ObjectiveTo explore the efficacy and predictive indicators of stellate ganglion block （SGB） as an adjunctive intervention for chronic subjective tinnitus and accumulate experience for the application of SGB in the clinical treatment of tinnitus. MethodsA retrospective review was conducted on the data of chronic subjective tinnitus patients who received SGB intervention， with unsatisfactory outcomes otherwise. Pure tone audiometry （PTA）， tinnitus loudness evaluation and Pittsburgh sleep quality index （PSQI） were used. The tinnitus handicap inventory （THI） scores were compared before and after SGB intervention. Correlation analysis and linear regression equations were employed to identify the potential indicators predicting the effectiveness of SGB intervention. Statistical analysis was performed by SPSS 24.0 software. ResultsBy April 2023， a total of 107 patients with chronic subjective tinnitus had undergone SGB intervention， including 67 male and 40 female， with a mean age of （45.32±11.40） years old and an average tinnitus history of （20.32±24.64） months ［16 （12~20）］. Only 7 patients （6.54%） quitted the intervention for personal reasons， which demonstrated good compliance with the intervention. No patients experienced adverse reactions such as infection at the injection site， hematoma， nerve injury， local anesthetic intoxication and so on， which revealed good safety. After SGB intervention， THI scores decreased to below 36 points in 77 patients and decrease by 10 points or more in 12 of the remaining patients， with a total effective rate of 89%. A paired sample t-test showed a significant difference in THI scores before and after SGB intervention （t=15.575， P<0.001）， indicating good improvement. Pearson correlation analysis suggested that pre-intervention THI scores and subjective tinnitus loudness were significantly positively correlated with the improvement level of THI scores （P<0.05）. Further stepwise linear regression analysis found that "pre-intervention THI scores" had statistical significance （P<0.001）， with a regression coefficient of 0.308， predicting a 17.4% improvement level in THI scores. ConclusionsDue to its good and safe short-term effects， SGB intervention can be used as a supplementary option for chronic subjective tinnitus when other interventions are not ideal， especially for patients with higher THI scores. However， further research is needed to clarify the long-term efficacy and underlying mechanisms， in order to establish a more solid theoretical basis for SGB intervention in the treatment of subjective tinnitus.

Objective:To evaluate the relationship between lung injury induced by cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) and acetyltransferase p300 (p300) in rats.Methods:Eighteen SPF healthy adult male Sprague-Dawley rats, aged 12-16 weeks, weighing 350-450 g, were divided into 3 groups ( n=6 each) using a random number table method: sham operation group (S group), CPB group, and CPB+ left lung ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) group (CPB+ IR group). CPB group was connected to CPB pipeline for cardiopulmonary bypass. The lung I/R injury model was prepared by clamping the left lung hilum for 45 min followed by opening during CPB, 30 min later CPB was terminated, and mechanical ventilation was continuously performed for 1.5 h before ending the experiment in CPB+ IR group. Arterial blood gas analysis was performed and oxygenation index (OI) and respiratory index (RI) were calculated before CPB, at 10 min after opening the lung hilum, and immediately after the end of experiment. The bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) and left lung tissues were collected immediately after the end of experiment for determination of the concentrations of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) in BALF and total protein in BALF and concentrations of IL-17 in lung tissues (by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay), expression of p300, phosphorylated p300 (p-p300), and acetylated histone H3 (AC-H3) in lung tissues (by Western blot) and expression of p-p300 (using immunohistochemical staining) and for microscopic examination of the pathological changes of lung tissues (under the light microscope) which were scored. Results:Compared with S group, OI was significantly decreased and RI was increased at 10 min after opening the lung hilum and immediately after the end of experiment, the lung injury score and levels of IL-6, TNF-α and total protein in BALF and IL-17 in lung tissues were increased, and the expression of p300, p-p300 and AC-H3 was up-regulated in CPB and CPB+ IR groups ( P<0.05). Compared with CPB group, OI was significantly decreased and RI was increased at 10 min after opening the lung hilum and immediately after the end of experiment, the lung injury score and levels of IL-6, TNF-α and total protein in BALF and IL-17 in lung tissues were increased, and the expression of p300, p-p300 and AC-H3 was up-regulated in CPB+ IR group ( P<0.05). Conclusions:The mechanism by which CPB induces lung injury may be related to up-regulation of the expression of p300 and enhancement of activity of p300 in lung tissues and increased release of inflammatory factors in rats.

