Objective:To quantitatively measure the spatial relationship between the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) and surface landmarks such as the tragus and lateral canthus using cone-beam CT (CBCT), as to provide guidance for accurate positioning of CBCT scanning of the TMJ.Methods:DICOM format data from 112 patients (35 males and 77 females with 224 TMJs) were included in this study. The patients were between 12 and 66 years old, with a mean age of (25.6± 9.8) years and they underwent initial visits at the Department of Stomatology, General Hospital of Chinese PLA. CBCT images were imported into Mimics Medical 21.0 software for three-dimensional reconstruction. The distance between selected surface landmarks and corresponding projection points on the same side of the TMJ were measured in both the sagittal and coronal planes. In the frontal view, the distance from the lateral canthus to the perpendicular line passing through the center of the condyle (d x). In the lateral view, the vertical distance from the horizontal line through the rear edge convex of tragus to the roof of glenoid fossa (d y1); the vertical distance from the horizontal line through the rear edge convex of tragus to sigmoid notch (d y2); the distance from the tragus to the perpendicular line through the center of the condyle (d z). The results were compared between different genders and age groups (adolescent group aged 12 to 18 years, 33 cases; adult group aged>18 years, 79 cases). To verify the reliability and stability of the body surface landmarks obtained in this study, a comparison was made between the use of scout view positioning and the auxiliary positioning method that utilizes body surface landmarks to capture the mandibular condyle in a small field of view CBCT of the TMJ (scout view group, 25 cases; surface landmark-assisted positioning group, with 25 cases aged 12-18 years and 25 cases older than 18 years, totaling 50 cases), with regard to the deviation distance from the central point of the field of view to the central point of the mandibular condyle. Results:A total of 112 patients with 224 TMJs were included in this study. In the frontal view, d x was (8.59±3.13) mm, with no significant difference between the left and right sides, between males and females ( P>0.05). Notably, the d x in the adolescent group [(7.43±3.02) mm] was significantly smaller than that in the adult group [(9.07±3.06) mm] ( t=-3.68, P<0.001). In the lateral view, d y1 was (14.80±3.90) mm, showing no significant difference between the left and right sides, males and females, or different age groups( P>0.05). Similarly, d y2 was (6.82±3.95) mm, with no significant differences between the left and right sides or between males and females( P>0.05). However, the d y2 in the adolescent group [(5.88±4.13) mm] was significantly smaller than that in the adult group [(7.22±3.83) mm] ( t=-2.33, P=0.021). Regarding d z, the measurement was (11.73±3.16) mm, with no significant difference between the left and right sides, between males and females ( P>0.05). Meanwhile, the d z in the adolescent group[(10.92± 2.74) mm] was also significantly smaller than that in the adult group [(12.07±3.27) mm] ( t=-2.52, P=0.012). The verification results showed that both positioning methods could fully display the TMJ. The eccentricity in the scout view group [(8.84±3.79) mm ]was slightly greater than that in the body surface landmark-assisted positioning group[ (6.50±2.88) mm], and the difference between the two groups was statistically significant ( t=4.20, P=0.032). Conclusions:The TMJ can be accurately positioned using stable surface landmarks such as the tragus and lateral canthus for reference.

