Penile vascular endothelial damage, vasomotor dysfunction, and blood flow deficiency are the major causes of erectile dysfunction (ED). Current management of ED mostly depends on selective phosphodiesterase type 5- (PDE5) inhibitors, which fail for some ED patients. For Peyronie's disease-induced ED, surgical and physical therapies are used in addition to PDE5I medication, but frequently it is difficult to achieve satisfactory results. Recent studies show that the low-intensity extracorporeal shockwave therapy can promote angiogenesis and improve blood flow to the penis, which promises to be a novel effective therapy for ED and Peyronie's disease.
Erectile Dysfunction ; therapy ; High-Energy Shock Waves ; therapeutic use ; Humans ; Male ; Penile Induration ; therapy

Hepatitis B e Antigens ; Hepatitis B, Chronic ; drug therapy ; immunology ; Humans ; Interferon-alpha ; administration & dosage ; therapeutic use ; Polyethylene Glycols

Objective This study was designed to evaluate the effect of laparoscopic-assisted subtotal colectomy(LASC)and modified Duhamel procedure in the treatment of severe functional constipation(SFC).Methods From June 2005 to October 2007,100 cases of SFC were treated by LASC combined with modified Duhamel procedure in our institute.After freed the colon under a laparoscope,we made a small incision in the lower abdomen to perform subtotal colectomy while preserved the ileocecal region.Then a side-to-side colorectal anastomosis was conducted.Results In this study,98 cases of LASC were successively completed and 2 cases were converted to open surgery.The operation time of LASC in the 98 cases ranged from 48 to 125 min mean,(76?23)min],and the total operation time was 140-225 min mean,(170?42)min].The intraoperative blood loss was 10-160 m1 mean,(35?18)m1].In the patients,the intestinal function was recovered within 25-52 hours mean,(42?12)h] after the operation;none of them developed postoperative wound infection,anastomotic stoma,or other complications.One week after the operation,2 of the 100 patients showed mild dehydration,and 2 were diagnosed as having incomplete small bowl obstruction.All of the four were cured by conservative treatments.The other 96 patients who had no complication were discharged from the hospital in 5-11 days mean,(7.0?1.5)days] postperation.One year later,the symptoms of constipation were significantly alleviated(defecation 1-3 times/d)in 90 patients;7 cases had various degrees of diarrhea(defecation 4-6 times/d);and 3 patients showed recurrence of mild constipation(defecation 1 time/2-3 d).The gastrointestinal quality of life index(GIQOL)determined in 1 year postperation was(109?20)points,which indicated good results compared to(94?23)points before the operation(maximum:144).Eighty-three cases were satisfied with their frequency of defecation.Conclusions LASC combined with modified Duhamel procedure is an effective method for the treatment of SFC,resulting in less damage,less influence to the internal environment,and quick recovery.The procedure is worth being wildly used.

Objective To explore the role of chromokinesin KIF4A in gastric cancer cell invasion using gastric cancer cells SGC-7901 and chromokinesin KIF4A deficient gastric cancer cells (SGC-shKIF4A).Methods Expression levels of KIF4A in controlling gastric cancer cells (SGC-shNC) and SGC-shKIF4A cells were determined by Western Blot.Invasion of gastric cancer cells were assessed using Transwell invasion assay and the number of cells passing through the matrigel was counted.Changing numbers of cortactin in SGC-7901,SGC-shNC,and SGC-shKIF4A cells were analyzed by immunofluorescence staining.Results Compared to the SGC-shNC cells,invasion ability of SGC-shKIF4A cells was increased.Compared to other cells,the numbers of cortactin in SGC-shKlF4A cells was also increased suggesting invadopodia in these cells was increased(P＜0.01).Conclusions Chromokinesin KIF4A acts as a tumor suppressor by inhibiting gastric cancer cells invasion and the results provides strong evidences for KIF4A serving as one of potent targets for gastric cancer prognostics and treatment in clinic.

OBJECTIVETo investigate the levels of secretions from the prostate and seminal vesicles and their association with the expressions of aquaporins (AQP) in the prostatic tissue and seminal vesicles of castrated rats.

