BACKGROUND:Intervertebral disc degeneration is caused by damage and degeneration of the nucleus pulposus and annulus fibrosus tissues inside the intervertebral disc,resulting in structural and functional changes of the intervertebral disc.However,there is yet no effective drug treatment for intervertebral disc degeneration. OBJECTIVE:To investigate the inhibitory effect of syringin on intervertebral disc degeneration. METHODS:A total of 10 male Sprague-Dawley rats were selected,and the coccygeal intervertebral disc(Co4/Co5)of each rat was set as model group,Co5/Co6 intervertebral disc as syringin group,and Co6/Co7 intervertebral disc as control group.The control group did not receive any treatment.In the model group and syringin group,a miniature puncture needle was used to puncture the annulus fibrosus to establish an intervertebral disc degeneration model.Immediately after modeling,2.5 μL of normal saline and syringin solution(5 μmol/L)were given in the model and syringin groups,respectively.Four weeks after injection,the samples were taken.The degree of intervertebral disc degeneration in rats was observed by hematoxylin-eosin and safranine O-fast green staining.The expressions of type Ⅱ collagen,aggrecan and matrix metalloproteinases 3 and 13 in intervertebral disc tissue were analyzed by immunohistochemical staining. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:Hematoxylin-eosin staining showed that in the model group,the height of intervertebral disc decreased,the cartilage endplate became thinner and cracked,the fibrous ring structure was disordered and cracked,and the nucleus pulposus disappeared;in the syringin group,the height of intervertebral disc was normal or slightly lower than that in the control group,the degree of cartilage endplate degeneration was lighter than that in the model group,the fiber circle permutation was relatively regular with no cracks,and the nucleus pulposus was partially shrunk.Safranine O-fast green staining showed that in the model group,the cartilage endplate of the intervertebral disc was defective and the calcified layer of cartilage became thinner,showing obvious degeneration.The structure and morphology of intervertebral disc cartilage endplate in the syringin group recovered to some extent.Immunohistochemical staining showed that,compared with the control group,the expressions of type Ⅱ collagen and aggrecan in the intervertebral disc cartilage were decreased in the model group(P<0.000 1),while the expressions of matrix metalloproteinases 3 and 13 increased(P<0.000 1).Compared with the model group,the expressions of type Ⅱ collagen and aggrecan in the intervertebral disc cartilage tissue were increased in the syringin group(P<0.001,P<0.000 1),while the expressions of matrix metalloproteinases 3 and 13 decreased(P<0.001,P<0.000 1).These results showed that syringin could improve the structure and function of intervertebral disc by inhibiting the expression of matrix metalloproteinases 3 and 13 and increasing the expression of type Ⅱ collagen and aggrecan,thus preventing and slowing down the procession of intervertebral disc degeneration.

Objective To develop and validate a fatigue risk nomogram model in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease(COPD)patients.Methods A prospective study design was adopted,and 430 COPD patients recruited from a tertiary A hospital in Huzhou City from January to December 2022 were conveniently selected for model construction,and 129 patients were recruited from the same hospital from January to June 2023 for external validation of the model.The general information questionnaire,Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index,2-item Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale,2-item Patient Health Questionnaire,modified British Medical Research Council Dyspnea Index,International Physical Activity Questionnaire,and Fatigue Severity Scale were used for questionnaire survey.The risk prediction model and nomograms model were constructed using Logistic regression analysis and R 4.3.2 software,and the area under the receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve was used to test the prediction effect of the model.Results Univariate and binary logistic regression analysis results showed that age(OR=1.095),gender(OR=2.077),dyspnea(OR=3.309),sleep quality(OR=1.979),anemia(OR=3.289),the number of acute exacerbation(OR=2.991)were independent influencing factors for fatigue in COPD patients.The internal evaluation and external validation results of the model showed that the areas under the curve are 0.912 and 0.844 respectively,and the Hosmer-Lemeshow goodness of fit test P values were 0.806 and 0.526 respectively.The average absolute errors were 0.013 and 0.019 respectively.Conclusion The COPD fatigue risk prediction model constructed in this study has good prediction effect.The visual nomogram is intuitive,convenient and easy to operate.It can provide a tool for early screening of fatigue in COPD patients.

