[Cross-sectional study on clinic behavior and therapeutic status of patients with psoriatic arthritis in multi-center].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate and analyse the features of treatment behavior and standardized therapeutic status of patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA). METHODS: Out patients diagnosed with PsA in People's Hospital of Peking University, Haidian Hospital, People's Hospital of Jianyang City, Central Hospital of Xinxiang City, Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine Hospital of Cangzhou City, The Third Hospital of Hebei Medical University from February to June 2018 were enrolled in this investigation. The data including gender, age of onset, course of disease, site of first consulting department, time of the first visit and definite diagnosis, follow-up interval, and use of conventional disease modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (cDMARDs) and biological DMARDs (BioDMARDs) were collected and analyzed. RESULTS: In the cross-sectional study, 133 PsA patients were investigated. The mean age of onset was (47±11) years, the male to female ratio was 1.3:1, and mean disease duration was (16±8) years. Rheumatology department was the most common site of first hospital visit (37.6%, 50/133). Orthopedics department and dermatological department were visited by 24.1% (32/133) and 23.3% (31/133), respectively. Ratio of definite diagnosis was the highest in rheumatology department which was 78% (39/50). The ratio of definite diagnosis of dermatological department was the second highest, which was 19.4% (6/31). The mean definite diagnosed time was 7.6 months since the first visit of PsA patients, and diagnosed time was the shortest in rheumatology department, which had statistical significance. 37% PsA patients were treated appropriately in 3 months, 17.3% PsA patients were treated in 3-6 months and 40.2% patients with PsA visited their doctor more than once a year. 48.8% patients hadn't received standardized treatment before visit, and one third patients never received the therapy of DMARDs. Methotrexate was the most commonly used cDMARDs (58.3%), followed by leflunomide (20.5%) and BioDMARDs (19.7%), and biologicals were tumor necrosis factor antagonists. CONCLUSION: In this multi-center study, the first visit department of PsA patients was widely distributed, and most patients were definitely diagnosed in Rheumatology Department. The time of their first visit and definite diagnosis were delayed due to multi factors. Nearly half of the patients did not receive standardized treatment.

Effect of intravenous and topical laryngeal lidocaine on sore throat after extubation: a prospective randomized controlled study.

OBJECTIVE: The present study aimed to compare the effect of topical laryngeal lidocaine with intravenous lidocaine before endotracheal intubation on the incidence and severity of postoperative sore throat, hoarseness, and cough. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This prospective randomized controlled study enrolled 144 patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy with endotracheal intubation. The patients were randomized to three groups and received 2% lidocaine by topical laryngeal spray (group T), intravenous 2% lidocaine (group I), and the equivalent volume of intravenous saline (group C) before intubation. The incidence and severity of sore throat, hoarseness, and cough reaction at 0.5, 1, 6, and 24 h after extubation were collected. RESULTS: The incidence of sore throat was significantly lower in group T than in groups I and C (6.4% vs. 37.2% and 86.7%, p < 0.001), respectively at 0.5 h after extubation, and it was significantly lower in group I than that in group C (37.2% vs. 86.7%, p < 0.001). Both the incidence of hoarseness and cough were significantly lower in group T than in group I and in group C (14.9% vs. 97.7% and 97.8%, p < 0.001, and 19.1% vs. 72.0% and 93.3%, p < 0.001), respectively. The severity of sore throat, hoarseness and cough in group T was significantly lower than that in group I and that in group C (p < 0.05), and it was significantly lower in group I than in group C (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Both topical laryngeal lidocaine and intravenous lidocaine before intubation have positive effects on preventing sore throat. Topical laryngeal route was superior to intravenous route. Chictr.org.cn ID: ChiCTR2100042442.

Impact of erythromycin on respiratory colonization of Ureaplasma urealyticum and the development of chronic lung disease in extremely low birth weight infants.

