Objective To review the experience of treatment for prosthetic valve endocarditis(PVE)after mitral valve replacement(MVR)in 16 cases.Methods From September 1979 to December 2010,16 patients were diagnosed as PVE after MVR by modified Duke University diagnostic criteria.There were 10 males and 6 females.Their ages ranged from 19 to 55 years old(mean 28 years old).The incidence of PVE was 0.97％(16/1657)after MVR.Blood culture positive was in 5 cases.Medical treatment alone was performed in 10 patients who were treated by using Penicillin or Vancomycin with other broad-spectrum antibiotics,using Fluconazole and Amphotericin if necessary.Combined medical and surgical management were performed in 6 cases.One emergency case was operated because of obstinate heart failure.Five cases underwent operation after adequate antibiotics treatment and general condition improvement.The infective tissue and vegetation were aggressively debrided after the infective prosthetic valve removed.Before the new valve was replaced paravalvular tissue must be flushed with diluted iodine solution and large quantities of normal saline.Tricuspid valve repair (TVR)was performed during the same period in 3 cases.Results Hospital death occurred in 8 patients and only 2 patients were recovery in group with medical treatment only.The main reasons of death were infective shock and cardiac failure in 4 patients,cerebral complications(embolism or bleeding)and multiple organs failure in 4 cases.While 6 patients cured after combined medical and surgical management.Follow-up had been carried out in 8 cases for 1.7 to 15 years(mean 5.1 years).Eight years later one patient was re-operated because of severe tricuspid regurgitation and paravalvular leak.There was no PVE recurrence in others.Conclusion Combined medical and surgical management for PVE get a better result than medical treatment alone.Good prognosis lies in timely diagnosis,adequate antibiotics,aggressive debridement of infective tissue and better myocardium protection during operation.

Objective To retrospectively analyse the clinical data of off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting surgery(OPCAB)in our department and summarize the clinical experience of peri-operative management.Methods From January 2007 to May 2008,253 patients underwent OPCAB.Seventy-six cases with left main disease(including 18 cases of single left main lesion and 58 cases of complex lesion);13 cases had single vessel disease;32 cases had double vessels disease and 190 cases had triple vessels disease.Eighteen cases received emergency OPCAB.All vessel anastomosis were performed with coronary artery stablizer and shunt through median sternotomy.Resuits Three cases died after operation(1.2%).Intra-aortic balloon pump was used in 11 cases.Mechanical ventilation time was 3-168 h[(24.1±22.3)h],and ICU stay time was 1-14 day[(2.8±2.0)d].Postoperative hospital stay time was 8-42 days[(15.6±6.3)d].Conclusion OPCAB is reliable for most bypass cases.With appropilate peri-operative management,a satisfied result will be acceptable.

Objective To summarize the clinical experiences of 1386 patients undergoing off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting(OPCAB)during Jan 2002 to Mar 2008.Methods OPCAB was done through midsternumtomy under ordinary-temperature anesthesia after radial artery,left breast artery and vena saphena magna were taken.Patients over 70 years old accounted for 32.35%,and the oldest was 99 years old.Emergency and subemergency OPCAB was done in 111 cases,re-do CABG with off-pump technique was done in 52 patients.Results 24 cases died during perioperation,with mortality of 1.73%and all other patients discharged from the hospital.Following operation,the symptoms of angina pectoris were relieved and the life quality was much beaer than that before operation.Conclusion OPCAB is feasible for older patients,who are complicated with other chronic diseases for elder patients.Skillful technique of surgeon,right indications for OPCAB and management of peri-and postoperation are key to success of operation.

BACKGROUNDAt present, little is known about the correlation between osteopontin (OPN) and P21 in primary non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The aim of this study is to investigate the expression of OPN and P21 and their correlation in NSCLC.

METHODSThe expression of OPN and P21 was detected in 58 NSCLC tissues and 18 pulmonary inflammatory pseudotumor (PIP) as controls by immunohistochemical technique.

RESULTSThe positive rate of OPN and P21 in NSCLC was 58.6% and 70.7% respectively, which was significantly higher than those in PIP (11.1% and 16.7%) (P=0.0008, P < 0.0001). There was a positive correlation between OPN and P21 expression (P < 0.0001). Lymph node metastasis was closely related to OPN expression (P=0.0367), but not to P21 expression (P=0.4898).

CONCLUSIONSThe abnormal expression of OPN and P21 in NSCLC may act in a synergistic way. Immunopositivity of OPN may suggest a potential risk of metastasis in NSCLC.

