Correlations among serum alpha-(1,6)-fucosyltransferase and early symptoms associated with Parkinson's disease: A cross-sectional retrospective study.

Alpha-(1,6)-fucosyltransferase (FUT8) has been found to play a role in modulating the central immune system and inflammatory responses. Limited studies have assessed the correlations between serum FUT8 levels and various non-motor symptoms associated with early Parkinson's disease (PD). Therefore, our research aims to investigate the associations between serum FUT8 levels and symptoms such as smell dysfunction, sleep duration, sleep problems, and MMSE scores in PD patients. FUT8 and neurofilament light chain (NfL) levels were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA). We analyzed the correlations between serum FUT8 levels, NfL, and early symptoms of PD using Spearman's correlation, multiple linear regression, and logistic regression models. The expression of FUT8 in CSF samples from PD patients was significantly upregulated, with its protein levels in CSF being positively associated with serum levels. Furthermore, there were significant positive associations between serum FUT8 levels with NfL levels, smell dysfunction, short sleep duration, and long sleep duration. However, a significant inverse relationship was observed between FUT8 levels and MMSE scores. Additionally, we explored gender and age differences in the correlations of FUT8 levels and early symptoms in patients. This study reveals that increased FUT8 levels are positively correlated with a higher risk of early PD-associated symptoms. These findings suggest that serum FUT8 could serve as a promising biomarker for the early detection of PD.

Development and validation of a new prediction model for calcific aortic valve stenosis.

Background: Calcific aortic valve stenosis (CAVS) is a common valvular heart disease, but there are limited reports on the construction of prediction models for CAVS. This study aimed to investigate the risk factors for CAVS and construct a predictive model for CAVS based on its common clinical features. Methods: Patients with CAVS who underwent surgical treatment in our hospital from 2016 to 2020 and those who underwent physical examination during the same period were retrospectively studied and placed in the CAVS group and normal group based on the area of aortic valve orifice less than or more than 3 cm2. A total of 548 patients were included in this study, including 106 CAVS patients and 442 normal patients. Subjects were randomly divided into training and validation sets at a 7:3 ratio. The features were dimensionally reduced using the Least Absolute Shrinkage and Selection Operator (LASSO) algorithm in the training set, and the optimal clinical features were selected. The independent predictors of patients with CAVS were determined by univariate and multivariate logistic regression, and nomogram was constructed. The calibration curve, receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve, and decision curve analysis (DCA) were used to evaluate the model in both the training set and the validation set. Results: In this study, 11 independent predictors were distinguished by multivariate logistic regression analysis: history of hypertension, history of carotid atherosclerosis, age, diastolic blood pressure, C-reactive protein, direct bilirubin, alkaline phosphatase, low-density lipoprotein (LDL), lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)], uric acid, and cystatin C. A nomogram was constructed using the above indicators. The model was well-calibrated and showed good discrimination and accuracy [the area under the curve (AUC) =0.981] in the training set, with a sensitivity of 91.89% and a specificity of 95.48%. More importantly, the nomogram displayed a good performance in the validation set (AUC =0.955, 95% CI: 0.925-0.985), with a sensitivity of 93.75% and a specificity of 84.09%. Additionally, DCA revealed that the nomogram had high clinical practicability. Conclusions: This study successfully established a risk prediction model for CAVS based on 11 conveniently accessible clinical indicators, which might easily be used for individualized risk assessment of CAVS.

Safety and efficacy of the Amplatzer Amulet and Watchman 2.5 for left atrial appendage occlusion: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Left atrial appendage occlusion (LAAO) is an alternative to oral anticoagulation (OAC) to decrease the risk of stroke in patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF); however, certain complications remain a concern. Amplatzer Amulet and Watchman are the two most popular used devices for preventing stroke in patients with NVAF. We assessed the safety and efficacy of LAAO using the Amplatzer Amulet and Watchman. METHODS: A meta-analysis was conducted to compare the safety and efficacy outcomes associated with the use of the Amplatzer Amulet and Watchman 2.5. The Newcastle-Ottawa Scale has been utilized to assess the quality of study. RESULTS: The meta-analysis includes seven studies involving 2926 patients (1418 patients with an amulet and 1508 with a Watchman 2.5). Generally, adverse event rates for both systems were minimal. No significant differences between the two devices were found in safety (pericardial effusion, device embolization, and cardiac tamponade) or efficacy outcomes (death, TIA, stroke, major/minor bleeding, device leak, and thromboembolic events). CONCLUSIONS: The data suggest LAAO is a safe procedure, regardless of which device was used. LAAO devices generally have low complication rates. Outcomes were comparable between the two groups with no significant differences in their safety or efficacy.

