Prevalence of diabetic peripheral neuropathy and relation to glycemic control therapies at baseline in the BARI 2D cohort

Abstract   We evaluated the associations between glycemic therapies and prevalence of diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN) at baseline among participants in the Bypass Angioplasty Revascularization Investigation 2 Diabetes (BARI 2D) trial on medical and revascularization therapies for coronary artery disease (CAD) and on insulin-sensitizing vs. insulin-providing treatments for diabetes. A total of 2,368 patients with type 2 diabetes and CAD was evaluated. DPN was defined as clinical examination score >2 using the Michigan Neuropathy Screening Instrument (MNSI). DPN odds ratios across different groups of glycemic therapy were evaluated by multiple logistic regression adjusted for multiple covariates including age, sex, hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), and diabetes duration. Fifty-one percent of BARI 2D subjects with valid baseline characteristics and MNSI scores had DPN. After adjusting for all variables, use of insulin was significantly associated with DPN (OR = 1.57, 95% CI: 1.15–2.13). Patients on sulfonylurea (SU) or combination of SU/metformin (Met)/thiazolidinediones (TZD) had marginally higher rates of DPN than the Met/TZD group. This cross-sectional study in a cohort of patients with type 2 diabetes and CAD showed association of insulin use with higher DPN prevalence, independent of disease duration, glycemic control, and other characteristics. The causality between a glycemic control strategy and DPN cannot be evaluated in this cross-sectional study, but continued assessment of DPN and randomized therapies in BARI 2D trial may provide further explanations on the development of DPN.     

Lipid extract from completely sporoderm‐broken germinating Ganoderma sinensis spores elicits potent antitumor immune responses in human macrophages

Ganoderma sinensis has been used widely in Oriental countries for the prevention and treatment of various diseases including cancer. Previous studies have shown that the lipid extract from Ganoderma exhibits direct cytotoxicity against tumor cells. Here, it is reported that the lipid extract from germinating G. sinensis spores, at lower concentrations that have no direct tumoricidal activity, induce potent antitumor immune responses in human monocytes/macrophages. Upon stimulation with the lipid extract, monocytes/macrophages exhibited markedly increased production of proinflammatory cytokines and surface expression of costimulatory molecules. Conditioned medium from stimulated cells effectively suppressed the growth of tumor cells. Apparently, the lipid extract triggered macrophage activation via a mechanism different from that associated with LPS. Moreover, it was observed that the lipid extract could partially re‐establish the antitumor activity of the immunosuppressive tumor‐associated macrophages. These results indicated that in addition to its direct tumoricidal activity, the lipid extract from G. sinensis spores could exert antitumor activity by stimulating the activation of human monocytes/macrophages. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Changes in T .lymphocyte subsets after severe traumatic brain inJury

