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Yuan Cheng,1,* Qingqing Wang,2,* Guihong Niu,1 Chun Luo3 1Medical School, Fuyang Normal University, Fuyang, Anhui, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Neurology, The Affiliated Fuyang People’s Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Fuyang, Anhui, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Pediatric Surgery, Fuyang Women and Children’s Hospital, Fuyang, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Guihong Niu, Medical School, Fuyang Normal University, Fuyang, Anhui, 236300, People’s Republic of China, Email mostudy@163.com Chun Luo, Department of Pediatric Surgery, Fuyang Women and Children’s Hospital, Fuyang, Anhui, 236300, People’s Republic of China, Email luochun0406@163.comBackground: Atherosclerotic dyslipidemia (AD) is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular diseases and stroke events, but the effect of AD among acute ischemic stroke (AIS) patients undergoing intravenous thrombolysis is unclear. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between AD and long-term stroke recurrence in AIS patients undergoing intravenous thrombolysis.Methods: This prospective cohort study included 499 AIS patients treated with intravenous thrombolysis. Stroke subtype was classified according to the Trial of ORG 10172 in Acute Stroke Treatment (TOAST) criteria, patients’ clinical characteristics, and results from multiple diagnostic tests. The primary endpoint event was ischemic stroke recurrence; the time to first AIS recurrence was estimated using Kaplan‒Meier analysis and compared using the two-sided Log rank test. Cox univariate and multivariate regression analyses were used to assess the association between AD and long-term stroke recurrence.Results: Of the 499 patients with AIS treated with rt-PA intravenous thrombolysis, 80 (16.0%) had AD, and 60 (12.0%) had a stroke recurrence event. Kaplan‒Meier analysis showed that the stroke recurrence rate was significantly higher in patients with AD than in those without AD (p = 0.035, log rank test) and in the large-artery disease (LAD) subtype (p = 0.006, log rank test). Multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that AD (HR = 2.363, 95% CI: 1.294– 4.314, P = 0.005) and atrial fibrillation (HR = 2.325, 95% CI: 1.007– 5.366, P = 0.048) were associated with an increased risk of long-term stroke recurrence in AIS patients who underwent intravenous thrombolysis. Furthermore, AD was associated with an increased risk of stroke recurrence in patients undergoing intravenous thrombolysis in the LAD subtype (HR = 3.122, 95% CI: 1.304– 7.437, P = 0.011).Conclusion: We found that AD increases the risk of long-term stroke recurrence in AIS patients undergoing intravenous thrombolysis. This association may be stronger in the LAD subtype.Keywords: atherosclerotic dyslipidemia, ischemic stroke, stroke recurrence, thrombolysis

Chao Li,1 Zhenchun Shi,2 Jiacui Ji,2 Gengyun Niu,1 Zengxun Liu2 1Department of Psychiatry, Jining Medical University, Jining, 272067, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Psychiatry, Shandong Mental Health Center, Jinan, 250014, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Zengxun LiuDepartment of Psychiatry, Shandong Mental Health Center, No. 49 Wenhua Eastern Road, Jinan, 250014, People’s Republic of ChinaTel +86-13583135343Email zengxunliu@126.comPurpose: Agitation is prevalent among inpatients with schizophrenia. The aim of this study was to investigate whether biochemical parameters are associated with agitation in schizophrenia.Patients and Methods: Agitation was evaluated by the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale-Excited Component questionnaire (PANSS-EC). Fasting serum levels of C-reactive protein (CRP), free triiodothyronine (FT3), free thyroxine (FT4), thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), uric acid (UA), creatinine, glucose and lipids were measured.Results: The analysis included 154 inpatients with schizophrenia (71 with agitation, 83 without agitation) and 75 healthy control subjects. Patients with schizophrenia and agitation had higher serum levels of CRP, FT3, FT4 and UA as well as lower levels of serum TSH and creatinine than patients without agitation (all P < 0.05). Multivariate logistic regression analysis indicated that serum CRP (odds ratio [OR] = 1.470, P = 0.001), FT3 (OR = 13.026, P < 0.001), TSH (OR = 0.758, P = 0.033) and creatinine (OR = 0.965, P = 0.004) were significantly associated with agitation in schizophrenia. CRP, FT3, TSH and creatinine achieved an area under the ROC curve of 0.626, 0.728, 0.620 and 0.663 respectively in discriminating schizophrenia with or without agitation.Conclusion: Increased serum CRP and FT3 levels and decreased serum TSH and creatinine levels are independent risk factors for agitation in hospitalized patients with schizophrenia. Inflammation, thyroid hormones and renal function may be involved in the pathogenesis of agitation in schizophrenia.Keywords: schizophrenia, psychomotor agitation, C-reactive protein, triiodothyronine, thyroid-stimulating hormone, creatinine

