Objective To evaluate the clinical significance of the change of serum matrix metalloproteinases (MMP)-1,-2,-3 and -9 in acute and chronic aortic diseases and acute myocardial ischemia.Methods The blood serum levels of MMP-1,-2,-3 and -9 were detected in 30 patients with acute aortic dissection,19 patients with chronic aortic dissection,19 patients with aortic aneurysm and in 12 patients with acute myocardial ischemia,as well as in 16 healthy individuals who served as the control group.Serum MMP levels were measured by using an ELISA technique.Results There were significantly higher levels of MMP-3 in patients with acute myocardial ischemia as compared to acute aortic dissection ( [19.10 ± 3.11 ] μg/L vs [11.89 ± 1.31 ] μg/L,P =0.02).Significantly lower levels of MMP-1 were found in healthy controls compared to the groups of patients ( [1.30 ± 0.56 ] μg/L vs [2.99 ± 0.78 ] μg/L in acute aortic dissection,P =0.03,[3.12 ±0.78] μg/L in chronic dissection,P =0.02,[3.01 ± 1.01 ] μg/L in thoracic aortic aneurysm,P =0.03 and [5.01 ± 0.98 ] μg/L in acute myocardial ischemia,P =0.01 ).Higher levels of M MP-1 and MMP-3 were detected on males.There was a positive correlation between MMP-1 and increasing age ( r =0.38,P ＜ 0.05 ).In patients operated for acute type A aortic dissection,the levels of MMP-1,MMP-3 and MMP-9 increased immediately after surgery,while the levels of MMP-2 decreased.Twenty-four hours after surgery levels of MMP-1,-2 and -9 were almost equal to the preoperative ones( P ＞ 0.05 ).Conclusion Measurement of serum MMP levels in thoracic aortic disease and acute myocardial ischemia is a simple and relatively rapid laboratory test that could be used as a biochemical indicator of aortic disease or acute myocardial ischemia,when evaluated in combination with imaging techniques.

Objective To investigate the markers in early diagnosis of acute kidney injury (AKI) in patients undergoing heart surgery.Methods Markers included serum cystatin C (CyC),and urinary neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin(NGAL),interleukin 18(IL-18),retinol binding protein(RBP)and N-acetyl-β-D-glucosaminidase(NAG).Twenty-nine cardiac surgical patients hospitalized were enrolled in the study.Serial blood and urine samples were collected immediately before incision and at various time intervals after surgery.The primary outcome measure was AKI.defined as a 50%increase in Scr from baseline. Results The cohort consisted of 29 patients aged(62.9±13.7)years,and baseline Scr was(73.2±11.9)μmol/L.There were no significant differences in demographics between cases and controls,while the aortic clamp time was predictably longer in AKI cases as compared to controls[(60.63±13.92)vs(43.00±9.20)rain,P<0.05].Each biomarker difiered significantly between cases and controls at least one timepoint.Optimal AUCs were for CyC at 10 houm with sensitivity (ST)0.71,specificity(SP)0.92,AUC=0.83(0.67-1.00),cut-off(CO)1.31 mg/L;NGAL at 0 hour with ST 0.84,SP 0.80,Auc=0.85(0.70-1.00),CO 49.15 μg/g Ucr;IL-18 at 2 hours with ST 0.85,SP 0.73,AUC=0.81(0.64-0.97),CO 285.65 ng/g Ucr;RBP at 0 hour with ST 0.75,SP 0.67,AUC=0.77(0.60-0.95),CO 2934.65μg/g Ucr and NAG at 4 hours with ST 0.86,SP 0.67,AUC=0.72(0.53-O.92),CO 37.05 U/mg Ucr.Using a combination of all the 5 biomarkers analyzed at the optimal time-point as above,an AUC of 0.98(0.93-1.02)(P<0.01)in this limited sample was able to obtain. Conclusions Application of serum and urinary biomarkers for the prediction of AKI in patients undergoing cardiac surgery is highly dependent on the sampling time.Of the evaluated markers,uNGAL has the best predictive profile.uRBP also shows similar predictive power.Combining all the five above biomarkers is able to predict significantly more cases,suggesting that the use of more than one marker may be beneficial clinically.

