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Objective: To compare the efficacy and safety of combining diosmin with Jiuhua hemorrhoid suppository versus diosmin alone for the treatment of hemorrhoid hemorrhage. Method: The Jiuhua hemorrhoid suppository study was conducted in 10 medical centers across China from April 1, 2019 to June 30, 2020. Patients with hemorrhoid bleeding were randomized in a ratio of 1 : 1 to either receive Jiuhua hemorrhoid suppository and diosmin tablets (the study group) or diosmin tablets alone (the control group). The suppository was used once a day after defecation or at bedtime after rinsing the anus with warm water. Diosmin tablets were administered only once a day (0.9 g). The primary endpoint of the study was the assessment of hemorrhoid bleeding relief 7 ± 2 days after treatment, classified as “very effective” “effective” and “ineffective”. The secondary endpoint included the evaluation of pain alleviation using the visual analogue scale (VAS, with scores ranging from 0 to 10) and edema (with scores ranging from 0 to 3). The safety of the two treatment regimens was evaluated 14 ± 2 days after drug administration. Results: The full analysis set (FAS) comprised 107 participants in the study group and 111 in the control group, while the per-protocol set (PPS) included 106 participants in the study group and 111 in the control group. In terms of hemorrhoid bleeding, the proportion of very effective and effective cases in the study group were significantly higher than that in the control group [106 (99.06 %) vs. 91 (81.98 %), P < 0.0001] in the FAS, and the PPS results [105 (99.06 %) vs. 91 (81.98 %), P < 0.0001] were comparable to the FAS results. The pain VAS scores at day 7 after treatment were comparable between the two groups (0.80 ± 1.17 vs. 0.80 ± 1.20, P = 0.2177). The majority of the participants in both groups had an edema score of 0 at day 7 after treatment [96 (89.72 %) vs. 99 (91.67 %), P = 0.3705]. Adverse events (AEs) occurred in 9 patients (8.4 %) in the study group and 3 patients (2.7 %) in the control group. In addition, 5 AEs in the study group and 1 AE in the control group were possibly in association with the study drug. Conclusion: Compared with the administration of diosmin oral tablets alone, the addition of Jiuhua hemorrhoid suppository to the tablets demonstrates enhanced efficacy in addressing hemorrhoid bleeding, with satisfactory patient adherence and acceptable safety.

Glass fiber-reinforced polypropylene composites (GF/PP) were fabricated in this study by direct fiber feeding injection molding technology (DFFIM) equipped with specially designed plasticizing units. By analyzing the fiber length distribution, scanning electron microscopy micrographs, and the mechanical properties of GF/PP composites, the effect of three process parameters, namely the number of fiber bundles, screw rotational speed, and injection pressure, on the properties of GF/PP composites fabricated by DFFIM were investigated. The results show that the mechanical properties of GF/PP composites gradually increase as the fiber content increases and the screw rotational speed decreases; however, when the fiber content exceeds a certain range, the enhancement effect of mechanical property is reduced due to the increase of fiber breakage and fiber aggregation. Appropriately increasing the injection pressure can increase the fiber length and make the fiber and PP more tightly bonded, and the mechanical properties of GF/PP composites gradually improve, but the fiber breakage phenomenon is more severe under excessive injection pressure, the mechanical property enhancement effect is reduced or even the mechanical property is decreased due to the decrease of the fiber length. KEYWORDS fiber length, fiber-reinforced, GF/PP composites, injection molding, mechanical properties, 1 | INTRODUCTION Fiber-reinforced thermoplastics (FRTP) are made from thermoplastic resin as the matrix and various fibers as the reinforcing material with the advantages of high strength, low density, corrosion [...]

