Effectiveness and safety of Shugan Jianpi (SGJP) formula in the treatment of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH): A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

BACKGROUND: It is known that nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) has been more and more popular in clinical practice. Apart from lifestyle modification, pharmacological therapy treating NASH has still been limited and insufficient. A growing number of studies demonstrated that Shugan Jianpi (SGJP) formula, as a kind of Chinese herbal medicine prescription, could improve blood lipid indexes, liver function, and other clinical measures in NASH patients. Nevertheless, there still has been a lack of study to systematically assess the efficacy and safety of SGJP formula treating NASH. Therefore, it is necessary to conduct this systematic review and meta-analysis. METHODS: A systematic literature search for articles up to December 2021 will be performed in following electronic databases: MEDLINE, Embase, the Cochrane Library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Chinese Scientific Journals Database Database, Chinese Biomedical Database, Chinese Biomedical Literature Service System, and Wanfang Database. Inclusion criteria are randomized controlled trials of SGJP formula applied on NASH patients. The primary outcome measures will be liver function, blood lipid indexes, ultrasound, or radiological imaging examination. The safety outcome measures will be adverse events and kidney function. RevMan 5.3 software will be used for data synthesis, sensitivity analysis, subgroup analysis, and risk of bias assessment. A funnel plot will be developed to evaluate reporting bias. Stata 12.0 will be used for meta-regression and Egger tests. We will use the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation system to assess the quality of evidence.Discussion: This study will provide a high-quality synthesis of the efficacy and safety of SGJP for NASH patients. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: This systematic review does not require ethics approval and will be submitted to a peer-reviewed journal. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: PROSPERO CRD42021259097.

The Role of Hypothermia in Large Hemispheric Infarction: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Background: Hypothermia is used in the treatment of large hemispheric infarction (LHI); however, its role in outcomes for LHI patients remains ambiguous. This systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted to evaluate the effect of hypothermia on the outcomes of LHI patients. Methods: We searched MEDLINE, Embase, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, China Biological Medicine Database, and clinical trials registers before September 21, 2018, and then scanned the reference lists. Randomized controlled trials that compared hypothermia with normothermia in LHI patients were included. Primary outcomes that we reviewed were mortality and neurological outcome. Adverse events during treatment were defined as secondary outcomes. We performed a meta-analysis to calculate pooled risk ratios (RRs), standardized mean differences (SMDs), and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) using fixed-effect models. Results: Three randomized controlled trials involving 131 participants were included. No statistically significant association was revealed between hypothermia and mortality (RR, 1.12; 95% CI, 0.76-1.65). There was significant association between hypothermia and good neurological outcome as assessed by modified Rankin Scale score (mRS of 0-3) of survivors (RR, 2.09; 95% CI, 1.14-3.82), and with neurological outcome by mRS (SMD, -0.54; 95% CI, -1.07 to -0.01). However, significant associations were found between hypothermia and gastrointestinal bleeding, gastric retention, electrolyte derangement, and shivering. No significant differences were detected in the incidence of developing herniation in the rewarming process, pneumonia, cardiac arrhythmia, hemorrhagic transformation, hyperglycemia, hypotension, acute kidney injury, and venous thrombotic events in LHI patients who underwent hypothermia compared with those who had normothermia. Conclusions: This meta-analysis suggested that hypothermia was not associated with mortality in LHI patients. However, it was associated with the improvement of neurological outcome, but with a higher risk of adverse events during treatment. Future studies are needed to demonstrate the efficacy and safety of hypothermia for LHI. The protocol for this systematic review was obtained from PROSPERO (registration number: CRD42018111761).

Elevation of erythrocyte sedimentation rate and C-reactive protein levels reflects renal interstitial inflammation in drug-induced acute tubulointerstitial nephritis.

BACKGROUND: A renal biopsy is needed to define active inflammatory infiltration and guide therapeutic management in drug-induced acute tubulointerstitial nephritis (D-ATIN). However, factors such as various contraindications, refusal of informed consent and limited technical support may stop the biopsy process. It is thus of great importance to explore approaches that could deduce probable pathologic changes. METHODS: A total of 81 biopsy-proven D-ATIN patients were enrolled from a prospective cohort of ATIN patients at Peking University First Hospital. The systemic inflammation score (SIS) was developed based on the CRP and ESR levels at biopsy, and patients were divided into high-SIS, median-SIS, and low-SIS groups. The demographic data, clinicopathologic features, and renal outcomes were compared. RESULTS: The SIS was positively correlated with inflammatory cell infiltration and was inversely correlated with interstitial fibrosis. The number of interstitial inflammatory cells increased significantly with increasing SISs. The proportions of neutrophils and plasma cells were the highest in the high-SIS group compared with the other two groups. Prednisone (30-40 mg/day) was prescribed in all patients. The high-SIS group tended to have more favorable renal restoration than the other two groups. By 12 months postbiopsy, a decreased eGFR (< 60 mL/min/1.73 m2) was observed in 66.7% of medium-SIS patients, 32.4% of high-SIS patients, and 30.4% of low-SIS patients. CONCLUSION: The SIS was positively correlated with active tubulointerstitial inflammation and therefore could help to aid therapeutic decisions in D-ATIN.

HLA-DQA1, -DQB1, and -DRB1 Alleles Associated with Acute Tubulointerstitial Nephritis in a Chinese Population: A Single-Center Cohort Study.

