Diagnostic Value of CT Delayed Phase Images Added to Gd-EOB-DTPA MRI for HCC Diagnosis in LR-3/4 Lesions.

Objective: To explore the potential value of gadolinium-ethoxybenzyl-diethylenetriamine pentaacetic acid (Gd-EOB-DTPA) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in the diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in LR-3/4 lesions by adding computed tomography (CT) delayed images based on the Liver Imaging Reporting And Data System (LI-RADS). Methods: The differences in clinical and imaging characteristics between hepatocellular carcinoma and non-HCC were compared, and logistic regression was used to analyze the imaging risk factors for the diagnosis of HCC. Based on the main and HCC-specific auxiliary features of Gd-EOB-DTPA MRI, the HCC diagnostic model 1 was established, and the diagnostic efficacy was analyzed. Based on model 1, delayed phase CT images were added to establish model 2 to find reliable predictors of HCC diagnosis. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis and the DeLong test were used to compare the two models. Results: There was a significant difference in serum AFP between HCC and non-HCC (P = 0.008). Based on main and HCC-specific auxiliary features of Gd-EOB-DTPA MRI, enhancing capsule (OR = 0.197, 95% CI = 0.06-0.595, P = 0.005) and washout (OR = 10.345, 95% CI = 3.460-30.930, P < 0.001) were independent risk factors in Model 1. After adding CT delayed-phase images to build model 2, enhancing capsule (OR = 0.132, 95% CI = 0.139-0.449, P = 0.001), MRI and (or) CT washout (OR = 0.052, 95% CI = 0.016-0.172, P < 0.001) were reliable predictors for HCC diagnosis. The AUC of model 1 was 0.808, sensitivity was 63.46%, and specificity was 85.00%. The AUC of model 2 was 0.854, the sensitivity was 71.20%, and the specificity was 85.00%. DeLong test (P = 0.040) demonstrated the diagnostic efficacy of model 2 significantly superior than model 1. Conclusion: Tumor washout and enhanced capsule are reliable factors for the diagnosis of HCC. Gd-EOB-DTPA MRI with delayed phase CT images can improve the sensitivity and diagnostic efficiency of HCC in LR-3/4 lesions on the premise of maintaining high specificity. Future studies are required to reinforce our finding.

Clinical Study on the Relationship between Gene Mutation Profile and Prognosis in Pediatric Acute Lymphocyte Leukemia / 中国实验血液学杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To analyze the gene mutation profile in children with acute lymphocyte leukemia (ALL) and to explore its prognostic significance.@*METHODS@#Clinical data of 249 primary pediatric ALL patients diagnosed and treated in the Department of Hematological Oncology of Wuhan Children's Hospital from January 2018 to December 2021 were analyzed retrospectively. Next-generation sequencing (NGS) was used to obtain gene mutation data and analyze the correlation between it and the prognosis of children with ALL.@*RESULTS@#227 (91.2%) were B-ALL, 22 (8.8%) were T-ALL among the 249 cases, and 178 (71.5%) were found to have gene mutations, of which 85 (34.1%) had ≥3 gene mutations. NRAS(23.7%), KRAS (22.9%),FLT3(11.2%), PTPN11(8.8%), CREBBP (7.2%), NOTCH1(6.4%) were the most frequently mutated genes, the mutations of KRAS, FLT3, PTPN11, CREBBP were mainly found in B-ALL, the mutations of NOTCH1 and FBXW7 were mainly found in T-ALL. The gene mutation incidence of T-ALL was significantly higher than that of B-ALL (χ2= 5.573，P＜0.05) and were more likely to have co-mutations (P＜0.05). The predicted 4-year EFS rate (47.9% vs 88.5%, P＜0.001) and OS rate (53.8% vs 94.1%, P＜0.001) in children with tp53 mutations were significantly lower than those of patients without tp53 mutations. Patients with NOTCH1 mutations had higher initial white blood cell count （128.64×109/L vs 8.23×109/L，P＜0.001）, and children with NOTCH1 mutations had a lower 4-year EFS rate than those of without mutations (71.5% vs 87.2%, P＝0.037).@*CONCLUSION@#Genetic mutations are prevalent in childhood ALL and mutations in tp53 and NOTCH1 are strong predictors of adverse outcomes in childhood ALL, with NGS contributing to the discovery of genetic mutations and timely adjustment of treatment regimens.

