Objective:To study the clinical characteristics of congenital esophageal atresia (CEA) and risk factors of mortality associated with esophageal repair (ER) surgery.Methods:From January 2010 to December 2022, patients diagnosed of CEA using chest and abdomen X-ray and esophagography in our hospital were retrospectively reviewed. The patients were assigned into ER group and non-ER group according to the treatments. The ER group was subgrouped into survival group and death group according to the prognosis. Clinical data and outcomes were collected and compared between the groups.Results:A total of 553 cases were enrolled. According to Gross classification, 29 patients (5.2%) were type A, 2 patients (0.4%) were type B, 504 patients (91.1%) were type C, 6 patients (1.1%) were type D and 11 patients (2.0%) were type E. One patient had simple transluminal septal atresia of the esophagus. 406 patients were in ER group and 147 in non-ER group. Compared with ER group, non-ER group had significantly higher incidences of preterm birth, low birth weight and overall malformations (all P<0.05). In ER group, 152 patients (37.4%) received open thoracic surgery (OTS), 243 (59.9%) had video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) and 11 (2.7%) were VATS converted to OTS. Postoperative anastomotic leakage (PAL) occurred in 92 patients (22.7%) and 15 patients (3.7%) died after surgery. The median length of hospital stay was 23 (17, 36) d. Compared with the survival group, the death group had higher incidences of preterm birth, low birth weight, VATS converted to OTS, mechanical ventilation after ER, and shorter length of hospital stay (all P<0.05). After adjusted for birth weight, VATS converted to OTS ( OR=9.585, 95% CI 1.899-48.374) and mechanical ventilation after ER ( OR=7.821, 95% CI 1.002-61.057) were risk factors of mortality in ER patients. Conclusions:Non-ER patients have higher incidences of preterm birth, low birth weight and overall malformations than ER patients. VATS is the method of choice for CEA. Preterm birth, low birth weight, VATS converted to OTS and mechanical ventilation after ER are risk factors of mortality in ER patients.

Objective To explore the correlation of nerve function and prognosis with serum uric acid(UA),homocysteine(Hcy)and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol(LDL-C)in patients with acute cerebral infarction(ACI)after alteplase intravenous thrombolysis.Methods A total of 220 ACI patients undergoing thrombolysis in Changsha First Hospital ICU between January 2020 and December 2022 were enrolled,and according to mRS score at 3 months after thrombolysis,they were divided into poor prognosis group(mRS score＞2,91 cases)and good prognosis group(mRS score ≤2,129 cases).The serum levels of UA,Hcy and LDL-C were compared between the two groups.The correlation between the three indexes and score of National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale(NIHSS),and their predictive value for poor prognosis were analyzed.Results At 1 and 3 d after thrombolysis,the serum levels of UA,Hcy and LDL-C and NIHSS score were sig-nificantly decreased in both groups,and the serum levels of UA and Hcy and NIHSS score at 3 d after thrombolysis were significantly lower than those at 1 d(P＜0.05).The poor prognosis group had obviously higher serum levels of UA,Hcy and LDL-C and NIHSS score at 1 and 3 d after thrombolysis than the good prognosis group(P＜0.05,P＜0.01).Pearson correlation analysis showed that the serum levels of UA,Hcy and LDL-C were positively correlated with NIHSS score at 1 and 3 d after thrombolysis(P＜0.01).ROC curve analysis indicated that the AUC values of UA,Hcy and LDL-C at 1 d after thrombolysis for predicting poor prognosis were 0.707(95％CI:0.639-0.776),0.800(95％CI:0.739-0.860)and 0.624(95％CI:0.550-0.698),respectively,while the values of them at 3 d after thrombolysis were 0.655(95％CI:0.583-0.726),0.730(95％CI:0.664-0.795)and 0.573(95％CI:0.497-0.649),respectively.Conclusion In ACI patients after thrombolysis,the serum levels of UA,Hcy and LDL-C are increased in those with poor prognosis,and are associated with the severity of nerve injury.The levels at 1 d after throm-bolysis have good predictive value for poor prognosis.

