Objective: To compare the efficacy and safety of combining diosmin with Jiuhua hemorrhoid suppository versus diosmin alone for the treatment of hemorrhoid hemorrhage. Methods: The Jiuhua hemorrhoid suppository study was conducted in 10 medical centers across China from April 1, 2019 to June 30, 2020. Patients with hemorrhoid bleeding were randomized in a ratio of 1 : 1 to either receive Jiuhua hemorrhoid suppository and diosmin tablets (the study group) or diosmin tablets alone (the control group). The suppository was used once a day after defecation or at bedtime after rinsing the anus with warm water. Diosmin tablets were administered only once a day (0.9 g). The primary endpoint of the study was the assessment of hemorrhoid bleeding relief 7 ± 2 days after treatment, classified as “very effective” “effective” and “ineffective”. The secondary endpoint included the evaluation of pain alleviation using the visual analogue scale (VAS, with scores ranging from 0 to 10) and edema (with scores ranging from 0 to 3). The safety of the two treatment regimens was evaluated 14 ± 2 days after drug administration. Results: The full analysis set (FAS) comprised 107 participants in the study group and 111 in the control group, while the per-protocol set (PPS) included 106 participants in the study group and 111 in the control group. In terms of hemorrhoid bleeding, the proportion of very effective and effective cases in the study group were significantly higher than that in the control group [106 (99.06%) vs. 91 (81.98%), P < 0.0001] in the FAS, and the PPS results [105 (99.06%) vs. 91 (81.98%), P < 0.0001] were comparable to the FAS results. The pain VAS scores at day 7 after treatment were comparable between the two groups (0.80 ± 1.17 vs. 0.80 ± 1.20, P = 0.2177). The majority of the participants in both groups had an edema score of 0 at day 7 after treatment [96 (89.72%) vs. 99 (91.67%), P = 0.370 5]. Adverse events (AEs) occurred in 9 patients (8.4%) in the study group and 3 patients (2.7%) in the control group. In addition, 5 AEs in the study group and 1 AE in the control group were possibly in association with the study drug. Conclusion Compared with the administration of diosmin oral tablets alone, the addition of Jiuhua hemorrhoid suppository to the tablets demonstrates enhanced efficacy in addressing hemorrhoid bleeding, with satisfactory patient adherence and acceptable safety.

Objective:To investigate the effect of centrosome protein 55 (CEP55) on the proliferation of bladder cancer cells and its related molecular mechanism.Methods:Western blot was used to detect the expression of CEP55 and H3K9me3 in normal bladder tissue cells (SV-HUC-1) and bladder cancer cells (T24) . The bladder cancer cells T24 were divided into experimental group and control group. The experimental group cells were transfected with siRNA-CEP55, and the control group cells were transfected with siRNA-MOCK. The expression levels of CEP55, H3K9 and H3K9me3 in each group of cells were detected by Western blot. The proliferation ability of each group of cells was detected by CCK8 assay.Results:Western blot assay showed that the expression of CEP55 and H3K9me3 in T24 cells was 0.83±0.15 and 1.01±0.19 respectively. The expressions of CEP55 and H3K9me3 in bladder epithelial SV-HUC-1 cells were 0.35±0.09 and 0.44±0.10 respectively. The expressions of CEP55 and H3K9me3 in bladder cancer cells were higher than those in normal bladder cells (all P<0.05) . siRNA-CEP55 successfully reduced the expression of T24 CEP55 in bladder cancer cells. The absorbance of T24 cells in the experimental group was 1.109±0.105, which was significantly lower than that in the control group (2.208±0.104) . Low expression of CEP55 reduced the proliferation ability of T24 cells ( P<0.05) . Western blot results showed that H3K9 was not significantly changed in T24 cells in the experimental group, and H3K9me3 expression decreased significantly ( P<0.05) . Conclusion:CEP55 can inhibit the proliferation of bladder cancer cells by reducing the trimethylation of H3K9.

