Infrared spectroscopy: A new diagnostic tool in Alzheimer disease

Biological markers play an evolving role in the diagnosis of Alzheimer disease (AD). We compare conventional measurements of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) tau and β-amyloid_1–42 proteins to a novel approach – Fourier transformed infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy – a simple technique derived from chemical and physical sciences that characterizes intramolecular bonds. For automatic diagnostic analysis, we developed an artificial neural network (ANN). We examined 71 patients with a clinical diagnosis of AD and 66 controls. β-Amyloid_1–42 was decreased (sensitivity 80% and specificity 78%); tau was elevated (sensitivity 76% and specificity 88%) in CSF of AD patients. The combined tau/β-amyloid_1–42 quotient was able to distinguish healthy from diseased subjects with 99% sensitivity and 86% specificity. The ANN could separate FT-IR spectroscopy data with 88.5% sensitivity and 80% specificity. FT-IR spectroscopy proved to be cost-effective and simple to perform. Diagnostic sensitivity and specificity is in the range of CSF tau and β-amyloid_1–42 protein analysis. Larger sample numbers for ANN training and validation could increase diagnostic accuracy and thus prove to be a useful screening tool.     

胃癌前病变的中医药治疗

胃癌前病变是近年来胃癌防治学研究的重点,常见病因有饮食劳倦,肝郁气滞,脾胃虚弱,湿热内蕴等。病位在胃,以脾胃为病变中心,可涉及肝胆肾等脏腑。病理性质总属本虚标实,寒热错杂。临床主要研究方法:①分型论治;②专方加减。实验研究主要涉及模型研究和中医药治疗机制的研究。     

Defining the spectrum of international practice in pediatric epilepsy surgery patients

PURPOSE: The Pediatric Epilepsy Surgery Sub-commission of the International League Against Epilepsy conducted a survey to determine the frequency of epilepsy procedures and etiologies. METHODS: Data were gathered from 20 programs in the United States, Europe, and Australia on 543 patients (<18 years) for calendar year 2004. RESULTS: Age at seizure onset was 1 year or less in 46% of patients. Intracranial electrodes were used in 27% of patients. The most common final operation was lobar and focal resections of the frontal and temporal lobes (41%), followed by cerebral hemispherectomy (16%), vagus nerve stimulator (16%), and multilobar resections (13%). Multiple-subpial transections were uncommon procedures (0.6%). The most frequent etiologies were cortical dysplasia (42%), tumors (19%), and atrophic lesions and strokes (10%). Less common were vascular lesions (1.5%), Rasmussen encephalitis (3%), Sturge-Weber (3%), and operations for infantile spasms (4%), and Landau-Kleffner/ESES (<2%). Children <4 years generally presented with daily seizures from cortical dysplasia and underwent multilobar or hemispherectomy. Previous surgeries before 2004 were reported in 22%, and occurred more commonly in patients with tumors (40%), hypothalamic hamartomas (47%), and vascular lesions (67%). U.S. centers reported more vagus nerve stimulator procedures, operated more often on children with no or subtle MRI findings, and used intracranial electrodes and functional neuroimaging more frequently than programs in Europe and Australia. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this international survey show the feasibility of international collaborations in determining epilepsy etiologies and procedures in children, and suggest differences in clinical practice between regions of the world. These results can guide the design of future studies in producing guidelines for therapy-resistant pediatric epilepsy surgery patients.     

自发性蛛网膜下腔出血274例临床分析

目的 :探讨自发性蛛网膜下腔出血 (SAH)患者的临床特征。方法 :回顾性分析了 1986～ 2 0 0 0年湘雅医院2 74例SAH住院患者的病因、临床表现、CT和血管造影检查结果。结果 :病因 :动脉瘤 112例 (40 .9% ) ,以 4 5～ 5 9岁组最多见 (P <0 .0 1) ;血管畸形 33例 (12 .1% ) ,小于 4 5岁组中多见 (P <0 .0 1) ;高血压动脉硬化 5 0例(18.3% ) ,主要集中在大于 6 0岁组 (P <0 .0 1)。临床表现 :头痛、呕吐、颈抗阳性在中青年SAH患者中的发生率显著高于老年患者 ;而意识障碍和肢体瘫痪症状在老年患者中发生率较高。头部CT检查阳性率79.6 6 % (14 1/ 177)。本组病人治愈 138例 (5 0 .4 % ) ,好转 83例 (30 .3% ) ,恶化 2 5例 (9.1% ) ,死亡 2 8例(10 .2 % )。结论 :青中年SAH患者的主要病因是动脉瘤和血管畸形 ,而老年患者为高血压动脉硬化 ;老年SAH患者的临床表现不如中青年患者典型 ;CT是首选检查方法 ,血管造影对明确病因意义重大。     

