Chinese herbal medicine (CHM) has been used to treat stroke for thousands of years. The objective of the study is to assess the current evidence for bioactive components of CHM as neurogenesis agent in animal models of ischemic stroke.

HBV (hepatitis B virus) genotyping is important in determining the clinical manifestation of disease and treatment response, particularly, in patients with low viral loads. Also, sensitive detection of HBV antiviral drug resistance mutations is essential for monitoring therapy response.Asensitive direct sequencing method for genotyping and the drug resistance mutation detection of low levels of HBV DNA in patients' plasma is developed by PCR amplification of the DNA with novel universal primers.The novel, common, and universal primers were identified by alignment of RT region of all the HBV DNA sequences in databases. These primers could efficiently amplify the RT region of HBV virus at low DNA levels by directly sequencing the resulting PCR products, and mapping with the reference sequence made it possible to clearly obtain the HBV subtypes and identify the resistance mutations in the samples with HBV DNA level as low as 20 IU/mL. We examined the reliability of the method in clinical samples, and found it could detect the HBV subtypes and drug resistance mutations in 80 clinical HBV samples with low HBV DNA levels ranging from 20 to 200 IU/mL.This method is a sensitive and reliable direct sequencing method for HBV genotyping and antiviral drug resistance mutation detection, and is helpful for efficiently monitoring the response to therapy in HBV patients.

Current evidence concerning the association between persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is inconsistent. The aim of the present systematic review and meta-analysis is to evaluate the role of POPs in PCOS.

The high incidence of cognition disorders in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients represents a main focus in public health field recently. Thus, we tried to explore relationship between cognitive function and arterial partial pressure O2 (PaO2) in patients with COPD as assessed by Mini-mental State Examination (MMSE) and/or Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA).

Human assisted reproductive technology (ART) has become an important part of infertility treatments throughout the world, including IVF, ICSI, embryo culture, and embryo cryopreservation. In China and East Asia, Chinese herbal medicine (CHM) has been used to treat various diseases and improves the success chance of live birth among infertile couples undergoing ART treatment. The aim of this study is to assess the effect and safety of Chinese herbal medicine among women undergoing ART.

HER-2 positive breast cancer is a subtype of breast cancer with poor clinical outcome. The aim of this study was to identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs) for HER-2 positive breast cancer and elucidate the potential interactions among them.

Hiccups are involuntary contractions of the diaphragm and intercostal muscles, which lead to sudden contractions of the glottis. CAM, such as acupuncture is commonly used and stimulation of the vagus nerve and interference with phrenic nerve conduction are also used to treat hiccups. However, there is little evidence on the effectiveness of acupuncture for cancer-related hiccups. We will plan to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis of RCTs to evaluate the current evidence on the effects of acupuncture for cancer-related hiccups.

Post-stroke cognitive impairment and dementia (PSCID) is the main source of morbidity and mortality after stroke worldwide. It is one consequence of ischemic stroke, intracerebral hemorrhage, or subarachnoid hemorrhage. Cognitive impairment and dementia after the clinical stroke may contribute to the clinical expression of PSCID, which are prevalent clinical symptoms, especially in the elderly. Current problems in the field of PSCID are related to a lack of harmonization of the classification and definition, deficiency of well-defined diagnosis, deficiency of standardized and objective treatment plans, etc. Auricular therapy can effectively improve the symptoms of patients with PSCID. However, there has been no systematic review of auricular therapy for PSCID. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of auricular therapy in patients with PSCID.

Acupuncture and moxibustion (AM) are utilized to treat Alzheimer's disease (AD). However, no bibliometric analysis has explored this issue. Thus, this study investigated the status, hotspots and trends of AM in the treatment of AD.

HIV-positive individuals encounter a number of negative life events (NLEs). This cross-sectional study aimed to evaluate the association between NLEs and major depressive disorder (MDD) among HIV-positive individuals in Guangdong, China, about which little is known.HIV-positive individuals were recruited from the Centers for Disease Prevention and Control of Guangzhou, Zhongshan, and Yangjiang from September 2007 to September 2008. Data on NLEs were collected using a questionnaire. The Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV-TR Axis I Disorders-Patient Edition (SCID-I/P) based on the DSM-IV criteria was used to diagnose MDD. Multiple logistic regression analyses were conducted to evaluate the association between NLEs and MDD.Among the 339 participants, 306 (90.27%) reported that one or more NLEs had ever occurred. Participants who reported NLEs that included HIV infection, financial problems, AIDS diagnosis, HIV/AIDS discrimination, conflict with spouse or lover, conflict with other family members, problems in childbearing, and conflict with nonfamily were at a higher risk of MDD. Participants who reported more NLEs in the last year had a higher risk of MDD (OR = 2.86, 95%CI: 1.76-4.65) than individuals who reported fewer NLEs. Individuals with higher chronic stress scores had a higher risk of MDD (OR = 4.36, 95%CI: 2.44-7.78) than individuals with lower chronic stress scores. However, acute stress was not associated with MDD.NLEs were common among HIV-positive individuals. MDD was associated with a greater number of NLEs and the increased chronic stress caused by the NLEs. Interventions should be tailored to those who reported NLEs to help reduce the risk of MDD and increase the quality of life among HIV-positive individuals.

