Journal of the Chinese Medical Association : JCMA
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Review
Anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer effects of polysaccharides from Antrodia cinnamomea: A review.
Antrodia cinnamomea ( Ac ), also known as "Niu-Chang-Chih" in Chinese, is a valuable fungus that has been widely used as medicine and food among indigenous people in Taiwan. Ac is rich in polysaccharides ( Ac -PS), making it a promising candidate for adjunctive therapy in cancer and inflammation conditions. There are two types of Ac -PS: general (non-sulfated) PS ( Ac -GPS) and sulfated PS ( Ac -SPS). ⋯ Clinically, Ac -GPS has been used as an adjunctive therapy for advanced lung cancer, as noted in recent reports. However, given the numerous studies emphasizing its anticancer mechanisms, Ac -SPS may exhibit greater efficacy, warranting further investigation. This review concludes that Ac -derived Ac -GPS or Ac -SPS have the potential to be developed into functional health supplements or adjunctive therapies, providing dual benefits of anti-inflammatory and anticancer effects.
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Round spermatid injection (ROSI) into oocytes offers men with nonobstructive azoospermia (NOA) the opportunity to have biological offspring in cases where mature spermatozoa are not detected. However, the clinical outcomes of ROSI remain poor. This study compared the outcomes of ROSI with intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) and investigated the effect of hormonal pretreatment. ⋯ ROSI demonstrated fertilization and implantation rates comparable to those of ICSI for male patient with NOA undergoing testicular sperm extraction surgery. Anastrozole may improve the outcomes of ROSI into oocytes. Further studies evaluating the effect of anastrozole administration on ROSI outcomes are warranted.
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A combination treatment of surgery, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy can improve the survivals of pediatric patients with Ewing sarcoma (ES). However, prognosis remains poor for patients with metastatic disease at diagnosis or recurrence. Other high-risk (HR) features include large tumor burden, tumors of the axial skeleton, and poor histologic response. Several studies have documented high-dose chemotherapy with autologous stem cell rescue (HDC-ASCR) to be effective in such patients. In this retrospective study, we present the results of HDC-ASCR for high-risk ES (HRES) in children and young adults in a single institute. ⋯ HDC-ASCR seems promising as an alternative treatment for HRES in improving OS in this retrospective study with a limited case number.
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Observational Study
Clinical outcomes in ventilator-associated pneumonia patients with and without chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: A retrospective observational study.
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is the third leading cause of death worldwide. Critically ill patients with COPD exacerbations may require invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV). Ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) commonly occurs in the intensive care unit (ICU) and is usually associated with high mortality. Current studies on the association between COPD and VAP are limited. This work compared the causes and clinical outcomes of VAP in patients with and without COPD in Taiwan. ⋯ Our study revealed that COPD was not associated with worse clinical outcomes in patients with VAP. No significant differences in bacterial cause were observed between the two groups.
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The wide-awake local anesthesia no tourniquet (WALANT) technique, which is based on the local infiltration of lidocaine and epinephrine, is widely used in hand and wrist surgery. However, few studies have been conducted on the cost-benefit analysis of phalanx fracture surgery using the WALANT technique. This study aimed to investigate the clinical condition, as well as the time spent for anesthesia and operation. We also performed an economic analysis to compare general anesthesia, local anesthesia with a tourniquet, and the WALANT technique for plate fixation of phalanx fractures. ⋯ Open reduction with plate fixation of phalanx fractures using the WALANT technique or local anesthesia was cost-effective compared with general anesthesia. Patients who underwent phalanx fracture surgery using the WALANT technique experienced less pain on the first postoperative day because of the adequate tumescent technique and not using a tourniquet during surgery.