Objective To explore the effect and indication of splenectomy in liver transplantation.Methods From January 2001 to April 2006,260 patients underwent piggyback orthotopic liver transplantation(PBOLT),and 28 patients had undergone combined PBOLT and splenectomy(splenectomy group).These patients were compared to 56 randomly selected non-splenectomy patients from the same transplant period,meaningly two controls were se- lected for every non-spleneetomy case.Two groups were analyzed with respect to rate of infection and survival rate, as well as biopsy-proven acute allograft rejection within 30 days after transplantation.Results Rate of infection in the splenectomy group was higher than that in the non-splenectomy patients(85.7% vs 55.4%,P

Humans ; Liver Transplantation ; Transplantation, Autologous

OBJECTIVETo determine the feasibility and accuracy of detecting numerical chromosomal abnormalities by high-flux sequencing analysis of free fetal DNA from maternal plasma.

METHODSHigh-flux sequencing was applied to analyze fetal chromosome sequence copy numbers in 153 pregnant women. Fetal karyotyping was also carried out on amniocentesis samples.

RESULTSSix cases were detected with fetal chromosomal abnormalities by high-flux sequencing analysis, among which five were confirmed by karyotyping to be chromosomal aneuploidies (47,XYY; 45,X; 47,XY,+18; 47,XY,+21 and 47,XY,+13), 1 case was confirmed to be structural rearrangement, i.e., 46,XY,der(13;21)(q10;q10),+21. Furthermore, 3 chromosomal polymorphisms (one 46,XY,21p+ and two 46,XY,Yqh-) were identified. The two methods yielded similar results on fetal chromosome copy number detection.

CONCLUSIONHigh-flux sequencing analysis of free DNA derived from maternal plasma is efficient for detecting fetal chromosomal aneuploidies, and is non-invasive, highly sensitive and specific. It therefore has a broad application in antenatal diagnosis.

Adult ; Amniocentesis ; methods ; Aneuploidy ; Chromosome Disorders ; diagnosis ; genetics ; DNA ; chemistry ; genetics ; Female ; Fetus ; Humans ; Pregnancy ; Prenatal Diagnosis ; methods ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo study the clinical significance of piggy-back liver transplantation in treating acute liver failure (ALF).

METHODSFifteen ALF patients (13 caused by HBV and 2 with acute Wilson disease) had piggy-back liver transplantations (PBLT) in our hospital from Sept 1999 to Feb 2006. The outcomes of these patients were retrospectively analyzed.

RESULTSOne year survival rate of the 15 patients was 87% (13/15). Excellent outcome was achieved in the 2 acute Wilson disease cases: their corneal Kayser-Fleischer rings disappeared and serum ceruloplasmin levels returned to normal. Among the 15 cases, one died of severe pulmonary infection and another died of multiple organ system failure on the 6th and 11th postoperative days. HBsAg positivity was observed in 13 cases before liver transplantation. Eleven patients survived and later received anti-HBV treatment recommended by the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases. Their HBsAg became negative.

CONCLUSIONLiver transplantation is an effective therapy for ALF and can improve survival rate significantly.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Female ; Humans ; Liver Failure, Acute ; mortality ; surgery ; Liver Transplantation ; methods ; mortality ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Retrospective Studies ; Survival Rate ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo observe the changes of serum free testosterone (FT) and testosterone secreting index (TSI) in ED patients, and to assess the contribution of these two indexes to the diagnosis of ED caused by endocrine factors.

METHODSWe studied 120 ED patients and 30 healthy men undergoing pre-marital medical check-up in Jiangsu Province Hospital of TCM by analyzing the scores on erectile function and desire domain in IIEF, testing the serum total testosterone, luteinizing hormone by chemiluminescent enzyme immunoassay (CLIA), measuring free testosterone by radioimmunoassay( RIA), and calculating TSI.

RESULTSOf the 120 ED patients, 5% and 1538% were below the reference norm of TT and FT values respectively. TT, FT and TSI decreased with age, with statistical with FT and TSI, but not with TT. FT and TSI statistically declined with lower IIEF score on ED domain, but this was not the case with TT. There were no significant differences in TI, FT and TSI among different sexual desire groups the ED patients.

CONCLUSIONFT is much more valuable than TF in the diagnosis of ED with hypogonadism. Both FT and TSI are important parameters in assessing the severity of ED.

Adult ; Aged ; China ; Erectile Dysfunction ; blood ; metabolism ; Humans ; Immunoenzyme Techniques ; methods ; Luteinizing Hormone ; blood ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Radioimmunoassay ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Testosterone ; blood ; secretion