PURPOSE: The rate of complications among patients undergoing surgery has increased due to infection with SARS-CoV-2 and other variants of concern. However, Omicron has shown decreased pathogenicity, raising questions about the risk of postoperative complications among patients who are infected with this variant. This study aimed to investigate complications and related factors among patients with recent Omicron infection prior to undergoing orthopedic surgery. METHODS: A historical control study was conducted. Data were collected from all patients who underwent surgery during 2 distinct periods: (1) between Dec 12, 2022 and Jan 31, 2023 (COVID-19 positive group), (2) between Dec 12, 2021 and Jan 31, 2022 (COVID-19 negative control group). The patients were at least 18 years old. Patients who received conservative treatment after admission or had high-risk diseases or special circumstances (use of anticoagulants before surgery) were excluded from the study. The study outcomes were the total complication rate and related factors. Binary logistic regression analysis was used to identify related factors, and odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were calculated to assess the impact of COVID-19 infection on complications. RESULTS: In the analysis, a total of 847 patients who underwent surgery were included, with 275 of these patients testing positive for COVID-19 and 572 testing negative. The COVID-19-positive group had a significantly higher rate of total complications (11.27%) than the control group (4.90%, p < 0.001). After adjusting for relevant factors, the OR was 3.08 (95% CI: 1.45-6.53). Patients who were diagnosed with COVID-19 at 3-4 weeks (OR = 0.20 (95% CI: 0.06-0.59), p = 0.005), 5-6 weeks (OR = 0.16 (95% CI: 0.04-0.59), p = 0.010), or ≥7 weeks (OR = 0.26 (95% CI: 0.06-1.02), p = 0.069) prior to surgery had a lower risk of complications than those who were diagnosed at 0-2 weeks prior to surgery. Seven factors (age, indications for surgery, time of operation, time of COVID-19 diagnosis prior to surgery, C-reactive protein levels, alanine transaminase levels, and aspartate aminotransferase levels) were found to be associated with complications; thus, these factors were used to create a nomogram. CONCLUSION Omicron continues to be a significant factor in the incidence of postoperative complications among patients undergoing orthopedic surgery. By identifying the factors associated with these complications, we can determine the optimal surgical timing, provide more accurate prognostic information, and offer appropriate consultation for orthopedic surgery patients who have been infected with Omicron.
Humans ; COVID-19/complications* ; Male ; Female ; Middle Aged ; Postoperative Complications/epidemiology* ; SARS-CoV-2 ; Orthopedic Procedures/adverse effects* ; Aged ; Nomograms ; Adult ; Retrospective Studies ; Risk Factors

The adulteration and counterfeiting of herbal ingredients in medicinal and food homology (MFH) have a serious impact on the quality of herbal materials, thereby endangering human health. Compared to pharmaceutical drugs, health products derived from traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) are more easily accessible and closely integrated into consumers' daily life. However, the authentication of the authenticity of TCM ingredients in MFH has not received sufficient attention. The lack of clear standards emphasizes the necessity of conducting systematic research in this area. This study utilized DNA barcoding technology, combining ITS2, psbA-trnH, matK as universal barcode sequences, and DX, HH, JYH as specific barcode sequences, to identify the authenticity of commercial medicinal and food homology scented herbal teas. The aim was to investigate the authenticity of scented herbal tea products circulating in the market. The research results revealed that among 180 scented herbal tea samples, DNA barcodes were successfully obtained from 164 samples, while the remaining samples either lacked the target components or suffered severe DNA degradation, resulting in failed amplification. Combined with morphological identification studies, it was found that out of the 180 samples, 141 were authentic, accounting for 78.33% of the total samples, while 31 samples showed adulteration and 8 samples lacked the target components, accounting for 21.67% of the total samples. Additionally, water testing revealed that 5 samples of Carthamus tinctorius herbal tea exhibited the phenomenon of weight adulteration. This study exposed the presence of adulteration and weight adulteration in scented herbal tea products, highlighting the need for regulatory authorities to expedite the establishment of quality standards in scented herbal tea industry. These findings provide valuable insights for the rapid development of the scented herbal tea industry.

Pleural mesothelioma （PM） is a rare malignant tumor originating from the pleura. Most patients are already in the advanced stage at the time of diagnosis， resulting in a low overall survival rate. MicroRNA （miRNA）， as key regulators of tumor epigenetic modification， have an intertwined interactive network with PM drug resistance. The mechanisms of drug resistance in PM to chemotherapeutic drugs include increasing drug efflux， reducing drug intake， enhancing DNA repair， and altering drug targets. The mechanisms of resistance to targeted therapy drugs include activating alternative signaling pathways， establishing a favorable tumor microenvironment， and triggering epithelial-mesenchymal transition. MiRNA plays a key part in the aforementioned resistance mechanisms， with some miRNAs promoting the drug sensitivity of cancer cells， while others contribute to increased drug resistance. In light of these key regulatory functions， targeting the dysregulated expression of endogenous miRNAs in the process of resistance formation using miRNA antagonists or miRNA mimics may be an effective therapeutic strategy to reverse drug resistance in PM.

OBJECTIVES: To study the clinical characteristics and prognosis of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant infection-associated acute necrotizing encephalopathy (ANE) in children . METHODS: A retrospective analysis was conducted on the medical data of 12 children with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant infection-associated ANE who were admitted to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit, Qingdao Women and Children's Hospital from December 18 to 29, 2022. The children were divided into two groups based on outcomes: death group (7 cases) and survival group (5 cases). The clinical manifestations and auxiliary examination results were compared between the two groups. RESULTS: The median age of the 12 patients was 30 months, with a male-to-female ratio of 1:1. All patients presented with persistent high fever, with a median highest body temperature of 41℃. The median time from fever onset to seizure or consciousness disturbance was 18 hours. The death group had a higher proportion of neurogenic shock, coagulation dysfunction, as well as elevated lactate, D-dimer, interleukin-6, interleukin--8, and interleukin-10 levels compared to the survival group (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS Children with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant infection-associated with ANE commonly present with persistent high fever, rapidly progressing disease, and have a high likelihood of developing consciousness disorders and multiorgan dysfunction within a short period. The occurrence of neurogenic shock, coagulation dysfunction, and significantly elevated cytokine levels suggests an increased risk of mortality.
Humans ; Female ; Child ; Male ; Infant ; SARS-CoV-2 ; Retrospective Studies ; COVID-19/complications* ; Brain Diseases/etiology* ; Prognosis ; Fever ; Blood Coagulation Disorders

ObjectivePeriprosthetic joint infections （PJI） are currently the most calamitous complication after arthroplasty. Although achievements have been made in many markers for the diagnosis of PJI， the lack of a gold standard remains a great obstacle for early diagnosis. This study aimed to investigate the association between coagulation markers and the development of PJI in patients undergoing revision total joint arthroplasty （TJA）. MethodsWe conducted a retrospective cohort study with a total of 2 517 patients who underwent hip or knee arthroplasties from January 2011 to January 2022 （2 394 with primary TJA， 87 with aseptic revision and 36 with PJI）. We applied univariate analysis and multivariate logistic regression to analyze differences of coagulation factors between primary TJA and aseptic revision or PJI group. Receiver operating characteristic （ROC） curve and area under the curve （AUC） were used to measure the diagnostic value of coagulation factors in predicting PJI. ResultsCoagulation factors and their ratios including plasma fibrinogen （FBG）， prothrombin time （PT）， thrombin time （TT）， activated partial thromboplastin time （APTT）， platelet （PLT）， mean platelet volume （MPV）， platelet distribution width （PDW）， plateletcrit （PCT）， PLT / MPV， PLT / PDW and PLT / PCT were included in this study. High FGB level was strongly correlated with the risk of PJI compared to other coagulation factors. The optimal threshold value of FBG was 4.53 g/L with a sensitivity of 47.22%， a specificity of 93.07% （Primary TJA group vs. PJI group）. Similarly， the optimal threshold value of FBG was 4.44 g/L with a sensitivity of 47.22%， a specificity of 95.40% between the other two groups （Aseptic revision group vs. PJI group）. ROC curve analysis demonstrated moderate diagnostic performance of FBG （AUC value）， indicating a potential to be a diagnostic marker for PJI. ConclusionsFBG is significantly correlated with PJI and it can be used as a potential non-invasive marker for early detection. It may serve as a safe and cost-effective tool for assessing PJI in clinical work.