Objective To summarize the clinical experiences and early-to median effect of coronary artery bypass grafting(CABG)in patients aged 70 years or above.Methods From Dec.2006 to Dec.2007,86 patients aged 70 or above underwent CABG,of whom 71 cases underwent off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting(OPCAB),15 cases had CABG with cardiopulmonary bypass(CPB).5 cases underwent mitral valve replacement,3 underwent aortic valve replacement besides CABG,and one case underwent removal of ventricular aneurysm.Their clinical data were retrospectively analyzed.Results There was one case who died of enterobrosis after operation.The average ICU stay time was(77.4±49.6)h,the average postoperative stay time was 15 d,and the average drainage was 530 ml.22 postoperative complications were found.76 cases were followed up for 10-22 months.Follow up effect was better showing cardiac classification I-II and no angina pectoris,myocardial infarction and late death.Conclusion Patients with coronary heart disease in good condition will have not remarkable improvement in mortality as compared with ordinary patients but attention should be paid to their preoperative pulmonary function and angina pectoffs.OPCABG would have encouraging result in reducing the rate of postoperative complications and hospital death,which should be recommended as the first choice for the elderly patients.

Objective To analyze the characteristic changes of macular thickness in patients with Parkinson's disease by spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT),and find out the association between macular thickness and disease progression,cognitive dysfunction,visuospatial impairment and asymmetry of motor symptoms.Methods Seventy-one Parkinson's disease (PD) patients who were admitted to the Department of Neurology,Xinhua Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine from January 2016 to May 2018 and sixty-one healthy controls who volunteered to participate for the same period were enrolled and underwent SD-OCT examination.The macular thickness of all retinal quadrant segments,foveal thickness,and macular volume between the two groups were comparatively analyzed.Associations between macular measurements and clinical parameters such as disease duration,Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale part Ⅲ (UPDRS-Ⅲ) scores,Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) total scores,and visuospatial subscores were analyzed using generalized estimated equation fitted with linear regression models.Results Mean macular thickness in the PD group was significantly reduced compared with those in the control group ((261.94± 12.90) μm vs (270.96± 10.71) μm,B=-8.135,P＜0.01).All quadrants of macular thickness (except fovea and 1 mm central zone) in the PD group were reduced compared with those in the control group.Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis revealed that inner superior thickness could predict the presence of PD with an area under ROC of 0.727 (95％CI 0.662-0.792,P＜0.01).UPDRS-Ⅲ scores were negatively correlated with foveal thickness (B=-9.132,P=0.034),1 mm central zone thickness (B=6.963,P=0.036) and all quadrants of the inner ring (superior (B=-7.727,P＜0.01),inferior (B=-5.169,P=0.044),nasal (B=-5.960,P＜0.01) and temporal (B=-5.905,P＜0.01)) macular thickness.The disease duration had no relationship with any quadrant of macular measurements.No statistically significant difference was found between the macula parameters of the hemiretinae corresponding to more and less severely affected cerebral hemisphere.MoCA total scores were positively correlated with all quadrants of the inner ring (superior (B=2.693,P=0.007),inferior (B=3.391,P=0.002),nasal (B=2.609,P=0.001) and temporal (B=2.115,P=0.013)) macular thickness.MoCA visuospatial subscores were positively associated with average macular thickness (B=4.368,P=0.042),macular volume (B=0.161,P=0.004),inferior (B=8.582,6.541),nasal (B=8.130,6.017) and temporal (B=5.938,5.316)quadrants of outer and inner rings macular thickness (all P＜0.05).Conclusions In PD patients,the macular thickness and macular volume were decreased.Asymmetry was not identified between hemiretinae in PD.Some quadrants of macular thickness were associated with disease progression,cognitive dysfunction,and visuospatial impairment.

