BACKGROUNDTo investigate the incidence and risk factors of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) in two Neonatal Intensive Care Units in North and South of China, respectively.

METHODSWe studied data concerning 472 infants with gestational age (GA) ≤ 34 weeks or birth weight (BW) ≤ 2000 g who were admitted to the Zhujiang Hospital of Southern Medical University and the Fourth Hospital of Shijiazhuang between January 1, 2011 and December 31, 2011. Clinical information about perinatal neonates was collected and was confirmed by reviewing medical charts. The incidence and severity of ROP were assessed in the screened population. Main outcome measures are the incidence and severity of ROP. The relationship of clinical risk factors and the development of ROP were analyzed.

RESULTSThe overall incidence of ROP was 12.7%, and the overall incidence of type 1 ROP was 2.3%; 9.4% of infants in Zhujiang Hospital had ROP compared to 15.0% infants in the Fourth Hospital of Shijiazhuang developed ROP, and the difference is statistically significant. ROP was significantly associated with GA (odds ratio [OR]: 0.77 [0.62-0.95], P = 0.015), BW (OR: 0.998 [0.996-0.999], P = 0.008), maternal supplemental oxygen administration before and during delivery (OR: 4.27 [1.21-15.10], P = 0.024) and preeclampsia (OR: 6.07 [1.73-21.36] P = 0.005). The risk factors for ROP are different in two hospitals. In Zhujiang Hospital, BW is the independent risk factors for ROP while GA, BW and preeclampsia in the Fourth Hospital in Shijiazhuang Conclusions: Retinopathy of prematurity incidence is different based on area. Incidence of ROP is still high in China. More efforts need to prevent ROP.

China ; Female ; Humans ; Infant, Newborn ; Intensive Care Units, Neonatal ; statistics & numerical data ; Male ; Retinopathy of Prematurity ; epidemiology ; Risk Factors

OBJECTIVETo investigate whether IL-10 gene modification on immature dendritic cells (iDC) could induce autoimmune tolerance in rat experimental autoimmune myocarditis (EAM).

METHODSEAM was induced by cardiac myosin immunization on day 0 and day 7 in rats. A total of 2 x 10(6) mature DC (mDC), iDC, pcDNA3 transfected iDC, pcDNA3-IL-10 transfected iDC or PBS were injected intravenously at 5th immunization day. Three weeks later, echocardiography and HE staining were performed to observe the cardiac function and myocardial inflammation. Th1/Th2 cytokines were detected by ELISA and MHC-II molecules, costimulatory molecules were identified by flow cytometry. In vitro T lymphocyte proliferation assay and adoptive transfer of DCs were performed to determine the antigen specific tolerance induced by IL-10 gene modification on iDCs.

RESULTSEAM rats treated with pcDNA3-IL-10 transfected iDC showed improved cardiac function and reduced inflammatory cells infiltration into myocardium. Moreover, lower Th1 and higher Th2-type response was induced, MHC-II and costimulatory molecules down-regulated and antigen specific immunological responses towards cardiac myosin inhibited in pcDNA3-IL-10-iDC treated EAM rats.

CONCLUSIONTreatment with IL-10 gene modified iDCs could ameliorates EAM by inducing Th2 polarization and down-regulation of MHC-II molecules and costimulatory molecule expressions.

Animals ; Animals, Genetically Modified ; Autoimmune Diseases ; immunology ; Bone Marrow Cells ; Cell Line ; Dendritic Cells ; immunology ; Genetic Therapy ; Immune Tolerance ; Interleukin-10 ; genetics ; immunology ; Myocarditis ; immunology ; Rats ; Rats, Inbred Lew

OBJECTIVETo explore the fact that the east border of Heilongjiang had been a lyme disease natural focus,we investigated the species and distribution of ticks and isolated bacteria from ticks and identified genomic species of Borrelia burdorferi sensu lato. This study provided evidence for prevention and control of lyme disease.

METHODSTicks were caught by flagging method and Direct immunofluorescence method was used to detect the rate of bacteria borne by the tick. BSK UI culture medium was used to isolate the agent and Specific McAbs were used to identify the bacteria. SDS-PAGE protein profile and PCR-RFLP method were also used to identify the species of Spirochetes.

RESULTSTicks, collected from China-Russia border of east Heilongiiang province were classified including Ixodes persulcatus Schulze, Dermacentor sivarum Olener, Haemaphysalis concinna Kock,and Haemaphysalis japonica Kock. We found that the distributon of ticks was different under different circumstances and the predominant species were also different in different ports. The rate of bacteria borne by Iodes persulaatus Schulze was 31.4% ,by Dermacentor sivarum Olener and Haemaphysalis concinna Kock were 2.2% and 3.8%, respectively. However,it was negative for Haenaphysalis japonica Kock. Spirochetes isolated from Ixodes persulcatus Schulze were collected from Dongning and Tongjiang while Genomic species of Spirochetes, isolated from ticks of the border belonged to B. garinii.

