Objective To investigate the safe region for screw fixation in atlas lateral mass by ra- diologic measurements to conduct the operative procedure.Methods The dimensions of the pedicles were determined in 30 patients with normal atlas by CT scan and three dimensional reconstruction images of the upper cervical spine.The space available for the screw(SAS)was defined as the perpendicular distance between two lines tangential to the spinal canal and the transverse foramen,respectively.SAS was evaluated at 0?(SAS1)and 10?(SAS2)insertion angles.The location of screws in 13 cases of opera- tion were observed by CT scan images measurements of the cervical spine.Results SASI at 0?inser- tion angle was(7.81?1.28)mm and SAS2 at 10?insertion angle was(9.69?1.23)mm,with statisti- cal difference(P＜0.01).For SAS1,the distance from the midline of pedicle to the midline of posterior arch and the distance from the center of C2 inferior articular process to the midline of posterior arch showed insignificant statistical difference.However,the entry point at the posterior arch of the midline of SAS2 was located at 2.0 mm lateral to the midline of ASAI.Twenty-six pedicle screws in 13 cases were inserted correctly,without cortex breakage,or nerve and vessel injury.Conclusions There is a safe region for screw fixation in atlas lateral mass.Wider space available for the screw can be acquired when transverse angle is 10?.It is necessary to confirm the safe region by using axial CT of atlas before screw fixation.

Adult ; China ; epidemiology ; Female ; Humans ; Low Back Pain ; epidemiology ; etiology ; Occupational Diseases ; epidemiology ; etiology

OBJECTIVEWe conducted both quick surveillance and evaluation programs within one week after the novel H7N9 influenza cases had been released by the Ministry of Health (MOH), to get the basic information on H7N9 virus in Guangzhou.

METHODSWe sampled live birds from food markets and the natural habitat of birds to detect H7N9, H5 and H9 viruses. We interviewed workers from both markets and natural habitats. We also reviewed records on pneumonia patients with unknown causes from the surveillance system, to find clues related to the identification of severe pneumonia.

RESULTSWe sampled 300 specimens from 49 stalls in 13 food markets and a natural habitat but none showed H7N9 positive result. A chopping block was detected positive of carrying H5 avian influenza virus, while another 4 specimens including a chicken cage, a duck cage, a chopping block and a pigeon cage were detected positive of carrying H9 avian influenza virus. In the past month, no sick, dead birds or ILI cases among the workers were discovered. 21.2% (7/33) of the stalls did not follow the set regulations for prevention. 10.3% (4/39) of the stalls had the cages cleaned, 4 days after the inspection. 3.7% (2/54) of the workers wore masks and 40.7% (22/54) of them wore gloves during the slaughtering process. 102 bird feces specimens were tested negative on H7N9 virus. No pneumonia cases with unknown reason were identified. From April 3(rd) to 17(th), we found 26 severe pneumonia cases but with negative results on influenza A (H7N9).

CONCLUSIONAccording to the data and information from 1) lab tests, 2) pneumonia cases with unknown reasons under the surveillance system, 3) the identification of severe pneumonia cases, and 4) preventive measures and actions taken by the workers, we inferred that no H7N9 virus or related cases were found prior to April in Guangzhou. However, the risk of H7N9 epidemic does exist because of the following reasons:1) improper market management process, 2) negligent behavior of the workers and 3) potential trend of the national situation, suggesting strategies related to poultry markets management, health education and preventive measures against the avian influenza need to be strengthened.

