Cut-off points of neck and waist circumference as predictors of obstructive sleep apnea in the Colombian population: a comparison with polysomnography

ABSTRACT BACKGROUND: Neck circumference (NC) is a useful anthropometric measure for predicting obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). Ethnicity and sex also influence obesity phenotypes. NC cut-offs for defining OSA have not been established for the Latin American population. OBJECTIVES: To evaluate NC, waist circumference (WC), and body mass index (BMI) as predictors of OSA in the Colombian population and to determine optimal cut-off points. DESIGN AND SETTING: Diagnostic tests were conducted at the Javeriana University, Bogota. METHODS: Adults from three cities in Colombia were included. NC, WC, and BMI were measured, and a polysomnogram provided the reference standard. The discrimination capacity and best cut-off points for diagnosing OSA were calculated. RESULTS: 964 patients were included (57.7% men; median age, 58 years) and 43.4% had OSA. The discrimination capacity of NC was similar for men and women (area under curve, AUC 0.63 versus 0.66, P = 0.39) but better for women under 60 years old (AUC 0.69 versus 0.57, P < 0.05). WC had better discrimination capacity for women (AUC 0.69 versus 0.57, P < 0.001). There were no significant differences in BMI. Optimal NC cut-off points were 36.5 cm for women (sensitivity [S]: 71.7%, specificity [E]: 55.3%) and 41 cm for men (S: 56%, E: 62%); and for WC, 97 cm for women (S: 65%, E: 69%) and 99 cm for men (S: 53%, E: 58%). CONCLUSIONS: NC and WC have moderate discrimination capacities for diagnosing OSA. The cut-off values suggest differences between Latin- and North American as well as Asian populations.

Puntaje de riesgo finlandés para detección de disglucemia en adultos en Unidad de Medicina Familiar

Establecer la capacidad discriminativa del puntaje de riesgo finlandés para disglucemia en usuarios de una unidad de medicina familiar localizada en zona conurbana del Estado de Guerrero, México. Material y métodos: Realizamos un estudio transversal de marzo a diciembre del 2021 en una Unidad de Medicina Familiar. Previo consentimiento informado aplicamos a 200 personas de 20 a 60 años, el puntaje de riesgo finlandés para detección de disglucemia, obtuvimos medidas somatométricas y cifras de glucosa plasmática en ayuno. Estimamos sensibilidad, especificidad, valor predictivo positivo y negativo, razón de verosimilitud positiva y negativa, y calculamos el área bajo la curva (AUC) para estimar la capacidad discriminativa del puntaje de riesgo, donde la prueba de referencia fue la glucosa en ayuno. Realizamos análisis bivariado para identificar factores asociados a disglucemia, obteniendo Odds Ratio (OR), e intervalos de confianza del 95 % (IC95%). La ocurrencia de disglucemia fue de 26.5 % (53/200). El AUC de la curva ROC del puntaje finlandés para disglucemia fue de 0.65 (IC95% 0.57-0.74). Los factores asociados a diabetes fueron ≥40 años (OR 2.1; IC95% 1.1-3.9), índice de masa corporal ≥25 Kg/m2 (OR 2.8; IC95% 1.2-6.7) y padecer hipertensión arterial (OR 2.2; IC95% 1.1-4.4). El FINDRISC demostró por AUC ser una mala herramienta para detectar personas en riesgo de padecer disglucemia, en población adscrita a unidad médica conurbana.

To establish the discriminative capacity of the Finnish risk score for dysglycemia in users of a family medicine unit located in the suburbs of the State of Guerrero, Mexico. We conducted a cross-sectional study from March to December 2021 in a Family Medicine Unit. With prior informed consent, we applied the Finnish risk score for the detection of dysglycemia to 200 people between the ages of 20 and 60, we obtained somatometric measurements and fasting plasma glucose figures. We estimated sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive value, positive and negative likelihood ratio, and calculated the area under the curve (AUC) to estimate the discriminative ability of the risk score, where the reference test was fasting glucose. We performed bivariate analysis to identify factors associated with dysglycemia, obtaining Odds Ratio (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (95%CI). Result: The occurrence of dysglycemia was 26.5% (53/200). The AUC of the ROC curve of the Finnish score for dysglycemia was 0.65 (95%CI 0.57-0.74). The factors associated with diabetes were ≥40 years (OR 2.1; 95%CI 1.1-3.9), body mass index ≥25 Kg/m2 (OR 2.8; 95%CI 1.2-6.7) and suffering from arterial hypertension (OR 2.2; 95%CI 1.1 -4.4). The FINDRISC was shown by AUC to be a poor tool for detecting people at risk of suffering from dysglycemia, in a population attached to a suburban medical unit

