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BACKGROUND Both lung cancer and cardiometabolic diseases are leading causes of death in China, and they share some common risk factors. However, the prevalence and long-term effect of pre-existing cardiometabolic comorbidities (CMCs) on the survival of middle-aged and elderly lung cancer patients are still not clear. METHODS We consecutively recruited 3477 non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients between January 2011 and December 2018 from four cancer specialty hospitals in China. Univariable and multivariable adjusted Cox proportional hazard models were conducted to evaluate the risk factors associated with mortality. Hazard ratio (HR) for mortality and corresponding 95% CI were calculated. RESULTS The prevalence of CMCs was 30.0% in middle-aged NSCLC patients and 45.5% in elderly NSCLC patients. Log-rank analysis presented statistically significant differences in median survival time between patients with CMCs and without CMCs in both the middle-aged group (21.0 months vs. 32.0 months, P < 0.01) and the elderly group (13.0 months vs. 17.0 months, P = 0.01). Heart failure (HR = 1.754, 95% CI: 1.436-2.144, P < 0.001) and venous thrombus embolism (HR = 2.196, 95% CI: 1.691-2.853, P < 0.001) were independent risk factors for the survival of middle-aged NSCLC patients, while heart failure (HR = 1.709, 95% CI: 1.371-2.130, P < 0.001) continued to decrease overall survival in the elderly group. Hyperlipidemia may be a protective factor for survival in middle-aged group (HR = 0.741, 95% CI: 0.566-0.971, P = 0.030). CONCLUSIONS Our findings demonstrate for the first time the prevalence and prognostic value of pre-existing CMCs in Chinese middle-aged and elderly NSCLC patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss is a clinical emergency with an increased incidence of occurrence in recent years. Hyperbaric oxygen has been widely used in the clinical treatment of sudden hearing loss. However, prognostic factors related to its curative effects are still not clear, which hinders its clinical application. The aim of this study was to investigate the efficacy and prognostic factors of hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) plus drug therapies in the treatment of sudden hearing loss. Method: Patients with sudden hearing loss who were treated with hyperbaric oxygen from April to October 2017 were retrospectively included. Clinical information was collected, including pure-tone audiometry data before and after hyperbaric oxygen treatment, age, gender, hearing curve classification, concomitant symptoms, history of diseases (diabetes and hypertension), history of hormone therapy, start time of hyperbaric oxygen treatment, and total number of hyperbaric oxygen treatments. The prognostic factors were analyzed with univariate and multivariate analyses. Results: Sixty-four patients with sudden hearing loss were enrolled, including 7 cases of low-frequency loss, 4 cases of high-frequency loss, 32 cases of flat loss, and 21 cases of complete hearing loss. After HBOT, there were 16 cases (25%) of complete recovery, 15 cases (23.43%) of partial recovery, 7 cases (10.93%) of slight improvement, and 26 cases (40.63%) of no improvement. The total effective rate was 59.37%. Twelve of 21 cases (57.14%) of complete hearing loss showed recovery. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that the start time of HBOT ≤ 7 days from disease onset was independently associated with hearing recovery (OR = 27.763, 95% CI [4.209, 183.115], p = .001). Conclusion: Combined HBOT can improve the hearing impairment of sudden hearing loss. The early HBOT showed the most promising therapeutic effects, especially among patients with complete hearing loss. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: to examine the associations of two common CRP gene polymorphisms with CRP levels, frailty and comorbidity in an elderly Chinese population. Design: a population-based cohort study. Setting and participants: we obtained data on 1,723 elderly participants aged 70-84 from the ageing arm of the Rugao Longevity and Ageing study (RuLAS), a population-based observational cohort study conducted in Rugao, Jiangsu province, China. Measurements: the genotyping of two common CRP gene polymorphisms (rs1205 and rs3093059) was performed. Items concerning the frailty index and comorbidity were collected. Results: the mean age of the study population was 75.3 ± 3.9 years, and 53.5% (n = 922) were women. The minor allele frequencies of rs1205 and rs3093059 were 42.4% (C allele) and 16.9% (C allele), respectively. The polymorphisms rs1205 and rs3093059 were significantly associated with CRP levels (β=0.113 and 0.222, all P< 0.001). Non-significant association between rs1205 and rs3093059 and frailty, as well as between rs3093059 and co-morbidity was observed. However, SNP rs1205 CC genotype had an increased odds of co-morbidity compared with the TT genotype (odds ratio (OR):1.53; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.16--2.02). Each additional copy of the C allele of SNP rs1205 was associated with 1.23 times (95% CI: 1.07--1.41) odds of co-morbidity. The significance remained after controlling for covariates such as education level, etc. Conclusions: among elderly Chinese individuals, two CRP gene polymorphisms were significantly associated with CRP levels. However, none of them was associated with frailty. The preliminary findings warrant further validations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Arsenic (As) is identified by the EPA as the third highest toxic inorganic contaminant. Almost every 9th or 10th human in more than 70 countries including mainland China is affected by As. Arsenic along with other toxins not only affects human life but also creates alarming situations such as the deterioration of farm lands and desertion of industrial/mining lands. Researchers and administrators have agreed to opt for phytoremediation of As over costly cleanups. Boehmeria nivea L. can soak up various heavy metals, such as