ObjectiveTo evaluate the efficacy and safety of topical Bisaitong （鼻塞通） in treating moderate-to-severe allergic rhinitis （AR）. MethodsA randomized， positive-controlled， non-inferiority clinical trial design was adopted. Totally， 108 cases of moderate-to-severe AR were randomly divided into Bisaitong group and mometasone furoate group，with 54 cases in each group. The Bisaitong group was treated with Bisaitong smeared at the nasal cavity twice a day， and the mometasone furoate group received inhalation of mometasone furoate nasal spray 100 μg in each nostril， once a day. Both groups were treated for 4 weeks and followed up after additional 4 weeks. Both groups were compared on the rhinoconjunctivitis quality of life questionnaire （RQLQ）， rhinoconjunctivitis total symptom score （RTSS）， visual analogue score （VAS） of sneezing， runny nose， nasal itching， nasal congestion degree， days of AR episodes at enrollment， after 2- and 4-week， and at follow-up. The peripheral blood eosinophil （EOS） count and percentage （EOS%）， serum eosinophil cationic protein （ECP）， serum dust mite， dermatophagoides farinae， and cockroach allergen-specific IgE （sIgE） levels were compared between groups at enrollment and after 4-week treatment. Drug overuse rate was calculated， and the safety was evaluated. The analysis of all efficacy outcomes was based on both full analysis set （FAS） and per-protocol set （PPS）. ResultsThe lower limit of the 95% confidence interval for the differences in RQLQ scores were greater than -0.6 measured after 2- and 4-week treatment and at follow-up compared to that measured at the enrollment in both groups， indicating of the Bisaitong group being non-inferior to the mometasone furoate group. There was no statistically significant difference between groups on RTSS score， VAS scores of sneezing， runny nose， nasal itching， nasal congestion degree and days of episodes at all timepoints （P＞0.05）， but each outcome changed significantly over time in both groups （P＜0.01）. The differences between groups in EOS count， EOS%， ECP levels， serum dust mite， dermatophagoides farinae， cockroach sIgE levels， and drug overuse rate were not statistically significant at enrollment and after 4-week treatment （P＞0.05）. Adverse events occurred in eight cases （15.10%） in the Bisaitong group and five cases （9.30%） in the mometasone furoate group， showing no significant difference between groups （P＞0.05）. ConclusionTopical Bisaitong is non-inferior to mometasone furoate nasal spray in the treatment of moderate to severe AR in terms of clinical symptom relief，reduction in the episodes， improvement of quality of life， and sound safety.

Objective:To explore the prognostic value of tumor deposits (TD) by number and anatomical distribution in gastric cancer (GC) patients without lymph node metastasis.Methods:From Aug 2012 to Aug 2018 all 91 GC patients undergoing radical gastrectomy and without nodal metastasis at Yijishan Hospital of Wannan Medical College were enrolled in this study. Patients were divided into L1, L2, and L3 groups according to the number of TD and into Q1 and Q2 groups according to the anatomical regions of the TD.Results:The 3-year overall survival (OS) rates of groups L1, L2, and L3 were 58.9%, 52.1%, and 31.5%, respectively ( χ2=9.769, P=0.008). The 3-year OS rates of groups Q1 and Q2 were 58.9% and 7.1% ( χ2=46.310, P<0.001). The number of TD, their distribution, neural invasion, vascular invasion, tumor size, and pT stage were all related to prognosis by univariate analysis (all P<0.05). Tumor size>4 cm ( HR=2.460, 95% CI:1.307-4.629, P=0.005), distribution of TD (non-perigastric)( HR=3.959, 95% CI:2.077-7.545, P<0.001), neural invasion ( HR=4.299,95% CI:1.953-9.461, P<0.001), and pT 4 stage ( HR=2.283, 95% CI:1.250-4.171, P=0.007) were independent risk factors for prognosis by multivariate analysis. Conclusion:The distribution of TD (non-perigastric) is an independent risk factor for poor prognosis in gastric cancer patients after radical gastrectomy and with negative lymph node metastasis.

