Objective: To investigate a new method for improving the therapeutic effect on malignant glioma. Methods: A new type of killer cells, named GS-LAK, was induced by means of costimulating the peripheral ginsenoside(GS) and interleukin-2 (IL-2). Comparing with control group-LAK cells, cytotoxicity of GS-LAK cells against malignant glioma cells(BT325) was examined with MTI method. Results: It showed that GS-LAK cells exhibited some advantages over LAKcells in proliferation, cytotoxicity, as well as the utilizing of IL-2. Conclusion: The application of GS-LAK cells mightopen a new prospect to clinical therapeutic approach to malignant glioma.

Objective To describe the technique, efficacy, and safety of percutaneous interventional therapy for anastomotic biliary strictures after orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT).Methods From May 2004 to December 2009, 25 patients with anastomotic biliary strictures afte OLT were enrolled in our study. The modalities of biliary drainage included external drainage in 22patients, and external-internal drainage in 3 patients who underwent re-transplantation. All patients accepted percutaneous interventional therapy in our hospital, including single PTBD in 4 patients,PTBD combined with balloon dilation in 14 patients, balloon dilation and plastic stent implantation in 5 patients, balloon dilation and metallic stent implantation in 2 patients. The drainage catheters were exchanged every 1 to 3 months. Results The success rate of PTBD was 100%. Of the all 25patients, 15 (60 %) patients were cured, and 10 (40 %) patients were improved. The effective rate was 100 %. The drainage catheters failed to pass through the narrow bile duct when initial PTBD in 7 patients, and success was achieved in 3 patients by operation again after biliary drainage for one week.In the other 4 patients, anastomotic bile ducts were occluded, which was confirmed by cholangiography after biliary drainage for 4 to 8 weeks. The rate of biliary tract infection was 24 % (6/25). No serious procedure-related complications occurred in the all 25 patients. Conclusion PTBD combined with balloon dilation and biliary stenting is a effective and safe therapeutic modality for anastomotic biliary strictures after OLT, which can improve the patients' clinical symptoms and elevate patients' quality of life. To avoid bile duct occlusion, the drainage catheters should be passed through the narrow segments of bile duct when initial PTBD.

Objective To analyze the role of multislice spiral CT in the diagnosis of biliary com-plications following liver transplantation. Methods Forty-four patients with biliary complications re-ceived tri-phase contrast-enhancement CT examination and cholangiography (CP) within one week af-ter the CT scanning. Using the results of CP as the standard, we investigated the efficacy of multislice spiral CT for each kind of biliary complication. All the analyses for bile duct were based on the images on the late portal venous phase and the reconstruction of images performed with multiplan reformat,Results CP depicted biliary strictures involved in extrahepatic bile duct in 23 cases (including the common bile duct and common hepatic duct), left or right hepatic duct in 24 and intrahepatic bile duct in 27. The sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of the CT examination were 91.3%, 83. 3% , 87. 8%, 87. 5% and 88. 2% for biliary stricture in extrahe-patic bile duct, 83. 3% , 88. 2%, 85. 4%, 90. 9% and 78. 9% for biliary stricture in left or right he-patic duct, 74.1%, 92.7%, 80.5%, 95.2% and 65.0%, for biliary stricture in intrahepatic bile duct, respectively. CT detected intrahepatic biloma in 4 cases and abscess in 2 but CP only detected biloma in 2 cases. The other 4 cases did not detected by CP because of severe biliary strictures which filled with biliary sludge. CP confirmed anastomotic bile leak in 3 cases. In these cases, CT only de-picted the fluid collection in hepatic hilum and abdominal cavity, none of the exact leak site could be detected. CP detected biliary sludge or stones in 33 cases. However, the sensitivity, specificity, accu-racy, positive predictive value and negative predictive value of the CT examination for biliary sludge or stones were 72.7%,100.0%,78.1%,100.0%and 47.6%,respectively.Meanwhile,in 1 patient with diffuse intrahepatic biliary strictures,active biliary bleeding was correctly detected by CT exami-nation and confirmed by hepatic arteriography.Conclusion Tri-phase contrast-enhancement CT exam-ination can be used as a general method for biliary complications after liver transplantation.Besides its benefits in biliary complications,it is of great value for depicting complications involved in hepatic pa-renchyma and acute biliary bleeding in the same examination.

