Objective To investigate the effect of tongue tie corrective surgery on the development of language in children with short lingual frenulum.Methods 94 children with short lingual frenulum were selected,and under the permission of the patients'family they were randomly divided into two groups.The treatment group received ankylotomy and language training.The control group was only given language training.The clinical efficacy,improvement time of pronunciation and adverse reactions were compared between the two groups.Results The total effective rate of the treatment group was 91.49％,which was significantly higher than 72.34％ of the control group (x2 =5.816,P ＜0.05).The improvement time of pronunciation in the treatment group was significantly shorter than the control group(t =21.250,P ＜ 0.01).There were no serious adverse reactions observed in two groups.Conclusion Tongue tie correction surgery can significantly affect the language development in children with short lingual frenulum,the improvement time of pronunciation is short,which is worthy of clinical application.

Objective To study the value of 64-slice spiral CT digital subtraction technique in the diagnosis of intracranial aneurysms.Methods 36 patients with subarachnoid hemorrhage underwent 64-slice spiral CT examination,including unenhanced CT scan and enhanced CT scan.The image data were used to reconstruct the conventional CTA and digital subtraction CTA(DSCTA).Then the differences of image quality and diagnostic efficiency between the CTA and DSCTA were compared based on the standard of DSA . Results There were 40 intracranial aneurysms in 36 patients . 40 aneurysms were detected completely by DSCTA,the sensitivity and specificity of the DSCTA were both 100% . 37 aneurysms were detected by CTA , and the sensitivity and specificity were 92.5% and 100%,respectively.There was significant difference in image quality between CTA and DSCTA(P＜0.01).Conclusion DSCTA with 64-slice spiral CT might be the first diagnostic tool in screening intracranial aneurysm.

For the establishment of chemical library of protoberberines provided for the bio-activity screening, the target compounds were synthesized by thermal degradation and nucleophilic substitution reactions with the bio-active alkaloid, palmatine (1), as the raw material, and their structures were identified and conformed by 1H-NMR and MS spectra. Among them, 13 compounds were new.
Berberine Alkaloids ; chemical synthesis ; chemistry ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; chemical synthesis ; chemistry ; Molecular Structure

Objective To report the clinical outcome and prognostic factors for locally recurrent nasopharyngeal carcinoma(NPC)treated with intensity modulated radiotherapy(IMRT).Methods From January 2001 to August 2004,the data of 132 such NPC patients were analyzed retrospectively;104 male and 28 female with a median of 44.5 years(range 21-73 years).Ninety-eight patients(74.2%)were confirmed by biopsy as having NPC:9 with WHO TypeⅡand 89 WHO TypeⅢ.The other 34 patients were only diagnosed by MRI scan because of the extension/invasion was in the base of skull and/or cavernous sinus.Median interval time were 24 months(range 6-184 months).According to the 1992 Chinese Fuzhou Staging System:stageⅠ3.8 %,Ⅱ10.6 %,Ⅲ22.0% andⅣa 63.6%;T1 5.3%,T2 10.6%,T3 22.7% and T4 55.3%.Twenty-two patients had recurrence in the neck lymph nodes.IMRT was given with the sequential tomotherapy system(NOMOS Peacock systems)of 6 MV X-rays.Prescription dose was 60-70 Gy in GTV,with the fractional dose of 1.94-2.8 Gy.Sixty patients were also supplemented with two to six courses of cisplatin-based chemotherapy.Results The median volume of GTV was 39.5 cm~3(range 0.8-158.9 cm~3).The D95,V95,mean dose and fractionation dose of GTV was 66.9 Gy,98.3%,69.8 Gy and 2.32 Gy,respectively.The median follow-up time was 12 months(range,2-47 months).The 1-,2-and 3-year local progression-free rate was 96.4%,88.4% and 85.3%,respectively.The overall 1-,2-and 3-year survival rate was 6.5.9%,49.6% and 41.6%,respectively.Eleven patients developed distant metastases.Forty-seven patients were observed to devdop mucosa necrosis and/or massive hemorrhage in the nasopharynx.On univariate and multivariate analysis,fractional dose and vohane of GTV were significant prognostic factors for overall survival(P=0.016,0.009).Conclusions The local control and survival rate can be improved for patients with locally recurrent nasopharygeal carcinoma after treatment of intensity modulated radiotherapy.The fractional dose and volume of GTV are independent prognostic factors for the overall survival. The main death reasons are mucosa necrosis and/or massive hemorrhage in the nasopharynx.

Adult ; Dermatitis, Occupational ; etiology ; Drug Eruptions ; etiology ; Humans ; Male ; Phthalimides ; adverse effects

OBJECTIVETo investigate the expression of Slingshot-1L (SSH-1L) in peripheral blood eosinophils of asthmatic patients.

METHODSPeripheral vein blood sample of 30 ml was collected from 15 healthy volunteers, 15 asthmatic patients with glucocorticoid treatment and 15 asthmatic patients without the treatment. The eosinophils were isolated, purified and counted for each sample, and SSH-1L/beta-actin gene fragments were amplified simultaneously by RT-PCR for the total RNA. SSH-1L protein was detected by Western blotting from the total protein of the peripheral eosinophils. The expressions of SSH-1L at both mRNA and protein levels are compared between different groups.

RESULTSSSH-1L/beta-actin ratio significantly increased in untreated patients with asthma attacks in comparison with healthy volunteers (P<0.05), which did not occur in patients treated with glucocorticoids (P>0.05). The optical density of SSH-1L protein significantly increased in untreated asthmatic patients (P<0.05), but not in patients treated with glucocorticoids (P>0.05), as compared with the healthy volunteers.

CONCLUSIONSignificantly increased SSH-1L expression in peripheral eosinophils may play an important role in the activation and migration of eosinophils.

Actin Depolymerizing Factors ; metabolism ; Actins ; metabolism ; Adult ; Asthma ; blood ; Blotting, Western ; Eosinophils ; metabolism ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Phosphoprotein Phosphatases ; biosynthesis ; genetics ; RNA, Messenger ; biosynthesis ; genetics ; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction

OBJECTIVESTo investigate the relationships among rotational alignment reference axes of distal femur and tibial mechanical axis, and determine the safest rotational alignment reference axis.

METHODSDigital photos were taken of 30 cadaveric lower extremities with knee in extension and flexion at 90 degrees , angles were measured among tibial mechanical axis and a line perpendicular to clinical epicondylar axis, a line perpendicular to surgical epicondylar axis, Whiteside's line and femoral mechanical axis. Statistical analysis of relationships among those axes were performed.

RESULTSThe angles among the tibial mechanical axis and a line perpendicular to the clinical epicondylar axis, a line perpendicular to the surgical epicondylar axis, Whiteside's line and femoral mechanical axis were 0.6 degrees varus, 3.9 degrees varus, 0.2 degrees valgus and 3.0 degrees varus respectively. The angle between the femoral mechanical axis and the tibial mechanical axis was significantly larger than the angles among the tibial mechanical axis and a line perpendicular to the clinical epicondylar axis, the Whiteside's line (P < 0.05). There was no significant difference compared with the angle between a line perpendicular to the surgical epicondylar axis and the tibial mechanical axis. Angles of the clinical epicondylar axis, the surgical epicondylar axis and the Whiteside's line between knee extension and flexion were 2.3 degrees valgus, 0.9 degrees varus and 3.1 degrees valgus respectively.

CONCLUSIONThe surgical epicondylar axis rather than the clinical epicondylar axis or the Whiteside's line is the safest femoral rotational alignment reference axis intraoperatively.

Arthroplasty, Replacement, Knee ; Biomechanical Phenomena ; Femur ; anatomy & histology ; surgery ; Humans ; Knee Prosthesis ; Rotation ; Tibia ; anatomy & histology ; surgery

OBJECTIVETo investigate the expression of vitamin D3 upregulated protein-1 (VDUP1) in peripheral eosinophils at different stages of asthma and its correlation with clinical manifestations of asthma.

METHODSFourteen normal volunteers and 51 mild to moderate asthma patients, including 16 untreated patients with asthma attack and 35 with asthma remission by continuously corticosterone inhalation. The symptom severity and pulmonary function indices were evaluated and induced sputum eosinophil counts and blood eosinophil count measured. VDUP1 and beta-actin gene fragments were amplified simultaneously by RT-PCR from the total RNA of peripheral eosinophils, and 10 microl of the RT-PCR product underwent agarose gel electrophoresis and the VDUP1/beta-actin ratio was obtained by Gel-Pro software.

RESULTSVDUP1/beta-actin ratio significantly decreased in untreated patients with asthma attacks in comparison with normal volunteers (0.314+/-0.242 vs 0.532 +/-0.279) but not in patients with asthma remission (0.612+/-0.381). In the former patients, a positive correlation of VDUP1/beta-actin ratio was found with FEV1.0% (r=0.587, P=0.046) and %PEF (r=0.563, P=0.033), whereas an inverse one observed with sputum eosinophil count (r=-0.436, P=0.049).

CONCLUSIONVDUP1 expression in the eosinophils correlates to eosinophil activation and may influence the disease severity of asthma patients.

Actins ; biosynthesis ; genetics ; Asthma ; blood ; metabolism ; Carrier Proteins ; biosynthesis ; genetics ; Eosinophils ; metabolism ; Humans ; Maximal Expiratory Flow-Volume Curves ; Peak Expiratory Flow Rate ; Respiratory Function Tests ; Thioredoxins ; biosynthesis ; genetics

OBJECTIVETo construct a subtracted cDNA library of differentially expressed genes in eosinophils from asthma patients.

METHODSSuppression subtractive hybridization (SSH) was used to isolate the cDNA fragments of differentially expressed genes in the eosinophils of asthma patients before and after treatment. The cDNA fragments were directly inserted into T/A cloning vector to establish the subtractive library, followed by amplification of the library through E. coli transformation with calcium chloride and screening of blue and white clones of the transformants. One hundred positive bacterial clones were randomly picked and identified by colony PCR.

RESULTSThe amplified library contained more than 3,000 positive bacterial clones. Analysis of the randomly selected 100 white clones by PCR showed that 90% of the clones contained 100-500 bp inserts, which might be the cDNA fragments of differentially expressed genes in eosinophils of asthma patients before treatment.

CONCLUSIONA subtracted cDNA library of differentially expressed genes in the eosinophils of asthma patients before and after treatment is constructed successfully by SSH and T/A cloning techniques, which lays a solid foundation for screening and cloning new specific differentially.expressed genes in the eosinophils of asthma patients.

Asthma ; blood ; genetics ; DNA, Complementary ; genetics ; Eosinophils ; metabolism ; Gene Expression Profiling ; Gene Expression Regulation ; genetics ; Gene Library ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Nucleic Acid Hybridization