Objective: To investigate the efficacy, safety, and traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) medication patterns of rituximab (RTX) combined with TCM on treating children with steroid-dependent nephrotic syndrome (SDNS). Methods: One hundred and forty-three children with SDNS who visited the Pediatric Nephrology Department of the First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University of Chinese Medicine from January 2018 to December 2022 were enrolled. A cohort study design was adopted, with " RTX treatment" as the exposure factor. Children who met this exposure factor were assigned to the RTX cohort (RTX, glucocorticoid, immunosuppressive agent, combined with traditional Chinese medicine syndrome differentiation treatment), whereas those who did not were assigned to the basic treatment cohort (glucocorticoid, immunosuppressive agent, combined with traditional Chinese medicine syndrome differentiation treatment ), and followed up for 6 months. The frequency of urinary protein recurrences, urinary protein remission duration, proportion and duration of steroid reduction and cessation, cumulative usage of steroids, proportion of recurrence, recurrence amount of steroid used, efficacy of TCM syndrome, and laboratory and safety indicators after treatment, and height and CD19+ B cell count before and after treatment were compared between the two cohorts. The medication patterns of TCM in the two cohorts were analyzed using frequency statistics, association rule analysis, and systematic clustering analysis. Results: Compared with the basic treatment cohort, the RTX cohort showed a decrease in the frequency of urinary protein recurrence, extended sustained remission of urinary protein, an increase in the proportion of steroid reduction and cessation, a shorter duration of steroid reduction and cessation, a decrease in cumulative steroid dosage, a lower recurrence rate, a decrease in CD19+ B cell count, and a decrease in 24-h urinary total protein quantification and the level of cholesterol (P<0.05). No significant difference in the recurrence amount of steroid used, height, TCM syndrome efficacy, albumin, aspartate transaminase, blood urea nitrogen, platelet count, and safety indicators between the two cohorts. Children with SDNS were mostly characterized by qi and yin deficiency syndrome, followed by spleen and kidney yang deficiency syndrome. A total of 175 TCMs were included, including 28 high-frequency drugs such as Huangqi, Fuling, Gancao, Baizhu, Dangshen, and Jiuyurou. The primary use of medication is to nourish the qi and spleen, nourish the kidney, and warm yang. The analysis of association rules yielded eight binary associations and ten three-phase associations, with Huangqi, Baizhu, Fuling, and Dangshen, being the most closely related. Cluster analysis identified four TCM combinations, primarily focusing on tonifying kidney and replenishing essence, benefiting qi and nourishing yin, and removing blood stasis. Conclusion RTX combined with TCM syndrome differentiation treatment can reduce the recurrence frequency of SDNS, prolong the remission period, reduce the glucocorticoid dosage, and have no marked effect on height growth. No apparent adverse reactions were observed. TCM should focus on nourishing qi and yin while removing blood stasis.

Sinusitis is a prevalent nasal disease in children, characterized by chronic and difficult-to-treat symptoms. Its onset is related to nasal stagnation, gallbladder and lung dysfunctions. This article explores the root cause based on Huangdi Neijing by considering the physiological and pathological characteristics of children. The core pathogenesis of pediatric sinusitis is the transmission of heat from the gallbladder and lung to the brain and nose, disrupting normal nasal function. Wind and heat pathogens often persist, accumulate, and transform into turbid qi, which are common triggers of the disease. Evil qi retention and yin depletion are internal factors that cause the prolonged and unhealed condition of the disease. This article emphasizes individualized treatment approaches based on disease duration and the severity of pathogenic factors. If external pathogens remain uncleared, treatment should focus on dispelling wind, clearing heat, dispersing with pungent medicinals, and dredging nasal orifices. If internal fire is exuberant, clearing lung qi, inhibiting hyperactive liver yang, and clearing exuberant fire should be used to relieve stagnation. In chronic cases with residual pathogens and liver-kidney yin deficiency, nourishing yin, clearing fire, and moistening the nasal orifices are essential. When exuberant heat has subsided, but the symptom of a persistent runny nose continues, leading to the loss of healthy qi and damage to the lung and spleen, treatments that tonify the spleen, benefit the lung, and reinforce healthy qi should be adopted to relieve stagnation. These treatments aim to restore the balance of the body′s vital qi by addressing both the lingering symptoms and the underlying weakness of the lung and spleen. The diagnosis and treatment of pediatric sinusitis based on the theory of "the transmission of heat from gallbladder and lung" can help reduce the recurrence of sinusitis and alleviate symptoms, with the aim of broadening the approach of traditional Chinese medicine in treating this condition.

