB-65 score ≥2 or those with a history of hypertension （P＜0.05）. Specifically， among females， patients aged ≥18 and ＜65 years， non-smokers， those without hypertension， and those with a CURB-65 score of 0， the exposure group showed a higher cough resolution rate than the non-exposure group （P＜0.05）. From an economic perspective， total hospitalization cost， length of stay， antibiotic cost， and CHM cost all differed significantly between groups （P＜0.05）. The cost-effectiveness ratio （CER） was 10,788.80 CNY/case in the exposure group， while 22,513.80 CNY/case in the non-exposure group. This implies that， compared with the exposure group， the non-exposure group incurred an additional 17,302.27 CNY to achieve one case of cough resolution. When the willingness-to-pay threshold ranged from 0 to 50,000 CNY， the probability of economic advantage was consistently higher in the exposure group than in the non-exposure group. ConclusionOn the basis of conventional western medicine， the addition of CHM in accordance with the Diagnosis and Treatment Protocol can effectively improve clinical symptoms， reduce inflammatory markers， promote clinical recovery， and is more cost-effective in treating adults with non-severe CAP.

ObjectiveTo observe the real‑world effectiveness and economic outcomes of Weishi Qingjin Formula （苇石清金方， WQF） in the treatment of adult community‑acquired pneumonia （CAP） with phlegm‑heat obstructing the lung syndrome. MethodsBased on a multicenter， real-world retrospective cohort study， clinical data were collected from hospitalized adult patients diagnosed with non‑severe CAP and phlegm‑heat obstructing the lung syndrome in 10 traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） hospitals in Jiangsu province. Patients were divided into an exposure group （those who received oral WQF） and a non‑exposure group （those who did not）. The following outcomes were compared between the two groups before and after treatment， which were remission rates of clinical symptoms including cough， expectoration （sputum volume， color， consistency）， and chest pain， levels of inflammatory markers including C‑reactive protein （CRP） and white blood cell count （WBC）， and the rate of pulmonary inflammatory absorption on chest CT. Subgroup analyses were performed based on age， gender， smoking status， presence of hypertension， and the severity of community-acquired pneumonia （CURB‑65） score， comparing the two groups in terms of cough remission rate， chest pain remission rate， and chest CT absorption rate. For health economic evaluation， cost‑effectiveness analysis was used to calculate the cost‑effectiveness ratio （CER） and incremental cost‑effectiveness ratio （ICER）. Univariate sensitivity analysis and probabilistic sensitivity analysis were performed to test the robustness of the results. ResultsA total of 647 patients in the exposure group and 1491 patients in the non-exposure group were included in the final statistical analysis. There was no statistically significant difference in length of hospital stay， gender， marital status， smoking history， bronchoscopy history， and comorbidities between the groups （P＞0.05）， but age， CURB-65 score， and antibiotic use. The exposure group had significantly higher remission rates of cough and sputum consistency than the non-exposure group （P＜0.05）. After adjusting for confounders using propensity score matching and logistic regression， the cough remission rate in the exposure group was 1.49 times that of the non-exposure group （P＜0.01）. No significant difference was observed between groups in the reduction rates of CRP and WBC， and in the rate of pulmonary inflammatory absorption on chest CT （P＞0.05）. Subgroup analyses revealed that the cough remission rate in the exposure group was significantly better than that in the non-exposure group except for patients aged ≥65 years， smokers， hypertensive patients， those using other type antibiotics or not using antibiotics， and those with a CURB-65 score ≥1 （P＜0.05）. Among smokers， the chest pain remission rate in the exposure group was 4.38 times that of the non-exposure group （P＜0.01）. No significant difference in chest CT absorption rate was found between groups across subgroups of gender， age， hypertension status， or antibiotic type （P＞0.05）. In terms of economic evaluation， CER was 10,877.60 CNY/case in the exposure group and 16,773.10 CNY/case in the non-exposure group. Compared to the exposure group， the non-exposure group incurred an additional 15,034.26 CNY to achieve one case of cough resolution， indicating a more favorable cost-effectiveness profile. Probabilistic sensitivity analysis yielded results consistent with the cost-effectiveness analysis， confirming the robustness of the findings. ConclusionWQF demonstrates significant efficacy in improving cough symptoms in the treatment of adult CAP with phlegm-heat obstructing the lung syndrome， and also exhibits favorable economic benefits.

