Objective To explore the impact of obstructive sleep apnea(OSA)on cognitive impairment in post-stroke patients,to explore its underlying mechanism and to evaluate potential diagnostic value by dynamically moni-toring the level of brain-derived neurotrophic factor(BDNF)and Tau protein in serum.Methods Totally 96 stroke patients admitted to Mianyang third People's Hospital from February 2022 to June 2024 were selected.They were divided into the groups complicated with OSA and control one without OSA following up of neuropsychological scales for 1 week,1 month,3 months,and 6 months after stroke for evaluating cognitive function.Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA)was applied to detect the level of BDNF and Tau protein in serum.The correlation of test results and the degree of cognitive impairment as well as their diagnostic value were analyzed.Results The AHI in the OSA group was significantly higher than that of control group,while LSaO2 and MSaO2 were significantly lower in the OSA group(P＜0.05).One week and 1,3,6 month months after the onset of the disease,the MMSE and MoCA scores in the OSA group were significantly lower than those in the control group,BDNF level was signifi-cantly lower while Tau protein level was significantly higher as compare to those in control group(P＜0.05).Pear-son correlation analysis showed that the serum BDNF level was positively correlated with both MMSE score(r=0.654,P＜0.001)and MoCA score(r=0.689,P＜0.001).However,the serum Tau protein level was nega-tively correlated with both MMSE score(r=-0.623,P＜0.001)and MoCA score(r=-0.667,P＜0.001).The ar-ea under the curve(AUC)of the combined detection of BDNF and Tau protein was greater than that of the individ-ual detection.The diagnostic value of the combined detection of BDNF and Tau protein for cognitive impairment in post-stroke patients was greater than that of the individual detection(P＜0.05).Conclusions OSA significantly exacerbates patients'cognitive impairment after stroke.Elevated serum BDNF level and decreased Tau protein level may be the underlying mechanisms of cognitive impairment.Serum BDNF and Tau protein may function as potential biomarkers for diagnosis of cognitive impairment after stroke.

With advancements in radiology,endoscopic techniques,surgical treatments,cell biology and molecular biology,the un-derstanding of temporomandibular disorders(TMD)has increased.The temporomandibular joint(TMJ)is a complex structure comprising both soft and hard tissues.Within the TMJ,the temporomandibular disc is a soft tissue structure that connects the mandible to the skull,providing cushioning and stability during joint movement.Different imaging techniques have their own advantages and limi-tations in the diagnosis and treatment of TMD.Therefore,using image registration technology to assess the condition and position of the articular disc provides new research perspectives for evaluating TMD,which may contribute to the diagnosis and treatment.This article reviews the latest advancements in TMJ imaging,explores the applications of various image registration techniques,particularly in the context of TMD diagnosis and treatment,and discusses future prospects.Combining the research results of some scholars at home and a-broad with the author’s clinical experience,the article aims to provide valuable insights for clinicians.

Objective:To investigate the effect of deviation from the isocenter point on the quality of CT images at the same radiation dose.Methods:A 160-layer CT scanner was used to scan the phantom at isocenter and deviations of 3, 6, 9, 12 and 15 cm. CT was performed with the following parameters: 120 kVp; 400 mAs; slice thickness, 1 mm; and slice increment, 1 mm. Images were reconstructed using the filtered back projection algorithm. Noise power spectrum (NPS), task transfer function (TTF) and detectability index (d′) were measured. NPS peak was used to quantify the noise magnitude and TTF 50% was used to quantify the spatial resolution. NPS, TTF and d′ were compared using one-way ANOVA. Results:The NPS average spatial frequency, spatial resolution and d′ values gradually decreased as the offset distance increased and the amount of noise increased. NPS peak at isocenter and deviations of 3 cm, 6 cm, 9 cm, 12 cm and 15 cm were (94.31±1.48), (104.25±1.46), (131.44±1.96), (171.86±1.91), (224.05±1.37), (286.51±2.09)HU 2·mm 2, respectively ( F=37 241.91, P<0.001). And d′ values of 2 mm low-contrast lesions were 3.51±0.06, 3.31±0.04, 3.01±0.04, 2.59±0.06, 2.21±0.03, 1.88±0.03, respectively. The reduction in spatial resolution was more pronounced for high contrast, and the d′ values decreased to a similar extent for various types of lesions. The noise was increased by about 82%, the high contrast spatial resolution was decreased by about 12%, and the d′ value was decreased by about 26% at 9 cm from the isocenter point (all P<0.05). The noise was increased by about 204%, the high contrast spatial resolution was decreased by about 27%, and the d′ value was decreased by about 45% at 15 cm from the isocenter (all P<0.05). Conclusion:The CT image quality was decreased with the increase of the offset distance from the CT isocenter point. The image quality was severely compromised at offset distances greater than 9 cm.

