Objective To explore the efficiency improvement in segmenting neural network with the application of Transformer + U-Net artificial intelligence (AI) and modeling with the application of Python scripts in three-dimensional (3D) printing brachytherapy. Methods A Transformer + U-Net AI neural network model was constructed, and Adam optimizer was used to ensure rapid gradient descent. Computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging data of patients were standardized and processed as self-made data sets. The training set was used to train AI and the optimal result weight parameters were saved. The test set was used to evaluate the AI ability. Python programming language was used to write an automated script to obtain the output segmentation image and convert it to the STL file for import. The source applicator and needle could be automatically modeled. The time of automatic segmentation and modeling and the time of manual segmentation and modeling were entered by two people, and the difference was verified by paired t-test. Results Dice similarity coefficient (DSC), mean intersection over union (MIOU), and Hausdorff distance (HD95) were used for evaluation. DSC was 0.9341, MIOU was 0.8762, and mean HD95 was 2.516. The mean time of manual segmentation was 1187 s, and the mean time of AI segmentation was 145 s (P < 0.01). The mean time of manual modeling was 321 s, and the mean time of modeling with Python automated scripts was 18 s (P < 0.01). Conclusion The application of Transformer + U-Net automatic segmentation and Python automated scripts can effectively improve work efficiency in the 3D printing brachytherapy for cervical cancer.

Objective:To explore a staged repair procedure for whole foot skin degloving injury and evaluate the clinical outcome.Methods:From August 2020 to March 2023, a retrospective analysis was conducted on 20 patients, 12 males and 8 females, with who had whole foot skin avulsion injuries and were treated at the Department of Foot and Ankle Surgery, Ninth People's Hospital of Wuxi City. Nine injuries of foot skin avulsion were on the left feet and 11 on the right. All patients underwent a primary in situ replantation of the avulsed skin, and a stage-II surgery based on clinical manifestations and combined together with plantar pressure analysis in order to design a contralateral free medial plantar flap for reconstruction of the weight-bearing area of the affected foot. Eleven patients received the reconstructive surgery for forefoot weight-bearing area, and 9 had the reconstructive surgery for the heel weight-bearing area. The flap sizes ranged from 4 cm×4 cm to 13 cm×8 cm. All flap donor sites were closed with full-thickness skin grafts from ipsilateral thigh. Scheduled postoperative follow-ups at outpatient clinic were conducted to observe the flap survival, appearance and texture of the foot skin. American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society (AOFAS) ankle and hindfoot functional scores and the British Medical Research Council (BMRC) sensory function scale for flap sensation evaluation were used for assessment of the surgical outcomes, as well as the patient satisfaction. Pre- and postoperative plantar pressure analyses were performed to compare the weight-bearing area, load ratio and average plantar pressure. Statistical analysis was conducted using One-way ANOVA and Chi-square tests. P<0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results:The postoperative follow-up lasted for 10 to 24 months, with an average of 12.1 months. All 20 flaps survived. The flap swelling, appearance and wear resistance were good with AOFAS scores at 70 - 88 points. The sensation recovery reached S 2 to S 3. Patient satisfaction was excellent in 19 patients and good in 1 patient. The preoperative weight-bearing area was measured at 84 cm 2 to 140 cm 2, and 93 cm 2 to 145 cm 2 after surgery. The preoperative load ratio was 25% to 40%, and 30% to 43% after surgery. The preoperative plantar pressure was 185 grams/cm 2 to 356 grams/cm 2, and that was 205 grams/cm 2 to 381 grams/cm 2 after surgery. The postoperative weight bearing area, load ratio and mean plantar pressure of the patients were found all superior to those before surgery, with statistically significant differences ( P<0.05). Conclusion:In primary surgery, the avulsed skin is in situ replanted meanwhile have the original plantar skin preserved as much as possible. In the stage-II surgery, a contralateral medial free plantar flap is precisely designed to reconstruct the foot weight-bearing area, according to the healing of the in situ replanted skin and the wear resistance of the skin in weight-bearing area, and an analysis of plantar pressure should be performed. This is a reliable surgical procedure in the treatment of a degloving injury of whole foot.

