Endogenous motion of liver correlates to the severity of portal hypertension

BACKGROUND Degree of portal hypertension(PH) is the most important prognostic factor for the decompensation of liver cirrhosis and death, therefore adequate care for patients with liver cirrhosis requires timely detection and evaluation of the presence of clinically significant PH(CSPH) and severe PH(SPH). As the most accurate method for the assessment of PH is an invasive direct measurement of hepatic venous pressure gradient(HVPG), the search for non-invasive methods to diagnose these conditions is actively ongoing.AIM To evaluate the feasibility of parameters of endogenously induced displacements and strain of liver to assess degree of PH.METHODS Of 36 patients with liver cirrhosis and measured HVPG were included in the casecontrol study. Endogenous motion of the liver was characterized by derived parameters of region average tissue displacement signal(dantero, dretro, d RMS) and results of endogenous tissue strain imaging using specific radiofrequency signal processing algorithm. Average endogenous strain μ and standard deviation σ of strain were assessed in the regions of interest(ROI)(1 cm × 1 cm and 2 cm × 2 cm in size) and different frequency subbands of endogenous motion(0-10 Hz and 10-20 Hz).RESULTS Four parameters showed statistically significant(P 0.05) correlation with HVPG measurement. The strongest correlation was obtained for the standard deviation of strain(estimated at 0-10 Hz and 2 cm × 2 cm ROI size). Three parameters showed statistically significant differences between patient groups with CSPH, but only dretro showed significant results in SPH analysis. According to ROC analysis area under the curve(AUC) of the σROI[0…10 Hz, 2 cm × 2 cm] parameter reached 0.71(P = 0.036) for the diagnosis of CSPH; with a cut-off value of 1.28 μm/cm providing 73% sensitivity and 70% specificity. AUC for the diagnosis of CSPH for μROI[0…10 Hz, 1 cm × 1 cm] was 0.78(P = 0.0024); with a cut-off value of 3.92 μm/cm providing 73% sensitivity and 80% specificity. Dretro parameter had an AUC of 0.86(P = 0.0001) for the diagnosis of CSPH and 0.84(P = 0.0001) for the diagnosis of SPH. A cut-off value of-132.34 μm yielded 100% sensitivity for both conditions, whereas specificity was 80% and 72% for CSPH and SPH respectively.CONCLUSION The parameters of endogenously induced displacements and strain of the liver correlated with HVPG and might be used for non-invasive diagnosis of PH.     

Review/overview of pain in sickle cell disease

Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a highly complex inherited disorder of hemoglobin structure. Although the molecular lesion is a single-point mutation, the sickle gene is pleiotropic in nature causing multiple phenotypic expressions that constitute the various complications of the disease. Its manifestations could be acute, chronic, nociceptive, neuropathic that could occur singly or in various combinations. Pain continues to be the major factor of SCD phenotypic complications and the most common cause of admissions to the Emergency Department and/or the hospital. Although progress has been made in understanding the pathophysiology of SCD as well as in developing curative therapies such as hematopoietic stem cell transplantation and gene therapy, effective pain management continues to lag behind. Palliative therapies continue to be the major approach to the management of SCD and its complications. The advent of hydroxyurea made partial success in preventing the frequency of vaso-occlusive crises and l-glutamine awaits post-trial confirmation of benefits. The search for additional pharmacotherapeutic agents that could be used singly or in combination with hydroxyurea and/or l-glutamine awaits their dawn hopefully in the near future. The purpose of this review is to describe the various manifestations of SCD, their pathophysiology and their current management. Recent impressive advances in understanding the pathophysiology of pain promise the determination of agents that could replace or minimize the use of opioids.     

Chemogenetic Silencing of the Locus Coeruleus–Basolateral Amygdala Pathway Abolishes Pain-Induced Anxiety and Enhanced Aversive Learning in Rats

