中性粒细胞与淋巴细胞比值对弥漫性大B细胞淋巴瘤预后判断的意义北大核心

目的:探讨中性粒细胞/淋巴细胞比值(neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio,NLR)对初治前弥漫性大B细胞淋巴瘤(diffuse large B cell lymphoma,DLBCL)患者预后的意义。方法:回顾性分析2010年1月至2019年10月,新疆医科大学附属肿瘤医院收治的165例初治DLBCL患者,确定了NLR(>2.77)在预后预测中的最佳临界值,采用Log-rank检验和Cox回归模型进行分析,评价治疗前NLR对无进展生存期(progression free survival time,PFS)和总生存期(overall survival rate,OS)的影响。结果:在入选的165例患者中,有67例患者治疗前NLR升高(>2.77),NLR升高与PFS和OS较短的患者明显相关(P<0.001和P=0.003)。多变量分析进一步表明,NLR>2.77是PFS的独立预测因子。结论:治疗前NLR升高提示DLBCL患者预后不良。     

Biomedical waste disposal practices among healthcare workers during COVID-19 pandemic in secondary and tertiary care facilities of Tamil Nadu

PurposeThe ongoing COVID-19 crisis has drastically changed the practice of biomedical waste (BMW) generation and management. Studies venturing into the facility level preparedness at various levels of healthcare delivery during pandemic situation is the need of the hour. Hence, we did this study to assess the BMW disposal practices amongst secondary and tertiary health facilities during COVID-19 pandemic in Tamil Nadu.Materials and methodsThis cross-sectional survey was conducted amongst doctors, nurses and allied healthcare staffs across various departments in 18 public health facilities across six districts of Tamil Nadu. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was done based on the random-intercept model to assess the determinants of BMW disposal practices. The effect size was reported as adjusted odds ratio (aOR) with 95% confidence interval (CI).ResultsIn total, 2593 BMW disposal observations were made. During nearly three-fourth of the observations (73%), the BMW was disposed of appropriately. Nurses (aOR ?= ?1.54; 95%CI: 1.06–2.23) and doctors (aOR ?= ?1.60; 95%CI: 1.05–2.45), healthcare workers in Paediatrics department (aOR ?= ?1.77; 95%CI: 1.13–2.76), healthcare workers in inpatient department (aOR ?= ?2.77; 95%CI: 1.95–3.94) and injection outpatient department (aOR ?= ?2.69; 95%CI: 1.59–4.47) had significantly better odds of having appropriate BMW disposal practices.ConclusionOur study shows that nearly during three-fourth of the observations, healthcare workers performed appropriate BMW disposal practices. However, measures should be taken to achieve 100% compliance by healthcare workers especially the target groups identified in our study by allocating appropriate resources and periodically monitor the BMW disposal practices.     

Recommendations for a safe restart of elective aerosol-generating oral surgery procedures following the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak: An Italian multicenter study

Among healthcare workers, oral and maxillofacial surgeons are some of the most exposed to coronavirus disease (COVID-19). The aim of this retrospective study was to develop suggestions for continuing the work of oral and maxillofacial surgeons using a safe protocol for elective and urgent aerosol-generating procedures that could prevent the onset of new clusters.Based on the results obtained and a guidelines review of those Asian countries that had promptly managed the current pandemic, the following safety protocol was developed:     

Improving knowledge and trust in vaccines: A survey-based assessment of the potential of the European Union Clinical Trial Regulation No 536/2014 plain language summary to increase health literacy

The European Clinical Trial Regulation No 536/2014 is the first mandate for a non-technical, publicly disclosed, plain language summary (PLS) of clinical trial results. This easy-to-understand summary has the potential to inform the public about clinical trial results and thereby improve health literacy in vaccines.To investigate the utility of the PLS, we undertook 2 online surveys (July/October 2020) in the United Kingdom, the United States and India. Participants were selected by quota sampling to ensure representation of gender, age and parental status. Those lacking interest in vaccine clinical research were excluded. In survey 1, participants were questioned about their interest in and expectations of vaccine trial results. In survey 2, the perceptions of participants to a range of written communication styles used in publicly available PLSs were evaluated.A total of 66 (13%) and 122 (29%) individuals were excluded solely due to lack of interest in vaccine clinical research in surveys 1 and 2, respectively; 450 respondents (150/country) completed survey 1 and 300 (100/country) completed survey 2. In survey 1, there was a correlation (p < 0.01) between claimed knowledge of and trust in vaccines. Healthcare professionals were the most trusted source for vaccine information, while vaccine companies were ranked relatively low. In survey 2, infographic PLS formats were considered easiest to understand, most engaging and the strongest communicators. Emphasizing the main points of the infographics in the text did not improve comprehension or recall. Most respondents (86%) indicated that they would like to see this type of communication in the future.Overall, this research suggests that the PLS, by optimizing content and format, has a potential to increase health literacy, and thereby, as part of a wider integrated communication strategy, build vaccine knowledge and confidence.     

