Construction and application of the public health practice teaching model of "internal-external interactions" / 中华医学教育探索杂志

Practice teaching is an important link in the training of public health talents in colleges and universities. At present, there are still some problems in the education of public health and preventive medicine in the colleges and universities in China, such as attaching greater importance to theory than to practice and weak training of practical skills among students. In view of this situation, a public health practice teaching model of "internal-external interactions" has been constructed in Dalian Medical University with focuses on the following aspects: ①experiments in the university are optimized based on social needs; ②the practice base outside the university is expanded based on the teaching in the university; ③"internal-external interactions" are adopted to enhance practice training and improve post competence. The teaching practice shows that the implementation of the teaching model of "internal-external interactions" can help to improve practice teaching ability, promote the improvement in the training quality of public health talents, and meet the social demand for application-oriented professionals.

Celastrol targeting Nedd4 reduces Nrf2-mediated oxidative stress in astrocytes after ischemic stroke / 药物分析学报

Stroke is the second leading cause of death worldwide,and oxidative stress plays a crucial role.Celastrol exhibits strong antioxidant properties in several diseases;however,whether it can affect oxidation in cerebral ischemic-reperfusion injury(CIRI)remains unclear.This study aimed to determine whether celastrol could reduce oxidative damage during CIRI and to elucidate the underlying mechanisms.Here,we found that celastrol attenuated oxidative injury in CIRI by upregulating nuclear factor E2-related factor 2(Nrf2).Using alkynyl-tagged celastrol and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry,we showed that celastrol directly bound to neuronally expressed developmentally downregulated 4(Nedd4)and then released Nrf2 from Nedd4 in astrocytes.Nedd4 promoted the degradation of Nrf2 through K48-linked ubiquitination and thus contributed to astrocytic reactive oxygen species production in CIRI,which was significantly blocked by celastrol.Furthermore,by inhibiting oxidative stress and astrocyte activation,celastrol effectively rescued neurons from axon damage and apoptosis.Our study uncovered Nedd4 as a direct target of celastrol,and that celastrol exerts an antioxidative effect on as-trocytes by inhibiting the interaction between Nedd4 and Nrf2 and reducing Nrf2 degradation in CIRI.

Application prospect of minimally invasive surgical techniques in the treatment of biliary tract cancer / 中华消化外科杂志

Due to the inherent disease characteristics and surgical difficulties, the develop-ment of minimally invasive surgery in biliary tract cancer has encountered more difficulties and controversies. As one of the representative fields of modern precise surgery and an important part of multidisciplinary therapy, the value and application of minimally invasive surgery in the treatment of biliary tract cancer need to be further elaborated and standardized. Minimally invasive surgical techniques should be explored and studied under reasonable norms and supervision. More higher level evidence-based evidences should be obtained under the premise of ensuring the ethical prin-ciple of maximum benefit to patients, and ultimately promote the overall progress in the field.

Risk predictive models of healthcare-seeking delay among imported malaria patients in Jiangsu Province based on the machine learning / 中国血吸虫病防治杂志

