ObjectiveTo investigate the relationship between the red blood cell distribution width (RDW) and the severity of acute exacerbation of bronchiectasis in elderly patients.MethodsThe clinical data of 216 elderly patients with acute exacerbation of bronchiectasis admitted from January 2015 to October of 2018 were analyzed retrospectively. The severity of acute exacerbation of bronchiectasis in the elderly was evaluated by bronchiectasis severity index (BSI) score. Meanwhile, 50 elderly people receiving qualified medical examination were collected as a healthy control group in the same period. The distributions of BSI score, RDW, procalcitonin (PCT), neutrophil percentage (NEU%) and C-reactive protein (CRP) were described in the patients with different risk degree. The severity of acute exacerbation of bronchiectasis in the elderly was evaluated by BSI. The patients were divided into three groups by BSI score: a low risk group, a middle risk group, and a high risk group. The indexes were described including the distribution of stratified BSI score, RDW, PCT, NEU%, CRP at different risk levels. The correlation of each index was analyzed by Spearman correlation. The threshold value of RDW was calculated by general linear regression, and the influencing factors of BSI score were analyzed by multivariate linear regression analysis.ResultsThe higher the risk stratification, the higher the BSI score, RDW, PCT, NEU% and CRP were. RDW was positively correlated with PCT, NEU% and CRP (r values were 0.425, 0.311, 0.177, respectively, P<0.05). BSI score was positively correlated with RDW, PCT, NEU%, and CRP (r values were 0.425, 0.394, 0.650, 0.578, respectively, P<0.05). RDW was positively correlated with PSI score (r=0.425, P<0.05). The thresholds of RDW were 11.45% and 14.03%. Multiple linear regression showed that RDW, PCT, NEU% and CRP were all influential factors of BSI score and explained 52.3% of the total mutation rate.ConclusionRDW is related to the severity of acute exacerbation of bronchiectasis in the elderly, and can predict the severity of acute exacerbation of bronchiectasis in the elderly.
ObjectivesTo compare the efficacy of acute physiology and chronic health evaluationⅡ (APACHEⅡ), national early warning score (NEWS), pulmonary embolism severity index (PESI) and Charlson comorbidity index (CCI) on pulmonary embolism (PE) prognosis.MethodsClinical data of patients with PE treated in The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University from 2010 to 2017 were retrospectively analyzed. They were divided into death group and survival group, and four clinical scores were calculated. The differences of risk factors between the two groups were compared. Logistic regression analysis was used to obtain the independent risk factors related to mortality. The ROC working curve was used to compare the capability of four clinical scores for PE mortality. SPSS 24.0 and Medcalc 18.2.1 software were used for statistical analysis. ResultsA total of 318 patients with PE were included, and the mortality rate was 13.2%. The APACHEⅡ, NEWS, PESI and CCI of the death group were higher than those of the survival group. There were significant differences between two groups (P<0.05). It was confirmed by logistic regression analysis that cerebrovascular disease, heart rate, leukocyte, troponin T, arterial partial pressure of oxygen, right ventricular dysfunction (RVD) were independent risk factors for 90-day mortality. The areas under the ROC curve of APACHEⅡ, CCI, PESI, NEWS were 0.886, 0.728, 0.715 and 0.731, respectively. The area under the ROC curve of APACHEⅡ was the largest, which was better than NEWS, CCI and PESI (P<0.05), and there was no significant difference among NEWS, CCI and PESI.ConclusionsAPACHEⅡ may be the best predictor of mortality in PE patients, which is superior to NEWS, CCI and PESI.
ObjectiveCurrently, simple triage and rapid transport (START) is widely used as a method to evaluate the severity of mass casualty events in a disaster. Modified physiological triage tool (MPTT) and modified physiological triage tool-24 (MPTT-24) are newly introduced triage methodologies that may offer improvements over START. However, the feasibility and accuracy of these two methods cannot be adequately assessed without sufficient data support, whether in earthquakes or other disasters. Our study aimed to analyze the value of the three triage methodologies in mass casualty events due to earthquakes.MethodsA total of 36 604 injured patients from the West China Hospital database were evaluated using START, MPTT and MPTT-24, respectively. The triage methodologies were then evaluated based on death and ICU acceptance, using the area under the receiver-operator curve (AUC). The sensitivity and specificity of the three methodologies were compared under different standards and correlations with the injury severity score (ISS) were analyzed. ResultsFor deaths, the AUCs for the triage methodologies were 0.711, 0.775 and 0.686 for START, MPTT, and MPTT-24, respectively. For ICU acceptance, the AUCs of the triage methodologies after correction for bias were 0.579, 0.618 and 0.603. The correlation coefficients of the triage methodologies and ISS score were 0.041, 0.087, and 0.115.ConclusionsMPTT is superior to START and MPTT-24 in the evaluation of critically ill patients in mass casualty events caused by earthquakes.
Objective To investigate the value of fibrinogen to albumin ratio (FAR) combined with pulmonary embolism severity index (PESI) in the assessment of severity and prognosis of patients with acute pulmonary thromboembolism (APTE). Methods A retrospective study of hospitalized patients with confirmed APTE admitted to the Affiliated Hospital of Southwest Medical University from September 2013 to August 2021, divided into low-risk, intermediate-risk, and high-risk groups according to the Guidelines for the Diagnosis, Treatment and Prevention of Pulmonary Thromboembolism, and divided into survival groups and death groups according to the 30-day prognosis. The general data of all patients and relevant blood laboratory tests within 2 hours after admission were collected to calculate PESI and FAR. FAR and PESI levels were compared in APTE patients with different severity of disease and different prognosis. Independent risk factors for 30-day mortality in APTE patients were analyzed using logistic regression. Subject working characteristic curves were drawn to assess the differences in sensitivity, specificity and area under the curve of FAR, PESI and FAR combined with PESI in predicting 30-day death. Results Total of 235 APTE patients were included, divided into 85 in the low-risk group, 110 in the intermediate-risk group, and 40 in the high-risk group; 192 in the survival group and 43 in the death group according to 30-day survival. The differences in age, albumin (ALB), high-sensitivity troponin, D-dimer, fibrinogen (FIB), FAR, and PESI of APTE patients with different disease severity were statistically significant (P<0.05). FAR increased progressively with increasing severity of disease (P<0.05), and correlation analysis showed a positive correlation between FAR and PESI (r=0.614, P<0.05). Elevated FIB, FAR, PESI and decreased ALB were independent risk factors for 30-day death in patients with APTE (P<0.05). FAR, PESI, and FAR combined with PESI all had predictive value for 30-day death in APTE patients, and FAR combined with PESI predicted the largest area under the 30-day death curve. Conclusions FAR correlated with the severity and prognosis of APTE patients. FAR combined with PESI was more valuable in assessing the 30-day prognosis of APTE patients than FAR alone or PESI alone.
Objective To investigate the load distribution on the more painful and less painful limbs in patients with mild-to-moderate and severe bilateral knee osteoarthritis (KOA) and explore the compensatory mechanisms in both limbs among bilateral KOA patients with different severity levels. Methods A total of 113 participants were enrolled between July 2022 and September 2023. This cohort comprised 43 patients with mild-to-moderate bilateral KOA (Kellgren-Lawrence grade 2-3), 43 patients with severe bilateral KOA (Kellgren-Lawrence grade 4), and 27 healthy volunteers (healthy control group). The visual analogue scale (VAS) score for pain, the Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) score, passive knee range of motion (ROM), and hip-knee-ankle angle (HKA) were used to assess walking pain intensity, joint function, and lower limb alignment in KOA patients, respectively. Motion trajectories of reflective markers and ground reaction force data during walking were captured using a gait analysis system. Musculoskeletal modeling was then employed to calculate biomechanical parameters, including the peak knee adduction moment (KAM), KAM impulse, peak joint contact force (JCF), and peak medial/lateral contact forces (MCF/LCF). Statistical analyses were performed to compare differences in clinical and gait parameters between bilateral limbs. Additionally, one-dimensional statistical parametric mapping was utilized to analyze temporal gait data. Results Mild-to-moderate KOA patients showed the significantly higher HSS score (67.7±7.9) than severe KOA patients (51.9±8.9; t=8.747, P<0.001). The more painful limb in all KOA patients exhibited significantly greater HKA and higher VAS scores compared to the less painful limb (P<0.05). While bilateral knee ROM did not differ significantly in mild-to-moderate KOA patients (P>0.05), the severe KOA patients had significantly reduced ROM in the more painful limb versus the less painful limb (P<0.05). Healthy controls showed no significant bilateral difference in any biomechanical parameters (P>0.05). All KOA patients demonstrated longer stance time on the less painful limb (P<0.05). Critically, severe KOA patients exhibited significantly higher peak KAM, KAM impulse, and peak MCF in the more painful limb (P<0.05), while mild-to-moderate KOA patients showed the opposite pattern with lower peak KAM and KAM impulse in the more painful limb (P<0.05) and a similar trend for peak MCF. Conclusion Patients with mild-to-moderate KOA effectively reduce load on the more painful limb through compensatory mechanisms in the less painful limb. Conversely, severe bilateral varus deformities in advanced KOA patients nullify compensatory capacity in the less painful limb, paradoxically increasing load on the more painful limb. This dichotomy necessitates personalized management strategies tailored to disease severity.
