Objective To explore a new method for assessing the walking efficiency of the paraplegic patients assisted by functional electrical stimulation (FES). Methods The measurement system based on a standard walker was developed. During FES assisted walking of the paraplegic, the real time of the upper limb support were obtained and transformed into a 3 D center of gravity (CG) motion map with a paraplegic upper body mechanical model to describe the CG motion locus. Then the FES efficiency indicated by walking balance condition was assessed objectively and quantitatively. Results In this design, the pilot study of a paraplegic patient undergoing walking training with FES showed that the force accuracy was better than 1.01%, nonlinearity was less than 0.8%, and crosstalk was less than 3.2%. Conclusion The results showed that this system may be used as 1) an evaluation index of FES assisted paraplegic walking efficiency, 2) a balance control indicator during FES assisted paraplegic walking training and 3) a feed back signal to choose an efficient FES pattern and sequence.

OBJECTIVETo observe the effect of acupuncture along affected meridian on the mem- brane metallo-endopeptidase (MME) gene expression of migraine patients without aura (MO) of Gan-yang hyperactivity syndrome (GYHS).

METHODSTotally 20 MO patients of GYHS were randomly assigned to the acupoint group (acupuncture along affected meridian) and the non-acupoint group, 10 cases in each group. Needling was performed once per day for 10 consecutive days. Gene chip technology was used to obtain two sets of gene expression profiles and analyzed using Gene Ontology (GO).

RESULTSIn the acupoint group, MME gene expression decreased after needling (P = 0.0023).That gene was rich in the beta-amyloid metabolic process (P = 3.16E-05) and the peptide metabolic process (P = 0.009612). Its expression was not seen in the non-acupoint group.

CONCLUSIONThe effect of point selection along affected meridian could be achieved possibly by regulating the MME gene expression.

Acupuncture ; Acupuncture Points ; Acupuncture Therapy ; Endrin ; analogs & derivatives ; metabolism ; Humans ; Meridians ; Migraine Disorders ; therapy ; Syndrome

Aged ; Brain Abscess ; etiology ; Brain Neoplasms ; complications ; secondary ; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell ; complications ; secondary ; Humans ; Male ; Neoplasms, Unknown Primary ; Parietal Lobe

AIM:To examine the difference of vascular remodeling between aorta and small artery in spontaneous hypertensive rats (SHR) and control rats.METHODS:Male SHR (20-week-old) were used as experiment group,and age matched male Wistar-Kyoto (WKY) rats were used as control group.The systolic blood pressure and body weight were measured once a week.At 43 weeks old,the rats were anaesthetized,blood samples were collected,and thoracic aorta and mesenteric small artery tissue were harvested.The morphological changes of the arterial tissue were observed with HE staining.The collagen and elastine fibers were detected by the Sirius red-Victoria blue staining.The protein expression of type Ⅰ and Ⅲ collagens were analyzed by confocal laser-scanning microscopy and Western blot.The changes of the vascular ultrastructure were imaged by transmission electron microscopy.The expression of proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) and the cell apoptosis in the arterial wall were examined by immunohistochemical method and TdT-mediated dUTP nick and labeling (TUNEL) detection.RESULTS:The inner diameter (ID) and luminal cross-sectional area (LCSA) of mesenteric small artery were decreased,whereas ratio of wall thickness (WT) to ID (WT/ID) and ratio of wall cross-sectional area (WCSA) to LCSA (WCSA/LCSA) were increased.Meanwhile,adventitia fibroblast migrated to the nedia,with overload collagens,especially collagen Ⅲ.Proliferation index (PI) and apoptotic index (AI) of the mesenteric small artery wall cells were increased.The ID,LCSA,WT/ID and WCSA/LCSA of the aorta were increased.Moreover,the vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) showed hypertrophy and hyperplasia,with overload collagens.The PI and AI of the aortic wall cells were increased.CONCLUSION:The difference of vascular remodeling between the aorta and small artery is significant.The small artery mainly appears hyperplasia of matrix,especially the adventitial collagen Ⅲ.Meanwhile,the cell apoptosis in the small artery wall is increased.The aorta mainly appears hyperplasia and hypertrophy of media VSMCs.

OBJECTIVE: To summarize the subtle anatomical structures of the normal nasal bone in multi-slice spiral CT (MSCT) image through the observation of the three-dimensional images. METHODS: One hundred and twenty volunteers who had no nasal trauma and disease history were collected. The nasal was scanned using MSCT. Raw data was reconstructed into bone window images (slice thickness 0.6 mm, slice interval 0.5 mm), and then the images were imported into Syngo Imaging XS software to reconstruct three-dimensional images and to summarize the nasal bone's subtle anatomical structures. RESULTS: The subtle anatomy of normal nasal bone generally included four seams, two holes and one edge. The four seams were left and right nasal-maxillary suture, nasal-frontal seam, and internasal suture. The two holes were left and right nasal aperture. The edge of the nasal was the lower edge of the nasal bone. In addition, there was suture bone in internasal suture in some normal nose. The nasal aperture mostly was hole-like, but some nasal apertures were line shape. The nasal edge can be divided into flat type, wave-shaped type, inverted spike type, hook-shaped type and others. CONCLUSION The anatomy diversity and individual differences in nasal bone are large. MSCT and three-dimensional image reconstruction techniques, combined with the history of trauma could distinguish between the normal anatomy and fractures.
Fractures, Bone/diagnosis* ; Humans ; Image Processing, Computer-Assisted ; Imaging, Three-Dimensional ; Maxilla ; Nasal Bone/diagnostic imaging* ; Software ; Tomography, Spiral Computed ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the effects of repairing rabbit radial defects with polyester/tricalcium phosphate scaffolds prepared by rapid prototyping technology loaded with bovine bone morphogenetic protein (bBMP), and find new carriers for growth factors.

