Objective To investigate the therapeutic effect of the new K+ channel blocker 4-aminopyridine-3-methanol (4-AP-3-MeOH) on chronic spinal cord injury in rats.Methods 18 adult male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided equally into 3 groups as follows:4-AP-3-MeOH treatment group (A),normal saline control group (B) and sham operation group (C).T10 segment of spinal cord compression injury was applied in group A and group B.4 weeks later,the rats in group A were daily treated by injecting 4-AP-3-MeOH 1 μmol (1000 μmol/L× 1 ml) into the veins of the tails for 4 weeks.While the same volume of saline was administrated into the group B for 4 weeks.Lamina of vertebra of T10 was cut without spinal cord injury in the sham-operation group.After modeling,the locomotor functional recovery was assessed by using Basso Beattie Bresnahan (BBB) scores and inclined plane (IP) tests,and all rats were periodical inspected by the somatosensory evoked potential(SEP) and motor evoked potential(MEP) post-operatively.Results BBB scores of group A started to increase gradually and were higher than those of group B from the 6th week,but the 2 groups at each time point in BBB scores were less than group C.Until 8 weeks after surgery,the inclined-plated angles of group A and B did not show significantly difference,but the both groups were significantly lower compared with group C.Electrophysiology study found that the amplitude of SEP and MEP in group A was higher than group B from the fourth to 8 weeks,but less than in group C.Histological examination showed that the spinal cord of rats in group C were morphologically intact with a clear demarcation between the grey and white matter.The gray matter structures of rats in group A and B were gone and a big cavity appears in the center of the spinal cord injury,with varying degrees of demyelination in the white around.In addition,statistically significant differences were found in the percentage of residual myelin at the injury epicenter between group A and group B.Conclusion With a persistent demyelination change and poor motor function in chronic spinal cord injury,daily administration of 4-AP-3-MeOH can improve the sensory and motor functions.

Objective To evaluate the clinical value of ankle arthroscopy in diagnosis and treatment of Danis-Weber type B ankle fracture associated with injury to the distal tibiofibular syndesmosis.Methods A retrospective study was conducted of the 35 patients who had been treated at Department of Orthopaedics,Ruijin Hospital North for Danis-Weber type B ankle fracture from February 2014 to December 2016.They were 23 males and 12 females,with an average age of 43.1 years (from 18 to 65 years).Each of them underwent 4 examinations to detect whether injury to the distal tibiofibular syndesmosis was complicated or not:preoperative CT and MRI,C-ann roentgenography and ankle arthroscopy before and after internal fixation of the ankle.The diagnostic rates of the complicated injury by the 4 examinations were compared.The patients complicated with injury to the distal tibiofibular syndesmosis received surgical repair of the injury using TightRope in addition to internal fixation of the ankle,and injury to the deltoid ligament was repaired simultaneously using 3.5 mm anchor nails in case the injury was concomitant.The repair and stability of the distal tibiofibular syndesmosis were observed using ankle arthroscopy again.Results The Cotton and external rotation tests under C-arm roentgenography before surgery and after internal fixation of the ankle demonstrated that 13 cases were complicated with injury to the distal tibiofibular syndesmosis.Of the other 22 patients who had not been diagnosed with the injury by C-arm roentgenography,6,13 and 11 were diagnosed with the injury respectively by CT,MRI and ankle arthroscopy.The diagnostic rates of Danis-Weber type B ankle fracture associated with injury to the distal tibiofibular syndesmosis were 37.1％ (13/35),54.3％ (19/35),74.3％ (26/35) and 68.6％ (24/35) respectively by C-arm roentgenography,CT,MRI and ankle arthroscopy.In the sensitivity to the injury,MRI ＞ ankle arthroscopy ＞ CT ＞ C-arm roentgenography,with significant differences between them (P ＜ 0.05).The ankle arthroscopy confirmed the repair efficacy in the 24 patients complicated with injury to the distal tibiofibular syndesmosis and negative results of Cotton and external rotation tests in them.Additionally,ankle arthroscopy revealed 16 cases of injury to the deltoid ligament at the medial ankle.Conclusions Ankle arthroscopy can provide evidence for correct diagnosis and treatment of Type B ankle fracture complicated with injury to the distal tibiofibular syndesmosis,because it allows direct observation of the medial deltoid ligament of the ankle and the distal tibiofibular syndesmosis.It can be also used to assess the stability of the tibiofibular syndesmosis after repair of the injury.

