Objective:To investigate whether stress hyperglycemia (SH) is an independent risk factor for the occurrence and mortality of sepsis-associated encephalopathy (SAE).Methods:From August 2016 to October 2021, sepsis patients admitted to the ICU of Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital were selected as the study subjects. According to whether they developed to SH (RBG>11.1 mmol/L) within 7 days of enrollment, the pat ients were divided into the SH group and the non-SH group for analysis. Logistic regression was used to analyze whether SH was an independent risk factor for SAE occurrence, and ROC curve was used to analyze the predictive value of SH to SAE. Kaplan-Meier curve was used to compare the 90-day survival of SAE patients with or without SH. Cox regression analysis was used to analyze the risk factors of 28-day and 90-day death in SAE patients.Results:A total of 183 sepsis patients were included, including 62 patients in the SH group and 121 in the non-SH group. Logistic regression analysis demonstrated that SH was an independent risk factor for SAE ( OR=4.452, 95% CI: 2.021-9.808, P <0.001). ROC curve demonstrated that SH could accurately predict SAE (AUC=0.831; Sensitivity=78.4%; Specificity=76.8%; and Yoden index=0.553). Kaplan-Meier curve demonstrated that the 90-day survival of SAE patients with SH significantly declined (log-rank test: P<0.01). Cox regression analysis suggested that SH was a risk factor for death at day 28 and day 90 in SAE patients (28 d, HR=2.272, 95% CI: 1.212-4.260, P=0.010; 90 d, HR=2.456, 95% CI: 1.400-4.306, P<0.01). Conclusions:SH is an independent risk factor for SAE and can predict SAE occurrence. SH significantly reduces 90-day survival and increase mortality at 28 and 90 days in SAE patients.

Objective To explore the value of prophylactic anticoagulation in the 28-day prognosis of patients with severe COVID-19.Methods The clinical data of COVID-19 patients admitted to Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital from December 2022 to January 2023 were collected,including age,gender,past medical history,routine blood test,liver and renal function,procalcitonin,coagulation function,Padua prediction score,antiviral therapy,hormonotherapy,immunotherapy and anticoagulation therapy.The patients were divided into an anticoagula-tion group and a non-anticoagulation group.The differences in various indicators were compared between the two groups.Cox regression was performed to assess the independent risk factors for 28-day mortality and the anticoagula-tion efficacy between the subgroups.Results Among 158 patients,128 received anticoagulation;There were significant differences between the two groups in case number of hypertension and critical condition,lymphocyte count,prothrombin time,D-dimer,and case number of immunotherapy.COX logistic regression showed that antico-agulation(HR = 2.25,95%CI:1.01～5.01,P = 0.048)was an independent risk factor for all-cause mortality of COVID-19 patients within 28 days.Subgroup analysis showed that anticoagulation therapy led to an increase in the 28-day mortality as level of procalcitonin of≥0.5 pg/mL(HR = 2.72,95%CI:1.05～7.04)or D-dimer of<2 000 ng/mL(HR = 9.16,95%CI:1.63～51.48).Conclusions Prophylactic anticoagulation did not reduce all-cause mortality of COVID-19 within 28 days.

Objective:To investigate the diagnostic and early-warning value of laboratory test indicators for sepsis-induced myocardial injury (SIMD).Methods:The clinical data of 183 patients with sepsis admitted to the Department of Emergency and Critical Care Medicine of Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital from August 2016 to October 2020 were collected. The patient's age, gender, past medical history, vital signs and pathogen culture results were extracted. Cardiac function, blood routine, liver function, renal function, inflammatory factors, coagulation function, APACHE Ⅱ and SOFA scores were recorded at enrollment and 72 h after admission. SIMD was defined as cTnT ≥300 pg/mL and NT-proBNP ≥1243 pg/mL twice in 72 h intervals between enrolled cases, and the early-warning factors of patients with SIMD were analyzed. The differences in various indicators between the two groups were compared, and Logistic regression analysis was used to explore the diagnostic efficacy of cTnT and NT-proBNP combined for SIMD, and the correlation between PCT/PLT ratio and the occurrence of SIMD.Results:Among 250 patients, 67 patients were excluded for lack of the main indicators, and 183 patients (including 62 patients with history of cardiac disease) were enrolled finally. Among 183 patients with sepsis, 105 patients (57.38%) with cTNT ≥300 pg/mL and NT-proBNP ≥1 243 pg/mL, were diagnosed as myocardial injury; after excluding 62 patients with history of cardiac disease, 59 patients (48.76%) with cTNT ≥300 pg/mL and NT-proBNP ≥1 243 pg/mL were diagnosed as myocardial injury. Logistic regression analysis showed that increased PCT/PLT ratio ( OR=1.585, 95% CI: 1.124-2.237, P=0.009) was an independent risk factor for early-warning of SIMD. The PCT/PLT ratio ( OR= 1.850, 95% CI: 1.103-3.102, P=0.020) could stably predict the occurrence of SIMD in patients without previous history of heart disease. ROC curve analysis showed that PCT/PLT ratio could effectively predict the occurrence of SIMD (AUC=0.693, 95% CI: 0.617-0.769, P<0.001), the optimal cut-off value was 0.177 (sensitivity: 65.7%, specificity: 66.7%). The PCT/PLT ratio was still effective in predicting the occurrence of SIMD after excluding patients with previous history of heart disease (AUC=0.733, 95% CI: 0.643-0.823, P<0.001), and the optimal cut-off value was 0.429 (sensitivity: 55.9%, specificity: 83.9%). Conclusions:The combination of cTnT and NT-proBNP has certain diagnostic value for SIMD, and the PCT/PLT ratio could warn the occurrence of SIMD.

