OBJECTIVETo compare therapeutic effects between surgical and conservative treatment for postoperative lumbar discitis.

METHODSFrom January 2004 to January 2009, 41 patients (17 males and 24 females ranging the age from 37 to 68 years with an average of 53.6 years) with postoperative lumbar discitis were retrospectively studied and divided into two groups. There were 19 patients in operation group, 22 patients in conservative group. Clinical data and features,image data, laboratory examinations, antibiotics utilization, hospital stays and sequelae were recorded and analyzed. Visual analogue scales system (VAS) and Oswestry disability index (ODI) were applied to evaluate therapeutic effects.

RESULTSAll patients were followed up over 2 years. Imaging revealed good bone fusion and no occurrence of discitis. VAS score and ODI at 1 month, 1 year and 2 years were significantly improved after treatment (P < 0.01). While VAS and ODI in operation group at 1 month were improved more than that of conservative group (P < 0.01), and there was no significant difference between two groups at 1 year and 2 years (P > 0.01).

CONCLUSIONSurgical and conservative treatment for postoperative lumbar discitis is effective. Surgical treatment is superior to conservative treatment in a short time, while conservative treatment can achieve long-term satisfactory curative effects.

Adult ; Aged ; Anti-Bacterial Agents ; pharmacology ; therapeutic use ; Discitis ; drug therapy ; surgery ; Female ; Humans ; Lumbar Vertebrae ; drug effects ; surgery ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Postoperative Complications ; drug therapy ; surgery ; Retrospective Studies ; Treatment Outcome

The immunoregulation effect to polysaccharides from Bifidobacterium spp. was investigated on the base of functional assessment standards of health food. Effects of the EPS on immunity were investigated by promoted the proliferation of spleen lymph cells, delayed type hypersensitivity reaction, the HC50 value and macrophage function assay in mice. Data showed that the EPS could obviously increase the ratio of swallowed chicken red blood cell by macrophage and the HC50 value in mice. However, no significant effect was found on the delayed type hypersensitive induced by sheep red blood cell, for only the low dose of 100 mg/(kg?d) EPS promoted the proliferation of spleen lymph cells. Bifidobacterium spp. EPS can certain immunomodulating function.

BACKGROUND: Using color Doppler ultrasonography, renal graft size, appearance, structure, and blood flow distribution can be observed. Through the use of blood flow display technique, blood flow perfusion of renal graft can be accurately observed to assist diagnosis and differential diagnosis of complications following renal transplantation. OBJECTIVE: To observe the hemodynamic characteristics during different periods of acute renal transplant rejection, summarize its specific manifestations through analyzing different reaction of two dimensional and color Doppler flow imaging (CDFI) during renal transplantation in order to get valuable index on acute rejection of renal transplantation.DESIGN, TIME AND SETTING: Comparative observation was performed at the Jinan University and First Hospital of Shenzhen University between January 2003 and January 2007.PARTICIPANTS: A total of 299 patients undergoing renal transplantation were divided into normal allograft group (n=236) and acute rejection group (n=63) according to renal allograft function.METHODS: The systolic peak flow rate, end-diastolic flow rate, mean flow rate, pulsatility index and resistance index of main renal artery and arcuate artery in patients of two groups were compared. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Renal allograft arterial inner diameter and hemodynamics of two groups.RESULTS: Compared with normal allograft group, the blood flow perfusion was reduced at acute rejection, which could not reach cortex margin, blood velocity was decreased at the diastolic phase, pulsatility index and resistance index were increased (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Color Doppler ultrasound, as a convenient, economical and noninvasive technique, provides the reliable evidences for the renal artery pulsatility index and resistance index in clinic, and also is valuable for the acute rejection early diagnosis of renal allograft.

