OBJECTIVETo evaluate computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings in patients with autoimmune pancreatitis (AIP).

METHODSThe imaging findings of pancreas and extra-pancreas in 24 patients with AIP were retrospectively reviewed. Among them, CT scan was performed in 18 patients, MRI in 11, and bGth CT and MRI in 10.

RESULTSThe pancreas showed diffuse enlargement (25%, 6/24), focal enlargement (37. 5%, 9/24), combined enlargement (25%, 6/24) ,and no enlargement (12. 5%, 9/24). Unenhanced CT showed hypoattenuation in AIP area (n = 2) . After intravenous injection of contrast medium, 17 patients showed abnormal contrast enhancement in the affected pancreatic parenchyma, including hypoattenuation during the arterial phase (50%, 9/18) and hyper attenuation during the delayed phase (94. 4%, 17/18). Precontrast MRI showed abnormal signal intense (n =9), including hypointense on T1-weight images (T1 WI) (n = 7), hyperintense (n = 7) and hypointense (n = 2) on T2-weight images (TIWI). Enhanced MRI demonstrated abnormal contrast enhancement within lesions (n = 11), including hypoattenuation during the arterial phase (81. 8%, 9/11) and good enhancement during the delayed phase (100%, 11111). A capsule-like rim was seen around pancreas (37. 5%, 9/24), among which CT detected in 6 out of 18 patients and MRI found in 7 out of 11 patients.The main pancreatic duct lumen within lesions has no visualization (100%, 24/24) and upstream dilation of the main pancreatic duct (n = 8) , ranging from 2. 2 to 4. 5 mm(mean 3. 1 0. 47 mm) in diameter. Narrowing of the common bile duct was shown in 14 patients. Miscellaneous findings were: infiltration of extrapancreatic vein (n = 9) and artery (n = 1); mild fluid collection around pancreas (n = 2); pseudocysts (n = 3). Fourteen patients also presented one or more of the following extrapancreatic imaging findings: narrowing of the intra-hepatic bile duct or hilar duct (n = 5); thickening of gallbladder wall (n = 5); fibrosis in mesenteric (n = 2), in retroperitoneal (n = 2) and in ligamentum teres hepatis (n = 1); renal involvement (n = 3); peri-pancreatic or para-aortic lymphadenopathy (n = 10); and ulcerative colitis (n = 3).

CONCLUSIONAIP display some characteristic CT and MRI imaging features: sausage-like change of the pancreas; capsule-like rims around lesions; delayed contrast enhancement in the affected pancreatic parenchyma; segment or diffuse pancreatic duct stenosis but mild upstream dilation and extrapancreatic organs involvement. CT and MRI findings combining with serological tests and pancreas biopsy can assist physicians to make accurate and timely diagnosis.

Adult ; Aged ; Autoimmune Diseases ; diagnosis ; Female ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Pancreas ; diagnostic imaging ; pathology ; Pancreatitis ; diagnosis ; Retrospective Studies ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed

Objective To investigate the methods ofmicrosurgical treatment of Arnold-Chiari Ⅰ malformation combined with syringomyelia and their curative effects.Methods The clinical data of 185 patients with Arnold-Chiari Ⅰ malformation combined with syringomyelia,admitted to our hospital from January 1997 to June 2010 and received different surgical treatments,were summarized.The relationship between curative effects and operative methods were analyzed.Results When these 185 patients were discharged from our hospital,the clinical signs and symptoms eliminated in 156 (84.3％)and not changed in 29; no symptomatic deterioration and death were noted.One hundred and forty-seven patients were followed up for 3 months-12 years; symptoms disappeared or alleviated in 110 (74.8％),not changed in 26 and deteriorated in 11.The MR findings in 95 patients demonstrated that the cisternals reconstructed and expanded in 82 and the cavities in spinal cords reduced in 79.Conclusion Both posterior fossa decompression + duraplasty and removal of cerebella tonsils + plastic operation of cistern magna are effective and advisable methods in the treatment of Arnold-Chiari Ⅰ malformation combined with syringomyelia.

