The American journal of the medical sciences最新文献

A pancreatic fistula is defined as the leakage of pancreatic fluid into another organ or compartment because of pancreatic duct disruption or pseudocyst formation. It is most often seen in middle-aged men between 40 and 50, particularly in patients who have a history of chronic alcoholism and pancreatitis. The tract may fistulae into the pleura, creating a pancreaticopleural fistula, an exceedingly rare condition presenting as a recurrent pleural effusion and extremely high amylase levels, a key distinguishing factor in diagnosis. Here, we present such a case of a recurrent pancreaticopleural fistula and review the presentation, pathophysiology, diagnosis and treatment.

Background: Hypoxia-inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α) has an essential role in ventricular remodeling processes involving myocardial fibrosis and hypertrophy, but the clinical significance of HIF-1α levels in the early period after ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) for the prediction of left ventricular remodeling (LVR) has yet to be fully elucidated.

Objective: To investigate the predictive value of HIF-1α for LVR after STEMI based on the echocardiographic parameters.

Methods: In this prospective observational study, plasma samples were collected within 12 hours of onset from 183 patients with a first reperfused anterior ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), and HIF-1α levels were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). At baseline and 12 months after discharge, all patients underwent repeat echocardiography. The changes of echocardiography parameters from baseline to 12 months were used to reflect the changes of ventricular structure and function. An increase in end-diastolic volume of ≥20% was defined as LVR.

Results: The levels of HIF-1α were highly correlated with the changes of echocardiography parameters (ΔLVEF, ΔLVEDD, as well as ΔLVEDV). During the follow-up period, patients with higher HIF-1α concentrations had higher incidence of LVR, poorer ventricular function, and a lower MACE-free survival. Multivariate analysis showed the single-point HIF-1α was an independent predictor of LVR (odds ratio[OR]: 4.813; 95% CI: 1.553 to 14.918; P = 0.006). The HIF-1α levels predicted LVR with an AUC of 0.7905 (95% CI: 0.7067 to 0.8744; P < 0.0001). The combination of HIF-1α and N-terminal probrain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) yielded a favorable increase in AUC to 0.8121 (95% CI: 0.7345 to 0.8896; P < 0.0001).

Conclusion: These results demonstrate that serum HIF-1α levels can predict LVR after STEMI independently.

Objective: Methionine synthetase (MS) A2756G and Cystathionine-β-synthase (CBS) 844ins68 gene polymorphisms were indicated to be associated with increased coronary artery disease (CAD) risk. Nevertheless, because the results of each experiment are different, there is no consensus till now. This meta-analysis aimed to clarify the relationship between MS gene A2756G and CBS gene 844ins68 polymorphisms and CAD.

Methods: 11,555 participants from 24 individual studies, 2162 participants from 6 individual studies were included in the MS gene A2756G and CBS 844ins68 gene polymorphisms meta-analysis respectively. To determine whether MS gene A2756G or CBS gene 844ins68 polymorphism was associated with CAD risk, a random or fixed-effect genetic model was adopted using pooled odds ratios (ORs) and their corresponding 95 % confidence intervals (CIs).

Results: MS gene A2756G polymorphism was significantly associated with CAD under recessive (OR: 1.400, 95 % CI: 1.119-1.751, P = 0.003) and homozygous genetic models (OR: 1.360, 95 % CI: 1.084-1.706, P = 0.008). In the African subgroup, the association was significant under the allelic, recessive, dominant, heterozygous, homozygous and additive (P < 0.05) genetic models. In the Asian subgroup, the association was significant under the allelic, recessive and homozygous genetic models (P < 0.05). No significant association was found between CBS 844ins68 gene polymorphism and CAD under all of the genetic models (P > 0.05).

Conclusions: MS gene A2756G polymorphism was significantly associated with increased CAD risk, especially in the African and Asian population. The G allele carriers of MS gene A2756G polymorphism were more susceptible to be suffered from CAD disease than others.

Background: This study aimed to investigate the potential impact of administering albumin and loop diuretics together on in-hospital mortality in septic shock patients.

Methods: Data from the MIMIC-IV database was used for a retrospective cohort study analyzing 3,298 adult septic shock patients. The Cox proportional hazards model and propensity score matching (PSM) were utilized to assess the relationship between loop diuretic administration and in-hospital mortality.

Results: The study found that septic shock patients who received albumin in combination with loop diuretic had a significantly lower in-hospital mortality rate compared to those who received albumin alone (19.4 % vs 33.1 %, p < 0.001). Administering diuretics after albumin infusion was associated with lower mortality rates. Optimal furosemide dosages of 10 to 40 mg daily were linked to the lowest mortality rates.

Conclusion: Co-administering albumin and loop diuretics in septic shock patients receiving high-dose crystalloids may be associated with reduced in-hospital mortality. Further investigation through a prospective randomized controlled trial is recommended to validate these findings.

To investigate the association between obesity and blood lead level (BLL) in the general population after controlled for menopause, blood pressure, calcium, and smoking; we assessed the relationship between BMI, WC (Waist Circumference), and blood lead levels in the non-smoking middle-aged subjects without hypertension among 2018 KNHANES. All data were recategorized into S1 (BMI<25 kg/m² & WC<90 cm), S2 (intermediate), and S3 (BMI>25 kg/m² & WC>90 cm). We made the log transformation of blood lead levels to bring them closer to a normal distribution. Logarithmic transformed BLL was closely related to BMI (p=.010) and WC (p=.020) after adjusting for sociodemographic, energy, working factors, and cardiometabolic variables. The prevalence of ratios of S3, S2, and S1 was comparable according to the quarterly group of BLL. Blood lead levels might increase oxidative stress on triglycerides and low high-density lipoprotein (HDL)-cholesterol; consequently, lead exposure might form peroxynitrite, a reactive oxygen substrate (ROS) susceptible to destroying lipids. Consequently, obesity was significantly correlated with logarithmic blood lead levels irrespective of sociodemographic, energy, working, and cardiometabolic factors in the non-smoking middle-aged population without hypertension. Further controlled clinical trials would be considered.

