Left Ventricular Systolic Dysfunction and Cardiovascular Outcomes in Tetralogy of Fallot: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

BackgroundAlthough there are robust data about the pathophysiology and prognostic implications of left ventricular (LV) systolic dysfunction in patients with acquired heart disease, similar prognostic data about LV systolic dysfunction are sparse in the tetralogy of Fallot (TOF) population. The purpose of this study was to perform a meta-analysis of all studies that assessed the relationship between LV ejection fraction (LVEF) and cardiovascular adverse events (CAEs) defined as death, aborted sudden death, or sustained ventricular tachycardia.MethodsWe used random-effects models to calculate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs).ResultsOf the 1,809 citations, 7 studies with 2,854 patients (age 28 ± 4 years) were included. During 5.6 ± 3.4 years' follow-up, there were 82 deaths, 17 aborted sudden cardiac deaths, and 56 sustained ventricular tachycardia events. Overall, CAEs occurred in 5.1% (144 patients). As a continuous variable, LVEF was a predictor of CAE (HR 1.29, 95% CI, 1.09-1.53, P = 0.001) per 5% decrease in LVEF. Similarly, LVEF < 40% was also a predictor of CAE (HR 3.22, 95% CI, 2.16-4.80, P < 0.001).ConclusionsLV systolic dysfunction was an independent predictor of CAE, and we observed a 30% increase in the risk of CAE for every 5% decrease in LVEF, and a 3-fold increase in the risk of CAE in patients with LVEF <40% compared with other patients. These findings underscore the importance of incorporating LV systolic function in clinical risk stratification of patients with TOF and the need to explore new treatment options to address this problem.     

Safety profile of the adjuvanted recombinant zoster vaccine: Pooled analysis of two large randomised phase 3 trials

Background

The ZOE-50 (NCT01165177) and ZOE-70 (NCT01165229) phase 3 clinical trials showed that the adjuvanted recombinant zoster vaccine (RZV) was ≥90% efficacious in preventing herpes zoster in adults. Here we present a comprehensive overview of the safety data from these studies.

Coronary Artery Disease Manifestations in HIV: What,How, and Why

Understanding why persons with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) have accelerated atherosclerosis and its sequelae, including coronary artery disease (CAD) and myocardial infarction, is necessary to provide appropriate care to a large and aging population with HIV. In this review, we delineate the diverse pathophysiologies underlying HIV-associated CAD and discuss how these are implicated in the clinical manifestations of CAD among persons with HIV. Several factors contribute to HIV-associated CAD, with chronic inflammation and immune activation likely representing the primary drivers. Increased monocyte activation, inflammation, and hyperlipidemia present in chronic HIV infection also mirror the pathophysiology of plaque rupture. Furthermore, mechanisms central to plaque erosion, such as activation of toll-like receptor 2 and formation of neutrophil extracellular traps, are also abundant in HIV. In addition to inflammation and immune activation in general, persons with HIV have a higher prevalence than uninfected persons of traditional cardiovascular risk factors, including dyslipidemia, hypertension, insulin resistance, and tobacco use. Antiretroviral therapies, although clearly necessary for HIV treatment and survival, have had varied effects on CAD, but newer generation regimens have reduced cardiovascular toxicities. From a clinical standpoint, this mix of risk factors is implicated in earlier CAD among persons with HIV than uninfected persons; whether the distribution and underlying plaque content of CAD for persons with HIV differs considerably from uninfected persons has not been definitively studied. Furthermore, the role of cardiovascular risk estimators in HIV remains unclear, as does the role of traditional and emerging therapies; no trials of CAD therapies powered to detect clinical events have been completed among persons with HIV.     