Objective To analyze the outcomes of the surgery repair for total anomalous pulmonary venous connection(TAPVC),and to investigate the risk factors which influence the mortality of the operation.Methods Comparative analysis was performed in the children with TAPVC who were treated operatively from Sep.2001 to Sep.2011 in the Third Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University,Henan Diagnosis & Treatment Center of Congenital Heart Disease.The children included 37 male and 20 female,aged from 15 days to 6.5 years[(4.27 ± 8.63) months],with body weight 4.0-21.0 (6.33 ± 2.70) kg,and the clinical records in hospital including echocardiogram operation records were collected.The clinical data including the age on operation,body weight,diagnosis,anatomic type of TAPVC,the emergency event before operation,cardiopulmonary bypass time,aortic crossclamping time,were analyzed by chisquared test and Logistic multivariable regression analysis.The risk factors influencing the early mortality of TAPVC were analyzed.Results Fifty-seven children underwent the operation,and 7 (12.2％)cases died during the operation.The univariate analysis on outcomes indicated that the risk factors influencing the mortality of the operation included body weight(P =0.035),anatomic type of TAPVC (P =0.037),the emergency event before operation (P =0.021),and aortic crossclamping time(P =0.046).The Logistic multivariable regression analysis indicated that the emergency events before operation was the independent risk factor for the mortality of TAPVC(P =0.003).Conclusion TAPVC children with preoperative emergency events have higher postoperative mortality.

BACKGROUND: Posterior internal fixation is one of the most common methods for thoracolumbar fractures. There is a lack of systematic evaluation about the efficacy of injured vertebra pedicle screw fixation(IVPSF)versus short-segment pedicle instrumentation (SSPI) for thoracolumbar fracture. OBJECTIVE: To compare the clinical outcomes of IVPSF and SSPI for single thoracolumbar fracture through a METHODS: A computer-based on-line research of PubMed, Medline, Embase, Cochrane Library, CNKI, and WanFang databases was performed for the studies regarding IVPSF versus SSPI for thoracolumbar fracture from 1990 to 2016. meta-analysis. The randomized controlled trials and cohort studies were collected based on the strict criteria of inclusion and exclusion. A meta-analysis was conducted on Revman5.3 sofeware. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: (1) Eleven articles were enrolled, including 5 English and 6 Chinese ones, involving 689 patients (328 cases for IVPSF and 361 cases for SSPI). (2) The meta-analysis indicated that the operation time, blood loss and mean hospital stay showed no significant differences between two groups. IVPSF showed more effective than SSPI in the kyphotic angle correction and anterior vertebral height recovery at postoperation and 1-5 years of follow-up. Moreover, the incidence of postoperative fixation failure in IVPSF was lower than that in SSPI. (3) These findings suggest that IVPSF that reduces the postoperative fixation failure rate for thoracolumbar fractures provides better kyphosis correction and restoration of anterior vertebral height at post-operation and 1-5 years of follow-up.

The effect of CYP3A4*18B and CYP3A5*3 on concentration/dosage x body surface area ratios (C/D'), adverse effects and acute rejection of tacrolimus in renal transplant patients were investigated. The CYP3A4*18B genotypes of 227 renal transplant patients were determined by PCR-RFLP method. The differences of C/D' ratios, adverse reactions and acute rejection were compared among all of the genotype groups treated with tacrolimus. The frequencies of CYP3A4*18 and CYP3A5*3 alleles in renal transplant patients were 30.8% and 74.2%, respectively. No significant association was found between the C/D's of tacrolimus and CYP3A4*18B genotypes when they were classified by two CYP3A5 genotypes (P > 0.05). While after the effects of CYP3A4*18B genotype were eliminated, the C/D' ratio of tacrolimus in patients with CYP3A5*1/*1 and *1/*3 genotype group was significantly lower than those with CYP3A5*3/*3 genotype groups (P < 0.01). There is no significant difference in adverse effects and acute rejection among different genotypes (P > 0.05).
Adult ; Alleles ; Cytochrome P-450 CYP3A ; genetics ; Digestive System Diseases ; chemically induced ; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug ; Female ; Genotype ; Graft Rejection ; genetics ; Humans ; Immunosuppressive Agents ; administration & dosage ; adverse effects ; blood ; therapeutic use ; Kidney Transplantation ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Polymorphism, Genetic ; Retrospective Studies ; Tacrolimus ; administration & dosage ; adverse effects ; blood ; therapeutic use

OBJECTIVETo develop a with high efficiency and practicality for separating and purifying total steroidal saponins lax china.

