OBJECTIVETo explore the correlationship between platelet count and efficacy of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) or Western medicine (WM) in treating rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients.

METHODSA total of 356 patients with confirmed diagnosis of active RA from 9 clinical centers were randomly assigned to the TCM group (184 cases) and the WM group (172 cases). The TCM group was treated with basic therapy (administration of glucosidorum tripterygll totorum and Yishen Juanbi Pill) and TCM syndrome differentiation dependent treatment, while the WM group was treated with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and slow-acting anti-rheumatic drugs. The therapeutic efficacy was assessed with ACR20, the joint damage degree of both hands was evaluated by X-ray.

RESULTSThe platelet count was positively correlated to the X- ray grading of joint damage, namely, patients with a more severe joint damage often presented a higher platelet count. After treatment, in patients with joint damage of X-ray grade II or III and effectively treated with TCM, also in patients with joint damage of grade III and effectively treated with WM, the platelet count was lower than that in those treated ineffectively.

CONCLUSIONPlatelet count is closely correlated to the efficacy of drug therapy, therefore, it may be taken as an important index for judging the curative effect of therapeutic approach in treating RA patients.

Adult ; Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal ; therapeutic use ; Arthritis, Rheumatoid ; blood ; drug therapy ; Drug Therapy, Combination ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; therapeutic use ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Phytotherapy ; Platelet Count ; Treatment Outcome ; Tripterygium ; chemistry

Objective To determine the allelic frequency distribution and genetic parameters of nine non-CODIS DNA index systems of the short tandemrepeat (STR ) loci (D2S1772, D6S1043, D7S3048, D8S1132, D11S2368, D12S391, D13S325, D18S1364, and GATA198B05). Methods A total of 353 blood samples were collected, extracted, amplified, and analyzed fromunrelated healthy individuals of Han na-tionality in Hunan Province, China. Results O ne hundred and fourteen alleles were observed in the pop-ulation with corresponding allelic frequencies ranged from0.001 0 to 0.323 0. For all the nine non-CODIS STR loci, the observed genotypic data showed no significant deviations fromthe Hardy-W einberg equi-librium. The Ho, He, PIC, D P, and PE of the studied non-CODIS STR loci ranged from0.108 0 to 0.195 0, 0.805 0 to 0.892 0, 0.770 0 to 0.860 0, 0.925 0 to 0.966 0 and 0.607 0 to 0.780 0, respectively. Conclusion N ine non-CODIS STR loci have high degrees of polymorphisms, which may be useful in in-dividual forensic identification and parentage testing in forensic practice.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the allelic frequency distribution and genetic parameters of nine non-CODIS DNA index systems of the short tandem repeat (STR) loci (D2S1772, D6S1043, D7S3048, D8S1132, D11S2368, D12S391, D13S325, D18S1364, and GATA198B05). METHODS: A total of 353 blood samples were collected, extracted, amplified, and analyzed from unrelated healthy individuals of Han nationality in Hunan Province, China. RESULTS: One hundred and fourteen alleles were observed in the population with corresponding allelic frequencies ranged from 0.001 0 to 0.323 0. For all the nine non-CODIS STR loci, the observed genotypic data showed no significant deviations from the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. The Ho, He, PIC, DP, and PE of the studied non-CODIS STR loci ranged from 0.1080 to 0.1950, 0.8050 to 0.8920, 0.7700 to 0.8600, 0.9250 to 0.9660 and 0.6070 to 0.7800, respectively. CONCLUSION Nine non-CODIS STR loci have high degrees of polymorphisms, which may be useful in individual forensic identification and parentage testing in forensic practice.
Alleles ; Asian People/genetics* ; China ; Ethnicity/genetics* ; Gene Frequency ; Genetics, Population ; Genotype ; Humans ; Male ; Microsatellite Repeats/genetics* ; Polymorphism, Genetic

Glycogen storage disease type II (GSD II) is an autosomal recessive disorder caused by a deficiency of the lysosomal glycogen-hydrolyzing enzyme acid α-glucosidase (GAA) and can affect multiple systems including the heart and skeletal muscle. The aim of this study was to investigate three children with GSD II confirmed by GAA gene analysis and to report their clinical characteristics and gene mutations. One case was classified as infantile-onset GSD II, and two cases as late-onset GSD II. The infantile-onset patient (aged 4 months) showed no weight increase and had dyspnea, muscle hypotonia, and increased alanine aminotransferase and creatine kinase; echocardiography showed hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. The late-onset patients (aged 8 years and 13 years respectively) showed persistently elevated liver enzymes; one of them had recurrent respiratory tract infection and restrictive ventilation disorder, and the other case showed significantly increased creatase but normal electromyographic findings. Peripheral blood genetic testing for GAA gene showed six pathogenic mutations in the three cases, and the mutations c.2738C>T and c.568C>T had not been reported. Therefore, peripheral blood genetic testing for GAA gene is an effective diagnostic method.
Adolescent ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Female ; Glycogen Storage Disease Type II ; genetics ; Humans ; Male ; Mutation ; alpha-Glucosidases ; genetics

