Objective:To investigate microstructural alterations in the optic chiasm and optic radiations of multiple sclerosis (MS) and neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOSD) based on diffusion kurtosis imaging (DKI).Methods:This study was a cross-sectional study. Retrospective analyses were conducted on the clinical and imaging data of 63 patients with relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS) and 62 patients with NMOSD diagnosed at First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University from January 2019 to December 2023. According to the occurrence of optic neuritis (ON), they were categorized into ON-positive MS (ON+MS) group (40 cases), ON-negative MS (ON-MS) group (23 cases), ON-positive NMOSD (ON+NMOSD) group (40 cases) and ON-negative NMOSD (ON-NMOSD) group (22 cases). In addition, 40 healthy controls were enrolled during the same period. DKI data of all subjects were collected, and DKI post-processing was performed to obtain fractional anisotropy (FA), mean kurtosis (MK), axial kurtosis (AK), and radial kurtosis (RK) values of the optic chiasm and bilateral optic radiations. The scores of the mini-mental state examination (MMSE), montreal cognitive assessment (MoCA), and expanded disability status scale (EDSS) were obtained. The Kruskal-Wallis test was used to analyze the differences in DKI parameters of the optic chiasm and bilateral optic radiation among the 5 groups, and the Holm-Bonferroni method was employed for multiple comparison correction in pairwise comparisons.Results:There were statistically significant overall differences in the DKI parameters of the optic chiasm and bilateral optic radiations among healthy control group, ON+MS group, ON-MS group, ON+NMOSD group, and ON-NMOSD group (all P0.05). The FA value of the optic chiasm in ON+NMOSD group was significantly lower than that of healthy control group and ON-MS group, as well as ON-NMOSD group ( P0.05). The FA value of the left optic radiation in ON+NMOSD group was lower than that in healthy control group and the ON-MS group. The RK value of the optic chiasm in ON+MS group was lower than that in the healthy control group and ON-NMOSD group ( P0.05). The MK and RK values of the left optic radiation in ON-MS group were significantly lower than those in the ON+NMOSD group and ON-NMOSD group ( P0.05). Conclusions:NMOSD and RRMS patients demonstrate varying degrees of microstructural damage in the optic chiasm and optic radiations. Differences of DKI parameters suggest different pathological mechanisms of visual pathway damage between NMOSD and MS, which may be helpful for early detection of occult visual pathway lesions.

Objective:To investigate microstructural alterations in the optic chiasm and optic radiations of multiple sclerosis (MS) and neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOSD) based on diffusion kurtosis imaging (DKI).Methods:This study was a cross-sectional study. Retrospective analyses were conducted on the clinical and imaging data of 63 patients with relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS) and 62 patients with NMOSD diagnosed at First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University from January 2019 to December 2023. According to the occurrence of optic neuritis (ON), they were categorized into ON-positive MS (ON+MS) group (40 cases), ON-negative MS (ON-MS) group (23 cases), ON-positive NMOSD (ON+NMOSD) group (40 cases) and ON-negative NMOSD (ON-NMOSD) group (22 cases). In addition, 40 healthy controls were enrolled during the same period. DKI data of all subjects were collected, and DKI post-processing was performed to obtain fractional anisotropy (FA), mean kurtosis (MK), axial kurtosis (AK), and radial kurtosis (RK) values of the optic chiasm and bilateral optic radiations. The scores of the mini-mental state examination (MMSE), montreal cognitive assessment (MoCA), and expanded disability status scale (EDSS) were obtained. The Kruskal-Wallis test was used to analyze the differences in DKI parameters of the optic chiasm and bilateral optic radiation among the 5 groups, and the Holm-Bonferroni method was employed for multiple comparison correction in pairwise comparisons.Results:There were statistically significant overall differences in the DKI parameters of the optic chiasm and bilateral optic radiations among healthy control group, ON+MS group, ON-MS group, ON+NMOSD group, and ON-NMOSD group (all P0.05). The FA value of the optic chiasm in ON+NMOSD group was significantly lower than that of healthy control group and ON-MS group, as well as ON-NMOSD group ( P0.05). The FA value of the left optic radiation in ON+NMOSD group was lower than that in healthy control group and the ON-MS group. The RK value of the optic chiasm in ON+MS group was lower than that in the healthy control group and ON-NMOSD group ( P0.05). The MK and RK values of the left optic radiation in ON-MS group were significantly lower than those in the ON+NMOSD group and ON-NMOSD group ( P0.05). Conclusions:NMOSD and RRMS patients demonstrate varying degrees of microstructural damage in the optic chiasm and optic radiations. Differences of DKI parameters suggest different pathological mechanisms of visual pathway damage between NMOSD and MS, which may be helpful for early detection of occult visual pathway lesions.