Objective:To evaluate the predictive effect of sepsis-induced coagulopathy (SIC) score level on the prognosis of septic patients under sepsis 3.0 criteria.Methods:A retrospective single-center observational study was conducted on the septic patients admitted to the department of critical care medicine and the department of emergency in Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital from August 2016 to July 2021. The baseline data, laboratory indexes and SIC scores of the patients were collected on the first and fourth (4th) day after hospitalization. Whether the patients were survival within 30 days after enrollment was recorded. Univariate and multivariate Logistic regression were used to analyze the independent risk factors for 30-day mortality in septic patients. The receiver operator characteristic curve (ROC curve) was drawn to evaluate the predictive value of SIC score on the 30-day prognosis of septic patients.Results:A total of 173 patients met the inclusion criteria including 111 (64%) survivors and 62 (36%) non-survivors. There were significant differences in lymphocyte count (LYM), sequential organ failure assessment (SOFA), oxygenation index (PaO 2/FiO 2) and cardiovascular SOFA score between the survival group and the non-survival group. And there were no significant differences in other indexes. On the first day of admission, there were statistically significant differences in PaO 2/FiO 2, cardiovascular SOFA score, LYM, SIC score between the non-survival group and the survival group. There were significant differences in international normalized ratio (INR), prothrombin activity (PTA), prothrombin time (PT), PaO 2/FiO 2, cardiovascular SOFA score, LYM, C-reactive protein (CRP) and procalcitonin (PCT) between the two groups on the 4th day after admission. The mortality of septic patients increased with the increase of SIC score. Binary Logistic regression analysis showed that SIC score and LYM on the 4th day after admission were independent risk factors for 30-day mortality in septic patients (both P < 0.05). The ROC curve showed that SIC score had a certain predictive value for the 30-day prognosis of septic patients [area under the ROC curve (AUC) = 0.712, 95% confidence interval (95% CI) was 0.629-0.794, P < 0.001]. The predictive value of SIC score combined with LYM was better than that of the two alone (AUC = 0.748, 95% CI was 0.688-0.828, P < 0.001). Conclusions:The SIC score has a certain predictive value for the 30-day prognosis of septic patients. The predictive value of SIC score combined with LYM is better than that of the two alone, which is expected to be a potential indicator for early assessment of the condition and prognosis of septic patients.

Objective:To investigate the clinical characteristics and prognostic factors of 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) Omicron variant infected cases.Methods:A total of 987 coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) adult imported cases admitted to Shanghai Public Health Clinical Center, Fudan University from July 1, 2021 to January 6, 2022 were recruited. The cases were divided into Omicron group (193 cases) and non-Omicron group (794 cases) according to the genotype of the virus. The clinical data, imaging examination and laboratory results of two groups were collected and compared. Chi-square test and Mann-Whitney U test were used as statistical methods. Multiple linear regression analysis was used for multiple linear regression analysis. Results:The majority of patients in Omicron group were 18 to 30 years old, accounting for 51.3%(99/193), which was higher than 31.4%(249/794) in non-Omicron group. The difference was statistically significant ( χ2=52.75, P<0.001). The proportion of mild cases in Omicron group was 88.6%(171/193), which was higher than 81.6%(648/794) in non-Omicron group. The difference was statistically significant ( χ2=5.37, P=0.021). Cases with symptoms were more common in Omicron group than those in non-Omicron group (60.1%(116/193) vs 29.1%(231/794)), and the difference was statistically significant ( χ2=65.49, P<0.001), with the main clinical manifestations of sore/itchy throat, fever and cough/expectoration. The proportion of cases with pulmonary computed tomography (CT) imaging manifestations at admission in Omicron group was 13.0%(25/193), which was lower than that in non-Omicron group (215/794, 27.1%). The difference was statistically significant ( χ2=16.83, P<0.001). The proportion of cases with 2019-nCoV IgG positive at admission was 47.7%(92/193) in Omicron group, which was lower than 61.1%(485/794) in non-Omicron group, and the difference was statistically significant ( χ2=11.51, P<0.001). The hospitalization time of Omicron group was 20.0 (16.0, 23.0) d, which was longer than that of non-Omicron group (14.0 (10.0, 22.0) d), and the difference was statistically significant ( Z=-7.42, P<0.001). Multiple linear regression analysis showed that the time of hospitalization of cases with 2019-nCoV IgG positive at admission was shorter, while that of the cases with fever in Omicron group was longer (both P<0.050). Conclusions:The main clinical characteristics of cases with Omicron variant are fever and upper respiratory symptoms. Their pulmonary CT imaging manifestations are less, and the time of hospitalization is slightly longer. The time of hospitalization and the virus clearance time in Omicron variant infected cases with 2019-nCoV IgG positive at admission and not presented with fever are both shorter.

