Diabetic Retinopathy ; complications ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Prognosis ; Retinal Vein Occlusion ; complications ; Vitrectomy ; Vitreous Hemorrhage ; etiology ; surgery

Objective To establish the model and software for quality assessment of fetal nuchal translucency ultrasound image using computer image recognition technology.Methods The proposed approach firstly divided the input image into four sub-image blocks:the nasal bone(NB) area,the nuchal translucency (NT) area,the midbrain area,and the jaw and chest area.For each sub-image block,the algorithm compared the image block with the corresponding area of the standard training image set,and then determined whether the current image block was the qualified one using the the Gabor feature and Bayesian decision.The input ultrasound image was determined to be qualified only if it had four qualified sub-image blocks.Results The difference between our automatic method and the manual screening by experts wasting small,the method obtained Kappa =0.795 and P ＜0.001.Moreover,the efficiency of our method was much higher than the manual screening method.Conclusions Image recognition technology can effectively assist the sonographer to assess the quality of fetal NT of ultrasound image.The proposed approach can reduce the subjectivity and randomness of the manual evaluation of NT image.

Objective To explore the relationship between the endemic arsenism and the liver,renal damage.Methods Some permanent residents were selected as investigated subjects who lived at 3 villages in Datong in Shanxi Province,an arseniasis-endemic areas,These objects were divided into arsenic poisoning and control group on the basis of Diagnosis Standard for Endemic Arsenism(WS/T 211-2001).Then blood and urine samples were collected in the surveyed people.Serum glutamate pyruvic transaminase(ALT)were detected by Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay as the indicator of the impaired hepatic function.The microdosis albumen (mAlb)and acetylglucosaminidase(NAG)in urine were detected by end-point method and alkaline picric acid as the renal damage indicators.Results A total of 661 people investigated,of which 144 cases were arsenic poisoning patients.The rates of abnormal liver function were significant hisher in arsenic poisoning group[10.42% (15/144)]than that in control[5.22%(27/517)],and both wag significant[X2=5.107,P＜0.05;OR=2.11,95%CI (1.09-4.08)].The geometric mean of mAlb/Ucr was 2.16 mg/g Cr in control,and 2.31 mg/g Cr in arsenic poisoning group,and both was not significant(t=-1.71,P＞0.05).The geometric mean of NAG waft higher in arsenic poisoning group(2.43 U/g Cr)than that in the control(2.22 U/g Cr),and both was significant(t=-3.55, P＜0.05).Conclusions The damage of the liver and renal function were related with endemic arsenism,and NAG is the early indicators suggesting impaired renal function due to endemic arsenism.

Objective: To observe the clinical efficacy of sinew-bone balancing manipulation in treating lumbar disc herniation (LDH) and offer clinical evidence to support the concept of paying equal attention to sinew and bone. Methods: Sixty LDH patients were randomized into an observation group and a control group, with 30 cases in each group. The observation group was treated with the sinew-bone balancing manipulation, and the control group received conventional Tuina (Chinese therapeutic massage) manipulation. The clinical efficacy and posterior muscle chain tone effect were compared between the two groups by observing the visual analog scale (VAS) score, Japanese Orthopaedic Association (JOA) score, and posture-associated indicators. Results: The total effective rate was 86.7％ in the observation group, higher than 76.7％ in the control group, but the between-group difference in efficacy was statistically insignificant (P>0.05). After treatment, the VAS and JOA scores, angle-dependent muscle tone indicator of the posterior muscle chain, and lumbar posture symmetry showed significant changes in both groups (P<0.05). The VAS and JOA scores, angle-dependent muscle tone indicator of the posterior muscle chain, and lumbar posture symmetry in the observation group were significantly different from those in the control group after treatment (P<0.05), but the between-group difference in the general posture symmetry was statistically insignificant (P>0.05). Conclusion: Both the sinew-bone balancing and conventional Tuina manipulations can reduce pain in LDH patients, improve lumbar function, and adjust the angle-dependent muscle tone coefficient of the posterior muscle chain and lumbar posture symmetry; except for the general posture symmetry of the posterior muscle chain, the sinew-bone balancing manipulation wins out over the conventional Tuina manipulation.

Humans ; Infant ; Infant, Low Birth Weight ; Infant, Newborn ; Male ; Tyrosinemias ; diagnosis ; therapy

Objective To further investigate direct effects of dipeptidyl peptidase-4(DPP4) on calcification and to identify responsible signaling pathways in human vascular smooth muscle cells (HVSMC). Methods The effect of DPP-4 on calcification of HVSMC was observed by alizarin red, and Western blot was used to detect whether DPP4 induced calcification-related protein expressions through extracellular signal-regulated kinases 1/2 (ERK1/2) pathway. Results The Alizarin red staining results showed that calcified nodules in DPP4 group were significantly increased as compared with control group, similar to calcification group.The protein expressions of osteoprotegerin (OPG), osteopontin (OPN), Runt-related transcription factor 2 (RUNX2), and bone morphogenetic protein 2 (BMP2) were stimulated by DPP4 in a concentration- and time-dependent manner. The phosphorylation level of ERK1/2 was significantly increased after DPP4 incubation for 15 min (P<0.05). PD98059, an ERK1/2 inhibitor, significantly lowered DPP4-stimulated expressions of calcification-related proteins (P<0.05). Conclusion DPP4 may promote the calcification of HVSMC through ERK1/2 signaling pathways.

