Does erectile dysfunction predict cardiovascular risk? A cross-sectional study of clinical characteristics in patients with erectile dysfunction combined with coronary heart disease.

Background: Erectile Dysfunction (ED) is a common sexual dysfunction in men who are unable to consistently obtain and maintain sufficient penile erection to accomplish a satisfactory sexual life. ED is currently considered to be a predictor of cardiovascular disease (CVD), but few studies have observed the association between ED and clinical features of coronary heart disease (CHD). An investigation of the association between ED and clinical characteristics of CHD was carried out using a cross-sectional study design. Methods: This cross-sectional single-center study was conducted in the Department of Cardiology and included 248 patients. Associations between patients' general information, underlying disease information, coronary heart disease information, and ED severity were statistically and analytically analyzed using SPSS 26.0 software. Patients with comparable clinical characteristics were grouped together using K-means clustering. Finally, ordered logistic regression analysis was performed for general and underlying disease information. Results: In the comparison of general data, age, education, and weekly exercise were associated with the distribution of ED severity. In the comparison of underlying disease information, the number of underlying diseases, hypertension, diabetes, hyperlipidemia, anxiety state, and depressive state were associated with the distribution of ED severity. In the comparison of CHD information, the degree of ED severity was associated with CHD subtypes, lesion sites, number of stenoses, degree of stenosis, and interventional interventions. The time from ED to CHD onset was associated with the subtypes of CHD and the number of stenoses. We clustered the main characteristics of low-risk and high-risk patients and ordered logistic regression analysis found that BMI, smoking, alcoholism, number of underlying diseases, diabetes, anxiety state, and depression state were all risk factors for CHD severity (P < 0.05); the higher the value of the above factors, the more severe the degree of CHD. Age was a protective factor for CHD severity; the younger the patient, the lower the likelihood of myocardial infarction. Conclusion: ED severity and the time from ED to CHD onset may be predictive of coronary heart disease severity. Reducing smoking and alcohol consumption, maintaining a healthy body weight, and regular physical activity are important in preventing CVD in ED patients.

A comprehensive analysis of the KLRB1 expression and its clinical implication in testicular germ cell tumors: A review.

Testicular germ cell tumors (TGCT) are the most common testicular malignancies. KLRB1 is considered to influence the development and progression of a number of cancers. However, it is unclear how the KLRB1 gene functions in TGCT. First, it was determined the expression level of KLRB1 in TGCT using The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) (The Cancer Genome Atlas) dataset and GTEx (Genotype-Tissue Expression) dataset. The clinical significance and biological functions of KLRB1 were explored using the TCGA dataset, and we analyzed the correlation of the KLRB1 gene with tumor immunity and infiltrating immune cells using gene set variation analysis and the TIMER database. We found that the expression level of KLRB1 was upregulated in TGCT malignant tissues with the corresponding normal tissues as controls, and KLRB1 expression correlated with clinicopathologic features of TGCT. Functional enrichment analysis suggested that KLRB1 might be involved in immune response and inflammatory response. KLRB1 was highly positively correlated with natural killer cell activation in immune response and positively correlated with tumor-infiltrating immune cells. This study demonstrated for the first time the role of KLRB1 in TGCT, which may serve as a new biomarker associated with immune infiltration and provide a potential therapeutic target for the treatment of TGCT.

[Effect of bird-induced anus-lifting surgery combined with oral Relinqing Granules on LUTS/CP with damp heat syndrome: Evaluation by infrared thermal imaging].

OBJECTIVE: To observe the clinical effect of bird-induced anus-lifting surgery (BIAL) combined with oral Relinqing Granules (RG) in the treatment of lower urinary tract symptoms / chronic prostatitis (LUTS/CP) with damp-heat syndrome using infrared thermal imaging (ITI). METHODS: This study included 165 cases of LUTS/CP with damp-heat syndrome treated in the Departments of Andrology and Urology of our hospital, which were divided into three groups of an equal number and treated by medication of oral tamsulosin hydrochloride at 0.2 mg, qd plus levofloxacin at 0.2 g bid (control), anus-lifting exercise (15 lifts once a day) combined with oral RG at 8 g tid (routine treatment) and BIAL (15 lifts once a day) combined with oral RG at 8 g tid (BIAL+RG), respectively, all for two weeks. We recorded the ITI indicators, NIH-CPSI and Self-Rating Anxiety Scale (SAS) scores of patients before and after treatment, observed adverse reactions during the treatment, and compared them among the three groups of patients. RESULTS: Compared with the baseline, NIH-CPSI and SAS scores were significantly reduced in all the three groups after treatment (P < 0.05), even more significantly in the BIAL+RG (10.49 ± 2.97 and 49.73 ± 2.79) than in the control (21.15 ± 3.56 and 52.62 ± 5.38) and routine treatment groups (15.55 ± 2.77 and 52.35 ± 3.87) (P < 0.05). The ITI temperature at the related parts of the body was remarkably decreased in the three groups after treatment (P < 0.05), even lower in the BIAL+RG group (30.47 ± 1.61, 32.14 ± 1.25, 31.16 ± 1.58, 31.97 ± 1.19) than in the control (33.39 ± 0.6, 33.64 ± 1.07, 32.78 ± 0.58, 33.18 ± 0.78) and routine treatment groups (31.93 ± 1.14, 33.06 ± 0.8, 33.08 ± 0.82, 33.17 ± 1.05) (P < 0.05), with statistically significant difference from the baseline in the BIAL+RG group after 12 hours and 24 hours of treatment (ï¼»34.26 ± 0.06ï¼½ vs ï¼»32.65 ± 0.05ï¼½ and ï¼»32.72 ± 0.09ï¼½, P < 0.05), but not between the two time points (P > 0.05). The incidence rate of adverse reactions was markedly lower in the BIAL+RG and routine treatment groups than in the control (P < 0.05) but not significantly different between the BIAL+RG and routine treatment groups (P > 0.05). CONCLUSION: Bird-induced anus-lifting surgery combined with oral Relinqing Granules can safely and significantly improve infrared thermal imaging indicators and NIH-CPSI scores in LUTS/CP patients with damp-heat syndrome.

