BACKGROUND:The plateau environment affects the immune function and metabolic status of patients with osteomyelitis,leading to acceleration or complication of the disease process.The construction of effective and stable animal models of chronic osteomyelitis is essential for experimental studies of chronic osteomyelitis.OBJECTIVE:To establish a sheep model of chronic osteomyelitis in plateau regions for toxicity assessment and therapeutic research.METHODS:Fifteen healthy sheep were selected in this study.Sodium morrhuate and Staphylococcus aureus suspension were injected into the medullary cavity of the middle segment of the tibia to establish the chronic osteomyelitis model.General observation,body mass and temperature monitoring,blood infection index detection,radiological scoring,and microbial culture were performed for evaluation and analysis.RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:(1)Local tissue swelling and lameness of the affected leg were observed in all sheep in the early stage after modeling,accompanied by varying degrees of anorexia.A slight decrease in body mass was observed in sheep 1 week after modeling,while no significant changes in body temperature were observed.(2)The erythrocyte sedimentation rate significantly accelerated 4 days after modeling(P<0.05)and gradually returned to normal levels after 1 month.The white blood cell count showed a significant increase within 4 days after modeling and returned to normal after 1 week.The level of C-reactive protein increased significantly after modeling(P<0.05)and remained significantly higher than normal until the end of the experiment(P<0.05).(3)Fifteen sheep exhibited typical radiological manifestations of osteomyelitis,including unclear boundaries,irregular osteolytic lesions,and low-density bright absorption areas with interspersed necrotic bone fragments of increased and uneven density.Different degrees of periosteal reaction were observed in the cortex near the lesion.(4)Thirteen sheep were cultured for a single strain of Staphylococcus aureus,while two sheep were cultured for Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli.These findings indicate that a reliable chronic osteomyelitis animal model of sheep tibia can be successfully established in plateau regions by injecting an appropriate amount of Staphylococcus aureus suspension into the medullary cavity of sheep,combined with local implantation of foreign cotton thread and sodium morrhuate.

Objective:To investigate the correlation of intracranial arterial calcification (IAC) and its different subtypes with the severity of white matter hyperintensities (WMHs) in patients with cerebral small vessel disease (CSVD).Methods:Consecutive CSVD patients admitted to the Department of Neurology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University from March 2018 to March 2022 were enrolled. Baseline demographic, laboratory, and imaging data were collected. Based on a developed and validated IAC grading scale using head CT, IAC was classified into intimal and medial types, and further categorized as focal or diffuse based on the extent of involvement. The severity of WMHs on magnetic resonance imaging was assessed using the Fazekas Scale, with patients divided into those with moderate-to-severe (total score>2) and non-moderate-to-severe WMHs (total score≤2). Subgroups were stratified based on baseline characteristics (patients′ sex, age, hypertension history, stroke history, diabetes, coronary heart disease, hyperlipidemia, smoking, and alcohol consumption). Multivariate Logistic regression was used to analyze the correlation between IAC′s subtypes and the severity of WMHs, with forest plots illustrating the interaction between medial IAC and subgroup variables.Results:A total of 490 patients with CSVD who met the inclusion and exclusion criteria were ultimately included, with a age of (60.88±10.99) years, including 162 females (33.1%). Moderate-to-severe WMHs were present in 245 patients (50.0%). Among the 490 CSVD patients, 395 (80.6%) had IAC, including 335 (68.4%) with intimal IAC and 207 (42.2%) with medial IAC. Diffuse IAC was observed in 126 patients (25.7%), all of whom had medial IAC. Intracranial arterial stenosis was present in 271 patients (55.3%). Multivariate Logistic regression showed that IAC ( OR=2.073, 95% CI 1.142-3.761, P=0.016) was significantly associated with moderate-to-severe WMHs and medial IAC ( OR=3.230, 95% CI 1.800-5.797, P<0.001) and advanced age ( OR=1.046, 95% CI 1.019-1.074, P=0.001) were significantly associated with moderate-to-severe WMHs. Subgroup analysis revealed medial IAC had no significant interaction with patients′ gender, age, hypertension, diabetes, coronary heart disease, hyperlipidemia, alcohol or smoking consumption except for stroke history. Conclusion:In the CSVD patients, IAC, especially medial IAC, is significantly associated with the severity of WMHs.