Correlation Analysis between Cerebrospinal Fluid Status and Prognosis in Childhood with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia by Flow Cytometry / 中国实验血液学杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To study the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) status and prognosis value in patients with newly diagnosed acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) by flow cytometry (FCM).@*METHODS@#The clinical features of the 75 newly diagnosed ALL patients from September 2020 to December 2021 in our centre were retrospective analyzed, as well as the bone marrow (BM) and CSF minimal residual disease (MRD) data, and the CSF conventional cytology data. Central nervous system infiltration(CNSI) positive was as CSF MRD positive by FCM or leukemia cells detected by conventional cytology. The status of CSF were compared and analyzed by FCM and conventional cytology, the clinical features and the prognosis value of different CNSI status in these patients were analyzed.@*RESULTS@#Among 75 newly diagnosed ALL, 16 cases (21%) with CNSI positive (CNSI+) were detected by FCM, while only 2 positive cases (3%) were detected by conventional cytology. The CNSI+ rate detected by FCM was significantly higher than conventional cytology(P<0.05). Compared with CNSI- ALL patients, the median age of CNSI+ ALL patients was significantly younger, and the median platelet count was significantly lower, the difference was statistically significant (P<0.05). Up to follow-up time (August 31, 2022), four ALL patients were died, including 3 patients were CNSI- and 1 patient was CNSI+. Furthermore, three cases were primary disease relapse, including 1 case was CNSI+. There was no significant difference in overall survival (OS) rate and relapse-free survival (RFS) rate of the patients with different CNSI status.@*CONCLUSION@#Compared with conventional cytology, FCM is a more sensitive assay to evaluate the central nervous system status in ALL patients. After active treatment, there was no significant difference in OS and RFS between patients with different CNSI status at diagnosis.

Clinical Analysis of Infants with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (18 cases) / 中国实验血液学杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To investigate the clinical features and outcomes of infants (<1 year old) with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (IALL).@*METHODS@#The clinical manifestations, laboratory examination results, treatment and prognosis of 18 infants diagnosed with ALL at our department between January 1, 2014 and August 31, 2022 were retrospectively analyzed.@*RESULTS@#Among the 18 cases of IALL, there were 10 males and 8 females. The median age of patients was 6.5 months old (3 months-11 months old). The median white blood cell count (WBC) was 33.63×109/L ［(3.92-470)×109/L］ at initial diagnosis, including 2 patients with WBC≥300×109/L. Flow cytometric immunophenotyping showed a B-lineage infant ALL in all the 18 patients. Eight of the 18 children had abnormal chromosome karyotype analysis. Fusion gene detection showed 12 KMT2A-rearrangement of 18 patients. 15 patients underwent leukemia related mutation gene screening, among which KRAS, NRAS and FLT3 were the most common mutation genes. 4 patients underwent allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation and two survived. 14 patients received chemotherapy only and ten survived. The 3-year OS rate was (65.5±11.5)%, while the EFS rate was (46.9±12.3)%.@*CONCLUSION@#B-cell ALL and KMT2A rearrangement are prevalent in IALL. The therapeutic effect of IALL with standard childhood ALL protocal is similer to international infant specific protocal.

FcGBP and VCAM-1 are ponderable biomarkers for differential diagnosis of alcoholic liver cirrhosis.

BACKGROUND/ AIMS: Early diagnosis of alcoholic liver cirrhosis (ALD) and coexisting ALD and hepatitis B virus-induced cirrhosis (ALD+HBV) is primordial for an optimal management of these conditions. However, the lack of specific noninvasive biomarkers coupled with the inaccuracy of self-reported alcohol consumption make the early diagnosis of these pathologies difficult. This study aimed to identify biomarkers to diagnose ALD and differentiate ALD+HBV from HBV. METHODS: Proteomics mass spectrometry technique was used to identify specific proteins of ALD by contrasting serums of ALD to that of healthy subjects. The accuracy of the selected proteins in diagnosing ALD and discriminating ALD+HBV from HBV was assessed in two independent cohorts using the area under the receiver operator characteristic curve (AUROC). RESULTS: 452 cirrhotic and normal subjects were enrolled in this study. The proteomic results revealed that FcGBP and VCAM-1 were the highest overexpressed proteins while comparing ALD samples to the healthy cohort. The combination of these two biomarkers had an AUROC of 0.986 (P < 0.001, sensitivity: 97.2%, specificity: 100%) in identifying ALD from the healthy cohort, and AUROC of 0.781 (P < 0.001, sensitivity: 81.8%, specificity: 77.0%) in differentiating ALD+HBV from HBV. This combination was more accurate than the combination of AST/ALT, MCV and GGT (ALD vs healthy, AUROC = 0.898; ALD+HBV vs HBV, AUROC = 0.599). The discrimination performance of this combination was further validated in another independent cohort. CONCLUSION: FcGBP and VCAM-1 are two promising biomarkers in the diagnosis of ALD and in the differentiating of ALD+HBV from HBV subjects.