Sacroiliac complex injuries are commonly seen in high-energy pelvic fractures. The injuries make a big difference in treatment patterns due to the diverse injury types, posing considerable challenges in formulating optimal treatment strategies, and hence are persistent clinical difficulties in orthopedic trauma. The clinical management of sacroiliac complex injuries presents several key challenges such as a non-negligible rate of missed diagnoses in associated vascular and visceral injuries, absence of standardized protocols for surgical approaches and reduction-fixation strategies across different injury patterns, and ongoing controversies regarding surgical indications and optimal timing for patients combined with concomitant lumbosacral plexus injuries. Currently, no systematic clinical guidelines are available for the diagnosis and treatment of sacroiliac complex injuries both domestically and internationally. To this end, the Pelvic and Acetabular Surgery Group, Orthopedic Branch, China International Exchange and Promotive Association for Medical and Health Care and Orthopedic Physician Branch, Chinese Medical Doctor Association organized a panel of domestic experts in the field to develop the Clinical guideline for the diagnosis and treatment of sacroiliac complex injuries ( version 2025), based on evidence-based medicine and adhering to the principles of scientific rigor, clinical applicability, and innovation. These guidelines provided 11 recommendations covering diagnosis, therapeutic principles and techniques, management protocols for lumbosacral plexus injuries, outcome evaluation, and postoperative rehabilitation pathways, etc., aiming to standardize the clinical management of sacroiliac complex injuries.

Sacroiliac complex injuries are commonly seen in high-energy pelvic fractures. The injuries make a big difference in treatment patterns due to the diverse injury types, posing considerable challenges in formulating optimal treatment strategies, and hence are persistent clinical difficulties in orthopedic trauma. The clinical management of sacroiliac complex injuries presents several key challenges such as a non-negligible rate of missed diagnoses in associated vascular and visceral injuries, absence of standardized protocols for surgical approaches and reduction-fixation strategies across different injury patterns, and ongoing controversies regarding surgical indications and optimal timing for patients combined with concomitant lumbosacral plexus injuries. Currently, no systematic clinical guidelines are available for the diagnosis and treatment of sacroiliac complex injuries both domestically and internationally. To this end, the Pelvic and Acetabular Surgery Group, Orthopedic Branch, China International Exchange and Promotive Association for Medical and Health Care and Orthopedic Physician Branch, Chinese Medical Doctor Association organized a panel of domestic experts in the field to develop the Clinical guideline for the diagnosis and treatment of sacroiliac complex injuries ( version 2025), based on evidence-based medicine and adhering to the principles of scientific rigor, clinical applicability, and innovation. These guidelines provided 11 recommendations covering diagnosis, therapeutic principles and techniques, management protocols for lumbosacral plexus injuries, outcome evaluation, and postoperative rehabilitation pathways, etc., aiming to standardize the clinical management of sacroiliac complex injuries.

Objective:To explore a staged repair procedure for whole foot skin degloving injury and evaluate the clinical outcome.Methods:From August 2020 to March 2023, a retrospective analysis was conducted on 20 patients, 12 males and 8 females, with who had whole foot skin avulsion injuries and were treated at the Department of Foot and Ankle Surgery, Ninth People's Hospital of Wuxi City. Nine injuries of foot skin avulsion were on the left feet and 11 on the right. All patients underwent a primary in situ replantation of the avulsed skin, and a stage-II surgery based on clinical manifestations and combined together with plantar pressure analysis in order to design a contralateral free medial plantar flap for reconstruction of the weight-bearing area of the affected foot. Eleven patients received the reconstructive surgery for forefoot weight-bearing area, and 9 had the reconstructive surgery for the heel weight-bearing area. The flap sizes ranged from 4 cm×4 cm to 13 cm×8 cm. All flap donor sites were closed with full-thickness skin grafts from ipsilateral thigh. Scheduled postoperative follow-ups at outpatient clinic were conducted to observe the flap survival, appearance and texture of the foot skin. American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society (AOFAS) ankle and hindfoot functional scores and the British Medical Research Council (BMRC) sensory function scale for flap sensation evaluation were used for assessment of the surgical outcomes, as well as the patient satisfaction. Pre- and postoperative plantar pressure analyses were performed to compare the weight-bearing area, load ratio and average plantar pressure. Statistical analysis was conducted using One-way ANOVA and Chi-square tests. P<0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results:The postoperative follow-up lasted for 10 to 24 months, with an average of 12.1 months. All 20 flaps survived. The flap swelling, appearance and wear resistance were good with AOFAS scores at 70 - 88 points. The sensation recovery reached S 2 to S 3. Patient satisfaction was excellent in 19 patients and good in 1 patient. The preoperative weight-bearing area was measured at 84 cm 2 to 140 cm 2, and 93 cm 2 to 145 cm 2 after surgery. The preoperative load ratio was 25% to 40%, and 30% to 43% after surgery. The preoperative plantar pressure was 185 grams/cm 2 to 356 grams/cm 2, and that was 205 grams/cm 2 to 381 grams/cm 2 after surgery. The postoperative weight bearing area, load ratio and mean plantar pressure of the patients were found all superior to those before surgery, with statistically significant differences ( P<0.05). Conclusion:In primary surgery, the avulsed skin is in situ replanted meanwhile have the original plantar skin preserved as much as possible. In the stage-II surgery, a contralateral medial free plantar flap is precisely designed to reconstruct the foot weight-bearing area, according to the healing of the in situ replanted skin and the wear resistance of the skin in weight-bearing area, and an analysis of plantar pressure should be performed. This is a reliable surgical procedure in the treatment of a degloving injury of whole foot.

