Objective To assess the biophysical characteristics of normal skin and inflammatory skin lesions in mild and moderate acne. Methods Seventy-five mild and moderate acne vulgaris patients were included in the study. One inflammatory lesion measuring 2.0 to 5.0 mm in diameter which occurred within 48 hours prior to the measurement was selected as the target lesion. Trans-epidermis water loss (TEWL), capacitance and a* value were measured in target lesions and lesion-adjacent normal skin. Sebum content immediately,1 and 4 (saturated) hours after face washing was also determined on target lesions and central forehead between the eyebrows. Sebum secretion rate (SSR) was calculated. Results The TEWL and SSR significantly increased in the lesion-adjacent normal skin with the increment of inflammatory lesion number (both P < 0.05), and increased in target lesions with the elevation of a* value (both P < 0.05). The target lesions exhibited a significantly higher TEWL but a lower saturated sebum content and SSR than the adjacent normal skin did (all P <0.05). Conclusions The severity of inflammatory lesions is correlated with the impaired barrier function and increased SSR in facial skin. Compared with the adjacent normal skin, inflammatory skin lesions have a reduced skin barrier function and SSR.

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the effectiveness of manual therapy and traction for lumbar disc herniation and analyze the current status of this kind of randomized clinical trial (RCT).

METHODSDatabase of CNKI, VIP, WANFANG, PubMed and OVID were searched. Some relevant journals were manually retrieved. A total of 2 874 literatures on manual therapy and traction for lumbar disc herniation were collected, of which 17 articles met the inclusion criteria. The Jadad score scale was used to evaluate the quality,and RevMan5.0 was used for meta-analysis of literatures.

RESULTSThe results of the meta-analysis of all trials involved were as followed:the combined effect of the effective rate was RR = 1.10, 95% CI [1.06, 1.14], the combined effect of the cure rate was RR = 1.36, 95% CI [1.21,1.52], the combined effect of the VAS was RR = 1.37, 95% CI [1.28, 1.45], the combined effect of the JOA was RR = 4.75, 95% CI [4.40, 5.09].

CONCLUSIONThe overall quality of the current RCT researches about manual therapy for lumbar disc herniation was lower,and did not support the conclusion that manual therapy was more effective than traction for lumbar disc herniation.

Humans ; Intervertebral Disc Displacement ; surgery ; therapy ; Lumbar Vertebrae ; surgery ; Musculoskeletal Manipulations ; methods ; Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic ; Traction ; methods

Objective To explore the evaluation methods of deodorants for patients with axillary odor. Methods Four trained judges used a blind method to evaluate 60 subjects directly or indirectly before and 6 hours and 24 hours after using deodorants. New T-shirts were provided for the subjects each time after grading. Then the judges evaluated the odor from the T-shirt as indirect axillary evaluation method. Then statistic analysis was used to compare the odor changes of axillary odor. Results The odors of axillary area were all decreased by two evaluation methods after using 3 different deodorants. But the efficacy of 3 deodorants were not completely same. Conclusion Direct axillary odor evaluation is a good method to evaluate the efficacy of deodorants.

Objective To reinvestigate the value of overnight low-dose dexamethasone suppression test in the diagnosis of Cushing syndrome.Methods Fifty-two patients with Cushing syndrome and 153 patients with simple obesity or essential hypertension in whom Cushing syndrome was excluded were studied retrospectively in order to compare the sensitivity and specificity of different serum cortisol cut-off levels in overnight 1 mg dexamethasone suppression test in the diagnosis of Cushing syndrome.Results The sensitivity of 50% of basal serum cortisol level at 8:00 and of the serum cortisol cut-off levels of 275,200,138,50 nmoL/L at 8:00 after the overnight 1 mg dexamethasone suppression test was 92.3%,92.3%,92.3%,92.3% and 100.0% respectively, and the specificity was 90.8%,98.7%,96.1%,91.5% and 78.4%,respectively.Conclusion The serum cortisol cut-off level of 50 nmol/L in the overnight 1 mg dexamethasone suppression test has very high sensitivity and can be used as a screening test for Cushing syndrome.