Effect of alcohol on clinical complications of hepatitis virus-induced liver cirrhosis: a consecutive ten-year study.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Although coexisting alcohol-induced liver disease and hepatitis B or C virus-induced liver cirrhosis (ALD + HBV or ALD + HCV) has been the center of recent hepatology researches, numerous controversies still persist. This study aimed to showcase the influence of alcohol on the laboratory values and on the clinical outcomes of patients with hepatitis B and C virus-induced liver cirrhosis. METHODS: Patients diagnosed with liver cirrhosis (n = 22,287) from January 2010 to December 2019 were enrolled, and divided into five groups according to the etiology: alcohol-induced liver disease (ALD, 1652 cases), hepatitis B virus (HBV, 18,079 cases), hepatitis C virus (HCV, 682 cases), ALD + HBV (1594 cases) and ALD + HCV (280 cases). Laboratory results and proportion of different liver cirrhosis complications were contrasted between groups. RESULTS: The proportions of patients with Child Pugh grade C (28.0% vs 18.8%, P < 0.001) or MELD greater than 18 (24.1% vs 18.5%, P < 0.001) in the ALD + HBV group exceeded significantly those in the HBV group. Multivariate logistic regression revealed that the risk of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and that of esophageal gastric variceal bleeding (EGVB) in the ALD + HBV group was respectively 2.01-fold and 1.74-fold that in the HBV group (HCC: OR = 2.01, 95% CI [1.58-2.55]; EGVB: OR = 1.74, 95% CI [1.30-2.33]) after adjusting for potential confounders. Furthermore, a linear-by-linear analysis test showed a decrease in the risk of HCC and EGVB with the duration of alcohol abstinence. Moreover, patients with both antiviral treatment and alcohol abstinence had the lowest risk of HCC and EGVB (HCC: OR = 0.10, 95% CI [0.05-0.20], P < 0.001; EGVB: OR = 0.17, 95% CI [0.06-0.45], P < 0.001) compared to those without any treatment, those with abstinence alone and those with antiviral therapy alone. Similar pattern was noticed while comparing the ALD + HCV group to the HCV group. CONCLUSION: Heavy alcohol use increased the severity of liver function impairment and the prevalence of HCC and EGVB in hepatitis virus-induced liver cirrhosis patients. Remarkably, long-term alcohol abstinence coupled with antiviral treatment effectively decreased the risk of HCC and EGVB in these populations.

Recurrent and Refractory Langerhans Cell Histiocytosis in Children Treated with the Combination of Cladribine and Cytarabine / 中国实验血液学杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To observe the efficacy and prognosis of cladribine (2-CdA) combined with cytarabine (Ara-C) regimen in the treatment of relapsed refractory Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH) in children.@*METHODS@#Nine patients with relapsed refractory LCH treated with the 2-CdA combined with Ara-C regimen in the Department of Hematology and Oncology of Wuhan Children's Hospital from July 2014 to February 2020 were retrospectively analyzed, and the efficacy and disease status were evaluated according to the Histiocyte Society Evaluation and Treatment Guidelines (2009) and the Disease Activity Score (DAS), the drug toxicity were evaluated according to the World Health Organization（WHO） grading criteria for chemotherapy. All patients were followed up for survival status and disease-related sequelae.@*RESULTS@#Before the treatment combining 2-CdA and Ara-C, 7 of 9 patients were evaluated as active disease worse (ADW), and 2 as active disease stable (ADS) with a median disease activity score of 8 (4-15). Of 9 patients, 6 cases achieved non active disease (NAD) and 3 achieved active disease better (ADB) with a median disease activity score of 0 (0 to 5) after 2-6 courses of therapy. All 9 patients experienced WHO grade IV hematologic toxicity and 3 patients had hepatobiliary adverse effects (WHO grade I～II) after treatment. The median follow-up time was 31(1 to 50) months with all 9 patients survived, 3 of the 9 patients experienced sequelae to the disease with 2 combined liver cirrhosis as well as cholestatic hepatitis and 1 with oral desmopressin acetate tablets for diabetes insipidus.@*CONCLUSION@#2-CdA combined with Ara-C is an effective regimen for the treatment of recurrent refractory LCH in children, and the main adverse effect is hematologic toxicity, which is mostly tolerated in children. Early treatment with this regimen may be considered for patients with multisystem LCH with risky organ involvement who have failed first-line therapy and for patients with relapse.