BACKGROUNDMatrix-induced autologous chondrocyte implantation (MACI) is the third generation tissue-engineering technique for the treatment of full-thickness articular cartilage defects. The aim of this study was to describe this new technique and the postoperative findings in adolescent knee with focal chondral defect.

METHODSThe MACI consists of diagnostic arthroscopy and cartilage harvest, chondrocyte culture and seeding in tissue-engineering collagenous membrane, and implantation of the scaffold. Clinical outcome at minimum 1-year follow-up was assessed in seven patients (mean age (16.6 ± 1.5) years; 14 - 19 years) with full-thickness cartilage defects, with International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC) score, the International Cartilage Repair Society (ICRS) score and the Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS). Besides, MR imaging was performed with T1 and T2-weighted imaging and three-dimensional spoiled gradient-recalled (3D-SPGR) MR imaging.

RESULTSClinical evaluation showed significant improvement and MRI analysis showed that the structure was homogeneous and the implant surface was regular and intact in six patients, but irregular in one. Of all the seven patients, the cartilage defect site was nearly totally covered by the implanted scaffold.

CONCLUSIONSThese results indicated that MACI technique is an option for cartilage defect in adolescent knee joint, especially large defect of over 2 cm(2). Long-term assessment is necessary to determine the true value of this technique.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Cartilage, Articular ; injuries ; surgery ; Cells, Cultured ; Chondrocytes ; cytology ; physiology ; Female ; Humans ; Knee Joint ; cytology ; surgery ; Male ; Tissue Engineering ; methods ; Transplantation, Autologous ; methods ; Young Adult

Objective To prospectively investigate the value of urinary neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL) in the diagnosis of acute kidney injury (AKI) following adult cardiac surgery. Methods Twenty-nine hospitalization patients undergone cardiac surgery were enrolled in the study. Serial blood and urinary samples were collected immediately before incision and at various time intervals after surgery. The primary outcome measure was acute kidney injury, defined as a 50% increase in the level of serum creatinine (Scr) from baseline. Results Fourteen of 29 developed acute kidney injury. The diagnosis time point with Ser was at 24 (10, 48) h after cardiac surgery. By contrast, the concentration of urinary NGAL rose from a median of 3.42(1.60, 9.92) μg/L at baseline to 20.51(13.42, 50.02) μg/L at admission to ICU (P=0.006),and the median concentration of urinary NGAL in patients who developed AKI was significantly higher at admission to ICU compared with patients who did not develop AKI [20.51 (13.42, 50.02) μg/L vs 2.91 (0.72,8.61) μg/L, P=0.002]. As to urinary NGAL at admission to ICU, the area under the receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve was 0.824, the sensitivity was 85.7% and the specificity was 80.0% with a cutoff value of 10.95 μg/L. Significant correlation was found between urinary NGAL at admission and the levd of Scr at 24 h in ICU (r=0.545, P=0.002), as well as estimated GFR (r=-0.546,P=0.002). Conclusion Urinary NGAL concentration is significantly higher in patients developing postoperative AKI at the early time of admission to ICU, which may be a useful early biomarker of AKI after adult cardiac surgery.

Objective To evaluate the safety and efficacy of ultra-thin transnasal esophagogastroduodenoscopy(EGD).Methods The patients(n=240)receiving diagnostic EGD were randomly assigned to 3 groups to undergo ultra-thin trails-nasal EGD(group A,n=82),ultra-thin trans-oral EGD(group B,n=79)and conventional trans-oral EGD(group C,n=79).The blood pressure,pulse rate,arterial oxygen saturation,myocardial oxygen consumption were monitored and recorded before and during the procedure,as well as the operation time.All patients completed a questionnaire after the procedure.Results No significant difference was found in drop of arterial oxygen saturation between three groups.Increases in pulse rate,blood pressure,rate-pressure product in group A were significantly lower than those in group B and C(P＜0.05).Patients in group A experienced the lowest VAS scores of discomfort and nausea during the procedure (P＜0.05).But examination time and insertion time were significantly longer in group A than those in group B and C.With the increase in number of cases,the insertion time for group A decreased gradually.Conclusion Ultra-thin trans-nasal EGD is well tolerated and has fewer hemodynamic effects.It is safe and may be the optimal route of intubation with ultra-thin scopes.