Objective To investigate the correlation between the Controlling Nutritional Status (CONUT) score and wound repair of diabetic foot ulcer (DFU). Methods A total of 80 DFU patients treated in the Hospital from November 20, 2019 to November 20, 2022 were randomly selected as the study objects and divided into non-wound repair group (n=47) and wound repair group (n=33) based on wound repair status. Wound repair and hospital stay were recorded; clinical characteristics and the CONUT score were compared between the wound repair group and the non-wound repair group; the influencing factors of DFU wound repair were analyzed by the multivariate Logistic regression model. Results The hospital stay of patients in the non-wound repair group was 16.00 (10.50 to 24.00) days, which was significantly shorter than 44.00 (31.00 to 61.80) days of patients in the wound repair group (P < 0.05). The total cholesterol (TC), ankle-brachial index (ABI), the CONUT score, and malnutrition rate of patients in the non-wound repair group were significantly higher than those in the wound repair group (P < 0.05). The results of multivariate Logistic regression analysis showed that the CONUT score, malnutrition, TC and ABI were the independent risk factors for wound repair of DFU (P < 0.05). Conclusion Malnutrition, ABI, TC and CONUT score in DFU patients can adversely affect wound repair, and the CONUT score can accurately predict the risk of wound repair in patients, serving as a reliable reference for clinicians in early assessment of DFU.

Objective To compare the safety and efficacy of flexible terminal suction ureteral access sheath(FTS-UAS)and negative pressure ureteral access sheath(NPUAS)in flexible ureteroscopic lithotripsy with holmium laser in treatment of renal calculi less than 2 cm in diameter.Methods A total of 68 patients(largest diameter of stone＜2 cm)with renal calculi treated in Yangjiang Hospital Affiliated to Guangdong Medical University during Nov.2022 and Aug.2023 were divided into FTS-UAS group(n=34)and NPUAS group(n=34)according to different surgical methods.The perioperative parameters and stone-free rate(SFR)were compared between the two groups.Results The average SFR on the first day after operation was significantly higher in the FTS-UAS group than in the NPUAS group[85.3％(29/34)vs.61.8％(21/34),P=0.028].The operation time was significantly lower in the FTS-UAS group than in the NPUAS group[(65.85±13.16)min vs.(75.59±20.21)min,P=0.022].For lower calyceal renal calculi,the SFR was significantly higher in the FTS-UAS group than in the NPUAS group[82.4％(14/17)vs.43.8％(7/16),P=0.032].One month after operation,the SFR was higher in the FTS-UAS group than in the NPUAS group[94.1％(32/34)vs.85.3％(29/34),P=0.452].There were no significant differences in hemoglobin reduction,serum creatinine level,postoperative complications,hospital stay and hospitalization costs between the two groups(P＞0.05).Conclusion FTS-UAS in flexible ureteroscopic lithotripsy can shorten the operation time and improve stone-clearance rate,which is safe,effective,and worthy of clinical promotion.

Objective:To analyze the implementation effect of single disease payment policy for day surgery (hereinafter referred to as the policy), for references for the reform of medical insurance payment.Methods:By collecting the information of inpatients from 2017 to 2019 in a tertiary hospital, the research group took patients with colorectal benign tumor and nodular goitre as the policy implementation group and the control group respectively. 2017-2018 was the pre implementation stage of the policy, and 2019 was the post implementation stage of the policy. The difference-in-differences (DID) model was used to analyze the changes in indicators such as length of stay and hospitalization expenses after policy implementation, under whether the policy is implemented or not, as well as before or after policy implementation.Results:A total of 2 419 patients were included, including 927 patients with nodular goiter in the control group and 1 492 patients with colorectal benign tumors in the policy implementation group (688 patients before the policy implementation and 804 patients after the policy implementation). The results of DID showed that the hospital days for patients with colorectal benign tumor decreased by 56.53%, the hospitalization expenses decreased by 26.51%, the out-of-pocket expenses decreased by 26.66%, the treatment expenses increased by 11.96%, the drug expenses decreased by 50.29% and the consumables expenses decreased by 20.23% after the implementation of the policy.Conclusions:The implementation of the policy could reduce length of stay, hospitalization expenses and out-of-pocket expenses, optimize the structure of hospitalization expenses, improve the efficiency of hospital diagnosis and treatment, and help the hospital realize its transformation from a size expansion to a quality and benefit expansion.

