Objective To summarize the clinical characteristics of 2 cases of styloid-carotid syndrome(SCS)and review the literature to enhance understanding of the disease.Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted on the clinical manifestations,auxiliary examinations,and diagnosis and treatment of 2 patients with SCS admitted to the Neurology Department of Kaifeng Central Hospital.Additionally,relevant literature was searched through domestic and foreign databases such as PubMed,WOS,Embase,CNKI and VIP.The clinical characteristics of SCS were summarized based on the literature results.Results The 2 cases were diagnosed as transient cerebral ischemia(TIA)combined with SCS through head and neck CT angiography(CTA)and styloid process CT.Apart from the 2 cases treated in our hospital,a total of 11 cases of SCS have been reported in Chinese and English literature up to October 2023.Among the 13 cases,11 cases(84.6%)started with episodic TIA symptoms,and 11 cases(84.6%)had obvious inducing factors related to specific head position changes.Common clinical manifestations included unilateral limb weakness with or without sensory disturbance(10 cases,76.9%),slurred speech(7 cases,53.8%),unilateral limb sensation disorder(4 cases,30.7%),syncope(3 cases,23.1%)and amaurosis(2 cases,15.4%).All 13 cases underwent 64-row head and neck CTA examination,and 6 cases(46.2%)dynamically observed the changes in blood flow velocity through examinations such as transcranial Doppler ultrasound(TCD),cervical vascular ultrasound,and digital subtraction angiography(DSA).All patients were followed up for more than 3 months;and 10 cases(76.9%)achieved clinical cure after treatment,of which 8 cases underwent styloid process shortening surgery;3 cases(23.1%)achieved clinical symptom improvement after treatment.Conclusions For patients with recurrent TIA and/or cerebral infarction,it is necessary to identify whether there are inducing factors related to specific body position changes.For patients highly suspected of SCS,routine examinations such as styloid process CT and 64-row head and neck CTA should be performed,and if necessary,whole brain DSA,dynamic TCD and/or carotid ultrasound should be conducted to guide the diagnosis and treatment.When non-surgical treatment is ineffective,radical styloid process truncation can be considered as a treatment option.

Objective: To analyze the incidence of preterm birth based on pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI) stratification and explore the associated factors of preterm birth among pregnant women at different BMI stratifications. Methods: From February 2018 to December 2020, pregnant women who participated in China Birth Cohort Study (CBCS) and gave birth at Beijing Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital were enrolled as the study subjects. Electronic Data Capture System and standard structured questionnaires were used to collect data related to pre-pregnancy, pregnancy, and delivery for pregnant women. Pregnant women were divided into the low-weight group, normal-weight group and overweight group based on their pre-pregnancy BMI. A Cox proportional hazards model was used to analyze the associated factors of preterm birth among pregnant women with different BMI before pregnancy. Results: A total of 27 195 singleton pregnant women were included, with a preterm birth rate of 5.08% (1 381/27 195). The preterm birth rates in the low-weight group, normal-weight group and overweight group were 4.29% (138/3 219), 4.63% (852/18 390) and 7.00% (391/5 586) respectively (P<0.001). After adjusting for relevant factors, the Cox proportional hazards model showed that the risk of preterm birth in the overweight group was 1.457 times higher than that in the normal-weight group (95%CI: 1.292-1.643). Preeclampsia-eclampsia (HR=2.701, 95%CI: 1.318-5.537) was the associated factor for preterm birth in the low-weight group. Advanced maternal age (HR=1.232, 95%CI: 1.054-1.441), history of preterm birth (HR=4.647, 95%CI: 3.314-6.515), vaginal bleeding in early pregnancy (HR=1.613, 95%CI: 1.380-1.884), and preeclampsia-eclampsia (HR=3.553, 95%CI: 2.866-4.404) were associated factors for preterm birth in the normal-weight group. Advanced maternal age (HR=1.473, 95%CI: 1.193-1.818), history of preterm birth (HR=3.209, 95%CI: 1.960-5.253), vaginal bleeding in early pregnancy (HR=1.636, 95%CI: 1.301-2.058), preeclampsia-eclampsia (HR=2.873, 95%CI:2.265-3.643), and pre-gestational diabetes mellitus (HR=1.867, 95%CI: 1.283-2.717) were associated factors for preterm birth in the overweight group. Conclusion: Pre-pregnancy overweight is an associated factor for preterm birth, and there are significant differences in the associated factors of preterm birth among pregnant women with different BMI before pregnancy.
Pregnancy ; Infant, Newborn ; Female ; Humans ; Body Mass Index ; Overweight/epidemiology* ; Premature Birth/epidemiology* ; Pre-Eclampsia/epidemiology* ; Cohort Studies ; Eclampsia ; Incidence ; Risk Factors ; Thinness/epidemiology*

