Bismuth Sodium Titanate Based Materials for Piezoelectric Actuators

The ban of lead in many electronic products and the expectation that, sooner or later, this ban will include the currently exempt piezoelectric ceramics based on Lead-Zirconate-Titanate has motivated many research groups to look for lead-free substitutes. After a short overview on different classes of lead-free piezoelectric ceramics with large strain, this review will focus on Bismuth-Sodium-Titanate and its solid solutions. These compounds exhibit extraordinarily high strain, due to a field induced phase transition, which makes them attractive for actuator applications. The structural features of these materials and the origin of the field-induced strain will be revised. Technologies for texturing, which increases the useable strain, will be introduced. Finally, the features that are relevant for the application of these materials in a multilayer design will be summarized.     

Intermittent Internal Fixation With a Locking Plate to Preserve Epiphyseal Growth Function During Limb-Salvage Surgery in a Child With Osteosarcoma of the Distal Femur: A Case Report

Limb shortening is a problem associated with surgery for osteosarcoma of the lower extremity in adolescents, as the tumors frequently occur near the epiphysis. Herein we report the use of a less invasive stabilization system (LISS) and an intermittent fixation method to preserve the growth function of epiphysis in an 11-year-old patient with an osteosarcoma of the distal femur.The 11-year-old male presented with left knee enlargement and pain for 2 weeks, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and biopsy were consistent with osteosarcoma of the left distal femur. After preoperative chemotherapy, en bloc tumor resection was performed with margins based on MRI findings preserving the epiphyseal growth plate, the tumor cavity was filled with inactivated bone and bone cement, and a LISS was used to stabilize the femur. Aggressive postoperative chemotherapy was given. Approximately 105 weeks after surgery radiography showed that the distal end of the plate had moved superior to the epiphysis along with bone growth. Locking screws were placed in the distal part of the LISS plate to stabilize the re-implanted bone, and external fixation was not needed.The patient was able to walk with the crutches 1 week postoperatively, and bear weight on the extremity 6 weeks postoperatively. At 6 years after surgery, the patient''s height had increased 52 cm, shortening of the affected limb was only 1 cm, and the circumference of the affected limb was 2 cm smaller than that of the contralateral limb. There was no significant discomfort in the affected limb, and there was no gait abnormality. The patient could jump and run, and could participate in sports including basketball and badminton to the same degree as his peers.In summary, the novel method of bone reconstruction and fixation provided good results in a child with an osteosarcoma of the distal femur. This fixation method preserves the osteogenic function of the epiphysis and restored bone integrity simultaneously, and provides good functional recovery.     

基于TCGA数据初步探查肝内胆管癌预后相关基因

目的 分析tCGA数据库中肝内胆管癌（ICC）高通量测序数据，寻找其预后相关基因，构建风险模型，并研究其在ICC组织中表达及作用通路。方法 下载tCGA数据库中33例ICC组织和8例癌旁组织中的RNA-seq表达矩阵数据和患者临床资料信息，利用edgeR软件包进行基因差异表达分析，通过单因素Cox回归分析筛选出预后相关差异基因，对差异基因绘制生存曲线，筛选出具有临床意义的基因，经多因素Cox回归分析并构建风险模型，通过京都基因与基因组百科全书（KEGG）通路富集分析了解预后相关基因的作用通路。结果 通过edgeR分析后得到6 617个差异基因（筛选标准为|log2 Fold Change|＞1，P＜0.05），其中高表达组4 094个，低表达组2 523个。通过功能富集发现，这些基因主要集中在化学物致癌作用、药物代谢-细胞色素P450系统、细胞色素P450对异生物质的代谢影响以及视黄醇代谢通路。经单因素Cox回归、R软件“survival”包生存曲线分析显示，UCN2、CST1、PROS1、SLC35E4、PEMT五个基因对ICC患者预后存在显著性影响。通过多因素Cox回归分析，CST1、PEMT、PROS1构建的风险模型对ICC患者预后具有判断作用。结论 UCN2、CST1、PROS1、SLC35E4、PEMT基因可能成为ICC预后判断指标，为后续临床试验提供数据支持。     

Developing a Brief Neuropsychological Battery for Early Diagnosis of Cognitive Impairment

