Early efficacy of water sac blocking versus Heartstring for proximal anastomosis during off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting / 中华胸心血管外科杂志

Objective:To compare the early effect of water sac blocking and Heartstring for proximal anastomosis of the calcific ascending aorta.Methods:The data of 400 consecutive patients undergoing elective off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting(OPCABG) in Beijing Anzhen Hospital from January 2022 to June 2022 were retrospectively analyzed. 46 patients with calcific ascending aorta including 40 males and 6 females, with the age ranged from 53 to 73 years and an average of(65.2±5.1) years, who were revealed by preoperative chest CT scan and intraoperative palpation. According to the method of proximal anastomosis, the patients were divided into 2 groups: water sac blocking group(n=19) and Heartstring group(n=27). The effect of preventing postoperative stroke was compared by counting the incidence of postoperative stroke. The efficacy of the 2 methods was compared by detecting the flow and pulsatility fraction of the saphenous vein trunk during surgery, observing the dynamic changes of the electrocardiogram and cTnI level within 48h after the surgery, and reviewing the coronary CTA 3 months after discharge.Results:There was no perioperative death, and all the patients were discharged 4-13 days postoperatively. No adverse events such as stroke and malignant ventricular arrhythmia occurred during perioperative period. 1 patient in each group developed low cardiac output syndrome postoperatively, and both improved after IABP placement. 1 patient in Heartstring group developed acute inferior myocardial infarction, which was improved after IABP placement. Coronary CTA 3 months after operation showed that there was no proximal anastomotic stenosis in both groups.Conclusion:There is no significant difference between the 2 proximal anastomosis methods in preventing stroke after OPCABG in patients with ascending aortic calcification. Compared with Heartstring, water sac blocking does not increase the risk of proximal anastomotic stenosis. In addition, water sac blocking does not require expensive consumables, which is especially suitable for patients with limited funds and can be generalized.

Astaxanthine attenuates cisplatin ototoxicity in vitro and protects against cisplatin-induced hearing loss in vivo

Astaxanthine (AST) has important biological activities including antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects that could alleviate neurological and heart diseases, but its role in the prevention of cisplatin-induced hearing loss (CIHL) is not yet well understood. In our study, a steady interaction between AST and the E3 ligase adapter Kelch-like ECH-associated protein 1, a predominant repressor of nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (NRF2), was performed and tested via computer molecular docking and dynamics. AST protected against cisplatin-induced ototoxicity via NRF2 mediated pathway using quantitative PCR and Western blotting. The levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and mitochondrial membrane potential revealed that AST reduced ROS overexpression and mitochondrial dysfunction. Moreover, AST exerted anti-apoptosis effects in mouse cochlear explants using immunofluorescence staining and HEI-OC1 cell lines using quantitative PCR and Western blotting. Finally, AST combined with poloxamer was injected into the middle ear through the tympanum, and the protection against CIHL was evaluated using the acoustic brain stem test and immunofluorescent staining in adult mice. Our results suggest that AST reduced ROS overexpression, mitochondrial dysfunction, and apoptosis via NRF2-mediated pathway in cisplatin-exposed HEI-OC1 cell lines and mouse cochlear explants, finally promoting cell survival. Our study demonstrates that AST is a candidate therapeutic agent for CIHL.

Evaluation Deviation of Round-Window Stimulation Based on Basilar Membrane Response / 医用生物力学

Objective To study the accuracy of traditional basilar membrane displacement evaluation criteria for evaluating hearing compensation performance of round window-stimulated middle ear implant, so as to provide the theoretical basis for performance evaluation of round window-stimulated middle ear implant. Methods An acoustic microscopic finite element model of cochlea was constructed based on experimental data of the cochlea geometry. Reliability of this model was verified by comparison with experimental measurement values of inner hair cell, outer hair cell, tectorial membrane displacement. Based on this model, the displacement of basilar membrane and the stereocilia shear displacement of inner hair cells under forward stimulation and round-window stimulation were comparatively analyzed. Using the stereocilia shear displacement of inner hair cells as the criterion for sense of sound, the equivalent sound pressure level (SPL) deviation under round-window stimulation was studied when using traditional basilar membrane displacement as evaluation criterion. Results At 5 kHz characteristic frequency of the studied slice of cochlea, under sound pressures with the same amplitude, the displacement of basilar membrane and the stereocilia shear displacement of inner hair cells under round-window stimulation were lower than that under forward stimulation. Conclusions Under forward stimulation, the inner hair cells were more excited and the performance for sense of sound was better than that under round-window stimulation. Concurrently, using the displacement of basilar membrane under forward stimulation as the criterion of hearing compensation performance would overestimate hearing compensation performance of middle ear implant under round-window stimulation; but the deviation was relatively small, which was a relatively reliable evaluation method.

