Medicine
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Meta Analysis
Prognostic significance of platelet lymphocyte ratio in patients with melanoma: A meta-analysis.
The aim of this study was to systematically evaluate the prognostic role of platelet lymphocyte ratio (PLR) in patients with melanoma through performing a meta-analysis. ⋯ Our results showed that higher PLR was associated with poorer overall survival and progression-free survival in patients with melanoma. These findings may help to determine the prognosis and explore future novel therapies based on modulating inflammation and immune responses in melanoma.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Efficacy of erzhu jiedu recipe on hepatitis B cirrhosis with hyperalphafetoproteinemia: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial.
Hepatitis B cirrhosis with hyperalphafetoproteinemia is the intermediate stage of liver cirrhosis progressing to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), there is no effective way to treat precancerous lesions of liver in modern medicine. In recent decades, clinical and experimental evidence shows that Chinese medicine (CM) has a certain beneficial effect on Hepatitis B Cirrhosis. Therefore, this trial aims to evaluate the efficacy and safety of a CM erzhu jiedu recipe (EZJDR) for the treatment of Hepatitis B Cirrhosis with Hyperalphafetoproteinemia. ⋯ The study protocol was approved by the Medical Ethics Committee of Shuguang Hospital, affiliated with University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai (NO.2018-579-08-01).
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Multicenter Study Observational Study
Cognitive decline according to amyloid uptake in patients with poststroke cognitive impairment.
Poststroke cognitive impairment (PSCI) is common, but the impact of β-amyloid (Aβ) on PSCI is uncertain. The proposed study will investigate amyloid pathology in participants with PSCI and how differently their cognition progress according to the amyloid pathology. ⋯ This study will provide a broadened perspective on the impact of Aβ on the cause and outcomes of PSCI in clinical practice. Identifying amyloid pathology in patients with PSCI will help select patients who need more focused treatments such as acetylcholinesterase inhibitors.
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To investigate the mucosal microbiota in the stomach of patients with Helicobacter pylori-negative mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) lymphoma by means of metagenomic analysis. Although some gastric MALT lymphomas are associated with the presence of H. pylori, other gastric MALT lymphomas occur independently of H. pylori infection. The pathogenesis of H. pylori-negative MALT lymphoma remains unclear. ⋯ Taxonomic composition analysis indicated that the genera Burkholderia and Sphingomonas were significantly more abundant in MALT lymphoma patients, while the genera Prevotella and Veillonella were less abundant. Functional microbiota prediction showed that the predicted gene pathways "replication and repair," "translation," and "nucleotide metabolism" were downregulated in MALT lymphoma patients. H. pylori-negative MALT lymphoma patients exhibited altered gastric mucosal microbial compositions, suggesting that altered microbiota might be involved in the pathogenesis of H. pylori-negative MALT lymphoma.
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Clinical pharmacy specialists (CPS) were deployed nationally to improve care access and relieve provider burden in primary care. The aim of this study was to assess CPS integration in primary care and the Clinical Pharmacy Specialist Rural Veteran Access (CRVA) initiative's effectiveness in improving access. Concurrent embedded mixed-methods evaluation of participating CRVA CPS and their clinical team members (primary care providers, others). ⋯ Themes in provider interviews focused on value of CPS in teams, relieving provider burden, facilitators to integration, and team communication issues. This evaluation indicates good integration of CPS on primary care teams as perceived by other team members despite some communication and role clarification challenges. CPS may play an important role in improving access to primary care.