1.Arterial switch operation under an integrated management mode of prenatal diagnosis-postnatal treatment for congenital heart disease: A single-center retrospective cohort study
Zirui PENG ; Jing LING ; Jiaxiong WU ; Runzhang LIANG ; Canxin WANG ; Jinxin LI ; Haiyun YUAN ; Shusheng WEN
Chinese Journal of Clinical Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery 2026;33(03):415-423
Objective To evaluate the impact of an integrated management mode of prenatal diagnosis-postnatal treatment for congenital heart disease (CHD) on perioperative and long-term outcomes of the arterial switch operation (ASO), and to analyze the efficacy of ASO in a single center. Methods This retrospective study analyzed the clinical data of 183 children who underwent ASO at Guangdong Provincial People’s Hospital from 2018 to 2024. The cohort included 106 (57.9%) patients of transposition of the great arteries with intact ventricular septum (TGA/IVS), 61 (33.3%) patients of transposition of the great arteries with ventricular septal defect (TGA/VSD), and 16 (8.7%) patients of Taussig-bing anomaly (TBA). Perioperative indicators were compared between 91 patients in the prenatal-postnatal integrated management group (an integrated group) and 92 patients in the traditional management group (a non-integrated group). Long-term survival and reoperation rates were analyzed using Kaplan-Meier curves. Results The overall perioperative mortality rate was 4.9% (9/183), showing a downward trend year by year. The primary cause of perioperative mortality was low cardiac output syndrome (LCOS), which occurred in 12 patients (6.6% incidence) with a mortality rate of 75.0%. The integrated group had a higher proportion of males (89.0% vs. 72.8%, P<0.05) and lower body weight [3.1 (2.7, 3.3) kg vs. 3.3 (3.0, 3.7) kg, P<0.05] compared to the non-integrated group. The age at surgery was significantly earlier in the integrated group [7 (3, 10) d vs. 14 (9, 48) d, P<0.05], and all children in the integrated group underwent ASO within the optimal surgical window (100.0% vs. 82.6%, P<0.05). Intraoperatively, cardiopulmonary bypass time [173 (150, 207) min vs. 186 (159, 237) min, P<0.05] and aortic cross-clamp time [100 (90, 117) min vs. 116 (97, 142) min, P<0.05] were significantly shorter in the integrated group. Although the integrated group had longer postoperative mechanical ventilation time [145 (98, 214) h vs. 116 (77, 147) h, P<0.05] and higher 48-hour maximum vasoactive inotropic score [15 (10, 21) points vs. 12 (8, 16) points, P<0.05], there was no statistically significant difference in the incidence of severe complications (LCOS, necrotizing enterocolitis, extracorporeal membrane oxygenation) or mortality rate (3.3% vs. 6.5%, P=0.51) between the two groups, despite earlier surgical intervention and a higher proportion of critically ill cases in the integrated group. The length of hospital stay in the emergency surgery group was significantly shorter than that in the elective surgery group [20 (15, 28) d vs. 25 (21, 30) d, P<0.05], suggesting that early surgery may be of potential benefit. A total of 163 patients were successfully followed up for a median of 4.7 years, with a 5-year survival rate of 95.1% and a freedom from reintervention survival rate of 95.1%. There were no late deaths, and the most common postoperative complication was pulmonary artery stenosis. Conclusion The integrated management model allowed critically ill children with lower body weights to safely undergo surgery, significantly optimizing the timing of surgery and shortening intraoperative times. The long-term risk of reoperation after ASO is primarily concentrated on pulmonary artery stenosis, necessitating long-term follow-up and monitoring.