Pentoxifylline-tocopherol-clodronate combination in the treatment of localized temporal bone osteoradionecrosis / 中华放射医学与防护杂志

Objective:To determine the effects of pentoxifylline-tocopherol-clodronate combination (PENTOCLO) protocol in the treatment of localized temporal bone osteoradionecrosis (TBORN).Methods:A retrospective analysis was conducted on the clinical data of 21 patients, who suffered localized TBORN (23 ears) and were treated with the PENTOCLO protocol in Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University from November 2020 to April 2021. The curative effects of the PENTOCLO protocol were evaluated based on the changes in ear symptoms and the extent of exposed bone before and after treatment.Results:The PENTOCLO protocol was applied for (506 ± 48) d on average. As a result, 19 ears (82.6%) became free of earache and purulent ear discharge, and two ears (8.7%) showed alleviation of symptoms. Moreover, nine ears (39.1%) exhibited re-epithelialization in the ear canal, 11 ears (47.6%) showed a decrease in exposed ear canal bone, and the osteonecrosis of three ears (13.0%) was stable.Conclusions:PENTOCLO has encouraging treatment effects on TBORN, and thus can be used as an effective nonsurgical option for localized TBORN.

MRI-based assessment of effects of radiotherapy on the onset and progression of mastoiditis in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma / 中华放射医学与防护杂志

Objective:To analyze the effects of radiotherapy on the onset and progression of mastoiditis in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and to explore the risk factors for the onset of mastoiditis after radiotherapy.Methods:The onset and progression of mastoiditis of 204 NPC patients 3, 12, and 24 months after radiotherapy were analyzed based on MRI images. The multi-factor logistic regression analysis was applied to explore the risk factors of the onset of mastoiditis after radiotherapy. The cross-sectional area of the tensor veli palatini muscle was measured and the relationship between the atrophy degrees of the tensor veli palatini muscle and the onset of mastoiditis was analyzed.Results:The incidence of mastoiditis before radiotherapy was 20.6% (84/408, ears), and was 41.1% (168/408, ears), 22.3% (91/408, ears), and 19.6% (80/408, ears), respectively 3, 12, and 24 months after radiotherapy. The incidence of radiotherapy-induced mastoiditis was 35.8% (116/324, ears), 18.2% (59/324, ears), and 16.4% (53/324, ears), respectively 3, 12, and 24 months after radiotherapy. The remission rate of 63 patients (83 ears) who developed mastoiditis 3 months after radiotherapy was 63.9% (53/83, ears) and 75.9% (63/83, ears), respectively 12 and 24 months after radiotherapy. The remission rate of 54 patients (60 ears) who suffered mastoiditis before radiotherapy was 43.3% (26/60, ears), 65.0% (39/60, ears), and 73.3% (44/60, ears) 3, 12, and 24 months after radiotherapy. The multivariate analysis showed that the independent risk factors for radiotherapy-induced mastoiditis included age ≥50, clinical stages Ⅲ-Ⅳ, radiotherapy dose > 70 Gy, and tumors invading pharyngeal ostium of the eustachian tube. In addition, the atrophy degree of tensor veli palatini muscle 12 and 24 months after radiotherapy correlated with the onset of mastoiditis.Conclusions:The incidence of mastoiditis significantly increased 3 months after radiotherapy and significantly decreased 12 months after radiotherapy for NPC patients. The natural remission rate of radiotherapy-induced mastoiditis 12 months after radiotherapy was over 70%. The independent risk factors for radiotherapy-induced mastoiditis include age ≥50, clinical stages Ⅲ-Ⅳ, radiotherapy dose >70 Gy, and tumor invading pharyngeal ostium of the eustachian tube. The atrophy degree of the tensor veli palatini muscle 12 and 24 months after radiotherapy correlates with the onset of mastoiditis.

