Current Organizations / Institutes

The organizations/institutes from the scholar's latest article


Yan Zha has a total of 15 co-authors. Here are the top co-authors by number of shared publications:

  • Yuqi Yang

    Department of Nephrology, Guizhou Provincial People’s Hospital, Guiyang, China

    5 shared publications
  • Jing Yuan

    Department of Nephrology Guizhou Provincial People's Hospital Guiyang China

    3 shared publications
  • Jingjing Da

    Department of Nephrology, Guizhou Provincial People’s Hospital, Guiyang, China

    2 shared publications
  • Yanjun Long

    Department of Nephrology, Guizhou Provincial People’s Hospital

    2 shared publications
  • Changzhu Long

    Department of Nephrology, Guizhou Provincial People’s Hospital, Guiyang, China

    1 shared publication
  • Chengchong Huang

    Department of Nephrology, Guizhou Provincial People’s Hospital, Guiyang, China

    1 shared publication

Latest Publications

  • Open Access

    The association of left ventricular fraction shortening with cardiovascular events in peritoneal dialysis patients

    by Lu Dai, Yuqi Yang, Lu Liu, Changzhu Long, Jingjing Da, Shuang Chen, Jianqiu Zhao, Yan Shen, Chengchong Huang, Yan Zha, et al.

    Peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients have a high incidence of cardiovascular events (CVEs). Left ventricular fraction shortening (LVFS), one of the echocardiographic parameters, is an independent risk factor for mortality in previous studies. The aim of this study was to evaluate associations between LVFS and CVEs in PD patients. This was a single-center observational cohort study. Seven hundred and eighty-four PD patients were enrolled from 1 January 2012 to 1 June 2021 and followed until 1 June 2022. The primary outcome was the incidence of CVEs. PD patients were categorized into three groups according to the tertiles of LVFS levels (tertile 1-tertile 3). Kaplan-Meier method, Cox proportional hazard models and competing risk regression models were used for survival analysis. The areas under the curve (AUC) of receiver-operating characteristic analysis was used to determine the predictive values of LVFS for CVEs. A preplanned subgroup analysis was assessed according to age, gender, and the presence of hypertension and dyslipidemia, etc. During a median follow-up period of 42.3 months (interquartile range 24.0-79.0 months), 259 CVEs occurred. Compared to the other two groups respectively, patients in tertile 3 group had the lowest incidence of CVEs (24.5% vs 31.6% vs 43.0%, respectively, p < 0.05). After multiple adjustments, the tertile 3 group was associated with the 45.1% decrease in the CVEs hazard compared to that of the tertile1 group (SHR = 0.549, 95%CI: 0.395-0.762, p < 0.001). Subgroup analysis demonstrated that tertile 1 group as the reference, the association between LVFS and CVEs in tertile 3 group was robust among female patients (HR = 0.506, 95%CI: 0.309-0.829, p = 0.007), aged < 45 years (HR = 0.496, 95%CI: 0.331-0.744, p = 0.001), history of hypertension (HR = 0.586, 95%CI: 0.349-0.872, p = 0.008) and combined with dyslipidemia (HR = 0.464, 95%CI: 0.269-0.799, p = 0.006). This study suggests that LVFS is independently associated with the increased risk of CVEs in PD patients, especially those with aged < 45 years, female, with hypertension and dyslipidemia.


  • Open Access

    One‐year change in sarcopenia was associated with cognitive impairment among haemodialysis patients

    by Yuqi Yang, Jingjing Da, Jing Yuan, Yan Zha

    Background: Our study aimed to evaluate change in sarcopenia, its defining components over 1 year follow‐up and investigate associations with subsequent cognitive decline, incident mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and dementia among patients undergoing haemodialysis (HD).Methods: In the multicentre, longitudinal study, 1117 HD patients aged 56.8 ± 14.3 years (654 men; and 463 women) from 17 dialysis centres in Guizhou Province, China, were recruited in 2019 and followed up for 1 year in 2020. Sarcopenia was diagnosed with Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia criteria using appendicular skeletal muscle mass index (ASMI) and handgrip strength (HGS). Body composition was measured using body composition monitor; body water, weight, and height were corrected to calculate ASMI. HGS was measured by mechanical handgrip dynamometer. Cognitive function was measured with Mini Mental State Examination. Multivariate linear, logistic regression models and subgroup analyses were employed to examine the associations of changes in sarcopenia, ASMI, and HGS with Mini Mental State Examination score change, and incident MCI, dementia.Results: Four hundred fourteen (37.1%) patients had sarcopenia at baseline; during 1 year follow‐up, 257 (23.0%) developed MCI and 143 (12.8%) developed dementia. According to changes in sarcopenia, patients were stratified into four groups: non‐sarcopenia; non‐sarcopenia to sarcopenia; sarcopenia; and sarcopenia to non‐sarcopenia. HD patients in sarcopenia and non‐sarcopenia to sarcopenia groups had higher risk of MCI (34.8%, 32.0%, vs. 17.4%) and dementia (20.6%, 19.8%, vs. 8.7%), compared non‐sarcopenia group (P < 0.001). Multivariate linear regression analyses showed that sarcopenia [regression coefficients (β) −1.098, 95% confidence interval (CI) −1.872, −0.324, P = 0.005] and non‐sarcopenia to sarcopenia (β −1.826, −2.441, −1.212, P < 0.001) were associated with faster cognitive decline compared to non‐sarcopenia. HGS decline (β 0.046, 0.027–0.064, P < 0.001) and ASMI decline (β 0.236, 0.109–0.362, P < 0.001) were both positively associated with cognitive decline. Multivariate logistic regression analyses demonstrated that patients with sarcopenia and non‐sarcopenia to sarcopenia were both at increased risk of developing MCI [odds ratio (OR) 1.788, 95% CI 1.115–2.870, P = 0.016 and OR 1.589, 95% CI 1.087–2.324, P = 0.017, respectively], but only non‐sarcopenia to sarcopenia was at increased risk of dementia (OR 1.792, 95% CI 1.108–2.879, P = 0.017). Both greater change of ASMI and HGS had lower risk of MCI with adjusted ORs of 0.857 (0.778–0.945, P = 0.002) and 0.976 (0.963–0.989, P < 0.001). Robust associations were found among female individuals, aged >60 years, and with low educational level.Conclusions: Longitudinal associations were observed between new‐onset, persistent sarcopenia, and cognitive impairment. Early detection and intervention should be implemented to delay the onset of sarcopenia and improve cognitive health among HD patients.