To study the effect of wearing overnight orthokeratology ( OK) contact lens on corneal topography and tears in adolescents.METHODS: The diopter, corneal curvature, corneal surface regularity index ( SRl ) , tear break - up time ( BUT ) , Schirmer l test, and corneal fluorescent ( FL ) were recordedon 40 (80 eyes) adolescent myopia patients (mean age 13. 68±2. 32 years), who had worn OK contact lensfor more than 1 year, with mean spherical equivalent refraction -3. 61 ± 1. 48D before wearing OK contact lens. These indexes were tested and recorded before the patients' wearing OK contact lens and 5 times (1wk and 1, 3, 6, 12mo after the first wearing) during the patients' overnight wearing OK contact lens for 8~10 hours per day.RESULTS: Compared with pre - wearing, at post -wearing OK contact lens 12mo, the mean spherical equivalent refraction was apparently decreased from -3.61±1. 48D to -1. 39±1. 31D(P<0. 01). The corneal curvature was significantly flattened from 42. 29 ± 1. 55D to 40.13±1. 41D (P<0. 01). Mean SRl was increased from 0. 34± 0. 01 to 0. 37 ± 0. 01 ( P<0. 01 ). Mean BUT was decreased from 10. 39±2. 25s to 7. 26±1. 77s (P<0. 01). These indexes were stable at 1wk after wearing OK contact lens overnight and had no significant differences during the following (1, 3, 6, 12mo after wearing) tests (P > 0. 05 ). There were no significant differences on Schirmer▏test during the 12mo of OK wearing(P>0. 05). The cases of corneal fluorescent staining increased were mainly grade l, and the number of corneal staining grade l at 1 wk and 1, 3, 6, 12 mo after wearing were 15 eyes (18. 8%), 9 eyes (11. 3%),13 eyes (16. 3%), 9 eyes (11. 3%), and 12 eyes (15. 0%). BUT of corneal staining grade l wasdecreased significantly, compared with the BUT of corneal staining grade 0 during the 12mo of OK wearing (P<0. 05). CONCLUSlON: OK contact lens can significantly decrease the degree of myopia and K value of corneal curvature without changing tear volume. However, tear film stability weakens, which needs regular follow-up.

Animals ; Gene Expression ; Mice ; Mice, Inbred Strains ; Spinal Cord ; metabolism ; Spinal Cord Injuries ; genetics ; metabolism ; p21-Activated Kinases ; genetics

OBJECTIVETo analyze the incidence and treatment of Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) in pediatric patients with antibiotic-associated diarrhea (AAD).

METHODClinical data of totally 577 pediatric patients with AAD seen from January 2012 to January 2014 were collected; those children were divided according to age into 4 groups, 0.25 -1 year, >1 -4 years, >4 -12 years and >12 -18 years old groups, and 220 healthy children were enrolled as controls. CDI was tested by C. Diff Quik Chek Complete (QCC) and BD GeneOhm™ C. Diff Assay (BD-PCR) in all children, and the CDI incidence of four groups was added up. All pediatric patients with AAD were divided into mild, general and severe type according to different symptoms of diarrhea, and grading treatment, the general type and severe type of CDI children were treated with metronidazole and (or) vancomycin, afterwards, the results of grading treatment were analyzed.

RESULTThe number of pediatric patients with AAD were 178, 177, 132 and 90 in 0. 25 - 1 year, > 1 -4 years, > 4 - 12 years and > 12 - 18 years old group, respectively. The positive rate of CDI (22. 0% (39/177)) in > 1 -4 years old AAD patients was very significantly higher compared to the controls (4% (4/91), P < 0. 001), the rate of CDI (21. 2% (28/132)) in > 4 - 12 years old AAD pediatric patients was significantly higher compared to the controls (4% (2/53), P = 0. 004), the rates of CDI in 0. 25 - 1 year and > 12 - 18years old AAD groups were not significantly different from that of the controls (P >0. 05). There were 285 mild type AAD children (no CDI children), 176 general type AAD children (including 47 CDI children), and 116 severe type AAD children (including 81 CDI children). After grading and symptomatic treatment, there were 16 recurrent diarrhea in 128 CDI patients (severe type AAD), and the rest recovered. Two cases were transferred for referral treatment, 2 cases died, and the rest 12 recurrent diarrhea children fully recovered after administration of metronidazole, vancomycin, probiotics and symptomatic treatment.

CONCLUSIONThe > 1 -12 years old AAD children had higher CDI rate than healthy children; administration of metronidazole and (or) vancomycin was effective for CD infection.

Adolescent ; Anti-Bacterial Agents ; therapeutic use ; Case-Control Studies ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Clostridium Infections ; drug therapy ; Clostridium difficile ; Diarrhea ; microbiology ; Humans ; Incidence ; Metronidazole ; therapeutic use ; Probiotics ; therapeutic use ; Vancomycin ; therapeutic use

Objective:To study the inhibitory effect of siRNA on Heparanase (HPA) expression in SKOV3 cells. Methods:Two pairs of 21 bp reverse repeated sequence targeting HPA RNA (spaced by 9 bp nueleotide) were synthe- sized and were cloned into plasmid PGenesil-1 to construct recombinant plasmid PGenesil-1(+)-HPA expressing 2 hair- pin siRNAs.The inhibition of HPA gene was detected by RT-PCR,real-time PCR and immunohistochemical staining after PGenesil-1(+)-HPA was stably transfected into SKOV3 cells.Results:The recombinant plasmid PGenesil-1(+)-HPA (expressing 2 hairpin siRNAs) was successfully constructed.RT-PCR,real-time PCR and immunohistochemical staining showed that there was a significant decrease in HPA mRNA and protein level in experimental group compared with those in control group.Conclusion:siRNA targeting HPA mRNA can specically suppress the expression of HPA gene in SKOV3 cells;RNA interference method provides a new way for studying the role of HPA and gene therapy of cancer.