CONCLUSIONAll the results showed that the east border of Heilongjiang province was the natural focus of lyme disease.

Animals ; Arachnid Vectors ; classification ; microbiology ; Borrelia burgdorferi ; classification ; genetics ; isolation & purification ; China ; Humans ; Lyme Disease ; microbiology ; Russia ; Ticks ; classification ; microbiology

BACKGROUNDBivalirudin was widely used as an anticoagulant during coronary interventional procedure in western countries. However, it was not available in China before this clinical trial was designed. This randomized, single-blind and multicenter clinical trial aimed to evaluate the efficacy and the safety of domestic bivalirudin during percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).

METHODSA randomized, single-blind, multicenter trial was designed. Elective PCI candidates in five centers were randomized into a bivalirudin group and a heparin group, which were treated with domestic bivalirudin and non-fractional heparin during the PCI procedure. The efficacy was evaluated by comparing the activated coagulation time (ACT), the procedural success rate (residual stenosis < 20% in target lesions without any coronary artery related adverse events within 24 hours after PCI), and the survival rate without major adverse cardiac events at 30 days after PCI between the two groups. Safety was evaluated by the major/minor bleeding rate.

RESULTSA total of 218 elective PCI patients were randomized into a bivalirudin group (n = 110) and heparin group (n = 108). Except for two patients needing additional dosing in the heparin group, the ACT values of all other patients in both groups were longer than 225 seconds at 5 minutes after the first intravenous bolus. Procedural success rates were respectively 100.0% and 98.2% in the bivalirudin group and heparin group (P > 0.05). Survival rates without major adverse cardiac events at 30 days after PCI were 100.0% in the bivalirudin group and 98.2% in the heparin group (P > 0.05). Mild bleeding rates were 0.9% and 6.9% (P < 0.05) at 24 hours, and 1.9% and 8.8% (P < 0.05) at 30 days after PCI in the bivalirudin group and heparin group respectively. There was one severe gastrointestinal bleeding case in the heparin group.

CONCLUSIONSDomestic bivalirudin is an effective and safe anticoagulant during elective PCI procedures. The efficacy is not inferior to heparin, but the safety is superior to heparin.

Aged ; Antithrombins ; adverse effects ; therapeutic use ; Female ; Heparin ; therapeutic use ; Hirudins ; adverse effects ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Peptide Fragments ; adverse effects ; therapeutic use ; Percutaneous Coronary Intervention ; Recombinant Proteins ; adverse effects ; therapeutic use ; Single-Blind Method ; Survival Rate ; Whole Blood Coagulation Time

OBJECTIVETo investigate the imaging features, clinical manifestations and pathological characteristics of solitary fibrous tumors (SFT).

METHODSThe clinicopathological manifestations and medical imaging findings were analyzed retrospectively in 27 patients with surgically confirmed SFT.

RESULTSThe SFTs originated from different parts of the body, including 18 in the chest, 4 in the abdomen, 1 in the lumboscral area, 3 in the pelvis, and 1 in the left shoulder. Twenty-three cases were found by CT scan, among which there were 16 benign diseases, presented with well-defined round or elliptic margins, with homogeneous attenuation and clearly surrounding; 6 malignant cases with unclear demarcations, invasive surrounding, heterogeneous attenuation due to calcification and/or irregular necrosis, and 1 junctional case with well-defined margins, which was enlarged during follow-up. There were 4 SFTs scanned by MRI with clear margin and homogeneous or heterogeneous signal intensity. All of the 4 cases were isointense or hyperintense to muscle on T1-weighted images, and were hyperintense on the T2-weighted images. All tumors showed heterogeneously intense enhancement with geographic pattern. Immunohistochemical staining showed that CD34-positive was 81.5%, vimentin (100.0%), CD99 (100.0%) and bcl-2 (96.3%), as well as negative CK (100.0%) and S-100 (96.3%).

CONCLUSIONThe location of SFT is varying. Though its clinical manifestations vary, the diagnosis is depended on pathology and immunohistochemistry. There are certain specific features related to SFTs on CT or MRI. These imaging techniques may serve to provide helpful information as to the location and vicinal anatomic structure of the tumor, which is of substantial importance for planning surgery.

12E7 Antigen ; Abdominal Neoplasms ; diagnosis ; metabolism ; pathology ; surgery ; Adult ; Aged ; Antigens, CD ; metabolism ; Antigens, CD34 ; metabolism ; Cell Adhesion Molecules ; metabolism ; Female ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Pelvic Neoplasms ; diagnosis ; metabolism ; pathology ; surgery ; Retrospective Studies ; Solitary Fibrous Tumor, Pleural ; diagnosis ; metabolism ; pathology ; surgery ; Solitary Fibrous Tumors ; diagnosis ; metabolism ; pathology ; surgery ; Tomography, Spiral Computed ; Vimentin ; metabolism ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVEThe aim of this study was to evaluate the value of diffusion weighted imaging (DWI) in the diagnosis of patients with breast diseases.

