[Effect of auricular acupressure combined with 5α-reductase inhibitor on short-term quality of life of patients after transurethral plasmakinetic enucleation of the prostate].

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effect of combined application of Semen vaccariae seeds auricular acupressure and 5α-reductase inhibitor (finasteride tablets) on postoperative quality of life of patients after transurethral plasmakinetic enucleation of the prostate (PKEP). METHODS: 120 patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) who were scheduled to undergo PKEP at the Department of Urology, Jintan People's Hospital Affiliated to Jiangsu University from January 2020 to December 2022, were randomly divided into 4 groups after voluntarily signing informed consent. Three days before the operation, 30 patients were given oryzanol tablets 5 mg orally once a night (placebo group), 31 patients were given Semen vaccariae seeds auricular acupressure (auricular acupressure group), 29 patients were given finasteride 5 mg orally once a night (finasteride group), and another 30 patients were given auricular acupressure combined with finasteride 5 mg orally once a night (combination therapy group). The above treatment was continued for 6 weeks after PKEP. The general data of the perioperative period and the 6-week postoperative follow-up results of the 4 groups were compared to observe the indicators such as the symptom score of nocturia, the self-rating depression scale, and the quality of life (QoL) after treatment among the groups. RESULTS: All patients who underwent PKEP completed the 6-week postoperative follow-up and no statistical difference in the relevant data of the 4 groups was found before the operation. After 2 and 4 weeks of follow-up, the nocturia symptom scores of the auricular acupressure group and the combination therapy group were better than those of the placebo group and the finasteride group. The depression symptom scores and QoL results showed that the auricular acupressure group, finasteride group, and combination therapy group were superior to the placebo group (P<0.05). After 6 weeks of follow-up, QoL in the combination therapy group was 1.65±0.55, which was significantly different from that in the other three groups (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: Combined application of auricular acupressure and 5α-reductase inhibitor can significantly alleviate symptoms such as nocturia and depression and improve the quality of life in BPH patients after PKEP.

[The application of multidimensional nursing intervention in postoperative patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia].

OBJECTIVE: Analyze the application effect of multidimensional nursing intervention in postoperative patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia in urology, and explore targeted nursing measures. METHODS: A total of 118 patients who underwent benign prostatic hyperplasia surgery at the Urology Department of Jintan First People's Hospital in Changzhou City from December 2022 to June 2023 were selected and divided into an experimental group of 59 and an intervention group of 59 according to different nursing measures. Collect IPSS, QoL, SDS, and SAS scores from patients to evaluate their quality of life and psychological changes during hospitalization. RESULTS: The postoperative SAS score of the experimental group patients (54.44 ±2.93) was lower than that of the control group (56.05±2.22), and the predischarge SAS score (46.19 ± 5.56) was lower than that of the control group (51.32 ± 1.48), with statistical significance (P<0.05). The SDS preoperative score (61.53 ± 6.40), postoperative score (54.75 ± 5.13),and pre discharge score (46.71 ± 4.32) of the experimental group patients were lower than preoperative score (67.76 ± 3.44), postoperative score (58.34 ± 3.03), and predischarge score (50.59 ± 2.58) of the control group with statistical significance (P<0.05). The preoperative IPSS score of the experimental group patients (27.97 ± 3.82) was lower than that of the control group (25.49 ± 4.00), and the difference was statistically significant (P<0.05), but there was no significant difference between the two groups after surgery and before discharge. The preoperative QoL score of the experimental group patients (91.90 ± 6.19) was lower than that of the control group (95.17 ± 5.56), and before discharge (105.15 ± 4.66) was higher than that of the control group (101.63 ± 5.66), with a statistically significant difference (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: Multidimensional nursing measures for postoperative patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia can improve their quality of life, reduce psychological pressure, and benefit patients significantly, which is worth further promotion.

