OBJECTIVES: We aimed to compare the apical sealing properties of three endodontic sealers, namely, C-Root SP (C-R), iRoot SP, and GuttaFlow Bioseal (GFB) in vitro. METHODS: Eighty-two single-rooted premolars and anterior teeth were prepared by using M3 machine with nickel-titanium file and randomly divided into six experimental groups (n=12) and two control groups (n=5). Group A1: single-cone technique (SC)+C-R; group B1: SC+iRoot SP; group C1: SC+GFB; group A2: single-cone with ultrasonic activation (SU)+C-R; group B2: SU+iRoot SP; group C2: SU +GFB; group D: positive control group, and group E: negative control group. Dye penetration length and lateral root canal filling in each group were measured by dye penetration test. A scanning electron microscope (SEM) was used to observe the interface between gutta pertscha, root canal sealer, and dentin wall. Dye penetration length was measured and analyzed by Kruskal-Wallis test, and data on lateral root canal filling were evaluated using Chi-square. RESULTS: The dye penetration length in group A1 was lower than that in groups C1 and A2 (P<0.05) but was not significantly different from the other groups (P>0.05). Lateral root canal filling was not significantly different among all groups (P>0.05). SEM showed that GFB was slightly better than C-R and iRoot SP in binding to gutta pertcha and dentin wall. CONCLUSIONS GFB, C-R, and iRoot SP demonstrate excellent apical sealing ability. Under the conditions tested in this study, SU did not yield significantly improve the apical sealing ability of the three root canal sealers.
Root Canal Filling Materials/chemistry* ; Humans ; Gutta-Percha ; Microscopy, Electron, Scanning ; Root Canal Obturation/methods* ; Ceramics ; Dimethylpolysiloxanes ; Drug Combinations

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to evaluate the filling effects of three biomaterial root canal sealers [iRoot SP, C-Root SP, and GuttaFlow Bioseal (GFB)] by using Micro-CT. METHODS: Sixty single-canal detached premolars were selected. After crown amputation, their uniform working length was set at 12 mm and prepared to a 06 taper 30# with M3 nickel-titanium file. The samples were randomly divided into six groups with different sealers and obturation techniques: iRoot SP+single-cone technique (SC), C-Root SP+SC, GFB+SC, iRoot SP+single cone-mediated ultrasonic technique (SU), C-Root SP+SU, and GFB+SU. Samples were scanned by Micro-CT, and the total and segmented filling rates were calculated with Mimics 22.0 software after 3D reconstruction. RESULTS: The overall filling rate of the three biomaterial root canal sealers was higher than 90%. The overall and coronal third and middle third segment filling rate of groups iRoot SP+SC, C-Root SP+SC was higher than that of group GFB+SC (P<0.01), with no significant difference between groups iRoot SP+SC and C-Root SP+SC (P>0.05). On the apical third, no significant difference was found among each group (P>0.05). The overall and segment filling rate of groups iRoot SP+SU and C-Root SP+SU was higher than that of GFB+SU (P<0.01), with no significant difference between groups iRoot SP+SU and C-Root SP+SU (P>0.05). The filling rate of the apical 1/3 of group C-Root+SC was lower than that of group C-Root+SU (P<0.01), and the filling rate of the coronal 1/3 of group GFB+SC was higher than that in the GFB+SU (P<0.01). Nevertheless, no significant difference was found in other filling rate of two obturation techniques (P>0.05). CONCLUSIONS The overall filling rate of the three biomaterial root canal sealers using SC and SU are satisfactory. iRoot SP and C-Root SP have similar filling rates, which are significantly higher than that of GFB. C-Root SP combined with SU technique can improve the filling quality of the root apical.
Root Canal Filling Materials ; X-Ray Microtomography ; Humans ; Root Canal Obturation/methods* ; Gutta-Percha ; Dimethylpolysiloxanes ; Drug Combinations ; Dental Pulp Cavity/diagnostic imaging* ; Bicuspid

