Application of 13N-Ammonia PET/CT Cerebral Blood Perfusion Imaging Combined with Methazolamide Challenge in Ischemic Cerebrovascular Diseases / 中国康复理论与实践

Objective:To apply 13N-ammonia PET/CT cerebral blood perfusion imaging combined with methazolamide challenge for cerebrovascular reserve (CVR) evaluation in ischemic cerebrovascular diseases. Methods:From January, 2014 to December, 2016, 56 ischemic stroke patients with serious stenosis of unilateral internal carotid artery or middle cerebral artery accepted basal and stress PET/CT with methazolamide challenge. The patients were divided into normal-CVR group (n = 29) and reduced-CVR group (n = 27) according to the results of CVR, and followed up for 24 months. The ischemic cerebrovascular events and cerebral blood flow were observed. Results:The incidence of transient ischemic attack was more in the reduced-CVR group than in the normal-CVR group (χ2 = 4.389, P < 0.05), while the incidence of ischemic stroke increased a little with no significant difference between the two groups (P > 0.05). The CBF was improved in normal-CVR group after treatment (t = 2.409, P < 0.05), and the improvement was not significant in reduced-CVR group (t = 0.648, P > 0.05). Conclusion:13N-ammonia PET/CT cerebral blood flow perfusion imaging combined with methazolamide challenge can be used to evaluate CVR to predict the outcome for patients with cerebral ischemic disease, which is helpful for early intervention.

Rationale and Study Design for a Single-Arm Phase IIa Study Investigating Feasibility of Preventing Ischemic Cerebrovascular Events in High-Risk Patients with Acute Non-disabling Ischemic Cerebrovascular Events Using Remote Ischemic Conditioning / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>Acute minor ischemic stroke (AMIS) or transient ischemic attack (TIA) is a common cerebrovascular event with a considerable high recurrence. Prior research demonstrated the effectiveness of regular long-term remote ischemic conditioning (RIC) in secondary stroke prevention in patients with intracranial stenosis. We hypothesized that RIC can serve as an effective adjunctive therapy to pharmacotherapy in preventing ischemic events in patients with AMIS/TIA. This study aimed to investigate the feasibility, safety, and preliminary efficacy of daily RIC in inhibiting cerebrovascular/cardiovascular events after AMIS/TIA.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>This is a single-arm, open-label, multicenter Phase IIa futility study with a sample size of 165. Patients with AMIS/TIA receive RIC as an additional therapy to secondary stroke prevention regimen. RIC consists of five cycles of 5-min inflation (200 mmHg) and 5-min deflation of cuffs on bilateral upper limbs twice a day for 90 days. The antiplatelet strategy is based on individual physician's best practice: aspirin alone, clopidogrel alone, or combination of aspirin and clopidogrel. We will assess the recurrence rate of ischemic stroke/TIA within 3 months as the primary outcomes.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>The data gathered from the study will be used to determine whether a further large-scale, multicenter randomized controlled Phase II trial is warranted in patients with AMIS/TIA.</p><p><b>TRIAL REGISTRATION</b>ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT03004820; https://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03004820.</p>

Coexistence of High Fibrinogen and Low High-density Lipoprotein Cholesterol Levels Predicts Recurrent Cerebral Venous Thrombosis / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>Cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT) may lead to serious neurological disorders; however, little is known about the risk factors for recurrent CVT. Our aim was to determine the association between elevated fibrinogen and decreased high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels with recurrent CVT.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>This retrospective cohort study included participants if they had a first episode of objectively defined CVT and were admitted to Xuan Wu Hospital, Capital Medical University from August 2005 to September 2009. Demographic and clinical variables were collected, as well as laboratory parameters, including plasma fibrinogen and HDL-C. Patients with CVT were followed for recurrent symptomatic CVT. Follow-up was through the end of September 2010. Potential predictors of recurrence were analyzed using Cox survival analysis.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>At the end of the follow-up, 95 patients were eligible for the study. Twelve of 95 patients (12.6%) had recurred CVT. The median time of recurrence was 7 months (range: 1-39 months). Eight of these 12 (66.7%) experienced recurrence within the first 12 months after their initial CVT. The recurrence rate of CVT was 2.76 per 100 patient-years. Multivariate Cox regression analysis demonstrated that the coexistence of high fibrinogen (>4.00 g/L) and low HDL-C (<1.08 mmol/L) levels at baseline was the only independent predictor for recurrent CVT (hazard ratio: 4.69; 95% confidence interval: 1.10-20.11; P < 0.05). Of the twelve patients with recurrent CVT in our study, 7 (58.3%) had high fibrinogen plus low HDL-C levels. All 7 of these patients took warfarin for 3-12 months, and 6 of 7 had recurrent CVT after the discontinuation of anticoagulant treatment.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Concomitant high fibrinogen and low HDL-C levels may be associated with recurrence of CVT. The effect of potential risk factors related to atherothrombosis on recurrent CVT should be closely monitored.</p>

