Medical science monitor : international medical journal of experimental and clinical research
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BACKGROUND As all we know, gastric cancer (GC) is a highly aggressive disease. Recently, circular RNA (circRNA) was found to play a vital role in regulation of GC. Some circRNAs could regulate messenger RNA (mRNA) expression by functioning as a microRNA (miRNA) sponge. ⋯ PPI network and Cytoscape showed that the top 10 hub genes were MYC, CTGF, TGFBR2, TGFBR1, SERPINE1, KRAS, ZEB1, THBS1, CDK6, and TNS1; 4 of which were verified by GEPIA based on TCGA. Highly expressed SERPINE1 had a poor OS (over survival) and DFS (disease-free survival), and TGFBR1 expression increased along with the increase of clinical stages. CONCLUSIONS This study looked at a circRNA-miRNA-mRNA regulatory network associated with GC and explored the potential functions of mRNA in the network, then identified a new molecular marker for prediction, prognosis, and therapeutic targets for clinical patients.
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BACKGROUND The aim of this study was to compare the clinical, imaging, pathological, and prognostic characteristics of combined hepatocellular carcinoma and cholangiocarcinoma (cHCC-CC) and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). MATERIAL AND METHODS Medical records of 21 patients with cHCC-CC and 21 patients with HCC were retrospectively reviewed. Patients underwent a computed tomography (CT) examination within 1 month before surgery and did not receive preoperative interventional therapy. ⋯ CONCLUSIONS Multi-phase contrast-enhanced CT may be useful for preoperative diagnosis of cHCC-CC in tumors with a diffuse boundary, no pseudocapsule, extensive necrosis (>50%), and a dilated bile duct, and when the CT value in the delayed phase is higher than in the arterial phase. VEGF expression is more likely to be positive in HCC than cHCC-CC. There was no significant difference between cHCC-CC and HCC in prognosis, but cHCC-CC was more likely to recur after treatment than HCC.
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BACKGROUND This study aimed to compare femoral obturator nerve block (FONB) with fascia iliaca compartment block (FICB) in the management of acute preoperative pain in elderly patients with hip fracture. MATERIAL AND METHODS Patients ≥65 years (n=154) diagnosed with hip fracture who had surgery within 48 hours of hospital admission included two groups who received ultrasound-guided nerve block, the FONB group (n=77), and the FICB group (n=77). The visual analog scale (VAS) score for pain, requirement for analgesic drugs, nursing care requirements after hospitalization, post-operative complications, and rehabilitation were compared between the FONB and FICB patient groups. ⋯ Patients in the FONB group experienced significantly improved quality of postoperative function (P=0.029). CONCLUSIONS Both FONB and FICB provided pain control for elderly patients with hip fracture. However, compared with FICB, FONB resulted in significantly improved analgesia with a reduced requirement for analgesic drugs.
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BACKGROUND Increasing antibiotic resistance and multidrug resistance (MDR) in patients with bloodstream infection (BSI) has resulted in treatment using bacteriophage. This study aimed to identify Gram-negative bacilli and Gram-positive cocci and antibiotic resistance in patients with BSI in a burn intensive care unit (BICU). The environment, including sewage systems, were investigated for the presence of lytic bacteriophage. ⋯ Screening of hospital and residential sewage systems identified increased levels of bacteriophage in hospital sewage. CONCLUSIONS The causative organisms of BSI and the presence of MDR in a hospital BICU were not typical, which supports the need for routine bacterial monitoring. Hospital sewage provides a potential source of bacteriophage for the treatment of MDR pathogenic bacteria.