Since 2008, oral propranolol has evolved as the first-line therapy for infantile hemangiomas (IHs). Meanwhile, oral atenolol gradually shows comparative effectiveness versus oral propranolol with few side effects. Here, we conducted a mobile internal survey among a group of Chinese clinicians about how they choose the dosage, dose regimen, and dose escalation methods of propranolol and atenolol for the treatment of IH.A mobile-ready internal survey on the application of oral propranolol and oral atenolol for IH in mainland China was performed and distributed to 333 potential clinicians from different levels of healthcare institutions in mainland China. Eighty-one doctors responded to the survey. All the respondents had the experience of treating IH with oral propranolol and 32 had the experience with oral atenolol.Most of the doctors from tertiary hospitals chose 2 mg/kg/d twice daily, while most of those with the experience of propranolol from private hospitals chose 1 mg/kg/d once daily. More doctors from tertiary hospitals had the experience of atenolol than those from private hospitals.Oral atenolol has become another medication intervention option for IH in mainland China. This survey is helpful to standardize and develop a guideline of oral atenolol therapy for IH.

Tumor is a common and frequently-occurring disease that seriously threatens human health, and is one of the main causes of death. Adriamycin (ADM) is the most commonly used and effective anti-tumor chemotherapeutics in clinical practice, but they can cause severe cardiotoxicity, which obviously limits their clinical application. Shengmai injection is a modern injection form of traditional Chinese medicine widely used for heart failure, myocardial infarction, cardiogenic shock, and cardiotoxicity patients in China. Therefore, we design this systematic review and meta-analysis to assess the effectiveness and safety of Shengmai injection for treating ADM-related cardiotoxicity.

It has been proposed that cytotoxic T-lymphocyte antigen 4 (CTLA-4) may attenuate the T-cell activation threshold, thereby decreasing the antitumor response and conferring susceptibility to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).In the present study, we selected CTLA-4 tagging single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and explored the relationship between these polymorphisms and susceptibility to HCC. A hospital-based case-control study, comprising 584 cases with HCC and 923 controls, was performed in an eastern Chinese Han population. CTLA-4 SNPs were genotyped using a custom-by-design 48-Plex SNPscan Kit.We found that the CTLA-4 rs3087243 G>A polymorphism might be associated with increased risk of HCC (GA vs GG: adjusted odds ratio [OR], 1.38; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.04-1.85; P = .028 and AA/GA vs GG: adjusted OR, 1.43; 95% CI, 1.08-1.89; P = .012). After using Bonferroni correction, this association remained (P = .012 for the AA/GA vs GG genetic model). In addition, the power value was 0.904 in the AA/GA versus GG genetic model. Haplotype analysis showed that CTLA4 Crs16840252Ars231775Ars3087243Trs733618, Crs16840252Grs231775Ars3087243Trs733618, and other haplotypes might increase the risk of HCC risk (P = .018, <.001, and .017, respectively). However, we found that CTLA4 Trs16840252A rs231775Grs3087243Trs733618 decreased the risk of HCC (P = .020).Our results suggest that the CTLA-4 rs3087243 G>A polymorphism increases susceptibility to HCC in an eastern Chinese Han population. CTLA-4 haplotypes may influence the development of HCC. In the future, a population-based fine-mapping study with functional assessment should be performed to further determine these potential correlations.

New sonographic patterns have been recommended by the 2015 American Thyroid Association (ATA) to stratify nodules in terms of malignancy risk and help guide biopsy decision. This study aimed to compare the ultrasound part of the ATA guidelines and the Thyroid Imaging Reporting and Data System (TIRADS-Na).In 2013 to 2016, 708 thyroid nodules in 505 patients were confirmed by postoperative histopathology. Hypoechogenicity, solidity, microcalcification, irregular margin, and a taller-than-wide shape were considered features suggesting malignancy. Sensitivity, specificity, negative predictive value (NPV), and positive predictive value (PPV) were obtained for the TIRADS and ATA guidelines.Of the 708 nodules, 341(48.2%) and 367(51.8%) were benign and malignant, respectively. Based on the ultrasound 2015 ATA guidelines, 62 nodules had nonspecific pattern (both malignant and benign features); malignancy rates of nodules with very low, low, intermediate, and high suspicion, and nonspecific pattern were 0, 17.7%, 57.9%, 90.0%, and 69.4%, respectively (P < .001). Malignancy rates of categories 2/3/4/5 nodules by TIRADS were 0, 8.1%, 67.0%, and 90.1%, respectively (P < .001). Based on pathological results, the AUC, sensitivity, specificity, NPV, and PPV were 0.926, 96.7%, 81.5%, 84.9%, and 95.9% for TIRADS, and 0.920, 93.5%, 82.4%, 85.1%, and 92.1% for ATA patterns, respectively. The TIRADS was generally more efficient than the 2015 ATA guidelines, especially for nodules >2 cm in diameter or those with nonspecific pattern.The TIRADS show a relative superiority over the ultrasound 2015 ATA guidelines, especially for nodules with >2 cm diameter or nonspecific pattern.

The coronavirus disease 2019 infection has significantly impacted the world and placed a heavy strain on the medical system and the public, especially those with cardiovascular diseases. Hoverer, the differences in door-to-balloon time and outcomes in ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) patients undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention after severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection are not known too much.

Coronary heart disease (CHD) is the most common heart disease and the leading cause of cardiovascular deaths worldwide. Decreased endothelial cell (EC) proliferation, increased apoptosis, inflammation, and vascular dysfunction are considered vital factors in CHD. In this study, we aimed to determine the expression and role of microRNA-195-3p and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in hypoxic-treated human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs).