Objective To evaluate the feasibility of percutaneous transsplenic portal vein catheterization (PTSPC). Methods Thirty patients with portal hypertension underwent gastroesophageal variceal embolization via PTSPC route, 2 of which simultaneously underwent portal vein stenting. This study included the patients with portal venous obstruction ( tumor embolus or thrombus) or the patients with serious liver atrophy caused by liver cirrhosis. The patients who had severe coagulation insufficiency (with prothrombin time ＞ 20 s) were excluded. Of the 30 patients, 17 had primary hepatocellular carcinoma with main portal venous tumor embolus, 13 had cirrhosis with severe liver atrophy and(or) slight or moderate ascite. Before this study, all of 30 patients had a history of variceal bleeding, and 16 patients had a normal coagulation level, 10 patients had a mildly prolonged prothrombin time (14-17 s), 4 patients had a moderately prolonged prothrombin time (18-20 s). All of 30 patients underwent upper abdomen CT enhanced scanning before this procedure, and the site, direction, and depth of splenic vein branch puncture were decided by CT images. The technology of PTSPC, procedure-related complications, and its clinical application were retrospectively analyzed. Results PTSPC was performed successfully in 28 of 30 patients. Two cases failed because of a small intrasplenic vein. Procedure-related complications occurred in 6 patients (20. 0% ), which had decrease of hemoglobin concentration ( 15-50 g/L). Four of them needed blood transfusion. In the six patients, one patient (3.3%) with abdominal cavity hemorrhage had a serious drop of blood pressure 2 hours after procedure, whose clinical symptoms were relieved after four units of packed RBC and a great quantity of fluid were transfused. Twenty-eight patients whose PTSPC were successfullyperformed underwent variceal embolization, 2 of them were placed with portal vein covered stents. During a median follow-up period of 6 months (range: one to forty-two months), 14 patients died of hepatocellular carcinoma 1 to 12 months after procedure, and 2 patients died of hepatic failure caused by liver cirrhosis at fourteen months and twenty-three months after procedure, respectively. Variceal rebleeding was observed in 4 patients, the cumulative rebleeding rate at 1 year was 14.3%. Conclusion PTSPC is a feasible procedure, which provides a useful route for endovascular treatment of portal vein. However, hemorrhage at the puncture site after procedure should be noticed.

Objective To investigate the diagnosis and interventional therapeutic technology for the obstruction of hepatic vein(HV)or inferior vena cava(IVC)after liver transplantation.Methods In the 831 patients who received orthotopic liver transplantation(OLT)and 26 patients who received living donor liver transplantation(LDLT),11 cases were confirmed with HV or IVC obstruction by venography and received interventional treatment from 2 to 111 days after liver transplantation.Of the 11 patients,five had the obstruction of HV anastomosis,five had the obstruction of IVC anastomosis,and one had the obstruction of HV and IVC anastomosis.In the eleven patients,five patients underwent OLT,four patients underwent LDLT,and two pediatric patients underwent reduced-size OLT.Before interventional treatment,9 patients received CT enhanced scans,2 received MR enhanced scans.Follow-up evaluations included liver or renal function tests,clinical symptom,and monitoring of HV or IVC flow.Pressure gradients before and after interventional treatment were compared by using a paired t test.The imaging data and interventional therapeutic technology of 11 cases were retrospectively analyzed.Results In all 11 patients,CT or MRI could clearly show congested areas of the liver,and the location and degree of HV or IVC obstruction.Of the 11 patients,four with HV obstruction and five with IVC obstruction were treated with stent placement,one with HV obstruction was treated with percutaneous transluminal angioplasty(PTA),one with HV and IVC obstruction was treated with HV PTA and IVC stent placement.Interventional technical success was achieved in all patients.The venous pressure gradient across obstruction was significantly reduced from(16.5±4.1)mm Hg(1 mm Hg=0.133 kPa)before the procedure to(2.9±1.7)mm Hg after the rocedure(t= 11.5,P＜0.01).Clinical improvement was noted in 10 patients except one pediatric patient who died of multiple-organs failure at the 9 th day after the treatment During the follow-up period of 9 to 672 days,two patients with PTA treatment had recurrent HV stenosis within one month after treatment,no patient with stent placement developed venous restenosis.No major complications occurred during the procedures.Conclusions Stent placement is safe and effective for HV or IVC obstruction after liver transplantation.CT or MRI before treatment is of important value for the diagnosis of congested areas of the liver,and the observation of HV or IVC obstruction.