Clinical study of comprehensive TCM therapy in the treatment of damp and hot stasis erectile dysfunction.

BACKGROUND: The dilemma of male sexual dysfunction has been the focus of the whole society. Erectile dysfunction (ED) is one of the common sexual dysfunctions, and traditional Chinese medicine therapy has shown potential benefits in the treatment of ED. Comprehensive therapy of traditional Chinese medicine (CTTCM) is a comprehensive application of Chinese medicine therapy for auxiliary intervention. Through preliminary clinical observations, we found that CTTCM is simple, safe, and has good efficacy; however, there is a lack of rigorous clinical trials to support its application. Therefore, we designed a randomized controlled trial to evaluate the efficacy and safety of CTTCM for patients with ED of damp-heat stasis type, and to provide evidence for the clinical application of CTTCM and the construction of a traditional Chinese medicine andrology rehabilitation system. METHODS: In this randomized controlled study, 108 eligible patients were assigned 1:1 to the CTTCM group or the tadalafil group. The treatment period was 8 weeks and the follow-up period was 8 weeks. The primary outcome will be the International Erectile Function Score and traditional Chinese medicine Syndrome Score. Secondary outcomes will include the Erection Quality Score, Patient Health Questionnaire-9, and the 7-item Generalized Anxiety Scale. Safety results will include electrocardiogram, blood tests (including blood, liver and kidney function), urine and stool. International Erectile Function Score-5, traditional Chinese medicine Syndrome Score, Erectile Quality Score, Patient Health Questionnaire-9, 7-item Generalized Anxiety Scale and all Safety outcomes will be conducted at baseline, 2th, 4th, 6th, and 8th week. Follow-up results will be assessed at 8th week after 8 weeks' treatment. DISCUSSION: This study will provide preliminary evidence for the efficacy and safety of traditional Chinese medicine integrated therapy in the treatment of damp-heat stasis ED. In addition, it also provides a basis for the clinical application of Chinese medicine comprehensive therapy and the construction of Chinese medicine andrology rehabilitation system. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Chinese clinical trial registration identifier, ChiCTR2200062016, registered on July 19, 2022.

Clinical study on the treatment of male infertility with Wuwei Fuzheng Yijing decoction based on microplastics: Study protocol for a randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Environmental pollution and male infertility have become global public health problems. The presence of microplastics (MPs) has been detected in the human body, and it has also been demonstrated that MPs can cause damage to the reproductive system. Wuwei Fuzheng Yijing Decoction (WWFZYJ) is effective in treating male infertility. Therefore, we designed a clinical randomized controlled trial to observe the effect of WWFZYJ on the content of MPs and semen quality in male infertility patients, and to evaluate its security. METHODS: In this randomized controlled study, 66 eligible patients were randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to a treatment group (WWFZYJ Decoction) and a control group (Coenzyme Q10 tablets combined with vitamin E soft capsules) for 8 weeks. The content of MPs in semen, sperm DNA Fragmentation Index (DFI), and semen analysis (including sperm density, sperm count, forward motile sperm, sperm motility, etc) will be used as primary indicators, and Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) syndrome scores will be used as secondary indicators. Vital signs (such as respiration, heart rate, body temperature, blood pressure, electrocardiogram, etc), blood routine, urine routine, stool routine, liver function, and renal function will be used as safety indicators. The primary and secondary indicators will be performed at 0th and 8th week, and the safety indicators will be performed at 0th, 4th, and 8th week. DISCUSSION: This study will provide evidence for the efficacy and safety of WWFZYJ in treating male infertility and reducing the content of MPs in semen, and further explore the effects of MPs on male fertility.

[Analysis of therapeutic effect of acupuncture at neiguan (PC 6) and zusanli (ST 36) on acute renal colic].

OBJECTIVE: To observe the efficacy differences among acupuncture at Neiguan (PC 6) and Zusanli (ST 36), dolantin and scopolamine in treatment of acute renal colic, and to verify the clinical effect of acupuncture at Neiguan (PC 6) and Zusanli (ST 36). METHODS: Two hundred and forty patients were randomly divided into an acupuncture group, a scopolamine group and a dolantin group, 80 cases in each group. The acupuncture group was treated by acupuncture at unilateral or bilateral Neiguan (PC 6) and Zusanli (ST 36). The scopolamine group was treated by intramuscular injection of scopolamine combined with intravenous drip of scopolamine, and the dolantin group was treated by intramuscular injection of dolantin. The clinical therapeutic effects were observed 30 min after drug administration or acupuncture, and the onset time of effect and adverse reactions were compared among the groups. RESULTS: The total effective rate of 95.0% (76/80) in the acupuncture group had a similar therapeutic effect to 92.5% (74/80) in dolantin group (P>0.05), which were both superior to 76.3% (61/80) in scopolamine group (both P<0.05). The onset time of (13.24 +/- 2.12) min in the acupuncture group was significant earlier than (23.11 +/- 6.22) min in scopolamine group and (22.17 +/- 3.15) min in dolantin group (both P<0.05), and compared with the other two groups, the adverse reactions in the acupuncture group were significant decreased (both P<0.05). CONCLUSION: Acupuncture at Neiguan (PC 6) and Zusanli (ST 36) has a good analgesic effect with a low incidence of adverse reactions, which is superior to that of dolantin and scopolamine.