METHODSPolyester/tricalcium phosphate scaffolds prepared by rapid prototyping technology loaded with and without bovine BMP were used to repair the 15 mm radial defect in rabbit. Then the results of radiography, histology, scaffolds degrade rates and bone mineral density (BMD) were appraised to examine the effects at the 12th week.

RESULTSAt the 12th week postoperatively, all defects treated with bBMP were radiographically repaired. No radius implanted polyester/tricalcium phosphate scaffolds without bBMP showed radiographic and histological union. At experimental groups, longitudinal alignment of lamellar structure was observed histologically at the 12th week, indicating that remodeling of regenerated bone was complete in different degree. Of the three experimental groups, the bony regeneration and remodeling of callus in poly lactide-co-glycolide/tricalcium phosphate (PLGA/TCP) group was the best. The BMD values were beyond 70% of normal value at the 12th week while the PLGA/TCP scaffolds group was the highest, and no abnormalities were observed in the surrounding soft tissue in all groups.

CONCLUSIONSPolyester/tricalcium phosphate scaffolds prepared by rapid prototyping technology loaded with bovine BMP can repair a 15 mm radial defect of rabbit. As for the results, the PLGA/TCP scaffold is ideal and better than poly L-lactide-co-D, L-lactide (PDLLA/TCP) scaffold, but the ploy L-lactic acid (PLLA/TCP) is not so good for its low degradation rates.

Animals ; Bone Density ; Bone Morphogenetic Proteins ; Bone Regeneration ; Bone Substitutes ; therapeutic use ; Calcium Phosphates ; therapeutic use ; Polyesters ; therapeutic use ; Rabbits ; Radiography ; Radius ; diagnostic imaging ; pathology ; surgery

Tumor immune checkpoint therapy is a clinical treatment strategy developed based on the new principle of the inhibition of negative immune regulation. In this article, the tumor immune checkpoint therapy and the drug delivery strategies were reviewed, mainly including immunity and tumor therapy, tumor immune checkpoint therapy and its mechanism of action, clinical application of tumor immune checkpoint therapy and therapeutic drugs, immune resistance of programmed cell death protein 1 (PD1)/programmed cell death ligand 1 (PDL1) treatment and countermeasures, drug delivery strategies for tumor immune checkpoint therapeutic agents, etc. As a revolutionary new immunotherapy strategy, tumor immune checkpoint therapy has shown obvious superior therapeutic efficacy in a variety types of tumor. However, tumor immune checkpoint therapy is also faced with a big challenge, namely, immunotherapy resistance. With the discovery of new mechanism, the continuous development of new therapeutic drugs and delivery strategies, tumor immune checkpoint therapy is expected to further improve the clinical efficacy of tumor.

Adult ; Aged ; Arteriovenous Fistula ; etiology ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular ; complications ; Female ; Hepatic Artery ; abnormalities ; Hepatic Veins ; abnormalities ; Humans ; Liver Neoplasms ; complications ; Male ; Middle Aged

AIMTo study the effect of lidocaine-dodecanol binary eutectic system on the transdermal permeation of lidocaine.

METHODSBinary eutectic mixture of different proportions of lidocaine and dodecanol were prepared and the patch containing the binary eutectic mixture was developed. The solubilities of pure lidocaine and lidocaine from the binary eutectic system were determined in pH 7.9 phosphate buffer. The transdermal flux of lidocaine from the patches containing the binary eutectic system and pure lidocaine were measured using Franz-type single diffusion cell.

RESULTSThe melting point of the lidocaine-dodecanol binary eutectic system was markedly lower than that of pure lidocaine. The steady state transdermal flux of lidocaine from the patch of the binary eutectic system was six times as much as that of pure lidocaine patch.

CONCLUSIONThe lidocaine-dodecanol binary eutectic system could produce high thermodynamic activity of the drug and the high driving force for transdermal permeation of lidocaine.

Administration, Cutaneous ; Anesthetics, Local ; administration & dosage ; pharmacokinetics ; Animals ; Dodecanol ; administration & dosage ; chemistry ; Drug Combinations ; Drug Stability ; Guinea Pigs ; Lidocaine ; administration & dosage ; pharmacokinetics ; Skin Absorption ; Solubility

Objective:To analysis the risk factors for central compartment lymph node metastasis in patients with papillary thyroid microcarcinoma.Methods:The clinical data of 200 patients with PTMC were retrospectively analyzed,and the risk factors for central compartment lymph node metastasis were ananlyzed also.Results:200 patients with PTMC includes 70 cases for central lymph node metastasis with metastasis rate as 35％.Univariate logistic regression analysis showed that tumor size,clinical stage,with or without membrane invasionwere risk factorsfor central lymph node metastasis of papillary thyroid microcarcinoma(P＜0.05).Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that tumor size,clinical stage,with or without membrane invasion were independent risk factors forcentral lymph node metastasis of papillary thyroid microcarcinoma (P＜0.05).Conclusion:Tumor size,clinical stage,with or without membrane invasion were independent risk factors for central lymph node metastasis of papillary thyroid microcarcinoma,and the central lymph node clearance could prolong the survival time of patients and improve the clinical prognosis when necessary.