Going Upstream: Coordination to Improve CKD Care

Care coordination for patients with chronic kidney disease has been shown to be effective in improving outcomes and reducing costs. However, few patients with CKD benefit from this systematic management of their kidney disease and other medical conditions. As a result, outcomes for patients with kidney disease are not optimal, and their cost of care is increased. For those patients who transition to kidney failure treatment in the United States, the transition does not go as well as it could. The effectiveness of treatments to delay progression of kidney disease in contemporary clinical practice does not match the efficacy of these treatments in clinical trials. Conservative care for kidney disease, which should be an option for patients who are very old and very sick, is not considered often enough or seriously enough. Opportunities for early and even pre‐emptive transplantation are missed, as are opportunities for home dialysis. The process of dialysis access creation is rarely optimal. The consequence is care which is not as good as it could be, and much more expensive than it should be. We describe our initial efforts to implement care coordination for chronic kidney disease in routine clinical care and attempt to project some of the benefits to patients and the cost savings.     

Evaluation of the relationship between the anterior component of occlusal force and postretention crowding.

The aim of this study was to investigate whether a relationship exists between the anterior component of occlusal force (ACF) and postretention crowding in the mandibular incisor area. The study group comprised 32 adults who had undergone fixed orthodontic treatment in the department clinic at Marmara University in Istanbul, Turkey. In 13 subjects, the mandibular arch was treated without extractions; in 19, it was treated with bilateral first premolar extractions. The average postretention period was 3.5 years. The ACF created in the left side of the mandibular dentition was determined by measuring interdental frictional forces at each contact point mesial to the first molar and distal to the canine. Anatomic contact point displacements between the left mandibular anterior teeth (lateral incisor-canine, central incisor-lateral incisor, and central incisor-central incisor) were measured on plaster casts and summed to provide the irregularity index for these teeth. Correlation analysis was used to assess the relationship between the ACF values at each contact and the irregularity index. In the nonextraction group, statistically significant positive correlations were observed between the ACF and the irregularity index at the 3 contact points that were measured. The strongest correlation was found at the canine-first premolar contact (r = 0.65). In the extraction group, a positive correlation was found between the ACF and the irregularity index (r = 0.49, P <.05) at the second premolar-first molar contact, but no correlation was found at the canine-second premolar contact.     

腰椎椎弓根通道不同头尾偏角方向变化规律的数字解剖学特点

目的:观察个体化腰椎椎弓根通道在外偏角不变而不同头尾偏角方向的变化规律。方法:实验于2005-09/2006-09在广东省医学生物力学重点实验室完成。选取1例健康成人腰椎CT连续扫描数据集,应用Mimics8.11三维重建腰椎数字解剖模型,将腰椎数字模型导入Surface10.0,获得椎弓根通道的正投影区内边界及其正投影区内边界内、外切圆,获得内切圆经椎板、椎弓根与椎体的通道长度,获取各内、外切圆半径大小,对获取相关数据进行定量分析与椎弓根通道的可视化显示。结果:①内切圆半径:L1～5左右椎弓根通道正投影区内切圆半径在设定头尾偏角大小范围内变化不明显,左侧内切圆半径分别为(3.01±0.02),(3.89±0.03),(4.13±0.04),(5.16±0.43),(5.37±0.73)mm,右侧分别为(3.49±0.03),(4.34±0.06),(4.55±0.13),(5.26±0.36),(5.27±0.83)mm。②外切圆半径:L1～5左右椎弓根通道正投影区外切圆半径在设定头尾偏角大小范围内变化不明显,左侧外切圆半径分别为(7.22±0.81),(7.96±0.43),(8.04±0.34),(8.15±0.21),(11.00±0.40)mm,右侧分别为(7.82±0.55),(8.03±0.26),(7.76±0.40),(7.81±0.29),(10.77±0.30)mm。③通道长度:L1～5左右椎弓根通道正投影区内切圆通道长度随头尾角度的增大呈逐渐增大而后又逐渐减小趋势,左侧通道长度分别为(40.49±6.73),(41.49±6.12),(42.02±7.55)(37.02±7.58),(38.87±10.37)mm,右侧分别为(38.08±6.33),(41.16±5.03),(42.01±6.53),(37.94±7.71),(37.66±4.32)mm。结论:腰椎椎弓根通道大小是随头尾偏角方向不同而不同的连续动态变化过程,应用数字技术可以获得其通道大小连续动态的变化规律,临床应用选择合适直径、长度大小的螺钉及确定最佳进钉方向需要依循这一规律。     