METHODSFifty-three consecutive patients were scanned with GE signa HDx 1.5 T magnetic resonance system equipped with 8-channel breast coil. DWI was scanned by SE-EPI sequence in b values of 500 s/mm(2) and 800 s/mm(2), respectively. The apparent diffusion coefficients (ADC) of these lesions were measured. The mean apparent diffusion coefficients (ADC) of these lesions were calculated in b values of 500 s/mm(2) and 800 s/mm(2), respectively. These lesions' ADC value (rADC) was counted respectively and the result of the rADC was equal to the lesion's ADC divided by the ADC of the ipsilateral normal breast tissue. Threshold of ADC and rADC for differential diagnosis was acquired by ROC (receiver operating characteristic curve) analysis. Different imaging technologies were evaluated emphasizing their sensitivity, specificity and accuracy.

RESULTSSixty-six lesions of 53 cases were confirmed by pathology, including 39 malignant lesions and 27 benign lesions. (1) b = 500 s/mm(2), the threshold of ADC value was 1.435 x 10(-3) mm(2)/s, with a sensitivity of 82.1% and a specificity of 81.5%. The threshold of rADC value was 0.62, with a sensitivity of 76.9% and a specificity of 100%. (2) b = 800 s/mm(2), the threshold of ADC value was 1.295 x 10(-3) mm(2)/s, with a sensitivity of 79.5% and a specificity of 81.5%. The threshold of rADC value was 0.71, with a sensitivity of 89.7% and specificity of 88.9%. (3) The area under the ROC curve was increased for the four diagnostic indicators (ADC(500), ADC(800), rADC(500), rADC(800)).

CONCLUSIONDWI spends short time, and it doesn't need contrast material. ADC value and rADC value have a high sensitivity and specificity as a diagnostic indicator. DWI is helpful in improving the specificity of MR and may become one of valuable conventional procedures for breast tumor diagnosis.

Adult ; Breast ; pathology ; Breast Neoplasms ; diagnosis ; pathology ; Carcinoma, Ductal, Breast ; diagnosis ; pathology ; Carcinoma, Intraductal, Noninfiltrating ; diagnosis ; pathology ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; methods ; Female ; Fibroadenoma ; diagnosis ; pathology ; Fibrocystic Breast Disease ; diagnosis ; pathology ; Humans ; Middle Aged ; ROC Curve ; Sensitivity and Specificity

BACKGROUNDCoronary slow flow phenomenon (CSFP) is an important, angiographic clinical entity but is lacking non-invasive detecting techniques. This study aimed to elucidate the value of transthoracic Doppler echocardiography (TTDE) in the diagnosis and monitoring of coronary slow flow in left anterior descending (LAD) coronary artery.

METHODSWe consecutively enrolled 27 patients with CSFP in LAD detected by coronary arteriography from August 2009 to April 2010. Thirty-eight patients with angiographically normal coronary flow served as control. Corrected thrombolysis in myocardial infarction (TIMI) frame count (CTFC) was used to document coronary flow velocities. All subjects underwent TTDE within 24 hours after coronary angiography. LAD flow was detected and the coronary diastolic peak velocities (DPV) and diastolic mean velocities (DMV) were calculated.

RESULTSSixty of 65 (92.3%) subjects successfully underwent TTDE. Baseline clinical characteristics were similar between the two groups. Coronary DPV and DMV of LAD were significantly lower in the CSFP group than in the control group ((0.228 ± 0.029) m/s vs. (0.302 ± 0.065) m/s, P = 0.000; (0.176 ± 0.028) m/s vs. (0.226 ± 0.052) m/s, P = 0.000, respectively). There was a high inverse correlation between CTFC and coronary DPV and DMV (r = -0.727, P = 0.000; r = -0.671, P = 0.000, respectively). Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve showed that the area under the curve (AUC) was less than one half for coronary DPV (AUC = 0.104) and DMV (AUC = 0.204), respectively.

CONCLUSIONSIn patients with CSFP, there is a high inverse correlation between CTFC and coronary diastolic flow velocities in the LAD coronary artery, as measured by TTDE. The value of TTDE in the monitoring and evaluation of coronary flow in patients with CSFP deserves further investigation.

Adult ; Aged ; Blood Flow Velocity ; Coronary Angiography ; Coronary Circulation ; Diastole ; Echocardiography ; methods ; Echocardiography, Doppler ; methods ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; No-Reflow Phenomenon ; diagnostic imaging

OBJECTIVETo develop 22 Chinese Mandarin monosyllable lists with good psychometrical equivalence. This study was to evaluate the test-retest reliability of these lists when it was used in speech recognition test in normal hearing dialectal speakers.

