Background The prevalence of hyperuricemia (HUA) among Chinese residents has been increasing annually, with occupational populations facing a higher risk of HUA due to shift work or obesity. Objective To investigate the impact of shift work and obesity on HUA among coal miners, and to provide scientific data for the prevention of HUA in this occupational group. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted with 25619 workers from a coal mining group in 2023 as the study population, using a questionnaire survey and occupational health check-ups. Workers who were retired or on medical leave, as well as those who provided incomplete responses to the questionnaire or did not complete anthropometric measurements or blood tests, were excluded. A total of 23173 participants were included in the study. An unconditional logistic regression model was used to analyze the association between HUA and selected factors such as shift work status, years of shift work, daily shift work hours, body mass index (BMI), waist-to-height ratio (WHtR), and visceral adiposity index (VAI), as well as the interaction between obesity and shift work on HUA. Restricted cubic spline functions were used to analyze the dose-response relationship between years of shift work, daily shift work hours, and HUA. Results The average age of the included workers was (42.38 ± 9.82) years. A total of 6735 workers reported positive HUA, with a positive rate of 29.1%, and the prevalence was higher in men compared to women (31.8% vs. 13.9%). After adjusting for confounding factors, the restricted cubic spline model revealed a nonlinear dose-response relationship between years of shift work, daily shift work duration, and HUA: ① When the years of shift work exceeded 3.25 years, the risk of HUA in workers gradually increased with longer work duration. At 20 years of shift work, the risk increase showed a "saturation effect," meaning that the risk of HUA no longer increased with additional years of shift work. ② When daily shift work duration was below 10 h, the risk of HUA increased with the length of shift work, but after exceeding 10 h, the risk stabilized. After adjusting for confounding factors, the logistic regression model showed that, compared to non-shift workers, shift workers, those with 10-20 years and over 20 years of shift work experience, as well as those working less than 8 h and more than 8 h per day, had a higher risk of HUA, with odds ratios (OR) of 1.14 (95%CI: 1.06, 1.22), 2.42 (95%CI: 2.20, 2.67), 2.23 (95%CI: 2.00, 2.48), 1.41 (95%CI: 1.29, 1.54), and 1.90 (95%CI: 1.75, 2.06), respectively. Additionally, compared to individuals with normal obesity indices, those with overweight and obesity based on BMI, high and very high VAI and excessive WHtR had a higher risk of HUA, with ORs of 2.01 (95%CI: 1.85, 2.17), 3.51 (95%CI: 3.20, 3.84), 1.42 (95%CI: 1.32, 1.54), 2.10 (95%CI: 1.91, 2.30), and 1.82 (95%CI: 1.69, 1.97), respectively. The interaction analysis showed no interaction between shift work and obesity index (both P_s < 0.001). Conclusion Shift work, longer shift work years, and longer daily shift work hours increase the risk of HUA among coal miners. Additionally, the role of obesity in the development of HUA cannot be ignored.