Objective To create risk predictive models of healthcare-seeking delay among imported malaria patients in Jiangsu Province based on machine learning algorithms, so as to provide insights into early identification of imported malaria cases in Jiangsu Province. Methods Case investigation, first symptoms and time of initial diagnosis of imported malaria patients in Jiangsu Province in 2019 were captured from Infectious Disease Report Information Management System and Parasitic Disease Prevention and Control Information Management System of Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention. The risk predictive models of healthcare-seeking delay among imported malaria patients were created with the back propagation (BP) neural network model, logistic regression model, random forest model and Bayesian model using thirteen factors as independent variables, including occupation, species of malaria parasite, main clinical manifestations, presence of complications, severity of disease, age, duration of residing abroad, frequency of malaria parasite infections abroad, incubation period, level of institution at initial diagnosis, country of origin, number of individuals travelling with patients and way to go abroad, and time of healthcare-seeking delay as a dependent variable. Logistic regression model was visualized using a nomogram, and the nomogram was evaluated using calibration curves. In addition, the efficiency of the four models for prediction of risk of healthcare-seeking delay among imported malaria patients was evaluated using the area under curve (AUC) of receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC). The importance of each characteristic was quantified and attributed by using SHAP to examine the positive and negative effects of the value of each characteristic on the predictive efficiency. Results A total of 244 imported malaria patients were enrolled, including 100 cases (40.98%) with the duration from onset of first symptoms to time of initial diagnosis that exceeded 24 hours. Logistic regression analysis identified a history of malaria parasite infection [odds ratio (OR) = 3.075, 95% confidential interval (CI): (1.597, 5.923)], long incubation period [OR = 1.010, 95% CI: (1.001, 1.018)] and seeking healthcare in provincial or municipal medical facilities [OR = 12.550, 95% CI: (1.158, 135.963)] as risk factors for delay in seeking healthcare among imported malaria cases. BP neural network modeling showed that duration of residing abroad, incubation period and age posed great impacts on delay in healthcare-seek among imported malaria patients. Random forest modeling showed that the top five factors with the greatest impact on healthcare-seeking delay included main clinical manifestations, the way to go abroad, incubation period, duration of residing abroad and age among imported malaria patients, and Bayesian modeling revealed that the top five factors affecting healthcare-seeking delay among imported malaria patients included level of institutions at initial diagnosis, age, country of origin, history of malaria parasite infection and individuals travelling with imported malaria patients. ROC curve analysis showed higher overall performance of the BP neural network model and the logistic regression model for prediction of the risk of healthcare-seeking delay among imported malaria patients (Z = 2.700 to 4.641, all P values < 0.01), with no statistically significant difference in the AUC among four models (Z = 1.209, P > 0.05). The sensitivity (71.00%) and Youden index (43.92%) of the logistic regression model was higher than those of the BP neural network (63.00% and 36.61%, respectively), and the specificity of the BP neural network model (73.61%) was higher than that of the logistic regression model (72.92%). Conclusions Imported malaria cases with long duration of residing abroad, a history of malaria parasite infection, long incubation period, advanced age and seeking healthcare in provincial or municipal medical institutions have a high likelihood of delay in healthcare-seeking in Jiangsu Province. The models created based on the logistic regression and BP neural network show a high efficiency for prediction of the risk of healthcare-seeking among imported malaria patients in Jiangsu Province, which may provide insights into health management of imported malaria patients.

Progress of researches on antimalarial peptides / 中国血吸虫病防治杂志

Malaria remains a major global public health concern, and nearly half of the global populations are still at risk of malaria infection. However, continuous emergence and spread of drug-resistant malaria parasite strains lead to ineffectiveness of conventional antimalarials. Therefore, development of novel antimalarial agents is of urgent need for malaria elimination. As an important component of the host natural immune defense system, antibacterial peptides provide the first line of defense against pathogenic invasion, and the mechanism of preferentially attacking the cell membrane makes them difficult to develop drug resistance. Antimicrobial peptides are therefore considered as a promising candidate for novel antimalarial agents. This review summarizes the advances in researches on antimicrobial peptides with antimalarial actions and discusses the potential of antimalarial peptides as novel antimalarials.

Regular assessment is an effective approach to maintaining the capacity of prevention of re-establishment from imported malaria in China / 中国血吸虫病防治杂志

After achieving malaria elimination, preventing re-establishment from imported malaria and consolidating malaria elimination achievements are top priorities of the national malaria control program in China. Due to the long-term existence of overseas imported malaria cases and incomplete eradication of local epidemic conditions, there are multiple challenges for prevention of re-establishment from imported malaria in China. Hereby, we propose that regular assessment is an effective approach to maintaining the capability of prevention of re-establishment from imported malaria, and describe the purpose, significance, management and implementation of the capability assessment for prevention of re-establishment from imported malaria, so as to provide insights into the formulation and adjustment of malaria control strategies during the post-elimination phase.

