Objective To evaluate the changes of right ventricular function in patients with obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS) before and after continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) treatment by two-dimensional speckle tracking imaging (2D-STI). Methods Fifty patients with moderate and severe OSAHS were selected for CPAP treatment, and another 40 healthy volunteers were selected as a control group. 2D-STI and traditional echocardiography were conducted in the study group before treatment, after 3 months of continuous treatment and after 6 months of continuous treatment and in the control group. Results The differences between the control subjects and the OSAHS patients were statistically significant in right ventricular global longitudinal strain (RVGLS), right ventricular free lateral wall longitudinal strain (RVLLS), apical segment of the right ventricular free wall longitudinal strain (Apical RV-SL), basal segment of the right ventricular free wall longitudinal strain (Basal RV-SL), and media segment of the right ventricular free wall longitudinal strain (Media RV-SL) (all P<0.05). RVGLS, RVLLS and Apical RV-SL were significantly improved after 3 months of CPAP treatment (all P<0.05). Basal RV-SL was significantly improved after 6 months of CPAP treatment (P<0.05). Conclusions The right ventricular function of patients with OSAHS is abnormal. CPAP treatment can improve the right ventricular function of OSAHS patients. 2D-STI can accurately assess the changes of right ventricular function.
Objective This study aims to investigate the changes of inflammatory markers of oropharynx and its correlation with prognosis in the stable phase of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Methods Sixty-two patients with COPD in stable stage were divided into smoking and non-smoking groups, and 31 healthy persons were selected as controls. The pharyngeal swabs were collected to determine tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-8 (IL-8), collagen type Ⅳ (COL-4), and fibronectin (FN) by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Meanwhile, eosinophil count and C-reactive protein (CRP) in peripheral blood were measured. The correlations between the above metrics and COPD and the prognosis of the patients were analyzed. Results TNF-α, IL-8, COL-4, FN and CRP levels in patients with COPD were significantly higher compared with control groups (P<0.05), and there were significant differences between smoking and non-smoking groups in inflammatory markers such as TNF-α, IL-8, FN, CRP (P<0.05). The forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) and FEV1%pred of patients with COPD were significantly lower than the control group (P<0.05). The smoking index of patients with COPD in smoking group was significantly higher than that in smoking control group (P<0.05). TNF- α and IL-8 were positively associated with blood CRP in patients with COPD. Conclusion The inflammatory markers of oropharynx in patients with COPD are different from those in healthy persons and smoking may promote the increase of inflammatory markers of oropharynx in patients with COPD; the non-invasive detection of paired pharyngeal inflammatory markers may be helpful in determining acute onset and prognosis.
To investigate the effects of postoperative fusion implantation on the mesoscopic biomechanical properties of vertebrae and bone tissue osteogenesis in idiopathic scoliosis, a macroscopic finite element model of the postoperative fusion device was developed, and a mesoscopic model of the bone unit was developed using the Saint Venant sub-model approach. To simulate human physiological conditions, the differences in biomechanical properties between macroscopic cortical bone and mesoscopic bone units under the same boundary conditions were studied, and the effects of fusion implantation on bone tissue growth at the mesoscopic scale were analyzed. The results showed that the stresses in the mesoscopic structure of the lumbar spine increased compared to the macroscopic structure, and the mesoscopic stress in this case is 2.606 to 5.958 times of the macroscopic stress; the stresses in the upper bone unit of the fusion device were greater than those in the lower part; the average stresses in the upper vertebral body end surfaces were ranked in the order of right, left, posterior and anterior; the stresses in the lower vertebral body were ranked in the order of left, posterior, right and anterior; and rotation was the condition with the greatest stress value in the bone unit. It is hypothesized that bone tissue osteogenesis is better on the upper face of the fusion than on the lower face, and that bone tissue growth rate on the upper face is in the order of right, left, posterior, and anterior; while on the lower face, it is in the order of left, posterior, right, and anterior; and that patients’ constant rotational movements after surgery is conducive to bone growth. The results of the study may provide a theoretical basis for the design of surgical protocols and optimization of fusion devices for idiopathic scoliosis.
