Objective: To investigate the level of arsenic exposure in rural drinking water and to assess the health risk caused by exposure to arsenic in Tongzhou District, Beijing Municipality in 2019, so as to provide insights into improving the quality of rural drinking water. Methods: Water samples were collected from self-provided wells in 196 villages of 7 townships in Tongzhou District from April to June, 2019, and the arsenic levels were measured in drinking water according to Standard examination methods for drinking water-Metal parameters (GB/T 5750.6-2006). The carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic risks of arsenic were evaluated in drinking water using the environmental risk assessment model recommended by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Results: Totally 520 water samples were collected, and the median arsenic concentration was 0.001 2-0.050 0 mg/L. There were 67 water samples with arsenic levels exceeding the defined standard level (12.88%), and the proportions of arsenic levels exceeding the defined standard level were 57.69%, 17.24%, 12.20%, 6.52% and 1.31% in Songzhuang, Huoxian, Lucheng, Zhangjiawan and Yongdedian townships, and the arsenic levels did not exceed the defined standard level in Majuqiao or Taihu townships. The carcinogenic risk of arsenic was 3.135 7×10-4/a in drinking water, which exceeded the maximum acceptable risk, and the carcinogenic risk of arsenic all exceeded the maximum acceptable risk, with the highest value seen in Songzhuang Township (9.648 2×10-4/a). A high carcinogenic risk of arsenic was seen in men at ages of 60 to 80 years (3.012 8×10-4/a) and in women at ages of 80 years and older (2.949 0×10-4/a). The non-carcinogenic risk of arsenic was 0.696 8 in drinking water, indicating a low risk, and were 1.009 5 and 2.144 1 in Huoxian and Songzhuang townships, indicating a high risk. In addition, a high non-carcinogenic risk of arsenic was seen in men at ages of 60 to 80 years (0.669 5) and in women at ages of 80 years and older (0.655 3). Conclusion There was a high proportion of arsenic levels exceeding the defined standard level in rural drinking water in Tongzhou District, 2019, and there was a health risk, notably with the highest carcinogenic risk seen in residents at ages of 60 years and older. Effective interventions are needed to reduce arsenic levels in drinking water.

Objective To evaluate the value of glycogen phosphorylase isoenzyme BB (GPBB) in the diagnosis of early acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Methods The plasma levels of GPBB were mea-sured by sandwich ELISA in 115 patients with suspected AMI at admission within 6 hours after onset of chest pain and 55 normal healthy subjects. The plasma concent of cardiac troponin-Ⅰ (cTnI), creatine kinase-MB (CK-MB) and myoglobin (MYO) was assayed at the same time by using corpuscle chemiluminescence. The patients were classified retrospectively into AMI group (n = 45) , unstable angina pectoris (UAP) group (n =40) , stable angina pectoris (SAP) group (n = 13) and non-cardiac chest pain (NCCP) group (n =17).The diagnostic validity was evaluated in terms of sensitivity and specificity. Results The diagnostic sensitivity of GPBB for AMI was 64.29 % within 3 hours and 88.89 % within 6 hours after onset of chest pain,which is significantly higher than that of cTnI (28.57 %, 60.00 %) and CK-MB (21.43 %, 64.44 % ). There was no significant difference in specificity among the four markers. The diagnostic accuracy of GPBB within 3hours and 6 hours (80.77 %, 89.57% ) was significantly higher than that of cTnI (61.54%, 81.74% ),CK-MB (50.00%, 75.65%) and MYO (73.08% ,73.91%). Conclusions GPBB seems to be a sensitive and specific biochemical cardiac marker for AMI in the early stage. Its diagnostic accuracy is higher than that of cTnI, CK-MB, MYO.

Placido disk is widely used in corneal topography. In order to solve the problem that the convex of the corneal can not be precisely located in the Placido corneal topography system, an algorithm of corneal reconstruction based on the Placido disk was introduced. The key of this method is the calculation of radius of corneal convex by using the innermost ring data. Based on image analysis result, we precisely calculated the radius of corneal convex iteratively by connecting the convex and the first ring using a circle, and then calculated the location of all the reflect point and its power. At last we created the pseudo color map of the human corneal. The corneal was simulated by using standard steel sphere, and the calculating errors of the result were all below 0.25D. It showed that the algorithm used in this work could get relatively accurate powers and would have fair stability.
Algorithms ; Cornea ; pathology ; Corneal Topography ; methods ; standards ; Corneal Wavefront Aberration ; Humans ; Image Processing, Computer-Assisted

