Objective:To study the clinical efficacy of ultrasound-guided radiofrequency acupotomy in early and middle-stage knee osteoarthritis (KOA).Methods:A total of 62 patients with KOA were enrolled and then randomly divided into the radiofrequency acupuncture group and the control group. The two groups were treated with radiofrequency acupotomy and conventional acupotomy under ultrasound guidance, respectively. The treatments were conducted once a week, twice in total. The Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Arthritis Index (WOMAC) of all the patients was evaluated before the treatment as well as the day, 2 weeks, and 1 month after the treatment.Results:Before the treatment, the differences between the two groups in gender, age, body mass index (BMI), WOMAC pain score, WOMAC stiffness score, WOMAC function score, and WOMAC total score were not statistically significant (all P>0.05), indicating the two groups were comparable. On the day, 2 weeks, and 1 month after the treatment, the above WOMAC scores of the two groups were lower than those before the treatment, and the differences were statistically significant (all P<0.01). The WOMAC scores of the radiofrequency acupotomy group were lower than those of the control group at the same period, and the differences were statistically significant (all P<0.05). Conclusions:For patients with early and middle-stage KOA, ultrasound-guided radiofrequency acupotomy therapy has proven clinical efficacy in relieving pain and improving knee joint function.

Objective:To evaluate the safety and efficacy of LVIS stent-assisted coil embolization in the acute phase of ruptured intracranial aneurysms.Methods:The clinical data of 55 patients with ruptured intracranial aneurysm treated with LVIS stent-assisted coil embolization admitted to Zhongshan Hospital of Xiamen University from January 2016 to December 2018 were analyzed retrospectively. The general data, the characteristics of aneurysms and the occurrence of perioperative complications of the patients were collected. The clinical prognosis of the patients at discharge and 6 months of follow-up was recorded. The Glasgow prognosis score (GOS) was graded as good (5), average (3-4), and poor (1-2), and the cerebral angiography results were recorded immediately after embolization and 6-month follow-up. The aneurysm occlusion was assessed by Raymond grade, Raymond Ⅰ was complete obliteration, Ⅱ was residual neck and Ⅲ was residual aneurysm.Results:All 55 patients received LVIS stent-assisted coil embolization within 72 hours of ruptured intracranial aneurysms, and all stents were released successfully, including 16 males (29.1%) and 39 females (70.9%). The median age was 53 (24-80) years old. Anterior circulation aneurysms were found in 49 patients (89.1%) and posterior circulation aneurysms in 6 patients (10.9%). According to Hunt-Hess classification, there were 43 patients with grade Ⅰ-Ⅱ (78.2%), 7 patients with grade Ⅲ (12.7%) and 5 patients with grade Ⅳ-Ⅴ (9.1%). The first digital subtraction angiography (DSA) examination of 55 patients after embolization showed that 41 patients had complete obliteration of aneurysms and 14 had residual neck; and the smaller the aneurysm was, the higher the rate of complete obliteration after embolization was. The proportion of small aneurysms (maximum diameter ≤ 7 mm) in the complete obliteration group was significantly higher than that in the neck residual group (100.0% vs. 64.3%, P < 0.01). Among the 55 patients, there was 1 patient suffered from in-stent thrombosis during embolization, 1 patient suffered from distal vascular thrombosis induced by plaque shedding during embolization, 1 patient suffered from vasospasm during embolization, and 1 patient suffered from postoperative distal cerebral hemorrhage after embolization. In 2 dead patients, 1 died of cardiogenic disease and 1 died of respiratory failure caused by severe pneumonia. At discharge, the prognosis was good in 40 patients, average in 10 patients, and poor in 5 patients; and the higher the Hunt-Hess grade at admission, the worse the prognosis. The proportion of patients with Hunt-Hess grade Ⅰ-Ⅱ at admission in the good prognosis group was significantly higher than that in the general prognosis group and the poor prognosis group (90.0% vs. 50.0%, 40.0%, P < 0.01). Of the 55 patients, 39 completed clinical prognosis and cerebral angiography 6 months after embolization for follow-up. All patients had GOS no less than 3, including 32 patients with complete obliteration of aneurysm, 4 with residual neck and 3 with residual aneurysm. The smaller the aneurysm, the higher the rate of complete obliteration at 6-month follow-up was. The proportion of small aneurysm in the complete obliteration group was significantly higher than that in the residual neck group and the residual aneurysm group (100.0% vs. 75.0%, 33.3%, P < 0.01). There was no rebleeding or ischemic complication at 6-month follow-up. Conclusions:LVIS stent assisted coil embolization is safe, effective and feasible in the acute stage of ruptured intracranial aneurysms. Standardizing antiplatelet therapy and dense packing of aneurysms during embolization are the key to reduce bleeding and ischemic complications.