Objective:To assess the efficacy, safety, and related prognostic factors associated with the P-GemDOx regimen as a first-line treatment for patients with early-stage extranodal natural killer (NK) /T cell lymphoma (ENKTL) .Methods:A retrospective analysis was performed on sixty early-stage ENKTL patients treated with the P-GemDOx regimen who were admitted to the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University between August 2015 and May 2021. The Chi-square test or Fisher's exact test was used to compare group differences, and the Log-rank test was used to compare the differences in survival. Survival outcomes and prognostic factors were examined.Results:After completing 4 to 6 cycles of P-GemDOx chemotherapy, the overall response rate (ORR) was 88.3%, with forty-six patients (76.7% ) achieving complete response (CR). The 4-year progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) rates were (66.3±7.1) % and (79.5±6.0) %, respectively. According to the PINK/PINK-E model, there was no significant difference in survival outcomes among risk groups. 23.3% of patients experienced progression of disease within 24 months (POD<24). OS estimates differed significantly ( P<0.001) between the POD<24 group ( n=14) and the POD≥24 group ( n=46). Analysis showed that SUVmax > 12.8 at diagnosis, non-single nasal cavity infiltration, and response less than CR after 4–6 cycles all had a significant association with POD24. We used these data as the basis for predicting POD<24 international prognostic index (POD24-IPI). Patients were stratified into low-risk (no risk factors), intermediate-risk (one risk factor), or high risk (two or three risk factors). These groups were associated with 4-year OS rate of 100%, (85.6±9.7) %, and (65.0±10.2) %, respectively ( P=0.014). The P-GemDOx regimen was well tolerated, with hematological toxicity being the main side effect. Conclusion:This study demonstrated that the P-GemDOx regimen is effective and safe in the first-line treatment of early-stage ENKTL, and POD24-IPI is a promising prognostic model.

Objective:To investigate the efficacy and safety of orelabrutinib combined with R-CHOP in the treatment of MCD subtype diffuse large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL) .Methods:Twenty-three MCD subtype patients whose gene-subtype classification was based on baseline tumor tissue and/or baseline plasma using the LymphGen algorithm from June 2022 to June 2023 in the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University were retrospectively enrolled in the analysis. All patients were treated with R-CHOP or R-miniCHOP in Course 1, OR-CHOP or OR-miniCHOP (21 days for one course) in Courses 2-6, and R-monotherapy in Courses 7-8.Results:Of the 23 patients, the median age was 58 years (range: 30-81 years), and 11 (47.8% ) aged >60 years. Fifteen cases (65.2% ) had international prognostic index (IPI) scores of 3 to 5. The top 10 mutated genes in the gDNA tissues were PIM1 (78.3% ), MYD88 (69.6% ), ETV6 (43.5% ), BTG1 (39.1% ), CD79B (43.5% ), HIST1H1E (39.1% ), BTG2 (34.8% ), KMT2D (30.4% ), CD58 (26.1% ), and CDKN2B (21.7% ). The consistency rate of the tissue and plasma mutations was 80%, while the baseline plasma ctDNA burden was closely correlated with the LDH levels and IPI scores ( P<0.05). All patients received 5 courses of OR-CHOP regimens. The mid-term (after 3 courses) evaluation showed that the overall response rate (ORR) was 100% (23/23), with 22 patients (95.65% ) achieving complete remission (CR), and 1 patient (4.35% ) achieving partial remission (PR). The ORR after the end of treatment (EOT) was 95.65% (22/23). Moreover, 21 patients (91.30% ) obtained CR, 1 patient (4.35% ) obtained PR, and 1 patient (4.35% ) obtained progression disease (PD). Of the 21 patients who had the dynamic EOT-ctDNA burden, only four patients (19.0% ) did not achieve EOT-ctDNA clearance, while the other 17 patients (81.0% ) achieved EOT-ctDNA clearance. The median follow-up time was 20.8 (15.3-30.0) months, while the median progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) were not reached. The 2-year PFS rate was 71.8% (95% CI 54.7% -94.2% ), while the 2-year OS rate was 91.3% (95% CI 80.5% -100.0% ). Furthermore, the OR-CHOP regimen was generally well tolerated during clinical use, with hematological toxicity being the main adverse effect. Conclusion:This study revealed that the OR-CHOP regimen can be used as an effective and safe first-line treatment for MCD subtype DLBCL.