Background In recent years, the detection rate of thyroid nodules in China's occupational population has shown an upward trend. The prevalence of this disease needs to be taken seriously and targeted measures should be taken to address its influencing factors. Objective To analyze the detection and influencing factors of thyroid nodules among adult male workers in coal mining enterprises in Shanxi Province, and provide a theoretical basis for the prevention of thyroid nodules. Methods A total of 5195 adult male workers from coal mining enterprises who ordered physical examination provided by the Xishan Coal Electricity (Group) Corporation Occupational Disease Prevention and Control Institute in Taiyuan City, Shanxi Province from May 2023 to December 2023 were selected as research subjects. A questionnaire survey, physical examination, ultrasound examination, and biological sample collection and testing were conducted. Thyroid nodules were diagnosed based on ultrasound results, classified and evaluated according to the Chinese-Thyroid Imaging Reporting and Data System (C-TIRADS), and the crude detection rate and standardized detection rate of thyroid nodules in adult male coal mine workers in Shanxi Province wereestimated. Occupational history and occupational exposure information were retrieved from their annual occupational health examination reports provided by the employer. Logistic regression modeling was used to analyze the influencing factors of thyroid nodule. Results A total of 1688 cases of thyroid nodules were detected, with a crude detection rate of 32.49% and an age-standardized detection rate of 31.17%. The cases (constitution ratio) of thyroid nodules by category in the detected cases was as follows: 358 cases (21.21%) were classified as category 2, 1261 cases (74.70%) as category 3, 67 cases (3.97%) as category 4a, and 2 cases (0.12%) as category 4b. The results of logistic regression showed that the duration of exposure to occupational hazards for 11-20 years, 21-30 years, ≥31 years, average monthly working>26 days, and shift work were positively correlated with the detection of thyroid nodules (P<0.05), and the associated ORs (95%CIs) were 1.29 (1.01, 1.65), 1.55 (1.20, 1.99), 1.68 (1.26, 2.55), 1.19 (1.00, 1.40), and 1.15 (1.02, 1.29), respectively. Conclusion The duration of exposure to occupational hazards, average monthly working days, and shift work are influencing factors of thyroid nodules. Intervention measures should be developed based on these influencing factors to prevent the occurrence of thyroid nodules.

Objective To analyze the independent factors impacting the in-hospital prognosis of patients with septic shock,and to construct a simplified scoring system and evaluate its predictive value.Methods A retrospective analysis was carried out on 247 patients with septic shock admitted to the People's Hospital of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region from January 2021 to July 2022,among whom 122 patients survived and 125 died.Univariate analysis and multivariate Cox proportional hazard regression model were used to screen the independent factors affecting in-hospital mortality of septic shock patients.The best cut-off value was ob-tained by using the receiver operating characteristics(ROC)curve,and the continuous variables were conver-ted into binary variables and assigned.Finally,a simplified scoring system was established,and its predictive efficacy for hospital death in septic shock patients was verified.Results The results of multivariate Cox pro-portional hazard regression model showed that the Glasgow coma scale(GCS)score(HR=0.929,95%CI:0.875-0.985,P=0.014),quick sequential organ failure assessment(qSOFA)score(HR=1.475,95%CI:1.094-1.989,P=0.011),lactate level(HR=1.096,95%CI:1.049-1.145,P<0.001),procalcitonin level(HR=1.009,95%CI:1.000-1.018,P=0.048),and albumin level(HR=0.958,95%CI:0.922-0.996,P=0.029)were identified as independent influencing factors for in-hospital mortality in patients with septic shock.The ROC curve showed that the simplified scoring system,based on GCS score,qSOFA score,lactate,procalcitonin,and albumin levels,exhibited an area under the curve and 95%CI of 0.866(0.822-0.910),with an optimal cutoff value of 2.5.The sensitivity and specificity were 80.0%and 78.7%,respectively.Con-clusion The simplified scoring system,based on early assessments of GCS score,qSOFA score,lactate,pro-calcitonin,and albumin levels,demonstrates substantial predictive value for in-hospital mortality in patients with septic shock.

