Does Social Support Alleviate the Caregiving Burden of Adult Children? Evidence from Chinese Long-Term Care Insurance Pilot Program.

In China, and many other developed nations, public long-term care insurance (LTCI) is a commonly adopted approach to meet long-term care needs, but its impact on the burden of family caregivers remains uncertain. This study investigated whether a parent having LTCI alleviates the caregiver burden for the adult child caregiver. Data derived from the 2011, 2013, and 2018 China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study ( = 4595 adult child caregivers).

Forecasting Informal care needs of the urban-rural older adults in China based on microsimulation model.

Background: Forecasting the intensity, source, and cost of informal care for older adults in China is essential to establish and enhance policy support systems for informal care within the context of East Asian traditional culture that emphasizes filial piety. This study aims to analyze the current situation and influencing factors for the informal care needs and predict the trends of informal care needs for older adults in China from 2020 to 2040.

Methods: Using the CHARLS database from 2015 to 2018, this study first combined a two-part model and a multinomial logit to analyze the influencing factors for the informal care needs of urban-rural older adults in China.

Treatment of recurrent trigeminal neuralgia after microvascular decompression: How to select.

Background: This study aimed to investigate individualized treatment strategies and clinical outcomes in patients with recurrent trigeminal neuralgia after undergoing microvascular decompression (MVD).

Methods: One hundred forty-four patients with recurrent trigeminal neuralgia after MVD were retrospectively examined and grouped according to treatment. Surgical efficacy and pain recurrence were analyzed as outcomes.

What determines informal care need among community-dwelling older adults in China? Results from a longitudinal study.

Background: With an intensified aging population and an associated upsurge of informal care need in China, there is an ongoing discussion around what factors influence this need among older adults. Most existing studies are cross-sectional and do not focus on older people living in the community. Conversely, this study empirically explores the factors that affect informal care need of Chinese community-dwelling older individuals based on longitudinal data.

Three-dimensional CT reconstruction-guided percutaneous balloon compression for trigeminal neuralgia.

Objective: To study the value of three-dimensional CT (3D-CT) reconstruction by comparing the surgical effects of C-arm and 3D-CT in the treatment of trigeminal neuralgia (TN) by percutaneous balloon compression (PBC).

Methods: A total of 136 patients were included from May 2018 to February 2019. Among them, 65 patients underwent PBC treatment with 3D-CT and others with C-arm.

Can single disease payment impact hospitalization expenses and quality in district hospital? A case study in Fujian, China.

Background: China is exploring payment reform methods for patients to address the escalating issue of increasing medical costs. While most district hospitals were still in the stage of Single Disease Payment (SDP) due to conditions, there is a scarcity of research on comprehensive assessment of SDP. This study aims to evaluate the implementation of SDP in a district hospital, and provided data support and scientific reference for improving SDP method and accelerating medical insurance payment reform at district hospitals.

Spatial-temporal distribution patterns and influencing factors analysis of comorbidity prevalence of chronic diseases among middle-aged and elderly people in China: focusing on exposure to ambient fine particulate matter (PM).

Objective: This study describes regional differences and dynamic changes in the prevalence of comorbidities among middle-aged and elderly people with chronic diseases (PCMC) in China from 2011-2018, and explores distribution patterns and the relationship between PM and PCMC, aiming to provide data support for regional prevention and control measures for chronic disease comorbidities in China.

Methods: This study utilized CHARLS follow-up data for ≥ 45-year-old individuals from 2011, 2013, 2015, and 2018 as research subjects. Missing values were filled using the random forest machine learning method.

Bridging the gap: coordinating equity and efficiency in older people care resource allocation in China.

Background: With the increasing global aging population, how to allocate older people care resources reasonably has become an increasingly urgent international issue. China, as the largest developing country, has made many efforts to actively respond to the challenges of an aging population. However, there are still problems with uneven allocation of older people care resources and low efficiency of allocation.

Expenditure projections for community home-based care services for older adults with functional decline in China.

