[Objective] To compare the clinical efficacy of super pulse thulium laser enucleation of the prostate (SPThuLEP) with "open tunnel" and transurethral holmium laser enucleation of the prostate (HoLEP) in the treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), in order to provide reference for the treatment options of BPH. [Methods] The clinical data of 112 BPH patients treated in our hospital during Jan.2023 and Jul.2023 were retrospectively analyzed, including 65 treated with SPThuLEP with "open tunnel" and 57 with HoLEP.The operation time, postoperative hemoglobin decrease, postoperative bladder irrigation, catheter indwelling time, hospitalization time and complications were compared between the two groups.The changes of maximum urine flow rate (Qmax), international prostate symptom score (IPSS), quality of life score (QoL), postvoid residual (PVR) and prostate-specific antigen (PSA) were compared between the two groups before operation and one month after operation. [Results] All operations were successful without conversion to open or transurethral plasmakinetic resection.The postoperative decrease of hemoglobin in SPThuLEP group was lower than that in HoLEP group [(13.12±6.72) g/L vs. (21.02±6.51) g/L], with statistical difference (P<0.05). There were no significant differences in the operation time [(63.35±15.73) min vs.(61.02±17.55) min], postoperative bladder irrigation time [(1.07±0.45) d vs. (1.06±0.36) d], catheter indwelling time [(2.98±0.56) d vs. (3.01±0.63) d] and hospitalization time [(3.63±0.61) d vs.(3.79±0.76) d] between the two groups (P>0.05). No blood transfusion, secondary bleeding or unplanned hospitalization occurred, and there were no serious complications such as transurethral electroresection syndrome (TURS), urethral stricture and urinary incontinence.One month after operation, the Qmax, IPSS, QoL, PVR and PSA of the two groups were significantly improved compared with those before operation (P<0.05), but with no statistical difference between the two groups (P>0.05). [Conclusion] SPThuLEP with "open tunnel" has comparable efficacy as HoLEP in the treatment of BPH.With advantages of small amount of bleeding and high safety, this minimally invasive technique can be widely popularized in clinical practice.

Medical artificial intelligence （AI） is a new type of application formed by the combination of machine learning， computer vision， natural language processing， and other technologies with clinical medical treatment. With the continuous iteration and development of relevant technologies， medical AI has shown great potential in improving the efficiency of diagnosis and treatment， and service quality， but it also increases the possibility of triggering ethical issues. Ethical issues resulting from the clinical application of medical AI were analyzed， including the lack of algorithmic interpretability and transparency of medical AI， leading to information asymmetry and cognitive discrepancies； the concerning status of security and privacy protection of medical data； and the complex and unclear division of responsibilities due to the collaborative participation of multiple subjects in the clinical application of medical AI， resulting in increased difficulty in the identification of medical accidents and clarification of responsibilities. The paper proposed the principles of not harming patients’ interests， physician’s subjectivity， fairness and inclusiveness， and rapid response. It also explored the strategies and implementation paths for responding to the ethical issues of medical AI from multiple perspectives， including standardizing the environment and processes， clarifying responsibility attribution， continuously assessing the impact of data protection， guaranteeing data security， ensuring model transparency and interpretability， carrying out multi-subject collaboration， as well as the principles of being driven by ethical values and adhering to the “human health-centeredness.” It aimed to provide guidance for the healthy development of medical AI， ensuring technological progress while effectively managing and mitigating accompanying ethical risks， thereby promoting the benign development of medical AI technology and better serving the healthcare industry and patients.