Objective To analyze the correlation between thromboelastogram indicators(R time,K time,MA value)and global registry of acute coronary events(GRACE)score and acute myocardial infarction(AMI),and explore the risk factors for the onset of AMI.Methods A total of 108 patients with AMI who were hospitalized in Xuancheng Central Hospital for the first time from September 2020 to February 2023 were selected as the observation group,while 70 patients with stable coronary heart disease were selected as the control group.The clinical basic data,thromboelastogram indicators,GRACE score,and homocysteine(Hcy)of all study subjects were collected.The differences of clinical basic data,thromboelastogram indica-tors,GEACE score,and Hcy level between the observation group and the control group were statistically ana-lyzed.The predictive value of thromboelastogram indicators,GRACE score,and Hcy level for the occurrence of AMI was evaluated by using the receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve.Binary Logistic regression model was used to conduct univariate and multivariate regression analyses on indicators with statistically sig-nificant differences,in order to determine the independent risk factors for AMI occurrence.Results There were significant differences of R time,K time,MA value,GRACE score,serum Hcy level,and the proportion of underlying diseases between the observation group and the control group(P＜0.05).The ROC curve re-sults showed that R time,K time,MA value,GRACE score,and Hcy had good predictive value for the occur-rence of different types of AMI,and the value of the combined application was higher.Univariate Logistic re-gression showed that MA value,GRACE score,Hcy level,and underlying disease were positively correlated with the occurrence of AMI(P＜0.05),while R time and K time were negatively correlated with the occur-rence of AMI(P＜0.05).Multivariate Logistic regression showed that high GRACE score and elevated Hcy level were independent risk factors for the occurrence of AMI(P＜0.05),while R time and K time were inde-pendent protective factors for the occurrence of AMI(P＜0.05).Conclusion Thromboelastogram,Hcy,and GRACE score could be used as dynamic monitoring indicators for clinical risk assessment of AMI in acute cor-onary syndrome population.

Objective·To explore the relationship between osteoarthritis and nicotinamide metabolism-related genes using bioinformatics analysis,and identify key genes with diagnostic value and therapeutic potential.Methods·By using"Osteoarthritis"as a search term,GSE12021,GSE55235,and GSE55457 were obtained from the GEO database,with GSE55457 being used as the validation set.After removing batch effects from the GSE12021 and GSE55235 datasets,the standardized combined dataset was obtained and used as the training dataset.Differentially expressed genes(DEGs)were identified from the training dataset.All nicotinamide metabolism-related genes(NMRGs)were obtained from the GeneCards and MSigDB databases.The intersection of DEGs and NMRGs was taken to obtain nicotinamide metabolism-related differentially expressed genes(NMRDEGs).Gene set enrichment analysis(GSEA)was performed on the training dataset,while gene ontology(GO)and Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes(KEGG)analysis were performed on NMRDEGs.Key genes were selected by using least absolute shrinkage and selection operator(LASSO)and support vector machine(SVM)analysis in NMRDEGs to build an osteoarthritis diagnosis model which was validated by using the GSE55457 dataset.Single sample gene set enrichment analysis(ssGSEA)was used to analyze the immune cell infiltration type.Interactions networks and drug molecule predictions were obtained for these key genes'mRNA with the DGIdb,ENCORI,and CHIPBase databases.siRNA was used to knock down the key genes in chondrocytes,and then real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction(RT-qPCR)was used to detect the expression of chondrogenesis-related genes.Results·Seven NMRDEGs,including NAMPT,TIPARP,were discovered.GO and KEGG analysis enriched some signaling pathways,such as nuclear factor-κB signaling pathway and positive regulation of interleukin-1-mediated signaling pathway.GSEA enriched pathways such as Hif1 Tfpathway and syndecan 1 pathway.Key genes NPAS2,TIPARP,and NAMPT were identified through LASSO and SVM analysis,and used to construct an osteoarthritis diagnostic model.The validated results showed that the diagnostic model had high accuracy.Immune infiltration analysis results obtained by ssGSEA showed significant differences(all P<0.05)in 15 types of immune cells,including macrophages.Seven potential small molecules targeting key genes were identified,along with 19 miRNAs with the sum of upstream and downstream>10,19 transcription factors with upstream and downstream>7,and 27 RNA binding proteins with clusterNum>19.The results of RT-qPCR showed that knocking down key genes reduced the expression of chondrogenesis-related genes.Conclusion·Through bioinformatics analysis,key genes related to nicotinamide metabolism,NPAS2,TIPARP,and NAMPT,are discovered,and an osteoarthritis diagnostic model is constructed.

