Pragmatic Clinical Studies: An Emerging Clinical Research Discipline for Improving Evidence-Based Practice of Cardiovascular Diseases in Asia.

Pragmatic clinical studies, an emerging clinical research discipline, include a wide range of studies that are largely embedded with routine clinical practice and aim to evaluate the comparative effectiveness and safety of different clinical intervention strategies. Increased availability and quality of electronic medical/health records drives the development of pragmatic clinical studies. In this review, we describe evolution of the conceptual framework of pragmatic clinical studies and share perspectives on the importance of pragmatic clinical studies in evidence-based practice for cardiovascular diseases, as a complement to conventional randomized controlled trials.

Balloon internal fixation: A novel approach to manipulate catheter knotting.

A successful alternative technique to resolve the catheter knotting during radial access using balloon internal fixation of 5F angiographic catheter in the cath laboratory.

Effect of mesoporous silica nanoparticles-based nano-fragrance on the central nervous system.

Fragrances are widely used in our daily lives and can make us feel happy. However, traditional aromatic products release fragrance quickly and have a strong aroma. This not only worsens our scenting experience, but also severely shortens the useful life of fragrance products.

Stem cell-derived cell sheet transplantation for heart tissue repair in myocardial infarction.

Stem cell-derived sheet engineering has been developed as the next-generation treatment for myocardial infarction (MI) and offers attractive advantages in comparison with direct stem cell transplantation and scaffold tissue engineering. Furthermore, induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cell sheets have been indicated to possess higher potential for MI therapy than other stem cell-derived sheets because of their capacity to form vascularized networks for fabricating thickened human cardiac tissue and their long-term therapeutic effects after transplantation in MI. To date, stem cell sheet transplantation has exhibited a dramatic role in attenuating cardiac dysfunction and improving clinical manifestations of heart failure in MI.

Chest Pain Center Accreditation Is Associated With Improved In-Hospital Outcomes of Acute Myocardial Infarction Patients in China: Findings From the CCC-ACS Project.

Background Chest pain center (CPC) accreditation plays an important role in the management of acute myocardial infarction (AMI). However, no evidence shows whether the outcomes of AMI patients are improved with CPC accreditation in China. Methods and Results This retrospective analysis is based on a predesigned nationwide registry, CCC-ACS (Improving Care for Cardiovascular Disease in China-Acute Coronary Syndrome).

Impact of Obstructive Sleep Apnea on Platelet Function Profiles in Patients With Acute Coronary Syndrome Taking Dual Antiplatelet Therapy.

Background Obstructive sleep apnea ( OSA ) is a novel risk factor for acute coronary syndrome ( ACS ). Several studies have shown OSA to be associated with induced platelet reactivity. However, whether OSA have effects on platelet function profiles in ACS patients taking dual antiplatelet therapy remains unexplored.

Optimal Systolic Blood Pressure Levels for Primary Prevention of Stroke in General Hypertensive Adults: Findings From the CSPPT (China Stroke Primary Prevention Trial).

We aimed to investigate the relationship of time-averaged on-treatment systolic blood pressure (SBP) with the risk of first stroke in the CSPPT (China Stroke Primary Prevention Trial). A post hoc analysis was conducted using data from 17 720 hypertensive adults without cardiovascular disease, diabetes mellitus, and renal function decline from the CSPPT, a randomized double-blind controlled trial. The primary outcome was first stroke.

Late Gadolinium Enhancement Amount As an Independent Risk Factor for the Incidence of Adverse Cardiovascular Events in Patients with Stage C or D Heart Failure.

Myocardial fibrosis (MF) is a risk factor for poor prognosis in dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM). Late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) of the myocardium on cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) represents MF. We examined whether the LGE amount increases the incidence of adverse cardiovascular events in patients with stage C or D heart failure (HF).

[Involvement of chemokine CXCL16 in myocardial infarction and its influence on phagocytic activity of macrophage in vitro].

Objective: To explore whether chemokine CXCL16 is up-regulated after myocardial infarction and promotes the phagocytic activity of macrophage in vitro.

Methods: Forty wild-type mice were randomly separated into 2 groups (n = 20 each). Group A had the ligation of left anterior descending coronary artery while group B underwent a sham operation.

Lifetime risk for cardiovascular disease in a Chinese population: the Chinese Multi-Provincial Cohort Study.

Background: Lifetime risk estimation is used to predict long-term cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk across the entire life span. However, most of the lifetime risk estimation came from the studies based on western population. This study aimed to assess the lifetime risk of CVD and the impact of risk factors on lifetime risk of CVD in Chinese population.

[Improvement in left ventricular filling properties after thrombolysis and anticoagulant therapy with heparin for acute pulmonary thromboembolism].

Objective: The purpose of the present study mainly aimed to evaluate whether thrombolysis and heparin anticoagulation for acute pulmonary thromboembolism (PTE) could improve the abnormal left ventricular diastolic filling induced by acute PTE.

Methods: A total of 71 acute PTE patients (36 males and 35 females; age 64 ± 13 years, range 24 - 87 years) admitted to the emergency intensive care unit of Beijing Anzhen Hospital were consecutively recruited from January of 2006 to June of 2011. Fifty-one age-and gender-matched healthy controls (29 males and 22 females, age 61 ± 9 years, range 31 - 79 years) were also recruited from Health Center during the same period of time.