The Predictive Ability of MAGGIC Score After Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting: A Comparative Study

ABSTRACT Introduction: The European System for Cardiac Operative Risk Evaluation (EuroSCORE) II and the Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) are validated scoring systems for short-term risk estimation after coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). The Meta-Analysis Global Group in Chronic Heart Failure (MAGGIC) risk score is originally aimed to estimate mortality in heart failure patients; however, it has showed a similar power to predict mortality after heart valve surgery. In this study, we sought to evaluate whether MAGGIC score may predict short and long-term mortality after CABG and to compare its power with EuroSCORE II and STS scoring systems. Methods: Patients who underwent CABG due to chronic coronary syndrome at our institution were included in this retrospective study. Follow-up data were used to define the predictive ability of MAGGIC and to compare it with STS and EuroSCORE-II for early, one-year, and up to 10-year mortality. Results: MAGGIC, STS, and EuroSCORE-II scores had good prognostic power, moreover MAGGIC was better for predicting 30-day (area under the curve [AUC]: 0.903; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.871-0.935), one-year (AUC: 0.931; 95% CI: 0.907-0.955), and 10-year (AUC: 0.923; 95% CI: 0.893-0.954) mortality. MAGGIC was found to be an independent predictor to sustain statistically significant association with mortality in follow-up. Conclusion: MAGGIC scoring system had a good predictive accuracy for early and long-term mortality in patients undergoing CABG when compared to EuroSCORE-II and STS scores. It requires limited variables for calculation and still yields better prognostic power in determining 30-day, one-year, and up to 10-year mortality.

Factors Predicting Early Major Adverse Events in the Intensive Care Unit After Successful Cardiac Surgery for Congenital Heart Disease in Full-Term Neonates

ABSTRACT Objective: In this study, we aimed to evaluate the factors affecting major adverse event (MAE) development after full-term neonatal cardiac surgery. Methods: This study was conducted retrospectively on newborns who underwent congenital heart surgery between June 1, 2020, and June 1, 2022. MAE was defined as the presence of at least one of the following: cardiac arrest, unplanned reoperation, emergency chest opening, admission to the advanced life support system, and death. The role of blood lactate level, vasoactive inotropic score (VIS), and cerebral near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) changes in predicting MAE was investigated. Results: A total of 240 patients (50% male) were operated during the study period. The median age of patients was seven days (interquartile range 3-10 days). MAE was detected in 19.5% of the cases. Peak blood lactate levels >7 mmol/liter (area under the curve [AUC] 0.72, 95% confidence interval [CI] [0.62-0.82], P<0.001, sensitivity 76%, specificity 82%, positive predictive value [PPV] 88%) was an independent risk factor for MAE (odds ratio [OR] 2.7 [95% CI 1.3-6]). More than 30% change in NIRS value during the operative period (AUC 0.84, 95% CI [0.80-0.88], P<0.001, sensitivity 65%, specificity 85%, PPV 90%) was a strong predictor of MAE. VIS > 10 was an independent risk factor (AUC 0.75, 95% CI [0.70-0.84], P<0.001, sensitivity 86%, specificity 80%, PPV 84%) and strongly predicted MAE (OR 1.4 [95% CI 0.9-5]). Conclusion: Cerebral NIRS changes > 30%, high blood lactate levels, and VIS score within the 48 hours may help to predict the development of MAE in the postoperative period.

Validation of Blood Transfusion Risk Scores (TRACK and TRUST) in a Cardiac Surgery Service in Brazil

ABSTRACT Introduction: Transfusion of red blood cells is recurrent in cardiac surgery despite the well-established deleterious effects. Identifying patients with higher chances of requiring blood transfusion is essential to apply strategic preventive measures to reduce such chances, considering the restricted availability of this product. The most used risk scores to predict blood transfusion are the Transfusion Risk and Clinical Knowledge (TRACK) and Transfusion Risk Understanding Scoring Tool (TRUST). However, these scores were not validated for the Brazilian population. The objective of this study was to assess the accuracy of TRACK and TRUST scores in estimating the need for postoperative transfusion of red blood cell concentrates (TRBCC) after cardiac surgery. Methods: A clinical retrospective study was conducted using the database of a Brazilian reference service composed of patients operated between November 2019 and September 2021. Scores were compared using Mann-Whitney U test. Hosmer-Lemeshow goodness of fit test assessed calibration of the scores. Accuracy was assessed using the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC). All analyses considered a level of significance of 5%. The study was approved by the research ethics committee (CAAE 55577421.4.0000.5201). Results: This study assessed 498 patients. Only the TRACK score presented good calibration (P=0.238; TRUST P=0.034). AUC of TRACK was 0.678 (95% confidence interval 0.63 to 0.73; P<0.001), showing a significant accuracy. Conclusion: Between the scores analyzed, only the TRACK score showed a good calibration, but low accuracy, to predict postoperative TRBCC after cardiac surgery.

