BACKGROUND:Patients with spinal metastases may appear different degrees of pain and abnormal spinal stability, and can be treated with percutaneous baloon kyphoplasty combined with bone cement implantation. OBJECTIVE:To explore the effect of percutaneous baloon kyphoplasty with bone cement implantation on spinal stability and pain in patients with spinal metastases. METHODS:Twenty-three patients with metastatic spinal tumor were treated with percutaneous baloon dilatation kyphoplasty with polymethyl methacrylate bone cement. There were 10 females and 13 males, and their age ranged from 23 to 71 years. The visual analogue scale score, anterior and posterior edge height of vertebral body, quality of life, and motor function score of patients were observed before and after treatment. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: Compared with before treatment, the visual analogue scale score and motor function score were significantly decreased, while anterior and posterior edge height of vertebral body were significantly increased in 23 patients at 24 hours after treatment (P < 0.05). After 12 months of folow-up, no case appeared to have spinal nerve root damage, serious adverse reactions and bone cement embolism. The patient'squality of life was significantly improved, compared with before treatment (P < 0.05). Experimental findings indicate that percutaneous baloon dilatation kyphoplasty with polymethyl methacrylate bone cement can significantly improve the spinal stability, relieve the degree of pain, and exert exact effects in treatment of spinal metastases.

Different from the traditional teaching method, PBL (Problem-Based Learning) teaching mode is emphasized to foster the students' skills in spontaneous study and problem solving and the analyzing and comprehensive thinking ability. The authors believe that in the application of the PBL teaching method, the teachers' functions should be stressed on how to select the initial moment, provide the topics, excite the interesting points, search information,make comments and evaluate the students' ability, i.e. to offer fish and teach how to catch fish as well.

OBJECTIVETo observe the clinical effect of Sizhi-Xifang in the improvement of postoperative ankle function.

METHODSFrom Jan. 2006 to Mar. 2008,49 patients were divided randomly into treatment group and control group. The treatment group included 16 males and 8 females with an average age of (41.3 +/- 13.2) years, involving 13 cases of tye A, 9 of type B and 2 of type C based on AO classification. The control group included 15 males and 10 females with an average age of (38.2 +/- 10.9) years, involving 12 cases of type A, 10 of type B, 3 of type C. Minimal invasive percutaneous plate were used in each group. In treatment group 24 cases were treated with Sizhi-Xifang after the incisions were healed.

RESULTSThere were no incision infections, flaps necrosis, bone and plate exposure after treatment in two groups. All patients were followed-up for 4 to 16 months with an average of 8.6 months. According to Johner-Wruhs evaluation standard, there were 7 cases in excellent, 12 good, 5 in fair in treatment group and in control group there were 5 cases in excellent, 7 in good, 10 in fair and 3 in poor. The comparison of effect between two groups had significant difference (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONSizhi-Xifang is helpful to improve the ankle postoperative function.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Ankle ; physiopathology ; Bone Plates ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Minimally Invasive Surgical Procedures ; methods ; Recovery of Function ; Skin ; Tibial Fractures ; physiopathology ; surgery ; therapy ; Treatment Outcome ; Young Adult

Adolescent ; Dermatitis Herpetiformis ; complications ; Esophageal Diseases ; etiology ; Humans ; Male ; Mucous Membrane ; pathology

Objective To assess the clinical significance of three-dimensional speckle tracking imaging (3D-STI) in the evaluation of left ventricular myocardial function in breast cancer survivors with postoperative anthracycline-based chemotherapy.Methods A total of 51 breast cancer survivors with postoperative anthracycline-based chemotherapy were recruited and 31 female healthy volunteers as the controls.Conventional echocardiography and 3D-STI derived parameters [including global longitudinal strain (GLS) and global area strain (GAS)] were measured before and at 3 and 6 anthracycline-based chemotherapeutic cycles.The receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve was constructed to determine optimal sensitivity and specificity of 3ID-STI derived parameters for the prediction of future cardiotoxicity.Results In comparison with the controls and baseline cases,GLS and GAS deteriorated significantly (P ＜ 0.05 for both).No statistical difference in GCS and conventional parameters showed before and after the initiation of chemotherapy (P ＜0.05,respectively).The ROC curves showed that GAS as the best 3D-STI predictor of patients who develop cardiotoxicity during the follow-up.The area under ROC(AUC) of GAS was 0.894,and its optimal cut-off value was-28.4％,with a specificity of 88.0％ and a sensitivity of 82.9％.AUC of GLS was 0.802,and its optimal cut-off value was-14.3％,with a specificity of 62.0％ and a sensitivity of 85.4％.Conclusions Early decreases in GAS and GLS based on 3D-STI may allow the prediction of subsequent cardiotoxic development accurately in breast cancer survivors with postoperative anthracycline-based chemotherapy.