Objective:To explore the correlation between the lesion imaging characteristics and the parent artery plaques detected by high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging (HR-MRI) in patients with recent small subcortical infarction (RSSI) in the lenticulostriate artery territory with mild stenosis of the parent artery.Methods:Consecutive patients with RSSI in the lenticulostriate artery territory admitted to Department of Neurology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University from January 2020 to December 2022 were prospectively enrolled. Patients with stenosis of <50% in the ipsilateral middle cerebral artery (MCA) who had completed HR-MRI were included. The RSSI lesion characteristics, such as the lowest slice involved (LS), total number of slices involved (TNS) were evaluated based on serialized axial levels of diffusion weighted imaging. HR-MRI was utilized to assess the presence of dorsal superior plaques in the M1 segment of the responsible MCA. Patients were divided into plaque group and non-plaque group based on the presence or absence of plaque. Logistic regression analysis was carried out to identify the lesion characteristics associated with the presence of dorsal superior plaques in the MCA. A receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was employed to estimate the predictive efficacy of these parameters for MCA plaques using the area under the curve (AUC) and the optimal cut-off point.Results:A total of 112 patients were incorporated into the final analysis. The age of these patients was (57.08±11.90) years, and 78 patients (69.64%) were male. Plaques were detected on the dorsal superior wall of the MCA in 57 cases (50.89%) as the plaque group, and the other 55 cases (49.11%) were regarded as the non-plaque group. Multivariate Logistic regression revealed that LS was significantly associated with MCA plaques ( OR=0.674, 95% CI 0.485-0.937, P=0.019). The optimal cut-off point (LS≤1) was determined by ROC curve analysis (AUC=0.640, P=0.007). Conclusion:The findings suggest that in RSSI patients with mild stenosis of the parent artery, an LS≤1 is notably associated with the presence of dorsal superior plaques on MCA as detected by HR-MRI.

BACKGROUND:The plateau environment affects the immune function and metabolic status of patients with osteomyelitis,leading to acceleration or complication of the disease process.The construction of effective and stable animal models of chronic osteomyelitis is essential for experimental studies of chronic osteomyelitis.OBJECTIVE:To establish a sheep model of chronic osteomyelitis in plateau regions for toxicity assessment and therapeutic research.METHODS:Fifteen healthy sheep were selected in this study.Sodium morrhuate and Staphylococcus aureus suspension were injected into the medullary cavity of the middle segment of the tibia to establish the chronic osteomyelitis model.General observation,body mass and temperature monitoring,blood infection index detection,radiological scoring,and microbial culture were performed for evaluation and analysis.RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:(1)Local tissue swelling and lameness of the affected leg were observed in all sheep in the early stage after modeling,accompanied by varying degrees of anorexia.A slight decrease in body mass was observed in sheep 1 week after modeling,while no significant changes in body temperature were observed.(2)The erythrocyte sedimentation rate significantly accelerated 4 days after modeling(P<0.05)and gradually returned to normal levels after 1 month.The white blood cell count showed a significant increase within 4 days after modeling and returned to normal after 1 week.The level of C-reactive protein increased significantly after modeling(P<0.05)and remained significantly higher than normal until the end of the experiment(P<0.05).(3)Fifteen sheep exhibited typical radiological manifestations of osteomyelitis,including unclear boundaries,irregular osteolytic lesions,and low-density bright absorption areas with interspersed necrotic bone fragments of increased and uneven density.Different degrees of periosteal reaction were observed in the cortex near the lesion.(4)Thirteen sheep were cultured for a single strain of Staphylococcus aureus,while two sheep were cultured for Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli.These findings indicate that a reliable chronic osteomyelitis animal model of sheep tibia can be successfully established in plateau regions by injecting an appropriate amount of Staphylococcus aureus suspension into the medullary cavity of sheep,combined with local implantation of foreign cotton thread and sodium morrhuate.