Background and objective The pathological types of lung ground glass nodules(GGNs)show great significance to the clinical treatment.This study was aimed to predict pathological types of GGNs based on computed tomog-raphy(CT)quantitative parameters.Methods 389 GGNs confirmed by postoperative pathology were selected,including 138 cases of precursor glandular lesions[atypical adenomatous hyperplasia(AAH)and adenocarcinoma in situ(AIS)],109 cases of microinvasive adenocarcinoma(MIA)and 142 cases of invasive adenocarcinoma(IAC).The morphological characteristics of nodules were evaluated subjectively by radiologist,as well as artificial intelligence(AI).Results In the subjective CT signs,the maximum diameter of nodule and the frequency of spiculation,lobulation and pleural traction increased from AAH+AIS,MIA to IAC.In the AI quantitative parameters,parameters related to size and CT value,proportion of solid component,energy and entropy increased from AAH+AIS,MIA to IAC.There was no significant difference between AI quantitative parameters and the subjective CT signs for distinguishing the pathological types of GGNs.Conclusion AI quantitative parameters were valu-able in distinguishing the pathological types of GGNs.

Objective:To explore the change in cerebral blood flow when healthy subjects swallow hot and ice water, and to verify the sensitivity of functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) in identifying liquid temperatures while swallowing as a basis for applying it in diagnosis and intervention.Methods:Sixteen healthy subjects swallowed hot and ice water in randomized order while the process was recorded using fNIRS. The activation at rest and when swallowing hot and ice water was compared pairwise.Results:Compared with the resting state, 19 channels were activated during the swallowing of the hot and ice water. The common activated areas were S1, M1, PMC, SMA, Wernicke′s area, the somatosensory association cortex, the visual association cortex and the frontal eye field. However, the dorsal lateral prefrontal cortex was activated only when swallowing hot water, and the subcentral area was activated only when swallowing ice water. The SMA and PMC were significantly more activated when swallowing hot water than ice water.Conclusions:Multiple brain regions are activated and participate in regulating swallowing. The PMC and SMA areas can distinguish hot water from ice water swallowing.

Objective:To analyze the epidemiological characteristics and genotypes of human rhinovirus (HRV) in patients with upper respiratory tract infection in Qingdao in the winter of 2020.Methods:Throat swab samples were collected from 101 patients with upper respiratory tract infection in Qingdao from November 2020 to January 2021. Quantitative PCR was used to detect 15 common respiratory viruses in the samples. HRV-positive samples were further analyzed with RT-PCR to amplify and sequence HRV VP4/VP2 gene. A phylogenetic tree was constructed based on the sequencing results and homology analysis was conducted.Results:Six common respiratory viruses were detected in the 101 patients. Thirty-four cases (34/101, 33.66%) were single pathogen infection and two cases were multiple infection (2/101, 1.98%). The positive rate of HRV was the highest (21.78%, 22/101). Twenty HRV VP4/VP2 sequences were successfully amplified. Phylogenetic analysis showed that there were 16 strains of HRV-A subtype and four strains of HRV-C subtype and 14 serotypes were involved.Conclusions:HRV was one of the leading viral pathogens causing upper respiratory tract infection in Qingdao in the winter of 2020 and the predominant subtype was HRV-A.