Objective:To explore the feasibility of constructing an objective tinnitus subtype model based on peripheral blood differentially expressed genes (DEGs) using a combination of Weighted Gene Co-expression Network Analysis (WGCNA) and Random Forest algorithm (RF).Methods:From October 2019 to June 2020, peripheral blood DEGs were obtained from 37 patients (from the Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University)with chronic subjective high-frequency tinnitus (21 unbothersome type, 16 bothersome type) and 20 healthy volunteers through high-throughput sequencing. WGCNA was used to construct gene modules with different expression patterns and analyze their relationships with tinnitus characteristics. Subsequently, RF was employed to build subtype models, which were evaluated by the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC), accuracy, and F1-score.Results:A total of 12 351 intergroup DEGs were divided into 9 gene modules. Among them, MEblue, MEgreen, and MEbrown showed significant negative correlations with the healthy volunteer group, while MEpink showed a significant positive correlation with the tinnitus distress group. The "Tinnitus vs. Normal" and "Compensatory vs. Decompensatory" subtype models, based on MEblue and MEpink respectively, both had AUCs greater than 0.80, accuracies above 90%, and F1-scores above 0.90, indicating good performance.Conclusions:Peripheral blood DEGs are potential biological indicators for objective classification of subjective tinnitus. The combined application of WGCNA and the Random Forest algorithm should be a viable approach to constructing an objective tinnitus subtype model. However, further exploration and refinement are needed to validate the model′s generalizability, cross-dataset performance, and algorithm optimization.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effectiveness of limited internal fixation combined with a hinged external fixator in the treatment of peri-elbow bone infection. METHODS: The clinical data of 19 patients with peri-elbow bone infection treated with limited internal fixation combined with a hinged external fixator between May 2018 and May 2021 were retrospectively analyzed. There were 15 males and 4 females with an average age of 44.6 years (range, 28-61 years). There were 13 cases of distal humerus fractures and 6 cases of proximal ulna fractures. All the 19 cases were infected after internal fixation of fracture, and 2 cases were complicated with radial nerve injury. According to Cierny-Mader anatomical classification, 11 cases were type Ⅱ, 6 cases were type Ⅲ, and 2 cases were type Ⅳ. The duration of bone infection was 1-3 years. After primary debridement, the bone defect was (3.04±0.28) cm, and the antibiotic bone cement was implanted into the defect area, and the external fixator was installed; 3 cases were repaired with latissimus dorsi myocutaneous flap, and 2 cases were repaired with lateral brachial fascial flap. Bone defects repair and reconstruction were performed after 6-8 weeks of infection control. The wound healing was observed, and white blood cell (WBC), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), and C-reaction protein (CRP) were reexamined regularly after operation to evaluate the infection control. X-ray films of the affected limb were taken regularly after operation to observe the bone healing in the defect area. At last follow-up, the flexion and extension range of motion and the total range of motion of the elbow joint were observed and recorded, and compared with those before operation, and the function of the elbow joint was evaluated by Mayo score. RESULTS: All patients were followed up 12-34 months (mean, 26.2 months). The wounds healed in 5 cases after skin flap repair. Two cases of recurrent infection were effectively controlled by debridement again and replacement of antibiotic bone cement. The infection control rate was 89.47% (17/19) in the first stage. Two patients with radial nerve injury had poor muscle strength of the affected limb, and the muscle strength of the affected limb recovered from grade Ⅲ to about grade Ⅳ after rehabilitation exercise. During the follow-up period, there was no complication such as incision ulceration, exudation, bone nonunion, infection recurrence, or infection in the bone harvesting area. Bone healing time ranged from 16 to 37 weeks, with an average of 24.2 weeks. WBC, ESR, CRP, PCT, and elbow flexion, extension, and total range of motions significantly improved at last follow-up ( P<0.05). According to Mayo elbow scoring system, the results were excellent in 14 cases, good in 3 cases, and fair in 2 cases, and the excellent and good rate was 89.47%. CONCLUSION Limited internal fixation combined with a hinged external fixator in the treatment of the peri-elbow bone infection can effectively control infection and restore the function of the elbow joint.