Based on the viewpoint of "sweat pore-qi and liquid-kidney collaterals"， it is believed that children's nephrotic syndrome is caused by the core mechanism of sweat pore constraint and closure， qi and liquid imbalance， and kidney collaterals impairment， and it is proposed that the treatment principle is to nourish the sweat pore， regulate qi and fluid， and supplement the kidney and unblock the collaterals. In clinic， guided by sequential therapy and according to the different disease mechanism characteristics of the four stages， including early stage of the disease， hormone induction stage， hormone reduction stage， hormone maintenance stage， the staged dynamic identification and treatment was applied. For early stage of the disease with edema due to yang deficiency， modified Zhenwu Decoction （真武汤） was applied to warm yang and drain water； for hormone induction stage with yin deficiency resulting in effulgent fire， modified Zhibai Dihuang Pill （知柏地黄丸） plus Erzhi Pill （二至丸） was used to enrich yin and reduce fire； for hormone reduction stage with qi and yin deficiency， modified Shenqi Dihuang Decoction （参芪地黄汤） was used to boost qi and nourish yin； for hormone maintenance stage， modified Shenqi Pill （肾气丸） was used to supplement yin and yang. Meanwhile， the treatment also attaches importance to the combination of vine-based or worm medicinals to dredge collaterals， so as to providing ideas for clinical treatment.

ObjectiveTo analyze the clinical treatment plan and traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） medication rule of children with primary nephrotic syndrome （PNS） in the First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University of Chinese Medicine. MethodsThe gender and age of children firstly diagnosed with nephrotic syndrome in the pediatric nephrology department of the First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University of Chinese Medicine from November 2019 to December 2022 were collected， and the use of immunosuppressive agents and related frequencies were counted. According to the inclusion and exclusion criteria， an independent TCM prescription database for children with nephrotic syndrome was established. Excel was used to analyze the relevant information of the literature. The frequency counting， association rule analysis， and cluster analysis were carried out on TCM in the prescription， and the high-frequent drugs were analyzed. Results（1） General information： A total of 711 children were included， consisting of 522 males （73.42%） and 189 females （26.58%）. The ratio of male to female was about 2.76∶1. The disease mainly occurred in infants and preschool age， and the average age of onset was （4.74 ± 3.48） years old. （2） Clinical treatment plan and use of immunosuppressive agents： Of the 711 children with PNS， 237 were treated with hormone alone （32.33%）， and 474 （66.67%） received immunosuppressive agents combined with hormones. In the initial treatment， hormone combined with Tacrolimus （TAC） was the preferred treatment （32.91%）. For children with refractory PNS who exhibited poor clinical efficacy， Rituximab （RTX） was mostly used for treatment， with a ratio of up to 23.63%. （3） TCM syndrome and medication rule： In PNS syndrome differentiation， Qi and Yin deficiency was identified as the main syndrome. This involved a total of 477 cases， accounting for 67.09%. Yang deficiency of spleen and kidney was observed in 118 cases， accounting for 16.60%. A total of 711 children were included， of which 706 children were treated with TCM. This involved a total of 706 prescriptions， 226 TCM， and 9 793 frequencies. There were 30 herbs used more than 95 times. The top five TCM were Radix et Rhizoma Glycyrrhizae （81.16%）， Radix Astragali （71.81%）， Poria （68.84%）， Rhizoma Atractylodis Macrocephalae （63.60%）， and Fructus Corni （57.37%）. The drug association rules and network diagram showed that the combination of ''Radix Astragali-Rhizoma Atractylodis Macrocephalae-Poria'' was the closest， and five types of combinations were obtained by cluster analysis. ConclusionIn the diagnosis and treatment of PNS in children， TAC combined with hormones shows good clinical efficacy and high safety. For children with refractory PNS， RTX combined with hormones can be used. TCM medication for PNS should follow the basic principles of strengthening the body and vital Qi and make good use of drugs such as Radix Astragali， Poria， Rhizoma Atractylodis Macrocephalae， and cornus to regulate the Yin and Yang balance and achieve better clinical efficacy.