Objective: To explore the association between coagulation function indicators and placental abruption (PA) in different trimesters of pregnancy among preeclampsia-eclampsia pregnant women. Methods: From February 2018 to December 2020, pregnant women who participated in the China birth cohort study and were diagnosed with preeclampsia, eclampsia and chronic hypertension with superimposed preeclampsia in Beijing Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital were enrolled in this study. The baseline and follow-up information were collected by questionnaire survey, and the coagulation function indicators in the first and third trimesters were obtained through medical records. The Cox proportional hazards model was used to analyze the association between the coagulation function indicators and PA. A restrictive cubic spline curve was used to draw the dose-response curve between the relevant coagulation function indicators and PA. Results: A total of 1 340 participants were included in this study. The age was (32.50±4.24) and the incidence of PA was 4.4% (59/1 340). After adjusting for relevant factors, Cox proportional hazards model showed that compared with the high-level classification of fibrinogen (FIB), participants within the middle-(HR=3.28, 95%CI: 1.27-8.48) and low-level (HR=3.84, 95%CI: 1.40-10.53) classification during the first trimester and within the low-level classification (HR=4.18, 95%CI: 1.68-10.39) during the third trimester were more likely to experience PA. Compared with the middle-level classification of pro-thrombin time (PT), the risk of PA in the participants within the low-level classification (HR=2.67, 95%CI: 1.48-4.82) was significantly higher in the third trimester. The restrictive cubic spline analysis showed a linear negative association between FIB and PA in the first and third trimesters, while PT and PA showed an approximately L-shaped association . Conclusion: Among pregnant women diagnosed with preeclampsia-eclampsia, the middle-and low-level classification of FIB in the first and third trimesters and the low-level classification of PT in the third trimester could increase the risk of PA.
Pregnancy ; Female ; Humans ; Pre-Eclampsia/diagnosis* ; Abruptio Placentae/epidemiology* ; Pregnant Women ; Eclampsia ; Cohort Studies ; Placenta

The biomechanical stability of Zero-Profile anterior cervical interbody fusion cage(Zero-P)was introduced when used for anterior cervical discectomy and fusion(ACDF),and the efficacy of Zero-P was reviewed for treating cervical dege-nerative diseases such as single-and two-segment,intersegmental and multisegmental spondylotic cervical spondylolisthesis.The advantages of Zero-P were described in reducing the incidence rates of postoperative dysphagia and adjacent segment degeneration,and the disadvantages and countermeasures were put forward.References were provided for enhancing the efficacy of Zero-P for treating cervical degenerative diseases.[Chinese Medical Equipment Journal,2023,44(9):103-109]

Objective To introduce an optimized practical method of making and detecting pipettes for microinjection.Methods Transfer pipette was made from hard glass capillary. We softened the hard glass capillary by rotating it in a spirit-lamp flame,then moved out from the flame and quickly pulled it into two transfer pipettes.After broken by a grinding wheel,the tip of the pipette was fire-polished by quickly touching the flame to make a fine opening.A hard glass capillary (1.0 mm,ouside diametre)was pulled into two holding pipettes by pipette Puller.The pipette shoulder was broken at desired position with a grinding wheel,then the fine pipette tip opening was heated by a microforge and shrinked into a diameter -15 μm.Injection pipette could be made directly from a capillary with filament by Puller.The solution loaded injection pipette and holding pipette were assembled into the micromanipulator and could be checked before use.We transfered both pipettes into the zygotes media drop,touched the holding pipette with the tip of the injection pipette to make a "suitable"opening.Then we switched injection pipette to the mineral oil and applied injection pressure through the injector to check whether the solution could come out of the tip smoothly and at a proper speed.It could be further verified by pronucleus microinjection of zygotes.Results The results showed that the method introduced in this paper could produce suitable pipettes for zygote microinjection.In particular,the method of detecting the opening of the injection pipette was helpful for achieving high efficiency of zygote microinjection.Conclusion The method introduced here to make and detect pipettes for microinjection is very helpful for establishing a standard microinjection manipulation procedure and improving the efficiency of zygote microinjection.

