Deteriorated bone microarchitecture caused by sympathetic overstimulation in pheochromocytoma and paraganglioma

PURPOSE

Despite the potentially destructive effect of sympathetic activity on bone metabolism, its impact on bone microarchitecture, a key determinant of bone quality, has not been thoroughly investigated. This study aims to evaluate the impact of sympathetic activity on bone microarchitecture and bone strength in patients with pheochromocytoma and paraganglioma (PPGL).

METHODS

A cross-sectional study was conducted in 38 PPGL patients (15 males and 23 females). Bone turnover markers serum procollagen type 1 N-terminal propeptide (P1NP) and β-carboxy-terminal crosslinked telopeptide of type 1 collagen (β-CTX) were measured. 24-h urinary adrenaline (24hUE) and 24-h urinary norepinephrine levels (24hUNE) were measured to indicate sympathetic activity. High-resolution peripheral quantitative computed tomography (HR-pQCT) was conducted to evaluate bone microarchitecture in PPGL patients and 76 age-, sex-matched healthy controls (30 males and 46 females). Areal bone mineral density (aBMD) was measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) simultaneously.

RESULTS

PPGL patients had a higher level of β-CTX. HR-pQCT assessment revealed that PPGL patients had notably thinner and more sparse trabecular bone (decreased trabecular number and thickness with increased trabecular separation), significantly decreased volume BMD (vBMD), and bone strength at both the radius and tibia compared with healthy controls. The deterioration of Tt.vBMD, Tb.Sp, and Tb.1/N.SD was more pronounced in postmenopausal patients compared with the premenopausal subjects. Moreover, subjects in the highest 24hUNE quartile (Q4) showed markedly lower Tb.N and higher Tb.Sp and Tb.1/N.SD at the tibia than those in the lowest quartile (Q1). Age-related bone loss was also exacerbated in PPGL patients to a certain extent.

CONCLUSIONS

PPGL patients had significantly deteriorated bone microarchitecture and strength, especially in the trabecular bone, with an increased bone resorption rate. Our findings provide clinical evidence that sympathetic overstimulation may serve as a secondary cause of osteoporosis, especially in subjects with increased sympathetic activity.

Parenteral n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids supplementation improves postoperative recovery for patients with Crohn's disease after bowel resection: a randomized, unblinded controlled clinical trial

BACKGROUND

The postoperative inflammatory response is associated with postoperative recovery in surgery. n-3 (ω-3) polyunsaturated fatty acids have been reported to lower inflammation. The postoperative role of parenteral n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids supplementation on outcomes in Crohn's disease after bowel resection is unclear.

OBJECTIVES

We aimed to investigate the effects of postoperative parenteral n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids supplementation in Crohn's disease.

METHODS

A prospective randomized, unblinded controlled clinical trial was conducted for patients with Crohn's disease who underwent bowel resection between May 2019 and February 2022. Postoperative complications, complete blood count, serum biochemical values, and cytokine concentrations were compared in patients with and without parenteral n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids supplementation for 5 d postoperatively.

RESULTS

There were 268 patients randomly assigned in the analysis, with 134 in the control group (a mix of long-chain and medium-chain fats at 1.0 g/kg/d) and 134 in the treatment group (long-chain, medium-chain, and n-3 polyunsaturated fats at 1.2 g/kg/d). Twenty-six did not complete the allocated treatment, and 8 patients were lost to follow-up. The intention-to-treat analysis and the per-protocol analysis showed that there were a significant reduction in overall complication rates (22.4% compared with 49.3%; P < 0.001 and 21.8% compared with 38.2%; P = 0.006) and postoperative stay (8.8 ± 4.5 d compared with 11.2 ± 6.8 d; P = 0.001 and 8.7 ± 4.0 d compared with 11.5 ± 7.3 d; P < 0.001) in patients with parenteral n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids supplementation compared with patients in the control group. In the secondary outcomes, the mean ± standard deviation of interleukin (IL)-6 (17.11 ± 2.14 pg/mL compared with 30.50 ± 5.14 pg/mL; P = 0.014), IL-1β (2.01 ± 0.05 pg/mL compared with 2.24 ± 0.09 pg/mL; P = 0.019), tumor necrosis factor-α (2.09 ± 0.06 pg/mL compared with 2.29 ± 0.06 pg/mL; P = 0.029), and C-reactive protein concentrations (51.3 ± 4.2 mg/L compared with 64.4 ± 5.3 mg/L; P = 0.050) on postoperative day 5 in the treatment group were much lower than those in the control group.

CONCLUSIONS

Parenteral n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids supplementation promotes postoperative recovery in patients with Crohn's disease following bowel resection, with fewer complications and reduced inflammatory cytokines. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT03901937 at https://classic.

CLINICALTRIALS

gov/ct2/show/NCT03901937?term=NCT03901937&cond=Crohn+Disease&draw=2&rank=1.

Strictureplasty may lead to increased preference in the surgical management of Crohn's disease: a case-matched study

BACKGROUND

Resection and strictureplasty are the two surgical modalities used in the management of Crohn's disease (CD). The objective of this study was to compare morbidity and clinical recurrence between patients who underwent strictureplasty and patients who underwent resection.

METHODS

Patients with CD who underwent strictureplasty between January 2012 and December 2022 were enrolled. The patients were well matched with patients who underwent resection without strictureplasty. Patient- and disease-specific characteristics, postoperative morbidity, and clinical recurrence were also analyzed.

RESULTS

A total of 118 patients who underwent a total of 192 strictureplasties were well matched to 118 patients who underwent resection. The strictureplasty group exhibited significantly less blood loss (30 ml versus 50 ml, p < 0.001) and stoma creation (2.5% versus 16.9%, p < 0.001). No significant difference was found regarding postoperative complications or length of postoperative stay. At the end of the follow-up, the overall rate of clinical recurrence was 39.4%, and no difference was observed between the two groups. Postoperative prophylactic use of biologics (odds ratio = 0.2, p < 0.001) was the only protective factor against recurrence.

CONCLUSION

Strictureplasty does not increase the risk of complications or recurrence compared with resection. It represents a viable alternative to resection in selected patients, and as such, it should have a broader scope of indications and greater acceptance among surgeons.

[Study on risk factors of mycobacterium tuberculosis infection among health workers in medical institutions]

Objective: To understand the infection status of mycobacterium tuberculosis among health workers in tuberculosis designated medical institutions and explore the risk factors of infection. Methods: From September 2021 to June 2022, a questionnaire survey was conducted among health workers in relevant departments of 4 tuberculosis designated medical institutions by cluster stratified sampling, including the implementation of hospital infection control measures in medical institutions and occupational exposure of medical staff to mycobacterium tuberculosis. Peripheral blood interferon gamma release assays (IGRAs) and lung imaging examination were performed to determine the mycobacterium tuberculosis infection. Factors with statistical significance in univariate analysis were included in multivariate logistic regression to analyze the risk factors of mycobacterium tuberculosis infection. Results: A total of 657 people completed the lung imaging examination and questionnaire, of which 654 people had peripheral blood IGRAs detection, and the latent infection rate of tuberculosis was 39.45% (258/654) . Univariate analysis showed that age, sex, marital status, economic income, occupational category, professional title, length of service, and other variables had statistical significances in tuberculosis latent infection (P<0.05) . In terms of personal health status, there were statistically significant differences in the distribution of health workers in terms of their tuberculosis history, tuberculosis history of their immediate family members, previous tuberculin skin test (TST) (P<0.05) . Multivariate analysis showed that there were four risk factors related to tuberculosis, including professional title (X(1)) , years of tuberculosis related works (X(2)) , tuberculosis history (X(3)) and previous TST (X(4)) . The regression equation of the probability of tuberculosis among health workers was y=-1.920+0.246X(1)+0.046X(2)+1.231X(3)+0.478X(4). Conclusion: The latent infection rate of tuberculosis among health workers in tuberculosis designated medical institutions is high. It is necessary to strengthen the management of infection control, carry out regular screening, enhance the self-protection awareness of health workers, and reduce their exposure to mycobacterium tuberculosis and infection risk.

Prediction of Response to Neoadjuvant Chemoradiotherapy Combined with Pembrolizumab in Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma with CT/FDG PET Radiomic Signatures Based on Machine Learning Classification

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVE(S)

PALACE-1 trial has confirm that the addition of pembrolizumab to neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (NCRT) improves the pathological complete response(pCR) for esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), which might be a novel treatment strategy for ESCC. In the present study, we aim to establish a machine learning model to predict the local response to NCRT+ pembrolizumab for ESCC by using pretreatment 18-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG PET) and contrast-enhanced plan CT images.

MATERIALS/METHODS

A total of 65 cases treated with NCRT+ pembrolizumab followed by surgery were prospectively enrolled for analysis from 2019-2022. Each patient contains a contrast-enhanced plan CT and FDG PET images. 52 patients were randomly divided into training set and 13 patients were used as test set. The Extraction of radiomics features was performed using an open-source Python library PyRadiomics automatically. Features were computed according to the radiologist-drawn ROIs on both CT and PET images. In the feature selection stage least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) was utilized on CT features and PET features separately. Four different machine learning models were implemented: Support Vector Machine (SVM), Logistic Regression (LR), Random Forest (RF) and XGBoost (XGB). The features selected by LASSO regression were used as model input and the output of the model is "pCR" or "non-pCR". To find the optimal parameter, the 5-fold cross-validation method was used in the training stage. In this study, we use accuracy, sensitivity and specificity as the metrics to evaluate the performance of the model on the testing cohort. The predictive performance of the model was assessed using the area under curve (AUC) of the receiver operating characteristics curve (ROC).

RESULTS

Of the 65 cases treated with NCRT+pembrolizumab, 35 patients archived pCR (53.8%), and 30 archived non-pCR. 1684 radiomics features were extracted from each case, and half of them (842 features) were from CT and others were from PET. Among the machine learning models mentioned above SVM achieves the most promising performance on the evaluation metrics. Accuracy, sensitivity, specificity and AUC score on test set were 0.692, 0.833, 0.571 and 0.786 for CT features and 0.615, 0.667, 0.571 and 0.762 for PET features, respectively. For CT+FDG PET fused features accuracy, sensitivity, specificity and AUC score on test set were 0.769, 0.667, 0.857 and 0.833.

