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Serum samples were tested for IgG antibodies using indirect immunofluorescence assays. We then analyzed associated risk factors. Serum samples were considered positive when reactive at a dilution of more than 1:320. Differences between groups and risk factors associated with exposure were statistically analyzed using Chi-square tests and the generalized linear model. 122 of 1,260 samples (9.68%) were positive for infection. The infection rate ranged from 0% to 30.43% and differed significantly among age groups ( < 0.01); infection rate in the 50-59 years group was significantly higher than that in other age groups. The seroprevalence of varied significantly among sites within the four provinces, and the infection rate of field workers was significantly higher than that of urban workers.
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Objective To investigate the clinical efficacy of Zhu's "neck seven needles" in treating cervical spondylotic radiculopathy. Method Ninety-six patients with cervical spondylotic radiculopathy were randomized to two groups. The treatment group received Zhu's "neck seven needles" therapy and the control group, cervical vertebra traction therapy. Both groups were treated once every other day, for a total of 10 days. The symptoms were scored using the Short-form McGill Pain Questionnaire (SF-MPQ-2) before and after treatment. Result The SF-MPQ-2 score decreased significantly in both groups of patients after treatment compared with before. It decreased more in the treatment group than in the control group and the difference was statistically significant (P<0.01). The total efficacy rate was significantly higher in the treatment group than in the control group (P<0.01). Conclusion Zhu's "neck seven needles" is clinically more effective than conventional cervical vertebra traction in treating cervical spondylotic radiculopathy.
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<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the clinical effects of medial and lateral approach in treating terrible triad of the elbow.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>From May 2010 from May 2014, 11 patients with terrible triad of the elbow were treated through medial and lateral approach. There were 6 males and 5 females, aged from 25 to 56 years with an average of 35.2 years old. The time from injury to operation was from 1 to 13 days with an average of 5.9 days. Fracture of radial head according to Mason typing, 2 cases were type I, 7 cases were type II, 2 cases were type III. Ulnar coronoid fracture according to Regan-Morrey typing, 3 cases were type I, 7 cases were type II, 1 case was type III. Postoperative complications were observed and Mayo elbow performance score(MEPS) was used to assess the elbow joint function.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>All patients were followed up from 6 to 24 months with an average of 15.5 months. All fractures obtained healing with an average time of 14 weeks (ranged from 10 to 18 weeks). According to Mayo to assess the results, total score was 78.2±11.7, 2 cases got excellent results, 7 good, 1 fair, 1 poor. At final follow up, the mean range of motion was (108±21)° in flexion, (12±8)° in extension, (66±13)° in pronation, (28±18)° in supination. The varus angle of the elbow ranged from 5°to 8° in 3 cases and the valgus angle was 8° in 1 case.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Treatment of the terrible triad of the elbow through medial and lateral approach can obtain satisfactory clinical effects, restore the elbow stability, allow early motion postoperatively, and promote the joint functional rehabilitation.</p>
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Objective: To determine the seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii) infection in dogs and cats in Zhenjiang City, Jiangsu Province, Eastern China, and to evaluate the main associated risk factors relating to exposure to T. gondii in this region. Methods: Sera from 160 dogs and 116 cats from Zhenjiang City were tested for anti-T. gondii antibodies using ELISA. The seropositivity by area of activity, sex and age was analyzed. Results: Overall, 21 dogs (13.1%) and 24 cats (20.7%) had antibodies to T. gondii. The infection rate in stray dogs (38.7%) and cats (28.6%) was significantly higher (P0.05). A high proportion of dogs at 3 to 6 years of age were positive to T. gondii (20.0%) while cats with relatively high seropositivity rates were at 0 to 1 year of age (33.3%). Conclusions: The prevalence of T. gondii infection in dogs and cats in Zhenjiang City was high, which is probably the main source of T. gondii infection in this area.
