BACKGROUND:The aim of spinal mobilization and spinal manipulation is to correct vertebral subluxation. However, facet joint pressures are not clear during these two therapies.
OBJECTIVE:To compare human lumbar facet joint pressures during simulated high-velocity, low-amplitude spinal manipulationversuslow-velocity, low-amplitude spinal mobilization.
METHODS:Totaly 12 adult fresh lumbar spinal specimens (T12-S2) were divided into two groups randomly. Parameters of simulated spinal mobilization (n=6): preload angle 15° (speed 3°/s), maximum angle 20° (speed 1°/s), with 9 N horizontal force to L5 spinous process. Parameters of simulated spinal manipulation (n=6): preload angle 15° (speed 3°/s), impulse angle 20° (impulse speed 33°/s), with 22 N horizontal force to L5 spinous process. Pressures of bilateral L4-5/L5-S1 facet joints were measured with Tekscan system.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:(1) During two spinal manipulative therapies (rotation to the right and then back to the neutral position), pressures of right facet joints decreased first and then increased gradualy, while pressures of left facet joints changed oppositely. (2) Pressures of right facet joints were similar regardless of manipulation type (P > 0.05). The maximum pressure of left facet joints was larger during manipulation than that during mobilization (P < 0.05). (3) Descending speed of pressures of right joint was larger during manipulation than that during mobilization (P < 0.01), and no significant difference in ascending speed of pressure of right facet joints was detected (P > 0.05). Both ascending and descending speeds of the left facet joints were larger during manipulation than that during mobilization (P < 0.01). (4) During two spinal manipulative therapies, pressures of ipsilateral facet joints decreased first and then increased, while pressures of contralateral facet joints increased first and then decreased. Joint pressure after treatment restored to that before treatment. (5) Impulse speed and magnitude of pressures of facet joints during manipulation were larger than that during mobilization. Facet joints are more possible to be injured during manipulation than that during mobilization. During manipulation, we should pay attention to the speed and intensity of the impact.

Objective:To investigate the initial effectiveness of manual techniques versus navigation positioning system-assisted reconstruction for anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries in children and adolescent populations.Methods:A retrospective analysis was conducted on 28 patients with ACL rupture who underwent primary total epiphyseal ACL reconstruction in the Sports Medicine Treatment Center of Honghui Hospital Affiliated to Xi'an Jiaotong University from January 2019 to October 2022. Patients were categorized into two groups based on the method of guide needle insertion: the manual group (guide needle insertion relying on the operator's expertise) and the robot-assisted group (guide needle insertion assisted by the Tianji robot navigation and positioning system). The manual group comprised 14 cases (9 males, 5 females) with an average age of 13.59±1.59 years, while the robot-assisted group included 14 patients (10 males, 4 females) with an average age of 13.27±1.66 years. The operation time, intraoperative fluoroscopy times, guide needle placement times, the distance between the central point of the internal articular opening of the tibial and femoral bone tunnel and the ideal point, the rate of epiphyseal inflammation, and the International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC) subjective score, Lysholm score, KT-2000 ligament relaxation, lower limb force line were compared between the two groups.Results:The follow-up duration was 19.9±6.3 months for the manual group and 18.8±4.9 months for the robot group ( t=0.546, P=0.589). The manual group's operation duration was 123.0±12.6 min, significantly longer than the robot group's 96.4±12.9 min ( t=5.502, P<0.001). Intraoperative fluoroscopy was performed 11.8±3.1 times in the manual group, markedly more than the robot group's 3.7±0.8 times ( t=9.434, P<0.001). The robot group required only one guide needle placement for both femur and tibia, while the manual group had 5.7±1.2 placements on the femur side and 4.6±1.8 on the tibia side. The distance between the femoral joint's central point and the ideal point was 0.87±0.20 mm in the robot group, superior to the manual group's 1.92±0.64 mm ( t=5.816, P<0.001). Similarly, the distance between the central point and the ideal point was 1.15±0.34 mm for the robot group, better than the manual group's 1.94±0.55 mm ( t=4.582, P<0.001). No cases of epiphyseal irritation were observed in the robot group, while 21% (3/14) of the manual group experienced tibial or femoral epiphyseal plate involvement. At 3 months post-surgery, the robot group exhibited higher IKDC subjective scores (90.57±8.46) and Lysholm scores (86.29±5.09) compared to the manual group (83.50±6.19 and 80.93±5.93), respectively ( P<0.05). However, at the final follow-up, there were no significant differences in IKDC subjective scores, Lysholm scores, or KT-2000 ligament relaxation between the two groups ( P>0.05). Both groups showed normal lower limb force alignment and no abnormal growth or development. Conclusion:Tianji robot navigation and positioning system-assisted ACL reconstruction in children and adolescents offer advantages such as precise positioning, shorter operation times, reduced intraoperative fluoroscopy, faster recovery, and enhanced epiphyseal protection compared to manual methods.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the efficacy and safety of rituximab （RTX） in the treatment of children with refractory nephrotic syndrome （RNS） based on the real world by meta-analysis. METHODS A systematic search was conducted on CNKI， Wanfang， VIP， PubMed， Embase， Web of Science， the Cochrane Library， and CINAHL databases to strictly screen the literature and evaluate their quality. A meta-analysis was performed on the extracted literature data using R 4.2.2 and RStudio software. RESULTS A total of 26 real-world studies were included in this study， involving 996 children with steroid-dependent nephrotic syndrome/frequente-relapse nephrotic syndrome （SDNS/FRNS） and 205 children with steroid-resistant nephrotic syndrome （SRNS）. The results of the meta-analysis showed that the complete remission （CR） rate of RTX treatment for RNS was 46% （95%CI： 37%-56%）， the partial remission （PR） rate was 22% （95%CI： 14%-31%）， and the discontinuation rate was 35% （95%CI： 25%-44%）. The results of subgroup analysis showed that the CR rate of RTX treatment in SDNS/FRNS children was 49% （95%CI： 37%-62%）， PR rate was 25% （95%CI： 0-50%）， discontinuation rate was 41% （95%CI： 29%-52%）； the CR rate in SRNS children was 42% （95%CI： 27%-56%）， PR rate was 22%（95%CI： 12%-32%）， discontinuation rate was 21% （95%CI： 4%-38%）. The recurrence rate in children with SDNS/FRNS was 39% （95%CI： 21%-57%） within 1 year or less， 18% （95%CI： 18%-98%） in 2 years and more. As for safety， the majority of adverse reactions were mild infusion reactions， with an incidence of 13% （95%CI： 8%-22%）. Sensitivity analysis suggested that the results were robust. There was publication bias in mild infusion 20210908-BZ-CACM） reaction rate. CONCLUSIONS RTX is effective and safe in the treatment of RNS in children.

In the era of evidence-based medicine, it is necessary to explore the unique advantages of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) based on standardized technical methods and operating procedures in order to achieve the modernization and internationalization of TCM and benefit all humanity. The proposal of a three-pronged evidence system combining TCM theory, human experience and experimental evidence marks an important progress in the thinking method of the TCM evaluation system. The multi-evidence body integrated through appropriate methods provides a strong support for the clinical guideline recommendations and evidence-based health decision-making in TCM. Based on the current methodological progress of international evidence synthesis and grading, this paper proposes a novel approach for integrating multi-evidence in TCM: the MERGE framework. The aim is to establish a solid foundation for the development of this methodology and provide guidance for the advancement of evidence-based medicine framework in TCM.