Objective:To investigate the application of 3-D ultrasonography enabled by a wide band linear matrix array volume transducer in the localisation of perforating vessels of a free anterolateral thigh perforator flap (ALTPF) before surgery, and to guide microsurgeons in precise design and harvest of a ALTPF.Methods:From May 2020 to October 2022, a retrospective study was carried out on 35 patients who had soft tissue defects and undertaken free ALTPF surgery in Department of Foot and Ankle Surgery, Wuxi No.9 People's Hospital Affiliated to Soochow University. ALTPFs were transfered for reconstruction of soft tissue defects of foot in 25 patients and of ankle in 10 patients. The age of patients were 20 to 66 years old. The defects were 11.0 cm×8.0 cm-28.0 cm×9.0 cm in size. The sizes of ALTPFs were at 12.0 cm×9.0 cm-29.0 cm×10.0 cm. Before surgery, ultrasound scans with a wide band linear matrix array volume transducer were performed to locate the perforating vessels. The 3-D ultrasound images showing the perforating vessels of ALTPFs were acquired and the number, location and classification of the perforating vessels were saved. After the appropriate perforating vessels had been determined, ALTPFs were designed for precisely intraoperative incision. The accuracy of preoperative location of perforating vessels by the linear matrix array volume ultrasound transducer was investigated in surgery. All patients received the scheduled postoperative follow-up at outpatient clinics.Results:Of the 72 perforating vessels discovered in surgery, 70 matched with those being located by ultrasound before surgery. It was found that a total of 67 perforating vessels located before surgery by ultrasonography were consistently mapped with the perforators discovered in surgery. Of the 67 consistently mapped perforating vessels, 19 were Kimura type I, 27 of Kimura type II and 21 of Kimura type III perforators. The rate of sensitivity and positive prediction were 95.7% and 93.1%, respectively, in the preoperative localisation of perforating vessels of ALTPFs with a wide band linear matrix array volume ultrasound transducer. Twenty-five ALTPFs were harvested subfascially and 10 superfascially. Average size of ALTPFs was 17.7 cm × 8.6 cm. The perforating vessels revealed during the harvest of all ALTPFs were basically consistent with the preoperative 3-D ultrasound. All flaps survived after surgery without any incident. The postoperative follow-up lasted 8 to 20 months, with 12.7 months in average.Conclusion:The 3-D ultrasonography with a wide band linear matrix array volume ultrasound transducer can accurately locate the perforating vessels of ALTPF before surgery. This technique has many advantages in the design and harvest of super-thin ALTPFs.