There is rich scientific information in the traditional Chinese medicine ( TCM ) patents . However , few of them have been efficiently utilized by the academic researchers for a long time . In this paper , TCM patent literatures from 1992 to 2011 were collected by retrieving with SooPat patent searching engine . A total of 638 TCM entries have been indexed, which are consistent with the index in the Modern Chinese Materia Medica. The patents with special academic values were manually screened , and were finally stored in an Access database . A survey on the filed patents was outlined . The work provided a new information resource for the TCM researchers. And it was important to promote the effective use of TCM patents.

Objective To investigate the importance of elements of teaching aesthetic(appearance aesthetics; language aesthetics; emotion aesthetics; PPT aesthetics; blackboard-writing aesthetics and model aesthetics) in clinical orthopaedic teaching,and to analyze the reasons and significance of them.Methods Totally 137 medical students(2005 and 2006 grade) were investigated by the questionnaire in resent 2 years.They were asked to choose the first two important elements of teaching anesthetic from six elements displayed by four teachers.Results The percentage of appearance aesthetics,language aesthetics,emotion aesthetics,PPT aesthetics,blackboard-writing aesthetics and model aesthetics were showed as 97.4％,88.7％,67.1％,58.9％,13.6％ and 1.2％ respectively.Conclusion Teaching aesthetics is an indispensible part of teaching aesthetically and it is helpful to promote the teaching.We should be focus on PPT aesthetics and appearance aesthetics,which show high percentage in our research.

To observe the influence of Mycobacterium tuberculosis 19-kDa lipoprotein (Mtb P19) on function and phenotype of macrophage,the Mtb P19 was prepared from cultured Mtb H37Ra and the phorbol myristate acetate-differentiated THP-1 cells were incubated with P19 at the concentration of 10 μg/mL with 5% CO_2 at 37℃ for up to 48 hours.Supernatants were collected for TNF-α and IL-6 detection by ELISA,then the phenotype fluorescent antibodies were stained to analyze HLA-DR expression changes between control group and experimental group.Flow cytometry and microscopy was used to assay the phagocytosis in macrophages stimulated by Mtb P19.IL-6 and TNF-α in collected supernatants were detected.Results indicated that both were found significant increases and their phagocytosis were enhanced.Comparing to the control group,the mean fluorescence intensity showed a significant increase 24hs after stimulation.It presents that Mtb P19 could be able to induce macrophages activation,and it would be significantly important for protection during infection period.

To observe the effect of Mycobacterium tuberculosis 19 kDa lipoprotein (Mtb P19) upon the expression and distribution of Toll-like receptor-2 (TLR-2) on the surface of macrophages, Mtb P19 was prepared from the cultured M.tuberculosis H37 Ra strain , and phorbol myristatye acetate (PMA)-differentiated THP-1 cells were co-cultivated with Mtb P19 at concentration of 10 g/mL and at 37 ℃ temperature and a condition containing 5% CO_2.for 6 hours.. The distribution of TLP-2 on the surface of macrophages was investigated by immuno-cellular chemical method (ICC) while the effect of Mtb P19 upon the expression of TLR on the surface of macrophages was assayed by fluorescent antibody staining. In addition,the changes of TLR-2 expression before and after the effect of Mtb P19 were investigated by flow cytometry analysis and change of TLR-2 arrangement after stimulation with Mth P19 was determined by co-focal microscopy. It was found that the TLR-2 molecules were evenly distributed on the surface of macrophages as demonstrated by ICC. The mean fluorescent intensity increased significantly after stimulation with Mtb P19 for 6 hours in comparison with that of the control group, and the patchy surface with fluorescent staining positive zones could be detected on the surface of macrophages. Nevertheless , the distribution of TLR-2 molecule in the control group appeared to be randomly dynamic. It is evident that the Mth P19 not only can induce the surface expression of TLR-2 molecules, but also cause a functional aggregation of this receptor.

Objective To investigate the relationship of placental vascular anastomosis and physical development and morbidity of the disease in twin neonates.Methods Fourteen pairs of twin neonates deliveried from Sep.2005 to Aug.2009 were enrolled in Newborn Intensive Care Unit,the Third Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University.These twins were divided into 2 groups according the conditions of placental vascular anastomosis:significant placental vascular anastomosis group(group A) and no significant vascula anastomosis group(group B).Birth weight,head circumference,length,the morbidity of disease were all investigated in 2 groups.Clinic follow-up included neonatal behavioral neurological assessment(NBNA) and children′s development center of China(CDCC).The correlation of neonates placental vascular anastomosis between twin neonates were compared.Results There were statistically significant differences between group A and group B in birth weight,head circumference and body length(t=6.070,5.237,5.784,Pa