CONCLUSION

In this study, we performed several different machine learning models to predict the response to NCRT+ pembrolizumab among ESCC based on the extracted radiomics features from CT and FDG PET images. The best-performing model based on radiomics features of CT and PET images could identify non-pCR to NCRT + pembrolizumab in EC patients.

Treatment Outcomes of Concurrent Nimotuzumab with Intensity Modulated Radiotherapy in Advanced Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Patients Unfit for Concurrent Chemoradiotherapy: A Single Institute Experience

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVE(S)

To assess the safety and efficacy of intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) combined with nimotuzumab for patients with locally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma (LA-NPC) medically unfit to receive concomitant chemotherapy.

MATERIALS/METHODS

From 2016.6 to 2020.9, 34 newly diagnosed patients with local-regional advanced NPC medically unfit for concurrent chemoradiation had undergone definitive radiotherapy and were retrospectively evaluated. All patients were treated with IMRT combined treatment modality of nimotuzumab with or without cisplatin-based induction chemotherapy. Nimotuzumab was administered concurrently with IMRT at a weekly dose of 200 mg. Acute and late radiation-related toxicities were evaluated based on the Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (CTCAE) Version 5.0 during and after IMRT. The Kaplan-Meier method was used for survival analysis. Univariate and multivariate prognostic analyses were performed by using the Cox proportional hazard model.

RESULTS

The median follow-up time for the entire group was 15 months (range 5 to 55 months). At the time of this analysis, a total of 2 cases developed loco-regional recurrence. In addition, 4 patients developed distant metastasis. There was a total of 5 deaths: 3 patients died from distant metastasis, 1 patient died from the progression of loco-regional disease after recurrence, and the causes of death for the additional 1 case was a nasopharyngeal ulcer and deadly bleeding. The 1-year OS rate of the whole cohort was 87.9%, and the 1-year LFFR, DFFR, and PFS rates were 100%, 91.0%, and 91.0%, respectively. During the period of concurrent nimotuzumab and IMRT, no grade 3-4 hematologic toxicities and dermatitis were observed. Grade 3-4 radiotherapy-related oral mucositis was reported in 7 patients (20.6%). No infusion reaction was observed. No acneiform eruptions were found among these patients. The most commonly observed late complication was xerostomia. The degree of dry mouth in most patients was mild-to-moderate at the time of the last follow-up. Finally, 7 patients developed either unilateral or bilateral hearing impairment. One female patient experienced a nasopharyngeal ulcer and deadly bleeding after 5 months of completion of radiotherapy.

CONCLUSION

Concurrent nimotuzumab with IMRT for the treatment of LA-NPC was well tolerated, with encouraging survival data, and it could be an effective treatment alternative for patients with LA-NPC medically unfit for concomitant chemotherapy. Further clinical trials are needed to confirm these findings.

Development of a novel combined nomogram integrating deep-learning-assisted CT texture and clinical-radiological features to predict the invasiveness of clinical stage IA part-solid lung adenocarcinoma: a multicentre study

AIM

To develop a novel combined nomogram based on deep-learning-assisted computed tomography (CT) texture (DL-TA) and clinical-radiological features for the preoperative prediction of invasiveness in patients with clinical stage IA lung adenocarcinoma manifesting as part-solid nodules (PSNs).

MATERIALS AND METHODS

This study was conducted from January 2015 to October 2021 at three centres: 355 patients with 355 PSN lung adenocarcinomas who underwent surgical resection were included and classified into the training (n=222) and validation (n=133) cohorts. PSN segmentation on CT images was performed automatically with a commercial deep-learning algorithm, and CT texture features were extracted. The least absolute shrinkage and selection operator was used for feature selection and transformed into a DL-TA score. The combined nomogram that incorporated the DL-TA score and identified clinical-radiological features was developed for the prediction of pathological invasiveness of the PSNs and validated in terms of discrimination and calibration.

RESULTS

The present study generated a combined nomogram for predicting the invasiveness of PSNs that included age, consolidation-to-tumour ratio, smoking status, and DL-TA score, with a C-index of 0.851 (95% confidence interval: 0.826-0.877) for the training cohort and 0.854 (95% confidence interval: 0.817-0.891) for the validation cohort, indicating good discrimination. Furthermore, the model had a Brier score of 0.153 for the training cohort and 0.135 for the validation cohort, indicating good calibration.

CONCLUSION

The developed combined nomogram consisting of the DL-TA score and clinical-radiological features and has the potential to predict the individual risk for the invasiveness of stage IA PSN lung adenocarcinomas.

Establishing a Risk Stratification Model to Identify Clinically High-Risk N0 Breast Cancer Who Could Benefit from Regional Nodal Irradiation: A Single Institute Analysis

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVE(S)

The adverse clinical features for pN0 BC patients significantly varies and there is no established clinical risk stratification system to identify those "high-risk" pN0 BC patients who might benefit from RNI. The purpose of this real-world study was to investigate the risk factors for developing recurrence among patients with pathological T1-3N0 breast cancer (BC) treated with breast-conserving surgery (BCS) followed by whole breast irradiation alone (WBI) and identify those clinically high-risk BCs who could benefit from regional nodal irradiation (RNI).

MATERIALS/METHODS

Female BC patients treated from 2009 to 2016 were retrospectively reviewed. The disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) were estimated by the Kaplan-Meier method, and survival differences were compared with the log-rank test. Univariate and multivariate analysis was performed using Cox logistic regression analysis. An external validation was conducted by using SEER database.

RESULTS

A total of 622 BC patients treated with BCS+WBI alone were included. With a median follow-up of 82 months, the 7-year OS and DFS for the entire cohort was 97% and 91%, respectively. Multivariable Cox analysis indicated that tumor size (p = 0.006), tumor location (p = 0.033), lymphovascular invasion (LVI) status (p = 0.0028) and Ki-67 index (p = 0.051) were independent risk factors for DFS, while only tumor size was the only independent risk factors for OS (p = 0.029). A scoring system was developed using these four factors and the 7-year DFS and OS were 97% and 96% for patients with 0-1 risk factors, 95% and 82% for patients with ≥2 risk factors (p<0.0001 for DFS, and p = 0.0063 for OS). Based on tumor size and tumor location, an external validation by demonstrated that the 7-year OS was 90% and 88% for patients with 0-1 risk factor, which was significantly better than those defined as high-risk BC patients (82%, p<0.0001).

CONCLUSION

By using our institute database, we establish a risk stratification system for identifying sub-group of pN0 BC patients, who are at high risk for developing recurrence. The results of our study support tailored RT decision-making according to individual risks, which needed to be confirmed in further studies.

The Safety and Efficacy of SCART for Bulky Metastatic or Recurrent Cancer, a Phase I Study

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVE(S)

We are proposing a new treatment methodology, (called Stereotactic Centralized Ablative Radiation Therapy, (SCART), for bulky or metastatic tumors, which is based on the principles of SFRT, by using SBRT methods to deliver an ablative radiation dose to the central portion of the target while keeping the dose to surrounding normal tissue to a relatively low level. We performed a prospective dose escalation study of SCART for bulky metastatic or recurrent cancer. The purpose of the study was to determine dose-limiting toxicities (DLTs) and the Maximum Tolerated Dose (MTD) of SCART.

MATERIALS/METHODS

This study was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT0488198, and approved at Foshan Chancheng Hospital. Patients with unresectable solid "bulky" nonhematological malignancies with limited treatment options were enrolled and received SCART with a prescription to the central spot in the tumor with a peripheral dose to the tumor edge at around 20% isodose line of the prescription dose. Five dose levels were proposed. The primary endpoint was the maximum tolerated dose (MTD), defined as the highest dose where zero of three or one of six patients experienced grade 3 dose-limiting toxicity (DLT), scored according to the Common Toxicity Criteria for Adverse Events v. 4.03, up to 6 months after SCART.

RESULTS

A total of 21 patients received SCART and have eligible data for study follow-up. The dose was escalated for two patients to 24 GyX3. No grade 3 toxicity was observed in any of the enrolled patients. The median SCART dose was 18 Gy (range: 15 - 24). Six out of the 18 patients with data for overall survival (OS) died, and the median time to death was 16.29 months (range: 0.99 - 25.58). Three patients out of the 15 patients with available data for local recurrence (LR) were found to have an LR and the median time to LR was 16.01 months (range: 0.99 - 25.58). There appears to be a trend of tumors decreasing from the patient's first visit date, or pre-SCART, to their final volume post-SCART. The mean percent change for tumor shrinkage between first visit volumes and post-SCART volumes was 49.49% (SD: 40.89, p-value:0.009). Of 15 patients with available data for progression free survival, 9 had a local recurrence or were deceased. Estimated median survival (i.e., when survival is 50%) was equal to16.80 months (95% CI = 13.90, NA). The survival rate at 12 months and 24 months were72.22% and 24.07%, respectively. Of 15 patients with available data for time to local recurrence, 3 people had a local recurrence. The percent of patients that were free from local recurrence at one and two years after the beginning of SCART treatment was 85.56% for both.

CONCLUSION

Despite the high dose delivered and the excellent local control achieved; the incidence of Any toxicity was unexpectedly low. Multiple courses of SCART are possible. The optimal dose, volume and timing of SCART still need more study.

Nodal Response to Neo-Adjuvant Systemic Therapy Predicts Prognosis of cN3c Breast Cancer Patients Receiving Multidisciplinary Therapy

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVE(S)

cN3c breast cancer with ipsilateral supraclavicular (SCV) lymph nodal (SCLN) metastasis has a dismal prognosis. We investigated the survival outcomes, patterns and risks of recurrence in those patients after multidisciplinary therapy, as well as the predictors of candidates for SCV area boosting.

MATERIALS/METHODS

Consecutive cN3c breast cancer patients without distant metastases from January 2009 to December 2020 in our institution were retrospectively reviewed. Based on nodal response to neoadjuvant therapy (NAT), patients were categorized into three groups: clinical complete response (cCR) not achieved in SCLN (Group A, n = 66), SCLN cCR but axillary node (ALN) did not achieve pathological complete response (pCR, Group B, n = 34), cCR in SCLN and pCR in ALN (Group C, n = 13).