Objective To evaluate multisliee CT in the diagnosis of biliary complications after liver transplantation. Methods Eighty-three consecutive patients who had undergone orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) presented with clinical or biochemical signs of biliary complications and underwent contrast-enhancement CT examination. Three experienced radiologists, who were blinded to patient's clinical data, assessed CT images for the detection of biliary complications in consensus. Diagnostic confirmation of biliary complications was obtained with direct cholangiography in 69 patients, histologie study in 11 patients and hepatieojejunostomy in 3 patients. The sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of CT for the detection of biliary complications were calculated. In addition, CT features of anastomotie biliary stricture (ABS) were compared with those of non-anastomotie biliary stricture (NABS) using x2 test. Results A total of 62 biliary complications (74. 7% ) was eventually confirmed in the 83 patients, including ABS in 32 patients, NABS in 21 patients, biliary duct stones in 16 patients (of which 12 patients with biliary stricture), anastomotie bile leakage in 5 patients, biloma in 4 patients with biliary stricture, and biliogenic abscess in 2 patients with biliary stricture. The sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of CT for the detection of biliary stricture were 90. 6%、86. 7%、89. 2%、92. 3% and 83.9% , respectively. Other biliary complications, including biliary duct stones ( 16 cases) , anastomotic bile leak (5 cases) , biloma (4 cases), and biliogenic abscess (2 cases), were correctly diagnosed by CT; there was no false-positive or false-negative result. The incidence of irregular dilatation of bile duct was 71.4% ( 15/21 ), which was significantly higher in NABS cases than in ABS of 25.0% (8/32,P <0. 01 ) ; whereas the incidence of extrahepatie biliary dilatation was 33.3% (7/21) and regular dilatation was 14. 3% (3/21), which was significantly lower in NABS cases than in ABS of 84. 4% ( 27/32 ) and 68. 8% ( 22/32 ), respectively ( P < 0. 01 ). Of 21 patients with NABS, 66. 7% (14/21)complicated with hepatic artery stenosis or thrombosis, which was markedly more than that of NABS cases (15. 6%, 5/32,P <0. 01 ). Conclusions Multislice CT is a useful imaging procedure in the detection of biliary complications after liver transplantation, and biliary stricture can be primitively classified into ABS and NABS by CT. Hepatic artery ischemia is an important factor that causes NABS.

Objective:To investigate the effects of Jin's three needles combined with neuromuscular electrical stimulation on electromyography (EMG), muscle strength, and lower limb motor function in patients with hemiplegia after stroke.Methods:A total of 102 patients with hemiplegia after ischemic stroke who received treatment in Dongyang People's Hospital from July 2021 to August 2022 were included in this randomized controlled study. They were divided into a treatment group and a control group ( n = 51 per group) using a random number table method. The treatment group was given Jin's three needles combined with neuromuscular electrical stimulation, and the control group was given neuromuscular electrical stimulation alone. The National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) was used to assess the degree of neurological impairment. The modified Barthel Index (MBI) score was used to assess a patient's self-care ability. EMG was performed to record myoelectric signals. The Fugl-Meyer Assessment Scale was used to evaluate a patient's lower limb motor function. Manual Muscle Testing was performed to measure a patient's muscle strength. The degree of nerve defect, self-care ability, lower limb motor function, hip flexion muscle strength, knee extensor muscle strength, and ankle dorsalis extensor muscle strength were compared before treatment and after 2 weeks of treatment. Results:After treatment, the NIHSS score in the treatment and control groups significantly decreased compared with those before treatment [(10.14 ± 3.45) points vs. (3.80 ± 1.92) points, (10.10 ± 3.17) points vs. (6.18 ± 2.15) points, t = 17.31, 19.08, both P < 0.05]. After treatment, the NIHSS score in the treatment group was lower than that in the control group ( t = -5.87, P < 0.001). After treatment, the integral EMG values of the tibialis anterior muscle, gastrocnemius muscle, and quadriceps femoris in the treatment and control groups were increased compared with those before treatment [(20.43 ± 5.26) points vs. (48.14 ± 10.41) points, (16.20 ± 2.62) points vs. (24.69 ± 4.07) points, (32.62 ± 3.42) points vs. (43.40 ± 4.69) points; (20.40 ± 5.19) points vs. (35.45 ± 7.41) points, (16.32 ± 2.51) points vs. (20.91 ± 3.45) points, (32.59 ± 3.37) points vs. (37.39 ± 4.06) points, t = -23.79, -16.11, -19.89; -21.92, -10.86, -8.71, all P < 0.05]. After treatment, the integral EMG values of the tibialis anterior muscle, gastrocnemius muscle, and quadriceps femoris in the treatment group were significantly higher than those in the control group ( t = 7.09, 5.05, 6.92, all P < 0.001). After treatment, The Fugl-Meyer Assessment scale score in the treatment and control groups were significantly increased compared with that before treatment [(17.61 ± 8.93) points vs. (27.16 ± 5.84) points, (17.53 ± 7.59) points vs. (22.22 ± 6.66) points, t = -14.64, -10.72, both P < 0.05). After treatment, The Fugl-Meyer Assessment scale score in the treatment group was significantly higher than that in the control group ( t = 3.98, P < 0.001). After treatment, hip flexion muscle strength, knee extensor muscle strength, and ankle dorsalis extensor muscle strength in the treatment and control groups increased compared with those before treatment. After treatment, hip flexion muscle strength, knee extensor muscle strength, and ankle dorsalis extensor muscle strength in the treatment group were significantly higher than those in the control group [(3.75 ± 0.63) grades vs. (3.31 ± 0.65) grades, (3.51 ± 0.67) grades vs. (3.08 ± 0.87) grades, (2.98 ± 0.81) grades vs.(2.35 ± 1.06) grades, t = 3.41, 2.80, and 3.36, all P < 0.05]. Conclusion:Jin's three needles combined with neuromuscular electrical stimulation can improve EMG findings, increase muscle strength, and lower limb motor function in patients with hemiplegia after stroke

