To investigate the influence of the extent of attrition of teeth in the elderly and to provide a basis for the treatment, 5 527 teeth of 249 elderly, aged from 60 to 92 years, were examined. The results indicated that the occurrence rate of attrition was 100%, 54.6% of them was slight and 45.4% of them was severe. About 16% of them showed symptoms, and hypersensitivity of teeth was the most common one. The authors tried to individualize the treatment. The teeth with severe attrition were repaired by making plastic-metal plate and occlusive rehabilitation. After treatment all patients′ symptoms were resolved, and masticatory efficiency was improved.

To investigate the influence of the extent of attrition of teeth in the elderly and to provide a basis for the treatment, 5 527 teeth of 249 elderly, aged from 60 to 92 years, were examined. The results indicated that the occurrence rate of attrition was 100%, 54.6% of them was slight and 45.4% of them was severe. About 16% of them showed symptoms, and hypersensitivity of teeth was the most common one. The authors tried to individualize the treatment. The teeth with severe attrition were repaired by making plastic-metal plate and occlusive rehabilitation. After treatment all patients′ symptoms were resolved, and masticatory efficiency was improved.

OBJECTIVESTo assess the changes of the levels of plasma endothelin (ET-1), nitric oxide (NO) and atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) after cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) and the influence of inhaled nitric oxide in patients with ventricular septal defect (VSD) and pulmonary hypertension (PH).

METHODSSixty patients with VSD were enrolled in this study. They were divided into 2 groups: group A [no-PH group, mean pulmonary artery pressure (mPAP) < 20 mm Hg (1 mm Hg = 0.133 kPa) n = 20] and group B (PH group, mPAP > 20 mm Hg, n = 40). Group B was subdivided into two groups by randomized block, group B(1) (inhaled NO group, n = 20) and group B(2) (contrast group, n = 20). The plasma ET-1, NO, ANP concentrations were assayed at 24 h pre-operation and 0 h, 1 h, 5 h, 12 h, 24 h, 48 h after CPB.

RESULTSThe preoperative plasma ET-1, NO and ANP concentrations in group B were significantly higher than those in group A. In three groups, the plasma ET-1 concentration at 0 h after CPB was significantly higher than that at 24 h pre-operation, and the plasma NO concentration at 0 h after CPB was significantly lower than that at 24 h pre-operation. In group B, the plasma ANP concentration at 0 h after CPB was significantly higher than that at 24 h pre-operation. After CPB, the plasma ET-1 concentration in group B(1) decreased faster than that in group B(2), and the plasma NO concentration in group B(1) increased faster than that in group B(2). In group B, the preoperative plasma ET-1 concentration negatively correlated with the preoperative plasma NO concentration and positively correlated with the preoperative ANP concentration.

CONCLUSIONSThe broken dynamic balance of ET-1/NO may take part in generation and development of pulmonary hypertension. ANP acts as a favorable physiological regulating factor in the pathogenesis of pulmonary hypertension. CPB can regulate the level of ET-1 up and NO and ANP down while inhaled NO can cause the level of ET-1 down and the level of NO up.

Administration, Inhalation ; Atrial Natriuretic Factor ; blood ; Cardiopulmonary Bypass ; Child, Preschool ; Endothelin-1 ; blood ; Female ; Heart Septal Defects ; blood ; surgery ; Humans ; Hypertension, Pulmonary ; blood ; surgery ; Male ; Nitric Oxide ; blood ; pharmacology

PURPOSE: Pneumonia is rather common and benign disease in children but its course is various. Many clinicians used the empirical antibiotics to treat pneumonia without identification of causative organism. This study was performed to find the pathogenic organism from the fluid culture by bronchoscopy with BAL (bronchoalveolar lavage) in severe pneumonia patients. METHODS: We studied 21 cases (male 15, female 6) who were admitted with severe pneumonia in the Department of Pediatrics, Sunlin Hospital from March to October in 1999. These patients had no underlying disease such as immunologic deficiency. We took laboratory tests including CBC, CRP, ESR, PB smear, mycoplasmal antibody and blood culture at admission day. We performed bronchoscopy with BAL, and wet smear and culture of that fluid. RESULTS: Organisms were cultured in nineteen cases out of 21 cases. Seven cases of Streptococcus mitis, five of Stenotrphomonas maltophilia, five cases of Streptococcus oralis, two of Moraxella species, two of Acinetobacter junii, one of Acinetobacter spesies, one Staphylococcus hominus, one alpha-h-Streptococcus, one Klebsiella pneumoniae, one Pseudomonas aeruginosa, one Enterobacter cloacae. Two organisms were cultured in nine cases. CONCLUSION: The positive rate of BALF culture was very high (90.5%). But, further studies are necessary for the patients with severe pneumonia preceded the use of antibiotics.
Acinetobacter ; Anti-Bacterial Agents ; Bronchoalveolar Lavage* ; Bronchoscopy ; Child ; Enterobacter cloacae ; Female ; Humans ; Klebsiella pneumoniae ; Moraxella ; Pediatrics ; Pneumonia* ; Pseudomonas aeruginosa ; Staphylococcus ; Streptococcus mitis ; Streptococcus oralis

OBJECTIVETo explore the genetic and clinical characteristics of isodicentric Ph chromosomes [idic(Ph)] in lymphoid blast crisis of chronic myeloid leukemia (CML-BLC).

METHODSBone marrow aspirates of 2 patients with CML-BLC were analyzed by R banding after 24 hours of culturing. Genomic copy number variations (CNV) were analyzed by single nucleotide polymorphism array (SNP array) in case 1. The results were confirmed with fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). Variations of acute lymphoblastic leukemia-related genes including CDKN2A/AB and PAX5 were detected by multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplication (MLPA).

RESULTSDeletions and duplications on derivative chromosome 9 detected by FISH were confirmed by SNP array analysis. The distances between the BCR/ABL fusion signals on the idic(Ph) chromosomes in the two patients have differed greatly. The idic(Ph) in the second patient was supposed to be formed by two Ph chromosomes joined at their q terminals, where as the idic(Ph) in the first patient have been shown to be fused at the satellite regions of their p arms.

CONCLUSIONThe idic(Ph) chromosomes presented in CML-BLC may predict resistance to Imatinib and response to Dasatinib.

Blast Crisis ; diagnosis ; genetics ; therapy ; Chromosome Aberrations ; Chromosome Banding ; Chromosome Deletion ; Chromosome Duplication ; Chromosomes, Human, Pair 9 ; genetics ; DNA Copy Number Variations ; Fatal Outcome ; Female ; Humans ; In Situ Hybridization, Fluorescence ; Karyotyping ; Leukemia, Myelogenous, Chronic, BCR-ABL Positive ; diagnosis ; genetics ; therapy ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Philadelphia Chromosome