Objective:To investigate the correlation of intracranial arterial calcification (IAC) and its different subtypes with the severity of white matter hyperintensities (WMHs) in patients with cerebral small vessel disease (CSVD).Methods:Consecutive CSVD patients admitted to the Department of Neurology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University from March 2018 to March 2022 were enrolled. Baseline demographic, laboratory, and imaging data were collected. Based on a developed and validated IAC grading scale using head CT, IAC was classified into intimal and medial types, and further categorized as focal or diffuse based on the extent of involvement. The severity of WMHs on magnetic resonance imaging was assessed using the Fazekas Scale, with patients divided into those with moderate-to-severe (total score>2) and non-moderate-to-severe WMHs (total score≤2). Subgroups were stratified based on baseline characteristics (patients′ sex, age, hypertension history, stroke history, diabetes, coronary heart disease, hyperlipidemia, smoking, and alcohol consumption). Multivariate Logistic regression was used to analyze the correlation between IAC′s subtypes and the severity of WMHs, with forest plots illustrating the interaction between medial IAC and subgroup variables.Results:A total of 490 patients with CSVD who met the inclusion and exclusion criteria were ultimately included, with a age of (60.88±10.99) years, including 162 females (33.1%). Moderate-to-severe WMHs were present in 245 patients (50.0%). Among the 490 CSVD patients, 395 (80.6%) had IAC, including 335 (68.4%) with intimal IAC and 207 (42.2%) with medial IAC. Diffuse IAC was observed in 126 patients (25.7%), all of whom had medial IAC. Intracranial arterial stenosis was present in 271 patients (55.3%). Multivariate Logistic regression showed that IAC ( OR=2.073, 95% CI 1.142-3.761, P=0.016) was significantly associated with moderate-to-severe WMHs and medial IAC ( OR=3.230, 95% CI 1.800-5.797, P<0.001) and advanced age ( OR=1.046, 95% CI 1.019-1.074, P=0.001) were significantly associated with moderate-to-severe WMHs. Subgroup analysis revealed medial IAC had no significant interaction with patients′ gender, age, hypertension, diabetes, coronary heart disease, hyperlipidemia, alcohol or smoking consumption except for stroke history. Conclusion:In the CSVD patients, IAC, especially medial IAC, is significantly associated with the severity of WMHs.

Objective:To explore the correlation between the lesion imaging characteristics and the parent artery plaques detected by high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging (HR-MRI) in patients with recent small subcortical infarction (RSSI) in the lenticulostriate artery territory with mild stenosis of the parent artery.Methods:Consecutive patients with RSSI in the lenticulostriate artery territory admitted to Department of Neurology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University from January 2020 to December 2022 were prospectively enrolled. Patients with stenosis of <50% in the ipsilateral middle cerebral artery (MCA) who had completed HR-MRI were included. The RSSI lesion characteristics, such as the lowest slice involved (LS), total number of slices involved (TNS) were evaluated based on serialized axial levels of diffusion weighted imaging. HR-MRI was utilized to assess the presence of dorsal superior plaques in the M1 segment of the responsible MCA. Patients were divided into plaque group and non-plaque group based on the presence or absence of plaque. Logistic regression analysis was carried out to identify the lesion characteristics associated with the presence of dorsal superior plaques in the MCA. A receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was employed to estimate the predictive efficacy of these parameters for MCA plaques using the area under the curve (AUC) and the optimal cut-off point.Results:A total of 112 patients were incorporated into the final analysis. The age of these patients was (57.08±11.90) years, and 78 patients (69.64%) were male. Plaques were detected on the dorsal superior wall of the MCA in 57 cases (50.89%) as the plaque group, and the other 55 cases (49.11%) were regarded as the non-plaque group. Multivariate Logistic regression revealed that LS was significantly associated with MCA plaques ( OR=0.674, 95% CI 0.485-0.937, P=0.019). The optimal cut-off point (LS≤1) was determined by ROC curve analysis (AUC=0.640, P=0.007). Conclusion:The findings suggest that in RSSI patients with mild stenosis of the parent artery, an LS≤1 is notably associated with the presence of dorsal superior plaques on MCA as detected by HR-MRI.

Anterior cruciate ligament(ACL)injury is caused by strong violence,which can destabilize the knee joint,cause joint cartilage degeneration,meniscus injury,and in severe cases,develop osteoarthropathy.The gold standard for the treatment of ACLR injuries at this stage is arthroscopic anterior cruciate ligament recon-struction(ACLR).In clinical practice,the LARS(Ligament advanced reinforcement system)artificial ligament made of polyethylene terephthalate(PET)as the material has a good effect in the short and medium term,but the long-term biological healing between the graft and the host bone is poor,and the real"ligamentization"requirement of the postoperative graft cannot be met.Coating-modified modification of artificial ligaments can improve their hydrophilicity and biocompatibility,which in turn can promote the healing of graft-bone tunnels.Tendon bone healing is a bone-derived progressive process from indirect insertion to direct insertion,which takes a relatively long time and is closely related to the prognosis and early rehabilitation effect of patients.This article reviews the progress of superficial modification of artificial ligaments to promote ACLR tendon bone healing.