BACKGROUND:Premature birth is a major global health problem associated with high mortality and morbidity.White matter injury is the most common brain injury in preterm infants.Salvia miltiorrhiza is a traditional herbal plant that is commonly used to treat cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases in Asian countries. OBJECTIVE:To investigate the therapeutic effect of Salvia miltiorrhiza on white matter injury in preterm infants. METHODS:Eighteen neonatal male Sprague-Dawley rats at 3-day gestational age were selected and randomized into normal group,white matter injury group,and Salvia miltiorrhiza group.Animal models of preterm white matter injury were established by permanent ligation of the right common carotid artery in the latter two groups.Rats in the Salvia miltiorrhiza group were given intraperitoneal injection of Salvia miltiorrhiza(5 mg/kg·d)for 7 consecutive days.Normal group and white matter injury group were given the same volume of PBS for intervention.On the 14th day after modeling,the rats were sacrificed.Brains were pathologically observed by hematoxylin-eosin staining under microscope,and the expression levels of myelin basic protein and CC1 in brain tissue were visualized using immunofluorescence.Furthermore,liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry was used to analyze possible pathways for the action of Salvia miltiorrhiza. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:In the white matter injury group,the structure of the corpus callosum was irregular and the cells appeared swollen and necrotic.In addition,induction of white matter injury resulted in significantly reduced myelin formation,with irregular and loosely arranged nerve fibers and significantly decreased myelin sheaths.Interestingly,white matter injury rats treated with Salvia miltiorrhiza had reduced cellular swelling,reduced lesions,and increased myelin sheaths.The expression of myelin basic protein was closely related to myelin formation,and CC1 was a marker of myelin oligodendrocytes.Salvia miltiorrhiza significantly up-regulated the expressions of myelin basic protein and CC1 in white matter injury rats(P＜0.000 1),indicating that Salvia miltiorrhiza alleviated white matter injury.Liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry analysis showed that the therapeutic effect of Salvia miltiorrhiza in the rat model of white matter injury was closely related to the regulation of complement and coagulation cascades.To conclude,Salvia miltiorrhiza may be a potential therapeutic agent for treating preterm white matter injury.

Obesity type 2 diabetes mellitus （T2DM） strengthens insulin resistance （IR） and metabolic abnormalities and significantly increases the risk of heart disease， cancer， and other diseases， and it is characterized by IR and malnutrition. As a metabolic regulation center， adenosine phosphate activated protein kinase （AMPK） mainly responds to the changes in intracellular serine/threonine kinase adenosine monophosphate （AMP） levels. After its activation， AMPK converts the cell metabolism mode from synthesis to decomposition to improve energy metabolism and acts on pathological conditions such as inflammation， ischemia， obesity， and aging. In recent years， a large number of studies have found that AMPK is an important target for the treatment of obesity T2DM. Traditional Chinese medicine（TCM） monomers/extracts and TCM formulas mainly affect the mammalian target of rapamycin （mTOR）， recombinant sirtuin 1 （SIRT1）， nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 （Nrf2）， nuclear factor kappa-B （NF-κB）， and other key signaling factors by regulating the AMPK signaling pathway， so as to achieve a variety of effects such as regulating metabolism and autophagy， reducing oxidative stress and inflammatory response， and treating obesity T2DM. It also has advantages such as multiple targets， comprehensiveness， and low toxicity. The regulation of the AMPK pathway by TCM in the prevention and treatment of obesity T2DM has become an important research direction at the present and in the future， but there is no systematic summary and induction in this field. Therefore， this article attempts to summarize the composition and regulatory mechanisms of the AMPK signaling pathway in affecting obesity. It provides a review of the current research status of TCM in regulating the AMPK signaling pathway for the prevention and treatment of obesity T2DM， so as to provide a reference for the diagnosis and treatment of obesity T2DM in TCM and the development of new drugs.

