Objective To analyze the cause and clinical characteristics of maternal cardiac arrest.Methods The data of all cases of maternal cardiac arrest from January 2005 to December 2009 in Third Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical College was retrospectively studied.Results ( 1 ) A total of 41 maternal cardiac arrests (6 in prenatal period,2 in the first stage of labor,7 in the third stage of labor,26 in postpartum period ) were included.All patients regained spontaneous circulation after basic life support.Twelve (29％) mothers survived.Twelve cardiac arrests occurred in the hospital,and the totaldelivery number from January 2005 to December 2009 was 17101,with occurrence rate of 1:1425.(2) Thecauses of arrest were hemorrhagic shock (12,29％),amniotic fluid embolism (7,17％),severepreeclampsia/eclampsia (7,17％),septic shock (6,15％),cardiac disease (2,5％),unidentified cause (2,5％ ) and other occasional causes.(3) Thirty-seven (90％) in-hospital maternal cardiac arrest occurred in operation room (16,39％ ),ICU (7,17％ ),maternity wards (6,15％ ),delivery room (5,12％ ) and the emergency room (3,7％ ).Three (7％) arrest occurred out of hospital and one in the ambulance.Matemal survival rate was 2/3 in the emergency room,8/16 in the operation room,1/5 in the maternity wards,and 1/6 in the delivery room.No mother survived in ICU,ambulance or out of hospital.(4) Five of the 12 survived women showed ischemic encephalopathy after cardiac arrest and one of them developed cerebral infarction in the right corona radiate.(5) In 4 of the 8 cases of cardiac arrest in pregnancy,perimortem caesarean section (PMCS) was performed.In the four PMCS,2 mothers and 2 children survived.In the 4 cases that PMCS was not carried out,no infant survived.Conclusions Hemorrhagic shock,severe preeclampsia and eclampsia,amniotic fluid embolism are the major obstetric causes of maternal cardiac arrest.Septic shock and cardiac diseases are the major non-obstetric causes.Cardiac arrests occurred in emergency room and operation room has a higher maternal survival rate than those occurred in the delivery room and maternity wards.Timely PMCS may ensure the optimal outcome for mothers and fetuses.

Objective To analyse the causes and clinical characteristics of re-exploration after peripartum hysterectomy due to postpartum hemorrhage. Methods Clinical data was analysed retrospectively including 88 critically ill obstetric patients who underwent peripartum hysterectomy due to postpartum hemorrhage in the Obstetric Critical Care Center of Guangzhou from January 1999 to July 2009, which were divided into re-explored group (n= 14) and non-re-explored group (n=74)depending on whether the patient underwent re-exploration after peripartum hysterectomy. The main demographic data and clinical details were compared between the two groups, including mode of delivery, indication and type of hysterectomy, interval from hysterectomy to re-exploration, surgical intervention, complications, blood loss, blood transfusion,Glasgow Coma Score(GCS), the need for mechanical ventilation, intensive care unit stay and hospital stay. Results Fourteen out of the 88 (15.91%) patients underwent re-exploration due to internal bleeding after peripartum hysterectomy.Removal of cervical stump was performed in five patients and stump hemostasis in eight cases.Significant difference was found between the re-exploration and non-re-explored group on thepercentage of patients complicated with disseminated intravascular coagulation(92.9% vs 43.2%,x2=11.598,P=0.001) and amniotic fluid embolism (28.6% vs 2.7%, x2 =8.663, P=0.003).0.000], blood transfusion [(8163.6± 3903.1 ) ml vs (2958.8± 2323.0) ml, P = 0.000], intensive care unit admission rate (100.0% vs 41.9%, x2 = 15.909, P= 0.000), the need for mechanical ventilation (100.0% vs 24.3%,P=0.000), the number of patients with GCS≤8 score (71.4% vs 25.7% ,x2 = 9.179, P = 0.002 ), the number of multiple organ dysfunction syndrome ( 71.4% vs 14.9%, x2 = 17.735, P = 0.000), intensive care unit stay [ ( 11.4 ± 10.0 ) d vs ( 1.3 ± 2.3 ) d, P =0.000] and hospital stay[(24.0±13.1) d vs (12.7±7.0) d, P=0.000]. Allof the 14 cases were clinical recovered before discharge. Conclusions The rate of re-exploration after peripartum hysterectomy is not low, and internal bleeding is the most common causes. The re-exploration after peripartum hysterectomy might be associated with coagulopathy and the mode of hysterectomy, and patients may experience more severe complications.

