A congenital urethrocutaneous fistula is a rare anomaly which was first described in 1962 by Gupta. Clinically, children present when their guardian is alarmed by either frequent urinary dribbling or unusual stream when they pass urine. This congenital anomaly can present in isolation or be accompanied by a chordee, hypospadia and anorectal malformations in a newborn. The surgical management will either be a primary repair of the fistula or converting it to a hypospadia before proceeding with a single or staged hypospadia repair. Surgical technique will depend on the local tissue factors and associated anomalies.

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the roles of oxidative stress in the generation and development of aneurysms.

METHODSFive terminal aneurysms and 8 lateral aneurysms were rebuilt on rabbits, and 6 normal artery vessels were prepared as control. The levels of malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and anti-reactive oxygen species unit (anti-ROS unit) were measured with chemical methods.

RESULTSThe levels of MDA in terminal and lateral aneurysms were (33.85 +/- 8.66) and (27.87 +/- 5.78) nmol/mg prot, respectively, which were significantly higher than (10.91 +/- 2.72) nmol/mg prot in control group (P < 0.01). The levels of SOD in terminal and lateral aneurysms were (28.30 +/- 3.58) and (33.00 +/- 8.09) U/mg prot, respectively, which were significantly lower than (127.27 +/- 38.72) U/mg prot in control group (P < 0.01). The levels of anti-ROS unit in terminal and lateral aneurysms were (47.86 +/- 5.00) and (62.64 +/- 13.87) U/ mg prot, respectively, which were significantly lower than (116.94 +/- 9.22) U/mg prot in control group (P < 0.01). No significant differences were shown between terminal aneurysm and lateral aneurysm in MDA and SOD except anti-ROS unit (P = 0.014). MDA had negative correlations with both SOD and anti-ROS unit, and the correlation coefficients were -0. 830 and -0. 852, respectively.

CONCLUSIONOxidative stress may play an important role in the development of aneurysms. Oxidative stress seems similar among various aneurysms.

Aneurysm ; classification ; metabolism ; Animals ; Disease Models, Animal ; Malondialdehyde ; metabolism ; Oxidative Stress ; Rabbits ; Reactive Oxygen Species ; metabolism ; Superoxide Dismutase ; metabolism

INTRODUCTIONThe objective of the study is to compare the efficacy of fl at insoles, bone spur pads, pre-fabricated orthotics and customised orthotics in reducing plantar contact pressure of subjects with plantar fasciitis.

MATERIALS AND METHODSThis is a controlled non-blinded comparative study conducted in a tertiary medical institute. Thirty subjects with unilateral plantar fasciitis between the ages of 20 and 65 years were recruited at the sports medicine clinic. The contact pressures and pressure distribution patterns in both feet for each subject were measured with sensor pressure mats while standing. Repeat measurements were made with the subjects wearing shoes, fl at insoles, bone spur heel pads, pre-fabricated insoles and customised orthotics on both feet. The asymptomatic side was used as the control. Contact pressure measurements of the symptomatic and asymptomatic feet and power ratio of the pressure distribution pattern of the rearfoot were then compared.

RESULTSContact pressure was higher on the asymptomatic side due to unequal distribution of weight. Bone spur heel pads were ineffective in reducing rearfoot pressure while formthotics and customised orthotics reduced peak rearfoot pressures significantly. The power ratio of the rearfoot region decreased with the use of formthotics and customised orthotics.

CONCLUSIONPre-fabricated orthotics and customised orthotics reduced rearfoot peak forces on both sides while bone spurs heel pad increase rearfoot peak pressures. Pre-fabricated and customised orthotics are useful in distributing pressure uniformly over the rearfoot region.

