Objective To investigate quantitatively the thermal sensation characteristics of the patients with facial palsy and the value of quantitative thermal test (QTT) in prognostication.Methods The QTT threshold of the fore ear and cheek of 30 patients with peripheral facial palsy was tested,their facial nerve conduction velocity was measured,and House-Brackmann facial nerve grading system was used to estimate facial nerve function at 2～3 weeks,a month,two months and half a year post onset.Results It was found that 12 out of 30 patients had abnor- mal QTT threshold value;the majority of them suffered from herpes virus and diabetes.In those with abnormal QTT, 8 were with diabetes mellitus (account for 66.7%),3 with partial shingles (account for 25%),and 1 with positive serum virus infection (account for 8.3%).Those with normal QTT were significantly different from those with abnor- mal QTT,with regard to the House-Brackmann rating scores after 2 and 6 months post onset (P

AIM:ToinvestigatetheeffectofP21-activatedkinase1(PAK1)andlymphoidenhancer-binding factor 1(LEF1) on the proliferation of esophagus cancer cells .METHODS:Real-time PCR was applied to detect the mR-NA expression of PAK1 and LEF1 in the esophagus cancer tissues .MTT assay were used to measure the proliferation of hu-man esophagus cancer cell line KYSE transfected with PAK 1 and LEF1.RESULTS: The mRNA expression of PAK1 in the esophagus cancer tissues was lower than that in control group (P<0.05).The mRNA expression of LEF1 and tran-scription factor 4 (TCF4) in the esophagus cancer tissues was higher than that in control group (P<0.05).The prolifera-tion of KYSE cells with over-expression of PAK1 and LEF1 was higher than that in control group .No significant change of apoptosis between the KYSE cells with over-expression of PAK1 and LEF1 and control group was observed .CONCLU-SION:The expression of PAK1 decreases and the expression of LEF 1 increases in esophagus cancer tissues .LEF1 domi-nantly regulates the proliferation of esophagus cancer cells .

Objective To observe the effect of acute hypervolemic hemodilution (AHH) with two kinds of hydroxyethyl starches including Voluven and HES on the renal function of emergency surgery patients with brain injury.Methods This study involved 54 brain injury patients treated with emergency surgery,who were randomly divided into Voluven group ( AHH130 group),HES group ( AHH200 group) and Ringer's lactate group (LR group),with 18 patients in each group.All the patients were managed with inhalation anesthesia.ECG,MAP,CVP and SpO2 were observed in operation.The blood urea nitrogen (BUN),urine creatinine ( BCr,UCr),urinary albumin (ALB) and urinary α1-microglobulin ( α1-MG) were detected before AHH ( T0 ),at the end of operation ( T1 ),at 4 hours ( T2 ),day 1 ( T3 ),day 2 (T4) and day 3 (T5) after operation.The creatinine clearance (CCr) and fractional sodium clearance (FSC) were calculated and the urine output,fluid replacement,blood loss and blood transfusion recorded.Results The HR,CVP and MAP in the three groups were within the normal range of variation at all time points,with statistical difference for comparison between groups and within group ( P ＞ 0.05 ).There was no significant difference in urine output and blood loss,while the intraoperative fluid volume and blood transfusion in the AHH130 group and the AHH200 group were significantly less than those in the LR group (P ＜ 0.01 ).There was no statistical difference in aspects of BUN,BCr and urinary ALB at each time point between and within the three groups ( P ＞ 0.05 ).After treatment with AHH,the urinary α1-MG level in the AHH130 group and AHH200 group was significantly increased ( P ＜0.01 ),which was decreased at T5 but was still higher than that at T0 ( P ＜ 0.01 ),and was higher than that in the LR group at all time points (P＜0.05).After treatment with AHH,CCr was decreased in the AHH130 group and AHH200 group,which reached the lowest level at T2,with statistical difference compared with the levd at T0 ( P ＜0.01 ).Then,CCr was recovered to normal at T5.FSC in the three groups after AHH treatment was increased slightly and the most significantly at T2,which was not statistically different compared with that at T0 ( P ＞ 0.05) and FSC was not statistically different between and within groups at other time points (P ＞0.05).All the values about the renal function in all the groups changed within the normal range at each time point.Conclusions AHH with Voluven or HAES is a feasible and safe blood conservation measure that can significantly reduce the allogeneic blood transfusion but exert insignificant effect on renal function of the brain injury patients with normal renal function before emergency surgery.

