Medicine
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To inform policy makers on efficient provision of end-of-life care, we estimated the 12-month medical expenditures of French decedents in 2015. ⋯ Diagnoses and care trajectories, including repeated hospital stays, are the main drivers of the last year of life expenditures. Our data suggests that early identification of patients requiring palliative care and community-based end-of-life service delivery is feasible and could better support patients, families and caregivers with constant or reduced costs.
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Observational Study
Increased transferase ratio is associated with adverse cardio-cerebral events in patients with unstable angina: A retrospective cohort study.
To investigate the prognostic role of the elevated aspartate and alanine aminotransferase (AST/ALT) ratio in patients with unstable angina (UA). In this observational study, all patients with UA undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention at our center from January 2019 to December 2020 were examined. Clinical presentations, laboratory parameters, and procedural characteristics were collected. ⋯ Importantly, the AST/ALT ratio was associated with MACCE in a multivariate analysis that was adjusted for potential covariates (hazard ratio 1.72, 95% confidence interval 1.48-1.99, P < .01). The optimal cutoff point of the AST/ALT ratio to predict MACCE was 1.29 (area under the curve 0.77, 95% confidence interval 0.69-0.84, P < .001), with sensitivity and specificity of 77.5% and 65.1%, respectively. The increased AST/ALT ratio, especially when above 1.29, is associated with MACCE in patients with UA undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention.
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Dyschromatosis universalis hereditaria (DUH) is an uncommon form of pigmented genodermatosis that is typically inherited autosomally and dominantly. In the previous study, the pathogenic genes of DUH have been identified in ATP-binding cassette subfamily B, member 6 and SASH1. However, the mutational screening of the causative gene remains incomplete and still lacks sufficient proof in the etiology. ⋯ Our study broadens the spectrum of DUH mutations and provides more genetic characteristics of DUH in understanding its etiology. Furthermore, we demonstrated the diagnostic accuracy of whole-exome sequencing for inherited skin diseases and provided new information for etiological study.
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Neurodegenerative diseases (NDDs) pose a significant global health threat. In particular, Alzheimer disease, the most common type causing dementia, remains an incurable disease. Alzheimer disease is thought to be associated with an imbalance of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in neurons, and scientists considered ROS modulation as a promising strategy for novel remedies. ⋯ These findings highlighted the potential of H-LIPEF combined with BDNF in the treatment of NDDs. Furthermore, BDNF-mimetic drugs combining with noninvasive H-LIPEF to patients is a promising approach worthy of further research. This points to strategies for selecting drugs to cooperate with electric fields in treating neurodegenerative disorders.
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Uric acid (UA) and HDL-cholesterol (HDL-C) level are closely associated to the cardiovascular disease (CVD) morbidity. The UA/HDL-C ratio (UHR), a new parameter combination of serum UA and HDL-C, attracts attention for its association with metabolic and inflammatory conditions. There may exists the association between UHR and arterial stiffness. ⋯ This study revealed the nonlinear relationship between UHR and baPWV. A significant correlation between UHR and baPWV existed in females but not in males. Fatty liver status, BMI, and menopausal status may affect the above association.