Bone defect repair is an urgent problem in the field of orthopedics,and numerous researchers are working to develop more effective treatment plans.The accurate evaluation of bone repair after surgery is a crucial step.In line with the development of computed tomography(CT)imaging,dual-energy CT imaging has shown significant advantages in analyzing bone composition and reducing metal artifacts.This article reviews the application of dual-energy CT imaging for the evaluation of bone repair in animals.

Bone defect repair is an urgent problem in the field of orthopedics,and numerous researchers are working to develop more effective treatment plans.The accurate evaluation of bone repair after surgery is a crucial step.In line with the development of computed tomography(CT)imaging,dual-energy CT imaging has shown significant advantages in analyzing bone composition and reducing metal artifacts.This article reviews the application of dual-energy CT imaging for the evaluation of bone repair in animals.

Objective To investigate the effect of moderate treadmill exercise together with modified hydroxyapatite chitosan composite hydrogel (CS/HA-g-CS) implantation on repair of full-thickness defects of articular cartilage in rats.Methods Full-thickness cartilage defects were drilled in the patellar groove of bilateral femoral condyles in a total of 24 male SD rats before they were randomly assigned into 4 groups.The control group (BC group) was subjected to no exercise or CS/HA-g-CS implantation;the chitosan group (CHI group) to CS/HA-g-CS implantation without exercise;the moderate treadmill exercise group (MIR group) to exercise 4 weeks after modeling without CS/HA-g-CS implantation;the CHI + MIR group to moderate treadmill exercise plus CS/HA-g-CS implantation 4 weeks after modeling.Half of the animals were sacrificed at week 8 and half at week 16 after operation.Femoral condyles were harvested for gross observation and histochemical measurement by O' Driscoll scoring system.mRNA expressions of glycosaminoglycan,collagen type Ⅱ and BMP-2 were detected by RT-PCR.Results Gross observation revealed:at 8 weeks after modeling,the CHI + MIR group was significantly better than the other 3 groups,with the BC group in the poorest (P ＜ 0.05);at 16 weeks after modeling,the BC group was significantly poorer than the other 3 groups (P ＜0.05) among which there were no significant differences (P ＞ 0.05).O 'Driscoll scoring revealed:at both 8 and 16 weeks after modeling,the CHI + MIR group was significantly better than the other 2 groups and the BC group significantly poorer than the other 3 groups (P ＜ 0.05) but there was no significant difference between the MIR and CHI + MIR groups(P ＞ 0.05).The expressions of collagen type Ⅱ,glycosaminoglycan and BMP-2 were significantly higher in the CHI + MIR group than in the other 3 groups (P ＜ 0.05) and significantly lower in the BC group than in the other 3 groups (P ＜ 0.05).Conclusions Moderate treadmill exercise together with CS/HA-g-CS implantation has significant positive effects on repair of full-thickness defects of articular cartilage in rats than merely moderate treadmill exercise or CS/HA-g-CS implantation alone.The defective cartilage repaired by moderate treadmill exercise together with CS/HA-g-CS implantation contains more collagen type Ⅱ and glycosaminoglycan and shows morphology of nearly normal cartilage.

Objective: To observe the therapeutic effect of electroacupuncture on Jiaozheng (Extra) plus hydro-acupuncture in treating facial paralysis, and to explore a better acupuncture therapy for treating facial paralysis. Methods: One hundred and nineteen cases with peripheral facial paralysis were randomly allocated into an observation group (60 cases) and a control group (59 cases) by the visiting sequence. The cases in the observation group were treated with electroacupuncture on Jiaozheng (Extra) plus hydro-acupuncture, and the cases in the control group were treated with normal acupuncture. The treatment was conducted once a day and 7 times as a course, with 1-2 d interval. Evaluation were done after 6 courses. Results: Comparing the cure and marked efficacy rate, observation group was much better than control group, and there was statistical difference (P<0.05); after 14-day treatment, the cure and marked efficacy rate of the observation group and the control group was 78.3% and 49.2%, respectively; after 21-day treatment, the cure and marked efficacy rate of the observation group and the control group was 88.3% and 67.8%, respectively. There was significant difference between the two groups (P<0.01). Conclusion: The therapeutic effect of electroacupuncture mainly on Jiaozheng (Extra) plus hydro-acupuncture in treating facial paralysis was better and with shorter courses.