2.The Philosophy and Practical Pathway of "Dao (道)-Shen (神)-Formula" in Traditional Chinese Medicine
Lesong ZHANG ; Jun LI ; Zhaorui CUI ; Xiao XIA ; Zirui WANG
Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine 2026;67(9):921-925
By tracing back to the classical literature of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), this paper proposes a TCM philosophy integrating "dao (道)-shen(神)-formula" as a unified whole. It systematically elaborates the formula-constructing thought that "the monarch drug follows dao, and the formula carries dao", analyzes shen (spirit/ life vitality) from the perspectives of its substance, manifestation and function, and explains the pivotal role of shen in connecting dao and formula. Taking Treatise on Cold Damage and Miscellaneous Diseases (《伤寒杂病论》) as an example, the paper explores how the "dao-shen-formula" union is implemented in classics. Based on the Inner Canon of Yellow Emperor (《黄帝内经》), the paper articulates a practical pathway for the "dao-shen-formula" union, namely "observing shen to differentiate the mechanism → restoring dao to regulate shen → achieving harmony of shen and restoration of dao", thereby transforming abstract concepts into operable and verifiable practical approaches. It is hoped that this study will provide theoretical foundation and practical guidance for the shift from treating diseases to treating the person, and from correcting deviations to restoring dao in TCM.
3.The Philosophy and Practical Pathway of "Dao (道)-Shen (神)-Formula" in Traditional Chinese Medicine
Lesong ZHANG ; Jun LI ; Zhaorui CUI ; Xiao XIA ; Zirui WANG
Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine 2026;67(9):921-925
By tracing back to the classical literature of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), this paper proposes a TCM philosophy integrating "dao (道)-shen(神)-formula" as a unified whole. It systematically elaborates the formula-constructing thought that "the monarch drug follows dao, and the formula carries dao", analyzes shen (spirit/ life vitality) from the perspectives of its substance, manifestation and function, and explains the pivotal role of shen in connecting dao and formula. Taking Treatise on Cold Damage and Miscellaneous Diseases (《伤寒杂病论》) as an example, the paper explores how the "dao-shen-formula" union is implemented in classics. Based on the Inner Canon of Yellow Emperor (《黄帝内经》), the paper articulates a practical pathway for the "dao-shen-formula" union, namely "observing shen to differentiate the mechanism → restoring dao to regulate shen → achieving harmony of shen and restoration of dao", thereby transforming abstract concepts into operable and verifiable practical approaches. It is hoped that this study will provide theoretical foundation and practical guidance for the shift from treating diseases to treating the person, and from correcting deviations to restoring dao in TCM.
4.Perceived stress and ego depletion of college students: the mediating role of emotional eating and the moderating role of peer relationship
Siyu WEI ; Yuecui KAN ; Tianyi BU ; Xiaomeng HU ; Kexin QIAO ; Xuan LIU ; Zirui LI ; Yanjie YANG
Chinese Journal of Behavioral Medicine and Brain Science 2025;34(4):357-362
Objective:To explore the effects of perceived stress on ego depletion of college students, as well as the mediating role of emotional eating and the moderating role of peer relationship.Methods:A cross-sectional survey of 1 088 college students was conducted using the perceived stress scale, the Dutch eating behavior questionnaire, the self-control resource depletion scale, and the peer relationship measurement from December 2023 to April 2024.PROCESS Macro program in SPSS 25.0 software was used to test the mediating effect of emotional eating and the moderating effect of peer relationship.Results:(1)The score of perceived stress, emotional eating, peer relationship and ego depletion were 39.26±8.35, 39.19±12.15, 2.00(1.00), and 18.19±7.15, respectively.(2)Perceived stress was positively correlated with emotional eating, ego depletion, and peer relationship( r=0.36, 0.61, 0.25, all P<0.01). Emotional eating was positively correlated with ego depletion and peer relationship( r=0.40, 0.19, both P<0.01). And ego depletion was positively correlated with peer relationship( r=0.23, P<0.01).(3)Emotional eating played a partial mediating role in the effect of perceived stress on ego depletion( β=0.077, 95% CI=0.053-0.104), and the mediating effect accounted for 12.38%(0.077/0.622) of the total effect.(4)Peer relationship played a moderating role between perceived stress and emotional eating. Under low peer relationship, perceived stress had a significant positive predictive effect on emotional eating( βsimple=0.46, P<0.01), and under high peer relationship, the predictive effect of perceived stress on emotional eating was significantly weaker( βsimple=0.26, P<0.01). Conclusions:Perceived stress not only directly affects ego depletion, but also indirectly affects ego depletion through emotional eating in college students.High levels of peer relationship can weaken the impact of perceived stress and high emotional eating on ego depletion.