MRAS Genetic Variation Is Associated with Atherothrombotic Stroke in the Han Chinese Population

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Atherothrombotic cerebral infarction [atherothrombotic stroke (ATS)] shares common risk factors and pathophysiological mechanisms with coronary artery disease (CAD), and both diseases appear to have common susceptibility loci. The muscle RAS oncogene homolog gene (MRAS) has been identified as a susceptibility locus for CAD and is implicated in atherosclerosis. The aim of this study was to elucidate whether the single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and haplotypes of MRAS are associated with increased risk of ATS in a population of Han Chinese. METHODS: A case-controlled association study was conducted in which only patients with ATS (identified as a major subtype in the Korean modification of the Trial of Org 10172 in Acute Stroke Treatment classification) were enrolled. Subgroup analyses were carried out to determine whether the effect of the MRAS polymorphism was specific to age and gender among the subjects. RESULTS: In total, 194 ATS and 186 control subjects were included in the present study. Two tagging SNPs were identified in MRAS (rs40593 and rs3755751). A multivariate regression analysis revealed a positive association between rs40593 and ATS under dominant and additive models after adjustment for covariates. Subgroup analyses revealed that there were no gender differences with respect to allele or genotype frequencies between the groups. The AG genotype for rs40593 (p=0.028), the CT genotype for rs3755751 (p=0.036), and G-allele carriers (AG plus GG) for rs40593 (p=0.015) exhibited a significant protective effect among those aged > or =45 years. For the haplotype analysis, ATS subjects aged > or =45 years had a higher frequency of the ACAC haplotype (76.0%) than the controls (68.1%; p<0.05); that haplotype was associated with an increased risk of ATS. CONCLUSIONS: The obtained data suggest a positive association between MRAS and ATS among the Han Chinese. Further studies should be performed with larger sample and among different ethnic populations, and gene-gene or gene-environment interactions should be considered.

Thirty-day outcome of carotid artery stenting in Chinese patients: a single-center experience / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>Carotid artery stenting (CAS) as a competing treatment modality has had to adhere to limits to gain widespread acceptance in some studies. This study analyzed the clinical data of 1700 consecutive patients after CAS to retrospectively evaluate the 30-day outcome of CAS for internal carotid artery stenosis in a Chinese population.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Medical records of 1700 patients who underwent CAS at Xuanwu Hospital affiliated to Capital Medical University between January 2001 and August 2012 were reviewed. Postoperative 30-day complication rates were analyzed and compared with those of other studies. Univariate and multivariate Logistic regression analyses were used to identify factors associated with perioperation myocardial infarction (MI), stroke, and death.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The overall 30-day rate of MI, stroke, and death after CAS was 2.53%. In univariate analysis, patients who were symptomatic, had a neurological deficit (modified Rankin score (mRS) ≥3; P = 0.001), and who were not taking statins experienced a significantly increased rate of MI, stroke, and death (P = 0.017). In multivariate Logistic regression analysis, the presence of symptoms (odds ratio (OR) = 2.485; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.267-4.876; P = 0.008) and a neurological deficit (mRS ≥3) (OR = 3.025; 95% CI = 1.353-6.763; P = 0.007) were independent risk factors for perioperative MI, stroke, and death.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>According to this single-center experience, CAS may effectively prevent and treat carotid artery stenosis that would otherwise lead to stroke. Being symptomatic and having a neurological deficit (mRS ≥3) increased the risk of perioperative MI, stroke, and death.</p>

Correlation analysis of internal jugular vein abnormalities and cerebral venous sinus thrombosis / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>Cerebral venous sinus thrombosis (CVST) is a special form of stroke with multiple causes and risk factors. However, there are still a portion of cases with unknown reasons. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between internal jugular vein (IJV) abnormalities and the development of CVST.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>A total of 51 CVST patients and 30 healthy controls were enrolled. The diameter, the maximum velocity (Vmax) and the reflux time in bilateral IJVs were measured by color Doppler flow imaging (CDFI). The paired t test was used to compare the numeric values between the bilateral IJVs. The Pearson chi-square test was used to evaluate the relationship between IJV abnormality and CVST, IJV abnormality and IJV reflux, respectively.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Among the 51 CVST patients, 20 (39%) patients were with normal IJV and 31 (61%) patients were with abnormal IJV. The types of IJV abnormality included annulus stenosis 19 cases (61%), hypoplasia 9 cases (29%), thrombosis 2 cases (7%) and anomalous valve 1 case (3%). In patients with unilateral IJV abnormality, the minimum diameter of the IJV on the lesion side was significantly smaller than that of the contralateral side (P < 0.0001). When compared with contralateral side, the Vmax of the lesion side with unilateral annulus stenosis was significant higher, however, it was obvious lower in patients with unilateral hypoplasia (P < 0.05). Furthermore, among 27 cases with unilateral IJV abnormality, all the CVST occurred on the same side as the IJV lesions.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>IJV abnormality closely correlated with the development of CVST, which is a newly identified risk factor for CVST.</p>