METHODUsing adsorption capacity and desorption rate of total steroidal saponins as the primary screening index, surveyed, and the optimized conditions of adsorption and desorption of total steroidal saponins were studied.

RESULTThe adsorption and desorption rate of total steroidal saponins reached 16 mg x mL(-1) and 90% respectively for macroporous resin HPD100 chosen. Macroporous resin HPD100 could be well used in separating and purifying total steroidal saponins from S. china.

Adsorption ; Anion Exchange Resins ; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration ; Plants, Medicinal ; chemistry ; Rhizome ; chemistry ; Saponins ; isolation & purification ; Smilax ; chemistry ; Spectrophotometry, Ultraviolet ; methods

OBJECTIVEThe aim of this study was to investigate the expression and significance of P311 and ITGB4BP in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

METHODSTissue microarrays were prepared from 80 NSCLC specimens and examined by immunohistochemistry.

RESULTSThe positive rates of P311 and ITGB4BP expression were 77.5% (62/80) and 82.5% (66/80), respectively. The double positive expression rate was 73.8% (59/80). The consistency rate was 87.5%, and there was a significant consistency between P311 and ITGB4BP expressions (Kappa = 0.611, P < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONThere may be a new signaling pathway P311-ITGB4BP in NSCLC, and it may regulate the lung cancer cell migration.

Adenocarcinoma ; metabolism ; Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung ; metabolism ; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell ; metabolism ; Eukaryotic Initiation Factors ; metabolism ; Humans ; Immunohistochemistry ; Lung Neoplasms ; metabolism ; Nerve Tissue Proteins ; metabolism ; Oncogene Proteins ; metabolism ; Paraffin Embedding ; Signal Transduction ; Tissue Array Analysis

A simple and quick method is described for the determination of ferulic acid, senkyunolide I, senkyunolide H, senkyunolide A and ligustilide in rhizomes of Ligusticum chuanxiong. The 5 active ingredients in the sample was extracted using 40% ethanol and analyzed by reversed-phase high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Chromatography separation was performed using Agilent 1100 series HPLC system with a Symmetry C18 column and gradient elution with a mixture of three solvents : solvent A, acetonitrile, solvent B, methanol and solvent C, 1% aqueous acetic acid, 0 min to 5 min A: B: C 20: 40: 40, 5 min to 30 min A: B: C 60 to 100 : 0 : 40 to 0. The effluent was monitored using a VWD detector set at 321 nm (0-4.3 min) and 275 nm (4.31-30 min). The flow rate was set at 1 mL x min(-1) and the injection volume was 10 microL. The column temperature was maintained at 35 degrees C. The calibration curve was linear (r > or = 0.99) over the tested ranges. The average recovery was 94.44%-103.1% (n = 6). The method has been successfully applied to the analysis in different harvest periods of L. chuanxiong samples. In this paper, single-factor randomized block design to study the 5 components content of L. chuanxiong on ten collecting stages. For the L. chuanxiong collected from April 15th to May 30rd, the content of 5 ingredients increased primarily, and then decreased. Determine the appropriate harvest time has important significance to the promotion of the quality of L. chuanxiong.
4-Butyrolactone ; analogs & derivatives ; analysis ; Acetic Acid ; chemistry ; Acetonitriles ; chemistry ; Benzofurans ; analysis ; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid ; methods ; Coumaric Acids ; analysis ; Ligusticum ; chemistry ; Methanol ; chemistry ; Solvents ; chemistry ; Time Factors

BACKGROUNDImmunosuppression for immunologically high-risk kidney transplant patients usually involves antithymocyte globulin induction with triple drug maintenance therapy. Alemtuzumab, a humanized anti-CD52 antibody, was expected to be a promising induction therapy agent for kidney transplantation. However, currently no consensus is available about its efficacy and safety. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of alemtuzumab as immune induction therapy in highly sensitized kidney transplant recipients.