BACKGROUND: Chronic lung disease (CLD) is a significant cause of neonatal morbidity and mortality despite advances in neonatal care. Ureaplasma urealyticum colonization of the lower respiratory tract has been associated with CLD, particularly in extremely low birth weight infants. Despite numerous studies demonstrating the pathogenicity of this organism, treatment remains controversial. This study examines neonates colonized with U. urealyticum in the lower respiratory tract and treated with erythromycin, as compared with noncolonized neonates. METHODS: A prospective cohort study of 124 neonates weighing <1000 g at birth, requiring endotracheal intubation and ventilation. Endotracheal aspirates were cultured for U. urealyticum and conventional bacteria twice weekly for the duration of endotracheal intubation. Infants colonized with U. urealyticum were treated with intravenous erythromycin. Maximal ventilatory requirements, CLD at Day 28 and 36 weeks postconception, duration of ventilation, oxygen dependency and hospital stay were documented. RESULTS: Twenty-two infants (18%) were identified as being U. urealyticum colonized in endotracheal aspirates. Colonization was significantly associated with younger maternal age, prolonged rupture of membranes, premature labor and vaginal delivery. Of colonized neonates 14% were delivered by cesarean section, with intact membranes. As compared with noncolonized infants, there were no statistically significant differences in chronic lung disease, duration of oxygen therapy or time to discharge. CONCLUSIONS: Seven published cohort studies of similar high risk populations where U. urealyticum-colonized infants did not receive erythromycin therapy, show a consistent association with CLD (pooled relative risk + 5.21; 95% confidence interval, 2.93 to 9.64). This association was not demonstrated in the current study and adds further weight to the need for a randomized controlled trial to be performed to evaluate this treatment regimen.

Nitric oxide modulates regional blood flow differences in the fetal gastrointestinal tract.

We studied the role of endogenous nitric oxide (NO) in the regulation of gastrointestinal (GI) circulation in 11 chronically instrumented and unanesthetized late-gestation fetal sheep. Systemic and GI blood flows were measured by the radiolabeled microsphere technique. Mean arterial pressure (MAP), heart rate, blood flows, oxygen delivery, and vascular resistance were determined before and after infusion of the specific NO synthase inhibitor, N omega-nitro-L-arginine (L-NNA), to cumulative doses of 10 and 25 mg/kg. At both L-NNA doses, MAP increased, and combined ventricular output and heart rate decreased. GI blood flow and oxygen delivery decreased and vascular resistance increased for the stomach, all segments of the small intestine, and proximal colon and cecum but were unchanged in the middle and distal colon and rectum. Because blood flow reduction in the small intestine was pronounced (from 176 to 107 ml.min-1.100 g-1, P < 0.001) and blood flow in the large intestine was unchanged, distribution of intestinal blood flow became more uniform. Overall, blood flow reduction was proportionally greater in GI circulation than in the remainder of fetal circulation. In three additional animals we established that L-NNA reduced blood flow to the mucosal-submucosal layer (P < 0.02) but not to the muscularis serosa of the small intestine. In the same animals, L-arginine (250 mg/kg) restored systemic hemodynamics and partially restored small intestinal blood flow. Our results suggest that NO is an important differential regulator of vascular tone in the developing GI circulation.

Major vasodilator role for nitric oxide in the gastrointestinal circulation of the mid-gestation fetal lamb.

As nitric oxide (NO) may be a particularly important vasodilator in early life, we investigated its role in the regulation of the gastrointestinal (GI) circulation at mid-gestation. Cardiac output and GI blood flow were measured by the radioactive microsphere technique in eight chronically instrumented and unanesthetized mid-gestation fetal sheep. Mean arterial pressure (MAP), heart rate, blood flow, oxygen delivery, and vascular resistance were determined before and after infusion of the specific NO synthase inhibitor, Nomega-nitro-L-arginine (L-NNA) at doses of 10 and 25 mg/kg. In response to L-NNA infusion, MAP increased (p < 0.01) and combined ventricular output decreased (p < 0.001). GI blood flow and oxygen delivery decreased and vascular resistance increased in the stomach and all segments of the small and large intestine (all p < 0.001). The greatest reduction in blood flow was in the small intestine (p < 0.01) and the basal differential pattern of small intestinal blood flow exceeding large intestinal flow was completely abolished. These changes were much greater than those previously described in late-gestation fetuses. Our results suggest that, at mid-gestation, NO plays a major role in the regulation of blood flow and vascular tone across all segments of the fetal GI tract, with its effects being more pronounced than later in development.