Objective To evaluate the clinical value of 131 Ⅰ SPECT/CT in the differentiation of indeterminate 131Ⅰ uptake on planer whole body scan (WBS) for patients with DTC after 131Ⅰ treatment. Methods Fifty-six DTC patients ( male: 19, female: 37, mean age: 45 ± 15 years, ranging from 20 to 85 years) underwent 131Ⅰ treatment. 131Ⅰ WBS was performed five days after 131 Ⅰ treatment, followed by regional 131Ⅰ SPECT/CT for the indeterminate foci with abnormal uptake on 131Ⅰ WBS. The diagnostic difference of the two imaging modalities was compared by x2 test. Results There were 288 foci with abnormal uptake on 131 Ⅰ WBS, including 108 indeterminate foci (37.5%). Subsequent 131Ⅰ SPECT/CT identified 27 foci as DTC metastases (25.0%) and 71 foci as non-metastases such as benign lesions at nose, oral cavity, salivary gland, maxillary cyst, thyroid remnant, thymus, gallbladder, gastrointestinal tract, and uterus, or non-specific uptake of body contaminations (65.7%). However, the remaining 10 foci (9.3%) remained indeterminate on 131 Ⅰ SPECT/CT imaging. The diagnostic accuracy of 131 Ⅰ SPECT/CT was significantly higher than that of 131Ⅰ WBS (x2 = 102.35, P＜0. 01). Conclusion 131Ⅰ SPECT/CT could significantly improve the diagnostic accuracy for the differentiation of indeterminate foci with abnormal uptake on 131Ⅰ WBS.

Objective　To review the etiology of fever of unknown origin (FUO) and the methods used to establish a diagnosis. Methods　A retrospective review of the medical records of 317 patients with FUO admitted between January, 1996 and December, 2000 was performed. Results　Of the 317 children, 298 cases (94.0%) had a definitive etiology established. Of the 298 cases, 160 (53.7%) had infectious diseases and non-infectious diseases, such as collagen vascular disease, and neoplasm which accounted for a large fraction of the remainder. A diagnosis was established in 140 (47.0%) by comprehensive clinical analysis alone. Culture of bacteria in serum and biopsy specimens established a diagnosis in 64 cases (21.5%) and 37 cases (12.4%), respectively. Non-invasive imaging techniques (35 cases; 11.7%), autopsy (11 cases; 3.7%), bone marrow examination (6 cases; 1.9%) and retrospective diagnosis (5 cases; 1.7%) accounted for the remainder of the diagnosis. Conclusions　Most cases of FUO can be diagnosed by clinical characteristics of the patients and by essential laboratory studies. Pathological examination is very important in diagnosing the etiology of FUO. Infectious diseases, collagen vascular disease and neoplasm are the major causes of FUO in children.

The chemical constituents of Safflower injection were isolated and purified by polyamide, silica gel, Sephadex LH-20, ODS column chromatographies and preparative HPLC. As a result, sixteen compounds have been isolated. Based on the spectral data analysis, their structures were elucidated as scutellarin (1), kaempferol-3-O-β-rutinoside(2), hydroxysafflor yellow A(3), rutin (4), coumalic acid(5), adenosine(6), syringoside(7), (3E)-4-(4'-hydroxyphenyl)-3-buten-2-one(8), (8Z)-decaene-4, 6-diyne-1-Oβ-D-glucopyranoside(9), 4-hydroxybenzaldehyde (10), (2E, 8E) -tetradecadiene-4, 6-diyne-1, 12, 14-triol-1-O-β-D-glucopyranoside (11), kaem-pferol-3-O-β-sophorose (12), uridine (13), roseoside (14), cinnamic acid (15), and kaempferol (16). Compounds 1,2,7,9,11 and 12 were isolated from the Safflower injection for the first time. The anti-platelet aggregation activities of the isolated compounds were assayed. The results indicated all tested compounds exhibited potent activity except for 5, while 2, 3, 9 and 12 showed strong activity against platelet aggregation.
Animals ; Blood Platelets ; drug effects ; physiology ; Carthamus tinctorius ; chemistry ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; pharmacology ; Fibrinolytic Agents ; chemistry ; isolation & purification ; pharmacology ; Molecular Structure ; Platelet Aggregation ; drug effects ; Rabbits ; Spectrometry, Mass, Electrospray Ionization

