OBJECTIVETo evaluate percutaneous epididymal sperm aspiration (PESA) and testicular sperm extraction (TESE) in the diagnosis and treatment of azoospermia.

METHODSWe examined 385 azoospermia patients using the techniques of PESA and TESE.

RESULTSOf the total number of the azoospermia patients, 64 (16.62%) had sperm in the epididymis and 45 (11.69%) in the testis. Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) was applied to 64 of the patients with sperm in the epididymis or testis. The pregnancy rate after the embryo transfer was 39.07%.

CONCLUSIONPESA and TESE, as an effective therapy for azoospermia, can further the classification of azoospermia and provide chances of procreation to azoospermia patients with partial obstruction.

Adult ; Azoospermia ; diagnosis ; therapy ; Cell Separation ; methods ; Epididymis ; cytology ; Humans ; Male ; Sperm Injections, Intracytoplasmic ; methods ; Testis ; cytology ; Treatment Outcome

Objective To evaluate the effect of latanoprost on cell proliferation of and melanogenesis in human epidermal melanocytes,and to explore its mechanism.Methods Latanoprost was added into the 254 medium to prepare latanoprost solutions at different concentrations of 10-5,10-6 and 10-7 mol/L.In vitro cultured human epidermal melanocytes were divided into 4 groups to be cultured with media containing no latanoprost (control group) or 10-5,10-6 and 10-7 mol/L latanoprost for 48 hours.Cell counting kit-8 (CCK8) assay was performed to evaluate the proliferative activity of melanocytes,dopa oxidation assay to estimate the activity of tyrosinase.Sodium hydroxide (NaOH)-lysis method was used to determine the content of melanin,and Masson-Fontana staining to observe the number and distribution of melanin granules.Westernblot analysis and real-time fluorescence-based quantitative PCR were performed to determine the protein and mRNA expression of melanogenesis-related genes including microphthalmia-associated transcription factor (MITF),tyrosinase (TYR) and tyrosinase-related protein 1 (TYRP1).Comparison among the 4 groups and multiple comparisons were done by using one-way analysis of variance and least significant difference (LSD)-t test.Results Compared with the control group,the 10-6-,10-5-mol/L latanoprost groups showed significantly increased proliferative activity of melanocytes (1.064 ± 0.172 and 1.078 ± 0.080 vs.0.784 ± 0.015;t =3.289,3.454 respectively,both P ＜ 0.05),increased activity of tyrosinase (0.510 ± 0.017 and 0.454 ± 0.009 vs.0.355 ± 0.041;t =6.139,3.939 respectively,P ＜ 0.01 or 0.05),and increased content of melanin (t =7.232,5.967,both P ＜ 0.01).However,there were no significant differences in the proliferative activity of melanocytes,activity of tyrosinase or content of melanin between the 10-7-mol/L latanoprost group and control group (all P ＞ 0.05).Masson-Fontana staining showed more and darker melanin granules on melanocyte dendrites in the 10-5-,10-6-,10-7-mol/L latanoprost groups than in the control group,and the color of melanin granules changed from light brown to black brown along with the increase in the concentration of latanoprost.The mRNA expression of MITF increased along with the increase in the concentration of latanoprost (P ＜ 0.01),and the protein expression of MITF wassignificantly higher in the 10-6,10-5-mol/L latanoprost groups than in the control group and 10-7-mol/L latanoprost group (all P ＜ 0.01).The 10-6-mol/L latanoprost group showed significantly increased mRNA and protein expression of TYR and TYRP1 compared with the control group,10-7-,10-5-mol/L latanoprost groups (all P ＜ 0.01).Conclusion Latanoprost can increase the proliferation of human epidermal melanocytes,and promote tyrosinase activity and melanogenesis likely by enhancing the mRNA and protein expression of MITF,TYR,TYRP1.

Objective:To translate and revise the Arteriovenous Fistula Assessment Scale (AVF-AS), test the reliability and validity of the Chinese version of AVF-AS.Methods:The modified Brislin translation model was used to translate, back translate and cross culture adjust AVF-AS, forming the Chinese version of AVF-AS. Using the convenient sampling method, 220 hemodialysis patients from the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University were selected for investigation from July to September 2022. Two weeks later, 30 patients were randomly selected for retesting. The valid data were used for project analysis and reliability and validity evaluation.Results:The Chinese version of AVF-AS consisted of 3 factors and 18 items. Consistency level between evaluators was 0.94, the item level content validity index was 0.83-1.00, average scale level content validity index was 0.94, and the calibration validity was 0.68.Three common factors(autogenous arteriovenous fistula blood flow, stenosis and ischemia, puncture location) were extracted from exploratory factors, and the cumulative variance contribution rate was 75.255%. The total scale's Cronbach α was 0.946, the half reliability of each dimension was 0.826 - 0.898, and the test-retest reliability was 0.907.Conclusions:The Chinese version of AVF-AS has good reliability and validity, and can be used as an effective tool to evaluate the autogenous arteriovenous fistula functional status of hemodialysis patients in China.