Clinical Study of Intestinal Acute Graft-Versus-Host Disease after Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation in Children / 中国实验血液学杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To observe the clinical characteristics, treatment and prognosis of intestinal acute graft-versus-host disease (aGVHD) after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) in children and futher evaluate the occurring risk factors.@*METHODS@#The clinical data of 136 patients undergoing allo-HSCT in Wuhan Children's Hospital Affiliated to Tongji Medical College from August 2016 to August 2020 were retrospectively analyzed, clinical characteristics of children with intestinal aGVHD were observed. The risk factors of intestinal aGVHD were assessed by logistic regression while cumulative survival were analyzed by Kaplan-Meier method.@*RESULTS@#Among 136 patients intestinal aGVHD occurred in 24 (17.6%) cases, with 4 cases of grade II, 20 cases of grade III-IV, and the median occurrence time was 28(10-63) days. The clinical manifestations were diarrhea with intermittent abdominal pain, 17 cases with nausea and vomiting, 11 cases with fresh bloody stool, and 8 cases with skin rash before intestinal aGVHD. The average time for treatment was 33(11-100) days. 18 cases received electronic colonoscopy and histopathology examination. 20 out of 24 cases achieved remission after treatment, and the total effective rate was 83.3%. Finally, 9 out of 24 cases died during the follow-up time. Survival analysis showed that the cumulative survival rate of patients with intestinal aGVHD (15/24, 62.5%) were significantly lower than those without intestinal aGVHD (101/112, 90.2%) (Log-rank test, P=0.001). Univariate analysis showed that recipient age, sex, primary disease, donor age, donor sex, donor-recipient blood type, conditioning regimen, prophylaxis of GVHD, dosage of ATG, engraft time of blood platelet and neutrophils, and number of MNC/CD34+ were not risk factors for intestinal aGVHD (P>0.05). Only the type of HSCT (χ2=16.020, P=0.001) and matched degree of HLA (χ2=15.502, P=0.001) had statistical significance with intestinal aGVHD (P<0.05). Multivariate analysis showed that only HLA-mismatched unrelated donor was the risk factor for intestinal aGVHD for children (P=0.014，OR=16，95%CI 1.735-147.543).@*CONCLUSION@#Intestinal aGVHD is a risk factor for cumulative survial of patients who received allo-HSCT in children and HLA-mismatched unrelated donor is its independent risk factor.

Clinical Analysis of Pediatric Acute Myeloid Leukemia with CCLG-AML 2015 Regimen / 中国实验血液学杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To analyze the clinical effects of CCLG-AML-2015 protocol on newly diagnosed children with acute myeloid leukemia (AML).@*METHODS@#The clinical data of 60 newly diagnosed AML children in the Department of Hematology and Oncology, Wuhan Children's Hospital from August 2015 to September 2019 were summarized, the effect of chemotherapy using the CCLG-AML-2015 regimen (hereinafter referred to as the 2015 regimen) were retrospectively analyzed. 42 children with AML treated by the AML-2006 regimen (hereinafter referred to as the 2006 regimen) from February 2010 to July 2015 were used as control group.@*RESULTS@#There were no statistical differences between the 2015 regimen group and the 2006 regimen group in sex, age at first diagnosis, and risk stratification (P>0.05). The complete remission rate of bone marrow cytology after induction of 1 course of chemotherapy (84.7% vs 73.1%, P=0.155), and minimal residual disease detection (MRD) negative (42.3% vs 41.4%, P=0.928) in the 2015 regimen group were not statistically different than those in the 2006 regimen group. The bone marrow cytology CR (98.1% vs 80.6%, P=0.004) and MRD negative (83.3% vs 52.8%, P=0.002) in the 2015 regimen group after 2 courses of induction were higher than those in the 2006 regimen group. The 5-year overall survival (OS) rate in the 2015 regimen group (62.3%±6.4% vs 20.6%±6.4%, P=0.001), the 5-year disease-free survival (EFS) rate (61.0%±6.4% vs 21.0% ±6.4% , P=0.001) were better than those in the 2006 regimen group. The 5-year OS and EFS of high-risk transplant patients in the 2015 regimen group were significantly better than those of high-risk non-transplant patients (OS: 86.6%±9.0% vs 26.7%±11.4%, P=0.000; EFS: 86.6%±9% vs 26.7%±11.4%, P=0.000).@*CONCLUSION@#The 2015 regimen can increase the CR rate after 2 courses of induction compared with the 2006 regimen. High-risk children receiving hematopoietic stem cell transplantation can significantly improve the prognosis.

Glucose Protects Cochlear Hair Cells Against Oxidative Stress and Attenuates Noise-Induced Hearing Loss in Mice / 神经科学通报·英文版

Oxidative stress is the key determinant in the pathogenesis of noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL). Given that cellular defense against oxidative stress is an energy-consuming process, the aim of the present study was to investigate whether increasing energy availability by glucose supplementation protects cochlear hair cells against oxidative stress and attenuates NIHL. Our results revealed that glucose supplementation reduced the noise-induced formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and consequently attenuated noise-induced loss of outer hair cells, inner hair cell synaptic ribbons, and NIHL in CBA/J mice. In cochlear explants, glucose supplementation increased the levels of ATP and NADPH, as well as attenuating H

