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Background: Lead-related or valve-related endocarditis can complicate cardiovascular implantable electronic device (CIED) infection in patients with both CIED and prosthetic valves. The objective of this study was to determine the outcomes of transvenous lead extraction for CIED infection in patients with prosthetic valves.Methods and Results: We retrospectively screened 794 transvenous lead extraction procedures, between September 1, 2001 and August 31, 2012, at Mayo Clinic to identify patients with prosthetic valves who underwent lead extraction for infection. Demographic, clinical, and follow-up characteristics were analyzed. In total, 51 patients (6%) met the study inclusion criteria, of whom 20 had pocket infection and 31 had lead-related or valve-related, or both, endocarditis or bloodstream infection (mean age, 67 [18] years). Staphylococcal species were the most common pathogens, including Staphylococcus aureus in 20 cases (39%) and coagulase-negative staphylococci in 19 cases (37%). Overall, 127 transvenous leads (median lead age, 52 months) were extracted. Of these leads, 123 (97%) were removed completely. The in-hospital mortality rate was 9.8%; no deaths were attributable to the extraction procedure. Ninety-five percent of patients who survived had no evidence of recurrent device-related or valve-related infection.Conclusions: Transvenous lead extraction seems safe and curative in patients with CIED infection and prosthetic valves. Cure of infection can be achieved in the majority of patients with complete CIED removal and antimicrobial therapy and without valve surgery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The role ofHelicobacter pylori(H. pylori) infection on thrombocytopenia in chronic hepatitis B (CHB) related compensatory cirrhotic patients is unknown. We conducted an observational study to determine whetherH. pyloriplays a role in these patients. A total of 255 patients from three centers in China were enrolled in the study. All patients received nucleoside analogs (NA) therapy and were screened forH. pyloriinfection. Patients were divided into three groups based on theirH. pyloriinfection status and the therapy administered: patients withoutH. pyloriinfection who received NA therapy alone (N = 146); patients withH. pyloriinfection who received NA therapy alone (n = 48); and patients withH. pyloriinfection who receivedH. pylorieradication combined with NA therapy (N = 61). We observed that in CHB compensatory cirrhotic patients withH. pyloriinfection, the platelets count was significantly lower relative to uninfected patients (31 versus 60 × 109/L,p < 0.01). During a 2-year follow-up, the elevation in platelet count was significantly higher in HBV/H. pylorico-infected patients who received the NA andH. pylorieradication treatment compared to the other two groups (p < 0.01). It suggested thatH. pyloriinfection and eradication treatment combined with NA were independent risk factors associated with platelets response during treatment of thrombocytopenia in CHB compensatory cirrhosis (p < 0.01). In conclusion,H. pyloriinfection may associate with thrombocytopenia in CHB compensatory cirrhosis.H. pylorieradication combined with NA treatment may prove to be beneficial to CHB compensatory cirrhotic patients with thrombocytopenia who are infected withH. pylori. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

No effective treatment has been identified for patients of liver cirrhosis (LC) associated with hepatitis B virus (HBV) and severe thrombocytopenia. We aimed to explore the effectiveness and safety of low-dose prednisone or cyclosporine A (CsA) combined with nucleoside analog (NA) in patients with severe thrombocytopenia associated with HBV-related LC. We included 145 consecutive compensated HBV-associated LC patients with severe thrombocytopenia between 1 January 2006 and 31 December 2013. We divided the patients into three groups by treatment strategy, including NA only (n = 57), NA plus prednisone (n = 46), and NA plus CsA (n = 42). We analyzed the platelet counts, bleeding events, liver function, replication of HBV, and outcomes in each group. At all time points during this observation, the platelet counts in prednisone or CsA group were higher than those in the NA only group. There are significant differences in the cumulative rates of bleeding events among the three groups. The platelet counts and treatment were factors associated with bleeding events in multivariate analysis. The differences in HBV-DNA negative rates, HBV-DNA elevated rates, normal serum alanine transaminase rates, serum alanine transaminase elevated more than two times the baseline rates, and HBeAg seropositive conversion ratio among the groups did not reach statistical significance. The adverse events in our study were, in general, mild and balanced among the three treatment groups. Treatment with low-dose prednisone or CsA plus NA could elevate the platelet counts and reduce the risk of bleeding events in HBV LC with severe thrombocytopenia. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The incidence of herpes zoster (HZ) in allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) recipients is significantly higher than that of the general public. Although routine antiviral prophylaxis is recommended, late-onset HZ has been highlighted, yet limited information is known about its clinical features and predictors. Here, we conducted a retrospective nested case-control study to identify patients with late-onset HZ, defined as a diagnosis of HZ after 1 year of transplantation, among allo-HSCT recipients between 2012 and 2017 at Peking University People's Hospital. Three controls were matched for each patient. A total of 201 patients developed late-onset HZ. Age over 20 years, absence of neutrophil engraftment by 14 days, mental disorders, immunosuppressant use at 1 year, and a peripheral CD4+/CD8+ ratio ≥0.5 at 1 year were independent risk factors, among which the CD4+/CD8+ ratio demonstrated good discriminative power for predicting late-onset HZ. For patients with a CD4+/CD8+ ratio <0.5, patient age, neutrophil engraftment time, mental disorders, and immunosuppressant use were potential risk factors. A stratification algorithm was accordingly established, classifying the transplant recipients into three risk groups. Whether the algorithm could facilitate the administration of posttransplant antiviral prophylaxis merits further validation. • Late-onset herpes zoster is not rare after HSCT despite routine prophylaxis. • A higher CD4+/CD8+ ratio predicts the occurrence of late-onset HZ. • Age, NE engraftment, mental disorder, and immunosuppression are risk factors. • A risk stratification algorithm is suggested to facilitate long-term HZ prevention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Membranous nephropathy (MN) is a rare complication that can occur after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT). MN patients may develop nephrotic syndrome or even kidney failure, which greatly affects their quality of life and prognosis. However, current knowledge regarding MN after allo-HSCT is limited. Thus, a multicenter nested case‒control study was conducted. Patients who had been diagnosed with MN after allo-HSCT were retrospectively identified at 8 HSCT centers. A total of 51 patients with MN after allo-HSCT were included. The median age of MN patients after allo-HSCT was 38 years, and the median duration from HSCT to MN was 18 months. The use of HLA-matched donors (P = 0.0102) and peripheral blood as the graft source (P = 0.0060) were identified as independent predisposing risk factors for the onset of MN after allo-HSCT. Compared to those in the control group, the incidence of extensive chronic graft-versus-host disease was greater in the MN patients (P = 0.0002). A total of 31 patients developed nephrotic syndrome. Patients receiving combination treatments of corticosteroids and immunosuppressants appeared to have better outcomes. In conclusion, MN is a rare but occasionally severe complication following HSCT and may require active treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: The objective of this study was to identify independent prognostic factors of viral encephalitis (VE) after allogeneic haematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo‐HSCT) and establish a prognostic model to identify post‐transplant VE patients with a greater likelihood of mortality. Among 5380 patients in our centre from 2014 to 2022, 211 patients who developed VE after allo‐HSCT were reviewed in this retrospective study. Prognostic factors were selected, and a prognostic model was constructed using Cox regression analysis. The model was subsequently validated and estimated using the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC), a calibration plot and decision curve analysis (DCA). Glasgow Coma Scale score <9, lesions >3 lobes on magnetic resonance imaging and severe thrombocytopenia were identified as independent prognostic risk factors for VE patients who underwent allo‐HSCT. The prognostic model GTM (GTM is an abbreviation for a model composed of three risk factors: GCS score <9, severe thrombocytopenia [platelet count <20 000 per microliter], and lesions >3 lobes on MRI) was established according to the regression coefficients. The validated internal AUC was 0.862 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.773–0.950), and the external AUC was 0.815 (95% CI, 0.708–0.922), indicating strong discriminatory ability. Furthermore, we constructed calibration plots that demonstrated good consistency between the predicted outcomes and the observed outcomes. DCA exhibited high accuracy in this system, leading to potential benefits for patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent findings have shown that the level of interleukin‐35 (IL‐35) is abnormal in several autoimmune diseases. Nonetheless, whether IL‐35 participates in the pathogenesis of immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) remains unclear. The current study investigates whether IL‐35 modulates megakaryopoiesis. The results show that IL‐35 receptors are progressively expressed on bone marrow megakaryocytes during the in vitro differentiation of CD34+ progenitors. IL‐35 increases the number of megakaryocyte colony‐forming units through the Akt pathway. The level of bone marrow IL‐35 is reduced in ITP patients, and the decreased level of IL‐35 may inhibit megakaryopoiesis. Then, the potential causes of decreased IL‐35 in ITP patients are explored. The primary type of cell that secretes IL‐35, known as IL‐35‐producing regulatory T cells (iTr35), is reduced in ITP patients. Bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) from ITP patients exhibit an impaired capability of inducing iTr35 due to enhanced apoptosis, which may contribute to the reduced level of bone marrow IL‐35 in ITP patients. Iguratimod promotes megakaryocyte development and differentiation by elevating the expression of IL‐35 receptors on megakaryocytes. Iguratimod improves response rates and reduces bleeding symptoms in corticosteroid‐resistant ITP patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We performed a nested case-control study to investigate the incidence, treatment, and prognosis of central nervous system (CNS) relapse after allogenic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) for acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and compared the outcomes of patients with CNS relapse following haploidentical donor (HID) HSCT versus identical sibling donor (ISD) HSCT. A total of 37 patients (HID-HSCT, 24; ISD-HSCT, 13) developed CNS relapse after transplantation between January 2009 and January 2019, with an incidence of 1.81%. The median time from transplantation to CNS relapse was 239 days. Pre-HSCT CNS involvement (HR 6.940, 95% CI 3.146–15.306, p <.001) was an independent risk factor for CNS relapse after allo-HSCT for AML. The 3-year overall survival (OS) for patients with CNS relapse was 60.3 ± 8.8%, which was significantly lower than that in the controls (81.5 ± 4.5%, p =.003). The incidence of CNS relapse was 1.64% for patients who received HID-HSCT and 2.55% for those who received ISD-HSCT (p =.193). There was no significant difference in OS between the HID-HSCT and ISD-HSCT subgroups among the patients with CNS relapse. In conclusion, CNS relapse is a rare but serious complication after allo-HSCT for AML, and the incidence and outcomes of patients with CNS relapse are comparable following HID-HSCT and ISD-HSCT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The frequency of active tuberculosis (TB) following allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) was 0.5%. • TB infection history was an independent risk factor for active TB after allo-HSCT. • The prognosis was similar between patients with or without post-transplant active TB. • This study includes the largest cohort of recipients with active TB after allo-HSCT. • The impact of the anti-TB regimen for prophylaxis and treatment is described. We aimed to investigate the frequency, risk factors, and outcome of active tuberculosis (TB) after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT). This retrospective, nested, case-control study reviewed data from 6236 patients who received allo-HSCT from January 2008 to December 2018 at a single center; thirty-three patients (0.5%) with active TB and 99 controls without active TB after allo-HSCT were identified. We performed propensity score matching by randomly selecting 3 controls for each identified active TB patient according to the time of transplantation and follow-up period. History of pretransplant active TB previously treated and inactive at time of transplantation (P <.001) was an independent risk factor. No significant differences in overall survival (P =.342), nonrelapse mortality (P =.497), or incidence of relapse (P =.807) were found. Thirty (90.9%) patients were treated with 4-drug (isoniazid, rifampicin/three rifapentine, pyrazinamide, and ethambutol) or 3-drug combination first-line therapy, with a response rate of 76.7%. Twenty-six (78.8%) patients were treated with first-line and second-line combined therapy, and the response rate was 76.9%. Five (15.2%) patients developed hepatotoxicity. In conclusion, history of pretransplant active TB previously treated and inactive at time of transplantation was an independent risk factor of active TB after allo-HSCT. No significant differences in prognosis between the TB and control groups were found. More studies are needed to help develop standardized therapeutic strategies for patients with post-transplant TB. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We report the incidence of acute pancreatitis (AP) after allo-HSCT. • We identify younger age, grades II to IV aGVHD, a history of DLI, and pre-existing gallstones as independent risk factors of post-transplant AP. • We describe the outcomes of patients with post-transplant AP. • We establish an exploratory risk score model to help risk stratification in such patients. Acute pancreatitis (AP) has been recognized as an uncommon yet potentially lethal complication after hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT). This retrospective, nested, case-control study reviewed data from 5284 consecutive patients who underwent allogeneic (allo)-HSCT between 2009 and 2018 at a single center, identifying 40 patients (0.76%) with AP after allo-HSCT. The diagnosis and severity of AP were established and classified according to existing criteria. Younger age (P =.008), grades II to IV acute graft-versus-host disease (P =.010), a history of donor lymphocyte infusion (P =.033), and pre-existing gallstones (P =.003) were independent risk factors of AP after allo-HSCT. Post-transplant AP had a trend to negatively influence overall survival (OS) and nonrelapse mortality (NRM) (P =.063) for allo-HSCT recipients, but no significant difference was found. Patients with moderately severe and severe AP had significantly lower OS (P =.002) and higher NRM (P =.000) than other patients. Based on these findings, a risk score model was also established to predict the occurrence of AP. Our risk score model performed well in terms of discrimination when applied to derivation samples. Patients were classified into a low-risk group (0 to 1 point), a medium-risk group (2 to 3 points), and a high-risk group (4 points or more). Significant difference was observed in AP incidence among the 3 groups. The predictive tool explored by our study might contribute to target high-risk patients and guide personalized AP prevention in allo-HSCT recipients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Bloodstream infection (BSI) is a common and serious complication after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). An investigation of the characteristics of pre-engraftment BSI after haploidentical HSCT compared with human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-identical sibling HSCT has not been conducted. Methods A single-center cohort representing 1847 consecutive patients undergoing haploidentical or HLA-identical sibling HSCT from 2013 to 2016 was selected. We investigated the characteristics of pre-engraftment BSI after haploidentical HSCT and its impact on patient outcome, and we compared it with HLA-identical sibling HSCT. Results After haploidentical HSCT, the cumulative incidence of pre-engraftment BSI was higher (30-day: 9.2% [7.6, 10.8] vs 1.7% [0.5, 2.9], P <.0001) and median onset of BSI was earlier (day +3 vs day +9, P =.001) than HLA-identical sibling HSCT. Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and coagulase-negative staphylococci were the most common isolates after haploidentical HSCT. However, Enterococcus faecium was the most common isolate after HLA-identical sibling HSCT. A multivariate analysis suggested that variables associated with BSI after haploidentical HSCT included a diagnosis of myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), an interval from diagnosis to HSCT ≥190 days, carbapenem therapy, and grade 3–4 intestinal mucositis. The same variables, except MDS, were also associated with BSI after HLA-identical sibling HSCT. The multivariate analysis also suggested that BSI was a risk factor for increased all-cause mortality at 3 months after haploidentical HSCT (hazard ratio = 2.281; 95% confidence interval: 1.334, 3.900; P =.003). Conclusions Pre-engraftment BSI was more common after haploidentical HSCT than HLA-identical sibling HSCT. It was an independent factor associated with increased all-cause mortality at 3 months after haploidentical HSCT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] Mesoporous silica nanospheres (MSNs) were functionalized by CaTiO3:Pr3+ by sol–gel method. [•] CaTiO3:Pr3+@MSNs nanospheres synthesized at 700°C possess both mesoporous and long-lasting phosphorescence properties. [•] CaTiO3:Pr3+@MSNs nanospheres can be observed in vivo. [•] CaTiO3:Pr3+@MSNs nanospheres can be used as sustained drug delivery system. [•] The drug release process can be monitored by detecting the phosphorescence intensity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Patients with steroid-resistant or relapsed immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) suffer increased bleeding risk and impaired quality of life. Baricitinib, an oral Janus-associated kinases (JAK) inhibitor, could alleviate both innate and adaptive immune disorders without inducing thrombocytopenia in several autoimmune diseases. Accordingly, an open-label, single-arm, phase 2 trial (NCT05446831) was initiated to explore the safety and efficacy of baricitinib in ITP. Eligible patients were adults with primary ITP who were refractory to corticosteroids and at least one subsequent treatment, and had platelet counts below 30 × 10 9 /L at enrolment. Participants received baricitinib 4 mg daily for 6 months. The primary endpoint was durable response at the 6-month follow-up. A total of 35 patients were enrolled. Durable response was achieved in 20 patients (57.1%, 95% confidence interval, 39.9 to 74.4), and initial response in 23 (65.7%) patients. For patients responding to baricitinib, the median time to response was 12 (IQR 6-20) days, and the median peak platelet count was 94 (IQR 72-128) × 10 9 /L. Among the 27 patients undergoing extend observation, 12 (44.4%) remained responsive for a median duration of approximately 20 weeks after baricitinib discontinuation. Adverse events were reported in 11 (31.4%) patients, including infections in 6 (17.1%) patients during the treatment period. Treatment discontinuation due to an adverse event was reported in 2 (5.7%) patients. Evidence from this pilot study suggested that baricitinib might be a novel candidate for the armamentarium of ITP-modifying agents. Future studies are warranted to validate the safety, efficacy, and optimal dosing of baricitinib in patients with ITP., (© 2024 Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

To investigate the role of co-stimulatory and co-inhibitory molecules on immune tolerance in immune thrombocytopenia (ITP), this study mapped the immune cell heterogeneity in the bone marrow of ITP at the single-cell level using Cytometry by Time of Flight (CyTOF). Thirty-six patients with ITP and nine healthy volunteers were enrolled in the study. As soluble immunomodulatory molecules, more sCD25 and sGalectin-9 were detected in ITP patients. On the cell surface, co-stimulatory molecules like ICOS and HVEM were observed to be upregulated in mainly central memory and effector T cells. In contrast, co-inhibitory molecules such as CTLA-4 were significantly reduced in Th1 and Th17 cell subsets. Taking a platelet count of 30×10 9 L -1 as the cutoff value, ITP patients with high and low platelet counts showed different T cell immune profiles. Antigen-presenting cells such as monocytes and B cells may regulate the activation of T cells through CTLA-4/CD86 and HVEM/BTLA interactions, respectively, and participate in the pathogenesis of ITP. In conclusion, the proteomic and soluble molecular profiles brought insight into the interaction and modulation of immune cells in the bone marrow of ITP. They may offer novel targets to develop personalized immunotherapies., (© 2024. Science China Press.)