Surveillance of Aedes populations in Jiangsu Province in 2020 / 中国血吸虫病防治杂志

Objective To investigate the seasonal Aedes population fluctuation and the resistance of Aedes populations to common insecticides in Jiangsu Province in 2020, so as to provide insights into vector-borne infectious diseases control.. Methods One village was randomly sampled from each of Xinbei District of Changzhou City and Zhangjiagang County of Suzhou City in southern Jiangsu Province, Hai’an County of Nantong City and Yandu District of Yancheng City in Central Jiangsu Province, and Suining County of Xuzhou City and Sihong County of Suqian City in northern Jiangsu Province during the period between May and October, 2020. A small ponding container was sampled, and larval Aedes mosquitoes were collected using straws once each in early and late stages of each month. All larvae were bred in laboratory to adults for population identification. In addition, larval breeding were observed in all small ponding containers in and out of 30 households that were randomly sampled from six surveillance sites, and the larval mosquito density was estimated using Breteau index. Larval A. albopictus mosquitoes were sampled around Cuiyuan New Village in Jintan District of Changzhou City, and bred in laboratory to the first offspring generation, and the susceptibility of adult female mosquitoes to deltamethrin, lambda-cyhalothrin, malathion, and propoxur was tested using the filter-paper bioassay recommended by WHO. Results A total of 1 165 larval Aedes mosquitoes were captured from small ponding containers in six surveillance sites of Jiangsu Province in 2020, and all were identified as A. albopictus following eclosion. The largest number of Aedes larvae captured was found in July. A total of 1 152 households were investigated in six surveillance sites, and the mean Breteau indexes were 9.58, 13.20, 13.71, 13.20, 12.18 and 5.58 from May to October, respectively, while a high Aedes transmission risk was seen in Xinbei District of Changzhou City, with a higher Breteau index than in Suining (H = 23.667, Padjusted = 0.001) and Sihong (H = 22.500, Padjusted = 0.003) counties. The field-captured A. albopictus from Cuiyuan New Village in Jintan District of Changzhou City remained sensitive to malathion, but was resistant to propoxur, and developed high-level resistance to deltamethrin and lambda-cyhalothrin. Conclusions A. albopictus was present in southern, central and northern Jiangsu Province in 2020, and the larval density peaked in July. A. albopictus captured from Cuiyuan New Village in Jintan District of Changzhou City has developed high-level resistance to pyrethroid pesticides.

Long-term outcomes of fully covered self-expanding metal stent for benign refractory pancreatic stenosis (with video) / 中华消化内镜杂志

Objective:To investigate the safety and long-term outcomes of fully covered self-expanding metal stent (FCSEMS) placement in patients with benign refractory pancreatic stenosis.Methods:Data of 18 patients with benign refractory pancreatic stenosis who underwent endoscopic treatment with FCSEMS in Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital between March 2013 and July 2020 were collected. The technical success, clinical success, adverse events and long-term outcomes were analyzed.Results:FCSEMS placement was successful in all 18 patients, with technical success rate of 100.0% (18/18). After stenting, the visual analogue scale (VAS) significantly decreased [2.00 (1.75, 3.00) VS 6.00 (5.00, 7.00), Z=-3.572, P<0.001]. The VAS decreased by more than 50% in 15 cases, and the clinical success rate was 83.3% (15/18). Stent-related adverse events included intolerable pain in 3 patients, stented-induced de novo stricture in 2 patients, and distal migration of stent in 2 patients. The stents were successfully removed in all patients after 137.5 (59.0, 417.0) days. There was significant reduction in terms of decreased upstream ductal dilatation after stent removal [9.1 (6.7, 14.1) mm VS 11.0 (7.6, 16.2) mm, Z=10.508, P<0.001]. After stent removal, 10 of the 14 patients maintained the response to pancreatic stenting and 4 recurred during the follow-up of 37-1 246 days. Conclusion:FCSEMS placement appears to be safe and effective in the treatment of benign refractory pancreatic stenosis and can provide persistent improvement in the stricture.

