AIM: To observe the supplementation action of the crude and processed Epimedium Sapittatum Maxim. METHODS: The effects of different extracts of Epimedium Sagittatum Maxim. on the castrated mice were observed. RESULTS: The aqueous and alcohol extracts of the crude and processed Epimedium Sagittatum maxim. showed same marked inhibition on atrophy of castrated mice. CONCLUSION: The crude and processed Epimedium Sagittatum maxim. both have the supplementation action and show no marked difference in action.

Objective To study the angle and articular facet curvature of lumbar zygapophyseal joints in adults.Methods The lumbar zygapophyseal joints in 120 healthy subjects without lumbar diseases were detected using spiral CT and mutiple planner re-construction.The angle and articular facet curvature of zygapophyseal joints were measured.The differences in the measured param-eters between male and female or different age groups were compared.Results ①There were no significant differences in the angle of the same lumbar zygapophyseal joints between males and females or different age groups (P >0.05);however,the significant differences in the angle between different lumbar segments were found (P <0.05).②There were no significant differences in articu-lar facet curvature of the same lumbar zygapophyseal joints between males and females or different age groups (P >0.05);however, there were significant differences in the curvature between different lumbar segments (P <0.05).The maximum articular facet cur-vature of L3-L4 was 22.1°±6.0°.Conclusion The angle and articular facet curvature of lumbar zygapophyseal joints varies from different lumbar segments with different contributions for the lumbar stability.

Objective: To explore the clinical effects of electroacupuncture (EA) at Zusanli (ST 36) and Fenglong (ST 40) in treating senile dementia. Methods:A total of74 patients were randomly divided into an EA group and a medication group based upon the random digital table, 37 cases in each group. EA at Zusanli (ST 36) and Fenglong (ST 40) was given in the EA group, once every day, for six treatments per week. Donepezil Hydrochloride Tablets were given to the medication group, 5 mg per time and once a day in the former four weeks, 10 mg per time and once a day after 4 weeks, oral administration before sleep at night. The courses of the treatment were 12 weeks in both groups. The scores of mini-mental state examination (MMSE) and Barthel index (BI) were observed before and after the treatment, for processing the comparative analysis of the clinical effects after the course of the treatment. Results:The total effective rate was 86.5% in the EA group and 70.3% in the medication group. The therapeutic effect was better in the EA group than that in the medication group, and the difference between the two groups was statistically significant (P<0.05). MMSE and BI scores after the treatment in the two groups were all elevated than those of the same groups before the treatment (P<0.05,P<0.01). The improving situation was obviously better in the EA group than that in the medication group, and the difference between the two groups was statistically significant (P<0.05). Conclusion:EA at Zusanli (ST 36) and Fenglong (ST 40) is affirmative in the therapeutic effect for senile dementia and can also improve the cognitive function and enhance the patients’ quality of life .

OBJECTIVE: To explore the clinical and genetic characteristics of two children with Williams-Beuren syndrome (WBS). METHODS: Two children who had presented at the Department of Pediatrics, General Hospital of Ningxia Medical University respectively on January 26 and March 18, 2021 were selected as the study subjects. Clinical data and results of genetic testing of the two patients were analyzed. RESULTS: Both children had featured developmental delay, characteristic facies and cardiovascular malformation. Child 1 also had subclinical hypothyroidism, whilst child 2 had occurrence of epilepsy. Genetic testing revealed that child 1 has harbored a 1.54 Mb deletion in the 7q11.23 region, whilst child 2 has a 1.53 Mb deletion in the same region, in addition with a c.158G>A variant of the ATP1A1 gene and a c.12181A>G variant of the KMT2C gene. Based on the guidelines from the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics, the c.158G>A and c.12181A>G variants were rated as variants of unknown significance (PM1+PM2_Supporting+PP2+PP3；PM2_Supporting). CONCLUSION Both children had characteristic features of WBS, for which deletions of the 7q11.23 region may be accountable. For children manifesting developmental delay, facial dysmorphism and cardiovascular malformations, the diagnosis of WBS should be suspected, and genetic testing should be recommended to confirm the diagnosis.
Child ; Humans ; Williams Syndrome/diagnosis* ; Genetic Testing ; Facies ; Epilepsy/genetics* ; Chromosomes, Human, Pair 7/genetics* ; Chromosome Deletion

