Extracellular vesicles: Their emerging roles in the pathogenesis of respiratory diseases

Alveoli are the basic structure of the lungs, consisting of various types of parenchymal and bone marrow-derived cells including alveolar macrophages. These various types of cells have several important functions; thus, communication between these cells plays an important role in homeostasis as well as in the pathophysiology of diseases in the lungs. For a better understanding of the pathophysiology of lung diseases, researchers have isolated each type of lung cell to investigate the changes in their gene expressions, including their humoral factor or adhesion molecules, to reveal the intercellular communication among these cells. In particular, investigations during the past decade have focused on extracellular vesicles, which are lipid bilayer delimited vesicles released from a cell that can move among various cells and transfer substances, including microRNAs, mRNAs and proteins, thus, functioning as intercellular messengers. Extracellular vesicles can be classified into three general groups: apoptotic bodies, exosomes, and microparticles. Extracellular vesicles, especially exosomes and microparticles, are attracting increasing attention from pulmonologists as tools for understanding pathogenesis and disease diagnosis. Here, we review studies, including our own, on exosomes and microparticles and their roles in both lung homeostasis and the pathogenesis of lung diseases such as idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, chronic obstructive lung diseases, and acute respiratory distress syndrome. This review also addresses the roles of extracellular vesicles in COVID-19, the current global public health crisis.     

Safety and feasibility of robotic assisted percutaneous coronary intervention compared to standard percutaneous coronary intervention- a systematic review and meta-analysis

ObjectiveRobotically assisted PCI offers a great alternative to S–PCI. This has gained even more relevance during the COVID-19 pandemic era however safety of R–PCI compared to S–PCI has not been studied well. This study explores the safety and efficacy of robotically assisted PCI (R–PCI) compared to standard PCI (S–PCI) for the treatment of coronary artery disease (CAD).MethodsPubMed, Scopus, Ovid, and Google scholar databases were searched for studies comparing R–PCI to S–PCI. Outcomes included clinical success, procedure time, fluoroscopy time, contrast use and radiation exposure.ResultsTheauthors included 5 studies comprising 1555 patients in this meta-analysis. Clinical success was comparable in both arms (p = 0.91). Procedure time was significantly longer in R–PCI group (risk ratio: 5.52, 95% confidence interval: 1.85 to 9.91, p = 0.003). Compared to S–PCI, patients in R–PCI group had lower contrast use (meandifference: −19.88, 95% confidence interval: −21.43 to −18.33, p < 0.001), fluoroscopy time (mean difference:-1.82, 95% confidence interval: −3.64 to −0.00, p = 0.05) and radiation exposure (mean difference:-457.8, 95% confidence interval: −707.14 to −208.14, p < 0.001).ConclusionR–PCI can achieve similar success as S–PCI at the expense of longer procedural times. However, radiation exposure and contrast exposure were lower in the R–PCI arm.     

慢性阻塞性肺疾病合并侵袭性肺曲霉菌病的临床分析

目的探析慢性阻塞性肺疾病合并侵袭性肺曲霉菌病患者的临床特点。方法对医院2018年2月—2019年12月间收治的慢性阻塞性肺疾病合并侵袭性肺曲霉菌病患者24例相关临床数据进行回顾性分析,归纳此类患者的临床特点,以期为以后收治此类患者在诊疗上提供可参考数据。结果慢性阻塞性肺疾病合并侵袭性肺曲霉菌病患者典型临床症状为肺部罗音、呼吸障碍、胸痛、咳嗽咳痰、发热。影像学检查后典型表现为肺部炎性渗出、空洞、结节、实变。经过积极治疗后有8例患者判定为治疗有效。结论收治慢性阻塞性肺疾病合并侵袭性肺曲霉菌病患者应该做到早期阶段准确诊断,积极治疗,是保障预后的重点。     

“保胆”理念正误

胆囊切除术是公认的胆囊良性疾病的治愈手段，国内外学术界对于手术适应证和手术时机已有明确共识。近年来，“保胆手术”治疗胆囊良性疾病颇受热议，一些医生将“保护胆囊”的学术观点等同于“保留胆囊”的手术技术，这种误解可能导致病人出现差异性的预后。因此，临床医师应明晰“保护胆囊”理念与“保胆手术”的差别，对胆囊良性疾病的诊疗原则有正确的理解和应用。     

Risk of seizures and subclinical epileptiform activity in patients with dementia: A systematic review and meta-analysis

BackgroundSeizures and subclinical epileptiform activity are common yet easily overlooked among demented patients. We aimed to investigate their epidemiological characteristics in patients with dementia from various aspects.MethodsWe retrieved relevant observational studies from PubMed and Embase Library until March 2021. Pooled estimate effects were calculated using random-effects models. This study is registered with PROSPERO, number CRD42020200949.ResultsOf the 19144 identified studies, 27 were eligible for inclusion. The pooled period prevalence rates of seizures were 4.86% (95%CI: 3.43–6.51%), 2.68% (95%CI: 2.13–3.28%), 2.81% (95%CI: 2.02–3.71%）and 7.13% (95%CI: 2.67–13.14%) among patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD), Dementia of Lewy Body (DLB), Frontotemporal dementia (FTD) and Vascular dementia (VaD), respectively. The pooled incidence rate of seizures was [8.4 (95%CI: 4.2–12.7) per 1000 person-years] in AD patients. And the pooled relative risk of seizures in patients with AD was 3.35 (95%CI: 2.69–4.19). Besides, the pooled cumulative incidence rate and prevalence rate of subclinical epileptiform activity among AD patients were [21.41% (95%CI: 0.001–63.60%)] and 9.73% (95%CI: 0.26–28.38%), respectively.ConclusionsThe accurate rates of seizures and subclinical epileptiform activities in the four major dementia types are high. Besides, patients with AD are likely at a higher risk of seizures.     

刍议清络法论治特发性肺纤维化急性发作＊

本文通过对特发性肺纤维化急性发作病因病机的分析，认为其病因为外邪或内伤引动肺络虚火，从阳化热，病机为“肺热”、“络瘀”；并结合其病因病机，探究归纳《温病条辨》中清络法和中药复方清络饮在论治特发性肺纤维化急性发作时的理论基础，为临床中论治特发性肺纤维化急性发作，改善患者症状提供新方法，为肺络病证治体系构建及应用提供新思路。     

约束隐结构研究冠心病痰湿证的定量化辨证规则＊

目前在中医界已发布的冠心病痰湿证辨证标准是以主症、次症形式定性地给出，存在主观性较强的问题。本文引入约束隐结构分析，该方法将主症、次症的语义作为约束条件加入隐结构分析过程，得到含有主症、次症语义约束的定量化中医证候辨证规则。使用该方法对冠心病痰湿证患者556条无标签数据的分析，得到其约束隐结构模型，最后建立定量化痰湿证辨证规则，舌胖边有齿痕（3.16）、苔腻（3.12）、苔白滑（4.72）、胸闷（1.73）、脉濡或滑（6.04）；次症：肢体困重（0.48）、口黏（0.63）、体胖（0.49）、大便粘滞（1.38）、脘腹痞满（0.97）、面色晦浊（0.79）、嗜睡（1.18）、纳差（1.07）。与经典隐结构模型得到规则和中医界已发布的定性化辨证规则相比，约束隐结构得到的规则客观性强，具有可重复性。在证候类大小、规则的量化合理度上较好地反映了主症、次症的特点，得到的规则切合中医实际，为冠心病痰湿证辨证标准的定量化研究提供帮助和参考。