Efficiency and safety of traditional growing rod technique in the treatment of early onset dystrophic scoliosis secondary to type 1 neurofibromatosis with intraspinal rib head in children / 中华骨科杂志

Objective:To investigate the efficiency and safety of traditional growing rod in the treatment of early onset dystrophic scoliosis secondary to type 1 neurofibromatosis (NF1-DS) with intraspinal rib head in children.Methods:From September 2006 to May 2020, this study recruited 20 children with intraspinal rib head with early onset NF1-DS who had received traditional growing rods. There were 13 boys and 7 girls and the age of the initial operation was 7.0±1.6 years (range, 4.1-9.8 years). There were 7 cases of simple left chest bend, 9 cases of simple right chest bend, and 4 cases of double chest bend; 13 patients had varying degrees of kyphosis deformity. Two children had neurological symptoms before surgery, American Spinal Injury Association Impairment Scale (AIS) were grade D. The proportion of the intraspinal rib head (IRP), the Cobb angle of the main chest bend, apical vertebra rotation (AVR), apical vertebral translation (AVT), trunk shift (TS) and sagittal TK, lumbar lordosis (LL), sagittal balance and T 1-S 1 height were measured before and after first time internal fixation and at last follow-up, and the complications were also evaluated. Results:All 20 patients were followed up and the average follow-up time was 41.6±23.8 months (range, 24-99 months). A total of 85 operations was conducted including 63 protrude operations. After operation, the IRP was significantly lower than that before operation (preoperative 33.1%±17.5% vs. postoperative 22.2%±11.3%, P<0.001) and no significant correction loss was found at last follow-up 23.7%±12.4% ( P>0.05). The mean Cobb angle decreased from 75.9°±26.7° preoperatively to 45.0°±18.5° postoperatively ( P<0.001) and there was still significant improvement at the last follow-up (41.0°±17.2°) compared with postoperatively ( P<0.05). The AVR was significantly reduced after surgery compared with preoperatively (33.0°±10.1° vs. 39.3°±13.3°, P<0.001), and the last follow-up (40.1°±11.4°) was significantly improved compared with postoperative ( P=0.005). The T 1-S 1 height increased from 259.8±70.7 mm preoperatively to 296.9±78.4 mm postoperatively ( P=0.001), and at the last follow-up 296.9±78.4 mm was still significantly higher than after operation ( P<0.001), with an average annual increase of 12.4±3.2 mm. Significant correction of AVT, TK, LL and sagittal balance were noted after initial surgery ( P<0.05), and no significant correction loss was found at last follow-up ( P>0.05). There were 10 complications in 7 cases. There were 5 complications of pedicle screw loosening, 1 complication of bolt droping, 2 complications of broken rod, 1 complication of distal junctional kyphosis and 1 complication of adding-on phenomenon. 2 cases with nerve injury were recover after operation (AIS grading E). None of the children had new neurological complications during growth rod insertion and multiple stretching during follow-up. Conclusion:For children with early onset NF1-DS with intraspinal rib head, if the preoperative AIS grade is D or E, traditional growing rod technique is relatively safe and effective and can make the intraspinal rib head remove from the spinal canal partly.

Assessment of effects of intra-abdominal pressure monitoring on evaluating early enteral nutrition in patients with acute pancreatitis / 中华危重病急救医学