Research on computer aided diagnosis of otitis media based on faster region convolutional neural network / 生物医学工程学杂志

Otitis media is one of the common ear diseases, and its accurate diagnosis can prevent the deterioration of conductive hearing loss and avoid the overuse of antibiotics. At present, the diagnosis of otitis media mainly relies on the doctor's visual inspection based on the images fed back by the otoscope equipment. Due to the quality of otoscope equipment pictures and the doctor's diagnosis experience, this subjective examination has a relatively high rate of misdiagnosis. In response to this problem, this paper proposes the use of faster region convolutional neural networks to analyze clinically collected digital otoscope pictures. First, through image data enhancement and preprocessing, the number of samples in the clinical otoscope dataset was expanded. Then, according to the characteristics of the otoscope picture, the convolutional neural network was selected for feature extraction, and the feature pyramid network was added for multi-scale feature extraction to enhance the detection ability. Finally, a faster region convolutional neural network with anchor size optimization and hyperparameter adjustment was used for identification, and the effectiveness of the method was tested through a randomly selected test set. The results showed that the overall recognition accuracy of otoscope pictures in the test samples reached 91.43%. The above studies show that the proposed method effectively improves the accuracy of otoscope picture classification, and is expected to assist clinical diagnosis.

Numerical study on the effect of middle ear malformations on energy absorbance / 生物医学工程学杂志

In order to study the effect of middle ear malformations on energy absorbance, we constructed a mechanical model that can simulate the energy absorbance of the human ear based on our previous human ear finite element model. The validation of this model was confirmed by two sets of experimental data. Based on this model, three common types of middle ear malformations,

Distal anastomosis support for bypass grafting for the small posterior descending artery / 中华胸心血管外科杂志

Objective:To describe a distal anastomosis support (DAS) technique, and retrospectively investigate the effect of DAS on the mid-term graft patency of patient with small posterior descending artery.Methods:Between January and December 2016, 100 patients with triple-vessel disease and small PDA who continuously underwent off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting (OPCABG) (OPCABG group, n=50) and OPCABG with DAS for anastomosis of PDA grafted by saphenous vein (SVG) (OPCABG+ DAS group, n=50) were evaluated retrospectively. The dynamic changes of electrocardiogram and TnI level were observed within 48h after the surgery. All patients came back to follow-up visit 6th, 12th, 24th and 36th postoperative month. The primary endpoint was the graft failure (FitzGibbon B or O) of SVG-PDA on the follow-up CTA.Results:There was no death during the operation. There was no acute inferior wall myocardial infarction confirmed by electrocardiogram. Peak TnI within 48h of surgery was 0.74(0.98)ng/ml vs. 0.92(1.29)ng/ml, P>0.05, and the number of patients with peak TnI≥70×ULN was 3(6%, 3/50) vs.5(10%, 5/50), P>0.05. There was no postoperative death, and all the patients were discharged 5-15 days postoperatively. We found significantly improved cumulative graft patency in OPCABG+ DAS group at 36 months after operation [85.7%(42/49) vs. 68.0%(34/50), P<0.05). In multivariate logistic regression analysis, PDA with atherosclerotic lesions ( OR=6.513, 95% CI: 1.279-33.180, P=0.024), and peak TnI≥70×ULN within 48 h of surgery ( OR=5.948, 95% CI: 1.128-31.368, P=0.036) were independent predictors of graft failure, whereas concomitant DAS ( OR=0.222, 95% CI: 0.069-0.713, P=0.011) was significant protective factor. Conclusion:Concomitant DAS conferred superior mid-term patency of SVG-PDA in patients with small PDA. Adding the DAS procedure to OPCABG may be a promising surgical option for small PDA with atherosclerotic lesions.

