Gefitinib improves severe bronchorrhea and prolongs the survival of a patient with lung invasive mucinous adenocarcinoma: A case report.

BACKGROUND: Lung invasive mucinous adenocarcinoma (LIMA), formerly referred to as mucinous bronchioloalveolar carcinoma, is a rare disease that usually presents as bilateral lung infiltration, is unsuitable for surgery and radiotherapy, and shows poor response to conventional chemotherapy. CASE SUMMARY: We report a 56-year-old Chinese man with a history of smoking and epidermal growth factor receptor mutation-positivity who was initially misdiagnosed as severe pneumonia, but was ultimately diagnosed as a case of invasive mucinous adenocarcinoma of the lung by computed tomography -guided percutaneous lung biopsy. Bronchorrhea and dyspnea were improved within 24 h after initiation of gefitinib therapy and the radiographic signs of bilateral lung consolidation showed visible improvement within 30 d. After more than 11 months of treatment, there is no evidence of recurrence or severe adverse events. CONCLUSION: Although the precise mechanism of the antitumor effects of gefitinib are not clear, our experience indicates an important role of the drug in LIMA and provides a reference for the diagnosis and treatment of this disease.

Prevalence of freezing of gait in Parkinson's disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Freezing of gait (FOG) is considered one of the most disturbing and least understood symptoms in Parkinson's disease (PD). The reported prevalence rates of FOG in PD vary widely, ranging from 5 to 85.9%. OBJECTIVE: We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to provide a reliable estimate of the average point prevalence of FOG in PD, and we further investigated the study characteristics that might have influenced the estimate. METHODS: We searched different databases to identify studies that report the prevalence of FOG in PD or include relevant raw data for further calculation. The last inclusion date was February 20, 2020. The modified Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies (QUADAS) tool was used for the quality assessment, and articles that met the predefined criteria were included in the quantitative analysis. RESULTS: Sixty-six studies were selected from 3392 references. A weighted prevalence of 50.6% in 9072 PD patients experienced FOG based on the special questionnaires (the FOG-Q and NFOG-Q), which was about twice as high as that assessed by the specific items of the clinical rating scales (UPDRS item2.14 and MDS-UPDRS item3.11) (23.2%) or simple clinical questions (25.4%). The weighted prevalence was 37.9% for early stage (≤ 5 years) and 64.6% for advanced stage (≥ 9 years). Moreover, a higher prevalence was calculated from the population-based studies than that in multicenter and single-center studies (47.3% vs. 33.5% and 37.1%, respectively). CONCLUSION: The result from this systematic review confirms that FOG is very common in PD and its prevalence is usually underestimated in hospital settings. Importantly, a more accurate assessment of FOG in future clinical researches would involve the use of special FOG scale rather than a single item on a scale or a general clinical inquiry.

[Quantitative evaluation for diagnostic efficacy of computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging in patients with lumbar disc herniation].

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the diagnostic performances of CT and MRI in patients with lumbar intervertebral disc herniation through the Meta analytical method. METHOD: The relevant English and Chinese articles published between 1980 and 2010 were searched in PubMed, Medline, Ovid database, Cochrane library and Chinese Periodical Web. According to the criteria for diagnostic researches published by Cochrane Method Group on Screening and Diagnostic Tests, each article was critically appraised and screened with regards to the absolute numbers of true-positive, false-negative, true-negative and false-positive. Statistical analysis was performed by the Meta-Disc version 1.4, SPSS 13.0 and Comprehensive Meta-analysis version II. Heterogeneity was tested and publication bias analyzed. And the pooled weighted sensitivity and specificity and the corresponding 95%CI were calculated. The summary receiver operating characteristic (SROC) curve was performed and the area under the curve (AUC) calculated to summarize and evaluate the diagnostic efficiency of CT and MRI in lumbar intervertebral disc herniation. Finally a sensitivity analysis was performed. RESULTS: According to the criteria of internalization, 9 articles were included. Among them, the themes were CT (n = 3), MRI (n = 3) and CT & MRI (n = 3). Eight was prospectively studied and one retrospectively. At the diagnosis of lumbar intervertebral disc herniation, the pooled weighted sensibility and specificity and 95% confidence interval and area under SROC curve for CT to the lumbar intervertebral disc herniation was 0.73 (0.68 - 0.77), 0.78 (0.72 - 0.82) and 83.5% respectively. The MRI was 0.88 (0.83 - 0.91), 0.79 (0.71 - 0.87) and 88.8% respectively. There was statistically significant difference in the pooled weighted sensibility (P < 0.05); No statistically significant difference was found in the pooled weighted specificity (P > 0.05); And there was statistically significant difference in the AUC curve (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: After a meta-analysis of the diagnostic value of CT and MRI for the lumbar intervertebral disc herniation, MRI is more accurate than CT in the diagnosis of lumbar intervertebral disc herniation.