BACKGROUND:Degenerative scoliosis is defined as a condition that occurs in adulthood with a coronal cobb angle of the spine>10° accompanied by sagittal deformity and rotational subluxation,which often produces symptoms of spinal cord and nerve compression,such as lumbar pain,lower limb pain,numbness,weakness,and neurogenic claudication.The finite element method is a mechanical analysis technique for computer modelling,which can be used for spinal mechanics research by building digital models that can realistically restore the human spine model and design modifications. OBJECTIVE:To review the application of finite element method in the etiology and treatment of degenerative scoliosis. METHODS:The literature databases CNKI,PubMed,and Web of Science were searched for articles on the application of finite element method in degenerative scoliosis published before October 2023.Search terms were"finite element analysis,biomechanics,stress analysis,degenerative scoliosis,adult spinal deformity"in Chinese and English.Fifty-four papers were finally included. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:(1)The biomechanical findings from the degenerative scoliosis model constructed using the finite element method were identical to those from the in vivo experimental studies,which proves that the finite element method has a high practical value in degenerative scoliosis.(2)The study of the etiology and treatment of degenerative scoliosis by the finite element method is conducive to the prevention of the occurrence of the scoliosis,slowing down the progress of the scoliosis,the development of a more appropriate treatment plan,the reduction of complications,and the promotion of the patients'surgical operation.(3)The finite element method has gradually evolved from a single bony structure to the inclusion of soft tissues such as muscle ligaments,and the small sample content is increasingly unable to meet the research needs.(4)The finite element method has much room for exploration in degenerative scoliosis.

Objective To investigate the setup error in patients with spinal bone metastasis who underwent radiotherapy under the guidance of kilovoltage cone-beam CT (KV-CBCT). Methods A total of 118 patients with spinal metastasis who underwent radiotherapy, including 17 cases of cervical spine, 62 cases of thoracic spine, and 39 cases of lumbar spine, were collected. KV-CBCT scans were performed using the linear accelerators from Elekta and Varian’s EDGE system. CBCT images were registered with reference CT images in the bone window mode. A total of 973 data were collected, and 3D linear errors were recorded. Results The patients with spinal bone metastasis were grouped by site, height, weight, and BMI. The P value of the patients grouped only by site was P<0.05, which was statistically significant. Conclusion When grouped by site in the 3D direction, the positioning effect of cervical spine is better than that of thoracic and lumbar spine. The positioning effect of the thoracic spine is better in the head and foot direction but worse in the left and right direction compared with that of the lumbar spine. Instead of extending or narrowing the margin according to the BMI of patients with spinal metastasis, the margin must be changed according to the site of spinal bone metastasis.

Background: and Purpose Limited evidence exists on the effectiveness of endovascular treatment (EVT) for acute posterior circulation tandem lesion (PCTL). This study aimed to explore the role of extracranial vertebral artery (VA) stenting in patients with PCTL stroke undergoing EVT. Methods: Individual patient data were pooled from the BASILAR (EVT for Acute Basilar Artery Occlusion Study) and PERSIST (Posterior Circulation Ischemic Stroke) registries. Patients with PCTLs who underwent EVT were included in the present cohort and divided into the stenting and nonstenting groups based on the placement of extracranial VA stents. The primary efficacy outcome was the modified Rankin Scale (mRS) scores at 90 days and 1 year. Safety outcomes included 24-hour symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage (sICH) and all-cause mortality at 90 days and 1 year post-surgery. Results: A combined dataset of 1,320 patients with posterior circulation artery occlusion, including 263 (19.9%) with tandem lesions, of whom 217 (median age, 65 years; 82.9% male) met the inclusion criteria for the analysis. The stenting group had 84 (38.7%) patients, while the non-stenting group had 133 (61.3%). After adjustment for the potential confounders, extracranial VA stenting was associated with favorable shifts in mRS scores at both 90 days (adjusted common odds ratio [OR], 2.30; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.23–4.28; P<0.01) and 1 year (adjusted OR [aOR], 2.04; 95% CI [1.05–3.97]; P=0.04), along with lower rate of mortality at both 90 days (aOR, 0.45; 95% CI [0.21–0.93]; P=0.01) and 1 year (aOR, 0.36; 95% CI [0.16–0.79]; P=0.01), with no significant difference in sICH incidence (aOR, 0.35; 95% CI [0.06–1.98]; P=0.24). Conclusion Extracranial VA stenting during EVT may improve functional outcomes and reduce mortality in patients with PCTL strokes.

