Objective:To study the clinical efficacy of acupuncture for ischemic stroke and its effect on ET-1 levels in IS cases.Method:The 63 cases were randomized into a treatment group (31 cases),receiving acupuncture and routine method,and control group (32 cases),receiving routine method alone.Seven days constitute a course of treatment,a 2-day interval between two courses.The clinical efficacy and ET-1 level in two groups were compared after four weeks.Result:The total effective rate in the treatment group and control group were 96.8% and 75% respectively,with a statistical significance (P＜0.05);the ET-1 level in blood plasma also with a statistical significance after the treatment (P＜0.05);the pre-treatment and post-treatment ET-1 level in the treatment group showed a statistical significance (P＜0.01),whereas the control group didn't.Conclusion:Acupuncture is effective for ischemic stroke and can lower the ET-1 level in ischemic stroke cases.

Objective To explore the chnical manifestation,pathological features and characteristics of lobular capillary hemangioma (LCH),so as to raise awareness.Methods Sixty-nine cases of LCH were studied by routine histopathologic and immunohistochemical examinations.Results The age range of the 69 patients including 34 males and 35 females with LCH was 4-80 years,with an average age of 42 years.The lesions of 50 cases were located in head and neck region,and the other 19 cases were in other parts of the body,with 1 case in the left main bronchus and intracalvarium.The average diameter of the tumors was about 1 cm,and parts of the tumors showed polypoid masses.Most of the tumors were in the skin and mucosa.Granulomatous lesions showed the proliferation of thin-walled and thick-walled capillaries in a lobular pattern.The vascular interstitium was edematous and was infiltrated by the inflammatory cells.Immunohistochemical examination showed CD34 positive in the endothelial cells and smooth muscle actin positive in the peri-vascular spindle cells.Conclusions Studies of LCH show the obvious features on age,gender and diseased location,and very few have a relapse.Its pathogenesis is still unclear.LCH is rarely found in the trachea,and is more rarely in the central nervous system.So far,there is no case report to show LCH occurs both in the bronchus and intracalvarium.In the special case,the early lesion is found in the left main bronchus.Although the patient is treated,LCH still recurs for many times in a short period.Finally the tumor is also found in the intracalvarium.Therefore,it's critical to alert whether LCH also occurs in the important organs at the early stage.Complete surgical resection and / or adjuvant radiotherapy can avoid delaying the treatment and the subsequent serious outcomes.

Adult ; Fracture Fixation, Internal ; Fractures, Bone ; complications ; surgery ; Humans ; Joint Dislocations ; surgery ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Talus ; injuries ; surgery ; Treatment Outcome ; Young Adult

This study was aimed to explore the role of human fetal bone marrow stromal cells (FBMSC) in combination with exogenous cytokines in supporting the in vitro expansion of cord blood mononuclear cells and the expression of CXCR4(+) and CD49d(+) in CD34(+) cells. Mononuclear cells (MNC) separated from cord blood (CB) were cultured in a serum-free support culture system with FBMSC or exogenous cytokines or both of them. On day 0, 6, 10 and 14, total cells were counted, CD34(+), CD34(+)CXCR4(+) and CD34(+)CD49d(+) cells were quantitated by FACS, and hematopoietic progenitor cells were assessed by semisolid culture assay. The results showed that after culturing for 14 days, CD34(+) cells, CD34(+)CXCR4(+) cells, CD34(+) CD49d(+) cells and colony forming unit (CFU) were significantly increased (P < 0.05). Compared with other groups, expansion multiple of CD34(+), CD34(+)CXCR4(+), CD34(+)CD49d(+) cells and CFU were higher than that in FBMSC and cytokine group (P < 0.05). It is concluded that the culture system used in this study can not only support the expansion of CB MNCs but also increase the number of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells which has chemokine and adhesion capacity. This culture system may be a feasible way for in vitro culture of cord blood cells.
Antigens, CD34 ; blood ; Bone Marrow Cells ; cytology ; immunology ; Cell Proliferation ; drug effects ; Cells, Cultured ; Coculture Techniques ; Cytokines ; pharmacology ; Fetal Blood ; cytology ; Fetus ; Flow Cytometry ; Granulocyte-Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor ; pharmacology ; Humans ; Integrin alpha4 ; blood ; Interleukin-3 ; pharmacology ; Leukocytes, Mononuclear ; cytology ; immunology ; Receptors, CXCR4 ; blood ; Stromal Cells ; cytology ; immunology ; Time Factors

OBJECTIVETo observe the change of lipid metabolism and vascular endothelium as well as morphology of heart tissue in rats who were long-time exposed to moxa smoke with different concentrations in order to provide reference for safety assessment of moxa smoke on cardiovascular system.

