Acupuncture Therapy ; Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Chronic Disease ; therapy ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Pterygopalatine Fossa ; innervation ; Rhinitis ; physiopathology ; therapy ; Smell ; Treatment Outcome ; Young Adult

ObjectiveTo develop the manipulation and scoring system of Loewenstein Occupational Therapy Cognitive Assessment (LOTCA) into a Chinese software.MethodsThe manual manipulation and scoring system of LOTCA was developed into a technological procedure and changed into primary product of software through conforming computer programs such as Basic, C, C++ and Flash Maker. The primary product was tested in clinic and feedback suggestions were collected. The questions found during assessment and items with reliability and validity not satisfied were optimized.ResultsThe Chinese software of LOTCA, including mandarin and Cantonese, composed manipulation system, scoring system, administer system and affiliated system. It could run on systems of Windows 2000 and Windows XP.ConclusionThe Chinese software of LOTCA is objective, standard and convenient for clinic.

Cysts ; congenital ; diagnosis ; surgery ; Female ; Humans ; Infant, Newborn ; Male ; Tongue Diseases ; congenital ; diagnosis ; surgery

Objective To investigate the cause of non-union and delayed union of femoral and tibia] fractures and assess the clinical outcome after treatment with intramedullary compression interlocking nail (ICIN). Methods From February 1998 to December 2006, 21 patients with non-union and delayed union of femoral and tibial fractures (13 patients with femoral fractures and 8 with tibial fractures) were treated by ICIN. Bone grafting was performed in 18 patients, and the other three patients only rocoived reamed compression nailing. Five patients received bone grafting combined with knee adhesion release operation. Results All patients were followed up for 11.4-36 months (mean 13.6 months). Solid bone union was observed in all patients, with mean bone union time of 8.7 months and without malunion, infection or refracture. According to the Klemm grading, the clinical outcome was graded excellent in 19 patients and good in 2. Conclusions The main causes for non-union and delayed union of femoral and tibial fractures are improper indication selection and incorrect use of implants, which may result in bieenvironment disruption. ICIN shortens the time of functional recovery of knee and ankle joint. ICIN has advantages of stable fixation, early exercise of the knee and ankle as well as early weight loading and hence is one of effective alternatives in treatment of non-union and delayed union of femoral and tibial fractures. ICIN can accelerate the healing of bone and improves the function of knee joint when combined with bone grafting, reamed compression nailing and knee adhesion release.

0.05)between the images from the two groups.Conclusion When scanning the heart with volume CT(VCT),the application of ECG modulated mA can effectively reduce the exposure dosage without sacrificing the image quality.

According to operative modalities,128 patients with unilateral benign thyroid disease were divided into hemithyroidectomy group (n =68) and subtotal thyroidectomy group (n =60).The operative duration of hemithyroidectomy group was (63 ± 14) min,intraoperative blood loss (54 ± 15) ml,postoperative drainage volume (64 ± 10) ml and hospitalization stay (5.9 ±0.8) days.The hospital charge of (8 335 ± 278) yuan was less than that of subtotal thyroidectomy group (P ＜ 0.05).The incidence rate of postoperative hoarseness,water bucking,low calcium and hypothyroidism had no significant inter-group difference (P ＞ 0.05).But the postoperative recurrence rate of hemithyroidectomy was significantly lower than that of subtotal thyroidectomy group (P ＜ 0.05).Treating patients of unilateral benign thyroid disease with hemithyroidectomy yield excellent efficacies.It is worthy of wider clinical application.

Objective To estimate the biological effects of leptin on human HaCaT keratinocytes and explore their molecular mechanisms.Methods Cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8) was used to evaluate the proliferation of cultured HaCaT cells treated with different concentrations of leptin for 24 and 48 hours.Some HaCaT cells were classified into four groups to remain untreated,be treated with leptin (100 μg/L) and piceatannol (a specific inhibitor of STAT3 phosphorylation) alone or in combination for 24 hours,respectively,followed by the evaluation of cell proliferation using CCK-8 kit.Flow cytometry was performed to assess cell cycle of HaCaT cells treated with leptin of 100 μg/L,Western blot to determine the phosphorylation level of Erk1/2 and STAT3 in HaCaT cells treated with leptin of 100 μg/L for different durations.Statistical analysis was done by Student's t-test for unpaired data using GraphPad Prism 5 software.Results The proliferation of HaCaT cells was accelerated to different degrees after treatment with leptin of 50 and 100 μg/L for 24 and 48 hours,and the accelerating effect was in a dose-dependent manner within 24 hours (r =0.9989,P ＜ 0.05).Piceatannol apparently inhibited the promotive effect of leptin on the proliferation of HaCaT cells.There was an obvious elevation in the percentage of cells at S phase ((57.70 ± 5.88)％ vs.(42.50 ± 7.55)％,P ＞ 0.05),but a significant decrease in that at G0/G1 phase ((39.70 ± 1.57)％ vs.(45.20 ± 1.44)％,P ＜ 0.05),with a significant increase in proliferation index (0.603 ±0.0157 vs.0.564 ± 0.0144,P ＜ 0.05) in HaCaT cells treated with leptin of 100 μg/L for 24 hours compared with the untreated controls.Western blot showed that leptin of 100 μg/L markedly enhanced the phosphorylation level of STAT3 in HaCaT cells.Conclusion Leptin may upregulate the proliferation of HaCaT cells through activation of STAT3 pathway.