Objective To evaluate the effect of TGF-β1 and IL-1β expression in serum on acute radiation-induced heart disease (RIHD) in patients with thoracic tumors.Methods Three-dimensional conformal radiotherapy (3D-CRT) or intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) was delivered at 1.8-2.0 Gy,5 times per week to a total dose of 50-66 Gy to 44 patients with lung cancer and 10 patients with esophagus cancer.The target and organs at risk dose distribution were analyzed by 3-dimensiond treatment planning system.The expressions of TGF-β1 and IL-1β in serum were detected by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay before and at the end of the irradiation.The cardiac injury was evaluated by detecting the cmyocardium creatase,cardiac troponin I (cTnI),electrocardiogram and cardiac function before and at the end of the irradiation within 90 d.The acute RIHD was evaluated by the Common Terminology Criteria V 3.0 (NCI-CTCAE 3.0).The expressions of TGF-β1 and IL-1β in the serum of RIHD patients with thoracic tumors were analyzed.Results The expression of TGF-β1 in serum was (888.4 ± 41.1) μg/L before the irradiation and approached to (926.1 ± 23.1) μg/L at the end of the radiotherapy.The expression level of TGF-β1 in the serum of acute RIDH group was (900.6 ± 34.5) μg/L,higher than that of normal group [(865.7 ±47.0) μg/L,t =-2.646,P ＜0.05)].The acute RIDH was correlated with the expression level of TGF-β1 before irradiation and the difference before and at the end of irradiation (r =0.378,0.311,P ＜0.05).The IL-1β expression had no significant difference before and after irradiation.The expression of TGF-β1 in serum before and at the end of irradiation had positive correlation with the expression of IL-1β at the end of the irradiation (r =0.416,0.389,P ＜ 0.05).Conclusions The expression of TGF-β1 in the serum of patients with thoracic tumor increases after irradiation and correlated with the acute RIHD,but the expression of IL-1β in serum has no relationship with RIHD.TGF-β1 could induce the expression of IL-1β at the end of the irradiation.

ABO Blood-Group System ; immunology ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; therapeutic use ; Erythroblastosis, Fetal ; classification ; prevention & control ; Female ; Humans ; Hyperbilirubinemia ; prevention & control ; Immunoglobulin G ; blood ; Infant, Newborn ; Phytotherapy ; Pregnancy ; Prenatal Diagnosis

The paper reported an investigation of the pharmacokinetics of SN-38 (7-ethyl-10-hydroxy-camptothecin) in rats and the tissue distribution in mice after injection of irinotecan hydrochloride nanoparticles (CPT-11) via tail veins. An LC-MS/MS method was established to determine the concentrations of SN-38 in whole blood of rats and in different tissues of mice. The pharmacokinetics and tissue distribution of SN-38 were compared after the intravenous injection of CPT-11 NPs and CPT-11 solution. Compared with irinotecan solution, the elimination half-life of SN-38 was prolonged from 2.17 h to 2.67 h after the intravenous injection of CPT-11 NPs, but its AUC had little change. After the injection of CPT-11 NPs in mice, over time, the concentrations of CPT-11-metabolized SN-38 in CPT-11 NPs were significantly higher in the whole blood, colon and lungs than those in CPT-11 solution, followed by in the spleen and liver, but those in the heart and brain had no change. However, the amount of SN-38 in the kidneys was reduced with time. CPT-11 NPs could prolong SN-38's (one of its metabolites) blood circulation time in rats and significantly increased the concentration of CPT-11-metabolized SN-38 in the whole blood, colon and lungs of mice. CPT-11 NPs made SN-38 efficiently target-bind to the colon and lungs of mice.
Animals ; Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic ; pharmacokinetics ; Camptothecin ; analogs & derivatives ; pharmacokinetics ; Chromatography, Liquid ; Colon ; metabolism ; Half-Life ; Injections, Intravenous ; Lung ; metabolism ; Mice ; Nanoparticles ; administration & dosage ; Rats ; Tandem Mass Spectrometry ; Tissue Distribution