Background: As a life-threatening complication in patients undergoing surgery, acute kidney injury (AKI) is strongly associated with a worse prognosis. Urinary dickkopf-related protein 3 (DKK3) has been identified as a biomarker for predicting postoperative AKI in patients undergoing cardiac surgery.

Objective: To investigate the predictive value of urinary DKK3 on postoperative AKI and develop a clinical model based on the predictor for predicting the development of AKI within seven days for patients undergoing noncardiac surgery.

Methods: All patients who were admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) after noncardiac surgery from March 2023 to June 2023 were included in this study. The patients' baseline data on demographic characteristics, lifestyle risk factors, medical history, clinical features, and laboratory tests before surgery were collected at the time of admission. Besides, the blood samples for cystatin C and routine laboratory tests and the urine samples for DKK3 tests were simultaneously collected at the time of admission to the ICU. In addition, the independent predictors of postoperative AKI were identified by univariate, multivariate, and LASSO analyses. Moreover, a nomogram for predicting postoperative AKI was developed based on these independent predictors. Finally, the nomogram was evaluated through calibration and decision curve analyses.

Results: A total of 166 patients with a median age of 67 years old were included in this study, including 94 (56.63%) males. Among these patients, 47 patients (28.3%) developed postoperative AKI. Additionally, 7 independent risk factors, including preoperative serum creatinine, preoperative eGFR, preoperative serum albumin, preoperative serum potassium ion, cystatin C, uDKK3/uCr, and SOFA score, were selected by univariate and multivariate regression analyses. Eventually, 4 independent risk factors (including preoperative eGFR, cystatin C, uDKK3/uCr, and SOFA score) identified in this study by LASSO analyses were used to establish the nomogram. The area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve (AUC) for the prediction model was 0.868. The calibration curve and decision curve analysis results demonstrated that the nomogram had good prediction performance.

Conclusions: Urinary DKK3/creatinine was independently associated with postoperative AKI for patients in the ICU after noncardiac surgery. The nomogram constructed based on uDKK3/uCr, preoperative eGFR, cystatin C, and SOFA score showed a higher accuracy in predicting postoperative AKI.

Clinicians frequently evaluate patients who present with dyspnea. This term describes uncomfortable breathing during physical activity, and the intensity or degree of dyspnea can vary in an individual depending on circumstances and between individuals. In some cases, the level of dyspnea appears out of proportion to other information relevant to the cardiorespiratory system, and this situation has been described as dysfunctional breathing. The Bayesian brain hypothesis helps clinicians understand this symptom in these patients. This hypothesis suggests that prior experiences with dyspnea during physical activity or a respiratory disorder provide the background that is used to interpret current symptoms. This review outlines problems associated with the use of the term "dyspnea" and briefly describes how the Bayesian brain hypothesis might help clinicians understand this symptom better.

Background: Carcinoma erysipeloides (CE) is a rare form of cutaneous metastasis appearing similar to erysipelas or cellulitis. Due to its rarity, little is known about CE.

Methods: We here initially reported a case of CE secondary to rectal carcinoma and then reviewed the literature and analyzed the basic characteristics of the cases reported previously.

Results: Sixty-nine patients(including our case) with CE were identified. The mean age of diagnosis with CE was 60 ± 15 yr(min:25 yr, max:91 yr), and 69.6 % of the patients were female. Breast cancer, skin cancer, and gastroesophageal cancer were the three most commonly seen malignancies presented with CE(52.2 %, 11.6 %, and 10.1 %, respectively). Adenocarcinoma(81.2 %) was the primary histological subtype of the cases. While CE was the first presentation of the disease in 20.3 % of patients, it was associated with recurrence or disease progression in 69.7 %. The median time from the first presentation of the disease to the diagnosis of CE was two years. More than half of the patients(55.1 %) have received local dermatological treatment with another differential diagnosis before diagnosis of CE. Only 21.7 % of the patients responded to the treatment, and median survival after diagnosis of CE was 4 months(min:0 mo, max:24 mo).

Conclusions: CE has a poor prognosis and is most common in individuals with breast cancer and adenocarcinoma. Patients generally receive local dermatological treatments with different diagnoses. CE should be considered in the differential diagnosis, especially in the presence of erysipelas/cellulitis-like lesions in patients with a history of malignancy or who do not respond to local treatments.

Coronary embolism (CE) is an infrequent etiology of myocardial infarction secondary to embolization of occlusive thrombi within the coronary arteries, typically arising in patients with pre-existing atrial fibrillation. Clinical presentation is similar to atherosclerotic myocardial infarction, however the condition is likely underrecognized. The simultaneous presence of other embolic manifestations may assist with diagnosis, although definitive therapy, medical or interventional, remains inconclusive. We aim to lower the threshold for clinical suspicion in the appropriate setting and promote assessment of predisposing embolic conditions once a tentative diagnosis of CE is established. In addition, we intend to highlight the need for focused refinement of the existing diagnostic criteria and further optimization of management guidelines for CE.