Objective:To investigate the therapeutic effect of high-flow nasal cannula oxygen therapy (HFNC) and non-invasive positive pressure ventilation (NPPV) on patients with pulmonary edema caused by seawater drowning.Methods:A retrospective analysis method was used. Based on the Utstein database of emergency drowning in the First Hospital of Qinhuangdao, the clinical data of patients with seawater drowning pulmonary edema admitted to the emergency medicine department of the First Hospital of Qinhuangdao from January 1, 2019 to December 31, 2022 were collected. The patients were divided into NPPV group and HFNC group according to different ventilation methods. The general data, endotracheal intubation rate in 7 days, arterial blood gas analysis indexes [arterial partial pressure of oxygen (PaO 2), arterial partial pressure of carbon dioxide (PaCO 2), arterial oxygen saturation (SaO 2)] and hemodynamic indexes (systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, mean arterial pressure, heart rate, blood lactic acid) before and after treatment, length of stay in intensive care unit (ICU), oxygen therapy comfort of the two groups were compared. Results:A total of 54 patients were enrolled, including 21 patients in the NPPV group and 33 patients in the HFNC group. There were no significant differences in gender, age, state of consciousness and other general information between the two groups. Compared with NPPV group, the rate of endotracheal intubation in HFNC group within 7 days was significantly lower [24.2% (8/33) vs. 33.3% (7/21), P < 0.05]. Before treatment, there were no significant differences in arterial blood gas analysis and hemodynamics between the two groups. After treatment, the above indexes in both groups were significantly improved compared with those before treatment, and PaO 2, SaO 2, systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure and mean arterial pressure in HFNC group were significantly higher than those in NPPV group [PaO 2 (mmHg, 1 mmHg≈0.133kPa): 93.56±6.37 vs. 82.14±6.25, SaO 2: 1.02±0.09 vs. 0.95±0.11, systolic blood pressure (mmHg): 117.37±8.43 vs. 110.42±8.38, diastolic blood pressure (mmHg): 79.43±7.61 vs. 72.21±4.32, mean arterial pressure (mmHg): 92.34±6.32 vs. 85.12±5.38], PaCO 2, heart rate and blood lactic acid were significantly lower than those in NPPV group [PaCO 2 (mmHg) : 34.26±5.63 vs. 37.24±6.22, heart rate (times/min): 73.38±7.56 vs. 86.25±5.41, blood lactic acid (mmol/L): 1.38±0.36 vs. 2.25±1.14], and the differences were statistically significant (all P < 0.05). In addition, the length of ICU stay in HFNC group was significantly shorter than that in NPPV group (days: 13.30±2.38 vs. 16.27±4.26), and the comfort rate of oxygen therapy was significantly higher than that in NPPV group [66.7% (22/33) vs. 42.8% (9/21)], with statistical significance (all P < 0.05). Conclusion:HFNC can improve the oxygenation of patients with pulmonary edema caused by seawater drowning, improve hemodynamics, reduce the rate of tracheal intubation, shorten the length of ICU stay, and improve the comfort of oxygen therapy, which has certain clinical application value.