Sb, Cd, Pb, and Zn. But the effect of As pollution on the biology and metabolism of B. nivea has been somewhat overlooked. This study attempts to evaluate the extent of As resistance, chlorophyll content, and metabolic changes in As-polluted (5, 10, 15, and 20 mg L−1 As) B. nivea in hydroponics. Toxic effects of As in the form of inhibited growth were apparent at the highest level of added As. The significant changes in the chlorophyll, electrolyte leakage, and H2O2, significant increases in As in plant parts, catalase (CAT), and malondialdehyde (MDA), with applied As revealed the potential of B. nivea for As decontamination. By employing the metabolic machinery of B. nivea, As was sustainably removed from the contaminated areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: A number of effective strategies have been developed to improve the quality of life in patients with COPD. However, few have been implemented in patients with COPD at all stages in a community setting. This study evaluated the efficacy of a complex COPD health management intervention in rural communities in China. METHODS: A randomized controlled trial including 8,217 subjects with COPD was implemented from May 2008 to May 2012 in 14 community health-care centers. The control group of subjects received usual care, whereas the management group of subjects participated in a health management program that included assessing the subjects’ health status, giving regular health lectures, smoking cessation counseling, encouraging regular exercise, providing rehabilitative training and psychological counseling, and regular followup. As a primary outcome, we examined the changes in the BODE index. Secondary outcomes included depression and anxiety rates, current smoking rate, awareness of COPD, mortality, risk factors, respiratory medication use, hospital admissions, and emergency department visits. RESULTS: After 4 y, the mean cumulative value of the BODE index increased by 0.7 per subject in the control group and decreased by 0.4 per subject in the health management group (difference of 1.1, 95% CI 0.2–2.0, P < .001). Health management reduced anxiety symptoms by 4.8%, depression symptoms by 6.6%, current smoking by 14.3%, mortality due to all causes by 9.0%, hospitalizations due to all causes by 16.1%, and emergency department visits due to all causes by 18.1% (P < .05 for all). However, it increased immunomodulator use by 58.9%, respiratory medication use by 14.1–21.9%, and awareness scores for COPD by 57.2% (P < .05 for all). CONCLUSIONS: The health management program is an effective community-based strategy for the prevention and management of COPD in China, increasing awareness and knowledge among patients and practitioners and improving management within the limitations of access to pharmacotherapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This research investigated the response of vascular active factors, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and angiotensin-II (AT-II) to ovarian stimulation during 24 hours in patients with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). Materials and Methods: In this clinical trial study, 52 patients with PCOS and 8 control cases were stimulated with human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) on the 4th to 7th day of the patients’ natural or induced menstrual cycles. We measured VEGF and AT-II by radioimmunoassay before the injection (0 hour) and 3, 8, 12, 18 and 24 hours after the stimulation. Results: After ovarian stimulation, there was substantially higher level of VEGF in typical PCOS patients than the other three groups at the 3 hour time point (p<0.05), while there were no significant differences in VEGF at all the other time points among the four groups. As for AT-II, before and at all time points after the ovarian stimulation, it seemed that the AT-II levels in patients’ sera with different phenotypes of PCOS by the Rotterdam criteria were all higher than in the control group although the differences were not statistically significant. The level of AT-II in typical PCOS patients was also significantly higher than the other three groups at the 3 hour time point (p<0.05), while no significant differences at all the other time points among the four groups were observed. Conclusion: The response to the stimulation varied among patients with different phenotypes of PCOS according to the Rotterdam criteria. Serum VEGF and AT-II were possible contributors to an increased risk of developing ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS) in patients with typical PCOS during the early follicular phase (3 hours) after ovarian stimulation (Registration Number: NCT02265861). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We aim to investigate the therapeutic effects of QSYQ, a drug of heart failure (HF) in clinical practice in China, on a rat heart failure (HF) model. 3 groups were divided: HF model group (LAD ligation), QSYQ group (LAD ligation and treated with QSYQ), and sham-operated group. After 4 weeks, rats were sacrificed for cardiac injury measurements. Rats with HF showed obvious histological changes including necrosis and inflammation foci, elevated ventricular remodeling markers levels(matrix metallo proteinases-2, MMP-2), deregulated ejection fraction (EF) value, increased formation of oxidative stress (Malondialdehyde, MDA), and upregulated levels of apoptotic cells (caspase-3,p53 and tunnel) in my ocardial tissue. Treatment of QSYQ improved cardiac remodeling through counter-acting those events. The improvement of QSYQ was accompanied with a restoration of NADPH oxidase 4 (NOX4) and NADPH oxidase 2 (NOX2) pathways in different patterns. Administration of QSYQ could attenuate LAD-induced HF, and AngII-NOX2-ROS-MMPs pathway seemed to be the critical potential targets for QSYQ to reduce the remodeling. Moreover, NOX4 was another key targets to inhibit the p53 and Caspase 3, thus to reduce the hypertrophy and apoptosis, and eventually provide a synergetic cardiac protective effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]