[Effect of transurethral thuliumlaser vapoenucleation of the prostate with low-power conventional pulse mode on sexual function in patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the effect of a novel transurethral thulium laser vapoenucleation of the prostate with low-power conventional pulse mode (LP-ThuVEP) on sexual function in patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). METHODS: 89 BPH patients admitted to Department of Urology, Jintan People's Hospital, Affiliated to Jiangsu University, from January 2022 to June 2023 were selected and randomly divided into the LP-ThuLEP group (45 cases) and the transurethral plasma kinetic resection of the prostate (TUPKRP) group (44 cases). Perioperative indicators were recorded, and the IPSS, Qmax, Qavg, PVR, and QoL of the two groups of patients before surgery and 3 months and 6 months after surgery were comparatively analyzed. The effect of surgery on male sexual function was evaluated through the International Index of Erectile Function-5 (IIEF-5) score and the Male Sexual Health Questionnaire-Ejaculatory Dysfunction (MSHQ-EjD) score. RESULTS: Compared with the TUPKRP group, the LP-ThuVEP group had no statistically significant difference in operation time (P>0.05), but there were statistical differences in bladder irrigation time and indwelling urinary catheter time (P<0.05) and significant statistical differences in the decrease in hemoglobin on the day of surgery and the disappearance time of gross hematuria induced by defecation after surgery (P<0.001). The perioperative complications of the two groups were comparable. Among the urinary tract symptom indicators, the LP-ThuVEP group had statistically significant differences in IPSS score, QoL score, and PVR compared with the TUPKRP group 3 months after surgery (P<0.05). In terms of male sexual function, there was a statistical difference in IIEF-5 scores between the two groups at 3 months and 6 months after surgery (P<0.05); Except that there was no statistical difference in the ejaculation-related satisfaction scores between the two groups at 3 months after surgery (P>0.05), there had all significant statistical differences in ejaculation function and satisfaction scores between and within the groups at 3 months and 6 months after surgery (P<0.001). CONCLUSION: Compared with TUPKRP, the LP-ThuVEP can also effectively relieve urinary tract obstruction caused by BPH and has the advantages of less damage and faster recovery of erectile function and ejaculatory function of patients.

[Investigation on the Emission Difference of Air Pollutants from Common Residential Coal Stoves and Suggestions for Emission Reduction].

To explore the difference in the emission of air pollutants from coal stoves, five new and common residential coal stoves (square briquette, baffled heat exchange, heating and cooking integrated gasification positive burning, and gasification reverse burning stove) were selected. The emission level of major air pollutants was determined using simulated combustion in the laboratory for quantitatively evaluating the environmental effects of different coal stoves. Moreover, the factors and reasons for the differences were identified, and suggestions for the reduction of emission were proposed. The results showed that: ① the emissions of air pollutants from different coal stoves were significantly different; the heating and cooking integrated stove had the largest emission intensity (2.9 kg ·t-1) of air pollutants (SO2, NOx, and TSP), which was 1.6 times of the average value, and the square briquette stove had the lowest emission level, which was 65% of the average value. ② The emissions of gaseous pollutants from the coal stoves in different combustion stages also showed evident differences. In the high-fire stage, the NOx emission concentration of the square briquette stove was 0.49 mg ·m-3, which was 45%-72% lower than that of the other stoves; the SO2 emission concentration of the gasification reverse burning stove was 1.38 mg ·m-3, which was 28% lower than that of the other stoves. ③ The application technology and combustion type were the main factors affecting the emission levels of the coal stoves. The stove with square briquette technology and gasification reverse burning technology could have great environmental benefit. However, the cost of the two stoves was 20 and 18 thousand yuan, respectively, which was clearly higher than that of the other types of stoves. ④ Considering the difference in the emission of air pollutants from the different stoves, it was suggested to adopt differentiated economic policy and strict emission and product standards, promoting the use of energy-saving and environment-friendly coal stoves to reduce the emission of air pollutants from coal-fired stoves.

[Fugitive Dust Emission Characteristics from Building Construction Sites of Beijing].

Particulate matter (PM) is the primary air pollutant in Beijing, and its emission control is an important direction of air pollution prevention and control. Construction dust plays a significant role in the source of airborne particulate matter in Beijing. Due to population growth and economic development, the demand for residential and office space has been increasing which results in a high construction area in Beijing and dust pollution caused by construction activities. However, there are few studies focusing on fugitive dust emissions from construction sites and their contribution to air pollution in Beijing. Under this background, this paper established an estimation model of dust emission from construction sites, and used the localized emission factor to calculate the dust emission from 2000 to 2015 in Beijing, identified the emission characteristics and laws of construction dust emission and quantified the uncertainty range of the emissions. The WRF/CMAQ model system was used to simulate the contribution of dust pollution to quantify its influence on air quality. The results showed that the dust emission from construction sites in Beijing has been increasing, but the construction area is falling in recent years. However, the emission of PM is still high and needs to be paid enough attention. In the spatial distribution, the dust emissions in summer and autumn are larger than those in other seasons. As for spatial distribution, the construction dust is mainly concentrated in the urban function extension area and suburban area, which is related to the extension of population activities and the gradual development of urbanization. The contribution of construction dust to PM10 and PM2.5 concentration in the ambient air can reach 31.3 µg·m-3 and 9.6 µg·m-3, respectively. Through scenarios analysis, for further reduction of the emission from construction sites in 2030, more stricter standard for green construction and powerful supervision are needed.

