OBJECTIVES: To investigate the clinical characteristics and prognosis of chronic disseminated candidiasis (CDC) in children with acute leukemia (AL) following chemotherapy. METHODS: A retrospective analysis was conducted on children diagnosed with CDC (including confirmed, clinically diagnosed, and suspected cases) after AL chemotherapy from January 2015 to December 2023 at Fujian Medical University Union Hospital, Zhangzhou Municipal Hospital, and Quanzhou First Hospital Affiliated to Fujian Medical University. Clinical characteristics and prognosis were analyzed. RESULTS: The incidence of CDC in children with AL following chemotherapy was 1.92% (32/1 668). Among the children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, the incidence of CDC in the high-risk group was significantly higher than in the low-risk group (P=0.002). All patients presented with fever unresponsive to antibiotics during the neutropenic period, with 81% (26/32) involving the liver. C-reactive protein (CRP) levels were significantly elevated (≥50 mg/L) in 97% (31/32) of the patients. The efficacy of combined therapy with liposomal amphotericin B and caspofungin or posaconazole for CDC was 66% (19/29), higher than with caspofungin (9%, 2/22) or liposomal amphotericin B (18%, 2/11) monotherapy. The overall cure rate was 72% (23/32). The proportion of patients with CRP ≥50 mg/L and/or a positive β-D-glucan test for more than 2 weeks and breakthrough infections during caspofungin treatment was significantly higher in the treatment failure group compared to the successful treatment group (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS CDC in children with AL after chemotherapy may be associated with prolonged neutropenia due to intensive chemotherapy. Combination antifungal regimens based on liposomal amphotericin B have a higher cure rate, while persistently high CRP levels and positive β-D-glucan tests may indicate poor prognosis.
Adolescent ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Female ; Humans ; Infant ; Male ; Antifungal Agents/therapeutic use* ; Candidiasis/diagnosis* ; Chronic Disease ; Leukemia/complications* ; Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma/complications* ; Prognosis ; Retrospective Studies

BACKGROUND: It is inaccurate to reflect the level of dust exposure through working years. Furthermore, identifying a predictive indicator for lung function decline is significant for coal miners. The study aimed to explored whether club cell secretory protein (CC16) levels can reflect early lung function changes. METHODS: The cumulative respiratory dust exposure (CDE) levels of 1,461 coal miners were retrospectively assessed by constructed a job-exposure matrix to replace working years. Important factors affecting lung function and CC16 were selected by establishing random forest models. Subsequently, the potential of CC16 to reflect lung injury was explored from multiple perspectives. First, restricted cubic spline (RCS) models were used to compare the trends of changes in lung function indicators and plasma CC16 levels after dust exposure. Then mediating analysis was performed to investigate the role of CC16 in the association between dust exposure and lung function decline. Finally, the association between baseline CC16 levels and follow-up lung function was explored. RESULTS: The median CDE were 35.13 mg/m³-years. RCS models revealed a rapid decline in forced vital capacity (FVC), forced expiratory volume in the first second (FEV₁), and their percentages of predicted values when CDE exceeded 25 mg/m³-years. The dust exposure level (<5 mg/m³-years) causing significant changes in CC16 was much lower than the level (25 mg/m³-years) that caused changes in lung function indicators. CC16 mediated 11.1% to 26.0% of dust-related lung function decline. Additionally, workers with low baseline CC16 levels experienced greater reductions in lung function in the future. CONCLUSIONS CC16 levels are more sensitive than lung indicators in reflecting early lung function injury and plays mediating role in lung function decline induced by dust exposure. Low baseline CC16 levels predict poor future lung function.
Uteroglobin/blood* ; Humans ; Dust/analysis* ; Occupational Exposure/analysis* ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Adult ; Retrospective Studies ; Lung Injury/chemically induced* ; Coal Mining ; Biomarkers/blood* ; China/epidemiology* ; Air Pollutants, Occupational ; Female

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 investigate the efficacy of Castor branching stent in treating Stanford type B aortic dissection(TBAD)involving aortic arch.Methods The clinical data of 18 patients with Stanford TBAD,who were treated with Castor branching stent at the Suining Municipal Central Hospital of China from January 2020 to January 2022,were retrospectively analyzed.Results The main bracket and branch bracket of Castor branching stent were successfully released in all the 18 patients with a surgical success rate of 100％,and no internal leakage occurred during operation.During the perioperative period,there were neither aorta-related deaths nor serious complications such as stroke,upper limb ischemia,internal leakage,or stent displacement.The patients were followed up for(14.7±8.3)months,no aorta-related death,stroke,upper limb ischemia,internal leakage,or stent displacement was observed,the blood flow of the left subclavian artery(LSA)was unobstructed,but there was thrombosis formation within the false lumen of the covered stent segment.Conclusion The Castor branching stent has the advantages of reasonable release mode,accurate positioning,effective isolation of the first rupture of Stanford TBAD and reconstruction of LSA,with no serious short-term complications.However,further follow-up observation is needed before its long-term efficacy can be clarified.

Objective To analyze the health management situation of non-communicable chronic disease(NCD)in Chongqing City and Guizhou Province and its influencing factors.Methods A stratified random sampling method was used to select 16 representative primary medical and health institutions from Chongqing City and Guizhou Province as the research sites,and the data were collected through the combination method of qualitative and quantitative research.Results A total of 760 patients with NCD were surveyed,and the awareness rate,utilization rate and satisfaction rate of the NCD health management program all exceeded 84.2％,while the awareness rate,utilization rate and satisfaction rate of follow-up and categorical intervention were the lowest.The awareness rate of hypertension physical examination in the patients with＜60 years old was lower than that in the patients with 60-＜70 years old(OR=4.28,95％CI:1.43-12.81)and the pa-tients with ≥70 year sold(OR=3.16,95％CI:1.12-8.91);the utilization rate of diabetes screening in the patients with＜60 years-old was lower than that in the patients with ≥70 years old(OR=2.70,95％CI:1.08-6.76)and the awareness rate of hypertension physical examination was lower than that of the patients with 60-＜70 years old(OR=4.24,95％CI:1.01-17.75);the awareness rate of hypertension physical ex-amination in the patients in Chongqing City was higher than that in Guizhou Province(OR=0.15,95％CI:0.04-0.54)and the utilization situation was better than that in Guizhou Province(OR=0.13,95％CI:0.05-0.34).Conclusion The overall situation of NCD management services in Chongqing City and Guizhou Province is good,but the service quality of follow-up and classified intervention projects needs to be further improved.

Purpose::Mannitol is one of the first-line drugs for reducing cerebral edema through increasing the extracellular osmotic pressure. However, long-term administration of mannitol in the treatment of cerebral edema triggers damage to neurons and astrocytes. Given that neural stem cell (NSC) is a subpopulation of main regenerative cells in the central nervous system after injury, the effect of mannitol on NSC is still elusive. The present study aims to elucidate the role of mannitol in NSC proliferation.Methods::C57 mice were derived from the animal house of Zunyi Medical University. A total of 15 pregnant mice were employed for the purpose of isolating NSCs in this investigation. Initially, mouse primary NSCs were isolated from the embryonic cortex of mice and subsequently identified through immunofluorescence staining. In order to investigate the impact of mannitol on NSC proliferation, both cell counting kit-8 assays and neurospheres formation assays were conducted. The in vitro effects of mannitol were examined at various doses and time points. In order to elucidate the role of Aquaporin 4 (AQP4) in the suppressive effect of mannitol on NSC proliferation, various assays including reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction, western blotting, and immunocytochemistry were conducted on control and mannitol-treated groups. Additionally, the phosphorylated p38 (p-p38) was examined to explore the potential mechanism underlying the inhibitory effect of mannitol on NSC proliferation. Finally, to further confirm the involvement of the p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase-dependent (MAPK) signaling pathway in the observed inhibition of NSC proliferation by mannitol, SB203580 was employed. All data were analyzed using SPSS 20.0 software (SPSS, Inc., Chicago, IL). The statistical analysis among multiple comparisons was performed using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), followed by Turkey's post hoc test in case of the data following a normal distribution using a Shapiro-Wilk normality test. Comparisons between 2 groups were determined using Student's t-test, if the data exhibited a normal distribution using a Shapiro-Wilk normality test. Meanwhile, data were shown as median and interquartile range and analyzed using the Mann-Whitney U test, if the data failed the normality test. A p < 0.05 was considered as significant difference. Results::Primary NSC were isolated from the mice, and the characteristics were identified using immunostaining analysis. Thereafter, the results indicated that mannitol held the capability of inhibiting NSC proliferation in a dose-dependent and time-dependent manner using cell counting kit-8, neurospheres formation, and immunostaining of Nestin and Ki67 assays. During the process of mannitol suppressing NSC proliferation, the expression of AQP4 mRNA and protein was downregulated, while the gene expression of p-p38 was elevated by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction, immunostaining, and western blotting assays. Subsequently, the administration of SB203580, one of the p38 MAPK signaling pathway inhibitors, partially abrogated this inhibitory effect resulting from mannitol, supporting the fact that the p38 MAPK signaling pathway participated in curbing NSC proliferation induced by mannitol.Conclusions::Mannitol inhibits NSC proliferation through downregulating AQP4, while upregulating the expression of p-p38 MAPK.

