OBJECTIVE To investigate the effect and mechanism of modified Lichong decoction （MLCD） on the apoptosis of transplanted tumor cells in nude mice. METHODS Human gastric cancer AGS cells were cultured， and a nude mice transplanted tumor model was established. The nude mice were divided into the model group and MLCD low-， medium- and high-dose groups （150， 300， 600 mg/kg）. They were given distilled water or the corresponding drug solution by gavage once daily for four consecutive weeks. The size of transplanted tumors in nude mice was measured every six days， and the tumor volume was calculated. After the medication， the nude mice were sacrificed， and the transplanted tumor tissues were isolated. The contents of lactate dehydrogenase （LDH） and reactive oxygen species （ROS） in the transplanted tumor tissues were detected， and the changes in mitochondrial membrane potential were assessed. The pathological morphological changes were observed. The enzymatic activities of caspase-3， caspase-8， and caspase-9， as well as protein expressions of Fas and FasL and mRNA expressions of caspase-3， caspase-8， caspase-9， Fas and FasL in the transplanted tumor tissues， were detected. RESULTS Compared with the model group， the volume of transplanted tumors in nude mice from all MLCD dose groups was reduced to varying degrees. The contents of LDH and ROS， as well as the enzymatic activities of caspase-3， caspase-8 and caspase-9， were significantly increased/enhanced. The mitochondrial membrane potential was significantly decreased. The protein expressions of Fas and FasL， and the mRNA expressions of caspase-3， caspase-8， caspase-9， Fas and FasL were significantly up-regulated. Most of these differences were statistically significant （ P ＜0.05 or P ＜0.01）. Pathological results showed that with increasing doses of MLCD， the cellular density in the transplanted tumor tissues gradually decreased， and typical morphological features of apoptosis， such as loosening and increasing fragmentation， became more prominent. CONCLUSIONS MLCD can induce apoptosis in transplanted tumor cells of nude mice， and its mechanism may be related to the activation of the Fas/FasL pathway and the caspase apoptotic pathway.

BACKGROUND: Based on the China-VHD database, this study sought to develop and validate a Valvular Heart Disease- specific Age-adjusted Comorbidity Index (VHD-ACI) for predicting mortality risk in patients with VHD. METHODS & RESULTS: The China-VHD study was a nationwide, multi-centre multi-centre cohort study enrolling 13,917 patients with moderate or severe VHD across 46 medical centres in China between April-June 2018. After excluding cases with missing key variables, 11,459 patients were retained for final analysis. The primary endpoint was 2-year all-cause mortality, with 941 deaths (10.0%) observed during follow-up. The VHD-ACI was derived after identifying 13 independent mortality predictors: cardiomyopathy, myocardial infarction, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, pulmonary artery hypertension, low body weight, anaemia, hypoalbuminaemia, renal insufficiency, moderate/severe hepatic dysfunction, heart failure, cancer, NYHA functional class and age. The index exhibited good discrimination (AUC, 0.79) and calibration (Brier score, 0.062) in the total cohort, outperforming both EuroSCORE II and ACCI (P < 0.001 for comparison). Internal validation through 100 bootstrap iterations yielded a C statistic of 0.694 (95% CI: 0.665-0.723) for 2-year mortality prediction. VHD-ACI scores, as a continuous variable (VHD-ACI score: adjusted HR (95% CI): 1.263 (1.245-1.282), P < 0.001) or categorized using thresholds determined by the Yoden index (VHD-ACI ≥ 9 vs. < 9, adjusted HR (95% CI): 6.216 (5.378-7.184), P < 0.001), were independently associated with mortality. The prognostic performance remained consistent across all VHD subtypes (aortic stenosis, aortic regurgitation, mitral stenosis, mitral regurgitation, tricuspid valve disease, mixed aortic/mitral valve disease and multiple VHD), and clinical subgroups stratified by therapeutic strategy, LVEF status (preserved vs. reduced), disease severity and etiology. CONCLUSION The VHD-ACI is a simple 13-comorbidity algorithm for the prediction of mortality in VHD patients and providing a simple and rapid tool for risk stratification.