Qualitative and staging diagnosis of rectal tumors with dual contrast-enhanced ultrasonography and interventional biopsy / 中国基层医药

Objective:To investigate the clinical efficacy of qualitative and staging diagnosis of rectal tumors with dual contrast-enhanced ultrasonography and interventional biopsy.Methods:A total of 300 patients with rectal tumors who received treatment in The First People's Hospital of Huzhou from December 2019 to March 2022 were included in this study. All patients underwent dual contrast-enhanced ultrasonography and interventional biopsy followed by focus resection. Taking the postoperative histopathological test results as the gold standard, the efficacy of dual contrast-enhanced ultrasonography and interventional biopsy in the localization, qualitative analysis, and staging of rectal tumors was analyzed.Results:The compliance rate of dual contrast-enhanced ultrasonography and interventional biopsy in the localization of rectal tumors was 100%. The sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of the dual contrast-enhanced ultrasonography and interventional biopsy for qualitative diagnosis of rectal tumors were 94.8%, 97.8%, and 96.7%, respectively. The Kappa value used for assessing agreement in the qualitative diagnosis of rectal tumors between dual contrast-enhanced ultrasonography and interventional biopsy and postoperative tissue pathological examination results was 0.947. The area under the curve plotted for qualitative diagnosis of rectal tumors was 0.974. The sensitivity, specificity, and sensitivity of dual contrast-enhanced ultrasonography and interventional biopsy for diagnosis of stage I-III rectal cancer were 94.1%-97.8%. The Kappa values used for assessing agreement in staging diagnosis of stage I-III rectal cancer between dual contrast-enhanced ultrasonography and interventional biopsy and postoperative tissue pathological examination results were 0.923, 0.912, and 0.927, respectively. The areas under the curve plotted for staging diagnosis of rectal cancer were 0.961, 0.955, and 0.970, respectively.Conclusion:Dual contrast-enhanced ultrasonography and interventional biopsy have a high efficacy in the localization, qualitative diagnosis, and staging diagnosis of rectal tumors.

Expression and significance of microRNA-21 and microRNA-181b in peripheral blood of patients with schizophrenia / 中国基层医药

Objective:To investigate the expression and significance of microRNA-21 (miRNA-21) and microRNA-181b (miRNA-181b) in the peripheral blood of patients with schizophrenia.Methods:A total of 100 patients with schizophrenia who received treatment in Shaoxing 7 th People's Hospital from March 2020 to March 2022 were included in the study group. An additional 30 healthy controls who concurrently underwent physical examination were included in the control group. The expression of miRNA-21 and miRNA-181b in peripheral blood was compared between the two groups. The 100 patients with schizophrenia received standardized clinical treatment. Their mental symptoms were evaluated with the Positive and Negative Symptom Scale (PANSS). miRNA-21 and miRNA-181b expression and PANSS scores before and 1, 4, 8, and 12 weeks after treatment were collected and compared between the two groups. The receiver operating characteristic curve was plotted to analyze the value of miRNA-21 and miRNA-181b expression in the diagnosis of schizophrenia. Results:Serum miRNA-21 and miRNA-181b expression in the study group were (2.41 ± 1.12) and (15.62 ± 2.26), respectively, which were significantly higher than (0.73 ± 0.37) and (8.11 ± 0.98) in the control group ( t = 8.07,17.67, both P < 0.05). With the prolongation of treatment time, serum miRNA-21 and miRNA-181b expression and PANSS score in the study group gradually decreased (all P < 0.001). The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve plotted for evaluating the value of miRNA-21 and miRNA-181b expression in the diagnosis of schizophrenia was 0.616 and 0.683, respectively. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve plotted for evaluating the value of miRNA-21 combined with miRNA-181b expression in the diagnosis of schizophrenia was 0.788, which was markedly higher than that for the detection of miRNA-21 or miRNA-181b expression alone. Conclusion:miRNA-21 and miRNA-181b are abnormally highly expressed in the peripheral blood of patients with schizophrenia. Both of them can be used as objective and effective indicators for early diagnosis of schizophrenia. Combined detection of miRNA-21 and miRNA-181b provides higher accuracy in the diagnosis of schizophrenia than the detection of miRNA-21 or miRNA-181b alone.

Value of serum IgG4 and IgG4/IgG ratio in differential diagnosis of autoimmune diseases / 中国基层医药

Objective:To investigate the value of immunoglobulin G4 (IgG4) and IgG4/ immunoglobulin G (IgG) ratio in the differential diagnosis of IgG4-related diseases (IgG4-RD) and other autoimmune diseases.Methods:A total of 35 patients with IgG4-RD and 937 patients with autoimmune diseases who received treatment in Beijing Hospital from January 2021 to July 2022, and 200 subjects who concurrently underwent health checkups in the same hospital were included in this study. The IMMAGE 800 and BN II automatic special protein analyzers were used to detect IgG and IgG4. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve of IgG4 and IgG4/IgG ratio was plotted.Results:Serum IgG4 level and IgG4/IgG ratio in the IgG4-RD group were 2.83 (2.01, 5.07) g/L and 25% (18%, 43%) respectively, which were higher than 0.35 (0.16, 0.72) g/L, 3% (1%, 6%) in the autoimmune disease group and 0.27 (0.14, 0.49) g/L, 2% (1%, 4%) in the healthy control group ( U = 795.50, 82.50, 1 744.50, 205.50, all P < 0.001). Taking IgG4 ≥ 1.35 g/L as the standard, patients with IgG4 ≥ 1.35 g/L in the three groups were screened out. There was a statistically significant difference in IgG4/IgG ratio between the IgG4-RD group and the non-IgG4-RD group ( U = 453.50, P < 0.001). The ROC curve of IgG4 and IgG4/IgG ratio showed that when IgG4 was 1.47 g/L, the sensitivity was 91.7%, the specificity was 83.5%, and the area under the ROC curve was 0.96. When IgG4/IgG was 12.5%, the sensitivity was 91.4%, the specificity was 85%, and the area under the ROC curve was 0.96. Taking IgG4 ≥ 1.47 g/L and IgG4/IgG ≥ 12.5% as the diagnostic criteria of IgG4-RD, the sensitivity was 94.3%, the specificity was 85.9%, and the area under the ROC curve was 0.96, which were higher than the sensitivity (87.2%) and diagnostic specificity (82.6%) provided by IgG4 alone. Conclusion:Because non-IgG4-RD diseases can also have the phenomenon of increased IgG4, when IgG4 ≥ 1.47 g/L is taken as the diagnostic criteria, its diagnostic sensitivity and specificity are the highest. Combined detection of IgG4 and IgG4/IgG ratio can increase the diagnostic efficacy of IgG4-RD.

Efectos de la migración venezolana sobre la notificación de casos de VIH en Colombia / Effects of the Venezuelan migration phenomenon on the notification of HIV cases in Colombia

Resumen Introducción: En la última década, millones de venezolanos han emigrado de su país; Colombia ha sido su principal destino. Es importante evaluar las repercusiones de la migración sobre eventos de interés en salud pública como la infección por el VIH, a fin de adoptar políticas pertinentes para atender la epidemia. Sin embargo, la información del estado de salud de la población migrante y su impacto sobre la salud pública en Colombia es escasa. Objetivos: Evaluar el papel de los casos de VIH importados desde Venezuela en el comportamiento del evento VIH/SIDA/ mortalidad por VIH en Colombia. Metodología: Mediante cálculo integral se compara el área bajo las curvas de casos de VIH totales e importados notificados al Sistema Nacional de Vigilancia en Salud Pública de Colombia. Resultados: La curva de casos de VIH importados desde Venezuela tiene una contribución menor (2,26 %) en el incremento de casos notificados en Colombia. Conclusiones: La migración venezolana no es el principal factor responsable del incremento de casos de VIH en Colombia, deben evaluarse otros factores involucrados en la difusión de la pandemia a nivel local.

