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ABSTRACT Aims/Introduction We investigated the utilization of healthcare resources in patients with type 2 diabetes treated with empagliflozin, a sodium‐glucose co‐transporter‐2 (SGLT2) inhibitor, versus dipeptidyl peptidase‐4 (DPP‐4) inhibitors in clinical practice in Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan. Materials and Methods We analyzed the Japanese Medical Data Vision database (December 2014–April 2018), the South Korean National Health Information Database, and the Taiwanese National Health Insurance claims database (both May 2016–December 2017). Patients with type 2 diabetes starting empagliflozin, 10 or 25 mg, or a DPP‐4 inhibitor were matched 1:1 via propensity scores (PS). We compared inpatient care needs, emergency room (ER) visits, and outpatient visits between the treatment groups using Poisson regression and Cox proportional hazards models, pooled across countries by random‐effects meta‐analysis. Results We identified 28,712 pairs of PS‐matched patients; the mean follow‐up was 5.7–6.8 months. Empagliflozin‐treated patients had a 27% lower risk of all‐cause hospitalization compared with DPP‐4 inhibitor–treated patients (rate ratio [RR] 0.73, 95% CI 0.67–0.79), and 23% reduced risk for first hospitalization (hazard ratio 0.77, 95% CI 0.73–0.81). The risk for an ER visit was 12% lower with empagliflozin than with DPP‐4 inhibitors (RR 0.88, 95% CI 0.83–0.94) while the risk for outpatient visit was 4% lower (RR 0.96, 95% CI 0.96–0.97). These findings were generally consistent across countries, regardless of baseline cardiovascular disease, and in the subgroup starting empagliflozin with the 10 mg dose. Conclusions Empagliflozin treatment was associated with lower inpatient care needs and other healthcare resource utilization than DPP‐4 inhibitors in routine clinical practice in East Asia in this study.

Objective To investigate the effect of automatic nucleic acid purifiers QIAsymphony SP and QIAcube in the DNA extraction of samples of trace amount or mixed with inhibitors. Methods Different kinds of purification methods using QIAsymphony SP and QIAcube were applied to extract swabs which contained 30, 100, 150 and 300 cells and other samples which contained six types of inhibitors- heme, humic acid, lard, soil, rust and grease. PCR amplification and STR typing were performed on the extracted DNA templates to compare extracting efficiency and inhibitor removal ability of four different purification methods. Results Different purification methods showed similar extraction effects, 70.83%-100.00% of loci could be detected by amplification of DNA extracted from samples with 30, 100 and 300 cells, and the six types of inhibitors could be removed well. Conclusion The two automatic nucleic acid purifiers have a good inhibitor removal effect. For swabs with only 30 cells, after DNA extraction and amplification, the locus detection rate of samples can still be high, which can meet the requirements of local DNA laboratory work, and realize the standardization construction of the laboratory.

Abstract Aim To evaluate the effectiveness of empagliflozin in clinical practice in East Asia in the Empagliflozin Comparative Effectiveness and Safety (EMPRISE) East Asia study. Materials and methods Data were obtained from the Medical Data Vision database (Japan), National Health Insurance Service database (South Korea) and National Health Insurance database (Taiwan). Patients aged ≥ 18 years with type 2 diabetes initiating empagliflozin or a dipeptidyl peptidase‐4 (DPP‐4) inhibitor were 1:1 propensity score (PS) matched into sequentially built cohorts of new users naïve to both drug classes. This design reduces confounding due to switching treatments, time lag and immortal time biases. Outcomes included hospitalization for heart failure (HHF), end‐stage renal disease (ESRD) and all‐cause mortality. Hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% CIs were estimated using Cox proportional models, controlling for > 130 baseline characteristics in each data source and pooled by random‐effects meta‐analysis. Results Overall, 28 712 pairs of PS‐matched patients were identified with mean follow‐up of 5.7‐6.8 months. Compared with DPP‐4 inhibitors, the risk of HHF was reduced by 18% and all‐cause mortality was reduced by 36% with empagliflozin (HR 0.82; 95% CI 0.71‐0.94, and HR 0.64; 95% CI 0.50‐0.81, respectively). Reductions were consistent across countries, and in patients with and without baseline cardiovascular disease. ESRD was also significantly reduced with empagliflozin versus DPP‐4 inhibitors (HR 0.37; 95% CI 0.24‐0.58). Conclusions Empagliflozin treatment was associated with reduced risk for HHF, all‐cause mortality and ESRD compared with DPP‐4 inhibitors in routine clinical practice in Japan, South Korea and Taiwan.

