Breast Volume Measurement in Young Chinese Women and Clinical Applications

The authors carried out research on breast volume and body surface anatomy of 125 women. As a result, an average breast volume for Chinese women was obtained (325.36 ± 12.66 ml), and a table with several linear equations for calculating breast volume was derived. The authors applied these results to their clinical work and succeeded in making mammaplasty more precise in 178 patients.     

Liver transplantation in Taiwan: the Chang Gung experience

Between March 1984 and February 1991, six orthotopic liver transplantations were performed at the Chang Gung Memorial Hospital in Taiwan. The indications for transplantation were Wilson's disease (5 patients) and biliary atresia (1 patient). Donors and recipients were matched only for size and ABO blood group compatibility, and the recipient operations were performed without the use of a venovenous bypass. Arterial reconstruction was carried out by end-to-end hepatic artery anastomosis (4), thoracic aortic conduit (1), or interposition of an iliac artery graft (1), whereas biliary reconstruction was accomplished by a choledochocholedochostomy using a T-tube stent (4) or a choledochocholedochostomy using an external cholecystostomy without stenting (2). Biliary complications occurred in three patients, and all required additional surgery. The average duration of donor-liver cold ischemia, operating time, and blood loss during surgery were 7 h and 50 min (range, 4.5–9 h), 13.5 h (range, 11.8–17h), and 4,385 ml (range, 750–12,000 ml) respectively. The immunosuppressive regimens included a cyclosporinsteroid combination (n=2) and a triple-drug combination (n=4). All except one of the surviving patients experienced at least one rejection episode that was reversed by a methyl-prednisolone bolus and/or recycle. One patient developed a primary cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection that responded well to Ganciclovir treatment. Two of the patients died, one of injuries sustained in a traffic accident 3 years after transplantation, and the other of massive upper gastrointestinal bleeding. The overall survival value at 3 months was 83%, and the follow-up period ranged from 3 months to 7 years. All of the survivors have achieved complete rehabilitation and currently enjoy an excellent quality of life with normal liver function. Althought the present study involved a small number of cases, our results indicate that liver transplantation can be successfully achieved in a high proportion of patients with acceptable morbidity, mortality, and cost in an Asian setting. The extreme shortage of donor organs is currently the most important obstacle limiting the application of liver transplantation in Taiwan.Presented at The Second International Symposium on Treatment of Liver Cancer. Taipei, 3–4 February 1991     

Dopa-responsive parkinsonism secondary to right temporal lobe haemorrahage.

A 46-year-old man developed a symmetrical parkinsonian syndrome 7 weeks after large right temporal intracerebral haemorrhage resulting from a ruptured arteriovenous malformation. His signs included bradykinesia, rigidity, start hesitation, and poor postural reflexes, without a resting tremor. He also had signs of a Parinaud's syndrome. Computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging of the brain demonstrated changes in the right temporal lobe associated with the haemorrhage but no abnormality of the basal ganglia or midbrain. Levodopa therapy produced a dramatic improvement within a few days of commencement. We postulate that the parkinsonism resulted from midbrain compression secondary to transtentorial herniation. Although parkinsonism is a rare complication of lobar intracerebral haemorrhage, it is important to recognise as it may be potentially treatable.     

Characterization of prorenin activation using a synthetic peptide substrate.

Human renin is synthesized as an inactive zymogen (prorenin) which is processed to the active form. We synthesized an 11-amino acid peptide which spans the human prorenin processing site in order to develop a simple assay to study human prorenin activation. Six enzymes which are capable of activating recombinant prorenin in vitro were studied. Four of these enzymes digested the synthetic peptide in a specific fashion, as analyzed by reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography. Amino acid analysis of the purified digestion products revealed that trypsin cleaves between Arg-Leu, the authentic processing site, while kallikrein, plasmin and elastase all cleaved at alternate sites. On the other hand, pepsin and cathepsin D did not cleave this substrate, suggesting that the activation of prorenin by these proteases might occur at a site distinct from the authentic processing site. Our data suggest that this synthetic peptide may be used as a simple and specific assay for prorenin activation.     

Studies on the relationship between transaldolase activity and testosterone synthesis in Leydig cells of pubertalmice

Objective: To study the relationship between transaldolase activity, protein expression and testosterone synthesis in Leydig cells of pubertal mice. Methods: Leydig cells were cultured for 2 hours and 8 hours, to the Stimulation Group, hCG was added and to the Controls, only the vehicle. The testosterone concentration was then determined by enzyme-linked immunoadsordent assay (ELISA) and the transaldolase activity and protein expression by Western blot. Results: (1) Both the testosterone concentration and the transaldolase activity in both Stimulation Groups were significantly higher than those in the corresponding Controls (2 h: p<0.05-0.01; 8 h: P<0.001); (2) The ratios of the A isoform, the B isoform and the total transaldolase protein to β-actin between the Stimulation and Control Groups did not differ signifi-cantly. Conclusion: hCG stimulates the transaldolase activity as well as the testosterone synthesis in the Leydig cells of pubertal mice, indicating a positive relationship between them.     

