Medicine
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Anti-differentiation non-coding RNA (ANCR), a long non-coding RNA, is involved in the development, progression and metastasis of various human cancers. However, its clinical significance in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) still remains unknown. This study aimed to investigate ANCR expression and its clinical significance in NPC. ⋯ Kaplan-Meier survival analysis revealed that high level of ANCR expression was significantly associated with poor disease-free survival but not with OS in NPC patients. Univariate analysis showed a significant association between increased ANCR expression and adverse OS (P < .05), but multivariate analysis suggested that ANCR could not be used as an independent prognostic factor for NPC patients. ANCR is involved in the development and progression of NPC, but whether it can be used as an effective therapeutic target for NPC needs further study.
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The present study reported early clinical outcomes and perioperative precautions for medical staffs during joint arthroplasty procedures in SARS-CoV-2-infected patients. The medical records of 8 patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection who underwent joint arthroplasty from January 19 to September 24, 2020 were retrospectively reviewed and analyzed. Perioperative precautions and follow-up (time length varies from 6 month to 13 months, 11 months in average) for SARS-CoV-2 infection of medical staffs were reported. ⋯ There was no evidence indicating SARS-CoV-2 infection in any health providers. Elective joint arthroplasties for patients in recovery period of SARS-CoV-2 infection could be continued under comprehensive preoperative evaluation and appropriate medical protection. For patients with currently confirmed or highly suspected COVID-19, the operation should be carried out only if it was essential.
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Comparative Study
A comparison of quality of life between patients with small and large gastric remnant volumes after gastrectomy for gastric cancer.
The impact of gastric remnant volumes (GRVs) after gastrectomy on patients' quality of life (QOL) has not yet been clarified. The aim of the present study was to compare QOL after gastrectomy between small and large gastric remnant volume patients. We prospectively collected clinical data from 78 consecutive patients who underwent distal gastrectomy with Billroth II gastrojejunostomy for gastric cancer. ⋯ There was no difference in the STO22 score except for dysphagia between the S and L groups after gastrectomy (P > .05). The QOL score of dysphagia was different at postoperative 6 months (S vs L, 12.4 vs 22.8, P < .03), but there was no difference at postoperative months 1, 3, 12, 24, or 36 (P > .05). The remnant gastric volume after partial gastrectomy affects neither functional differences nor QOL after 6 months following appropriate radical surgery.
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The prognostic impact of atrial fibrillation (AF) in patients with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) infection has not been well evaluated. We estimated the prognostic implications of AF in SARS-CoV-2 confirmed patients. The OpenData4Covid19 (https://hira-covid19.net) project is a global research collaboration on coronavirus disease (COVID-19), hosted by the Ministry of Health and Welfare of Korea and the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service of Korea. ⋯ However, AF was not an independent predictor of the primary endpoint (OR: 1.402, 95% CI: 0.932-2.108). Patients with AF and concomitant SARS-CoV-2 infection had more comorbidities and a worse prognosis. However, an independent association between AF and adverse clinical outcomes was not evident.
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Liver function tests (LFTs) use for common bile duct stone (CBDS) prediction in acute cholecystitis (AC) patients is challenging, especially in patients with chronic cholecystitis (CC) history. This study aims to describe characteristics of AC patients with CC history and assess LFTs' utility for CBDS prediction in these patients. A retrospective cohort study was conducted on adults with a diagnosis of AC and CC history included in the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program database from 2008 to 2016. ⋯ AC patients with CC history are more likely to have CBDS. Abnormal LFTs are significantly associated with CBDS in this patient population. Familiarity with these findings can help raise clinical suspicion of providers for earlier evaluation and management of CBDS.