METHODSOne hundred and sixty-eighty Wistar rats were randomly divided into a control group, a low-concentration group, a median-concentration group and a high-concentration group, 42 rats in each one. The rats were exposed to moxa smoke with concentration of 0%, 10%, 40% and 70%, respectively, for 20 min per day. After continuous intervention for six months, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was applied to measure the level of low density lipoprotein-receptor (LDL-r) and intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) in blood serum in each group; the slices of heart tissue were stained with hematoxylin-eosin staining method to observe morphology change of heart tissue.

RESULTS(1) After the intervention of moxa smoke, the levels of LDL-r and ICAM-1 in the low-concentration group were not statistically different from those in the control group (both P > 0.05); the level of LDL-r in the median-concentration group was significantly increased, which was statistically different from that in the control group [(3.87 +/- 0.27) mg/mL vs (2.12 +/- 0.13) mg/mL, P < 0.01], however, the content of ICAM-1 was not obviously changed; although the level of LDL-r in the high-concentration group was presented with an escalating trend, it was not statistically different from that in the control group (P > 0.05) while the level of ICAM-1 was obviously increased (P < 0.01). (2) Under the light microscope, the abnormalities of cardiac muscle fibers and myocardial cell in each group were not been observed.

CONCLUSIONThe long-time intervention of low-concentration moxa smoke has no significant effects on lipid metabolism and vascular endothelium of rats, indicating that clinical application of low-concentration moxa smoke is relatively safe. The long-time intervention of moderate-concentration moxa smoke could significantly increase the clearance rate of cholesterol, implying the beneficial regulation of moxa smoke on lipid metabolism. The high-concentration moxa smoke could induce certain damage to vascular endothelium but its mechanism is in need of further research. The pathologic change of heart tissue could not be induced by moxa smoke with any concentration.

Animals ; Heart ; anatomy & histology ; Intercellular Adhesion Molecule-1 ; metabolism ; Lipid Metabolism ; Male ; Moxibustion ; adverse effects ; Myocardium ; pathology ; Rats ; Rats, Wistar ; Receptors, LDL ; metabolism ; Smoke ; adverse effects ; analysis

To investigate the effects of leptin on expression of acyl-coenzymeA: cholesterol acyl-transferases-1 (ACAT-1) in monocyte-macrophage differentiation, human monocytic cells (THP-1) were cultured in RPMI 1640 and made to differentiate into macrophages under the incubation with phorbol myristate acetate (PMA) for 48 h. The cells were divided into 4 groups according to different intervention factors as follows: MCs cultured in RPM11640 medium with 10% FBS for 48 h served as MC group (control group), MCs cultured in medium with serum-free RPM11640 containing 5% BSA, 100 nmol/L PMA for 48 h as MP group, MCs cultured in RPMI1640 medium with 10% FBS, 10 micromol/ml leptin for 48 h as leptin-MC group, and MCs cultured in medium with serum-free RPMI1640 containing 5% BSA. 100 nmol/L PMA, and 10 micromol/ml leptin for 48 h as leptin-MP group. Immunocytochemistry, reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and Western blot were performed, respectively, to observe the effects of leptin on expression of ACAT-1 in the monocyte-macrophage differentiation. Our results showed that expression of ACAT-1 protein and mRNA in MP-group is two times that in MC-group (P<0.05), and the expression of ACAT-1 protein and mRNA increased by up to 4 folds in leptin-MP group-as compared with that of MC group (P<0.01). Thus, our results support the idea that expression of ACAT-1 increases more in cultured human macrophages than in monocytes, and leptin can significantly promote ACAT-1 expression. It was concluded that high expression of ACAT-1 may accelerate the development of human atherogenesis, and leptin might participate in atherogenesis by increasing expression of ACAT-1.
Atherosclerosis ; enzymology ; Cell Differentiation ; Cells, Cultured ; Humans ; Leptin ; pharmacology ; Macrophages ; cytology ; enzymology ; Monocytes ; cytology ; enzymology ; Sterol O-Acyltransferase ; biosynthesis ; genetics ; Tetradecanoylphorbol Acetate