Background: and Purpose Limited evidence exists on the effectiveness of endovascular treatment (EVT) for acute posterior circulation tandem lesion (PCTL). This study aimed to explore the role of extracranial vertebral artery (VA) stenting in patients with PCTL stroke undergoing EVT. Methods: Individual patient data were pooled from the BASILAR (EVT for Acute Basilar Artery Occlusion Study) and PERSIST (Posterior Circulation Ischemic Stroke) registries. Patients with PCTLs who underwent EVT were included in the present cohort and divided into the stenting and nonstenting groups based on the placement of extracranial VA stents. The primary efficacy outcome was the modified Rankin Scale (mRS) scores at 90 days and 1 year. Safety outcomes included 24-hour symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage (sICH) and all-cause mortality at 90 days and 1 year post-surgery. Results: A combined dataset of 1,320 patients with posterior circulation artery occlusion, including 263 (19.9%) with tandem lesions, of whom 217 (median age, 65 years; 82.9% male) met the inclusion criteria for the analysis. The stenting group had 84 (38.7%) patients, while the non-stenting group had 133 (61.3%). After adjustment for the potential confounders, extracranial VA stenting was associated with favorable shifts in mRS scores at both 90 days (adjusted common odds ratio [OR], 2.30; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.23–4.28; P<0.01) and 1 year (adjusted OR [aOR], 2.04; 95% CI [1.05–3.97]; P=0.04), along with lower rate of mortality at both 90 days (aOR, 0.45; 95% CI [0.21–0.93]; P=0.01) and 1 year (aOR, 0.36; 95% CI [0.16–0.79]; P=0.01), with no significant difference in sICH incidence (aOR, 0.35; 95% CI [0.06–1.98]; P=0.24). Conclusion Extracranial VA stenting during EVT may improve functional outcomes and reduce mortality in patients with PCTL strokes.

Background: and Purpose Limited evidence exists on the effectiveness of endovascular treatment (EVT) for acute posterior circulation tandem lesion (PCTL). This study aimed to explore the role of extracranial vertebral artery (VA) stenting in patients with PCTL stroke undergoing EVT. Methods: Individual patient data were pooled from the BASILAR (EVT for Acute Basilar Artery Occlusion Study) and PERSIST (Posterior Circulation Ischemic Stroke) registries. Patients with PCTLs who underwent EVT were included in the present cohort and divided into the stenting and nonstenting groups based on the placement of extracranial VA stents. The primary efficacy outcome was the modified Rankin Scale (mRS) scores at 90 days and 1 year. Safety outcomes included 24-hour symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage (sICH) and all-cause mortality at 90 days and 1 year post-surgery. Results: A combined dataset of 1,320 patients with posterior circulation artery occlusion, including 263 (19.9%) with tandem lesions, of whom 217 (median age, 65 years; 82.9% male) met the inclusion criteria for the analysis. The stenting group had 84 (38.7%) patients, while the non-stenting group had 133 (61.3%). After adjustment for the potential confounders, extracranial VA stenting was associated with favorable shifts in mRS scores at both 90 days (adjusted common odds ratio [OR], 2.30; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.23–4.28; P<0.01) and 1 year (adjusted OR [aOR], 2.04; 95% CI [1.05–3.97]; P=0.04), along with lower rate of mortality at both 90 days (aOR, 0.45; 95% CI [0.21–0.93]; P=0.01) and 1 year (aOR, 0.36; 95% CI [0.16–0.79]; P=0.01), with no significant difference in sICH incidence (aOR, 0.35; 95% CI [0.06–1.98]; P=0.24). Conclusion Extracranial VA stenting during EVT may improve functional outcomes and reduce mortality in patients with PCTL strokes.

