OBJECTIVE: To investigate the genetic causal relationship of leukocyte telomere length (LTL) with prostatitis, orchitis and epididymitis by two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR). METHODS: Using LTL as the exposure factor and prostatitis, orchitis and epididymitis as outcome factors, we mined the Database of Genome-Wide Association Studies (GWAS). Then, we analyzed the causal relationship of LTL with prostatitis, orchitis and epididymitis by Mendelian randomization using inverse variance weighting (IVW) as the main method and weighted median and MR-Egger regression as auxiliary methods, determined the horizontal multiplicity by MR-Egger intercept test, and conducted sensitivity analysis using the leaving-one-out method. RESULTS: A total of 121 related single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were identified in this study. IVW showed LTL to be a risk factor for prostatitis (OR = 1.383, 95% CI: 1.044－1.832, P = 0.024), and for orchitis and epididymitis as well (OR = 1.770, 95% CI: 1.275－2.456, P = 0.000 6). CONCLUSION Genetic evidence from Mendelian randomized analysis indicates that shortening of LTL reduces the risk of prostatitis, orchitis and epididymitis.
Humans ; Male ; Mendelian Randomization Analysis ; Epididymitis/genetics* ; Prostatitis/genetics* ; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide ; Leukocytes ; Orchitis/genetics* ; Genome-Wide Association Study ; Telomere ; Risk Factors

Objective To analyze the cellular and histopathological characteristics of underdiagnosed thyroid nodules of Chinese thyroid imaging reporting and data system(C-TIRADS) categories 3 and 4a,thus improving the understanding of these lesions. Methods The data of ultrasound and fine needle aspiration cytology were collected from 683 nodules diagnosed based on pathological evidence in 549 patients undergoing thyroid surgery.The cellular and histopathological characteristics of C-TIRADS 3 and 4a nodules were analyzed. Results Two hundred and sixty-eight nodules were classified as C-TIRADS category 3,including 236 benign nodules,12 low-risk ones,and 20 (7.46%) malignant ones.Two hundred and twenty-one nodules were classified as C-TIRADS category 4a,including 133 benign nodules,7 low-risk ones,and 81 (36.65%) malignant ones.The malignancy rates differed between C-TIRADS 3 and 4a nodules (χ²=58.93,P<0.001),and both were higher than the recommended malignancy rate in the guidelines for malignancy risk stratification of thyroid nodules (C-TIRADS) (both P<0.001).According to the pathological evidence,the underdiagnosed C-TIRADS 3/4a nodules were mainly papillary thyroid carcinoma,especially in patients with Hashimoto thyroiditis.There was not a consistent one-to-one match between each ultrasound result and each cytological classification of low-risk thyroid nodules.Conclusions When the malignant features in preoprative ultrasound imaging are atypical or absent,papillary thyroid carcinoma (especially with Hashimoto thyroiditis),follicular carcinoma,and medullary carcinoma are likely to be underdiagnosed as C-TIRADS 3 or 4a nodules.Therefore,efforts should be made to fully understand the cellular and pathological characteristics of these lesions.
Humans ; Thyroid Nodule/diagnostic imaging* ; Female ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Adult ; Ultrasonography ; Biopsy, Fine-Needle ; Aged ; Young Adult ; Thyroid Neoplasms/diagnostic imaging* ; Adolescent

OBJECTIVE: To estimate the minimal clinically important difference (MCID) of the frequency of bowel movement for the patients with chronic severe functional constipation treated with acupuncture so as to provide the evidence for the clinical decision. METHODS: In this study, 813 patients with chronic severe functional constipation treated with acupuncture in two previous randomized controlled trials were included. Through the anchor-based method (anchored by the item 28 "satisfaction with previous treatment" of the patient assessment of constipation-quality of life [PAC-QOL]) and the distribution-based method, the MCID of the weekly frequency of complete spontaneous bowel movement (CSBM) and spontaneous bowel movement (SBM) was analyzed statistically in the patients. RESULTS: The MCID of the mean weekly frequency of CSBM and SBM was 1.3 times and 1.6 times in patients with chronic severe functional constipation treated with acupuncture, respectively. CONCLUSION The mean increase of the weekly CSMB is ≥ 1.3 times and that of SBM is ≥ 1.6 times after treatment when compared with the baseline respectively, suggesting the clinical significance.
Humans ; Quality of Life ; Minimal Clinically Important Difference ; Treatment Outcome ; Constipation/therapy* ; Acupuncture Therapy