【Objective】 To establish and improve the emergency recruitment strategy of voluntary blood donors under public health emergencies in Shenzhen and verify its effectiveness. 【Methods】 Blood donor recruitment strategies under routine, emergency and combined situation were developed. The blood collection data from 2017 to 2019 before the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic was used as the control group, and those from 2020 to 2022 after the outbreak was used as the experimental group, and the feasibility and effectiveness of this emergency recruitment strategy was confirmed through statistical analysis of key indicators of blood collection and supply. 【Results】 Through the application of the emergency recruitment strategy for blood donors in Shenzhen under public health emergencies, statistical analysis of the experimental group and the control group showed a year-on-year increase of 14.11%(73 647.25/521 855.5) in whole blood collection, 42.33%(28 891.47/68 250.95) in platelet collection, 0.33%(529/161 033) in first-time donors, 33.25%(3 154/9 487) in repeated donors and 16.78%(32 585/194 149) in the number of 400 mL donors. The inventory of various types of red blood cell maintained between 6-18 days. After the implementation of the emergency recruitment strategy the blood donation population has shown characteristics as younger age, localization, increased repeated donation and a higher proportion of donors with college education or above. 【Conclusion】 The emergency recruitment strategy of blood donors under public health emergencies is feasible and effective, which can quickly and efficiently improve the blood recruitment ability.

Objective:To investigate the application effect of situational simulation combined with the Debriefing-GAS method in the teaching of prenatal genetic counseling.Methods:A total of 30 medical students of the five- and eight-year programs in the classes of 2017 and 2018 who received genetic counseling training in The First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University from May 2021 to May 2022 were selected as research subjects, and situational simulation combined with the debriefing-GAS method was used for the teaching of prenatal genetic counseling. Assessment was performed by the teacher to evaluate the change in genetic counseling abilities during the teaching process, and a questionnaire survey was conducted to investigate the degree of satisfaction with teaching among the students. SPSS 26.0 software was used for data analysis; normally distributed continuous data were expressed as mean±standard deviation, non-normally distributed continuous data were expressed as M d(P 25,P75), and categorical data were expressed as frequency and rate; the paired samples t-test was used for comparison of assessment scores before and after teaching. Results:After teaching, there were significant increases in the assessment scores of genetic counseling [(74.5±18.6) points vs. (87.2±14.5) points, t=4.10, P<0.001] and comprehensive abilities such as clinical ability [(35.4±9.6) points vs. (41.1±6.9) points, t=3.72, P=0.001], doctor-patient communication [(17.5±4.6) points vs. (20.8±3.8) points, t=4.34, P<0.001], professional literacy [(11.0±2.5) points vs. (12.5±2.3) points, t=2.89, P=0.007], teamwork [(3.5±1.0) points vs. (4.2±0.8) points, t=3.67, P=0.001], and organizational effectiveness [(7.1±2.0) points vs. (8.3±1.7) points, t=2.94, P=0.006]. The questionnaire survey showed that the degree of satisfaction among students was rated above satisfaction for the reasonability of the implementation process and links of genetic counseling teaching [3.0 (3.0, 4.0) points], teaching quality [3.5 (3.0, 4.0) points], whether the teaching model could effectively increase the interest and initiative in learning [4.0 (3.0, 4.0) points], the improvement in theoretical knowledge [4.0 (3.0, 4.0) points], communication skills in genetic counseling [3.0 (3.0, 4.0) points], and the understanding of related techniques and application prospect [3.0 (3.0, 4.0) points]. However, two students (6.7%) thought that this teaching model could not efficiently reach teaching objectives, since the teaching process was slightly complicated. Conclusions:Situational simulation combined with the debriefing-GAS method has achieved a good effect in the teaching of prenatal genetic counseling and can help undergraduates to master the theoretical knowledge of prenatal genetic counseling and improve their comprehensive clinical abilities, with a relatively high degree of satisfaction, and therefore, it holds promise for clinical application.