ObjectiveTo explore the risk factors which affect the severity of acute pancreatitis by using machine learning algorithms. MethodsA retrospective review was conducted of medical records from 262 patients hospitalized for acute pancreatitis at the Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University between October 2022 and February 2024. Patients were classified according to the revised edition Atlanta Classification into mild cases (n=146) and non-mild cases (n=116). LASSO analysis was employed to identify predictors for non-mild acute pancreatitis. Six machine learning algorithms, including extreme gradient boosting, random forest, logistic regression, decision tree, support vector machine, and K-nearest neighbors were integrated to construct predictive models. Model performance was evaluated by comparing the following metrics: area under the curve (AUC), sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, F1 score, calibration curves, and decision curves. ResultsThrough LASSO regression analysis, six feature variables, including heart rate, white blood cell count, neutrophil count, C-reactive protein, albumin, and calcium ion were selected to train and test machine learning models. Results showed that extreme gradient boosting achieved the highest AUC value of 0.93 on the test set, making it the optimal model. The sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, Brier score, and F1 score of the extreme gradient boosting model were 0.97, 0.70, 0.85, 0.108, and 0.84. ConclusionThe prediction model developed using extreme gradient boosting has high clinical utility value, helps to predict the severity of acute pancreatitis at an early stage and is valuable in guiding clinical decision-making.
Objective To explore the correlation between body mass index (BMI) and disease severity in patients with spinocerebellar ataxia type 3 (SCA3). Methods Patients who visited the Department of Neurology of the First Affiliated Hospital of Fujian Medical University with a confirmed diagnosis of SCA3 between July 2022 and August 2023 were selected as a case group, and healthy individuals between June 2024 and October 2024 were selected as a control group, and the BMI levels of the two groups were compared. Patient demographics and clinical statistics were collected, the severity of ataxia in SCA3 patients was assessed using the Scale for the Assessment and Rating of Ataxi, and the relationship between BMI and disease severity was evaluated. Results A total of 101 patients and 101 healthy individuals were included. The BMI levels of SCA3 patients were significantly lower than those of normal controls (t=?2.370, P=0.019). The results of the multiple linear regression model showed that the BMI, disease duration and smoking history had an effect on the disease severity of SCA3 patients (P<0.05), and disease duration and disease severity had a significant effect on the disease progression in SCA3 patients (P<0.05). Conclusion There may be a correlation between BMI and disease severity in SCA3 patients, and controlling the BMI level may help to control the disease in SCA3 patients.
Objective To study the factors that affect the prognosis of status epilepticus (SE) and to improve the understanding of clinicians. Methods A retrospective analysis of 57 patients with SE witch from the General Hospital of Ningxia Medical University and Cardio-cerebrovascular Disease Hospital were carried out to collect their clinical data. The data were analyzed by SPSS 17.0 software. The prognosis of the patients was assessed by the Status epilepticus severity score (STESS) scale. Results A total of 57 patients were included, 53 cases improved, 4 cases were automatically discharged. Telephone follow-up showed that 4 cases of automatic discharge were dead. The mortality rate of SE was 7.02%. The most common cause of SE was acute cerebrovascular disease (17.54%), followed by intracranial infection (10.53%); The most common incidence were the occasional medication, self-medication, withdrawal (15.79%). Age, state of consciousness and concurrent infection were associated with prognosis (improvement/death) (P<0.05). STESS score of 0 to 2 points were 45 patients, all improved; score of 3 to 5 points were 12 patients, 8 patients improved, 4 patients died. There were significant differences in the prognosis between the two groups (P<0.05). Conclusions Age, state of consciousness, concurrent infection were related to prognosis, more than 65 years, the state of consciousness for the sleeping or coma had the poor prognosis. STESS scale can predict the prognosis of patients effectively.
