Abstract： Objective To evaluate clinical outcomes of tricuspid annuloplasty using a C-type ring made of autologous pericardium for the treatment of functional tricuspid regurgitation （TR）. Methods Eleven patients underwent tricuspid annuloplasty in Guizhou Provincial People’s Hospital between March 2009 and January 2011， including 5 male patients and 6 female patients with their age of 32-57 （43.80±12.20） years. There were 3 patients with mild TR， 7 patients with moderate TR， and 1 patient with severe TR. Concomitant procedures included mitral valve replacement and/or aortic valve replacement and/or left atrial thrombectomy. The C-type ring was created using a strip of pericardium after 0.8% glutaraldehyde fixation for 15 minutes. Interrupted horizontal mattress suture was used to secure the C-type ring to the tricuspid annulus. Hear function and echocardiography were examined during follow-up. Results There was no in-hospital death， and the hospital stay was 15-28 （21.10±3.80） days. All the patients were followed up for 8-28 （18.50±7.00）months. There was no death or reoperation because of TR or tricuspid stenosis during follow-up. Ten patients had TR during follow-up， including 9 patients with mild TR and 1 patient with mild to moderate TR， but there was no patient with severe TR. The degree of TR during follow-up was significantly reduced than preoperative degree （Z =-2.81，P＜0.05）. Preoperative and postoperative right ventricular dimension （19.95±5.11 mm vs. 21.57±12.81 mm，P=0.705） and right atrial dimension（37.55±6.79 mm vs. 35.55±5.22 mm，P=0.317）were not statistically different. Conclusion Tricuspid annuloplasty using a C-type ring made of autologous pericardium has satisfactory clinical outcomes for patients with functional TR.
ObjectiveTo verify the reliability of Anticlot Assistant, a patient self-management system for warfarin therapy assisted by artificial intelligence.MethodsIt was a single-center, prospective cohort study. The eligible 34 participants were recruited consecutively between November 29, 2017 to September 27, 2018 and managed by warfarin therapy via Anticlot Assistant. The recommendations of Anticlot Assistant were examined and verified by the doctors to ensure the security. Medical records were exported from the the background management system. An univariate analysis compared the outcomes between accepted and overridden records and a logistic regression model was built to determine independent predictors of the outcomes. The research team analyzed 153 medical records, which were from 18 participants and were input by 19 doctors. There were 97 records with doctor accepting the suggestion and 56 records with doctor rejecting the suggestion .ResultsWhen the doctors accepted the recommendations, the percentage of the next-test international normalized ratio (INR) in the therapeutic range was higher (64.95% vs. 44.64%, RR=2.298, 95%CI 1.173 to 4.499, P=0.014). The logistic regression analysis revealed that accepting the recommendations was an independent predictor for the next-test INR being in the therapeutic range after controlling potentially confounding factors (OR=2.446, 95%CI 1.103 to 5.423, P=0.028).ConclusionThe algorithm of Anticlot Assistant is reasonable and reliable.