Objective:To explore the incidence of secondary hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (sHLH) in elderly patients with severe SARS-CoV-2 infection, and to analyze and summarize its clinical features and risk factors for early identification of high-risk groups.Methods:A retrospective cohort study was conducted. From January to May 2020, No. 960 Hospital of People's Liberation Army, the Second Hospital Affiliated to Cheeloo College of Medicine of Shandong Province, the First Rehabilitation Hospital of Shandong Province, the Public Health Clinical Center Affiliated to Shandong University, and Ruijin Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine received 248 patients over 60 years old who were diagnosed with severe SARS-CoV-2 infection during their assistance to Hubei or support for diagnosis and treatment of SARS-CoV-2 infection in Shandong Province. The clinical data of patients were collected. According to the hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis diagnosis scoring (HScore) criteria, the patients were divided into sHLH group (HScore > 169) and non-sHLH group (HScore < 98). The demographic data, clinical features, laboratory results, the proportion of organ failure and 60-day mortality of patients were collected and compared between the two groups. The risk factors of sHLH and 60-day death were evaluated through binary multivariate Logistic regression analysis in elderly patients with severe SARS-CoV-2 infection. The receiver operator characteristic curve (ROC curve) was plotted to analyze the diagnostic value of indicators only or combined for sHLH.Results:Among 248 elderly patients with severe SARS-CoV-2 infection, 82 patients with incomplete data and untraceable clinical outcomes, and 35 patients with HScore of 98-169 were excluded. Finally, 131 patients were enrolled in the final follow-up and statistics, including 25 patients in the sHLH group and 106 patients in the non-sHLH group. Compared with the non-sHLH group, plasma albumin (ALB), hemoglobin (Hb), lymphocyte count (LYM), platelet count (PLT), fibrinogen (Fib) and prealbumin (PAB) in the sHLH group were significantly reduced, while alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), blood urea nitrogen (BUN), MB isoenzyme of creatine kinase (CK-MB), serum creatinine (SCr), C-reactive protein (CRP), D-dimer, ferritin (Fer), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), procalcitonin (PCT), cardiac troponin I (cTnI), triglycerides (TG), interleukin-6 (IL-6), total bilirubin (TBil) were significantly higher. The fever and fatigue in the sHLH group were more severe than those in the non-sHLH group, and the patients in the sHLH group had higher rates of shock, acute kidney injury, liver dysfunction, and cardiac injury than the non-sHLH group. The 60-day mortality of patient in the sHLH group was significantly higher than that in the non-sHLH group [84.0% (21/25) vs. 40.6% (43/106), P < 0.01]. Binary multivariate Logistic regression analysis showed that high Fer [odds ratio ( OR) = 0.997, 95% confidence interval (95% CI) was 0.996-0.998], D-dimer ( OR = 0.960, 95% CI was 0.944-0.977), LDH ( OR = 0.998, 95% CI was 0.997-0.999) and TG ( OR = 0.706, 95% CI was 0.579-0.860) were independent risk factors for sHLH in elderly patients with severe SARS-CoV-2 infection (all P < 0.01), while elevated Fer ( OR = 1.001, 95% CI was 1.001-1.002), LDH ( OR = 1.004, 95% CI was 1.002-1.005) and D-dimer ( OR = 1.036, 95% CI was 1.018-1.055) were independent risk factors for 60-day death of patients (all P < 0.01). The death risk of the sHLH patients was 7.692 times higher than that of the non-sHLH patients ( OR = 7.692, 95% CI was 2.466-23.987, P = 0.000). ROC curve analysis showed that a three-composite-index composed of LDH, D-dimer and TG had good diagnostic value for sHLH in elderly patients with severe SARS-CoV-2 infection [area under the ROC curve (AUC) = 0.920, 95% CI was 0.866-0.973, P = 0.000]. Conclusions:Elderly patients with severe SARS-CoV-2 infection complicated by sHLH tend to be critically ill and have refractory status and worse prognosis. High Fer, LDH, D-dimer and TG are independent risk factors for sHLH, and are highly suggestive of poor outcome. The comprehensive index composed of LDH, D-dimer and TG has good diagnostic value, and can be used as an early screening tool for sHLH in elderly patients with severe SARS-CoV-2 infection.

As far the current severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), respiratory disease is still the biggest threat to human health. In addition, infectious respiratory diseases are particularly prominent. In addition to killing and clearing the infection pathogen directly, regulating the immune responses against the pathogens is also an important therapeutic modality. Sirtuins belong to NAD+-dependent class III histone deacetylases. Among 7 types of sirtuins, silent information regulator type-1 (SIRT1) played a multitasking role in modulating a wide range of physiological processes, including oxidative stress, inflammation, cell apoptosis, autophagy, antibacterial and antiviral functions. It showed a critical effect in regulating immune responses by deacetylation modification, especially through high-mobility group box 1 (HMGB1), a core molecule regulating the immune system. SIRT1 was associated with many respiratory diseases, including COVID-19 infection, bacterial pneumonia, tuberculosis, and so on. Here, we reviewed the latest research progress regarding the effects of SIRT1 on immune system in respiratory diseases. First, the structure and catalytic characteristics of SIRT1 were introduced. Next, the roles of SIRT1, and the mechanisms underlying the immune regulatory effect through HMGB1, as well as the specific activators/inhibitors of SIRT1, were elaborated. Finally, the multitasking roles of SIRT1 in several respiratory diseases were discussed separately. Taken together, this review implied that SIRT1 could serve as a promising specific therapeutic target for the treatment of respiratory diseases.

