TCM as adjunctive therapy improves risks of respiratory hospitalizations in persons with type 2 diabetes: A retrospective cohort study.

Patients with type 2 diabetes are at a higher risk of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma than the general population. In addition, emerging evidence suggests that traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) might be beneficial for patients with type 2 diabetes. We investigated whether TCM use was associated with a reduced risk of respiratory hospitalizations in patients with type 2 diabetes.

Assessing the prognostic value of respiratory oscillometry in patients with difficult-to-treat asthma.

Respiratory oscillometry is widely explored in asthma management; however, there is currently no consensus on its routine work-up in patients with difficult-to-treat asthma. We conducted a retrospective, cross-sectional study involving patients with difficult-to-treat asthma at Asia University Hospital between January 2017 and October 2020. We aimed to correlate clinical significance of respiratory oscillometry and asthma treatment outcomes including symptoms control and exacerbation in patients with difficult-to-treat asthma.

Association between Statin Use and Diabetes Risk in Patients with Transient Ischemic Attack.

Statin therapy can effectively reduce recurrent transient ischemic attack (TIA) risk. However, studies have reported that statin use is associated with incidence of diabetes mellitus (DM). Whether statin therapy remains associated with higher DM risk in patients with TIA remains unknown.

Statin Therapy and the Risk of Viral Infection: A Retrospective Population-Based Cohort Study.

Statins exert cholesterol-independent beneficial effects, including immunomodulatory effects. In this study, we attempted to investigate the association between statin therapy and the risk of viral infection. We conducted a retrospective cohort study using data from Taiwan's National Health Insurance Research Database.

Type 1 diabetes is associated with an increased risk of venous thromboembolism: A retrospective population-based cohort study.

Background: It has been unclear whether diabetes mellitus (DM) is positively associated with a risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE). In addition, whether the risk of VTE is altered in patients with type 1 diabetes (T1DM) has rarely been explored.

Aim: We investigated whether patients with T1DM are at a relatively high risk of VTE development.

Skeletal bone age assessments for young children based on regression convolutional neural networks.

Pediatricians and pediatric endocrinologists utilize Bone Age Assessment (BAA) for in-vestigations pertaining to genetic disorders, hormonal complications and abnormalities in the skeletal system maturity of children. Conventional methods dating back to 1950 were often tedious and suscep-tible to inter-observer variability, and preceding attempts to improve these traditional techniques have inadequately addressed the human expert inter-observer variability so as to significantly refine bone age evaluations. In this paper, an automated and efficient approach with regression convolutional neu-ral network is proposed.

Association between asthma and risk of benign prostatic hyperplasia: a retrospective population-based study.

Objective: The association between asthma and benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) has rarely been explored. We investigated whether male asthmatic patients had an increased risk of BPH by conducting this retrospective nationwide population-based study.

Methods: We utilized data derived from the National Health Insurance Research Database (NHIRD) in Taiwan.

Reduced Risks of Both Ischemic and Hemorrhagic Strokes in Nurses: A Population-Based Cohort Study in Taiwan.

Background: Nurses are typically required to address patient emergencies, and they experience high stress levels in their work, which may expose them to a higher risk of stroke. This cohort study compared the risk of stroke between nurses and the general population.

Methods: We used the Taiwan National Health Insurance database to conduct our retrospective cohort study, and we identified 83,641 individuals in the nurse group and 334,564 individuals in the control group.

Asthma is associated with endometriosis: A retrospective population-based cohort study.

Background: Evidence regarding the association between asthma and endometriosis is limited and inconsistent. The goal of the study was to investigate whether women diagnosed as having asthma were at a greater risk of endometriosis than age-matched unaffected women.

Methods: We conducted a nationwide population-based retrospective study by using data retrieved from the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database during the period of 2000-2005 with follow-up through 2013.

Association between chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and increased risk of benign prostatic hyperplasia: a retrospective nationwide cohort study.

Objective: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) are common disorders in ageing male populations. Nevertheless, the relationship between the two diseases has rarely been explored. The objective of this study was to examine whether patients with COPD are at an increased risk of BPH.

Association of migraine with asthma risk: A retrospective population-based cohort study.

Background: Both migraine and asthma are common health problems in the general population. However, the association between these two disorders is yet to be fully explored.

Objective: We examined whether adult patients with migraine are at a higher risk of asthma development.

Adult asthma is associated with an increased risk of herpes zoster: A population-based cohort study.

Objective: The objective of this study was to determine whether a new diagnosis of asthma is associated with a later diagnosis of herpes zoster (HZ) in a nationwide, retrospective, non-age limited, population-based cohort.

Methods: We used data from the National Health Insurance Research Database in Taiwan. The asthma group consisted of all 40 069 patients in the database with newly diagnosed asthma and using asthma medications from 2000 through 2005.

Risk of Migraine in Patients With Asthma: A Nationwide Cohort Study.

Asthma has been described as an "acephalic migraine" and "pulmonary migraine." However, no study has investigated the temporal frequency of migraine development in patients with asthma, and the results of previous studies may be difficult to generalize.We investigated the effect of asthma on the subsequent development of migraine by using a population-based data set in Taiwan.

Increased risk of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease among patients with Helicobacter pylori infection: a population-based cohort study.

Background: Increasing evidence suggests that Helicobacter pylori infection (HPI) may have extragastric manifestations, including the respiratory system. This study investigated the role of HPI in increasing the subsequent risk of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in a nationwide population.

Methods: We conducted this retrospective cohort study using data from the Longitudinal Health Insurance Database, which is derived from the Taiwanese National Health Insurance Research Database.

Association of inflammatory bowel disease with asthma risk: A nationwide cohort study.

Objective: We evaluated the risk of asthma development in adult patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) in a nationwide population.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted by using data retrieved from the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database. Patients, ages 20 year or older, with newly diagnosed IBD between 2000 and 2005 were identified and randomly frequency-matched (based on sex, age, and index year) with four times the number of enrollees without IBD from the general population.

Increased risk of dementia among patients with pulmonary tuberculosis: a retrospective population-based cohort study.

Objective: We investigated and compared the risk of dementia development in a cohort of patients with tuberculosis (TB).

Methods: The study involved 6473 patient with newly diagnosed TB, and each patient was randomly frequency matched with 4 people without TB based on age, sex, and index year. The risk of dementia development was analyzed using Cox proportional hazards regression.

Adult asthma increases dementia risk: a nationwide cohort study.

Background: Studies on the association between adult asthma and dementia are few. We investigated the risk of dementia in patients diagnosed with adult asthma compared with that of people without asthma who were age and sex matched to the study patients.

Methods: We used data from the National Health Insurance Research Database.

Association between obstructive sleep apnea and deep vein thrombosis / pulmonary embolism: a population-based retrospective cohort study.

Background: Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a major contributor to cardiovascular disease, and may cause severe morbidity and mortality. Recent studies have indicated that OSA patients exhibited elevated platelet activity, fibrinogen levels, and platelet aggregation.

Objectives: We investigated the risk of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE) in patients diagnosed with OSA compared with age- and sex-matched unaffected people.

Simvastatin upregulates Bcl-2 expression and protects retinal neurons from early ischemia/reperfusion injury in the rat retina.

Simvastatin has been shown to enhance the survival of retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) following ischemia-reperfusion (IR) injury by mediating the expression of stress proteins. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of simvastatin on retinal neurons and the expression of apoptotic proteins in a rat IR model. Wistar rats received intravitreal injection of simvastatin immediately after retinal reperfusion.