AIM:To evaluate the efficacy and safety of methazolamide in treating refractory uveitic macular edema.METHODS: Retrospective self-controlled study was designed.A total of 15 patients (20 eyes) with refractory uveitic macular edema which used methazolamide as adjuvant therapy were enrolled in Shanghai First People`s Hospital from January 2015 to June 2016.The changes of central macular thickness (CMT) and best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) were observed at baseline and 2, 4, 8wk after treatment.We also focused on the incidence of complications and relapse.RESULTS: The CMT was 445.95±154.10μm, 338.83±138.34μm, 251.50±40.20μm, 244.90±35.68μm at baseline, 2, 4 and 8wk after treatment, respectively.The differences among them were statistically significant (F=15.467, P<0.05).The BCVA (log MAR) were 0.40±0.17, 0.28±0.21, 0.19±0.20, 0.18±0.21 at baseline, 2, 4 and 8wk respectively, with a significant difference among them (F=5.208, P<0.05).When the cumulative dose reached to 700mg and 1400mg, no one had methazolamide-related complications;and when it came to 2800mg, 5 patients (33%) had methazolamide-related complication.After the withdrawal of methazolamide 1wk, 1 and 3mo, 3 patients (20%), 5 patients (33%) and 8 patients (53%) relapsed, respectively.CONCLUSION: Methazolamide is beneficial in improving macular edema and vision in 4wk.When the cumulative dose is more than 1400mg, we need pay attention to the complications.After discontinuing methazolamide for 1wk, macular edema relapsed in some patients, and more than half of patients recurred after 3mo.So the patients should be followed closely in 3mo after withdrawal of methazolamide.

Objective To study the influence of hydrocortisone sodium succinct by intravenous infusion or continuous intravenous micro pumping on the vital signs,shock duration,blood glucose and mortality in the patients with severe sepsis secondary shock.Methods Ninety patients with septic shock treated in our hospital from June 2014 to September 2016 were selected and divided into the control group and observasion group by using the random number table method,45 cases in each group.The control group was given hydrocortisone sodium succinct 200mg/d by slow intravenous drip for 2h,while the observasion group was given hydrocortisone sodium succinct 8.33mg/h by continuous intravenous micro pumping.The two groups were treated for continuous 5 d.The blood glucose,hemodynamics and prognosis were compared between the two groups.Results In the observasion group,the blood glucose indicators such as the time window of high blood glucose,LAGE,MBG and CV levels were lower than those in the control group,the difference had statistical significance (P<0.05).The hemodynamic indicators such as HR,CVP and MAP between the two groups before treatment and at 6,24 h and 5 d after treatment had no statistical difference between the two groups (P>0.05).The shock duration,ICU stay length,total hospital stay and 28 d mortality in the observasion group were lower than those in the control group,but the difference between the two groups had no statistical significance (P>0.05).Conclusion Continuous intravenous micro pumping of hydrocortisone sodium succinct can stabilize blood glucose fluctuation range in the patients with septic shock,but the hemodynamic indexes and prognosis have no obvious improvement.

?Proliferative diabetic retinopathy ( PDR ) is a group of disease characterized by neovascular disease complication of diabetes mellitus. Neovascular diseases of eye are one of the major causes of blindness of the world. Recent studies showed that vascular endothelial growth factor ( VEGF) and pigment epithelium-derived factor ( PEDF ) are now accepted as the key cytokine in the development of diabetic retinopathy. Recent progress in the investigation of VEGF and PEDF of PDR are summarized in this review.

Air Pollutants, Occupational ; adverse effects ; analysis ; Calcium Carbonate ; adverse effects ; analysis ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Dust ; Female ; Humans ; Lung ; drug effects ; physiology ; Male ; Occupational Exposure ; adverse effects ; Pneumoconiosis ; epidemiology ; Sampling Studies ; Surveys and Questionnaires

