Azithromycin ; pharmacology ; therapeutic use ; Humans ; Nephrotic Syndrome ; drug therapy ; Recurrence ; Steroids ; pharmacology ; therapeutic use

Acute Kidney Injury ; blood ; diagnosis ; etiology ; Child, Preschool ; Humans ; Hyperuricemia ; blood ; complications ; Kidney ; pathology ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Male ; Uric Acid ; blood

Objective To report the clinical outcome of dual plating in treating humeral intercondylar fractures. Methods From February 2002 to June 2003, 22 cases of humeral intercondylar fractures were treated with dual plating. It involved 15 males and 7 females, whose average age was 42.2 years with a range from 19 to 67 years. According to the AO classification, 5 cases were of type C1, 11 of C2 and 6 of C3. The posterior midline approach was selected, and the intercondylar fracture ends were exposed through the trans-olecranon osteotomy. The intercondylar fragments were fixed first, in 6 cases with C3 type fractures, the auto-grafting from the iliac bone was performed because of comminution, then the supracondylar fracture was fixed with dual plating. The semi-tubular plates was applied on the medial epicondylar crest of the humerus; and the reconstruction plate was implanted on the postero-lateral side, the two plates were kept in 90? with each other. The osteotomized ends were fixed with tension band. Results All the 22 patients were followed up for 13-29 months ( mean, 20.2 months ). By the end of the first postoperative month, the elbow flexion averaged 86.2?( range, 80?-105?), and the loss of extension averaged 40.7?(range, 30?-45?). But at the 12th month, the flexion improved to 117?(range, 95?-135?), and the extension loss decreased to 23.2?( range, 10?-35?). The averaged union time was 15.7 weeks with a range of 12 to 20 weeks. Assessed by the Jupiter scoring system, 3 cases were rated as excellent, 15 as good and 4 as fair. Complications included 4 cases of incision exudation, 3 K-wires withdrawal, 1 ulnar neuropathy and 3 heterotopic ossification. But no incision necrosis, deep infection, loosening or breakage of the internal fixators occurred. Conclusion The dual plating is able to provide stable and durable fixation for the humeral intercondylar fractures. In addition, it can prevent malunion or nonunion effectively, and decrease the related complications significantly. This method is helpful to improve the functional recovery of the elbow joint satisfactorily.

Objective To summarize clinical experience of reconstruction of breast suspensory structure in correction of mild-to-moderate breast ptosis.Methods Through a periareolar incision,the flabby deep layer of the superficial fascia beneath the upper breast gland was completely removed.Then the gland was lifted up to the normal position and the superior pole of the gland was fixed to the pectoral fascia at the second intercostal space.By using the dermal bra technique,an appropriate amount of skin was excised,and the dermis was fixed to the anterior surface of the breast gland. Or a monofilament polypropylene mesh was implanted and fixed to the anterior or posterior surface of the upper breast gland.Postoperatively,remarkable scar fibrosis reaction developed to form strong supporting structures just like natural ones.Glandular plication or implant augmentation was simultaneously employed to enhance the projection,if necessary.Results A total of 32 cases of mild-to-moderate breast ptosis was treated with this technique,including 10 cases of mastopexy only,20 cases of mastopexy with implant augmentation,and 2 cases of mastopexy using monofilament polypropylene mesh.The operation time was 90~150 min(mean,110 min).The intraoperative blood loss was 30~100 ml(mean,58 ml).No complications such as nipple or areola necrosis or sensory disturbance were found.Follow-up observations for 6~12 months(mean,11.3 months) showed a satisfactory rate of 90.6%(29/32).Conclusions Reconstruction of breast suspensory structure is a simple,safe,and effective method for correction of mild-to-moderate breast ptosis without hyperplasia of mammary glands.

