Objective: To investigate the epidemiological characteristics of pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) among residents aged 60 years and older in Yangzhou City, Jiangsu Province from 2013 to 2022, so as to provide the evidence for the improvement of PTB prevention and control measures in this population. Methods: Data of PTB cases aged 60 years and older in Yangzhou City from 2013 to 2022 were collected from the Chinese Disease Prevention and Control Information System. The temporal, population, and regional distribution characteristics of PTB cases were analyzed using the descriptive epidemiological method. Results: A total of 8 726 PTB cases aged 60 years and older were registered in Yangzhou City from 2013 to 2022, including 4 167 cases positive for pathogenic tests, with a positive rate of 47.75%. The registered incidence rates and the positive rates of pathogenic tests of PTB among residents aged 60 years and older in Yangzhou City showed downward trends from 2013 to 2022 (both P<0.05). The average annual registered incidence rate of PTB was 83.95/105, and the average annual registered incidence rate of PTB positive for pathogenic tests was 40.09/105. The average annual registered incidence rate of PTB in males was higher than that in females (138.57/105 vs. 31.76/105, P<0.05). The registered incidence rate of PTB showed an increasing trend with age (P<0.05), with the highest rate observed in the age group of 75-<80 years (110.37/105). The top three regions with the highest average annual registered incidence rates of PTB were Jiangdu District (94.34/105), Baoying County (91.61/105) and Hanjiang District (84.93/105). Conclusions The registered incidence of PTB among residents aged 60 years and older in Yangzhou City showed a downward trend from 2013 to 2022. Particular attention should be payed to males, residents aged 75- <80 years, and the elderly in Jiangdu District and Baoying County.

Objective: To analyze the consumption frequency of major foods among Chinese children aged 6-17 years old, and to provide a basis for optimizing the dietary structure of children in China. Methods: Using data from the China Nutrition and Health System Survey and Application Program for Children 0-18 years old, 56 734 children aged 6-17 years old from North, Norththeast East, Central, South, Southwest and Northwest seven regions in China were selected for the study using stratified cluster random sampling from 2019 to 2021. A food frequency questionnaire was used to investigate the intake frequency of eight food groups in a month, including fresh vegetables, fresh fruits, livestock and poultry meats, aquatic products, eggs, dairy products, legumes, and cereals and potatoes. The foods were grouped according to whether they met the recommended intake criteria outlined in the Dietary Guidelines for Chinese Residents 2022. The〖KG*2〗χ2 test was used to compare the differences in the proportion of childrens intake frequency of each food group meeting the standard in different regions and age groups. Results: The proportions of Chinese children aged 6-17 years who consumed fresh vegetables and cereals and potatoes ≥3 times/d were 12.1% and 67.2%, respectively. The proportions of children who consumed fresh fruits, livestock and poultry meats, eggs and dairy products ≥1 time/d were 50.8%, 58.8%, 36.0% and 54.3%, respectively. The proportion of legumes consumed ≥4 times/week was 37.4%, and the proportion of aquatic products consumed ≥2 times/week was 39.7%. Fresh vegetables (5.5%), fresh fruits (33.1%), and dairy products (36.4%) had the lowest frequency of meeting the recommended standards in South China, and aquatic products (27.4%) and eggs (21.1%) had the lowest frequency of meeting the recommended standards in Northwest (P<0.008 3). Conclusion The overall intake frequency of fresh vegetables, fresh fruits, legumes, and dairy products are insufficient among Chinese children, with significant regional variations.

