Clinical study on effect of Astragalus Injection and its immuno-regulation action in treating chronic aplastic anemia.

OBJECTIVE: To observe the clinical effect of Astragalus Injection (, AI) and its immuno-regulatory action in treating chronic aplastic anemia (CAA). METHODS: Sixty patients with CAA were randomly assigned to two groups equally, both were treated with Stanozolol three times a day, 2 mg each time through oral intake, but AI was given additionally to the patients in the treated group once a day via intravenous dripping. All were treated for 15 days as one therapeutic course and the whole medication lasted for more than 4 months totally, with follow-up adopted. The clinical efficacy was estimated and the changes of T-lymphocyte subsets in peripheral blood as well as the serum levels of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) and interleukin-2 (IL-2) were observed. RESULTS: The total effective rate in the treated group was 83.3% (25/30), which was higher than that in the control group 66.7% (20/30), showing significant difference between them (P<0.05). Levels of hemoglobin, WBC, reticular cell and platelet were elevated in both groups after treatment, but the improvement was significantly better in the treated group than that in the control group with respect to the former three indexes (P<0.05). The level of CD4(+) increased and that of CD8(+) decreased significantly after treatment in the treated group (P<0.05), which showed significant difference as compared with those in the control group (P<0.05). Levels of serum TNF-alpha and IL-2 lowered after treatment in both groups, but significance only showed in the treated group (P<0.05). The degree of proliferation in bone marrow got raised significantly and the percentage of non-hemopoietic cells reduced significantly in the treated group after treatment, also showing significant difference to those in the control group (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: AI could promote the recovery of hemopoietic function, which might be through improving T-lymphocyte subsets and reducing the release of negative regulatory factors such as TNF-alpha and IL-2 to alleviate the inhibition on hemopoietic function.

[Infection pathogen analysis of 2388 patients in an open hematology ward from 1993 to 2004].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the incidence of infection and pathogens in hematology ward. METHODS: The data of incidence, pathogen, and outcome of infection of 2388 hospitalized patients in an open hematology ward of Peking Union Medical College Hospital from 1993 to 2004 were analyzed retrospectively. RESULTS: The overall incidence of infection was 34.3% according to the person-times of hospitalization, 24.4% for nosocomial infection and 9.9% for community-acquired infection. Most of the pathogenic bacteria of the nosocomial infection were Gram negative. The most common bacteria in the sputum samples included Enterobacter (27%), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (16%) and coagulase negative Staphylococcus (MRSCoN, 12%), the most common bacteria in the blood samples included Escherichia coli (43%), Enterobacter cloacae (11%), and Klebsiella (11%). Whereas in the community-acquired infection the most common bacteria in the sputum samples were Haemophilus parainfluenzae (15%), MRSCoN (28%), and Staphylococcus epidermidis (10%), and the most common bacteria in the blood samples were MRSCoN (28%), E. coli (28%), and Klebsiella (9.4%). Fungi were more often found in nosocomial infection, especially in the sputum samples. 12-year follow up showed that in nosocomial infection Pseudomonas aeruginosa remained the most common bacteria in the sputum samples, whereas E. coli and Enterobacter cloacae became the major bacteria in the blood samples. In community-acquired infection, the proportion of Staphylococcus aureus, that of Klebsiella in blood samples, and that of E. coli in throat swab samples increased in recent years. The incidence of fungi infection had increased in both nosocomial infection and community acquired infection. The mortality of nosocomial infection was 6.1%, higher than that of the community-acquired infection, however, not statistically significant (P = 0.17). There was a trend of decrease in the mortality of community-acquired infection but did not in the nosocomial infection. CONCLUSION: The patients in hematology ward are susceptible to infection, especially nosocomial infection that has a higher mortality rate in comparison with the community-acquired infection, however, not statistically significant. The pathogens of nosocomial infection are most likely G- bacteria, fungi and other bacteria resistant to most antibiotics. The mortality rate of nosocomial infection remains almost unchanged in the 12-year follow up.