Objective:To explore the role of intra-abdominal pressure (IAP) monitoring in evaluating the efficacy of early enteral nutrition (EN) in patients with acute pancreatitis (AP).Methods:The clinical data were collected from the AP patients in department of criticle care medicine of Baoshan Branch of Huashan Hospital Affiliated to Fudan University from July 2020 to June 2021. The patients were divided into three groups according to their treatments: no gastrointestinal decompression with fasting group, gastrointestinal decompression with fasting group, gastrointestinal decompression with indwelling jejunal tube within 24 hours group. The data of white blood cell (WBC), procalcitonin (PCT), serum amylase (AMY) and IAP were analyzed before and after treatment, the initiation time oral feeding were also analyzed.Results:The decrease of WBC, PCT, AMY, and IAP in gastrointestinal decompression with indwelling jejunal tube within 24 hours group were significantly greater than those in the other groups [WBC (×10 9/L): -1.72±0.74 vs. -0.68±0.36, -1.23±86.97; PCT (μg/L): -3.14±5.19 vs. 0.06±0.48, -1.57±0.78; AMY (U): -148.43±75.89 vs. -74.85±78.84, -93.78±1.17; IAP (cmH 2O, 1 cmH 2O≈0.098 kPa): -4.82±1.66 vs. 0.36±1.32, -3.22±4.36, all P < 0.05]. There were no correlation between the changes of IAP and the changes of WBC, PCT or AMY in the non-gastrointestinal decompression with fasting group and the gastrointestinal decompression with indwelling jejunal tube within 24 hours group (all P > 0.05). The decreasing trend of IAP in patients with gastrointestinal decompression with fasting group was positively correlated with the change of AMY ( r = 0.65, P < 0.001). The initiation time of oral feeding in gastrointestinal decompression with indwelling jejunal tube within 24 hours group was significantly shorter than that in the other groups (hours: 89.538 vs. 111.273, 109.714), the difference was statistically significant ( P < 0.05). Conclusions:IAP monitoring, as an emergency means of monitoring the efficacy of early EN in AP patients, has the advantages of simplicity, efficiency and rationality, which has a more objective basis than the previous empirical treatment and open oral feeding.

Theory and technical practice of anatomic liver resection based on portal territory for the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma / 中华消化外科杂志

Anatomic resection aims to improve the surgical efficacy of hepatocellular carcinoma by systematic resection of portal territory. However, due to its deviation of traditional theory and practice, the oncology effect is questionable. Anatomic resection based on portal territory(PT-AR) is planned by the analysis of real portal vein territory, and performed complete resection of tumor-bearing portal territory by fluorescent guidance, while exposing typical inter-territory hepatic vein, so as to ensure the complete function of future liver remnant. PT-AR is based on the core theory of classical anatomic resection, which will correct the deviation of traditional theory and practice from the technical level, so as to lead a better surgical oncology outcomes for hepatocellular carcinoma.

Risk prediction for deep venous thrombosis after total knee arthroplasty based on modified Caprini risk assessment model:a confirmatory study / 中国骨伤

OBJECTIVE@#To investigate the effectiveness of modified Caprini risk assessment model(Caprini MRAM) in predicting the risk of deep venous thrombosis (DVT) after total knee arthroplasty (TKA).@*METHODS@#A case-control study was used to collect 43 patients with DVT after TKA in lower limb department of Sichuan Orthopedic Hospital from January 2016 to November 2020 in the positive group, and 172 patients without DVT after TKA in the same period according to the 1∶4 ratio between positive and control group were selected in the control group. Caprini MRAM was used to score and grade the risk of DVT. The clinical data, score and risk classification of the two groups were compared. The relationship between the risk of DVT in the patients after TKA and the risk factors in the risk ckassification and assessment of Caprini MRAM was analyzed by multivariate logistic regression model.@*RESULTS@#The average score of caprini in DVT group was significantly higher than that in control group[(8.11±2.91) vs(4.07±2.12), P<0.001];DVT group was mainly at medium and high risk group(66.67%), while the control group was mainly at low risk (77.33%). There was a significant difference between the two groups in risk classification composition (P<0.001). BMI≥30 kg/m2, lower extremity edema (<1 month), severe pulmonary disease (<1 month), acute myocardial infarction (<1 month), bed rest (> 2 h), history of superficial or deep vein or pulmonary embolism and family history of thrombosis were the main risk factors for DVT in patients after TKA(all P<0.05). Preoperative D-dimer elevation (OR=4.380), BMI≥30 kg/m2(OR=2.518), lower extremity edema(<1 month)(OR=7.652), acute myocardial infarction (<1 month) (OR=1.994), bed rest (> 72 h)(OR=3.897), history of superficial or deep vein or pulmonary embolism (OR=13.517) and family history of blood embolism (OR=6.551) were independent risk factors for DVT in patients after TKA (all P<0.05). The risk of DVT was 13.457 and 2.739 times higher in high and moderate risk TKA patients with Caprini MRAM classification, respectively.@*CONCLUSION@#Caprini MRAM can be used to predict the risk of DVT in patients after TKA, especially for patients with high risk.

