Objective To review the serial CT findings of cryptogenic organizing pneumonia(COP)and semiquantitatively analyze the changes after corticosteroid therapy.Methods The clinical and radiological features of 13 patients with COP confirmed by pathology were retrospectively collected and analyzed.The lung lesions extent on CT scans was estimated using semi-quantitative method.Changes of overall disease extent were evaluated by comparing the initial CT images and the follow-up CT scans after corticosteroid therapy.Results CT images of all cases revealed diffuse and bilateral lesions,mainly located in lower zone,distributed as predominantly subpleural and(or)along the bronchovascular bundle.The two most common manifestations of lung abnormality on initial scans were ground-glass opacity(GGO)(13 cases)and consolidation(12 cases),the average areas of which were 13％ and 10％ respectively.The treatment with antibiotics was ineffective.After treatment with corticosteroid,the lesions resolved completely in 2 patients ; the disease was decreased in extent in 8 patients ; and the lesion showed no change in extent in one patient,while the disease progressed in extent in 2 patients on follow-up CT.The most common CT findings were GGO(10 cases)and reticulation(5 cases),followed by consolidation(4 cases),the average areas of which were 19％,2％ and 1％ respectively.Conclusion The CT features of the patients with COP are characteristic.The most lesions resolved or improved after corticosteroid therapy on follow-up CT scans.The estimation of disease extent with semi-quantitative method is helpful for the clinicians to evaluate the therapeutic effect.

Objective To evaluate the muscle mass in elderly patients with inguinal hernia using CT scan.Methods 30 male (age 70-90 years) hospitalized patients scheduled to receive surgery for inguinal hernia were selected into study group, 10 male health volunteers (40-50 years) were involved in adult control group, and 10 men of the same age as the study receiving annual physical examination were enrolled as elderly control group.General information were recorded;CT scanning of the stomach muscles and thigh muscles were conducted, and the muscle area was calculated using a special software.Results The index of grip strength in the study group was significantly lower than the adult control group [(36.44 ± 14.15) kg vs.(77.30 ± 22.69) kg, P =0.001], the calf circumference in the study group was significantly less than the adult control group [(25.18 ±2.31) cm vs.(27.62 ±2.33) cm, P =0.006].There was no significant difference in L3 abdominal area, subcutaneous fat area, abdominal fat area, and vertical spinal muscular volume between the study group and the adult control group;while the L3 abdominal muscle area and vertical spinal muscular mass was significantly less in the study group than in the adult control group [(12 094.23 ± 1 970.30) mm2 vs.(17462.00±1 600.58) mm2, P=0.001;(1 642.60±266.90) mm2 vs.(2 003.50±350.91) mm2,P =0.007].L3 skeletal muscle index of the study group was 50.64 ±7.52 and 66.7％ (20/30) of the study group had sarcopenia (≤52.4％).The CT findings of abdominal muscle of the study group were not significantly different from those of the elderly control group.The thigh muscle mass in the study group was significantly less than that in the control group (P =0.001), but there was no significant inter-group difference in thigh fat and femur areas (P ＞ 0.05).Conclusion The muscle mass and strength in elderly patients with inguinal hernia are significantly lower than those of adult controls, for which CT scan can be applied for assessment.

Objective:To assess the prognostic value of the collateral status and clot burden score based on four-dimensional computed tomography angiography(4D CTA)in anteriorcir culation is chemics troke patients with large ischemic core after endovascular treatment.Methods:Clinical and imaging data of 36 anterior circulation ischemic stroke patients with large infarct core (infarct core≥50.0 ml) after endovascular treatment at our institution from March 2016 to September 2020 were retrospectively reviewed. According to the modified Rankin Scale (mRS) score, patients were divided into the good outcome (mRS score 0-2) and poor outcome (mRS score 3-6) groups. Mann-Whitney U and Fisher tests were used to compare the 4D CTA collateral circulation score, clot burden score, and baseline clinical data between the good and poor outcome groups. Multivariate logistic regression was used to analyze the risk factors associated with the poor outcome (mRS score 3-6) and mortality in patients with large infarct core stroke. Finally, based on the 90-day outcome, a ROC curve was used to obtain the cut-off values for poor prognosis (mRS 3-6) and death, respectively. Results:Ten patients (27.8%) had good outcome and 26 (72.2%) had poor outcome. The patients in the poor outcome group had older median age, higher blood glucose, lower 4D CTA collateral circulation score, lower clot burden score, larger infarct core volume, and higher hemorrhagic transformation and brain hernia (all P<0.05). Multivariate logistic regression showed that the poor collateral circulation score on 4D CTA( OR=0.18, 95% CI: 0.03-0.99, P<0.05)and clot burden score( OR=0.64, 95% CI: 0.44-0.93, P<0.05) were independent predictors of the poor prognosis. The ROC curves revealed that the cut-off value of infarct core for distinguishing between good prognosis and poor prognosis was 63.7 ml, while that for distinguishing between survival and death was 130.3 ml. Conclusions:Endovascular treatment may improve the prognosis of patients with large infarct core of anterior circulation is chemic stroke if the patients have good 4D CTA collateral circulation score and high clot burden score.

Increasing evidences suggest the important role of calcium homeostasis in hallmarks of cancer, but its function and regulatory network in metastasis remain unclear. A comprehensive investigation of key regulators in cancer metastasis is urgently needed. Transcriptome sequencing (RNA-seq) of primary esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) and matched metastatic tissues and a series of gain/loss-of-function experiments identified potassium channel tetramerization domain containing 4 (KCTD4) as a driver of cancer metastasis. KCTD4 expression was found upregulated in metastatic ESCC. High KCTD4 expression is associated with poor prognosis in patients with ESCC and contributes to cancer metastasis in vitro and in vivo. Mechanistically, KCTD4 binds to CLIC1 and disrupts its dimerization, thus increasing intracellular Ca²⁺ level to enhance NFATc1-dependent fibronectin transcription. KCTD4-induced fibronectin secretion activates fibroblasts in a paracrine manner, which in turn promotes cancer cell invasion via MMP24 signaling as positive feedback. Furthermore, a lead compound K279-0738 significantly suppresses cancer metastasis by targeting the KCTD4‒CLIC1 interaction, providing a potential therapeutic strategy. Taken together, our study not only uncovers KCTD4 as a regulator of calcium homeostasis, but also reveals KCTD4/CLIC1-Ca²⁺-NFATc1-fibronectin signaling as a novel mechanism of cancer metastasis. These findings validate KCTD4 as a potential prognostic biomarker and therapeutic target for ESCC.