ObjectiveTo investigate the characteristic of pathology in Chinese patients with Nonaka myopathy.MethodsThirteen patients (7 males and 6 females) diagnosed with Nonaka myopathy in our laboratory from January 2002 to March 2011 were included in this study.Their mean age was 39.5 years old and the mean duration of illness was 4.15 years.The most common symptoms were weakness of raising feet with sparing of quadriceps femoris muscles in the early stage of disease.One patient presented the initial symptoms of upper limb weakness. Muscles biopsies were obtained from all these 13 patients. Histology study including immunohistochemical (IHC) staining with antibody against amyloid 3,phosphorylated tau protein,ubiquitin,glucose-regulated protein of molecular weight 78 000(GRP78),calnexin,caspase-12and Bax were performed.Skeletal muscle samples from 3 chronic fatigue syndrome patients,2 myofibrillar myopathy patients were used for control in the IHC staining. All coding exons of uridinediphospho-N-acetylglucosamine 2-epimerase gene were directly sequenced in genomic DNA from these patients.Results The main pathological changes of tibialis anterior muscle in 12 cases were muscle dystrophy with rimmed vacuoles.The rimmed vacuoles were positive for anti-β-amyloid,tau protein and ubiquitin in IHC studies.In the atrophy fibers,IHC showed the increased expression of endoplasmic reticulum stress related proteins GRP78 and calnexin,and apoptosis proteins of caspase-12 and Bax.ConclusionsThere is accumulation of abnormal proteins in muscle fibers in Chinese patients with Nonaka myopahty.These proteins may stimulate endoplasmic reticulum stress and apoptosis,which may be a mechanism responsible for muscle damage.

Background and purpose: With the increase of aging population, elderly patients (age ≥70 years) with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma occurred more and more. However, few studies have focused on elderly esophageal squamous cell carcinoma patients. This study aimed to assess the outcomes and prognostic factors for elderly patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma treated after deifnitive chemoradiotherapy. Methods:We retrospectively analyzed 53 patients (age≥70 years) with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma and treated with deifnitive radiotherapy with or without chemotherapy from Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center from Mar. 2009 to Dec. 2011. Results:Median age was 74 years. Twenty-nine patients underwent radiotherapy, 24 patients underwent radiochemotherapy. 1-, 2-, 3-, and 5- year survival was 62%, 44%, 33% and 19% respectively. Grade 2 and above acute radiation-induced esophageal toxicity and radiation pneumonitis occur rate was 6% and 9% respectively. No treatment-related deaths occurred and no patients experienced any grade 4 and above toxicities. Multivariate analysis identiifed treatment modality, tumor site and smoking history as independent prognostic factors for overall survival. Conclusion:Radiotherapy may be an acceptable treatment option for elderly patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma. In appropriately selected patients, concurrent chemotherapy could bring a better overall survival.

Objective: To investigate the prevalence of scoliosis among primary and middle school students in Jiaxing City, Zhejiang Province, so as to provide insights into scoliosis control among children and adolescents. Methods: Grade 4 to 6 primary school students and grade 1 to 3 junior high school students were recruited using a stratified cluster sampling method in Jiaxing City in 2019. Participants' demographic characteristics, dietary habits and nutritional status, physical activity, learning environments, reading and writing habits were collected using questionnaires. Scoliosis was screened through general examinations, forward bend test and scoliometer, and scoliosis was diagnosed with whole-spine X-ray scans in an erect position. The prevalence of scoliosis was descriptively analyzed among primary and middle school students. Results: A total of 8 026 primary and middle school students were included, 7 304 valid questionnaires were recovered, with an effective recovery rate of 91.00%. The respondents included 3 667 primary school students (50.21%) and 3 637 junior high school students (49.79%), and included 3 776 boys (51.70%) and 3 528 girls (48.30%). There were 659 participants with initial screening positive for scoliosis (9.02%), and the percentages of positive initial screening of thoracic, thoracolumbar and lumbar scoliosis were 2.93%, 4.56% and 4.56%, respectively. A higher percentage of positive initial screening of scoliosis was diagnosed among participants living in Pinghu City (10.45%), junior high school students (11.74%), girls (11.96%), students with a medical history of anemia (22.44%), students with less than 3 days of moderate-intensity physical activity in the past week (9.46%), students with less than 3 days of walking duration of over 10 minutes in the past week (10.18%), students with daily sitting duration of 5 hours and more in the past week (10.74%), students with their class seats exchanged every semester or month (10.28%), students with daily reading and writing duration of 3 hours and more after school (10.93%) and students with less than 10 cm distance from the chest at reading or writing to the edge of the table (9.67%) (all P<0.05). A total of 218 students received whole-spine X-ray scans in an erect position, 132 participants were definitively diagnosed as scoliosis (60.55%), and the estimated prevalence of scoliosis was 5.46%. Conclusion The percentage of positive initial screening of scoliosis was 9.02% among primary and middle school students in Jiaxing City. Gender, stage of learning, nutritional status, exercise frequency and habits of reading and writing may be factors affecting the development of scoliosis.