Abstract Introduction: Millions of Venezuelans have emigrated due to their country's socio-economic crisis in the last decade; Colombia has been their main destination. To adopt relevant policies to address the problem, it is important to assess the impact of migration on public health interest events such as HIV infection. However, information on the health status of immigrants and its repercussions on public health in Colombia is scarce. Objective: Outline how the Venezuelan migration phenomenon has impacted HIV notification within Colombia. Methodology: Through an integral calculation, the area under the curves of total and imported HIV cases reported to the National Public Health Surveillance System of Colombia are compared. Incidence measures are carried out among the migrant population and the Colombian regions with the highest concentration of migrants are analyzed in greater depth. Results: The curve of HIV cases imported from Venezuela has a smaller contribution (2.26%) in the increase of cases notified in Colombia. Conclusions: The migratory crisis is not the main cause responsible for the increase in cases in Colombia. Other factors involved in the spread of the pandemic at the local level must be evaluated.

An observational study of the effect of baseline renal cortical blood perfusion with contrast-enhanced ultrasound on short-term outcomes of stent implantation for severe renal artery stenosis / 中华超声影像学杂志

Objective:To observe the effect of the cortical blood perfusion parameter of wash-in area under curve (iAUC) with contrast-enhanced ultrasound(CEUS) on the effect of short-term outcomes of stent implantation in patients with severe renal artery stenosis (RAS).Methods:Retrospective analysis was performed on 82 patients with unilateral severe RAS who received stent implantation in Beijing Hospital from October 2017 to December 2019. According to the baseline iAUC before CEUS, all patients were divided into the poorly-perfused group (iAUC<850.0 dB×s) (37 cases) and the well-perfused group (iAUC≥850.0 dB×s) (45 cases). Baseline and perioperative clinical-imaging data were analyzed between the two groups. Followed up for 10-12 (11.5±1.7) months, Kaplan-Meier survival curves and Log-rank test were used to analyze the rate of adverse cardiac and renal vascular events and hypertension control rates.Results:Compared with the well-perfused group, the poorly-perfused group showed a longer course of hypertension, more diabetic patients, higher systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, 24 h average systolic blood pressure, and 24 h average diastolic blood pressure, lower glomerular filtration rate, and severe renal artery stenosis. Besides, the iAUC, wash-out AUC and the peak intensity were lower, the average transit time was longer, and the hypoglycemic treatment rate was higher (all P<0.05). Kaplan-Meier survival curve and Log-rank test analysis showed that the occurrence of cardio-renal vascular events ( HR=0.361, 95% CI=0.144-0.907, P=0.012) and renal function deterioration rate ( HR=0.286, 95% CI=0.090-0.914, P=0.035) in the well-perfused group were significantly lower than those in the poorly-perfused group. The blood pressure results demonstrated that the effective rate of hypertension treatment in the well-perfused group was significantly higher than that in the poorly-perfused group (93.3% vs 59.5%, P<0.001), but the improvement rate of hypertension (60.0% vs 43.2%) and cure rate (28.9% vs 16.2%) were not statistically significant between the two groups(all P>0.05). Conclusions:Severe RAS patients with decreased baseline iAUC often have diabetes, longer duration of hypertension, significantly reduced glomerular filtration rate and more severe RAS, short-term outcomes are worse with stent implantation.

Prediction of adverse cardiovascular events in patients with acute ST-elevation myocardial infarction after percutaneous coronary intervention / 中国基层医药