Objective:To explore the features of free uroflow(FF) curve patterns in female patients with detrusor underactivity(DU) and their clinical significance.Methods:Data of 275 adult female patients with lower urinary tract symptoms(LUTS) underwent urodynamic studies(UDS) at urology center of our hospital from June 2014 to June 2016 were analyzed retrospectively. The uroflow curve patterns of patients with DU were classified and analyzed in the context of parameters of FF, cystometry (CM), and pressure-flow study(PFS). The prevalence of each abnormal uroflow curve pattern in DU patients were calculated and compared with those in non-DU patients.Results:No bell-shaped curve was found in 141 patients with DU. The abnormal curve patterns can be divided into 5 types: Type Ⅰ (bell-shaped curve with saw tooth) in 20 cases (14.2%), Type Ⅱ (box-like curve) in 34 cases (24.1%), Type Ⅲ (triangle curve with decreasing slop) in 62 cases(43.9%), Type Ⅳ (triangle curve with increasing slop) in 4 cases (4.3%), Type Ⅴ (tide-wave curve)in 19 cases (13.5%). Maximum flow rate of free uroflow(Q max.FF) of type Ⅰ [(28.4±9.7) ml/s] was significantly greater than that of type Ⅱ, Ⅲ and Ⅴ[(17.0±4.1), (15.8±5.4) and (12.9±6.4) ml/s, P<0.05]. Flow time of free uroflow(FT.FF) of type Ⅲ and Ⅴ [(43.7±17.2) and (50.1±28.9)s] were significantly longer than that of type Ⅰ and Ⅱ [(18.5±7.3)s and (27.2±9.7)s, P<0.05]. Post voided residual > 50ml was noted in 19 cases (30.6%) of type Ⅲ, 7 cases (36.8%) of type Ⅴ, 1 case (2.9%) of type Ⅱ and no one in type Ⅰ and Ⅳ. Abnormal manifestations in cystometry mainly included bladder hypersensitivity, detrusor overactivity, and stress urinary incontinence. Detrusor pressure at Q max (Pdet.Q max) of type Ⅴ [(7.4±5.0) cmH 2O] was significantly lower than that of type Ⅰ, Ⅱ, Ⅲ [(11.8±6.7), (12.0±5.3), (12.1±5.0) cmH 2O, P<0.05]. Among 134 cases of non-DU, there were type Ⅰ curves in 88 cases (65.7%), type Ⅱ curves in 4 cases (2.9%), type Ⅲ curves in 15 cases (11.2%), type Ⅳ curves in 1 cases (0.7%), type Ⅴ curves in 7 cases (5.2%). And normal bell-shaped curves in 19 cases(14.2%). The prevalence of type Ⅱ, Ⅲ and Ⅴ in DU patients was significantly higher than that in the non DU patients ( P<0.05). Conclusions:This study reveals that the characteristics of reduced detrusor contractility and duration, prolonged bladder emptying or incomplete emptying can be reflected in the patterns of free uroflow curve in female patients with DU. The abnormalities of these free uroflow curve patterns, especially type Ⅱ, Ⅲ and Ⅴ will be helpful in preliminarily screening DU in females.

Objective:To compare the dose distribution among CyberKnife, Tomotherapy, Edge, Triology and γ-knife in stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) for pancreatic cancer.Methods:Clinical data of 10 panreatic cancer patients receiving CyberKinife treatment were retrospectively analyzed. The treatment plans were designed by five apparatuses from five centers according to the uniform requirement. All plans were transferred to MIM system for the extraction of parameters, which mainly included D min, D mean and D max of PTV, conformity index (CI), new conformity index (nCI), homogeneity index (HI), gradient index (GI), coverage, D max and dose-volume of the stomach and bowel. Results:The best CI and nCI were obtained in Triology ( P<0.001), and the worst HI was found in γ-knife ( P<0.001). The best GI was found in CyberKnife, followed by γ-knife and Tomotherapy, and Edge showed the worst GI ( P<0.001). The highest D min of PTV was found in both Edge and Triology, while lower D min of PTV was found in CyberKnife and Tomotherapy ( P<0.001). Additionally, γ-knife provided the highest D mean and D max of PTV ( P<0.001). Regarding the organs at risk, the lowest D max and D 5cm 3 of the bowel ( P<0.001), D max of the stomach ( P=0.003), D max( P=0.001), D 5cm 3 ( P<0.001) and D 10cm 3 ( P=0.005) of the duodenum, D max( P<0.001) and D 0.35cm 3 ( P<0.001) of the spinal cord were found in CyberKnife. The highest D max of the bowel was found in γ-knife. Furthermore, the highest D 5cm 3 of the duodenum was demonstrated in Edge ( P<0.001) and Tomotherapy provided the highest D max( P<0.001) and D 0.35cm 3 of the spinal cord ( P<0.001). Conclusions:All five radiotherapy apparatuses can meet the requirement of SBRT for pancreatic cancer. More rapid dose fall-off could be obtained via CyberKnife and γ-knife. Triology and Edge provide better target conformity. CyberKnife can better protect the gastrointestinal tract.