The Relationship between Plasma sST2/Reg3α Levels and Acute Graft-Versus-Host Disease in Children After Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation / 中国实验血液学杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To explore the relationship between plasma sST2/Reg3α levels and acute graft-versus-host disease (aGVHD) in children after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT).@*METHODS@#The clinical data of 29 pediatric patients received allo-HSCT treatment in Department of Hematology and Oncology of Wuhan Children's Hospital from January 2019 to January 2020 were collected. Peripheral blood samples were collected at 14 and 28 day after allo-HSCT. The plasma concentrations of sST2 and Reg3α were detected by Luminex assay.@*RESULTS@#Among 29 patients there were 15 males and 14 females with a median age of 53 (29-117) months. After allo-HSCT, 18 patients developed grade 0-I aGVHD; while 11 patients developed grade II-IV aGVHD. These included skin aGVHD in 6 cases, gastrointestinal aGVHD (GI-aGVHD) in 3 cases and gastrointestinal/skin aGVHD in 5 cases. Plasma sST2 level in II-IV aGVHD group showed significantly higher than that in 0-I aGVHD group at 28 days after allo-HSCT [101.81 (73.94-150.77) ng/ml vs 48.97 (28.82-56.69) ng/ml, P=0.021]. Also, the plasma sST2 level was significantly higher in GI-aGVHD group than that in no-aGVHD group at 28 days after allo-HSCT [118.74 (87.00-243.36) ng/ml vs 48.97 (23.55-61.40) ng/ml, P=0.004]. Plasma sST2 level ≥65.34 ng/ml at 28 days after allo-HSCT showed a sensitivity of 85.7% and a specificity of 87.5% in predicting II-IV aGVHD. And the patients with a plasma sST2 level ≥65.34 ng/ml showed a significantly higher incidence of II-IV aGVHD than those with plasma sST2 level of < 65.34 ng/ml after allo-HSCT (P=0.021). There was no significant difference in plasma Reg3α level between the patients with II-IV aGVHD and the non-aGVHD ones.@*CONCLUSION@#The increasing plasma sST2 level after allo-HSCT in children indicates the development of II-IV aGVHD, so sST2 is promising as a biomarker for predicting II-IV aGVHD.

Analysis of the Outcome and Prognostic Factors of Cyclosporine A in Children with Non-severe Aplastic Anemia / 中国实验血液学杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To summarize the long-term efficacy of cyclosporine (CsA) in the treatment of non-severe aplastic anemia (NSAA) in children, and explore the early significant indicators.@*METHODS@#Data of 36 NSAA children in Department of Hematological Oncology, Wuhan Children's Hospital, Tongji Medical College of Huazhong University of Science and Technology from January 2013 to December 2017 were analyzed retrospectively. All the children received oral CsA immunosuppressive therapy, and CsA trough concentration was checked to maintain at the rage of 200-250 μg/L after 2 weeks. The evaluation time points were at 3, 6, 12, 18 and 24 months, and assessment items were peripheral white blood cell differential count and reticulocyte's percentage and count.@*RESULTS@#The 36 NSAA cases were composed of 16 males and 20 females, whose median age was 5.46 (2.92-7.99) years old, and median follow-up time was 28.00 (10.00-38.25) months. After taking oral CsA for 24 months, the number of cumulative effective cases was 21. There were 4 cases of complete remission (CR), 17 cases of partial remission (PR), and 15 cases of non-remission (NR). The total effective rate was 58.33%, and median effect-acting time of CsA was 3.0 (0.5-10.0) months. Compared with ineffective group, neutrophil (NEU) and red blood cell (RBC) of effective group (CR+PR) began to increase significantly at the 3rd month, and hemoglobin (Hb), platelet (PLT) and white blood cell (WBC) increase significantly at the 6th month after oral CsA administration (P<0.05). Except for 2 cases who received component transfusion within 3-12 months after taking oral CsA for 3 months in effective group, the others did not need.@*CONCLUSION@#The overall effective rate of oral CsA in children with NSAA was 58.33%. Stopping blood transfusion after the 3 months of treatment may be considered as a turning point for disease outcomes, and levels of NEU, RBC at the 3rd month and Hb, PLT, WBC at the 6th month as indicators for predicting disease prognosis.

Infection in Children with Acute Myeloid Leukemia in the Intensive Chemotherapy Period / 中国实验血液学杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To investigate the clinical characteristics of infection in children with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) after high intensive chemotherapy， so as to provide reference for prevention and control of infection.@*METHODS@#56 children diagnosed as acute myeloid leukemia in our hospital from January 2016 to August 2019 were enrolled and retrospectively analyzed, the infection rate, pathogens of disease and common location of infection during the induction and consolidation period were analyzed.@*RESULTS@#The total infection rate of the patients was 93.4%－96.4%, the average of serious infection rate was 16.0%(11.3%－19.6%), and the infection related mortality was 10.7%. Fever of unknown cause was the main reason of infection, while blood flow infections were the most common in severe infection, which were mainly caused by Gramnegative bacteria. The rate of fungal infection was 35.7% during chemotherapy.@*CONCLUSION@#Children with AML shows a high incidence of infection in each stage of chemotherapy. The serious illness caused by blood flow infection and take antifungal drugs to reduce the occurrence of fungal infection in AML patients should be paid attention.

