OBJECTIVETo study the early X-ray and CT findings of patients with severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS).

METHODSChest radiography and CT were performed in 28 patients with SARS within one to three days after onset of the disease. CT examinations included conventional spiral CT and high-resolution CT (HRCT). The radiographic and CT findings of these patients were analyzed retrospectively.

RESULTSAbnormal CT findings were noted in all the patients, but abnormal chest radiographic findings in 17 cases (60.7%, 17/28). CT showed single small focal patchy opacities in 23 patients (82.1%, 23/28), including oval ground-glass opacities in 20 patients, lobular distribution ground-glass opacities in 2 and small patchy consolidation in one. Multi-focal ground-glass opacities were found in 2 patients and extensive opacities in three. In the 28 patients, a total of 31 lesions were found in the upper (7, 22.6%), middle (3, 9.7%), and lower lobes (21, 67.7%). The diameter of the lesions ranged from 20 to 35 mm.

CONCLUSIONThe dominant feature of early SARS patients is focal patchy opacity in the lung, and oval small ground-glass opacities are the common morphological findings on CT.

Adult ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Radiography, Thoracic ; Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome ; diagnostic imaging ; pathology ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed

OBJECTIVE To study the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of oral colon targeted pH-sensitive hydrogel of hydrocortisone sodium succinate(HSS-GEL). METHODS The plasma concentration changes of HSS-GEL and HSS in the mice were investigated; 2, 4, 6-trinitrobenzene sulfonic acid(TNBS)-induced mouse model of ulcerative colitis(UC) was established, disease activity index(DAI), colon length, myeloperoxidase(MPO) and organ index were used as indicators to investigate the therapeutic effect of HSS-GEL on colitis. RESULTS The results showed that the Tmax, Cmax and AUC of HSS-GEL were significantly different from those of HSS(P<0.01). The Tmax of HSS-GEL was significantly longer than that of HSS, and the time of drug absorption into the blood was significantly delayed. The Cmax of HSS-GEL group was significantly lower than that of HSS. The AUC of the HSS-GEL group was 39.38% of the same dose of HSS, indicating that the amount of the drug absorbed into blood was significantly reduced after the HSS was made into HSS-GEL orally. After modeling, DAI, MPO activity and organ index were increased, while the colon was shortened due to the inflammatory reaction, with the treatment of HSS-GEL, DAI, MPO activity and some organ index of mice were significantly decreased comparing with TNBS group(P<0.05 or P<0.01). The degree of reduction of MPO activity and some organ indexes of the mice in the TNBS+HSS-GEL group were significantly greater than those in the TNBS+HSS group, indicating that HSS-GEL had good therapeutic effect on TNBS-induced ulcerative colitis, and the effect was better than that of HSS. CONCLUSION The HSS-GEL prepared has good colon targeting characteristic and colitis treatment effect.