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In the past, aortic dissection, aortic aneurysm, and other aortic diseases, primarily rely on surgical intervention. In recent years, due to breakthroughs in materials science, endovascular therapy has become the first choice for the surgical treatment of most aortic diseases. However, traditional endovascular repair cannot fully meet the clinical needs for certain complex lesions involving the aortic arch and the originations of visceral arteries. The emergence of physician-modified stent technology has brought new hope for the treatment of complex aortic diseases. This article provides a detailed introduction to the concept, development, technical characteristics, and applications of physician-modified stents in the treatment of aortic diseases, analyzing their advantages and limitations. Physician-modified stents serve as a powerful complement to traditional endovascular interventions and commercial branched stents, yet further research and refinement are still required.

Abdominal war trauma is a common and high-risk type of injury in the modern battlefield,with rapid changes in condition and a high mortality rate.There is an urgent need for emerging medical technologies to improve the efficiency and success rate of first aid for military casualties.With the development of artificial intelligence(AI),5G,and other emerging technologies,the concept of intelligent medical treatment is gradually forming and can assist in the diagnosis and treatment of abdominal trauma.This paper reviews the characteristics of abdominal war trauma in modern wars,discusses the application of intelligent medical treatment for abdominal war trauma and its drawbacks to be solved,aiming to provide reference for research related to abdominal war trauma.

Objective To analyze the causal relationship between genetically predicted body mass index(BMI)and prostate cancer(PCa)risk with Mendelian randomization(MR),in order to explore the potential risk factors for PCa and the development of prevention strategies.Methods Two-sample MR was performed using BMI genome-wide association study(GWAS)data of 339 224 samples and PCa GWAS data of 463 010 samples.After that,69 single nucleotide polymorphisms(SNP)of BMI were used as instrumental variables to perform MR analysis on PCa.MR analysis adopted the inverse variance weighting method(IVW),MR-Egger method,weighted median method(WME),simple mode method(SM)and weighted mode method(WM).Heterogeneity test,plciotropy test and leave-one-out sensitivity test were used to verify the stability and reliability of the data.Results In the IVW analysis,it was found that BMI was associated with the risk of PCa(OR:0.997,95％CI:0.995-0.999,P=0.001).In the WME(OR:0.996,95％CI:0.994-0.999,P=0.009),and WM(OR:0.995,95％CI:0.991-1.000,P=0.045),the same results were obtained.There was no statistical significant difference between the MR-Egger method(OR:0.996,95％CI:0.991-1.002,P=0.205)and SM(OR:0.995,95％CI:0.990-1.000,P=0.079).Conclusion There is a causal relationship between a genetically predicted higher BMI and a lower risk of PCa by two sample MR analysis.This finding can prove a reference for identifying potential risk factors for PCa and the development of prevention strategies.