Objective:To observe the effects of bilateral thoracic paravertebral block (TPVB) on left ventricular myocardial work using pressure-strain loop(PSL) in patients before off-pump coronary artery bypass graft(OPCABG).Methods:A total of 24 patients with coronary heart disease undergoing selective OPCABG were recruited in the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University from May to August 2021. All patients underwent ultrasound-guided TPVB preoperatively. Left ventricular global work, including global longitudinal strain(GLS), global work index(GWI), global constructive work(GCW), global waste work(GWW), global work efficiency(GWE), and regional work, including myocardial work index(MWI), myocardial work efficiency(MWE) were observed before TPVB and 20 minutes after TPVB.Results:The parameters of heart rate and left ventricular outflow tract blood flow were decreased [(69.13±10.72)bpm vs (65.46±9.66)bpm, P=0.010; (13.86±2.83)ml vs (12.72±2.60)ml, P=0.017]. The MWI in regional segments of hypokinesis and akinesis were significantly improved [hypokinesis: (1 175.76±206.64)mmHg% vs (1 349.38±462.35)mmHg%, P=0.004; akinesis: (684.94±251.39)mmHg% vs (965.35±384.33)mmHg%, P=0.001] and the MWE in regional segments of hypokinesis and akinesis were improved [hypokinesis: (87.79±7.46)% vs (90.35±6.39)%, P=0.029; akinesis: (70.24±18.03)% vs (80.15±16.65)%, P=0.021]. There were no significant changes in MWI, MWE, LVEF, GLS, GWI, GCW, GWW and GWE(all P>0.05). Conclusions:Based on PSL, the changes of left ventricular work in patients with OPCABG before and after TPVB show that TPVB can improve the blood supply of the ischemic myocardium, which provides a reliable basis for optimizing the perioperative anesthesia management.

Objective:To investigate the value of ultrasound combined with thyroglobulin (Tg) in preoperative N staging of thyroid carcinoma.Methods:The clinical data of 1 138 patients with thyroid carcinoma in the Cancer Hospital of the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Zhejiang Cancer Hospital) from August 2018 to October 2020, who confirmed by surgery and pathology were analyzed retrospectively. The 1 138 cases were divided into pN0, pN1a, and pN1b stages. Kappa consistency test was used to analyze the consistency of ultrasound evaluation of N staging and pathological N staging. Pathology result was taken as the gold standard to analyze the correlation between some preoperative serum markers and lymph node metastasis. The ROC curve was used to compare the diagnostic value of ultrasound, Tg, and ultrasound combined with Tg for lymph node metastasis.Results:The preoperative ultrasound assessment of N staging was moderately consistent with pathology(Kappa=0.459, P<0.01). Between pN0 and pN1(pN1a+ pN1b) stages, the differences in free triiodothyronine (fT3), anti-thyroid peroxidase antibody (TPOAb) and Tg were statistically significant (all P<0.05). Among the different indicators, only Tg had significant effect on lymph node metastasis ( P<0.01) .The area under the ROC curve (AUC) of Tg in predicting lymph node metastasis of thyroid cancer was 0.679, while the best cut-off value for Tg was 25.245 μg/L. The AUC of only ultrasound and ultrasound combined with Tg were 0.699 and 0.775, respectively. Therefore, combined diagnosis method was better than ultrasound only. Conclusions:Preoperative ultrasound and thyroglobulin has a specific value in evaluating the N staging of thyroid carcinoma. The combination of the two is more valuable in the diagnosis of lymph node metastasis than ultrasound only.