OBJECTIVETo explore the determinants of 'signing a agreement for establishing smoke-free homes' among the parents of secondary school students.

METHODS2019 parents were surveyed with self-administered questionnaires on their socio-demographic characteristics, smoking behaviors, attitude toward tobacco control at home and related data of their children. At the same time, parents were asked to sign an agreement for making the 'home as smoking-free'. 'Parents signing the agreement' was defined as dependent variable (0=no, 1=yes), and parent's age, gender, educational level, etc. were defined as independent ones. Multi-variant logistic regression analysis was conducted for identifying the determinants of the parents to sign an agreement for establishing 'smoking-free homes'.

RESULTSOf the 2019 surveyed parents, 1047 (51.86%) had signed the agreement including 49.25% of the fathers and 55.73% of the mothers. The results from multi-variant logistic regression analysis indicated that father's 'signing action' was significantly associated with (a) their intention of carrying out the agreements (OR = 3.37), (b) to teach their children about the consequence between smoking and health (OR = 2.10), (c) knowing tobacco control program at school (OR = 1.38), (d) reading tobacco control material provided by school (OR = 1.38), (e) being current smoker (OR = 0.53) compare to that the mother's 'signing action' was significantly associated to (a) intention to carrying out agreements (OR = 2.36), (b) teaching children not to smoke (OR = 2.22), (c) reading tobacco control material provided by school (OR = 1.57).

CONCLUSIONChanging parental cognition and attitude toward smoking was beneficial to promote parental participation in tobacco control campaign and to establish 'smoking-free homes'.

China ; Data Collection ; Female ; Housing ; Humans ; Male ; Parents ; Smoking ; Tobacco Smoke Pollution ; prevention & control

OBJECTIVETo study the changes in expression and activity of protein phosphatases type 2A (PP2A ) during differentiation of NB4 and NB4-MR2 cells induced by all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA), and evaluate the role of PP2A in MR2 resistance to ATRA.

METHODSATRA, okadaic acid (OKA) and ATRA + OKA at the same dosage were incubated with NB4 and MR2 cells respectively. Wright's staining and NBT reduction test were employed to evaluate the change in the cells. The CD11b expression was measured by flow cytometry. The activity of PP2A was evaluated by serine/threonine phosphatase assay system, and the level of PP2A subunits was detected by Western blot.

RESULTS1) Wright's staining, NBT reduction test and flow cytometry results showed OKA could augment the differentiation of NB4 induced by ATRA, and OKA + ATRA induced slight differentiation of MR2 cells. 2) Phosphatase assay showed a decrease in PP2A phosphatase activity [(534 +/- 43) pmol x min(-1) x microg protein(-1)] in NB4 after ATRA treatment, accompanied with that activity [(959 +/- 83) pmol x min(-1) x microg protein(-1)] in untreated NB4 cells. OKA enhanced the inhibitory effect of ATRA on the activity in NB4. When OKA + ATRA was incubated with MR2, PP2A in the cells was significantly decreased [(229 +/- 23) pmol x min(-1) x microg protein(-1)]. 3) Western blot analysis showed that the level of PP2A catalytic subunit (PP2A/C) was decreased during the course of ATRA-induced NB4 cell differentiation, whereas expressions of every subunits of PP2A in MR2 cells were somewhat unaltered.

CONCLUSIONExpression of PP2A/C and activity of PP2A is decreased during differentiation of NB4 induced by ATRA, and no repression of the PP2 activity maybe related to MR2 resistance to ATRA.