Introduction: Difficulty in identifying the functional status of older adults creates an imbalance between the supply and demand for community home-based care. Using a multi-level functional classification system to guide care cost measurement may optimize care resources and meet diverse eldercare demands.

Methods: The Markov model was used to project the older population size in different functional decline (FD) statuses.

Visualized Lateral Flow Assay for Dual Viral RNA Fragment Detection.

In this technical note, we report an easy-to-produce, reverse-transcription-free, and protein-enzyme-free lateral flow assay for detection of viral RNA fragments by taking SARS-CoV-2 ORF1ab and N as target models. Catalytic hairpin assembly is utilized for dual RNA fragment orthogonal reaction to generate copious amounts of opened hairpin duplexes, which bridge DNA-modified gold nanoparticles and capture strands on the strip to induce coloration. The dual RNA fragments are simultaneously visualized during one time of sample flow, and single-base-mismatched nontarget sequences can be differentiated.

Astrocyte-derived SerpinA3N promotes neuroinflammation and epileptic seizures by activating the NF-κB signaling pathway in mice with temporal lobe epilepsy.

Impaired activation and regulation of the extinction of inflammatory cells and molecules in injured neuronal tissues are key factors in the development of epilepsy. SerpinA3N is mainly associated with the acute phase response and inflammatory response. In our current study, transcriptomics analysis, proteomics analysis, and Western blotting showed that the expression level of Serpin clade A member 3N (SerpinA3N) is significantly increased in the hippocampus of mice with kainic acid (KA)-induced temporal lobe epilepsy, and this molecule is mainly expressed in astrocytes.

Abnormal activation of brain regions in idiopathic trigeminal neuralgia patients by fMRI: An activation likelihood estimation meta-analysis.

Background: Idiopathic trigeminal neuralgia (ITN) is one of the most common types of neuropathic pain, severely affecting the physiological and psychological wellbeing of patients. Recently, fMRI has been used to examine abnormal activation of brain regions in patients with ITN. However, sample sizes have been small in these few studies, and the abnormally activated brain regions remain unclear.

Non-human and human service efficiency of long-term care facilities in China.

Introduction: Care services provided by long-term care facilities (LTCFs) are currently plagued by care resource shortages and insufficient utilization. The analysis on the temporal and spatial distribution of human resources and non-human resources in LTCFs, could provide a basis to optimize resource allocation and efficient use of limited resources.

Methods: This study used data envelopment analysis to comprehensively evaluate the efficiency of human and non-human resources in different time spans and regions.

Effects of Urban and Rural Resident Basic Medical Insurance on Healthcare Utilization Inequality in China.

This study aims to evaluate the effects of Urban and Rural Resident Basic Medical Insurance (URRBMI) integration on healthcare utilization and explore the contribution of URRBMI to healthcare utilization inequality among middle-aged and older adults. Using data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS) 2011-2018. The difference-in-difference model, concentration index (CI), and decomposition method were adopted.

The effect of PM levels on continuum functional capability among older adults: Potential cause-effect or statistical associations.

Background: Since there is limited knowledge about health effects of the clean air policy (CAP, i.e., a series of emission-control actions) on continuum functional capacity (CFC) among the older adults on a large representative data, our research was to fill this gap.

Multi-layer reconstruction of skull base after endoscopic transnasal surgery for invasive pituitary adenomas.

Objective: To explore the efficacy of multi-layer skull base reconstruction after endoscopic transnasal surgery for invasive pituitary adenomas (IPAs).

Clinical Rationale For The Study: Skull base reconstruction for IPAs.

Material And Methods: This retrospective analysis involved 160 patients with IPAs who underwent operations from October 2018 to October 2020.

Research on the optimization of financing scheme of long-term care insurance in China based on system dynamics simulation.

Objective: The aging population in China highlights the significance of long-term care insurance (LTCI). This study provides policy suggestions for China to establish a sustainable LTCI financing mechanism by predicting the trend of funds balance and screening the appropriate financing scheme.

