Objective To study the imaging characteristics of the ligaments in craniocervical junction (CCJ), and to optimize the examination methods and scanning sequences of the ligaments in this region. Methods Two groups of 51 healthy volunteers in each were selected to undergo CT and MRI examination respectively. The CT and MRI features of the ligaments in CCJ were assessed. Two senior imaging doctors compared the results of showing the ligaments in CCJ by several MRI sequences, including T1 WI ,T2 WI, proton density weighted imaging (PDWI), T2 * WI and short time inversion recovery (STIR) ,and proton density fat saturate (PDFSAT). Standard normal rank transformation was done according to the primary data,and then analysis of variance of repeated measurement was applied. Results CT and MRI could both demonstrate the ligaments (except the anterior atlantooccipital membrane only seen on MRI) and their adjoins in CCJ, while MRI had more advantages than CT. The display ratio of the anterior atlantooccipital membrane was 100% (51/51) by MRI. The display ratio of the apical ligament was 29.4%(15/51) by CT and 43.1% (22/51) by MRI. The posterior atlantooccipital membrane-dura complex,tectorial ligament-dura complex, transverse ligament, and alar ligament could be demonstrated clearly by CT and MRI, the display ratio was 100% respectively (51/51). The results of PDWi scored by two doctors were both 5.0, there were no significant differences between them (F = 0.000, P > 0.05), which were significantly higher than T, WI (M = 3.0), T2Wi (M = 3.0), T2 * WI (M = 1.0), STIR (M = 1.0), and PDFSAT(M = 3.0)(P < 0.01). Conclusion MRI was superior to CT in demonstrating the ligaments in CCJ. PDWI was the optimal MRI sequence. Imaging research of normal ligamentous structures in CCJ could provide valuable diagnostic and therapeutic information for evaluating the ligamentous diseases.

Experimentalanimalsareimportantbasisforlifescienceresearchanddevelopment.Alongwiththe continuous development of science and technology , new technology and new ideas emerging , treatment and protection of animals during experiments are important condition to ensure the scientific results accurate and reliable , so scientists have paid more attention to the issues of animal welfare and protection .This article summarizes the animal treatment and protection measures during experiments based on both own work and experience and knowledge of other scientists .

Objective To estimate the value of computed tomography perfusion for clinical stage and approach the correlation of perfusion parameters and Cyfra21-1.Methods 63 patients with head and neck squamous carcinoma were confirmed by pathology and follow up underwent CT perfusion,which were divided into three groups by international clinical staging criteria(stageⅠ,stageⅡand stageⅢ-Ⅳ).BF,BV,MTT,TTP and Cyfra21-1 were recorded and compared with correlation in different clinical staging.Results There was no significant difference of Cyfra21-1 between stageⅠand stageⅡ(Z =1.439,P =0.1 62).There was significant differ-ence of Cyfra21-1 between stageⅠand stageⅢ-Ⅳ(Z =3.356,P =0.000),stageⅡand stageⅢ-Ⅳ(Z =4.959,P =0.000).There was significant difference of BF and BV between stageⅠand stageⅡ,stageⅠand stageⅢ-Ⅳ(P <0.05),of MTT and TTP between stageⅠand stageⅢ-Ⅳ,stageⅡand stageⅢ-Ⅳ(P <0.05).There was no significant difference of BF and BV between stageⅡand stageⅢ-Ⅳ(P >0.05),of MTT and TTP between stageⅠand stageⅡ(P >0.05).Cyfra21-1 and perfusion parameters in all groups have relationship(r=0.76,0.76,-0.82,-0.82,P <0.05).Conclusion The statistically significant of positive correlation be-tween Cyfra21-1 and perfusion parameters in head and neck squamous carcinoma suggests that CT perfusion could play a complemen-tary role in clinical assessment.

