红外光谱数据融合对栽培滇重楼产地鉴别*

目的 多样的环境因素使得不同产地栽培滇重楼的化学成分也丰富多样，不同居群栽培滇重楼的甾体皂苷类成分具有很大的差异，多源数据融合分析能更全面的表征药材化学信息，建立一个高效而准确的产地鉴别模型，为其资源合理开发利用提供依据。方法 以来自云南和四川的8个产地（保山、楚雄、大理、红河、丽江、成都、文山、玉溪）共366份栽培滇重楼根茎为实验材料，采集其傅里叶变换近红外光谱（FT-NIR）和衰减全反射-傅里叶变换中红外光谱（ATR-FTMIR）数据。采用Kennard-Stone算法将不同产地的样品分为2/3的训练集和1/3的预测集，基于4种特征变量提取方法（CARS、VIP、SPA、SO-Covsel）结合2种数据融合策略（低级数据融合和中级数据融合），建立偏最小二乘产地判别分析模型。根据模型参数交叉验证均方根误差（RMSECV）和预测均方根误差（RMSEP）评估模型的稳定性，模型训练集和预测集准确率（ACC）评估模型分类性能。结果 近红外光谱和中红外光谱均能反应不同产地栽培滇重楼的化学成分差异，在中级数据融合中，基于VIP和SPA提取的特征变量建立的模型正确率均大于94%。相较于中级数据融合，低级数据融合模型得到了最为满意的结果，其预测集分类正确率达到100%。结论 根据近红外和中红外数据建立的低级数据融合PLS-DA模型，能够用于栽培滇重楼的产地鉴别分析。     

Atrial fibrillation after cardiac surgery: A systematic review and meta-analysis

ObjectiveNew-onset postoperative atrial fibrillation (POAF) after cardiac surgery is common, with rates up to 60%. POAF has been associated with early and late stroke, but its association with other cardiovascular outcomes is less known. The objective was to perform a meta-analysis of the studies reporting the association of POAF with perioperative and long-term outcomes in patients with cardiac surgery.MethodsWe performed a systematic review and a meta-analysis of studies that presented outcomes for cardiac surgery on the basis of the presence or absence of POAF. MEDLINE, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Library were assessed; 57 studies (246,340 patients) were selected. Perioperative mortality was the primary outcome. Inverse variance method and random model were performed. Leave-one-out analysis, subgroup analyses, and metaregression were conducted.ResultsPOAF was associated with perioperative mortality (odds ratio [OR], 1.92; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.58-2.33), perioperative stroke (OR, 2.17; 95% CI, 1.90-2.49), perioperative myocardial infarction (OR, 1.28; 95% CI, 1.06-1.54), perioperative acute renal failure (OR, 2.74; 95% CI, 2.42-3.11), hospital (standardized mean difference, 0.80; 95% CI, 0.53-1.07) and intensive care unit stay (standardized mean difference, 0.55; 95% CI, 0.24-0.86), long-term mortality (incidence rate ratio [IRR], 1.54; 95% CI, 1.40-1.69), long-term stroke (IRR, 1.33; 95% CI, 1.21-1.46), and longstanding persistent atrial fibrillation (IRR, 4.73; 95% CI, 3.36-6.66).ConclusionsThe results suggest that POAF after cardiac surgery is associated with an increased occurrence of most short- and long-term cardiovascular adverse events. However, the causality of this association remains to be established.     

The fate of aortic valve after rheumatic mitral valve surgery

ObjectiveDeterioration of the native aortic valve function by a late progression of rheumatic disease is not infrequent in patients who underwent rheumatic mitral valve surgery; however, this phenomenon has not been clearly quantified.MethodsA total of 1155 consecutive patients (age 52.0 ± 12.9 years; 807 female) who underwent rheumatic mitral valve surgery without concomitant aortic valve surgery from 1997 to 2015 were enrolled. The primary end point was the composite of progression to severe aortic valve dysfunction or a requirement of subsequent aortic valve replacements during follow-up. To determine the risk factors of the primary outcome, we performed the generalized linear mixed model.ResultsThe baseline severities of aortic valve were none to trivial in 880 patients (76.2%), mild in 256 patients (22.2%), and moderate in 19 patients (1.6%). The latest 1062 echocardiographic assessments (91.9%; median, 81.2 postoperative months; interquartile range, 37.3-132.1 months) demonstrated 26 cases (0.33%/patient-year) meeting the primary end point during follow-up. Cumulative incidence of the primary end point at 10 years was 0.4% ± 0.3% and 7.4% ± 2.5% depending on the presence of mild or greater aortic valve dysfunction at baseline (P < .01). In multivariable analyses, aortic valve peak pressure gradient (odds ratio, 1.14; 95% confidence interval, 1.10-1.20), aortic regurgitation degree (mild over none: odds ratio, 3.26; 95% confidence interval, 1.15-9.23), and time (odds ratio, 1.30; 95% confidence interval 1.19-1.41) were significantly associated with the occurrence of the primary end point.ConclusionsProgression of severe aortic valve dysfunction and the need for aortic valve replacement are uncommon in patients undergoing rheumatic mitral valve surgery. However, such events were relatively common among those with mild or greater aortic valve dysfunction at the time of mitral valve surgery.     

