Publications by authors named "Yu-Chao Lin"

Article Synopsis
  • Osimertinib is a third-generation EGFR TKI that is commonly used as a first-line treatment for advanced EGFR-mutated non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), but its effectiveness compared to second-generation TKIs (afatinib and dacomitinib) hasn't been thoroughly studied.
  • The study enrolled 168 patients with stage IIIb-IV EGFR-mutated NSCLC, finding that median progression-free survival (PFS) was not significantly different between those treated with osimertinib and those on second-generation TKIs.
  • Results indicated that while osimertinib showed longer PFS in patients with certain mutations, none of the differences were statistically significant, and the stage of NSCLC was the only strong predictor
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Article Synopsis
  • - This study examines how the COVID-19 pandemic affected various respiratory pathogens, including SARS-CoV-2, RSV, and influenza, using data collected from 2020 to 2023.
  • - Findings revealed higher infection rates in pediatric cases compared to adults, with a notable increase in mixed viral detections and a resurgence of RSV after mid-2022.
  • - The research highlights the need for updated vaccine strategies, leveraging multiplex PCR testing to adapt to the changing dynamics of respiratory infections across different age groups.
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Objectives: To investigate whether using the BioFire® FilmArray® Blood Culture Identification 2 panel (BCID2) leads to timely antimicrobial therapy and improves patient outcomes in critically ill patients with bloodstream infections (BSIs).

Methods: This retrospective observational study included patients with BSIs admitted to the intensive care unit from July 1, 2021, to August 31, 2023. Patients were divided into groups receiving appropriate or inappropriate antimicrobial therapy.

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Background: Carbapenem-resistant gram-negative bacteria (CRGNB) present a considerable global threat due to their challenging treatment and increased mortality rates, with bloodstream infection (BSI) having the highest mortality rate. Patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) undergoing renal replacement therapy (RRT) face an increased risk of BSI. Limited data are available regarding the prognosis and treatment outcomes of CRGNB-BSI in patients with ESRD in intensive care units (ICUs).

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Background: The increasing prevalence of drug-resistant pathogens leads to delays in adequate antimicrobial treatment in intensive care units (ICU). The real-world influence of the BioFire FilmArray Blood Culture Identification 2 (BCID2) panel on pathogen identification, diagnostic concordance with conventional culture methods, and antimicrobial stewardship in the ICU remains unexplored.

Methods: This retrospective observational study, conducted from July 2021 to August 2023, involved adult ICU patients with positive blood cultures who underwent BCID2 testing.

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Background: The optimal timing for applying the BioFire FilmArray Pneumonia Panel (FAPP) in intensive care unit (ICU) patients with hospital-acquired pneumonia (HAP) or ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) remains undefined, and there are limited data on its impact on antimicrobial stewardship.

Methods: This retrospective study was conducted at a referral hospital in Taiwan from November 2019 to October 2022. Adult ICU patients with HAP/VAP who underwent FAPP testing were enrolled.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study compared the effectiveness and safety of afatinib and dacomitinib as first-line treatments for EGFR mutation-positive non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) using data from 101 patients treated between September 2020 and March 2023.
  • Both drugs showed similar partial response rates, median progression-free survival (PFS), and time to treatment failure (TTF), indicating comparable efficacy.
  • Significant differences in side effects were noted, with afatinib causing more diarrhea and dacomitinib leading to more cases of paronychia, but both treatments were deemed safe for patients of varying ages.
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Background: There is a lack of information regarding outcomes of elderly patients hospitalized with COVID-19 following the widespread use of COVID-19 vaccines and antiviral agents.

Methods: A retrospective study was conducted between January and August 2022, enrolling patients aged 65 years or older. Patients were categorized into two groups: 'old' (65-79 years) and 'oldest-old' (80 years or more).

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Among the 14 patients with respiratory syncytial virus pneumonia, the majority (n = 8, 57.1 %) were older than 65 years and had health care-associated pneumonia (57.1 %).

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Carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (CRAB) infection is common worldwide. Despite carbapenem resistance, standard-dose carbapenems are still used in clinical practice. Hence in this study, we aimed to compare the efficacy and outcomes of a regimen containing standard-dose carbapenems with those of a regimen lacking carbapenems during the treatment of critically ill patients with CRAB nosocomial pneumonia in the intensive care unit (ICU).

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In this study, we established a novel capillary electrophoresis method for monitoring the concentration of doripenem in human plasma. As a time-dependent antibiotic, doripenem maximizes its antibacterial effects and minimizes the potential for antibiotic resistance through careful therapeutic drug monitoring. Two online preconcentration techniques, field-enhanced sample stacking (FESS) and sweeping, were coupled to enhance the detection sensitivity.

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Objectives: The increasing epidemic of infections caused by drug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria has led to the development of several antibiotic therapies. Owing to the scarcity of head-to-head comparisons of current and emerging antibiotics, the present network meta-analysis aimed to compare the efficacy and safety of antibiotics in patients with nosocomial pneumonia, complicated intra-abdominal infection, or complicated urinary tract infection.

Methods: Two independent researchers systematically searched databases up to August 2022 and included 26 randomised controlled trials that fulfilled the inclusion criteria.