Objective To analyze the clinical features and risk factors of delayed intracranial hemorrhage (DICH) after ventriculoperitoneal shunt (VPS) in patients with communicating hydrocephalus.Methods One hundred and seventy-six patients with ventriculoperitoneal shunt due to communicating hydrocephalus secondary to craniocerebral trauma,hypertensive intracerebral hemorrhage,brain tumor or intracranial aneurysm rupture hemorrhage,admitted to our hospital from January 2012 to August 2018,were selected in our study;these patients were divided into DICH group and non-DICH group according to whether or not DICH occurred.The clinical features,including incidence,time and location of DICH,were analyzed.The differences of age,gender,length of stay,concomitant diseases,previous operation history,incidences of subdural effusion and puncture canal edema after ventriculoperitoneal shunt,and history of down-regulating shunt valve within 2 weeks between the two groups were compared by univariate analysis.The independent risk factors for DICH were further assessed using multivariable Logistic regression.Results Among 176 patients,23 (13.07％) had DICH;2-11 d after surgery,DICH appeared,manifesting as subdural,ventriculoventricular end canal and/or hemorrhage in one or more areas of the ventricle.There were significant differences in incidence of subdural effusion and history of down-regulating shunt valve within 2 weeks between the two groups (P＜0.05).Multivariate Logistic regression analysis showed that subdural effusion after surgery and down-regulation of shunt valve pressure within 2 weeks after ventriculoperitoneal shunt were independent risk factors for DICH (OR=4.516,95％CI:1.555-13.110,P=0.006;OR=5.352,95％CI:1.987-14.414,P=0.001).Conclusion High incidence of DICH mighty be noted within two weeks of ventriculoperitoneal shunt;subdural effusion and pressure reduction of shunt valve within 2 weeks are independent risk factors for DICH,which needs close monitoring and clinical intervention.

The present study explored the effect and mechanism of repeatedly steamed and sundried Rehmanniae Radix Praeparata(RRP) in delaying brain aging in ovariectomized mice. After ovariectomy, the mice were randomly divided into a model group, an estradiol valerate group(0.3 mg·kg~(-1)), and low-(1.0 g·kg~(-1)), medium-(2.0 g·kg~(-1)), and high-dose(4.0 g·kg~(-1)) RRP groups, and a sham operation group was also set up, with 15 mice in each group. One week after the operation, intragastric administration was carried out for 15 consecutive weeks. The step-down test and Morris water maze test were used to detect the behavioral changes of mice. HE staining and Nissl staining were used to observe the morphological changes of mouse brain tissues. Immunohistochemistry was used to detect the expression of Aβ and ER_β in mouse brain tissues. The serum estrogen levels and cholinesterase and cholinesterase transferase levels in brain tissues of mice were detected by assay kits. The extracted hippocampal protein was detected by the Nano-ESI-LC-MS system, identified by the Protein Discovery, and analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively by the SIEVE. The PANTHER Classification System was used for GO analysis and KEGG pathway enrichment analysis of the differential proteins. Compared with the sham operation group, the model group showed decreased learning and memory ability, shortened step-down latency(P<0.05), prolonged escape latency(P<0.05), reduced platform crossings and residence time in the target quadrant, scattered nerve cells in the hippocampus with enlarged intercellular space, increased expression of Aβ-positive cells(P<0.05), declining expression of ER_β-positive cells and estrogen level(P<0.05), and weakened cholinergic function(P<0.05). Compared with the model group, the RRP groups showed improved learning and memory ability, prolonged step-down latency(P<0.05), increased estrogen level(P<0.05), neatly arranged nerve cells in the hippocampus with complete morphology, declining Aβ-positive cells, and elevated expression of ER_β-positive cells. A total of 146 differential proteins were screened out by proteomics, and KEGG pathway enrichment yielded 75 signaling pathways. The number of proteins involved in the dopaminergic synapse signaling pathway was the largest, with 13 proteins involved. In summary, RRP can delay brain aging presumedly by increasing the level of estrogen, mediating the dopaminergic synapse signaling pathway, and improving cholinergic function.
Aging ; Animals ; Female ; Hippocampus/metabolism* ; Learning ; Mice ; Plant Extracts ; Proteomics ; Rehmannia