Objective To explore the spatial distribution of abnormal brain areas and metabolic changes in Alzheimer's disease (AD),and provide a reference for early clinical diagnosis of AD.Methods Sixteen cases of AD patients and 1 6 healthy controls (HC)underwent multi-voxel 1H-MRS examination with semi-LASER sequence.The posterior cingulate gyrus section was localized as the volume of interest(VOI)level.The VOI consisted of bilateral posterior cingulate gyrus,occipital lobe cortex,lateral ventricle paratrigonal white matter and dorsal thalamus.N-acetylaspartate (NAA),creatine (Cr),choline (Cho),myo-inositol (MI)and glutamate-glutamine (Glx)concentration were measured.Differences in metabolite were compared between AD and HC groups.Relationships between metabolite and clinical mini-mental state examination(MMSE)score were analyzed.Results For metabolite index in VOI of right hemisphere:the AD group displayed significantly lower NAA,NAA/Cr,NAA/MI and higher MI,MI/Cr levels in posterior cingulate gyrus,lower NAA,Glx levels in occipital lobe cortex,lower NAA and higher Cho levels in dorsal thalamus.For metabolite index in VOI of left hemisphere:the AD group displayed significantly lower NAA,NAA/Cr,NAA/MI,Glx/Cr and higher MI/Cr levels in posterior cingulate gyrus,lower NAA and higher Cho/Cr levels in occipital lobe cortex,lower NAA and higher cho levels in lateral ventricle paratrigonal white matter,lower Glx and higher Cho levels in dorsal thalamus.NAA/Cr was positively correlated with Glx/Cr in left posterior cingulate gyrus in AD group.Conclusion NAA is decreased while MI is increased in posterior cingulate gyrus in AD patients.Cho is increased in both grey and white matter.Glx is decreased mainly within grey matter,involving both cortex and sub cortex structures.

Objective:To evaluate the effect of venous excess ultrasound score (VExUS Score) in the acute kidney injury(AKI) in Patients with sepsis, so as to reduce the risk of disease and improve the prognosis of patients.Methods:This experiment was a single-center prospective cohort study. Include septic patients with AKI who were admitted to the Department of Emergency Intensive Care Unit of the First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University from February 2022 to February 2023, Those with inadequate window, inferior vena cava (IVC) thrombus, age<18 years and known case of cirrhosis with portal hypertension were excluded from the study. Patients underwent ultrasound examination with serial determination till AKI resolved or patient is initiated on dialysis.Results:Totally 86 patients were enrolled for the study. The mean age was (60.43±15.48) with 50 (58.1%) males. Mean sequential organ failure assessment (SOFA) score was (6.23±1.87). 38 patients (44.2%) were in AKI stage 1, while 24 patients (27.9%) were in AKI stage 2 and stage 3 each. 52 patients (60.5%) had VExUS grade Ⅲ. Resolution of AKI injury showed significant correlation with improvement in VExUS grade ( p value 0.003). Similarly, there was significant association between changes in VExUS grade and fluid balance ( p value 0.005). There was no correlation between central venous pressure (CVP), left ventricular function, and right ventricular function with change in VExUS grade. Conclusions:The study shows a significant correlation between the VExUS Score and AKI staging, With improvement in kidney function, there is decline in the VExUS grade as well. Moreover VExUS Score might reliably demonstrate venous congestion and aid in the clinical decision to perform fluid removal.

Objective:To evaluate the effect of perioperative application of hydroxychloroquine on the prognosis of patients undergoing cardiac surgery.Methods:All SLE patients in the Department of Cardiovascular Surgery of the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University who took hydroxychloroquine and glucocorticoid for more than 7 days before operation were enrolled in the observation group(28 cases), including 3 males and 25 females, aged(38.3±8.2)years old. Patients who did not use hydroxychloroquine but only used glucocorticoid before operation were included in the control group(24 cases), including 2 males and 22 females, aged(37.9 ±9.8)years old. There was no significant difference in preoperative clinical data between the two groups in terms of sex, age, BMI, course of systemic lupus erythematosus, hemoglobin, albumin, C-reactive protein, ALT, serum creatinine, ejection fraction, diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, smoking, alcoholism, preoperative atrial arrhythmia, ventricular arrhythmia, atrioventricular block and so on. The constituent ratio of preoperative operation plan was basically the same between the two groups. The postoperative complications and survival of the two groups were compared.Results:There was no significant difference in early clinical indexes between the two groups, such as cardiopulmonary bypass time( t=0.12, P=0.19), chest drainage volume( t=0.30, P=0.77), second thoracotomy hemostasis( χ2=1.17, P=0.46). There was no significant difference in drug-related complications such as new retinopathy, myocardial concentric hypertrophy, atrial arrhythmia( χ2=1.27, P=0.26), ventricular arrhythmia( χ2=0.98, P=0.32), atrioventricular block( χ2=0.06, P=0.82) and other drug-related complications between the observation group and the control group. There was no significant difference between the two groups in postoperative acute heart failure( χ2=1.17, P=0.28), acute liver insufficiency( χ2=1.17, P=0.28), sternal infection and IABP use( χ2=0.47, P=0.50). Compared with the control group, the incidence of acute renal insufficiency after operation was lower in the observation group( χ2=4.51, P=0.04). The incidence of new postoperative pneumonia was lower( χ2=8.26, P=0.01). The length of postoperative antibiotic use, the length of postoperative ICU hospital stay, the postoperative hospital stay and the total cost of hospitalization in the observation group were significantly less than those in the control group( z=2.71, 2.09, 2.02, 2.02, P=0.01, 0.04, 0.04, 0.04). Compared with the control group, the in-hospital mortality rate of patients in the observation group was lower than that in the control group(3.6% vs. 12.5%, χ2=0.47, P=0.50), and the 6-month and 1-year survival rates of the observation group were higher than those of the control group(92.9% vs.83.3%, 92.9% vs.79.2%; χ2=0.41, 2.17; P=0.53, 0.34), but the difference was not statistically significant. Conclusion:Perioperative administration of hydroxychloroquine can significantly reduce the incidence of postoperative acute renal insufficiency and pneumonia, reduce the duration of postoperative antibiotic use, postoperative ICU hospital stay, postoperative hospital stay, and the cost of hospitalization. Hydroxychloroquine may reduce the in-hospital mortality and improve the long-term survival rate after cardiac surgery, but long-term large sample clinical studies are still needed.