BACKGROUND： Besides local changes of cranial parenchymal cells, hemorrhage, etc., severe traumatic brain injuries also cause the changes of total body fluid and various functions, and the changes of lymphocytes and T lymphocyte subsets should be paid more attention to. OBJECTIVE： To reveal the changing laws of T lymphocyte subsets after severe traumatic brain injury, and compare with mild to moderate brain injury. DESIGN： A comparative observation. SETTINGS： Department of Neurosurgery, Longgang District Buji People＇s Hospital of Shenzhen City; Central Laboratory of Shenzhen Hospital of Prevention and Cure for Chronic Disease. PARTICIPANTS： All the subjects were selected from the Department of Neurosurgery, Longgang District Buji People＇s Hospital of Shenzhen City from August 2002 to August 2005. Thirty patients with severe brain injury, whose Glasgow coma score （GCS） was ≤ 8 points, were taken as the experimental group, including 21 males and 9 females, aging 16 - 62 years. Meanwhile, 30 patients with mild traumatic brain injury were taken as the control group （GCS ranged 14- 15 points）, including 18 males and 12 females, aging 15 -58 years. All the subjects were in admission at 6 hours after injury, without disease of major organs before injury Informed consents were obtained from all the patients or their relatives. METHODS： （1） The T lymphocytes and the subsets in peripheral blood were detected with immunofluorescent tricolor flow cytometry at l, 3, 7 and 14 days after injury in both groups. （2） The conditions of pulmonary infections were observed at 4 days after injury. The differences of measurement data were compared with the t test. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES： Changes of T lymphocytes subsets at 1 - 14 days after severe and mild or moderate traumatic injury. RESULTS： Finally, 28 and 25 patients with mild to moderate traumatic brain injury, whereas 25 and 21 patients with severe traumatic brain injury were analyzed at 7 and 14 days respectively, and the missed ones died due to the development of disease. （1） Changes of T lymphocyte subsets： At 1 and 3 days after injury, CD3, CD4, CD8, CD4/CD8 began to decrease, whereas CD8 increased in the experimental group, which were very significantly different from those in the control group （t =2.77 - 3.26, P 〈 0.01）, and began to recover at 7 days, which were significantly different from those in the control group （t = 2.06 - 2.24, P 〈 0.05）, and generally recovered to the normal levels at 14 days （P 〉 0.05）. （2） Conditions of pulmonary infections： At 4 days after injury, the rate of pulmonary infection was significantly different between the experimental group and control group [73% （22/30）, 0, x2=37.29, P 〈 0.01]. CONCLUSION： Patients with severe traumatic brain injury suffer from damages of cellular immune function at early period （within 7 days）, and they are easily to be accompanied by pulmonary infections.     

平阳霉素对HeLa细胞的大分子生物合成及超微结构的影响

作者用同位数前体参入法及透射与扫描电镜研究了平阳霉素(博莱霉素A_5)对HeLa细胞大分子生物合成及超微结构的影响。结果显示:平阳霉素能抑制HeLa细胞DNA,RNA和蛋白质的生物合成,对DNA的抑制作用强,ID_(50DNA)为42.77μg/ml。表现为:染色质减少,核内电子密度低,核仁分离及“核仁帽”形成,细胞表面微绒毛消失或变形,最终导致质膜破裂等。作者认为,细胞膜是否为此类药物作用的靶位值得进一步研究。     

明代中晚期的礼仪之变及其社会内涵——以江南地区为考察中心

中国传统的礼仪制度是在以身份等级制为内核的社会架构中形成的，同时又对传统的社会形态起着维系的作用。然而，至明代中晚期，婚、丧、冠、寿、社交等礼仪惯制却发生了诸多变异，并在江南地区尤为典型地表现出来。考察并分析当时的礼仪之变，可以发现。婚礼的变古出新，丧礼的淆乱旧制，冠礼的废弛，寿诞礼的盛行，人际交往的尊卑失序。所反映的正是社会的震荡与变迁。     

图书馆做好读者服务工作之管见

图书馆要做好读者服务工作,只有加强图书馆专业队伍建设,丰富读书活动,优化馆藏结构,创新信息服务,树立“读者第一,服务至上”的理念,才能适应社会的发展,最大限度地满足读者的需求。     