Objective To investigate the effect of lung ischemic preconditioning (IP) on the expression of aquaporin-1 (AQP1) during lung ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) induced by cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) in dogs.Methods Twelve adult mongrel dogs,weighing 15-20 kg,were randomly divided into 2 groups (n =6 each):lung I/R (group I/R) and ischemic preconditioning group (group IP).The left pulmonary artery was occluded at 10 min of off-pump CPB and mechanical ventilation was stopped in the left lung,60 min later occlusion was released,and mechanical ventilation was recovered to establish the model of left lung ischemia-reperfusion injury induced by CPB.In group IP,lung ischemic preconditioning was induced by 2 cycles of 5 min ischemia followed by 5 min reperfusion before occlusion of the left pulmonary artery.Before CPB (T1),immediately after occlusion of the left pulmonary artery (T2),at the end of CPB (T3),and at 2 h after the end of CPB (T4),pulmonary specimens were collected for determination of wet to dry lung weight ratio (W/D ratio) and expression of AQP1 and for examination of the pathological changes of lungs which were scored.Respiration index (RI),oxygenation index (OI),and alveolar-arterial oxygen tension difference (P(A-a)O2) were calculated at T1,T3 and T4,and the left pulmonary alveolar fluid clearance (AFC) was calculated at T4.Results Compared with group I/R,P(A-a) O2 and RI were significantly decreased,OI was increased,W/D ratio and pathological scores were decreased,the expression of AQP1 was up-regulated,and the AFC was increased at T3 and T4 in group IP.The pathological changes of the lung were significantly attenuated in group IP as compared with group I/R.Conclusion The mechanism by which lung ischemic preconditioning mitigates lung I/R injury induced by CPB is related to upregulation of the expression of AQP1 in dog lung tissues.

Purpose To compare and investigate the oncogenic and metastatic phenotypes in nude mice by injection of rat hepatocellu-lar carcinoma ( HCC) cells L2 via two different routes. Methods Twenty of 7-week-old female BALB/cA mice were randomly divided into 2 groups. After the injections of L2 from liver or spleen lobe, the survival rate, tumor formation rate, carcinogenic features, and metastasis were comparatively studied. Results All of the liver orthotopic nude mice developed liver cancer (100%) with 60% lung metastasis rate, and exhibited an expansive growing pattern with surrounding invasion. In the spleen orthotopic model, 78% mice de-veloped HCC in spleen, with 67% liver metastatic rate and 11% lung metastatic rate, lower than the liver orthotopic model ( P <0. 05). But the microscopically hilar lymph node metastasis rate was 33%. Conclusion The direct liver injection of L2 in female nude mice is a better modeling method for studying the mechanism of both carcinogenesis and metastasis, as well as the evaluation of therapeutic effect of liver cancer.

Hepatitis, Viral, Human ; drug therapy ; Humans ; Prostaglandins E ; therapeutic use ; Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic ; Research Design

OBJECTIVEHighland natives adapt well to the hypoxic environment at high altitude (HA). Several genes have been reported to be linked to HA adaptation. Previous studies showed that the endothelial ni- tric oxide synthase (ENOS) G894T polymorphism contributed to the physiology and pathophysiology of hu- mans at HA by regulating the production of NO. In this meta-analysis, we evaluate the association between the ENOS G894T polymorphism and HA adaptation through analyzing the published data.

METHODSWe searched all relevant literature about the ENOS G894T polymorphism and HA adaptation in PubMed, Med- line, and Embase before Step 2015. A random-effects model was applied (Revman 5.0), and study quality was assessed in duplicate. Six studies with 634 HA native cases and 621 low-altitude controls were included in this meta-analysis.

RESULTSFrom the results, we observed that the wild-type allele G was significantly overrepresented in the HA groups (OR = 1.85; 95% Cl, 1.47-2.33; P < 0.0001). In addition, the GG genotype was significantly associated with HA adaptation (OR = 1.99; 95% Cl, 1.54-2.57; P < 0.0001).

CONCLUSIONOur results showed that in 894 G allele carriers, the GG genotype might be a beneficial factor for HA adaptation through enhancing the level of NO. However, more studies were needed to confirm our findings due to the limited sample size.