Objective To investigate the practical application values of copper sulfate method and hemocyte analyzer in blood do‐nation screening .Methods A total of 1 500 blood samples of donors were randomly collected and determined by using both copper sulfate method and hemocyte analyzer .Taking hemocyte analyzer as the reference method ,the sensitivity and specificity of copper sulfate method for detecting hemoglobin(Hb) were calculated .The overall detection rates of abnormal blood samples determinded by the two methods were calculated ,as well .Statistical comparisons were performed on the test data from both methods .Results A total of 29 donors(accounted for 1 .9% ) with unacceptable Hb value were found by using copper sulfate method .For all blood do‐nors ,the sensitivity and specificity of copper sulfate method for Hb screening before blood donation was 99 .7% and 82 .8% ,respec‐tively .And there were no statistically significant differences in sensitivity and specificity between the two methods for Hb estima‐tion(P>0 .05) .There were 336 donors with abnormal blood samples detected by using hemocyte analyzer .Taking hemocyte analy‐zer as the reference method ,only 8 .6% of donors with abnormal blood samples were screened out by using copper sulfate method . Conclusion The copper sulfate method could be used for Hb screening before blood donation .While because of its limitations ,such as relatively low specificity and inadequate screening items ,the hemocyte analyzer shoud be utilized before blood donation if the con‐ditions permit .

Objective By investigating the departments of ECG and the staff in China,to study the current ECG status and thus provide references for training ECG workers,improving the work environment and stabilizing the ECG professional team.Methods One hundred and twenty four domestie grass-root hospitals were investigated through real-name questionnaire surveys.The data was collected and analyzed.Results Among the 124 investigated hospitals,the educational background description is:(1) The ECG workers in provincial or municipal hospitals had mainly been entitled with Bachelor's degree or above accounting for 72.7％ of whole ECG workers;the ECG workers in the county or township hospitals were entitled with college degree or below,accounting for 85.7％ of whole ECG workers.The difference between the two kind of workers was significant(P＜0.01).(2) The proportion of ECG workers owning senior professional titles in provincial or municipal hospitals and county or township hospitals were both low,which were 12.2％ and 3.6％,and the former one was significantly higher than the later(P＜0.01).(3) The proportion of hospitals which established dependent department of ECG was low;the percentage of provincial or municipal hospitals was 23.4％,which was significantly higher than that of county or township hospitals (3.3％,P＜0.05).(4) The provincial or municipal hospitals were well equipped and also conducted various of inspection projects in comparison to county or township hospitals.Conclusions The grass-root ECG staff in China has no satisfying education background and professional titles;ECG department belonging varies and the special inspection projects are insufficient and the economic benefit was low.So this study suggest that the competent departments take measures in improving ECG personnel enthusiasm,improving the working environment,and ensuring the healthy and orderly development of ECG profession.

Objective To investigate the changes of serum levels of IL-24, IFN-γand IL-4 in patients with condyloma acuminatum (CA) after treatment. Methods Forty-two patients with CA who experienced no recurrence within 3 months after successful treatment were enrolled in this study. Double-antibody sandwich enzyme-linked immunoabsorbent assay (DAS ELISA) was performed to determine the serum levels of IL-24,IFN-γand IL-4 in these patients before and 3 months after successful treatment as well as in 35 normal human controls. Results The untreated patients showed a lower level of serum IFN-γ (9.65 ± 3.70 vs. 15.49 ± 3.85ng/L, P ＜ 0.01) and a higher level of serum IL-4 and IL-24 (15.91 ± 6.14 vs. 10.48 ± 5.08 ng/L, 141.84 ±44.01 vs. 103.20 ± 41.37 ng/L, both P ＜ 0.01 ) compared with the controls. No significant difference was observed for the above parameters between the serum samples from the controls and patients 3 months after successful treatment. Conclusions Cellular immunity is impaired in patients with CA, which may be involved in the immunopathogenesis of CA.

Diabetic nephropathy presents an increasing trend worldwide. It has been an attractive area to find novel targets for the treatment of diabetic nephropathy. SIRT1 (Sirtuin 1), a member of deacetylation enzymes, regulates cell senescence, metabolism, and apoptosis. In last ten years, lots of studies showed that SIRT1 exerts a protective effect in the progression of the diabetic nephropathy by promoting reconstruction of energy homeostasis, modulating cell redox state, resisting cell apoptosis, inhibiting inflammation and ameliorating renal fibrosis. SIRT1 has become a potential new target for the treatment of diabetic nephropathy.
Apoptosis ; Cellular Senescence ; Diabetic Nephropathies ; pathology ; Humans ; Oxidation-Reduction ; Sirtuin 1 ; physiology