METHODSIn this prospective, open-label, randomized, controlled trial, we enrolled 23 highly immunological risk patients (panel reactive antibody > 20%). They were divided into two groups: alemtuzumab group (trial group) and anti-thymocyte globulin (ATG) group (control group). Patients in the alemtuzumab group received intravenous alemtuzumab (15 mg) as a single dose before reperfusion. At the 24th hour post-operation, another dosage of alemtuzumab (15 mg) was given. The control group received a bolus of rabbit ATG (9 mg/kg), which was given 2 hours before kidney transplantation and lasted until the removal of vascular clamps when the anastomoses were completed. Maintenance immunosuppression in both groups comprised standard triple therapy consisting of tacrolimus, prednisone, and mycophenolate mofetil (MMF). Acute rejection (AR) and infection episodes were recorded, and kidney function was monitored during a 2-year follow-up. χ(2) test, t test and Kaplan-Meier analysis were performed with SPSS17.0 software.

RESULTSMedian follow-up was 338 days. In both the alemtuzumab group and ATG group, creatinine and blood urea nitrogen values in surviving recipients were similar (P > 0.05). White blood cell counts were significantly reduced in the alemtuzumab group for the most time points up to 6 months (P < 0.05). One patient receiving alemtuzumab died for acute myocardial infarction at the 65th day post-operation. Two ATG patients died for severe pulmonary infection or cardiac and pulmonary failure. Cumulative 2-year graft survival rate was 90.9% in the alemtuzumab group and 81.8% in ATG group (P > 0.05) respectively. There was one graft failure in the alemtuzumab group and two graft failures in ATG group, with all graft failures at tributed to rejection episodes. The alemtuzumab group had a 2-year cumulative freedom from rejection rate of 81.8%, compared with 72.7% for the ATG group (P > 0.05).

CONCLUSIONAlemtuzumab induction therapy for highly sensitized kidney transplant recipients is an effective and safe protocol yielding an acceptable acute rejection rate.

Adult ; Aged ; Alemtuzumab ; Antibodies, Monoclonal ; therapeutic use ; Antibodies, Monoclonal, Humanized ; Antibodies, Neoplasm ; therapeutic use ; Antilymphocyte Serum ; therapeutic use ; Female ; Graft Rejection ; immunology ; Graft Survival ; immunology ; Humans ; Immunosuppressive Agents ; therapeutic use ; Kidney Transplantation ; immunology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Treatment Outcome ; Young Adult

BACKGROUNDImmunological sensitization remains a major problem following renal transplantation. There is no consensus for the management of sensitized renal allograft recipients. The patients become tethered to dialysis while waiting for compatible donors. This study was designed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of preoperative single-bolus high-dose antithymocyte globulin (ATG) as induction therapy in sensitized renal transplant recipients.

METHODSA total of 56 patients were divided into two groups according to the level of panel reactive antibody (PRA): non-sensitized group (PRA < 10%, n = 30) and sensitized group (PRA > or = 10%, n = 26). The characteristics of the recipients and donors were comparable between the two groups. Mycophenolate mofetil (MMF, 1 g) or ATG (iv. 9 mg/kg) were given preoperatively in the two groups as induction therapy. After the transplantation, the patients were treated with standard triple therapy regimen consisting of tacrolimus (FK-506) or cyclosporine A, MMF, and prednisolone. Acute rejection (AR) and infection episodes were recorded and renal function was monitored during a 12-month follow-up. Chi(2) test and t test were used to analyze the data.

RESULTSDuring the follow-up, 6 patients (20.0%) suffered AR episodes in the non-sensitized group and 4 (15.4%) in the sensitized group (P = 0.737); 8 patients (26.7%) experienced 11 infection episodes (average, 1.4 episodes per infected patient) in the non-sensitized group, and 6 (23.1%) experienced 10 infection episodes (average, 1.7 episodes per infected patient) in the sensitized group (P = 0.757, 0.890). The safety of the drugs, which was assessed by the occurrence of side effects, was comparable between the two groups. The hospital stay was 13 - 25 days (mean, 16.7 +/- 3.3) in the non-sensitized group and 14 - 29 days (mean, 16.2 +/- 3.1) in the sensitized group, respectively (P = 0.563). No delayed graft function (DGF) was observed in all the patients. Both the 12-month actuarial patient and graft survival rates were 100% in the two groups.

CONCLUSIONPreoperative single-bolus high-dose ATG is an effective and safe induction therapy yielding acceptable acute rejection rate in sensitized renal transplant recipients.

Adult ; Antilymphocyte Serum ; adverse effects ; therapeutic use ; Female ; Graft Rejection ; prevention & control ; Graft Survival ; Humans ; Immunosuppressive Agents ; Kidney Transplantation ; Male ; Middle Aged