Objective:To compare the image quality and the diagnostic efficiency for breast malignant lesions using simultaneous multi-slice single shot echo planar imaging (SMS+SS-EPI) and readout segment of long variable echo trains (RESOLVE) for breast diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI).Methods:This study was a cross-sectional study. Clinical and imaging data of 102 patients with breast lesion from March 2021 to February 2023 in the First Hospital Affiliated to Ningbo University were prospectively analyzed. All patients underwent routine breast MRI scans and cross-sectional RESOLVE and SMS+SS EPI sequence DWI, and the image quality of 2 types sequences of DWI was evaluated. The subjective evaluation was based on a 5-point scale, including geometric distortion, artifact blurring, fat suppression, overall image quality, and lesion conspicuity of the breast. The objective evaluation included signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR), and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) value of the lesion. Wilcoxon signed rank sum test was used to compare the subjective and objective parameters between the two sequences. Finally, the receiver operating characteristic curve and area under the curve (AUC) were used to evaluate the effectiveness of ADC values for diagnosing breast malignant lesions based on two sequence images.Results:All 102 female patients had single lesions, aged from 25 to 68 years and 60 lesions were malignant and 42 were benign. The acquisition time for SMS+SS-EPI sequence imaging was 1 min 50 s, and the acquisition time for RESOLVE sequence imaging was 3 min 43 s.The subjective scores from both SMS+SS-EPI and RESOLVE sequence were over than 3 points. The geometric distortion, artifact blurring, and overall image quality scores of RESOLVE sequence images were higher than those of SMS+SS-EPI (all P<0.001). The overall lesion conspicuity score, malignant lesion conspicuity score, and benign lesion conspicuity score of DWI and ADC images combined with SMS+SS-EPI sequence were higher than those of the RESOLVE sequence (all P<0.05). There were no statistically difference in SNR, CNR, overall ADC value, malignant ADC value, and benign ADC value between SMS+SS-EPI and RESOLVE sequence DWI images of breast lesions (all P>0.05). The AUC of RESOLVE sequence ADC value in diagnosis of breast cancer was 0.973, the sensitivity was 0.929, and the specificity was 0.915; The AUC of SMS+SSC-EPI sequence ADC value in diagnosis of breast cancer was 0.956, the sensitivity was 0.977, and the specificity was 0.850. Conclusions:In breast DWI, the subjective score of SMS+SS EPI image quality can basically meet the diagnostic requirements and the conspicuity of lesions is better than that of the RESOLVE sequence. Both have good diagnostic efficacy for malignant breast lesions.

Objective:To investigate the clinical characteristics and correlation of sleep disturbances(SD)with cognitive impairment-associated cerebral small vascular disease(CSVD-CI)in elderly patients.Methods:In this cross-sectional study, 261 elderly CSVD-CI patients admitted to the Department of Neurology, Second Hospital of Tianjin Medical University between December 2019 and December 2021 were continuously enrolled.The Pittsburgh Sleep Index Scale(PSQI)was used to evaluate the overall sleep quality.Those with a PSQI score ≥7 was assigned to the CSVD-CI with sleep disturbances(CSVD-CI-SD)group, while those with a PSQI score <7 was assigned to the CSVD-CI without SD(CSVD-CI-NSD)group.The Montreal Cognitive Assessment(MoCA)was used to evaluate the cognitive function of patients with CSVD-CI, and scores on the overall cognitive function and various cognitive domains were compared between the CSVD-CI-SD group and the CSVD-CI-NSD group.Results:There were no significant differences between the CSVD-CI-SD group and the CSVD-CI-NSD group in sex ratio, age, education level and comorbidities( P>0.05). Compared with the CSVD-CI-NSD group, patients in the CSVD-CI-SD group took longer to fall asleep, had worse sleep efficiency, a shorter sleep duration, more obvious SD at night, worse sleep quality, more use of sleeping drugs, and more obvious daytime dysfunction(all P<0.05). Compared with the CSVD-CI-NSD group, the total MoCA score, attention score and orientation score in the CSVD-CI-SD group were significantly decreased( P<0.01). Correlation analysis results showed that the total MoCA score and attention in the CSVD-CI-SD group were negatively correlated with SD at night( r=-0.198, r=-0.115, P<0.05 for both), and orientation was negatively correlated with sleep quality( r=-0.170, P<0.05). Conclusions:The prevalence of SD is high in CSVD-CI patients, with CSVD-CI-SD patients showing more obvious overall cognitive, attention and orientation impairment in MoCA.Additionally, the total MoCA score and attention are negatively correlated with nighttime SD, and orientation is negatively correlated with sleep quality in CSVD-CI-SD patients.

