Diagnosis and treatment of McCune-Albright syndrome: A case report.

BACKGROUND: McCune-Albright syndrome (MAS) is extremely rare clinically. We here report a case of MAS with severe symptoms that have not been reported previously. CASE SUMMARY: A 10-year-old boy attended our outpatient clinic due to craniofacial malformations found two years ago. He underwent temporal bone computed tomography and digital radiography photography. Based on a literature review combined with the patient's medical history and imaging examination findings, he was diagnosed with multiple fibrous dysplasia of bone. As the clinical symptoms related to MAS in this patient were not obvious, he was only followed up and not given any special treatment. CONCLUSION: The unique clinical manifestations in this MAS patient may be related to mutations in the GNAS gene.

Role of Zinc Sulphate in Immune Regulation in Artemisia annua Pollen-challenged P815 Mastocytoma Cells.

Objective This study aimed to investigate the role of zinc sulphate in immune regulation in Artemisia annua pollen-challenged P815 mastocytoma cells. Methods P815 mastocytoma cells were treated with various concentrations of zinc sulphate and Artemisia annua pollen. Cell proliferation was measured using the Cell Counting Kit-8. The amount of ST2 and p38 in the cells were measured using Western blotting. The level of interleukins (IL)-33 in the supernatant was determined using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The levels of IL-2, IL-4, IL-5, interferon-γ, and tumor necrosis factor were measured using the cytometric bead array. Results Artemisia annua pollen at a concentration >0.001 µg/mL induced allergic response in the P815 mastocytoma cells. Expressions of IL-33, IL-4, ST2, and p38 increased along with higher concentrations of Artemisia annua pollen. Zinc sulphate of 50-200 µmol/L promoted the proliferation of P815 mastocytoma cells. Zinc sulphate attenuated the upregulation of IL-33, IL-4, ST2, and p38 caused by Artemisia annua pollen. Conclusion Zinc sulphate can promote the proliferation of P815 mastocytoma cells. It can also attenuate allergic response in the P815 mastocytoma cells induced by Artemisia annua pollen, which might provide a new treatment method for allergic diseases.

[Multi-center study on the treatment of sudden total deafness].

OBJECTIVE: To assess the results of drug therapy in patients with severe idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss (ISSHL) with total frequency hearing loss. METHODS: A prospective randomized, single blind, multi-center clinical trial was designed. The untreated patients with ISSHL were included, who had severe hearing loss (pure tone audiometry showed patients had total frequency hearing loss, and their mean auditory threshold of 500, 1000, 2000, 4000 Hz was beyond 81 dB HL), age between 18 to 65 years old, and within 14 days of the onset . The patients were divided into one of the four drug groups [batroxobin, batroxobin + ginkgo biloba leaves extract (EGb), batroxobin + EGb + glucocorticoids, EGb + glucocorticoids] according to the random table, and receive treatment. RESULTS: Totally 276 patients with unilateral severe ISSHL were included from 33 hospitals, from August 2007 to October 2011. Among them, male patients accounted for 135 (48.91%), female 141 (51.09%); the average age was (41.7 ± 13.3)years. Forty cases were recovered (14.49%), 78 cases had marked effective (28.26%), 76 cases were effective (27.54%), 82 cases were in-effective (29.71%), and the total effective rate was 70.29%. Among four drug groups, the separate effective rate were 73.33%, 61.43%, 78.31% and 67.95% respectively, no significant difference was found between groups (χ(2) = 9.97,P = 0.62). Among the four groups, the separate cure rate for hearing loss were 11.11%, 12.86%, 16.87% and 15.38%, the glucocorticoid groups were significantly better than those not used. Among severe sudden deafness patients, 92.39% cases accompanied with tinnitus, 44.93% with dizziness (or vertigo), 50.36% with ear stuffy. There had no significant difference between the four groups with accompanied symptoms (all P > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: It is value to give active treatment to sever sudden deafness patients because of an effective rate of 70%. However, the doctors and patients should be mind of a cure rate of only 14%. Steroids are recommended bacause it may play a role in the improvement rate.

Anterior skull base reconstruction with galeal-frontalis-pericranial flap based on temporalis myofascial flap.

Such a giant anterior skull base mucocele involving the orbito-ethmoido-maxillo-fronto sinuses is a rare case. This patient complained of a right orbital mass for 18 years, and he was recommended to our hospital for treatment. His history, physical examination, laboratory study results, diagnosis, and treatment are reported in detail. In conclusion, we show that modified transcranial pathway and ingenious assistant incision can get the utmost exposure and can obtain a satisfactory aesthetic result and that anterior skull base reconstruction with the galeal-frontalis-pericranial flap based on the temporalis myofascial flap for the first time can successfully prevent life-threatening complications from happening.