OBJECTIVES: To explore the value of serum cystatin C (CysC) levels in evaluating renal prognosis in IgA nephropathy (IgAN) patients. METHODS: We retrospectively collected the clinical data of IgAN patients diagnosed by renal biopsy at Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital from January, 2014 to December, 2018. Based on baseline serum CysC levels, the patients were divided into high serum CysC (>1.03 mg/L) group and normal serum CysC (≤1.03 mg/L) group. The composite endpoint for poor renal prognosis was defined as ≥50% decline in estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) and/or progression to end-stage renal disease (ESRD). Lasso regression, multivariate Cox regression and Kaplan-Meier survival analysis were used to identify the risk factors and compare renal survival rates between the two groups. Smooth curves fitting and threshold effect analysis were used to explore the relationship between serum CysC levels and the outcomes. A nomogram model was constructed and its predictive performance was evaluated using concordance index, calibration curve, receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve and the area under curve (AUC). RESULTS: A total of 356 IgAN patients were enrolled, who were followed up for 4.65±0.93 years. The composite endpoint occurred in 74 patients. High serum CysC was identified as an independent risk factor for poor renal prognosis in IgAN (HR=2.142, 95% CI 1.222 to 3.755), and the patients with high serum CysC levels had a lower renal survival rate (Log-rank χ²=47.970, P<0.001). In patients with serum CysC below 2.12 mg/L, a higher CysC level was associated with an increased risk of poor renal prognosis (β=3.487, 95% CI: 2.561-4.413, P<0.001), while above this level, the increase of the risk was not significant (β=0.676, 95% CI: -0.642-1.995, P=0.315). The nomogram model based on serum CysC and 3 other independent risk factors demonstrated good internal validity with a concordance index of 0.873 (95% CI: 0.839-0.907) and an AUC of 0.909 (95% CI: 0.873-0.945). CONCLUSIONS Serum CysC levels are associated with renal prognosis in IgAN patients, and high serum CysC an independent risk factor for poor renal prognosis.
Humans ; Glomerulonephritis, IGA/diagnosis* ; Cystatin C/blood* ; Prognosis ; Risk Factors ; Retrospective Studies ; Glomerular Filtration Rate ; Kidney Failure, Chronic ; Male ; Female ; Adult ; Nomograms ; Middle Aged

Objective To analyze the correlation between inflammation,nutritional indicators and hy-poproteinemia in patients with acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease(AECOPD).Meth-ods The clinical data of patients with AECOPD admitted to the Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine of the First Affiliated Hospital of Xiamen University from January 2020 to September 2022 were ret-rospectively analyzed,and the patients were divided into the hypoproteinemia group(n=73)and the non-hy-poproteinemia group(n=141)according to whether the serum albumin(ALB)was lower than 35 g/L.The clinical data,inflammatory indicators and nutritional indicators of the two groups were compared,Spearman correlation analysis was performed,and binary logistic regression analysis was performed to analyze the influ-encing factors of patients with AECOPD complicated with hypoproteinemia.Results There were statistically significant differences in age,length of hospital stay,and body weight between the two groups(P＜0.05).There were no significant differences in gender,number of hospitalizations in the past 1 year,height,diabetes,hypertension and proportion of coronary heart disease(P＞0.05).Compared with the non-hypoproteinemia group,the hypoproteinemia group had longer hospital stays and higher levels of C-reactive protein,neutrophil/albumin ratio(NAR),neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio(NLR),platelet-lymphocyte ratio(PLR),and systemic immunoinflammatory index(SII).The prognostic nutritional index(PNI),body mass index(BMI),hemoglo-bin and total protein levels were lower,and the difference was statistically significant(P＜0.05).Body weight,BMI,hemoglobin,total protein,PNI and AECOPD patients with hypoproteinemia were negatively cor-related(P＜0.05),while age,length of hospital stay,C-reactive protein,NAR,NLR,PLR,SII and AECOPD patients with hypoproteinemia were positively correlated(P＜0.05).Binary logistic regression analysis showed that PNI,SII and NLR were the influencing factors of hypoproteinemia in AECOPD patients.Conclusion In clinical practice,attention should be paid to and timely correction of hypoproteinemia in pa-tients with AECOPD,improvement of inflammatory indicators and nutritional status of patients,and preven-tion of acute exacerbation.

