Laser-Generated Leaky Acoustic Wave Imaging for Interventional Guidewire Guidance.

Ultrasound (US) is widely used to visualize both tissue and the positions of surgical instruments in real time during surgery. Previously we proposed a new method to exploit US imaging and laser-generated leaky acoustic waves (LAWs) for needle visualization. Although successful, that method only detects the position of a needle tip, with the location of the entire needle deduced from knowing that the needle is straight. The purpose of the current study was to develop a beamforming-based method for the direct visualization of objects. The approach can be applied to objects with arbitrary shapes, such as the guidewires that are commonly used in interventional guidance. With this method, illumination by a short laser pulse generates photoacoustic waves at the top of the guidewire that propagate down its metal surface. These waves then leak into the surrounding tissue, which can be detected by a US array transducer. The time of flight consists of two parts: 1) the propagation time of the guided waves on the guidewire and 2) the propagation time of the US that leaks into the tissue. In principle, an image of the guidewire can be formed based on array beamforming by taking the propagation time on the metal into consideration. Furthermore, we introduced directional filtering and a matched filter to compress the dispersion signal associated with long propagation times. The results showed that guidewires could be detected at depths of at least 70 mm. The maximum detectable angle was 56.3°. LAW imaging with a 1268-mm-long guidewire was also demonstrated. The proposed method has considerable potential in new clinical applications.

Semen quality and HIV RNA level in HIV/AIDS male patients after treated by highly active antiretroviral therapy / 中华男科学杂志

<p><b>Objective</b>To evaluate the semen quality of the HIV/AIDS male patients after treated by the highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) and their potential of transmitting HIV/AIDS and provide some evidence for this cohort of males who wish for parenthood.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>We collected semen samples from 20 HIV/AIDS male patients who had been treated by HAART for over 6 months and wished for parenthood. We examined sperm concentration, viability and total motility and the percentage of morphologically normal sperm (MNS) using the computer-assisted semen analysis system, measured the HIV-1 RNA loads in the semen by the Cobas Amplicor Monitor test, and counted CD4+ T cells in the peripheral blood by flow cytometry.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The patients were aged 25－40 (30.7 ± 5.05) years. After treated by HAART for 6－26 (14.24 ± 12.26) months, the count of blood CD4+ T cells was significantly increased (341－1 058 ［535.76 ± 212.021］ /μl) in comparison with the baseline (226－965 ［422.38 ± 200.86］ /μl). Compared with the normal value, the semen volume was increased except in 1 case (≥2 ml) while total sperm motility was decreased in 13 cases (≥40%), and so were sperm concentration in 2 cases (≥15 × 106 / ml), sperm viability in 5 (58%), the percentage of progressively motile sperm in 18 (≥32%), and the percentage of MNS in 6 (≤4%). HIV-1 RNA in the peripheral blood was <20 copies/mL in all the cases and that in the seminal plasma was also <20 copies/ml in 18 cases but >20 copies/mL in the other 2 (［4.70 × 101］ and ［2.2 × 102］ copies/ml, respectively). Of the 4 couples that had sex without protective measures for over 6 months, all the 4 female partners exhibited negative HIV antibodies in regular follow-up examinations and 1 achieved spontaneous pregnancy and healthy birth, with negative HIV-1 RNA in both the mother and the baby.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>The HIV RNA level is higher in the semen than in the blood of the HIV/AIDS male patients after HAART, which indicates the potential risk of their semen transmitting HIV/AIDS to their female partners. Their sperm concentration and total sperm motility are lower than the normal value, which suggests a decreased fertility.</p>

Effect of androgen deprivation therapy on bone mineral density in prostate cancer patients / 亚洲男科学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>AIM</b>To evaluate the effect of androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) on bone mineral density (BMD) in prostate cancer patients.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Forty-nine prostate cancer patients with their BMD determined were divided into two groups: the non-treated group included 21 patients before the commencement of ADT and the treated group, 28 patients, who had received ADT for more than 1 year. BMD was measured by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) in the lumbar spine (L2-4) and femoral neck.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Thirteen (62 %) non-treated and 23 (82 %) treated patients fulfilled the BMD criteria for osteopenia or osteoporosis. Z scores for age-matched control in lumbar spine and femoral neck were -0.9 +/- 0.7 and -0.6 +/- 0.5, respectively, in the treated group, and -1.8 +/- 1.1 and -1.6 +/- 1.0, respectively, in the non-treated group, the differences between the two groups were highly significant (P<0.01).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Prostate cancer patients who received ADT for more than 1 year had a significantly lower BMD in the lumbar spine and femoral neck than those before the beginning of ADT.</p>