Male ; Female ; Humans ; Adult ; Elbow ; Elbow Joint/surgery* ; Retrospective Studies ; Bone Cements ; Treatment Outcome ; External Fixators ; Fracture Fixation, Internal/methods* ; Fractures, Bone ; Range of Motion, Articular

Objective To analyze etiology,clinical manifestation and diagnosis process of vertigo and dizziness in children.Method The clinical data of 82 children with vertigo and dizziness treated in our hospital from January 2006 to December 2016 were retrospectively analyzed.Results There were 46 girls and 36 boys with a female:male ration of 1.28:1.The median age of patients was 9.0 years (14 months-18.0 years) and 21 cases were less than 6 years old.The chief complaints were repeatedly falling,crying,walking unsteadily and scratching the ear for unknown reasons.For children aged ＞ 5 years may express " roof or tent rotation";for those aged ＞ 6-＜ 15 years (n =34),the main complaint was more ambiguous "dizziness";for those aged ≥ 15-≤ 18 years (n =27) with the main complaint of " dizziness" may clearly express the " sense of rotation" or " the feeling of feeling drowsy,the top-heavy sense," and the accompanying deafness,earfullness,tinnitus and so on.Among 82 cases,there were 15 cases of benign paroxysmal vertigo (BPV,18.3％),12 cases of secretory otitis media (SOM,14.6％),11 cases of vestibular migraine (VM,13.4％),9 cases of benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV,11.0％),8 cases of inner ear malformation (9.8％),8 cases of Meniere's disease (9.8％),7 cases of vestibular neuritis (8.5％),6 cases of sudden deafness with vertigo (7.3％),4 cases of central vertigo (4.9％),1 case of rare genetic disease (1.2％) and 1 case of vertigo due to mental psychological (1.2％).The incidence of BPV,VM and Meniere's disease in girls was higher than that in boys.There was a tendency to self heal in BPV with the age increasing,in 15 BPV cases,8 after 12 years of age,3 after 14 years old had no vertigo attacks,and 4 cases were still in follow-up.The attack frequency of VM was decreased,and the extent was reduced with the age.Children older than 6 years were able to cooperate to vestibular function tests,and the majority completed the tests.Conclusion The analysis shows that the etiology of vertigo and dizziness in children is different from that of adults.Central vertigo and rare genetic disorders with dizziness as the first symptom are of great harmfulness,so intensive observation and multidisciplinary consultations are recommended.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the methods to detect and intervene children's late-onset hearing loss early which are suitable for basic-level hospitals. METHOD: Udiology and imaging diagnosis had been given to the children who passed the newborn hearing screening but showed auditory behavior disorders in the growth process, and individualized interventions were given according to the results of diagnosis. Seven children with high risk for hereditary deafness were sent to superior hospital and had molecular screening of common mutations of inherited deafness carried out, then corresponding prevention guidance and intervention were given to them. RESULT: Fifty-two cases with late-onset hearing loss or verbal disorders were detected by auditory behavior observations,including 4 cases of auditory neuropathy, 4 cases of unilateral sensorineural deafness, 27 cases of secretory otitis media. 13 cases of bilateral sensorineural deafness and 4 cases of autism. Seven newborns with high risk of hereditary deafness were sent to the Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University and received molecular screening of common mutations of inherited deafness. One case with GJB2 compound heterozygous mutations was detected and followed up to 4 years old, he was found bilateral moderate hearing loss and accepted the hearing aids at 2 years old. Mitochondrial DNA 1555 a > G heterogeneity mutation in 2 cases and GJB2 235 delC single heterozygous mutations in 3 cases, no mutation in 1 case, all these 6 cases have been followed-up until now, their hearing are normal. CONCLUSION Children's auditory behavior observations and the superior hospitals referral performing high risk individual screening for newborns with high risk for hereditary deafness can detect children's late-onset hearing loss in time, this model is suitable for basic-level hospitals.
Behavior Observation Techniques ; Child ; Connexin 26 ; Connexins ; genetics ; DNA Mutational Analysis ; DNA, Mitochondrial ; genetics ; Deafness ; diagnosis ; genetics ; Early Diagnosis ; Genetic Testing ; Hearing Tests ; Heterozygote ; Humans ; Infant, Newborn ; Male ; Mutation

OBJECTIVE: To analyze social-psychological causes of acute exacerbation or re-decompensation of chronic tinnitus and provide theoretical basis for controlling and preventing tinnitus exacerbation and re-decompensation. METHOD: Systemic audiological tests and tinnitus handicap inventory were performed on 136 chronic tinnitus patients with acuteexacerbation or re-decompensation. For the patients with new hearing loss, a further investigation of living conditions and assessment of social support rating scale were utilized. The patients with relatively definite causes were treated accordingly. RESULT: (1) There were 89 patients complained of new changes of hearing, all of whom could tell the definite time point of tinnitus exacerbation, and 5 of them felt the exacerbation of hearing loss meanwhile. (2) Forty-two patients encountered adverse events on life or working, and tinnitus exacerbation occurred within several weeks to 3 months afterwards. Most of these patients could not tell the definite time point of tinnitus exacerbation or re-decompensation. Five cases of tinnitus exacerbation didn't tell any adverse events on life or working, but showed mood disorders, and the anti-anxiety treatment was effective to them. (3) Forty-seven cases without new hearing loss scored significantly lower in SSRS than healthy adults. CONCLUSION Emerging hearing loss is the main cause of acute exacerbation of chronic tinnitus. To find it in time and give effective treatment can save newly presented hearing loss, cure or relieve tinnitus. Adverse events in life(or working) and short of social support is another important cause of acute exacerbation of chronic tinnitus or decompensation recurrence, which suggests that social-psychological factors besides of hearing loss should be concerned in diagnosis and treatment of tinnitus.
