To investigate the hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection in hemodialysis patients. Methods Sixty patients were tested for anti-HCV IgG and anti-HCV IgM using a second generation enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA); for HCV-RNA using a nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay. Results Twenty seven patients were positive for anti-HCV IgG, 24 for anti-HCV IgM and 37 for HCV-RNA. The total positive rate of HCV markers was 63.3% in 60 hemodialysis patients. In transfused group, the positive rate of HCV markers was 69.9% , while in non-transfused was 42.9% . Conclusion The prevalence of HCV infection in hemodialysis patients is serious. Blood transfusion is the main way to transmit HCV. However, there may be other transmitting routes by the dialysis equipment.

Objective To evaluate the value of automated breast volume scanner (ABVS) and conventional ultrasound in differentiation of benign and malignant breast imaging reporting and data system (BI-RADS) 4 breast lesions. Methods Totally 239 breast lesions from 217 patients, with diagnosing of BI-RADS 4 by conventional ultrasound and automatically breast volume imaging, were analyzed retrospectively, using postoperative pathology as golden standard. The sensitivity, specificity, accuracy and area under the curve of ABVS and conventional ultrasound were calculated separately. Results There were 154 benign breast lesions, 83 malignant lesions and 2 borderline lesions. The statistical analysis results of ABVS and conventional ultrasound were 96.10% and 91.80% in sensitivity, 84.30% and 80.20% in specificity,89.30% and 84.10% in accuracy, and 0.952 and 0.833 in area under the curve. Therefore, ABVS was superior to the conventional ultrasound. Conclusion Compared with conventional ultrasound, ABVS could improve the diagnostic efficacy for BI-RADS 4 breast lesions in the aspects of sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, which was useful in detection of small and atypical breast cancer and could be used as a noninvasive and reliable complement for conventional ultrasound.

Objective To investigate the effect of low 1evel laser treatment (LLLT) on periodontal clinical index,high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and metabolic control in patients of type 2 diabetes mellitus combined chronic peridontitis.Methods Nighty patients with type 2 diabetes combined chronic peridontitis were divided into three groups:initial periodontal therapy (group A),initial therapy combined with LLLT (group B) and control group (group C).The periodontal clinical parameters including periodontal probing depth (PD),clinical attachment loss (CAL),sulcus bleeding index (SBI),hs-CRP,HbA1c and fasting blood glucose (FBG) were tested before and at three months after therapy.Results The periodontal clinical parameters (PD,CAL,SBI) and hsCRP in group A and B improved significantly compared with that of group C after therapy (P＜0.05),with group B had more significant difference (P＜0.01).For the levels of HbA1c and FPG,group A and B showed downtrend,and more obvious outcome was detected in group B (P＜0.05).Conclusions LLLT can effectively improve periodontal status,hs-CRP levels and metabolic control of patients with type 2 diabetes combined with chronic peridontitis,and thus to prevent the occurrence of diabetes complications.

ObjectiveTo investigate the value of the automated breast volume scanner (ABVS) in the diagnosis of ductal carcinomain situ(DCIS).MethodsSixty-seven patients who were diagnosed as DCIS by histopathology from December, 2010 to December, 2012 were retrospectively analyzed. Their image results and detection rates of mammography, conventional ultrasound and ABVS were analyzed and compared by Nonparametric Cochran'sQ test, and the further comparison were performed between groups by McNemar test.ResultsThe cases diagnosed as mass (with or without microcalcifications) by mammography, conventional ultrasound and ABVS were 13 (19%), 22 (33%) and 25 (37%), respectively. The detection rates of conventional ultrasound and ABVS were higher than mammography, and the differences were statistically significant (χ2=7.11, 10.08, bothP<0.05). However, the detection rate of mass between conventional ultrasound and ABVS were not statistically different (P>0.05). The cases diagnosed as simple microcalcification or associated with microcalcification by mammography, conventional ultrasound and ABVS were 42 (63%), 30 (45%) and 39 (58%), respectively. The detection rates of simple microcalcification or associated with microcalcifications by mammography and ABVS were higher than conventional ultrasound, and the differences were statistically significant (χ2=8.64, 5.82, bothP<0.05). However, the detection rate of simple microcalcification or associated with microcalcifications between conventional ultrasound and ABVS were not statistically different (P>0.05). The detection rates of DCIS by mammography, conventional ultrasound and ABVS were 84%, 70% and 91%. The detection rates of DCIS by mammography and ABVS were higher than conventional ultrasound, and the differences were statistically significant. But the rate between mammography and ABVS showed no statistical significance.ConclusionsABVS can improve the ultronic detection rate of breast DCIS. Its detection rate is similar with mammography performance.