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<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To confirm the malignant phenotype of hepatocarcinoma cell (HCC) lines at various stages of differentiation (MHCC97L, MHCC97H and HCCLM3) and to explore their expression levels of cancer stem cell (CSC) markers.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The invasive and proliferative properties of each HCC line were assessed by transwell assay and the Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) colorimetric assay. Sensitivity to chemotherapy was assessed by treatment with oxaliplatin and determination of the half inhibitory concentration (IC50). The expression of CD90, EpCAM and CD24 was measured by flow cytometry.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The number of cells that migrated through the invasion assay membrane were significantly different between the three HCC lines: HCCLM3 (30.57 +/- 8.95) more than MHCC97H (21.33 +/- 4.17) more than HCC97L (9.33 +/- 3.85), P less than 0.01. The IC50 was significantly different between the three HCC lines: HCCLM3 (36.57 +/- 6.95) mumol/L more than MHCC97H (26.35+/-3.88) mumol/L more than MHCC97L (17.68 +/- 3.25) mumol/L. The CSC marker with the highest expression on all three HCC lines was CD90 (HCCLM3: 0.92% +/- 0.21%, MHCC97H: 1.98% +/- 0.23%, and MHCC97L: 2.55% +/- 0.34%), followed by EpCAM (2.11% +/- 0.32%, 3.23% +/- 0.18%, and 4.38% +/-0.49%, respectively), and CD24 as the lowest (0.68% +/- 0.37%, 1.22% +/- 0.26%, and 1.36% +/- 0.24%, respectively).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Higher expression of CSC markers on HCC lines is associated with a stronger invasive ability and higher sensitivity to chemotherapy.</p>
Subject(s)
Humans , Antigens, Neoplasm , Metabolism , CD24 Antigen , Metabolism , Carcinoma, Hepatocellular , Metabolism , Pathology , Cell Adhesion Molecules , Metabolism , Cell Differentiation , Cell Line, Tumor , Epithelial Cell Adhesion Molecule , Liver Neoplasms , Metabolism , Pathology , Neoplastic Stem Cells , Cell Biology , Metabolism , Signal Transduction , Thy-1 Antigens , MetabolismABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate sperm DNA integrity in male infertility patients with hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>This study included 90 infertile men with HBV infection (group A), 82 infertile men without HBV infection (group B) and 70 normal fertile men (group C). We detected sperm DNA integrity among the subjects, including DNA fragmentation index (DFI) and high DNA stainability (HDS), by sperm chromatin structure assay (SCSA), and compared them among the three groups.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>DFI was higher in group A ([28.17 +/- 13.06]%) than in B ([26.64 +/- 9.79]%) and C ([15.67 +/- 4.73]%), significantly higher in A and B than in C (P < 0.05) but with no significant difference between A and B (P > 0.05). HDS was higher in group A ([10.83 +/- 5.601]%) than in B ([9.04 +/- 3.48]%) and C ([8.04-2.25]%), with significant difference between A and C (P < 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Sperm DNA integrity of infertile males is significantly different from that of normal fertile men, and infertility with HBV infection further impairs sperm DNA, which is manifested by abnormal sperm nuclear maturity.</p>
Subject(s)
Adult , Humans , Male , Young Adult , Case-Control Studies , Chromatin , DNA , Genetics , DNA Damage , Hepatitis B , Pathology , Hepatitis B virus , Infertility, Male , Genetics , Virology , Sperm Count , Spermatozoa , PathologyABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the expressions of CD4+ CD25(high) regulatory T cells, TGF-beta 1 and COX-2 in the peripheral blood of prostate cancer (PCa) patients, and analyze the role of CD4+ CD25(high) regulatory T cells in the pathogenesis of PCa and their relationship with TGF-beta 1 and COX-2.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>We used flow cytometry to calculate the percentage of CD4+ CD25(high) regulatory T cells in the CD4+ T cells in the peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) from 30 PCa patients (11 localized and 19 non-localized cases) and 20 healthy volunteer controls, determined the expressions of TGF-beta 1 and COX-2 in the serum by ELISA, and analyzed their correlation with the CD4+ CD25(high) regulatory T cells in the PCa patients as well as the differences between the localized and non- localized cases.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>CD4+ CD25(high) regulatory T cells accounted for (18.32 +/- 7.49) % in the CD4+ T cells in PBMCs from the PCa patients, significantly higher than (7.77 +/- 1.86) % from the controls (P < 0.05), but with no statistically significant difference between pre- and post-treatment in the PCa patients (P > 0.05). The expressions of TGF-beta 1 and COX-2 in the peripheral blood were (215.97 +/- 55.16) ng/ml and (6.88 +/- 5.14) ng/ml in the PCa patients, in comparison with (149.75 +/- 47.11) ng/ml (P < 0.05) and (6.88 +/- 5.14) ng/ml (P > 0.05) in the controls. Multiple linear regression analysis showed no significant correlation between the expression of CD4+ CD25(high) regulatory T cells in PBMCs and those of TGF-beta 1 and COX-2 in the peripheral blood of the PCa patients. There were no significant differences between the localized and non-localized PCa groups in the expressions of CD4+ CD25(high) regulatory T cells, TGF-beta 1 and COX-2 (P > 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>CD4+ CD25(high) regulatory T cells in in PBMCs are involved in the pathogenesis of PCa. The proliferation of CD4+ CD25(high) regulatory T cells is not significantly correlated to the expressions of TGF-beta 1 and COX-2 in the peripheral blood, but maybe to the tumor itself and the local tumor microenvironment.</p>
