OBJECTIVES: To compare the efficacy of transcatheter tricuspid valve replacement (TTVR) using Lux-Valve and Lux-Valve Plus in patients with severe tricuspid regurgitation. METHODS: A total of 28 consecutive patients with severe tricuspid regurgitation who underwent TTVR with Lux-Valve (n=14) or Lux-Valve Plus (n=14) in the First Affiliated Hospital of the Air Force Medical University from August 2019 to November 2023 were enrolled. Transthoracic echocardiography was performed in all patients before and 6 months after the TTVR. The ultrasound indexes were compared before and 6 months after the TTVR in all patients and between Lux-Valve and Lux-Valve Plus groups. RESULTS: Compared with the Lux-Valve group, the Lux-Valve Plus group showed significantly reduced intraoperative bleeding and shorter postoperative hospital stays (both P<0.05). Six months after the TTVR, none of the patients exhibited more than a mild tricuspid valve regurgitation, and none of the patients had moderate or above perivalvular leakage except for one patient in the Lux-Valve Plus group who had a separation of the clamping member from the anterior tricuspid leaflet. The incidence of perivalvular leakage was significantly lower in the Lux-Valve Plus group (14.29%, 2/14) than in the Lux-Valve group (64.29%, 9/14, P<0.05). At 6 months after operation, the right chamber volume and right ventricle middle transverse diameter were reduced (both P<0.05); the peak blood flow velocity across the tricuspid valve, peak pressure gradient across the tricuspid valve, mean blood flow velocity of tricuspid valve, mean pressure gradient across the tricuspid valve and velocity time integral were increased in both groups (all P<0.05).Compared with the Lux-Valve group, the Lux-Valve Plus group showed higher left ventricular ejection fraction at 6 months postoperatively (P<0.05), while the rest of the indicators were not statistically different (all P>0.05). CONCLUSIONS The efficacy of using Lux-Valve and Lux-Valve Plus for TTVR in patients with severe tricuspid regurgitation is comparable. Six months after the TTVR, the right side of the heart has undergone reverse remodeling.While Lux-Valve Plus offers greater minimally invasive benefits, valve selection should consider device-specific characteristics and differences in individual patients.
Humans ; Tricuspid Valve Insufficiency/surgery* ; Male ; Female ; Heart Valve Prosthesis Implantation/methods* ; Middle Aged ; Aged ; Tricuspid Valve/surgery* ; Heart Valve Prosthesis ; Treatment Outcome ; Echocardiography ; Adult ; Cardiac Catheterization/methods*

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the application of transesophageal echocar-diography assessment for mitral valve in patients with atrial septal defects undergoing repair surgery. METHODS: The study group comprised of thirty-two adult patients with atrial septal defect who underwent thoracoscopic repair surgery at the First Affiliated Hospital of the Air Force Medical University from March to September 2022. Two-dimensional and real-time three-dimensional transesophageal ultrasonography of the mitral valve were performed after anesthesia. The parameters of the mitral valve structure at the late diastolic and late systolic stages were recorded, including anteroposterior and left-right annular diameters, anterior and posterior valves lengths, the vertical distance from the coaptation point of leaflet zone 2 during systole to the annular plane (mitral valve coaptation depth) and mitral valve coaptation length. Data from 32 patients with normal intracardiac structure and no mitral valve regurgitation (control group) were also collected and compared with those of the study group. Concurrent mitral valvoplasty was performed during the atrial septal defect repair surgery for 7 patients with significant mitral valve structural abnormalities and 2 patients with significantly increased mitral regurgitation after cardiac resuscitation. The study group was followed up with transthoracic echocardiography for 2 years postoperatively. RESULTS: In the study group, 26 (81.3%) patients had varying degrees of mitral valve morphological abnormalities. Among them, 10 (31.3%) patients had short mitral valve coaptation length or depth, 12 (37.5%) patients had closure point malposition, and 4 (12.5%) patients had different bulge of anterior and posterior leaflets. Compared with the control group, the study group had significantly smaller systolic and diastolic mitral left-right annular diameter, mitral posterior valves lengths, mitral coaptation length or depth (all P<0.05), a higher pulmonary systemic flow ratio (P<0.01), and a lower maximum blood flow velocity across the mitral valve (P<0.05). After 2 years of follow-up, among the 9 patients who underwent concurrent mitral valvoplasty, the mitral valve maintained no or little regurgitation, and the average mitral valve pressure difference was less than 5 mmHg (1 mmHg=0.133 kPa). Among the 23 patients without concurrent mitral valvoplasty, 2 patients had moderate regurgitation 1 year after surgery, with a pulmonary/systemic flow ratio larger than 2.8. CONCLUSIONS Patients with large atrial septal defects often have abnormal mitral valve structure. Therefore transesophageal echocardiography is recommended for mitral valve assessment during the surgery. If significant mitral valve structural abnormalities are detected, concurrent mitral valvoplasty is recommended.
Humans ; Heart Septal Defects, Atrial/diagnostic imaging* ; Echocardiography, Transesophageal/methods* ; Mitral Valve/surgery* ; Adult ; Female ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Mitral Valve Insufficiency/diagnostic imaging*

