ObjectiveTo evaluate the prognostic value of osteopontin (OPN) in patients with liver cancer by using meta-analysis.MethodsWe searched PubMed, Embase, Web of science, Wanfang database, Chinese Science and Technology Academic Journal, Chinese Journal Full-text Database, and Chinese Biomedical Literature Database to identify relevant articles from their inception to October 31, 2018. A meta-analysis was carried out by using the STATA 12.0 software.ResultsA total of 13 studies were included in this meta-analysis, including 2 171 liver cancer cases. The pooled data of studies showed that OPN expression level was negatively associated with overall survival time (HR=1.58, 95% CI was (1.37, 1.79), P<0.001) and disease free survival time (HR=1.67, 95% CI was (1.39, 1.96), P<0.001). High expression of OPN for patients with liver cancer had shorter overall survival time and disease-free survival time compared with those of low expression of OPN.ConclusionCurrent evidence shows that high expression of OPN is closely related to poor prognosis of patients with liver cancer.
ObjectiveTo compare the effectiveness and safety of laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) plus laparoscopic common bile duct exploration (LCBDE) with LC plus endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) for patients with concomitant cholelithiasis and choledocholithiasis by using meta-analysis.MethodsWe searched PubMed, Cochrane Library、EMBASE, Chinese Biomedical Literature Database, Chinese Science and Technology Academic Journal, Chinese Journal Full-text Database and Wanfang database to identify relevant articles from their inception to 31 October 2018. A meta-analysis was carried out using the RevMan 5.3 software.ResultsA total of 13 RCTs were included in this meta-analysis, 747 cases received LC+LCBDE and 761 cases underwent LC+ERCP. The meta-analysis results showed that no significant difference between the LC+LCBDE group and the LC+ERCP group in terms of common bile duct (CBD) stone clearance rate [RR=0.99, 95%CI (0.95, 1.02), P=0.87] and overall complications [RR=0.94, 95%CI (0.72, 1.22), P=0.64]. The LC+LCBDE group had higher rate of postoperative bile leakage rate [RR=3.87, 95%CI (2.01, 7.42), P<0.000 1] than that LC+ERCP group. However, the LC+LCBDE group had lower rate of postoperative pancreatitis [RR=0.28, 95%CI (0.14, 0.55), P=0.002] than that LC+ERCP group.ConclusionsBoth LC+LCBDE and LC+ERCP are equivalent in CBD stone clearance rate and overall complications, LC+LCBDE is associated with a higher postoperative bile leakage rate and lower rate of postoperative pancreatitis, appropriate treatment should be selected according to the individual patient’s condition.
Objective To investigate the diagnostic value of strain elastography (SE) and virtual touch tissue image quantification (VTIQ) technique in determining the nature of cervical lymph nodes in patients with lung cancer. Methods A total of 124 patients with lung cancer combined with cervical lymph node enlargement were selected for this study. All patients underwent routine ultrasound examination, using SE to detect lymph nodes and scored them, and using VTIQ technique fro measurement of lymph node shear wave velocity (SWV). Pathological results were taken as gold standards. Non-metastatic lymph nodes were included in the benign group, while metastatic lymph nodes were included in the malignant group. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was generated. The optimal cutoff value of SWV was determined for predicting metastatic lymph nodes, the area under curve (AUC) of SE and VTIQ technique was compared, and the diagnostic efficacy of SE and VTIQ technique for benign and malignant lymph nodes was analyzed. Results Among the 124 patients, 28 cases of benign lymph nodes had an SE score of 2 - 3, and 59 cases of malignant lymph nodes had an SE score of 4 - 5. The accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity of SE were 70.2%, 75.6%, and 60.9%, respectively. The maximum, minimum, median, and mean values of SWV in the malignant lymph nodes were significantly higher than those in the benign lymph nodes in VTIQ technique testing (P<0.05). Based on the ROC curve analysis, the mean value of SWV had the highest diagnostic efficiency, and its cutoff value of 3.18 m/s was used as the diagnostic criterion for predicting malignant lymph nodes. The accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity of the VTIQ technique in diagnosing malignant lymph nodes were 85.5%, 92.3%, and 73.9%, respectively. The AUC of SE and VTIQ technique were 0.713 and 0.896, respectively, indicating higher diagnostic value of VTIQ technique. Conclusions Both SE and VTIQ technique have high accuracy in determining the nature of cervical lymph nodes in lung cancer patients. Compared with SE, VTIQ technique showed superior diagnostic performance, and SWVmean has the best diagnostic performance. It can provide a new non-invasive examination method for evaluating the nature of cervical lymph nodes in lung cancer patients in clinical practice.