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the correlation between the mutational status of immunoglobulin heavy chain variable (IGHV) gene with the prognosis of patients with Waldenström macroglobulinemia (WM). METHODS: Immunoglobulin heavy chain gene (IGH) clonotypic sequence analysis was carried out to assess the mutational status of IGHV in the blood and/or bone marrow samples from 44 WM patients. The usage characteristics of IGHV-IGHD-IGHJ gene was explored. RESULTS: The most common IGHV subgroup was IGHV3, which was similar to the data from the Institute of Hematology of Chinese Academy of Medical Science. IGHV3-23 (20.45% vs. 15.44%) and IGHV3-74 (11.36% vs. 7.35%) were the main fragments used, which was followed by IGHV4 gene family (15.91% vs. 24.26%). However, no significant correlation was found between the IGHV4 usage and the prognosis of the patients. Should 98% be taken as the cut-off value for the IGHV mutation status, only 5 patients had no IGHV variant, and there was no correlation with the prognosis. Based on the X-tile analysis, 92.6% was re-selected as the cut-off value for the IGHV variant status in such patients. LDH was increased in 26 patients (59.1%) without IGHV variant (P < 0.05), whilst progression-free survival (P < 0.05) and overall survival (P < 0.05) were significantly shorter compared with those with IGHV variants. CONCLUSION The usage characteristics of IGHV-IGHD-IGHJ in our patients was similar to reported by the Institute of Hematology of Chinese Academy of Medical Science, albeit that no correlation was found between the IGHV4 usage and the prognosis of the patients. Furthermore, 98% may not be appropriate for distinguishing the IGHV variant status in WM patients.
Humans ; Immunoglobulin Heavy Chains/genetics* ; Multigene Family ; Mutation ; Waldenstrom Macroglobulinemia/genetics*

Humans ; Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation ; Transplantation, Autologous ; Lymphoma, Non-Hodgkin/drug therapy* ; Aminopyridines/therapeutic use* ; Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols

Objective:To investigate the clinical symptoms and cone-beam CT (CBCT) imaging characteristics of temporomandibular joint osteoarthritis (TMJOA) with chewing side preference (CSP).Methods:One hundred patients with TMJOA diagnosed in the Department of Stomatology, General Hospital of the Chinese PLA from January 2018 to December 2020 were enrolled, including 32 males and 68 females, with an median age of 27.5 years (16-71 years). According to the habit of CSP, 100 cases were divided into 71 cases of TMJOA with CSP group and 29 cases of TMJOA without CSP group. The clinical symptoms were observed, including pain, TMJ sounds, limited mouth opening as well as the radiograph imaging changes of condylar bone. When analyzing the radiograph imaging changes of condylar, the cases with bilateral TMJ symptoms were excluded and the remaining cases were divided into symptomatic sides and asymptomatic sides with CSP or without CSP according to the symptoms of the chief complaint. SPSS 25.0 was used to analyze the statistical data. Age data did not conform to normal distribution so that median and quartile spacing were used for description, and Mann-Whitney U test was used for nonparametric test. Qualitative data such as gender, clinical symptoms and condylar lesion types were described by composition ratio and chi-square test was performed. Results:There was no statistical significance in age and gender of TMJOA patients in the group with or without CSP ( P>0.05). The incidence of pain in CSP group [83.1% (59/71)] was marginally higher than that in non-CSP group [65.5% (19/29)] but without statistical difference (χ2 =3.71, P=0.054). There was also no significant difference in TMJ sounds and limitation of mandibular movement between the two groups (χ2 =0.11, P=0.742; χ2 =0.48, P=0.489). Among all of joints, the most common types of TMJOA were articular flattening and shortening and erosion. CBCT showed that erosion [65.0% (130/200)], flattening and shortening [73.0% (146/200)], subcortical sclerosis [42.0% (84/200)], osteophyte [30.5% (61/200)] and subcortical cystic [15.5% (31/200)]. According to the different groups of chief complaint sides, intra-group comparisons show that the proportion of erosion in symptomatic sides of CSP group [80.0% (40/50)] was significantly higher than that in asymptomatic sides of CSP group [50.0% (25/50)] (χ2=9.89, P=0.002). Inter-group comparisons show that the proportion of condyle flattening and shortening in symptomatic sides of CSP group [84.0% (42/50)] was significantly higher than that in bilateral joint of non-CSP group (8/15) (χ2=8.81, P=0.032). There was no significant difference in the proportion of subcortical sclerosis, osteophyte and subcortical cystic between the group with or without CSP ( P>0.05). Conclusions:TMJOA patients with CSP may be more prone to clinical symptoms of pain and CBCT imaging changes of condyle erosion as well as flattening and shortening. CSP may be a promoting factor for the development of TMJOA.

