Retrospective investigation of inpatients with chronic wounds / 中华烧伤杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate cause of chronic wounds and related status of patients so as to provide strategy for study and treatment of chronic wounds and establishment of health policy.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>A total of twelve thousand one hundred and sixty-one cases hospitalized in our hospital in 2008 were enrolled in the study. A chronic wound was defined as skin tissue defect which could not heal after one month of treatment. Medical records were thus screened. Then a retrospective study was performed on patients with chronic wounds with analysis of age, gender, injury cause, therapy, and average length of hospital stay. Data were processed with chi-square test and one-way analysis of variance.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Investigation showed: 397 out of 12 161 cases (accounting for 3.3%) were recognized as having chronic wounds. (1) The main causes for chronic wound were burn, diabetes, and pressure ulcer, accounting for 59.9% (238/397), 15.6% (62/397), 10.8% (43/397), respectively. The other causes were operative injury, infection, varicosity, etc. There was statistical difference among the numbers of patients with chronic wounds with regard to various causes of injury (χ(2) = 136.21, P = 0.001). (2) Among patients with chronic wound, the ratio of male and female was 2.0:1.0 with mean age of (44 ± 23) years, and the highest ratio occurred in patients older than 70 years. There was significant difference in the numbers of patients with chronic wound among different age groups (χ(2) = 24.12, P = 0.025). There was statistical difference among the numbers of patients with chronic wound in different age groups with each cause of injury (with χ(2) values from 7.86 to 28.31, P values all below 0.05). (3) All patients with chronic wounds received traditional dressing. In 60.5% (240/397) and 86.4% (343/397) of patients, operative treatment or antibiotics were given. (4) The average length of hospital stay in patients with chronic wound [(38 ± 27) d] was longer as compared with that of all the inpatients in the same period [(15 ± 7) d, F = 22.82, P = 0.012]. There was obvious difference in the average length of hospital stay among patients with chronic wound caused by different reasons (F = 24.06, P = 0.036), in which burn injury resulted in the longest length of hospital stay [(47 ± 27) d].</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Chronic wounds are mainly caused by diabetes and burn, and characterized by old age and longer length of hospital stay. It is necessary to strengthen translational research and related policy making, so that more rational treatment can be applied for patients with chronic wounds.</p>

Study on the determinants of Helicobacter pylori infection among coal miners / 中华流行病学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study the prevalence and determinants of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection among coal miners and to seek for competent preventive measures.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>425 coal miners from three coal mines, Tangshan, Daxing, and baodian were chosen under stratified random cluster sampling. Face to face interview was conducted to fill the unified questionnaires by trained interviewers. 306 subjects underwent gastroenduoscopy to detect the situation of the gastroenduodenal diseases, according to the Sydney System of diagnosis. Mucosa biopsies were also undertaken according to the regulated location for culture of H. pylori and for pathological examination. Blood samples were obtained to detect the anti-HpU-IgG by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). H. pylori infection was determined through culture and ELISA but confirmed under the standards set at the National Congress on Gastroduodenal Diseases in 1999.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Among 425 eligible coal miners being tested, 297 (69.9%) were H. pylori positive and the rate for those working underground (74.0%) was higher than that of those working on ground (P=0.004). No difference was found among coal miners between the three mines (P >0.05). Age, living conditions in childhood, number of current family members, the amount of alcohol intake and ways of eating at home were strongly associated with the status of H. pylori infection.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Difference of H. pylori infection prevalences between the underground and the aboveground coal miners was noticed. Determinants that influencing the H. pylori infection would include socioeconomic factors, individual habits and ways of eating at home.</p>