Objective:To analyze the long-term prognosis and prognostic factors of allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis(ABPA) in children suffering from cystic fibrosis (CF).Methods:An observational study was performed.All children who were admitted to the Department of Respiratory, Beijing Children′s Hospital, Capital Medical University from August 2014 to June 2018, with more than 2 years of followed up for the diagnosis of CF accompanied by ABPA were involved.Results:Three children met the inclusion criteria, with 2 boys and 1 girl, and their diagnostic age were 14, 8 and 9 years old, respectively.The follow-up duration ranged from 2 to 6 years.All the 3 cases were treated with systemic corticosteroids and antifungal agent.In case 1, the initial dose of prednisone was 0.75 mg/(kg·d), and the course of treatment was more than 5 years.The corticosteroid-dependent patient suffered from expectoration and chest pain, and radiographic findings indicated exacerbation, while his lung function was normal.Treating with initial dose of prednisone 2 mg/(kg·d) for 9 months, case 2 had normal serum immunoglobulin E(IgE) concentration, but his pulmonary artery was infiltrated by lesions, thus leasing to lobectomy.In case 3, the initial dose of prednisone was 0.6 mg/(kg·d), and the course of treatment was 18 months.And she developed persistent hypoxemia, and decreased pulmonary function, so lung transplantation was necessary 2 years after diagnosis.Conclusions:Systemic glucocorticoid combined with antifungal therapy is the main treatment for CF with ABPA, but there are individual differences in the efficacy.The level of serum total IgE is not always consistent with lung function and chest images.The overall prognosis is poor, and it is infeasible to evaluate the prognosis by single factor.

Objective: To investigate the manufacturing procedures of personalized miniscrew-assisted rapid palatal expanders (pMARPE) using digital technologies and to evaluate the effect of the expanders when expanding the midpalatal suture of an adult. Methods: Digital technologies were used to make pMARPE, which was used to treat a 21-year-old woman with maxillary transverse deficiency (MTD). The relevant literature on MARPE was reviewed. Results: PMARPE could be manufactured using intraoral digital scanning, computer-aided design and computer-aided manufacturing(CAD/CAM ), and 3D printing technologies. After expansion, the width of the anterior midpalatal suture, posterior midpalatal suture and maxillary skeletal width increased by 3.9 mm, 3.2 mm and 4.7 mm, respectively. There was no significant change in the inclination of maxillary first molars, and the height of alveolar ridge decreased slightly. It could be seen that using digital technologies to manufacture personalized expanders was possible for MARPE , and the initial stability of miniscrews played an important role in the expansion success rate, the increase of molar inclination is composed of many parts, and the decrease of alveolar ridge height may be overestimated due to the measurement method, as shown by a literature review. Conclusion The midpalatal suture of an adult patient with MTD could be expanded by pMARPE. However, the effect of this expander on the inclination of the first molar and alveolar bone height needs to be further studied with a larger sample size.

Objective: To investigate the effect of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) combined with donepezil on the cognition of persons with post-stroke cognitive impairment (PSCI) and their ability to perform activities of daily living (ADL). Methods: A total of 106 PSCI patients were randomly divided into an observation group and a control group using a random number table. Those in the observation group received 10Hz rTMS (5 seconds on and 25 seconds off for 20 minutes daily) and donepezil daily, 5 days per week for 4 weeks, while those in the control group were provided with donepezil but only sham rTMS on the same schedule. Before and after 4 weeks of treatment, the Montreal cognitive assessment scale (MoCA), the Rivermead behavior memory test (RBMT) and the modified Barthel index (MBI) were used to evaluate the subjects′ cognitive functioning, memory capacity and ADL ability. The latency and amplitude of auditory event-related potential P300 were also assessed using a myoelectric evoked potential apparatus. Results: After the treatment, improvement was observed in all the measurements of both groups. After the treatment, the average MoCA, RBMT and MBI scores, as well as the latency and amplitude of P300 in the observation group were all significantly better than among the control group. Conclusions rTMS can supplement donepezil′s ability to improve the cognition and ADL ability of persons with PSCI. Such therapy is worthy of clinical promotion and application.