Early diagnosis of acute kidney injury (AKI) remains a challenge. Recently, [TIMP-2]·[IGFBP7], which is a combination of urine tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase 2 (TIMP-2) and insulin-like growth factor (IGF) binding protein 7 (IGFBP7), has been identified as a potential biomarker of AKI. We performed this meta-analysis to assess the diagnostic accuracy of urinary [TIMP-2]·[IGFBP7] for AKI in adult patients.

THE PURPOSE OF THE STUDY T: o assess the efficacy of sex hormone therapy in the treatment of dry eye syndrome in postmenopausal women.The following electronic databases were searched without language restrictions: PubMed, Embase, Cochrane, and the Chinese Biomedical Database. Two reviewers collected all the literature, which was searched for relevance in English and Chinese from January 1990 to July 2017. Both of the reviewers screened documents independently, identifying the studies that met the inclusion criteria. Then, the included studies were evaluated, and the data were extracted and conversed dependently. Finally, Review Manager 5.3 (offered by the Cochrane collaboration) was used to complete the meta-analysis. An integrated mean difference (MD) with its corresponding 95% confidence interval (CI) was calculated.A total of 358 patients with dry eye were enrolled in 7 randomized controlled trials (RCTs). We observed statistically significant improvements in the Schirmer's test scores (MD, 2.06; 95% CI, 0.74-4.46; I = 97%; P = .006) after sex hormone treatment. However, the scores for tear breakup time (TBUT) (MD, 1.28; 95% CI, -1.03 to 4.68; I = 99%; P = .21) and the ocular comfort index (OCI) (MD, -1.12; 95% CI, -4.42 to 1.98; I = 95%; P = .48) were not improved.This meta-analysis of 7 RCTs suggests that sex hormone therapy may be associated with better Schirmer's test scores. However, no significant differences were detected in the TBUT and OCI test scores. Consequently, sex hormone therapy has a potentially useful role in the effective management of postmenopausal women with dry eye syndrome.

It is difficult to diagnose brucellar spondylitis because of its nonspecific clinical, radiological, and histological characteristics. This study aimed to determine whether real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissues was superior to conventional serum-based methods for diagnosing brucellar spondylitis.This retrospective study included 31 patients with brucellosis and a control group of 20 people with no history of brucellosis or exposure to Brucella spp. Samples from all patients with brucellar spondylitis were evaluated using Giemsa staining, the standard tube agglutination (STA) test, blood culture, and real-time PCR.The brucellar spondylitis was acute in 7 patients (22.6%), subacute in 15 patients (48.4%), and chronic in 9 patients (29%). Serological assays provided positive results for 25 patients (80.1%), real-time PCR provided positive results for 29 patients (93.5%), and blood cultures provided positive results for 11 patients (35.5%). The real-time PCR provided sensitivity of 93.5%, specificity of 100%, a positive predictive value of 100%, and a negative predictive value of 100%. The corresponding values for the STA test were 80.1%, 100%, 100%, and 76.9%, respectively. Real-time PCR provided better sensitivity than Giemsa staining, the STA test, and blood culture, although the difference between PCR and STA was not statistically significant (P = .22). B melitensis was the only pathogen that was detected in patient with brucellar spondylitis using real-time PCR.These results suggest that real-time PCR provides a high sensitivity for diagnosing brucellar spondylitis. Furthermore, the real-time PCR results indicate that B melitensis was the causative pathogen in these cases.

More than 11 million people suffer from coronary heart disease (CHD) angina in China, showing high morbidity and mortality rates. Yufengingxin (YFNX) is a commonly used Chinese patent medicine in CHD angina treatment. The purpose of this protocol is to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of YFNX for the treatment of CHD angina.

Coronary heart disease (CHD) is one of the manifestations of atherosclerosis with a high morbidity rate. MicroRNA (miRNA)-146a rs2910164, a single nucleotide polymorphism, is associated with the progression of CHD risk. However, the results are controversial and uncertain. Therefore, an updated meta-analysis was conducted to evaluate the association between rs2910164 and CHD susceptibility.

Adjuvant endocrine therapy (AET) is known to reduce the risk of hormone receptor-positive (HR+) breast cancer (BC) recurrence and mortality rates, but its impact on cardiovascular disease (CVD) events is unclear. The primary objective of this study was to analyze the association of HR status with CVD mortality in patients with stage I to III BC. A retrospective study of patients with stage I to III BC was conducted using the 2004 to 2016 Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database, and patients were grouped according to their HR status. Propensity score matching (PSM) was used to adjust for heterogeneity between the groups. The cumulative incidence rate of CVD mortality was evaluated via a cumulative incidence curve. Univariate and multivariate Fine and Gray's competing risk regression models were used to identify risk factors associated with CVD mortality. In total, 399,209 patients with BC were included in this study, and 329,958 patients (82.65%) were HR-positive. The cumulative incidence of CVD death was 8.28% in stage I to III BC patients. In the constituent ratio analysis, primary BC was the leading cause of death (45.29%, N = 31,465), followed by heart disease (16.07%, N = 11,166). Compared to the second year following BC diagnosis, the risk of CVD-specific death gradually increased. After PSM, 65,952 pairs of patients were matched, which led to the equilibrium of all variables between the HR-negative cohort and HR+ cohort. Multivariate analysis indicated that HR status was not significantly associated with the risk of CVD mortality, with a hazard ratio of 1.01 (P = .895). This study highlights the importance of understanding the associations between risk factors and CVD for BC patients. HR status was not associated with the risk of CVD mortality in this study.