Small intestinal obstruction is a common complication of primary gastrointestinal cancer or metastatic cancers.Patients with this condition are often poor candidates for surgical bypasses,and placement of self-expanding metal stent (SEMS) can be technically challenging.In this study,we examined the feasibility of combined application of single-balloon enteroscope (SBE) and colonoscope for SEMS placement in patients with malignant small intestinal obstruction.Thirty-four patients were enrolled in this study,among which 22 patients received SEMS placement by using SBE and colonoscope,while the other 12 patients received conservative medical treatment.The patients were followed up for one year.Stent placernent was technically feasible in 95.5％ (21/22).Clinical improvement was achieved in 86.4％ (19/22).For the 19 clinical success cases,the average time of benefits from a gastric outlet obstruction scoring system (GOOSS) increase ≥1 was 111.9±89.5 days.For the 12 patients receiving conservative medical treatment,no significant improvement in GOOSS score was observed.Moreover,a significant increase of Short-Form-36 health survey score was observed in the 19 patients at time of 30 days after stent placement.By Kaplan-Meier analysis,a significant survival improvement was observed in patients with successful SEMS placement,compared with patients receiving conservative medical treatment.Taken together,combined use of SBE and colonoscope makes endoscopic stent placement feasible in patients with malignant small intestinal obstruction,and patients can benefit from it in terms of prolonged survival and improved quality of life.

OBJECTIVETo explore early treatment and technique of grade-III open fracture of tibia and fibula and to summarize the experience of the treatment with external fixation.

METHODSThe retrospective analysis were carried out in 168 cases of grade-III open tibial and fibular fractures. One hundred and twenty cases were treated with external fixation,and others were treated with intramedullary nail or amputated. Among 120 patients treated with external fixation in early stage, 86 were male and 34 were female. The age ranged from 18 to 67 years with an average of 36.8 years.

RESULTSOne hundred and eleven patients achieved the excellent or good results, some of them underwent later repair of soft tissues. One case was nonunion because of infection and malreduction, and amputation in later stage in 8 cases.

CONCLUSIONTreatment with external fixation in early stage is an ideal method for grade-III open fractures of tibia and fibula. Good reduction integrated with simple internal and external fixation is favorable for the repair of soft tissue and union of fracture.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; External Fixators ; Female ; Fibula ; injuries ; Fracture Fixation ; methods ; Fractures, Open ; surgery ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Retrospective Studies ; Tibial Fractures ; surgery

Objective To observe over-time changes in rat blood flow in the skins of related meridian points during physiological status, the pathological state of ischemic myocardial injury and low or high frequency electroacupuncture intervention and explore the post effect of different frequency electroacupuncture on related meridian points after treating ischemic myocardial injury. Method Fifty male Wister rats were randomized into five groups: blank control, sham operation, model, low frequency electroacupuncture (meridian point A) and high frequency electroacupuncture (meridian point B), 10 rats each. Blood flow in the skins of bilateral points Neiguan (PC6), Ximen (PC4) and Tianquan (PC2), and non-meridian and non-acupoint control points was measured by laser speckle contrast imaging in every group immediately and at 30 and 60 min after the end of three treatments. Statistical analysis was made. Result Blood flow in the skins of bilateral points Neiguan, Ximen and Tianquan was significantly lower in the blank control group than in the model group (P<0.01,P<0.05). Blood flow in the skin of every acupoint increased in varing degrees after low or high frequency electroacupuncture treatment. Blood flow in bilateral points Neiguan, Ximen and Tianquan regions in meridian point group A was closer to that in the blank control group immediately after treatment. Blood flow in three left-side and three right-side acupoint regions in meridian point group B was closer to that in the blank control group at 30 and 60 min, respectively, after treatment. Conclusion The immediate effect of low frequency electroacupuncture on blood flow in acupoint regions is better than high frequency electroacupuncture during intervention in ischemic myocardial injury. The post effect of high frequency electroacupuncture on blood flow in acupoint regions is better than low frequency electroacupuncture during intervention in ischemic myocardial injury.

OBJECTIVETo explore effects of acupuncture on ability of daily living (ALD) and the incidence rate of disability and mortality of the patient of acute ischemic stroke.

METHODSForty patients with acute ischemic stroke were randomly assigned to an acupuncture group and a control group, 20 cases in each group. The treatment group were treated with acupuncture for 3-4 weeks, 5 times each week, and routine therapy. The control group were treated with routine therapy alone.

RESULTSNo statistically significant differences between the two groups in the score of neurological defection, and the incidence rate of disability and mortality at following survey of 3 and 6 months were found.

CONCLUSIONAcupuncture is safe and feasible for stroke at early stage.

Acupuncture ; Acupuncture Therapy ; Humans ; Stroke ; therapy