[Objective]To investigate the biological basis of the theory of"heart corresponding to summer"by observing the differences in the secretion of atrial natriuretic peptide(ANP),brain natriuretic peptide(BNP)and amino-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide(NT-proBNP)in the myocardial tissues of the rats at the summer solstice and the winter solstice.[Methods]Specific pathogen free grade male SD rats were randomly divided into 4 groups,which were treated as normal control group,chronic heart failure(CHF)group,pineal gland removal group and composite model(CHF+pineal gland removal)group,and the contents of ANP,BNP and NT-proBNP were detected in myocardial tissues of the rats in each group at the winter solstice and summer solstice time points.[Results]Under normal physiological conditions,the secretion of ANP,BNP and NT-proBNP in rat myocardial tissues showed seasonal rhythmic changes of low in summer and high in winter;after the removal of the pineal gland,the seasonal rhythmic differences of ANP,BNP and NT-proBNP disappeared,and even appeared to be inverted;under the condition of CHF,the secretion of ANP,BNP and NT-proBNP in rat myocardial tissues showed seasonal rhythmic changes of high in summer and low in winter,and the original rhythm disappeared after the removal of the pineal gland.[Conclusion]Myocardial tissue ANP,BNP,NT-proBNP is the important biological material basis of the"heart corresponding to summer",their secretion of summer and winter seasonal rhythm changes,and the pathological state of CHF show the opposite of the normal state of the seasonal rhythm.At the same time,the pineal gland is involved in the seasonal regulation of the heart corresponding to summer.

Objective:To investigate the impact of peak pressure upon different bone densities during autonomous puncture by orthopedic robot on puncture path deviation and bone cement leakage.Methods:A spinal surgery robot system was designed for autonomous vertebral puncture and bone cement injection, and six porcine spine specimens were used for single-segment or double-segment simulated percutaneous vertebral augmentation surgery. The accuracy of puncture path (Gertzbein-Robbins grading), bone cement leakage classification, and peak bone drill pressure were measured to assess the accuracy of autonomous vertebral puncture and bone cement leakage in vertebral cortical and cancellous bone of different densities.Results:A total of 64 porcine vertebrae were simulated for puncture, among which 53 vertebrae were classified as Grade A, 8 as Grade B, and 3 as Grade C according to the Gertzbein-Robbins grading. The cortical bone pressure of Grade A vertebrae was 6.663±0.319 N which was lower than that of Grade B (8.348±0.418 N) and Grade C (11.500±0.600 N), with significant differences ( F=341.000, P<0.001). The cancellous bone pressure of Grade A, B, and C vertebrae were 3.660±0.317, 3.594±0.608, and 4.117±0.257 N, respectively, with no significant difference ( F=2.496, P=0.091). There were 40 cases of no leakage, 20 cases of Type I leakage (leakage into the surrounding vertebrae), and 3 cases of Type II leakage (leakage into the vertebral canal), with an overall leakage rate of 36% (23/64). The peak cortical bone pressure for no leakage, Type I, and Type II leakage was 6.638±0.301, 6.792±0.404, and 6.753±0.473 N, respectively, and the peak cancellous bone pressure was 3.634±0.279, 3.783±0.423, and 3.920±0.255 N, respectively, with no significant difference ( F=1.521, P=0.227; F=2.106, P=0.131). Conclusion:During the autonomous puncture process of the novel orthopedic robot, the accuracy of autonomous puncture path decreased when the puncture pressure through the cortical bone was high, and the probability of invading the pedicle increased. The puncture pressure of cortical and cancellous bone had no significant effect on the occurrence rate of bone cement leakage.