Objective To explore the clinical data,muscle pathological findings and recent follow-up results of 5 patients being diagnosed as having mitochondrial encephalopathy,lactic acidosis,and stroke-like episodes (MELAS).Methods A retrospective analysis was carried out on the clinical manifestations,sero-enzymology,electrophysiology,iconography and muscle biopsy pathology,and recent follow-up results of 5 patients with MELAS,who admitted to our hospital from December 2008 to June 2011.Results Headache as first symptom appeared in 3 patients,hemiparesis as first symptom in 1 patient and upper gastrointestinal bleeding in 1.The total body seizure in the course was noted in 4 patients and psychiatric symptoms in 2.The creatine kinase level was normal in 4 with one being mildly elevated.Four patients were observed no abnormal electromyography with one having myogenic lesions.Brain MRI showed significant abnormality in 5 patients,mainly presented as permanent cerebral infarction and cerebral atrophy.Five patients were found strongly SDH-reactive blood vessels (SSVs) in muscle tissue pathological staining and the SSVs of CCO (+).After mitochondrial protection treatment,follow-up for six months showed that 3 patients has been restored to normal work and mildly improvement was noted 2 patients.Conclusion The brain MR imaging of 5 patients with MELAS is significantly abnormal,and muscle biopsy pathology and tissue enzymatic staining are important methods in diagnosing the disease; generally,the disease is a benign course.

Objective To compare the complications in transoral CO2 and Nd: YAG laser surgery for the treatment of laryngeal carcinoma. Methods Retrospective analysis of 83 cases of glottic laryngeal carcinoma treated with laser surgery from January 1,1999 to December 31,2008 was carried out. Thirty-two cases were treated with the CO2 laser, including Tis(2 cases), T1N0M0 (21 cases), T2N0M0 (8 cases),and T3N0M0 (1 case). Fifty-one cases were treated with the Nd:YAG laser, including Tis (3 cases),T1N0M0 (36 cases), T1N2M0 (3 cases), and T2N0M0 (9 cases). Results Four complications ( 12.5% )occurred in the CO2 laser group. There was 1 local infection ( 3.1% ), 1 numbness of the tongue ( 3.1% ),1 odontoseisis (3. 1 % ), and 1 subcutaneous emphysema (3.1% ). Twenty-seven complications (52.9%)occurred in 19 patients in the Nd: YAG laser group. There were postoperative bleeding 2(3.9% ), dyspnea 5 ( 9. 8% ), local infection 7 ( 13.7% ), aspiration pneumonia 4 ( 7. 8% ), numbness of the tongue 2(3. 9% ), pharyngeal cutaneous fistula 1 (2.0%), vocal cord fixation 4 (7.8%), and laryngostenosis 2(3.9% ). Conclusion More complications were observed in the patients with Nd: YAG laser surgery when compared to the patients with CO2 laser surgery.

The primers and probes for the Real-time RT-PCR were designed based on the multiple sequence (swine and humans HEV strains) alignments of the ORF3 region of genotype 4 HEV. A rapid, sensitive and stable TaqMan Real-time RT-PCR assay was established, and its specificity and sensitivity were assessed, and comparison of the Real-time RT-PCR with conventional and nested RT-PCR was performed. The results found that the crossing points showed linearly proportional to the logarithm of the input copy number. The correlation coefficient (R2) and the slope value of the standard curves with plasmid DNA were 0.994 and -3.312, respectively. The efficiency (E) of the PCR was 100%. Coefficients of variation values of the different diluted plasmid DNA were low in the same or different repeated experimental group. In addition, the assay was able to correctly detect genotype 4 HEV RNA from swine fecal samples. The sensitivity of established assay was 100-fold higher than that of conventional RT-PCR and 10-fold higher than nested RT-PCR.
Animals ; DNA Primers ; genetics ; Disease Reservoirs ; virology ; Feces ; virology ; Fluorescence ; Genotype ; Hepatitis E ; virology ; Hepatitis E virus ; classification ; genetics ; isolation & purification ; Humans ; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction ; methods ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Swine ; virology

OBJECTIVETo investigate the incidence of hepatotoxicity in acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) patients on combined anti-retroviral therapy (cART) containing nevirapine (NVP) and to assess the risk factors and its impact on cART.