Numerical analysis of the influence of otitis media on the hearing compensation performance of round-window stimulation / 生物医学工程学杂志

In order to study the influence of tympanic membrane lesion and ossicular erosion caused by otitis media on the hearing compensation performance of round-window stimulation, a human ear finite element model including cochlear asymmetric structure was established by computed tomography (CT) technique and reverse engineering technique. The reliability of the model was verified by comparing with the published experimental data. Based on this model, the tympanic membrane lesion and ossicular erosion caused by otitis media were simulated by changing the corresponding tissue structure. Besides, these simulated diseases' effects on the round-window stimulation were studied by comparing the corresponding basilar-membrane's displacement at the frequency-dependent characteristic position. The results show that the thickening and the hardening of the tympanic membrane mainly deteriorated the hearing compensation performance of round-window stimulation in the low frequency; tympanic membrane perforation and the minor erosion of ossicle with ossicular chain connected slightly effected the hearing compensation performance of round-window stimulation. Whereas, different from the influence of the aforementioned lesions, the ossicular erosion involving the ossicular chain detachment increased its influence on performance of round-window stimulation at the low frequency. Therefore, the effect of otitis media on the hearing compensation performance of round-window stimulation should be considered comprehensively when designing its actuator, especially the low-frequency deterioration caused by the thickening and the hardening of the tympanic membrane; the actuator's low-frequency output should be enhanced accordingly to ensure its postoperative hearing compensation performance.

A comparative study of individual and sequential saphenous vein grafts instantaneous flow in posterior descending ar-tery / 中华胸心血管外科杂志

Objective To evaluate the mean blood flow(MF) and pulsatility index(PI) of individual and sequential sa-phenous vein grafts in posterior descending artery(PDA) in the same patient undergone off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting (OPCABG).Methods 140 patients with coronary artery disease were studied.Sequential surgical technique using single large saphenous vein was used in grafts of diagnostic artery(DIAG)(side-side), obtuse marginal artery(OM)(side-side), and PDA( end-side) .Bulldog clamps were used to temporarily arrest the anastomoses of DIAG and OM near the large saphenous vein .Thus the sequential graft became to the single graft , the MF and PI of PDA were recorded in the simulating single graft by the transit-time flow measurement(TTFM), after that, bulldog clamps were removed and the MF and PI of PDA were recorded again in the real sequential graft.The data were compared.Six months later after surgery, coronary CTA were done in all pa-tients in clinic.Results The MF of single graft and sequential graft was(22.5 ±13.1)ml/min and(22.2 ±12.9)ml/min(P>0.05).The PI of single graft and sequential graft was 2.43 ±0.94 and 2.38 ±0.88(P>0.05).The patency of all grafts is good in all patients after 6 months follows-up.Conclusion There ars no hemodynamic differences between individual and sequential grafts in PDA.It is reasonable that the short-term surgical result is the same in individual and sequential grafts in PDA.

Low power consumption structure design of an incus-stimulating middle ear implant based on piezoelectric stack / 医用生物力学

Objective To improve the design plan and get a piezoelectric actuator with displacement magnification structure,so as to reduce power consumption of the existing incus-stimulating piezoelectric actuator for middle ear implant.Methods Based on anatomical structure of human ear,the piezoelectric actuator with displacement magnification structure,and the one only composed of piezoelectric stack were designed,respectively,then the corresponding coupled mechanical models of the middle ear with the piezoelectric actuator were established.By comparing the calculation results from the two types of coupled mechanical models,the hearing compensation property and power consumption of the actuator before and after the implantation with the displacement magnification structure were analyzed.Results After adding the displacement magnification structure,the sound pressure level (SPL) at 1 kHz frequency was increased from 100 dB to 113 dB when the piezoelectric actuator was stimulated by 10.5 V effective voltages.In addition,for the piezoelectric stack,its power consumption at the frequency of 1,2 and 4 kHz were 6.42,1.56 and 0.28 mW,respectively;after introducing the displacement magnification structure,the power consumption at the above-mentioned 3 frequencies decreased to 0.39,0.09 and 0.01 mW,respectively.Conclusions Piezoelectric actuator with displacement magnification structure in this study can improve hearing compensation ability of the incus-stimulating middle ear implant,and effectively reduce the power consumption.The research findings will help to further improve the structure design of middle ear implant,thus achieving better hearing compensation effect.