1,7‐Bis(4‐hydroxyphenyl)‐1,4‐heptadien‐3‐one (EB30) is a diarylheptanoid‐like compound isolated from Viscum coloratum. This curcumin analog exhibits significant cytotoxic activity against HeLa, SGC‐7901, and MCF‐7 cells. However, little is known about the anticancer effects and mechanisms of EB30 in human lung cancer. The current study reports that EB30 significantly reduced the cell viability of A549 and NCI‐H292 human lung cancer cells. Further examination revealed that EB30 not only induced cell cycle arrest and promoted the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) but also induced cell apoptosis through the intrinsic and extrinsic signaling pathways. Furthermore, EB30 upregulated the expression levels of p‐ERK1/2 and p‐P90RSK, whereas downregulating the phosphorylation of Akt and P70RSK. Cell viability was further inhibited by the combination of EB30 with LY294002 (a specific PI3K inhibitor) or U0126 (a MEK inhibitor). The current study indicates that EB30 is a potential anticancer agent that induces cell apoptosis via suppression of the PI3K/Akt pathway and activation of the ERK1/2 pathway. The results of this study indicated that EB30 could decrease cell viability, induce apoptosis, and cell cycle arrest. The induction of apoptosis was found to be mediated through the mitochondrial intrinsic pathway and extrinsic pathway. The apoptotic effects of EB30 were mediated by suppressing the PI3K/Akt pathway, whereas activating the ERK1/2 signaling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: With further understanding and research into non-small cell lung cancer with tumours ≤2 cm in maximum diameter, segmental lung resection is able to achieve the same long-term prognosis as lobectomy. However, there are few studies on the prognostic effect of wedge resection on small volume invasive lung adenocarcinoma with an invasion depth of 0.5 to 1.0 cm. Therefore, this study focuses on the clinical efficacy and prognosis of wedge resection in patients with small-volume invasive lung adenocarcinoma., Methods: A retrospective analysis of the medical records of 208 patients who underwent surgery in the Department of Thoracic Surgery of the Affiliated Provincial Hospital of Anhui Medical University from February 2016 to December 2017 was made, and the postoperative pathological results confirmed small volume invasive lung adenocarcinoma. According to their surgical methods, they were divided into lobectomy group (n=115), segmentectomy group (n=48) and wedge resection group (n=45). Kaplan-Meier survival curve estimation and Cox proportional risk regression model were used to explore the influence of different surgical methods on the prognosis of patients with small volume invasive lung adenocarcinoma., Results: The wedge resection group had better perioperative outcomes compared with the segmentectomy group and lobectomy group, with statistically significant differences in intraoperative bleeding (P=0.036), postoperative drainage (P<0.001), operative time (P=0.018), postoperative time with tubes (P=0.001), and postoperative complication rate (P=0.006). There were no significant differences when comparing the three groups in terms of survival rate (lobectomy group vs segmentectomy group, P=0.303; lobectomy group vs wedge resection group, P=0.742; and segmentectomy group vs wedge resection group, P=0.278) and recurrence-free survival rate (lobectomy group vs segmentectomy group, P=0.495; lobectomy group vs wedge resection group, P=0.362; segmentectomy group vs wedge resection group, P=0.775). Univariate and multivariate survival analyses showed that consolidation tumor ratio (CTR) was the prognostic factor of overall survival and revurrence-free survival for patients with small-volume invasive lung adenocarcinoma (P<0.05)., Conclusions: Wedge resection in patients with small volume invasive lung adenocarcinoma can achieve long-term outcomes similar to segmentectomy and lobectomy. When the CTR≤0.5, wedge resection is preferred in such patients.

Background: In 2015, the World Health Organization (WHO) included spread through air space (STAS) as a new invasive mode of lung cancer. As a new mode of lung cancer dissemination, STAS has a significant and negative impact on patient prognosis. The surgical approach as well as lymph node dissection (LND) for STAS-positive patients is currently unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of different surgical approaches to STAS and LND on the prognosis of patients with ≤2 cm stage IA lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD). This study also investigated the possible relationship between STAS and the micropapillary histological subtype and its impact on patient prognosis., Methods: A total of 212 patients with LUAD were included in this study from January 2016 to December 2017, and the overall survival (OS) of the patients was compared. The chi-square test and t -test were applied to compare the clinicopathological data of the patients, and the Cox model was used for the multivariate survival analysis., Results: Of the 212 patients, 93 (43.9%) were STAS positive. The univariate analysis showed that the surgical approach, LND type, micropapillary pattern (MP), solid pattern, and STAS were risk factors for OS. The multivariate analysis showed that the surgical approach, MP, and STAS were risk factors for OS. The STAS-positive patients who underwent lobectomy had a better prognosis than those who underwent sublobar resection; however, there was no significant difference between the two surgical procedures in the STAS-negative group. Additionally, the STAS-positive patients who underwent systematic lymph node dissection (SLND) had a better prognosis than those who underwent limited lymph node dissection (LLND); however, there was no significant difference between the two LNDs in the STAS-negative group., Conclusions: STAS plays an important role in patient prognosis and is an independent risk factor for OS of patients with ≤2 cm stage IA LUAD. When STAS is positive, the choice of lobectomy with SLND may result in a better long-term prognosis for patients., Competing Interests: Conflicts of Interest: All authors have completed the ICMJE uniform disclosure form (available at https://jtd.amegroups.com/article/view/10.21037/jtd-24-444/coif). The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare., (2024 Journal of Thoracic Disease. All rights reserved.)

