Safety evaluation of surgical materials by cytotoxicity testing

The cytotoxicity of three kinds of commercially available absorbable hemostats [oxidized cellulose (Surgicel, gauze and cotton types), microfibrillar collagen (Avitene), and cotton-type collagen (Integran)] and one adhesion barrier [sodium hyaluronate and carboxymethyl-cellulose membrane (Seprafilm)] were comparatively assessed by a colony assay using V79 cells and a minimum essential medium (MEM) elution assay in combination with a neutral red assay using L929 cells. Strong cytotoxicity was detected for Surgicel by both the MEM elution assay and the colony assay. For Avitene, both methods revealed weak cytotoxicity. For Seprafilm, no cytotoxicity was detected by the MEM elution assay, while a moderate degree of cytotoxicity was observed in the colony assay. For Integran cytotoxicity was not detected by either the MEM elution or the colony assay. The results of the different methods showed some inconsistency in terms of the degree of cytotoxicity of the materials. It is proposed that the combination of two or more sensitive cytotoxicity testing methods for the evaluation of biomaterials is necessary to avoid false-negative results for biomaterials at the preclinical stage. Furthermore, investigation of the correlation between the cytotoxicity and the extraction period of the surgical materials is helpful for predicting the effect of prolonged in vivo use of biomaterials on surrounding cells, tissues, and organs.     

青豌豆气调包装工艺及其质量评价

摘要：包装内气氛与包装材料选择性透气性是影响果蔬气调包装质量的主要因素。对青豌豆采用6组不同初始气体组分、3种包装材料进行气调包装，在5℃，相对湿度85％的环境下贮藏7d后，测定青豌豆的相关质量指标，并与未包装产品进行比较，结果表明气调包装对青豌豆保鲜效果显著；在此基础上，用主成分分析法构造了气调包装产品质量的综合评价模型，对气调包装青豌豆质量进行综合评价，得出青豌豆气调包装的最佳初始气体组分，分析了不同包装材料对青豌豆气调包装质量的影响。     

Evaluating therapeutic outcome in epileptic patients using the changes of interval and duration

BACKGROUND: Seizure frequency is in abnormal distribution, and it is not enough to express the trend of concentration using means, and its median loses a lot of information, thus it lacks of a standard for evaluating the therapeutic effects based on seizure frequency. OBJECTIVE: To establish a method for evaluating the therapeutic effects on anti-epileptic drugs using changes of interval and duration of seizure. DESIGN: A prospective cohort study. SETTING: Zhumadian Psychiatric Hospital. PARTICIPANTS: Outpatients and inpatients suffering from epilepsy attending firstly visited Zhumadian Psychiatric Hospital from June 2001 to June 2002 were enrolled. They were diagnosed as epileptic according to the International Classification of Epileptic Seizure by International League Against Epilepsy (1981) based on the clinical history, physical examination, and investigations. The interval time was no more than 6 months. Informed consent was obtained from all the subjects, and the study was approved by the hospital ethical committee. METHODS: ① For the first visit and each follow-up, the following data were recorded, including general demographic information, seizure type, the date and time of ictus, the duration of ictus, and inducement or situation related, according to which the following indexes could be calculated, including seizure styles, interval, duration, cluster frequency and cluster duration. The information from the first review was noted as annals A. The second interview was taken at the end of the evaluating period; the information from the second review was noted as annals B. The third interview was taken within two weeks after the second one; the information from the third review was noted as annals C. The annals B or the annals C were respectively compared with the annals A in the light of the same types or the same styles of the same patient. Summation of the scores of interval change and duration change of the same type or the same style and 5 of basic score was the score of a corresponding seizure type or a corresponding style of one patient. In order to test its reliability and validity, the score of change of frequency or duration plus 5 scores respectively was the score of frequency or duration. ② Reliability and validity were tested by calculating corresponding correlation coefficient with SPSS 11.0. ROC curve was used for developing diagnostic criterion of predicting therapeutic effects with SPSS 11.0. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: ① Reliability and validity; ② Diagnostic criterion for predicting therapeutic effects one year later. RESULTS: Totally 28 patients were involved in the final analysis of results. ① Reliability and validity were high: rinter-rater=0.98, rtest-retest=0.99, rconstruct validity=0.83. ② A total score > 6 was the optimal diagnostic criteria for predicting therapeutic effects one year later, in other words, a patient who scored more than 6 at the evaluating period may be seizure-free one year later. CONCLUSION: It is a potential tool for evaluating epileptic therapeutic outcome, and it can be diffusely used in interrelated fields after being further validated.     