Objective To discuss the diagnostic value of a diagnostic strategy combining D-dimer and aortic dissection detection risk score (ADDRS) for patients with acute aortic dissection (AAD). Methods The clinical data of 750 patients with suspected AAD in emergency department of Zhongda Hospital Affiliated to Southeast University from January 2016 to January 2018 were retrospectively analyzed, including medical history, gender, age, chief complaint, physical examination, diagnostic imaging data and D-dimer levels on admission. ADDRS = 0 was defined as low risk group, ADDRS = 1 as medium risk group, ADDRS≤1 as non-high risk group,whereas ADDRS > 1 as high risk group. The clinical characteristics of AAD and non-AAD patients, ADDRS, D-dimer, and the diagnostic ability of D-dimer (the cutoff value of 500 μg/L) for AAD in different risk groups were observed. Results AAD was diagnosed in 79 of 750 (10.53%) patients. Of the 256 (34.13%) patients in low risk group, 5 patients were diagnosed with AAD. The medium risk group had 337 (44.93%) patients, including 44 cases with AAD. The high risk group had 157 (20.93%) patients, including 30 cases with AAD. In AAD patients, the proportion of male and hypertension, the incidence of ADDRS risk markers (including abrupt onset of pain, severe pain intensity, ripping or tearing pain, pulse deficit or systolic blood pressure differential of upper limb, focal neurological deficit, recent aortic manipulation, known thoracic aortic aneurysm) and the D-dimer levels in AAD group were significantly higher than those of non-AAD patients [male: 82.28% (65/79) vs. 59.76% (401/671), hypertension: 81.01% (64/79) vs. 41.43% (278/671), abrupt onset of pain: 78.48% (62/79) vs. 39.94% (268/671), severe pain intensity: 78.48% (62/79) vs. 50.52% (339/671), ripping or tearing pain: 32.91% (26/79) vs. 0.75% (5/671), pulse deficit or systolic blood pressure differential of upper limb: 15.19% (12/79) vs. 0.15% (1/671), focal neurological deficit: 7.59% (6/79) vs. 1.64% (11/671), recent aortic manipulation: 6.33% (5/79) vs. 0.30% (2/671), known thoracic aortic aneurysm: 15.19% (12/79) vs. 0.30% (2/671), D-dimer (μg/L): 1 160 (588, 3 340) vs 135 (56, 478), all P < 0.05], the proportion of diabetics was significantly lower than that of non-AAD patients [7.59% (6/79) vs. 18.78% (126/671), P < 0.05]. The positive predictive values of D-dimer for AAD diagnosis in the low risk group and the non-high-risk groups (including low and medium risk groups) were lower than that in the high risk group (8.62%, 26.32% vs. 40.91%), the negative predictive values of D-dimer were higher in the low risk group and non-high-risk groups than that in the high risk group (100.00%, 99.05% vs. 96.70%), missed diagnosis rates were higher than that in high risk group (0, 0.95%, vs. 3.30%). Conclusion In the high risk group, D-dimer≥500 μg/L is helpful for diagnosis of AAD; and in low risk group or non-high-risk group, D-dimer < 500 μg/L can efficiently and accurately exclude AAD.

Objective: To investigate the role of endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS) in rats with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) related right ventricular dysfunction and the protective effect of sodium 4-phenylbutyrate (4-PBA) on right ventricle. Methods: Sixty male Spragne-Dawley (SD) rats were randomly divided into control group (CON group), lipopolysaccharide (LPS) model group, 4-PBA prevention group and 4-PBA treatment group, with 15 rats in each group. ARDS rat model was established by intratracheal instillation of LPS 10 mg/kg after tracheotomy; CON group was given the same amount of saline. 4-PBA prevention group and 4-PBA treatment group were given 4-PBA 500 mg/kg intragastric administration 2 hours before and after LPS respectively. Echocardiography was performed 12 hours after treatment to evaluate the right ventricular function. Then, the rats were sacrificed by bloodletting, and the serum and right ventricular tissue were harvested. The histopathological changes of myocardial were observed by hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining, the levels of tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α), interleukins (IL-1β and IL-6) in serum and myocardial were detected by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), and Western Blot was used to detect the expression of the marker proteins of ERS in myocardial, including glucose regulatory protein 78 (GRP78), C/EBP cyclic adenosine phosphate reaction primitive binding transcription factor homologous protein (CHOP), caspase-12 and caspase-3. Results: Compared with the CON group, the echocardiography showed pulmonary artery maximum pressure gradient (PAmaxPG), pulmonary artery acceleration time (PAAT), tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion (TAPSE) in LPS model group were significantly decreased, and right ventricular end-diastolic excursion (RVDd) was significantly increased, and the levels of TNF-α, IL-1β and IL-6 in serum and myocardial, as well as the expressions of GRP78, CHOP, caspase-12 and caspase-3 in myocardial were significantly increased. Compared with LPS model group, TAPSE of 4-PBA preventive and treatment groups were significantly increased (mm: 3.08±0.65, 2.96±0.61 vs. 2.48±0.45), RVDd were significantly decreased (mm: 3.67±0.58, 3.60±0.61 vs. 4.18±0.71), the levels of TNF-α, IL-1β and IL-6 in serum and myocardial were significantly decreased [TNF-α (ng/L): 187.98±18.98, 176.08±17.98 vs. 332.00±19.90 in serum, 135.06±19.00, 132.78±17.00 vs. 155.00±20.00 in myocardial; IL-1β(ng/L): 12.07±2.98, 11.05±2.41 vs. 24.06±4.01 in serum, 19.89±2.80, 21.06±2.80 vs. 26.00±2.60 in myocardial; IL-6 (ng/L): 42.98±7.90, 34.05±6.09 vs. 89.80±10.07 in serum, 129.45±25.00, 127.08±26.06 vs. 145.77±23.00 in myocardial]; the expressions of GRP78, CHOP, caspase-12 and caspase-3 in myocardial were significantly decreased (GRP78/GAPDH: 0.090±0.070, 0.103±0.060 vs. 0.167±0.090, CHOP/GAPDH: 0.109±0.090, 0.090±0.080 vs. 0.186±0.090, caspase-12/GAPDH: 0.769±0.230, 0.799±0.210 vs. 1.040±0.350, caspase-3/GAPDH: 0.391±0.060, 0.401±0.054 vs. 0.603±0.340), with statistically significant differences (all P < 0.05). There were no significant differences in each indexes between 4-PBA prevention group and 4-PBA treatment group (all P > 0.05). Conclusions ERS is involved in ARDS-related right ventricular dysfunction. 4-PBA can protect the right ventricular function of ARDS rats by inhibiting ERS and alleviating inflammation, and the preventive and therapeutic effects of 4-PBA are similar.