Different traditional Chinese medicine constitution is associated with dietary and lifestyle behaviors among adults in Taiwan.

The World Health Organization states prevention of chronic diseases should be based on good lifestyle behaviors and healthy diets as they can reduce the risk of chronic diseases by 80%. The theory of traditional Chinese medicine constitution (TCMC) emphasizes the congenital differences of TCMC stem from the genes of parents, while acquired differences in TCMC are caused by factors as living environments, lifestyle behaviors, and dietary habits. From the perspective of preventive medicine, this study explores the correlation between dietary habits and lifestyle behaviors as potential risk factors for different types of TCMC-balanced constitution, Yang deficiency, Yin deficiency, and Phlegm stasis. Research data were collected from 2760 subjects aged 30 to 70 years participating in a survey conducted by Taiwan Biobank in 2012 to 2017. The survey included basic demographic characteristics, lifestyle behaviors, and dietary habits along with a Body Constitution Questionnaire. Compared to men, women were 3 to 4 times more likely to develop Yang-deficiency, Yin-deficiency, and Phlegm stasis. Variables that affected TCMC were smoking, midnight snack consumption, consumption of gravy-soaked or lard-soaked rice/noodles, deep-fried soybean products, bread spread, pickled vegetables as side dishes for the main course of a meal, and the dietary habit of vegetables or fruits instead of high-fat desserts. Poor dietary habits and lifestyle behaviors are the cause of unbalanced TCMCs. Understanding the specific TCMC of individual can provide useful information and predictions to maintain physical health and achieve early disease prevention to meet the goal of preventive medicine.

Using Healthcare Complaints Analysis Tool to Evaluate Patient Complaints during the COVID-19 Pandemic at a Medical Center in Taiwan.

The purpose of this study is to evaluate patient complaints using the Healthcare Complaints Analysis Tool (HCAT) during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021 in Taiwan. Additionally, the study examines the distribution and type of patient complaints before and during the COVID-19 pandemic to provide a better clinical procedure, hospital management and patient relationship. This study utilizes a cross-sectional design. We collected patient complaints from January 2021 to December 2021 at a medical center in Southern Taiwan. Using the Healthcare Complaints Analysis Tool (HCAT), the patient complaints are classified and coded into three major domains (clinical, management and relationship), and seven problem categories (quality, safety, environment, institutional process, respect and patient rights, listening and communication). We further compared and categorized the complaints based on whether they were COVID-19-related or not and whether it was before or during the COVID-19 pandemic to understand the differences in patient complaints. In total, we collected 584 events of patient complaints. Based on the HCAT domains, the complaints about management were the highest, at 52.9%, followed by complaints about relationship, about 37.7%. According to the types of problem, the complaints about the environment were the highest, about 32.5% (190/584), followed by communication at about 29.6% (173/584), and institutional process at about 20.4% (119/584). There were 178 COVID-19-related complaints and they were made more frequently during Q3 and Q4 (from mid-June to December) which was the pandemic period in 2021 in Taiwan. Among the COVID-19-related complaints, the most frequent were in the environment domain with 114 cases (about 65.7% of COVID-19-related complaints). The domains of patient complaints were statistically different between COVID-19-related and non-related (p < 0.001). During the COVID-19 pandemic, the proportion of COVID-19-related complaints increased 1.67 times (117/312 vs. 61/272, p < 0.001). Both prior to and during the COVID-19 pandemic, management-related complaints represented the highest domain. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the implementation of infectious disease prevention and control policies and actions may have developed some inconvenience and difficulty in seeking medical practice and process. These characteristics (complaints) are more prominent, and timely and patient-first consideration is required immediately to build up better clinical procedures, the healthcare environment and comprehensive communication. Using the HCAT can allow health centers or health practitioners to understand the needs and demands of patients through complaints, provide friendly medical and health services, avoid unequal information transmission, build trust in doctor−patient relationships and improve patients' safety.

The use of statins was associated with reduced COVID-19 mortality: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Statins are widely used to treat people with metabolic and cardiovascular disorders. The effect of statins on coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is unclear. To investigate the association between statins and COVID-19 outcomes and, if possible, identify the subgroup population that benefits most from statin use. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A systematic review and meta-analysis of published studies that included statin users and described COVID-19 outcomes through 10 November 2020. This study used the generic inverse variance method to perform meta-analyses with random-effects modelling. The main outcomes were evaluation of the need for invasive mechanical ventilator (IMV) support, the need for intensive care unit (ICU) care and death. All outcomes were measured as dichotomous variables. RESULTS: A total of 28 observational studies, covering data from 63,537 individuals with COVID-19, were included. The use of statins was significantly associated with decreased mortality (odds ratio [OR] = 0.71, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.55-0.92, I2=72%) and the need for IMV (OR = 0.81, 95% CI: 0.69-0.95, I2=0%) but was not linked to the need for ICU care (OR = 0.91, 95% CI: 0.55-1.51, I2=66%). Subgroup analysis further identified five types of studies in which statin users had even lower odds of death. CONCLUSIONS: The use of statins was significantly associated with a reduced need for IMV and decreased mortality among individuals with COVID-19. Statins may not need to be discontinued because of concern for COVID-19 on admission. Further randomized controlled trial (RCTs) are needed to clarify the causal effect between statin use and severe COVID-19 outcomes.Key messagesParticipants in five types of studies were shown to have even lower odds of death when taking statins.The use of statins was significantly associated with a reduced need for invasive mechanical ventilation and decreased all-cause mortality among individuals with COVID-19. However, statin use did not prevent participants from needing care in the intensive care unit.The results justify performing randomized controlled trials (RCTs) to validate the benefits of statins on COVID-19 outcomes.