  • Open Access

    U-shaped association of serum magnesium with mild cognitive impairment among hemodialysis patients: a multicenter study

    by Yuqi Yang, Yanjun Long, Jing Yuan, Yan Zha

    The optimal serum magnesium level of patients undergoing hemodialysis (HD) with cognitive impairment is still unclear. This study aimed to evaluate the association between serum magnesium levels and mild cognitive impairment among HD patients. This was a multicenter observational study. Patients undergoing hemodialysis from 22 dialysis centers in Guizhou Province, China were recruited into the study. HD patients were divided into five groups according to serum magnesium quintile. Cognitive function was measured with Mini Mental State Examination. The outcome was an incident mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Multivariate logistic regression analysis, restricted cubic spline and subgroup analysis were applied to explore the association of serum magnesium level with MCI. Among 3562 HD patients (mean age 54.3 years, 60.1% male), the prevalence of MCI was 27.2%. After adjusting for confounders, serum magnesium 0.41–0.83 mmol/L [odds ratios (OR) 1.55, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.10–2.18] had a higher risk of MCI compared with serum magnesium of 1.19–1.45 mmol/L. A U-shaped association was identified between the serum magnesium and incident MCI (P for non-linearity = 0.004). The optimal range of magnesium level with the lowest risk of MCI was 1.12–1.24 mmol/L. As the serum magnesium level was lower than 1.12 mmol/L, the risk of MCI decreased by 24% per standard deviation (SD) increase in serum magnesium (OR 0.76, 95%CI: 0.62–0.93); when the serum magnesium level exceeds 1.24 mmol/L, a rise per SD increased the risk of MCI by 21% (OR = 1.20, 95%CI: 1.02–1.43). Subgroup analyses demonstrated that the associations were robust among individuals with low educational level, smoking, living alone, no working, and without hypertension or diabetes. Serum magnesium has a U-shaped association with MCI among HD patients. Both lower and higher serum magnesium can increase the risk of MCI for this population specifically. The optimal serum magnesium range with the lowest risk of MCI was 1.12–1.24 mmol/L.


  • Open Access

    Associations of metabolic syndrome, its severity with cognitive impairment among hemodialysis patients

    by Yuqi Yang, Qian Li, Yanjun Long, Jing Yuan, Yan Zha

    Background: In the general population, metabolic syndrome (MetS) is associated with increased risk of cognitive impairment, including global and specific cognitive domains. These associations are not well studied in patients undergoing hemodialysis and were the focus of the current investigation. Methods: In this multicenter cross-sectional study, 5492 adult hemodialysis patients (3351 men; mean age: 54.4 ± 15.2 years) treated in twenty-two dialysis centers of Guizhou, China were included. The Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) was utilized to assess mild cognitive impairment (MCI). MetS was diagnosed with abdominal obesity, hypertension, hyperglycemia, and dyslipidemia. Multivariate logistic and linear regression models were used to examine the associations of MetS, its components, and metabolic scores with the risk of MCI. Restricted cubic spline analyses were performed to explore the dose–response associations. Results: Hemodialysis patients had a high prevalence of MetS (62.3%) and MCI (34.3%). MetS was positively associated with MCI risk with adjusted ORs of 1.22 [95% confidence interval (CI) 1.08–1.37, P = 0.001]. Compared to no MetS, adjusted ORs for MCI were 2.03 (95% CI 1.04–3.98) for 22.51 (95% CI 1.28–4.90) for 3, 2.35 (95% CI 1.20–4.62) for 4, and 2.94 (95% CI 1.48–5.84) for 5 components. Metabolic syndrome score, cardiometabolic index, and metabolic syndrome severity score were associated with increased risk of MCI. Further analysis showed that MetS was negatively associated with MMSE score, orientation, registration, recall and language (P < 0.05). Significant interaction effect of sex (P for interaction = 0.012) on the MetS-MCI was observed. Conclusion: Metabolic syndrome was associated with MCI in hemodialysis patients in a positive dose–response effect.


  • Open Access

    Microfluidic cell squeeze-based vaccine comes into clinical investigation

    by Shuhang Wang, Yuqi Yang, Yan Zha, Ning Li