5.Risk factors associated with oral leukoplakia: a cross-sectional study of 430 patients
Xuanning CHEN ; Zirui WANG ; Tianhao JIN ; Zengtong ZHOU ; Chenxi LI ; Linjun SHI
Chinese Journal of Stomatology 2025;60(7):731-738
Objective:To analyze the epidemiological information of oral leukoplakia and explore the relationship between clinical characteristics and different degrees of epithelial dysplasia.Methods:A total of 430 patients with oral leukoplakia confirmed by pathology in the Department of Oral Medicine, Shanghai Ninth People′s Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine from February 2013 to May 2021 were enrolled. Epidemiological information was recorded, and univariate and multivariate Logistic regression analysis were performed on age, gender, smoking, drinking, lesion size, lesion site and lesion type to evaluate the correlation between the risk factors and the degree of epithelial dysplasia in oral leukoplakia.Results:A total of 430 valid samples were included in this study, among which 23 patients were diagnosed with oral leukoplakia with concurrent cancer. The age of all patients was (52.9±12.9) years (22-85 years); 213 were male and 217 were female. One hundred and seventy-six cases (40.9%) had lesions on the lateral and ventral tongue, and 254 cases (59.1%) had lesions in other locations. Three hundred and two cases (70.2%) had homogeneous lesions, and 128 cases (29.8%) had heterogeneous lesions. The degrees of epithelial dysplasia included none [11.9% (51/430)], mild [51.9% (223/430)], moderate [24.4% (105/430)], severe [6.5% (28/430)], and concurrent cancer [5.3% (23/430)]. Smoking, drinking, and gender were correlated with the degree of epithelial dysplasia in some binary classification systems, while tongue (border and ventral) and non-homogeneous damage were significantly correlated with higher degrees of epithelial dysplasia in all binary classification systems ( P<0.05). Conclusions:Lesions on the lateral or ventral tongue and heterogeneous lesions are significantly associated with higher degrees of dysplasia, suggesting that clinicians should pay more attention to these types of oral leukoplakia during the follow-up monitoring process.
6.Impact of early triglyceride reduction on clinical outcomes in patients with extremely severe hypertriglyceridemia-induced acute pancreatitis
Zirui LIU ; Lin GAO ; Lu KE ; Weiqin LI
Chinese Journal of Pancreatology 2025;25(1):6-13
Objective:To investigate the association between early reduction (within 3 days of admission) of serum triglyceride (TG) to 5.65 mmol/L and clinical outcomes in patients with acute pancreatitis extremely severe hypertriglyceridemia-induced (HTG-AP).Methods:The clinical data were derived from the PERFORM database, which prospectively collected clinical information on 613 HTG-AP patients admitted to 38 medical centers across China between November 2020 and June 2023 with serum TG level ≥11.3 mmol/L at admission. This study further screened extremely severe HTG patients with TG≥22.6 mmol/L. Patients were divided into the target-reaching group (TG≤5.65 mmol/L on day 3 after admission) and non-target-reaching group (TG>5.65 mmol/L on day3 after admission). The effect of early reduction of serum triglyceride to standard level on organ failure was observed. The primary outcome was organ failure-free days (OFFD) to 14 days of admission. Secondary outcomes included the presence of organ failure on day 7 and day 14, persistent organ failure (POF) to day 14, new-onset organ failure to day 14, maximum sequential organ failure assessment (SOFA) score to day 14, incidence of infected pancreatic necrosis (IPN) by day 60 of admission, length of ICU and hospital stay, mortality by day 60 of admission. The linear regression model was used for multivariate analysis. The subgroup forest plot was drawn to assess the effect of early reduction of TG on OFFD in different subgroups. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to plot the cumulative recurrence rate curve for the time to organ failure resolution and Log-Rank test was used for comparison between two groups.Results:Overall, 212 patients with HTG-AP were enrolled, with 118 in the target-reaching group and 94 in the non-target-reaching group. There was no significantly statistical difference on baseline TG level between two groups, but patients in non-target-reaching group had higher total cholesterol, LDL and CRP than those in target-reaching group. The median OFFD with 14 days of admission in target-reaching and non-target-reaching group was 14.0(11.0, 14.0) and 14.0(13.0, 14.0) days, respectively, without significant difference ( P=0.279). Moreover, there was no significant difference on the presence of organ failure on day 7 and day 14, POF to day 14, new-onset organ failure to day 14, maximum SOFA score to day 14, incidence of IPN by day 60 of admission, length of ICU and hospital stay, mortality by day 60 of admission between two groups. Results of multivariate analysis revealed that there was no significant difference on OFFD between two groups. Subgroup analyses were performed according to age, body mass index, baseline acute physiology and chronic health evaluation-Ⅱ (APACHE-Ⅱ) score, and whether there was organ failure at baseline. However, no association of early reduction of TG with OFFD to day 14 was shown in any subgroup. Among the 67 patients with organ failure at baseline, there was no significant difference in the time to organ failure resolution between target-reaching group and non-target-reaching group ( HR=1.256, 95% CI 0.746-2.116; P=0.343). Conclusions:For patients with acute pancreatitis complicated with extremely severe HTG (TG≥22.6 mmol/L), rapid TG decline (TG≤5.65 mmol/L on day 3 after admission) is not associated with reduced incidence and shorter duration of organ failure.
7.In Vitro and Animal Studies of Human Natural Killer Cell-Derived Exosomes for the Treatment of Otitis Media.
Zirui ZHAO ; Liqin WANG ; Zhen GUO ; Kanglun JIANG ; Jianghong XU ; Yilai SHU ; Christina Y XU ; Jianning ZHANG ; Yunfeng WANG ; Geng-Lin LI
Neuroscience Bulletin 2025;41(10):1792-1804
Otitis media is an infection of the middle ear mainly caused by bacteria, and current treatments rely heavily on antibiotics. However, the emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacterial strains seriously affects their efficacy. In our study, we found that extracellular vesicles (EVs) derived from human natural killer cells (NKs) inhibit the proliferation of both standard and levofloxacin (LVX)-resistant strains of Staphylococcus aureus in a dose-dependent manner. Moreover, compared to LVX, EVs were more effective at reducing effusion and rescuing hearing thresholds in animal models. For LVX-sensitive strains, EVs were significantly more effective in terms of curative time but not curative rate. For LVX-resistant strains, EVs were significantly more effective in terms of both curative rate and curative time when applied alone or applied jointly with LVX. In summary, we found that NK EVs are highly effective in treating otitis media, providing an alternative approach for treating this common disease.