Objective To investigate the influence of aerobic exercise on the vulnerability of atherosclerotic plaques and to observe the concentration of matrix metalloproteinase-9 ( MMP-9 ) and matrix metalloproteinase-14(MMP-14) in carotid atherosclerotic plaques in apolipoprotein E (APoE) gene deficient mice.Methods Eighty male, APoE gene deficient mice were divided into two equal groups: an aerobic exercise group and a limited action control group. Carotid atherosclerotic lesions were induced by perivascular constrictive collars placed on the right common carotid artery. Blood lipid levels in the exercise group were measured after 8 weeks of treadmill running and also in the control group. The morphological characteristics of carotid atherosclerotic plaques were observed in the two groups. Plaque area and fibrous cap thickness were measured. Lipid and collagen positive areas were quantified and the ratios correlated with the entimal areas were calculated. Plaque rupture rate and vulnerable index were calculated.Immunostaining was used to detect MMP-9 and MMP-14 expression in the atherosclerotic plaques. The mRNA levels of MMP-9 and MMP-14 mRNA in the fresh carotid plaques were quantified using a real-time reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Western blotting was performed for examining MMP-9 and MMP-14 protein expression in the fresh carotid plaques.Results No significant difference in serum lipid profiles or plaque area was found between the exercise and control groups. Compared with the control group, mean fibrous cap thickness, cap/core ratio and collagen content were all significantly higher in the exercise group, and lipid content was significantly lower. Plaque rupture rate and the vulnerable index were both significantly lower in the exercise group. Immunostaining showed that MMP-9 and MMP-14 expression were lower in the exercise group compared with the control group.The mRNA expression of MMP-9 and MMP-14 was also significantly lower.Conclusions Aerobic exercise can decrease the expression of MMP-9 and MMP-14 in carotid atherosclerotic plaques in ApoE gene deficient mice. Aerobic exercise may play a role in forestalling atherosclerosis by increasing the stability of plaque and decreasing plaque vulnerability.

Objective To investigate the effects of alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone (alpha-MSH) on the production of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) and intedeukin-10 (IL-10) by peri-pheral blood monohuclear cells (PBMCs) from patients with psoriasis vulgaris. Methods Heparinized peri-pheral blood was obtained from 20 patients with psoriasis vulgaris and 10 healthy human controls. PBMCs were isolated, cultured in complete medium, and stimulated with phytohemagglutinin (PHA) alone, the com-bination of PHA and various concentrations of alpha-MSH, or nothing. After another 48-hour culture, ELISA and real-time PCR were performed to measure the secretion levels of TNF-alpha and IL-10 in the super-natants of cultured PBMCs as well as the mRNA expression levels of TNF-alpha and IL-10 in PBMCs. Results The secretion level of TNF-alpha in the supematants of patient-derived PBMCs stimulated by nothing or PHA alone was significantly higher than that from normal control-derived PBMCs (329.87 ± 99.33 ng/L vs 116.95 ± 37.15 ng/L, 1756.01 ± 183.60 ng/L vs 1287.30 ± 152.36 ng/L, both P<0.01). alpha-MSH of all tested concentrations (10-13, 10-11, 10-7,mol/L) could inhibit the secretion of TNF-alpha by PBMCs com-pared with PHA alone (all P < 0.01), and the maximum effective concentration was 10-13 mol/L. On the con-Wary, a significant decrease was observed in the secretion level of IL-10 in the supematants of patient-derived PBMCs stimulated by nothing or PHA alone compared with normal control-derived PBMCs (P <0.05 or 0.01). Moreover, the secretion of IL-10 by PBMCs was promoted by alpha-MSH of all tested con-centrations (P < 0.01 or 0.05), with the maximum effective concentration being 10-13 mol/L (P < 0.01). The alpha-MSH of 10-13 mol/L down-regulated the mRNA expression of TNF-alpha (P < 0.001), but up-regnlated that of IL-10 (P < 0.001) in PHA-stimulated PBMCs from patients. Conclusion alpha-MSH can regulate the production of TNF-alpha and IL-10 by PHA-stimulated PBMCs from patients with psoriasis vulgaris.