Effects of Dasatinib on the Maturation of Monocyte-Derived Dendritic Cells Derived from Healthy Donors and Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia Patients / 中国实验血液学杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To investigate the effects of dasatinib on the maturation of monocyte-derived dendritic cells (moDCs) derived from healthy donors (HDs) and chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) patients.@*METHODS@#Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) were isolated from HDs (n=10) and CML patients (n=10) who had got the remission of MR4.5 with imatinib treatment. The generation of moDCs from PBMCs was completed after 7 days of incubation in DC I culture medium, and another 3 days of incubation in DC II culture medium with or without 25 nmol/L dasatinib. On the 10th day, cells were harvested and expression of molecules of maturation related marker were assessed by flow cytometry. The CD80+CD86+ cell population in total cells was gated as DCs in the fluorescence-activated cell storting (FACS) analyzing system, then the expression of CD83, CD40 or HLA-DR in this population was analyzed respectively.@*RESULTS@#The proportion of CD80+CD86+ cells in total cells didn't show a statistical difference between HD group and patient group (89.46%±9.70% vs 87.39%±9.34%, P=0.690). Dasatinib significantly enhanced the expression of the surface marker CD40 (P=0.008) and HLA-DR (P=0.028) on moDCs derived from HDs compared with the control group, while the expression of CD83 on moDCs didn't show a significant difference between dasatinib group and the control group (P=0.428). Meanwhile, dasatinib significantly enhanced the expression of the surface marker CD40 (P=0.023), CD83 (P=0.038) and HLA-DR (P=0.001) on moDCs derived from patients compared with the control group.@*CONCLUSION@#For CML patients, the same high proportion of moDCs as HDs can be induced in vitro, which provides a basis for the application of DC-based immunotherapy strategy. Dasatinib at the concentration of 25 nmol/L can efficiently promote the maturation of moDCs derived from HDs and CML patients in vitro. Dasatinib shows potential as a DC adjuvant to be applied in DC-based immunotherapy strategies, such as DC vaccine and DC cell-therapy.

Research advances on thymosin β4 in promoting wound healing / 中华烧伤杂志

With the aging of population and the development of social economy, the incidence of chronic wounds is increasing day by day, while the incidence of burns and trauma remains at a high level, making wound repair an increasingly concerned area in clinical practice. Thymosin β4 is a naturally occurring small molecule protein in vivo, which is widely distributed in a variety of body fluids and cells, especially in platelets. Thymosin β4 has biological activities of promoting angiogenesis, anti-inflammation, anti-apoptosis, and anti-fibrosis, and has many important functions in wound repair. Thymosin β4 has been observed to promote the healing of various wounds, such as burns, diabetic ulcers, pressure ulcers. This paper will review the molecular structure, mechanism of wound healing promotion, pharmacokinetics, and clinical application of thymosin β4, aiming to introduce its potential in wound treatment and the shortcomings of current researches.

Research advances on signaling pathways affecting sweat gland development and their involvement in the reconstitution of sweat adenoid cells in vitro / 中华烧伤杂志

The damage of sweat glands in patients with extensive deep burns results in the loss of thermoregulation, which seriously affects the quality of life of patients. At present, there are many researches on the repair of sweat gland function, but the mechanism of human sweat gland development has not been fully clarified. More and more studies have shown that the cascaded pathways of Wnt/β-catenin, ecto- dysplasin A/ectodysplasin A receptor/nuclear factor-κB, sonic hedgehog, and forkhead box transcription factor jointly affect the development of sweat glands, and it has been reported that the cascaded signaling pathways can be used to achieve the reconstruction of sweat adenoid cells in vitro. This article reviews the signaling pathways that affect the development of sweat glands and their involvement in the reconstruction of sweat adenoid cells in vitro.