Objective: To understand anxiety symptoms among medical college students and their relationship with social ecological risk factors, so as to provide reference for mental health promotion among medical students. Methods: From September to October 2021, a convenient cluster sampling method was used to include 1 274 freshmen to senior students of a medical school in Taiyuan City, and the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 and adolescent social ecological risk factors assessment questionnaire were used. Multivariate binary Logistic regression was used to analyze the association between anxiety symptoms and social ecological risk factors among medical students. Results: The overall detection rate of anxiety symptoms among medical students was 16.2%. The rate of anxiety varied significantly by grade (freshman: 19.9%, sophomore: 13.0%, junior: 14.0%, senior: 18.9% ) and number of friends (≤2: 22.8%, 3-5: 14.4%, ≥6: 11.8%) ( χ 2=8.70, 16.34, P <0.05). Spearman correlation analysis showed that individual, family, school, community, policy, culture, time, and total score in socio ecological risk factors were positively associated with anxiety symptom scores at different levels of risk ( r=0.33, 0.25, 0.32, 0.16, 0.15, 0.16, 0.16, 0.35, P <0.01). Logistic regression analysis showed that high risk for personal dimension of the socio ecological risk factors was positively associated with rate of anxiety symptoms among medical students ( OR=3.32, 95%CI =1.66-6.61), and remained positively associated ( OR=2.98, 95%CI =1.49-5.94) after adjusting for grade and number of friends ( P <0.01). Conclusions Exposure to high personal dimensions of socio ecological risk factors increases the risk of developing anxiety symptoms among medical students. A focus should be placed on the personal factors associated with anxiety to promote medical students mental health.

Objective To compare the clinical efficacy of DSA-guided pyloric balloon dilation with that of conservative medical treatment for postsurgical gastroparesis syndrome(PGS).Methods The clinical data of 41 patients with PGS,who were admitted to the Department of Interventional Radiology,Affiliated Third Hospital of Suzhou University of China to receive DSA-guided pyloric balloon dilation(study group,n=21)or conservative medical treatment(control group,n=20)between January 2012 and February 2021,were retrospectively analyzed.The median follow-up period in the control group and the study group was 626 days and 588 days respectively.The average length of stay(ALOS)was compared between the two groups.Results In the study group,all the 21 patients returned to normal food intake within 2 days after successful DSA-guided pyloric balloon dilation treatment,and they were all discharged within one week after treatment.The ALOS in the study group was(10.2±1.3)days,which was strikingly shorter than(34.5±14.2)days in the control group,the difference between the two groups was statistically significant(P＜0.001).Conclusion For the treatment of PGS,DSA-guided pyloric balloon dilation carries better clinical efficacy when compared with conservative medical treatment,therefore,it can be used as the preferred treatment for patients with PGS.Further studies are need to be conducted before its therapeutic mechanism can be clarified.

BACKGROUND:Synovitis plays a leading role in the early progression of knee osteoarthritis and is a potential early therapeutic target.However,the mechanism of synovitis remains unclear.In animal models,increased systemic iron and intracellular iron uptake can induce and exacerbate osteoarthritis,but the association with ferroptosis in synovitis remains unclear.Further studies are needed to investigate the role of ferroptosis in the development and progression of synovitis in osteoarthritis. OBJECTIVE:To investigate the role of ferroptosis mediated by glutathione peroxidase 4(GPX4)in the development of synovitis in knee osteoarthritis. METHODS:The synovial tissues of 43 patients with osteoarthritis who underwent arthroscopic or joint replacement surgery and 10 patients undergoing arthroscopic treatment of meniscal injury or ligament tear were collected and divided into three groups according to the Kellgren-Lawrence grading of X-ray images:normal control group(KLG 0,n=10),early knee osteoarthritis group(KLG 1,2,n=20)and late knee osteoarthritis group(KLG 3,4,n=23).Hematoxylin-eosin staining was used to observe the severity of synovitis in each group,and iron deposition in the synovium in each group was evaluated by Prussian blue staining.The expressions of Acyl-CoA Synthetase Long Chain Family Member 4(ACSL4),GPX4,cyclooxygenase 2 and tumor necrosis factor α in the synovium were detected by immunohistochemical staining.Western blot and immunofluorescence were used to detect the expression of ferroptosis-related proteins ACSL4 and GPX4. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:Compared with the normal control group,iron content in synovial tissue was increased in the knee osteoarthritis groups,and iron deposition in the late knee osteoarthritis group was higher than that in the early osteoarthritis group.ACSL4 was highly expressed in the synovial tissue of knee osteoarthritis compared with the normal control group(P＜0.01),and GPX4 was lowly expressed in the synovial tissue of knee osteoarthritis(P＜0.01).The expression level of ACSL4 increased with the progression of osteoarthritis,while the expression level of GPX4 decreased with the progression of osteoarthritis.The expression of cyclooxygenase 2 in the synovium of osteoarthritis was significantly higher than that in the normal synovium,and the expression was the highest in the early stage of osteoarthritis,which was significantly different from that in the advanced stage of osteoarthritis(P＜0.01).The expression of tumor necrosis factor α in the synovium of osteoarthritis was significantly higher than that in the normal synovium,but there was no significant difference between early and late osteoarthritis groups(P＞0.05).To conclude,the deposition of iron exists in the synovial tissue of osteoarthritis and ferroptosis is involved in the occurrence and progression of synovitis in knee osteoarthritis.

