Background: At the end of 2019, a novel coronavirus outbreak emerged in Wuhan, China, and its causative organism has been subsequently designated the 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV). The effectiveness of adjunctive glucocorticoid therapy in the management of 2019-nCoV-infected patients with severe lower respiratory tract infections is not clear, and warrants further investigation. Methods: The present study will be conducted as an open-labeled, randomized, controlled trial. We will enrol 48 subjects from Chongqing Public Health Medical Center. Each eligible subject will be assigned to an intervention group (methylprednisolone via intravenous injection at a dose of 1-2 mg/kg/day for 3 days) or a control group (no glucocorticoid use) randomly, at a 1:1 ratio. Subjects in both groups will be invited for 28 days of follow-up which will be scheduled at four consecutive visit points. We will use the clinical improvement rate as our primary endpoint. Secondary endpoints include the timing of clinical improvement after intervention, duration of mechanical ventilation, duration of hospitalization, overall incidence of adverse events, as well as rate of adverse events at each visit, and mortality at 2 and 4 weeks. Discussion: The present coronavirus outbreak is the third serious global coronavirus outbreak in the past two decades. Oral and parenteral glucocorticoids have been used in the management of severe respiratory symptoms in coronavirus-infected patients in the past. However, there remains no definitive evidence in the literature for or against the utilization of systemic glucocorticoids in seriously ill patients with coronavirus-related severe respiratory disease, or indeed in other types of severe respiratory disease. In this study, we hope to discover evidence either supporting or opposing the systemic therapeutic administration of glucocorticoids in patients with severe coronavirus disease 2019. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov, ChiCTR2000029386, http://www.chictr.org.cn/showproj.aspx?proj=48777.

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The human neurotropic virus JC Polyomavirus, a member of the Polyomaviridae family, is the opportunistic infectious agent causing progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy, typically in immunocompromised individuals. The spectrum of underlying reasons for the systemic immunosuppression that permits JCV infection in the central nervous system has evolved over the past 2 decades, and therapeutic immunosuppression arousing JCV infection in the brain has become increasingly prominent as a trigger for PML. Effective immune restoration subsequent to human immunodeficiency virus-related suppression is now recognized as a cause for unexpected deterioration of symptoms in patients with PML, secondary to a rebound inflammatory phenomenon called immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome, resulting in significantly increased morbidity and mortality in a disease already infamous for its lethality. This review addresses current knowledge regarding JC Polyomavirus, progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy, progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy-related immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome, and the immunocompromised states that incite JC Polyomavirus central nervous system infection, and discusses prospects for the future management of these conditions.

Background: Surgical resection can be performed for idiopathic granulomatous mastitis (IGM), but recurrence and tissue defects remain issues. Here we report our 6-year experience with a four-pattern surgical approach for IGM that involves the use of a random breast dermo-glandular flap (BDGF).Methods: Sixty-eight consecutive patients with IGM were prospectively enrolled from 01/2012 and 03/2017. Based on the extent, shape, and location of the lesions, four different patterns of surgery based on BDGF were used to remove the lesion and repair the defect. Operative data (time, blood loss, and intraoperative complications), primary healing time, recurrence, and patient-reported outcomes (cosmetic outcome, and improvement in dressing change and bathing) at 2 years were evaluated.Results: Patients' median age was 35 (range, 22-55) years. Duration of IGM was 3-22 months, with a median lesion size of 3.5 (range, 0.9-9.1) cm. The operative time was significantly longer, and blood loss was more important with the increasing lesion size (both P<0.05). No significant intraoperative complications occurred. All wounds healed by primary intention. IGM relapsed in three patients (3/68, 4.4%); they were treated successfully with a second operation. The self-evaluated cosmetic outcome was "much better" in 45 patients (66.2%), "a little better" in 18 (26.5%), and "same or worse" in five (7.3%). The self-evaluated improvement in dressing change and bathing was "improved a lot" in 51 patients (75.0%), "improved a little" in 11 (16.2%), and "not improved or getting worse" in six (8.8%). Conclusions:The BDGF-based systematic four-pattern surgical approach is effective in the treatment of IGM. Recurrence rate is low, there are no complications, and the cosmetic results and improvement in dressing change and bathing are generally favourable.