ObjectivesTo investigate and analyze the status of pediatric internal medicine clinical practice guidelines published in journals of mainland China from 2010 to 2017.MethodsCBM, CNKI, VIP and WanFang Data databases were electronically searched to collect pediatric internal medicine clinical practice guidelines published in Chinese journals of mainland China from January 2010 to December 2017. Two reviewers independently screened literature, extracted data. The author's information was organized and co-word matrixes were produced using BICOMS 2 software. The visualization diagram was plotted using Ucinet 6.0 software to analysze the societal relationship of authors.ResultsA total of 135 pediatric clinical guidelines were included, involving 109 western medical guidelines, 24 Chinese traditional medicine guidelines and 2 guidelines on integrated traditional Chinese and western medicine. The main types of clinical practice guidelines for children were diagnosis and treatment (45.19%), followed by technical guidelines (15.56%). Most of the guidelines were on respiratory diseases (23.70%). 54.81% of the guidelines for children were formulated by seminars and consensus, and 28.89% of the guidelines mentioned the application of evidence-based methods to develop guidelines. The institutes (40.00%) were participated in the development of the guidelines, in which 11 research groups were participated in the development of the guidelines.ConclusionsThe quantity of pediatric internal medicine clinical practice guidelines in mainland China has increased from 2010 to 2017. The scope of the guidelines is limited, and cooperation is required to further improve the quality of children’s guidelines.
ObjectiveTo explore the clinical phenotype of patients with acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) by cluster analysis and provide a basis for individualized treatment.MethodsA total of 515 patients with acute exacerbation of COPD admitted to this department from January 2014 to December 2016 were enrolled. The age, duration, smoking index, number of hospitalizations in the past 1 year, hospitalization days, treatment costs and other information were collected for cluster analysis.ResultsThe patients were divided into three categories of phenotype: " mild-glucocorticoid resistance-antibiotic dependent”," mild-glucocorticoid sensitive”, and " serious complication”. The patients with the first two phenotypes had a milder condition and lower hospitalization costs. There were differences in the time and cumulative dose of glucocorticoids in different pathways, antibiotic use time and usage rate. The third phenotype was the most serious, with the highest cost of hospitalization, and may merge or co-exist with other diseases such as cardiovascular disease and digestive tract disease.ConclusionCluster analysis may identify different phenotypes of acute exacerbation of COPD to provide a reference for clinical individualized treatment.
ObjectiveTo analyze the features and clinical significance of blood eosinophils (EOS) in patients with acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AECOPD).MethodsThe general data, laboratory examination and treatment of patients with AECOPD admitted to this department from January 2014 to December 2016 were analyzed retrospectively. Based on the inclusion of treatment targets for blood EOS according to 2018GOLD, patients were divided into group A (EOS<100 cells/μL), group B (100 cells/μL≤EOS≤300 cells/μL), and group C (EOS>300 cells/μL) with two cut-off levels. The differences in general data, severity, and glucocorticoid use between group A, group B and group C were compared.ResultsA total of 515 patients with AECOPD were enrolled. 10.87% of patients had blood EOS>300 cells/μL, and 39.03% of patients had blood EOS≥100 cells/μL. Patients in group B and C were younger, with shorter disease duration, intensive care unit stay time, non-invasive mechanical ventilation use time. The time of glucocorticoid administration was significantly shortened, and the cumulative dose of venous glucocorticoid, hospitalization cost, and total drug cost were also lower than those of group A (all P<0.05).ConclusionsPatients in group B and C are younger, shorter in disease duration, lower in severity and more responsive to glucocorticoid therapy. Blood EOS can be used as a marker to guide glucocorticoid therapy in patients with AECOPD.
ObjectiveTo analyze the current situation of adaptation guidelines. MethodsCBM, CNKI, VIP, WanFang Data, PubMed, EMbase, GIN, SIGN, NICE and AHRQ databases were electronically searched to collect studies related to adaptation guidelines from inception to August 31th, 2020. Two reviewers independently screened literature, extracted data, and assessed the risk of bias of included studies. Descriptive analysis was then conducted on the general situation of the adaptation guidelines. ResultsA total of 83 studies were included, involving 63 full-text studies, 16 methodological studies and 4 secondary studies. The quantity of published articles of the adapted guidelines had an overall upward trend, and 48.39% of the adapted guidelines were published in UK-hosted journals. 51.81% of the adapted guidelines reported receiving funding or project funding during the development process, and 67.46% reported information of conflict of interests. Among the 33 adaptation guidelines published in the past five years, 33.34% reported their methodology used ADAPTE, 6.1% reported their methodology used GRADE-Adolopment, and 60.56% did not report the adaptation method. ConclusionsAt present, the international research on the adapted guideline is extensive, however, it is still in its infancy in China. The adaptation guideline is also required to be based on a theoretical framework, standardize the development of methodology, and ensure the quality of the adaptation guideline.