Cell Differentiation ; drug effects ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Humans ; Leukemia, Promyelocytic, Acute ; metabolism ; pathology ; Okadaic Acid ; pharmacology ; Phosphoprotein Phosphatases ; metabolism ; Protein Phosphatase 2 ; antagonists & inhibitors ; metabolism ; Tretinoin ; pharmacology

OBJECTIVETo compare the apical microleakage of Vitapex (calcium hydroxide based paste) with that of AH-plus and zinc oxide eugenol sealer when used with laterally condensed gutta percha obturation technique.

METHODSOne hundred single rooted human anterior teeth were instrumented and randomly divided into three experimental groups (A, B, C) of 30 teeth each and two control groups (D, E) of 5 teeth each. Group A was filled with laterally condensed gutta-percha using Vitapex as sealer. Group B was filled with laterally condensed gutta-percha using AH-plus as sealer. Group C was filled with laterally condensed gutta-percha using zinc oxide eugenol as sealer. Group D was the positive control. Group E was the negative control, which were coated with nail polish to entire root surface. Teeth were then suspended in 2% methylene blue. After this, teeth were demineralized dehydrated and cleared. Linear dye penetration was determined under stereomicroscope with calibrated eye piece.

RESULTSThe mean dye penetration for group A, B, C were respectively (0.57 +/- 0.56) mm, (0.79 +/- 0.96) mm and (1.07 +/- 1.12) mm. Group D demonstrated maximum dye penetration. Group E showed no dye penetration. There was no statistically significant difference between group B and group C (P > 0.05). However, there was statistically significant difference between group A and group B, C (P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONThis study showed that Vitapex used as endodontic sealer material are better than AH-plus sealer and zinc oxide eugenol sealer.

Calcium Hydroxide ; Dental Leakage ; Dental Pulp Cavity ; Gutta-Percha ; Humans ; Molar ; Root Canal Filling Materials ; Root Canal Obturation ; Silicones ; Zinc Oxide-Eugenol Cement

Ultrasound therapy is a new type of therapy technology, there are hyperthermia and high intensity focused ultrasound surgery (HIFUS). Compared with a single frequency system, mutiple frequency system has an additional function to combine power patterns of different frequencies. This function increases the availability of power patterns to treat tumors of various shapes and depths. Therefore, we have in this article proposed a system with the ability to drive ultrasonic phased arrays of multiple resonant frequencies for ultrasound hyperthermia and HIFUS. The results show that this system is able to (1) drive multi-element applicators or phased arrays of a single resonant frequency through the multichannel power amplifiers, (2) concurrently drive transducer with different resonant frequencies, (3) adjust the relative phase and output power of each channel for the scanning ultrasonic focus, and (4) operate each channel with good output stability.
Equipment Design ; Humans ; Neoplasms ; therapy ; Transducers ; Ultrasonic Therapy ; instrumentation

OBJECTIVETo evaluate the process of smoking prevention and control among Chinese adolescent with a model on health promotion in junior high school.

METHODSA cluster-randomized, controlled and schooled-based trial on smoking prevention was conducted among 2343 students at four secondary schools in Huangpu District of Guangzhou. Students 'reports and investigators' daily records were used to evaluate the intervention measures.

RESULTSDuring the one-year period of intervention (Dec. 2004 through Dec. 2005), eighteen activities had been implemented among students, teachers, parents and cigarette retailers. Ranked by the rate of awareness, the top six activities were shown as follows: "the nicotine toxicity experiment" (90.7%), "agreement of building families free of smoking"(77.7%), "a letter to parents" (77.1%), "no-smoking signs" (76.5%), "Blackboard information about health and smoking" (75.0%), and "signature on the 18th World Day of No Smoking" (70.2%). Among all the activities, "the nicotine toxicity experiment" had the highest rate of participation (88.5%), followed by "a letter to parents" (73.6%), "agreement of building families free of smoking" (69.8%), "health education through experiments"(68.6%), "health education through multimedia" (65.7%) and "signature on the 18th World Day of No Smoking" (65.6%). The top seven activities in which students showed greatest interests were "the nicotine toxicity experiment" (64.5%), "signature on the 18th World Day of No Smoking" (33.0%), "health education through experiments" (31.2%), "health education through multimedia" (29.8%), "class meetings with a thesis of smoking" (26.8%), "health pamphlets" (26.6%), "specific textbooks" (25.9%). The extent of students' general satisfaction to the work of tobacco control in school during the last year was 52.4%. The biggest perceived shortcoming for the intervention plan was the low participation of students.