新诊断2型糖尿病常见中医证型与非酒精性脂肪肝及其相关危险因素分析

目的探讨新诊断2型糖尿病(T2DM)常见中医证型与非酒精性脂肪肝(NAFLD)及其相关危险因素的相关性,为中西医结合治疗提供临床指导。方法选择沧州中西医结合医院门诊和病房收治的300例新诊断T2DM患者作为研究对象,根据其是否合并NAFLD分为合并NAFLD组,单纯T2DM组。记录2组一般资料,依照《糖尿病中医防治指南》对所有患者进行辨证分型,记录2组腰围、身高、体质量、体质量指数(BMI)、肝功指标[丙氨酸转氨酶(ALT)、天冬氨酸转氨酶(AST)、γ-谷氨酰转肽酶(GGT)、碱性磷酸酶(ALP)]、血脂指标(TG、TC、HDL-C、LDL-C)及血尿酸(SUA)、空腹血糖(FPG)、空腹胰岛素(FINS)、空腹C-肽(FC-P)、胰岛素抵抗指数(HOMA-IR),分析各中医证型与客观化指标的关系。结果合并NAFLD组124例,单纯T2DM组176例,2组性别、年龄比较差异无统计学意义(P均>0.05);合并NAFLD组的痰湿郁阻证占比明显高于T2DM组(P<0.05),其余分型占比组间比较差异无统计学意义(P均>0.05);合并NAFLD组的腰围、BMI、TG、TC、FC-P、HOMA-IR均显著高于T2DM组(P均<0.05),其余指标2组比较差异无统计学意义(P均>0.05);非条件Logistic回归分析显示,NAFLD的独立危险因素为BMI、TG、HOMA-IR。结论痰湿郁阻证是T2DM合并NAFLD患者的最常见证型,肥胖、胰岛素抵抗、脂质代谢紊乱是T2DM合并NAFLD患者的独立危险因素。     

Epithelial ovarian cancer risk: A review of the current genetic landscape

Ovarian cancer is the fourth most common cause of cancer-related death in women in the developed world, and one of the most heritable cancers. One of the most significant risk factors for epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) is a family history of breast and/or ovarian cancer. Combined risk factors can be used in models to stratify risk of EOC, and aid in decisions regarding risk-reduction strategies. Germline pathogenic variants in EOC susceptibility genes including those involved in homologous recombination and mismatch repair pathways are present in approximately 22% to 25% of EOC. These genes are associated with an estimated lifetime risk of EOC of 13% to 60% for BRCA1 variants and 10% to 25% for BRCA2 variants, with lower risks associated with remaining genes. Genome-wide association studies have identified single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) thought to explain an additional 6.4% of the familial risk of ovarian cancer, with 34 susceptibility loci identified to date. However, an unknown proportion of the genetic component of EOC risk remains unexplained. This review comprises an overview of individual genes and SNPs suspected to contribute to risk of EOC, and discusses use of a polygenic risk score to predict individual cancer risk more accurately.     

健康支持性环境对四川农村人群的不同血压水平的影响分析

目的 探讨健康支持性环境中的不同特征变量对四川省农村人群的不同血压水平的影响。方法 采用多阶段整群抽样的方法，随机抽取四川省7个县（区）8400名的18岁以上常住居民为调查对象。问卷调查一般人口学特征、身体活动行为特征和环境等信息。采用标准方法测量身高、体重、腰围和血压。采用无序多分类logistic回归分析。结果 本调查人群中共检出正常高值血压者4270例，检出率为50.83%，标化率为37.02%，平均年龄（56.22±14.89）岁；高血压患者1498例，检出率为17.83%，标化率为7.92%，平均年龄（65.26±11.28）岁。无序多分类logistic回归结果显示，住宿环境好、获得运动方面的健康信息和参与中等强度活动150Symbol~A@300min/周是正常高值血压和高血压人群的共同保护因素；住宿便利（OR=0.789, 95%CI:0.649~0.958, P=0.017）、医疗服务可及性便利（OR=0.686, 95%CI:0.509~0.924, P=0.013）、对健身步道和健身广场满意为高血压人群的保护因素。结论 多途径合理构建健康支持性环境，对农村正常高值血压者和高血压患者具有保护作用，对遏制农村高血压的流行现状起到一定作用。     

Relationship between plasma cell-free DNA (cfDNA) and prognosis of TACE for primary hepatocellular carcinoma