Adult ; Disease Progression ; Hearing Loss ; Humans ; Social Support ; Tinnitus ; psychology

OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether there is gender difference in the incidence and severity of tinnitus in medical staff (including doctors, nurses, and technicians). METHOD: A total of 354 people (all are medial stuff from hospitals in Guangzhou) were invited to be involved in the investigation and granted a self-reported questionnaire of tinnitus (designed by the authors; based on the scoring method of severity of tinnitus (Liu et al.). Statistical analysis on the data was performed using SPSS Statistics 17.0. RESULT: (1) The incidence of tinnitus of the sample was 43.22%, with that in female higher than in male (P < 0.05), and that in nurses higher than in doctors or technicians (P < 0.01). (2) The effect of working position factor on the incidence of prolonged tinnitus was significant (P < 0.01). However, no statistically significant gender difference was detected in the incidence of prolonged tinnitus. (3) There was no statistically significant difference of tinnitus severity scores between different genders or among different positions (P > 0.05). (4) There was statistically significant difference among the four sub-items of the questionnaire (P < 0.01), with the mean score of "occurred environment" higher than "the impact on sleeping", "the impact on everyday life", and "the impact on emotion". CONCLUSION (1) The effort-reward imbalance might be the key factor of the gender difference in the incidence of tinnitus. (2) For patients of tinnitus, improving the knowledge about their symptoms as well as levels of psychological resilience would be helpful to relieve the mental impairment of tinnitus.
Adult ; Emotions ; Female ; Humans ; Incidence ; Male ; Medical Staff ; Middle Aged ; Sex Factors ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Tinnitus ; epidemiology ; psychology

OBJECTIVE: To probe the factors that affect the pure-tone threshold glycerol test and the distribution of frequencies in positive glycerol test. METHOD: We tested the pure-tone threshold before and after glycerol intake in patients with Meniere's disease, and then analyzed the positive rates,distribution of positive frequencies and the time when the maximum threshold changes appeared. RESULT: The positive rate of pure-tone glycerol test was 72.09%, of which the threshold descending rate was 47.67%, and the threshold rebounding rate was 24.42%; the pure-tone threshold changes of descending group and rebounding group were (17.41 +/- 9.92) dB, (13.53 +/- 4.64) dB respectively, and the differences were significant. The distribution of positive frequencies were 250 Hz, 125 Hz, 500 Hz, 1 kHz, 4 kHz, 2 kHz, 8 kHz in descending order. The maximum pure-tone threshold changes mostly appeared within 2 or 3 hours after glycerol intake. CONCLUSIONS Patient selection, test occasion and the judgement criteria may affect the positive rate of glycerol test; the positive frequencies distribute in the low-frequency region mainly; the maximum pure-tone threshold changes mostly appeared within 2 or 3 hours after glycerol intake.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Audiometry, Pure-Tone ; Auditory Threshold ; Child ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Meniere Disease ; diagnosis ; physiopathology ; Middle Aged ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVE: To explore the clinical characteristics, pathological mechanism, diagnose, differential diagnosis and the treatment of vascular compressive vestibular neuropathy. METHOD: The authors retrospectively studied 2 cases of vascular compressive vestibular neuropathy about clinical characteristics, auditory tests, vestibular tests and imaging examine results, pharmacotherapy results and reviewed the related documents. RESULT: There were some common clinical characteristics: (1) Vertigo and disequilibrium could be elicited by any physical activity and head movement and abated with complete bed rest; (2) Symptoms and signs can't be improved by vestibular suppressant medications; (3) When taken Dix-Hallpike test, true vertigo or a spinning sensation appeared during head movement, when head skilled at any position,the symptoms disappeared; (4) The suffering lateral often showed high frequency sensorineural hearing loss ,the ABR of the suffering lateral showed prolonged inter wave latency of I-III wave; (5) Vestibular tests showed central lesion; (6) Occupying lesion can be ruled out by CT and MRI, MRI showed neurovascular compression of vestibular nerve; (7) Taking carbamazepine plus baclofen or only Tegretol orally can alleviate symptoms. A great deal of surgeries confirmed neurovascular compression of cranial nerve U as a disease entity, the offending artery mainly anterior inferior cerebellar artery. Microvascular decompression of cranial nerve VIII can successfully relieve vertigo. CONCLUSION Neurovascular compression of cranial nerve VIII is a disease entity beyond question. It's major characters were vertigo and disequilibrium which elicited by any physical activity and head movement, magnetic resonance tomographic angiography can give valuable information for diagnosis and treatment. Microvascular decompression can effectively relieve vertigo.
Adult ; Decompression, Surgical ; Female ; Humans ; Microsurgery ; Middle Aged ; Nerve Compression Syndromes ; complications ; diagnosis ; surgery ; Retrospective Studies ; Vertigo ; etiology ; Vestibular Nerve ; pathology ; Vestibular Neuronitis ; diagnosis ; pathology ; surgery ; Vestibulocochlear Nerve ; pathology