Quality of life and influencing factors of postoperative accelerated rehabilitation of esophageal cancer patients / 中华肿瘤杂志

Objective: To explore the quality of life and its influencing factors of enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) of esophageal cancer patients. Methods: The quality of life of 134 esophageal cancer patients was assessed using the quality of life assessment scale (EORTC QLQ-C30) developed by the European Cancer Research and Treatment Organization. Student's t test, One-way ANOVA and multiple linear regression statistical methods were used to analyze the effects of sociodemographic and clinical characteristics on patients' quality of life. Results: The overall score of quality of life (74.00) was lower than that of the general population (75.30). However, the scores of emotion and cognition in function dimension (93.97 and 95.77) were better than those of the general population (82.80 and 86.50). The results of fatigue, pain, insomnia and constipation in symptom dimension (14.18, 10.94, 11.69 and 5.72) were better than those of the general population (28.80, 20.50, 20.40 and 10.70). The pathological stage, body mass index and dietary were independent influencing factors for the quality of life of patients with esophageal cancer (P<0.05). Conclusions: ERAS can partially improve the quality of life of esophageal cancer patients. More attention should be paid to the esophageal cancer patients after surgery and take targeted measures to improve their quality of life.

Evaluation of the effectiveness of malaria control health education among overseas enterprise employees / 中国血吸虫病防治杂志

Objective To evaluate the effectiveness of health education on knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) relating to malaria control among overseas enterprise employees. Methods In September 2019, on-site malaria control health education was conducted among all Chinese employees of a China-funded mining enterprise in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The KAP questionnaire for malaria control was generated on the Questionstar website, and the participants were subjected to two questionnaire surveys prior to and 14 months after health education. After the questionnaires were recovered, all valid questionnaires were divided into 4 groups, including the baseline group (the questionnaires filled out by respondents who received health education and participated in two questionnaire surveys before health education), the loss-to-follow-up group (the questionnaires filled out by respondents who received health education but only participated in the questionnaire survey after health education), the retest group (the questionnaires filled out by respondents who received health education and participated in two questionnaire surveys after health education) and the new group (questionnaires filled out by respondents who did not receive health education and only participated in the questionnaire survey after health education) according to subjects’ receiving health education and participation in two questionnaire surveys. The correct rate of malaria control knowledge, the proportion to good attitudes towards malaria control and the proportion of good practices towards malaria control were compared between the baseline group and the loss-to-follow-up group, between the baseline group and the retest group, and between the retest group and the new group. Results A total of 110 and 142 valid questionnaires were recovered during the two surveys, and the recovery rates were 90.9% and 70.3%, respectively. There were 77, 77, 33, and 65 valid questionnaires recovered from the baseline group, the loss-to-follow-up group, the retest group, and the new group, respectively. There were no significant differences in respondents’ gender, age and educational levels between the baseline group and the loss-to-follow-up group (all P values > 0.05), and there were no significant differences between the two groups in terms of the mean score of malaria control knowledge (Z = 2.011, P > 0.05), the mean score of attitudes towards malaria control (t = −0.787, P > 0.05) and the mean score of practices towards malaria control (t = −0.787, P > 0.05). There were significant differences between the retest group and the baseline group in terms of the mean score of malaria control knowledge (10.83 vs. 9.79; Z = −4.017, P < 0.05), the mean score of attitudes towards malaria control (29.48 vs. 28.61; Z = −1.981, P < 0.05) and the mean score of practices towards malaria control (6.43 vs. 5.91; Z = −2.499, P < 0.05). There were no significant differences between the retest group and the new group in terms of gender, age or education levels (all P values > 0.05), and a higher mean score of malaria control knowledge was found in the retest group than in the new group (10.83 vs. 9.81; Z = −2.962, P < 0.05), while no significant differences were seen in the mean score of attitudes towards malaria control (29.48 vs. 30.17; Z = −1.158, P > 0.05) and the mean score of practices towards malaria control (6.43 vs. 6.37; Z = −0.048, P > 0.05) between the two groups. Conclusion Malaria control health education may significantly improve the understanding of malaria control knowledge, positive attitudes towards malaria control and the compliance of practices towards malaria control among overseas enterprise employees.

