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Tacrolimus combined with corticosteroid had tolerable adverse effects and induced the remission of IMN more effectively and more rapidly. This is the first prospective randomized cohort study to compare three different therapies in patients at high risk for IMN. It provides strong evidence for choosing optimal treatment for patients with IMN. The long-term efficacy of this treatment strategy should be investigated further in future studies.

Based on this study, regular follow-up without additional treatment may be considered as another choice for elderly patients with early esophageal SCC and relative indications after ESD.

BackgroundLittle is known on the cost-effectiveness of novel regimens for hepatitis C virus (HCV) compared with standard-of-care with pegylated interferon (pegIFN) and ribavirin (RBV) therapy in developing countries. We evaluated cost-effectiveness of sofosbuvir/ledipasvir for 12 weeks compared with a 48-week pegIFN-RBV regimen in Chinese patients with genotype 1b HCV infection by economic regions.MethodsA decision analytic Markov model was developed to estimate quality-adjusted-life-years, lifetime cost of HCV infection and incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs). SVR rates and direct medical costs were obtained from real-world data. Parameter uncertainty was assessed by one-way and probabilistic sensitivity analyses. Threshold analysis was conducted to estimate the price which can make the regimen cost-effective and affordable.ResultsSofosbuvir/ledipasvir was cost-effective in treatment-experienced patients with an ICER of US$21,612. It varied by economic regions. The probability of cost-effectiveness was 18% and 47% for treatment-naive and experienced patients, and it ranged from 15% in treatment-naïve patients in Central-China to 64% in treatment-experienced patients in Eastern-China. The price of 12-week sofosbuvir/ledipasvir treatment needs to be reduced by at least 81% to US$18,185 to make the regimen cost-effective in all patients at WTP of one time GDP per capita. The price has to be US$105 to make the regimen affordable in average patients in China.ConclusionSofosbuvir/ledipasvir regimen is not cost-effective in most Chinese patients with genotype 1b HCV infection. The results vary by economic regions. Drug price of sofosbuvir/ledipasvir needs to be substantially reduced when entering the market in China to ensure the widest accessibility.

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Background Knowledge of COVID-19 epidemiology remains incomplete and crucial questions persist. We aimed to examine risk factors for COVID-19 death. Methods A total of 80 543 COVID-19 cases reported in China, nationwide, through April 8, 2020 were included. Risk factors for death were investigated by Cox proportional hazards regression and stratified analyses. Results Overall national case fatality ratio (CFR) was 5.64%. Risk factors for death were older age (≥80: adjusted hazard ratio [aHR]=12.58, 95% confidence interval [CI]=6.78-23.33), presence of underlying disease (aHR=1.33, CI=1.19-1.49), worse case severity (severe: aHR=3.86, CI=3.15-4.73; critical: aHR=11.34, CI=9.22-13.95), and near-epicenter region (Hubei: aHR=2.64, CI=2.11-3.30; Wuhan: aHR=6.35, CI=5.04-8.00). CFR increased from 0.35% (30-39 years) to 18.21% (≥70 years) without underlying disease. Regardless of age, CFR increased from 2.50% for no underlying disease to 7.72% for 1, 13.99% for 2, and 21.99% for ≥3. CFR increased with worse case severity from 2.80% (mild), to 12.51% (severe) and 48.60% (critical) regardless of region. Compared to other regions, CFR was much higher in Wuhan regardless of case severity (mild: 3.83% versus 0.14% in Hubei and 0.03% elsewhere; moderate: 4.60% versus 0.21% and 0.06%; severe: 15.92% versus 5.84% and 1.86%; and critical: 58.57% versus 49.80% and 18.39%). Conclusions Older patients regardless of underlying disease and patients with underlying disease regardless of age were at elevated risk of death. Higher death rates near the outbreak epicenter and during the surge of cases reflect the deleterious effects of allowing health systems to become overwhelmed.

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