Objective To discover the mutations of rare thalassemia genes by sequencing of α and β-globin genes,to understand the frequency of rare mutations and to enrich thalassemia gene mutation spectrum in Chinese population.Methods For the cases of phenotype and genotype inconsistent,the 1st generation of sequencing was performed for α or β-globin gene coding region sequence analysis.Results A total of 102 patients with rare thalassemia gene mutations were found by sequencing,including 79 cases of β-thalassemia with 35 kinds of mutant types,and 23 cases of α-thalassemia with 11 kinds of mutant types.Conclusion The thalassemia gene sequencing could reveal rare mutations in genes,identify the genotype of patients,provide important support for prenatal diagnosis of rare thalassemia families,and reduce the missing rate and birth rate of children with thalassemia.

Objective To determine the effect of high dose albumin on permeability of blood brain barrier (BBB) in brain of rats after ischemic-reperfusion (IR) in order to explore its possible mechanism.Methods Establishment of brain ischemic reperfusion rat model by using middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO).Medicine treatment was given by caudal vein injection after 2 hours of MCAO.Thirty-six healthy male SD rats were then randomly (random number) divided into 6 groups (n =6 in each):6 h and 24 h sham-operation groups (Group Sham:operation without ischemia),6 h and 24 h normal saline groups (Group NS:NS injection 5 ml/kg) and 6 h and 24 h albumin group (Group Alb:25 ％ Alb injection 1.25 g/kg).Six hours and 24 hours after the end of reperfusion,rats were measured by Zea-Longa score (neural function deficit) separately.Serum concentration of S100B was examined by the ELISA kit and Evans blue in brain tissue was detected by spectrophotometer.The level of AQP4 was examined by Western blot and immunohistochemistry.All data were analyzed by one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA),The intergroup comparisons were analyzed by the least-significant-difference (LSD) test by using SPSS version 17.0 software.Differences were considered statistically significant if P ＜ 0.05.Results Zea-Longa score significantly increased in both group NS and group Alb at 6 h and 24 h (P =0.000).However,there was no significant difference in ZEA-LONGA score of 6 h and 24 h between group Alb and group NS (P =1.000).The serum concentration of S100B in group NS 6 h was significantly lower than that in group Alb at 6h (196.67±20.11 vs 160.04±14.00,P=0.000),and at24h (2.45±0.07 vs.2.23±0.07,P=0.000).Furthermore,concentration of Evans blue in brain tissue in group Alb was significantly higher than that in group NS at both 6 h (0.97 ± 0.08 vs.0.74 ± 0.06,P =0.000) and 24 h (2.45 ± 0.07 vs.2.23 ± 0.07,P =0.000).The expression of AQP4 in brain tissue was higher in group Alb than that in group NS at both 6 h (0.72 ±.0.11 vs.0.57 ± 0.06,P ＜ 0.01) and 24 h (0.80 ± 0.03 vs 0.61 ± 0.02,P ＜0.01).Conclusions High dose albumin contribute slightly in improvement of neural deficit in rats after IR.On the contrary,it can also aggravate the IR injury,which increases brain edema then increase the permeability of BBB.The mechanism may be associated with over-expression of AQP4 in brain tissue.