Objective To investigate the etiology, symptoms, diagnosis, surgical treatment, and outcomes of acute necrotizing mediastinitis (ANM) in order to guide future diagnosis and treatment of ANM. Methods The clinical data of patients with ANM referred to West China Hospital, Sichuan University from March 2012 to April 2021 were retrospectively analyzed. The etiology, clinical manifestations, demographic characteristics, bacterial culture results, surgical approach and prognostic factors of these patients were summarized. Results A total of 176 patients were enrolled in this study. The median age was 60 ( 0-84) years. There were 124 (70.5%) males and 52 (29.5%) females. The most common origin of infection was neck (n=66, 37.5%). The most common symptom was fever (n=85, 48.3%). Streptococcus constellatus represented the most common pathogens in secretion culture. Surgical treatment was administered to 119 (67.6%) patients through different approaches, including 54 (30.7%) patients of cervical approach, 9 (5.1%) patients of thoracotomy, 18 (10.2%) patients of video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS), 7 (4.0%) patients of cervical combined with thoracotomy, 30 (17.0%) patients of cervical combined with VATS, and 1 (0.6%) patient of subxiphoid approach. Among this cohort, 144 (81.8%) patients were cured, while 32 (18.1%) patients died. Age-adjusted Charlson comorbidity index (OR=2.95, P=0.022), perioperative sepsis (OR=2.84, P=0.024), and non-surgical treatment (OR=2.41, P=0.043) were identified as independent predictors of poor outcomes. Conclusion For patients with corresponding history and manifestations of ANM, it is crucial to go through imaging examination to confirm the presence of an abscess and guide the selection of surgical approach. Once the diagnosis of ANM is made, it is imperative to promptly perform surgical intervention for effective drainage. Our study highlights the significance of age-adjusted Charlson comorbidity index, perioperative sepsis and surgical treatment in predicting patients’ outcomes.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the clinical application of high-frequency color Doppler ultrasound (HFCDU) in detecting perforators in the deep adipose layers for harvesting super-thin anterolateral thigh flap (ALTF). METHODS: Between August 2019 and January 2023, 45 patients (46 sides) with skin and soft tissue defects in the foot and ankle were treated, including 29 males and 16 females, aged from 22 to 62 years, with an average of 46.7 years. The body mass index ranged from 19.6 to 36.2 kg/m ², with an average of 23.62 kg/m ². The causes of injury included traffic accident injury in 15 cases, heavy object crush injury in 20 cases, mechanical injury in 8 cases, heat crush injury in 1 case, and chronic infection in 1 case. There were 20 cases on the left side, 24 cases on the right side, and 1 case on both sides. After thorough debridement, the wound size ranged from 5 cm×4 cm to 17 cm×11 cm. All patients underwent free super-thin ALTF transplantation repair. HFCDU was used to detect the location of the perforators piercing the deep and superficial fascia, as well as the direction and branches of the perforators within the deep adipose layers before operation. According to the preoperative HFCDU findings, the dimensions of the super-thin ALTF ranged from 6 cm×4 cm to 18 cm×12 cm. The donor sites of the flaps were directly sutured. RESULTS: A total of 55 perforators were detected by HFCDU before operation, but 1 was not found during operation. During operation, a total of 56 perforators were found, and 2 perforators were not detected by HFCDU. The positive predictive value of HFCDU for identifying perforator vessels was 98.2%, and the sensitivity was 96.4%. Among the 54 perforators accurately located by HFCDU, the orientation of the perforators in the deep adipose layers was confirmed during operation. There were 21 perforators (38.9%) traveled laterally and inferiorly, 12 (22.2%) traveled medially and inferiorly, 14 (25.9%) traveled laterally and superiorly, 5 (9.3%) traveled medially and superiorly, and 2 (3.7%) ran almost vertically to the body surface. Among the 54 perforators accurately located by HFCDU, 35 were identified as type 1 perforators and 12 as type 2 perforators (HFCDU misidentified 7 type 2 perforators as type 1 perforators). The sensitivity of HFCDU in identifying type 1 perforators was 100%, with a positive predictive value of 83.3%. For type 2 perforators, the sensitivity was 63.2%, and the positive predictive value was 100%. The surgeries were successfully completed. The super-thin ALTF had a thickness ranging from 2 to 6 mm, with an average of 3.56 mm. All super-thin ALTF survived, however, 1 flap experienced a venous crisis at 1 day after operation, but it survived after emergency exploration and re-anastomosis of the veins; 1 flap developed venous crisis at 3 days after operation but survived after bleeding with several small incisions; 3 flaps had necrosis at the distal edge of the epidermis, which healed after undergoing dressing changes. All 45 patients were followed up 6-18 months (mean, 13.6 months). Three flaps required secondary defatting procedures, while the rest had the appropriate thickness, and the overall appearance was satisfactory. CONCLUSION Preoperative application of HFCDU to detect the perforator in the deep adipose layers can improve the success and safety of the procedure by facilitating the harvest of super-thin ALTF.
Male ; Female ; Humans ; Thigh/surgery* ; Plastic Surgery Procedures ; Prospective Studies ; Skin Transplantation ; Free Tissue Flaps ; Burns ; Soft Tissue Injuries/surgery* ; Ultrasonography, Doppler, Color ; Crush Injuries/surgery* ; Perforator Flap ; Treatment Outcome

Erythropoietic protoporphyria （EPP） is a rare inherited metabolic disease that often involves skin， blood， and nervous systems， and EPP with the main manifestations of severe liver damage and acute abdominal pain is extremely rare. By reviewing the clinical data and genetic testing results of a patient with EPP， this article discusses the clinical features and pathogenic genes of this disease， in order to improve the understanding of the disease among hepatologists and achieve early diagnosis and treatment.

Visceral leishmaniasis is a zoonotic parasitic disease caused by viscerotropic Leishmania species and transmitted by bites of infected phlebotomine sandflies, which is predominantly prevalent in the Indian subcontinent, eastern Africa and South America. Currently, visceral leishmaniasis is the second most fatal parasitic disease in the world. Because of climate changes, urban development and individual conditions, there are changes in the density of visceral leishmaniasis vector sandflies and the likelihood of contact with humans, resulting in a visceral leishmaniasis transmission risk. The review summarizes natural, social and biological factors affecting the transmission of visceral leishmaniasis, so as to provide insights into formulation of targeted control measures for visceral leishmaniasis.