Objective:Due to the limitation of traditional identification methods of Chinese medicinal materials， the study established a rapid method to identify Persicae Semen mixed with Armeniacae Semen Amarum by allele-specific polymerase chain reaction （PCR）. Method:By comparing the ribosomal DNA internal transcribed spacer （ITS） gene sequences of Persicae Semen and Armeniacae Semen Amarum， single nucleotide polymorphism （SNP） sites were searched and specific primers were designed. Different Persicae Semen and Armeniacae Semen Amarum samples were amplified by PCR， the effects of annealing temperature， primer concentration and cycle number on the PCR reaction system were optimized， and the specificity and detection limit of this method were investigated. In addition， the established PCR method was used to detect the samples of Persicae Semen mixed with different proportion of Armeniacae Semen Amarum from different sources and producing areas. Result:A specific PCR method for identifying Persicae Semen mixed with Armeniacae Semen Amarum was established. When the annealing temperature was 63 ℃ and the number of primer cycles was 30， only Armeniacae Semen Amarum could be amplified with 432 bp specific band， while Persicae Semen samples did not have this band. The minimum detection limit of this method for Armeniacae Semen Amarum was 0.2 ng， and the detection limit for Armeniacae Semen Amarum adulterated in Persicae Semen was 1%. Conclusion:The established allele-specific PCR method can accurately detect whether there is Armeniacae Semen Amarum in Persicae Semen， which can provide experimental basis for the quality control of Persicae Semen and guarantee the safety of its clinical use.

The emergence of regular short repetitive palindromic sequence clusters (CRISPR) and CRISPR- associated proteins 9 (Cas9) gene editing technology has greatly promoted the wide application of genetically modified pigs. Efficient single guide RNA (sgRNA) is the key to the success of gene editing using CRISPR/Cas9 technology. For large animals with a long reproductive cycle, such as pigs, it is necessary to screen out efficient sgRNA
Animals ; CRISPR-Cas Systems/genetics* ; Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats/genetics* ; Gene Editing ; RNA, Guide/genetics* ; Swine

Objective To investigate the feasibility of 18G trocar for central venous catheterization in adults.Methods Retrospective analyzed the clinical data of 60 patients with central venous catheterization under local anesthesia.These patients were randomly divided into the control group and the observation group.Selected the internal jugular vein as the site of the puncture catheter.The control group was punc-tured by conventional puncture needle while the observation group was punctured by the 18G trocar.Results There was no statistical differ-ence between the two groups in the success rate of final puncture and catheterization(P>0.05).Compared with the control group,the suc-cess rate of guidewire insert was higher,the puncture operation time was shorter,the pain score during puncture operation was lower,and post-operative patient satisfaction was higher in the observation group.The differences of the two groups were statistically significant(P<0.05). Conclusion 18G trocar can perform central venous catheterization successfully.This method has great advantages for awake patients,and it also worked in some cases with difficult wire insertion.

Objective To develop a supporting pole for medical detachable camouflage net at field conditions to enhance the timeliness of battlefield camouflage of deployable units such as medical tent.Methods The pole had a dumbbell-shaped,hollow and columnar structure,which was composed of a base,a pole body and a terminal disc.The pole body consisted of internal and external parts.The external part had a vertical opening at its top and screw thread at its side wall,which was equipped with a binding bolt.The terminal disc had a circular structure and a 20 cm outer diameter,which was fixed 10 cm under the top of the internal pole to support the net.The base had a center hole and a sleeve to hold the lower part of the external pole to immobilize the supporting pole.Results The supporting pole decreased the deployment time of the camouflage net from 5 min to 2 min and the withdrawal time from 4 min to 1.5 min,and enhanced the timeliness of all-element deployment of mobile medical unit during field practical training.Conclusion The supporting pole meets the tactical requirements for deployment,storage,transport and robustness,and thus is worthy promoting in medical unit.