Subject(s)
Aged , Aged, 80 and over , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Case-Control Studies , Cyclooxygenase 2 , Blood , Flow Cytometry , Prostatic Neoplasms , Blood , T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory , Metabolism , Transforming Growth Factor beta1 , BloodABSTRACT
Objective: To study the role of clinical classification of adult polycystic liver disease (APLD) in guiding the selection of treatments for the patients. Methods: The clinical data of 43 APLD patients who were treated in our hospital from May 1995 to Oct. 2007 were retrospectively analyzed. The patients were divided into 3 stages according to the clinical manifestations and imaging examination: non-symptom or slight symptom stage, obvious symptom stage, and lethal symptom stage. Seventeen patients in our group received outpatient clinical follow-up; 26 were treated by partial hepatectomy combined with fenestration. Results: Among the 15 cases at non-symptom or slight symptom stage, one had primary hepatic carcinoma simultaneously and died 4 mouths after diagnosis; the rest 14 case were followed up for a mean of (42.8±37.9) months; 12 of them had slow progression and 2 had rapid progression of APLD; the latter 2 cases received operatioa The 24 cases at obvious symptom stage were treated by partial hepatectomy combined with fenestration. There were no perioperation deathes and the mean follow-up period was (61.4±43.0) months; 2 cases died of renal failure and 3 had post-operation recurrence. Two of the 4 cases at the lethal symptom stage were treated by partial hepatectomy combined with fenestration: one had no symptom relieve after operation and one developed hepatic dysfunction and received liver transplantation 8 months after operation; the other 2 patients received percutaneous cyst aspiration at the outpatient department, one patient died of upper gastrointestinal hemorrhage 5 months later, and one had the symptom slightly relieved. Conclusion: Our classification of APLD can help to select treatments for patients: patients at non-symptom or slight symptom stage should be followed up, those at the obvious symptom stage can be treated surgically, and those at the lethal symptom stage are not suitable for routine operation and liver transplantation may be the best choice for them.
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<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To explore the application of transrectal high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) for treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>From Dec. 2002 to Dec. 2006, 262 BPH patients underwent transrectal HIFU ablative therapy. After the treatment, IPSS, QOL score, peak uroflow rate and prostatic volume measured by TRUS were used for evaluation.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>After 1 to 3 years' follow-up, IPSS, QOL score, and prostatic volume all decreased, while the peak uroflow rate increased obviously (P<0.01). Mild hematuria was noted in all the cases after the treatment, and epididymitis was found in 7 cases (2.7%), short-term hematospermia in 66 cases (25.2%), retrograde ejaculation in 35 cases (13.4%), and urethro-rectal fistula in 1 case (0.3%). No urinary incontinence was found in these cases. TURP was performed in 18 cases (6.8%) in 3 years after the treatment due to an excessively large volume of the prostates or bladder neck contracture.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>HIFU is effective and safe in the treatment of BPH which causes minimal invasion, absence of intraoperative bleeding, good tolerance and few complications, and is especially suitable in elderly patients.</p>
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Aged , Aged, 80 and over , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound Ablation , Methods , Prostatic Hyperplasia , Therapeutics , Treatment OutcomeABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To evaluate therapeutical effect of combined hepatic resection and fenestration on patients with severe adult polycystic liver disease (APLD).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Preoperative clinical symptoms, postoperative complications and prognoses from 33 patients with severe adult polycystic liver disease (APLD) treated with combined hepatic resection and fenestration were recorded. According to the number and location of cysts before surgery and the remnant liver parenchyma after operation, all patients were classified into two types: class A and B. And patients in each type were further classified into three grades: Grade I, II and III. The frequency of postoperative complications of two types patients was compared.