RESULTS

The median follow-up time was 32.7 months (range, 21.9-53.3months). The 5-year overall survival (OS) and recurrence-free survival (RFS) rates were 64.6% and 43.7% respectively. Multivariate analysis showed cumulative SCV dose and ypT stage, ALN response and SCV response to NAT were significantly associated with OS and RFS respectively. The 3-year for patients receiving the cumulative SCV dose of ≥60 Gy versus <60 Gy was 81.3% versus 69.0% (P = 0.042). Compared with Group A or B, Group C showed significantly improved RFS (3y-RFS: 53.8% vs 73.6% vs 100%, p = 0.003) and a numerically longer OS (3y-OS: 73.4% vs 86.7% vs 100%, p = 0.089). Meanwhile, Group C showed the lowest rate of DM as first failure (37.9 % vs 23.5% vs 0 in group A, B and C, respectively, p = 0.010). In patients of Group A, the 3-year OS rates for patients receiving the cumulative SCV dose of ≥60 Gy versus <60 Gy was 78.0% versus 57.3% (p = 0.029).

CONCLUSION

Nodal response to NAT is an independent prognostic factor for survival and pattern of failure. cN3c breast cancer patients with SCLN cCR and ALN pCR after NAT are potentially curable. A cumulative SCV dose of ≥60 Gy is positively associated with improved OS, especially in patients of SCLN without achieving cCR. Our data supports the perspective of optimizing radiotherapeutic strategy based on nodal response.

Temporal trends in surgery for Crohn's disease: a ten-year single-center retrospective study

PURPOSE

Crohn's disease (CD) is a chronic inflammatory bowel disease that requires surgery in many cases. The aim of this article is to present the experience of a referral center regarding surgical interventions for CD, while also exploring the transformations that have occurred over 10 years.

METHODS

The data of patients underwent abdominal surgery for CD between 2013 and 2022 were collected prospectively. Data were compared between two periods (2013-2017 and 2018-2022). Temporal trends were assessed with the Mann-Kendall trend test.

RESULTS

A total of 1059 individuals underwent 1176 surgical procedures, of which 67.1% were male. The median age of patients at the time of surgery was 36.0 years, and an overall increasing trend was observed in surgical volume (z = 3.04; p = 0.002). The proportion of patients treated with biologics increased from the first period (2013-2017) to the second (2018-2022), rising from 19.2% to 33.5% (p < 0.001). In the second stage, the proportion of patients who underwent surgery for abscesses or fistulas increased (47.8% vs. 40.0%, p = 0.028), while the percentage of emergency surgeries declined (3.0% vs. 7.1%, p = 0.001). Furthermore, there was a rise in the proportion of laparoscopic surgeries (76.5% vs. 63.7%, p < 0.001), coupled with a decrease in stoma rates (15.4% vs. 30.5%, p < 0.001) and postoperative complications (23.0% vs. 30.5%, p = 0.007).

CONCLUSION

The frequency of biologics use in CD surgery have increased over time, and the proportion of penetrating patients has grown. Minimally invasive surgical methods have become the norm, and surgical outcomes have markedly enhanced, evidenced by a substantial reduction in both stoma rates and complication rates.

High-Flux Neutron Generator Based on Laser-Driven Collisionless Shock Acceleration

A novel compact high-flux neutron generator with a pitcher-catcher configuration based on laser-driven collisionless shock acceleration (CSA) is proposed and experimentally verified. Different from those that previously relied on target normal sheath acceleration (TNSA), CSA in nature favors not only acceleration of deuterons (instead of hydrogen contaminants) but also increasing of the number of deuterons in the high-energy range, therefore having great advantages for production of high-flux neutron source. The proof-of-principle experiment has observed a typical CSA plateau feature from 2 to 6 MeV in deuteron energy spectrum and measured a forward neutron flux with yield 6.6×10^{7}  n/sr from the LiF catcher target, an order of magnitude higher than the compared TNSA case, where the laser intensity is 10^{19}  W/cm^{2}. Self-consistent simulations have reproduced the experimental results and predicted that a high-flux forward neutron source with yield up to 5×10^{10}  n/sr can be obtained when laser intensity increases to 10^{21}  W/cm^{2} under the same laser energy.

[The design method of the digital sequential tooth-sectioning guide for the extraction of mandibular impacted third molars]

Objective: To explore a method for digitally designing and fabricating a sequential tooth-sectioning guide that can assist in the extraction of mandibular horizontal impacted third molars, preliminarily evaluate its feasibility and provide a reference for clinical application. Methods: Twenty patients with mandibular low level impacted third molars who visited the Department of General Dentistry, Peking University School and Hospital of Stomatology from March 2021 to January 2022 were selected. Cone-beam CT showed direct contact between the roots and mandibular canal, and full range impressions of the patients' intraoral teeth were taken and optical scans of the dental model were performed. The patients' cone-beam CT data and optical scan data were reconstructed in three dimensions, anatomical structure extraction, registration fusion, and the design of the structure of the guide (including crown-sectioning guide and root-sectioning guide) by Mimics 24.0, Geomagic Wrap 2021, and Magics 21.0 software, and then the titanium guide was three dimension printed, and the guide was tried on the dental model. After confirmation, the guide was used to assist the dentist in the operation. We observed whether the guide was in place, the number of tooth splitting, the matching of tooth splitting with the preoperative design, the operation time, and whether there were any complications. Results: In this study, 20 sectioning guides were successfully printed, all of them were well fitted in the patients' mouth, the average number of section was 3.4 times, the tooth parts was better matched with the preoperative design, and the average operative time of the guides was (29.2±9.8) minutes without complications such as perforation of the bone cortex. Conclusions: The use of sequential sectioning guides to assist in the extraction of mandibular impacted third molars was initially validated to accurately replicate the preoperative sectioning design, and is expected to provide a digital solution to improve surgical precision and ensure safety. Further studies with larger sample sizes are needed to evaluate its accuracy and safety.

An observational study of the effects of ω-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid-supplemented parenteral nutrition on postoperative complications in patients with Crohn's disease

BACKGROUND

Crohn's disease (CD) is a chronic inflammatory disease. Most patients with CD require surgery but exhibit an elevated incidence of postoperative complications. Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (ω-3 PUFAs) are considered beneficial for nutrition, anti-inflammation, immunity, and intestinal microflora balance in humans. This study assessed the effects of ω-3 PUFA-supplemented parenteral nutrition (PN) on postoperative complications in CD patients.

METHODS

Overall, 186 CD patients undergoing bowel resection were recruited for this study. The patient data were collected from a prospectively maintained database. After surgery, 83 patients received ω-3 PUFA-supplemented PN, and 103 did not. The postoperative complications were compared between the groups. Complication risk factors were identified by univariate and multivariate analyses.

RESULTS

Patients who received ω-3 PUFA-supplemented PN after surgery had lower C-reactive protein (CRP) levels on postoperative day 3 (57.2±5.3 vs. 43.5±3.9 mg/L, P=0.047) and shorter postoperative hospital stays (12.1±1.1 vs. 9.3±0.6 days, P=0.041) than those who did not. The ω-3 PUFA group exhibited significantly fewer overall complications (40.8% vs. 24.1%, P=0.016) and major complications (23.3% vs. 9.6%, P=0.014) than the control group. Postoperative complications were associated with infliximab, ω-3 PUFAs, CRP levels, operative time, and laparoscopic surgery. The multivariate regression revealed that preoperative infliximab use was a positive risk factor and postoperative ω-3 PUFA-supplemented PN was a negative risk factor for postoperative complications.

CONCLUSIONS

ω-3 PUFA-supplemented PN reduced post-surgery inflammatory response of CD patients, which in turn decreased the postoperative complications and accelerated recovery.

POS0749 ANTI-Β2GPI-DOMAIN 1 ANTIBODIES STRATIFY HIGH RISK OF EXTRA-CRITERIA MANIFESTATIONS IN A LARGE PROSPECTIVE CHINESE COHORT OF ANTIPHOSPHOLIPID SYNDROME

Background

Anti-β2GPI-Domain 1 (β2GPI-D1) antibodies are potentially pathogenic in patients with antiphospholipid syndrome (APS), but their clinical associations and diagnostic value were unclear.

Objectives

To evaluate the clinical characteristics of APS patients with anti-β2GPI-D1 positivity, and its utility in diagnosing APS among SLE patients.

Methods

A total of 338 patients were included, of which 169 patients diagnosed with primary APS (PAPS group), 50 with APS secondary to SLE (SAPS group), 209 with SLE (SLE group). Serum anti-β2GPI-D1 IgG was measured using chemiluminescent immunoassay (Inova Company). Extra-criteria manifestations were analyzed, including thrombocytopenia, autoimmune hemolytic anemia, valvular lesions, APS nephropathy, and non-vascular neurological manifestations.

Results

Similar presence of anti-β2GPI-D1 IgG was seen among PAPS (32.80%) and SAPS (32.0%) patients, and 96.4% of those with positive anti-β2GPI-D1 IgG showed triple aPLs positivity. Anti-β2GPI-D1 IgG was significantly associated with recurrent thrombosis before APS diagnosis, microscopic thrombosis (p<0.05), but not with adverse pregnancy events (Figure 1). Notably, patients with extra-criteria manifestations, especially thrombocytopenia and APS nephropathy, showed significantly higher titers in anti-β2GPI-D1 IgG (p<0.05). After a median follow-up of twenty-five months, patients with anti-β2GPI-D1 IgG also showed a tendency of more extra-criteria events (3/55 vs 1/114, p=0.095), but not thrombotic events or adverse pregnancy events. Anti-β2GPI-D1 was positive among 8.13% of the SLE controls, and showed higher specificity (91.9%) in diagnosing SAPS among SLE patients as compared to classic aPLs.

Figure 1.

Conclusion

Anti-β2GPI-D1 IgG had a stronger association with extra-criteria manifestations in APS patients compared to three classic APLs, which properly indicated its pathogenic role of microangiopathy.

Disclosure of Interests

None declared

OP0145 VALIDATION OF 3 PREDICTION MODELS FOR THROMBOSIS IN ANTIPHOSPHOLIPID SYNDROME PATIENTS BASED ON A PROSPECTIVE COHORT

Background

Antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) is a rare and complicated acquired autoimmune thrombophilia characterized by arterial/venous thrombosis and/or recurrent pregnancy loss. Thrombosis is the first cause of death of APS patients. However, there has been no generally acknowledged model to predict thrombosis. Only adjusted global APS score (aGAPSS) was developed for prediction but based on a cross-sectional study1. Additionally, the predictive ability of Padua score and Caprini score has not been validated in APS patients.

