Medicine
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Observational Study
Expression and clinical significance of serum cystatin C in patients with hypertension and coronary heart disease.
The aim of this study is to explore the potential association between cystatin C (Cys-c) and coronary heart disease (CHD) in hypertensive patients. In this study, circulating levels of Cys-c in 62 essential hypertension (EH) patients, 147 hypertension with coronary heart disease (EH + CHD) patients, and 60 healthy volunteers were investigated using immunoturbidimetry. Then, we analyzed the correlations between Cys-C and other clinical parameters. ⋯ Cys-C was an independent risk factor for CHD in hypertensive patients. Our results suggested that circulating Cys-C levels was up-regulated in patients with hypertension and CHD, and had correlation with the severity of coronary artery disease. As one of the important risk factors for CHD, Cys-C can predict the occurrence of CHD in patients with hypertension.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Tamoxifen for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: A randomized double-blind clinical trial.
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is the most common cause of motor neuron disease, and effective treatment for ALS is still lacking. Transactive response (TAR) -DNA-binding protein-43 (TDP-43) is aggregated in the neurons of ALS patients. Animal studies shown TDP-43 aggregation can be attenuated by enhancing autophagy by tamoxifen. However, its beneficial effects for ALS patients remain unknown. ⋯ Tamoxifen exerted only a modest effect on attenuate progression for 6 months in this small trial. Additional larger scale studies should be necessary to confirm whether enhancing autophagy can attenuate ALS progression.
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Meta Analysis Comparative Study
Comparison of 18F-FDG-PET and 18F-FDG-PET/CT for the diagnostic performance in thyroid nodules with indeterminate cytology: A meta-analysis.
We performed a meta-analysis to compare F-FDG-PET and F-FDG-PET/CT for the diagnostic performance in thyroid nodules with indeterminate cytology by Bethesda classification. ⋯ This meta-analysis reveals that in evaluating thyroid nodules with indeterminate cytology by Bethesda classification, the rule-out performance of F-FDG-PET is significantly better than F-FDG-PET/CT, although the latter represents a more objective and accurate technique. We hypothesize that the lack of precise localization of suspicious FDG uptake in the neck region may have contributed to this overvaluation for PET alone studies, and advocate that future studies be performed with PET/CT rather than PET alone to avoid misinterpretation and overvaluation in this scenario.
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Meta Analysis
Antidepressant use and colorectal cancer morbidity and mortality: A dose-response meta analysis.
The risk of colorectal cancer associated to antidepressant use remains unclear. The purpose of this meta-analysis was to investigate the risk of colorectal cancer associated to antidepressant use. Medline, Embase, Web of Science, and Cochrane Database were accessed from the dates of their establishment to October 2018, to collect study of antidepressant use and colorectal cancer morbidity and mortality. ⋯ Additionally, a dose-response showed per 1 year of duration of antidepressant use incremental increase was not associated with colorectal cancer risk (RR: 0.96; 95% CI: 0.87-1.09). Evidence suggests that antidepressant use was not associated with colorectal cancer morbidity and mortality. The cumulative duration of antidepressant use did not utilized played critical roles.
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Previous studies have indicated the association of microRNA-146a/b (miR-146a/miR-146b) with pro-inflammatory cytokines production, lipopolysaccharide-mediated injuries and organ dysfunction, however, the correlation of miR-146a/miR-146b with disease risk, disease severity, biochemical indices, inflammatory cytokines and mortality of sepsis has not been explored, which was investigated in the present study. ⋯ MiR-146b presents superior potential as a prognostic biomarker in sepsis patients compared to MiR-146a, which implies the clinical application of miR-146b in disease management of sepsis.