Background:As one of the most popular traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs) for the treatment of various liver diseases,virgate wormwood herb (Artemisia capillaris Thunb.) has a long application history in TCM practices.It has been well established that the chemical composition is responsible for the pronounced therapeutic spectrum of A.capillaris.Although they are comprehensive,the time-intensive liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) assays cannot fully satisfy the analytical measurement workload from many test samples.Direct infusion-MS/MS (DI-MS/MS) may be the optimal choice to achieve high-throughput analysis if the mass spectrometer can universally record MS2 spectra.Methods:According to the application of gas phase ion fractionation concept,the MS/MSALL program enables to gain MS2 spectrum for each nominal m/z value with a data-independent acquisition algorithm via segmenting the entire MS1 ion cohort into sequential ion pieces with 1 Da width,when sufficient measurement time is allowed by DI approach.Here,rapid clarification of the chemical composition was attempted for A.capillaris using DI-MS/MSALL.A.capillaris extract was imported directly into the elec-trospray ionization interface to obtain the MS/MSALL measurement.After the MS1-MS2 dataset was well organized,we focused on structural characterization through retrieving information from the available databases and literature.Results:Twenty-six compounds were found,including 12 caffeoyl quinic acid derivatives,7 flavonoids,and 7 compounds belonging to other chemical families.Among them,24 ones were structurally iden-tified.Compared with the LC-MS/MS technique,DI-MS/MSALL has the advantages of low-costing,solvent-saving,and time-saving.Conclusions:Chemical profiling of A.capillaris extract was accomplished within 5 min by DI-MS/MSALL,and this technique can be an alternative choice for chemical profile characterization of TCMs due to its extraordinary high-throughput advantage.

Objective To approach the spine MRI features and its possibility of etiology for refractory lower urinary tract symptoms(LUTS) in female patients.Methods We conducted prospectively a cross sectional description study of female patients with refractory LUTS during January 16 through March 27 in 2017 based on a urologist's outpatient work.The including criteria were adult female patients with refractory LUTS which defined as having LUTS more than three months and having poor response to behavior therapy and medication treatment.The excluding criteria were patients having evidence of infection,tumor,stone in urinary tract,any central nerve system diseases,or any other diseases may potentially producing LUTS.Data collected included patients demographic information,main complains,present disease features,disease history,physical examination,urine routine,urodynamic study and spine MRI.The characteristics of clinical manifestation,urodynamic study and spine MRI were analyzed.Results During the time span of study,totally 70 cases had been diagnosed as having refractory LUTS and had qualified data of clinical recordings,urodynamic study and spine MRI.Among these 70 cases,63 (90.9％) had storage phase symptoms,11 (15.7％) had voiding phase symptoms,8 (11.4％) had postmicturition symptoms,12 (17.1％) also had disorders in defecating,45 (64.3％) had pain in lower abdomen or pelvic region.69 cases (98.6％) had urodynamic disorders,33 (47.1％) had oversensitivity of bladder,12 (17.1％) had smaller bladder volume,16(22.9％) had detrusor overactivity,15 (21.4％) had bladder outlet obstruction,39(55.7％) had detrusor underactivity.69 cases(98.6％)had spine MRI abnormalities,54(77.1％) had sacral nerve lesions,49 (70.0％) had cervical lesions,48 (68.6％) had lumbar lesions,4 had thorathic lesions.Conclusions The present study revealed extraordinary high prevalence of abnormality in urodynamic parameters and spine MRI in female patients with refractory LUTS,which implies possibility that the refractory LUTS are caused by lesions in spinal nerve system.