Objective:To identify and quantify spatiotemporal and kinematic gait parameters in a group of early-stage Parkinson′s disease (PD) patients compared with healthy subjects.Methods:Eight patients with PD (PD group, Hoehn-Yahr stage≤2.5) and seven age-matched healthy subjects (control group) were enrolled from the Department of Neurology, Xinhua Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine between May 2017 and August 2018 for the study. The spatiotemporal and kinematic gait parameters were obtained by Vicon 3D optical motion analysis system under three conditions: single-task walking, dual-task walking and turning. The linear mixed model was used to compare the gait parameters between the two groups and analyze the interactive effects.Results:Arm swing amplitude in the PD group was lower than that in the control group ((0.63±0.15) m vs (0.89±0.27) m in single-task walking, (0.64±0.16) m vs (0.99±0.22) m in dual-task walking, β=-0.353, 95% CI -0.558--0.148, P=0.002). The PD group showed significantly higher arm swing asymmetry than the control group (12.48%±5.48% vs 6.96%±4.39% in single-task walking, 17.13%±4.05% vs 7.67%±5.23% in dual-task walking, β=8.992, 95% CI 4.148-13.836, P=0.001). A notable interactive effect of groups and task factors in arm swing asymmetry was found. The arm swing asymmetry of the PD group increased more than the control group in dual-task walking than in single-task walking (β=3.916, 95% CI 1.367-6.466, P=0.003). As for the gait characteristics of the lower limbs, stride length and step length of the PD group were lower than those of the control group ((1.10±0.17) m vs (1.31±0.10) m in stride length, β=-0.169, 95% CI -0.300--0.038, P=0.015; (0.55±0.09) m vs (0.65±0.04) m in step length, β=-0.081, 95% CI -0.150--0.013, P=0.023). For both groups, statistically significant differences were not observed in step width, stride length and step length between single-task and dual-task walking ( P>0.05). The PD group completed the turning process faster than the control group ((1.66±0.30) s vs (1.37±0.23) s, β=0.302, 95% CI 0.049-0.555, P=0.023). As for the rotation-onset pattern, no statistically significant differences were found between the PD and the control group for the onset of the head, trunk and pelvic rotation ( P>0.05). Participants started to rotate their heads before the pelvis in all groups (β=-0.060, 95% CI-0.107--0.014, P=0.011). Conclusions:The quantified gait parameters can more accurately reflect the gait characteristics of early PD. Patients with PD exhibited smaller arm swing magnitude, greater arm swing asymmetry, shorter stride length, and slower turning speed compared to the controls. Arm swing asymmetry further differs between subjects with early PD and controls under dual-task walking.

Objective:To determine the evolution of gait impairment over the course of Parkinson′s disease (PD) by assessing the changes of gait characteristics in different disease stages, which could be helpful for disease monitoring.Methods:A total of 276 PD patients [PD group, Hoehn-Yahr (H-Y) stage 1-3] and 63 healthy controls (control group) enrolled in Xinhua Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine from January 2019 to September 2021 were included in this cross-sectional study. The gait spatiotemporal variables were recorded by a portable inertial measurement unit system. Exploratory factor analysis was performed to obtain gait domains representing different gait characteristics. One way analysis of variance was used to evaluate the differences of gait variables and gait domains among the control group and 3 different H-Y stages of the PD group, as well as the differences among the control group and 2 motor subtypes of PD in different stages. The sensitivity of different gait variables and gait domains in evaluating the severity of gait impairments at different disease stages was compared.Results:Eleven gait spatiotemporal variables were grouped in 4 gait domains: pace (step length, gait speed and stride length), rhythm/phase (cadence, stride time and double support time), pace-related variability/asymmetry [step length coefficient of variation (CV), gait speed CV and step length asymmetry] and rhythm/phase-related variability/asymmetry (swing time CV and swing time asymmetry). As the disease progresses, most evolution trends of the 4 gait domains in the tremor-dominant PD patients were consistent with those in the non-tremor-dominant subtype. Compared with the control group, PD patients at H-Y stage 1 began to show the mild impairment of rhythm/phase-related variability/asymmetry (effect size 0.42; standardized score -0.03±0.69 vs -0.33±0.49, P<0.05), especially swing time asymmetry in tremor-dominant patients; the pace domain was damaged moderately in PD patients at H-Y stage 2 (effect size 0.64; standardized score 0.12±0.80 vs 0.64±0.81, P<0.05), especially in non-tremor-dominant PD patients, but not in PD patients at H-Y stage 1 ( P>0.05). Pace-related variability/asymmetry showed great impairment in PD patients at H-Y stage 3 (effect size 0.62; standardized score 0.27±1.12 vs -0.27±0.52, P<0.05), but not in PD patients at H-Y stages 1 and 2 ( P>0.05). Conclusions:The characteristic impairments of gait in PD evolve in the process of disease progression. The rhythm/phase-related variability/asymmetry domain may be a marker to distinguish early PD from healthy controls. The pace domain and the pace-related variability/asymmetry domain are important markers to evaluate the progression of PD.