Objective:To observe and compare the radiographs of spiral CT and cone-beam CT (CBCT) in the imaging of temporomandibular joint osteoarthrosis (TMJOA) and to explore the difference between CBCT and spiral CT in detection accuracy so as to provide references for clinical diagnosis and treatment.Methods:A total of 52 patients with TMJOA diagnosed in the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, General Hospital of Chinese PLA, from January 2018 to December 2019 were selected. There were 10 males and 42 females, with an average age of 38.6 years (21-70 years). All patients underwent spiral CT and CBCT examinations. Two oral radiologists and two oral and maxillofacial surgeons measured and evaluated the joint spaces and condylar bone lesions of each side of temporomandibular joint. According to the presence or absence of osteoarthrosis, the patients were divided into osteoarthrosis group (92 sides) and non osteoarthrosis group (12 sides). The mean size of joint spaces and the detection rate of lesions were compared between the two groups. SPSS 20.0 was used to analyze the data.Results:There was no significant difference between the measurements of joint space size and joint position in the spiral CT group and the CBCT group ( P>0.05). The mean size of the anterior space and the ratio of the posterior condyle in the osteoarthrosis side were larger than that in the normal side. The linear percentage index was smaller in the osteoarthrosis side than that in the normal side indicating that the position of the posterior condyle in the osteoarthrosis side was deviated. However, the difference was not statistically significant ( P>0.05). Both spiral CT and CBCT showed good consistency in displaying condylar osteopathy. The most common types of condylar osteopathy was surface defect. The detection rates of defects by spiral CT were surface erosion (85.6%, 89/104), articular surface flattening and shortening (82.7%, 86/104), subcortical sclerosis (40.4%, 42/104), osteophyte (40.4%, 42/104) and subcortical cyst (11.5%, 12/104) respectively. The detection rates of defects by CBCT were surface erosion (88.5%, 92/104), articular surface flattening and shortening (86.5%, 90/104), subcortical sclerosis (35.6%, 37/104), osteophyte (41.3%, 43/104) and subcortical cyst (11.5%, 12/104). There was no statistical difference between the two groups ( P>0.05), respectively. Conclusions:Both spiral CT and CBCT showed good accuracies in displaying the osteopathy of TMJOA and the sizes of the joint spaces measured by spiral CT and CBCT were basically the same. Both spiral CT and CBCT could be used as a routine diagnostic method for TMJOA.

Objective: To evaluate the prognostic value of lymphocyte to monocyte ratio (LMR) and PET scan performed after first two cycles of chemotherapy (PET-2) in Hodgkin’s lymphoma (HL) . Methods: The clinical data of 133 patients with HL diagnosed from January 2007 to March 2016 at the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, were retrospectively analyzed. The X-tile software was used to calculate the optimal cut-off value of LMR. Kaplan-Meier method and Cox regression were used for survival analysis. Results: The median age of 133 HL patients was 33 (18–84) years, and the male to female ratio was 1.9∶1. The optimal cut-off value of LMR was 2.5, and progression free survival (PFS) (P<0.001) and overall survival (OS) (P<0.001) were significantly lower in the LMR<2.5 group than that of LMR≥2.5. Multivariate survival analysis showed that LMR<2.5 was an independent predictor of PFS (P=0.002, HR=2.35, 95%CI 1.36–4.07) and OS (P=0.002, HR=10.36, 95%CI 2.35–45.66) in HL patients. The analysis of PET-2 from 56 HL patients showed that PET-2 positive patients had significantly poorer PFS (P=0.022) . After grouping LMR combined with PET-2, significant differences were found in PFS and OS between the three groups (P values were 0.009 and 0.012) . Conclusion LMR<2.5 is an independent prognostic factor for patients with HL. PET-2 combined with LMR may have better prognostic value.