China ; epidemiology ; Humans ; Influenza A Virus, H7N9 Subtype ; Influenza, Human ; epidemiology ; prevention & control ; virology ; Risk Assessment

To establish a fingerprint for Cimicifugae Rhizoma from different producing areas. Column kromasil (4.6 mm x 250 mm, 5 microm) was employed with acetonitrile-0.1% formic acid solution as the mobile phase for gradient elution. The flow rate was 1.0 mL x min(-1), the detection wavelength was 254 nm. Twenty chromatographic peaks were extracted as the common peaks of fingerprint, and 21 batches of samples were compared and classified with such methods as similarity evaluation, cluster analysis and principle component analysis. The results showed 12 common peaks and three categories of samples. The method was so highly reproducible, simple and reliable that it could provide basis for quality control and evaluation of Cimicifugae Rhizoma from different producing areas.
Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid ; methods ; Cimicifuga ; chemistry ; Drug Stability ; Quality Control

Fingerprint technology is the key technology in modern Chinese medicine research, while spectrum-effect relationship research is the advanced stage of fingerprint research. Spectrum-effect relationship research can reveal the relationship between fingerprint and pharmacological effect through multiple statistical analyses, which can be used in Chinese medicine research. Spectrum-effect relationship has been used in many areas of Chinese medicine research, such as effective basis of single and compound Chinese medicine research, component compatibility research, processing mechanism research, pharmacological effect forecast research, technology optimization research, and so on. This paper systematically reviewed the application of spectrum-effect relationship in Chinese medicine research, and indicated some problems in spectrum-effect relationship research. At last, the authors give an outlook of the future of spectrum-effect relationship research.
Animals ; Biomedical Research ; China ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; chemistry ; pharmacology ; Humans ; Spectrum Analysis

Objective To evaluate the impact of different rating instruments used by raters with different seniority in OSCEs. Methods Surgical interns were randomly divided into two groups to undertake a nine－station surgical OSCEs. Raters with different seniority were also divided into two groups with four senior raters and four junior raters in one group. OSCE results were compared. Results There was no statistical significance when comparing results from different raters using checklist rating instrument. Results from different raters using global rating scale instrument were significantly different. Correlations between raters using checklist and global rating scale instruments showed statistical significance in 81.3% of stations. Conclusion Checklist rating instrument showed high capability of repeating the results. Therefore, it is recommended to apply checklist as many as possible in OSCE exams with mixed rater seniorities. Research on design of rating instruments are to be investigated to insure the effectiveness as well as the credibility of the rating system.

Objective:A rat model of excessive gestational weight gain (EGWG) was constructed to investigate the impact of EGWG on fetal hepatic lipid metabolism and the relevant regulatory mechanism.Methods:Healthy Sprague-Dawley rats were caged together and tested for pregnancy.Rats with the sperm observed under microscope were considered pregnant for 0.5 days.Pregnant rats were divided into the normal diet (ND) group and high-fat diet (HFD) group by the random number table method, with 8 rats in each group.The body weight during pregnancy of the pregnant rats was recorded.Cesarean section was performed at day 21.5 of gestation and the birth weight of the fetal rats was recorded.Hepatic lipid deposition of the pregnant and fetal rats was examined by hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining and oil red O staining.Triglyceride (TG) and cholesterol (TC) levels in livers and serum of the pregnant and fetal rats were detected by glycerol phosphate oxidase-peroxidase(GPO-PAP) method.The mRNA and protein expression levels of key genes FASN and SREBP1c in hepatic lipid metabolism of fetal rats were measured by real-time polyme-rase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and Western blot.Differences between the two groups were compared by independent sample t test. Results:There was no difference in pre-pregnancy body weight between the HFD group and the ND group, but the differences in the weight and the weight gain during pregnancy gradually enlarged between the two groups.At day 21.5 of gestation, the weight of the pregnant rats[(467.75±22.05) g vs.(430.88±18.80) g, t=-3.600, P=0.003], the weight gain of the pregnant rats during pregnancy[(181.50±9.68) g vs.(148.50±10.86) g, t=-6.415, P<0.001] and the birth weight of the fetal rats[(5.51±0.17) g vs.(4.85±0.35) g, t=-4.779, P<0.001] of the HFD group were significantly higher than those of the ND group.Both HE staining and oil red O staining presented increased hepatic lipid deposition in the pregnant and fetal rats of the HFD group.The hepatic and serum TG and TC levels of the pregnant and fetal rats of the HFD group were significantly higher than those of the ND group (all P<0.05). RT-PCR and Western blot showed that the mRNA and protein levels of key genes FASN and SREBP1c in hepatic lipid metabolism of fetal rats of the HFD group were significantly higher than those of the ND group (all P<0.05). Conclusions:An EGWG model can be successfully constructed by a 21-day HFD during pregnancy.EGWG can lead to hepatic lipid deposition in the fetal rats.The mechanism may be related to the expression changes of key genes FASN and SREBP1c in hepatic lipid metabolism of fetal rats.