ObjectiveTo analyze the clinical treatment plan and traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） medication rule of children with primary nephrotic syndrome （PNS） in the First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University of Chinese Medicine. MethodsThe gender and age of children firstly diagnosed with nephrotic syndrome in the pediatric nephrology department of the First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University of Chinese Medicine from November 2019 to December 2022 were collected， and the use of immunosuppressive agents and related frequencies were counted. According to the inclusion and exclusion criteria， an independent TCM prescription database for children with nephrotic syndrome was established. Excel was used to analyze the relevant information of the literature. The frequency counting， association rule analysis， and cluster analysis were carried out on TCM in the prescription， and the high-frequent drugs were analyzed. Results（1） General information： A total of 711 children were included， consisting of 522 males （73.42%） and 189 females （26.58%）. The ratio of male to female was about 2.76∶1. The disease mainly occurred in infants and preschool age， and the average age of onset was （4.74 ± 3.48） years old. （2） Clinical treatment plan and use of immunosuppressive agents： Of the 711 children with PNS， 237 were treated with hormone alone （32.33%）， and 474 （66.67%） received immunosuppressive agents combined with hormones. In the initial treatment， hormone combined with Tacrolimus （TAC） was the preferred treatment （32.91%）. For children with refractory PNS who exhibited poor clinical efficacy， Rituximab （RTX） was mostly used for treatment， with a ratio of up to 23.63%. （3） TCM syndrome and medication rule： In PNS syndrome differentiation， Qi and Yin deficiency was identified as the main syndrome. This involved a total of 477 cases， accounting for 67.09%. Yang deficiency of spleen and kidney was observed in 118 cases， accounting for 16.60%. A total of 711 children were included， of which 706 children were treated with TCM. This involved a total of 706 prescriptions， 226 TCM， and 9 793 frequencies. There were 30 herbs used more than 95 times. The top five TCM were Radix et Rhizoma Glycyrrhizae （81.16%）， Radix Astragali （71.81%）， Poria （68.84%）， Rhizoma Atractylodis Macrocephalae （63.60%）， and Fructus Corni （57.37%）. The drug association rules and network diagram showed that the combination of ''Radix Astragali-Rhizoma Atractylodis Macrocephalae-Poria'' was the closest， and five types of combinations were obtained by cluster analysis. ConclusionIn the diagnosis and treatment of PNS in children， TAC combined with hormones shows good clinical efficacy and high safety. For children with refractory PNS， RTX combined with hormones can be used. TCM medication for PNS should follow the basic principles of strengthening the body and vital Qi and make good use of drugs such as Radix Astragali， Poria， Rhizoma Atractylodis Macrocephalae， and cornus to regulate the Yin and Yang balance and achieve better clinical efficacy.

ObjectiveTo assess the relapse rate， clinical efficacy， and safety of a traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） sequential syndrome differentiation protocol for frequently relapsing/steroid-dependent nephrotic syndrome （FRNS/SDNS） in children. MethodsA total of 151 children with FRNS/SDNS treated in the First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University of Chinese Medicine from December 2020 to June 2024 were randomized into an observation group （77 cases） and a control group （74 cases）. Both groups received Western medicine （prednisone tablets and tacrolimus capsules）. In addition， the observation group additionally underwent TCM sequential syndrome differentiation and the control group received 1/10 of the TCM dose. The 6-month intervention was followed by a 12-month follow-up， totaling 18 months of observation across seven time points （before treatment and after 1， 2， 4， 24， 52， 76 weeks of treatment）. The evaluation was carried out based on the following indicators. ① The relapse rates were mainly recorded after 24， 52， 76 weeks of treatment. ② The efficacy was evaluated based on the clinical remission rates after 1， 2， 4 weeks of treatment， the time to proteinuria clearance， the levels of 24-hour urine total protein （24-h UTP）， serum total protein （TP）， serum albumin （ALB）， cholesterol （CHO）， and triglycerides （TG） and the TCM symptom scores before treatment and after 24 weeks of treatment. ③ The treatment safety was evaluated based on blood routine and levels of liver enzymes， renal function indicators and blood glucose （Glu） before treatment and after 24 weeks of treatment. Results① Relapse rate： After 24 weeks of treatment， no significant difference in relapse rate was found between the two groups. The observation group showed lower relapse rates than the control group after 52 weeks of treatment ［24.2% （16/66） vs. 52.5% （31/59）， χ²=10.634， P<0.01］ and 76 weeks of treatment ［42.4% （28/66） vs. 74.6% （44/59）， χ²=13.186， P<0.01］ than the control group. ② Efficacy indicators： The two groups showed no significant difference in remission rate after 1 week of treatment. The observation group demonstrated higher remission rates after 2 weeks of treatment ［88.2% （67/76） vs. 74.0% （54/73）， Z=-1.999， P<0.05］ and 4 weeks of treatment ［94.7% （72/76） vs. 82.2% （60/73）， Z=-2.3589， P<0.05）. In addition， the observation group had shorter time to proteinuria clearance （P<0.01）. After treatment， both groups showed declined 24 h-UTP， CHO， TG， and TCM symptom scores and elevated TP and ALB levels （P<0.01）， and the observation group had lower CHO， TG， and TCM symptom scores and higher TP and ALB than the control group （P<0.05）. ③ Safety indicators： After treatment， both groups showed declined white blood cell count （WBC）， red blood cell count （RBC）， hemoglobin （HB）， and alanine aminotransferase （ALT） （P<0.05， P<0.01） and elevated Glu （P<0.01） and blood urea nitrogen （BUN） （P<0.05）. After 24 weeks of treatment， none of WBC， RBC， HB， PLT， ALT， AST， BUN， Cr or Glu had significant differences between groups. Moreover， the incidence of adverse reactions showed no significant difference between the two groups. ConclusionThe TCM sequential syndrome differentiation protocol effectively reduces the relapse rate， improves the remission rate， shortens the time to proteinuria clearance， raised serum protein levels， lowers blood lipid levels， and alleviates symptoms， demonstrating good clinical safety in children with FRNS/SDNS.