Objective:To analyze the association between visceral fat area (VFA) and fatty liver based on quantitative CT (QCT) in people receiving health examination with normal body mass index (BMI).Methods:A cross-sectional study. A total of 1 305 physical examiners who underwent chest CT and QCT examination in the Department of Health Management of Henan Provincial People′s Hospital from January to December 2021 were retrospectively selected as subjects. The physical components at the central level of the lumbar two cone were measured with QCT, including subcutaneous fat area (SFA), VFA and liver fat content (LFC). And the metabolic indexes, such as blood lipids and blood glucose, were collected. The t-test and χ2 test were used to analyze the correlation between the detection rate of fatty live and LFCr and age and gender. According to level of VFA (<100 cm 2, 100-150 cm 2 and≥150 cm 2), the subjects were divided into three groups, and one-way ANOVA and χ2 test were used in comparison between groups. Multiple linear regression was used to analyze the correlation between VFA and metabolic indexes and LFC. Results:Of the 1 305 subjects, there were 634 males and 671 females. The detection rate of fatty liver in normal BMI population was 65.67%, and it was 72.71% and 59.02% respectively in men and women ( χ2=27.12, P<0.001), and the detection rate of fatty liver and LFC increased with age (both P<0.05). With the increase of VFA, the age, BMI, SFA, LFC, total cholesterol (TC), triacylglycerol (TG), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), fasting blood glucose (FBG), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), blood uric acid and prevalence of fatty liver increased (all P<0.05), and the low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) decreased ( P<0.001). Multiple linear regression analysis showed that after adjustment for age factors, regardless of male or female, LFC was independently positively related with VFA, BMI, and ALT (male β=0.206, 0.145, 0.174, female β=0.194, 0.150, 0.184; all P<0.05). FBG was positively correlated with male independently ( β=0.134; P<0.001). The indicators related to female independently were TC, TG, and blood uric acid ( β=-0.121, 0.145, 0.141, all P<0.05) Conclusion:In the population receiving health examination with normal BMI, the VFA measured by QCT technique is closely related to fatty liver.

Objective To adapt to the requirements of medical technology innovation under the new situation.To explore the establishment of a scientific,standardized,and reasonable management institution and system.It aims to actively promote the development of Investigator Initiate Trials(IITs)in medical and health institutions.Methods By conducting a literature review,policy interpretation,and examing work practices,this study identified the pain points and difficulties in IIT management.It sorted out the core requirements and elements needed for effective IIT management and proposed measures.Results The study proposed the development of five support systems for IIT management.A functional responsibility system for implementing classified and tiered management of IITs with clear delineation of responsibilities and authority;A quality supervision system that introduces a third-party co-management mechanism to fill the gaps of IIT quality management in the three-level quality control system;A fund support system that reduces or waives the hospital management fees for IITs,and incorporate the IIT undertaking into the annual evaluation metrics for optimized SMO;A collaborative innovation system that connect with external enterprises and coordinates internal departments to jointly promote the efficient operation of IITs;A risk early warning system that establishes IIT risk assessment criteria and conducts real-time dynamic supervision,strengthening IIT data management,and ensuring IIT data security.Conclusions Currently,IIT management generally lacks sufficient attention in China,and there is no complete framework or practice.By constructing the five IIT system construction scheme.It is conducive to optimizing the process,improving efficiency,ensuring quality and reducing risk,which has certain reference significance for the improvement and development of IIT management.

Objective:To summarize the clinical characteristics of patients with end-stage heart failure who receive heart transplant under extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) support.Methods:The clinical data of 12 pediatric patients who received heart transplant with ECMO support in the Seventh Medical Center of Chinese People′s Liberation Army General Hospital and Guangdong Provincial People′s Hospital, from January 2019 to December 2023 was collected. The data included sex, age, weight, diagnosis, pre-ECMO lactate level, left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), vasoactive-inotropic score (VIS), and preoperative ECMO running time. Surgical data included cold ischemia time of the donor heart, cardiopulmonary bypass time, intraoperative use of immunosuppressant, postoperative use of ECMO, duration of postoperative ECMO, rate of successful weaning from ECMO, and survival discharge rate. The paired t-test was performed to compare cardiac function indices before and after left ventricular decompression. Results:The 12 patients ranged in age from 1.1 to 15.8 years, and weighted from 8 to 63 kg. Ten children were diagnosed with dilated cardiomyopathy, one with myocardial underdensification, and one with a novel heterozygous mutation of the SCN5A gene causing overlap syndrome complicated by fatal arrhythmia. Before ECMO, the lactate ranged from 0.6 to>15.0 mmol/L, the LVEF from 6.5% to 43%, and VIS from 3 to 108. Four patients underwent left ventricular decompression supported by preoperative ECMO, and their pulse pressure was significantly increased after decompression ((17.8±2.1) vs. (9.8±1.5) mmHg, 1 mmHg=0.133 kPa, t=11.31, P=0.001), while there was no apparent change in LVEF ((26.8±4.4)% vs. (24.9±4.9)%, t=1.75, P=0.178). A total of 7 children received a second run of ECMO after surgery and 3 of them successfully weaned off ECMO and survived to discharge. In the entire cohort, 10 were successfully weaned from ECMO and 8 survived to discharge. Conclusions:For children with end-stage heart failure supported by ECMO, left ventricular decompression can significantly improve pulse pressure. These patients will eventually require heart transplantation.