BackgroundPain affects both sensory and emotional aversive responses, often provoking anxiety-related diseases when chronic. However, the neural mechanisms underlying the interactions between anxiety and chronic pain remain unclear.MethodsWe characterized the sensory, emotional, and cognitive consequences of neuropathic pain (chronic constriction injury) in a rat model. Moreover, we determined the role of the locus coeruleus (LC) neurons that project to the basolateral amygdala (BLA) using a DREADD (designer receptor exclusively activated by designer drugs).ResultsChronic constriction injury led to sensorial hypersensitivity in both the short term and long term. Otherwise, long-term pain led to an anxiety-like profile (in the elevated zero maze and open field tests), as well as increased responses to learn aversive situations (in the passive avoidance and fear conditioning tests) and an impairment of nonemotional cognitive tasks (in the novel object recognition and object pattern of separation tests). Chemogenetic blockade of the LC-BLA pathway and intra-BLA or systemic antagonism of beta-adrenergic receptors abolished both long-term pain-induced anxiety and enhanced fear learning. By contrast, chemogenetic activation of this pathway induced anxiety-like behaviors and enhanced the aversive learning and memory index in sham animals, although it had little effect on short- and long-term chronic constriction injury animals. Interestingly, modulation of LC-BLA activity did not modify sensorial perception or episodic memory.ConclusionsOur results indicate that dimensions associated with pain are processed by independent pathways and that there is an overactivation of the LC-BLA pathway when anxiety and chronic pain are comorbid, which involves the activity of beta-adrenergic receptors.     

SI和DBP对女性产后出血的风险预测效果

目的考察休克指数(shock index,SI)和舒张压(diastolic blood pressure,DBP)对女性产后出血的风险预测效果。方法选取2016年1月～2018年12月在我院行产检并分娩的320例产后出血孕妇作为研究组,另外选取同期进行正常分娩的健康孕妇240例作为对照组,比较两组患者的一般临床资料、血红蛋白(hemoglobin,Hb)、舒张压(diastolic blood pressure,DBP)、收缩压(systolic blood pressure,SBP)、心率(heart rate,HR)及休克指数(shock index,SI),并采用Ordinal逻辑回归分析各参数对产后出血的风险预警。结果两组患者在年龄、孕周、BMI及新生儿体重相比,差异无统计学意义(P0.05),而孕次相比,差异具有统计学意义(P0.05);与对照组产后24 h相比,研究组产后24 h患者的DBP、SBP及Hb均显著降低,而HR和SI显著升高(P0.05);与对照组产前相比,产后24 h患者的SBP、HR及SI显著降低(P0.05);与研究组产前相比,产后24 h患者的DBP、SBP、HR及Hb均显著降低,而SI显著升高,差异具有统计学意义(P0.05);Ordinal逻辑回归分析结果显示,休克指数和舒张压对产后出血具有预警作用(P0.05)。结论休克指数和舒张压可作为评估女性产后出血的风险预测指标,临床应密切监护。     

Complications of hand surgery

Hand surgery involves the surgical treatment of hand conditions and encompasses small bone fixation, arthroscopy, joint replacement and reconstruction of tendon and nerves. Complications following surgery to the hand may be due to patient factors, surgical decisions and the complex anatomy of the hand. Here we describe the complications associated with common surgical interventions for both elective and traumatic injuries to the hand. Following hand surgery, a balance between immobilisation and early range of motion is offset by the risk of wound complications, non-union of fractures and tendon re-rupture with stiffness and reduced range of motion of the digits. Superficial infection is relatively common following procedures to the hand, however long-term sequelae are rare. Implant failure, subsidence, instability and reduced range of motion are seen following arthroplasty procedures. Complex regional pain syndrome offers a significant challenge following injury to the hand and specifically after surgical procedures. Surgeons should consider the risk of particular surgical techniques, other perioperative factors and patient factors that may contribute to the development of complications following hand surgery. Patients should be adequately counselled in order to make an informed decision regarding the management of their condition.     

快速康复护理、中医特色护理对卵巢癌的效果

目的分析快速康复护理联合中医特色护理在卵巢癌围手术期护理中应用效果。方法选择本院100例2018年7月-2019年2月卵巢癌患者。随机分组,快速康复护理组采取快速康复护理,快速康复护理联合中医特色护理组则采取快速康复护理联合中医针灸推拿护理。比较两组护理满意度;卵巢癌疼痛以及不良反应好转的时间;治疗前后患者中医证候积分、QOL量表评分值。结果快速康复护理联合中医特色护理组护理满意度、卵巢癌疼痛以及不良反应好转的时间、中医证候积分、QOL量表评分值相比较快速康复护理组更好,P <0.05。结论快速康复护理联合中医针灸推拿护理卵巢癌效果确切,可改善并发症和缓解疼痛,改善生存质量。