Objective To explore the short-term and long-term efficacy of laparoscopic versus open liver resection(LLR)in the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC). Methods The perioperative and follow-up data ofLLR(n = 43)and OLR(n = 73)for the treatment of HCC at the same period were analyzed respectively. Results There were no significant differences in the age,gender,Child-Pugh classification,liver cirrhosis, AFP,and hepatic virus affection between the 2 groups. 1 case in the LLR group was converted for the open surgery and another one case in the OLR group died in the perioperative time. However ,compared with OLR group ,the intraoperative blood loss of LLR group(P < 0.05)was larger and the mean operative time(P < 0.05)was longer. The liver function indicators of the regular hepatectomy subgroup were recovered more quickly(P<0.05),but the indicators of remaining subgroups were not significantly different. The postoperative ambulation time (P < 0.05), the postoperative eating time(P < 0.05),the postoperative hospital stay(P < 0.05)were all shorter. The VAS score was lower(P<0.05). There was no difference in the incidence and distribution of complications and the inci-dence of severe complications between the two groups(all P>0.05). The first and third year disease-free survival rates were 82.2%,53.8%for LLR and 91.5%,75.9%for OLR,respectively(χ2=0.55,P=0.46). The first and third 5 year overall survival rates were 94.2%,79.3%for LLR and 94.9%,47.3%for OLR,respectively(χ2=1.06, P=0.30). Conclusion LLR for HCC treatment is a safe and effective way with the advantages of minimal opera-tive trauma,quick recovery and significant short-term efficacy.

Objective To overcome the disadvantages of the traditional auscultating method and design the electro-auscultating visual system integrating the monitoring and recording functions.Methods The portable system consisted of the module pre-gathering and electro-auscultating heart-sound signal,the circuit of A/D converting and MCU,as well as the device of signal LCD-displaying in real-time and the USB mass storage device.Results Portable electro-auscultating system was realized,which integrated the functions of watching,monitoring and recording.Conclusion The portable system is more convenient for clinical doctors to get correct information from patients,benefiting to the clinical pathology-statistics and profound development of the related data.

Objective Overexpressions of epidermal growth factor(EGF)and EGF receptor have been associ- ated with progression and invasive phenotype of pancreatic cancer.However,the underlying molecular mechanism by which EGF worked in pancreatic cancer cells has not been completely understood.In this study,effect of EGF on the invasion and metastasis of pancreatic cancer cells and its regulatory mechanism were investigated.Methods The effects of EGF on the proliferation,adhesion and invasion of pancreatic cancer cells were detected by WST-1 prolif- eration assay,adhesion assay and invasive assay,respectively.The activity and expression of MMP-2 and MMP-9 were examined by zymography,Western blot and RT-PCR,respectively.The activity of NF-?B was examined by EMSA.Results EGF could significantly promote the invasiveness of pancreatic cancer cells but did not affect cell proliferation or adhesion.The expressions of NF-?B and MMP-9 were significantly increased by EGF,but EGF did not affect the activity and expression of MMP-2.Furthermore,EGF stimulated the NF-?B binding activity.Pre- treatment with NF-?B inhibitors,pyrrolidine dithiocarbamate(PDTC),could significantly inhibit the activity of NF-?B induced by EGF.Meanwhile,the EGF-induced expression and activity of MMP-9,as well as cell invasiveness were also inhibited by NF-?B inhibitor.Conclusion EGF could increase the expression and promote the invasiveness of MMP-9 via the activation of NF-?B in pancreatic cancer cells,which implies that NF-?B inhibitant,such as PDTC,may diminish the invasiveness of pancreatic cancer cells.