Adult ; Basic Helix-Loop-Helix Transcription Factors ; metabolism ; Cerebral Ventricle Neoplasms ; metabolism ; pathology ; surgery ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Fourth Ventricle ; Ganglioglioma ; metabolism ; pathology ; surgery ; Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein ; metabolism ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Nerve Tissue Proteins ; metabolism ; Oligodendrocyte Transcription Factor 2 ; Rosette Formation ; Synaptophysin ; metabolism ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo observe the clinical efficacy of yiqi jiedu quyu recipe (YJQR) combined endocrine therapy in treating advanced prostate cancer (APC).

METHODSTotally 44 APC patients were randomly assigned to the combination group (23 cases) and the control group (21 cases). All patients received endocrine therapy for treating PC in Guidelines for Diagnosis and Treatment of Urological Diseases in China. After 6 months of treatment serum prostate specific antigen (PSA), free PSA (f-PSA), hemoglobin (Hb), Tcell subsets, natural kill (NK) cells, QLQ-C30 scale, Chinese medical symptoms score, I -PSS score, as well as the incidence of tidal fever were observed.

RESULTSAfter treatment the PSA, f-PSA, and Hb were improved in the combination group, showing statistical difference when compared with before treatment (P <0.05). Besides, better effects were obtained in the combination group (P <0.05, P <0.01). After treatment CD3, CD4, CD8, CD4/CD8, and NK cell levels were also improved in the combination group, showing statistical difference when compared with before treatment (P <0.05). Besides, better effects were obtained in the combination group (P <0.01). The quality of life (QOL), emotional function, Chinese medical symptoms score, and I -PSS symptom score were improved in the two groups (P <0. 05,P <0. 01). Besides, better effects in the aforesaid indices and the incidence of tidal fever were obtained in the combination group (P <0.05).

CONCLUSIONYJQR combined endocrine therapy could obviously improve APC patients' QOL, reduce adverse reactions of Western medical treatment, improve the immune function, and enhance therapeutic effects of endocrine therapy.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; therapeutic use ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Phytotherapy ; Prostatic Neoplasms ; pathology ; therapy ; Treatment Outcome ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the association of early diarrhea(postoperative day 1 to 7) and anastomotic leakage after low anterior resection for rectal cancer.

METHODSClinical data of 192 cases (group A, tumor from the anal verge 4-7 cm) from May 2004 to May 2007 and 236 cases(group B) from July 2007 to May 2010 in our hospital who received low anterior resection of rectal cancer were analyzed retrospectively.

RESULTSIn group A, the incidence of early postoperative diarrhea was 19.3%(37/192), of which 9 cases were treated with anti-diarrhea drugs. The morbidity of anastomotic leakage in patients with diarrhea was significantly higher than those without early diarrhea(16.2% vs. 5.2%, P<0.05). In group B, the incidence of early postoperative diarrhea was 16.5%(39/236). All the patients were treated with anti-diarrhea drugs. There was no difference in the morbidity of anastomotic leakage between patients with diarrhea and those without early diarrhea(16.2% vs. 5.2%, P<0.05). There was no difference in early diarrhea between groups A and B(P>0.05). However, the incidence of anastomotic leakage in patients with early diarrhea was lower in group B(P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONSEarly diarrhea after the low anterior resection of rectal cancer may indicate anastomotic leakage. Treatment of early postoperative diarrhea may reduce the risk of anastomotic leakage.

Adult ; Aged ; Anastomotic Leak ; etiology ; Diarrhea ; complications ; etiology ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Postoperative Complications ; etiology ; Rectal Neoplasms ; surgery ; Retrospective Studies