Clinical decision-making is a series of activities of medical scheme selection, which determines the direction of medical behavior and the level of patients' welfare. In practice, clinical decision-making is not only restricted by medical technology factors, but also by non-technical factors. Therefore, it is necessary to analyze and predict the possible influence of non-technical factors in clinical decision-making. Game theory is a scientific system of strategic choice, which can effectively predict and analyze the impact of non-technical factors on clinical decision-making process. According to the game analysis results between doctors and patients, medical management and pharmaceutical enterprises, we can predict the non-technical impacts in clinical decision-making and their influence paths, guide clinical decision-makers to choose excellent strategies, abide by rationality and give up moderately, so as to improve the level of clinical decision-making and the welfare of patients.

Objective To evaluate the effect of dexmedetomidine combined with erector spinae plane block on inflammatory responses and cellular immune function after thoracic interbody fusion in patients.Methods Ninety American Society of Anesthesiologists physical status Ⅰ or Ⅱ patients of both sexes,aged 18-60 yr,with body mass index of 19-25 kg/m2,scheduled for elective thoracic interbody fusion with the vertebral segments involved in the operation ＜6,were divided into 3 groups (n =30 each) using a random number table method:general anesthesia group (group G),dexmedetomidine group (group D) and dexmedetomidine plus erector spinae plane block group (group DE).In group D and group DE,dexmedetomidine was intravenously infused over 10 min at a loading dose of 0.5 μg/kg starting from 30 min before anesthesia induction,followed by continuous infusion of 0.5 μg · kg-1 · h-1 until 15 min before the end of operation.In group DE,bilateral erector spinae blocks were performed under ultrasound guidance at 20 min before anesthesia induction,and 0.25％ ropivacaine 30 ml was injected into each side.Patients received patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) after operation.The consumption of propofol was recorded.The patients were followed up for 48 h after operation,and the pressing times of PCA and consumption of sufentanil were recorded.The emergence time,extubation time and volume of blood loss were also recorded.Blood samples were collected from the radial artery immediately before induction (T1),at 30 min of operation (T2),and at 1 h and 1,3 and 5 days after operation (T3-6) for determination of plasma CD42+,HLA-DR+ and CD14+ concentrations,white blood cell (WBC) count (by electrical impedance method) and plasma C-reactive protein (CRP) concentrations (by latex-enhanced scattering turbidimetry assay).CD42+/CD14+ and HLA-DR+/CD14+ ratios were calculated.Results Compared with group G,the pressing times of PCA and consumption of sufentanil were significantly decreased,CD42+/CD14+ ratio was decreased,and HLA-DR+/CD14+ ratio was increased at T3-6 in group D,and the emergence time,extubation time,pressing times of PCA and consumption of sufentanil and propofol were significantly decreased,CD42+/CD14+ ratio was decreased,HLA-DR+/CD14+ratio was increased at T3-6,and the plasma CRP concentrations and WBC count were decreased at T2-6 in group DE (P ＜0.05).Compared with group D,the emergence time,extubation time,pressing times of PCA and consumption of sufentanil and propofol were significantly decreased,CD42+/CD14+ ratio was decreased at T5,HLA-DR+/CD14+ratio was increased at T3.4,and the plasma CRP concentrations and WBC count were decreased at T3-6 in group DE (P ＜0.05).Conclusion Dexmedetomidine combined with erector spinae plane block can reduce inflammatory responses and improve cellular immune function after thoracic interbody fusion in patients.