Objective:To investigate the efficacy of robot-assisted femoral tunnel localization in reconstruction of the medial patellofemoral ligament (MPFL).Methods:A retrospective study was conducted to analyze the 36 patients who had been admitted to Department of Sports Medicine, The Fourth Hospital of Wuhan between January 2019 and January 2022 due to recurrent patellar dislocation. There were 15 males and 21 females; age: 23.5 (18.3, 29.0) years; number of dislocations: 2.5 (2.0, 3.0). They were stratified into 2 cohorts based on utilization of robot-assistance. In the observation group (17 cases), the femoral tunnel localization was robot-assisted in MPFL reconstruction; in the control group (19 cases), the femoral tunnel localization was guided by C-arm fluoroscopy in MPFL reconstruction. The 2 groups were compared in terms of operation time, frequency of guide wire placement, visual analogue scale (VAS) at postoperative 1 d, patellar tilt angle (PTA) and the disparity between actual femoral tunnel insertion and ideal tunnel insertion point (Sch?ttle point) at postoperative 1 to 3 d, and Lysholm knee score and International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC) score at the last follow-up.Results:There was no significant difference in the preoperative general data between the 2 groups, showing comparability ( P>0.05). All patients were followed up for 12.0 (10.3, 13.0) months. In the observation group, the operation time [(64.1±16.7) min], frequency of guide wire placement [1.0 (1.0, 2.0) times], VAS [2.5 (2.0, 3.0) points], and disparity between actual femoral tunnel insertion and ideal tunnel insertion point [(4.7±1.2) mm] were significantly better than those in the control group [(84.2±19.7) min, 3.0 (2.0, 4.0) times, 3.5 (3.0, 4.0) points, and (6.1±1.2) mm] ( P<0.05). There was no statistical difference between the 2 groups in PTA, Lysholm knee score or IKDC score ( P>0.05). Conclusions:The short-term clinical efficacy of robot-assisted femoral tunnel localization is satisfactory in MPFL reconstruction. Compared with the intraoperative C-arm fluoroscopy, robot-assisted localization can decrease the frequency of guide wire placement, enhance femoral tunnel accuracy and efficiency, and alleviate more postoperative pain for the patients.

Diabetic nephropathy （DN） is a chronic microvascular complication in diabetic patients and the main cause of end-stage renal disease （ESRD）. Studies have shown that nuclear factor kappa-B （NF-κB） signaling pathway is involved in the pathological process of DN by activating pathological mechanisms such as inflammation， oxidative stress， fibrosis， apoptosis， autophagy， and pyroptosis. Therefore， blocking the transduction of NF-κB signaling pathway can help prevent and treat DN. Currently， western medical treatment involves strategies such as lowering blood sugar， blood pressure， and lipids， as well as using endothelin receptor antagonists， mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists， aldosterone synthase inhibitors， and other drugs， but they still cannot block the pathological process of DN. Traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） offers a simpler and more cost-effective approach that addresses both the symptoms and underlying causes of DN. Recent research has shown promising results in managing DN with TCM， and NF-κB， as a key factor， plays an important role in the prevention and treatment of DN. This article summarized the research results of TCM based on the NF-κB signaling pathway for the treatment of DN in the past five years. It described a variety of TCM extracts， such as polysaccharides， terpenes， phenols， flavonoids， saponins， and alkaloids， as well as TCM compound prescriptions such as Huaiqihuang granules， Astragalus mongholicus Bunge and Panax notoginseng formula， and Danzhi Jiangtang capsules， which regulated the NF-κB signaling pathway and its upstream and downstream factors to block the pathological process of DN. This inhibition aims to prevent renal pathological damage caused by DN and slow down the deterioration of renal function. The article aims to provide new ideas and references for the research and development of drugs for the prevention and treatment of DN.