BackgroundOur study aims to investigate changes in cell-free DNA (cfDNA) concentration and integrity in primary hepatocellular carcinoma (PHC) patients before and after transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) treatment and their influence on the evaluation of prognosis of the disease.MethodsA total of 84 PHC patients admitted to the Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine from December 2016 to December 2017 were included as the study group, while 55 healthy people served as the control group. Plasma cfDNA concentration and integrity were determined using qRT-PCR. The correlation between cfDNA concentration/integrity and clinical characteristics of PHC patients were analyzed. A ROC curve was used to investigate the sensitivity and specificity of cfDNA as detection indices. Univariate and multivariate analyses were used to analyze factors affecting recurrence in PHC patients and compare recurrence-free survival (RFS) of PHC patients with high cfDNA expression and low cfDNA expression.ResultsPlasma cfDNA concentration and integrity were significantly higher in PHC patients before TACE treatment than in healthy people and significantly lower after treatment than before (P<0.05). The cfDNA concentration was significantly correlated with tumor size, lymph node metastasis, TNM stage, and BCLC stage, while cfDNA integrity was significantly correlated with tumor size, TNM stage, and BCLC stage (P<0.05). ROC results showed that the area under the curve (AUC) value of cfDNA concentration was the largest, with an optimal cut-off of 10.51 ng/mL. Multivariate regression analysis for COX showed that the TNM stage, cfDNA concentration, and AFP were independent risk factors that affected PHC patients’ survival.ConclusionsPlasma cfDNA concentration in PHC patients is more sensitive and specific than any other tumor marker. It is an independent risk factor for PHC patients treated with TACE. Therefore, it is hypothesized cfDNA is a potential biomarker for prognostic evaluation of PHC patients treated with TACE.     

Paresthesia‐Free Spinal Nerve Root Stimulation for the Treatment of Chronic Neuropathic Pain

ObjectiveStimulation of the dorsal spinal roots, or spinal nerve root stimulation (SNRS), is a neuromodulation modality that can target pain within specific dermatomal distributions. The use of paresthesia-free stimulation has been described with conventional dorsal column spinal cord stimulation, although has yet to be described for SNRS. This objective of this study was to investigate the efficacy of paresthesia-free high-frequency (1000–1200 Hz) SNRS in the treatment of intractable, dermatomal neuropathic pain.Materials and MethodsA retrospective chart review was performed on 14 patients implanted with SNRS in varying distributions: Ten patients initially received tonic stimulation and crossed over to a paresthesia-free paradigm and four patients received only paresthesia-free stimulation. The primary outcome was reduction in pain severity (visual analog scale [VAS]), measured at baseline and follow-up to 24 months with paresthesia-free stimulation.ResultsAll 14 patients who received paresthesia-free stimulation had significant improvement in pain severity at a mean follow-up of 1.39 ± 0.15 years (VAS 7.46 at baseline vs. 3.25 at most recent follow-up, p < 0.001). Ten patients were initially treated with tonic stimulation and crossed over to paresthesia-free stimulation after a mean of 61.7 months. Baseline pain in these crossover patients was significantly improved at last follow-up with tonic stimulation (VAS 7.65 at baseline vs. 2.83 at 48 months, p < 0.001), although all patients developed uncomfortable paresthesias. There was no significant difference in pain severity between patients receiving tonic and paresthesia-free stimulation.ConclusionsWe present real-world outcomes of patients with intractable dermatomal neuropathic pain treated with paresthesia-free, high-frequency SNRS. We demonstrate its effectiveness in providing pain reduction at a level comparable to tonic SNRS up to 24 months follow-up, without producing uncomfortable paresthesias.     

磁共振结合高分辨率CT在中耳乳突炎患者术前评估中的临床应用

目的探讨磁共振结合高分辨率CT在中耳乳突炎患者术前评估中的临床应用。方法选取我院2018年11月~2020年12月接收患有中耳乳突炎的患者40例为研究对象,所有患者均采用磁共振以及高分辨率CT进行诊断检查,比较两组患者诊断后手术特征显示度。结果诊断后,磁共振联合高分辨率CT检查图像显示度高于单独使用磁共振或高分辨率CT诊断(P<0.05)。结论使用磁共振结合高分辨率CT对中耳乳突炎患者进行术前评估,显示度较高,提高诊断准确度,值得推广。