CONCLUSIONSome intervention measures had not been fully carried out among the students and only covered part of them. It is necessary to adjust the previous intervention measures through keeping the nicotine toxicity experiment, health education through multimedia and other measures with extensive participation of students and at the same time, to avoid literal materials, exhibition boards and traditional single-way health education program.

China ; Health Education ; Health Promotion ; Humans ; Smoking Prevention ; Students

OBJECTIVETo investigate and compare the short-term outcome of patients with low-middle frequency sudden deafness treated with alone or combination treatment.

METHODSFrom August 2007 to October 2011, 205 patients with the diagnosis of low-middle frequency sudden deafness who were from 33 different clinical centers were recruited. All patients were followed up for four weeks from the initial examination. Patients were treated with steroid , Ginaton, batroxobin respectively, or Ginaton and steroid combination treatment.

RESULTSThe total effective rate was 90.73%. In Ginaton group, the total effective rate was 87.27%, 89.19% in steroid group, 87.80% in batroxobin group, and 95.83% in Ginaton and steroid group. Considering the total effective rate, there was no statistical difference between four groups (χ(2) = 7.98, P = 0.54). The clinical cure rate for steroid alone was 81.01%, Ginaton alone 76.36%, batroxobin alone 68.29%, and Ginaton and steroid combination treatment 80.56%. There were no clinically significant differences between the different treatments (P > 0.05).

CONCLUSIONSThe low-middle frequency sudden deafness tends to have a relatively favorable prognosis. The steroid played a good effect in the treatment. But different treatments either improving the microcirculation of inner ear or alleviating edema blood has undifferentiated results. Therefore the combination therapy may be more effective.

Batroxobin ; China ; epidemiology ; Combined Modality Therapy ; Drug Therapy, Combination ; Hearing Loss, Sensorineural ; Hearing Loss, Sudden ; classification ; diagnosis ; epidemiology ; therapy ; Humans

OBJECTIVETo analyze the direct and indirect outcomes of influencing factors on smoking behaviors among adolescents.

METHODSSelf-administered questionnaires were used to collect smoking-related information from 2021 respondents. Measurement models were built by confirmatory factor analysis and parameters were estimated by ERLS method. The final structural equation model was determined by comprehensive evaluation and necessary modification.

RESULTSThree latent variables were extracted from 10 manifest variables of environment, while only one latent variable was identified from 9 manifest variables of attitudes. The goodness of fit for the structural equation model was satisfactory that all indices had met corresponding requirements. The final model could explain 38.8% of the variance of smoking behaviors. Four factors (smoking environment, smoking restriction from parents and teachers, determination of cigarette refusal and attitudes toward smoking) were directly affecting the smoking behaviors, while another three factors (grade, health knowledge and school environment) had indirect impacts. According to the percentages of their contribution, the risk factors were ranked as follows: smoking environment (45.76%), attitudes toward smoking (19.88%) and grade at school (0.44%). Similarly, the top protective factor were: determination of cigarette refusal (16.61%), followed by smoking restriction from parents and teachers (10.51%), health knowledge (3.89%) and school environment (2.92%).

CONCLUSIONSHeath knowledge had minor effect on smoking in adolescents but could indirectly affect their smoking behaviors through changing their belief. Grade at school had a doubled influence on smoking, but mainly served as a risk factor. Tobacco control measures for adolescents should not only be limited to health education but environment factors as well.

Adolescent ; Adolescent Behavior ; China ; Humans ; Male ; Smoking ; psychology ; Students