ObjectiveTo explore the value of virtual touch tissue quantification (VTQ) in the evaluation of clinical pathological typing of advanced gastric cancer.MethodsFifty six patients who had been diagnosed as gastric cancer were examined using acoustic radiation force impulse.According to clinical pathological typing,all cases were divided into highly-moderately differentiated adenocarcinoma (14 cases) and non-highly-moderately differentiated adenocarcinoma (42 cases).A comparison with clinical pathologic results was made after surgery.The correlation of VTQ results and clinical pathological typing of gastric cancer was analyzed.ResultsThe VTQ value of highly-moderately differentiated adenocarcinoma was lower than that of non-highly-moderately differentiated adenocarcinoma [(1.49 ± 0.44) m/s vs (2.12 ± 0.45) m/s],with statistical significance( t =-4.53,P ＜0.05).According to the maximum area under the ROC curve,the cutoff value of VTQ was 1.795 m/s,the sensitivity and specificity were 78％ and 86％,respectively,the Youden's index was 0.64,and with high reproducibility(Kappa =0.81).ConclusionsVTQ could initial estimate the clinical pathological typing of advanced gastric cancer before operation.

Objective To analyze sonographic characteristics of the automated breast volume scanner (ABVS) in non-mass-like breast carcinoma.Methods 49 patients with non-mass-like breast carcinoma were confirmed by pathology after operation.All of the patients underwent ABVS,the sonographic characteristics of internal echo and microcalcifications in the lesions,the retraction phenomenon in coronal plane and surrounding change were analyzed.All the lesions were assessed by breast imaging reporting and data system (BI-RADS).Results In 49 patients with non-mass-like breast carcinoma,27(55.10％) cases were ductal carcinoma in situ,21 (42.86％) cases were infitrating ductal carcinoma,and 1 (2.04％) case were infitrating lobular carcinoma.The findings of ABVS:43 (87.76 ％) lesions appeared as segmental hypoechoic areas,41 (83.67％) lesions appeared as scattered or clustered microcalcifications,6(12.24％) lesions appeared as the retraction phenomenon in coronal plane,and 1 (2.04％) lesion appeared as pachyderma and subcutaneous dropsy.Microcalcifications in ductal carcinoma in situ appeared more than that in infitrating ductal carcinoma (85.19 ％ vs 80.95 ％,P =0.715) ;the retraction phenomenon in coronal plane of infitrating ductal carcinoma were higher than that of ductal carcinoma in situ(19.05％ vs 7.41％,P =0.383),but there were no significant difference in those between ductal carcinoma in situ with infitrating ductal carcinoma(P ＞0.05).All the cases were assessed according to BI-RADS,including 4a-5 category 44 cases,0-2 category 5 cases.The coincidence rate in diagnosis of ABVS were 89.80％.Conclusions The ABVS features of non-mass-like breast carcinoma are characteristic.Segmental hypoechoic areas,microcalcifications and the retraction phenomenon in coronal plane are important for the diagnosis of non-mass-like breast carcinoma,ABVS can improve the detect ability and decrease the missed diagnosis of non-mass-like breast carcinoma.

Objective To explore the association of NH2-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide ( NT-proBNP) with the risk of type 2 diabetes.Methods One hundred and twenty-six impaired glucose regulation( IGR) participants from Diabetic Identification Center of Tianjin Metabolic Diseases Hospital were included.NT-proBNP was measured in plasma samples collected from participants at baseline condition.Results At baseline, NT-proBNP was inversely associated with body mass index, waist circumference, fasting glucose, insulin and low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol( LDL-C) levels.During a follow-up of 2 years, 51 participants reported a new diagnosis of diabetes from OGTT.Baseline quartiles of NT-proBNP were inversely associated with diabetes risk, even after multivariable adjustment.Theadjustedrelativerisksfordiabeteswere1.0(reference),0.83(95%CI0.74-0.96),0.78(95%CI 0.68-0.90), 0.74 (95%CI 0.64-0.87) for the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th quartiles of baseline NT-proBNP, respectively ( P<0.01 ) .Conclus ion In IGRpopulation , lowlevels of NT-proBNP were associated with a significantly increased risk of type 2 diabetes.