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Background: Carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (CRAB) is a key pathogen associated with ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP). Research on treatment outcomes, especially ventilator dependence, in patients with VAP caused by CRAB remains limited.

Methods: This retrospective multicenter study included ICU-admitted patients with VAP caused by CRAB.

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Hospital-acquired pneumonia (HAP) and ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) caused by carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (CRAB) are both associated with significant morbidity and mortality in daily clinical practice, as well as in a critical care setting. It is unclear whether colistin susceptible-only Acinetobacter baumannii (CSO AB) is a unique phenotype separate from or a subset of CRAB-associated pneumonia. The aim of this study is to investigate the prevalence of CSO AB pneumonia and compare the presentation and outcome between CSO AB and CRAB-associated pneumonia in critically ill patients.

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Article Synopsis
  • Tigecycline is a type of antibiotic that can fight off certain hard-to-treat bacteria known as carbapenem-resistant Gram-negative bacteria (CR-GNB), often causing pneumonia in hospitalized patients.
  • A study looked at ICU patients with pneumonia from CR-GNB to see if adding tigecycline to their treatment would help them recover better.
  • Results showed that patients who got tigecycline had lower death rates and a better chance of getting better compared to those who didn't, especially after 28 days of treatment.
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Background: Although lung protective strategy and adjunctive intervention are associated with improved survival in patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), the implementation of effective therapies remains low. This study aimed to evaluate whether the use of business intelligence (BI) for real-time data visualization is associated with an improvement in lung protective strategy and adjunctive therapy.

Methods: A retrospective observational cohort study was conducted on patients with ARDS admitted between September 2020 and June 2021 at two intensive care units (ICUs) of a tertiary referral hospital in Taiwan.

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Aptamers are single-stranded, short DNA or RNA oligonucleotides that can specifically bind to various target molecules. To diagnose the infected cases of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in time, numerous conventional methods are applied for viral detection via the amplification and quantification of DNA or antibodies specific to antigens on the virus. Herein, we generated a large number of mutated aptamer sequences, derived from a known sequence of receptor-binding domain (RBD)-1C aptamer, specific to the RBD of SARS-CoV-2 spike protein (S protein).

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Article Synopsis
  • Nosocomial pneumonia caused by carbapenem-resistant gram-negative bacteria (CRGNB) poses a serious health threat with high mortality rates, and this study focused on understanding factors predicting mortality in ICU patients affected by it.
  • A total of 690 patients were analyzed, revealing a 46.1% in-hospital mortality rate, with the primary pathogens identified as Acinetobacter baumannii and Pseudomonas aeruginosa.
  • Key predictors of mortality included prolonged hospital stays, high SOFA scores, and the use of vasopressors, while the study found that colistin-based therapy did not significantly impact survival outcomes, although it showed benefits in certain subgroups with more severe organ involvement.
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Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is characterized by fibrotic change in alveolar epithelial cells and leads to the irreversible deterioration of pulmonary function. Transforming growth factor-beta 1 (TGF-β1)-induced epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in type 2 lung epithelial cells contributes to excessive collagen deposition and plays an important role in IPF. Atractylodin (ATL) is a kind of herbal medicine that has been proven to protect intestinal inflammation and attenuate acute lung injury.

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Prevention of cardiorenal syndrome through treatment with inotropic agents remains challenging. This network meta-analysis evaluated the safety and renoprotective effects of inotropes on patients with advanced heart failure (HF) using a frequentist random-effects model. A systematic database search was performed until 31 January 2021, and a total of 37 trials were included.

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Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have been approved to treat patients with various cancer types, including lung cancer, in many countries. This study aims to investigate the effectiveness and safety of ICIs under different treatment conditions of non-small cell lung cancer patients. A population-based retrospective cohort study was conducted using the electronic health records of three medical centers in Taiwan.

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Several kinds of inotropes have been used in critically ill patients to improve hemodynamics and renal dysfunction after cardiac surgery; however, the treatment strategies for reducing mortality and increasing renal protection in patients who underwent cardiac surgery remain controversial. Therefore, we performed a comprehensive network meta-analysis to overcome the lack of head-to-head comparisons. A systematic database was searched up to 31 December 2020, for randomized controlled trials that compared different inotropes on mortality outcomes and renal protective effects after cardiac surgery.

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Background: P-glycoprotein (P-gp) over-expression plays a vital role in not only systemic drug bioavailability but also cancer multi-drug resistance (MDR). Develop functional inhibitors of P-gp can conquer both problems.

Purpose And Study Design: The aim of the present study was to research the P-gp modulating effects and MDR reversing ability of a novel flavonoid from Fissistigma cupreonitens, the underlying inhibitory mechanisms were further elucidated as well.

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Objectives: To investigate the association between adjunctive nebulized colistin and treatment outcomes in critically ill patients with nosocomial carbapenem-resistant Gram-negative bacterial (CR-GNB) pneumonia.

Methods: This retrospective, multi-centre, cohort study included individuals admitted to the intensive care unit with nosocomial pneumonia caused by colistin-susceptible CR-GNB. Enrolled patients were divided into groups with/without nebulized colistin as adjunct to at least one effective intravenous antibiotic.

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