Objective: To summarize the measures and experience of treatment in mass extremely severe burn patients. Methods: The clinical data and treatment of 8 extremely severe burn patients in August 2 Kunshan factory aluminum dust explosion accident who were admitted in the 100th Hospital of PLA on August 2nd, 2014, were retrospectively analyzed. There were 4 males and 4 females, aging 22-45 (34±7) years, with total burn area of 55%-98% [(89±15)%] total body surface area (TBSA) and full-thickness burn area of 45%-97% [(80±21)%] TBSA. All the 8 patients were accompanied with severe shock, inhalation injury, and blast injury. According to the requirements of former PLA General Logistics Department and Nanjing Military Command, a treatment team was set up including a special medical unit and a special care unit, with Chai Jiake from the First Affiliated Hospital of PLA General Hospital as the team leader, Zheng Qingyi from the 175th Hospital of PLA (the Affiliated Dongnan Hospital of Xiamen University) as the deputy leader, the 100th Hospital of PLA as the treatment base, and burn care, respiratory, nephrology, nursing specialists from the First Affiliated Hospital of PLA General Hospital, and the burn care experts and nursing staff from the 180th Hospital of PLA, 118th Hospital of PLA, 98th Hospital of PLA, and 175th Hospital of PLA, and nurses from the 85th Hospital of PLA, 455th Hospital of PLA, 101th Hospital of PLA, 113th Hospital of PLA as team members. Treatment strategies were adopted as unified coordination by the superior, unified responsibility of team leader, division of labor and cooperation between team members, and multidisciplinary cooperation led by department of burns. With exception of one patient who received deep vein catheterization before admission, the other 7 patients were treated with deep vein catheterization 0.5 to 3.0 hours after admission to correct hypovolemic shock as soon as possible. Eight patients received tracheotomy, and 7 patients were treated with mechanical ventilation by ventilator in protective ventilation strategy with low tide volume and low volume pressure to assist breathing. Fiberoptic bronchoscopy was done one to three times for all the 8 patients to confirm airway injuries and healing status. Escharectomy and Meek dermatoplasty in the extremities of all the 8 patients were performed 3 to 6 days after injury for the first time. Escharectomy, microskin grafting, and covering of large pieces of allogeneic skin on the trunks of 4 patients were performed 11 to 16 days after injury for the second time. The broad-spectrum antibiotics were uniformly used at first time of anti-infective therapy, and then the antibiotics species were adjusted in time. The balance of internal environment was maintained and the visceral functions were protected. One special care unit was on responsibility of only one patient. Psychological intervention was performed on admission. The rehabilitative treatment was started at early stage and in company with the whole treatment. Results: Acute renal injury occurred in 5 patients within 36 hours after injury and their renal function was restored to normal 4 days after injury due to active adjustment of fluid resuscitation program. No pulmonary complications, such as severe pulmonary infection and ventilator-associated pneumonia, occurred in the survived patients. One of the 8 patients died, and the other 7 patients were cured successfully. The wounds were basically healed in 2 patients in 26 or 27 days by 2 or 3 times of operation, and in 5 patients by 4 or 5 times of operation. The basic wound healing time was 26-64 (48±15) days for all the 7 patients. Conclusions Treatment strategies of unified coordination by the superior, unified responsibility of team leader, division of labor and cooperation between team members, and multidisciplinary cooperation led by department of burns are the bases to successful treatment. Correcting shock as soon as possible is the prerequisite and closing wound as soon as possible is the key to successful treatment. Comprehensive treatment measures, such as maintaining and regulating the function of viscera, improving the body immunity, and preventing and treating the complications, are the important components to successful treatment. It is emphasized that in the treatment of mass extremely severe burn patients, specialist burn treatment should always be in the dominant position, and other related disciplines may play a part in auxiliary function.

OBJECTIVETo observe the effects of electroacupuncture (EA) pretreatment at different times for heart arrest induced by bupivacaine poisoning in rats.

METHODSWith a randomized, blind, control study, 24 SD rats were divided into a control group, a EA for 60 min (EA 60) group and a EA for 30 min (EA 30) group, 8 cases in each one. Rats in the EA 60 group and EA 30 groups were treated with EA at bilateral "Neiguan" (PC 6), "Zusanli" (ST 36) and "Fenglong" (ST 40) for 60 min and 30 min respectively. While no treatment was given in the control group. Then rats were monitored by leadⅡelectrocardiograph; catheters were inserted into the femoral vein to open the vein access and into the carotis to monitor the arterial pressure. Three hours after EA, 10 mg/kg bupivacaine was injected through femoral vein. The mean arterial pressure (MAP) and heart rate (HR) were automatically recorded by PowerLab system. The time points when QRS widened by 20 percent and cardiac arrest and the survival rates were observed.

