Burns ; complications ; immunology ; therapy ; Humans ; Immune System Diseases ; etiology ; therapy ; Nutritional Support

Burns ; complications ; metabolism ; Humans ; Inflammation ; etiology ; metabolism ; prevention & control

OBJECTIVETo explore the relationship between ulcerative colitis (UC) and lung injuries by assessing their clinical manifestations and characteristics.

METHODSFrom July 2009 to April 2012, 91 UC patients presenting to Longhua Hospital who met the established inclusion and exclusion criteria were enrolled in this retrospective study. According to the scores of disease activity index, the patients were divided into the mild, moderate, and severe groups. Meanwhile, the records of pulmonary symptoms, chest X-ray image, and pulmonary function were reviewed.

RESULTSSixty-eight (74.7%) patients had at least 1 pulmonary symptom, such as cough (38.5%), shortness of breath (27.5%), and expectoration (17.6%). And 77 (84.6%) had at least 1 ventilation abnormality. Vital capacity value was significantly lower in the severe group than that in the mild group (91.82%±10.38% vs. 98.92%±12.12%, P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONSLung injury is a common extraintestinal complication of UC. According to the theory in Traditional Chinese Medicine that the lung and large intestine are related, both the lungs and large intestine should be treated simultaneously.

Adult ; Colitis, Ulcerative ; complications ; physiopathology ; Female ; Humans ; Lung Injury ; etiology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Vital Capacity

OBJECTIVETo explore the procedures of dynamic infusion cavernosometry and cavernosography (DICC) and their application in the diagnosis and classification of venous erectile dysfunction (VED).

METHODSThis study included 103 ED patients, aged 20 to 43 years, highly suspected of VED, with disease courses of 4 months to 6 years. DICC was performed and analyses were made on the results, especially the parameters of flow-to-maintain (FTM) and pressure decay (PD) in the corpus cavernosum.

RESULTSBased on the parameters of FTM and PD, 21 of the patients were normal, 5 were suspected of VED, 39 had mild VED, 25 had moderate VED, and 13 had severe VED. Penile subcutaneous hematoma was found in 4 of the patients, all recovered after 3 to 5 days, with no other complications.

CONCLUSIONDICC is a reliable, safe and minimally invasive method for the diagnosis and classification of VED.

Diagnostic Techniques, Urological ; adverse effects ; Hematoma ; etiology ; Humans ; Impotence, Vasculogenic ; classification ; diagnosis ; Male ; Penile Diseases ; etiology ; Penis ; blood supply ; diagnostic imaging ; Radiography ; Veins

Early diagnosis of sepsis helps make effective clinical decisions and improve the survival rate of patients with severe infection. However, the timely and accurate diagnosis of sepsis is still a great challenge in clinic. In order to settle the very problem, the scientists in the world have made a lot of exploration and research in the field of rapid molecular identification of pathogens. Nowadays, the nucleic acid detection of sepsis is mainly composed of 3 types of methodological strategies, either based on positive blood culture, single colonies, or directly on blood specimens. This paper presents a comprehensive overview of advances in the research of early detection of bacterial nucleic acid as molecular diagnosis of sepsis.
DNA, Bacterial ; blood ; Humans ; Sepsis ; blood ; diagnosis

Traditional Chinese medicine industry is China's strategic emerging industry with great potential for self-innovation. Traditional Chinese medicine industry has successively experienced four stages which are the foundation (laying stage), the core status (establishing stage), the modern system (exploring stage), and the modernization system (constructing stage). Throughout the evolution of the self-innovation in traditional Chinese medicine industry, it presents distinct characteristics which we can explore the beneficial enlightenment.
Drug Industry ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional

ObjectiveTo investigate the relationship between the serum concentration of IL-6,S100β,NT-3 and the cognitive functions in first-episode schizophrenia characterized by positive or negative symptoms.Methods44 first-episode schizophrenic patients characterized by positive symptoms (positive group),36 first-episode schizophrenic patients characterized by negative symptoms (negative group) and 50 healthy controls (controls) were collected.The serum levels of IL-6,S100β and NT-3 were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).The systematic evaluation tool-MCCB was applied to assess cognitive function in patients and controls.ResultsNT-3 serum levels in positive or negative groups were lower than those in controls and the differences were significant((118.39±37.50) ng/L,(112.55±32.29) ng/L vs (141.18±29.67) ng/L) (P<0.01).IL-6 and S100β serum levels in positive or negative groups were higher than those in controls and the differences were statistically significant((5.74±1.00)ng/L,(5.07±1.17)ng/L vs (4.23±0.91)ng/L),((132.98±46.71)ng/L,(124.99±43.14)ng/L vs (103.63±31.57)ng/L)(P<0.01).IL-6 serum levels in the positive group ((5.07±1.17)ng/L) were lower than those in the negative group ((5.74±0.99)ng/L) and the difference was statistically significant (P<0.05).In MCCB test,the TMT scores in patients characterize by positive symptoms or patients characterize by negative symptoms were higher than those in healthy control group (P<0.01).BACS SC,HVLT-R WMS-Ⅲ,SS,NAB,BVMT-R,CF in patients characterize by positive symptoms or by negative symptoms were lower than those in healthy control group(P<0.01).There were no statistical difference in the MCCB scores between the patients with positive symptoms and negative symptoms.In positive group,there was a positive correlation between the IL-6 serum concentration and the general symptom scores in PANSS (P<0.05).In positive group,NT-3 serum concentration was positively correlated with the general symptom scores or total scores of PANSS (P<0.05).BVMT-R scores in MCCB were also positively correlated with IL-6 or NT-3 serum concentration in positive group (P<0.05).ConclusionThe impairment of part of cognitive functions for schizophrenic patients may be related to the serum protein factors.There may be different in pathophysiology between the first-episode schizophrenic patients characterized by positive symptoms and those characterized by negative symptoms.

OBJECTIVETo study the blood pressure (BP) changes in the liver transplant recipients.

METHODSA total of 206 patients without preoperation hypertension received liver transplantation in our hospital from February 2001 to July 2005. The BP level and serum immunosuppressant concentration at preoperation and various time points post operation were determined.

RESULTSCompared with the preoperation, the average systolic and diastolic pressure was significantly increased at the 2 week, 1, 2, 4 and 6 months post operation. The mobility of hypertension increased significantly after liver transplantation, with the highest mobility (46.49%) at the 1st month post operation. There was no linear correlation between the immunosuppressant (FK506) concentration and the BP level at any time point.

CONCLUSIONThere was a high hypertension incidence after liver transplantation. Although the use of immunosuppressive drugs accompanied with the BP increase, there was no linear correlation between the immunosuppressant concentration and the BP level post operation.

Blood Pressure ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Hypertension ; etiology ; Immunosuppressive Agents ; adverse effects ; Liver Transplantation ; adverse effects ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Postoperative Complications ; physiopathology ; Retrospective Studies

OBJECTIVETo study the impact of left varicocele (VC) and varicocelectomy (VCT) on the apoptosis of spermatogenic cells and the levels of nitrogen monoxidum (NO) and interleukin 1 (IL-1) in the rat testis.

METHODSWe randomly divided 60 adolescent male SD rats into four groups of equal number: sham operation control, VC model 1 (VC1), VC model 2 (VC2), and VCT. We determined the semen quality and levels of NO and IL-1 in the testis tissue, detected the apoptosis of spermatogenic cells by TUNEL, and compared the indexes obtained among different groups.

