Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic, systemic, autoimmune disease that may lead to joint damage, deformity, and disability, if not treated effectively. Hedyotis diffusa Willd (HDW) and its main components have been widely used to treat a variety of tumors and inflammatory diseases. The present study utilized a network pharmacology approach, microarray data analysis and molecular docking to predict the key active ingredients and mechanisms of HDW against RA. Eleven active ingredients in HDW and 180 potential anti-RA targets were identified. The ingredients-targets-RA network showed that stigmasterol, beta-sitosterol, quercetin, kaempferol, and 2-methoxy-3-methyl-9,10-anthraquinone were key components for RA treatment. KEGG pathway results revealed that the 180 potential targets were inflammatory-related pathways with predominant enrichment of the AGE-RAGE, TNF, IL17, and PI3K-Akt signaling pathways. Screened through the PPI network and with Cytoscape software, RELA, TNF, IL6, TP53, MAPK1, AKT1, IL10, and ESR1 were identified as the hub targets in the HDW for RA treatment. Molecular docking was used to identify the binding of 5 key components and the 8 related-RA hub targets. Moreover, the results of network pharmacology were verified by vitro experiments. HDW inhibits cell proliferation in MH7A cells in a dose and time-dependent manner. RT-qPCR and WB results suggest that HDW may affect hub targets through PI3K/AKT signaling pathway, thereby exerting anti-RA effect. This study provides evidence for a clinical effect of HDW on RA and a research basis for further investigation into the active ingredients and mechanisms of HDW against RA.

Journal of Medical Internet Research - International Scientific Journal for Medical Research, Information and Communication on the Internet #Preprint #PeerReviewMe: Warning: This is a unreviewed preprint. Readers are warned that the document has not been peer-reviewed by expert/patient reviewers or an academic editor, may contain misleading claims, and is likely to undergo changes before final publication, if accepted, or may have been rejected/withdrawn. Readers with interest and expertise are encouraged to sign up as peer-reviewer, if the paper is within an open peer-review period. Please cite this preprint only for review purposes or for grant applications and CVs (if you are the author). Background: Digital technologies have the potential to address many of the challenges associated with the traditional center-based CR (CBCR), but the remote home-based cardiac rehabilitation(HBCR) model remains a challenge. Objective: This study is designed to investigate the feasibility, and efficacy of a smartwatch-facilitated HBCR model in patients with coronary heart disease (CHD). Methods: It was a single-center, randomized, non-blind, and parallel-controlled study. We recruited patients aged 18 years or older with coronary heart disease from a tertiary hospital in Jilin Province, China. The intervention group received a 3-month smartwatch-based HBCR program involving remotely delivered real-time feedback, supervision, and education. The control group received conventional HBCR. Adherence is the primary outcome of the trial, assessed by the Home-Based Cardiac Rehabilitation Exercise Adherence Scale. The secondary outcomes include cardiopulmonary function, measured by cardiopulmonary exercise testing, anxiety (General Anxiety Disorder-7), depression(Patient Health Questionnaire-9), and quality of life (36-Item Short Form Health Survey) at 3 months. Results: Between January 1, 2023, and December 30, 2023, 62 patients (mean age 59.93±10.06 years), of whom 33.3% were female and 66.% were male, were recruited and subsequently randomly assigned to the smartwatch group (n=32) or control group (n=30). No difference was detected in the baseline characteristics between the two groups. After the intervention, the subjects in the smartwatch group performed significantly better in peak VO2, home-based cardiac rehabilitation adherence, GAD-7, PHQ-9, and some other parameters than those in the control group. Conclusions: This feasibility study showed that the smartwatch device was well-accepted and effective in supporting a home-based cardiac rehabilitation model for patients with coronary heart disease (CHD). Clinical Trial: Clinical Trials Registry: ChiCTR2400088039; https://www.chictr.org.cn/bin/project/edit?pid=215602

Background: Exercise intolerance is very common in patients with coronary heart disease (CHD). Although some researches confirming the validation of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) on CHD treatment, the effect of TCM on improving the exercise tolerance of patients with CHD remains unclear so far. Our trial is to investigate whether the Yangxinshi (YXS) tablet can improve exercise tolerance as well as the quality of life among CHD patients. Methods: It is a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multi-center trial. A total of 90 patients with CHD from 3 hospitals in China will be enrolled and randomly assigned to one of 2 groups: YXS group, N = 45; placebo group, N = 45. The 2 groups will simultaneously receive standardized western medicine and exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation program for 12 weeks. The primary outcome measure is the exercise capacity, which will be evaluated by the cardiopulmonary exercise test and 6-minute walking test. The 2nd outcomes include symptom improvement, psychologic issues, laboratory tests, side effects, and adverse events. Discussion: To our knowledge, it is the 1st randomized controlled trial to evaluate the effect of TCM YXS tablet on exercise tolerance in patients with CHD. The results will provide more evidence for future studies in this area. Trial registration: This study protocol was registered in Research Registry (researchregistry5752).