Tonsil cryptolysis usingCO2 Swiftlase

Treatment for inflammation of the tonsils has taken a variety of therapeutic forms over the years, ranging from the application of iodine and massage in the preantibiotic era to the tonsillectomy, which prevails today. The architecture of the cryptic tonsil, its clinical implications, and the rationale for a conservative, yet effective treatment modality focusing on the tonsillar crypts are addressed in this article. Also described are the procedures and results of a retrospective clinical study in which conventional tonsillectomy was compared with CO₂ SwiftLase cryptolysis. Although our observations are not based on a prospective, controlled study, the information disseminated here may be useful to otolaryngologists who routinely perform tonsillectomy in their practice, using conventional surgical dissection methods or the CO₂ laser. According to our experience with a population of 120 patients, cryptolysis offers some clear advantages, particularly when performed with the SwiftLase apparatus. The procedure can be performed safely in an ambulatory surgery or office setting under local anesthesia. The cooperative patient avoids the cost and risks of general anesthesia. Limited tissue destruction significantly reduces operative and postoperative complications, discomfort, and recovery time. To conclude, CO₂ SwiftLase cryptolysis is a safe and cost-effective method of treating tonsil pathology without unnecessary sacrifice of the organ, and undue risks and expenses to the patient.^11,12     

Pharmacokinetics of intravenously administered sodium dichloroacetate in rabbits

ＰｈａｒｍａｃｏｋｉｎｅｔｉｃｓｏｆｉｎｔｒａｖｅｎｏｕｓｌｙａｄｍｉｎｉｓｔｅｒｅｄｓｏｄｉｕｍｄｉｃｈｌｏｒｏａｃｅｔａｔｅｉｎｒａｂｂｉｔｓＧｕＢｉｎ（顾斌）；ＳｏｎｇＬｉｎｇ（宋岭）；ＪｉａｎｇＹｏｎｇｐｅｉ（蒋永培）；ＷｅｎＡｉｄｏｎｇ（文...     

脊髓运动诱发电位在脊髓肿瘤手术中的监测应用

目的探讨脊髓运动诱发电位(SCMEP)在脊髓肿瘤手术中监测的应用价值.方法采用硬膜外电极在椎管内直接刺激脊髓记录脊髓运动诱发电位(SCMEP)监测脊髓肿瘤手术,并对17例肿瘤患者的手术监测的记录结果进行回顾性分析.结果SCMEP由于病变部位及性质、刺激电极与记录电极间的距离不同,波幅及潜伏期的差异较大,电极安放后与手术结束时的结果个体对照,相差不显著(P=0.083;P=0.387).7例术中波幅降低超过预警值20%,5例经短暂休息或改变手术方向后,波幅恢复正常.结论SCMEP的波幅变化是提示脊髓损伤的可靠性灵敏指标,对辅助医生进行手术安全操作,缩短手术时间,提高手术质量,减少术后神经功能障碍起到重要作用.     

Genome-wide scan identified QTLs underlying femoral neck cross-sectional geometry that are novel studied risk factors of osteoporosis.

A genome-wide screen was conducted using a large white sample to identify QTLs for FNCS geometry. We found significant linkage of FNCS parameters to 20q12 and Xq25, plus significant epistatic interactions and sex-specific QTLs influencing FNCS geometry variation. INTRODUCTION: Bone geometry, a highly heritable trait, is a critical component of bone strength that significantly determines osteoporotic fracture risk. Specifically, femoral neck cross-sectional (FNCS) geometry is significantly associated with hip fracture risk as well as genetic factors. However, genetic research in this respect is still in its infancy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: To identify the underlying genomic regions influencing FNCS variables, we performed a remarkably large-scale whole genome linkage scan involving 3998 individuals from 434 pedigrees for four FNCS geometry parameters, namely buckling ratio (BR), cross-sectional area (CSA), cortical thickness (CT), and section modulus (Z). The major statistical approach adopted is the variance component method implemented in SOLAR. RESULTS: Significant linkage evidence (threshold LOD = 3.72 after correction for tests of multiple phenotypes) was found in the regions of 20q12 and Xq25 for CT (LOD = 4.28 and 3.90, respectively). We also identified eight suggestive linkage signals (threshold LOD = 2.31 after correction for multiple tests) for the respective geometry traits. The above findings were supported by principal component linkage analysis. Of them, 20q12 was of particular interest because it was linked to multiple FNCS geometry traits and significantly interacted with five other genomic loci to influence CSA variation. The effects of 20q12 on FNCS geometry were present in both male and female subgroups. Subgroup analysis also revealed the presence of sex-specific quantitative trait loci (QTLs) for FNCS traits in the regions such as 2p14, 3q26, 7q21 and 15q21. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings laid a foundation for further replication and fine-mapping studies as well as for positional and functional candidate gene studies, aiming at eventually finding the causal genetic variants and hidden mechanisms concerning FNCS geometry variation and the associated hip fractures.