Objective To investigate the clinical value of plasma copeptin in patients with acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AECOPD). Methods Ninety patients with AECOPD admitted between October 2013 and November 2015 were recruited as an AECOPD group, and 40 healthy subjects underwent physical examination simultaneously were recruited as a control group. According to patient history and severity, the AECOPD patients were divided into 3 groups: grade Ⅰ group (25 cases), grade Ⅱ group (45 cases) and grade Ⅲ group (20 cases). Plasma copeptin level was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The changes of copeptin, the total counts of white blood cells (WBC), and C-reactive protein (CRP) of the AECOPD patients were compared before and after treatment. Then the correlations between plasma levels of copeptin and severity of AECOPD were evaluated. Results The plasma level of copeptin in the AECOPD group was higher than that in the control group [(16.4±5.2) pmol/L vs. (5.7±2.8) pmol/L, P<0.05), and gradually increased with the severity of AECOPD. For the AECOPD patients both before and after treatment, the copeptin concentrations were positive correlated with the plasma CRP concentrations and the total counts of WBC in blood (both P<0.05). Conclusions The plasma levels of copeptin gradually increase with the severity of AECOPD. The changes of plasma copeptin may be as an indicator for the severity of AECOPD.
ObjectiveTo systematically review the impact of ACEI/ARB (angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor/ angiotensin receptor antagonist) treatment on the clinical outcomes of Chinese patients with COVID-19 infections. MethodsPubMed, EMbase, Web of Science, The Cochrane Library, CNKI, WanFang Data, and VIP databases were electronically searched to collect cohort studies on the impact of the treatment with ACEI/ARB on the clinical outcomes of Chinese patients with COVID-19 infections from January 2020 to January 2022. Two reviewers independently screened literature, extracted data, and assessed the risk of bias of the included studies. Then, meta-analysis was performed using RevMan 5.3 software. ResultsA total of 17 cohort studies involving 4 912 subjects were included. The results of meta-analysis showed that patients who were prescribed ACEI/ARB had shorter hospital stays (SMD=−0.28, 95%CI −0.46 to −0.11, P=0.002) and a lower mortality rate (OR=0.47, 95%CI 0.36 to 0.62, P<0.000 01) than patients who did not take ACEI/ARB. ConclusionCurrent evidence shows that the use of ACEI/ARB drugs can improve the clinical prognosis of Chinese patients with COVID-19 infections. Due to the limited quality and quantity of the included studies, more high-quality studies are needed to verify the above conclusion.
Objective To evaluate the diagnosis value of radial probe endobronchial ultrasound guide sheath transbronchial lung biopsy (RP-EBUS-GS-TBLB) combination with rapid on-site evaluation (ROSE) in peripheral pulmonary lesions (PPLs). Methods One hundred and fifty-eight patients with PPLs identified by computed tomography in Nanjing Chest Hospital underwent RP-EBUS-GS-TBLB with or without ROSE randomly between February 2016 and August 2017. The sensitivity, the procedure time, the biopsy times, and the complications were evaluated in the two groups. Results The diagnostic yield was 85.7% (72/84) in ROSE group and 70.3% (52/74) in No-ROSE group. There was significant difference in diagnostic sensitivity between the two groups (P<0.05). The mean procedure time and number of biopsy in ROSE group were less than those in No-ROSE group (P<0.01). No severe procedure related complications such as pneumothorax and hemoptysis were observed. Conclusions ROSE can improve the diagnostic sensitivity, and shorten the procedure time. RP-EBUS-GS-TBLB combined with ROSE is a safe and effective technique for PPLs.