Ischemic cerebrovascular disease (ICVD) is the most common type of nervous system disease in clinical practice in China at present. It is the important leading cause of death after heart disease and tumors. Ischemic cerebrovascular disease has a high rate of occurrence and mortality. It is easy to cause problems such as limb dysfunction, language disorders, nerve dysfunction, etc. It has a great negative effect on the quality of life of patients, and seriously affects the quality of their lives. Although the current research on the treatment of the disease has achieved certain results, single therapies can only treat some key parts of the disease and cannot completely reverse the whole process. At present, thrombolysis, antiplatelet aggregation, degradation of plasma fibrin, anticoagulation, and hemodilution are mainly used in clinical treatment. It is critical to select appropriate treatment methods based on the pathological characteristics of patients to improve efficacy and prognosis. In this review, the research progress in therapies for ischemic cerebrovascular disease was reviewed, both at home and abroad.

Objective: To compare the in vitro biocompatibility of bone marrow mesenchymal cells on polyetheretherketone (PEEK) and titanium (Ti) surfaces. Methods : PEEK and Ti foils with thicknesses of 1 mm and diameters of 10 mm were prepared. First, bone marrow mesenchymal cells were separated and purified by the whole bone marrow adherent culture method in vitro. Then, osteogenesis-induced bone marrow mesenchymal cells were cultivated on the surfaces of the PEEK and Ti foils. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), the Alamar Blue test, an alkaline phosphatase (ALP) kit and Alizarin Red staining were used to analyze calcium nodules and compare the adhesion, proliferation and osteogenic differentiation ability of bone marrow mesenchymal cells on the surfaces of the PEEK and Ti foils. Results : ① The morphology of the bone marrow mesenchymal cells cultured on the PEEK and Ti foils at 1 h, 4 h and 24 h showed no significant differences. ② In the 1 h, 3 h, 1 d and 3 d cultures of the bone marrow mesenchymal cells inoculated on the surfaces of the foils, the number of living cells in the PEEK group was greater than that in the Ti group (P < 0.05). ③ In the 7 d and 14 d osteogenesis-induced cultures of the inoculated bone marrow mesenchymal cells, the ALP activity of the PEEK group cells was significantly greater than that of the Ti group cells (P < 0.05). ④ Semiquantitative analysis after Alizarin Red staining showed that the mineralization degree of the bone marrow mesenchymal cells induced by osteoblasts was greater in the PEEK group than in the Ti group (P < 0.05). Conclusion PEEK has better in vitro biocompatibility than Ti and can better promote cell adhesion, proliferation and osteogenic differentiation compared with Ti, and so it is expected to become a new dental implant material.

As the body′s largest organ, skin harbors a large amount of immune cells to regulate both innate and adaptive immune responses. Regulatory T cells (Tregs), as a subset of T lymphocytes with negative regulatory functions, play an important role in maintaining the immune homeostasis of different tissue. However, researches of skin Tregs are largely limited and uncompleted as compared with other tissue. In recent years, a comprehensive understanding is increasingly showing the specialized functions of Tregs in skin, including the orchestration of tissue wound healing, involvement in hair follicle recycling, and modulation of proper immune homeostasis. In this review, we outline the classification and characteristics of Tregs in skin, distribution, migration routes, immune effects, and relationship with wound healing, which aims to deepening our understanding towards the immunological effects of T lymphocytes subsets in skin and its regulatory pathways.

Objective To investigate the correlation between lower extremity CTA and ankle brachial index (ABI) of the diabetic lower extremity arterial disease (LEAD),and to study the difference of the examination methods.Methods 80 patients of clinical diagnosed with diabetic LEAD that underwent CTA check were enrolled.The indexes of ABImax,ABImin,ABIave and lower limb atherosclerosis integral (LEAI) of the 80 patients were calculated respectively,and the relationship and correlation were analyzed between ABI and LEAI in different degree of lower extremity arterial calcification.Results ABI index of 58 (58/80) cases could be determined,with an average of 0.87.CTA results displayed that below-the-knee artery had a high incidence of atherosclerosis.According to the degree of arterial calcification,non-calcified in 4(4/58) cases,mild in 20(20/58),moderate in 10(10/58),and severe in 24(24/58).The patients with moderate and severe calcification,means the arterial calcification,had lower ABI (P =0.001),higher LEAI (P ＜ 0.001),and higher pressure of brachial artery(P =0.03).There was weak correlation between ABImax and LEAI(r =-0.48) and the best correlation between ABIave and LEAI(r=-0.59).The correlations between ABI and LEAI of non calcified cases were better than that of calcified ones.Conclusion ABI monitoring of diabetic LEAD has some limitations.Diabetic lower extremity artery CTA has important clinical value that can accurately assess the degree of arterial calcification and occlusion.