OBJECTIVETo explore the association of a functional polymorphism Val158Met of COMT gene and attention and executive function in first-episode treatment-naive patients with schizophrenia and healthy controls.

METHODSTrail making test (TMT) and clinical performances were evaluated in 103 first-episode treatment-naive patients with schizophrenia and 99 healthy controls. Polymorphism of COMT Val158Met was analyzed using polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism method. A general linear model was used to investigate the effect of genotype subgroups on the attention and executive function.

RESULTSThere was a significant difference between control subjects and patients with schizophrenia on the TMT-A and B. However, no significant difference among Val/Val, Val/Met and Met/Met on the TMT-A and B in control subjects and patients with schizophrenia was detected.

CONCLUSIONThe association among COMT Met variant and trail making testing (attention and executive function) has been replicated. However, no association of COMT Met variant with disruption of dopaminergic influence on neurocognitive function was detected. This may be due to the heterogeneity of population.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Amino Acid Substitution ; Attention ; physiology ; Catechol O-Methyltransferase ; genetics ; Executive Function ; physiology ; Female ; Gene Frequency ; Genotype ; Humans ; Male ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Polymorphism, Genetic ; Polymorphism, Restriction Fragment Length ; Schizophrenia ; genetics ; physiopathology ; Schizophrenic Psychology ; Trail Making Test ; Young Adult

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Probiotics are expected to confer benefits on patients with constipation, but how probiotics act on constipated patients with variable stool consistencies remains unclear. We investigated the effect of Lactobacillus casei strain Shirota (LcS) on constipation-related symptoms, especially stool consistency, of constipated patients. METHODS: Constipated patients meeting the Rome III criteria were divided into 3 groups according to the Bristol Stool Form Scale (BSFS): hard (hard stool [HS], BSFS < 3), normal (normal stool [NS], ≤ 3 BSFS ≤ 4), and soft (soft stool [SS], 4 < BSFS ≤ 5) stools. Subjects in each group consumed a probiotic beverage containing 1010 colony-forming units of LcS daily for 28 days. RESULTS: LcS intervention significantly alleviated constipation-related symptoms and increased defecation frequency in all subjects. Four weeks of LcS supplementation softened the hard stools in HS, hardened the soft stools in SS, and did not alter the ideal stool consistency in NS. The short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) concentrations were highest in SS, followed by NS and HS. LcS intervention increased the stool SCFA levels in HS but reduced or did not alter the levels in NS and SS. LcS intervention increased the Pseudobutyrivibrio and Roseburia abundances in HS and decreased the Pseudobutyrivibrio abundance in SS. CONCLUSIONS: LcS supplementation improved the constipation-related symptoms in constipated subjects. Differences in baseline stool consistency could result in different anti-constipation effects of LcS intervention. LcS balanced the stool consistency—softened the HS and hardened the SS. These effects could be associated with modulation of the gut microbiota and SCFA production.
Beverages ; China ; Constipation ; Defecation ; Fatty Acids, Volatile ; Gastrointestinal Microbiome ; Humans ; Lactobacillus casei ; Lactobacillus ; Probiotics ; Stem Cells