A systematic review and meta-analysis of published randomized controlled trials of combination of clopidogrel and aspirin in transient ischemic attack or minor stroke.

The use of antiplatelet agents in patients with ischemic stroke is recommended. In this study, we compared the efficacy and safety of the treatment of clopidogrel plus aspirin (ASA) and that of ASA alone in patients with mild stroke/transient ischemic attack (TIA). Randomized controlled trial (RCT) studies of Clop + ASA vs. ASA therapy in the patients with minor stroke/TIA were identified by electronic bibliographic searches. The primary result was recurrent stroke, while myocardial infarction (MI) as well as vascular mortalities were the secondary result, and major hemorrhagic events were the safety result. A comparative analysis of binary outcomes was performed on the treatment groups, with the employment of fixed effect models and the measurement of risk ratios (95% CI). Five RCT studies involving 9,527 patients were included. Compared with the group with ASA treatment, there was significant reduction in the incidence of recurrent stroke in the group with Clop + ASA (RR=0.76, 95% CI=0.67-0.87, P<0.0001), and there was no significant increase in the incidence of vascular mortalities and MI (RR=1.08, 95% CI=0.83-1.41, P=0.56) and no significant change in major hemorrhagic events (RR=1.55, 95% CI=0.72-3.36, P=0.26). Therefore, the treatment with Clop + ASA seems safe as well as effective for decreasing stroke recurrence. In addition, this is related to a statistically insignificant trend in increasing vascular mortalities, MI, and primary hemorrhagic events. These findings need to be confirmed in prospective studies.

[Effects of gender on treatment strategies for elderly patients with acute coronary syndrome].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the effects of gender on treatment strategies for elderly patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS). METHODS: March 2009 to March 2012, consecutive 619 aged ACS patients undergoing coronary angiography (CA) were screened at our hospital. There were 273 females and 346 males. Risk factors, ACS diagnosis, CA results, treatments and prognosis were compared between female and male groups. RESULTS: The risk factors of body mass index, stroke history, smoking history, hemoglobin (Hb), serum cholesterol (TC), low density lipoprotein (LDL-C) and blood uric acid (UA) levels were significantly lower in female group than those in male group (P < 0.05). The morbidity of diabetes in female group was obviously higher than that in male group (27.8% vs 18.5%, P < 0.05). The prevalence of myocardial infarction history, percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) and coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) history in male group were significantly greater than that in female group (48.0% vs 39.9%, P < 0.05; 30.6% vs 22.3%, P < 0.05; 19.9% vs 10.3%, P < 0.01). The rate of combined multiple risk factors (3 or higher) increased significantly in female group (41.8% vs 29.8%, P < 0.05). The incidence of unstable angina pectoris (UAP) and non-ST segment elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI) in female group was greater, but there was no statistical significance. The rate of 3-vessel and calcification lesions in female group was significantly elevated compared with male group (36.26% vs 28.61%, P < 0.05). Regarding the choice of treatment strategy, conservative treatment was common in females, but there was no statistical significance between them. PCI, emergency PCI and selective CABG operation were performed more frequently in female group compared with male group (26.0% vs 14.2%, P < 0.01; 14.7% vs 6.6%, P < 0.01; 19.1% vs 7.7%, P < 0.01). The prognosis had no statistical significance between two groups. CONCLUSION: The treatment strategies have certain limitations for female ACS patients. And an more aggressive treatment should be offered to improve the prognosis.