METHODSWe randomly divided 18 eight-week-old male SD rats into a control, a castration, and a testosterone (T) replacement group. Four weeks after surgical castration, we detected the plasma T level and measured the volumes of the secretions and the expressions of AQPs 3, 7, and 10 - 12 in the prostate and seminal vesicles of the rats.

RESULTSThe plasma T level was significantly lower in the castrated models ([30. 98 ± 28. 84] ng/dl) than in the rats of the control ([700.78 ± 123.8] ng/dl) and T replacement groups ([688.08 ± 132. 47] ng/dl) (P <0. 05). The castration group, in comparison with the control and T replacement groups, showed remarkably reduced ratios of prostatic secretion volume / prostate weight ([11.1 ± 0.30] vs [2.32 ± 0.61] and [2.13 ± 0.56] %, P <0. 05) and seminal vesicle secretion volume / seminal vesicle weight ( [4. 78 ± 1. 97 ] vs [57. 36 ± 11. 86] and [55. 74 ± 7. 21] %, P < 0. 05). Immunohistochemistry revealed the expressions of AQPs 3 and 7 in the epithelial envelop and cytoplasm and that of AQP 11 the in endothelial envelop and cytoplasm of the prostate and seminal vesicles. Western blot exhibited significantly lower expressions of AQPs 3, 7, and 10 - 12 in the prostate and seminal vesicles of the castrated rats than in the animals of the control and T replacement groups (P <0. 05).

CONCLUSIONSignificant decreases of the secretions from the prostate and seminal vesicles may be related to the reduced expressions of AQPs 3, 7, and 10 - 12 in the prostatic tissue and seminal vesicles in castrated rats.

Animals ; Aquaporins ; metabolism ; Humans ; Male ; Orchiectomy ; Prostate ; metabolism ; Random Allocation ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Seminal Vesicles ; metabolism ; Testosterone ; blood

Objective To study sleeping conditions and relevant factors for insomnia in the elderly people aged 60 years and over in the community of Shanghai,China.Methods A cross-sectional study on sleeping condition by questionnaire was conducted among 2789 elderly people aged 60 years and over during July to October 2005 in seven neighborhood committees of Jing'an District,Shanghai,China,with cluster sampling.Results Totally,2304 elderly people completed the study questionnaire with a response rate of 82.61%.Prevalence of insomnia was 14.84% (342/2304) in the elderly.Logistic regression analysis showed that age increasing (OR=1.02),female (OR=2.20),drinking before sleeping (OR=2.98), room light (OR=3.89),noise (OR=1.95),diabetes (OR=1.82),hypertension (OR=1.49),stroke (OR=1.65),osteoporosis (OR=1.76) and number of afflicted chronic diseases (OR=1.43) all were risk factors for insomnia in the elderly (P

Objective To explore the effects and the possible molecular mechanism of flavonoids of puerarin (PR) on chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) cell line K562 and acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) cell line NB4 in vitro. Methods MTT assays were used to detect the inhibitory effects of cell proliferation. The apoptosis of K562 and NB4 cells was detected by flow cytometry marked with Annexin V/PI. The expression of bcr-abl, p53, bcl-2, Fas/FasL in K562 cells and JNK, PARP, bcl-2 and Caspase 3 in NB4 cells at protein level was detected by Western blot. Results PR could inhibit the proliferation of K562 and NB4 cells in a time-dose dependent manner. The expression of protein levels of bcr-abl fusion gene declined, while the p53 protein otherwise increased, and both were in a dose-dependent manner (F = 18.74, P <0.05). The application of PR had no effect on bcl-2 and Fas/FasL protein expression in K562 cells. The JNK, PARP and Caspase3 proteins were upregulated in NB4 cells, while bcl-2 was downregulated with the increasing concentrations of PR (F=42.32, P <0.05). Conclusion PR could inhibit leukemic cell proliferation, induce cell cycle block, and increase cell apoptosis through different molecular mechanisms. It suggestes that PR might potentially be a kind of broad spectrum anti-leukemia agent.