Method: A system dynamics model (SDM) of LTCI funds was constructed by clarifying the current situation and its main influencing factors of revenue and expenditure of LTCI funds in China.

Retrospective Multicenter Study on Outcome Measurement for Dyskinesia Improvement in Parkinson's Disease Patients with Pallidal and Subthalamic Nucleus Deep Brain Stimulation.

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is an effective treatment for dyskinesia in patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD), among which the therapeutic targets commonly used include the subthalamic nucleus (STN) and the globus pallidus internus (GPi). Levodopa-induced dyskinesia (LID) is one of the common motor complications arising in PD patients on chronic treatment with levodopa. In this article, we retrospectively evaluated the outcomes of LID with the Unified Dyskinesia Rating Scale (UDysRS) in patients who underwent DBS in multiple centers with a GPi or an STN target.

Multidimensional Disability Evaluation and Confirmatory Analysis of Older Adults in a Home-Based Community in China.

A robust multi-dimensional disability assessment standard was constructed to consider physical condition, care resources, and social interaction that might lead to disability, to provide a basis for accurate identification of care needs for older people aged 60 and above in a home-based community. Based on the "Capability approach" theory, the Alkire-Foster method was applied to assess the multidimensional disability. This was followed by the confirmatory analysis of the Seemingly Unrelated Regression Estimation.

Novel subgroups of functional ability in older adults and their associations with adverse outcomes.

Background: There is no general agreement on a standard form of functional classification in older adults and is mainly assessed by Activities of Daily Living (ADL) and/or Instrument Activity of Daily Living. A refined classification based on evaluation the limitations of intrinsic capacity, environment and social interaction, could provide a basis to predict the future disability and identify individuals with increased risk of adverse outcomes.

Methods: A new functional classification among older adults aged 60 and over was conducted by latent class analysis and compared with the traditional classifications, based on the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study.

Factors that may affect recurrence of trigeminal neuralgia after percutaneous balloon compression.

Objective: To investigate the efficacy of percutaneous balloon compression of the Gasserian Ganglion (PCGG) in the treatment of trigeminal neuralgia(TN)and the influencing factors of recurrence after PCGG.

Methods: The clinical data of 221 patients with TN treated by PCGG were retrospectively analyzed and followed-up to explore the postoperative efficacy.

Results: There were 158 cases of immediate disappearance of pain and 59 cases of delayed pain disappearance in patients after one PCGG operation, for an overall efficacy rate of 98.

Factors that may delay disappearance of trigeminal neuralgia after percutaneous balloon compression.

Introduction: We set out to explore the factors that may affect delayed disappearance (DD) of trigeminal neuralgia (TN) after percutaneous balloon compression (PBC).

Material And Methods: PBC was undergone by 221 patients with TN (95 male, 126 female) aged 33-89 years (mean 65). Delayed disappearance after surgery occurred in 59 patients.

The Efficacy and Safety of Infliximab in Refractory Noninfectious Uveitis: A Meta-Analysis of Observational Studies.

Although infliximab has been recommended for the second-line treatment of seronegative spondyloarthropathy- or juvenile idiopathic arthritis-related uveitis, the issue of its systemic efficacy and safety in a broader diversity of refractory noninfectious uveitis is debatable. To assess the short-term and relatively long-term efficacy of infliximab in refractory noninfectious uveitis, we performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies. PubMed, Cochrane Library, EMBASE, and Wanfang Med Online were systematically searched from January 2005 to March 2020.

Research on Financing Mechanism of Long-Term Care Insurance in Xiamen, China: A System Dynamics Simulation.

This study aimed to predict the changing trend of long-term care insurance (LTCI) funds by clarifying the linkage between revenue and expenditure and its influencing factors and to provide evidence for the establishment of a sustainable LTCI financing mechanism in China. We have taken Xiamen as an example, based on the data from Xiamen Special Economic Zone Yearbook and field survey. The changing trend of LTCI funds is predicted from 2020 to 2030 based on the system dynamics model (SDM) of the LTCI financing system.