Objective To estimate the effects of N-acetylcystein (NAC) combined with conventional treatment on the patients with stable COPD. Methods Literatures published between January 1995 and September 2010 were searched in the databases including PubMed, CHEST, CNKI, CBM, VIP and WANGFANG for collecting the randomized control trials (RCTs) of NAC combined with the conventional treatment versus the conventional treatment on patients with stable COPD. The studies were screened according to the inclusive and exclusive criteria, the data were extracted, the quality was assessed and the meta-analysis was conducted with RevMan 5.0 software. Results A total of seven RCTs including 404 patients with stable COPD were enrolled. The meta-analysis demonstrated that, a) the short-term usage of NAC could improve PaO2 (SMD=0.05 mmHg, 95%CI –0.23 to 0.32) and PaCO2 (SMD= –0.29 mmHg, 95%CI –0.76 to 0.17) without significant differences compared with the control group; and b) the NAC could significantly improve FEV1 (SMD=1.11L, 95%CI 0.69 to 1.50) and clinical symptoms (RR=17.32, 95%CI 7.11 to 42.18), and reduce the frequency of acute exacerbation (RR=0.20, 95%CI 0.07 to 0.54) with significant differences. Conclusion The NAC used in a short-term can significantly improve arterial blood gas (ABG) and pulmonary function, and it can improve clinical symptoms and reduce the frequency of acute exacerbation. But for the possibility of moderate bias due to lower quality of the included studies and unclear implementation of RCTs, this conclusion should be cautiously applied in clinic with patients’ conditions in considered and it has to be verified with more large-scale and high-quality RCTs.
Objective To describe and compare the distributions of aminoglycosides modifying enzymes ( AMEs) in imipenem-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa ( IRPA) collected from5 cities in China. Methods A total of 146 strains of IRPA were collected from 5 cities of China ( Chengdu, Hangzhou, Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou) . The polymerase chain reaction ( PCR) were used to amplify the genes of AMEs in IRPA. Results Six positive genotypes were amplified out of 16 genotypes of AMEs by PCR. The total positive rate of AMEs is 65. 06% . The positive rates of genes of aac( 3) -Ⅱ, aac( 6′) -Ⅰ, aac( 6′) -Ⅱ, ant( 2″) -Ⅰ, ant ( 3″) -Ⅰ and aph( 3′) -Ⅵ were 33. 6% , 15. 8% , 19. 9% , 28. 8% , 14. 4%, and 4. 8% , respectively. The genotypes of AMEs were discrepant in different areas as 6 genotypes in Huangzhou and Shanghai, 4 genotypes in Chengdu and Beijing, and 3 genotypes in Guangzhou. Conclusion The results show that the positive rate of AMEs genes is high in IRPA, and the distribution is discrepant among different areas.
Objectives To evaluate the effect and safety of mycobacterium vaccae in the treatment of recurrent treated pulmonary tuberculosis. Methods We searched PubMed (1997 to 2006), VIP (1997 to 2006), Wanfang database (1997 to 2006), The Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (Issue 4, 2006) and the National Research Register (1996 to 2006). Randomized controlled trials comparing the mycobacterium vaccae immunotherapy group and the control group were included. Two reviewers independently performed data extraction and quality assessment. Data were analyzed using RevMan 4.2.2 software by The Cochrane Collaboration. Results Eleven high quality trials were included. Meta-analyses showed that mycobacterium vaccae immunotherapy plus chemotherapy resulted in higher sputum negative conversion rate (RR=1.36, 95%CI 1.21 to 1.54), higher lesion absorption rate (RR=1.39, 95%CI 1.13 to 1.72), and lower lesion non-absorption rate (RR=0.46, 95%CI 0.36 to 0.60), compared with the control group. These differences were all statistically significant. No serious adverse events were reported. Conclusion As an adjunct to chemotherapy, mycobacterium vaccae is helpful for patients with recurrent treated pulmonary tuberculosis in terms of improving cell-medicated immunity, sputum negative conversion and X-ray manifestation. More high quality studies are needed for further analysis.
Objective To explore the effects of SU5416，a vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR) inhibitor，on inflammation in mice with bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis.Methods C57BL/6 mice were randomly divided into four groups，ie.a control group，a bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis (BPF) group,early intervention with SU5416 group (days 1-14，SE)，and delayed intervention with SU5416group (days 15-28，SD).Bleomycin (10 mg/kg) was instilled into the trachea of the mice to induce pulmonary fibrosis.After the instillation，SU5416 (50 mg/kg) was injected into the peritoneal cavities of the mice twice a week.The mice treated with bleomycin alone or with bleomycin followed by SU5416 were sacrificed on the day 14 and day 28 after the instillation of bleomycin.Lung tissues were taken and processed for determination of hydroxyl proline content.Bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) was collected for total and differential cell counts and measurements of lactic dehydrogenase (LDH) levels.Results It was found that the hydroxyl proline contents，the number of macrophages，and the LDH contents from the mice treated with bleomycin alone on day 14 were greatly increased.However，only the hydroxyl proline showed a significant increase in the mice treated with bleomycin alone on day 28.The number of macrophages，LDH contents，and hydroxyl proline contents were greatly reduced in the mice treated with bleomycin and early administration of SU5416 on day 14 when compared with those treated with bleomycin alone.But there were no significant differences in the above parameters of the mice treated with bleomycin and delayed administration of SU5416 on day 14.Conclusion This study indicates that early intervention by SU5416 might attenuate the fibrosis through inhibiting early inflammation in animal model of pulmonary fibrosis induced by bleomycin.
Objective To evaluate the efficacy and safety of domestic ambroxol hydrochloride injection in the treatment of lower respiratory tract infection. Methods A total of 120 patients with respiratory tract infections were included and randomized into the treatment group (ambroxol hydrochloride injection 30mg, iv, q12h) and the control group (mucosolvan ampoule 30mg, iv, q12h). The duration of treatment was 6 days. Results 118 patients completed the trial, 59 in each group. From Day 1 to Day 6, the severity scores of cough, sputum amount, difficulty in expectoration and rales were similar between the two groups (Pgt;0.05), but a significant difference was observed in the nature of sputum (Plt;0.05). The total effective rates of the treatment group and the control group were 96.6% (FAS analysis and PP analysis) or 93.3% (FAS analysis), and 94.9% (PP analysis), respectively. There was no significant difference between the two groups (Pgt;0.05). The incidence of adverse effects was comparable between the two groups (1.7% vs. 0%, Pgt;0.05), and no severe adverse effect was observed. Conclusion The efficacy of domestic ambroxol hydrochloride injection in the treatment of lower respiratory infection was equal to that of mucosolvan ampoule, and it can even further improve the nature of sputum. Ambroxol hydrochloride was as safe as mucosolvan ampoule.