Objective To determine the expression of nucleobindin 2-encoded satiety and fatinfluencing protein-1 (nesfatin-1) and interleukin (IL)-26 in the serum of patients with vitiligo,and to explore the relationship of nesfatin-1 and IL-26 with anxiety status,disease stage and distribution pattern of vitiligo lesions.Methods From March 2017 to September 2018,123 outpatients with vitiligo,as well as 30 healthy controls (control group),were enrolled from Department of Dermatology,Affiliated Hospital of Jiangsu University.Of these patients,93 rated as anxious (vitiligo with anxiety group),and 30 as nonanxious (vitiligo without anxiety group).Another 30 anxious patients with other autoimmune diseases and background diseases like hypertension and diabetes mellitus but not vitiligo (anxiety group) were enrolled from Zhenjiang Fifth People's Hospital.Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was performed to detect levels of nesfatin-1 and IL-26 in the above groups,and state-trait anxiety inventory (STAI) was used to evaluate the anxiety status.According to the vitiligo disease activity (VIDA) score,the vitiligo patients with anxiety were divided into 3 subgroups:stable stage group,active stage group and rapid progressive stage group.According to the distribution pattern of skin lesions,the vitiligo patients with anxiety were divided into 5 subgroups:localized vitiligo group,segmental vitiligo group,generalized vitiligo group,sporadic vitiligo group and acral vitiligo group.The levels of nesfatin-1 and IL-26 were compared among different stage groups and type groups.Statistical analysis was carried out using one-way analysis of variance for comparison among several groups,multi-way analysis of variance and stratification analysis for multifactor data,paired t-test for comparison before and after treatment,and Pearson correlation analysis for analyzing correlations.Results The serum level of nesfatin-1 significantly differed among the vitiligo with anxiety group,vitiligo without anxiety group,anxiety group and control group (F =10.78,P ＜ 0.001),and was significantly higher in the vitiligo with anxiety group than in the other 3 groups (P ＜ 0.001).No significant difference in the serum level of IL-26 was found among the 4 above groups (F =1.34,P =0.26).As pearson correlation analysis showed,the serum level of nesfatin-1 was positively correlated with the STAI score in the 93 vitiligo patients with anxiety (r =0.55,P ＜ 0.001).The serum level of nesfatin-1 was significantly higher in the rapid progressive stage group than in the stable stage group (P ＜ 0.05),while there was no significant difference in the IL-26 level among different stage groups (P ＞ 0.05).The generalized vitiligo patients with anxiety showed significantly increased serum level of nesfatin-1 compared with the localized vitiligo patients with anxiety (P ＜ 0.001).After 3-month treatment,the nesfatin-1 level in the 10 vitiligo patients with anxiety significantly decreased compared with that before the treatment (paired t =4.40,P =0.02),but the STAI score did not change (P ＞ 0.05).Conclusion Nesfatin-1 as an emotioninfluencing factor may participate in the occurrence of vitiligo,especially affect patients with rapid progressive vitiligo or generalized vitiligo,while IL-26 may be irrelevant to vitiligo.

Objective:To explore the effects of nursing program-based dietary intervention combined with family support in hemodialysis patients.Methods:The clinical data of 180 hemodialysis patients admitted to the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University from September 2019 to September 2020 were selected by convenient sampling and retrospectively analyzed. The patients were divided into control group and observation group with 90 cases in each group according to different nursing methods. Patients in the control group received routine dietary care, while patients in the observation group underwent nursing program-based dietary intervention combined with family support on this basis. The nutritional status and dialysis compliance were compared between the two groups at the time of enrollment, 3 months, and 6 months after the intervention.Results:3 and 6 months after the intervention, the levels of body mass index, total protein, albumin, prealbumin, total lymphocyte count, and white blood cell count in the two groups increased, and the observation group was better than the control group, with statistically significant differences ( P<0.05) . At 3 and 6 months after the intervention, the scores of each dimension of compliance in the two groups increased, and the scores of each dimension in the observation group were better than those in the control group, with statistically significant differences ( P<0.05) . Conclusions:Nursing program-based dietary intervention combined with family support can improve the nutritional status and dialysis compliance of hemodialysis patients, which is worth promoting in clinical practice.