In the recent 20 years, primary vaginal adenosis is extremely rare and the data of clinical presentations, management, and outcome have not been studied systematically.In this retrospective study, women with vaginal adenosis between January 1997 and June 2017 were identified from the hospital's medical records. Data on patient age, history, symptoms, mass location, size, diagnosis, complications, treatment, and recurrence were analyzed by SPSS 20.0.Twenty women were histopathologically diagnosed as having vaginal adenosis (mean age, 37.9 ± 10.6 years). All patients denied utero exposure. The most common symptom was vaginal pain or abnormal bleeding. For all patients, the local vaginal lesions were surgically excised. Seven patients had complications with endometriosis. 15 patients lived without recurrence, and 1 patient underwent postoperative local recurrence after 81 months. Primary vaginal squamous cell carcinoma in another patient was confirmed to arise from adenosis; she survived with disease. The remaining 3 patients developed carcinoma of different types in varied periods of a disease-free state (5 months, 30 months, and 23 years, respectively); 1 patient died of progressive disease, and 2 patients survived with disease.Primary vaginal adenosis is a spontaneous lesion with a propensity for late canceration. Local lesion resection is the primary treatment.

Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) is an important cytokine and has been reported to be associated with the pathogenesis of many autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. TNF-α gene is located on a region that has been found to be associated with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). We performed this meta-analysis to assess the relationship between susceptibility to OCD and the TNF-α-238G/A gene polymorphism.

Vandetanib is a promising anticancer target agent for treating advanced carcinomas, such as non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and breast cancer. Rash is a frequently reported adverse event of vandetanib. We conducted this meta-analysis to determine the incidence rate and overall risks of all-grade and high-grade rash with vandetanib in NSCLC patients.

The autoimmune and gene etiology are implicated in the pathogenesis of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). The cytotoxic T-lymphocyte-associated antigen 4 (CTLA4) is important for negative regulation of T-cell activation, and CTLA4 gene has been identified as a risk factor for some autoimmune diseases. However, none studies have been performed about the association between PCOS and the CTLA4 gene before. Here, we aimed to investigate the association of CTLA4 with PCOS in the Chinese Han population though a case-control association analysis of 606 individuals. The tagging variants rs733618 and rs231775 in the CTLA4 gene were detected using polymerase chain reaction-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis method. Further analysis found the rs733618 was significantly different between case and control groups in either genotypic or allelic distribution (P = .01 and .009, respectively) while rs231775 not. Moreover, rs733618 was significantly associated with higher body mass index in the dominant model (P = .003) and with higher waist/hip ratio in the recessive model (P = .02). Interestingly, rs733618 was only found to have significant association with homeostatic model assessment for insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) in both dominant and recessive model (P = .009 and .0065, respectively). This is the first study to investigate the association of CTLA4 gene with PCOS. The CTLA4 gene is suggested to correlated with PCOS, and influence PCOS through regulating obesity and the HOMA-IR in a novel way.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of prophylactic intraoperative bilateral uterine or internal iliac artery embolization in planned cesarean for pernicious placenta previa in the third trimester of pregnancy.The patients with pernicious placenta previa were retrospectively included from January 2011 to May 2018, being divided into embolization group and control group. Intraoperative uterine artery embolization (UAE) or internal iliac artery embolization (IIAE) was undertaken to stop intrapartum and postpartum hemorrhage in embolization group.There were no significant differences on age, pregnancy times, gestational age, neonatal weight, neonatal asphyxia, prenatal bleeding, placental implantation, and mortality between embolization group and control group (P > .05). The amount of intraoperative and postoperative bleeding in embolization group was significantly greater than that in control group (P < .05). However, the hysterectomy rate in the embolization group was significantly lower than that in the control group (P < .05). Two (6.25%, 2/32) cases had undergone the second time embolotherapy after 8 hours of cesarean surgery because of severe vaginal bleeding. One case (3.13%, 1/32) died of diffuse intravascular coagulation because of hemorrhagic shock in embolization group. Transient and self-remitted lumbosacral pain was present in 28 (95%, 28/32) patients and no other severe interventional complications were reported in embolization group. All babies in 2 groups were healthy at half to 5 years' follow-up.The prophylactic intraoperative embolization of bilateral UAE or IIAE may be an effective strategy to treat intractable peripartum hemorrhage and preserve the fertility in patients with pernicious placenta previa.

Monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) rs1024611 (-2518 A > G) polymorphism are associated with inflammatory diseases. In this study, we investigate the relationship between MCP-1 rs1024611 polymorphism and genetic susceptibility of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) with sepsis. Two hundred eighty-five patients with T2DM are divided into the diabetes with sepsis group (combined group, 113 cases) and the diabetes group (172 cases). Blood samples and corresponding clinical data were collected. MCP-1 rs1024611 polymorphism in blood samples was detected by pyrosequencing. Meanwhile, the expressions of MCP-1, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), interleukin (IL)-1β, and IL-6 in blood samples were detected by real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, respectively. The relationship between different genotypes of MCP-1 rs1024611 polymorphic locus and T2DM with sepsis was analyzed by combining with the clinical data of the patients. The frequencies of rs1024611 AG/GG genotypes and G allele in T2DM with sepsis group were significantly higher than those in T2DM patients without sepsis (P = .004 for AG/GG vs AA genotypes; P = .037 for G allele vs A allele). Subgroup analysis showed that the rs1024611 G allele frequency in the septic shock group was significantly higher than the general sepsis group (P = .02). The expressions of MCP-1 and TNF-α in GG genotypes in T2DM with sepsis group were significantly higher than AA or GA genotypes (P < .05). This study preliminarily showed that the rs1024611 A > G polymorphism within the promoter region of MCP-1 gene can upregulate the expression of MCP-1 gene and proinflammatory cytokine TNF-α, which ultimately contributed to the predisposition and progression of T2DM with sepsis.

The instantaneous wave-free ratio (iFR) is a new vasodilator-free index of coronary stenosis severity. The aim of this meta-analysis is to assess the diagnostic performance of iFR for the evaluation of coronary stenosis severity with fractional flow reserve as standard reference.

The aim of this study was to investigate the vascular alteration of the whole lung and individual lobes in patients with COPD, and assess the association between pulmonary vessels and the extent and distribution of emphysema as well as pulmonary function by a 3-dimensional automated approach.A total of 83 computed tomography images from COPD patients were analyzed. Automated computerized approach was used to measure the total number of vessels at the fifth generation. The extent of emphysema (%LAA-950) in the whole lung and individual lobes were also calculated automatically. The association between the vascular number and the extent and distribution of emphysema, as well as the pulmonary function were assessed.Both the vascular number of fifth generation in the upper lobe and in the lower lobe were significantly negatively correlated with %LAA-950 (P < 0.05). Furthermore, there were significant, yet weak correlations between the vascular number and FEV1% predicted (R = 0.556, P = 0.039) and FEV1/FVC (R = 0.538, P = 0.047). In contrast, the vascular numbers were strongly correlated with DLco (R = 0.770, P = 0.003). Finally, the vascular number correlated closer with %LAA-950 of upper lobes than with %LAA-950 of lower lobes.Pulmonary vessel alteration can be measured; it is related to the extent of emphysema rather than the distribution of emphysema.

Swallowing dysfunction is a common dysfunction after stroke, and its incidence exceeds 50%. Aspiration pneumonia and malnutrition induced by dysphagia not only cause psychological shock to patients after stroke, but also burden the medical payment. Neuromuscular electrical stimulation, which stimulates the cortex and cortical bulb pathways to improve swallowing function, has been one of the emerging treatments for the post-stroke deglutition disorder. These therapy operators require the proficiency in professional knowledge, limiting clinical large sample studies, so there is an absence of evidence-based medicine. The research is to evaluate the effectiveness of neuromuscular electrical stimulations combined with swallowing-related muscle training to treat swallowing dysfunction after stroke.

Complicated intra-abdominal infections (cIAIs) are common in clinical practice, caused by a mixture of aerobic and anaerobic bacteria, increase the risk of mortality. Carbapenems and tigecycline (TGC) are recommended for antimicrobial therapies for cIAIs.