Objective:To summarize and analyze the current situation, contents and methods of curriculum ideological and political education practices in nursing health assessment courses, providing valuable recommendations for further advancing the integration of ethical and political education into health assessment courses.Methods:Following the PRISMA extension checklist for systematic reviews, this study systematically searched CNKI, Wanfang Database, VIP, China Biology Medicine disc, National Center for Philosophy and Social Sciences Documentation, China Academic Humanities and Social Sciences Library, and National Science and Technology Library for practical studies on ideological and political education in health assessment teaching. The search covered studies published up until December 31, 2023. Two researchers independently extracted and analyzed data from the included literature.Results:A total of 17 literature were included, identifying 25 ethical and political elements. Various teaching practices (such as scenario simulation, case-based teaching) and evaluation methods (such as course grades, professional identity) were employed.Conclusions:Ideological and political education practices in nursing health assessment courses have achieved certain effectiveness, with diverse ethical and political elements, flexible teaching methods, and varied teaching contents. However, there is still room for improvement in the integration methods, design, and evaluation of ideological and political education systems within the curriculum.

Objective To investigate the predictive value of preoperative frailty for pulmonary com-plications(PPCs)after cardiac surgery in elderly patients.Methods A total of 162 elderly patients,109 males and 53 females,aged 65-83 years,BMI 18-36 kg/m2,ASA physical status Ⅱ-Ⅳ,underwent elec-tive open heart surgery from July 2022 to January 2023 were collected.The patients were divided into two groups according to the occurrence of PPCs:the PPCs group(n=57)and the non-PPCs group(n=105).General information,smoking history,alcohol consumption history,EuroSCORE Ⅱ,frailty,chronic comorbidities(hypertension,diabetes mellitus,myocardial infarction,pulmonary hypertension,chronic ob-structive pulmonary disease,sleep apnea syndrome,etc.),Hb,creatinine,albumin,pulmonary function indices,left ventricular ejection fraction,type of surgery,duration of surgery,aortic clamping time,and cardiopulmonary bypass time were collected.Factors with P＜0.2 and clinically significant in the univariate regression analysis were included in the multivariate logistic regression analysis,and the predictive efficacy of the Fried frailty scale and EuroSCORE Ⅱ for PPCs were compared by the area under the ROC curve(AUC).Results PPCs occurred in 57 patients(35.2％).Multifactorial Logistic regression analysis showed that frailty(OR=3.14,95％CI 1.05-9.37,P＜0.05)and EuroSCORE Ⅱ(OR=2.16,95％CI 1.01-4.60,P＜0.05)were risk factors for the development of PPCs.The predictive power of Fried frailty scale(AUC=0.76,95％CI 0.68-0.82)was significantly higher than that of EuroSCORE Ⅱ(AUC=0.65,95％CI 0.57-0.72)(P＜0.05).Conclusion Preoperative frailty is the independent risk factors for pulmonary complications after cardiac surgery in elderly patients,and the Fried frailty scale has a better predictive efficacy compared to EuroSCORE Ⅱ,a traditional risk predictor.

