The clinical report of 21 cases of occlusion of atrial septal defect through right chest small incision / 中华外科杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To evaluate the methods and efficacy of atrial septal defect (ASD) occlusion through right chest incision.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The clinical data of 21 patients with ASD from July 2004 to May 2005 were analyzed retrospectively. Eight patients were male and 13 patients were female, aged from 1 to 70 years old, with the median age of 21 years old. The diameter of ASD was from 8 to 40 mm. All the 21 patients were under general anaesthesia. A 2 to 3 cm incision was made in the 4th intercostals of right side of sternum. With the help of transesophageal or normal transthoracic echocardiography, the occluder was released using monotube unit.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>All cases were occluded successfully without death. The types of the occluder were from 14 to 46 mm. None failed and had to choose extracorporeal circulation operations. No transfusion and no serious complication such as the occluder dislocated occurred. And no evident of atrial shunt was found when in review echo.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>The ASD occlusion through right chest minimal incision is safe, credit, minimal invasive and worth to use widely.</p>

Symptoms and prognosis of nasopharyngeal carcinoma / 中国医学科学院学报

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study the relationship between the symptoms and prognosis of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The clinical data of 905 M0 NPC patients who received radical radiotherapy from January 1990 to May 1999 were retrospectively studied. Nodal distribution, cranial nerve paralysis, as well as the relationship between symptom duration and prognosis were analyzed.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The most common symptom in patients with NPC is neck node metastasis, with an incidence of 40.0% at the time of diagnosis, followed by blood-staining sputum (18.7%) and aural symptoms (17.0%). Node metastasis in the lower neck and supraclavicular region alone was seen in 10 patients (1.1%). Cranial nerve paralysis was found in 179 patients (19.8%). The 5-year overall survival and disease-free survival were significant lower in symptom duration more than 6 months group than in less than 6 months group (71.2% vs 79.8%, P = 0.008 and 51.9% vs 63.6%, P = 0.0008); however, the local control rate between these two group was not significantly different (79.4% vs 83.5%, P = 0.138).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The symptom duration is associated with the prognosis of NPC. Early diagnosis and treatment are the most important factors in improving the prognosis of NPC.</p>