For double negative materials (DNMs), these are usually observed in artificial metamaterials or some metal/ceramic composites. Here, an interesting negative permittivity behavior of single-phase perovskite La1−xSrxMnO3 (LSMO) is found. The LSMO bulks with an x value of 0.2 or 0.5 were prepared by a sol–gel/sintering process. From microstructure characterization, the bulks are nearly in single phase and the major phase belongs to the perovskite structure; meanwhile, the bulks are of high density. Furthermore, the experimental data of the plasma-like negative permittivity are fitted well by a lossy Drude model, suggesting a plasma frequency of 3.85 GHz (x = 0.5). The complex permeability of LSMO presents a negative susceptibility (μ′ < 1) at a frequency range of 0.2–1 GHz (x = 0.2) and 0.6–1 GHz (x = 0.5). These results have important implications for the realization of double negative properties in single-phase LSMO as a promising candidate for DNMs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To explore the risk factors of abdominal aortic enlargement (AAE) after thoracic endovascular aortic repair using two-stent graft implantation (TEVAR-TSI) for Stanford type B aortic dissection., Methods: The clinical and imaging data of patients who underwent TEVAR-TSI for Stanford type B aortic dissection in the First Affiliated Hospital of Hebei North University from January 2013 through September 2020 were retrospectively collected and analyzed. CT angiography (CTA) scans were performed before the procedure. Follow-up CTA scans were scheduled and performed in 1, 3, 6, and 12 months after the procedure and annually thereafter. The primary outcome was AAE. The risk factors of AAE after TEVAR-TSI were selected and survival analysis and multivariate logistic regression were conducted accordingly., Results: A total of 146 patients were regularly followed up at our hospital, with the median followup time of the entire cohort being 48 months (ranging from 12 to 84 months). During the followup period after TEVAR-TSI, the incidence of AAE was 19.9% (29/146). A total of 29 patients developed AAE (the AAE group), while 117 patients did not develop AAE (the non-AAE group). There were a total of 27 deaths, including 13 in the non-AAE group versus 14 in the AAE group. Distal aortic reoperation was performed on 10 patients, including 4 in the non-AAE group versus 6 in the AAE group. The cumulative long-term survival and freedom from distal aortic reoperation of the non-AAE group were both significantly better those of the AAE group ( P <0.05). Logistic multivariate regression analysis showed that independent risk factors of AAE after TEVAR-TSI included the following, partial thrombosis of the false lumen (odds ratio [ OR ]=4.090, 95% confidence interval [ CI ]: 1.539-10.867, P =0.005), the longer cumulative diameter of residual intimal tear above the level of the lowest renal arteries ( OR =1.290, 95% CI : 1.164-1.429, P =0.000), and shorter cumulative diameter of residual intimal tear below the level of the lowest renal arteries ( OR =0.487, 95% CI : 0.270-0.878, P =0.017)., Conclusion: The prognosis of patients who developed AAE after TEVAR-TSI was not good. During followup visits, as precautions against the development of AAE, close attention should be paid to partial thrombosis of the false lumen, cumulative diameter of residual intimal tear above the level of the lowest renal arteries, and cumulative diameter of residual intimal tear below the level of the lowest renal arteries., (Copyright© by Editorial Board of Journal of Sichuan University (Medical Sciences).)