RESULTSAn experimental VC model was successfully established by partially ligating the left renal vein of the rats. Sperm concentration and motility were significantly decreased in the VC1 ([1.54 ± 1.16] x 10⁶/ml and [44.23 ± 15.46]%) as compared with those in the sham operation group ([2.80 ± 1.62] x 10⁶/ml and [72.34 ± 12.62]%) (P < 0.05), but remarkably higher in the VCT ([1.82 ± 1.34] x 10⁶/mI and [51.21 ± 12.62]%) than in the VC2 group ([1.04 ± 1.21] x 10⁶/ml and [39.23 ± 13.21]%) (P < 0.05). The levels of NO and IL-1 in the left testes were markedly elevated in the VC1 ([0.172 ± 0.030] ng/ml and [1.468 ± 0.080 ] mg/ml) in comparison with those in the sham operation group ([0.134 ± 0.021] ng/ml and [0.782 ± 0.079 ] mg/ml) (P < 0.05), and significantly higher in the VC2 ([0.198 ± 0.020] ng/ml and [1.994 ± 0.090] mg/ml) than in the VCT group ([0.141 ± 0.010] ng/ml and [0.781 ± 0.036] mg/ml) (P < 0.05). However, the NO and IL-1 levels in the right testis showed no statistically significant differences between the two groups, and the two levels were positively correlated (r = 0.492, P < 0.01). The rats of the VC1 group exhibited remarkable apoptosis of spermatogenic cells in the bilateral testes, with significant differences in the apoptosis index ( AL) between the two sides (P < 0.05) as well as in the same side in comparison with the sham operation group (P < 0.01). The Als of spermatogenic cells in the bilateral testes showed statistically significant differences in the VCT (P < 0.05) but not in the VC2 group (P > 0.05), and those in the same side manifested dramatic differences between the VCT and VC2 groups (P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONVaricocele induces changes of the NO and IL-1 levels in the testis tissue and increases the apoptosis of spermatogenic cells, which might be one of the causes of testis damage and spermatogenic dysfunction.

Animals ; Apoptosis ; Germ Cells ; pathology ; In Situ Nick-End Labeling ; Interleukin-1 ; analysis ; Ligation ; Male ; Nitrogen ; analysis ; Random Allocation ; Rats ; Semen Analysis ; Spermatogenesis ; Testis ; chemistry ; Varicocele ; complications ; surgery

OBJECTIVETo compare the effects and complications of subinguinal microscopic ligation, laparoscopic transperitoneal varicocelectomy, laparoscopic retroperitoneal varicocelectomy, open retroperitoneal high ligation, and interventional embolotherapy in the treatment of varicocele.

METHODSWe conducted a retrospective study that included 632 varicocele patients treated by subinguinal microscopic ligation (group A, n = 79), laparoscopic transperitoneal varicocelectomy (group B, n = 120), laparoscopic retroperitoneal varicocelectomy (group C, n =137), open retroperitoneal high ligation (group D, n = 283), and interventional embolotherapy (group E, n = 13). We compared the baseline and 3-month postoperative semen parameters, postoperative complications, and pregnancy rate among the five groups of patients.

RESULTSThe operation time was longer in groups A ([2.02 ± 1.25] h) and E ([2.17 ± 1.02] h) than in the other three groups, while the postoperative hospital stay was the shortest in group E ([1.1 ± 0.1] d). Intestinal injury or incision bleeding occurred intraoperatively in 2 cases in group B and 1 case in group E. Postoperative scrotal edema developed in 3.7, 17, 10, and 19% of the patients in groups A, B, C, and D, respectively, but not in group E. The rate of 1-year recurrence was the lowest in group A (1.6%) and highest in group E (22%). Sperm concentration and the percentages of progressively motile sperm and morphologically normal sperm were improved postoperatively in all the patients (P < 0. 05), but there were no statistically significant differences among the five groups either in the above three parameters or in the postoperative pregnancy rate (P > 0. 05).

CONCLUSIONIn the surgical treatment of varicocele, laparoscopic retroperitoneal approach involves short operation time and few complications, subinguinal microscopic ligation has the advantages of little injury, rapid recovery, and few complications but requires specialized microsurgical techniques, and interventional embolotherapy leaves no incision scar and needs only local anesthesia and 1-day postoperative hospital stay, which is uitable for those with a contraindication to anesthesia.

Embolization, Therapeutic ; adverse effects ; methods ; Female ; Humans ; Laparoscopy ; adverse effects ; methods ; Length of Stay ; Ligation ; adverse effects ; methods ; Male ; Operative Time ; Postoperative Complications ; Postoperative Hemorrhage ; Pregnancy ; Pregnancy Rate ; Recurrence ; Retroperitoneal Space ; Retrospective Studies ; Sperm Count ; Urogenital Surgical Procedures ; adverse effects ; Varicocele ; surgery ; Vascular Surgical Procedures ; adverse effects ; methods