Objective:To investigate the impact of the interval period between biopsy and MR examination on tumor detection and extraprostatic extension (EPE) assessment for prostate cancer (PCa) using multi-parametric MRI (mpMRI).Methods:The study was cross-sectional and retrospectively included 130 patients with PCa who underwent RP and preoperative systematic biopsies followed by mpMRI between January 2021 and December 2022 in the First Medical Center of Chinese PLA General Hospital. Patients were divided into 3 groups according to interval following biopsy (group A,<3 weeks, 31 cases; group B, 3-6 weeks, 67 cases; group C,>6 weeks, 32 cases). The percentages of hemorrhage volume in the total prostate were drawn on T 1WI and calculated. The junior, senior and expert radiologists independently localized the index lesions and calculated the accuracy for tumor detection, in addition to assessing the probabilities of EPE according to EPE grade. The correlation between the hemorrhage extent and interval was analyzed using the Spearman correlation coefficient. The accuracy for tumor detection was compared using χ2 test among groups. The diagnostic performance of the radiologists for EPE prediction was assessed using the receiver operating characteristic curve, and the differences between the corresponding area under the curve (AUC) were compared using the DeLong test. Results:The percentage of hemorrhage was correlated with the interval between biopsy and MR examination ( r=-0.325, P<0.001). The detection accuracy of junior radiologist was 83.9% (26/31), 76.1% (51/67), and 78.1% (25/32) in group A, B and C, respectively; no differences were observed in the detection accuracy among three groups ( χ2=0.76, P=0.685). The detection accuracy of senior radiologist was 83.9% (26/31), 80.6% (54/67), and 71.9% (23/32) in 3 groups with no differences ( χ2=1.53, P=0.464). The detection accuracy of expert radiologist was 80.6% (25/31), 77.6% (52/67), and 93.8% (30/32) with no differences ( χ2=3.95, P=0.139). The AUC (95% CI) for predicting EPE were 0.830 (0.652-0.940), 0.704 (0.580-0.809), 0.800 (0.621-0.920) in the group A, B and C for junior radiologist; 0.876 (0.708-0.966), 0.768 (0.659-0.863), 0.896 (0.736-0.975) for senior radiologist; and 0.866 (0.695-0.961), 0.813 (0.699-0.895), 0.852 (0.682-0.952) for expert radiologist, respectively. No differences were observed among the subgroups in each radiologist ( P>0.05). Conclusion:The interval period does not significantly affect the detection accuracy and EPE assessment of PCa using mpMRI. There is probably no necessity for prolonged intervals following systematic biopsy to preserve the clarity of MRI interpretation for PCa.

Objectives:To investigate the feasibility of using bedside echocardiography on the evaluation of potential donors with different causes of brain death for adult heart transplantation. Methods:Bedside echocardiographic and clinical data of consecutive potential donors for adult heart transplantation evaluated by the team of our institution from February 2018 to December 2020 were retrospectively analyzed.Based on different causes of brain death,the potential donors were divided into stroke(ischemic or hemorrhagic,n=398)and non-stroke(head trauma,brain tumor,anoxia,n=272)groups.The clinical and echocardiographic features were compared between the two groups.A total of 350 donors were assigned to our hospital by the China Organ Transplant Response System and met the inclusion criteria for donor selection.There were 195 cases in the stroke group and 155 in the non-stroke group.Retrieval operations were performed and the retrieval rate of hearts for transplantation in stroke donors was compared to that in non-stroke donors. Results:(1)Among the 670 potential heart donors,compared with the non-stroke group,donors in the stroke group were significantly older,had higher body mass index,larger left ventricular end-diastolic diameter,thicker interventricular septum,higher rates of echocardiographic abnormalities,higher prevalence of hypertension(all P<0.001).Among the 670 potential heart donors,17.5%(117 cases)did not meet the echo selection criteria,the common causes were left ventricular hypertrophy(59 cases,50.4%),left ventricular ejection fraction<50%(27 cases,23.1%),wall motion abnormalities(21 cases,17.9%),and left ventricular dilation(14 cases,12.0%).(2)Among the 350 donors who had met the selection criteria and assigned to our hospital by the China Organ Transplant Response System and underwent retrieval operation,70.3%(246 cases)were successfully procured,110 cases(44.7%)in the stroke group and 136 cases(55.3%)in the non-stroke group.The retrieval rate of stroke donors(110/195,56.4%)was lower compared with that of non-stroke(136/155,87.7%,P<0.001),104 cases(29.7%)were not retrieved,and the leading cause of unsuccessful organ retrieval was the occlusion of at least one major coronary artery(91 cases,87.5%). Conclusions:Bedside echocardiography is of great value as a screening tool for cardiac donors.Cardiac structures of the potential donor with stroke as the cause of brain death were different from those with non-stroke causes.The retrieval rate of stroke donors was lower than that of non-stroke donors,even if the initial criteria for donor selection were fulfilled.