Long term outcomes of posterior leaflet triangular resectionvalvuloplasty formitral valve regurgitation / 中华胸心血管外科杂志

Objective To explorethe long-term prognosis of the triangular resectionvalvuloplasty for posterior mitral valve prolapse and provide a reference for the clinical treatment.Methods We retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of 61 pa-tients with posterior mitral valve prolapse underwent the mitral valvuloplasty in our hospital from Match 2008 to December 2016.30 patients who underwent triangular resection for posterior mitral valve prolapse.31 patients who underwentstandard quadrangular resection.The cardiac functional parameters and condition of mitral regurgitation were compared among the period of preoperation,discharging and follow-up.Results The mean follow-up period was 42 ±34(3-106)months.left atrium and left ventricular diameter were decreased(P<0.05).Inresrarch group,there was 1 patient who have moderate regurgitation,ar-rhythmia is one.In control group,there was arrhythmia in 1 cases,moderate regurgitation in 2 cases and death in 1 cases.Rate of freedom from reregurgitation was(97 ±6)% in research group and was(97 ±4)% in control group.There was no SAM in two groups.There were no significant differences of survival or risk of reoperation.There was a statistic difference of NYHA classification of cardiac function in the phase of follow-up than that of discharging(P<0.05).Conclusion Triangular resec-tion of a prolapsed posterior mitral leaflet is a simplified,reliable, reproducible, and durable procedure,like quadrangular re-section of a prolapsed posterior leaflet.

"""No Touch"" ostial cardioplegia delivery for aortic valve replacement" / 中华胸心血管外科杂志

Objective To summary and explore the indications,safety and effectiveness of no touch ostial cardioplegia delivery method during aortic valve replacement(AVR) for severe aortic insufficiency(AI),in order to provide guidance for clinical application.Methods Between September 2012 and February 2015,63 cases were randomly divided into two groups,in study group we used this technique in 31 patients with a mean age of(58.0 ± 15.0) years and a range of 31 to 74 years old.The degree of AI averaged (3.5 ± 0.5) according to a semiquantitative 5-grade scale[1].32 patients were enrolled in control group with a mean age of(60.4 ± 9.4) years and a range of 22 to 73 years old.The degree of AI averaged (3.6 ± 0.5).The abnormal aortic cusps were sutured though the aortic incision,which would be closed temporarily.Blood cardioplegia was infused repeatedly into the coronary osita through the closed aortic incision during the remainder of the procedure except AVR,when the closed aortic incision was reopened.Results In the study group,spontaneous resumption of nodal and normal sinus rhythm shortly after the removal of aortic cross-clamp was achieved in all patients,no hearts had to be electrically defibrillated and electrocardiogram showed no obvious S-T segment elevation.The time from cross-clamp removal to sinus rhythm was(12.3 ± 7.7) minutes in the study group,versus (18.6 ± 8.2) minutes in the control group(P =0.037).No operative mortality occurred in both groups.There was a significant increase in left ventricular ejection fraction[from(0.54 ± 0.09) preoperatively to(0.62 ± 0.06) postoperatively] (P =0.005) in patients of the study group,which was not seen in patients of the control group.Conclusion Preliminary results have shown that the no touch ostial cardioplegia delivery method is a feasible method for cardioplegia infusion during aortic valve replacement in patients with severe AI.

