OBJECTIVE:To establish mathematical model of liquid volume added of TCM medicinal broth decoction machine to accurately calculate liquid volume added in the process of medicinal herb decocting,so as to guarantee the quality of medicinal herb decocting. METHODS:The water absorption rate of representative TCM decoction piece with high use frequency were deter-mined,and cluster analysis of water absorption rate of TCM decoction piece was conducted according to closely related index as density,size,shape,moisture. TCM decoction piece with similar water absorption rate were bracketed together,so that of single ingredient TCM decoction piece can be estimated by water absorption of representative TCM decoction piece;the quantity of water evaporation and liquid extrusion were determined among different types of decoction machine (powered by electric and gas);ac-cording to the above parameters,mathematical model of liquid volume of TCM medicinal broth prepared by different types of de-coction machine had been established,and validated with TCM formula. RESULTS:Factors that affected the liquid volume added included the water absorption of each ingredient,the quantity of water evaporation and extrusion function. The mathematical model was liquid volume added=water absorption of each ingredient × quality of decoction piece+the quantity of water evaporation+re-quired amount of liquid-parameters of extrusion function×total weight of decoction piece;in validation test,the percentage of the practical amount of liquid to required amount was within ±5%. CONCLUSIONS:Established model can promote the accuracy li-quid volume added and guarantee the quality of TCM decoction when using TCM decoction machine.

OBJECTIVE:To establish a method for the qualitative identification and content determination of berberine hydro-chloride in Huangjin paste. METHODS:TLC was adopted for the qualitative identification of berberine hydrochloride and HPLC was conducted for the content determination of berberine hydrochloride in preparation. The column was Symmetry Shield Rp-18 with mobile phase of acetonitrile-0.1% phosphoric acid(50∶50,V/V)at a flow rate of 1.0 ml/min,detection wavelength was 265 nm,column temperature was 30 ℃ and injection volume was 10 μl. RESULTS:TLC spots of berberine hydrochloride in prepara-tion were clear and well-separated. The linear range of berberine hydrochloride was 2.5-20.0 μg/ml(r=0.999 0);RSDs of preci-sion,stability and reproducibility tests were lower than 3%;recovery was 97.7%-102.1%(RSD=1.68%,n=6). CONCLUSI-ONS:The method is simple,accurate and reproducible,and can be used for the qualitative identification and content determination of berberine hydrochloride in Huangjin paste.

Objective·To investigate and analyze periodontal health knowledge and behaviors in medical students and the relationship of these knowledge and behaviors with periodontal health status, and to determine the periodontal health level of this population. Methods·A total of 602 medical students were included in this cross-sectional epidemiological study. The questionnaire covered sociodemographic information, periodontal health-related behaviors and knowledge, experience about themselves, and periodontal health of parents, etc. Meanwhile, periodontal health indices of index teeth were examined, including probing depth (PD), clinical attachment loss (CAL), and bleeding on probing (BOP), etc. Results·Of 570 subjects aged 16-26 who completed the survey, 79.82% never used dental floss, and 78.25% never underwent periodontal debridement. 50.25% of the index teeth had BOP, and only 0.70% of the subjects had no BOP. 81.05% of the subjects had some degree of periodontal attachment loss. Male students were more susceptible to periodontitis (P=0.027) and gingivitis (P=0.012) than female students. Conclusion·No new risk factors affecting the periodontal health are identified. Regular periodontal cleaning and protection are important for young people to prevent periodontitis.

Objective    To explore the clinical pattern of intrapulmonary lymph node metastasis and the significance of No.13 and No.14 lymph nodes biopsy in patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Methods    The clinical data of 234 patients with primary peripheral NSCLC who underwent systemic dissection of intrathoracic lymph nodes and intrapulmonary lymph nodes in the First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University between 2013 and 2015 were retrospectively analyzed. There were 159 males and 75 females, aged 36-89 (61.35±8.57) years. Statistical analysis was performed accordingly on hilar (No.10), interlobar (No.11), lobar (No.12) and segmental (No.13 and 14) sites of the samples of N1 lymph nodes after surgery. Results    A total of 3 019 lymph nodes of No.10-14 were dissected in 234 patients (12.9 per patient). The 263 lymph nodes were positive with a rate of 8.71% (263/3 019) and lymph node metastasisa occured in 99 patients with a rate of 42.31% (99/234), among whom there were 40 patients of N1 metastasis, 48 of N1+N2 metastasis and 11 of N2 skipping metastasis. Routine pathological examination demonstrated No.13 and No.14 lymph nodes metastasis in 16 patients with a rate of 6.84% (16/234). In 886 dissected lymph nodes of No.13 and No.14, 86 lymph nodes showed metastasis with a rate of 9.71% (86/886). Of the patients with swelling hilar and mediastinal lymph nodes reported by preoperative CT scan, only 56.32% of them were confirmed with lymph node metastasis by postoperative histopathology; while 34.01% of the patients with normal size lymph nodes had lymph node metastasis. Conclusion    In the surgical treatment of NSCLC, it is necessary to detect the metastasis of No. 13 and 14 lymph nodes and non-tumor parabronchial lymph nodes, which is helpful to obtain accurate postoperative TNM staging and is of great significance for guiding postoperative treatment. Preoperative CT is not a reliable method to judge lymph node metastasis, particularly for intrapulmonary lymph node metastasis.