METHODSSeven cities including Dalian, Shanghai, Hangzhou, Wuhan, Guangzhou, Fuzhou and Xiamen were selected as testing centers which contain 6 typical Chinese dialectal regions including north of China, East of China, north of Fujian, south of Fujian, Guangdong and mid-south of China. At each center, 22 local normal hearing people were selected to join this study. Every participant was tested by each recognition test of all 22 lists twice in two sessions and same test order respectively. The second run of testing was carried out within 10 days-1 month since first run of testing.

RESULTSThere was a significant correlations between scores obtained at the two sessions (r = 0.682, P < 0.01). Paired student-t test had shown that a gross score of all dialectal participants was significantly higher than that of initial test to retest (P < 0.01). The mean increment of score was (2.7 +/- 10.1)%. A significant difference of test-retest score in 7 sites was 19.8% and it was equal to 5 test items. A one way ANOVA analysis had indicated that there were statistically significant difference between the score improvement of 7 test sites (P < 0.01). Another analysis had shown that there was no significant correlation between test-retest score improvement and intra-session intervals (P = 0.947).

CONCLUSIONSMandarin monosyllabic recognition test seems to be more stable, and the present study has indicated a systematic differences in Chinese Mandarin monosyllable recognition scores between test and retest. Monosyllable recognition test is not susceptible to memory effect. Pearson's correction analysis is not suitable to evaluation for test-retest reliability.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Analysis of Variance ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Audiometry, Speech ; Female ; Humans ; Language ; Reproducibility of Results ; Speech Discrimination Tests ; Young Adult

BACKGROUNDStaphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) remains as an important microbial pathogen resulting in community and nosocomial acquired infections with significant morbidity and mortality. Few reports for S. aureus in lower respiratory tract infections (LRTIs) have been documented. The aim of this study was to explore the molecular epidemiology of S. aureus in LRTIs in China.

METHODSA multicenter study of the molecular epidemiology of S. aureus in LRTIs was conducted in 21 hospitals in Beijing, Shanghai and twelve other provinces from November 2007 to February 2009. All the collected S. aureus strains were classified as minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC), mecA gene, virulence genes Panton-Valentine Leukocidin (PVL) and γ-hemolysin (hlg), staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec (SCCmec) type, agr type, and Multilocus Sequence Typing (MLST).

RESULTSTotally, nine methicillin-sensitive S. aureus (MSSA) and 29 methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) strains were isolated after culture from a total of 2829 sputums or bronchoalveolar lavages. The majority of MRSA strains (22/29) had a MIC value of ≥ 512 µg/ml for cefoxitin. The mecA gene acting as the conservative gene was carried by all MRSA strains. PVL genes were detected in only one S. aureus strain (2.63%, 1/38). The hlg gene was detected in almost the all S. aureus (100% in MSSA and 96.56% in MRSA strains). About 75.86% of MRSA strains carried SCCmec III. Agr type 1 was predominant (78.95%) among the identified three agr types (agr types 1, 2, and 3). Totally, ten sequence type (ST) of S. aureus strains were detected. A new sequence type (ST1445) was found besides confirming ST239 as the major sequence type (60.53%). A dendrogram generated from our own MLST database showed all the bootstrap values ≤ 50%.

CONCLUSIONOur preliminary epidemiology data show SCCmec III, ST239 and agr type 1 of S. aureus as the predominant strains in LRTIs in Mainland of China.

Alleles ; Anti-Bacterial Agents ; therapeutic use ; China ; epidemiology ; Drug Resistance, Bacterial ; genetics ; Humans ; Microbial Sensitivity Tests ; Prospective Studies ; Respiratory Tract Infections ; epidemiology ; Staphylococcal Infections ; epidemiology ; Staphylococcus aureus ; drug effects ; pathogenicity

OBJECTIVETo apply and evaluate new methods regarding specific gene and antigen detection in plague surveillance program.

METHODS1798 samples from natural foci of plague were tested, using internal quality control multiple-polymerase chain reaction, F1 antigen marked by immuno chromatographic assay and enzyme linked immunosorbent assay. Culture of Yersinia pestis and reverse indirect hemagglutination assay were used as reference diagnostic methods.

RESULTSThe overall positive rate of culture on Yersinia pestis together with gene and antigen detection was 7.34%, showing an 16.81% increase when comparing to 6.28% using Yersinia pestis culture method alone. The rate of coincidence was 97.13%.

CONCLUSIONThe new standard being used for specific gene and antigen detection could increase the positive rate of diagnosis on plague.

Animals ; Bacterial Proteins ; genetics ; immunology ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Mice ; Plague ; microbiology ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Yersinia pestis ; genetics ; immunology ; pathogenicity