Objective To establish the animal model of comorbidity of knee osteoarthritis(KOA)and hypertension with pattern of liver and kidney deficiency and evaluate its characteristics of comorbidity and pattern.Methods Wistar-Kyoto(WKY)rats and spontaneously hypertensive rats(SHR)were assigned to the WKY control group(control group),hypertension combined with KOA sham-operation group(sham-operation group),hypertension combined with KOA group(model group),hypertension combined with KOA and liver-kidney deficiency pattern group(LKD group).The animal model of KOA combined with hypertension was prepared by anterior cruciate ligament transection(ACLT)in spontaneously hypertensive rats.ACLT combined with intramuscular injection of hydrocortisone was performed to prepare an animal model of KOA with liver-kidney deficiency(LKD)pattern type,combined with hypertension.Then,the related indexes of LKD syndrome were detected in turn,including the contents of thyroid stimulating hormone(TSH),testosterone(T),corticosterone(CORT),adrenocorticotropic hormone(ACTH)in serum,and enzyme activities of alanine transaminase(ALT),aspartate transaminase(AST),and alkaline phosphatase(ALP)in serum,the mass ratio of liver,kidney,spleen,thymus to the brain,body weight,anal temperature,activity situation,and emotion.Systolic blood pressure,diastolic blood pressure,and other blood pressure-related indices were also detected.The levels of serum tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α)and interleukin-1β(IL-1β),plantar mechanical pain sensitivity threshold,weight difference score of both hind limbs,hind limb joint swelling,and quadruped gait parameters were also measured.Furthermore,hematoxylin-eosin,safranine-fast green,and Masson staining were performed to observe pathological changes,cartilage degeneration,and bone destruction of the knee joint,and the microstructure parameters of the tibia were detected by Micro-CT imaging.Results Compared to the model group,the contents of serum TSH,ACTH,T,CORT and the mass ratio of the kidney,spleen,and thymus to the brain in the LKD group decreased(P<0.05).Compared to the control group,the systolic blood pressure and diastolic blood pressure of the other three groups increased significantly(P<0.05).Compared to the sham-operation group,serum TNF-α and IL-1β levels increased,plantar mechanical pain threshold decreased,weight difference score of both hind limbs and joint swelling of the affected limb increased(P<0.05),and gait parameters(e.g.,gait length and standing time of the affected limbs)became abnormal in the model and LKD groups.Simultaneously,the cartilage surface defect of the rat knee joint was severe,the arrangement of the surface chondrocytes was altered,the cartilage layer became thinner,the muscle fibers increased,and the cartilage ossification was severe.Furthermore,the relative volume,thickness,and number of trabeculae of the knee joint decreased significantly(P<0.05).Conclusion The rat model established in this study is consistent with the clinical characteristics of integrated traditional Chinese and Western medicine in patients with comorbidities of hypertension and KOA with liver and kidney deficiency pattern.This rat model can characterize the typical symptoms of liver and kidney deficiency pattern.It has typical pathological changes in knee cartilage and subchondral bone tissues and can maintain a stable range of high systolic and diastolic blood pressure.It also explore the scientific connotation of simultaneous treatment of different diseases in traditional Chinese medicine,revealing the therapeutic mechanism and developing new drugs.

Objective:To develop a three-dimensional body image stimuli suitable for middle-aged people in China, and verify the validity and reliability of the body image stimuli.Method:According to China and World Health Organization body mass index classification standards of adults, a set of three-dimensional body image stimuli of Chinese middle-aged males and females with different body size was developed by using 3D Studio Max and Adobe Photoshop CC based on the literature and expert consultation method. Forty-two 45- and 59-year-old middle-aged people in Zhengzhou City, Henan Province were recruited to verify the three-dimensional body image stimuli. Through questionnaire survey and physical examination, the coincidence between the selected body type and the actual body type was tested; the body composition was measured by dual-energy absorptiometry (DXA), and the structure validity of the image was tested; the body size satisfaction was investigated by the body image stimuli and the standard questionnaire, and the empirical validity of the image was tested. The repeated survey was conducted 14 days after the initial survey, and three experts were invited to score the current somatotype of the subjects to test the test-retest reliability and inter-rater reliability of the body image stimuli. Pearson, Spearman, Kendall correlation and Kappa consistency analysis were used to evaluate the validity and reliability of the body image stimuli.Results:The average age of 42 subjects was 52.7 years old, including 13 males and 29 females. A group of three-dimensional body image stimuli of middle-aged men and women were developed, and each group included 8 images. 73.8% of the subjects chose the body size consistent with the actual body type, and the weighted Kappa coefficient was 0.755 ( P<0.01). The selected somatotype was positively correlated with body weight and body composition indexes such as fat content, and the Pearson correlation coefficient of construct validity was 0.623-0.717 ( P<0.05). The results of the two surveys were positively correlated, and the Spearman correlation coefficient of test-retest reliability was 0.784-0.821 ( P<0.05). The scores of the three experts on the current somatotype of the subjects were positively correlated, and the Kendall correlation coefficient of inter-rater reliability was 0.818-0.878 ( P<0.05). Conclusion:The development of principle and reference basis of three-dimensional body image stimuli of middle-aged people is reliable, and the validity and reliability of the body image stimuli are good.