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Objective To investigate the preoperative hope level of elderly patients with femoral neck fracture and analyze its influencing factors, so as to provide a practical basis for improving the preoperative hope level of elderly patients with femoral neck fracture and promoting postoperative rehabilitation. Methods A total of 206 cases of elderly patients with femoral neck fractures who were eligible for the surgical treatment were included as the research objects. The general information questionnaire, Herth Hope Index (HHI)Scale, General Self-Efficacy Scale(GSES) were analyzed. Results The total HHI score of 206 elderly patients with femoral neck fractures was (31.73+-9.68) points, and scores of each dimension were: positive attitude towards reality and the future (9.14+-1.10), taking positive actions (11.69+-5.36), maintaining close relationships with others (10.89+-3.22); Among them, 63 cases (30. 6%) were high hope levels, 131 cases (65. 6%) were medium hope levels, and 12 cases (3. 8%) were low hope levels. The results of multiple stepwise regression analysis showed that age, comorbidity index, economic status, housing status, and self-efficacy were significant predictors of the preoperative hope level of elderly patients with femoral neck fractures (p

Background Pneumocystis jirovecii (PJ) can colonize the lungs, and cause pulmonary infections. It is essential to distinguish between PJ colonization and infection in the lung to avoid clinical overtreatment and delayed treatment. Many studies have shown that both the mNGS technique and serum G test can be used to aid the diagnosis of PJ pneumonia, but it is still unclear whether they have the appropriate cut-off value to distinguish PJ colonization from PJ infection. Objective To investigate the values of mNGS of alveolar lavage fluid and serum G test in distinguishing between infection and colonization of PJ and to assess the correlation between them. Methods A retrospective study design was used. Forty inpatients with pulmonary infections were recruited from Hubei No.3 People's Hospital of Jianghan University from September 2018 to May 2022, and divided into PJ infection group (n=21) and colonization group (n=19), according to the prevalence of anti-PJ treatment based on mNGS results of alveolar lavage fluid. Clinical data were collected, including general information〔gender, age, BMI, smoking history, underlying diseases (chronic kidney disease, hematological diseases, autoimmune diseases, malignancy, HIV, solid organ transplantation, chronic lung disease, the use of glucocorticoid/immunosuppressive agents) 〕, clinical symptoms (fever, cough, phlegm, dyspnea, chest pain, hemoptysis), imaging features (ground-glass shadow, interstitial change, consolidation, nodule, pleural effusion, cyst), laboratory indicators (white blood cell count, neutrophil count, lymphocyte count, PCT, CRP, LDH, PaO2/FiO2, CD4+T lymphocytes). The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve of mNGS and serum G test was plotted and analyzed to assess their performance in distinguishing between PJ infection and colonization, and the correlation between the two was analyzed. Results The utilization rate of glucocorticoids or immunosuppressants in PJ infection group was higher than that of colonization group (P

Desertification greatly threatens the ecological environment and sustainable development over approximately 30% of global land. In this study, the contributions of climate drivers and human activity in shaping the desertification process from 1984 to 2014 were quantified in the desertification-prone region (DPR) in Northern China (NC) by employing net primary productivity (NPP) as a proxy. The results reveal that 72.74% of the DPR experienced desertification mitigation and 27.26% experienced exacerbation. Climate drivers acted as primary drivers, contributing to both the mitigation (47.2%) and exacerbation (48.5%) of desertification, while human activity also played a crucial role, with contributions of 39.6% to mitigation and 41.0% to exacerbation of desertification. Furthermore, a shift in desertification dynamics emerged around 2000, with climate drivers promoting the mitigation process (66.8%), and precipitation was a dominant climatic factor for the mitigation of desertification after 2000, which was related to internal atmospheric variability. This study highlights changes in the contributions of different factors to desertification, underscoring the need for policy adjustment to attain sustainable land management in NC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: Neuropathic pain remains a significant unmet medical challenge due to its elusive mechanisms. Recent clinical observations suggest that vitamin D (VitD) holds promise in pain relief, yet its precise mechanism of action is still unclear. This study explores the therapeutical role and potential mechanism of VitD3 in spared nerve injury (SNI)‐induced neuropathic pain rat model. Methods: The analgesic effects and underlying mechanisms of VitD3 were evaluated in SNI and naïve rat models. Mechanical allodynia was assessed using the Von Frey test. Western blotting, immunofluorescence, biochemical assay, and transmission electron microscope (TEM) were employed to investigate the molecular and cellular effects of VitD3. Results: Ferroptosis was observed in the spinal cord following SNI. Intrathecal administration of VitD3, the active form of VitD, activated the vitamin D receptor (VDR), suppressed ferroptosis, and alleviated mechanical nociceptive behaviors. VitD3 treatment preserved spinal GABAergic interneurons, and its neuroprotective effects were eliminated by the ferroptosis inducer RSL3. Additionally, VitD3 mitigated aberrant mitochondrial morphology and oxidative metabolism in the spinal cord. Mechanistically, VitD3 inhibited SNI‐induced activation of spinal PKCα/NOX4 signaling. Inhibition of PKCα/NOX4 signaling alleviated mechanical pain hypersensitivity, accompanied by reduced ferroptosis and mitochondrial dysfunction in SNI rats. Conversely, activation of PKCα/NOX4 signaling in naïve rats induced hyperalgesia, ferroptosis, loss of GABAergic interneurons, and mitochondrial dysfunction in the spinal cord, all of which were reversed by VitD3 treatment. Conclusions: Our findings provide evidence that VitD3 attenuates neuropathic pain by preserving spinal GABAergic interneurons through the suppression of mitochondria‐associated ferroptosis mediated by PKCα/NOX4 signaling, probably via VDR activation. VitD, alone or in combination with existing analgesics, presents an innovative therapeutic avenue for neuropathic pain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Machine learning methods have improved in recent years and provide increasingly powerful tools for understanding landscape evolution. In this study, we used the random forest method based on Google Earth Engine to evaluate the desertification dynamics in northern China from 1995 to 2020. We selected Landsat series image bands, remote sensing inversion data, climate baseline data, land use data, and soil type data as variables for majority voting in the random forest method. The method's average classification accuracy was 91.6% ± 5.8 [mean ± SD], and the average kappa coefficient was 0.68 ± 0.09, suggesting good classification results. The random forest classifier results were consistent with the results of visual interpretation for the spatial distribution of different levels of desertification. From 1995 to 2000, the area of aeolian desertification increased at an average rate of 9977 km2 yr−1, and from 2000 to 2005, from 2005 to 2010, from 2010 to 2015, and from 2015 to 2020, the aeolian desertification decreased at an average rate of 2535, 3462, 1487, and 4537 km2 yr−1, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Maxillary canine impaction has been extensively reported, but studies of mandibular canine impaction are relatively few. Clinical studies and reports of experience treating mandibular canine impaction are of clinical benefit to both orthodontists and dentists.