[Exploring the Severe Haze in Beijing During December, 2015: Pollution Process and Emissions Variation].

Severe haze episodes shrouded Beijing and its surrounding regions again during December, 2015, causing major environmental and health problems. Beijing authorities had launched two red alerts for atmospheric heavy pollution in this period, adopted a series of emergency control measures to reduce the emissions from major pollution sources. To better understand the pollution process and emissions variation during these extreme pollution events, we performed a model-assisted analysis of the hourly observation data of PM2.5, and meteorological parameters combined with the emissions variation of pollution sources. The synthetic analysis indicated that: (1) Compared with the same period of last year, the emissions of atmospheric pollution sources decreased in December 2015. However, the emission levels of primary pollutants were still rather high, which were the main intrinsic causes for haze episodes, and the unfavorable diffusion conditions represented the important external factor. High source emissions and meteorological factors together led to this heavy air pollution process. (2) Emergency control measures taken by the red alert for heavy air pollution could decrease the pollutants emission by about 36% and the PM2.5 concentrations by 11% to 21%. Though the implementation of red alert could not reverse the evolution trend of heavier pollution, it indeed played an active role in mitigation of PM2.5 pollution aggravating. (3) Under the heavy pollution weather conditions, air pollutants continued to accumulate in the atmosphere, and the maximum effect by taking emergency measures occurred 48-72 hours after starting the implementation; therefore, the best time for executing emergency measures should be 36-48 hours before the rapid rise of PM2.5 concentration, which requires a more powerful demand on the accuracy of air quality forecast.

[Characteristic of Particulate Emissions from Concrete Batching in Beijing].

With the economic development and population growth in Beijing, there is a strong need for construction and housing, which leads to the increase of the construction areas. Meanwhile, as a local provided material, the production of concrete has been raised. In the process of concrete production by concrete batching, there are numerous particulates emitted, which have large effect on the atmospheric environment, however, systematic study about the tempo-spatial characteristics of pollutant emission from concrete batching is still rare. In this study, we estimated the emission of particulates from concrete batching from 1991 to 2012 using emission factor method, analyzed the tempo-spatial characteristics of pollutant emission, established the uncertainty range by adopting Monte-Carlo method, and predicted the future emission in 2020 based on the relative environmental and economical policies. The results showed that: (1) the emissions of particulates from concrete batching showed a trend of "first increase and then decrease", reaching the maximum in 2005, and then decreased due to stricter emission standard and enhanced environmental management. (2) according to spatial distribution, the emission of particulates from concrete batch mainly concentrated in the urban area with more human activities, and the area between the fifth ring and the sixth ring contributed the most. (3) through scenarios analysis, for further reducing the emission from concrete batching in 2020, more stricter standard for green production as well as powerful supervision is needed.

[Situation and Characteristics of Air Pollutants Emission from Crematories in Beijing, China].

Hazardous Air Pollutants (HAPs) such as exhaust particulate matter (PM), carbon monoxide (CO), sulfur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen oxide (NOx), mercury (Hg) and polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and polychlorinated dibenzo-furans ( PCDD/Fs) are emitted by the process of cremation and the burning of oblation. Risks to health posed by emissions of hazardous air pollutants from crematories are emerging concerns. Through field investigation and data collection, we obtained the related activity levels and monitored the concentrations of air pollutants from typical cremators, so as to better understand the current pollutants emission levels for crematory. Using the emission factor method, we calculated the emission inventory of HAPs for crematory of Beijing in 2012 and quantified the range of uncertainty. Using atmospheric diffusion model ADMS, we evaluated the influence of crematories on the surrounding environment, and identified the characteristics of air pollution. The results showed that: for the cremators installed with flue gas purification system, the emission concentration of exhaust PM was rather low, and the CO emission concentration fluctuated greatly. However, relative high emission concentrations of PCDD/Fs were detected mainly due to insufficient combustion. Exhaust PM, CO, SO2, NOx, Hg and PCDD/Fs emitted by crematory of Beijing in 2012 were estimated at about 11. 5 tons, 41.25 tons, 2.34 tons, 7.65 tons, 13.76 kg and 0.88 g, respectively; According to the results of dispersion model simulation, the concentration contributions of exhaust PM, CO, SO2, NOx, Hg, PCDD/Fs from crematories were 0.05947 microg x m(-3), 0.2009 microg x m(-3) and 0.0126 microg x m(-3), 0.03667 microg x m(-3) and 0.06247 microg x m(-3), 0.004213 microg x m(-3), respectively.