树突状细胞在慢性乙型肝炎和肝癌治疗中的应用前景

目的:综述树突状细胞在慢性乙型肝炎和肝癌治疗中的应用前景。资料来源:应用计算机检索PUBMED2001-01/2005-12期间的相关文章,检索词为"dendritic cells,chronic type B hepatitis,hepatoma,therapy",并限定文章语言种类为English。同时计算机检索万方数据库2001-01/2005-12期间的相关文章,检索词为"树突状细胞,慢性乙肝,肝癌,治疗",并限定文章语言种类为中文。资料选择:对资料进行初审,并查看每篇文献后的引文。纳入标准:文章所述内容应与树突状细胞在慢性乙型肝炎和肝癌治疗中的应用相关。排除标准:重复研究或Meta分析类文章。资料提炼:共收集到56篇相关文献,30篇文献符合纳入标准,排除的26篇文献为内容陈旧或重复。符合纳入标准的30篇文献中,15篇涉及树突状细胞与慢性乙型肝炎的治疗,10篇涉及树突状细胞与肝癌的治疗,5篇涉及存在的问题与展望。资料综合:慢性乙型肝炎和肝癌的发生发展与病毒的持续感染和机体的免疫功能障碍有关,树突状细胞是机体中功能最强的抗原提呈细胞,在诱导T细胞抗病毒和抗肿瘤免疫中起核心作用。①树突状细胞与慢性乙型肝炎的治疗:许多证据表明由树突状细胞介导的细胞毒T淋巴细胞反应,通过杀伤感染的肝细胞和释放抗病毒的细胞因子来清除乙型肝炎病毒。②树突状细胞与肝癌的治疗:研究证明,经肿瘤抗原致敏的树突状细胞能明显增强特异性细胞毒T淋巴细胞对肝癌细胞的杀伤活性。结论:树突状细胞与慢性乙型肝炎和肝癌的发生发展密切相关。在乙型肝炎和肝癌治疗中,如能激发、增强机体对乙型肝炎病毒和肝癌细胞的主动免疫排斥反应,可有助于清除体内的病毒和肿瘤,达到抗病毒和抗肿瘤治疗的目的。     

仰卧和俯卧位心脏对煤尘肺患者肺组织体积与功能的影响

目的:观察仰卧位和俯卧位心脏对煤尘肺患者肺组织体积和肺功能的影响,为临床应用俯卧位治疗成人呼吸窘迫综合征等肺部疾病提供依据。方法:2006-08/2007-01河南鹤煤集团公司总医院放射科对10例煤尘肺患者行仰、俯卧位高分辨螺旋CT扫描,分别测量位于心脏下方肺组织的体积,测量仰、俯卧位状态下肺功能,用配对t检验进行统计学分析。结果:10例患者均进入结果分析。①CT扫描心脏压迫下的肺组织体积:俯卧位时均小于仰卧位[左肺:(7.74±9.55),(242.60±72.11)mm3;右肺:(12.21±11.41),(156.49±76.54)mm3,P均<0.01]。②肺功能测量结果:仰卧位时,患者的用力肺活量、第1秒用力呼气容积、第1秒用力呼气容积预计值百分率、最大呼气量,分别为(2.14±0.58)L、(1.62±0.79)L、(89.80±29.26)、(3.42±1.98)L/s;俯卧位时,患者的用力肺活量、第1秒用力呼气容积、第1秒用力呼气容积预计值百分率、最大呼气量,分别为(2.36±20.79)L、(1.80±0.77)L、(100.10±22.46)、(4.30±2.37)L/s。俯卧位时肺功能明显优于仰卧位(P<0.05)。结论:俯卧位时位于心脏下方的肺组织明显减少,可显著改善人体的肺换气功能。     

重心移动式步行矫形器对截瘫患者步行功能的影响

目的:观察应用重心移动式步行矫形器配合系统康复对脊髓损伤后截瘫患者步行功能的重建效果。方法:①2003-03/2006-06,广东省工伤康复中心先后为15例T4～12节段完全性脊髓损伤患者安装自行研制的重心移动式步行矫形器,矫形器由一对髋关节、两个与髋关节连接的钢索作为其核心部分,外加与之相连接的上部躯干部分和下部大腿矫形器部分组成。②于安装前对其进行15～30d综合康复训练,包括关节活动度、肌肉力量、平衡转移、站立等;装配后再进行矫形器穿戴训练、站起与坐下训练、平行杠内训练、室内平地步行训练和室外步行训练,2次/d,1h/次,共训练2个月。③训练后对患者进行限时的步行功能检查和评价(包括平均步长,6min步行距离及10m步行时间);并对其在治疗后所达到的步行功能状态进行定性评估。结果:15例患者均进入结果分析。治疗后15例中12例达到功能性家庭内步行,其中5例达到功能性社区内步行,其余3例可作治疗性步行。其平均步长为(37.6±7.9)cm,6min平均步行距离为(75.3±8.4)m,10m平均步行时间为(54.9±4.6)s。结论:①重心移动式步行矫形器能帮助T4以下完全性截瘫患者实现功能性步行,提高生活质量。②综合系统的康复训练是影响使用效果的重要因素。