The progress of research about anatomy of posterolateral wall of maxillary sinus in endoscopic surgery / 临床耳鼻咽喉头颈外科杂志

As an important landmark, the posterolateral wall of maxillary sinus can help to locate numbers of significant signs such as maxillary artery and its branches, maxillary nerve and infraorbital nerve, infratemporal fossa and pterygopalatine fossa etc. in the endoscopic surgery for paranasal sinuses and lateral skull base. This article reviewed related researches about the anatomy and endoscopic surgery of posterolateral wall of maxillary sinus.

Inaccuracy of doppler echocardiographic estimates of pulmonary artery pressures in adult atrial septal defect patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>While echocardiography has been a pivotal screening test in pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), the presence of structural cardiac defects may affect the ability to reliably predict pulmonary artery pressures (PAPs). This study sought to evaluate the accuracy of Doppler echocardiography (DE) for estimating PAPs in adult atrial septal defect (ASD) patients with PAH.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>A prospective study was carried out to compare the echocardiographic assessment of PAP with the same pressures obtained by right heart catheterization (RHC) in adult ASD patients with PAH who underwent simultaneous DE and RHC. Bland-Altman analyses were performed to evaluate the agreement between DE and RHC measurements of PAPs.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Two hundred and fifty-seven patients were included in the study. A significant overestimation of the systolic pulmonary arterial pressure (sPAP) and mean pulmonary artery pressure (mPAP) was reported by echocardiography compared with those by catheterization ((81.8 ± 26.9) mmHg vs. (72.9 ± 26.9) mmHg, P < 0.01; (51.9 ± 16.4) mmHg vs. (41.4 ± 17.2) mmHg, P < 0.01, respectively). Twenty-one percent (55/257) of the patients had PAH when estimated by echocardiography whereas showed normal results in the subsequent catheterization test. Using Bland-Altman analytic methods, the bias for the echocardiographic assessment of the sPAP was 9.1 mmHg with 95% limits of agreement ranging from -24.4 to 42.6 mmHg. For mPAP measurement, the bias was 10.5 mmHg with 95% limits of agreement ranging from -12.4 to 33.4 mmHg. On multiple linear regression analysis, age, gender, body surface area, ASDs' diameter, PVR, diastolic blood pressure, and echocardiographic assessment of right atrial pressure (RAP) explained 68.8% of the total variability in the model (r(2) = 0.688, P < 0.01).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Inaccuracy was frequently reported in Doppler echocardiographic assessment of the PAP in adult ASD patients with PAH and was often associated with age, gender, body surface area, ASDs' diameter, pulmonary vascular resistance, diastolic blood pressure and echocardiographic estimation of RAP.</p>

Effects of iloprost combined with low dose tadalafil in adult congenital heart disease patients with severe pulmonary arterial hypertension: a single-center, open-label controlled study / 中华心血管病杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To evaluate the therapy efficacy of iloprost combined with low dose tadalafil in adult congenital heart disease (CHD) patients with severe pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Adult CHD patients with severe PAH were included and divided into the sequential combination therapy group [iloprost: 10 µg/inhalation, 6 times per day for 6 months, and then add oral tadalafil (5 mg/d) till 12 months, n = 32] and upfront combination therapy group [iloprost: 10 µg/inhalation, 6 times per day combined with oral tadalafil (5 mg) for 12 months, n = 36]. Data on 6 min walking test (6MWT), Borg dyspnea score, oxygen saturation measurement, WHO classification, and cardiac catheterization were obtained at baseline, 6 and 12 months.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Seventy-two patients were enrolled in the study and 68 patients completed the study. Pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR) was significantly reduced in the sequential combination therapy group[ (12.96 ± 6.48 ) Wood U vs. (16.94 ± 8.11) Wood U, P < 0.05] and in the upfront combination therapy group [(12.45 ± 7.32) Wood U vs. (16.73 ± 9.28) Wood U, P < 0.05] while pulmonary blood flow [(6.77 ± 3.17) L/min vs. (5.08 ± 2.36) L/min, P < 0.05; (6.95 ± 3.32) L/min vs. (5.03 ± 2.32) L/min, P < 0.05], the 6 MWD were significantly increased [(458 ± 59) m vs. (427 ± 65) m, P < 0.05; (494 ± 59) m vs. (436 ± 62) m, P < 0.01], the Borg dyspnea score (2.04 ± 0.72 vs. 2.52 ± 0.79, P < 0.05; 1.72 ± 0.73 vs. 2.51 ± 0.77, P < 0.01) was significantly improved in both groups at 6 months compared to baseline levels. In the upfront combination therapy group, venous oxygen saturation [(68.4 ± 9.3)% vs. (62.9 ± 9.5)%, P < 0.05] and systemic oxygen saturation during exercise[ (87.2 ± 9.7)% vs. (83.1 ± 15.6)%, P < 0.05]at 6 months were also significantly improved compared to baseline. At month 12, significantly lowered pulmonary artery pressure, PVR, Rp/Rs and increased pulmonary blood flow and cardiac index were evidenced in both groups compared to baseline.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Iloprost combined with low dose tadalafil regimen can effectively reduce PVR, increase 6MWD, and improve cardiopulmonary function in adults CHD patients with severe PAH. Compared with the sequential therapy regimen, the upfront combination therapy regimen can more rapidly improve the clinical symptoms of patients.</p>

