BACKGROUND: To date, there is no report on the successful construction of a three-dimensional finite element model of maxillary premolar with wedge-shaped defect restored by fiber post.OBJECTIVE: To establish the three-dimensional finite element model of maxillary premolar with wedge-shaped defect restored by fiber post. METHODS: Micro-CT was used to obtain imaging information of the human maxillary first premolar sample. Then Mimics, Geomagic and Hypermesh were used to establish a clear-structured three-dimensional finite element model of pulp-exposed maxillary premolar with wedge-shaped defect restored by fiber post. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: The three-dimensional finite element model of normal maxillary premolar had 180 119 units and 33 289 nodes. Compared with the real subject, the three-dimensional finite element model of maxillary premolar with wedge-shaped defect restored by fiber post had vivid appearance, good image quality and accurate grid partitioning with 237 496 units and 43 965 nodes in total, which could obtain good results in the aspects of geometry, boundary constraint and mechanical compatibility. Moreover, it could better simulate the mechanical stress distribution of diseased teeth under occlusion to further confirm the magnitude and distribution of forces, thereby providing a better basis for future biomechanical studies.

BACKGROUNDS: Standardization of nucleic acid amplification techniques (NAT) which can be achieved by the use of standard to validate reproducibility and sensitivity in each assay run is necessary before the introduction of such methods for routine screening of blood and blood products for viral contaminants. The objective of this study was to analyze the serological and genotypic characteristics of HCV positive plasmas and to manufacture the HCV RNA national standard candidate. METHODS: We obtained three plasmas from Blood Transfusion Research Institute, Korea, with highly positive HCV RNA plasmas (#37, #40, #46) and with normal plasma for dilution. All the plasmas were confirmed by enzyme immunoassay (EIA) test for anti-HIV, HBsAg, anti-HCV and by polymerase chain reaction(PCR) for HBV DNA, HIV RNA, HCV RNA. The genotypes of those were confirmed by INNO-LiPA HCV II. HCV RNA national standard candidate was manufactured by dispensing the diluted plasma into about 2,000 vials. Each vial was rapidly frozen using liquid nitrogen and was kept in refrigerator at -70 degrees C. RESULTS: All plasmas were identified as anti-HIV, HBsAg, HBV DNA, and HIV RNA negative plasmas. The genotypes of those were confirmed as 1b for #37, 1b or 2 for #40 and 2a or 2c for #46, respectively. Sample #37 was selected as the candidate material. After manufacturing, we obtained 1,944 vials for the candidate. CONCLUSION: In this study, we analyzed HCV positive plasmas and manufactured the HCV RNA national standard candidate. In near future, this material would be established for national standard to increase in the safety of blood and blood products in Korea.
Academies and Institutes ; Blood Transfusion ; DNA ; Genotype ; Hepacivirus ; Hepatitis B Surface Antigens ; HIV ; Immunoenzyme Techniques ; Korea ; Mass Screening ; Nitrogen ; Nucleic Acid Amplification Techniques ; Plasma* ; RNA*

STUDY DESIGN: Radiographic measurement of the lumbar disc height OBJECTIVES: To measure the lumbar disc height on the radiographs in normal Koreans. SUMMARY OF LITERATURE REVIEW: Many reports show good results after many procedures, such as inter-vertebral body fusion using a cage or total disc replacement, which restores the adequate disc height. However, there are no references regarding the range of normal lumbar disc heights in Korean adults, which can be used as a standard for the implant size. MATERIALS AND METHODS: One hundred and thirty two subjects (age range 20 to 40 years), who had no previous history of low back pain and no significant findings on the physical examination, were enrolled in this study. The plain lateral lumbar spine radiograph was taken in the supine position. The intervertebral disc heights were measured at the anterior, middle and posterior portion of each lumbar disc. The average magnification rate was 115%, and the disc heights were corrected by the magnification rate in each segment. RESULTS: The lumbar disc height showed a cranio-caudal pattern in both the male and female groups. The L4-5 disc heights were highest at the anterior, middle and posterior portion in males. The L4-5 disc heights were highest at the middle and posterior portion in females. The L5-S1 disc height was highest at the anterior portion in females, but there was no significant difference between the L4-5 and L5-S1 disc height at the anterior portion. There was no significant difference in disc height between males and females except at the anterior portion of the L1-2 and L2-3 disc. There was no significant decrease in disc height in overweight people at all measured site in males and females except at the posterior portion of the L1-2 disc in males. CONCLUSION: This study is meaningful in that it provides a reference value for the lumbar disc height in Korean adults. The measured values might also be useful for manufacturing a Korean model of an artificial lumbar disc prosthesis or surgical instruments for lumbar interbody fusion.
Adult ; Female ; Humans ; Intervertebral Disc* ; Low Back Pain ; Male ; Overweight ; Physical Examination ; Prostheses and Implants ; Radiography ; Reference Values ; Spine ; Supine Position ; Surgical Instruments ; Total Disc Replacement

