BACKGROUND: Wuhuang oil has a bacteriostatic action to treat burn wound and promote traumatic healing, but the action on inhibition of scars formation remains poorly understood.OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects of modified Wuhuang oil at different concentrations and administration times on the growth and proliferation of human fibroblasts in vitro.DESIGN, TIME AND SETTING: Comparison observation regarding cytology in vitro was performed at the Burns Institute in the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University between April 2006 and January 2007.MATERIALS: Prepuce specimens were harvested from patients who underwent circumcision in Department of urinary surgery, at First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University and Jiangxi Provincial Children Hospital. All patients aged 2-12 years old, and informed consents were obtained from their relatives. Wuhuang oil and modified Wuhuang oil (water-solubility) were offered by Department of Pharmaceutical Preparation in the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, China. METHODS: Human fibroblasts cultured in vitro were divided into 2 groups at random, experiment and control. Experiment group was treated with 300 g/L Wuhuang oil, while control group with 300 g/L modified Wuhuang oil. Serum-free culture fluid was used to prepare 6 concentrations of oil solution: 0 (blank control), 100, 150, 200, 250, 300 g/L.MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: MTT assay was used to determine the growth and proliferation of human fibroblasts at 2, 3, 4, 5,6 days; inhibition rate of cell growth was observed at 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 days.RESULTS: Modified Wuhuang oil (0-300 g/L) concentration positively correlated with inhibition of human fibroblast proliferation;the inhibition was not related to culture time. Modified Wuhuang oil (300 g/L) had the greatest inhibition rate of human fibroblasts at 8-10 days, there were significant differences between experiment group and control group (P < 0.01).CONCLUSION: Modified Wuhuang oil has an effective inhibition on the proliferation of human fibroblasts in vitro, and shows a dose-dependent tendency. Compared with Wuhuang oil, 300 g/L modified Wuhuang oil is superior to suppress the growth of human fibroblasts.

Objective To evaluate the safety and efficacy of retroperitoneal laparoscopic resec-tion and reconstructive surgeries in urology. Methods Retroperitoneal laparoseopic resection and re-constructive surgeries were performed on 245 patients including 17 cases of adrenalectomies, 32 cases of radical nephrectomies, 12 cases of partial nephrectomies, 53 cases of nephrectomies, 5 cases of nephroureterectomies, 6 cases of unroofing of peripelvie renal cysts, 46 cases of unroofing of renal cysts, 4 cases of unroofing of polyeystic kidneys, 12 cases of pyeloplasties, 58 cases of ureterolithoto-roles. Results All 245 surgeries were successfully completed. The mean operation time was 59 (20-250) min and the estimated blood loss was 5-300 ml with no transfusion. There was no serious complication during perioperative period. Conclusion Retroperitoneal laparoscopic resection and re-conatruetive surgery in urology is safe and effective with the advantages of minimal invasion, quick re-covery and few complications.

BACKGROUNDSeveral studies investigating the prognostic utility of interleukin-10 (IL-10) in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) have provided conflicting findings. The aim of the study was to assess the existing evidence regarding association between serum IL-10 levels and adverse events.

METHODSLiterature search was performed in PubMed, EMBASE, and Cochrane Trials Register databases from their inception to September 30, 2012. In addition, reference lists of the included articles and their related citations in PubMed were also reviewed for additional pertinent studies.

RESULTSA total of 12 eligible studies comprising a total of 5882 patients were identified. The pooled relative risks for both studies reporting the risk estimates by IL-10 categories and studies reporting the risk estimates by unit IL-10 indicated an association between high IL-10 levels and adverse events. Sensitivity and subgroup analysis indicated that the results obtained in IL-10 categories were not stable.

CONCLUSIONSData from our meta-analysis supported the existence of a relationship between high serum IL-10 levels and adverse events in patients with ACS. Large study with longer follow-up is needed to confirm the findings.

Acute Coronary Syndrome ; blood ; Humans ; Interleukin-10 ; blood

UNLABELLEDBackround N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) is a reliable predictor in acute coronary artery disease (CAD). Little is known about patients with stable CAD, especially Chinese patients with CAD. The aim of the present study was to investigate the association of NT-proBNP levels with the severity of CAD in patients with normal left ventricular ejection fraction.

METHODSA total of 658 consecutive patients were divided into two groups based on angiograms: CAD group (n = 484) and angiographic normal control group (n = 174). The severity of CAD was evaluated by modified Gensini score, and its relationship with NT-proBNP was analyzed.

RESULTSThe prevalence of risk factors such as age, male gender, diabetes mellitus (DM), dyslipidemia, smoking, and family history of CAD in the CAD group were higher than that in the control group. In multivariate regression model analysis, age, gender, and DM were determinants of the presence of CAD. NT-pro BNP was found to be an independent predictor for CAD (OR:1.66 (95% CI: 1.06-2.61), P < 0.05). In a receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis, an NT-proBNP value of 641.15 pmol/L was identified as a cut-off value in the diagnosis or exclusion of CAD (area under curve (AUC) = 0.56, 95% CI: 0.51-0.61). Furthermore, NT-proBNP was positively correlated with Gensini score (r = 0.14, P < 0.001) in patients with CAD.

CONCLUSIONNT-proBNP was an independent predictor for Chinese patients with CAD, suggesting that the NT-proBNP level might be associated with the presence and the severity of CAD.

Coronary Disease ; blood ; physiopathology ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Natriuretic Peptide, Brain ; blood ; Peptide Fragments ; blood ; Prospective Studies ; Risk Factors ; Severity of Illness Index ; Stroke Volume