Retracted: Icariin inhibits proliferation,migration, and invasion of medulloblastoma DAOY cells by regulation of SPARC

Icariin (ICA) is obtained from Epimedium brevicornu maxim and exploited to remedy miscellaneous cancers. But the role of ICA in medulloblastoma remains hazy. The research delved into the antitumor activity of ICA in medulloblastoma DAOY cells. ICA with diverse concentrations was utilized to stimulate DAOY cells, and the biological functions of ICA in medulloblastoma DAOY cells were examined. Then, the relative SPARC expression was determined in ICA‐managed DAOY cells, and the pc‐SPARC vector was transfected into DAOY cells to further probe the influence of SPARC and JAK1/STAT3 and PI3K/AKT pathways in ICA‐managed DAOY cells. A xenograft model was established to investigate the function of ICA in vivo. ICA restrained cell viability, expedited apoptosis, prohibited cell migration and invasion, and meanwhile affected the associative factors expression in DAOY cells. Additionally, SPARC expression was declined in ICA‐stimulated DAOY cells. Overexpressed SPARC reversed the functions of ICA in above‐involved cell behaviors of DAYO cells and the correlative protein levels. Besides, ICA notably frustrated JAK1/STAT3 and PI3K/AKT activations in DAOY cells. Beyond that, ICA prohibited tumor formation in vivo. The results concluded that ICA exhibited the antitumor activity in DAOY cells via decreasing SPARC and inactivating JAK1/STAT3 and PI3K/AKT pathways.     

No clear survival benefit of azacitidine for lower‐risk myelodysplastic syndromes: A retrospective study of Nagasaki

The efficacy of azacitidine (AZA) on survival of lower risk (LR) ‐ myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) is controversial. To address this issue, we retrospectively evaluated the long‐term survival benefit of AZA for patients with LR‐MDS defined by International Prognostic Scoring System (IPSS). Using data from 489 patients with LR‐MDS in Nagasaki, hematologic responses according to International Working Group 2006 and overall survival (OS) were compared among patients that received best supportive care (BSC), immunosuppressive therapy (IST), erythropoiesis‐stimulating agents (ESA), and AZA. Patients treated with AZA showed complete remission (CR) rate at 11.3%, marrow CR at 1.9%, and any hematologic improvement at 34.0%, with transfusion independence (TI) of red blood cells in 27.3% of patients. and platelet in 20% of patients, respectively. Median OS for patients received IST, ESA, BSC, and AZA (not reached, 91 months, 58 months, and 29 months, respectively) differed significantly (P < .001). Infection‐related severe adverse events were observed in more than 20% of patients treated with AZA. Multivariate analysis showed age, sex, IPSS score at diagnosis, and transfusion dependence were significant for OS, but AZA treatment was not, which maintained even response to AZA, and IPSS risk status at AZA administration was added as factors. We could not find significant survival benefit of AZA treatment for LR‐MDS patients.     

Efficacy of adjuvant ozone therapy in reducing postsurgical complications following impacted mandibular third-molar surgery: A systematic review and meta-analysis

BackgroundResults from several randomized controlled trials have shown a beneficial effect of ozone in reducing postsurgical complications after impacted mandibular third-molar surgery, but the literature is lacking a systematic review and meta-analysis.MethodsThe authors conducted this systematic review according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines after exclusion and inclusion criteria were applied and the following outcome parameters were evaluated: pain, swelling, trismus, quality of life, number of analgesics consumed, and adverse events. RevMan Cochrane Collaboration software, Version 5.3, was used to perform meta-analysis and the Grading of Recommendation Assessment, Development and Evaluation approach was used to rate the certainty of evidence.ResultsPatients who underwent adjuvant ozone application reported lower pain scores than patients in the control group at 24 hours after surgery (95% CI, –3.94 to –1.56) and at 7 days (95% CI, –1.67 to –0.78). Pooled analysis of all 4 included trials revealed a standardized mean difference (SMD) in swelling of –0.44 at 24 hours, 0.63 at 72 hours, and –0.87 at 7 days after surgery in the experimental group. Higher mean estimates in mouth opening were experienced by patients who received ozone at 24 hours (SMD, 2.74; 95% CI, –1.93 to 7.41; 4 studies, 133 patients), 72 hours (SMD, 2.77; 95% CI, –0.63 to 6.17; 4 studies, 133 patients), and 7 days after surgery (SMD, 1.42 SMD; 95% CI, –1.34 to 4.18; 4 studies, 133 patients).Practical ImplicationsEvidence suggests that adjuvant ozone application can offer some benefit for reducing pain, improving quality of life, and decreasing mean intake of analgesics after impacted mandibular third-molar surgery, but it is not effective in reducing facial swelling and trismus, which paves the way for future research.     