Objectives: To examine the influence factors on axillary evaluation in ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) patients, and the prognosis of different choices of axillary evaluation in a single-center retrospective study. Methods: Totally 1 557 DCIS patients admitted in Department of Breast Surgery, Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center from January 2006 to November 2016 were retrospectively enrolled. All patients were female. The median age was 49 years (range: 21 to 85 years). Surgical methods included modified radical mastectomy, simple mastectomy (with or without axillary evaluation) and breast conservation surgery (with or without axillary evaluation). Axillary evaluation included axillary lymph node dissection (ALND) and sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB). T tests, χ² test and Logistic regression analysis was used to analyze influence factors on axillary evaluation, respectively. Kaplan-Meier curve and Log-rank analysis were used to evaluate recurrence-free survival (RFS) and loco-regional recurrence-free survival (LRRFS) in patients with different surgical methods. Results: Among the 1 557 DCIS patients, there were 1 226 cases received axillary evaluation, while 331 cases not received axillary evaluation. Patients were separated into 3 groups by different axillary evaluation choices: SLNB group (957 cases, 61.46%), ALND group (197 cases, 12.65%) and no evaluation group (403 cases, 25.88%). The patients in SLNB group increased significantly (P=0.000), from 3.85% (60/1 557) in 2006 to 75.19% (1 170/1 557) in 2016. The independent influence factors of receiving axillary evaluation were high nuclear grade (OR=3.191, 95%CI: 1.722 to 5.912, P=0.001) and tumor size>15 mm (OR=1.698, 95%CI: 1.120 to 2.573, P=0.012). Also, patients received breast conservation surgery were more likely to refuse axillary evaluation (OR=0.155, 95%CI: 0.103 to 0.233, P=0.000). There were no significant differences in RFS and LRRFS in patients with different axillary evaluation choices. Conclusions The investigation in trends and influence factors of different axillary evaluation choices provided basis on surgical precision medicine in DCIS patients. Patients received SLNB increased significantly. The independent influence factors of axillary evaluation were nuclear grade, tumor size and surgical methods. There was no significant differences in prognosis among the groups receiving different axillary evaluations.

Objective To evaluate the influence factors on surgical methods in DCIS (Ductal carcinoma in situ) patients,and the prognosis of different surgical methods in a 10-year single-center retrospective study.Methods We retrospectively included 1557 DCIS patients who received treatments in our center from Jan.2006 to Nov.2016.T tests,Chi-square analysis and logistic regression analysis were used to analyze influence factors on surgical methods.Kaplan-Meier and Log-rank analysis were used to evaluate recurrence-free survival(RFS) and loco-regional recurrence-free survival (LRRFS) in patients with different surgical methods.Results Of the enrolled 1557 DCIS patients,surgical methods included modified radical mastectomy,simple mastectomy (with or without axillary evaluation) and breast conservation surgery (with or without axillary evaluation).The number of DCIS cases in our center increased (P＜0.001),so did the percentage of DCIS in annual malignant surgery cases (P=-0.026).Significant decrease was found in modified radical mastectomy (P=0.012).More than half of the patients received simple mastectomy after 2010,and more than one fifth of the patients received breast conservation surgery after 2008.About 13.99％ patients who received mastectomy had breast reconstruction.The independent influence factors of refusing breast conservation surgery were age ≥ 50(P＜0.001),medium nuclear grade (P=0.044),tumor size ＞ 15mm (P＜0.001) and spontaneous discharge (P＜0.001).Patients with smaller tumor size (≤ 15mm) and no spontaneous discharge had 4.18-fold and 7.04-fold greater preference for breast conservation surgery,respectively(OR=0.232,P＜0.001;OR=0.144,P＜0.001).There were no significant differences in RFS and LRRFS in patients with different surgical methods.Conclusion The evaluation in trends and influence factors of different surgical methods provides basis on surgical precision medicine in DCIS patients.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVE: Orostachys japonicus A. Berger (Crassulaceae) has been used in traditional herbal medicines in Korea and other Asian countries to treat various diseases, including liver disorders. In the present study, the anti-fibrotic effects of O. japonicus extract (OJE) in cellular and experimental hepatofibrotic rat models were investigated. MATERIALS/METHODS: An in vitro hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) system was used to estimate cell viability, cell cycle and apoptosis by MTT assay, flow cytometry, and Annexin V-FITC/PI staining techniques, respectively. In addition, thioacetamide (TAA)-induced liver fibrosis was established in Sprague Dawley rats. Briefly, animals were divided into five groups (n = 8): Control, TAA, OJE 10 (TAA with OJE 10 mg/kg), OJE 100 (TAA with OJE 100 mg/kg) and silymarin (TAA with Silymarin 50 mg/kg). Fibrosis was induced by treatment with TAA (200 mg/kg, i.p.) twice per week for 13 weeks, while OJE and silymarin were administered orally two times per week from week 7 to 13. The fibrotic related gene expression serum biomarkers glutathione and hydroxyproline were estimated by RT-PCR and spectrophotometry, respectively, using commercial kits. RESULTS: OJE (0.5 and 0.1 mg/mL) and silymarin (0.05 mg/mL) treatment significantly (P < 0.01 and P < 0.001) induced apoptosis (16.95% and 27.48% for OJE and 25.87% for silymarin, respectively) in HSC-T6 cells when compared with the control group (9.09%). Further, rat primary HSCs showed changes in morphology in response to OJE 0.1 mg/mL treatment. In in vivo studies, OJE (10 and 100 mg/kg) treatment significantly ameliorated TAA-induced alterations in levels of serum biomarkers, fibrotic related gene expression, glutathione, and hydroxyproline (P < 0.05-P < 0.001) and rescued the histopathological changes. CONCLUSIONS: OJE can be developed as a potential agent for the treatment of hepatofibrosis.
Animals ; Apoptosis ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Biomarkers ; Cell Cycle ; Cell Survival ; Fibrosis* ; Flow Cytometry ; Gene Expression ; Glutathione ; Hepatic Stellate Cells* ; Humans ; Hydroxyproline ; In Vitro Techniques ; Korea ; Liver ; Liver Cirrhosis ; Models, Animal ; Rats* ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Silymarin ; Spectrophotometry ; Thioacetamide