Correlations between subacromial impingement syndrome and acromial morphology and subacromial intervals after surgery of proximal humerus fracture / 中华创伤骨科杂志

Objective:To investigate the correlations between subacromial impingement syndrome (SIS) and acromial morphology and subacromial intervals after surgery of proximal humerus fracture.Methods:A retrospective study was conducted of the 62 patients with proximal humerus fracture who had been treated by internal fixation with a locking titanium plate from December 2014 to December 2019 at Department of Orthopedics, People's Hospital of Gaoming District. They were 40 men and 22 women, with an average age of 53.5 years (from 35 to 71 years). By the Neer classification, there were 38 three-part and 24 four-part fractures. The incidence of SIS was determined by Nikolaus's diagnostic criteria. The patients were divided into a SIS group and a non-SIS group. The acromial morphology was observed and the subacromial intervals [acromio-greater tuberosity of humerus interval (AGI) and acromio-plate interval (API)] were measured on postoperative X-ray films. The correlations were analyzed between them and SIS.Results:All patients completed treatments and follow-ups from 3 to 15 months (average, 10 months). There was no incision infection or internal fixation failure. There were 18 cases in the SIS group and 44 ones in the non-SIS group. In the SIS group, 3 cases had type Ⅰ acromion while 15 ones type Ⅱ or type Ⅲ acromion; in the non-SIS group, 20 cases had type Ⅰ acromion while 24 ones type Ⅱ or type Ⅲ acromion. The proportion of patients with type Ⅱ or type Ⅲ acromion in the SIS group was significantly higher than that in the non-SIS group ( P<0.05). AGI and API in the SIS group were (11.6±2.1) mm and (14.2±2.4) mm, significantly shorter than those in the non-SIS group [(15.7±2.8) mm and (18.5±3.2) mm] ( P<0.05). Conclusions:SIS is a common complication after surgery of proximal humerus fracture. Abnormal acromial morphology (type Ⅱ or type Ⅲ acromion), poor fracture reduction (reduced AGI), and high placement of a titanium plate (reduced API) may be all important factors leading to SIS.

Simulating the infected population and spread trend of 2019-nCov under different policy by EIR model

BackgroundChinese government has taken strong measures in response to the epidemic of new coronavirus (2019-nCoV) from Jan.23, 2020. The number of confirmed infected individuals are still increasing rapidly. Estimating the accurate infected population and the future trend of epidemic spreading under control measures is significant and urgent. There have been reports external icon of spread from an infected patient with no symptoms to a close contact, which means the incubation individuals may has the possibility of infectiousness. However, the traditional transmission model, Susceptible-Exposed-Infectious-Recovered (SEIR) model, assumes that the exposed individual is being infected but without infectiousness. Thus, the estimating infected populations based on SEIR model from the existing literatures seems too far more than the official reported data. MethodsHere, we inferred that the epidemic could be spread by exposed (incubation) individuals. Then, we provide a new Exposed-identified-Recovered (EIR) model, and simulated the epidemic spreading processes from free propagation phase to extremely control phase. Then, we estimate of the size of the epidemic and forecast the future development of the epidemics under strong prevention interventions. According to the spread characters of 2019-nCov, we construct a novel EIR compartment system dynamics model. This model integrates two phases of the epidemic spreading: before intervention and after intervention. We assume that 2019-nCov is firstly spread without intervention then the government started to take strong quarantine measures. Use the latest reported data from National Health Commission of the Peoples Republic of China, we estimate the basic parameters of the model and the basic reproduction number of 2019-nCov. Then, based on this model, we simulate the future spread of the epidemics. Both the infected population and the spreading trend of 2019-nCov under different prevention policy scenarios are estimated. The epidemic spreading trends under different quarantine rate and action starting date of prevention policy are simulated and compared. FindingsIn our baseline scenario, the government has taken strict prevention actions, and the estimate numbers fit the official numbers very well. Simulation results tells that, if the prevention measures are relaxed or the action starting date of prevention measures is later than Jan. 23, 2020, the peak of identified individuals would be greatly increased, and the elimination date also would be delayed. We estimate the reproductive number for 2019-nCoV was 2.7. And simulation of the baseline scenario tells that, the peak infected individuals will be 49093 at Feb.16, 2020 and the epidemic spreading will be eliminated at the end of March 2020. The simulation results also tell that the quarantine rate and the starting date of intervention action policy have great effect on the epidemic spreading. Specifically, if the quarantine rate is reduced from 100% to less than 63%, which is the threshold of the quarantine rate to control the epidemic spreading, the epidemic spreading would never be eliminated out. And, if the starting date of intervention is delayed for 1 day than the date Jan. 23, the peak infected population will increase about 6351 individuals. If the delayed period is 3 days or 7 days, the increasing number would be 21621 or 65929 individuals, thus the peak infected number would up to 70714 and 115022 individuals. InterpretationGiven that 2019-nCoV could be controlled under the strong prevention measures of what China has taken and it will take about three months. The confirmed infected individuals will still keep quick increasing for a generation period (27 days, equal to the sum of exposed period and identified period) after the start time point of control. The strong prevention measures should be insisted until the epidemics is wiped out. Other domestic places and overseas have confirmed infected individuals should take strong interventions immediately. Generally, earlier strong prevention measures could efficiently mitigate the outbreaks in other cities all over the world has confirmed individuals of epidemic of 2019-nCoV.