Immune checkpoint inhibitors for treatment of biliary malignant tumors / 临床肝胆病杂志

Biliary malignant tumors have an insidious onset and rapid development, and most patients have lost the opportunity for radical surgery at initial diagnosis and often have poor prognosis. Gemcitabine-based chemotherapy is the first-line treatment for biliary malignant tumors, but with a limited clinical effect. The improvement in next-generation sequencing technology provides the possibility for the precise treatment of biliary malignant tumors, but the application and development of the precise treatment of biliary malignant tumors are limited by the low positive rate of targets and the poor accessibility of therapeutic drugs. The advent of the era of immunotherapy represented by the immune checkpoint inhibitor PD1/PD-L1 monoclonal antibody brings a promising future for the treatment of malignant tumors, including biliary malignant tumors. Combined chemotherapy and/or targeted therapy based on immune checkpoint inhibitors has shown a good effect in the treatment of biliary malignant tumors, which is the direction of the treatment of advanced biliary malignant tumors in the future.

Time to initial diagnosis of imported malaria and its influencing factors in Jiangsu Province / 中国血吸虫病防治杂志

Objective To investigate the health-seeking behaviors of imported malaria cases after returning to China, and to investigate the factors affecting the time to initial diagnosis, so as to provide the scientific evidence for early identification of imported malaria cases and prevention of severe cases development and secondary transmission. Methods The individual demographic features, and the disease onset and the time to initial diagnosis of imported malaria cases in Jiangsu Province in 2019 were captured from the National Notifiable Disease Report System and the Information Management System for Parasitic Disease Control in China. The characteristics of health-seeking behaviors and epidemiological features of imported malaria cases were descriptively analyzed, and the factors affecting the time to initial diagnosis of imported malaria cases after returning to China were identified using multivariate logistic regression analysis. Results A total of 244 imported malaria cases were reported in Jiangsu Province in 2019, and the time to initial diagnosis of the cases were 1-12 days, with mean time of (1.53 ± 1.65) days, with median time of one day. The highest number of malaria cases seeking healthcare services were found on the day of developing primary symptoms (76 cases, 31.1%), followed by on the second day (68 cases, 27.9%), on the third day (46 cases, 18.9%), and 54 cases (22.1%) received initial diagnosis 3 days following presence of primary symptoms, including 3 cases with initial diagnosis at more than one week. High proportions of imported malaria cases with a delay in the time to initial diagnosis were seen in migrant workers who returned to China in January (14 cases, 5.7%) and December (13 cases, 5.3%) and those aged between 41 and 50 years (32 cases, 13.1%). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed relative short time to initial diagnosis among imported malaria cases returning to China on March [odds ratio (OR) = 0.16, P = 0.03, 95% confidence interval (CI): (0.03, 0.85)] and those with a history of overseas malaria parasite infections [OR = 0.36, P = 0.001, 95% CI: (0.19, 0.67)]. Conclusions Timely health-seeking behaviors should be improved among imported malaria cases in Jiangsu Province, patients with a history of overseas malaria infections require faster health-seeking activities.

Harder maintained than achieved: Challenges of maintaining malaria-free in China / 中国血吸虫病防治杂志

On June 2021, China was certified malaria-free by WHO. However, the global number and death of malaria cases have recently increased, and the malaria vectors will continue to inhabit in China, resulting in a high difficulty in consolidation of malaria elimination achievements. Hereby, we analyze the current challenges and propose the future priority of the national malaria control program in China, in order to provide insights into prevention of re-establishment of imported malaria in the country.