Medicine
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An international consensus for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients at risk of developing interstitial lung disease (ILD) is still lacking. The aims of study were to evaluate: the prevalence of ILD involvement in RA over high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT); the relationships between pulmonary function tests (PFTs), patient-centered measurements, and ILD; and the potential risk factors contributing to RA-ILD patients. Data regarding the clinical characteristics (age, sex, age at onset of RA), laboratory findings (rheumatoid factor [RF] and anti-citrullinated protein antibodies [ACPA]), respiratory functional assessment (forced vital capacity [FVC] and carbon monoxide diffusion capacity [DLCO]), patient-centred measures of dyspnea (PCMD), Health Assessment Questionnaire-Disability Index (HAQ-DI), and HRCT have collected retrospectively. ⋯ Advanced age (P < .0001), age at RA onset (P = .025), ACPA titer (P = .004), and smoking (P = .008) were independent explanatory variables of HRCT damage in multivariate analysis. The RA-ILD is associated with age and older age of RA onset, smoking, and ACPA titer. DLCO seems to be the most sensitive parameter to predict ILD on HRCT, followed by PCMD.
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Patients suffering from chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) might have negative adherence of treatment. Acupoint therapies, including acupuncture, acupressure, acupoints injection, massage, and moxibustion, are safe medical procedures with minimal side effects for CINV, but studies about overall safety and effectiveness of acupoint therapies have not been scientifically and methodically evaluated in recent years. Evaluating the overall safety and effectiveness of acupoint therapies in patients with CINV is the purpose of this review. ⋯ CRD42019125538.
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Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women worldwide, and it is a main cause of death in women. As with breast cancer, metabolic components are important risk factors for the development of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). In this retrospective cohort study, we aimed to determine the prevalence of NAFLD in patients with breast cancer and the impact of NAFLD on the prognosis of breast cancer. ⋯ The prevalence of NAFLD in patients with breast cancer is significantly higher than in healthy controls. Moreover, breast cancer patients with NAFLD showed poorer prognosis in terms of recurrence. Therefore, diagnostic evaluation for NALFD is important in managing patients with breast cancer.
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This study aimed to compare the catastrophic health expenditure (CHE) and impoverishment of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients between 2 ethnic groups and explore the contribution of associated factors to ethnic differences in CHE and impoverishment in Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, China. A cross-sectional study was conducted in 2 public hospitals from October 2016 to June 2017. Data were collected by interviewing eligible Hui and Han T2DM inpatients and reviewing the hospital electronic records. ⋯ Household income, occupation, and region were significant contributing factors. Hui T2DM patients suffered greater CHE and impoverishment than Han patients regardless of reimbursements from health insurance. Differences in socioeconomic status between Hui and Han patients were the main factors behind the ethnic differences.
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This study aimed to determine the association between different lymphocyte subsets and cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection status in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). We performed a retrospective study among SLE patients with CMV infection and collected patient socio-demographic and clinical characteristics, as well as their recorded circulating lymphocyte subsets. Univariate and multivariable logistic regression analyses examined the relationship between CMV infection status and lymphocyte subset counts. ⋯ Analysis of lymphocyte subsets via flow cytometry showed that CD4+ T cell, CD8+ T cell, and natural killer cell counts were lower among those with CMV disease compared to those with CMV viremia and those without infection. Further, multivariable analysis showed that total lymphocyte (odds ratio [OR] 0.999, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.998-1.000, P = .007) and CD4+ T cell counts (OR 0.99, 95% CI 0.992-0.998, P = .003) were negatively associated with CMV disease. Our findings support a potential inverse relationship between lymphopenia, specifically CD4+ T-cell lymphopenia, and CMV disease among hospitalized SLE patients.