Objective:To investigate the application value of combined detection of hypoxia-inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α), N-terminal proBNP (NT-proBNP) and thromboxane B 2 (TXB 2) in the prediction of major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in patients with acute ST-elevation myocardial infarction. Methods:The clinical data of 136 patients with acute ST-elevation myocardial infarction who received treatment in Jinhua Municipal Central Hospital, China between February 2018 and September 2019 were retrospectively analyzed. These patients were assigned to MACE group ( n = 33) and no MACE group ( n = 103) according to whether MACE occurred. The basic data was compared between the two groups. Serum levels of HIF-1α, NT-proBNP and TXB 2 prior to PCI were analyzed. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was plotted to investigate the application value of combined detection of serum HIF-1α, NT-proBNP and TXB 2 levels in the prediction of acute ST-elevation myocardial infarction after PCI. Results:At 6 months after PCI, MACE occurred in 33 out of 136 patients with acute ST-elevation myocardial infarction, with the incidence of 24.26%. There were no significant differences in age, sex and accompanied diseases between MACE and no MACE groups (all P > 0.05). Serum HIF-1α level in the MACE group was significantly lower than that in the no MACE group [(31.54 ± 5.26) ng/L vs. (37.18 ± 6.94) ng/L, t = 4.286, P < 0.05]. Serum levels of NT-proBNP and TXB 2 in the MACE group were (1 246.83 ± 243.71) μg/L and (125.13 ± 20.16) ng/L, respectively, which were significantly higher than those in the no MACE group [(876.92 ± 173.04) μg/L, (95.73 ± 18.24) ng/L, t = 9.617, 7.835, both P < 0.05]. ROC curve analysis showed that the optimal cutoff values of serum HIF-1α, NT-proBNP and TXB 2 levels in the prediction of MACE occurrence in patients with acute ST-elevation myocardial infarction after PCI were 32.67 ng/L, 1 018.27 μg/L and 112.19 ng/L, respectively. The sensitivity and specificity of combined detection of serum HIF-1α, NT-proBNP and TXB 2 levels in the prediction of MACE occurrence in patients with acute ST-elevation myocardial infarction after PCI were 69.70% (23/33) and 98.06% (101/103), respectively. The specificity of the combined detection of serum HIF-1α, NT-proBNP and TXB 2 levels was higher than that of detection of serum HIF-1α, NT-proBNP or TXB 2 level alone. The area under the curve (AUC) plotted regarding the prediction of MACE occurrence in patients with acute ST-elevation myocardial infarction after PCI by combined detection of serum HIF-1α, NT-proBNP and TXB 2 levels was 0.901, which was significantly higher than the AUC obtained for detection of serum HIF-1α, NT-proBNP or TXB2 level alone ( Z = 2.007, 1.991 and 2.217, all P < 0.05). Conclusion:Combined detection of serum HIF-1α, NT-proBNP and TXB 2 levels exhibits a higher value in the prediction of MACE occurrence in patients with acute ST-elevation myocardial infarction after PCI than detection of serum HIF-1α, NT-proBNP or TXB 2 level alone.

An update on oral drug delivery

Orally administered drug entities have to survive the harsh gastrointestinal environment, penetrate the enteric epithelia and circumvent hepatic metabolism before reaching the systemic circulation. Whereas the gastrointestinal stability can be well maintained by taking proper measures, hepatic metabolism presents as a formidable barrier to drugs suffering from first-pass metabolism. The pharmaceutical academia and industries are seeking alternative pathways for drug transport to circumvent problems associated with the portal pathway. Intestinal lymphatic transport is emerging as a promising pathway to this end. In this review, we intend to provide an updated overview on the rationale, strategies, factors and applications involved in intestinal lymphatic transport. There are mainly two pathways for peroral lymphatic transport-the chylomicron and the microfold cell pathways. The underlying mechanisms are being unraveled gradually and nowadays witness increasing research input and applications.

Application of Receiver Operating Characteristics (ROC) on the Prediction of Obesity

Abstract Obesity is the most common chronic disease, due to its ignorance in society. It gives birth to other diseases such as endocrine. The objective of this research is to analyze the different trends of each BMI category and predict its related serious consequences. Data mining based Support Vector Machine (SVM) technique has been applied for this and the accuracy of each BMI category has been calculated using Receiver Operating Characteristics (ROC), which is an effective method and potentially applied to medical data sets. The Area Under Curve (AUC) of ROC and predictive accuracy have been calculated for each classified BMI category. Our analysis shows interesting results and it is found that BMI ≥ 25 has the highest AUC and Predictive accuracy compares to other BMI, which claims a good rank of performance. From our trends, it has been explored that at each BMI precaution is mandatory even if the BMI < 18.5 and at ideal BMI too. Development of effective awareness, early monitoring and interventions can prevent its harmful effects on health.

German aortic valve score in risk assessment for surgical aortic valve replacement in a brazilian center

Abstract Objective: To test the German Aortic Valve (GAV) score at our university hospital in patients undergoing isolated aortic valve replacement (AVR). Methods: A total of 224 patients who underwent isolated conventional AVR between January 2015 and December 2018 were included. Patients with concomitant procedures and transcatheter aortic valve implantation were excluded. Patients' data were collected and analyzed retrospectively. Patients' risk scores were calculated according to criteria described by GAV score. Sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy (area under the ROC curve [AUC]) were also calculated. The calibration of the model was tested by the Hosmer-Lemeshow method. Results: The mortality rate was 8.04% (18 patients). The patients' mean age was 58.2±19.3 years and 25% of them were female (56 patients). Mean GAV score was 1.73±5.86 (min: 0.0; max: 3.53). The GAV score showed excellent discriminative capacity (AUC 0.925, 95% confidence interval 0.882-0.956; P<0.001). The cutoff "1.8" turned out to be the best discriminatory point with the best combination of sensitivity (88.9%) and specificity (75.7%) to predict operative death. Hosmer-Lemeshow method revealed a P-value of 0.687, confirming a good calibration of the model. Conclusion: The GAV score applies to our population with high predictive accuracy.