Objectives

Aim to validate the ability of aGAPSS, Padua score and Caprini score to predict thrombosis in APS patients basing on a prospective cohort.

Methods

Consecutive APS patients who fulfilled the 2006 Sydney Revised Classification Criteria for APS, referred to Peking Union Medical College Hospital were included. Clinical data, aGAPSS, Padua score, and Caprini score at the time of diagnosis were collected. Patients with less than 1-year follow-up were excluded. Harrell c-index and calibration curve were used to validate the prediction models.

Results

A total of 302 patients were enrolled in this study. The mean age was 32±12 years old, and 202 (66.9%) were female (Table 1). Patients were followed up for a median of 36 months. During the follow-up period, there were 62 thrombotic events, with 40 (13.25%) venous and 22 (7.28%) arterial thrombosis. The 1-, 3-, and 5-year thrombosis risks were 8.9%, 16.9%, and 21.3% respectively (Figure 1A). The Harrell c-indexes for predicting thrombosis of aGAPSS, Padua score, and Caprini score were 0.56 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.52-0.60), 0.58 (95% CI, 0.54-0.62), and 0.61 (95%CI, 0.57-0.65) respectively. The model predicting venous thrombosis with the best discrimination was Padua score whose Harrell c-index was 0.64 (95% CI, 0.60-0.68), and the model predicting arterial thrombosis with the best discrimination was Caprini score whose Harrell c-index was 0.62 (95%CI, 0.56-0.68). The calibration curves illustrated that the calibration for predicting thrombosis within 3 years after diagnosis of all the 3 models was poor (Figure 1B-D).

Table 1.

Demographic characteristics and clinical manifestations at baseline

N=302N=302Age, mean±SD32±12Clinical manifestationsFemale, n (%)202 (66.9)Venous thrombosis, n (%)156 (51.7)Disease duration (months), median (Q1, Q3)11.50 (3.00, 44.00)Deep venous thrombosis, n (%)112 (37.1)Secondary to SLE, n (%)73 (24.2)Pulmonary embolism, n (%)70 (23.2)Smoking history, n (%)63 (20.9)Visceral venous thrombosis, n (%)12 (4.0)Hypertension, n (%)59 (19.5)Cranial venous sinus thrombosis, n (%)13 (4.3)Hyperlipidemia, n (%)151 (50.0)Arterial thrombosis, n (%)113 (37.4)BMI, mean±SD23.96±3.89Stroke/TIA, n (%)62 (20.5)LA positive, n (%)241 (79.8)Myocardial infarction, n (%)14 (4.6)aCL positive, n (%)208 (68.9)Arterial thrombosis of lower extremities, n (%)22 (7.3)aβ2GPI positive, n (%)242 (80.1)Visceral arterial thrombosis, n (%)18 (6.0)Triple aPL positive, n (%)165 (54.6)Thrombocytopenia, n (%)118 (39.1)Obstetric manifestations, n (%)N=202Valvular lesions, n (%)24 (7.9)Pregnancy morbidity103 (51.0)Early miscarriages (<10 weeks)13 (6.4)Fetal death (>= 10 weeks)68 (33.7)Preeclampsia, eclampsia and placental dysfunction36 (17.8)Figure 1.

The Kaplan-Meier curve and the calibration curve of 3 prediction models within 3 years after diagnosis. A: The Kaplan-Meier curve of venous, arterial and both venous and arterial thrombosis. B: The calibration curves for venous thrombosis. C: The calibration curves for arterial thrombosis. D: The calibration curves for both venous and arterial thrombosis.

Conclusion

The ability of aGAPSS, Padua score and Caprini score to predict thrombosis in APS patients is relatively poor. Construction of a new prediction model specifically for APS patients is required to help with early prevention and treatment.

References

[1]Sciascia, S., et al., GAPSS: the Global Anti-Phospholipid Syndrome Score. Rheumatology (Oxford), 2013. 52(8): p. 1397-403.

Disclosure of Interests

None declared

Laparoscopic Orthotopic Right Hemihepatectomy by Anterior Approach Combined with Inferior Vena Cava Thrombectomy

BACKGROUND

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a highly aggressive malignant disease with a high rate of vascular invasion. (Bruix et al. in Gastroenterology 150:835-853, 2016; Xia et al. in Oncol Lett 20:101, 2020) The conventional surgical strategy for HCC with inferior vena cava (IVC) tumor thrombus is open major surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass, combined with large trauma. (Liu et al. in Eur J Gastroenterol Hepatol 24:186-194, 2012; Bai et al. in J Oncol 2020:3264079, 2020) We report a video of laparoscopic hemihepatectomy and thrombectomy without bypass. As far as we are aware, this is the first report on IVC thrombectomy using a minimally invasive surgical technique.

PATIENT

A 52-year-old male was admitted to our institution for a giant hepatic mass in the right liver combined with IVC tumor thrombosis. After 2 months of preoperative systemic treatment, the tumor had reduced to 8 cm and the enhancement of tumor thrombosis in the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan was significantly reduced.

METHODS

We used laparoscopy combined with thoracoscopy to perform the surgery, with the patient placed in the supine position. The abdominal trocar position is shown in Fig. 1b. First, we set the blocking band of the suprahepatic IVC in the thoracoscopy. Infrahepatic IVC occlusion and the Pringle maneuver device were prepared for laparoscopy. After fully exposing the retrohepatic IVC, we performed a thrombectomy and IVC suture completely in laparoscopy. Finally, the patient was transferred to the intensive care unit (ICU) for observation. Fig. 1 a Three-dimensional reconstruction model of the patient (a giant hepatic mass and tumor thrombosis extending to the suprahepatic IVC). b Trocar position for the laparoscopic surgery. The patient was placed in the supine position, and the 5, 6, and 7 intercostal axillary fronts were set for the thoracoscopic trocar, while the remaining five abdominal trocars were set for laparoscopic operation. c Retrohepatic IVC before being cut open. The fullness indicates the position of the tumor thrombosis. d Thrombectomy and suture of the IVC. IVC inferior vena cava, TT tumor thrombus RESULTS: Operation time was 495 mins and estimated blood loss was 1000 mL. The patient was discharged on the thirteenth day after the surgery. HCC was confirmed in histopathology.

CONCLUSION

Laparoscopic hepatectomy with IVC thrombectomy is a possible operation for HCC combined with IVC tumor thrombus, offering hope for minimally invasive treatment of such cases; however, it is still a highly challenging procedure.

CT texture analysis-based nomogram for the preoperative prediction of visceral pleural invasion in cT1N0M0 lung adenocarcinoma: an external validation cohort study

AIM

To develop a nomogram based on computed tomography (CT) texture analysis for the preoperative prediction of visceral pleural invasion in patients with cT1N0M0 lung adenocarcinoma.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A dataset of chest CT containing lung nodules was collected from two institutions, and all surgically resected nodules were classified pathologically based on the presence of visceral pleural invasion. Each nodule on the CT image was segmented automatically by artificial-intelligence software and its CT texture features were extracted. The dataset was divided into training and external validation cohorts according to the institution, and a nomogram for predicting visceral pleural invasion was developed and validated.

RESULTS

Of a total of 313 patients enrolled from two independent institutions, 63 were diagnosed with visceral pleural invasion. Three-dimensional (3D) CT long diameter, skewness, and sphericity, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease were identified as independent predictors for visceral pleural invasion by multivariable logistic regression. The nomogram based on multivariable logistic regression showed great discriminative ability, as indicated by a C-index of 0.890 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.867-0.914) and 0.864 (95% CI: 0.817-0.911) for the training and external validation cohorts, respectively. Additionally, calibration of the nomogram revealed good predictive ability, as indicated by the Brier score (0.108 and 0.100 for the training and external validation cohorts, respectively).

CONCLUSIONS

A nomogram was developed that could compute the probability of visceral pleural invasion in patients with cT1N0M0 lung adenocarcinoma with good calibration and discrimination. The nomogram has potential as a reliable tool for clinical evaluation and decision-making.

[The predictive value of ureteral wall area for impacted ureteral stones]

Objective: To investigate the clinical indicators for preoperative prediction of impacted ureteral stones and analyze the predictive value of ureteral wall area(UWA). Methods: A total of 197 patients who underwent ureteroscopic lithotripsy due to ureteral stones at our institution from January to December 2020 were retrospectively analyzed. Preoperative patient age, gender, body mass index (BMI), history of hypertension, diabetes mellitus, side of stone, location of stone, maximum diameter of stone, CT value of stone, C-reactive protein (CRP), creatinine, renal pelvis diameter, ureteral wall thickness and UWA were collected. Patients were divided into impacted and non-impacted groups according to whether the stones were impacted intraoperatively. Univariate analysis was used to compare the differences in each clinical indicator between the two groups, and multivariate logistic regression was performed to analyze the independent predictors of impacted stones for those with differences. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to analyze the predictive power of each independent predictor, and the Delong test was used to analyze whether the difference in the area under the curve (AUC) of each independent predictor was statistically significant. Results: All 197 patients successfully completed the operation, aged 51 (36, 56) years; 137 males and 60 females. According to the results of ureteroscopy, they were divided into 82 cases of impacted ureteral stones and 115 cases of non-impacted ureteral stones. Univariate analysis showed that there were significant differences in maximum stone diameter, stone CT value, renal pelvis diameter, ureteral wall thickness and ureteral wall area between the two groups (P<0.05); There was no significant difference in age, gender, BMI, history of hypertension, diabetes, stone side, location of stone, CRP and creatinine (P>0.05). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that stone CT value (P<0.01), ureteral wall thickness (P<0.001) and ureteral wall area were independent predictors of impacted ureteral stones (P<0.001). The ROC curve was used to compare the predictive efficacy of independent predictors of stone CT value, ureteral wall thickness and ureteral wall area. The area under the ureteral wall area curve was the largest (AUC = 0.901, 95%CI: 0.859-0.943, P<0.001), followed by ureteral wall thickness (AUC = 0.799, 95%CI: 0.736-0.862, P<0.001) and stone CT value (AUC = 0.700, 95%CI: 0.626-0.775, P<0.001). By Delong test, there were significant differences in AUC between ureteral wall area and stone CT value (Z=4.527, P<0.001) and ureteral wall thickness (Z=3.407, P<0.001). The best predictive value of ureteral wall area was 79.6 mm². The sensitivity and specificity of this critical value for predicting ureteral incarcerated calculi were 80.1% and 89.5%. Conclusions: The UWA, ureteral wall thickness as well as the CT value of stones were all independent predictors of impacted ureteral stones, and UWA had a better predictive value.