Background: Cough is one of the main complications after pulmonary surgery, which seriously affects the postoperative quality of life. Preserving the pulmonary branch of vagus nerve may reduce the incidence of postoperative cough. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate whether preserving the pulmonary branch of the vagus nerve could reduce the incidence of postoperative chronic cough in patients with stage I peripheral lung adenocarcinoma., Methods: A total of 125 patients who underwent single-port thoracoscopic radical resection for lung cancer in the Department of Thoracic Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of University of Science and Technology of China from June 2022 to June 2023 were retrospectively selected, and divided into two groups according to whether the vagopulmonary branch was preserved during the operation, namely, the vagopulmonary branch group (n=61) and the traditional group (n=64). The general clinical data, perioperative conditions, lymph node dissection, Mandarin Chinese version of The Leicester Cough Questionnaire (LCQ-MC) scores before and 8 weeks after operation were recorded in the two groups. Both the two groups were divided into tamponade group and non-tamponade group according to whether autologous fat or gelatin sponge was tamponade after lymph node dissection. LCQ-MC scores and postoperative chronic cough of both groups were calculated., Results: The LCQ-MC score of the traditional group was significantly lower than that of the vagopulmonary branch group in physiological, psychological, social and total scores at 8 weeks after surgery, and the difference was statistically significant (P<0.05). There were more cough patients in the traditional group than the vagopulmonary branch group at 8 weeks after surgery, with significant difference (P=0.006). Subgroup analysis was conducted separately for the vagopulmonary branch group and the traditional group. Among the patients in the vagopulmonary branch group and the traditional group, the LCQ-MC scores of the non-tamponade group 8 weeks after surgery were lower than those of the tamponade group (P<0.05). There were more patients with cough in the group 8 weeks after surgery than in the tamponade group (P=0.001, P=0.024)., Conclusions: For patients with stage I peripheral lung adenocarcinoma, the preservation of the pulmonary branch of vagus nerve is safe and effective, which can reduce the incidence of postoperative chronic cough and improve the postoperative quality of life of the patients.

Background: Chronic cough after pulmonary resection is one of the most common complications, which seriously affects the quality of life of patients after surgery. Therefore, the aim of this study is to explore the risk factors of chronic cough after pulmonary resection and construct a prediction model., Methods: The clinical data and postoperative cough of 499 patients who underwent pneumonectomy or pulmonary resection in The First Affiliated Hospital of University of Science and Technology of China from January 2021 to June 2023 were retrospectively analyzed. The patients were randomly divided into training set (n=348) and validation set (n=151) according to the principle of 7:3 randomization. According to whether the patients in the training set had chronic cough after surgery, they were divided into cough group and non-cough group. The Mandarin Chinese version of Leicester cough questionnare (LCQ-MC) was used to assess the severity of cough and its impact on patients' quality of life before and after surgery. The visual analog scale (VAS) and the self-designed numerical rating scale (NRS) were used to evaluate the postoperative chronic cough. Univariate and multivariate Logistic regression analysis were used to analyze the independent risk factors and construct a model. Receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curve was used to evaluate the discrimination of the model, and calibration curve was used to evaluate the consistency of the model. The clinical application value of the model was evaluated by decision curve analysis (DCA)., Results: Multivariate Logistic analysis screened out that preoperative forced expiratory volume in the first second/forced vital capacity (FEV1/FVC), surgical procedure, upper mediastinal lymph node dissection, subcarinal lymph node dissection, and postoperative closed thoracic drainage time were independent risk factors for postoperative chronic cough. Based on the results of multivariate analysis, a Nomogram prediction model was constructed. The area under the ROC curve was 0.954 (95%CI: 0.930-0.978), and the cut-off value corresponding to the maximum Youden index was 0.171, with a sensitivity of 94.7% and a specificity of 86.6%. With a Bootstrap sample of 1000 times, the predicted risk of chronic cough after pulmonary resection by the calibration curve was highly consistent with the actual risk. DCA showed that when the preprobability of the prediction model probability was between 0.1 and 0.9, patients showed a positive net benefit., Conclusions: Chronic cough after pulmonary resection seriously affects the quality of life of patients. The visual presentation form of the Nomogram is helpful to accurately predict chronic cough after pulmonary resection and provide support for clinical decision-making.

