We aimed to investigate the relationship between serum neurofilament light chain (NfL) and grip strength using data from the 2013–2014 US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES).

Secondary analysis of cross-sectional, population-based data.

NHANES sample, 2013–2014.

We studied 1925 participants aged 20–75 years.

We applied a multivariable generalised linear regression model, adjusted for several potential confounders, and restrictive cubic spline models to evaluate the association between serum NfL and grip strength. Subgroup analyses were conducted using stratified multivariable linear regression analysis.

We included 1925 participants (average age: 44.8±0.44 years) from the NHANES database. Participants with higher serum NfL levels had a significantly higher prevalence of medical conditions (hypertension, diabetes, cardiovascular disorder, chronic kidney disease (CKD) and cancer) compared with those with lower NfL levels (all p

Our study demonstrates a strong, negative and linear correlation between elevated serum NfL levels and grip strength. Notably, our findings indicate that individuals aged between 60 and 75 years, those with physical inactivity and those with CKD exhibit a more pronounced reduction in grip strength with increasing serum NfL levels.

Substance use disorders (SUDs) are common and highly disabling, causing serious long-term harm to people’s health. Despite the existence of evidence-based interventions for treating SUDs, many individuals remain symptomatic regardless of treatment, and relapse is common. Acupuncture has been examined for the treatment of SUDs, but available evidence is mixed. This comprehensive systematic review and meta-analysis aims to provide updated evidence which will include both English and Chinese studies to investigate the effectiveness and safety of different types of acupuncture for the treatment of alcohol, tobacco and illicit drug use disorders.

This protocol is guided by the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta Analysis Protocols. A thorough search for relevant studies in multiple electronic databases (PubMed, Embase, PsycINFO, Cochrane Library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, VIP, Wan-fang and China Biomedical Database) and clinical trial registries will be conducted. Population-Intervention-Comparator-Outcomes-Study design criteria will be adopted for study inclusion. Only randomised controlled trials analysing the efficacy and safety of acupuncture for SUDs will be included. Two reviewers will independently conduct the study selection, data extraction and quality assessment, and disagreements will be solved by a third senior reviewer or by contacting study authors. Frequency and quantity of substance use, abstinence rate, withdrawal symptoms, treatment drop-out and relapse rates are primary outcomes. Functional status, health-related quality of life and adverse events are secondary outcomes. The risk of bias and quality of evidence will be assessed by the revised Cochrane risk-of-bias tool for randomised trials and guidelines of the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation working group, respectively. When sufficient data is available, subgroup analyses will be performed to further compare the differences in the primary and secondary outcomes based on the type of substance use, acupuncture, co-intervention status, comparison group, measurement tools, length of follow-up, risk of bias of included studies and countries of studies conducted.

No private information is used in the entire process of the systematic review. Therefore, ethical approval is not required. Findings of the proposed systematic review will be published in a peer-reviewed journal and/or disseminated through conference presentations.

The protocol has been archived in the Prospero repository (PROSPERO 2024 CRD42024566389).

Premature ovarian insufficiency (POI) is a complicated reproductive endocrine disease seriously affecting physiological function and fertility in women. Its clinical features include amenorrhoea or infrequent menstruation, oestrogen deficiency and elevated levels of gonadotropins. At present, conventional treatments for POI in clinical practice are unable to fundamentally improve ovarian function or solve fertility problems, and often have certain side effects. Adipose tissue-derived stromal vascular fraction (SVF) contains various cell types, including adipose-derived stem/stromal cells, stromal cells, endothelial cells, fibroblasts and macrophages. Recently, SVF has shown tremendous potential in treating many refractory diseases, offering a promising therapeutic option for improving ovarian function. Although SVF has shown therapeutic effects in animal models of POI, there is insufficient evidence demonstrating the efficacy and safety of autologous SVF in women with POI.

This study is a single-centre randomised controlled trial designed to explore the efficacy and safety of using autologous SVF in improving pregnancy outcomes in patients with infertility diagnosed with POI. A total of 308 women meeting the eligibility criteria will be randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to either the SVF group or the control group. The control group will receive conventional assisted reproductive technology treatment, including in vitro fertilisation, embryo transfer and intracytoplasmic sperm injection. In the SVF group, patients will undergo bilateral intraovarian injections of the SVF suspension under ultrasound guidance. Their in vitro fertilisation cycles will commence 4–8 weeks after SVF injection. The primary outcome of this trial is the cumulative clinical pregnancy rate within 6 months. Aside from this, secondary outcomes including menstrual volume and duration, ovarian volume, antral follicle count, and serum levels of anti-mullerian hormone and sex hormone (oestrogen and follicle-stimulating hormone) will be measured. All adverse events will be monitored and recorded within a 6-month follow-up period. Additionally, pregnancy outcomes and the health status of the offspring will be tracked through telephone follow-up for 2 years.

This trial has been reviewed and approved by the Ethics Committee of Peking University Third Hospital (approval number: IRB00006761-M2024330). We will ensure that each patient has signed informed consent before participation in the trial. The findings will be published in a peer-reviewed journal.

NCT06481969.