Objective:To summarize the incidence of cerebral venous reflux (CVR) in patients with recent small subcortical infarct (RSSI) and explore its correlation with enlarged perivascular spaces (EPVS).Methods:Patients with RSSI in the lenticulostriate artery admitted to the Department of Neurology of the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University from January 2019 to December 2022 were included. The baseline demographic data, medical history, and laboratory results of the patients were collected. CVR was assessed by time-of-flight magnetic resonance angiography. Patients were stratified into 2 groups based on the presence (CVR group) or absence of CVR (non-CVR group), and baseline characteristics as well as laboratory test results were compared between the 2 groups. The location and number of EPVS were evaluated using a visual grading scale, with EPVS with higher scores defined as high-grade EPVS (HEPVS). Simultaneous evaluation of cerebral white matter hyperintensities and lacunar infarctions was conducted, followed by intergroup comparisons. The relationship between EPVS and CVR was studied using multiple Logistic regression analysis.Results:A total of 571 patients with RSSI in the lentiform artery area were ultimately included, including 180 females (31.5%). Their age was (59.37±12.87) years. Among them, 73 patients (12.8%) exhibited CVR based on imaging findings, so the incidence of CVR was 12.8%. In comparison between the CVR group ( n=73) and the non-CVR group ( n=498), the proportion of females [21.9% (16/73) vs 32.9% (164/498), χ 2=3.578, P=0.059] was lower and the proportion of history of smoking [38.4% (28/73) vs 27.7% (138/498), χ 2=3.499, P=0.061] was higher in the CVR group, but without statistical significance. Additionally, the history of alcohol consumption [34.2% (25/73) vs 21.7% (108/498), χ 2=5.621, P=0.018] and the proportion of patients with concomitant HEPVS in the basal ganglia area [41.1% (30/73) vs 25.3% (126/498), χ 2=7.999, P=0.005] was higher in the CVR group with statistical significance. Multiple Logistic regression analysis showed that HEPVS in the basal ganglia region remained independently associated with CVR ( OR=1.988, 95% CI 1.190-3.320, P=0.009). Conclusion:EPVS in the basal ganglia region is significantly associated with CVR in the RSSI population, suggesting that venous dysfunction may be closely related to the formation of EPVS.

A 55-year-old female patient received Pushen capsules 4 capsules orally thrice daily due to elevated triglyceride in physical examination. Three days after taking the medicine, the patient developed fatigue, anorexia, nausea, and vomiting, and 20 days later, she developed yellowish skin with itching, dark yellow urine, and clay-like stool. Laboratory tests showed alanine aminotransferase (ALT) 1 274 U/L, aspartate aminotransferase (AST) 946 U/L, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) 283 U/L, γ-glutamyltransferase (GGT) 271 U/L, total bilirubin (TBil) 126 μmol/L, direct bilirubin (DBil) 116 μmol/L. After eliminating viral hepatitis, autoimmune liver disease, fatty liver, liver cirrhosis, etc., the patient was diagnosed as having drug-induced liver injury, which was considered to be related to Pushen capsules. Pushen capsules was stopped and the treatments for liver protection and enzyme reduction were given. After 28 days, the above symptoms in the patient were significantly improved. Laboratory tests showed ALT 31 U/L, AST 38 U/L, ALP 98 U/L, GGT 110 U/L, TBil 17 μmol/L, and DBil 11 μmol/L. After consulting the literature, it was considered that the liver injury in the patient was probably related to the raw Polygonum multiflorum in Pushen capsules.

A 55-year-old female patient received Pushen capsules 4 capsules orally thrice daily due to elevated triglyceride in physical examination. Three days after taking the medicine, the patient developed fatigue, anorexia, nausea, and vomiting, and 20 days later, she developed yellowish skin with itching, dark yellow urine, and clay-like stool. Laboratory tests showed alanine aminotransferase (ALT) 1 274 U/L, aspartate aminotransferase (AST) 946 U/L, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) 283 U/L, γ-glutamyltransferase (GGT) 271 U/L, total bilirubin (TBil) 126 μmol/L, direct bilirubin (DBil) 116 μmol/L. After eliminating viral hepatitis, autoimmune liver disease, fatty liver, liver cirrhosis, etc., the patient was diagnosed as having drug-induced liver injury, which was considered to be related to Pushen capsules. Pushen capsules was stopped and the treatments for liver protection and enzyme reduction were given. After 28 days, the above symptoms in the patient were significantly improved. Laboratory tests showed ALT 31 U/L, AST 38 U/L, ALP 98 U/L, GGT 110 U/L, TBil 17 μmol/L, and DBil 11 μmol/L. After consulting the literature, it was considered that the liver injury in the patient was probably related to the raw Polygonum multiflorum in Pushen capsules.