Adult ; Aged ; Analysis of Variance ; Biomechanical Phenomena ; Body Mass Index ; Chronic Disease ; Fasciitis, Plantar ; therapy ; Female ; Foot ; physiology ; Heel ; Heel Spur ; prevention & control ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Orthotic Devices ; Pain ; prevention & control ; Pain Measurement ; Pressure ; Young Adult

The effect of the menstrual cycle on the diurnal cortisol rhythm was investigated in 15 normally cyclic healthy women during reproductive life. Salivary cortisol was measured by radioimmunoassay in samples collected every 2 h for 24 h during the four phases of the menstrual cycle: menstrual phase, late follicular/peri-ovulation phase, early to mid luteal phase and late luteal phase, respectively. Distinct diurnal rhythms of free cortisol were found throughout the menstrual cycle by using a nonlinear periodic regression model. The model was characterized by an asymmetrically peaked diurnal cycle and ultradian harmonics. There was a trend to higher troughs and significantly shorter peak-width in phase II and phase IV compared to phase I. The ultradian amplitude in phase IV was significantly lower compared with phase I and showed a trend of decrease compared with phase II. The results suggest that the daily cortisol secretion is modulated by the phase of the menstrual cycle.
Adult ; Circadian Rhythm ; Female ; Humans ; Hydrocortisone ; secretion ; Luteal Phase ; Menstrual Cycle ; Radioimmunoassay ; Salvia ; metabolism

In-stent stenosis is a feared complication of flow diversion treatment for cerebral aneurysms. We present 2 cases of patients treated with pipeline flow diversion for unruptured cerebral aneurysms. Initial perioperative dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) consisted of standard aspirin plus clopidogrel. At 6-month follow-up cerebral angiography, the patients were noted to have developed significant in-stent stenosis (63% and 53%). The patients were treated with cilostazol and clopidogrel for at least 6 months. Subsequent angiography at 1-year post-treatment showed significant improvement of the in-stent stenosis from 63% to 34% and 53% to 21%. The role of cilostazol as treatment of intracranial in-stent stenosis has not been previously described. Cilostazol’s vasodilatory effect and suppression of vascular smooth muscle proliferation provides ideal benefits in this setting. Cilostazol plus clopidogrel may be a safe and effective alternative to standard DAPT for treatment of in-stent stenosis following flow diversion and warrants further consideration and investigation.

Background: Obesity, especially central obesity, is a risk factor for non-communicable chronic diseases such as dyslipidemia, type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), cardiovascular diseases (CVD), and metabolic syndrome (MetS). Aim: Study the association between the subcutaneous fat area (SFA) and visceral fat area (VFA) with lipid metabolism parameters in adults with MetS. Materials and Methods: Data from 1511 participants who visited the ‘NURA Mongolia’ Ai Health screening center between September 2023 and February 2024, including general information, DEXA (Dual X-ray Absorptiometry), and biochemical analysis results, were used. Metabolic syndrome (MeS) was assessed based on the harmonizing criteria 2009 (≥3 criteria). VFA and SFA were categorized into four groups using quartiles (Q1-Q4). Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS v26, including T-tests, multiple logistic regression (OR, 95% CI), and ROC (AUC) analysis. Results: The average age of the participants was 30.5±3.9 years, with a BMI of 25.1 kg/m², and 49.5% were male. The group with MetS (n=531) had significantly higher levels of VFA and SFA compared to the group that rated their health as relatively healthy and had no clinical diagnosis (n=979) (control group) (p<0.0001), with males showing higher VFA and females showing higher SFA (p<0.0001). The Q4 group for VFA had a significant association with MetS in males (4.611, 95% CI=2.394–9.591) and females (2.253, 95% CI=1.097-3.912) (p<0.001). Logistic regression analysis showed that increased VFA was more strongly associated with MetS in males (β=0.325, p<0.0001) and females (β=0.338, p<0.003) than BMI. The AUC for predicting MetS was 0.790 (95% CI=0.750-0.831) for VFA and 0.401 (95% CI=0.351-0.451) for SFA, with all results being statistically significant (p<0.001). VFA had a higher predictive value compared to other markers. Conclusion In healthy men with metabolic syndrome, VFA is more prominently defined, while SFA is higher in healthy women. Since VFA is a better predictor of metabolic syndrome than SFA, it increases the risk of diseases such as cardiovascular diseases and type 2 diabetes in men, whereas SFA in women serves as a protective factor.

