Factors associated with patient delay for older adults with benign prostatic hyperplasia: A descriptive qualitative study

Based on the theory of planned behavior, the aim of this study was to describe the influencing factors of patient delay intentions and behaviors in benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) patients and to provide a reference for the development of a patient delay intention scale. This study was carried out over 4 months in 2021 in Daqing, Heilongjiang, China. The participants were 20 patients with BPH who were aged 60 to 82 years and experienced patient delay; participants were selected through a purposive sampling method. The data were collected via face-to-face semistructured interviews. Five main themes emerged from the interviews, including an insufficient understanding of symptoms, experiences of coping instead of seeking health care, negative attitudes toward care-seeking, the influence of others on decision-making for care-seeking, and obstacles to seeking health care. In conclusion, the patient delay intentions and behaviors of BPH patients are the result of a combination of many factors.

The illness perception and health promotion behaviour of young and middle-aged patients with hyperuricaemia: A qualitative study

AIM

The purpose of this qualitative study was to describe the health-promoting behaviours of patients with hyperuricaemia and influencing factors.

DESIGN

A descriptive qualitative design was used to gain insight into the personal experience of health promotion behaviour in patients with hyperuricaemia.

METHODS

Sixteen patients were sampled in face-to-face interviews with maximum variation, and the data were transcribed verbatim. The data analysis was based on the phrases of thematic analysis outlined by Braun and Clarke (2006).

RESULTS

Four main themes were identified in the data: (a) Perception of disease; (b) Motivation to change health-promoting behaviour; (c) Strategies for health-promoting behaviour; and (d) Encounter obstacles to change health-promoting behaviour.

A Brief Analysis of Mesenchymal Stem Cells as Biological Drugs for the Treatment of Acute-on-Chronic Liver Failure (ACLF): Safety and Potency

Acute-on-Chronic Liver Failure (ACLF) is characterized by acute exacerbation of chronic hepatitis, organ failure, high mortality, and poor prognosis. At present, the clinical methods of treatment include comprehensive treatment with medicines, artificial liver system, and Orthotopic Liver Transplantation (OLT), and of these, OLT is considered the most effective treatment for ACLF. However, it is difficult for ACLF patients to benefit from OLT due to the shortage of liver donors, high cost, unpredictable postoperative complications, and long-term use of immunosuppressive drugs; therefore, it is important to explore a new treatment option. With the development of stem cell transplantation technology in recent years, several studies have shown that treatment of ACLF with Mesenchymal Stem Cells (MSCs) leads to higher survival rates, and has good tolerance and safety rates, thereby improving the liver function and quality of life of patients; it has also become one of the popular research topics in clinical trials. This paper summarizes the current clinical interventions and treatments of ACLF, including the clinical trials, therapeutic mechanisms, and research progress on MSC application in the treatment of ACLF. The problems and challenges of the development of MSC-based therapy in the future are also discussed.

Application of mesenchymal stem cell therapy for the treatment of osteoarthritis of the knee: A concise review

Osteoarthritis (OA) refers to a chronic joint disease characterized by degenerative changes of articular cartilage and secondary bone hyperplasia. Since articular cartilage has a special structure, namely the absence of blood vessels as well as the low conversion rate of chondrocytes in the cartilage matrix, the treatment faces numerous clinical challenges. Traditional OA treatment (e.g., arthroscopic debridement, microfracture, autologous or allogeneic cartilage transplantation, chondrocyte transplantation) is primarily symptomatic treatment and pain management, which cannot contribute to regenerating degenerated cartilage or reducing joint inflammation. Also, the generated mixed fibrous cartilage tissue is not the same as natural hyaline cartilage. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have turned into the most extensively explored new therapeutic drugs in cell-based OA treatment as a result of their ability to differentiate into chondrocytes and their immunomodulatory properties. In this study, the preliminary results of preclinical (OA animal model)/clinical trials regarding the effects of MSCs on cartilage repair of knee joints are briefly summarized, which lay a solid application basis for more and deeper clinical studies on cell-based OA treatment.