Objective To explore the effect of low intensity ultrasound (LUS) and microbubble enhanced ultrasound cavitation (MEUS), alone or in combination, on ethanol ablation (EA) of rabbit liver and observe the changes of liver perfusion and liver function. Methods Sixty-two healthy New Zealand rabbits were randomized to five groups: LUS group (n=6), EA group (n=14), LUS + EA group (n=14), MEUS + EA group (n=14), MEUS + LUS + EA group (n=14). For LUS, pulsed low intensity focused ultrasound emission was adopted (focal distance, 15 cm; duty cycle, 0.036%-0.22%;therapy duration, 5-6 min). According to the experiment design, surgically exposed left lobe of the liver was treated. In the LUS, MEUS + EA, and MEUS + LUS + EA groups, quantitative parameters were calculated and compared between the experimental and control liver lobes after different treatments. Three rabbits in each of the EA, LUS + EA, MEUS + EA, and MEUS + LUS + EA groups were used to detect the contents of alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate transaminase (AST) in arterial blood at five different time points (before treatment, 1 h, 48 h, 5 d, and 7 d after treatment). The livers of the remaining rabbits were harvested for measurement of ethanol ablation volume by drainage method or examination of the histological changes by HE staining 48 h after treatment. Results In the LUS group, the peak intensity (PI) and the area under the curve (AUC) were higher in the experiment lobe than in the control lobe, but there was no significant difference. In the MEUS + EA and MEUS+LUS+EA groups, the PI and AUC values were significantly lower in the experiment lobe than in the control lobe(PI:51.65±16.90 vs 101.09±14.41,44.08±8.46 vs 113.40±9.35;AUC:2183.06±501.13 vs 4258.54±841.21,1900.39±352.59 vs 4385.55±1198.16;t=9.059,16.835,9.630,7.932,P<0.001 for all). In the LUS group, no necrosis was observed, and the necrosis volume was 0 ml. The necrosis volumes caused by ethanol ablation in the EA, LUS+EA, MEUS+EA, and MEUS+LUS+EA groups were (0.84±0.27) ml, (2.42±1.11) ml, (3.52±1.34) ml, and (4.01±1.45) ml. The ethanol ablation volume was significantly lower in the EA group than in the other three groups (u=-13.800, -20.400, -23.400, P<0.05 for all),although there were no significant difference between any two of the latter three groups. No pathological changes were observed in the ultrasound exposed liver of the LUS group. In contrast, a wide range of coagulation necrosis area was noted in the other four groups. Compared with pre-treatment values, ALT and AST levels in all groups showed a slight rise after treatment, peaked at 48 h, and gradually returned to the pretreatment levels after seven days. The tendency of changes in ALT and AST levels with time was similar among the four groups (F=0.256, P=0.855; F=0.517, P=0.686). Conclusion LUS and MEUS, alone or in combination, could significantly increase the ethanol ablated volume of rabbit liver without aggravating liver function.

Objective To evaluate (1,3)-β-D-glucan (BG) assay as an aid for invasive fungal infection (IFI) diagnosis in severe pneumonia patients (diagnosis followed 2007 American Thoracic Society (ATS) and Infectious Disease Society of America (IDSA) severe pneumonia standard).Methods BG antigenemia was measured by BG Assay Box.IFIs was classified according to the blood fungal laboratory reports.Results 558 patients (185 females,373 males,mean age 64.7) were included.41 patients were proven to be fungal infected to be classified in exposure group.BG assay mean value in exposure group and unexposure group were (568.53 ±796.57) pg/mL,(51.4 ±63.27) pg/mL,respectively.Patients in the exposure group had significantly higher BG assay value than patients in the unexposure group (P ＜0.05).For the cutoff 100 pg/mL recommended by manufacturer,the sensitivity,specificity,positive predict value and negative predict value of the BG assay were 92.7％,92.5％,49.4％ and 0.6％,respectively.Conclusion BG assay has positive clinical value in invasive fungal infection diagnosis in severe pneumonia patients.

Objective To investigate the change of HepG2 liver tumor perfusion after microbubble enhanced ultrasound cavitation treatment and observe the related pathological injury.Methods Twenty eight Balb/c(nu/nu) nude mice transplanted subcutaneous HepG2 tumor were divided into three groups randomly,including the microbubble enhanced ultrasound cavitation group,the ultrasound group and the sham group.Microbubble enhanced ultrasound cavitation treatment was performed by 0.1 ml microbubbles intravenous injection combined with pulse ultrasound emission in experimental group,while in control groups only ultrasound exposure or microbubble injection were applied.The perfusion of tumors was imaged using contrast-enhanced ultrasonography before and after treatments.Time-intensity curve and peak intensity were analyzed.The tumors were then harvested for histological examination.Results The perfusion of HepG2 tumors almost vanished immediately after treatment in experimental group,with the peak intensity reduced from (26.9 ± 10.9)％ to(8.2 ± 5.8)％ (P ＜0.05).There was no significant changes before and after treatments (P ＞ 0.05) in the two control groups.Histological findings were disruption of the endothelia,significant hemorrhage and increased intercellular fluid.Conclusions Microbubble-enhanced ultrasound cavitation can significantly reduce tumor blood perfusion and disrupt tumor vascularture.This new ultrasound therapy can potentially become a new physical anti-angiogenetic therapy for liver tumor.