Objective: To compare the clinical outcomes between young and elderly patients with humeral intercondylar fracture treated by open reduction and internal fixation (ORIF) with either parallel or orthogonal double-plate. Methods: From January 2013 to December 2017, 54 patients with humeral intercondylar fracture were treated at Department of Orthopedic Trauma, Jishuitan Hospital by ORIF with anatomical locking compression plate (LCP) (either parallel or orthogonal double-plate configuration). According to their age, the patients were divided into a young group (from 18 to 30 years old) of 29 cases with an age of 25.5±3.6 years and an elderly group (≥60 years old) of 25 cases with an age of 67.1±5.8 years. The 2 groups were compared in terms of perioperative data, ranges of motion (flextion, extension and rotation), numeric rating scale for pain (NRS), Mayo Elbow Performance Score (MEPS) and quick Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand (Quick-DASH) at the last follow-up, complications and secondary surgery. Results: The 2 groups were comparable because there were no significant differences in the preoperative general data except in injury energy, combined injury and gender between them (P>0.05). The young group had significantly more cases of high-energy injury and combined injuries than the elderly group(P<0.05). All patients were followed up for 33.6±15.0 months (from 12 to 63 months). The total blood loss in the elderly group (643.9±298.7 mL) was significantly less than that in the young group (953.9±554.6 mL) (P<0.05). At the last follow-up, there were no significant differences between the 2 groups in ranges of motion, NRS or MEPS (P>0.05), but the elderly group had significantly higher Quick-DASH scores (13.9±14.4 points) than the young group (5.7±8.9 points) (P<0.05). There was no significant difference in postoperative elbow stiffness or postoperative ulnar nerve symptoms betwee the 2 groups (P>0.05), but the rate of secondary surgery in the young group (37.9%, 11/29) was significantly higher than that in the elderly group (4.0%, 1/25) (P<0.05). Conclusions In the treatment of humeral intercondylar fractures, ORIF with LCP (either parallel or orthogonal double-plate configuration) can lead to similarly safe and effective clinical outcomes for both young and elderly patients.

Objective: To explore the risk factors for elbow stiffness after open reduction and internal fixation (ORIF) for intercondylar fractures of the distal humerus. Methods: From January 2013 to May 2017, 159 patients underwent ORIF for intercondylar fractures of the distal humerus with dual plating. They were 83 males and 76 females with a mean age of 42.6 years (from 14 to 79 years). They were divided into 2 groups according to their range of motion at the latest follow-up and the secondary elbow arthrolysis they had undergone or not. The stiffness group had extension-flexion and/or pronation-supination <100° and secondary elbow arthrolysis while the non-stiffness group had extension-flexion and pronation-supination ≥100° and no secondary elbow arthrolysis. Age, gender, fracture side, mechanism of injury, AO fracture classification, open/close fracture, additional fracture, preoperative nerve injury, time from injury to surgery, surgical approach, configuration of plating, medication for anti-heterotopic ossification and implant removal were analyzed as risk factors for elbow stiffness using Logistic regression analysis. Results: The mean follow-up period for this cohort was 32.0 months (from 10 to 63 months). The latest follow-up showed fracture union in all the patients. The stiffness group had 38 patients and the non-stiffness group 121. Multivariate regression analysis showed that high energy trauma (OR=3.141, 95%CI 1.396~7.070, P=0.006) and time from injury to surgery >one week (OR=2.596, 95%CI 1.123~6.000, P=0.026) were independent risk factors for elbow stiffness after ORIF for intercondylar fractures of the distal humerus. Conclusion The patients with high energy trauma and time from injury to surgery >one week should be treated with caution and special care in clinical practice because the 2 factors are closely related to posttraumatic elbow stiffness after ORIF for intercondylar fracture of the distal humerus.

"Assessing the quality by distinguishing features of traditional Chinese medicinal materials" is a characteristic quality evaluation system of traditional Chinese medicine, and it is also the basis of "Rating according to characters and setting the price by the grade" on the market. Astragali Radix was regarded as a famous traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), and this paper has carried out herbal textual research on the development and formation of the concept, "assessing the quality by distinguishing features of traditional Chinese medicinal materials", of Astragali Radix. The authentic medicine producing areas of Astragalus in China have experienced a great change, Gansu , Sichuan and adjacent areas before the Tang Dynasty; Shanxi during the Tang and Song Dynasty. The concept, "assessing the quality by distinguishing features of traditional Chinese medicinal materials", of Astragali Radix was formed in the Song and Ming Dynasty and still used today, which described as that the shape is "straight as an arrow"; the texture is "soft as cotton"; the section looks like" gold well and jade hurdle"; it was sweet in taste and has beany flavor. The system, "assessing the quality by distinguishing features of traditional Chinese medicinal materials", of Astragali Radix has undergone the adjustments from "true or false" to "good or bad", advance with the times, pick out the advantages from others and absorb the experience of traditional identification actively. Besides, it always returns to laconism from erudition and was summarized highly. Assessing the quality by distinguishing features of traditional Chinese medicinal materials and commodity specifications have the same root, so the former has reference meaning to revise the latter.