The role played by serum folate in the progression of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) remains controversial. The purpose of this study was to investigate the association of serum folate with NAFLD and advanced liver fibrosis (AHF). We conducted a cross-sectional study with 5417 participants using 2011–2018 NHANES data. Multiple logistic regression analysis and propensity score matching analysis were used to investigate the association of serum folate with NAFLD and AHF. In the completely adjusted model, participants in the high serum folate group had a 27% (OR 0.73, 95% CI 0.62, 0.87, p = 0.0003) and 53% (OR 0.47, 95% CI 0.35, 0.63, p < 0.0001) lower odds of suffering from NAFLD and AHF, respectively, compared to the low serum folate group. The similar results in propensity score matching further validated the above association. Stratified analysis showed that the negative correlation of serum folate with NAFLD and AHF demonstrated a broad consistency across populations. The results of this study indicate that higher serum folate level was associated with lower odds of NAFLD and AHF among US adults. Further prospective studies are necessary due to the limitations of cross-sectional studies.

Currently, tuberculosis (TB) is the second most lethal disease in the world caused by a single infectious pathogen. Rapid diagnosis of TB is of great importance for its treatment and management. Xpert MTB/RIF is a novel rapid diagnostic assay for the diagnosis of pulmonary TB (PTB). Use of the Xpert assay based on bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) samples is indicated when TB is suspected and sputum smears or cultures are negative. The aim of this meta-analysis was to systematically evaluate the diagnostic performance of the Xpert assay based on BALF samples for the diagnosis of PTB. A systematic review of previously published articles was performed, and relevant data were extracted. Meta-DiSc 1.4 and Stata 12.0 were used to analyze the data. When Mycobacterium tuberculosis cultures were used as the criterion standard, the combined sensitivity of BALF-based Xpert was 0.89 (95% CI, 0.87–0.91), the specificity was 0.87 (95% CI, 0.85-0.88), the positive likelihood ratio was 8.28 (95% CI, 5.39–12.71), the negative likelihood ratio was 0.14 (95% CI, 0.10–0.19) and the diagnostic ratio was 84.08 (95% CI, 42.00–168.31). When composite reference standard was used as the criterion standard, the above observations were 0.69 (95% CI, 0.67–0.72), 0.98 (95% CI, 0.97–0.98), 41.40 (95% CI, 14.56–117.71), 0.28 (95% CI, 0.21–0.37) and 190.47 (95% CI, 50.56–717.54), respectively. The area under the summary receiver operating characteristic curve was close to 1 for both. Overall, the Xpert MTB/RIF assay based on BALF samples showed high sensitivity and specificity for the diagnosis of PTB and seems to be a reliable rapid detection method.

Background: Lymph node tuberculosis (LNTB) is the leading type of extrapulmonary tuberculosis (EPTB) causing death in children. The Xpert MTB/RIF assay is a novel rapid test for the diagnosis of LNTB. Although previous evidence suggests that Xpert is reliably accurate in diagnosing EPTB in children, information is lacking for the specific type of LNTB in children. The aim of this study was to systematically assess the accuracy and reliability of Xpert for the diagnosis of LNTB in children. Methods: We systematically searched four databases, Embase, Cochrane Library, PubMed, and Web of Science, which extracted relevant data according to predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria. The data were analyzed by meta-Disc 1.4 and Stata 12.0 software to determine sensitivity, specificity, diagnostic odds ratio (DOR), etc. Results: A total of 646 samples from 8 studies were included in the analysis. The pooled sensitivity, specificity, negative likelihood ratio (NLR), positive likelihood ratio (PLR,) and combined diagnostic odds ratio (DOR) of Xpert for all samples were 0.79 (95% CI 0.70, 0.87), 0.90 (95% CI 0.86, 0.92), 0.29 (95% CI 0.19, 0.43), 7.20 (95% CI 3.32, 15.60), and 37.56 (95% CI 13.04, 108.15), respectively. The area under the curve (AUC) of the summary receiver operating characteristic (sROC) curve was 0.9050. Conclusion: Overall, Xpert showed moderate sensitivity and high specificity compared with culture in the diagnosis of LNTB in children. In addition, after analyzing the combined diagnostic odds ratio and positive LR, our study showed that Xpert has excellent diagnostic accuracy.

Objectives In this study, assessing whether coffee consumption and caffeine intake were associated with periodontitis infection separately was set as the objective. Materials and Methods Divided into binary and continuous categories, coffee consumption was set as the exposure variable along with caffeine intake and periodontitis infection as the outcome variables. Other covariables were regarded as potential confounders. The cross-sectional study was conducted based on the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, with multivariate regression models, subgroup analyses, smooth fitting curves, and threshold effect examinations conducted to pursue a definite correlation between exposures and the outcome. Results Negative associations were discovered between binary coffee consumption and caffeine intake and periodontitis infection, with all confounders adjusted. In subgroup analyses stratified by sex, diabetes mellitus status, and hypertension status, interaction and threshold effects were observed, which were revealed intuitively by smooth-fitting curves. Conclusions Significant negative associations between binary consumption and caffeine intake and periodontitis infection separately were indicated, with no evidence suggesting a credible correlation between continuous coffee consumption and periodontitis infection risk. The benefits of the behavior of consuming coffee and consuming caffeine were more obvious among males and individuals who do not suffer from diabetes or hypertension.