Objective To investigate the values of pneumonia severity index ( PSI) , CURB-65,plasma procalcitonin ( PCT) , C-reactive protein ( CRP) measurements for evaluation the severity of healthcare-associated pneumonia ( HCAP) .Methods A retrospective observational study was conducted on 92 hospitalized patients with HCAP admitted between June 2010 and December 2011. They were divided into different groups according to different severity assessment criteria. The variance and correlation of PCT,CRP,WBC and percent of neutrophil ( Neu% ) levels were compared among different groups. ROC curvewas established to analyze PSI, CURB-65, PCT and CRP levels for predicting the motality of HCAP patients.Results In the severe HCAP group, PSI and CURB-65 scoring and serum PCT, CRP, WBC, Neu% levels were significantly higher than those in the non-severe HCAP group( P lt; 0. 05) . In the high-risk HCAP group, PCT, CRP, WBC and Neu% levels were significantly higher than those in the low-risk HCAP group according to the PSI and CURB-65 scoring criteria( P lt;0. 05) .WBC and Neu% levels were also significantly higher than those in the moderate-risk group. PSI and CURB-65 scoring were positively correlated with PCT and CRP levels. PSI scoring gt;120 points or CURB-65 scoring gt;2 points on admission were predictors of mortality. Conclusions PSI and CURB-65 scoring are correlated with severity of HCAP. Combining serum PCT and CRP levels can improve the predictive accuracy of the severity of HCAP.
【Abstract】ObjectiveTo describe the imaging manifestations of acute necrotizing pancreatitis (ANP) on multidetectorrow spiral CT (MDCT). To investigate the relationship between pancreatic glandular necrosis and retroperitoneal inflammatory spreading and the clinical severity of ANP. MethodsA 16detector row spiral CT was used to perform contrastenhanced abdominal scanning in 90 patients diagnosed as ANP， who were prospectively enrolled into this study. Scoring of the extent of pancreatic glandular necrosis and Balthazar grading based on retroperitoneal inflammatory spreading were done at the same time. For 44 patients who met the criteria of Ranson scoring, both scoring by CT severity index (CTSI) and Ranson criteria. Multiplanar reformation technique was used for image postprocessing. Results①In 40 out of 90 patients, the pancreatic glandular necrosis was less than 30%, in 23 the necrosis was between 30%-50%, and in 27 the necrosis was more than 50%. Peripancreatic fat swelling and thickening of anterior renal fascia were observed in all cases of ANP; Peripancreatic and retroperitoneal phlegmonous fluid collection occurred in 78 patients (86.7%); 12 had fluid collection in lesser sac (13.3%); Thickening and swelling of posterior gastric wall in 71 patients (78.9%); 87 developed intestinal ileus (96.7%) and 35 patients had peritoneal effusion (38.9%); Splenic infarction in 4 patients (4.4%); 82 had pleural effusion (91.1%). ②Twelve patients were classified as Balthazar grade C， 42 as grade D and 36 as grade E. There was a statistically significant positive correlation between the extent of pancreatic glandular necrosis and Balthazar CT grade. ③In 44 ANP patients suitable for Ranson criteria, 12 cases were classified as mild (27.3%), 23 as moderate (52.3%), 9 as severe (20.5%). CTSI grading of these patients was as follows： Mild cases 0, moderate cases 25 (56.8%), severe cases 19 (43.2%). Correlation between the CTSI grades and the clinical severity of ANP was of statistical significance. ConclusionANP can demonstrate a series of imaging manifestations on MDCT. To some extent, the degree of pancreatic glandular necrosis and the extent of retroperitoneal spreading is positively correlated, and CTSI grading based on MDCT imaging features is also positively correlated with the clinical severity of ANP.