Bivalves are species-rich mollusks with prominent protective roles in coastal ecosystems.Across these ancient lineages,colony-founding larvae anchor themselves either by byssus produc-tion or by cemented attachment.The latter mode of sessile life is strongly molded by left-right shell asymmetry during larval development of Ostreoida oysters such as Crassostrea hongkongensis.Here,we sequenced the genome of C.hongkongensis in high resolution and compared it to reference bivalve genomes to unveil genomic determinants driving cemented attachment and shell asymmetry.Importantly,loss of the homeobox gene Antennapedia(Antp)and broad expansion of lineage-specific extracellular gene families are implicated in a shift from byssal to cemented attachment in bivalves.Comparative transcriptomic analysis shows a conspicuous divergence between left-right asymmetrical C.hongkongensis and symmetrical Pinctada fucata in their expression profiles.Especially,a couple of orthologous transcription factor genes and lineage-specific shell-related gene families including that encoding tyrosinases are elevated,and may cooperatively govern asymmet-rical shell formation in Ostreoida oysters.

Objective To analyze the characteristics of platelet changes and their influencing factors during postoperative hospitalization in patients who underwent transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI). Methods The patients who underwent TAVI at Beijing Anzhen Hospital Valve Surgery Center between March 2017 and October 2021 were retrospectively selected. The patients were divided into a self-limiting group and a non-self-limiting group according to the characteristics of postoperative platelet decline. In addition, the general preoperative data, preoperative and postoperative ultrasound data, intraoperative data, and the use of anticoagulant drugs during the postoperative stay in the hospital were compared between the two groups. Results A total of 249 patients were enrolled in this study. There were 175 (70.3%) patients in the self-limiting group, including 100 males and 75 females, and there were 74 (29.7%) patients in the non-self-limiting group, including 43 males and 31 females, with no statistical difference between the two groups (P=0.863). The mean age of patients was 73.11±8.88 years in the self-limiting group and 71.54±10.39 years in the non-self-limiting group (P=0.231). The decline of platelets in the self-limiting group generally occurred on the postoperative day 2 and reached the lowest count on the postoperative day 4, and returned to the baseline level on the postoperative day 5-7, while the platelets in the non-self-limiting group changed by simple rise, fall or irregular fluctuation. Patients in the self-limiting group had severer preoperative aortic stenosis (P<0.001) and used more extracorporeal circulation assistance during surgery (P<0.001). Postoperatively, patients in the self-limiting group were more likely to have periaortic valve leakage than those in the non-self-limiting group (P=0.013). Conclusion Platelet changes in most patients after TAVI show a self-limiting decline, which may be related to the severity of patients’ preoperative aortic stenosis, intraoperative extracorporeal circulation device use, and postoperative perivalvular leakage.

BACKGROUNDThe purpose of this retrospective study was to compare the surgical outcomes of simple discectomy and instrumented posterior lumbar interbody fusion (iPLIF) in patients with lumbar disc herniation and Modic endplate changes. Our hypothesis was that iPLIF could provide better outcome for patients with refractory lumbar disc herniation and Modic changes (LDH-MC).

METHODSNinety-one patients with single-segment LDH-MC were recruited. All patients experienced low back pain as well as radicular leg pain, and low back pain was more severe than leg pain. Forty-seven patients were treated with discectomy and 44 were treated with iPLIF. The outcomes of both low back pain and radicular leg pain using visual analogue scale (VAS) as well as the clinical outcome related to low back pain using Japanese Orthopaedic Association (JOA) score were assessed before and 18 months after surgery, respectively.

RESULTSBoth low back and leg pain were significantly improved 18 months after simple discectomy and iPLIF. Compared to patients undergoing simple discectomy, low back pain was significantly reduced in patients undergoing iPLIF, but there was no significant difference in leg pain between two groups. Solid fusion was achieved in all patients who underwent iPLIF.

CONCLUSIONSIn patients with LDH-MC, iPLIF can yield significantly superior outcome on the relief of low back pain compared to simple discectomy. Simple discectomy can relieve radicular leg pain as efficient as iPLIF. Accordingly, iPLIF seems to be a reliable treatment for patients with LDH-MC and predominant low back pain.

Adult ; Diskectomy ; standards ; Female ; Humans ; Intervertebral Disc Displacement ; surgery ; Low Back Pain ; surgery ; Lumbar Vertebrae ; surgery ; Middle Aged ; Retrospective Studies ; Spinal Fusion ; standards