Objective: To explore the effect of vaccination on viral negative conversion of children with COVID-19. Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted. A cohort of 189 children aged 3-14 years with COVID-19 admitted to Renji Hospital (South branch) of Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine from April 7^th to May 19^th 2022 was enrolled in the study. According to the vaccination status, the infected children were divided into an unvaccinated group and a vaccinated group. Age, gender, severity, clinical manifestations, and laboratory tests, etc. were compared between groups, by rank sum test or chi-square test. The effects of vaccination on viral negative conversion were analyzed by a Cox mixed-effects regression model. Additionally, a questionnaire survey was conducted among the parents of unvaccinated children to analyze the reasons for not being vaccinated. Results: A total of 189 children aged 3-14 years were enrolled, including 95 males (50.3%) and 94 females (49.7%), aged 5.7 (4.1,8.6) years. There were 117 cases (61.9%) in the unvaccinated group and 72 cases (38.1%) in the vaccinated group. The age of the vaccinated group was higher than that of the unvaccinated group (8.8 (6.8, 10.6) vs. 4.5 (3.6, 5.9) years, Z=9.45, P<0.001). No significant differences were found in clinical manifestations, disease severity, and laboratory results between groups (all P>0.05), except for the occurrence rate of cough symptoms, which was significantly higher in the vaccinated group than in the non-vaccinated group (68.1% (49/72) vs. 50.4% (59/117),χ²=5.67, P=0.017). The Kaplan-Meier survival curve and Cox mixed-effects regression model showed that the time to the viral negative conversion was significantly shorter in the vaccinated group compared with the unvaccinated group (8 (7, 10) vs. 11 (9, 12) d, Z=5.20, P<0.001; adjusted HR=2.19 (95%CI 1.62-2.97)). For questionnaire survey on the reasons for not receiving a vaccination, 115 questionnaires were distributed and 112 valid questionnaires (97.4%) were collected. The main reasons for not being vaccinated were that parents thought that their children were not in the range of appropriate age for vaccination (51 cases, 45.5%) and children were in special physical conditions (47 cases, 42.0%). Conclusion: Vaccination can effectively shorten the negative conversion time of children with COVID-19 and targeted programs should be developed to increase eligible children's vaccination rate for SARS-CoV-2 vaccination.
Child ; Female ; Male ; Humans ; COVID-19/prevention & control* ; COVID-19 Vaccines ; Retrospective Studies ; SARS-CoV-2 ; China/epidemiology* ; Vaccines

Objective:To investigate the expression levels and clinical significance of collagen typeⅠ α1 chain (COL1A1) and collagen type Ⅰ α2 chain (COL1A2) in malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) tissues.Methods:In January 2020, MPM tissues and adjacent normal pleural tissues were collected from 26 MPM patients, and the expression levels of COL1A1 and COL1A2 genes in the tissues were determined by quantitative reverse transcription PCR, and the efficacy of both levels in diagnosing MPM was assessed using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. The relationship between COL1A1 and COL1A2 gene expression and clinicopathological features was analyzed by the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database, and the relationship between the expression levels of both and overall survival (OS) and disease-free progression survival (DFS) of MPM patients was dynamically analyzed by gene expression profiling, and the factors affecting the prognosis of MPM patients were explored by Cox proportional risk regression model. The TIMER 2.0 platform was used to explore the relationship between COL1A1 and COL1A2 gene expression in MPM and tumor immune infiltrative cells.Results:Compared with normal pleural tissues, the expression of COL1A1 and COL1A2 genes was significantly increased in MPM tissues ( P<0.01) , and their expression was positively correlated ( P<0.001) . The ROC curves showed that the area under the curve for COL1A1 and COL1A2 expression levels diagnostic of MPM was 0.900 and 0.897, respectively. The expression of COL1A1 gene was correlated with tumor type in MPM patients ( P<0.05) , and COL1A2 gene expression was correlated with T stage in MPM patients ( P<0.05) . Both COL1A1 and COL1A2 gene expression were associated with OS in MPM patients (Logrank P<0.05) , but there was no significant correlation with DFS (Logrank P>0.05) . Cox multivariate analysis showed that patients with high COL1A1 and COL1A2 gene expression and biphasic mixed MPM had a higher risk of death ( P<0.05) . TIMER 2.0 platform analysis showed that COL1A1 and COL1A2 gene expression in MPM patients was positively correlated with macrophages, COL1A2 gene expression in MPM was negatively correlated with neutrophils ( P<0.05) . Conclusion:High expression of COL1A1 and COL1A2 genes in MPM tissues is valuable for diagnosis, disease prediction and prognostic assessment of MPM, and both may jointly contribute to the development of MPM.

Objective:To investigate the expression levels and clinical significance of collagen typeⅠ α1 chain (COL1A1) and collagen type Ⅰ α2 chain (COL1A2) in malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) tissues.Methods:In January 2020, MPM tissues and adjacent normal pleural tissues were collected from 26 MPM patients, and the expression levels of COL1A1 and COL1A2 genes in the tissues were determined by quantitative reverse transcription PCR, and the efficacy of both levels in diagnosing MPM was assessed using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. The relationship between COL1A1 and COL1A2 gene expression and clinicopathological features was analyzed by the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database, and the relationship between the expression levels of both and overall survival (OS) and disease-free progression survival (DFS) of MPM patients was dynamically analyzed by gene expression profiling, and the factors affecting the prognosis of MPM patients were explored by Cox proportional risk regression model. The TIMER 2.0 platform was used to explore the relationship between COL1A1 and COL1A2 gene expression in MPM and tumor immune infiltrative cells.Results:Compared with normal pleural tissues, the expression of COL1A1 and COL1A2 genes was significantly increased in MPM tissues ( P<0.01) , and their expression was positively correlated ( P<0.001) . The ROC curves showed that the area under the curve for COL1A1 and COL1A2 expression levels diagnostic of MPM was 0.900 and 0.897, respectively. The expression of COL1A1 gene was correlated with tumor type in MPM patients ( P<0.05) , and COL1A2 gene expression was correlated with T stage in MPM patients ( P<0.05) . Both COL1A1 and COL1A2 gene expression were associated with OS in MPM patients (Logrank P<0.05) , but there was no significant correlation with DFS (Logrank P>0.05) . Cox multivariate analysis showed that patients with high COL1A1 and COL1A2 gene expression and biphasic mixed MPM had a higher risk of death ( P<0.05) . TIMER 2.0 platform analysis showed that COL1A1 and COL1A2 gene expression in MPM patients was positively correlated with macrophages, COL1A2 gene expression in MPM was negatively correlated with neutrophils ( P<0.05) . Conclusion:High expression of COL1A1 and COL1A2 genes in MPM tissues is valuable for diagnosis, disease prediction and prognostic assessment of MPM, and both may jointly contribute to the development of MPM.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the clinical efficacy of distal radius T-plate combined with suture anchor and distal clavicle anatomical locking plate combined with suture anchor in the treatment of Neer Ⅱb distal clavicle fracture. METHODS: From June 2014 to June 2018, 42 patients with Neer Ⅱb distal clavicle fractures were retrospectively analyzed. According to different surgical methods, they were divided into the observation group (T-shaped plate combined with suture anchor) and the control group (anatomical locking plate combined with suture anchor). There were 22 patients in the observation group and 20 patients in the control group. In the observation group, there were 13 males and 9 females, aged from 22 to 70 (45.78± 14.44) years old, 12 cases on the left side and 10 cases on the right side, 8 cases of traffic accident injury and 14 cases of fall. In the control group, there were 12 males and 8 females, aged from 24 to 66 (44.17±15.58) years, 13 cases on the left side and 7 cases on the right side, 6 cases of traffic accident injuryand 14 cases of fall. The operation time, intraoperative blood loss and fracture healing time were compared between the two groups, and Constant Murley score was used to evaluate shoulder joint function. RESULTS: The patients in both groups were followed up for 18 to 24 (20.96±2.02) months. The incisions of both groups were healed at stageⅠ. The fracture ends of both groups were bony healed at the last follow up. There was no significant difference in operation time, intraoperative blood loss and fracture healing time between two groups ( CONCLUSION The two methods can obtain satisfactory results in the treatment of Neer Ⅱb distal clavicle fractures, especially suitable for patients with comminuted distal clavicle fractures or osteoporosis; the clinical effect of the treatment of NeerⅡb distal clavicle fractures with T type distal radius plate combined with suture anchor is satisfactory, which provides another feasible treatment scheme for clinic.
Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Bone Plates ; Case-Control Studies ; Clavicle/surgery* ; Female ; Fracture Fixation, Internal ; Fractures, Bone/surgery* ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Retrospective Studies ; Suture Anchors ; Treatment Outcome

Objective: To investigate the efficacy and predictors of autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (auto-HSCT) in the treatment of T lymphoblastic lymphoma (T-LBL) . Methods: 41 patients with T-LBL who underwent auto-HSCT from April 2006 to July 2017 in the Department of Hematology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University and the Department of Lymphoma, Peking University Cancer Hospital were analyzed retrospectively. Results: ①Among 41 patients, there were 30 males and 11 females with median age of 24 (11-53) years old. According to the Ann Arbor staging, 33 (80.5%) patients were in stage Ⅲ/Ⅳ. 12 (29.3%) patients have mediastinal involvement, and 20 (48.8%) patients have bone marrow (BM) involvement. Before transplantation, there were 26 (63.4%) patients who achieved first complete remission (CR(1)) , the other 15 (36.6%) patients were in the non-CR(1) group, and there were 29 (70.7%) patients in the low-intermediate risk group (IPI<3 scores) , the other 12 (34.1%) patients were in the middle-high risk group (IPI≥3 scores) . ②The median follow-up was 29 (3-98) months. The 3-year overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) for 41 patients were (64.3±8.2) % and (66.0±7.8) %, respectively. 3-year cumulative recurrence rate (CIR) was (30.7±7.4) %, and 3-year non-recurring mortality (NRM) was (4.8±4.6) %. ③The 3-year OS of the CR(1) group and the non-CR(1) group were (83.4±7.6) % and (38.9±12.9) % (P=0.010) , and the 3-year PFS of two groups were (83.8±7.4) % and (40.0±12.6) % (P=0.006) , respectively. The 3-year CIR of these two groups were (16.2±7.4) % and (53.3±12.9) % (P=0.015) , and the 3-year NRM were 0 and (14.3±13.2) % (P=0.157) , respectively. ④The 3-year OS of the IPI low-intermediate risk group and the high-intermediate risk group were (76.9±8.4) % and (35.7±15.2) % (P=0.014) and the 3-year PFS were (77.4±8.2) % and (40.0±14.6) (P=0.011) , respectively. The 3-year CIR of these two groups were (18.1±7.3) % and (60.0±14.6) % (P=0.006) , and the 3-year NRM were (5.6±5.4) % and 0 (P=0.683) , respectively. The OS and PFS of patients with low-intermediate risk group were significantly higher than the other group. Conclusion: Auto-HSCT could improve the survival of T-LBL. Pre-transplant status and IPI score are important predictors for survival T-LBL patients with auto-HSCT.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Child ; Disease-Free Survival ; Female ; Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasm Recurrence, Local ; Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma/therapy* ; Prognosis ; Retrospective Studies ; T-Lymphocytes ; Transplantation, Autologous ; Treatment Outcome ; Young Adult