Diagnostic performance of magnetic resonance venography in the detection of recanalization in patients with chronic cerebral venous sinus thrombus / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>In the chronic stage of cerebral venous sinus thrombosis (CVST), recanalization can result in disparate MR appearances. We aimed to prospectively investigate the diagnostic accuracy of magnetic resonance venography (MRV) in the evaluation of the recanalization of CVST.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>This study prospectively evaluated the diagnostic performance of 2-dimensional time-of-flight (2D-TOF) MRV in thirty-two consecutive patients during a three- to six-month follow-up for CVST. Both 2D-TOF MRV and digital substraction angiography (DSA) were undertaken. Diagnostic accuracy of 2D-TOF MRV in the detection of recanalized thrombus was evaluated using DSA as the reference standard.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>MRV and DSA were completed without complications in all 32 patients. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of 2D-TOF MRV for the detection of recanalization on a segmental basis were 91% (62/68), 93% (37/40), 95% (62/65), and 86% (37/43) respectively.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>2D-TOF MRV provides high sensitivity and specificity for the diagnosis of recanalized CVST segments.</p>

Local hypothermia and optimal temperature for stroke therapy in rats / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>Local hypothermia induced by intravascular infusion of cold saline solution effectively reduces brain damage in stroke. We further determined the optimal temperature of local hypothermia in our study.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Seventy-eight adult male Sprague Dawley rats (260 - 300 g) were randomly divided into 3 groups: group A, ischemia/reperfusion without cold saline infusion (n = 26) (control group); group B, infusion with 20 degrees C saline before reperfusion (n = 26); group C: infusion with 10 degrees C saline before reperfusion (n = 26). In each group, we chose 15 rats for monitoring physical indexes and the temperature of the brain (cortex and striatum) and body (anus), measurement of brain infarction volume, assessment of neurological deficits and the survival rate of reperfusion at 48 hours. Another 8 rats from each group was chosen for examining brain edema, another 3 from each group for histological observation by electron microscopy (EM) and light microscopy (LM) at 48 hours after reperfusion.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>There was no significant difference among the 3 groups for physical indexes during the examination (F((2, 45)) = 0.577, P = 0.568; F((2, 45)) = 0.42, P = 0.78 for blood pressure and blood gas analysis, respectively). The brain temperature was significantly reduced in the group C compared to the other groups (F((2, 45)) = 37.074, P = 0.000; F((2, 45)) = 32.983, P = 0.000, for cortex and striatum temperature respectively), while the difference in rectal temperature between group A and B or C after reperfusion was not significant (F((2, 45)) = 0.17115, P = 0.637). And the brain infarct volume was significantly reduced in group C (from 40% +/- 10% in group A, 26% +/- 8% in group B, to 12% +/- 6% in group C, F((2, 45)) = 43.465, P = 0.000) with the neurological deficits improving in group C (chi(2) = 27.626, P = 0.000). The survival rate at 48 hours after 10 degrees C and 20 degrees C saline reperfusion was increased by 132.5% and 150%, respectively, as compared to the control group (chi(2) = 10.489, P = 0.005). The extent of the brain edema showed no significant difference (F((2, 21)) = 0.547, P = 0.587) after cold saline infusion compared to the control group. No obvious vascular injury was found by electron or light microscopy in either infusion group.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Regional hypothermia with 10 degrees C cold saline infusion can significantly decrease the infarction volume, improve the neurological deficits, and 10 degrees C seems to be the optimal temperature in inducing a cerebral protection effect during stroke. This procedure could be adopted as a further treatment for acute stroke patients.</p>

The effects of repetitive limb ischemia on the systemic concentration of NO, NOS in plasma of healthy humans / 中国应用生理学杂志