Acupuncture has remarkable effects of pain relieving and functional restoration on injuries of soft tissue and joint due to military training. As more and more attention has been attached to the impact of psychological states and biorhythm disorder on the fighting ability of military staff, acupuncture has found its place in treating chronic fatigue, combat stress reaction, traumatic brain injury and post-traumatic stress disorder as well as regulating circadian rhythms. The therapeutic effect of acupuncture in military training-related physical damage and psychological trauma has already been proved by numerous clinical practices and researches. It is held that using acupuncture as an alternative could not only save medical resources, but also enhance the fighting ability of the army. However, the current clinical studies is facing the problem of limited sample size. Therefore, randomized controlled trials in large scale and multiple centers should be further carried out toward military staff, so as to provide more speaking evidences to the prevention and treatment of physical and psychological diseases.
Acupuncture Therapy ; Adult ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Military Personnel ; psychology ; Pain Management ; Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic ; therapy ; Wounds and Injuries ; therapy ; Young Adult

Objective To investigate the effectiveness and safety of transcatheter radiofrequency ablation guided by a three-dimensional mapping system (Ensite or Carto) for the treatment of complex cardiac arrhythmias. Methods A cohort of 123 consecutive hospitalized inpatients during the period from February 2006 to December 2008 were selected for this study. These patients suffered from various arrhythmias, including paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (n=58). Persistent or permanent atrial fibrillation (n=10), atrial flutter (n=13), atrial tachycardia (n=12) and ventricular tachycardia or frequent ventricular premature beats (n=30). Transcatheter radiofrequency ablation for arrhythmias was performed under the guidance of an EnSite3 000/NavX or Array mapping system in 80 cases, and under the guidance of a CARTO mapping system in the remaining 43 cases. Results Successful ablation of arrhythmias was obtained by single operation in 106 cases(86.18%). Including 59 cases with atrial fibriUation,11 cases with atrial flutter, 10 cases with atrial tachycardia, and 26 cases with ventricular tachycardia or premature ventricular beat. Ablation procedure was carried out and was successful in 10 cases with a successful rate of 94.31%, including 5 cases with atrial fibrillation. 1 case with recurred atrial flutter, 1 case with recurrent atrial tachycardia, and 3 cases with ventricular tachycardia or premature ventricular beat. After operation, complications occurred in 6 cases, including cardiac tamponade in 4 cases, distal embolism of the left anterior descending coronary artery in 1 case, and pulmonary embolism in 1 case. Conclusion Three-dimensional mapping system can clearly and stereoscopically display the cardiac structures. Therefore, this technique is of great value in guiding the transcatheter radiofrequency ablation for complex arrhythmias, in improving the success rate of ablation and in increasing the safety of the procedure.

To observe the effect of calycosin on the proliferation and activation of primary hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) in rats, and prove calycosin shows the effects through peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ(PPARγ) and farnesoid X receptor (FXR). The results indicated that calycosin could inhibit HSC proliferation and expressions of activation marker smooth muscle actin-α and type I collagen. With the increase in HSC activation time, FXR expression reduced, but with no notable impact from calycosin. Calycosin could up-regulate PPARγ expression and its nuclear transition in a concentration-dependent manner. Its prohibitory effect on HSC activation could be blocked by PPARγ antagonist. In conclusion, calycosin could inhibit HSC activation and proliferation, which may be related with the up-regulation of PPARγ signal pathway.
Animals ; Cell Proliferation ; drug effects ; Cells, Cultured ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; pharmacology ; Hepatic Stellate Cells ; cytology ; drug effects ; metabolism ; Isoflavones ; pharmacology ; Male ; PPAR gamma ; genetics ; metabolism ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Receptors, Cytoplasmic and Nuclear ; genetics ; metabolism ; Up-Regulation ; drug effects