The Prevalence of Neurological Complication after Renal Transplantation.

Objective: To evaluate the incidence of neurological complications (NCs) after renal transplantation by meta-analysis. Methods: A broad literature search in PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane-Library was performed from inception to December 31, 2021, to collect published studies on the incidence of NCs after kidney transplantation. The R language meta-package was used to organize and analyze the data. Results: 17 articles including 1,1119 participants were considered eligible. There were 3 studies that recorded unclassified NCs (249 participants), 6 that recorded nervous system CMV infection (1489 participants), 3 that recorded headache (243 participants), and 5 that recorded cerebrovascular events (9138 participants). There was significant heterogeneity (all I 2 ≥ 75%) in all analyses, and random-effects models were selected. Meta-analysis results showed that the incidence of unclassified NCs was 0.29 (95% CI (0.16-0.48)), the incidence of nervous system CMV infection was 0.38 (95% CI (0.26-0.52)), the incidence of headache was 0.55 (95% CI (0.44-0.66)), and the incidence of stroke was 0.05 (95% CI (0.02-0.09)). Egger's test showed that there was no conspicuous publication bias in the included literature in each group. Conclusions: Headache had the highest incidence (55%) in the nervous system after KT, followed by nervous system CMV infection (38%) and stroke (5%). Nevertheless, due to the inconsistencies in the types of NCs included and the follow-up time, our results might only serve as an epidemiological reference for the specific incidence differences.

Transmembrane protein 88 inhibits transforming growth factor-ß1-induced-extracellular matrix accumulation and epithelial-mesenchymal transition program in human pleural mesothelial cells through modulating TGF-ß1/Smad pathway.

Pleural fibrosis is an irreversible pathological process occurred in the development of several lung diseases. TMEM88 is a member of transmembrane (TMEM) family and has been found to be involved in the regulation of fibrogenesis. However, the role of TMEM88 in pleural fibrosis remains unknown. In this study, we aimed to explore the role of TMEM88 in pleural fibrosis in vitro using transforming growth factor-ß1 (TGF-ß1)-induced human pleural mesothelial cell line MeT-5A cells. Our results showed that the expression levels of TMEM88 were downregulated in pleural fibrosis tissues and TGF-ß1-treated Met-5A cells. Overexpression of TMEM88 inhibited the proliferation of Met-5A cells under TGF-ß1 stimulation. In addition, TMEM88 overexpression prevented TGF-ß1-induced extracellular matrix (ECM) accumulation and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in Met-5A cells with decreased expression levels of Col I and fibronectin, increased levels of cytokeratin-8 and E-cadherin, as well as decreased levels of vimentin and α-SMA. Furthermore, overexpression of TMEM88 inhibited the expression of TGF-ß receptor I (TßRI) and TßRII and suppressed the phosphorylation of Smad2 and Smad3 in Met-5A cells. In conclusion, these results indicated that TMEM88 exhibited an anti-fibrotic activity in pleural fibrosis via inhibiting the activation of TGF-ß1/Smad signaling pathway.

Pentraxin 3 (PTX-3) Levels in Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid as a Lung Cancer Biomarker.

In this study, we investigated the utility of pentraxin 3 (PTX-3) in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) as lung cancer (LCa) diagnostic. A total of 89 LCa patients and 84 non-LCa patients who received bronchoscopy in the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University from December 2014 to February 2015 were enrolled. LCa was subdivided according to pathological type (scale, gland, and small cell lung cancer). BALF samples were obtained during bronchoscopy and PTX-3 levels assayed by ELISA. t-tests, Mann-Whitney, and Kruskal-Wallis tests were performed for the comparison of PTX-3 levels between the different groups. Correlation analysis and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis were used to analyze clinical data. The levels of PTX-3 increased in the LCa groups. PTX-3 levels were higher in the small cell lung cancer (SCLC) compared to non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) groups. In LCa patients, obstructive pneumonia could upregulate the expression of PTX-3 in BALF. The area under the ROC curve of PTX-3 in BALF during LCa diagnosis, SCLC, and LCa with obstructive pneumonia was 0.949 (p ≤ 0.001), 0.672 (p < 0.05), and 0.838 (p < 0.01), respectively. In conclusion, PTX-3 in BALF has a potential value as an LCa biomarker, particularly in cases of SCLC and LCa with obstructive pneumonia.

Analysis of the current status of pelvic floor dysfunction in urban women in Xi'an City.

BACKGROUND: Female pelvic floor dysfunction (PFD), a common disease affecting women, has attracted a significant amount of attention in the field of obstetrics and gynecology in recent years. Pelvic floor disorders can induce urinary incontinence, vaginal prolapse and other dysfunction, which seriously affect the quality of life of patients. This study aimed to analyze the current status of PFD in urban women in Xi'an City. METHODS: A total of 1300 women in the urban area of Xi'an City were selected based on a multi-stage sampling method. A face-to-face questionnaire survey and gynecological examination were carried out, and the prevalence rates of stress urinary incontinence (SUI) and pelvic organ prolapse (POP) and PFD were calculated, Multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed to analyze the risk factors of PFD in urban women in Xi'an City. RESULTS: The effective questionnaire recovery rate was 76.69% (997/1,300). The number of patients with SUI, POP, and SUI combined POP were 124 (55.11%), 64 (28.44%) and 37 (16.44%), respectively, and the prevalence of PFD was 22.57% (225/997). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that the risk of PFD in women with vaginal delivery, delivery times ≥2, menopause or prolonged labor was higher than that in women with cesarean section, delivery times of 1, no menopause, or no prolonged labor (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence rate of PFD in urban women in Xi'an City cannot be ignored, especially women who have experienced vaginal delivery, delivered ≥2 children, menopause, or prolonged labor. It may be necessary to prioritize these women so as to actively prevent and control PFD.