ObjectivesEarly diagnosis of cognitive impairment is increasingly emphasized in the literature to facilitate timely preventive interventions. Although bedside cognitive tests such as the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) are widely used for such early diagnostic purposes, they may not have comparable performance to a full neuropsychological battery (FNB) in diagnosing early cognitive impairment. This study investigated whether a small subset of neuropsychological tests can be added on to MoCA to match its performance to that of the FNB in discriminating mild cognitive impairment and dementia (MCI/dementia) from normal cognition.DesignCross-sectional diagnostic study.SettingAlzheimer's Disease Centers across the United States.ParticipantsOlder participants (≥50 years) who completed MoCA and the FNB (N = 9187).MeasuresThe study sample was split into two: the derivation sample (n = 1837) was used to develop a brief neuropsychological battery that best discriminated MCI/dementia (using the best-subset approach with 10-fold cross-validation); while the validation sample (n = 7350) verified its actual performance in discriminating MCI/dementia.ResultsA 3-item neuropsychological battery was identified, comprising MoCA, Benson Complex Figure Recall, and Craft Story 21 Delayed Recall. It had excellent performance in discriminating MCI/dementia from normal cognition (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve [AUROC] 90.0%, 95% confidence interval [CI] 89.2%-90.7%), which was comparable to that of the FNB (AUROC 88.4%, 95% CI 87.6%-89.2%). By contrast, MoCA alone had significantly worse AUROC (86.9%, 95% CI 86.0%-87.7%) than that of the FNB.Conclusions/ImplicationsUsing rigorous methods, this study developed a brief neuropsychological battery that maintained the brevity of a bedside cognitive test, while rivaling the diagnostic performance of an FNB in early cognitive impairment. This brief battery offers a viable alternative when the FNB is needed but cannot be feasibly administered in nonspecialty clinics. It can have a wider health systems effect of improving patients’ access to accurate diagnosis in early cognitive impairment and facilitating timely interventions to delay the progression of cognitive impairment.     

补充维生素D预防骨折——随机对照试验汇总分析

背景：对于脊椎以外的骨折而言，补充口服维生素D的预防作用和用量仍无定论。 目的：评估补充维生素D在预防老年髋骨骨折和非脊椎骨折方面的效果。 数据来源：使用MEDLINE、Cochrance对照试验记录（1960～2005年）以及EMBASE（1991-2005年），对英文和非英文文章进行系统回顾。通过与临床专家接触，通过检索美国社会骨和骨矿研究协会提供的参考文献和摘要（1995～2004年）．进一步寻找更多的研究。检索词包括随机对照试验（randomized controlled trial，RCT）、临床对照试验、随机分配、双盲法、维生素D3、维生素D2；25-羟基维生素D、骨折、人类、老年、摔倒和骨密度。 研究选取：纳入的研究仅限于口服补充维生素D（维生素D3、维生素D2、补钙或不补钙）与补钙或安慰剂比较的双盲RCTs。试验于检查髋部骨折或非脊椎骨折的老年人（年龄≥60岁）中进行。数据提取：两位作者根据预先规定独立提取相关数据，其中包括研究质量指标。 数据综合：所有的汇总分析均以随机效应模型为基础。5项有关髋部骨折的RCTs（n=9294）和7项有关非脊椎骨折危险的RCTs（n=9820）符合我们的纳入标准。所有试验均使用了维生素D3。对髋部和非脊椎骨折预防研究的异质性亦进行观察，用低剂量（400IU／d）和高剂量（700～800IU／d）分别合并RCTs后异质性消失。与补钙或安慰剂相比，每天服700～800IU的维生素D可使髋部骨折的相对危险（relative risk，aa）下降26％（3项RCTs共计5572人；RR，0．74；95％可信区间[confidence interval，CI]，0．61～0．88），使非脊椎骨折的相对危险下降23％（5项RCTs共计6098人；RR，0．77；95％CI，0．68～0．87）。每天服400IU的维生素D（2项RCTs共计3722人；髋部骨折RR，1．15；95％CI，0．88～1．50；非脊椎骨折RR，1．03；95％CI，0．86—1．24）未见明显获益。 结论：口服补充维生素D（700～800IU／d）可以降低尚能活动的老人或慈善机构收容的老年人发生髋部骨折和脊椎以外骨折的危险，每天口服400IU维生素D并不足以预防骨折。     

脊椎转移瘤增强减影MR成像

目的评估增强减影在脊椎转移瘤MR I中的应用价值。方法50例脊椎转移瘤病人进行MR I增强扫描,对比剂采用Gd-DTPA(0.1 mmol/kg),然后用T1W I增强后的图像与增强前的图像进行减影。通过对比噪声比(CNR)、信噪比(SNR)以及肿瘤边界清晰程度的比较,对MR I减影与否进行评估。结果MR I对比增强减影图像比传统的T1W I增强图像显示更清晰、更直观。所有脊椎转移瘤图像MR I减影的CNR和SNR比常规T1W I增强图像的CNR和SNR高。MR I减影CNR为155.05±24.73(x±SD),常规T1W I增强图像的CNR为11.11±14.26(t=35.65,Ρ<0.001)。MR I减影SNR为192.82±32.89(x±SD),常规T1W I增强图像的SNR为46.03±28.22(t=23.95,Ρ<0.001))。MR I对比增强减影图像比传统的T1W I增强图像能更好地显示脊椎转移瘤的边界和侵犯情况(2χ=29.34,Ρ<0.005)。结论MR I增强减影为探查和评估脊椎转移瘤提供了一个新的诊断方法。