Leaflet enlargement with autologous pericardium for repairing mitral valve disease / 中华胸心血管外科杂志

Objective To evaluate the clinic effect of leaflet enlargement with autologous pericardium in repairing mitral valve disease and to describe the technique and discuss its indications. Methods Between July 2004 and June 2008, 45 pa-tients with isolated mitral valve disease, included stenosis in 10 and regurgitation in 35. The causes were congenital heart dis-ease in 8, rheumatic in 21, degenerative in 7 and endecarditis in 9. The procedures were: posterior leaflet enlargement with autologuus pericardium in 14, anterior leaflet enlargement in 8, both anterior and posterior leaflet enlargement in 23. In addi-tion, eye to eye technique was in 12, artificial chordal in 12, chordal transfer in 6, papillary muscle vepesitioning in 4. Mitral anuuloplasty was performed in all cases. Before and after surgery, cardiac function parameters were compared. Results No operative deaths occurred. One case wastransfered to mitral valve replacement due to regurgation, lntraoperative transesophageal echocardiography showed no mitral regurgitation in 38 and small regurgitation in 6 cases. The mean mitral valve effective orifice area(MVEOA) was (2.8±0.6) cm~2, with a mean gradient pressure of (6.21±1.34) mm Hg after operation. The mean followed up was ( 18.0±2.1 ) months. Echocardiography study showed that no mitral regurgitation in 35 cases, slight regurgi-tation in 9, mean mitral effective orifice area was (2.5±0. 8 ) cm~2, mean gradient pressure of (7.21±0. 45 ) mm Hg, no one need reoperation. Postoperative cardiac functions were significantly improved: the average left ventricular end-diastolic diameter (LVEDD) was (48±7) mm [ preoperative (56±6) nun, P <0.05], ejection fraction (EF) was 0.51～0.24( preoperative 0.45± 0.23, P < 0.05 ), the average left atrium diameter ( LA ) was ( 50±11 ) mm [ preoperative ( 62±23 ) mm, P <0. 05 ]. The function of mitral valves was well performed. Conclusion Leaflet enlargement with autologous pericardium com-bined with mitral annuloplasty was effective in repairing of diseased mitral valve. The advantages of the procedure including simplicity, good compatibility, avoiding foreign body and no need for anticoagulation.

Preliminary Clinical Study of Real-time Three-dimensional Echocardiographic Volume-time Curve in Evaluating Left Ventricular Diastolic Function / 华中科技大学学报（医学）（英德文版）

