Effect of easy cupping combined with pelvic floor electrical stimulation and Kegel exercise and pelvic floor muscle surface electromyography on symptoms improvement in women with stress urinary incontinence.

This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of easy cupping combined with pelvic floor electrical stimulation and Kegel exercises in treating female patients with stress urinary incontinence (SUI). Ninety SUI patients were randomly assigned to two groups: the control group (pelvic floor electrical stimulation + Kegel exercises) and the experimental group (easy cupping + pelvic floor electrical stimulation + Kegel exercises). Outcomes assessed included pelvic floor muscle strength, urinary incontinence, urinary leakage, pelvic floor muscle surface electromyography, adverse effects, and patient satisfaction before and after treatment.

Causal association between blood leukocyte counts and vascular dementia: a two-sample bidirectional Mendelian randomization study.

While previous observational studies have suggested a link between leukocyte counts and vascular dementia (VD), the causal relationship between leukocyte counts and various subtypes of VD remains elusive. This study aimed to investigate the causal relationship between five types of leukocyte counts and VD, with the goal of improving prevention and treatment strategies. In this study, leukocyte counts were used as the exposure variable, with genome-wide association study (GWAS) data sourced from both the UK Biobank and the Blood Cell Consortium.

Exploring a Potential Causal Link Between Dietary Intake and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: A Two-Sample Mendelian Randomization Study.

Background: Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), the most prevalent chronic respiratory condition, significantly impairs patients' quality of life. The pivotal element in disease management lies in prevention, underscoring the paramount importance of employing a scientific approach to investigate early prevention strategies for COPD.

Methods: This study delved into the causal link between 28 dietary intakes and COPD employing two-sample Mendelian randomization.

Cost-Effectiveness of Low-Dose Compared to Standard-Dose Alteplase for Acute Ischemic Stroke in China: A Within-Trial Economic Evaluation of the ENCHANTED Study.

Introduction: The Enhanced Control of Hypertension and Thrombolysis Stroke Study (ENCHANTED) showed that a low-dose alteplase was safe but not clearly non-inferior to standard-dose alteplase in acute ischemic stroke (AIS). Given the significant cost of this medicine, we undertook a cost-effectiveness analysis to determine the probability that low-dose is cost-effective relative to standard-dose alteplase in China.

Methods: For ENCHANTED participants in China with available health cost data, cost-effectiveness and cost-utility analyses were undertaken in which death or disability (modified Rankin scale scores 2-6) at 90 days and quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs) were used as outcome measures, respectively.

The relation between plasma miR-126 levels and cerebral collateral circulation in patients with intracranial arterial stenosis.

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the correlation between the circulating miR-126 regulation pathway and the cerebral collateral circulation (CCC), and to test whether miR-126 could serve as a potential biomarker for CCC formation in patients with intracranial arterial stenosis or occlusion.

Material And Methods: This single-centre cross-sectional study enrolled patients who underwent cerebral angiography with severe stenosis (≥70%) or occlusion in at least one major intracranial artery. Collateral degree was graded according to the ASITN/SIR classification.

Exome sequencing study revealed novel susceptibility loci in subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH).

Aim: To expand our current understanding of the genetic basis of subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH), and reveal the susceptibility genes in SAH risk.

Methods: We conducted whole-exome sequencing (WES) in a cohort of 196 individuals, including 94 SAH patients and 94 controls, as well as 8 samples that belong to two pedigrees. Systematically examination for rare variations (through direct genotyping) and common variations (through genotyping and imputation) for SAHs were performed in this study.

Variants in MME are associated with autosomal-recessive distal hereditary motor neuropathy.

Objective: To identify a new genetic cause in patients segregating distal hereditary motor neuropathy (dHMN) with an autosomal recessive pattern.

Methods: Whole-exome sequencing was conducted in two siblings and was combined with segregation analysis. Additionally, 83 unrelated dHMN patients with unknown genetic cause were screened.

Distribution Pattern of Atherosclerotic Stenosis in Chinese Patients with Stroke: A Multicenter Registry Study.

The aim of this multicenter study was to demonstrate the distribution pattern of atherosclerotic stenosis and its trend with aging between extracranial and intracranial arteries and its distribution between the anterior and posterior circulations in Chinese patients hospitalized with ischemic stroke. In addition, the risk factors for the distribution pattern were illustrated. From June 2015 to May 2016, 9,346 patients with ischemic stroke from 20 hospitals were enrolled.

Cost-effectiveness of targeted thrombolytic therapy for stroke patients using multi-modal CT compared to usual practice.

Introduction: The use of multimodal computed tomography imaging (MMCT) in routine clinical assessment of stroke patients improves the identification of patients with large regions of salvageable brain tissue, lower risk for haemorrhagic transformation, or a large vessel occlusion requiring endovascular therapy.

Aim: To evaluate the cost-effectiveness of using MMCT compared to usual practice for determining eligibility for reperfusion therapy with alteplase using real world data from the International Stroke Perfusion Imaging Registry (INSPIRE).

Methods: We performed a cost-utility analysis.

Intravenous Thrombolysis May Not Improve Clinical Outcome of Acute Ischemic Stroke Patients Without a Baseline Vessel Occlusion.

The benefit of thrombolysis in ischemic stroke patients without a visible vessel occlusion still requires investigation. This study tested the hypothesis that non-lacunar stroke patients with no visible vessel occlusion on baseline imaging would have a favorable outcome regardless of treatment with alteplase. We utilized a prospectively collected registry of ischemic stroke patients [the International Stroke Perfusion Imaging Registry (INSPIRE)] who had baseline computed tomographic perfusion and computed tomographic angiography.