Objective:To investigate the effects and mechanisms of curcumin on insulin resistance in streptozocin-induced diabetic rats.Methods:Diabetic rats were induced by intraperitoneal injection of STZ, then all the rats were randomly divided into diabetes (DM), diabetes+ curcumin (DM+ Cur), and diabetes + buffer control (DM+ NC) groups. Normal SD rats were used as control group (NC). The DM+ Cur group was treated with curcumin, while the DM+ NC group was treated with equal-volume buffer. The test lasted 12 weeks. The blood glucose was detected, and hyperinsulinemic-euglycemic clamp test was performed to estimate peripheral insulin resistance. At the end of the experiments, rats were killed and the total protein and cell membrane protein were extracted from skeletal muscle. The levels of phosphorylated PI3K, phosphorylated AKT, total PI3K, and total AKT were measured by Western blot. The levels of total GLUT4 and GLUT4 of cell membrane were also detected by Western blot, GLUT4 levels in skeletal muscle cell membranes were detected by immunofluorescence.Results:Blood glucose levels of DM+ Cur group were lower than those of DM group [(18.67±1.99 vs 24.38±2.88) mmol/L, P<0.05], and insulin resistance was also improved[the average GIR(14.69±0.29 vs 10.25±0.30) mg·kg -1·min -1, P<0.01]. The phosphorylation levels of PI3K and AKT were increased, and GLUT4 translocation to the cell membrane was increased. Conclusion:By activating the PI3K/AKT pathway, curcumin promotes GLUT4 translocation, increases skeletal muscle glucose uptake, and finally improves insulin resistance.

Objective To compare the Barcelona clinic liver cancer staging classification (BCLC), the Japan integrated staging score (JIS), the cancer of the liver Italian program score (CLIP) and Chinese staging system in terms of their ability to predict outcomes and to guide option of therapy in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in China.Methods Clinical data of 861 HCC patients from Zhongshan Hospital between 2001 and 2002 were retrospectively analyzed. Patients were classified acccording to different staging systems. Survival for patients in different stages and the effects of therapeutic methods on survival time were compared. Results BCLC, JIS and Chinese staging system showed the ability in predicting survival for patients in different staging. CLIP failed to show significant difference in survival rates for each subgroup. There was no significant difference in survival rate between surgery and transarterial chemoembolization (TACE)/transarterial embolization (TAE) for patients classified as BCLC stage C, CLIP scores more than 3 or Chinese stage Ⅲ a.The survival rate, however, was higher in patients received operation than those received TACE/TAE if they were classified as earlier stages. Conclusions The BCLC, JIS and Chinese staging systems show prospective ability for Chinese HCC patients in prediction outcomes, whereas the BCLC and the Chinese staging systems are better at both predicting outcomes and guiding the option of treatment.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the curative effect and adverse effect of low dose cytarabine and aclarubin in combination with granulocyte colony-stimulating factor priming (CAG regimen) on patients with the intermediate and high-risk myelodysplastic syndrome. METHODS: A: total of 46 patients with intermediate and high-risk myelodysplastic syndrome was retrospectively analyzed. Twenty-eight patients received CAG regimen and 18 received conventional chemotherapy. CAG regimen: aclarubicin 10 mg/(m2.d)intravenously daily, Day 1~8; cytarabine 10 mg/ m2 subcutaneously once every 12 hours, Day 1~14; and subcutaneously use of granulocyte colony-stimulating factor 200 mug/(m2.d) until 12 hours before the last use of cytarabine. The initial outcome was evaluated after the first course of treatment. The responders received the second course. The ultimate therapeutic effect was evaluated after the 2 courses. RESULTS: The overall response rate in the CAG regimen group was 78.6% (22/28). Thirteen patients (46.4%) responded, 5 (17.9%) showed partial response, and 4 (14.3%) hematologic improvement. The overall response rate in the conventional chemotherapy group was 50%(9/18). Six patients (33.3%) achieved complete response, 2 (11.1%) partial response, and 1(5.6%) hematologic improvement. The overall response rate of the CAG group was significantly higher than that in the control group (P<0.05). The adverse effects of CAG regimen were bearable. CONCLUSION With acceptable adverse effect, CAG regimen is effective for the intermediate and high-risk myelodysplastic syndrome. Long-time outcome needs further observation.
Aclarubicin ; therapeutic use ; Adult ; Aged ; Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols ; therapeutic use ; Cytarabine ; therapeutic use ; Female ; Granulocyte Colony-Stimulating Factor ; therapeutic use ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Myelodysplastic Syndromes ; drug therapy ; Retrospective Studies ; Treatment Outcome