Autologous implantation of chondrocytes on a solid collagen scaffold: clinical and histological outcomes after two years of follow-up

Abstract From our overall experience in 56 patients, we here report the treatment with matrix-induced autologous chondrocyte implantation (MACI) of 35 patients suffering from knee cartilage defects measuring about 4 cm², and followed for a minimum of 6 months. A total of 36 knees were treated (1 patient on both knees) and clinically observed for 22 months (in some cases for over 39 months), in accordance with a standardised protocol. Subjective parameters (pain, well-being, functional state, symptoms during specific activity) and objective outcomes (IKDC score and Lysholm and Tegner scores) were recorded. One or 2 years after implantation, some biopsies of the regenerated cartilage were histologically evaluated. The subjective parameters (VAS pain score, 2.80±1.49, p<0.0001; change vs. basal score, 2.72) promptly normalized after 1 month, as did the objective ones (IKDC score after 6 months, 1.53±0.59, p<0.0001; change vs. basal score, 1.78). Similar results were observed after the treatment of a femoropatellar kissing lesion. The three cartilage biopsies that were analysed from different patients showed a tissue positivity to immunohistochemical markers of hyaline cartilage. The conclusions of this preliminary analysis are that the clinical outcome and histological evaluation suggest that MACI is able to relieve pain and restore the functionality of the knee, and that the treatment appears capable of regenerating hyaline cartilage.     

Depression Scale (DEPS) among suicide attempters

The Depression Scale (DEPS), a new screening instrument for detecting depression in primary health care, was compared with the Hamilton Depression Scale (HDS) among 50 suicide attempters. Using the HDS as a gold standard, the positive and negative predictive values of the DEPS for the diagnosis of depression were 98% and 20%, respectively. The correlation between the total HDS scores and the total DEPS scores was 0.60. The DEPS may help general practitioners to detect depression among suicide attempters, but it should not be used to exclude depression.     

高危人群微量乙肝疫苗免疫效果动态观察

采用微量乙肝疫苗（总剂量为６μｇ）对ＨＢＶ高流行区居民进行随机对照研究，免疫Ⅰ组（疫苗＜８℃保存）Ｔ１２抗体阳转率和保护率分别为９０．８％和８７．０％，和对照组相比，差异显著（Ｐ均＜０．００１）；和常规剂量（总剂量９０μｇ）比，其抗体阳转率和保护率基本相同。提示ＨＢＶ高流行区可用微量乙肝苗代替常量乙肝苗进行预防接种。免疫Ⅰ组和免疫Ⅱ组（乙肝疫苗室温保藏２８℃±）免疫效果和保护率基本相同，认为室温条件下乙肝疫苗６个月内效价不变。     

住院医师临床技能评估方法探讨

该文总结了安徽省立医院住院医师培训情况,提出了必须引入实践性考核作为住院医师临床技能考核的主要方式。根据临床技能评价的项目,制定了内科、外科、影像科住院医师临床技能评估指标体系,确立了临床技能考核的原则,并组织实施。这种评估方法能全面考核住院医师的临床技能,但在新的医疗形势下,需建立相关配套措施来保证实施。     

高校科研业绩量化评价指标体系及评价方法初探

目的：建立高校科研业绩量化计算公式及评价方法。方法：通过对高校科研业绩的表现形式和特点进行分析，根据高校科研和教学工作实际，提出高校科研业绩量化评价指标选取原则。结果：初步拟定了指标体系和评价指标的计算方式。结论：为高校科研管理部门对科研人员评价提供量化方法。     

Mood state and cerebral metabolism in persons with age-associated memory impairment

People undergoing medical procedures sometimes experience feelings that may influence the results. In this study, we explore the relationship between changes in mood state self-ratings and cerebral glucose metabolism during positron emission tomography (PET) in persons with age-associated memory impairment (mean age 59.4±9.8 years). Brain regions of interest involved in both mood and memory were examined. Mood ratings of increased boredom correlated significantly with mesial temporal and parietal asymmetry and decreased parietal metabolism. Mood ratings of increased fatigue correlated with basal ganglia asymmetry and the right basal ganglia and left mesial temporal metabolism. These findings suggest that subjective mood state changes during PET may influence metabolism in brain regions implicated in emotion and memory function in people with age-related memory complaints.