Effect of the Risk Factors for Treatment-Related Death in Children with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia / 中国实验血液学杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To explore the possible risk factors of death in children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) after treatment.@*METHODS@#The clinical data of 31 children with newly diagnosed acute lymphoblastic leukemia and dead after treatment in the Hematology Oncology Department of Wuhan children's Hospital from January 1, 2016 to December 31, 2019 were retrospectively analyzed. Univariate factor analysis and multivariate Cox regression analysis were used to analyze the each indexes of ALL children, and the possible risk factors causes of death in ALL children after treatment were analyzed.@*RESULTS@#Among 230 newly diagnosed ALL children, 31 (13.4%) cases were dead. Among them, there were 12 male and 19 female. The mortality rates were 9%(12/133) for male and 19.5%(19/97) for female, which showed a significantly difference（P=0.02）； among the dead ALL children, 6 were less than 1 year old, 23 were 1-10 years old, and 2 was more than 10 years old. The mortality rates in different age groups were 46.1 % (6/13), 11.7%(23/195) and 9%(2/22), respectively, which showed a significantly difference（P=0.00）； the mortality rates of the ALL children in standard risk group, medium risk group and high risk group were 6.7% (4/59), 11.9% (13/10@*CONCLUSION@#The female, less than 1 year old at initial diagnosis, high risk ALL, WBC>50×10

Effect of Microvascular Endothelial Cells on the Proliferation of Bone Marrow Hematopoietic Stem Cells under Different Culture Conditions / 中国实验血液学杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To investigate the effect of microvascular endothelial cells (MEC) on the proliferation of hematopoictic stem cells (HSC) under different culture conditions in vitro.@*METHODS@#The MEC from lung tissue of C57BL/6 mice and the HSC from bone marrow of GFP mice were used for non-contact co-culture, 2 D contact co-culture, at same time the single MEC and single HSC culture were seted up and were used as control group. The cell counting and CCK-8 method were used to detect and compare the proliferation levels of suspension cells in different groups on day 1, 3, 5 and 7.@*RESULTS@#MEC presented adherent growth. In process of cell culture in vitro, the number of suspension cells in MEC and HSC co-culture group and single HSC culture group increased, the suspension cells in 2D contact and non-contact co-culture groups more early gated into logarithmic growth phase as compared with suspension cells in control group, the proliferation level of suspention cells in 2D contact culture group was higher than that in non-contact co-culture group and single HSC culture group (P<0.05), the proliferation level of suspension cells in non-contact co-culture group was higher than that in single HSC culture group (P<0.05).@*CONCLUSION@#The culture of HSC in vitro can proliferate HSC, MEC can promote the proliferation of HSC, MEC also can promote the HSC proliferation by non-contact co-culture in vitro, which relates with the effect of cytokines secreted from MEC; the effect of MEC and HSC contact co-culture on the proliferation of HSC is stronger than that of non-contact co-culture, which relates with the regulation of cell-cell contact.

The current state and prospect of open elbow arthrolysis for post-traumatic elbow stiffness / 中华创伤骨科杂志

The elbow is more susceptible to motion loss than other joints after trauma,and elbow stiffness leads to functional impairment in the upper limb and interferes with daily activities.Open arthrolysis is the most common and classical treatment for post-traumatic elbow stiffness.In this paper,we review the treatment protocols like preoperative clinical evaluation,arthrolysis strategies and postoperative rehabilitation program for post-traumatic elbow stiffness,discuss relevant issues and assess their prospects.