Killer Cells, Natural/metabolism*
;
Exosomes/metabolism*
;
Animals
;
Humans
;
Otitis Media/therapy*
;
Staphylococcus aureus/drug effects*
;
Disease Models, Animal
;
Anti-Bacterial Agents/pharmacology*
;
Levofloxacin/pharmacology*
8.Monte Carlo study of transmission X-ray tubes in kilovoltage radiotherapy
Yikai WU ; Zhongyu QI ; Li TAO ; Hui ZHANG ; Zeeshan MUHAMMAD ; Zirui YE ; Yankui CHANG ; Xi PEI ; Xu GEORGE
Chinese Journal of Medical Physics 2025;42(7):863-871
Transmission X-ray tubes are relatively new devices characterized by portability,suitability for miniaturization,and low requirements for shielding,making them ideal radiation sources for kilovoltage X-ray therapy.However,their application in radiotherapy remains underexplored.An electron target model of a transmission X-ray tube is developed using the Monte Carlo toolkit TOPAS 3.8.1.The study investigates the effect of tungsten target thickness on X-ray output efficiency,finding that a tube voltage of 50 kV and a tungsten thickness of 1.4 μm yields the highest emission efficiency.Based on the energy spectrum at this optimal efficiency,polynomial fitting approach is applied to determine the corresponding aluminum filter thickness for mean energies ranging from 20 keV to 35 keV,achieving a mean fitting error of 0.91%.Next,the study simulates dose deposition in a water phantom for spectra with different mean energies and various source-to-surface distances,and plots percent-depth-dose curves,relative normalized dose-depth curves,and relative normalized dose histograms under each treatment condition.Finally,the simulated results are compared with experimental data from the intraoperative radiotherapy system Intrabeam and the superficial X-ray therapy unit SRT-100,obtaining average relative errors of 3.71%and 4.38%,respectively.These findings provide a theoretical foundation for further optimization of transmission X-ray tubes in kilovoltage radiotherapy.
9.Establishment of a prognostic model for HER2 low expression breast cancer with lung metastasis
Zirui TAN ; Jiaxian MIAO ; Zhenyu MENG ; Ang LI ; Yuqing LUO ; Huirui ZHANG ; Yan DING ; Yueping LIU
Chinese Journal of Clinical and Experimental Pathology 2025;41(11):1427-1435
Purpose This study aimed to evaluate the consistency of human epidermal growth factor receptor 2(HER2)status between primary breast cancer lesions and lung metastatic lesions and to establish a prognostic model for predicting the survival rate of HER2 low expression(HER2-low)breast cancer patients with lung metastasis.Methods Clinicopathological data from a cohort of 252 patients with breast cancer and lung metastasis were retrospec-tively analyzed.Results 50.00%of the patients had HER2-low expression in metastatic lesions,and HER2-low ex-pression was the most prevalent subgroup in both primary and metastatic lesions.A discordance in HER2 status be-tween primary and metastatic sites was observed in 28.07%of cases.The most frequent shift was from HER2-zero in the primary tumor to HER2-low expression in the metastasis(12.28%of all cases).Estrogen receptor(ER)status,menopausal status,and histological type were identified as independent prognostic factors for overall survival(OS)by univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses.A prognostic model incorporating these factors was constructed to predict 3-year and 5-year survival.The model demonstrated area under the curve(AUC)values of 0.765 and 0.780 for 3-year and 5-year OS in the training cohort,and 0.667 and 0.706 in the validation cohort,respectively.Conclu-sion HER2-low expression is the most common subtype among breast cancer patients with lung metastasis.The ob-served shift from HER2-zero in primary lesions to HER2-low in metastases underscores the clinical necessity of re-biop-sy at metastatic sites.The developed prognostic model effectively predicts OS in this patient population.