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The mean follow-up time was 57 months. There were three patients with recurrence of symptoms at 81, 68 and 43 mouths after operation. Two patients died of renal failure due to polycystic kidney disease at 137 and 85 mouths after operation. And one patient with postoperative hepatic inadequacy received an orthotopic liver transplantation. The total number of patients with postoperative complications was 26 cases, including one patient with bleeding, two patients with bile leakage, fourteen patients with mild ascites, twelve patients with severe ascites and eighteen patients with pleural effusion, and the overall incidence was 78.8%. There were 22 patients with imaging data, including 6 patients within A type and sixteen patients within B type. The frequencies of postoperative complications were 4 and 31, respectively, and the difference was statistically significant (Chi-square test = 4.99, P less than 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Combined hepatic resection and fenestration is a safe and acceptable procedure for the treatment of severe APLD.</p>
Subject(s)
Adult , Aged , Female , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Ascites , Epidemiology , Cysts , Diagnostic Imaging , Pathology , General Surgery , Follow-Up Studies , Hepatectomy , Methods , Liver , Diagnostic Imaging , Pathology , General Surgery , Liver Diseases , Diagnostic Imaging , Pathology , General Surgery , Pleural Effusion , Epidemiology , Postoperative Complications , Epidemiology , Prognosis , Recurrence , Retrospective Studies , Severity of Illness Index , Tomography, X-Ray Computed , Treatment OutcomeABSTRACT
@#ObjectiveTo investigate the effective approach for the treatment of detrusor underactivity. Methods98 patients with detrusor underactivity were randomly divided into electrotherapy group (electroacupuncture, interference current stimulation, n=32), medicine group (n=32) and electrotherapy-medicine group (n=34). The patients were assessed with examination of urodynamics and clinical parameters before and after treatment. ResultsThe detrusor strength were stronger after treatment in all the 3 groups (P<0.001), but electrotherapy-medicine group was more stronger than the other 2 groups (P<0.01). The cure rate in the 3 groups were 68.75%, 59.38% and 88.23% respectively, the patients in electrotherapy-medicine group gained significantly better results than the other 2 groups (x2=9.976, P<0.01). The difference of cure rate between the electrotherapy group and the medicine group was not significant (P>0.05). ConclusionElectric stimulation therapy combined with medicine is an effective intervention for treatment of detrusor underactivity and is better than electric stimulation therapy or drugs only.
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<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To explore the secure resection margin (RM) of hepatectomy for primary liver cancer (PLC) with the coexistence of cirrhosis or hepatitis by studying the correlations of the resected liver parenchyma volume with postoperative liver function, complication and RM clinically.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The volume of tumor and the surrounding liver in resected liver specimen was measured and calculated in continuous 76 PLC patients prospectively, and the total liver parenchyma volume was measured and calculated using computed tomography (CT) images in former 40 patients. Under ideal circumstances, the surrounding liver volume, which would be resected theoretically, was calculated according to various sizes of tumors and RMs. The correlations of the resected liver volume or hepatic parenchyma-resected rate (HPRR) with postoperative liver function, complication and RM were analysed.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The RM was (5 +/- 7) mm in 76 patients. The volume of the tumors and the surrounding liver in the specimens were (107 +/- 203) cm(3) and (153 +/- 120) cm(3), respectively. In 40 patients, the total nontumorous liver volume using CT images was (1079 +/- 179) cm(3), and HPRR was (14 +/- 9)%. There were statistically significant differences in HPRR (P < 0.05) between three groups with complication score 0, 1-2 and 3-6 points, the value of the first group were lower than that of the third group at the level P < 0.05. The significant factors affecting liver function and complication are HPRR, the size of operation, the time of hepatic portal occlusion and the resected liver volume (P < 0.05) apart from preoperative liver function.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>When hepatectomy was performed in PLC patients with preoperative liver function of Child A grade and the coexistence of cirrhosis or hepatitis, 30% HPRR was a lower limit for greatly increasing the chance of developing serious postoperative complications, while 20% HPRR was a safe upper limit for achieves quick postoperative recovery or developing only a few mild complications. When PLC patients without macroscopic tumor thrombi or macrosatellites undergo hepatectomy, 10 mm RM is enough to ensure sufficient liver function residue and achieve complete micrometastasis clearance in liver parenchyma surrounding the lesion if the diameter of a tumor is less than 10 cm and 6 mm RM is enough to ensure sufficient liver function residue and obtain 99% micrometastasis clearance if the diameter of a tumor is greater than 10 cm, while with macroscopic tumor thrombi or macrosatellites, 20 mm RM is enough to ensure sufficient liver function residue and achieve 99% micrometastasis clearance if the diameter of a tumor is less than 6 cm.</p>