Predicting outcomes of penetrating cardiovascular injuries at a rural center by different scoring systems

Abstract Objective: To compare the anatomical and physiological scoring systems and the outcomes of surgical management of penetrating cardiovascular trauma at a rural center. Methods: Seventy-seven patients underwent emergency surgery at our center between January/2012 and October/2018 due to penetrating cardiovascular trauma. Injury Severity Score (ISS), Revised Trauma Score (RTS), New Injury Severity Score (NISS), and Trauma and Injury Severity Score (TRISS) were calculated. The validation of these risk scores to predict mortality was assessed by the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve analysis. Results: All trauma scores were correlated with mortality. As ISS, NISS, and TRISS values increased and RTS values decreased, the mortality rate increased. The area under the curve (AUC) in the receiver operating characteristic curve analysis was 0.943 for TRISS, 0.915 for RTS, 0.890 for ISS, and 0.896 for NISS (P<0.001 for each). Logistic regression analysis revealed that scores were correlated with mortality (P<0.001 for each). By investigating cardiac injuries alone, only TRISS and RTS results correlated with mortality for cardiac injuries (Mann-Whitney U test, P=0.003 and P=0.01, respectively). The AUC was only statistically significant for TRISS and RTS (AUC=0.929, P<0.05 for both). For vascular injuries, all the scores were significantly correlated with in-hospital mortality (Mann-Whitney U test, P<0.001 for each). TRISS had the highest AUC (AUC=0.946, P<0.001). Conclusion: TRISS has the highest predictivity for in-hospital mortality in patients with penetrating cardiovascular trauma.

Application value of quantitative parameters of contrast-enhanced ultrasound in evaluating donor liver from donation after brain death / 器官移植

Objective To evaluate the application value of quantitative parameters of contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) in evaluating the donor liver from donation after brain death (DBD). Methods Clinical data of 25 DBD donor livers and 10 healthy adult livers were retrospectively analyzed. CEUS examinations of DBD donor livers and healthy livers were collected. Quantitative parameters included the area under curve (AUC), maximum intensity (Imax), time to peak (TTP) and mean transit time (mTT), etc. Results Among 25 cases of DBD donor livers, 23 cases showed normal enhancement pattern, and the other 2 cases presented with abnormal enhancement pattern. Compared with the control group, the AUC, Imax and mTT values of DBD donor livers were significantly decreased (all P < 0.05). Conclusions CEUS quantitative parameters can be effective means to evaluate the micro-perfusion of DBD donor livers.

The efficiency study on different scoring models in predicting delayed graft function after renal transplantation / 器官移植

Objective To analyze the prediction efficiency of scoring models at home and abroad on delayed graft function (DGF) after renal transplantation in China. Methods The clinical data of 112 donors and 220 recipients undergoing renal transplantation were prospectively analyzed. The DGF predicted by KDRI model, Jeldres model, and model of our center was compared with actual DGF incidence of renal transplant recipients. The prediction efficiency of each model was analyzed. The predictive accuracy was compared by the area under curve (AUC) of receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. Results The DGF incidence of 220 renal transplant recipients was 14.1% (31/220). DGF prediction using KDRI model showed that 41 cases were high risk donors, the AUC was 0.57, the sensitivity was 0.37, the specificity was 0.66, and the positive predictive value was 22%. DGF prediction using Jedres model showed that 22 cases were high risk recipients, the AUC was 0.56, the sensitivity was 0.13, the specificity was 0.92 and the positive predictive value was 20%. DGF prediction using the model of our center showed that 25 cases were high risk donors, the AUC was 0.80, the sensitivity was 0.53, the specificity was 0.84, the positive predictive value was 40%. Conclusions Compared with the KDRI and Jedres models, the prediction model of our center has higher AUC and sensitivity with a better prediction efficiency on DGF. Therefore, it is a suitable evaluation system of donors from donation after citizen's death in Chinese.

Which is a better marker for overweight: waist height ratio or waist circumference?