AIM: To evaluate the pathogenic variants of the SCO2(OMIM 604272)gene in patients with high myopia from Enshi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture of China.METHODS: A total of 384 patients with high myopia whose spherical refractive error was ≤ -6.00 D and whose axial length was ≥26.00 mm in at least one eye were recruited. DNA was extracted by the phenol-chloroform method from 5 mL of peripheral venous blood. Sanger sequencing was performed to identify pathogenic variants in exon 2 of SCO2. The detected variants were evaluated via in silico prediction software. A total of 288 people from the same district were included as the normal control cohort.RESULTS: Seven variants were detected, namely, four synonymous variants(c.201C>T/p.=, c.576C>T/p.=, c.633A>C/p.=, c.780T>C/p.=.), two missense variants(c.187A>G/p.Ile63Val, c.59G>C/p.Arg20Pro)and one nonsense variant(c.544C>T/p.Gln182*). The two missense variants were not damaging, as predicted by PolyPhen2, SIFT and Provean. The novel nonsense variant(c.544C>T/p.Gln182*)cannot be found in the 1000 Genomes Project and was not identified in 288 normal controls. Variant Taster suggested that the nonsense variant site was conserved.CONCLUSION: The newly identified nonsense mutation may be responsible for high myopia of the patients in our cohort. SCO2 is associated with high myopia, while the incidence of SCO2 variants in high myopia in this cohort was as low as 1/384; the nonsense mutation may be a scarce variant of high myopia in the Enshi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture of China.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the effect of chitosan (CS) hydrogel loaded with tendon-derived stem cells (TDSCs; hereinafter referred to as TDSCs/CS hydrogel) on tendon-to-bone healing after rotator cuff repair in rabbits. METHODS: TDSCs were isolated from the rotator cuff tissue of 3 adult New Zealand white rabbits by Henderson step-by-step enzymatic digestion method and identified by multidirectional differentiation and flow cytometry. The 3rd generation TDSCs were encapsulated in CS to construct TDSCs/CS hydrogel. The cell counting kit 8 (CCK-8) assay was used to detect the proliferation of TDSCs in the hydrogel after 1-5 days of culture in vitro, and cell compatibility of TDSCs/CS hydrogel was evaluated by using TDSCs alone as control. Another 36 adult New Zealand white rabbits were randomly divided into 3 groups ( n=12): rotator cuff repair group (control group), rotator cuff repair+CS hydrogel injection group (CS group), and rotator cuff repair+TDSCs/CS hydrogel injection group (TDSCs/CS group). After establishing the rotator cuff repair models, the corresponding hydrogel was injected into the tendon-to-bone interface in the CS group and TDSCs/CS group, and no other treatment was performed in the control group. The general condition of the animals was observed after operation. At 4 and 8 weeks, real-time quantitative PCR (qPCR) was used to detect the relative expressions of tendon forming related genes (tenomodulin, scleraxis), chondrogenesis related genes (aggrecan, sex determining region Y-related high mobility group-box gene 9), and osteogenesis related genes (alkaline phosphatase, Runt-related transcription factor 2) at the tendon-to-bone interface. At 8 weeks, HE and Masson staining were used to observe the histological changes, and the biomechanical test was used to evaluate the ultimate load and the failure site of the repaired rotator cuff to evaluate the tendon-to-bone healing and biomechanical properties. RESULTS: CCK-8 assay showed that the CS hydrogel could promote the proliferation of TDSCs ( P<0.05). qPCR results showed that the expressions of tendon-to-bone interface related genes were significantly higher in the TDSCs/CS group than in the CS group and control group at 4 and 8 weeks after operation ( P<0.05). Moreover, the expressions of tendon-to-bone interface related genes at 8 weeks after operation were significantly higher than those at 4 weeks after operation in the TDSCs/CS group ( P<0.05). Histological staining showed the clear cartilage tissue and dense and orderly collagen formation at the tendon-to-bone interface in the TDSCs/CS group. The results of semi-quantitative analysis showed that compared with the control group, the number of cells, the proportion of collagen fiber orientation, and the histological score in the TDSCs/CS group increased, the vascularity decreased, showing significant differences ( P<0.05); compared with the CS group, the proportion of collagen fiber orientation and the histological score in the TDSCs/CS group significantly increased ( P<0.05), while there was no significant difference in the number of cells and vascularity ( P>0.05). All samples in biomechanical testing failed at the repair site during the testing process. The ultimate load of the TDSCs/CS group was significantly higher than that of the control group ( P<0.05), but there was no significant difference compared to the CS group ( P>0.05). CONCLUSION TDSCs/CS hydrogel can induce cartilage regeneration to promote rotator cuff tendon-to-bone healing.
Rabbits ; Animals ; Rotator Cuff/surgery* ; Chitosan ; Hydrogels ; Rotator Cuff Injuries/surgery* ; Wound Healing ; Tendons/surgery* ; Collagen ; Stem Cells ; Biomechanical Phenomena