A Fast Projection-Based Algorithm for Clustering Big Data.

With the fast development of various techniques, more and more data have been accumulated with the unique properties of large size (tall) and high dimension (wide). The era of big data is coming. How to understand and discover new knowledge from these data has attracted more and more scholars' attention and has become the most important task in data mining.

Validating a Predictive Model of Acute Advanced Imaging Biomarkers in Ischemic Stroke.

Background And Purpose: Advanced imaging to identify tissue pathophysiology may provide more accurate prognostication than the clinical measures used currently in stroke. This study aimed to derive and validate a predictive model for functional outcome based on acute clinical and advanced imaging measures.

Methods: A database of prospectively collected sub-4.

Perfusion computed tomography in patients with stroke thrombolysis.

See Saver (doi:10.1093/awx020) for a scientific commentary on this article.Stroke shortens an individual's disability-free life.

Too good to treat? ischemic stroke patients with small computed tomography perfusion lesions may not benefit from thrombolysis.

Objective: Although commonly used in clinical practice, there remains much uncertainty about whether perfusion computed tomography (CTP) should be used to select stroke patients for acute reperfusion therapy. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that a small acute perfusion lesion predicts good clinical outcome regardless of thrombolysis administration.

Methods: We used a prospectively collected cohort of acute ischemic stroke patients being assessed for treatment with IV-alteplase, who had CTP before a treatment decision.

[Understanding the reasons behind the low utilization of thrombolysis in hyperacute ischemic stroke].

Objective: The study aimed to analyze the influencing factors of thrombolysis therapy in acute ischemic stroke patients with onset time less than 4.5 hours.

Methods: We consecutively prospectively screened acute ischemic stroke patients with onset time less than 4.

Global White Matter Hypoperfusion on CT Predicts Larger Infarcts and Hemorrhagic Transformation after Acute Ischemia.

Introduction: Presence of white matter hyperintensity (WMH) on MRI is a marker of cerebral small vessel disease and is associated with increased small vessel stroke and increased risk of hemorrhagic transformation (HT) after thrombolysis.

Aim: We sought to determine whether white matter hypoperfusion (WMHP) on perfusion CT (CTP) was related to WMH, and if WMHP predisposed to acute lacunar stroke subtype and HT after thrombolysis.

Methods: Acute ischemic stroke patients within 12 h of symptom onset at 2 centers were prospectively recruited between 2011 and 2013 for the International Stroke Perfusion Imaging Registry.

A New Hidden Markov Model for Protein Quality Assessment Using Compatibility Between Protein Sequence and Structure.

Protein structure Quality Assessment (QA) is an essential component in protein structure prediction and analysis. The relationship between protein sequence and structure often serves as a basis for protein structure QA. In this work, we developed a new Hidden Markov Model (HMM) to assess the compatibility of protein sequence and structure for capturing their complex relationship.

Selective refinement and selection of near-native models in protein structure prediction.

In recent years in silico protein structure prediction reached a level where fully automated servers can generate large pools of near-native structures. However, the identification and further refinement of the best structures from the pool of models remain problematic. To address these issues, we have developed (i) a target-specific selective refinement (SR) protocol; and (ii) molecular dynamics (MD) simulation based ranking (SMDR) method.

Early expression of mannose-binding lectin 2 during Aspergillus fumigatus infection in human corneal epithelial cells.

Aim: To evaluate the early expression of mannose-binding lectin 2 (MBL2) in human corneal epithelial cells (HCECs) infected by Aspergillus fumigatus (AF).

Methods: HCECs cultured in vitro with AF antigens and sampled at 0, 0.5, 1, 2, 4, 6 and 8h.

MUFOLD-DB: a processed protein structure database for protein structure prediction and analysis.

Background: Protein structure data in Protein Data Bank (PDB) are widely used in studies of protein function and evolution and in protein structure prediction. However, there are two main barriers in large-scale usage of PDB data: 1) PDB data are highly redundant in terms of sequence and structure similarity; and 2) many PDB files have issues due to inconsistency of data and standards as well as missing residues, so that automated retrieval and analysis are often difficult.

Description: To address these issues, we have created MUFOLD-DB http://mufold.

The speed of ultraearly hematoma growth in acute intracerebral hemorrhage.

Objective: The prognostic importance of the speed of early hematoma growth in acute intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) has not been well established. We aimed to determine the association between the rate of increase in hematoma volume and major clinical outcomes in the Intensive Blood Pressure Reduction in Acute Cerebral Hemorrhage Trial (INTERACT) studies. The effects of early intensive blood pressure (BP) lowering according to the speed of hematoma growth were also investigated.

xMDFF: molecular dynamics flexible fitting of low-resolution X-ray structures.

X-ray crystallography remains the most dominant method for solving atomic structures. However, for relatively large systems, the availability of only medium-to-low-resolution diffraction data often limits the determination of all-atom details. A new molecular dynamics flexible fitting (MDFF)-based approach, xMDFF, for determining structures from such low-resolution crystallographic data is reported.

Correlation between aortic/carotid atherosclerotic plaques and cerebral infarction.

The aim of this study was to investigate the correlation between aortic/carotid atherosclerotic plaques and cerebral infarction. We examined 116 cases of cerebral infarction using transcranial Doppler ultrasound in order to exclude cerebrovascular stenosis. Transesophageal echocardiography and color Doppler ultrasound were used to detect aortic atherosclerotic plaques (AAPs) and carotid atherosclerotic plaques (CAPs).