METHODS330 AIDS patients from March 2003 to June 2008 at local county were enrolled and a retrospective study using Kaplan-meier survival and Multivariate logistic regression modeling was conducted.

RESULTS267 out of 330 patients received NVP based cART and 63 cases received EFV-based cART. The deference of prevalences of hepatotoxicity between the two groups is statistically significant (Chi2 = 6.691, P = 0.01). 133 out of 267 (49.8%) patients on NVP based cART had at least one episode of ALT elevation during a median 21 months (interquartile ranges, IQR 6, 37) follow-up time, amounts for 28.5 cases per 100 person-years. Baseline ALT elevation (OR = 14.368, P = 0.017)and HCV co-infection (OR = 3.009, P = 0.000) were risk factors for cART related hepatotoxicity, while greatly increased CD4+ T(CD4) cell count was protective against hepatotoxicity development (OR = 0.996, P = 0.000). Patients co-infected with HCV received NVP-based cART had the higher probability of hepatotoxicity than those without HCV co-infection (Log rank: Chi2 = 16.764, P = 0.000). 23 out of the 133 subjects (17.3%) with NVP related hepatotoxicity discontinued cART temporarily or shifted NVP to efavirenz.

CONCLUSIONNVP related hepatotoxicity was common among ARV naive HIV infected subjects in our cohort. Baseline ALT elevation and HCV co-infection were associated statistically with the development of hepatotoxicity. Hepatotoxicity led to discontinuing cART temporarily or switching to other regimens in some subjects. It suggested that NVP should be used with caution in patients co-infected with HCV among whom anti-HCV therapy before cART initiation may contribute to minimizing the probability of NVP associated hepatotoxicity.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome ; drug therapy ; metabolism ; Adolescent ; Adult ; Anti-Retroviral Agents ; adverse effects ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Chemical and Drug Induced Liver Injury ; epidemiology ; virology ; Female ; Humans ; Incidence ; Liver ; drug effects ; metabolism ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Nevirapine ; adverse effects ; Retrospective Studies ; Risk Factors ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo investigate the seroprevalence of anti-HAV IgG in adults of 4 cities in China.

METHODSSerum samples were collected from 2390 local residents aged between 20 to 88 years from Beijing, Shanghai, Wuhan and Guangzhou. The anti-HAV IgG in sera was detected with a microparticle enzyme immunoassay (MEIA).

RESULTSThe anti-HAV IgG seroprevalence in female of 30 to 39 years in Beijing (64.58%, 62/96) was higher than that in male (45.57% 36/79)) (x(2) = 6.358, P = 0.012). It increased with age in adults of Beijing and Guangzhou. The rates were 54.22 % (90/166), 56.00% (98/175) and 67.18% (88/131) for the 20-, 30- and 40-49 age groups in Beijing (x(2) = 4.76, P = 0.03); and 52.83% (56/106), 52.50% (63/120), 82.46% (94/114), 89.80% (88/98) and 96.77% (60/62) for the 20-, 30-, 40-, 50- and 60-88 age groups in Guangzhou, respectively (x(2) = 72.58, P less than 0.01). This trend was not found in Shanghai and Wuhan (x2 = 0.96, 2.99; P = 0.33, 0.08 respectively). The seroprevalence rates of anti-HAV IgG in the 20 to 39 age group of Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Wuhan were 55.13% (188/341), 63.93% (429/671), 52.65% (119/226) and 78.37% (308/393), respectively.

CONCLUSIONThe seroprevalence rates of anti-HAV IgG in young adults aged 20 to 39 years of the four cities are relatively low, and HAV vaccination should be suggested for the susceptible population of this age group in China.

Adult ; Age Distribution ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; China ; epidemiology ; Female ; Hepatitis A ; epidemiology ; immunology ; prevention & control ; Hepatitis A Antibodies ; blood ; Hepatitis A Virus, Human ; immunology ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin G ; blood ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Seroepidemiologic Studies ; Sex Distribution ; Urban Population ; Young Adult