Objective:To investigate the clinical characteristics of circadian rhythm disorder of blood pressure and its impact on orthostatic hypotension (OH) in Parkinson′s disease (PD).Methods:A total of 165 PD patients from Xinhua Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine from August 2019 to October 2021 were consecutively enrolled. Medical history and scores of motor and non-motor symptoms of patients were collected. Twenty-four-hour ambulatory blood pressure and OH data were collected, and the OH questionnaire was completed. The incidence of each type of circadian rhythm disorder of blood pressure was investigated. The t test, chi-square test and Mann-Whitney U test were used to determine between-group differences of circadian rhythm disorder of blood pressure. The linear trends in clinical characteristics were tested by linear regression analysis. Logistic regression analysis was used to analyze the relationship between different circadian rhythm disorders of blood pressure and OH as well as symptomatic OH (SOH). Results:In 165 PD patients, the incidence of reverse dipping pattern was 39.39% (65/165), nocturnal hypertension was 43.64% (72/165), and awakening hypotension was 31.52% (52/165). Compared with patients without reverse dipping pattern, patients with reverse dipping pattern were older [(71.72±7.81) years vs (65.29±9.68) years, t=-4.491, P<0.001], had later onset age [(66.67±9.10) years vs (62.16±10.66) years, t=-2.809, P=0.006], longer duration [36.00(20.50, 95.50) months vs 24.00(12.00, 41.75) months, Z=-3.393, P<0.001], higher dose of levodopa (LD) [(426.15±267.38) mg/d vs (284.00±235.58) mg/d, t=-3.590, P<0.001], higher levodopa equivalent dose (LED) [(514.80±360.03) mg/d vs (341.44±284.57) mg/d, t=-3.440, P=0.001], higher Unified Parkinson′s Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS)-Ⅱ scores (12.92±6.38 vs 9.54±5.59, t=-3.434, P=0.001), higher UPDRS-Ⅲ scores (28.34±11.60 vs 21.41±12.18, t=-3.508, P=0.001) and higher percentages of hallucinations [18.46% (12/65) vs 7.00% (7/100), χ2 =5.079, P=0.024]. Compared with patients without awakening hypotension, patients with awakening hypotension were older [(70.83±7.09) years vs (66.44±10.16) years, t=-2.811, P=0.006]. Compared with patients without nocturnal hypertension, patients with nocturnal hypertension had longer duration [39.50(15.00, 96.00) months vs 24.00 (12.00, 36.00) months, Z=-2.944, P=0.003], higher LD [(398.61±251.19) mg/d vs (294.62±254.25) mg/d, t=-2.619, P=0.010], higher LED [(493.28±344.02) mg/d vs (345.05±298.59) mg/d, t=-2.959, P=0.004], higher percentages of hallucinations [19.44% (14/72) vs 5.38% (5/93), χ2 =7.882, P=0.005], higher UPDRS-Ⅱ scores (12.08±6.33 vs 10.00±5.86, t=-2.086, P=0.039), higher UPDRS-Ⅲ scores (26.50±11.72 vs 22.42±12.66, t=-2.034, P=0.044), and greater blood pressure variability (BPV) (20.66±5.47 vs 17.44±5.36, t=-3.798, P<0.001). Trend analysis showed that the variety of circadian rhythm was positively correlated with age and duration, use of levodopa and monoamine oxidase B inhibitors and amantidine, morning and daily LD and LED, UPDRS-Ⅱ, UPDRS-Ⅲ and Hamilton Anxiety Scale scores, hallucinations, OH and SOH, and BPV in PD ( P<0.05). Multivariate Logistic regression analysis showed that awakening hypotension ( OR=3.35, 95% CI 1.55-7.22, P=0.002) and nocturnal hypertension ( OR=2.44, 95% CI 1.20-4.97, P=0.014) were risk factors for OH, and LED ( OR=1.21, 95% CI 1.01-1.43, P=0.035), UPDRS-Ⅲ scores ( OR=1.09, 95% CI 1.02-1.16, P=0.009) and w-BPV ( OR=1.14, 95% CI 1.01-1.29, P=0.029) were independent risk factors for SOH. Conclusions:Circadian rhythm disorder of blood pressure was correlated with age, duration, severity of motor symptoms. Awakening hypotension and nocturnal hypertension are independent risk factors for OH in PD.

Circular RNAs (circRNAs), covalently closed continuous RNA loops, are generated from cognate linear RNAs through back splicing events, and alternative splicing events may gener-ate different circRNA isoforms at the same locus. However, the challenges of reconstruction and quantification of alternatively spliced full-length circRNAs remain unresolved. On the basis of the internal structural characteristics of circRNAs, we developed CircAST, a tool to assemble alter-natively spliced circRNA transcripts and estimate their expression by using multiple splice graphs.Simulation studies showed that CircAST correctly assembled the full sequences of circRNAs with a sensitivity of 85.63％-94.32％and a precision of 81.96％-87.55％. By assigning reads to specific iso-forms, CircAST quantified the expression of circRNA isoforms with correlation coefficients of 0.85-0.99 between theoretical and estimated values. We evaluated CircAST on an in-house mouse testis RNA-seq dataset with RNase R treatment for enriching circRNAs and identified 380 cir-cRNAs with full-length sequences different from those of their corresponding cognate linear RNAs. RT-PCR and Sanger sequencing analyses validated 32 out of 37 randomly selected isoforms, thus further indicating the good performance of CircAST, especially for isoforms with low abundance. We also applied CircAST to published experimental data and observed substantial diversity in circular transcripts across samples, thus suggesting that circRNA expression is highly regulated. CircAST can be accessed freely at https://github.com/xiaofengsong/CircAST.