The importance of sarcopenia as a prognostic predictor of the clinical course in acute severe ulcerative colitis patients

BACKGROUND AND AIM

Acute severe ulcerative colitis (ASUC) is a life-threatening condition that requires timely referral for therapy. Sarcopenia has been associated with clinical outcomes of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). This study investigated the role of sarcopenia in predicting the clinical course of ASUC.

METHODS

This retrospective cohort study included ASUC patients with abdominal CT scans. Univariate and multivariable regression analyses were performed to identify a practical predictive index for the clinical course of ASUC.

RESULTS

Of 233 included patients, 151 had intravenous corticosteroid (IVS) failure, among whom 32 received surgery without medical rescue therapy. Fifty patients underwent colectomy after medical rescue therapy failure. Of these 82 surgical patients, 42 suffered postoperative complications. Multivariable regression analysis showed that sarcopenia remained an independent risk factor for IVS failure (OR=2.969; 95% CI, 1.547-5.701; p = 0.001), colectomy after medical rescue therapy failure (OR=3.411; 95% CI, 1.147-10.141; p = 0.027), and postoperative complications after colectomy (OR=4.157; 95% CI, 1.364-12.667; p = 0.012). During follow-up, patients with colectomy after first-line treatment had a lower comprehensive complication index and better health-related quality of life.

CONCLUSION

Sarcopenia is useful in predicting the clinical course and postoperative outcomes of ASUC.

OP0290 CLINICAL CHARACTERISTICS AND PROGNOSIS OF ANTIPHOSPHOLIPID SYNDROME PATIENTS BASED ON CLUSTER ANALYSIS: A 10-YEAR COHORT STUDY

Background:

APS is an autoimmune disease characterized by persistent antiphospholipid antibodies (aPLs) positivity, leading to thrombotic events or pregnancy morbidity. High-risk aPLs profiles included positive lupus anticoagulant (LA) and multiple aPLs positivity1. Association was also found between aPLs and a variety of manifestations beyond thrombosis, referred to “non-criteria manifestations” (i.e. thrombocytopenia, hemolytic anemia, heart valve disease and aPL-related nephropathy)2, of which the role in APS risk stratification is poorly understood. The manifestation spectrum of APS is wide, ranging from asymptomatic aPLs positivity to life-threatening catastrophic APS, and patients other than confirmed APS also need proper management. Therefore, a risk stratification integrating demographic data, aPL-related manifestations, aPLs profiles, coexisting cardiovascular risk factors and SLE is needed for management guidance and prognosis assessment.

Objectives:

Using cluster analysis, to identify phenotypes among aPL-positive patients and assess the prognosis of each phenotype.

Methods:

This is a single-center, prospective cohort study of aPL-positive patients who presented to Peking Union Medical College Hospital from 2004 to 2020. Demographic characteristics, aPL-related manifestations, cardiovascular risk factors, antibodies profile and follow-up data were recorded. The primary end point was defined as a combination of newly onset arterial thrombosis (AT) or deep venous thrombosis (DVT), major bleeding events, non-criteria manifestations and all-cause death. Hierarchical cluster analysis with the Euclidean distance and the Ward method was applied to identify clusters of patients and variables separately. Multiple comparison and Kaplan-Meier survival analysis were performed among clusters.

Results:

Four clusters among 383 patients (70.2% female; mean age 37.7 years) were identified (Figure 1A). Cluster 1 (n=138): female patients with SLE, non-criteria manifestations, triple aPLs positivity, high AT rate and moderate DVT rate. Cluster 2 (n=112): male patients with obesity, smoking history, hypertension, hyperhomocysteinemia, triple aPLs positivity and the highest rate of AT and DVT. Cluster 3 (n=83): female patients with the highest pregnancy morbidity rate and the lowest thrombosis rate. Cluster 4 (n=50): 62% male patients with isolated LA positivity, high AT rate and moderate DVT rate. Four clusters of variables were also identified (Figure 1A). From Kaplan-Meier survival analysis, 1-, 5- and 10-year event-free survival rates were 92.6%, 79.8% and 66.8%, respectively. Cluster 3 showed lowest incidence of primary endpoint (Figure 1B), while Cluster 1 and 2 showed higher newly-onset AT risk compared with other clusters (P=0.028 for 2 vs 3 and P=0.049 for 2 vs 4).

Figure 1.

Conclusion:

We identified 4 clinical phenotypes of aPL-positive patients. APS secondary to SLE was always aggregated with non-criteria manifestations. Clinicians should be alert to the possibility of SLE in aPL-positive patients with coexisting non-criteria manifestations, for whom immunosuppressive therapy besides anticoagulation may be necessary. Cluster 4 represented patients with isolated LA positivity and shared similar prognosis with secondary APS and male patients, which confirmed that LA represented a high-risk antibody spectrum. Additionally, cardiovascular risk factors (i.e. male, smoking history and obesity) played an important role in thrombosis events, and led to poor prognosis. Therefore, more attention should be paid to male patients, and the screening and management of cardiovascular risk factors should not be ignored.

References:

[1]Tektonidou MG, Andreoli L, Limper M et al. EULAR recommendations for the management of antiphospholipid syndrome in adults. Ann Rheum Dis 2019;78:1296–304.

[2]Miyakis S, Lockshin MD, Atsumi T et al. International consensus statement on an update of the classification criteria for definite antiphospholipid syndrome (APS). J Thromb Haemost 2006;4:295–306.

Disclosure of Interests:

None declared.

POS0777 ANTIPHOSPHOLIPID RELATED LARGE VESSEL LESIONS: NOT ONLY THROMBOSIS

Background:

Antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) is demonstrated as recurrent venous/arterial thromboses or obstetric morbidities with persistent antiphospholipid antibodies(aPLs). Recently, several cases reported that non-thrombotic lesions of large vessels may exist in APS, while less report described the characteristics of these patients.

Objectives:

The study investigated patients with chronic large vessel lesions (stenosis or occlusion) (LVL) in APS, to detect the features of non-thrombotic arterial vasculopathy in APS (VAPS) by comparing with thrombotic APS (TAPS).

Methods:

This is a single-center study involved the APS database from Peking Union Medical College Hospital (PUMCH) from 2013 to 2020. The study analyzed demography and laboratory index of 18 patients with LVL by comparing with 216 patients with thrombotic APS. Patients with LVL presented no specific vasculitis or in situ thrombosis at the lesion.

Results:

Radiographic analysis in patients with LVL showed widespread thickening/enhancement of vessel wall or multiple segments stenoses, without intraluminal thrombus or atherosclerosis. In comparing with 216 patients with TAPS, the 18 patients with LVL complicated no other autoimmune diseases, had more cardiovascular risks (72.22% vs. 30.09%, P < 0.01), lower inflammatory index such as erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) (6 vs. 11, p<0.05), increased cerebrovascular symptoms which maybe related to cerebral/carotid vessel occlusions (55.56%vs. 25.93%, p=0.01). Population characteristics, complications and antibody profiles in VAPS are similar to TAPS.

Conclusion:

Large vessel lesions in APS could present non-thrombotic and non-inflammatory manifestations which is different from TAPS.

Table 1.

Demographic characteristics

TAPS(n=216)VAPS(n=18)P-valueAge (years), Mean±SD39.36±13.6940.06±13.86.290Male, n (%)88(40.74)9(50.00).300SLE, n (%)53(24.54)0.008Other autoimmune diseases, n (%)4(1.85)0.724B.M.I. (kg/m2), Mean±SD24.10±4.1223.93±3.31.469Cardiovascular risk factors, n (%)65(30.09)13(72.22).001Non-criteria manifestations, n (%)109(50.46)7(38.89).243Triple positive antibodies, n (%)124(57.4)13(72.22).165Double positive antibodies, n (%)46(21.30)4(22.22).563Single positive antibody, n (%)45(20.83)1(5.56).096Arterial thrombosis, n(%)100(46.30)16(88.89).000Stroke56(25.93)10(55.56).010Venous thrombosis, n(%)152(70.37)8(44.44).025ESR (mm/h), Median (Quartile)11(5.00,29.00)6(2.75,14.00).035CRP (mg/L), Median (Quartile)1.52(0.59,4.44)1.28(0.26,1.91).054Hcy(umol/L), Median (Quartile)13.45(11.1,17.1)13.55(10.9,16.38).406

* SLE: systemic lupus erythematosus; B.M.I: Body Mass Index; Cardiovascular risks positive: patients with at least one positive of smoke, coronary heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, obesity or hyperlipidemia; Non-criteria manifestations: at least one positive of thrombocytopenia, hemolytic anemia, vulve vegetation, nephropathy, livedo reticularis, skin ulcer or non-stroke central nervous system manifestations; ESR: erythrocyte sedimentation rate; CRP: C-reactive protein; Hcy: homocysteine.

Disclosure of Interests:

None declared

POS0775 APLS-ASSOCIATED RETINAL VASCULOPATHY AS A PRESENTATION OF THROMBOTIC MICROANGIOPATHY

Background:

Persistent antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL) positivity was a recognized risk factor for thrombotic events, obstetric morbidity and a variety of manifestations beyond thrombosis. The presence of some non-criteria manifestations including thrombocytopenia, hemolytic anemia, and APS nephropathy should prompt consideration for thrombotic microangiopathy (TMA).1 Patients with APS can also present with a variety of ocular and neuro-ophthalmic manifestations, such as retinal artery/vein occlusion, retinal arteritis, optic neuritis and ischemic optic neuropathy, with underlying mechanisms remained elusive. Retinal vasculopathy including retinal artery occlusion (RAO) or retinal vein occlusion (RVO) was recently found occurred more frequently in APS patients with thrombocytopenia2, suggested other possible mechanisms besides thromboembolism.