Objective:To explore the risk factors for the occurrence of thrombocytopenia (TCP) within 2 weeks after pediatric liver transplantation (LT) and examine the relationship between the occurrence of TCP and prognosis.Methods:From January 2021 to November 2021, clinical data were retrospectively reviewed for 162 pediatric LT recipients aged under 4 years at Organ Transplantation Center of Tianjin First Central Hospital.Based upon the lowest value of platelet count at Week 2 post-operation, they were assigned into two groups of TCP (n=90) and non-TCP (n=72). General preoperative profiles, intraoperative findings, postoperative complications, types of commonly used antibiotics, anticoagulant dosing and prognosis of two groups were compared.Univariate and multivariate analyses were utilized for examining the independent risk factors for TCP.Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was plotted for examining the cut-off value of independent risk factors for diagnosing TCP.Results:Among them, 90 (55.56%) developed TCP within 2 weeks post-operation and 25(15.43%) developed TCP at Day 1 post-operation.The median preoperative platelet count was 178×10 9/L and the lowest value was 65×10 9/L at Day 3(1-4) post-operation with a declining rate of 63.5% and platelet count of recipient normalized at Day 6(4-7.25) post-operation.The results of univariate analysis showed statistically significant inter-group differences in operative duration[(574.43±80.53)min vs.(526.75±72.42)min], intraoperative blood loss[400(300, 550)ml vs.320(300, 400)ml], red blood cell transfusion[2(2, 3)U vs.2(1.5, 2.0)U], preoperative platelet count[178.5(141.75, 242.5)×10 9/L vs.257 (209.75, 357)×10 9/L], postoperative infection rate[27.8%(25/90)vs.13.9%(10/72)] and dosing rates of piperacillin sodium and tazobactam sodium[8.9%(8/90)vs.25.0%(18/72)] ( P<0.05). Multivariate Logistic regression analysis revealed statistically significant inter-group differences in operative duration( P=0.008), red blood cell transfusion( P=0.01), preoperative platelet count( P<0.01) and postoperative infection rate ( P=0.02). The results of ROC curve analysis showed that the cut-off values of operative duration, red blood cell transfusion and preoperative platelet count were 535 min, 2.75 U and 183.5×10 9/L respectively.Length of ICU stay was higher in TCP group than that in non-TCP group, and the difference was statistically significant [4(3, 5) vs.3(3, 4) day, P=0.006]. Conclusions:LT children aged under 4 years with intraoperative red blood cell transfusion>2.75 U, operative duration>535 min and preoperative platelet count<183.5×10 9/L are more likely to develop post-transplantation TCP.And occurrence of TCP prolongs the length of ICU stay in pediatric recipients.

Malfunction of the ventral subiculum (vSub), the main subregion controlling the output connections from the hippocampus, is associated with major depressive disorder (MDD). Although the vSub receives cholinergic innervation from the medial septum and diagonal band of Broca (MSDB), whether and how the MSDB-to-vSub cholinergic circuit is involved in MDD is elusive. Here, we found that chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) induced depression-like behaviors with hyperactivation of vSub neurons, measured by c-fos staining and whole-cell patch-clamp recording. By retrograde and anterograde tracing, we confirmed the dense MSDB cholinergic innervation of the vSub. In addition, transient restraint stress in CUMS increased the level of ACh in the vSub. Furthermore, chemogenetic stimulation of this MSDB-vSub innervation in ChAT-Cre mice induced hyperactivation of vSub pyramidal neurons along with depression-like behaviors; and local infusion of atropine, a muscarinic receptor antagonist, into the vSub attenuated the depression-like behaviors induced by chemogenetic stimulation of this pathway and CUMS. Together, these findings suggest that activating the MSDB-vSub cholinergic pathway induces hyperactivation of vSub pyramidal neurons and depression-like behaviors, revealing a novel circuit underlying vSub pyramidal neuronal hyperactivation and its associated depression.
Rats ; Mice ; Animals ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Depressive Disorder, Major/metabolism* ; Basal Forebrain ; Depression ; Hippocampus/metabolism* ; Cholinergic Agents