Objective:To explore the application of digital acoustic analysis in assessing the risk of aspiration among persons with dysphagia using the Praat speech analysis software.Methods:The swallowing of 46 stroke survivors with dysphagia was studied using video fluoroscopy. Each patient was required to pronounce " yi/i/" 3 times before and after taking each mouthful of food, and their voice samples were collected. The subjects were divided into a non-aspiration group of 16 and an aspiration group of 30 based on their penetration-aspiration scale scores. Fundamental frequency, relative average perturbation (RAP), jitter, shimmer, amplitude perturbation quotient and harmonic-to-noise ratio were compared between the two groups before and after taking food.Results:For the non-aspiration group, there was no significant difference in the acoustic data before and after eating. For the aspiration group there were significant differences in fundamental frequency, relative average perturbation and jitter before and after taking food. The average RAP and jitter of the non-aspiration group were significantly better than the aspiration group′s averages before eating. After eating, however, significant differences were observed only in average jitter.Conclusions:Analyzing perturbation and jitter can help to identify persons at risk of aspiration.

Objective:To explore the effect of the pharyngeal pressure feedback training on pharyngeal constriction in persons with swallowing disorders caused by brainstem lesions.Methods:Twenty patients with disordered swallowing caused by a brainstem lesion were randomly divided into a control group and an intervention group, each of 10. Both groups received routine swallowing training including oral sensorimotor training, neuromuscular stimulation and balloon catheter dilation, while the intervention group was additionally provided with two weeks of pharyngeal pressure feedback training. Before and after the treatment, both groups were evaluated in terms of the peak pressure of superior and inferior pharyngeal constriction, endoscopically and also using the functional oral intake scale.Results:There was no significant difference between the two groups in any measure before the intervention. Afterward, both groups had improved significantly by all of the measurements, but the average peak upper pharyngeal pressure, the average intake scale score and the endoscopy results of the intervention group were all significantly better than the control group′s averages.Conclusions:Pharyngeal pressure feedback training can significantly relieve swallowing disorders caused by brainstem lesions.

Objective: To explore the sensitivity and specificity of the Chinese version of the volume and viscosity swallowing test with modified safety and effectiveness indicators (VVST-CV) in assessing deglutition disorders. Methods: The solvent, volume, viscosity, and test index of the volume and viscosity swallowing test were modified before it was used to evaluate 89 patients with swallowing disorders. The positive rates of the safety indexes (coughing, voice changes and blood oxygen saturation decline at least 3%) and the efficiency indexes (poor lip closure, oral residue, pharynx residue and swallowing) were recorded and compared and compared with the positive rates of penetration, aspiration and food residue determined by means of according to the videofluoroscopic swallowing study, then the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value of the modified VVST-CV with regard to the safety and efficiency of swallowing were calculated. Results: The VVST-CV′s sensitivity in detecting dysphagia was 0.97. For impaired safety it was 0.85 and for impaired swallowing efficiency it was 0.95. The sensitivity of the coughing index was 0.65, that of sound change was 0.60 and that of oxygen saturation decrease was 0.42. The positive predictive values for coughing, sound change and oxygen saturation decrease were 0.98, 0.94 and 0.94, respectively. Conclusion The VVST-CV is simple, feasible and sensitive. It can be widely useful in the evaluation of dysphagia in clinical practice.

Objective To investigate the added value of CTAC for improving image quality and diagnostic efficiency of bone imaging in SPECT/CT.Methods Seventy-five patients (47 males,28 females,(56.6± 12.8) years) with abnormal uptake in planar whole-body bone scintigraphy underwent SPECT/CTfor differentiation of malignant from benign spinal lesions.NAC and CTAC SPECT images were classified based on 5-point scale (5:excellent,4:good,3:adequate,2:suboptimal,1:inadequate).The diagnostic confidence for both NAC and CTAC SPECT images were classified based on 4-point scale (4:definite,3:certain,2:equivocal,1:uninterpretable).The pathological results after surgery were used as gold standard to evaluate the added diagnostic value of CTAC for spinal lesions.Wilcoxon-signed rank sum test was used for data analysis.Results CTAC improved the image quality in 37.3％ (28/75) of patients,and downgraded in 2.7％ (2/75) of patients.The remaining 45 patients were unchanged (60.0％,45/75).SPECT with CTAC could significantly improve the image quality (z=-4.747,P＜0.001),but the overall diagnostic confidence was not increased (z=-1.000,P＞0.05).Conclusion CTAC can improve the image quality of spinal SPECT,especially useful in imaging with poorer quality,but it has no significant incremental value in diagnostic confidence.

Bile Ducts, Intrahepatic ; Dilatation, Pathologic ; Humans ; Synchrotrons