Objective:To evaluate the left ventricular myocardial work parameters of the animal models with left bundle branch block (LBBB) and evaluate the effects of LBBB on left ventricular function and motion pattern by pressure-strain loops (PSL) of speckle tracking imaging (STI).Methods:In Twenty-four healthy male beagles, LBBB was induced by radio frequency ablation under anesthesia, and blood pressure was measured at the same time. Electrocardiograms and echocardiography images were acquired before (baseline), 30 minutes after (acute-LBBB) and 3 months after(chronic-LBBB) the creation of LBBB respectively. STI was applied to measure the left ventricular global longitudinal strain (GLS) and obtain the the PSL of each time point to evaluate the left ventricular global and segmental myocardial work parameters.Results:Compared to the baseline, the global work efficiencies(GWE) were obviously reduced ( P<0.05) and global wasted works(GWW) were significantly increased ( P<0.01) in the acute-LBBB and chronic-LBBB, significant differences were observed in GLS between acute-LBBB and baseline( P=0.04). In baseline, the work efficiency (WEsept) and the constructive work (CWsept) in the basal and middle segments of the septal wall were both obviously higher than the corresponding segments of left ventricular lateral wall( P<0.01), while the distribution of the wasted work(WWsept) was opposite( P<0.01). In acute-LBBB, the WEsept of all segments were significantly decreased ( P<0.05), the WWsept were obviously increased( P<0.05), the CWsept of basal segment was significantly reduced( P=0.01), while the wasted work in the basal segment of lateral wall(WWlat) was increased( P=0.04) compared with the baseline. Compared with the acute-LBBB, the WEsept of basal and middle segments were mildly recovery( P=0.03) in chronic-LBBB, but were still lower than the baseline ( P=0.001), the changes of the other myocardial work parameters of septal and lateral wall were similar to the acute-LBBB. Conclusions:Both acute-LBBB and chronic-LBBB can lead to the changes of left ventricular global and segmental myocardial work parameters. The myocardial work parameters of left ventricle can quantitatively analyze the changes of left ventricular function and motion pattern of the LBBB.

Objective: To assess the diagnostic performance of contrast-enhanced spectral mammography (CESM) in suspected breast lesions. Methods: A total of 97 patients with suspected breast cancer identified by clinical examination or screening underwent two-views CESM examination on the basis of digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT) combined with full-field digital mammography (FFDM), and they were finally confirmed by biopsy or pathology. Three senior radiologists analyzed images, including lesion visibility, lesion characteristics, enhancement type, degree of enhancement, BIRDS classification, etc. Finally, based on the pathology, we compared the CESM+DBT+FFDM and DBT+FFDM two models according to sensitivity, specificity and ROC for diagnostic performance. Results: There were a total of 120 lesions. Eighty-nine lesions were malignant, 31 benign; CESM was not enhanced in 2 cases, mild enhancement was performed in 22 cases, moderately intensive in 15 cases, highly intensive in 81 cases, and 2 cases were not enhanced; mass-enhanced in 96 cases, including ring-enhanced in 12 cases, 22 cases of non-mass type. The sensitivities of the combination of CESM and not combination of CESM were 91.0% and 80.9%, respectively, and the specificities were 93.5% and 87.1%, respectively. The area under the ROC curve of combination of CESM was higher than the without combination of CESM (0.923 and 0.900, P<0.05), The difference was statistically significant. Conclusion For suspicious lesions, CESM examination can improve the diagnosis accuracy of breast cancer.

The widespread application of next generation sequencing (NGS) in clinical settings has enabled testing, diagnosis, treatment and prevention of genetic diseases. However, many issues have arisen in the meanwhile. One of the most pressing issues is the lack of standards for reporting genetic test results across different service providers. The First Forum on Standards and Specifications for Clinical Genetic Testing was held to address the issue in Shenzhen, China, on October 28, 2017. Participants, including geneticists, clinicians, and representatives of genetic testing service providers, discussed problems of clinical genetic testing services across in China and shared opinions on principles, challenges, and standards for reporting clinical genetic test results. Here we summarize expert opinions presented at the seminar and report the consensus, which will serve as a basis for the development of standards and guidelines for reporting of clinical genetic testing results, in order to promote the standardization and regulation of genetic testing services in China.