Objective To investigate the clinical applications of sandwich technique according to area calculation in endovascular aneurysm repair of patients with aorta and iliac artery lesions.Methods Six patients with aortoiliac artery disease confirmed by CT were treated using sandwich technique according to area calculation.The diameter of the main stent and two branches stents were chosen according to the area calculation.Technical success rate,patency of the stent graft and complications were observed.Results Technical success rate was 100％ (6/6),and no complications occurred in all the 6 patients.The clinical symptoms were significantly improved.Gutter endoleak was found in 1 patient 2 months after the procedure,and was managed by coil embolization successfully.No endoleak occurred in other patients during follow-up of 6-31 months.Conclusion For patients with special anatomy of aorta and iliac artery lesions,the application of area calculation in the sandwich technique provides a feasible approach in choosing the matching size of the main body stent and two side branches stents.

Adult ; Apoptosis ; drug effects ; Benzene ; poisoning ; Biomarkers ; analysis ; Bone Marrow Cells ; drug effects ; Female ; Flow Cytometry ; Humans ; Leukocytes, Mononuclear ; drug effects ; Lymphocytes ; drug effects ; metabolism ; Male ; Micronuclei, Chromosome-Defective ; drug effects ; metabolism ; Occupational Exposure ; analysis

To evaluate the efficacy of an ultrasound-based quantitative method to diagnose liver fibrosis using a rat model. Ultrasonography was performed on the livers of 90 Sprague-Dawley rats with or without thioacetamide-induced fibrosis. The liver capsule thickness and 13 texture parameters of gray level co-occurrence matrix were extracted from the standard sonograms. After sacrifice, severity of liver fibrosis (S0-S4 classification) was diagnosed by histopathology. Analysis of variance and correlation statistical tests were used to analyze the differences between groups and determine the relationships between each of the 14 quantitative ultrasound index points and the histological results, respectively. Discriminant analysis models were developed for quantitative diagnosis of liver fibrosis, and the leave-one-case-out method was used to verify the efficiency of models. All 14 indices were significantly correlated with the histological stages of fibrosis (P less than 0.05). The accuracy of the discriminant model for S0, S1, S2, S3 and S4 was 83.3%, 84.2%, 70.0%, 50.0% and 88.2%, respectively. In addition, 73.3% of cross-validated rats were accurately classified. Grouping S0 as no fibrosis, S1 as mild fibrosis, S2 with S3 as moderate to severe fibrosis and S4 as early cirrhosis increased the accuracy of the discriminant model for these four groups (respectively, 91.7%, 84.2%, 69.0% and 88.2%) and allowed for 78.9% of cross-validated rats to be correctly identified. Ultrasonography combined with texture analysis was a novel and accurate method to diagnose liver fibrosis in a rat model; further studies may provide insights into its applicability for quantitating liver fibrosis in other animal models or in clinic.
Animals ; Liver ; diagnostic imaging ; pathology ; Liver Cirrhosis, Experimental ; diagnostic imaging ; pathology ; Male ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Ultrasonography

To evaluate the efficacy and feasibility of bipolar electrocoagulation in the treatment of gastric antral vascular ectasia(GAVE). Six patients with GAVE who underwent gastroscopy and bipolar electrocoagulation between January 2018 and December 2019 in the Affiliated Hospital of Medical School of Ningbo University were included in the study.The operation and clinical response were observed. All the 6 patients underwent bipolar electrocoagulation successfully. The mean operation time was 32 min (range 25-45 min). Mean number of sessions required for eradication of GAVE was 1.17. No severe complications related to endoscopic treatment occurred. There was no recurrence of GAVE at a mean time of 10.8 months (range 2-25 months) of follow-up. Stabilization of hemoglobin levels and decrease in blood transfusion requirements along with endoscopically complete or near-complete eradication of GAVE were observed in all patients during the follow-up.Bipolar electrocoagulation in the treatment of GAVE is effective, safe, and simple.

OBJECTIVETo investigate the molecular genetic abnormalities of N-myc and C-myc, and their clinical pathological implications in pediatric neuroblastic tumors (NTs).

METHODSAbnormalities of N-myc were detected by interphase fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) technique in 246 cases of NTs, including neuroblastoma (NB,188 cases), ganglioneuroblastoma (GNB, 52 cases), ganglioneuroma (GN, 6 cases), and their association with the histological typing of the tumors and prognosis was analyzed. Abnormalities of C-myc were detected by FISH in 133 cases of NTs.

RESULTSOf the 246 cases of NTs, N-myc amplification was only found in 27 cases (11.0%, 27/246) of NB, but not in any cases of GNB or GN (P < 0.05). 89.0% (219/246) N-myc non-amplification were found in NTs, and it included N-myc gain in 175 cases (71.1%, 175/246) and normal N-myc in 44 cases (17.9%, 44/246). Univariate analysis indicated significantly (P = 0.012) poorer outcome in patients with N-myc amplification than N-myc non-amplification. However no significant difference was observed between N-myc gain cases and normal N-myc cases (P = 0.057). C-myc gain was found in 74 of 133 cases (55.6%) of NTs; no C-myc amplification or translocation was detected. Forty percent (6/15) of cases with N-myc amplification and 57.6% (68/118) of cases with N-myc non-amplification were accompanied by C-myc gain. The difference between N-myc amplification and non-amplification with C-myc gain was not significant (P > 0.05). Univariate analysis indicated that the outcome difference was not statistically significant between C-myc gain cases and normal C-myc cases (P = 0.357).

CONCLUSIONSThe incidence of N-myc amplification only found in NB is low in pediatric NTs in China. Patients with N-myc amplification predict poorer outcome. No amplification or translocation of C-myc is detected in NTs, whereas C-myc gain is relatively common in NTs. There is no obvious association between N-myc amplification and C-myc gain.

Adrenal Gland Neoplasms ; genetics ; pathology ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Ganglioneuroblastoma ; genetics ; pathology ; Ganglioneuroma ; genetics ; pathology ; Gene Amplification ; Genes, myc ; Humans ; In Situ Hybridization, Fluorescence ; Infant ; Male ; Mediastinal Neoplasms ; genetics ; pathology ; Neuroblastoma ; genetics ; pathology ; Survival Rate

Chronic enteritis can produce an excess of reactive oxygen species resulting in cellular damage. Stanniocalcin-1(STC-1) reportedly possesses anti-oxidative activity, the aim of this study was to define more clearly the direct contribution of STC-1 to anti-oxidative stress in cattle. In this study, primary intestinal epithelial cells (IECs) were exposed to hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) for different time intervals to mimic chronic enteritis-induced cellular damage. Prior to treatment with 200 microM H2O2, the cells were transfected with a recombinant plasmid for 48 h to over-express STC-1. Acridine orange/ethidium bromide (AO/EB) double staining and trypan blue exclusion assays were then performed to measure cell viability and apoptosis of the cells, respectively. The expression of STC-1 and apoptosis-related proteins in the cells was monitored by real-time PCR and Western blotting. The results indicated that both STC-1 mRNA and protein expression levels positively correlated with the duration of H2O2 treatment. H2O2 damaged the bovine IECs in a time-dependent manner, and this effect was attenuated by STC-1 over-expression. Furthermore, over-expression of STC-1 up-regulated Bcl-2 protein expression and slightly down-regulated caspase-3 production in the damaged cells. Findings from this study suggested that STC-1 plays a protective role in intestinal cells through an antioxidant mechanism.
Animals ; Animals, Newborn ; Blotting, Western/veterinary ; Caspase 3/*genetics/metabolism ; Cattle ; Cattle Diseases/etiology/*genetics/metabolism ; Duodenum/metabolism ; Enteritis/etiology/genetics/metabolism/*veterinary ; Epithelial Cells/metabolism ; *Gene Expression Regulation ; Glycoproteins/*genetics/metabolism ; Hydrogen Peroxide/pharmacology ; Male ; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2/*genetics/metabolism ; RNA, Messenger/genetics/metabolism ; Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction/veterinary

OBJECTIVETo review the clinical experience of muscle-sparing thoracotomy in intrathoracic surgery.

METHODSThoracotomy was performed in 386 patients from 1998 to 2002, during the procedure lateral-transverse incision, free dissection of muscular flap and entering to the thoracic cavity through certain intercostal space were applied. Two sets of rib retractors were used to ensure the excellent field exposure.

RESULTSIntrathoracic surgery was carried out by this method with the advantage of excellent surgical field exposure, less pain and relative quick recovery.

CONCLUSIONMuscle-sparing thoracotomy has the merits of less injury and the same good exposure as routine thoracotomy and it can be carried out in majority of chest surgery.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Child ; Female ; Humans ; Lung Neoplasms ; surgery ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Pectoralis Muscles ; surgery ; Pneumonectomy ; Postoperative Complications ; prevention & control ; Thoracic Surgical Procedures ; methods ; Thoracotomy ; methods

OBJECTIVETo sum up the experience in administering oral tadalafil on alternate days for the treatment of erectile dysfunction (ED) that fails to respond to on-demand medication.

METHODSWe retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of 15 cases of ED treated with oral tadalafil on alternate days from September 2010 to March 2012. All the patients had failed to respond to on-demand medication of sildenafil previously.

RESULTSAfter 4 weeks of tadalafil treatment, 11 (73.3%) of the cases were remarkably improved, with significant difference in IIEF-5 scores before and after treatment (P < 0.05). Transient adverse reactions were observed in the other 4 cases, including mild headache in 2, slight backache in 1, and facial flush in 1.

CONCLUSIONOral tadalafil on alternate days is safe and effective in the treatment of ED that fails to respond to on-demand medication of sildenafil.

Administration, Oral ; Adult ; Carbolines ; administration & dosage ; therapeutic use ; Erectile Dysfunction ; drug therapy ; Humans ; Male ; Phosphodiesterase Inhibitors ; administration & dosage ; therapeutic use ; Piperazines ; therapeutic use ; Purines ; therapeutic use ; Retrospective Studies ; Sildenafil Citrate ; Sulfones ; therapeutic use ; Tadalafil ; Treatment Failure ; Treatment Outcome

Objective:To evaluate the feasiblity and safety of in situ fenestration during the endograft of thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR) via the left subclavian artery (LSA).Methods:A total of 23 patients, including 17 patients with thoracic aortic dissection and 6 patients with thoracic aortic aneurysm, were respectively enrolled from October 2018 to June 2019 at Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University. All of the patients underwent in situ fenestration of LSA via the thoracic artery endograft following the TEVAR procedure. A 21 G preflex hollow needle was used to puncture the endograft from the medial segment of LSA for in situ feneatration. The success rate, clinical effect and complications were recorded on 1, 3 and 6 months after in situ fenestration.Results:The success rate was 100% in all the 23 patients with needle puncture in situ fenestration of LSA. The rechecked thoracic aorta angiography showed that both thoracic aortic main endograft and the LSA branch cover stent were well expanded, and there were no endoleaks occurred around the LSA branch cover stent. No hematoma was found in the supraclacicular fossa within all the perioperative period. A small pneumatothorax in the left pleural cavity which did not need treatment was being detected in 1 patient on the chest film 3 days after the procedure. The mean follow-uptime was (4.2±1.4) months. There were no retrograde tearing happened in the proximal end of the endograft, and no endoleak happened around the LSA branch cover stent either.Conclusion:The technique of needle puncture fenestration of LSA via the thoracic artery endograft is considered as a simple, safe, and effective method of in situ LSA reconstruction.

This study was aimed to quantify plasma circulating DNA level in patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and to evaluate its clinical significance. 66 AML patients and 100 controls (60 healthy subjects for health examination, 20 cases of benign hematopathy, and 20 cases of solid tumors) were enrolled in this study. Blood samples were collected from AML patients at different status of disease and control groups. Circulating DNA were drew by using the BILATEST DNA Kit. The level of plasma DNA was determined by using duplex real-time quantitative PCR. The results showed that the median value of plasma DNA level in AML patients at diagnosis was 168.5 (73.4 - 245.1) ng/ml, significantly higher than those in three control groups, and the median level in male patients was significantly higher than that in female patients (P = 0.019). No significant difference was found in plasma DNA level of the patients at different ages and with different FAB subtypes. Compared with level before chemotherapy, the plasma DNA levels in complete remission patients and partial remission patients decreased significantly, and with no statistical difference from level of healthy controls, but was significantly different from level of non-remission patients (P < 0.05). Following up of 31 remission patients showed that the plasma DNA level increased in 5 out of 6 (83.3%) relapsed patients, but no increase was found in 22 out of 25 (88.0%) non-relapsed patients. It is concluded that the quantification of plasma DNA may be useful for evaluating therapeutic effects and monitoring relapse in AML patients.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Case-Control Studies ; DNA ; blood ; Female ; Humans ; Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute ; blood ; pathology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Prognosis ; Young Adult