Benign prostatic hyperplasia （BPH） is a common chronic progressive disease in middle-aged and elderly men， characterized by prostate enlargement and bladder outlet obstruction， leading to symptoms such as frequent urination， urgency， and difficulty urinating. The pathogenesis of BPH involves factors such as aging， hormonal metabolic abnormalities， inflammatory responses， and imbalances in cell proliferation and apoptosis. Currently， the main treatment methods for BPH include medication， physical therapy， and surgical intervention. However， medication may cause side effects like sexual dysfunction and hypotension， physical therapy has limited efficacy， and surgery carries risks and postoperative complications. Therefore， there is an urgent need to find safer and more effective treatment options. Traditional Chinese medicine （TCM）， with its focus on treatment based on syndrome differentiation and a holistic approach， offers therapeutic advantages through multiple pathways and mechanisms. Recent studies have shown that TCM regulates pathways such as phosphoinositide-3-kinase/protein kinase B （PI3K/Akt）， nuclear factor-κB （NF-κB）， mitogen-activated protein kinases （MAPK）， nuclear factor E₂-related factor 2/antioxidant response element （Nrf2/ARE）， androgen receptor （AR）， transforming growth factor-β （TGF-β）/Smad， and hypoxia-inducible factor-1α/vascular endothelial growth factor （HIF-1α/VEGF） to inhibit oxidative stress and inflammatory response， reduce prostate cell proliferation， and promote apoptosis， thus exerting therapeutic effects. This article summarizes and analyzes the roles of these signaling pathways in the occurrence and development of BPH and the mechanisms of TCM intervention， aiming to provide scientific evidence for clinical treatment and drug development for BPH.

Benign prostatic hyperplasia （BPH） is a common chronic progressive disease in middle-aged and elderly men， characterized by prostate enlargement and bladder outlet obstruction， leading to symptoms such as frequent urination， urgency， and difficulty urinating. The pathogenesis of BPH involves factors such as aging， hormonal metabolic abnormalities， inflammatory responses， and imbalances in cell proliferation and apoptosis. Currently， the main treatment methods for BPH include medication， physical therapy， and surgical intervention. However， medication may cause side effects like sexual dysfunction and hypotension， physical therapy has limited efficacy， and surgery carries risks and postoperative complications. Therefore， there is an urgent need to find safer and more effective treatment options. Traditional Chinese medicine （TCM）， with its focus on treatment based on syndrome differentiation and a holistic approach， offers therapeutic advantages through multiple pathways and mechanisms. Recent studies have shown that TCM regulates pathways such as phosphoinositide-3-kinase/protein kinase B （PI3K/Akt）， nuclear factor-κB （NF-κB）， mitogen-activated protein kinases （MAPK）， nuclear factor E₂-related factor 2/antioxidant response element （Nrf2/ARE）， androgen receptor （AR）， transforming growth factor-β （TGF-β）/Smad， and hypoxia-inducible factor-1α/vascular endothelial growth factor （HIF-1α/VEGF） to inhibit oxidative stress and inflammatory response， reduce prostate cell proliferation， and promote apoptosis， thus exerting therapeutic effects. This article summarizes and analyzes the roles of these signaling pathways in the occurrence and development of BPH and the mechanisms of TCM intervention， aiming to provide scientific evidence for clinical treatment and drug development for BPH.

