Pharmacological research : the official journal of the Italian Pharmacological Society
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Since December 2019, new COVID-19 outbreaks have occurred and spread around the world. However, the clinical characteristics of patients in other areas around Wuhan, Hubei Province are still unclear. In this study, we performed epidemiological and clinical characteristics analysis on these regional cases. ⋯ The epidemiological characteristics of patients in the area around Wuhan, such as Shiyan, at first diagnosis are described as follows: Patients had histories of Wuhan residences in the early stage and family clustering in the later period. The incubation period was relatively long, and the incidence was relatively hidden, but the virulence was relatively low. The initial diagnosis of the patients was mostly ordinary, and the percentage of critical patients who evolved into the ICU during follow-up is 2.7 %, which is lower than the 26.1 % reported by Wuhan city. According to the Shiyan experience, early diagnosis with multiple swaps of the Q-PCR test and timely treatment can reduce the death rate. Diabetes could be one of the risk factors for progression to severe/critical outcomes. No evidence exists that smoking protects COVID-19 patients from developing to severe/critical cases, and the absolute number of lymphocytes at initial diagnosis could not predict the progression risk from severe to critical condition. Multivariate regression analysis should be used to further guide the allocation of clinical resources.
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Corona virus disease (COVID-19) has now spread to all parts of the world and almost all countries are battling against it. This study aimed to assess the efficacy and safety of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine (Hereinafter referred to as "Integrated Medicine") to COVID-19. We searched six major Chinese and English databases to identify randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and case-control studies (CCSs) of Integrated Medicine on COVID-19. ⋯ In addition, Integrated Medicine can improve the disappearance rate of fever, cough, expectoration, fatigue, chest tightness and anorexia and reduce patients' fever, and fatigue time (P < 0.05). This review found that Integrated Medicine had better effects and did not increase adverse drug reactions for COVID-19. More high-quality RCTs are needed in the future.
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Central post-stroke pain (CPSP) is chronic neuropathic pain due to a lesion or dysfunction of the central nervous system following cerebrovascular insult. This syndrome is characterized by chronic somatosensory abnormalities including spontaneous pain, hyperalgesia and allodynia, which localize to body areas corresponding to the injured brain region. However, despite its potential to impair activities of daily life and cause mood disorders after stroke, it is probably the least recognized complication of stroke. ⋯ Moreover, mounting evidence has revealed that EETs exert anti-inflammatory effects by inhibiting the expression of vascular adhesion molecules, activating NFκB, inflammatory cytokines secretion and COX-2 gene induction. The present review focuses on the extensive evidence supporting the potential of EETs to be a multi-functional therapeutic approach for CPSP. Additionally, the role of EETs in the crosstalk between anti-CPSP and the comorbid mood disorder is reviewed herein.
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Experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) is an animal model of multiple sclerosis (MS), in which myeloid cells sustain inflammation, take part in priming, differentiation, and reactivation of myelin-specific T cells, and cause direct myelin damage. N-Acylethanolamine-hydrolyzing acid amidase (NAAA) is a proinflammatory enzyme induced by phlogosis and overexpressed in macrophages and microglia of EAE mice. Targeting these cell populations by inhibiting NAAA may be a promising pharmacological strategy to modulate the inflammatory aspect of MS and manage disease progression. ⋯ We assessed whether enzyme inhibition affected the severity of neurological symptoms and modulated immune cell infiltration into the central nervous system of EAE mice. We found that preventive chronic treatment with ARN16186 was efficacious in slowing disease progression and preserving locomotor activity in EAE mice. Furthermore, NAAA inhibition reduced the number of immune cells infiltrating the spinal cord and modulated the overactivation of NF-kB and STAT3 transcription factors, leading to less expansion of Th17 cells over the course of the disease.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Efficacy of Huoxiang Zhengqi dropping pills and Lianhua Qingwen granules in treatment of COVID-19: A randomized controlled trial.
With the global epidemic of coronavirus disease (COVID-19), China has made progress in the prevention and control of the epidemic, and traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has played a key role in dealing with the disease's effects on the respiratory system. This randomized controlled clinical trial evaluated the clinical efficacy and prognosis of Huoxiang Zhengqi dropping pills and Lianhua Qingwen granules in patients with COVID-19. ⋯ The use of Huoxiang Zhengqi dropping pills and Lianhua Qingwen granules combined with western medicine may have clinical advantages for COVID-19 patients in improving clinical symptoms, reducing utilization rate of anti-infective drugs, and improving patient prognosis, which could pave the way for the use of complementary medicine in treating this infection.