OBJECTIVEThe aims of Asian Men's Attitudes to Life Events and Sexuality (Asian MALES)-China study were to identify the prevalence of erectile dysfunction (ED) and related health concerns in the general male population in China, and to examine the attitudes and behaviors of men in relation to these health issues.

METHODSA total of 2055 men aged 20-75 years were included in Phase-I MALES study using a standardized questionnaire, and another 225 recruited from the sub-sample of Phase-I MALES participants with reported ED and some ED patients from other sources were involved in Phase-II Asian MALES- China study, with the prevalence of ED and men's associated attitudes as the main measure.

RESULTSThe overall rate of ED in the Asian MALES-China sample was 5.9%. The rate of self-reported ED rose with age increase. A higher rate of ED was reported in men with co-morbid medical conditions and risk factors, including cardiovascular disease, hypertension, dyslipidemia, and depression, and so were the rates of these co-morbid conditions in ED patients. Data from Phase-II Asian MALES-China indicated that among men with reported ED, only 17% would seek treatment.

CONCLUSIONThe rate of ED is high in Chinese men and it is associated with co-morbid conditions. For Chinese men, it is necessary to know more about ED and to seek safe and effective treatment of its symptoms.

Adult ; Age Factors ; Aged ; Attitude to Health ; China ; epidemiology ; Comorbidity ; Erectile Dysfunction ; epidemiology ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Prevalence ; Risk Factors ; Sexuality ; Surveys and Questionnaires

Objective To understand the current status of disinfection and sterilization of medical institutions at all levels in 30 counties in Chongqing ,and to guide the work that medical institutions regulate and improve the quality of disinfection and steriliza‐tion ,and urge the relevant departments to strengthen the monitoring of disinfection quality of medical institutions .Methods Using field investigation and sampling inspection method ,the disinfection quality of medical institutions at all levels in 30 counties of Chongqing city was monitored and analyzed .Results From 30 districts and counties ,the medical institutions were sampled from 28 510 parts ,the overall average pass rate of 93 .3% .The qualified rate of medical institutions at all levels from high to low were as follows ,the village health room (96 .7% ) ,urban community medical institutions (96 .6% ) ,district level medical institutions (96 .1% ) ,individual clinic (90 .9% ) ,private hospitals (93 .7% ) and township (street) medical institutions (86 .5% ) .Different types of medical institutions got different qualified rate ,and the difference was statistically significant(χ2 =666 .84 ,P<0 .01) .Pro‐ject with the lowest qualified rate was radiation intensity of ultraviolet lamp(52 .8% ) ,secondly was indoor air (80 .4% ) and differ‐ent projects′qualified rate was significantly different(χ2 =1 706 .81 ,P<0 .01) .Conclusion Medical and health institutions at all levels′s disinfection quality were generally good ,but the village health room monitoring coverage ,ultraviolet light intensity and oth‐er individual monitoring projects need to be improved .

Objective To investigate the clinical characteristics and outcome of T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL) with SIL-TAL1 rearrangement.Methods 62 newly diagnosed T-ALL patients including 15 patients with SIL-TAL1 rearrangement were systemically reviewed.Results Compared with SIL-TAL1-T-ALL patients,SIL-TAL1 + T-ALL patients was characterized by higher white blood cell count (P =0.029) at diagnosis,predominant cortical T-ALL immunophenotype (P =0.028) of the leukemic blasts,a higher prevalence of acute tumor lysis syndrome (P ＜ 0.001) and disseminated intravascular coagulation (P ＜ 0.001),which led to a higher early mortality (26.7 ％ (4/15) vs 4.3 ％ (2/47),P =0.011).Compared with SIL-TAL1-patients,SIL-TAL1+ patients had shorter relapse free survival (2 months vs 12 months,P =0.007) and overall survival (4 months vs 25 months,P =0.002).Conclusion SIL-TAL1 rearrangement identifies a distinct subtype with inferior outcome which could allow for individual therapeutic stratification for T-ALL patients.