The study aims to assess the effectiveness of telephone follow-ups combined with a smartphone app (e.g., WeChat [Tencent], which is one of the most widely used communication apps in China), as a smoking cessation intervention. Social volunteers were recruited on March 1, 2017, and randomized to supervision groups with five participants in each group. Every day, the specialists shared some information related to smoking cessation including the videos, songs, and scientific knowledge in WeChat groups and conducted telephone follow-ups on the third, fifth, seventh, ninth, 12th, 17th, 22nd, 27th, and 30th day in March and on April 1. Ultimately, a comparison was made of the self-reported smoking abstinence and self-reported average number of cigarettes smoked between the participants. One hundred ten volunteers participated in the study, with 105 who completed follow-up. Self-reported smoking abstinence in the past 7 days occurred in 65.7% of the participants (n = 69) compared with 34.3% (n = 36) in whom smoking abstinence did not occur. The mean age of those who failed was 40.15 years (range: 22–70 years), and 55.5% (n = 20) attributed their failure to personal reasons. However, the self-reported average number of cigarettes smoked every day was less than that before the study (on average, 10.34 ± 8.17 per day), and this difference was statistically significant (95% CI [8.312, 12.364], p < .01). It was effective to deliver a telephone follow-up combined with a smartphone app follow-up as an intervention for smoking cessation.

Objective: To assess the clinical effectiveness of Yangxinshi (YXS) tablets on exercise capacity and symptoms of anxiety and depression in patients with coronary heart disease (CHD). Methods and Results: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multicenter clinical trial was performed to assess the effects of YXS tablets on exercise capacity and quality of life in patients with CHD. A total of 82 patients were included in this trial. Compared with the placebo group, the YXS group showed significant improvement in peak VO2 (0.22 L/min vs 0.01 L/min; difference 0.1, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.04–0.16, p = 0.000), peak Mets (0.58 vs 0.09; difference 0.3, 95% CI 0.12–0.47, p = 0.005), anaerobic threshold (AT) VO2 (0.23 L/min vs 0.04 L/min; difference 0.12, 95% CI 0.07–0.18, p = 0.000), AT Mets (0.62 vs 0.16; difference 0.35, 95% CI 0.2–0.5, p = 0.001), and 6 minutes walking test (6MWT) (50.05 m vs 11.91 m; difference 29.92, 95% CI 18.78–41.07, p = 0.000). There were no differences in Hamilton anxiety rating scale (HAM-A score (1.97 vs 2.07; difference 2.03, 95% CI 0.99–3.06, p = 0.926) and Hamilton depression rating scale (HAM-D) score (1.06 vs 1.7; difference1.42, 95% CI 0.24–2.6, p = 0.592). Conclusions: In patients with CHD, YXS tablets, compared with placebo, could improve exercise capacity, without beneficial effects on anxiety and depression symptoms.

Background: The benefits of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) are well-known, there is insufficient evidence about the effects of HIIT on heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF). Method: Multiple databases include MEDLINE, PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL, Web of Science, PEDro, Cochrane Library, and Google Scholar are used to search for randomized controlled trials investigating the effects of HIIT on HFpEF. All related articles published with the English language with no time limitation will be included. Two reviews independently conducted the selection, data extraction, and quality assessment. The primary outcome is exercise capacity. The secondary outcomes include quality of life (QoL), blood pressure (BP), ventricular function, and left ventricular diastolic function, symptom improvement, endothelial function, and arterial stiffness. Data analysis is performed with Review Manager Software (Version 5.3). Result: This systematic review and meta-analysis aim to evaluate the efficacy of HIIT on HFpEF, its outcome will provide reliable evidence for future studies. Conclusion: The findings of this study will be published in a related peer-reviewed journal. Registration number: INPLASY202050097