Objectives:

To explore risk factors and possible mechanisms of retinal vasculopathy among APS patients.

Methods:

In this single-center case-control study among APS patients, we evaluated patients who fulfilled 2006 Sapporo APS Classification Criteria3 with or without retinal vasculopathy during 2018-2020 at Peking Union Medical College Hospital. Demographic data, aPL-related manifestations, cardiovascular risk factors and antibodies profile were compared and a logistical regression model was built. Hierarchical cluster analysis with the Euclidean distance and the Ward method was applied to identify clusters of variables.

Results:

A total of 310 APS patients (67.4% female, mean age 38.1 years) were included, of whom 18 patients were diagnosed with retinal vasculopathy (9 with RVO and 9 with RAO). No significant differences was found among most demographic characteristics, clinical manifestations, or antibody profile. However, APS-related heart valve disease (OR 13.66, 95% confidence interval [CI] 4.55-40.98), APS nephropathy (OR 12.77, 95% CI 4.04-40.35), thrombocytopenia (OR 2.63, 95% CI 1.01-6.89) and high serum IgM (OR 3.67, 95% CI 1.30-10.40) were predictive of retinal vasculopathy (Figure 1 A). APS-related heart valve disease and nephropathy were also found statistical significant in multivariate logistical regression (Figure 1 B). They and other non-criteria manfestations were aggregated with retinal vasculopathy from cluster analysis of variables (Figure 1 C).

Conclusion:

Patients with APS-related heart valve disease and nephropathy suffered a higher risk of retinal vasculopathy including RAO and RVO. The underlying mechanisms of aPLs-associated retinal vasculopathy may involve TMA, leading to a poor prognosis and therapeutic changes.

References:

[1]Kotzen ES, Roy S, Jain K. Antiphospholipid Syndrome Nephropathy and Other Thrombotic Microangiopathies Among Patients With Systemic Lupus Erythematosus. Adv Chronic Kidney Dis. 2019 Sep;26(5):376-386.

[2]Ermakova NA, Alekberova ZS, Reshetniak TM, Kalashnikova LA, Kosheleva NM. [Retinal vascular lesions in systemic lupus erythematosus and secondary antiphospholipid syndrome]. Vestn Oftalmol. 2005 Sep-Oct;121(5):31-6.

[3]Miyakis S, Lockshin MD, Atsumi T, Branch DW, Brey RL, Cervera R, et al. International consensus statement on an update of the classification criteria for definite antiphospholipid syndrome (APS). J Thromb Haemost. 2006 Feb;4(2):295-306.

Figure 1. A) Forest plot of univariate analysis; B) Forest plot of multivariate logistic regression; C) Cluster analysis of variables.

Disclosure of Interests:

None declared

Visual recognition of ortho-xylene based on its host-guest crystalline self-assembly with α-cyclodextrin

HYPOTHESIS

Distinguishing substituted aromatic isomers is a challenging task because of the great similarity of their physicochemical properties. Considering xylene isomers have drastically different geometrical shapes, we predict this would show great impact on the self-assembling behavior of various xylene isomer@cyclodextrin inclusion complex.

EXPERIMENTS

Through host-guest crystalline self-assembly, among three isomers, only ortho-xylene is capable to form hydrogels with α-cyclodextrin. ROESY NMR, molecular simulations and circular dichroism spectra suggest that the ortho selectivity comes from the difference in the conformation of host-guest building block. The larger volume, and steric hinderance of the ortho isomer make it most possibly decrease their tendency to adopt more mobile orientations in cyclodextrin-based complex as meta and para isomers do, resulting in gel formation.

FINDINGS

Herein, we report a novel, facile and environmentally-friendly protocol on the recognition of ortho benzene isomers using α-cyclodextrin through host-guest crystalline self-assembly. Visual recognition of ortho-xylene is achieved through amplifying the structural difference of xylene isomers at molecular scale into macroscopic scale. We believe this work unveils subtle rules to control macroscopic assemblies at the molecular level and highlights the potential of using macrocyclic compounds to improve the quality and reduce the energy bill for separation in petrochemical industry.

Explaining heterogeneity of individual treatment causal effects by subgroup discovery: An observational case study in antibiotics treatment of acute rhino-sinusitis

OBJECTIVES

Individuals may respond differently to the same treatment, and there is a need to understand such heterogeneity of causal individual treatment effects. We propose and evaluate a modelling approach to better understand this heterogeneity from observational studies by identifying patient subgroups with a markedly deviating response to treatment. We illustrate this approach in a primary care case-study of antibiotic (AB) prescription on recovery from acute rhino-sinusitis (ARS).

METHODS

Our approach consists of four stages and is applied to a large dataset in primary care dataset of 24,392 patients suspected of suffering from ARS. We first identify pre-treatment variables that either confound the relationship between treatment and outcome or are risk factors of the outcome. Second, based on the pre-treatment variables we create Synthetic Random Forest (SRF) models to compute the potential outcomes and subsequently the causal individual treatment effect (ITE) estimates. Third, we perform subgroup discovery using the ITE estimates as outcomes to identify positive and negative responders. Fourth, we evaluate the predictive performance of the identified subgroups for predicting the outcome in two ways: the likelihood ratio test, and whether the subgroups are selected via the Akaike Information Criterion (AIC) using backward stepwise variable selection. We validate the whole modelling strategy by means of 10-fold-cross-validation.

RESULTS

Based on 20 pre-treatment variables, four subgroups (three for positive responders and one for negative responders) were identified. The log likelihood ratio tests showed that the subgroups were significant. Variable selection using the AIC kept two of the four subgroups, one for positive responders and one for negative responders. As for the validation of the whole modelling strategy, all reported measures (the number of pre-treatment variables associated with the outcome, number of subgroups, number of subgroups surviving variable selection and coverage) showed little variation.

CONCLUSIONS

With the proposed approach, we identified subgroups of positive and negative responders to treatment that markedly deviate from the mean response. The subgroups showed additive predictive value of the outcome. The modelling approach strategy was shown to be robust on this dataset. Our approach was thus able to discover understandable subgroups from observational data that have predictive value and which may be considered by the clinical users to get insight into who responds positively or negatively to a proposed treatment.

Creatinine-to-cystatin C ratio as a marker of skeletal muscle mass for predicting postoperative complications in patients undergoing gastric cancer surgery

BACKGROUND

Gastric cancer patients usually suffer from skeletal muscle depletion. The serum creatinine/cystatin C ratio (CCR) is a new, simple tool that could serve as a biomarker of skeletal muscle mass. This study explored the ability of the preoperative CCR to predict postoperative complications in patients with gastric cancer.

METHODS

A total of 309 patients with gastric cancer who were undergoing surgery were enrolled in this study. Univariate analyses were conducted to determine the potential risk factors for postoperative complications, and multivariate analyses were used to determine the independent influencing factors of postoperative complications. A receiver operating characteristic curve was conducted to identify the optimal cutoff value of the CCR. Patients were divided into two groups according to the critical value to investigate the relationship between the CCR and postoperative complications.

RESULTS

Postoperative complications occurred in 87 patients. Multivariate analysis suggested that age, red blood cell level, lymphocyte count, cystatin C, CCR, and N factor were independent risk or protective factors for postoperative complications (P<0.001). The optimal cutoff value of the preoperative CCR was 7.117. Compared with the high preoperative CCR group, patients with a low preoperative CCR were more likely to have both mild complications (P<0.001) and major complications (P<0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

The preoperative CCR can effectively predict postoperative complications in gastric cancer patients after surgery.

Not by Serendipity: Rationally Designed Reversible Temperature-Responsive Circularly Polarized Luminescence Inversion by Coupling Two Scenarios of Harata-Kodaka's Rule

Intelligent control over the handedness of circularly polarized luminescence (CPL) is of special significance in smart optoelectronics, information storage, and data encryption; however, it still remains a great challenge to rationally design a CPL material that displays reversible handedness inversion without changing the system composition. Herein, we show this comes true by coupling the two scenarios of Harata-Kodaka's rule on the same supramolecular platform of crystalline microtubes self-assembled from surfactant-cyclodextrin host-guest complexes. Upon coassembling a linear dye with its electronic transition dipole moment outside of the cavity of β-CyD, the chirality transfer from the induced chirality of SDS in the SDS@2β-CyD microtubes to the dye generates left-handed CPL at room temperature. Upon elevating temperature, the dye forms inclusion complex with β-CyD, so that right-handed CPL is induced because the polar group of the dye is outside of the cavity of β-CyD. This process is completely reversible. We envision that host-guest chemistry would be very promising in creating smart CPL inversion materials for a vast number of applications.

Prognostic significance of the Controlling Nutritional Status (CONUT) score in predicting postoperative complications in patients with Crohn's disease

Preoperative immune-nutritional status is correlated with postoperative outcomes. The Controlling Nutritional Status (CONUT) score is a useful tool for predicting the postoperative outcomes of cancer surgery. This study aimed to evaluate whether the CONUT score could predict postoperative complications in Crohn’s disease (CD) patients. In total, 202 CD patients were eligible. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to identify risk factors for postoperative complications. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were generated to examine the cutoff value for predictors of postoperative complications. Among all the patients, 66 developed postoperative complications. The cut-off value of the CONUT score was 3.5 for complications. Eighty-one patients had a low CONUT score (< 3.5), and 121 patients had a high CONUT score (> 3.5). There was a significant difference in postoperative complications between the groups with low and high CONUT score (17.3% vs. 43.0%, p < 0.001). Patients with high CONUT score had low body mass index (BMI), more mild postoperative complications (p = 0.001) and a longer postoperative stay (p = 0.002). Postoperative complications were correlated with BMI, preoperative albumin, the preoperative CONUT score, and preoperative infliximab use. Then, the preoperative CONUT score was an independent risk factor for complications (OR 3.507, 95% CI 1.522–8.079, p = 0.003). ROC analysis showed that the CONUT score was a better predictor of postoperative complications in CD patients than albumin and the prognostic nutritional index. Thus, a preoperative CONUT score cut-off value of more than 3.5 could help to identify patients with a high possibility of malnutrition and postoperative complications.