Apalutamide-induced severe interstitial lung disease: A report of two cases from Japan

Apalutamide, a competitive inhibitor of the androgen receptor, is being increasingly used for the treatment of prostate cancer. There have been few reports of interstitial lung disease in clinical trials of apalutamide. However, two cases of apalutamide-induced interstitial lung disease with respiratory failure in Japanese males, who were successfully treated with high-dose corticosteroids, are presented here. These cases suggest that clinicians should be alert to the potentially life-threatening risk of pulmonary toxicity associated with apalutamide treatment.     

Medicare Reimbursement Trends for Interventional Radiology Procedures: 2012 to 2020

PurposeTo investigate the reimbursement trends for interventional radiology (IR) procedures from 2012 to 2020.Materials and MethodsReimbursement data from the Physician Fee Schedule look-up tool from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services was compiled for 20 common IR procedures. The authors then investigated compensation trends after adjusting for inflation and from the unadjusted data between 2012 and 2020.ResultsFrom 2012 to 2020, the mean unadjusted reimbursement for procedures decreased by ?6.9% (95% confidence interval [CI], ?13.5% to ?0.34%). This trend was even more profound after inflation was taken into account, with a mean decline in adjusted reimbursement of ?18.7% (95% CI, ?24.4% to ?12.9%) during the study period, with a mean yearly decline of ?2.8%. The difference between the mean unadjusted and adjusted payment amounts was significant (P = .012). Similarly, linear regression analysis of the adjusted average reimbursement across all procedures revealed an overall decline from 2012 to 2020 (R² = 0.97), indicating a steady decline in reimbursement over time.ConclusionsIn just under a decade, IR has experienced significant reimbursement cuts by Medicare, as demonstrated by both the unadjusted and inflation-adjusted payment trends. Knowledge of these trends is critically important for practicing interventional radiologists, leaders within the field, and legislators, who may play a role in formulating future reimbursement schedules for IR. These data may be used to help support more amenable reimbursement plans to sustain and facilitate the growth of the specialty.     

Association of Multiple Plasma Biomarker Concentrations with Progression of Prevalent Diabetic Kidney Disease: Findings from the Chronic Renal Insufficiency Cohort (CRIC) Study

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伴皮层下梗死和白质脑病的常染色体显性遗传性脑动脉病一例报告

目的 总结貌似多发性硬化的皮层下梗死和白质脑病的常染色体显性遗传性脑动脉病(CADASIL)的临床特点.方法 报告1例经基因检查和周围神经活检确诊为CADASIL的临床资料.结果 患者腓肠神经活检可见有髓神经纤维密度轻度减少,电镜下可见神经束膜小动脉中层平滑肌细胞外大量颗粒性电子致密嗜锇颗粒物质(GOM)沉积.基因检测显示Notch3基因4号外显子Cys117Arg突变.结论 为避免CADASIL的漏诊及误诊,凡遇青年反复脑卒中发作,又无高血压、糖尿病等常见的血管病危险因素,虽无偏头痛病史,亦应注意追问家族史并做基因检测和周围神经活检.     

Acceptance of evidence based medicine (EBM) databases by Iranian medical residents using unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT)

Objective

Physicians often need uptodate, reliable and with easy access information for clinical decisions evidence based medicine (EBM) databases can be a suitable approach to meet this need. The aim of this study was to assess the knowledge, use and factors affecting the acceptance of EBM and its databases by Iranian medical residents using UTAUT model.