淋巴瘤样肉芽肿与韦格内肉芽肿临床特点的比较

目的 总结淋巴瘤样肉芽肿病(lym phom atoid granulom atosis,LG)与韦格内肉芽肿( egener granulo Wm atosis,W G)的临床特点,从临床上加以鉴别。 方法 回顾性总结我院与北京协和医院 1989 年以来收治的 6 例 LG和20 例 W G 患者的临床资料,并进行比较。 结果 发热、咳嗽及呼吸困难在 LG 中较常见,流涕、鼻衄及关节痛以W G 为多,肺受累以 LG 为多,耳鼻喉、眼及肾病变在 W G 中明显增多,皮肤受损两者相似。W G 患者常有 c-ANCA 阳性及尿沉渣异常。 LG X 线胸片为双侧多发结节,边界不清,多无肺门、纵隔淋巴结肿大; G 则为双侧多发边界清晰W的结节, 易形成空洞, 肺门和纵隔淋巴结可肿大。LG 病理改变为血管中心性淋巴增生性病变, 浸润的细胞主要是小淋巴细胞和不同数量大的不典型淋巴细胞; 而在 W G 中可见坏死性血管炎及大量中性白细胞、浆细胞及少量嗜酸细胞浸润形成的肉芽肿, 部分有多核巨细胞。W G 经治疗后, 多数患者病情缓解; 则疗效不佳。 结论 LG 和 W G 在临 LG床表现、实验室检查、 影像及病理诸方面的差异有利于两者的鉴别诊断。     

慢性间歇期创伤性膈疝1例

患者女性,53岁。不能左侧卧位近1月,下蹲时感腹痛、左侧胸闷1周,遂来我院就诊。既往史:1993年外伤致左肱骨骨折。体检:T:37.2℃,P:86次/min,R:22分/次,BP:120/80mmHg,呼吸稍促,左肺呼吸运动度减弱,胸廓无压痛。左下肺叩诊呈浊音,左下肺呼吸音减弱,右肺呼吸正常。心脏无阳性体征。腹平,无胃肠型及蠕动波,腹软,上腹部轻微压痛,无反跳痛及肌紧张,肝脾肋下未触及,移动浊音阴性,肠鸣音弱。实验室检查:血常规:WBC:10.5×109/L,NCU:62.8%,HGB:42g/L,PLT:147×109/L。影像学检查X线示:胸部后前位左下肺可见斑片状密度增高影,左侧膈面上升,…     

A preliminary study of radioimmunoimaging by 131I-COC183B2 monoclonal antibody in patients with epithelial ovarian cancer.

Monoclonal antibody 131I-COC183B2, developed in our laboratory and proved to fit for human treatment was injected intraperitoneally or subcutaneously in 13 patients. In 8 cases with i.p. injection the disease corresponded with the image, i.e. 3 primary ovarian epithelial cancers showed positive images, 1 ovarian Krukenberg tumor was negative and the other 4 negative images included 1 uterine myoma and 3 ovarian teratomas. In the subcutaneous injection group, 4 cases had ovarian carcinoma, surgery and chemotherapy. Two negative images corresponded with the clinical status-in good health, another negative case had metastatic left supraclavicular lymph node due to ovarian mucinous adenocarcinoma. The last negative image in this group was a case of benign ovarian teratoma which was proved after surgery. The 1 positive case was waiting to be proved by a scheduled third operation. The computer scintigram calculation of T/NT was 5.35 to 13.7. The results suggest that this monoclonal antibody can be used for radioimmunoimaging for the localization of ovarian carcinoma, which is not only helpful for clinical staging and differential diagnosis but is also a good follow-up method.

     

Pathways from first health care seeking to diagnosis: obstacles to tuberculosis care in rural China.

OBJECTIVE: To examine health care seeking pathways for patients with tuberculosis (TB) and barriers related to these pathways in counties under the National TB Control Programme in rural China. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted in two counties of east China in 2004-2005. A total of 557 TB patients were recruited and interviewed by physicians at the time of TB diagnosis. RESULTS: Of 557 participants, 13.3% had presented to a specialised county TB dispensary (CTD) directly after onset of symptoms, 31.4% had first sought care at a village health station and 51.2% had visited a township or county hospital first. The proportion of referral by a first health care provider to a CTD was highest in county level hospitals (73.5%) and lowest in village health stations (21.7%). The most prompt pathway from first health care seeking to TB diagnosis was to visit a CTD directly, with a median provider's delay of only one day. There was an increase in provider's delay when more health facilities were involved. CONCLUSION: To improve direct referral from general health care providers, especially village health care workers, to TB specialists would significantly shorten the delays in TB diagnosis in rural China.