Objective: To analyze the association of eating dining locations and their association with nutritional status among Chinese children aged 6-17 years,so as to provide reference for guiding children s reasonable diet. Methods: Stratified random cluster sampling was used to select children aged 6 to 17 years from 28 cities and rural areas of 14 provinces in East, North, Central, South, Southwest, Northwest, Northeast of China, and a total of 52 535 children were included in the study from 2019 to 2021. Information including dining locations, demographic characteristics, dietary intakes and physical activity were collected through a questionnaire survey. Fasting body height and weight were measured in the morning. Unordered multiclass Logistic regression analysis was conducted to assess the relationship between dining locations and nutritional status in children. Results: Regarding children s dining locations, 66.3% ate breakfast at home,25.8% ate breakfast at school,7.9% ate breakfast outside (small dining tables, restaurants, stalls, etc.); 67.7% ate dinner at home,29.0% ate dinner at school,3.3% ate dinner outside; and 63.6% ate lunch at school,30.8% ate lunch at home,5.7% ate lunch outside. The prevalence rates of overweight/obesity and undernutrition were 28.6% and 9.3%, respectively. The adjusted multiclass Logistic regression analysis (controlling for age, region, parental education, household income, total energy intake, and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity) demonstrated that, compared to eating at home, school based breakfast and dinner consumption was associated with significantly lower overweight/obesity risks for both genders (boys: breakfast OR =0.70, 95% CI =0.65-0.75; dinner OR =0.80, 95% CI = 0.74- 0.86; girls: breakfast OR = 0.89 , 95% CI = 0.82-0.96; dinner OR =0.88, 95% CI =0.81-0.95), whereas eating lunch away from home significantly increased overweight/obesity risks (boys: OR =1.32, 95% CI =1.17-1.48; girls: OR =1.43, 95% CI =1.26- 1.62 ), with all associations being statistically significant ( P <0.05). After adjusting for confounding factors, boys who ate breakfast away from home showed a significantly reduced risk of undernutrition ( OR =0.80,95% CI =0.66-0.97), while those consuming lunch away from home had an increased risk ( OR =1.26, 95% CI =1.01-1.57) ( P <0.05). Conclusions The choice of dining locations for children is becoming more diverse, and a relatively high proportion of children eat meals outside the home and at school. Eating out have a higher risk of malnutrition for children. School feeding may be beneficial to children s physical health.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to investigate the feasibility of an intelligent handheld ultrasound (US) device for assisting non-expert general practitioners (GPs) in detecting carotid plaques (CPs) in community populations. Methods: This prospective parallel controlled trial recruited 111 consecutive community residents. All of them underwent examinations by non-expert GPs and specialist doctors using handheld US devices (setting A, setting B, and setting C). The results of setting C with specialist doctors were considered the gold standard. Carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) and the features of CPs were measured and recorded. The diagnostic performance of GPs in distinguishing CPs was evaluated using a receiver operating characteristic curve. Inter-observer agreement was compared using the intragroup correlation coefficient (ICC). Questionnaires were completed to evaluate clinical benefits. Results: Among the 111 community residents, 80, 96, and 112 CPs were detected in settings A, B, and C, respectively. Setting B exhibited better diagnostic performance than setting A for detecting CPs (area under the curve, 0.856 vs. 0.749; P<0.01). Setting B had better consistency with setting C than setting A in CIMT measurement and the assessment of CPs (ICC, 0.731 to 0.923). Moreover, measurements in setting B required less time than the other two settings (44.59 seconds vs. 108.87 seconds vs. 126.13 seconds, both P<0.01). Conclusion Using an intelligent handheld US device, GPs can perform CP screening and achieve a diagnostic capability comparable to that of specialist doctors.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to investigate the feasibility of an intelligent handheld ultrasound (US) device for assisting non-expert general practitioners (GPs) in detecting carotid plaques (CPs) in community populations. Methods: This prospective parallel controlled trial recruited 111 consecutive community residents. All of them underwent examinations by non-expert GPs and specialist doctors using handheld US devices (setting A, setting B, and setting C). The results of setting C with specialist doctors were considered the gold standard. Carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) and the features of CPs were measured and recorded. The diagnostic performance of GPs in distinguishing CPs was evaluated using a receiver operating characteristic curve. Inter-observer agreement was compared using the intragroup correlation coefficient (ICC). Questionnaires were completed to evaluate clinical benefits. Results: Among the 111 community residents, 80, 96, and 112 CPs were detected in settings A, B, and C, respectively. Setting B exhibited better diagnostic performance than setting A for detecting CPs (area under the curve, 0.856 vs. 0.749; P<0.01). Setting B had better consistency with setting C than setting A in CIMT measurement and the assessment of CPs (ICC, 0.731 to 0.923). Moreover, measurements in setting B required less time than the other two settings (44.59 seconds vs. 108.87 seconds vs. 126.13 seconds, both P<0.01). Conclusion Using an intelligent handheld US device, GPs can perform CP screening and achieve a diagnostic capability comparable to that of specialist doctors.