Objective: To investigate the characteristics of aortic remodeling after thoracic endovascular aortic repair using two-stent graft implantation (TEVAR-TSI) for Stanford B aortic dissection., Methods: The clinical and imaging data of 128 patients who underwent TEVAR-TSI for Stanford B aortic dissection in the First Affiliated Hospital of Hebei North University from January 2013 through May 2019 were retrospectively collected. CT images were obtained before (T 0 ) TEVAR-TSI and, 1 week (T 1 ), 3 months (T 2 ), 6 months (T 3 ), 1 year (T 4 ) after TEVAR-TSI. The maximum diameter of the true lumen and false lumen in the short axis view was accessed at five levels: L 1 : the level of primary tear entry, L 2 : the level of the bronchial bifurcation, L 3 : the level of the distal of the first stent-graft, L 4 : the level of the celiac trunk, L 5 : the level of the lowest renal arteries. The false lumen thrombosis in the thoracic aorta and abdominal aorta were assessed at different times, the false lumen and true lumen changes in diameter were evaluated between the preoperative and postoperative CT scan., Results: The stented segment of the descending thoracic aorta was evaluated (L 1 -L 3 ): The true lumen diameter showed an increasing trend and the false lumen diameter showed an decreasing trend at levels L 1 , L 2 , and L 3 , the change of true lumen diameter was positively correlated with the follow-up time ( r =0.721, 0.827, 0.893, P <0.05), and the change rate of true lumen diameter was positively correlated with the follow-up time ( r =0.763, 0.818, 0.902, P <0.05), and the change of false lumen diameter was negatively correlated with the follow-up time ( r =-0.750, -0.927, -0.934, P <0.05), and the change rate of false lumen diameter was negatively correlated with the follow-up time (-0.774, -0.935, -0.952, P <0.05). When the unstented segment of the abdominal aorta was evaluated (L 4 -L 5 ), the average true lumen diameter at the level of celiac trunk increased significantly at 1 year by 13.7% ( P =0.007), however, the average false lumen diameter did not change over time ( P =0.406). The average true lumen diameter and false lumen diameter at the level of the lowest renal arteries increased over time as well, the average true lumen increased by 10.1%, and the average false lumen increased by 13.6% ( P =0.048, 0.017). Besides, the complete false lumen thrombosis rate of the stented segment of the descending thoracic aorta was higher than that of the unstented segment of the abdominal aorta.e complete false lumen thrombosis rate of the stented segment of the descending thoracic aorta was higher than that of the unstented segment of the abdominal aorta., Conclusion: After receiving TEVAR-TSI, Stanford type B aortic dissection patients had high thrombosis absorption rate in the thoracic aortic segment covered by stent, and the aortic remodeling was more ideal. The aortic remodeling effect in the abdominal aortic segment not covered was not ideal, and the inner diameter of the abdominal aorta tended to increase. Therefore, close follow-up monitoring should be conducted., (Copyright© by Editorial Board of Journal of Sichuan University (Medical Sciences).)

Objective: To study the protective effects of butylphthalide (NBP) on the Aβ(25-35)-induced apoptosis in PC-12 cells., Methods: The apoptosis of PC-12 cell was analyzed by MTT assay, transmission electron microscope and PI method at different concentrations of NBP (0.1, 1.0, 10, 100 µmol/L) with the addition of Aβ or not. The expressions of Bcl-2 and cytochrome C (Cyt-C) were detected by Western blot., Results: As demonstrated by the MTT assay, the values of cell viability were 76.5% ± 1.1%, 84.2% ± 1.3%, 89.5% ± 1.3% and 81.9% ± 1.9% at various concentration (0.1, 1.0, 10, 100 µmol/L) of NBP respectively. The model group was 71.7% ± 1.4%. It was revealed that the former could significantly prevent the cell viability under the induction of Aβ(25-35) (P < 0.05). A pretreatment with 10 µmol/L NBP could significantly inhibit the decrease of viability under the induction of Aβ(25-35) (P < 0.05). PI showed that the apoptosis rate of the 10 µmol/L NBP treatment group was significantly lower than that of the model group. Under electron microscope, the characteristics of cell apoptosis were significant in the model group. And the cell morphology of the 10 µmol/L NBP treatment group was normal. The expression rate of Bcl-2 protein in the 10 µmol/L NBP treatment group was obviously higher than that in the model group. Cyt-C was weakly expressed in nerve cells of the normal and the 10 µmol/L NBP groups. But it had a strong expression in the model group., Conclusion: NBP prevents the injury of PC12 cells by Aβ. And the mechanism may be related to the elevated level of Bcl-2 and the inhibited mitochondrial release of Cyt-C.