Background. The overall risk of cardiovascular mortality (CVM) in cancer survivors has increased with time. The trend of CVM in patients with gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) remains unclear. This study is aimed at assessing the risks and independent predictors of CVM in GIST patients. Methods. Data of the GIST patients were extracted from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database (2000-2019). The standardized mortality ratio (SMR) was used to evaluate the risk of CVM, and a multivariate competing risk model was utilized to identify the predictors for CVM. Results. A total of 12,058 patients with GIST were included in this study, of whom 477 (4.0%) patients died of cardiovascular disease (CVD). The SMR for CVM among GIST patients was significantly higher than in the general population (SMR, 3.23, 95% CI: 2.97-3.52), and all categories of CVD were associated with a significantly elevated SMR. The cumulative mortality of CVD was the lowest among all causes of death, while the CVM was the second most common cause of death in patients ≥ 80 years when stratified by age at diagnosis. Furthermore, male sex, older age at diagnosis, White race, unmarried, earlier year of diagnosis, and not receiving chemotherapy were the poor prognostic factors for CVM. Conclusions. The CVM risk in GIST patients was significantly higher relative to the general US population. Timely screening and cardioprotective interventions should be implemented to prevent the occurrence of CVM in patients with GIST.

The link between hearing impairment and air pollution has not been established, and the moderating effect of a healthy diet has never been investigated before. The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between air pollution and hearing impairment in British adults aged 37–73 years, and whether the association was modified by a healthy diet. We performed a cross-sectional population-based study with 158,811 participants who provided data from United Kingdom Biobank. A multivariate logistic regression model was used to investigate the link between air pollution and hearing impairment. Subgroup and effect modification analyses were carried out according to healthy diet scores, gender, and age. In the fully adjusted model, we found that exposure to PM10, NOX, and NO2 was associated with hearing impairment [PM10: odds ratio (OR) = 1.15, 95% confidence interval (95% CI) 1.02–1.30, P = 0.023; NOX: OR = 1.02, 95% CI 1.00–1.03, P = 0.040; NO2: OR = 1.03, 95% CI 1.01–1.06, P = 0.044], while PM2.5 and PM2.5 absorbance did not show similar associations. We discovered an interactive effect of age and air pollution on hearing impairment, but a healthy diet did not. The findings suggested that exposure to PM10, NOX and NO2 was linked to hearing impairment in British adults, whereas PM2.5 and PM2.5 absorbance did not show similar associations. These may help researchers focus more on the impact of air pollution on hearing impairment and provide a basis for developing effective prevention strategies.

Sigmoid sinus thrombophlebitis is a severe and potentially fatal intracranial complication of acute otitis media and middle ear cholesteatoma. Early administration of broad-spectrum antibiotics and immediate radical mastoidectomy are the recommended standard treatments; however anticoagulant therapy is always an option worthy of clinical consideration. Here, we report a case of middle ear cholesteatoma complicated with sigmoid sinus thrombophlebitis in a patient who received anticoagulant therapy for 1 year before the operation because of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic.