Follow-up study of preterm infants with thyroid dysfunction after medication / 中国当代儿科杂志

OBJECTIVES@#To study the effect of levothyroxine sodium tablets on the growth and development and thyroid function in preterm infants with thyroid dysfunction.@*METHODS@#A retrospective analysis was performed for 82 preterm infants who were born in the Department of Obstetrics of the First People's Hospital of Yunnan Province, from January 1, 2013 to December 31, 2017, and these infants were hospitalized after birth in the Department of Neonatology of the hospital. They were regularly followed up to observe growth and development and thyroid function at the outpatient service of the Department of Neonatology. According to thyroid function test results, they were divided into an abnormal thyroid function group (observation group; @*RESULTS@#There were no significant differences in physical development indices (body length, body weight, and head circumference) between the observation and control groups at various gestational ages after follow-up to the corrected age of 12 months (@*CONCLUSIONS@#Early diagnosis and reasonable treatment can reduce the impact on growth and development in preterm infants with thyroid dysfunction. Most preterm infants tend to have transient thyroid dysfunction, while those with positive results of neonatal screening are more likely to develop permanent thyroid dysfunction.

Association of copy number of SMN1 and SMN2 with clinical phenotypes in children with spinal muscular atrophy / 中国当代儿科杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To study the association of copy number of SMN1 and SMN2 with clinical phenotypes in children with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA).@*METHODS@#A total of 45 children with SMA were enrolled. Multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification was used to measure the gene copy numbers of SMN1 and SMN2. The association of copy number of SMN1 and SMN2 with clinical phenotypes was analyzed.@*RESULTS@#Of the 45 children with SMA, 42 (93%) had a homozygous deletion of SMN1 exons 7 and 8, and 3 (7%) had a deletion of SMN1 exon 7 alone. No association was found between SMA clinical types and the deletion types of SMN1 exons 7 and 8 (P>0.05). There was a significant difference in the distribution of SMN2 gene copy numbers between the children with SMA and the healthy children (P<0.05). The children with SMA usually had two or three copies of SMN2 gene, while the healthy children usually had one or two copies of SMN2 gene. There was a significant difference in the distribution of SMN2 copy numbers among the children with different SMA clinical types (P<0.05). The children with two copies of SMN2 gene had a significantly lower age of onset than those with three or four copies. Most of the children with type I SMA had two or three copies of SMN2 gene. Most of the children with type II SMA had three copies of SMN2 gene. Most of the children with type III SMA had three or four copies of SMN2 gene. Children with a higher copy number of SMN2 gene tended to have an older age of onset and better motor function and clinical outcome, and there was a significant association between SMN2 gene copy number and clinical outcome (P<0.05).@*CONCLUSIONS@#The SMN2 gene can reduce the severity of SMA via the dosage compensation effect. SMN2 copy number is associated with the phenotype of SMA, and therefore, it can be used to predict disease severity.

Clinical monitoring of chromosome karyotype and fusion gene expression after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation in chronic myelocytic leukemia / 中国组织工程研究

BACKGROUND:It has been reported that 70％ of patients with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) are negative for cytogenetic and genetic markers within 1-5 months after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT),but there are still some patients who have repeatedly varied outcomes in cytogenetic and genetic marker detection.Overall,the negative rate is up to 89.5％ at 3-12 months after allo-HSCT.OBJECTIVE:To monitor the changes in cytogenetic and genetic marker expression and to explore the prognostic significance in CML patients undergoing allo-HSCT.METHODS:Seventeen CML patients who had undergone allo-HSCT were enrolled.Chromosome G banding pattern of the bone marrow from these patients were analyzed using short-term culture method and direct method at 30 days,2,3,4,6,12,24,36,48,60,72 months after allo-HSCT.Dual-color fluorescence in situ hybridization was used to detect bcr-abl fusion gene;bcr-abl expressions in primary bone marrow ceils from CML patients were detected using RQ-PCR.Results and conclusion:There were 8/17 cases of male patient/male donor and 7/17cases of male patient/female donor (compatriots).46XX karyotype (women) was detected by multiple reexaminations after transplantation,and there was no Y chromosome or other aberration of chromosome karyotype in their karyotype.Among the 17 cases,1 case of female patient/female donor (compatriots) and 1 case of female patient/male donor (unrelated) manifested 46 XY chromosome karyotype and bcr-abl positive at 1 month after transplantation;after 4 months,these two cases still maintained 46 XY chromosome karyotype but bcr-abl negative;after 4-96 months,the karyotype continued to remain as 46 XY,and bcr-abl (-).Among the 17 cases,1 case of male patient/male donor of full-matched compatriot (brother) manifested that Ph chromosomal bcr-abl gene continuously expressed within 1-12 months after allo-HSCT;then the cases was given donor lymphocyte infusion,and the bcr-abl expression returned to be negative at 48 months after transplantation.To conclude,chromosomal karyotype analysis and bcr-abl fusion gene monitoring provide important reference value for subsequent treatment options and prognosis judgment for CML patients with allo-HSCT.

Analysis of treatment efficacy for congenital hypothyroidism in some regions of Yunnan Province, China / 中国当代儿科杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To observe the effects of initial doses and treatment timing of levothyroxine (L-T4) on the clinical efficacy in children with congenital hypothyroidism (CH).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>This study included 98 children who had an abnormal level of thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) in neonatal screening in four regions of Yunnan Province and who finally had a confirmed diagnosis of CH. They received treatment with L-T4 and were divided into standard dose group (10-15 μg/kg per day) and low dose group (<10 μg/kg per day) by the therapeutic dose of L-T4. Meanwhile, these patients were also classified into two treatment groups based on the starting time of L-T4 treatment, namely under 2 months old group and more than 2 months old group. The thyroid function and physical and neural development were examined before and after treatment.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Compared with the low dose group, the standard dose group had a significantly lower TSH level and a significantly higher free thyroxine (FT4) level at 2 weeks after treatment (P<0.05). There were no significant differences in TSH and FT4 levels at other time points after treatment between the standard and low dose groups (P>0.05). The physical and neural development were not significantly different between the two dose groups before and at all time points after treatment (P>0.05). At all time points after treatment, the levels of TSH and FT4 and physical development were not significantly different between the different starting time groups (P>0.05). However, the Gesell score was significantly higher in the under 2 months old group than in the more than 2 months old group at all time points after treatment (P<0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>The standard dose group has a better treatment outcome than the low dose group, whereas the symptoms of hyperthyroidism deserve close attention. The treatment timing is vital to the neurodevelopment of children with CH. Once diagnosed, the patients should receive treatments immediately.</p>

Gene Analysis of Thalassemia in Han and Dai Ethnic Childbearing-aged Population of Chinese Yunnan Province / 中国实验血液学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the common mutation spectrum of α- and β-thalassemia in Yunnan childbearing-aged population.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The common mutation types of α- or β-globin genes were detected by multiple Gap-PCR and the PCR-reversed dot blotting, and the unknown mutation types were determined by DNA sequencing in DNA samples of hypochromic microcytic anemia patients and carriers who were confirmed to be positive by serologic screaning, then the mutation types of globin in Yunnan population were analyzed statistically.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>A total of 40 kinds of mutation types were detected in 685 detected persons, among them the 3 commonest mutation types of α-globin genes were --(SEA)/αα (49.09%), -α(3.7)/αα (36.67%) and α(CS)α/αα (8.79%), the 3 commonest genetypes of β-globin gene were CD26(GAG>AAG)/N (43.78%), CD41-42(-CTTT)/N (20.1%) and CD17(AAG>TAG)/N (18.9%). There were 348 Han and 212 Dai ethnic persons in 685 cases, but their mutation of globin genes were different between these 2 ethnic groups. The results also showed that the gene mutation types were mostly concentrated in Dai ethnic individuals, since 28 of 38 detected α-β-thalassemia cases were Dai ethnic individuals.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The mutation spectrums of α- and β-globin genes in Yunnan childbearing-aged population are diverse and different from that in other areas of China.</p>

Analysis of neonatal screening results for congenital hypothyroidism in parts of Yunnan Province, China / 中国当代儿科杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To summarize and analyze neonatal screening results for congenital hypothyroidism (CH) in parts of Yunnan Province, China.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>A total of 236 218 newborns (121 463 males and 114 755 females) who were born in Zhaotong City, Qujing City, Lijiang City, and Diqing Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of Yunnan Province, China, between July 2012 and April 2014 were screened for CH. The original blood smear was re-tested if the thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) level in heel blood was ≥8 μIU/L in the initial screening. The newborns with positive TSH results were called back for further diagnosis by measuring blood TSH and free thyroxine (FT4) levels.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Among 236 218 newborns, the pass rate of blood smears, re-acquisition rate of unqualified blood smears, and recall rate of suspected cases were 96.67%, 81.75%, and 73.02%, respectively. Sixty-six cases of CH were confirmed, among which 36 were male infants and 30 were female infants (P>0.05). The incidence rate of CH was 1/3 579, which was significantly lower than the national average rate (1/2 034; P<0.01). The gestational age of CH newborns was mostly between 37 to 42 weeks, and only 3% were born at a gestational age of >42 weeks. Most of the CH newborns had normal birth weight. The CH newborns with a body length of <50 cm accounted for 32%.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>The incidence of CH in Yunnan Province is lower than the national average. There are no specific clinical features in CH newborns. The neonatal screening in Yunnan Province needs further improvement.</p>