Objective:To analyze the diagnostic value of X-ray, CT and MRI multimodal images in the vertebral compression fractures caused by osteolytic metastases and osteoporosis.Methods:The basic clinical data and X-ray, CT, MRI imaging data of 102 patients with vertebral compression fractures from January 2019 to May 2021 in Jiangnan Hospital (Xiaoshan Traditional Chinese Medicine) Affiliated to Zhejiang University of Traditional Chinese Medicine were retrospectively analyzed. Among them, vertebral compression fractures caused by osteolytic metastases was in 47 cases, and vertebral compression fractures caused by osteoporosis was in 55 cases.Results:The age and osteoporosis rate in patients with vertebral compression fractures caused by osteolytic metastases were significantly lower than those in patients with vertebral compression fractures caused by osteoporosis: (61.95 ± 11.84) years old vs. (72.37 ± 12.55) years old and 4.3% (2/47) vs. 83.6% (46/55), the body mass index and pain visual analogue score were significantly higher than those in patients with vertebral compression fractures caused by osteoporosis: (22.58 ± 3.85) kg/m 2 vs. (18.11 ± 2.79) kg/m 2 and (8.31 ± 2.91) scores vs. (7.02 ± 2.72) scores, and there were statistical differences ( P<0.05); there was no statistical difference in gender composition ( P>0.05). The rates of vertebral body wedge shape and double concave shape in patients with vertebral compression fractures caused by osteolytic metastases were significantly lower than those in patients with vertebral compression fractures caused by osteoporosis: 2.80% (3/107) vs. 60.82% (104/171) and 6.54% (7/107) vs. 29.82% (51/171), the rates of flat shape and posterior margin swelling were significantly higher than those in patients with vertebral compression fractures caused by osteoporosis: 75.70% (81/107) vs. 9.36% (16/171) and 14.95% (16/107) vs. 0, and there were statistical differences ( P<0.01); the rates of pedicle involvement and soft tissue mass in patients with vertebral compression fractures caused by osteolytic metastases were significantly higher than those in patients with vertebral compression fractures caused by osteoporosis: 68.09% (32/47) vs. 1.82% (1/55) and 46.81% (22/47) vs. 0, while the rate of linear image signal in vertebral body was significantly lower than that in patients with vertebral compression fractures caused by osteoporosis: 0 vs. 96.36% (53/47), and there were statistical difference ( P<0.01); there was statistical difference in MRI signals ( P<0.01), vertebral compression fractures caused by osteolytic metastases were mainly characterized by low T 1 high T 2 and low T 1 low T 2, while vertebral compression fractures caused by osteoporosis was mainly characterized by low T 1 high T 2; the rates of disc compression and widening in patients with vertebral compression fractures caused by osteolytic metastases were significantly lower than those in patients with vertebral compression fractures caused by osteoporosis: 4.26%(2/47) vs. 34.55% (19/55) and 2.13%(1/47) vs. 18.18% (10/55), and there were statistical differences ( P<0.01 or <0.05). The accuracies of multimodal imaging in the diagnosis of vertebral compression fractures caused by osteolytic metastases and osteoporosis were significantly higher than those of X-ray, CT and MRI (89.4% vs. 51.1%, 72.3%, 83.0%; 90.9% vs. 52.7%, 60.0%, 78.2%), and there were statistical differences( P<0.05). Conclusions:Multimodal imaging is helpful to improve the diagnostic accuracy of vertebral compression fractures caused by osteolytic metastases and osteoporosis, to reduce the clinical misdiagnosis rate, with important reference value for the differential diagnosis of the two diseases.

Objective    To explore the value of transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) to monitor and evaluate aortic insufficiency (AI) within one year after the implantation of the left ventricular assist device (LVAD). Methods    We retrospectively collected and analyzed the TTE data of 12 patients who received LVAD implantation from 2018 to 2020 in our hospital. All patients were males, with an average age of 43.3±8.6 years. We analyzed temporal changes in the aortic annulus (AA), aortic sinus (AoS), ascending aorta (AAo), the severity of AI and the opening of aortic valve before operation and 1 month, 3 months, 6 months and 12 months after LVAD implantation. Results    All 12 patients survived within 1 year after LVAD implantation. One patient was bridged to heart transplantation 6 months after implantation, and two patients did not receive TTE after 3 and 6 months. Compared to pre-implantation, AoS increased at 1 month after implantation (31.58±5.09 mm vs. 33.83±4.69 mm). The inner diameters of AA, AoS and AAo increased at 3, 6 and 12 months after LVAD implantation compared to pre-implantation (P<0.05), but all were within the normal range except for one patient whose AoS slightly increased before operation. After LVAD pump speed was adjusted, the opening of aortic  valve improved. The severity of AI increased at 6 and 12 months after LVAD implantation compared to pre-implantation, and increased at 12 months compared to 6 months after LVAD implantation (P<0.05). Conclusion    TTE can evaluate aortic regurgitation before and after LVAD implantation and monitor the optimization and adjustment of LVAD pump function, which has a positive impact on the prognosis after LVAD implantation.