ObjectiveTo study the brain network during balance control tasks in older adults. MethodsFrom January to April, 2022, 22 healthy young adults and 20 healthy older adults were recruited from the Fifth Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University and communities. They were asked to finish standing tasks on the plantar pressure plate with eyes opening and closing, while the functional connectivities (FC) of prefrontal cortex (PFC) and primary motor cortex (PMC) were measured with functional near-infrared spectroscopy. ResultsCompared with the young adults, the area of the ellipse (Z = -2.884, P < 0.01) and the maximum swing (Z = -2.481, P < 0.05) increased in the older adults as eyes closing. During the standing task, the intra-FC of left (t = 2.978, P < 0.01) and right (Z = -3.123, P < 0.01) PFC decreased in the older adults, and the inter-FC of right PMC to left PFC (t = 2.087, P < 0.05) and right PFC to left PFC (t = 3.471, P < 0.001) decreased, too. ConclusionThe FC of PFC decreased in healthy older adults during balance control tasks, which may be a indicator for aging brain.

The clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)-Cas9 system has been widely used for genome engineering and transcriptional regulation in many different organisms. Current CRISPR-activation (CRISPRa) platforms often require multiple components because of inefficient transcriptional activation. Here, we fused different phase-separation proteins to dCas9-VPR (dCas9-VP64-P65-RTA) and observed robust increases in transcriptional activation efficiency. Notably, human NUP98 (nucleoporin 98) and FUS (fused in sarcoma) IDR domains were best at enhancing dCas9-VPR activity, with dCas9-VPR-FUS IDR (VPRF) outperforming the other CRISPRa systems tested in this study in both activation efficiency and system simplicity. dCas9-VPRF overcomes the target strand bias and widens gRNA designing windows without affecting the off-target effect of dCas9-VPR. These findings demonstrate the feasibility of using phase-separation proteins to assist in the regulation of gene expression and support the broad appeal of the dCas9-VPRF system in basic and clinical applications.
Humans ; Transcriptional Activation ; RNA, Guide, CRISPR-Cas Systems ; Gene Expression Regulation ; CRISPR-Cas Systems/genetics*

Humans ; Pyriform Sinus/surgery* ; Thyroid Neoplasms/diagnosis* ; Fistula/surgery* ; Diagnostic Errors ; Pharyngeal Diseases/surgery*

Objective:To investigate the effect of smart air cell mattresses on sleep quality.Methods:Twenty healthy young people were enrolled as subjects, and each subject underwent a four-night polysomnographic monitoring experiment, including two nights each on a smart air cell mattress and a general mattress. The differences in sleep quality were compared by self-assessment of sleep quality, objective sleep indicators, and electroencephalogram (EEG) spectral analysis.Results:In the comparison between the smart air cell mattress and the general mattress, the differences in self-assessment of sleep quality and objective sleep indicators were not statistically significant (all P > 0.05), but the smart air cell mattress had a slight overall advantage. The relative power of EEG in the low-frequency band and the relative power of EEG in the high-frequency band were higher in the subjects with the smart air cell mattress. Conclusions:For the healthy young population, the smart air cell mattress can positively influence sleep quality to some extent, and the change in EEG relative power indicates an increase in sleep depth.

To evaluate the safety of the domestic 13-valent pneumococcal polysaccharide conjugate vaccine-tetanus toxoid protein (PCV13-TT) after its licensure. The adverse event following immunization (AEFI) and the vaccination data of PCV13-TT in Zhejiang province from July 2020 to October 2021 were collected from national adverse event following immunization surveillance system and Zhejiang provincial immunization information system. Descriptive epidemiological method was used for this analysis. From July 2020 to October 2021, 302 317 doses of PCV13-TT were administered in children under 6 years old in Zhejiang Province and 636 AEFI case reports were received, with a reporting rate of 21.04 per 10 000 doses. Of these AEFI cases, 97.17% were mild vaccine product-related reaction (20.54 per 10 000 doses) and 95.44% occurred in the 0-1 d after vaccination (20.08 per 10 000 doses). The most common clinical diagnoses of AEFI included fever (224 cases), redness (204 cases), and induration (190 cases), while allergic rash (11 cases) was the most common diagnosis among the abnormal reactions. In conclusion,the present results bolstered that the domestic PCV13-TT was generally well tolerated in children under 6 years old in Zhejiang Province.
Child ; Humans ; Child, Preschool ; Vaccines, Conjugate/adverse effects* ; Pneumococcal Vaccines/adverse effects* ; Vaccination ; Immunization ; Polysaccharides