10.Surgical treatment of ulcerative colitis: a 10-year retrospective analysis at a surgical referral center
Song LI ; Feng ZHU ; Abudourexiti WARESI ; Zhongyuan WANG ; Mingfei CHEN ; Yanzhe GUO ; Zirui YANG ; Yan ZHOU ; Jianfeng GONG
Chinese Journal of Gastrointestinal Surgery 2025;28(4):374-383
Objective:To investigate the clinical characteristics, postoperative complications, and risk factors for pouchitis in surgical patients with ulcerative colitis (UC).Methods:This was a retrospective observational study. The clinical data of 336 UC patients who had undergone surgical treatment at the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Center of the Department of General Surgery, Jinling Hospital Affiliated to Nanjing University Medical School from February 2014 to February 2024 were enrolled. The study patients were stratified into 2014-2019 ( n = 158) and 2020–2024 groups ( n = 178), these being the periods before and after biologics were covered for treatment of UC by national insurance in China in 2020. Clinical characteristics and surgical complications were analyzed and compared between the 2014-2019 and 2020-2024 groups. Multivariable logistic regression was performed to identify the risk factors associated with pouchitis in UC patients undergoing total proctocolectomy with ileal pouch-anal anastomosis (TPC-IPAA). Results:The study cohort comprised 336 UC patients, 193 (57.4%) of whom were men. The median preoperative disease course was 48.0 months and the mean age at colectomy was 46.4±15.4 years. TPC-IPAA had been performed on 275 patients (81.8%), 129 in the 2014-2019 group and 146 in the 2020-2024 group. Sixty-one patients had undergone total or subtotal colectomy, 29 in the 2014-2019 group and 32 in the 2020-2024 group. 262 (78.0%) UC patients underwent surgery due to medical refractory. Ninety-nine (29.5%) had used biopharmaceuticals within 2 months prior to surgery, 63 (18.8%) of them having received infliximab. A smaller proportion of patients had undergone surgery for UC that was refractory to medications in the 2020–2024 group than in the 2014–2019 group (73.0% [130/178] vs. 83.5% [132/158], χ 2=5.384, P=0.020), the patients were older at colectomy (48.0±15.4 years vs. 44.6±15.2 years, t=-2.008, P=0.045), the body mass index was higher (20.2±3.1 kg/m 2 vs. 19.4±3.2 kg/m 2, t=-2.201, P=0.028), the Mayo score prior to surgery was lower ( M[ Q1, Q3]: 11.0 [9.2, 12.0 points] vs. 12.0 [11.0, 12.0) points, Z=-4.242, P=0.001), the rate of Charlson Comorbidity Index ≥ 3 scores was higher (27.0% [48/178] vs. 17.1% [27/158], χ 2=5.384, P=0.020), a greater percentage of patients had received biologics prior to surgery (41.0% [73/178) vs. 16.5% [26/158], χ 2=24.285, P<0.001), and intraoperative blood loss was greater ( M[ Q1, Q3]: 100.0 [100.0, 150.0] ml vs. 50.0 [30.0, 100.0] ml, Z=-7.054, P<0.001) despite the operation time being shorter (253.8±74.6 minutes vs. 315.2±96.8 minutes, t=6.265, P<0.001). Among the 275 patients undergoing TPC-IPAA, 95 (34.6%) had early complications (within 30 days after surgery), 20 (7.3%) of which were Clavien-Dindo Grade III–IV complications. Among these patients, 50 (18.2%) had ileus or small bowel obstruction, 11 in the 2014-2019 group and 39 in the 2020-2024 group; this difference is statistically significant (χ 2=15.225, P<0.001). Ninety-one patients (33.1%) had late complications (more than 30 days after surgery), 75 (27.3%) being pouchitis (36 in the 2014-2019 group and 39 in the 2020-2024 group); this difference is not statistically significant (χ 2=0.049, P=0.824). Five patients (1.8%) had undergone pouch excision with permanent ileostomy. Among the 61 patients who had undergone total or subtotal colectomy, 26 (42.6%) developed early postoperative complications, including 10 (16.4%) Clavien-Dindo Grade III-IV complications and one death (1.6%), the last being attributable to multiorgan dysfunction. Three patients (4.9%) had late complications; the difference in incidence of postoperative complications between the 2014-2019 and 2020-2024 groups is not statistically significant (both P>0.05). Multivariable analysis identified intraoperative blood transfusion (OR: 2.12, 95% CI: 1.19–3.75, P=0.010) and interval to stoma closure > 120 days (OR: 2.05, 95%CI: 1.16-3.62, P = 0.013) as independent risk factors for development of pouchitis in UC patients undergoing TPC-IPAA. Conclusion:Surgical treatment of UC remains safe in the biologics era. Proactive strategies to reduce intraoperative blood transfusion and achieve timely stoma closure may reduce the risk of pouchitis in UC patients undergoing TPC-IPAA.

Result Analysis
Print
Save
E-mail