OBJECTIVETo retrospectively evaluate the early results of anatomic double-bundle anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction and compare with the results of native ACL of the contralateral knee.

METHODSThe results of a consecutive series of 118 patients receiving arthroscopic ACL reconstruction were evaluated. Eight patients were lost to the latest follow-up, leaving a total of 110 patients available for study within at least 3 years'clinical follow-up. Among them, 63 patients underwent postoperative MRI and CT scan, as well as clinical evaluation.

RESULTSAfter reconstruction, the knees were stable and pain-free. Mean postoperative Lysholm score was 95.54 in 110 patients after 3 years. CT and MRI assessment showed that the reconstruction centered in the femoral footprint of ACL (n equal to 63). The sagittal ACL angle in the reconstructed ACL (52.16 degree+/-2.45 degree was much close to that in the contralateral intact ACL (51.31 degree +/-2.18 degree, P larger than 0.05). By ACL-Blumensaat line angle analysis, there was no difference between double-bundle reconstructed knees and their contralateral normal knees (4.67 degree+/-0.43 degree vs. 4.62 degree+/-0.60degree, P larger than 0.05).

CONCLUSIONAnatomic double-bundle ACL reconstruction can place grafts more precisely in the anatomic footprint of the ACL and better restore knee kinematics.

Anterior Cruciate Ligament ; surgery ; Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction ; Biomechanical Phenomena ; Femur ; surgery ; Humans ; Knee Joint

Objective To investigate the epidemiological and clinical characteristics and prognosis of 31 children with hand foot and mouth disease(HFMD) complicated with acute flaccid paralysis(AFP).Methods Thirty-one HFMD children complicated with AFP served as study objective,who were admitted to Tangshan Maternity and Children Health Hospital from Jun 2011 to Dec 2014.The clinical manifestations and follow-up outcomes of 31 children with HFMD followed by AFP were retrospectively reviewed.Results Participants in this study consisted of 31 children(16 males,15 females,age from 3 months to 9 years) who met the criteria for HFMD with AFP.Among the 31 cases,27(87.1％)cases were less than 3 years old and 29(93.5％) cases were from countryside.Eleven cases (35.5％)were infected by enterovirus 71,1 case (3.2％) was infected with coxsackieviruses A16 and 19 cases(61.3％) were infected by other enteroviruses.AFP developed(7.1 ±2.9) days after the onset of fever and progressed to maximum severity within 1-2 days.All of the cases presented with fever and skin rash,38.7％ cases presented with limbs tremor and 87.1％ cases presented with startle and skip.Besides AFP of limbs, 100％ cases complicated with encephalitis.Thirty-one cases showed poliomyelitis-like syndrome(20 cases with one flaccid limb,5 cases with lower limbs,4 cases with upper limbs and 2 cases with left hemiplegia).In these cases, the muscle power varied from level 0 to level 4.The muscle strengthen and muscle tone in 21 patients were recovered within 2 weeks,and the other cases showed recovery 2 to 3 weeks later.After four weeks, the muscle strengthen in 19 cases recovered to 5 level(10 cases with single lower limb,5 cases with single upper limb,3 cases with two lower limbs and 1 case with two upper limbs).Conclusion HFMD complicated with AFP most commonly occurs in children aged less than 3 years old.The majority of cases were from countryside.Enterovirus 71 is still relatively common pathogen.All the 31 cases complicated with encephalitis.Cases clinically presented one flaccid limb, lower limbs, upper limbs and hemiplegia.AFP may be to some degree reversible in HFMD cases.In most cases described here, paralysis occurred in a single lower extremity and recovered more rapidly than those with two fimbs affected or with single upper extremity impairment.