RESULTSAfter the injection of bupivacaine, five rats in the EA 60 group caught cardiac arrest,while all the rats in the other two groups caught it. The survival rates were not statistically significant among the three groups (>0.05). The time of QRS widening by 20 percent in the EA 60 group was (87.4±14.8) s,which was longer than (63.6±14.2) s in the EA 30 group and (51.2±12.4) s in the control group (both<0.05). From injection of bupivacaine to cardiac arrest, the time of (375.3±23.7) s in the EA 60 group and that of (328.3±47.7)s in the EA 30 group were more than (235.5±91.5) s in the control group (both<0.05). After the injection, MAP and HR in the EA 60 group were higher than those in the EA 30 group and control group at most time points (all<0.05).

CONCLUSIONSEA pretreatment apparently decreases the vulnerability of bupivacaine-induced heart arrest, with better protective effect of 60 min pretreatment than that of 30 min.

[Objective] To analyze the prognostic value of prostate cancer (PCa) pyroptosis-related genes (PRGs) using gene expression databases and to explore the regulatory mechanism of nucleotidebinding oligomerization domain-like receptor containing pyrin domain 1 (NLRP1) in the pyroptosis of PCa cells. [Methods] Fragments per kilobase of exon model per million reads mapped (FPKM) data and clinical information from PCa and adjacent tissues from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) were obtained. Differentially expressed PRGs between PCa and adjacent tissues, classified subtypes and plotted survival curves were analyzed. Univariate Cox regression analysis, least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) regression analysis were conducted to screen prognosis-related PRGs, risk scores were calculated, and a prognostic risk model was constructed and validated. Patients were divided into high and low risk groups based on the median risk scores from the training and validation sets, and gene ontology (GO) enrichment and kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes (KEGG) analysis were conducted on differentially expressed PRGs. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) was used to detect the expression level of NLRP1 in PCa cell lines, and pyroptosis was induced in DU145 and LNCaP cells while morphological changes were observed. Western blot (WB) was performed to detect the expression of pyroptosis-related molecules. [Results] A total of 6 prognostic-related PRGs were obtained, including CHMP4C, CYCS, GPX4, GSDMB, NLRP1, and PLCG1. The risk score was positively correlated with the risk of recurrence but negatively correlated with the progression-free survival (P<0.001). The area under the receiver operating characteristic curves (AUCs) for the training set at 1, 3, and 5 years were 0.769 (95%CI: 0.652-0.878), 0.804 (95%CI: 0.736-0.882), and 0.772 (95%CI: 0.631-0.905), respectively, while those for the validation set were 0.731 (95%CI: 0.647-0.826), 0.753 (95%CI: 0.674-0.818), and 0.763 (95%CI: 0.626-0.849), respectively. Differences in expression levels of the 6 PRGs were observed between the high and low risk groups in both the training and validation sets (P<0.05). Cox regression analysis showed that T stage, prostate specific antigen (PSA), Gleason grade, and risk score were independent predictors of PCa prognosis (P<0.05). Differences in risk scores were observed among patients of different ages, T stages, and Gleason grades (P<0.05). NLRP1 was found to be lowly expressed in PCa cell lines and was involved in the regulation of pyroptosis in DU145 and LNCaP cells. [Conclusion] The prognostic risk model constructed based on PRGs has a certain predictability for the prognosis of PCa patients, and NLRP1 may be involved in the regulation of pyroptosis in PCa cells.

Experimental research on male infertility is critical to the study of the pathogenesis of male infertility and the evaluation of drug therapy. This paper reviewed animal experiments on male infertility in recent years. The experimental models of male infertility mainly include oligoasthenozoospermia （OA），teratozoospermia，azoospermia， and varicocele animal models. The OA animal models are mostly induced by glycosides of Tripterygium wilfordii （GTW）， adenine，hydrocortisone， and radiation，which are mainly chemical means. The animal models of azoospermia were usually constructed by intraperitoneal injection of bissulfonyl alkylating agent busulfan and immersion of scrotum in 43 ℃ water. There are few studies on animal models of teratozoospermia，and the induction methods by GTW and methyl methanesulfonate（MMS） are common. The animal models of varicocele-caused infertility are usually induced by operation. The ligation of the middle division of the left renal vein between the lateral inferior vena cava and the medial spermatic vein has a significant influence on testicular morphology and epididymal sperm quality. Animal experimental studies have shown that classic prescriptions for tonifying the kidney and promoting spermatogenesis represented by Wuzi Yanzongwan and clinical empirical prescriptions by modern research have played a significant role in the treatment of male infertility. The mechanism of tonifying the kidney in the treatment of male infertility mainly focuses on inhibiting spermatogenic cell apoptosis. The kidney-tonifying method can regulate the apoptosis of spermatogenic cells，which provides a new treatment idea and a reliable scientific basis for traditional Chinese medicine in the field of male reproduction.