Objective To investigate the correlation between pericarotid fat density(PFD)and carotid plaque CT vulnerability characteristics.Methods The clinical and imaging data of 78 patients were analyzed retrospectively.PFD and subcutaneous neck fat density(SNFD),as well as plaque density,degree of lumen stenosis,and maximum plaque thickness were measured on picture archiving and communication system(PACS),and PFD/SNFD ratio was calculated.The plaques were divided into 4 subgroups according to their composition,namely fatty plaque group,fibrous plaque group,calcified plaque group and mixed plaque group.The groups were divided into no/mild-to-moderate stenosis group and severe stenosis/complete occlusion group according to the degree of stenosis,and the differences between groups were compared for clinical indices,PFD,SNFD and PFD/SNFD ratio,respectively.Results The PFD/SNFD ratio[0.54(0.32,0.72)]in the fatty plaque group was lower than that in the calcified plaque group[0.74(0.56,0.96)],with a statistically significant difference(P=0.005).The PFD/SNFD ratio in the severe stenosis/complete occlusion group(0.51±0.29)was lower than that in the no/mild-to-moderate stenosis group(0.67±0.27)(P=0.001),and the PFD in the severe stenosis/complete occlusion group[-39.75(-61.13,-24.00)]was higher than that in the no/mild-to-moderate stenosis group[-61.75(-72.00,-45.38)](P＜0.001).Conclusion PFD,PFD/SNFD ratio are correlated with carotid plaque vulnerability.

In recent years,with the gradual maturity of achievable remote collection of digital health technology,more and more clinical research have applied this technology to improve the quality of data collection and reduce the burden on subjects.However,its technological characteristics of detachment from the diagnostic and treatment environment and real-time transmission of sensitive information also pose corresponding risks to the protection of subjects'rights and interests and data standardization management,among which personal information protection and data control permissions are more prominent issues.Based on risk analysis and regulatory review,this paper explored the responsibilities of multiple parties,including the sponsors,researchers,clinical trial institutions,and ethics committee,as well as proposed five elements of special concern for ethical review,with a view to providing a reference for promoting the standardized development of digital health technology in clinical research.

Objective To explore the correlations of lumbar bone mineral density(BMD)and metabolic syndrome(MS)in adult males.Methods Data of low dose chest CT and quantitative CT of 13 490 adult males were retrospectively analyzed,and lumbar BMD were measured to judge whether MS existed and the degree of MS,and the correlations of lumbar BMD with MS or not and the degree of MS,as well as of lumbar BMD value and the related indicators of MS were assessed.Taken lumbar BMD as the dependent variable,the age,low density lipoprotein cholesterol(LDL-C),blood uric acid(BUA),hemoglobin(Hb)and MS or not were included in multiple linear regression analysis to observe the impact of MS and related indicators on lumbar BMD.Results Among 13 490 adult males,3 900 were found with MS(MS group),while 9 590 were found without MS(non-MS group).Significant difference of lumbar BMD was detected between groups(P=0.001).Lumbar BMD values were negatively correlated with MS(rs=-0.025,P=0.004)and the degree of MS(rs=-0.038,P＜0.001),whereas positively correlated with abdominal obesity,high triglyceride and low HDL-C or not(rs=0.024,0.061,0.036,all P＜0.001)but negatively correlated with hypertension and hyperglycemia or not(rs=-0.135,-0.104,both P＜0.05).After adjustment of age,lumbar BMD of adult males was negatively correlated with MS or not as well as LDL-C(both P＜0.05),but positively correlated with BUA and Hb(both P＜0.001).Conclusion Lumbar BMD was associated with MS in adult males.