The volume-time curve change in patients with normal left ventricular (LV) diastolic function and diastolic dysfunction was evaluated by real-time three-dimensional echocardiography (RT3DE). LV diastolic dysfunction was defined by E'＜A' in pulse-wave tissue Doppler for inter-ventricular septal (IVS) of mitral annulus. In 24 patients with LV diastolic dysfunction, including 12 patients with delayed relaxation (delayed relaxation group) and 12 patients with pseudo-normal function (pseudo-normal group) and 24 normal volunteers (control group), data of full-volume image were acquired by real-time three-dimensional echocardiography and subjected to volume-time curve analysis. EDV (end-diastolic volume), ESV (end-systolic volume), LVEF (left ventricular ejection fraction), PER (peak ejection rate), PFR (peak filling rate) from RT3DE were examined in the three groups. Compared to the control group, PFR (diastolic filling index of RT3DE) was significantly reduced in the delayed relaxation group and pseudo-normal group (P＜0.05). There were no significant differences in EDV, ESV, LVEF, PER (P＞0.05). It is concluded that PFR, as a diastolic filling index of RT3DE, can reflect the early diastolic function and serve as a new non-invasive, quick and accurate tool for clinical assessment of LV diastolic function.

Preliminary clinical study of real-time three-dimensional echocardiographic volume-time curve in evaluating left ventricular diastolic function / 华中科技大学学报（医学）（英德文版）

The volume-time curve change in patients with normal left ventricular (LV) diastolic function and diastolic dysfunction was evaluated by real-time three-dimensional echocardiography (RT3DE). LV diastolic dysfunction was defined by E'0.05). It is concluded that PFR, as a diastolic filling index of RT3DE, can reflect the early diastolic function and serve as a new non-invasive, quick and accurate tool for clinical assessment of LV diastolic function.

Comparison study between transcatheter closure and surgical repair in over 50-year old patients with secundum atrial septal defect / 中华胸心血管外科杂志

Objective: The aim of this study is to compare the clinical data and result between transcatheter closure and surgical repair for the treatments of secundum ASD in patients above 50 years old, and explore the indications for these two methods. Methods: From January 1998 to December 2003, 53 patients with surgical repair and 42 patients with transcatheter closure were enlisted according to the diagnosis of ASD. The ages of all of cases were above 50 years old. The interventional approach was administrated with Amplatzer device. The surgical approach mended the defect directly or with autologous pericardium. These patients were followed up by echocardiography (Echo). The clinical data including the diameter of the right ventricle (RVD), the pulmonic flow velocity, the pulmonary pressure and the tricuspid valve regurgitation. Results: In surgery group, surgical mortality was 1 9% (1/53). Cerebral embolism occurred in 4 (7 5%) patients. Pericardial effusion and other complications occurred in 24.5%. All 42 patients with ASD were effectively closed with Amplatzer occlude. One occluder displaced and moved into pulmonary artery on the fourth day after the treatment. The short term effective rate was 97 6% in transcatheter closure group. The diameter of ASD showed by Echo was significantly less in patients treated with transcatheter closure than that in surgical repair group. The hospitalization time was significantly less in patients treated with transcatheter closure. The follow up data recorded decreased load of right ventricle, the decreased diameter of right ventricle as well as the relief of pulmonary artery hypertension. Conclusion: The data suggested that of surgical approach of ASD has a wider indication for patients in different stages of the disease, whereas surgical morbidity may increase in elderly patients due to their pre existed diseases. However, the transcatheter closure for ASD is feasible for patients with smaller defects.

Echocardiographic manifestations of cardiac valve involvement in Behcet's disease / 中国实用内科杂志

Objective To improve the understanding of cardiac valve involvement in Behcet's disease (BD).Methods The echocardiographic manifestations of 13 patients with BD were analysed and the results of 5 patients were compared with those of operation.Results Cardiac valve involvement wasn't rare.In the study,cardiac valve involvement was observed in 26% (13/50) of patients with BD.The principal manifestations of cardiac valve involvement were valve prolapse,perforation,split and regurgitation.Four (80%) patients had repeated operation.Conclusion Echocardiography provides the important information of valvular morphology and function in BD.

Two types of rareechocardiographic manifestation in the patients with constrictive pericarditis and its clinical significance / 中国实用内科杂志

Objective To evaluate the unusual echocardiographic manifestation and its clinical value in the patients with constrictive pericarditis (CP). Methods To analyse the echocardiographic manifestation of CP in 187 patients retrospectively, especially left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) and variation with respiration (VER) in mitral E velocity. Results Most of the patients with CP expressed the common echocardiographic features of CP. But some unusual echocardiographic signs were revealed. (1)LVEF