Background: The global prevalence of obesity has been increasing. Body mass index, waist circumference and waist height ratio have been widely used for nutritional assessment. Waist height ratio has the advantage of taking into account abdominal obesity as well as height associated with body fat accumulation or distribution. The objective of this study was to suggest cut off points for waist circumference and waist height ratio to identify overweight in Omani adults.Methods: Weight, height, waist circumference and waist height ratio were measured for all participants. Pearson’s correlation was used to determine correlation of BMI with waist circumference and waist height ratio. ROC curve was used to identify AUC and specific cut off point for anthropometric indicators.Results: The largest proportion of overweight was picked up by waist height ratio across both the genders. Correlation of BMI with waist height ratio was stronger (r=0.699) than correlation with waist circumference (r=0.589) for both the genders. Maximum AUC was for waist height ratio in males (AUC=0.833, 95% CI=0.791-0.875). The specific cut off point for waist circumference in males and females was 89.5cm and 87.6cm respectively. The specific cut off point for waist height ratio in males and females was 0.53 and 0.57 respectively.Conclusions: Maximum participants were found overweight by waist height ratio followed by waist circumference and the least by BMI. The higher cut off points should be used in this population for identifying overweight people.

Validated analytical study of the effect of Lycopene on the pharmacokinetics of Paracetamol and Chlorzoxazone in rats

Lycopene was reported to influence some cytochrome P450 enzymes activity. The present study investigates the effect of lycopene on the pharmacokinetics of paracetamol and chlorzoxazone. Lycopene (20 mg/kg) was intra-peritoneally administered to two groups of rats for eight consecutive days and two other groups were given vehicle. On the eighth day, chlorzoxazone and paracetamol were separately intravenously administered to a lycopene group and a control group. Blood samples were collected at different time intervals, treated and analyzed using HPLC. The HPLC method used for paracetamol analysis was based on isocratic elution using a mobile phase consisting of water: methanol, (77:23 v/v) at a flow rate 1 mL min−1, Kromasil C18 column, and UV detection at 254 nm using caffeine as internal standard. About chlorzoxazone, separation was carried out using water: acetonitrile (60: 40, v/v) as the mobile phase at a flow rate 1 mL min−1, Inertsil ODS-3 C18 column, UV detection at 283 nm and esomeprazole as internal standard. Statistical analysis of the pharmacokinetic data using student t test showed a significant increase in AUC 0-t , AUC 0-Inf and t1/2 of paracetamol (P<0.05) and of chlorzoxazone (P<0.05) in the groups pretreated with lycopene (20 mg/kg), significant increase in the volume of distribution of paracetamol (P < 0.05), but no significant difference in that of chlorzoxazone. In other words, paracetamol and chlorzoxazone showed significant decrease (P < 0.05), respectively. These results demonstrate that treatment of rats with Lycopene (20mg/kg, ip) has a significant effect on the metabolic clearance and the pharmacokinetics of both drugs

Comparison of diagnostic value of MRI plain scan and DWI for autoimmune pancreatitis / 中国基层医药

Objective@#To compare the diagnostic value of MRI plain scan and DWI for autoimmune pancreatitis(AIP).@*Methods@#From March 2016 to April 2017, 82 AIP patients in the Central Hospital of Taiyuan were selected in the research.And 42 healthy volunteers were selected as the control group.All patients received MRI plain scan and DWI examination.The imaging characteristics of AIP were observed and the diagnostic value of the two methods was compared.@*Results@#Among the 82 AIP patients, 42(51.22%) had diffuse pancreatic enlargement, 21(25.61%) in local pancreas, 72(87.80%) in pancreatic duct stricture, 68(82.93%) in common bile duct strictures, 67(81.71%) in false envelopes, and MRI plain scanning with low T1 signal, high T2 signal and delayed enhancement.The lesion was high in DWI, and the ADC was low.The average ADC value [(1.12±0.15)mm2/s] was significantly lower than that of the normal pancreas [(1.87±0.25)mm2/s], and the difference was statistically significant(t=22.295, P<0.05). The positive predictive value of MRI plain scan was 72.36%, the negative predictive value was 81.37%, and the sensitivity was 71.94%.The specificity was 70.52%.The positive predictive value of DWI for diagnosing AIP was 85.48%, the negative predictive value was 89.13%, and the sensitivity was 87.52%.The specificity was 88.49%.At ADC=0.001 13mm2/s, the sensitivity and specificity of DWI for the diagnosis of AIP were 86.9% and 89.2%, respectively, and the AUC was 0.826 (95% CI: 0.686-1.804).@*Conclusion@#MRI and DWI manifestations of AIP are characteristic, and the diagnostic efficiency of DWI for AIP is higher than MRI plain scan.