Background: Pre-operative accuracy of subcentimeter ground glass nodules (SGGNs) is a difficult problem in clinical practice, but there are few clinical studies on the benign and malignant prediction model of SGGNs. The aim of this study was to help identify benign and malignant lesions of SGGNs based on the imaging features of high resolution computed tomography (HRCT) and the general clinical data of patients, and to build a risk prediction model., Methods: This study retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of 483 patients with SGGNs who underwent surgical resection and were confirmed by histology from the First Affiliated Hospital of University of Science and Technology of China from August 2020 to December 2021. The patients were divided into the training set (n=338) and the validation set (n=145) according to 7:3 random assignment. According to the postoperative histology, they were divided into adenocarcinoma group and benign lesion group. The independent risk factors and models were analyzed by univariate analysis and multivariate Logistic regression. The receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curve was constructed to evaluate the model differentiation, and the calibration curve was used to evaluate the model consistency. The clinical application value of the decision curve analysis (DCA) evaluation model was drawn, and the validation set data was substituted for external verification., Results: Multivariate Logistic analysis screened out patients' age, vascular sign, lobular sign, nodule volume and mean-CT value as independent risk factors for SGGNs. Based on the results of multivariate analysis, Nomogram prediction model was constructed, and the area under ROC curve was 0.836 (95%CI: 0.794-0.879). The critical value corresponding to the maximum approximate entry index was 0.483. The sensitivity was 76.6%, and the specificity was 80.1%. The positive predictive value was 86.5%, and the negative predictive value was 68.7%. The benign and malignant risk of SGGNs predicted by the calibration curve was highly consistent with the actual occurrence risk after sampling 1,000 times using Bootstrap method. DCA showed that patients showed a positive net benefit when the predictive probability of the predicted model probability was 0.2 to 0.9., Conclusions: Based on preoperative medical history and preoperative HRCT examination indicators, the benign and malignant risk prediction model of SGGNs was established to have good predictive efficacy and clinical application value. The visualization of Nomogram can help to screen out high-risk groups of SGGNs, providing support for clinical decision-making.

A full-length cDNA, named MsNHX1, encoding a vacuolar Na+/H+ antiporter was cloned from alfalfa (Medicago sativa), using degenerate primers, followed by 3' and 5' RACE. The cDNA sequence was 2225 bp long and included an open reading frame encoding a deduced protein of 541-amino-acid polypeptide. The deduced amino acid sequence showed high similarity (more than 73%) to those of the previously cloned Na+/H+ antiporters form Arabidopsis thaliana, Qryza sativa, Atriplex gemlinin, Beta vulgaris and Hordeum vulgare. Southern hybridization showed that MsNHX1 has only one copy in alfalfa genome. Semiquantitative RT-PCR analysis indicated that the mRNA level of MsNHX1 was moderate without stress and markedly up-regulated after treatment by NaCl and ABA (abscisic acid). Those results suggest that the MsNHX1 product play an important role in salt tolerance of the alfalfa, and its transcript expression is possibly partially regulated through ABA-dependent signaling pathway.