Objective To investigate the effect and mechanism of tetramethylpyrazine(TMP)on cognitive function in mice with post-traumatic stress disorder(PTSD).Methods The mice were randomly divided into normal group,model group and experimental group.Except for the normal group,the PTSD mouse model was established by single prolonged stress(SPS).The experimental group was intraperitoneally injected with 10 mg·kg-1 TMP,and the normal group and the model group were intraperitoneally injected with an equal amount of 0.9％NaCl.The Morris water maze,open field and elevated plus maze tests were used to evaluate the cognitive behavior of the mice.The apoptosis of neurons was detected by Terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick end labeling(TUNEL).The expression of ionized calcium binding adapter molecule-1(Iba-1)protein was detected by immunofluorescence(ICC).The content of oxidative stress inflammatory factors was detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA).Results The escape latency of the normal group,model group,and TMP group were(56.50±9.89),(87.16±10.48)and(68.63±10.19)s,respectively;the corner residence time of the open field were(190.37±40.64),(260.39±40.54)and(218.63±38.27)s,respectively;the apoptosis rates were(18.28±2.35)％,(39.36±3.65)％and(30.74±3.58)％,respectively;the fluorescence intensities of Iba-1 were(8.01±2.23)％,(50.87±7.31)％and(7.49±1.41)％;malondialdehyde contents were(5.46±0.95),(12.98±2.06)and(8.31±1.28)nmol·mg-1,respectively;tumor necrosis factor-α contents were(53.59±9.91),(115.46±11.53)and(74.38±10.77)pg·mL-1,respectively.The above indexes in the normal group and the experimental group were statistically significant compared with the model group(P＜0.05,P＜0.01).Conclusion TMP can improve the cognitive function of PTSD mice,and the mechanism may be related to the regulation of inflammation and oxidative stress.