Cloud-based hospital information system as a service for grassroots healthcare institutions.

Grassroots healthcare institutions (GHIs) are the smallest administrative levels of medical institutions, where most patients access health services. The latest report from the National Bureau of Statistics of China showed that 96.04 % of 950,297 medical institutions in China were at the grassroots level in 2012, including county-level hospitals, township central hospitals, community health service centers, and rural clinics. In developing countries, these institutions are facing challenges involving a shortage of funds and talent, inconsistent medical standards, inefficient information sharing, and difficulties in management during the adoption of health information technologies (HIT). Because of the necessity and gravity for GHIs, our aim is to provide hospital information services for GHIs using Cloud computing technologies and service modes. In this medical scenario, the computing resources are pooled by means of a Cloud-based Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) to serve multiple GHIs, with different hospital information systems dynamically assigned and reassigned according to demand. This paper is concerned with establishing a Cloud-based Hospital Information Service Center to provide hospital information software as a service (HI-SaaS) with the aim of providing GHIs with an attractive and high-performance medical information service. Compared with individually establishing all hospital information systems, this approach is more cost-effective and affordable for GHIs and does not compromise HIT performance.

[Shang Ring, sleeve and conventional circumcisions for redundant prepuce and phimosis: A comparative study of 918 cases].

OBJECTIVE: To compare the clinical effects of conventional, sleeve and Shang Ring circumcisions in the treatment of redundant prepuce and phimosis. METHODS: We reviewed the clinical data of 918 patients with redundant prepuce or phimosis, 279 treated by conventional circumcision, 354 by sleeve circumcision and 285 by Shang Ring circumcision. We documented the preoperative characteristics, intra-operative blood loss, operation time, 4-hour and 7-day postoperative visual analogue scores, surgeons' satisfaction, incision healing time, degrees of preputial edema, postoperative complications, patients' satisfaction with penile appearance and peri-operative cost, and compared them among the three groups. RESULTS: Shang Ring circumcision significantly reduced the operation time and intra-operative blood loss as compared with conventional and sleeve circumcisions (P < 0.05). The postoperative incision healing time was (18.6 +/- 5.2) d in the conventional circumcision group, (11.4 +/- 3.7) d in the sleeve circumcision group and (20.3 +/- 5.7) d in the Shang Ring circumcision group, significantly shorter in the sleeve group than in the other two (P < 0.05). As for the surgeons' satisfaction, postoperative complications, degree of preputial edema and patients' satisfaction with penile appearance, sleeve circumcision showed similar effects to Shang Ring circumcision but significantly better than conventional circumcision (P < 0.05). The 7-day postoperative visual analogue score and peri-operative cost were significantly lower in the conventional and sleeve circumcision groups than in the Shang Ring group (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Each of the three circumcision methods has its own advantages and disadvantages. The treatment decision should be individualized and based on a comprehensive consideration of the patients' age and economic status as well as surgeons' advice and surgical skills.

Increased frequency and clinical significance of myeloid-derived suppressor cells in human colorectal carcinoma.

AIM: To investigate the frequency and clinical significance of the myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSC) in human colorectal carcinoma (CRC). METHODS: Samples of peripheral blood and tumor tissue from 49 CRC patients were analyzed. Mononuclear cells were isolated by Ficoll-Hypaque density gradient centrifugation and were subjected to a flow cytometry-based immunophenotypic analysis. RESULTS: A considerable increase in the percentage of CD33⁺HLA-DR⁻ MDSCs was observed in the peripheral blood (1.89% ± 0.75%) and tumor tissues (2.99% ± 1.29%) of CRC patients as compared with that in the peripheral blood of healthy controls (0.54% ± 0.35%). This expanded CD33⁺HLA-DR⁻ subset exhibited immature myeloid cell markers, but not lineage markers, and showed up-regulation of CD18/CD11b expression as compared with the MDSCs from healthy donors. Further studies showed that the MDSC proportion in CRC peripheral blood was correlated with nodal metastasis(P = 0.023), whereas that in tumor tissues was correlated with nodal/distant metastasis (P = 0.016/P = 0.047) and tumor stage (P = 0.028), suggesting the involvement of MDSCs in CRC tumor development. CONCLUSION: Characterization of MDSCs in CRC suggests the clinical significance of circulating and tumor-infiltrating MDSCs and may provide new insights into the CRC immunotherapy targeting MDSCs.