The main pathogenesis of chronic cough in children is the disorder of ascending and descending of qi movement caused by healthy qi deficiency and pathogenic qi retention. The deficiency of lung， spleen， and kidney is the root of the disease， and the retention of phlegm-fluid， food accumulation， and fire from constraint is the branch pathogenesis of the disease. In the treatment， we should reinforce and tonify healthy qi， dispel pathogen and regulate qi， with Yupingfeng Powder （玉屏风散） as the basic prescription. For lung qi deficiency syndrome， modified Yupingfeng Powder could be used for supplementing lung to consolidate the exterior； for lung and spleen qi deficiency syndrome， modified Yupingfeng Powder plus Shenling Baizhu Powder （参苓白术散） could be used for supplementing lung and fortifying the spleen， treating with both supplementation and transformation； for lung kidney qi deficiency syndrome， modified Yupingfeng Powder combined with Suzi Jiangqi Decoction （苏子降气汤） could be used for supplementing lung and replenishing kidneys， absorbing qi to the root. All the above prescriptions could combine the method of dispelling phlegm， promoting digestion and guiding out food stagnation， soothing the liver and draining fire to remove the solid pathogens， in order to treat the root and branch simultaneously， and the cough will stop if the ascending and descending of qi movement recover as usual.

OBJECTIVE To explore the renal protective mechanism of Shenbining granules on IgA nephropathy （IgAN） rats based on mitochondrial quality control system. METHODS IgAN rat model was established by the method of “bovine serum albumin+carbon tetrachloride+lipopolysaccharide”. The model rats were randomly divided into model group， prednisone acetate group （6.25 mg/kg）， Shenbining equal-dose group （4.1 g/kg） and Shenbining high-dose group （20.5 g/kg）. The normal rats were taken as the normal control group， with 12 rats in each group. Rats were given corresponding drugs or distilled water intragastrically in each group， once a day， for 4 consecutive weeks. After the last medication， the 24 h total urinary protein （24 h- UTP） and erythrocyte count in urine were determined， and the levels of serum creatinine （Scr）， blood urea nitrogen （BUN）， albumin （ALB） and alanine transaminase （ALT） were also detected. The histopathological changes in the kidneys and changes in IgA deposition in the mesangial area of the kidney were observed. mRNA and protein expression levels of PTEN-induced putative kinase 1 （PINK1）， E3 ubiquitin ligase（Parkin）， microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain-3 （LC3）， dynamin-related protein 1 （Drp1） and mitofusin 2 （Mfn2） were detected in the kidney tissues of rats. RESULTS Compared with model group， 24 h-UTP， urinary erythrocyte count， ALT， BUN and Scr levels， LC3-Ⅱ/LC3-Ⅰ mRNA ratio， mRNA and protein expressions of Drp1 were reduced significantly in prednisone acetate group， Shenbining equal-dose group and Shenbining high-dose group （P＜0.05）； ALB level， LC3-Ⅱ/LC3-Ⅰ protein ratio， mRNA and protein expressions of PINK1， Parkin and Mfn2 were increased significantly （P＜0.05）； the pathological morphology of kidney tissue in rats was significantly improved， and IgA deposition was significantly reduced. CONCLUSIONS Shenbining granule may reduce renal pathological injury in IgAN rats and protect renal function by activating the PINK1/Parkin pathway， enhancing mitochondrial autophagy， and correcting mitochondrial kinetic disorders.

Asthma is a common chronic respiratory disease characterized by repeated attacks and prolonged illness.Traditional Chinese medicine believes that the formation of Sugen is the core pathogenesis of repeated asthma attacks.By tracing the origin of Sug-en theory,summarizing the connotation of ancient asthma Sugen theory and the innovative understanding of modern medical scholars on asthma Sugen,this paper explores the potential connection between the traditional Chinese medicine Sugen theory and the pathogenesis of modern asthma,in order to provide new ideas and methods for the treatment and research of asthma.

Following the principles of evidence-based medicine,in accordance with the structure and drafting rules of standardized documents,based on literature research,according to the characteristics of chronic cough in children and issues that need to form a consensus,the TCM Guidelines for Diagnosis and Treatment of Chronic Cough in Children was formulated based on the Delphi method,expert discussion meetings,and public solicitation of opinions.The guideline includes scope of application,terms and definitions,eti-ology and diagnosis,auxiliary examination,treatment,prevention and care.The aim is to clarify the optimal treatment plan of Chinese medicine in the diagnosis and treatment of this disease,and to provide guidance for improving the clinical diagnosis and treatment of chronic cough in children with Chinese medicine.