Objective: To analyze the survival and first-line immune-chemotherapy (CIT) of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) with abnormal TP53 gene in the era of traditional CIT. Methods: The clinical data of 118 CLL patients diagnosed from January 2003 to August 2017 were collected. Survival was analyzed according to indicators including sex, age, Binet risk stratification, B symptoms, β₂-microglobulin (β₂-MG) , immunoglobulin heavy chain variable region gene (IGHV) mutation status, chromosome karyotype and TP53 gene deletion/mutation. The efficacy of first-line CIT of 101 CLL patients was further analyzed. Results: Among 118 patients, median progression-free survival (PFS) was 12 (95%CI 10.148-13.852) months and median overall survival (OS) was 53 (95%CI 41.822-64.178) months, only 30.5% patients survived over 5 years. Low β₂-MG<3.5 mg/L indicated longer PFS (P=0.027) , female and Binet A patients had longer OS (P=0.011 and 0.013, respectively) . Of 118 patients, 17 (14.4%) didn’t receive any therapy until follow-up time or the dead time. Among the 101 patients who received ≥1 CIT, median time to first treatment (TTFT) was 1 (0-62) months, patients in Binet A had longer TTFT (P<0.001) compared to the patients in Binet B/C. According to statistical needs, we divided those first-line CIT into four groups: there were 30 cases (29.7%) in mild chemotherapy group (mainly treated with nitrogen mustard phenylbutyrate or rituximab alone) , 32 cases (31.7%) in the fludarabine-containing group, 23 cases (22.8%) in high-dose methyprednisolone (HDMP) containing group and 16 cases (15.8%) in the other chemotherapy group. The first regimen contained HDMP can bring longer PFS (P<0.001) , however the OS between four groups had no statistical differences. Conclusion CLL patients with abnormal TP53 gene had poor response to immunotherapy, rapid clinical progressing, first-line immunotherapy containing HDMP can prolong PFS and will create an opportunity for patients to participate in clinical trials of novel drugs.

Objective: To evaluate the prognostic value of lymphocyte-to-monocyte ratio (LMR) in angioimmunoblastic T cell lymphoma (AITL). Methods: Data of 64 patients diagnosed as AITL at the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University between June 2009 and July 2017, were analyzed retrospectively. Receiver Operator Characteristic (ROC) curve was used to calculate the cutoff value of LMR to divide this cohort of patients into high and low LMR groups. Characteristics between groups were compared by Pearson Chi-square or Fisher exact tests. Kaplan-Meier method and Cox regression were performed to probe prognostic factors associated with progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS). Results: A total of 64 cases [39 cases male and 25 ones female with the median age of 63 (29-89) years old] were enrolled. The cutoff value of LMR was 3.07. Patients with low LMR showed inferior PFS (9 months vs 13 months, P=0.044) and OS (16 months vs not reached, P=0.014), respectively than those without low LMR during a median follow-up of 33 months (5 to 103 months). Multivariate analysis showed that low LMR was an independent prognostic factor associated with poor outcomes (HR=0.48, 95% CI 0.26-0.92 for PFS, P=0.027; HR=0.38, 95% CI 0.18-0.82 for OS, P=0.013, respectively). Subgroup analysis showed that patients with low LMR and under the situation of high score of Prognostic Index for peripheral T-cell lymphoma, Unspecified (PIT) (2-4) had shorter PFS and OS (P=0.013 and P=0.031, respectively). But in low score of PIT (0-1) group, low LMR seemed to play almost no effects on PFS and OS (P=0.949 and P=0.238, respectively). Conclusions The disease risk status of patients could be initially assessed according to PIT score and LMR level. Low LMR was demonstrated to be able to predict poor outcome in AITL.