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to investigate the feasibility of an intelligent handheld ultrasound (US) device for assisting non-expert general practitioners (GPs) in detecting carotid plaques (CPs) in community populations. Methods: This prospective parallel controlled trial recruited 111 consecutive community residents. All of them underwent examinations by non-expert GPs and specialist doctors using handheld US devices (setting A, setting B, and setting C). The results of setting C with specialist doctors were considered the gold standard. Carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) and the features of CPs were measured and recorded. The diagnostic performance of GPs in distinguishing CPs was evaluated using a receiver operating characteristic curve. Inter-observer agreement was compared using the intragroup correlation coefficient (ICC). Questionnaires were completed to evaluate clinical benefits. Results: Among the 111 community residents, 80, 96, and 112 CPs were detected in settings A, B, and C, respectively. Setting B exhibited better diagnostic performance than setting A for detecting CPs (area under the curve, 0.856 vs. 0.749; P<0.01). Setting B had better consistency with setting C than setting A in CIMT measurement and the assessment of CPs (ICC, 0.731 to 0.923). Moreover, measurements in setting B required less time than the other two settings (44.59 seconds vs. 108.87 seconds vs. 126.13 seconds, both P<0.01). Conclusion Using an intelligent handheld US device, GPs can perform CP screening and achieve a diagnostic capability comparable to that of specialist doctors.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to investigate the feasibility of an intelligent handheld ultrasound (US) device for assisting non-expert general practitioners (GPs) in detecting carotid plaques (CPs) in community populations. Methods: This prospective parallel controlled trial recruited 111 consecutive community residents. All of them underwent examinations by non-expert GPs and specialist doctors using handheld US devices (setting A, setting B, and setting C). The results of setting C with specialist doctors were considered the gold standard. Carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) and the features of CPs were measured and recorded. The diagnostic performance of GPs in distinguishing CPs was evaluated using a receiver operating characteristic curve. Inter-observer agreement was compared using the intragroup correlation coefficient (ICC). Questionnaires were completed to evaluate clinical benefits. Results: Among the 111 community residents, 80, 96, and 112 CPs were detected in settings A, B, and C, respectively. Setting B exhibited better diagnostic performance than setting A for detecting CPs (area under the curve, 0.856 vs. 0.749; P<0.01). Setting B had better consistency with setting C than setting A in CIMT measurement and the assessment of CPs (ICC, 0.731 to 0.923). Moreover, measurements in setting B required less time than the other two settings (44.59 seconds vs. 108.87 seconds vs. 126.13 seconds, both P<0.01). Conclusion Using an intelligent handheld US device, GPs can perform CP screening and achieve a diagnostic capability comparable to that of specialist doctors.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to investigate the feasibility of an intelligent handheld ultrasound (US) device for assisting non-expert general practitioners (GPs) in detecting carotid plaques (CPs) in community populations. Methods: This prospective parallel controlled trial recruited 111 consecutive community residents. All of them underwent examinations by non-expert GPs and specialist doctors using handheld US devices (setting A, setting B, and setting C). The results of setting C with specialist doctors were considered the gold standard. Carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) and the features of CPs were measured and recorded. The diagnostic performance of GPs in distinguishing CPs was evaluated using a receiver operating characteristic curve. Inter-observer agreement was compared using the intragroup correlation coefficient (ICC). Questionnaires were completed to evaluate clinical benefits. Results: Among the 111 community residents, 80, 96, and 112 CPs were detected in settings A, B, and C, respectively. Setting B exhibited better diagnostic performance than setting A for detecting CPs (area under the curve, 0.856 vs. 0.749; P<0.01). Setting B had better consistency with setting C than setting A in CIMT measurement and the assessment of CPs (ICC, 0.731 to 0.923). Moreover, measurements in setting B required less time than the other two settings (44.59 seconds vs. 108.87 seconds vs. 126.13 seconds, both P<0.01). Conclusion Using an intelligent handheld US device, GPs can perform CP screening and achieve a diagnostic capability comparable to that of specialist doctors.