Objective To observe the effect of aspirin on the proliferation inhibition and apoptosis of human adrenal cortical cancer cells, and to explore preliminarily the related mechanisms. Methods The human adrenal cortical cancer cells were cultured in vitro. The experimental group was DEME/F-12 complete medium which contained different concentrations of aspirin (final concentration of 0.125, 0.25, 0.5, 1 mg/ml). The control group was DEME/F-12 complete medium which had no aspirin but 1%anhydrous ethanol instead. After treatment by aspirin at different concentrations for different durations (24, 48, 72 hours), we detected the proliferation inhibition of SW-13 cells and H295R cells by methyl thiazolyl tetrazolium (MTT) method, observed the changes of cell morphology with the inverted microscope; Observed and counted apoptotic cells through Hoechst33258 fluorescent staining, tested the cell apoptosis by flow cytometry, and detected the expression of Bcl-2 and Bax by western blotting. Results The date of MTT showed that after treated by different concentrations of aspirin,the growth inhibition ratio of SW-13 cells and H295R cells were higher than the control group (P＜0.05), and at the same time, the inhibition ratio would increase when the drug concentration increased ( P＜0. 05 ), with a dose-dependent tendency. When the drug concentration was constant, the inhibition ratio increased with the duration of the drug (P＜0.05), which showed a time-dependent tendency. The number of apoptosis cells and the cell apoptosis rate of both SW-13 and H295R which were treated by different concentrations of aspirin for 48 hours were higher than the control group ( P＜0. 01). According to the analysis of grayscale value of western blotting, Aspirin can increase the expression of Bax ( P＜0.05). On the contrary, the expression of bcl-2 in the experimental group was lower than that in the control group (P＜0.05). Conclusion Aspirin may inhibit the growth of human adrenal cortical cancer cell in vitro and induce its apoptosis, and the possible mechanism may be correlated with the up-regulation of the expression of Bax, and down regulation of Bcl-2 expression.

Objective To analyze the risk factors affecting postoperative incisional infection in Crohn's disease (CD) patients after bowel resection.Methods The retrospective case-control study was conducted.The clinicopathologieal data of 239 CD patients who underwent bowel resection in the Sixth Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University between January 2007 and December 2016 were collected.All patients underwent bowel resection.Observation indicators:(1) surgical situations;(2) follow-up;(3) risk factors analysis affecting postoperative incisional infection;(4) clinical factors affecting preoperative anemia.The follow-up using outpatient examination or ward diagnosis was performed to detect incisional infection within 30 days postoperatively up to January 2017.The normality test was done by Shapiro-Wilk.Measurement data with normal distribution were represented as x-±s,and comparison between groups was evaluated with the t test.Measurement data with skewed distribution were described as M (range),and comparison between groups was analyzed using the Wilcoxon ranksum test.The univariate analysis and multivariate analysis were done using the Logistic regression model.The P＜ 0.05 in univariate analysis was incorporated into multivariate analysis for analysis in the forward wald.Results (1) Surgical situations:of 239 patients,11 underwent emergency surgery and 228 underwent elective surgery;65 and 174 underwent respectively laparoscopic surgery and open surgery;179 received digestive tract reconstruction and anastomosis and 81 received enterostomy (21 combined with anastomosis and enterostomy).Among 239 patients,137,113,101,58,54 and 11 were complicated respectively with fiber stenosis,intestinal fistula,obstruction of small intestine,abscess,cellulitis and enterobrosis (some patients combined with multiple signs).(2) Follow-up:239 patients were followed up at 30 days postoperatively.During the follow-up,48 with incisional infection were improved by symptomatic treatment.(3) Risk factors analysis affecting postoperative incisional infection:① Results of univariate analysis showed that illness behavior,sedimentation rate of RBC ＞ 20 mm/h,preoperative anemia,preoperative chronic intestinal fistula,open surgery,intraoperative fiber stenosis and intraoperative intestinal fistula were risk factors affecting occurrence of postoperative incisional infection [odds ratio (0R)=2.530,2.579,4.233,2.988,2.554,0.503,3.052,95％ confidence interval (CI):1.218-2.259,1.141-5.833,1.598-11.210,1.522-5.864,1.082-6.029,0.265-0.954,1.555-5.993,P＜0.05].② Results of multivariate analysis showed that preoperative anemia and intraoperative intestinal fistula were independent risk factors affecting occurrence of postoperative incisional infection (OR =3.881,2.837,95％ CI:1.449-10.396,1.429-5.634,P＜0.05).(4) Clinical factors affecting preoperative anemia:cases (male) with preoperative anemia,body mass index (BMI),cases with sedimentation rate of RBC ＞ 20 mm/h,platelet (PLT) ＞ 300x109/L,elevated C-reactive protein,albumin (Alb) ＜35 g/L were respectively 120,(17.4±2.9)kg/m2,130,75,139,65 in patients with preoperative anemia and 65,(18.3±2.9)kg/m2,36,12,39,10 in patients without preoperative anemia,with statistically significant differences (x2 =17.966,t =2.210,x2 =12.219,14.440,14.661,12.272,P＜0.05).Conclusion The preoperative anemia and intraoperative intestinal fistula are independent risk factors affecting occurrence of postoperative incisional infection,and preoperative anemia is associated with perioperative inflammatory conditions.