Purpose of this study was to analyse the characteristics of clinical, iconographical, pathological and treatment methods of Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH), so as to improve the diagnosis and treatment level of this disease. The clinical data of 35 LCH patients were studied retrospectively. These patients were divided into 2 groups according to age <14 years old and ≥ 14 years old. The clinical symptoms were analysed and the signs, imageology and pathology manifestation and treatment results were evaluated. The results showed that LCH clinical manifestations were diverse and complex. Surgical treatment for patients with single system involvement of LCH was better than that of multi-system involvement of LCH (MS-LCH). For the latter, combined chemotherapy effects was better. After 3-year follow-up, 1-year OS was 94% ± 4%, 2-years OS was 91% ± 5%, 3-year OS was 86% ± 7%. 3 years OS of group <14 years old and ≥ 14 years old was 94% ± 6% and 81% ± 10% respectively. The OS of former was better than that of the later, but because a small number of cases, this difference was not statistically significant. It is concluded that LCH is easy to be misdiagnosed, the pathological biopsy is the gold standard of LCH diagnosis. The PET-CT can be of great help in identifying stages and finding lesion areas of the disease. Pulmonary Langerhans cell histiocytosis (PLCH) is more common in adult. Combined chemotherapy can improve the prognosis of the patients. The treatment methods should be choosed according to the stage and classification of disease.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Female ; Histiocytosis, Langerhans-Cell ; diagnosis ; drug therapy ; pathology ; Humans ; Infant ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Prognosis ; Retrospective Studies ; Young Adult

Objective To evaluate the alteration of cholesterol ester fatty acids and related serum biochemical parameters in elderly patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus ( T2DM).Methods Totally 73 T2DM patients (T2DM group) and 72 healthy subjects (control group) (aged ≥60 years) who received health check-ups in Beijing Hospital from August to December in 2012 were recruited and blood samples were collected .Eleven main cholesterol ester fatty acids in serum were determined with liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry , and endogenous conversions by desaturases and elongases were estimated from product -to-precursor ratios .Fasting plas-ma glucose (FPG), total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), apolipoprotein (Apo) AI (ApoAI), ApoB, and high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) were analyzed with an automatic biochemistry analyzer and the results were statisti -cally analyzed .Results CE14∶0, CE16∶1 and CE22∶6 in T2DM group were significantly lower than those in the control group ( P <0.05 ) , while no significant difference existed between other fatty acid compositions .Δ9-desaturase activity was lower in T2DM group compared with that in control group (P=0.001).After adjus-ting for age, gender, body mass index (BMI), TC, TG, and FPG, Logistic analysis showed the quartiles of CE22∶6 andΔ9-desaturase activity were associated with risk of type 2 DM, and the odds ratios were 0.27 (95%CI:0.08-0.86, Wald:4.93, P<0.05) and 0.06 (95%CI:0.01-0.22, Wald: 17.39, P<0.01), respec-tively, for comparison of the top to bottom quartile .Both CE14∶0 and CE20∶3 negatively correlated with FPG (r=-0.18, -0.17, P<0.05);CE18∶0 positively correlated with BMI and TG (r=0.25, 0.24, P<0.01) and negatively correlated with HDL-C and ApoAI (r=-0.39, -0.35, P<0.01);CE20∶3 positively correlated with BMI, with a correlation coefficient of 0.42 (P<0.01).Conclusions Several cholesterol ester fatty acids de-crease in elderly T2DM patients.CE22∶6 andΔ9-desaturase may protect against T 2DM.An appropriately balanced intake of fatty acids is helpful for the prevention of T 2DM in the elderly population .

Acupuncture ; standards ; Acupuncture Therapy ; standards ; China ; Complementary Therapies ; standards ; Guideline Adherence ; Herpes Zoster ; diagnosis ; therapy ; Humans ; Male ; Practice Guidelines as Topic ; standards ; Risk Assessment ; Severity of Illness Index