Objective To investigate the value of T-SPOT in the diagnosis of tuberculosis (TB) in children.Methods 43 children who were admitted to a hospital and confirmed with TB between March 2015 and May 2016 were as TB group,50 children who were excluded TB as well as healthy children in the outpatient and inpatient departments of this hospital during the same period were as control group,two groups were underwent detection of TSPOT,PPD,MTB-Ab,and acid fast stain,results were compared,subgroup analysis was conducted on the positive of T-SPOT in children with different infection sites and in different age groups.Results Sensitivity and negative predictive value of T-SPOT were significantly higher than the other three methods(P＜0.05),specificity was also higher than that of PPD(P＜0.05);positive rates of T-SPOT in pulmonary tuberculosis and extrapulmonary tuberculosis were 88.9 ％ and 81.3 ％ respectively,difference was not statistically significant(P＞0.05);positive rates of T-SPOT in children ≤5 years and ＞5 years were 70.6％ and 96.2％ respectively,difference was statistically sig-nificant(P＜0.05).The sensitivity and specificity of combined detection of T-SPOT and PPD for diagnosis of TB were 95.3 ％ and 98.0％ respectively,which were both higher than the single method(P＜0.05).Conclusion The sensitivity and specificity of T-SPOT for detecting TB in children are both superior to traditional methods,T SPOT is also suitable for the detection of extrapulmonary tuberculosis,and can be used as the main method for laboratory diagnosis of tuberculosis in children,but it is uncertainty in children under 5 years of age,and should be rationally combined with PPD to improve the diagnosis of TB among children.

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the chromium (Cr) levels in blood and urine among general population in China between 2009 and 2010, and thereby to analyze its prevalent features.

METHODSFrom year 2009 to 2010, a total of 11 983 subjects of general population aged between 6 and 60 year-old were recruited from 24 districts in 8 provinces in eastern, central and western China mainland, by cluster random sampling method. The information about their living environment and health status were collected by questionnaire, and 11 983 blood samples and 11 853 urine samples were also collected. Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) was applied to test the Cr level both in blood and urine; and the Cr distribution in blood and urine among groups of population in different ages, genders and districts, were then analyzed.

RESULTSAmong general population in China, the geometric mean (GM) of Cr concentration in blood was 1.19 µg/L, with median at 1.74 µg /L and 95% percentile at 5.59 µg/L. The Cr concentration in blood among males and females were separately 1.18 µg/L and 1.20 µg/L(P > 0.05); while its GM in the groups of population aged 6 - 12, 12 - 16, 16 - 20, 20 - 30, 30 - 45 and 45 - 60 years old were 1.00, 1.22, 1.01, 1.40, 1.27 and 1.30 µg/L (P < 0.01), respectively; and the figures in populations from eastern, central and western China were 1.00, 1.70 and 1.98 µg/L (P < 0.01), respectively. Among general population, the GM of Cr concentration in urine was 0.53 µg/L, with median was lower than 0.42 µg/L and 95% percentile at 3.53 µg/L. The Cr concentration in urine among males and females were separately 0.52 µg/L and 0.53 µg/L (P > 0.05);while its GM in the groups of population aged 6 - 12, 12 - 16, 16 - 20, 20 - 30, 30 - 45 and 45 - 60 years old were 0.56, 0.60, 0.52, 0.50, 0.52 and 0.46 µg/L (P < 0.01), respectively;and the figures in populations from eastern, central and western China were 0.58, < 0.42 and 0.60 µg/L (P < 0.01), respectively.

CONCLUSIONThe study reported the Cr levels in blood and urine among general population in China, and thereby provided basic data evidence for the following Cr biological monitoring studies in near future.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Child ; China ; Chromium ; blood ; urine ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Population Surveillance ; Young Adult