Body measurements of Chinese males in dynamic postures and application.

It is generally accepted that there is a relationship between body dimensions, body movement and clothing wearing ease design, and yet previous research in this area has been neither sufficient nor systematic. This paper proposes a method to measure the human body in the static state and in 17 dynamic postures, so as to understand dimensional changes of different body parts during dynamic movements. Experimental work is carried out to collect 30 measurements of 10 male Chinese subjects in both static and dynamic states. Factor analysis is used to analyse body measurement data in a static state, and such key measurements describe the characteristics of different body figures. Moreover, one-way ANOVA is used to analyse how dynamic postures affect these key body measurements. Finally, an application of the research results is suggested: a dynamic block patternmaking method for high-performance clothing design.

An unusual case of both upper and lower gastrointestinal bleeding in a kidney transplant recipient.

BACKGROUND: Tuberculosis (TB) is an uncommon opportunistic infection in immunocompromised patients. Extrapulmonary infection involving the intestine is rare and poses diagnostic difficulties. CASE REPORT: A 49-year-old man with IgA nephropathy underwent a kidney transplantation in 1996 and was put on cyclosporine, azathioprine, and steroid. He suffered from a recurrence of his primary kidney disease and had a gradual deterioration of renal function since 1998. By 2005, he presented with an unusual gastrointestinal (GI) symptom with alternating signs of upper GI bleeding - melena - as well as lower GI bleeding with fresh rectal bleeding, resulting in severe anemia with hemoglobin level down to 5.0 g/dL. At the same time, his renal function further deteriorated and necessitated the initiation of dialysis while he was maintained on low-dose immunosuppressive drugs. Repeated upper and lower GI endoscopies were either unremarkable or revealed non-specific lesions. Symptoms persisted and exploratory laparotomy finally showed a 1 cm submucosal mass at the proximal jejunum and multiple inflammatory lesions at the terminal ileum. Segmental resection of the lesions was performed and confirmed TB infection. However, despite the initiation of anti-tuberculous treatment, the patient eventually died of complications. CONCLUSION: Diagnosing TB intestinal infection is a clinical challenge. A high index of suspicion in susceptible subjects is necessary, and early surgical intervention should always be considered when facing diagnostic uncertainties.