BACKGROUND: Vancomycin treatment failure against vancomycin-susceptible gram-positive cocci is not rare in the intensive care unit (ICU). One of the reasons for this is the substandard drug trough concentration. We aimed to examine the hypothesis that the target serum concentration could be reached earlier with a loading dose of vancomycin. METHODS: This retrospective cohort study was conducted at our ICU between June 2018 and June 2020 and involved patients who were suspected of having, or confirmed to have, gram-positive cocci infection and treated with vancomycin. One group of the patients was administered a loading dose of vancomycin (loading group) and compared with the group that did not receive a loading dose (control group). The baseline characteristics, vancomycin serum concentrations, and clinical outcomes were collected and analyzed. RESULTS: Fifty-five patients were finally included, of which 29 received a loading dose of vancomycin. The serum concentration of vancomycin before the second dose was significantly higher for the loading group than for the control group (10.3 ± 6.1 mg/L vs. 5.7 ± 4.4 mg/L, P = 0.002). The results for both groups were similar before the fifth dose (12.4 ± 7.3 mg/L vs. 10.3 ± 6.3 mg/L in the loading and the control groups, respectively; P = 0.251). The 28-day mortality was lower for the loading group than for the control group (6.7% vs. 34.6% in the loading and control groups, respectively; P = 0.026). No significant differences were observed in serum creatinine (Cr) concentrations of the two groups. CONCLUSION: With the loading dose of vancomycin, the target serum concentration of vancomycin may be reached earlier without increasing the risk of acute kidney injury. TRIAL REGISTRATION https://www.chictr.org.cn; ChiCTR2000035369.
Anti-Bacterial Agents/therapeutic use* ; Creatinine ; Humans ; Intensive Care Units ; Retrospective Studies ; Vancomycin

Traditional endocrine drugs, such as bicalutamide, are the first choice for neoadjuvant therapy of prostate cancer. There are few reports on the use of new endocrine drugs in neoadjuvant therapy in China. The patient, male, 63 years old. He was admitted to the hospital for the finding of prostate space occupying. Blood PSA 53.50 ng / ml. Prostate MRI suggested that the prostate lesion broke through the left capsule, the left seminal vesicle gland was invaded, and the bladder wall was invaded. Bone scan suggested that: the left 8th posterior costal branch radioactivity was limited and increased. Prostate adenocarcinoma was diagnosed by puncture, Gleason score 4 + 4 = 8 points, and stage T 4bN 1M 1. The patient was treated with goserelin combined with enzalutamide for 3 months, and PSMA-PET CT: prostate size was normal, no significant 68Ga PSMA uptake was increased, no abnormally high Ga PSMA uptake in bones. The patient was treated with enzalutamide combined with ADT as neoadjuvant endocrine therapy, winning surgical conditions for the patient to undergo surgical resection.

Objective:To investigate the effect of AngioJet thrombectomy on proximal iliofemoral vein thrombosis after trauma.Methods:The clinical data of patients with proximal iliofemoral vein thrombosis treated with AngioJet thrombectomy were retrospectively analyzed at Vascular Surgery Department of our hospital in 2019.Results:A total of 76 patients were enrolled. After PMT 20 patients had grade Ⅲ thrombolysis clearance(26.3%), 41 patients (53.9%) had grade Ⅱ clearance, and 15 cases (19.7%) had grade Ⅰ clearance. Thirty four cases (44.7%) of grade Ⅲ were cleared after catheter aspiration or catheter thrombolysis, 35 cases (46.1%) of grade Ⅱ, 7 cases (9.2%) of grade Ⅰ were cleared, thrombus clearance rate increased significantly ( P<0.05). Cerebral hemorrhage occurred in 1 case (1.3%), and thrombosis recurred in 2 cases (2.6%). The patency rate was 91.8% at 3 months follow-up. Conclusions:AngioJet thrombectomy is a safe and effective method for treating post-traumatic proximal iliac femoral vein thrombosis. Intraoperative application of urokinase thrombolysis, catheter aspiration and catheter-directed thrombolysis can increase thrombus clearance effect.