One hundred and thirty four cases were treated by arthroscopic surgery with radiofrequency (RF) from May 2000 to December 2001. In this group of patients the diagnosis and operations included: shoulder rotator cuff tears in 6, calcified supraspinattus tendinitis in 5 , internal fixation of the humerus greater tubercle fracture in 3, debridement of hip joint infection in 3, avascular necrosis of the femoral head in 9, degenerative osteoarthropathy in 6, synovium chondromatosis in 6, gluteus contracture release in 7, osteoarthritis of knee joint in 20, meniscus injury in 21, ACL reconstruction in 14, ACL shrinkage in 4, adheresion release of knee joint in 6, patellar subluxation retinacula release in 6, popliteal fossa in 4 , removal of screw and plate of femur shaft in 3 , ankle joint impingement and synovitis in 11. The clinical results showed that arthroscopic RF had characteristics such as hemostasis at low temperature, (so thermal damage to surrunding tissues would be minimal), tissue shrinkage, vaporization, cutting and hemostasis,and so on. It is excellent for debriding synovial and adherent tissue, and extremely effective in removing articular cartilage, meniscal tears and ACL shrinkage. It causes mild pain and no joint swelling ,thus facilitats rehabilitation.

To study the value and effect of arthroscopy under local anesthesia in the diagnosis and treatment of anterior ankle impingement and traumatic or degenerative ankle joint diseases. From September 1998 to September 2001 we performed arthroscopy in 36 ankles on 29 patients, in whom 17 suffered from traumatic and degenerative joint disease, 7 with anterior ankle impingement, 2 with osteoarthrosis deformans endemica of 4 ankles, 2 with gouty arthritis, and 1 with epidermoid cyst of the tibial end. Arthroscopic treatment included removal of loose bodies, osteophytes and/or scar tissue, osteochondral fragment, and cartilaginous debris. At an average of 11 month (5～28 month) follow up, the group without joint space narrowing showed significantly better relief in pain, swelling, and better function of the joint and ability to work. The result was excellent in 33.3% (12 ankles), good in 52.8% (19 ankles), and fair in 13.9% (5 ankles). Arthroscopy under local anesthesia in the treatment of anterior ankle impingement and traumatic or degenerative joint disease not only was less invasive than open techniques and less painful after surgery, but was also an effective, simple, and safe method.

Objective To observe the changes of mononuclear cell (MNCs) apoptosis and the level of inflammatory cytokines and adhesion molecules in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and to study the relationship between them. Methods The apoptosis of MNCs in 22 patients with SLE at the active stage and 10 patients with SLE at remission and 10 healthy controls were determined with flow cytometry. The inflammatory cytokines and the adhesion molecules were tested with ELISA method. Results The percentage of MNCs apoptosis in the patients with SLE at the active stage was significantly lower than that of healthy con- trols and the patients with SLE at remission. There was no significance difference of MNCs apoptosis between healthy controls and patients with SLE at remission. The levels of IL- 8, TNF-?, IL- 6 , NO, P- sel and ICAM- 1 in patients with SLE at the active stage were significantly higher than that of healthy controls and the pa- tients with SLE at remission, and the increased levels of inflammatory cytokines and adhesion molecules in ac- tive SLE patients were negatively correlated to the percentage of MNCs apoptosis and positively correlated to the severity of SLE. Conclusion The data demonstrates that there is a promote apoptotic process of MNCs in active SLE. The high expression of inflammatory cytokines and adhesion molecules may play an important role of promoting MNCs apoptosis which reduces the functional life span of MNCs. For this reason, modulating the expression of cytokines and adhesion molecules and moderately controlling the apoptosis of MNCs may be a new therapeutic target for SLE treatment.