Objective To analyze the interaction between voriconazole(VRC)and immunosuppressants such as tacrolimus and cyclosporine and the effect of CYP2C19 gene polymorphism on the interaction and adverse reactions(ADR)based on the results of CYP2C19 gene polymorphism and therapeutic drug monitoring,so as to provide a basis for the development of individualized VRC combined with immunosuppressants.Methods Two-dimensional liquid chromatography and pyrosequencing was used to detect the concentration of VRC and the CYP2C19 gene pol-ymorphism,respectively.And the concentration of immunosuppressants was detected at the same time.The rela-tionship among CYP2C19 gene polymorphism,the concentration of VRC and immunosuppressant and ADR was an-alyzed.Results A total of 61 patients were enrolled in this study,and the mutation rates of CYP2C19*2 and CYP2C19*3 were 54.1％(33/61)and 9.84％(6/61),respectively.The concentrations of VRC in patients with extensive metabolism(EMs),intermediate metabolism(IMs)and poor metabolism(PMs)were(4.44±3.46),(3.62±3.02)and(10.05±1.46)μg/ml(P＜0.05),respectively.The concentration of tacrolimus af-ter combined with VRC significantly increased compared to tacrolimus alone[(13.4±9.2)ng/ml vs(6.5±3.6)ng/ml;P=0.002],and the concentration of tacrolimus increased along with an increasing of VRC concentration.The concentration of VRC in patients combined with tacrolimus was lower than that in patients without immunosup-pressants[(3.81±3.48)μg/ml vs(5.84±3.71)μg/ml;P=0.032].The concentration of VRC inpatients with cyclosporine significantly decreased(P＜0.01),while tacrolimus and mycophenolate mofetil had no signifi-cant effect on the concentration of VRC.45.90％(28/61)of the patients had adverse reactions,the concentration of VRC in patients with ADR was significantly higher than that in patients without ADR[(7.07±3.43)μg/ml vs(3.06±2.90)μg/ml;P＜0.001].And the concentration of VRC in patients with ADR was higher than patients without ADR with based on CYP2C19 genotype.Conclusion CYP2C19 gene polymorphism can significantly affect the concentration and adverse reactions of VRC,and VRC has significant interaction with immunosuppressants such as tacrolimus.CYP2C19 gene polymorphism combined with therapeutic drug monitoring can improve the individual-ized treatment of tacrolimus and voriconazole,and is expected to minimize toxicity and improve treatment effects.

The core of theory of visceral manifestation of spleen is about'spleen in charge of transportation and transformation,spleen qi dispersing the essence'.Middle-jiao spleen-earth has the functions of digesting food and transporting food essence,and maintaining the homeostasis of glucose and lipid metabolism in the body.'Spleen in charge of transportation and transformation,spleen qi dispersing the essence'functions like the glucose and lipid metabolism at physiological state.The deficiency of spleen results in the dysfunction of food in-take and digestion and the susceptibility to external pathogens;qi deficiency and blood stasis lead to the interior damp-heat,and the long-term accumulation of damp-heat develops into stasis and then turns into toxins,which eventually induces inflammation-to-tumor transition.The pathogenesis of'spleen deficiency being the root cause and stasis blended with toxins'is correlated with the pathological changes of inflammation-to-tumor transition.The therapy of strengthening the spleen,dispersing essence and removing turbidity is effective on improving the disorder of glucose and lipid metabolism,and the therapy of strengthening the spleen,resolving stasis and removing toxin is effective on restraining the process of inflammation-to-tumor transition in the stomach.It has become a new direction in the field of spleen-stomach research to expound the scientific connotation of the essence of spleen function of'spleen in charge of transportation and transformation,spleen qi dispersing the essence'from the perspective of glucose and lipid metabolism,to focus on the inflammation-to-tumor transition process of major diseases of digestive system,to explore the evolution of the traditional Chinese medicine syndromes of inflammatory diseases and precancerous lesions of the digestive tract,and to reveal the pharmacological mechanism of treatment from the perspective of spleen,which will enrich the scientific connotation of theory of visceral manifestation of spleen and promote the modernization and internationalization of traditional Chinese medicine.

Objective To analyze the epidemiological and clinical characteristics of patients with monkeypox.Methods Data of 17 patients with monkeypox hospitalized in a hospital in Nanning City from July to October 2023 were collected retrospectively.The epidemiological history,clinical manifestations,laboratory examinations,treat-ment and prognosis were analyzed and summarized.Results All 17 patients were male,with a median age of 28 years old.Fifteen(88.2％)patients were men who had sex with men(MSM)within 21 days prior to onset.Major clinical manifestations were rash and fever.Rashes distributed mainly in the anus,perineum and genitals(82.4％),followed by the trunk and limbs(52.9％),head and face(35.3％),while soles and palms were rare.Some patients had swollen inguinal lymph nodes.All patients were discharged from hospital after improvement,with an average hospital stay of 7 days.Conclusion The monkeypox epidemic in Nanning area of Guangxi occurs mainly in MSM population,with fever and rashes as the major symptoms.All patients have mild disease and good prognosis.