Objective: To analyze the genetic characterization of norovirus isolated in an outbreak of gastroenteritis in Jiangsu province. Methods: Extracted viral RNA from the swab samples of cases of acute gastroenteritis outbreak in Jiangsu province on December 16-27, 2016 was reversely transcribed to cDNA, and partial RNA-dependent RNA polymerase sequence and complete capsid sequence (VP1) were amplified by RT-PCR. Amplification products were sequenced for the analysis of genetic characteristics. Results: Based on sequence alignment, the variant shared a high level of identity with the strain GⅡ.g isolated in Spain and Finland (98.7%) in the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase region, and with the strain GⅡ.1 isolated in American (99.4%) in the VP1. The recombination was determined by using software Simplot, and the breakpoint of recombination was located in the ORF1/2 overlap region at position 5 106 of VP1. The result of amino acids alignment in capsid region showed that there were no mutations in the amino acids of the predicted epitopes and receptor binding site Ⅰ-Ⅲ, but a unique amino acid change was detected at position 132 (N-S). Conclusion: The norovirus isolated in the outbreak of gastroenteritis in Jiangsu province was a rare recombinant norovirus variant GⅡ.g-GⅡ.1.
Caliciviridae Infections/epidemiology* ; Capsid Proteins ; Disease Outbreaks ; Gastroenteritis/epidemiology* ; Genotype ; Humans ; Norovirus/isolation & purification* ; Phylogeny ; RNA, Viral/genetics* ; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Sequence Analysis, DNA

OBJECTIVETo describe the design and application of cluster randomized controlled method on typhoid Vi vaccine trial, and to assess the effect of implementation.

METHODSSimple size calculation of cluster-randomized trial was used to determine the sample size of the two groups and a vaccination campaign was conducted. The study group was given typhoid Vi vaccine and the control group was given meningococcal A vaccine.

RESULTSAccording to sample size calculation, a total sample of 96,121 participants was required and the study areas were divided into 108 clusters. In practice, 53 study clusters with 44,054 participants and 54 control clusters with 48,422 participants were stratified and matched according to size, location (urban or rural), characteristics (school, department, factory, demography) were randomized respectively. Confounding factors of two groups including age, sex, resident area, income, level of education were compared. It was found that the ratio of all confounding factors between the two groups were comparable and balanced.

CONCLUSIONConfounding factors can be better controlled between study group and the control group by applying cluster-randomized method on vaccine trail which enabled the intervention to be more scientifically evaluated; The implementation of cluster randomization trial was simple and easy to be accepted.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; China ; Cluster Analysis ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Mass Vaccination ; organization & administration ; Middle Aged ; Polysaccharides, Bacterial ; immunology ; Typhoid Fever ; prevention & control ; Typhoid-Paratyphoid Vaccines ; immunology ; Vaccination

OBJECTIVESTo determine whether a large-scale physical activity intervention could affect body composition in primary school students in Beijing, China.

METHODSThe study design was one-year cluster randomized controlled trial of physical activity intervention (20 min of daily exercise in the classroom) with an additional year of follow-up among 4 700 students aged 8-11 years at baseline.

RESULTSAfter the one-year intervention, BMI increased by 0.56 kg/m(2) (SD 1.15) in the intervention group and by 0.72 kg/m(2) (SD 1.20) in the control group, with a mean difference of -0.15 kg/m(2) (95% CI: -0.28 to -0.02). BMI z score decreased by -0.05 (SD 0.44) in the intervention group, but increased by 0.01 (SD 0.46) in the control group, with a mean difference of -0.07 (-0.13 to -0.01). After another year of follow up, compared to the control group, children in the intervention group had significantly lower BMI (-0.13, -0.25 to -0.01), BMI z score (-0.05, -0.10 to -0.01), fat mass (-0.27 kg, -0.53 to -0.02) and percent body fat (-0.53, -1.00 to -0.05). The intervention had a more pronounced effect on weight, height, BMI, BMI z score, and body composition among obese children than among normal weight or overweight children. Compared to the control group, the intervention group had a significantly higher percentage of children who maintained or reduced their BMI z score at year 1 (P=0.008) and year 2 (P=0.04).

CONCLUSIONSThese findings suggest that 20 min of daily moderate to vigorous physical activity during the school year is a feasible and effective way to prevent excessive gain of body weight, BMI, and body fatness in primary school students.

Body Composition ; Child ; China ; epidemiology ; Exercise ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Obesity ; epidemiology ; prevention & control

No abstract available.
Diffusion Tensor Imaging ; Diffusion ; Hemiplegia ; Humans