<p><b>AIM</b>To investigate the effects of RLI on plasma nitric oxide (NO) and NO synthase (NOS) isoforms of healthy humans.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>30 healthy human subjects (aged from 40 - 70 years old) were recruited. RLI was induced by five 5 min cycles of ischemia of non dominant arm (200 mmHg, 5 min interval). Blood pressure, heart rate, and the feelings of ischemic arm were continuously monitored. Venous plasma was collected in contralateral arm at Pre, Post-0 h, Post-4 h, and Post-24 h. Plasma level of NO was measured by Griess reaction, and NOS was measured by chemical method.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Blood pressure and heart rate varied in normal range. The uncomfortable feeling was decreased with the increasing numbers of ischemic cycles. Plasma level of NO, and iNOS in plasma were significantly increased at Post-0 h, Post-4 h, and Post-24 h compared to Pre (P < 0.05). tNOS was also significantly increased at Post-0 h and Post-4 h compared to Pre (P < 0.05). No significant change in plasma cNOS was shown at following three time points than Pre.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>These findings suggest that RLI can elevate plasma level of NO, tNOS, and iNOS in healthy humans. RLI might be a safe method as a rIPC, and it would have important possibility to be performed in clinic.</p>

Evaluation by perfusion-weighted magnetic resonance to hemodynamic character and surgical effect of carotid system stenoses or occlusion / 中华外科杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To evaluate hemodynamic character and surgical effect of stenoses or occlusion of carotid artery system by perfusion-weighted MRI.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Twenty-one patients with stenoses or occlusion of carotid artery system underwent surgical treatment. Two patients underwent endarterectomy, extracranial-intracranial arterial bypass to 10 patients, and percutaneous stent angioplasty to 9 patients.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Preoperative perfusion-weighted magnetic resonance (MR) revealed normal regional cerebral blood flow in all patients, with delayed time to peak in both middle cerebral artery distribution and border zone. Postoperative perfusion-weighted MR revealed normal time to peak in border zone, but abnormal in middle cerebral artery distribution. Evaluated by perfusion-weighted MR, it showed that surgical method can improve the hemodynamic disorder of this kind of disease. The early curative effect of endarterectomy and percutaneous stent angioplasty is better than extracranial-intracranial arterial bypass.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Perfusion-weighted MR is a good method to evaluate hemodynamic character of stenoses or occlusion of carotid artery system. Surgical method is helpful to this kind of disease, and its curative effect can be evaluated impersonally and accurately by this new technique.</p>

A study on the differences of emotion and depression between patients as doctor/nurse and others occupation with severe acute respiratory syndrome / 中华流行病学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study the emotional and depressive differences between severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) patients whose occupations were doctor/nurse and others.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>During the three months when SARS was explosive in 2003, 524 questionnaires were collected from Xuanwu Hospital, You'an Hospital, Xiaotangshan Hospital, Renmin Hospital and Ditan Hospital in Beijing. There were 109 questionnaires finished by patients as doctors/nurses themselves. For a background matching, 109 questionnaires were also finished by the others.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>From 218 questionnaires, we found that the score on emotional condition (46.6204 +/- 8.4408 vs. 41.6789 +/- 8.612 95, P < 0.001) of SARS patients whose jobs were doctor/nurse was higher than the other groups on while the score of SARS patients whose jobs were doctor/nurse was lower than the other groups (37.7615 +/- 9.026 61 vs. 41.2844 +/- 9.655 25, P = 0.006) regarding depressive condition. The scores of emotional and depressive condition were all correlated with the factor as "I can not master my future".</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Doctors/nurses having SARS had less emotional and depressive conditions than the others, which might due to the difference in medical knowledge, working condition and the route of infection, suggesting that psychological intervention in the post-SARS period called for attention.</p>

Thrombolysis infusion via super selective ophthalmic artery catheterization treating central retinal artery occlusion / 眼科

Objective To evaluate the treament of central retinal artery occlusion by thrombolysis infusion via super selective ophthalmic artery catheterization.Design Retrospective,observational case series.Participants 21 eyes of 21 patients with CRAO. Methods 21 patients with CRAO were diagnosed by stereoscopic color fundus photography and flouorescein fundus angiography, and were treated by urokinase infusion via super select ophthalmic artery catheterization seldinger technique.Main Outcome Measures Visual acuity and the postoperative complications.Results In the 21 patients,10 had showed the occlusion of ophthalmic arterial trunk by super selective internal carotid artery angiography,the others can be found the appearance of ophthalmic arterial trunk and all patients had undergone thrombolysis therapy successfully.Imaging times of central retinal artery before and after thrombolysis infusion treatment are 38.18?10.86 seconds,12.65?3.30 seconds(t=-11.89,P=0.000).Mean foflow-up time is 3.23?1.26 months.After the treatment,the visual acuity was more than 0.25 in 4 patients,improved to different extent in 9 and remained unchanged in 8. Conclusions Super selective arterial catheterization with thrombolysis for CRAO can improve the visual acuity of the patients,a speedy execution of all internal,neurological,and ophthalmology diagnostic measures;and a prompt therapy are necessary.