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Background: Epidemiological studies have shown that young women often suffer from primary dysmenorrhea (PD) which is a common cause that affects their routine work and quality of life. Chinese herbal medicine has been widely used for PD in China. A systematic review found that Xuefu Zhuyu (XFZY) has a promising effect on PD management, yet there is a dearth of high-quality evidence in support of this claim. We want to conduct a randomized controlled trial to evaluate the efficacy and safety of XFZY for PD patients.Methods: This is a protocol for a multicenter, randomized, placebo-controlled trial. A total of 248 participants with PD will be recruited at 6 centers and randomized into two groups-a herbal treatment group and a placebo group. The participants will receive either XFZY or placebo, three times per day, for 3 menstrual cycles, with a 12-week follow-up. The primary outcome will be the mean change in pain intensity as measured by VAS, while the change in menstrual pain duration, the change in peak pain intensity as measured by VAS, the Cox Menstrual Symptom Scale (CMSS), quality of life EQ-5D-5L, cumulative painkiller consumption, and health economics will be included as secondary outcomes. Adverse events will also be reported.Discussion: This protocol describes a multicenter, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial that investigates the efficacy and safety of XFZY for primary dysmenorrhea. Validated evaluation tools will assess dysmenorrhea severity. We believe that this research will provide important evidence regarding the use of XFZY to treat dysmenorrhea.Trial Registration: Chinese Clinical Trial Registry ChiCTR1900026819 . Registered on 23 October 2019. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Several studies have stated that TNF-α participates in the pathogenesis of scleritis, but also in several systemic autoimmune diseases and vasculitis, of which some are associated with scleritis. Earlier GWAS and SNP studies have confirmed that multiple SNPs of TNF related genes are associated with many immune-mediated disorders. The purpose of this study was to examine the association of TNF related gene polymorphisms with scleritis in Chinese Han. A case-control study was carried out in 556 non-infectious scleritis cases and 742 normal controls. A total of 28 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were genotyped by the iPLEXGold genotyping assay., Results: No significant correlations were seen between the individual SNPs in the TNF related genes and scleritis. Haplotype analysis showed a significantly decreased frequency of a TNFAIP3 TGT haplotype (order of SNPs: rs9494885, rs3799491, rs2230926) (Pc = 0.021, OR = 0.717, 95% CI = 0.563-0.913) and a significantly increased frequency of a TNFSF4 GT haplotype (order of SNPs: rs3850641, rs704840) (Pc = 0.004, OR = 1.691, 95% CI = 1.205-2.372) and TNFSF15 CCC haplotype (order of SNPs: rs6478106, rs3810936, rs7865494) (Pc = 0.012, OR = 1.662, 95% CI = 1.168-2.363) in patients with scleritis as compared with healthy volunteers., Conclusions: This study reveals that a TGT haplotype in TNFAIP3 may be a protective factor for the development of scleritis and that a GT haplotype in TNFSF4 and a CCC haplotype in TNFSF15 may be risk factors for scleritis in Chinese Han.