J Formos Med Assoc
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Emerging evidence suggests the significance of microRNA-155 (miR-155) in fibrogenesis and oxidative stress accumulation, but its function in oral submucous fibrosis (OSF) has not been investigated. In this study, we assessed the expression of miR-155 and its effects on the maintenance of myofibroblast activation. ⋯ Taken together, these findings indicate that miR-155 is implicated in the pathogenesis of oxidative stress-associated OSF, possibly through the regulation of RPTOR.
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The prevalence of end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) in Taiwan has been increasing in recent decades. ESKD care and medical expenditures constitute an important part of the entire healthcare system. ⋯ Medical expenditure, including both inpatient and outpatient costs, of the ESKD population continued to grow from 2010 to 2018. The non-dialysis cost in the ESKD population was mainly for cardiovascular disease management and vascular access care, for which prevention will always be challenging.
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Taiwan has the highest incidence and prevalence of end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) worldwide. However, the epidemiologic features of ESKD requiring dialysis in Taiwan are unclear. ⋯ The annual incidence and prevalence of dialysis increased steadily from 2010 to 2018, whereas the age-standardized incidence and prevalence of dialysis remained stable. The increased numbers of patients undergoing incident and prevalent dialysis were mostly elderly, especially men aged ≥65 years. Age-based prevention strategies and multidisciplinary care should be implemented to target the elderly population at risk of developing ESKD.
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Patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) are commonly at high risk of tuberculosis (TB). Conversely, TB rarely causes tubulointerstitial nephritis. A 75-year-old Japanese man who was undergoing periodic follow-ups for CKD stage G3aA3 with membranous nephropathy was diagnosed with acute kidney injury (AKI) (estimated glomerular filtration rate [eGFR]: 15 mL/min/1.73 m2) without prerenal AKI. ⋯ At four months after TB treatment with no immunosuppressive therapy, his eGFR improved to 50 mL/min/1.73 m2, and based on this progress, the AKI was diagnosed as tuberculosis-associated tubulointerstitial nephritis (TATIN). Although TATIN typically occurs with chronic or miliary tuberculosis, it is very rare in early bronchial TB. Identification of TATIN is important in kidney diseases of unknown etiology, and treatment with anti-TB drugs is necessary.