Acute tubulointerstitial nephritis (ATIN) is a common cause of acute kidney injury with various origins. HLA-DQA1, -DQB1, and -DRB1 have been associated with development of tubulointerstitial nephritis and uveitis (TINU) syndrome in case reports and small case series, but information about HLA genetic susceptibility to drug hypersensitivity-related ATIN (D-ATIN) or other types of ATIN is limited. In this article, we genotyped 154 patients with ATIN of different causes and 200 healthy controls at HLA-DQA1, -DQB1, and -DRB1 loci. We found that there was no difference between patients with D-ATIN and TINU in the carrier's frequency of HLA-DQA1, -DQB1, or -DRB1 Patients with Sjogren's syndrome-ATIN and IgG4-related ATIN presented a different pattern of tested HLA alleles. HLA-DQA1*0104 (p value corrected by false discovery rate method [Pc] = 4.72 × 10-22, odds ratio [OR] = 13.81), -DQB1*0503 (Pc = 1.95 × 10-14, OR = 9.51), and -DRB1*1405 (Pc = 8.06 × 10-19, OR = 12.80) were significant risk alleles for the occurrence of D-ATIN and TINU. There were no significant associations between tested HLA alleles and ATIN induced by other causes. Patients with D-ATIN/TINU carrying HLA-DQA1*0104/DQB1*0503/DRB1*1405 had higher peak serum creatinine and more severe renal tubulointerstitial inflammatory impairment. They also had significantly higher levels of tubular HLA-DR and HLA-DQ expression, which were correlated with the numbers of interstitial CD4+ T lymphocytes (r = 0.975, p < 0.001 and r = 0.832, p = 0.005, respectively) and monocytes/macrophages (r = 0.721, p = 0.004 and r = 0.615, p = 0.02, respectively). In conclusion, patients with D-ATIN or TINU have genetic susceptibility in HLA-DQA1, -DQB1, and -DRB1 alleles. HLA-DQA1*0104/DQB1*0503/DRB1*1405 serves as a significant risk haplotype for development of D-ATIN and TINU, which might facilitate renal tubulointerstitial inflammation by enhancing Ag-presenting capacity of renal tubular cells.

Etiology and renal outcomes of acute tubulointerstitial nephritis: a single-center prospective cohort study in China.

Background: The aim of this study was to explore the etiology, long-term renal outcomes and affecting factors of acute tubulointerstitial nephritis (ATIN). Methods: Patients with biopsy-proven ATIN from 1 January 2005 to 31 December 2013 at Peking University First Hospital were enrolled in the study and received scheduled follow-up for at least 24 months. The causes of ATIN were defined at biopsy and reclassified during follow-up. Factors affecting renal recovery at 6 months post-biopsy and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) at 12 months post-biopsy and at the end of follow-up were analyzed. Results: A total of 157 ATIN patients were enrolled, with an average follow-up of 48 months (range 24-108 months). A modified etiology spectrum was identified, with a decreased proportion of drug-induced ATIN (D-ATIN, 64% at biopsy to 50% after follow-up) and an increase in autoimmune-related ATIN (22-41%) with late-onset systemic manifestations in patients who had been classified as D-ATIN or ATIN of unknown cause. Recurrent kidney injury was observed in 51% of the patients with tubulointerstitial nephritis and uveitis syndrome (TINU), 53% of those with an autoimmune disease and 8% of those with D-ATIN, resulting in prolonged immunosuppressive treatment. By 12 months, decreased eGFR (<60 mL/min/1.73 m2) was observed in 47% of the patients with D-ATIN, 74% of those with TINU and 57% of those with other autoimmune diseases. In multivariable analysis, female sex, older age, presence of hypertension and recurrent kidney injury were independent risk factors for worse renal outcomes. Conclusions: Our data demonstrate that autoimmune-related ATIN may present with systemic manifestations after kidney injury and is, therefore, commonly misdiagnosed. Repeated kidney injury is not uncommon in patients with ATIN. Scheduled follow-up is, therefore, critical for defining the exact etiology and proper management of ATIN.

Syndrome Differentiation of IgA Nephropathy Based on Clinicopathological Parameters: A Decision Tree Model.

Background. IgA nephropathy is the most common cause of primary glomerulonephritis in China, and Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is a vital treatment strategy. However, not all doctors prescribing TCM medicine have adequate knowledge to classify the syndrome accurately. Aim. To explore the feasibility of differentiation of TCM syndrome types among IgA nephropathy patients based on clinicopathological parameters. Materials and Methods. The cross-sectional study enrolled 464 biopsy-proven IgA nephropathy adult patients from 2010 to 2016. The demographic data, clinicopathological features, and TCM syndrome types were collected, and the decision tree models based on classification and regression tree were built to differentiate between the syndrome types. Results. 370 patients of training dataset were 32 years old with serum creatinine of 79 µmol/L, estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) of 97.2 mL/min/1.73 m2, and proteinuria of 1.0 g/day. The scores of Oxford classifications were as follows: M1 = 97.6%, E1 = 14.6%, S1 = 50.0%, and T1 = 52.2%/T2 = 18.4%. The decision trees without or with MEST scores achieved equal precision in training data. However, the tree with MEST scores performed better in validation dataset, especially in classifying the syndrome of qi deficiency of spleen and kidney. Conclusion. A feasible method to deduce TCM syndromes of IgA nephropathy patients by common parameters in routine clinical practice was proposed. The MEST scores helped in the differentiation of TCM syndromes with clinical data.