ObjectiveTo investigate the effects of cathodic transcranial direct current stimulation (ctDCS) on upper limb and finger dysfunction after right brain injury (RBI). MethodsFrom October, 2020 to May, 2022, 40 RBI patients in Beijing Bo'ai Hospital were randomly divided into control group and experimental group, with 20 patients in each group. All the patients accepted conventional drug treatment, conventional rehabilitation treatment and functional occupational therapy. The cathode electrode was placed in the M1 area of the uninjured side of brain, then the control group received sham stimulation and the experimental group received stimulation, for four weeks. They were assessed with Fugl-Meyer Assessment-Upper Extremities (FMA-UE) and -Finger, and the modified Barthel Index (MBI) before and after treatment. ResultsAfter treatment, the scores of FMA-UE, FMA-Finger and MBI improved in the two groups (t > 5.627, P < 0.001), and improved more in the experimental group than in the control group (t > 2.161, P < 0.05). ConclusionctDCS can effectively improve the motor function of upper limbs and fingers of RBI patients, and improve the ability of activities of daily living.

Background::To date, there is no effective medicine to treat coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), and the antiviral efficacy of arbidol in the treatment for COVID-19 remained equivocal and controversial. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of arbidol tablets in the treatment of COVID-19.Methods::This was a prospective, open-label, controlled and multicenter investigator-initiated trial involving adult patients with confirmed severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. Patients were stratified 1:2 to either standard-of-care (SOC) or SOC plus arbidol tablets (oral administration of 200 mg per time, three times a day for 14 days). The primary endpoint was negative conversion of SARS-CoV-2 within the first week. The rates and 95% confidential intervals were calculated for each variable.Results::A total of 99 patients with laboratory-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection were enrolled; 66 were assigned to the SOC plus arbidol tablets group, and 33 to the SOC group. The negative conversion rate of SARS-CoV-2 within the first week in patients receiving arbidol tablets was significantly higher than that of the SOC group (70.3% [45/64] vs. 42.4% [14/33]; difference of conversion rate 27.9%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 7.7%-48.1%; P = 0.008). Compared to those in the SOC group, patients receiving arbidol tablets had a shorter duration of clinical recovery (median 7.0 days vs. 12.0 days; hazard ratio [HR]: 1.877, 95% CI: 1.151-3.060, P = 0.006), symptom of fever (median 3.0 days vs. 12.0 days; HR: 18.990, 95% CI: 5.350-67.410, P < 0.001), as well as hospitalization (median 12.5 days vs. 20.0 days; P < 0.001). Moreover, the addition of arbidol tablets to SOC led to more rapid normalization of declined blood lymphocytes (median 10.0 days vs. 14.5 days; P > 0.05). The most common adverse event in the arbidol tablets group was the elevation of transaminase (5/200, 2.5%), and no one withdrew from the study due to adverse events or disease progression. Conclusions::SOC plus arbidol tablets significantly increase the negative conversion rate of SARS-CoV-2 within the first week and accelerate the recovery of COVID-19 patients. During the treatment with arbidol tablets, we find no significant serious adverse events.Trial registration::Chinese Clinical Trial Registry, NCT04260594, www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04260594?term= NCT04260594&draw=2&rank=1

Remodeling the tumor microenvironment through reprogramming tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) and increasing the immunogenicity of tumors via immunogenic cell death (ICD) have been emerging as promising anticancer immunotherapy strategies. However, the heterogeneous distribution of TAMs in tumor tissues and the heterogeneity of the tumor cells make the immune activation challenging. To overcome these dilemmas, a hybrid bacterium with tumor targeting and penetration, TAM polarization, and photothermal conversion capabilities is developed for improving antitumor immunotherapy in vivo. The hybrid bacteria (B.b@QDs) are prepared by loading Ag₂S quantum dots (QDs) on the Bifidobacterium bifidum (B.b) through electrostatic interactions. The hybrid bacteria with hypoxia targeting ability can effectively accumulate and penetrate the tumor tissues, enabling the B.b to fully contact with the TAMs and mediate their polarization toward M1 phenotype to reverse the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment. It also enables to overcome the intratumoral heterogeneity and obtain abundant tumor-associated antigens by coupling tumor penetration of the B.b with photothermal effect of the QDs, resulting in an enhanced immune effect. This strategy that combines B.b-triggered TAM polarization and QD-induced ICD achieved a remarkable inhibition of tumor growth in orthotopic breast cancer.