This article was aimed to study the acute toxicities on intragastric administration of differentRadix Aconiti Lateralis Praeparataprocessed products to Beagle dogs. A total of 16 healthy and qualified Beagle dogs were randomly divided into the blank group,Pao-Fu-Pian(PFP) group,Pao-Tian-Xiong(PTX) group andHei-Shun-Pian(HSP) group according to the body weight. The intragastric administration of 4 g crude herb per kg was given. Before medication, 1 h, 24 h, and 3, 7, 14 days after medication, the body weight, food consumption, rectal temperature, electrocardiogram, blood routine and blood biochemistry were measured. The results showed that after medication, all dogs in three experimental groups were depressed. And there were significant differences in the electrolytes of blood. Among them, the HSP group was the most obvious one. The red blood cells, blood sugar and triglycerides of dogs in the PFP group had significant difference. The lymphocytes and blood sugar had significant difference of dogs in the PTX group. However, after the medication of HSP, the lymphocytes of the dogs were decreased significantly. It was concluded that the toxicity of three processed products followed the order of HSP > PFP > PTX.

Objective To analyze the characteristics of proximal deep vein thrombosis (DVT) after total joint arthroplasty.Methods 40 cases of proximal DVT were collected from May 2007 to October 2016 which were all diagnosed by lower limb venography or sonography.There were 9 males and 31 females aged from 38 to 86 years,average 67 years,and body mass index was from 16.94 to 31.25kg/m2,with an average of 24.3 kg/m2.29 cases of THA patients and 11 cases of TKA patients.The anatomical distribution,size,radiological performance,local physical findings were recorded and multivariable analysis was performed to evaluate the relationship between distribution of proximal DVT and related parameters including age,gender (male/female),side of leg(left/right),surgery type(knee and hip),preoperative diagnosis(femoral neck fracture/other disease),time of diagnosis with DVT (during hospitalization/after discharge).Results Among 40 proximal DVT cases,31 cases diagnosed by phlebography and 9 cases were diagnosed by ultrasound.2 cases were isolated proximal DVT while 38 cases connected with distal DVTs.9 cases of blood clots in the proximal and distal thrombosis connected discontinuously.There was no isolated proximal DVT in TKA group and 10 cases (90.9％) of blood clots in the proximal and distal thrombosis connected continuously while there were 2 cases (6.9％) isolated proximal DVTs in THA group and 21 (77.8％) of blood clots in the proximal and distal thrombosis connected discontinuously,and there was no statistic significant difference between the two groups.The average length of proximal was 8.85±9.3 1cm (range from 2-35cm) with 5.0±2.05 cm in TKA group and 10.31 ± 10.55 cmin THA group.A significant difference was found between the 2 groups (P=0.014).13 cases located in femoral veins and upper venous region which were all from THA group.There was a significant difference in the distribution between surgery type and preoperative diagnosis.However,there was no significant difference between other potential factors and distribution of proximal DVT.25 cases accepted the evaluation of symptom of DVT before scanning.However,no significant difference were found in edema,VAS score,Homans sign,Neuof sign between 9 TKA and 16 THA cases.Conclusion Proximal DVTs after knee and hip arthroplasty are more preferred to connect with distal DVT continuously.Surgery type and preoperative diagnosis have a significant effect on the distribution of proximal DVT.Proximal DVTs in THA and patients with preoperative femoral neck fracture could be more easily involving femoral veins and upper parts.

Objective To investigate the incidence, risk factors and outcome of acute kidney injury (AKI) following cardiac surgeries. Methods Clinical data of 1056 patients undergoing open heart surgery in Renji Hospital from January 2004 to June 2007 were retrospectively analyzed. Univariate and multivariate analyses were used to evaluate possible pre-,intra-, and post-operative parameters associated with AKI according to AKI Network (AKIN). Results Of the 1056 patients, 328 (31.06%) developed AKI. In-hospital mortality was 4.07% in all discharges while 11.59% in AKI patients (P<0.01). Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that increased age (OR=1.40), pre-operative hyperurieemia (OR=1.97), pre-operative left ventricular insufficiency (OR=2.53), combined surgery (OR=2.79), prolonged operation time (OR=1.43), post-operative circulation volume insufficiency (OR=11.08) were risk factors of AKI. Conclusions AKI is a common complication and associated with increased mortality following cardiac surgery. Increased age, pre-operative hyperuricemia, pre-operative left ventricular insufficiency, combined surgery, prolonged operation time, post-operative circulation volume insufficiency are useful in stratifying risk factors for the development of AKI.