OBJECTIVE: To explore clinical efficacy of unilateral and bilateral nail-rod system fixation in single-level intervertebral fusion fixation of lumbar disc herniation (LDH) and instability with unilateral dual-channel spinal endoscopy. METHODS: The clinical data of 63 patients with LDH complicated with instability treated by unilateral double-channel spinal endoscopy from March 2021 to June 2022 were retrospectively analyzed. According to intraoperative fixation methods, the patients were divided into two groups, included unilateral nail rod system fixation group(unilateral group) and bilateral nail rod system fixation group(bilateral group). There were 31 patients in unilateral group, including 15 males and 16 females; aged from 40 to 67 years old with an average of (54.65±7.32) years old; 3 patients with L_3,4, 15 patients with L_4,5, 13 patients with L₅S₁. There were 32 patients in bilateral group, including 18 males and 14 females, aged from 43 to 68 years old with an average of (56.19±6.63) years old;4 patients with L_3,4, 17 patients with L_4,5, 11 patients with L₅S₁. The time of operation, length of incision, operation time, length of hospital stay, cost of treatment, occurrence of complications and adverse events were recorded and compared between two groups. Visual analogue scale (VAS) of lumbar and leg pain, Japanese Orthopaedic Association (JOA) and Oswestry disability index (ODI) were compared before operation, 3 and 12 months after operation. MacNab standard was used to evaluate clinical effect. RESULTS: Both of two groups were successfully completed operation and followed up. In unilateral fixation group, follow-up time, operation time, incision length, postoperative ambulation time, hospital stay and treatment cost were (11.81±1.08) months, (122.48±13.86) min, (3.15±0.45) cm, (3.06±0.73) d, (6.87±1.09) d, and (3.49±0.09) ten thousand yuan;while (11.47±1.16) months, (134.94±10.94) min, (6.45±0.83) cm, (3.19±0.86) d, (7.03±1.03) d, (3.77±0.12) ten thousand yuan in bilateral fixation group, respectively;there were significant differences in operation time, incision length and treatment cost between two groups (P<0.05), no significant difference in follow-up time, postoperative ambulation time and hospital stay (P>0.05). There were no significant difference in VAS of low back pain, JOA score, ODI and MacNab grade between two groups before and after operation (P>0.05). No significant complications and adverse events were observed between two groups after operation. CONCLUSION Both of unilateral and bilateral nail rod system for the treatment of LDH with instability could achieve the expected results. Unilateral fixation has more advantageous than bilateral fixation in terms of operation time, incision length and treatment cost. For patients with osteoporosis before operation or insufficient fixation strength of unilateral pedicle nails during surgery, bilateral fixation is feasible to enhance reliability of fixation.
Humans ; Male ; Female ; Middle Aged ; Spinal Fusion/methods* ; Endoscopy/methods* ; Aged ; Adult ; Intervertebral Disc Displacement/surgery* ; Lumbar Vertebrae/surgery* ; Retrospective Studies

To investigate the factors affecting the sperm retrieval rate of microdissection testicular sperm extraction (micro-TESE) in patients with nonmosaic Klinefelter syndrome (KS), 64 patients with nonmosaic KS who underwent micro-TESE in the Center for Reproductive Medicine of Peking University Third Hospital (Beijing, China) between January 2016 and December 2017 were included in the study. Data on medical history, physical examination and laboratory examination results, and micro-TESE outcomes were collected. Patients were divided into two groups according to micro-TESE outcomes. The following factors were compared between the two groups by the Mann‒Whitney U test or Student's t-test based on the distribution (nonnormal or normal) of the factors: age, testicular size, follicle-stimulating hormone level, luteinizing hormone level, testosterone level, and anti-Müllerian hormone level. The overall success rate of sperm retrieval was 50.0%. Correlation analysis showed that testicular volume was positively correlated with testosterone level. Using a logistic regression model, age and anti-Müllerian hormone levels were found to be better predictors for the sperm retrieval rate than the other parameters.
Humans ; Male ; Sperm Retrieval ; Klinefelter Syndrome ; Microdissection ; Anti-Mullerian Hormone ; Semen ; Testis ; Spermatozoa ; Testosterone ; Azoospermia ; Retrospective Studies