Objective? To evaluate the effect of physical restraintreduction strategy on improving the physical restraint practice of critical patients. Methods? Using convenient sampling method, the inpatients in the Intensive Care Uni(t ICU)of the Emergency Department of a ClassⅢ Grade A hospital in Beijing in 2017 and 2018 were selected as the research objects. According to the length of stay, the inpatients in 2017 were divided into two groups: the control group (n=282), the intervention group (n=263), the control group was given regular physical restraint strategy, and the intervention group used the developed physical restraint reduction strategy to implement the physical restraint. The rate of physical restraint, time of physical restraint, delirium, unplanned extubation and skin abnormality were compared between the two groups. Results? In the intervention group, the rate of physical restraint was 23.57%, and the rate of unplanned extubation was 1.14%, which was lower than that in the control group, the differences were statistically significant (χ2=26.830, 4.142; P＜ 0.05). The restraint time of the intervention group was (49.63±146.94) h, and that of the control group was (93.62± 186.35) h, the difference was statistically significant (t=10.04, P＜0.05). There was no significant difference in the incidence of delirium and skin abnormality between the two groups (P＞0.05). Conclusions? The strategy of body constraint reduction is helpful to reduce the rate of body constraint, the time of constraint and the rate of unplanned extubation.

Occupational therapy provides protective and corrective non-surgical measures for carpal tunnel syndrome. The information gained from the assessment process can help the occupational therapists determine the targets and treatment options, including the nerve-gliding exercises, tendon-gliding exercises, production or select splints, modification of tasks resulting in patients with exacerbations, modification of equipment and environment, transformation of daily necessities. The education would cover the pathophysiology of carpal tunnel syndrome, treatment options (conservative management and surgery), posture and activity modification principles. This information can also be provided in the form of an education booklet which participants will be encouraged to review at home.

Objective: To study the characteristics of gene mutations in Chinese myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) patients. Methods: A total of 511 Chinese patients with MDS performed 112-gene targeted sequencing were retrospectively analyzed. Results: Eighty-three distinct mutant genes were found in 511 patients with MDS. Amongst these, the most frequent mutations was associated with epigenetics (50%) , followed by spliceosome (37%) , signal transduction (34%) , transcription factors (24%) and cell cycle/apoptosis (17%) . 439 subjects (86%) had at least one gene mutation. The mean number of mutations in refractory anemia with unilineage dysplasia (RCUD) was 1.25, refractory anemia with multilineage dysplasia (RCMD) was 1.73, refractory anemia with ring sideroblasts (RARS) was 2.79, refractory anemia with excess blasts-1 (RAEB-1) was 2.22, RAEB-2 was 2.34, MDS with isolated 5q- was 2.67, MDS, unclassified (MDS-U) was 2.00. U2AF1 mutant subjects were more likely to have isolated+8[Q<0.001, OR=4.42 (95% CI 2.23-8.68) ]and less likely to have complex karyotypes[Q=0.005, OR=0.22 (95% CI 0.04-0.72) ]. According to the number of gene mutations, all subjects were categorized into three groups, namely group with 0-1 mutation, with 2 mutations and with three or more mutations. There was a significant difference in overall survival (OS) among three groups (P=0.041) . Conclusion About 90% patients with MDS have at least one gene mutation. Genes associated with epigenetics and spliceosome are most common mutated genes in MDS. The increased numbers of gene mutations accompany with disease evolution and associate with poor prognosis.