Yan-Li Du,1 Chun-Hua Ma,1 Yu-Feng Liao,1 Lu Wang,2 Ya Zhang,1 Geng Niu3 1School of Medical Technology and Nursing, Shenzhen Polytechnic, Shenzhen, 518055, Guangdong, People’s Republic of China; 2Delivery Center, Shenzhen Maternity & Child Healthcare Hospital, Shenzhen, 518028, Guangdong, People’s Republic of China; 3Shenzhen Elderly Healthcare College, Shenzhen Polytechnic, Shenzhen, Guangdong, 518055, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Geng NiuShenzhen Elderly Healthcare College, Shenzhen Polytechnic, Shenzhen, 518055, Guangdong, People’s Republic of ChinaTel +86 755 86379018Fax +86 755 26731867Email niugeng_dr@163.comObjective: To evaluate the effectiveness of a clinical scenario simulation method among nursing students for assessing the risk of patients developing pressure ulcers compared with the traditional didactic method.Methods: This experimental study was a controlled trial with single-blind assessments. Nursing students (n = 47) were randomly assigned to either a control or an experimental group. The control group (n = 21) was instructed using traditional didactic methods that only delivered knowledge of pressure ulcers, while the experimental group (n = 26) received a clinical scenario simulation-based method for cultivating the competence to assess the risk of pressure ulcers. Participants underwent pre- and post-intervention based on the objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) comprising objective performance criteria. Data were analyzed using a t-test in the SPSS Statistics software program at a significance level of 0.05.Results: No significant differences were observed regarding age or the mean scores of the OSCE in pre-intervention between the two groups. Following the intervention, the mean score of the experimental group’s performance was higher (29.04 ± 6.00) compared with the control group (12.38 ± 4.15) (P = 0.000). There were statistical differences between the two groups. Nursing students in the clinical scenario simulation group performed significantly better in recognizing and assessing the risk of pressure ulcers.Conclusion: This study demonstrates that a clinical scenario simulation approach is more effective than employing the traditional didactic method for cultivating students’ assessment ability regarding pressure ulcers. This student-centered, clinical scenario simulation method can help to effectively develop students’ competency in recognizing and assessing the risk of pressure ulcers, thereby providing a solid foundation for their clinical practice towards enhanced patient safety.Keywords: pressure ulcer, clinical scenario simulation, didactic method, patient safety, competence, systematic assessment

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to assess the effects of plasma grafting modification on the micro-push-out adhesive strength and mechanical properties of fiber posts and to assess the stability of these treatment effects. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Glass-fiber posts were divided into four groups based on the treatment methods used, as follows: (1) Group NT: no treatment; (2) Group PT: Helium (He) plasma treatment; (3) Group PIG: He-plasma-induced post-irradiation grafting; and (4) Group SIG: He-plasma-induced syn-irradiation grafting. The treated fiber posts were bonded using self-adhesive resin cement exposure to air for 0, 1, 6 or 12 hours separately after surface treatment. Micro-push-out adhesive strength, flexural modulus, and flexural strength were measured. RESULTS: Plasma treatment, post-irradiation grafting, and syn-irradiation grafting improved adhesive strength at the 0-hours level. However, the improved adhesive strength disappeared in group PT after exposure for one or more hours. In group PIG, the adhesive strength after 1-hour exposure was 20.5% lower than that of 0-hour exposure (adhesive immediately after treatment), and no statistically significant differences in adhesive strength were observed between the 1, 6, and 12-hour exposure. In group SIG, no statistically significant differences in adhesive strength were observed among the 0, 1, and 6-hour exposure. Although the adhesive strength was 23% lower at the 12-hour exposure than that of 0-hour exposure in group SIG, the adhesive strength of fiber posts received syn-irradiation grafting still presented the best adhesive strength compared with the other treatment methods. The three-point flexural modulus and strength remained unaffected by the treatment methods used. CONCLUSIONS: Plasma-induced syn-irradiation grafting provided the ideal improvement and stability in adhesive strength in fiber posts. In addition, plasma-induced grafting modification successfully overcame the surface aging effect caused by plasma treatment alone without affecting the bulk mechanical properties of fiber posts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report on the fabrication and electrical characterization of bottom gate thin-film transistors (TFTs) based on a sol-gel derived ZnO channel layer. The effect of annealing of ZnO active channel layers on the electrical characteristics of the ZnO TFTs was systematically investigated. Photoluminescence (PL) spectra indicate that the crystal quality of the ZnO improves with increasing annealing temperature. Both the device turn-on voltage (Von) and threshold voltage (VT) shift to a positive voltage with increasing annealing temperature. As the annealing temperature is increased, both the subthreshold slope and the interfacial defect density (Dit) decrease. The field effect mobility (μFET) increases with annealing temperature, peaking at 800 °C and decreases upon further temperature increase. An improvement in transfer and output characteristics was observed with increasing annealing temperature. However, when the annealing temperature reaches 900 °C, the TFTs demonstrate a large degradation in both transfer and output characteristics, which is possibly produced by non-continuous coverage of the film. By using the temperature-dependent field effect measurements, the localized sub-gap density of states (DOSs) for ZnO TFTs with different annealing temperatures were determined. The DOSs for the subthreshold regime decrease with increasing annealing temperature from 600 °C to 800 °C and no substantial change was observed with further temperature increase to 900 °C. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]