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a globally widespread ribonucleic acid virus that transmits through blood and sexual contact. Its morbidity and mortality are particularly higher in economically underdeveloped areas. Therefore, an economical and effective diagnostic method for detection of HCV is urgently needed. In this study, we evaluated the diagnostic accuracy of the SD BIOLINE rapid diagnostic test for HCV detection. We searched for studies related to SD BIOLINE and HCV in PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Library and then designed inclusion and exclusion criteria. After extracting valid data, the included literature was evaluated with the quality assessment tool Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies. After our data analysis, the sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio, negative likelihood ratio, diagnostic accuracy, summary receiver operating characteristic curve, funnel plot, box plot, and Fagan plot of the diagnostic method were determined. Nine articles with nine sets of data were finally included. The sensitivity and specificity were 0.94 and 0.98, respectively, the positive likelihood ratio was 79.53, the negative likelihood ratio was 0.05, the diagnostic odds ratio was 1590.32, and the summary receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.9958. The SD BIOLINE test has the advantages of high sensitivity, high specificity, low cost, and easy operation for diagnosing HCV. Therefore, we recommend using SD BIOLINE for rapid and effective screening of HCV, which is especially applicable for economically underdeveloped areas.

Objective A detection method with high efficiency and accuracy is urgently needed in clinical work. The purpose of our study was to determine the diagnostic accuracy of the Xpert MTB/RIF assay for intestinal tuberculosis (ITB). Methods We searched PubMed and 4 other databases from their establishment to July 19, 2022, for published essays of diagnostic performance in which Xpert MTB/RIF was used to test patients with clinically suspected ITB. An assessment of the quality of the selected literature was conducted using QUADAS-2. We built forest plots by MetaDiSc software. Results The pooled Xpert MTB/RIF sensitivity was 48%, and the specificity was 99%. Moreover, the positive likelihood ratio for ITB diagnosis was 21.61. The negative likelihood ratio was 0.54. There were substantial variations between the study estimates of sensitivity (I2 = 87.6%) and specificity (I2 = 82.4%). Conclusion Intestinal TB is detected with limited diagnostic sensitivity by Xpert MTB/RIF but with high specificity. An Xpert-positive result may facilitate the rapid identification of ITB cases. Nevertheless, a negative result has less certainty in excluding the disease.

Background Bacterial vaginosis (BV) is one of the most common infections among women of reproductive age and accounts for 15–50% of infections globally. The role played by folate in the pathogenesis and progression of BV is poorly understood. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between serum folate, red blood cell (RBC) folate, and BV in American women. Methods 1,954 participants from the 2001-2004 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) program were included in this study. Multiple logistic regression was used to analyze the association between serum folate, RBC folate, and BV, and covariates including race, age, education level, and body mass index were used to construct adjusted models. Stratified analysis was used to explore the stability of the above associations in different populations. Results In the present cross-sectional study, we found that serum folate and RBC folate were inversely associated with the risk of BV. In the fully adjusted model, the risk of BV was reduced by 35% (OR=0.65, 95% CI: 0.51~0.83, p=0.0007) in the highest serum folate group and 32% (OR=0.68, 95% CI: 0.53~0.87, p=0.0023) in the highest RBC folate group compared to the lowest group. Conclusions The results of this study indicated that serum folate and RBC folate were inversely associated with the risk of BV folate supplementation may play an important role in the prevention and management of BV.

Background: Coffee is one of the most consumed beverages in the world, coffee consumption has been growing in the United States over the past 20 years. Periodontitis is defined by the pathologic loss of the periodontal ligament and destruction of the connective tissue attachment and alveolar bone loss and is related to different systemic diseases and conditions. However, the causality has remained unclarified, thus we regarded discovering the causal relationship between coffee consumption and the infection risk of periodontitis as the objective of the study. Methods: Coffee consumption was subdivided into binary coffee consumption and continuous coffee consumption to refine the study design. Genetic instruments were stretched from the MRC-IEU (MRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit)analysis on the UK Biobank, the Gene-Lifestyle Interactions in Dental Endpoints (GLIDE) project, and the joint meta-analysis of a recent GWAS. The IVW (Inverse Variance Weighted) method, MR-Egger regression, and Weighted Median method were introduced to estimate the causality, a scatter plot revealed the intuitive result, and a Leave-One-Out plot was used to test the stability. Heterogeneity and pleiotropy analyses were also conducted to test outlier SNPs (Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms). Results: An effect of continuous coffee consumption on the risk of periodontitis was found (IVW: OR = 1.0104, 95%CI: 1.0016-1.0193, P = 0.0212; MR-Egger: OR = 1.0004, 95%CI: 0.9753-1.0303, P = 0.98; Weighted Median: OR = 1.0077, 95%CI: 0.9963-1.0191, P = 0.19), while the effect of binary coffee consumption on periodontitis did not meet the requirement of indicating a strong causal association, neither were the reverse causality analyses. Conclusions: The study indicated the causality of continuous coffee consumption to the risk of periodontitis with no strong evidence for an effect of binary coffee-consuming behavior on periodontitis. There was also no intensive evidence suggesting reverse causality.