Cholinergic hyperactivity in patients with myasthenia gravis with MuSK antibodies: A neurophysiological study

ObjectivePatients with myasthenia gravis associated with muscle-specific tyrosine kinase antibodies (MuSK-MG) often manifest signs of cholinergic hyperactivity with standard doses of acetylcholinesterase inhibitors (AChE-Is). Aim of the study was to investigate whether repetitive compound muscle action potential (R-CMAP), the neurophysiological correlate of cholinergic hyperactivity, was present in MuSK-MG irrespective of AChE-I treatment.MethodsPatients with confirmed diagnosis of MuSK-MG were consecutively enrolled during follow-up visits, from January 2019 to April 2020. All these subjects underwent the same neurophysiological protocol, including motor nerve conduction studies and repetitive nerve stimulation. In patients taking pyridostigmine, neurophysiological testing was performed at least 12 hours after the last dose. For comparison, the presence of R-CMAP was investigated in 20 consecutive acetylcholine receptor antibody positive myasthenia gravis (AChR-MG) patients.ResultsWe enrolled 25 MuSK-MG patients (20 females), aged 16–79 years at the study time, with disease duration ranging 0.6–48.8 years (median: 17.7 years). R-CMAP was detected in 12/25 (48%) MuSK-MG cases and in none of the AChR-MG controls (p = 0.0003). In the MuSK-MG population, a history of muscle cramps and fasciculations, during low-dose pyridostigmine therapy, was significantly more frequent in R-CMAP positive than in R-CMAP negative patients (100% vs 31%, p = 0.001). At the time of the study, the proportion of patients still symptomatic for MG was higher among R-CMAP positive cases (92% vs 23%, p = 0.0005).ConclusionsCholinergic hyperactivity is a relatively common finding in MuSK-MG patients, independent of AChE-I treatment, and may constitute an intrinsic feature of the disease.SignificanceR-CMAP detection can represent a useful diagnostic clue for MuSK-MG and predicts poor tolerance to AChE-Is.     

Outcome of patients hospitalized for COVID‐19 and exposure to angiotensin‐converting enzyme inhibitors and angiotensin‐receptor blockers in France: results of the ACE‐CoV study

Data are lacking on the impact of ACEI/ARB exposure on unfavorable outcome in the population of patients hospitalized for COVID‐19 with hypertension/cardiovascular disease, particularly in Europe. The ACE‐CoV study was designed to assess this question. The study was conducted in the Covid‐Clinic‐Toul cohort, which contains data about all patients hospitalized at Toulouse University hospital, France with a SARS‐CoV‐2 infection since March, 2020. We selected the patients with a history of cardiovascular disease (heart failure or coronary disease) and/or arterial hypertension. We conducted a subgroup analysis in patients with arterial hypertension. ACEI/ARB exposures at admission were assessed. The outcome was composite: admission to intensive care unit, need of mechanical ventilation or death during the 14 days after admission to hospital. We used logistic regression models with propensity scores (PS) weighted by overlap weighting (OW) and inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW). Between March 2020 and April 20, 2020, the Covid‐Clinic‐Toul included 263 patients. Among them, 111 were included in the ACE‐CoV study population. In OW‐PS‐adjusted analyses, the association of exposure to ACEIs or ARBs with outcome occurrence was OR: 1.56 (95% CI: 0.73–3.33). It was 0.99 (95% CI: 0.68–1.45) for ACEIs and 1.64 (95% CI: 0.77–3.50) for ARBs. Analyses with weighting by the IPTW‐PS method gave similar results. Results were similar when considering the subgroup of patients with arterial hypertension. The ACE‐CoV study found no association between exposure to ACEIs or ARBs and unfavorable outcome in hospitalized patients for COVID‐19 with a history of cardiovascular disease/arterial hypertension.     

Peripheral blood inflammatory markers in predicting prognosis in patients with COVID‐19. Some differences with influenza A

BackgroundTo evaluate the ability of peripheral blood inflammatory markers in predicating the typing of COVID‐19, prognosis, and some differences between COVID‐19 and influenza A patients.MethodsClinical data on 285 cases laboratory‐confirmed as SARS‐CoV‐2 infection were obtained from a Wuhan local hospital''s electronic medical records according to previously designed standardized data collection forms. Additional 446 Influenza A outpatients’ hematologic data were enrolled for comparison.ResultsNLR, SII, RLR, PLR, HsCRP, and IL‐6 were significant higher and LMR was lower in severe COVID‐19 patients than in mild COVID‐19 patients (p < .001). PLR and LMR were lower in the individuals with influenza A than those with COVID‐19 (p < .01). COVID‐19 patients with higher levels of NLR, SII, RLR, PLR, HsCRP, and IL‐6 and lower LMR were significantly associated with the severe type. AUC of NLR (0.76) was larger while the specificity of IL‐6 (86%) and sensitivity of HsCRP (89%) were higher than other inflammatory markers in predicating the typing of COVID‐19. PT had obvious correlation with all the inflammatory markers except RPR. NLR showed positive correlations with AST, TP, BUN, CREA, PT, and D‐dimer. Patients with high IL‐6 levels have a relatively worse prognosis (HR = 2.30).ConclusionPeripheral blood inflammatory markers reflected the intensity of inflammation and associated with severity of COVID‐19.NLR was more useful to predict severity as well as IL‐6 to predict prognosis of COVID‐19. PLR and LMR were initially found to be higher in SARS‐CoV‐2 virus‐infected group than in influenza A.