PURPOSE: We aim to examine nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) characteristics and survival outcomes in patients aged 70 years and older in the intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) era. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From 2006 to 2013, 126 non-metastatic NPC patients aged ≥ 70 years who were treated with IMRT +/‒ chemotherapy were included. Adult Comorbidity Evaluation 27 (ACE-27) was used to measure patient comorbidities. The overall survival (OS) and cancer-specific survival (CSS)were calculatedwith the Kaplan-Meier method, and differenceswere compared using the log-rank test. The Cox proportional hazards model was used to carry out multivariate analyses. RESULTS: For the entire group, only two patients (1.6%) presented stage I disease, and up to 84.1% patients had stage III-IVB disease. All patients had a comorbidity score of 0 in 24 (19.0%), 1 in 45 (35.7%), 2 in 42 (33.3%), and 3 in 15 (11.9%) patients. The main acute grade during radiotherapy was 3-4 adverse events consisting of mucositis (25.4%), bone marrow suppression (16.7%), and dermatitis (8.7%). After treatment, four patients (3.2%) developed temporal lobe injury. Five-year CSS and OS rates were 67.3% (95% confidence interval [CI], 58.6% to 77.4%) and 54.0% (95% CI, 45.6% to 63.9%), respectively. Five-year OS was significantly higher for ACE-27 score 0-1 than ACE-27 score 2-3 (72.9% and 39.9%, respectively; p < 0.001). Multivariate analyses showed ACE-27 score 0-1 was significantly associated with superior OS (hazard ratio [HR], 3.02; 95% CI, 1.64 to 5.55; p < 0.001). In addition, the rate of OS was higher for stage I-III than that of stage IV, with borderline significance (HR, 1.67; 95% CI, 0.99 to 2.82; p=0.053). But no significant advantage was observed in OS when chemotherapy was used (p > 0.05). CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest IMRT +/– chemotherapy has a manageable toxicity and provides an acceptable survival in patients aged ≥ 70 years with NPC. ACE-27 score was significantly associated with survival outcomes in this group population.
Adult ; Bone Marrow ; Comorbidity ; Dermatitis ; Drug Therapy ; Humans ; Methods ; Mucositis ; Multivariate Analysis ; Proportional Hazards Models ; Radiotherapy ; Radiotherapy, Intensity-Modulated* ; Temporal Lobe

OBJECTIVE: To observe the protective effect of electroacupuncture (EA) at Neiguan (PC 6) on pulmonary function during one-lung ventilation (OLV) in patients with lobectomy, and explore its action mechanism. METHODS: Sixty patients with lobectomy were randomly divided into an observation group and a control group, 30 cases in each one. The patients in the control group were treated with general anesthesia, and OLV was given when surgery began; when the surgery finished, air was removed from the thoracic cavity and two-lung ventilation was performed. On the basis of the treatment in the control group, the patients in the observation group were treated with EA (disperse-dense wave, 2 Hz/100 Hz of frequency) at Neiguan (PC 6) 30 min before anesthesia induction until the end of the surgery. The pulmonary function indexes [arterial partial pressure of oxygen (PaO RESULTS: Compared with T CONCLUSION EA at Neiguan (PC 6) has protective effects on lung injury induced by OLV after lobectomy, and its mechanism may be related to the improvement of oxidative stress and inflammatory response.
Anesthesia, General ; Electroacupuncture ; Humans ; Lung ; Lung Injury ; One-Lung Ventilation