Preoperative hypoalbuminemia is an independent risk factor for postoperative complications in Crohn's disease patients with normal BMI: A cohort study

BACKGROUND

Malnutrition is universal in Crohn's disease (CD). The body mass index (BMI) is used to assess nutritional status to predict postoperative complications in CD patients. However, some CD patients have a normal BMI. The aim of this study was to evaluate risk factors for postoperative complications in CD patients with normal preoperative BMI values.

METHODS

This retrospective observational study included 315 CD patients who underwent surgical treatment between December 2012 and January 2020. Patient data were collected from a prospectively maintained database. The risk factors for postoperative complications in CD patients with normal BMI values were identified by univariate and multivariate analyses.

RESULTS

In total, 315 eligible patients were included. The incidence of postoperative complications was 30.8%, consisting of 22.5% mild complications and 18.4% major complications. The albumin level, the C-reactive protein level, laparoscopic surgery, and operative time were significantly associated with postoperative outcomes. Multivariate analysis showed that a low preoperative albumin level (P = 0.013, OR = 2.991, 95% CI: 1.255-7.131) was an independent risk factor for postoperative complications in CD patients with normal BMI values.

CONCLUSIONS

A low preoperative albumin level was a risk factor for postoperative complications in CD patients with normal BMI values. Although some patients have a normal BMI, clinicians should still consider the preoperative albumin level in CD patients to evaluate their nutritional status and provide timely intervention to reduce the risk of postoperative complications.

Real-World Experience with AGA Guidelines in the Management of Crohn's Disease following Ileocolonic Resection: A Retrospective Cohort Study

BACKGROUND

Postoperative endoscopic recurrence (PER) is common in patients with Crohn's disease (CD) after surgery. The impact of the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) guideline adherence on PER in real life remains unclear.

METHODS

The postoperative management of CD patients undergoing ileocolonic resection with anastomosis from 2017 to 2018 was conducted based on the AGA guidelines. Colonoscopies were performed within one year after surgery. Clinical data and risk factors for endoscopic recurrence were analyzed focusing on postoperative pharmacological prophylaxis.

RESULTS

All patients were at a high risk of postoperative recurrence according to the AGA guidelines. PER occurred in 29 (28.7%) of these patients. The overall PER rate was 39.2% at one year. The PER rate in patients treated with nitroimidazole, thiopurines, infliximab, or a combination of thiopurines and infliximab for postoperative prophylaxis was 88.1%, 34.1%, 20.5%, and 0%, respectively. Cox regression showed that smoking at the time of surgery and AGA guideline adherence were independent factors associated with PER (HR: 3.75, 95% CI: 1.36-10.33, P = 0.01; HR: 0.36, 95% CI: 0.15-0.86, P = 0.02). In addition, further investigation revealed that educational background was the main factor related to patients' nonadherence to AGA guidelines.

CONCLUSIONS

The majority of CD patients who undergo surgery in clinical practice may be at a high risk of disease recurrence. Thiopurines and infliximab are effective in preventing endoscopic recurrence. Guideline nonadherence is associated with PER at one year, thus indicating that there is room for improvement in adherence to the AGA guidelines.

Compare risk factors associated with postoperative infectious complication in Crohn's disease with and without preoperative infliximab therapy: a cohort study

PURPOSES

The incidence of postoperative complication is higher in Crohn's disease (CD) compared with other intestinal disease. There is less published data yet on the comparison of risk factors to predict postoperative complications in CD exposed and unexposed to previous infliximab therapy. Also the relationship between infliximab and postoperative infectious complications is still controversial. Our aim is to compare the risk factors to predict infectious complications in CD with and without preoperative infliximab and to clarify relationship between infliximab and infectious complications.

METHODS

This retrospective study included 390 patients from June 2014 to June 2018. Postoperative complications were compared in patients with and without preoperative infliximab. Univariate and multivariable analyses were performed to identify risk factors.

RESULTS

Eighty-five patients received infliximab within 8 weeks of surgery. A total of 129 patients had postoperative complications, with 35 receiving infliximab. No significant differences of whole postoperative complications were found in CD with and without infliximab (p = 0.073). However, patients receiving infliximab suffered more infectious complications (p = 0.010). Preoperative infliximab was confirmed to be an independent risk factor in infectious complications (p = 0.042). Multivariate analysis suggested that increased erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) was an independent risk factor for infectious complications in patients receiving preoperative infliximab (p = 0.022), and increased C-reactive protein was an independent risk factor in patients not receiving preoperative infliximab (p = 0.019).

CONCLUSIONS

Preoperative use of infliximab ≤ 8 weeks was independently associated with infectious complications in CD. Risk factors were different in predicting postoperative complications in CD with and without infliximab, and preoperative ESR and C-reactive protein were risk factors, respectively.

Evaluating the risk of post-extraction inferior alveolar nerve injury through the relative position of the lower third molar root and inferior alveolar canal

The aim of this study was to introduce a method to evaluate the risk of inferior alveolar nerve (IAN) injury following the extraction of impacted lower third molars. Two hundred impacted lower third molars adjacent to the IAN were evaluated. These were divided into four classification groups according to preoperative cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) findings: AR, apical region; LT, lateral region of the tapered root; LE, lateral region of the enlarged root; AE, adjacent to the enlarged root. All teeth were dislocated along the long axis or arc of the root by tooth sectioning technique and extracted by a single surgeon. The primary outcome variable was postoperative neurosensory impairment of the IAN. The χ² test was used to evaluate differences in postoperative IAN injury between the classifications. Logistic regression analysis was used to evaluate the risk factors for postoperative IAN injury. The overall incidence of postoperative IAN injury was 7%. Specifically, most injuries involved classification AE (AE 36%, LE 8.6%, LT 3.6%, AR 0%), and the difference was statistically significant (P< 0.05). Logistic regression showed that classification AE was the only risk factor for postoperative IAN injury (P< 0.001). According to preoperative CBCT, the risk of postoperative IAN injury is higher when the IAN is adjacent to the enlarged part of the root.

Prevalence and predictors of surgical site infections after bowel resection for Crohn's disease: the role of dual-ring wound protector

PURPOSE

Surgical site infections (SSIs) have become a leading cause of preventable morbidity and mortality in surgery. The aim was to evaluate the efficacy of a dual-ring wound protector to prevent the SSIs in Crohn's disease (CD) after bowel resection.

METHODS

This retrospective observational study included all CD patients undergoing bowel resection at the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Center between January 2015 and June 2018 at Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital. Risk factors of SSIs were evaluated by assessing preoperative clinical characteristics and perioperative treatments in univariate and multivariate analyses. Outcomes for CD patients with and without the wound protector were compared.

RESULTS

Three hundred forty-four CD patients were enrolled in this study, 121 (35.2%) patients had postoperative complications, of whom, 72 (20.9%) patients developed SSIs (12.8% patients with incisional SSI and 8.1% patients with organ/space SSI). There was a significant reduction in the incidence of incisional SSI in the wound protector group (8.1% vs 16.8%, p < 0.05). No significant differences were identified in organ/space SSI between groups with and without wound protector (6.3% vs 9.8%, p = 0.232). Incisional SSI correlated with preoperative albumin, C-reactive protein, white blood cell, age (≤ 16), penetrating disease behavior, surgical history, open surgery, stoma creation, estimated blood loss, infliximab, and wound protector (p < 0.05). Multivariate analysis identified the wound protector to be one of independent factors for preventing incisional SSIs (OR 0.357, 95% CI 0.161-0.793, p < 0.05).

CONCLUSION

Among the CD patients with bowel resection, the use of a dual-ring wound protector during surgery significantly reduced the risk of incisional SSI.

Comparison of clinical outcomes between mesh-reinforced pancreatojejunostomy and pancreatogastrostomy following pancreaticoduodenectomy: a cohort study

Background

Postoperative complications, especially postoperative pancreatic fistulas, remain the major concern following pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD). Mesh-reinforced pancreatic anastomoses, including pancreatojejunostomy (PJ) and pancreatogastrostomy (PG), are a new effective technique in PD. This study was conducted to analyze the safety and efficacy of this new technique and to compare the results of mesh-reinforced PJ vs PG.

Methods

A total of 110 patients who underwent PD between August 2005 and January 2016 were eligible in this study. Perioperative and postoperative data of patients with a mesh-reinforced technique were analyzed. Data were also grouped according to the procedure performed: mesh-reinforced PJ and mesh-reinforced PG.

Results

Among patients undergoing PD with the mesh-reinforced technique, 42 had postoperative complications, and the comprehensive complication index (CCI) was 32.7 ± 2.5. Only 10% of patients had pancreatic fistula; three were grade A, six were grade B, and two were grade C. Biliary fistula occurred in only 8.2% of patients. Patients undergoing mesh-reinforced PG showed a significantly lower rate of CCI than did mesh-reinforced PJ patients (27.0 ± 2.1 vs 37.0 ± 3.9, p < 0.05). The mesh-reinforced PG was also favored over mesh-reinforced PJ because of significant differences in intra-abdominal fluid collection (5.9% vs 18.6%, p < 0.05) and delayed gastric emptying (3.9% vs 15.3%, p < 0.05).

Conclusions

PD with the mesh-reinforced technique was a safe and effective method of decreasing postoperative pancreatic fistula. Compared with mesh-reinforced PJ, mesh-reinforced PG did not show significant differences in the rates of pancreatic fistula or biliary fistula. However, CCI, intra-abdominal fluid collection, and delayed gastric emptying were significantly reduced in patients with mesh-reinforced PG.

Linking seed germination and plant height: a case study of a wetland community on the eastern Tibet Plateau

Seed germination is the earliest trait expressed in a plant's life history, and it can directly affect the expression of post-germination traits. Plant height is central to plant ecological strategies, because it is a major determinant of the ability of a species to compete for light. Thus, linking seed germination and plant height at the community level is very important to understanding plant fitness and community structure. Here, we tested storage condition and temperature requirements for germination of 31 species from a wetland plant community on the eastern Tibet Plateau and analysed correlation of germination traits with plant height in relation to storage condition. Germination percentage was positively related to plant height, and this relationship disappeared when seeds were incubated at a low temperature (i.e. 5 °C) or after they were stored under wet-cold conditions. The response of seeds to dry+wet-cold storage was negatively related to plant height. Based on the scores of each species on the first two principal components derived from PCA, species were classified into two categories by hierarchical clustering, and there was a significant difference between germination and plant height of species in these two categories. These results suggest that the requirements for seed germination together with seasonal change in environmental conditions determine the window for germination and, in turn, plant growth season and resource utilisation and ultimately plant height.