Objective To investigate the methods and efficacy of percutaneous transhepatic biliary drainage(PTBD)for the treatment of bile duct fistula related to orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT).Methods Seven patients(the median age was 40,from 25 to 56 years)with bile duct fistula related to OLT from January 2007 to May 2008 were analyzed retrospectively,including 6 receptors of OLT and 1 donor of living-donor liver tansplantation(LDLT),with anastomotic bile duct fistula and peripheral duct fistula of resection surface respectively.Of the 6 OLT receptors,hepatic artery stenosis occurred in 2 cases.All the patients underwent external biliary drainage(namely,with the drain tip in a pre-leak site).When the orificium fistulae was occluded and no bile drained from the drainage tube of abdominal cavity,the patients were diagnosed as cured.Results The mean output of the drainage tube was 350 ml/day(range 180-450 ml/day).After PTBD for 21 to 87 days(the median time was 62 days),the bile duct fistula was cured in all the 7 patients.During 93-675 days(the median time was 124 days)of follow-up,4 cases survived with normal level of health,2 cases gave up treatment for multiple-organ failure and 1 case died of hepatic function failure after hepatoma recurred.Biliary tract infection was occurred in 1 patient during PTBD.Conclusion PTBD could be proposed as a safe,effective and convenient method for treantment of bile duct fistula even in patients with poor general condition.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the relationship between concentration of serum leptin and age in females, and to establish the reference value and compare it with other races. METHODS: Serum leptin concentration of 690 adult healthy women (aged 20 approximately 81 years) was measured with ELISA. RESULTS: The serum leptin concentration increased with age (r=0.224, P<0.001), and cubic regression was the best-fitting model. Leptin concentration had significant positive correlation with weight (r=0.574) and body mass index (r=0.618). The geometric mean of leptin concentration in normal weight, overweight and obesity was (8.94+/-1.82), (17.6+/-1.89), and (34.7+/-1.69) microg/L, respectively, with significant difference among the 3 groups (P<0.001). Leptin in pre-menopause, peri-menopause and post-menopause women was (9.68+/-1.81), (11.7+/-1.89), and (11.4+/-2.21) microg/L, respectively. The reference value of serum leptin in normal weight females was 5.30 approximately 12.6 microg/L. The curve-fitting of leptin with age in this group was significantly lower than American non Hispanic White (NHW), non Hispanic Black (NHB), and American Mexican (AM) females. CONCLUSION This study provides reliable reference value of serum leptin in adult women and discovers ethnic difference with American NHW, NHB, and AM females.
Adult ; Age Factors ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; China ; ethnology ; European Continental Ancestry Group ; Female ; Humans ; Leptin ; blood ; Middle Aged ; Reference Values ; Young Adult

Hepatic venous outflow obstruction is a severe complication after liver transplantation, often occurs after living donor liver transplantation (LDLT). In this article, the clinical and imaging data of two patients with hepatic venous outflow obstruction after LDLT were analyzed retrospectively, and the related literatures were reviewed to explore the diagnosis and the interventional therapy of this complication. Hepatic venous outflow obstruction can be confirmed with percutaneous transhepatic venography. Percutaneous interventional managements, including balloon angioplasty and stent implantation are safe, easy and effective for the treatment of hepatic venous outflow obstruction after adult-to-adult living donor liver transplantation (A-A LDLT).