Objective: To evaluate the impacts of the prognostic factors of T2N0M0 upper tract urothelial carcinoma (UTUC) for Chinese patients.Methods: A retrospective study was conducted including 235 patients who were diagnosed with T2N0M0 UTUC in our hospital and received radical nephroureterectomy (RNU) or partial ureterectomy during January 2000 and December 2013.The 3 and 5-year can-cer-specific survival rates and bladder recurrence-free survival rates of all the patients were valued using Kaplan-Meier method, and the survival curves with statistical significance between the two were compared using the Log-rank test.Variables with significant differences in the univariate analysis were subjected to the multivariate analysis by Cox regression model.Results: A total of 235 patients were included in this study, including 95 (40.4%) male patients and 140 (59.6%) female patients.The mean age was 66.73±10.49 years.The median follow-up time was 53 (rang: 3-142) months, and during the follow-up, 74 (31.5%) patients died of UTUC after a median of 35 months,and 96 (40.9%) patients developed intravesical recurrence after a median of 19.5 months.The 3 and 5-year cancer-specific survival rates of all the patients were 89.1% and 85.9%, respectively;the bladder recurrence-free survival rates were 85.5% and 80.2%, respectively.The independent prognostic factors of cancer-specific mortality were tumor age elder than 55 years (HR=3.138, 95%CI: 1.348-7.306, P=0.008) and diameter larger than 5 cm (HR=3.320, 95%CI: 1.882-5.857, P<0.001).The independent prognostic factors of bladder recurrence-free survival were ureter tumor (HR=1.757, 95%CI: 1.159-2.664, P=0.008) and lower tumor grade (HR=1.760, 95% CI: 1.151-2.692, P=0.009).Conclusion: T2N0M0 UTUC has a better cancer-specific survival.The intravesical recurrence was equivalent to non-muscle invasive UTUC but earlier.The tumor diameter larger than 5 cm and the patient age elder than 55 years were independently associated with cancer-specific mortality;the primary tumor located in ureter and lower tumor grade were more likely to develop intravesical recurrence.

Objective:To observe the role of lamividine and silymarin preventing and curing liver fibrosisrelevant factors induced by alcohol drinking in hepatitis B virus (HBV) transgenic mice (Tg mice).Methods:Forty HBV-Tg BALB/C mice with 1.3 copy were randomly divided into 4 groups:a control group,a model group,a lamivudine group and a silymarin group.Tg mice in control group were treated with normal saline via intragastric administration;Tg-mice in the model group were treated with 50％ alcohol (5 mL/kg) once a day via intragastric administration;while Tg-mice in lamivudine group and silymarin group were treated with alcohol (5 mL/kg) plus laminvudine (100 mg/kg) and silymarin (200 mg/kg) once a day via intragastric administration respectively.All groups were raised for 10 weeks.The levels of HBV-DNA copy number,ALT,AST in serum,the degree of inflammation,the degree of fibrosis,the mRNA expression levels of TGF-β 1,Smad3,Smad7 and connective tissue growth factor (CTGF),and the protein expression levels of TGF-β1,CTGF and α-SMA in liver tissue were detected.All the images were scanned with electronic computer and the data were analyzed with SPSS13.0 software.Results:Compared with the control group,liver injury were significantly aggravated,while HBVDNA copies,mRNA levels ofTGF-β1,Smad3,Smad7 and CTGF as well as the protein levels of TGF-β1,CTGF and α-SMA were significantly increased (P＜0.05).Compared with the model group,liver injury were significantly attenuated in silymarine group and lamivudine group,while mRNA levels of TGF-β 1,Smad3 and CTGF as well as the protein levels of TGF-β1,CTGF and α-SMA were significantly decreased;mRNA level of Smad7 was further increased (P＜0.05);the levels of ALT and AST in serum were decreased in the silymarine group (P＜0.05).Conclusion:Lamivudine and silymarin relieve the histological damage in the liver of alcohol-fed Tg mice.The mechanisms for the beneficial effects of lamivudine or silymarin might be related to inhibiting the expression of TGF-β 1,Smad3 and CTGF,modulating the expression of Smads and suppressing the activation of HSC.

Objective To evaluate the value of superb micro-vascular imaging(SMI) in the detection of TI-RADS 4 thyroid nodules . Methods A retrospective analysis of 61 patients( 68 thyroid nodules) with grade 4 TI-RADS diagnosed by routine ultrasound and undergone SMI were performed ,and the differences between CDFI and SMI were compared . The TI-RADS level were corrected by CDFI and SMI technology , combined with the pathological results to compare the diagnostic efficacy before and after the correction . At the same time ,the related factors had been collected to evaluate the risk factors and to compare the value of SMI in benign and malignant nodules . Results SMI was more likely to detect the type Ⅲ blood flow ( P =0 .001) of malignant nodules . The area under the ROC curve before TI-RADS correction ,after CDFI correction and SMI correction were 0 .66 ,0 .69 and 0 .78 ,respectively . Compared with before TI-RADS correction and after CDFI correction ,the area under the curve of SMI correction was significant different ( P=0 .002 ,0 .009) . There was no significant difference in the area under the curve between after CDFI correction and before correction ( P = 0 .4196 ) . The sensitivity of SMI was higher ,but there was no significant difference ( P >0 .05) . After single factor analysis and multivariate analysis ,central blood flow and perforating blood flow found by SMI were not independent risk factors for thyroid cancer . Conclusions SMI is more effective than CDFI in detecting TI-RADS 4 thyroid nodules ,and it is expected to be an auxiliary tool for the diagnosis of benign and malignant thyroid nodules .