Comparison between a novel human cortical bone screw and bioabsorbable interference screw for graft fixation of ACL reconstruction

OBJECTIVE

To compare the mechanical behavior of a novel bioabsorbable cortical interference screw (BCIS) with bioabsorbable interference screw (BIS; Polylactate hydroxyapatite) used for anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction in femoral and tibial fixation with doubled Achilles tendon graft in vitro.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

30 paired goat knee specimens were harvested from 15 male sheep aged 18 months. All soft tissues were stripped from the bones of 20 paired specimens, and the last 10 paired specimens were stripped all soft tissues besides ACL (femur-ACL-tibia complex). The Achilles tendon was harvested as graft for ACL reconstruction. The specimens were divided into several groups: BCIS femoral fixation (group A, n=10), BIS femoral fixation (group B, n=10), BCIS tibial fixation (group C, n=10), BIS tibial fixation (group D, n=10), Group E is femur-ACL-tibia complex (n=10). Cyclic loading test was performed from 50 to 250 N at 1 Hz for 1000 cycles and followed by a load-to-failure test at 25 mm/sec. A paired t-test was used to compare the biomechanical properties of group A, B, E and group C, D, E.

RESULTS

No fixation structures failed during the cyclic phase. Cyclic displacement for group B was superior to group A, and showed statistically significant difference after 30, 100, 500, 1000 cycles. Group E got minimum cyclic displacements compared with group A and group B, and showed statistically significant difference after 500, 1000 cycles compared with group A. Cyclic displacement for group D was superior to group C, and showed statistically significant difference after 100, 500, 1000 cycles. Group E got minimum cyclic displacements compared with group C and group D, and showed statistically significant difference after 500,1000 cycles compared with group C. Regarding MFL, group A was superior to group B (572.10±111.12 N vs. 413.96±34.56 N, p=0.118), group E was superior to group A (599.74±85.45N vs. 572.10±111.12 N, p=0.992), and group C was superior to group D (802.88±240.07 N vs. 415.63±51.9 N, p<0.001), group C was superior to group E (802.88±240.07 N vs. 599.74±85.45 N, p=0.024). Regarding YL, group A was superior to group B (521.57±93.96 N vs. 366.99±44.66 N, p=0.109), group E was superior to group A (565.37±66.05 N vs. 521.57±93.96 N, p=0.952), and group C was superior to group D (735.63±242.91 N vs. 394.49±31.90 N, p<0.001), group C was superior to group E (735.63±242.91 N vs. 565.37±66.05 N, p=0.063). Regarding stiffness, group A was superior to group B (157.36±34.31 N/mm vs. 91.98±25.57 N/mm, p=0.001), group E was superior to group A (181.35±25.42 N vs. 157.36±34.31 N/mm, p=0.529), and group C was superior to group D (175.28±43.19 N/mm vs. 128.24±18.92 N/mm, p=0.032), group E was superior to group C (181.35±25.42 N/mm vs. 175.28±43.19 N/mm, p=0.995).

CONCLUSIONS

In vitro, this experimental study suggested the biomechanical properties of novel bioabsorbable cortical interference screw (BCIS) were superior to bioabsorbable interference screw (BIS) used for femoral and tibial anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction in a goat knee model.

Glasgow prognostic score is a practical predictive index for postoperative intra-abdominal septic complications after bowel resection in Crohn's disease patients

PURPOSE

Postoperative intra-abdominal septic complications (IASCs) are not uncommon in patients with Crohn's disease (CD). The appropriate index to predict postoperative IASCs in these individuals remains unknown. This study investigates whether the inflammation-based Glasgow prognostic score (GPS) is predictive in the setting of postoperative IASC CD patients who underwent elective bowel resection.

METHODS

A consecutive cohort of 163 CD patients who underwent elective intestinal resection from July 2012 to March 2016 was retrospectively analyzed. Patients were divided into two GPS groups, one lower and one higher. The GPS was defined by serum levels of C-reactive protein and albumin. Univariate and multivariate analyses were conducted to identify risk factors for postoperative IASCs.

RESULTS

Postoperative IASCs occurred in 25 (15.3%) patients. Compared with patients in the lower GPS group, patients with a higher GPS had a higher incidence of postoperative IASCs (9.85 vs. 38.71%, P < 0.001) and experienced longer postoperative hospital stay (10.53 ± 7.00 vs. 15.71 ± 9.17, P = 0.001). Univariate and multivariate analyses revealed preoperative GPS [odds ratio (OR) 5.016, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.134-22.193, P = 0.034] and penetrating behavior (OR 4.495, 95% CI 1.377-14.670, P = 0.013) to be independent risk factors for postoperative IASCs.

CONCLUSIONS

A preoperative GPS can serve as a useful index for predicting manifestation of postoperative IASCs after bowel resection in patients with CD. Perioperative optimization is required to improve postoperative outcomes for patients with higher GPS.

Experimental Evidence of Kinetic Effects in Indirect-Drive Inertial Confinement Fusion Hohlraums

We present the first experimental evidence supported by simulations of kinetic effects launched in the interpenetration layer between the laser-driven hohlraum plasma bubbles and the corona plasma of the compressed pellet at the Shenguang-III prototype laser facility. Solid plastic capsules were coated with carbon-deuterium layers; as the implosion neutron yield is quenched, DD fusion yield from the corona plasma provides a direct measure of the kinetic effects inside the hohlraum. An anomalous large energy spread of the DD neutron signal (∼282  keV) and anomalous scaling of the neutron yield with the thickness of the carbon-deuterium layers cannot be explained by the hydrodynamic mechanisms. Instead, these results can be attributed to kinetic shocks that arise in the hohlraum-wall-ablator interpenetration region, which result in efficient acceleration of the deuterons (∼28.8  J, 0.45% of the total input laser energy). These studies provide novel insight into the interactions and dynamics of a vacuum hohlraum and near-vacuum hohlraum.

Body mass index is a practical preoperative nutritional index for postoperative infectious complications after intestinal resection in patients with Crohn's disease

The patients with Crohn's disease (CD) are often accompanied with nutritional deficiencies. Compared with other intestinal benign disease, patients with CD have the higher risk of developing postoperative complications following intestinal resection. The aim of this study was to investigate the risk factors for postoperative infectious complications (PICs) after intestinal resection for CD, as well as search a practical preoperative nutritional index for PICs in patients with CD. A total of 122 patients who underwent intestinal resection for CD during 2011 to 2015 were retrospectively analyzed. After operation, 28 (22.95%) patients experienced PICs. Compared with the non-PICs group, the patients with PICs have the lower preoperative body mass index (BMI) (16.96 ± 2.33 vs 19.53 ± 2.49 kg/m, P < .001), lower albumin (ALB) (33.64 ± 5.58 vs 36.55 ± 5.69 g/L, P = .013), higher C-reactive protein (CRP) level (30.44 ± 37.06 vs 15.99 ± 33.30 mg/L, P = .052), and longer hospital stay (22.64 ± 9.93 vs 8.90 ± 4.32 days, P < .001). By analyzing the receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve, BMI have better value in predicting the occurrence of PICs than ALB. The areas under the ROC curves of BMI for PICs was 0.784 (95% confidence interval 0.690-0.878, P < .001) with an optimal diagnostic cut-off value of 17.5 kg/m. In the univariate and multivariate analysis, BMI < 17.5 kg/m (P = .001), ALB < 33.6 g/L (P = .024), CRP ≥ 10 mg/L (P = .026) were risk factors for PICs. Patients with a lower preoperative BMI (BMI < 17.5 kg/m) had a 7.35 times greater risk of PICs. Therefore, preoperative BMI could be regarded as a practical preoperative nutritional index for evaluating the nutritional preparation sufficiency before CD operations. Preoperative treatment with the aim of reducing CRP level and improving the patient's nutritional status may be helpful to reduce the rate of PICs.

Influence of Treg cells and HBV genotype on sustained response and drug resistance in the treatment with nucleoside drugs

We aimed to investigate the influence of regulatory T cells including CD4+CD25+, CD8+CD28- and hepatitis B virus (HBV) genotype on sustained virological response and tolerance of nucleoside drugs. One hundred and thirty-seven patients were enrolled. Lamivudine was administered to 84 patients. Entecavir was administered to the other 53 patients. Before treatment, biochemical tests, HBV DNA load, HBV serum level, HBV genotype, PB CD3+, CD4+, CD8+, CD4+CD25+/CD3+, and CD8+CD28-/CD3+ frequencies were measured. Based on HBV DNA loads after 4 weeks of therapy, patients were divided into response group and suboptimal response group. The lamivudine group received treatment continuously, and then patients were categorized into non-resistance group and resistance group. Compared with the suboptimal response and resistance groups for lamivudine, CD4+CD25+/CD3+ levels were higher in the response and non-resistance groups (t=4.372, P=0.046; t=7.262, P=0.017). In the non-resistance group, CD8+CD28-/CD3+ frequency was lower than in the resistance group (t=5.527, P=0.037). Virus load and hepatitis B E antigen (HBeAg)-positive rate were significantly lower than in the response and resistance group (t=2.164, P=0.038; X2=4.239, P=0.040; t=2.015, P=0.044; X2=16.2, P=0.000). Incidence of drug resistance was high in patients with virogene type C. For the virological response to entecavir, CD8+CD28-/CD3+ level was significantly lower than that of the suboptimal response group (t=6.283, P=0.036). Response and suboptimal response groups were compared in CD3+, CD4+, CD8+, CD4+CD25+/CD3+ and virus genotype, and differences were not statistically significant (P>0.05). Baseline regulatory T cells including CD4+CD25+/CD3+ and CD8+CD28-/CD3+ frequencies have a relationship with the incidence of rapid virological response and the resistance to nucleoside drugs. Patients with HBV genotype C receiving lamivudine more often underwent drug resistance. Antiviral efficacy and the resistance to lamivudine were closely correlated with baseline factors; the same cannot be found for entecavir.