What is the impact of zinc deficiency for pancreatectomies in patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma?

Backgroundand purpose: Zinc is an essential element for human health and plays an important role in metabolic, immunological and other biological processes. The present study was conducted to investigate the association between zinc deficiency (ZD) and the perioperative clinical course in patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC).MethodsOf 216 patients with PDAC who underwent elective pancreatectomy between 2013 and 2017 at our institution, 206 patients with sufficient clinical data were retrospectively reviewed. The perioperative variables were compared and the risk factors associated with infectious complications were identified.ResultsZD was preoperatively present in 36 (17.5%) of 206 patients with PDAC. In the patients of the ZD group, a higher proportion of males, higher preoperative modified Glasgow prognostic scores, a higher neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio, and a higher occurrence of postoperative infectious complications after pancreatectomy were observed, compared to the non-ZD group. By a univariate analysis, three risk factors were significantly associated with infectious complications after pancreatectomy: ZD (vs non-ZD: p = 0.002), serum albumin <3.5 g/dl (vs ≥ 3.5 g/dl: p = 0.005), and the procedure of pancreaticoduodenectomy (vs others: p = 0.013). By multivariate logistic regression analysis, the occurrence of infectious complications was significantly associated with ZD (OR 3.430, 95%CI 1.570 to 7.490, p = 0.002) and the procedure of pancreaticoduodenectomy (OR 2.030, 95%CI 1.090 to 3.770, p = 0.025).ConclusionsThe current study newly demonstrated that ZD could serve as a preoperative predictor of infectious complications after pancreatectomies in the patients with PDAC.     

Minimally Invasive Treatments for Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia: Systematic Review and Network Meta-Analysis

PurposeTo review and to compare indirectly the outcomes of minimally invasive therapies for the treatment of lower urinary tract symptoms secondary to benign prostatic hyperplasia.Materials and MethodsA literature search via Medline and Cochrane Central databases was completed for randomized control studies published between January 2000 to April 2020 for the following therapies: Rezum, Urolift, Aquablation, and prostatic artery embolization (PAE). Data on the following variables were included: International prostate symptom score (IPSS), maximum urinary flow rate, quality of life, and postvoid residual (PVR). Standard mean differences between treatments were compared through a meta-analysis using transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP) to assess differences in treatment effect.ResultsThere was no significant difference in outcomes between therapies for IPSS at the 3, 6, and 12-month follow ups. Although outcomes for Rezum were only available out to 3 months, there were no consistently significant differences in outcomes when comparing Aquablation versus PAE versus Rezum. TURP PVR was significantly better than Urolift at 3, 6, and 12 months. No significant differences in minor or major adverse events were noted.ConclusionAlthough significant differences in outcomes were limited, Aquablation and PAE were the most durable at 12 months. PAE has been well studied on multiple randomized control trials with minimal adverse events while Aquablation has limited high quality data and has been associated with bleeding-related complications.     

Midterm Outcomes of Angioplasty for Pediatric Renovascular Hypertension

PurposeTo evaluate the midterm outcomes of percutaneous transluminal renal angioplasty (PTRA) for pediatric renovascular hypertension (RVH).Materials and MethodsThe clinical data of patients who underwent PTRA for RVH in the authors’ hospital from 2012 to 2019 were retrospectively analyzed. Postprocedural blood pressure, glomerular filtration rate (GFR) of the affected kidney, restenosis, and complications were closely monitored.ResultsPTRA was performed in a total of 30 children (20 boys and 10 girls), with a mean age of 7.3 years ± 0.7 (range, 40 days to 13.9 years) and a mean weight of 25.0 kg ± 2.3 (range, 3.4–53 kg). The median follow-up period was 26.5 months (range, 1 month to 7.5 years). Technical success was achieved in 26 (86.7%) of the 30 patients. Restenosis developed in 3 patients (10.0%). Only 1 patient underwent stent implantation, and the stent fractured 8 months later, requiring further intervention. There were no other complications. In terms of clinical benefit of blood pressure control after the initial PTRA procedure, 15 patients (50%) were cured and 7 patients (23.3%) showed improvement. There was no significant difference in the etiology, lesion location, and lesion length between patients with clinical benefit and failure (P = .06, P = .202, and P = .06, respectively). GFR of the affected kidney was significantly improved from 19.9 mL/min ± 11.2 to 38.1 mL/min ± 11.9 at the 6-month follow-up after PTRA (P < .001).ConclusionsThe overall results of PTRA for pediatric RVH caused by different etiologies are promising. PTRA not only provided a clinical benefit of blood pressure control in 73.3% of the patients but also significantly improved the function of the affected kidney.     

NICE’s recent guidelines on “the size of your waist” unfairly penalizes shorter people

The National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) has just released its latest guidelines to assess and predict health risk, such as type 2 diabetes, hypertension or cardiovascular disease. Their latest advice is “Keep the size of your waist to less than half of your height”. We believe this advice is flawed and will seriously and unfairly penalize shorter people and lull taller people into a false sense of security. In this short communication, we provide this evidence. We consider this a serious oversight by NICE and feel strongly that this evidence needs to be made available in the public domain.