Objective:To investigate the difference of curative effect between zero-profile bridge-shaped locking cage (ROI-C) and anterior cage combined with titanium plate fixation in the treatment of two-level and three-level cervical spondylotic myelopathy.Methods:A total of 85 patients (43 males and 42 females), aged 52.3±8.0 years (range from 28 to 66 years) with bi- and three-level cervical spondylotic myelopathy who received surgical treatment from June 2017 to October 2019 were retrospectively analyzed. There were 63 cases of two levels and 22 cases of three levels. 45 cases were treated with zero-profile bridge-shaped locking cage ROI-C (ROI-C group), and 40 cases with anterior cage combined with titanium plate fixation (titanium plate group). The main observation indicators include operation time, intraoperative blood loss, cervical Cobb angle, fusion segment Cobb angle, average intervertebral height, pain visual analogue scale (VAS), Japanese Orthopaedic Association (JOA) Score and neck disability index (NDI).Results:All of 85 patients were followed up for 16.9±2.0 months (range 12 to 22 months). The operation time of two-level ROI-C group was 110.37±8.25 min, which was shorter than 139.5±10.54 min of titanium plate group; the intraoperative blood loss was 15.74±8.10 ml, which was less than 23.71±9.70 ml of titanium plate group; the operation time of three-level ROI-C group was 130.00±5.70 min, which was shorter than 162.83±5.59 min of titanium plate group, while the difference in the intraoperative blood loss between the two groups had no statistical significance. One year after operation, Cobb angle of cervical vertebra in double and three-level ROI-C groups were 15.31°±1.55° and 15.20°±0.42°, respectively, which were largerthan 11.23°±2.03° and 9.20°±1.14° before operation; in titanium plate group, they were 15.89°±1.13° and 16.08°±1.88°, which were higher than 11.25°±2.01° and 9.00°±1.60° before operation, and the differences had statistical significance. The differences between the two groups before operation and 1 year after operation had no statistical significance. One year after operation, the VAS scores of double and three-level ROI-C groups were 1.83±0.66 points and 2.60±0.52 points, respectively, which were less than the preoperative 7.49±0.51 points and 7.60±0.52 points; the titanium plate group was 1.79±0.50 points and 2.41±0.51 points, which were less than the preoperative 7.61±0.63 points and 7.42±0.52 points, and the differences had statistical significance. There was no significant difference between the two groups before operation and 1 year after operation. One year after operation, the JOA scores of double and three-level ROI-C groups were 15.00±0.84 points and 14.70±0.95 points, respectively, which were higher than the preoperative 7.20±0.87 points and 6.60±1.27 points; the scores of titanium plate group were 15.29±0.85 points and 14.83±0.58 points, which were higher than the preoperative 6.89±1.03 points and 6.92±0.67 points, and the differences had statistical significance. The differences between the two groups had no statistical significance. The postoperative JOA improvement rate was excellent. Postoperative dysphagia occurred in 1 case (2.22%, 1/45) in ROI-C group and 8 cases (20.00%, 8/40) in titanium plate group, and the difference in the incidence rate between two groups had statistical significance ( χ2=5.32, P=0.02). Conclusion:Both ROI-C and anterior cage combined with titanium plate fixation in the treatment of double and three-level cervical spondylotic myelopathy can achieve good short-term clinical efficacy, with shorter operation time and lower incidence rate of postoperative dysphagia using ROI-C.

Objective:To investigate the risk factors of low anterior resection syndrome (LARS)after low anterior resection of rectal cancer (Dixon).Methods:This retrospective study was conducted in Peking University First Hospital and Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital of Shanxi Provice from Jan 2012 to Jun 2019. A cohort of 504 patients with rectal cancer was enrolled in the study. All the patients underwent anterior resection. The relationship between clinical-pathological data were analyzed retrospectively. Univariate analysis using χ 2 test. Logistic regression analysis was used to screen the influencing factors of LARS, and the Nomogram method was used to score each factors. Results:Univariate analysis showed that BMI≥28 kg/m 2(χ 2=9.450, P=0.002), the distance from the lower edge of the tumors to the anus <6 cm (χ 2=12.070, P=0.001), high ligation of the inferior mesenteric artery (IMA) (χ 2=8.279, P=0.004), preoperative neoadjuvant therapy (χ 2=11.230, P=0.001), postoperative anastomotic leakage (χ 2=11.840, P=0.001) were associated with severe LARS.Multivariate analysis showed that the distance from the lower edge of the tumors to the anus <6 cm ( OR=1.861, 95% CI: 1.289-2.688, P=0.001), BMI≥28 kg/m 2 ( OR=1.747, 95% CI: 1.022-2.987, P=0.041), high IMA ligation ( OR=1.688, 95% CI: 1.157-2.463, P=0.007), preoperative neoadjuvant therapy ( OR=2.719, 95% CI: 1.343-5.505, P=0.005) were independent risk factors for LARS. Nomogram model showed that the total factor ranged from 2 to 212, and the corresponding risk rate ranged from 30% to 80%. The patients with higher score have greater risk for severe LARS. The area under the predictive power curve of Nomogram model (AUC) was 0.749 (95% CI: 0.705-0.793, P<0.001). Conclusion:Lower tumor location, obesity, preoperative neoadjuvant therapy, high IMA ligation and postoperative anastomotic leakage increase the risk of severe LARS.