BACKGROUND:Myocardial patches are used as an effective way to repair damaged myocardium,and there is controversy over which cells to use to make myocardial patches and how to maximize the therapeutic effect of myocardial patches in vivo. OBJECTIVE:To find out the best way to make myocardial patches by overviewing the cellular sources of myocardial patches and strategies for perfecting them. METHODS:The first author searched PubMed and Web of Science databases by using"cell sheet,cell patch,cardiomyocytes,cardiac progenitor cells,fibroblasts,embryonic stem cell,mesenchymal stem cells"as English search terms,and searched CNKI and Wanfang databases by using"myocardial patch,biological 3D printing,myocardial"as Chinese search terms.After enrollment screening,94 articles were ultimately included in the result analysis. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:(1)The cellular sources of myocardial patches are mainly divided into three categories:somatic cells,monoenergetic stem cells,and pluripotent stem cells,respectively.There are rich sources of cells for myocardial patches,but not all of them are suitable for making myocardial patches,e.g.,myocardial patches made from fibroblasts and skeletal myoblasts carry a risk of arrhythmogenicity,and mesenchymal stem cells have a short in vivo duration of action and ethical concerns.With the discovery of induced multifunctional stem cells,a reliable source of cells for making myocardial patches is available.(2)There are two methods of making myocardial patches.One is using cell sheet technology.The other is using biological 3D printing technology.Cell sheet technology can preserve the extracellular matrix components intact and can maximally mimic the cell growth ring in vivo.However,it is still difficult to obtain myocardial patches with three-dimensional structure by cell sheet technology.Biologicasl 3D printing technology,however,can be used to obtain myocardial patches with three-dimensional structures through computerized personalized design.(3)The strategies for perfecting myocardial patches mainly include:making myocardial patches after co-cultivation of multiple cells,improving the ink formulation and scaffold composition in biological 3D printing technology,improving the therapeutic effect of myocardial patches,suppressing immune rejection after transplantation,and perfecting the differentiation and cultivation protocols of stem cells.(4)There is no optimal cell source or method for making myocardial patches,and myocardial patches obtained from a particular cell or technique alone often do not achieve the desired therapeutic effect.Therefore,researchers need to choose the appropriate strategy for making myocardial patches based on the desired therapeutic effect before making them.

BACKGROUND:The anterior cruciate ligament has unique nonlinear mechanical properties under a complex physiological loading environment.Elastin is an important contributor to the mechanical properties of the anterior cruciate ligament,but its mechanical response to the anterior cruciate ligament under axial tension is not clear. OBJECTIVE:To quantitatively analyze the effect of elastin on the tensile mechanical response of the anterior cruciate ligament. METHODS:Elastase solution and control buffer were prepared.The porcine anterior cruciate ligament samples were prepared into small-size samples and randomly soaked in 0,0.1,1.0,2.0,5.0,and 10.0 U/mL elastase solution for 6 hours,and other small samples of the same size were soaked in 2 U/mL elastase solution for 0,1,3,6,9,and 12 hours.To determine suitable soaking conditions for elastin-targeted enzymes and verify the digestive effect,histological staining was used to compare the effects of enzyme treatment on tissue structure and composition.The ligament samples were randomly divided into elastase-treated group and PBS group,and immersed in 2 U/mL elastase solution and PBS buffer for 6 hours,respectively.A mechanical tensile test was performed before and after immersion. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:(1)The biochemical results showed that being treated in 2 U/mL elastase solution for 6 hours could reduce the elastin content by 31.1%,and had no significant effect on other mechanical-related components in the tissue.(2)The histological results showed that elastase was able to penetrate the tissue,and the loose degree of tissue increased after treatment.(3)In the mechanical results before and after treatment,the mechanical properties of the PBS group decreased significantly,only the low-tension elastic modulus increased significantly and the initial length increased significantly in the elastase-treated group.(4)The intergroup comparison results showed that there was no significant difference between the two groups in pre-treatment,but the low-tension elastic modulus,initial slopes,saturated slopes,and initial length of the elastase-treated group after treatment were significantly higher than those in the PBS group.(5)These results suggest that elastin degradation significantly affects the biomechanical properties of the anterior cruciate ligament and further complements our understanding of the structure-function relationship of the anterior cruciate ligament.