Objective To evaluate the predictive value of a combined model based on clinical and radiomics features for the invasiveness of lung adenocarcinoma manifesting as ground glass nodule(GGN).Methods Clinical data of patients with GGN-type lung adenocarcinoma who underwent chest CT and were confirmed by surgical pathology at some hospital from January to December 2019 were analyzed retrospectively,and the extraction of imaging histological features was performed using Python-based open resource Pyradiomics.A clinical model was constructed based on independent risk factors obtained from univariate and multivariate analyses,a radiomics model was built using the screened radiomics features,and a combined model was established with the predictive values of the clinical models and radiomics scores(Radscore).The predictive performance of the three models in the training and test sets was assessed using ROC curves,the statistical significance of the differences in the ROC curves of the three models for predicting GGN-type lung adenocarcinoma was assessed using the Delong test,and the net benefits of the models were analyzed using clinical decision curves.Results Logistic multifactor analysis showed that age(P=0.020 2)and vascular characteristics(P=0.002 2)were the independent predictors of the degree of the invasiveness of lung adenocarcinoma.The AUCs of the radiomics model,clinical model and combined model were 0.876,0.867 and 0.904 on the training set,and 0.828,0.828 and 0.864 on the test set,respectively.The difference between the ROC curves of the combined model and the clinical and radiomics models was not statistically significant(P>0.05)on the test set.Clinical decision curves showed a higher clinical benefit when using the combined model to predict the invasiveness under most conditions of threshold probability.Conclusion The combined model based on clinical and radiomics features enhances the predictive performance for the invasiveness of GGN-type lung adenocarcinoma.

OBJECTIVEChildhood absence epilepsy (CAE) is one of the most frequently recognized syndromes among the idiopathic generalized epilepsies (IGEs). It is considered to be a hereditary disease. The possible inheritance pattern of CAE is polygenic. The genes responsible for CAE, however, have not yet been identified. The aim of this study was to further investigate based on the authors' recent work whether or not T-type calcium channel gene-CACNA1H is a susceptibility gene to childhood absence epilepsy.

METHODSThe authors conducted the mutation screening of the exons 6-12 and the nearby partial introns of the CACNA1H gene using the method of direct sequencing of PCR products in 48 newly found CAE patients.

RESULTSThe authors found 13 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). They also found 4 mutations which only existed in CAE patients. Both G773D and H515Y mutations were heterozygous. The mutation of H515Y has never been reported previously. The patient inherited the mutation from his mother. The authors found two CAE patients with the mutation of G773D previously. This is the third time that the authors found one more CAE family with this G773D mutation, and the patient with the mutation G773D inherited the mutation from his father.

CONCLUSIONT-type calcium channel gene-CACNA1H might be a susceptibility gene to childhood absence epilepsy.

Amino Acid Sequence ; Calcium Channels, T-Type ; genetics ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Epilepsy, Absence ; genetics ; Genetic Predisposition to Disease ; Humans ; Molecular Sequence Data ; Mutation ; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide

Adult ; Female ; Humans ; Influenza A Virus, H1N1 Subtype ; immunology ; Influenza Vaccines ; immunology ; Influenza, Human ; prevention & control ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Vaccination