葡萄膜炎的临床分析

目的探讨葡萄膜炎的临床类型、病因和目前临床治疗方法。方法收集2008年2月至2011年11月我院眼科治疗门诊及病房收集的各类葡萄膜炎病例166例（236只眼）,对其临床资料进行回顾性分析。结果在166例葡萄膜炎患者中,前葡萄膜炎90例,占54．22％;中间葡萄膜炎15例,占9．04％;后葡萄膜炎10例,占6．02％;全葡萄膜炎51例,占30．72％。能够确定病因99例,占59．64％,其余为特发性患者67例,占40．36％。出现并发症及合并症的有105例（63．25％）。采用糖皮质激素、散瞳、非甾体类消炎药及免疫抑制剂等综合治疗方案,积极治疗其并发症和合并症,患者治疗后视力明显提高。结论由于葡萄膜炎病因复杂,病程长,易复发,易致盲,易出现并发症,目前治疗仍较困难,视力康复不容乐观,若诊治及时葡萄膜炎所致的盲和低视力大多可防可治。     

Linking multiple pathogenic pathways in Alzheimer&rsquo;s disease

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a chronic neurodegenerative disorder presenting as progressive cognitive decline with dementia that does not, to this day, benefit from any disease-modifying drug. Multiple etiologic pathways have been explored and demonstrate promising solutions. For example, iron ion chelators, such as deferoxamine, are a potential therapeutic solution around which future studies are being directed. Another promising domain is related to thrombin inhibitors. In this minireview, a common pathophysiological pathway is suggested for the pathogenesis of AD to prove that all these mechanisms converge onto the same cascade of neuroinflammatory events. This common pathway is initiated by the presence of vascular risk factors that induce brain tissue hypoxia, which leads to endothelial cell activation. However, the ensuing hypoxia stimulates the production and release of reactive oxygen species and pro-inflammatory proteins. Furthermore, the endothelial activation may become excessive and dysfunctional in predisposed individuals, leading to thrombin activation and iron ion decompartmentalization. The oxidative stress that results from these modifications in the neurovascular unit will eventually lead to neuronal and glial cell death, ultimately leading to the development of AD. Hence, future research in this field should focus on conducting trials with combinations of potentially efficient treatments, such as the combination of intranasal deferoxamine and direct thrombin inhibitors.     

蛛网膜下腔出血病因、症状和预后的相关性分析

目的 探讨原发性蛛网膜下腔出血（subarachnoid hemorrhage，SAH）的病因、症状和预后的相关性。方法 回顾性分析了167例SAH患者病因、症状，恶化和死亡患者的主要病因和症状。结果 动脉瘤是SAH患者的主要病因，以中青年多见；高血压动脉硬化次之，以中老年多见；血管畸形所致的SAH以青年多见。头痛、呕吐和脑膜刺激征等SAH的典型症状在中青年患者中常见，肌力、精神症状和语言障碍等不典型症状在老年SAH患者中常见。恶化、死亡的24例SAH以〈45岁、出血后14d内多见，多以后枕部疼痛、意识障碍为首发症状，后颅窝出血为常见出血部位。结论动脉瘤和血管畸形是中青年SAH患者的主要病因，高血压动脉硬化、动脉瘤是老年患者主要病因；老年SAH患者临床症状不如中青年患者典型；后颅窝出血所致的SAH是〈45岁患者恶化死亡主要原因，多发生在出血后14d内。     

Infantile hydrocephalus: A retrospective cohort of 467 patients from a single center

PurposeInfantile hydrocephalus has various etiologies that may influence children's cognitive development and onset of neurological comorbidities such as epilepsy. However, few studies specifically analyzed etiologies encountered in this population. Here we report a 9-year retrospective analysis of the etiologies and short-term outcome of surgically treated patients in a major pediatric neurosurgical center in a high-income country.MethodsThis was a single-center retrospective study for the period 2010 to 2018 using the database of the French medical classification for clinical procedures (CCAM) of the Necker Hospital, Paris. We included all the patients surgically treated for hydrocephalus before the age of 2 years and reviewed digital medical files and MRI.ResultsFour hundred and sixty seven patients were included, with a mean age at diagnosis of 4.8 months and male predominance (M/F ratio = 1/2). Etiologies comprised: intraventricular hemorrhage (27.8%), arachnoid cyst (13.9%), spinal dysraphism (12.4%), brain tumor (10.5%), associated brain malformation (8.6%), infection (7.5%), isolated aqueduct stenosis (5.1%), and other (14.1%). Epilepsy was more likely to occur in post-infection (40%) and post-hemorrhage (31%) hydrocephalus, and when brain malformation was associated (35%). Etiology, epileptic status and the number of dysfunctions influenced short-term school performance.ConclusionThis study identified various etiologies of infantile hydrocephalus, with different neurological outcomes. Specific follow-up is required according to these observations.     

The epidemiology and etiologies of respiratory tract infection in Northern Taiwan during the early phase of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak

BackgroundCoronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) manifests symptoms as common etiologies of respiratory tract infections (RTIs). During the pandemic of COVID-19, identifying the etiologies correctly from patients with RTI symptoms was crucial in not only disease control but preventing healthcare system from collapsing. By applying sensitive PCR-based molecular assays, we detected the etiologic agents and delineated the epidemiologic picture of RTIs in the early phase of COVID-19 pandemic.MethodsFrom December 2019 to February 2020, we screened patients presented with RTIs using multiplex PCR-based diagnostic assays. Data from pediatric and adult patients were compared with different months and units in the hospital.ResultsOf all 1631 patients including 1445 adult and 186 pediatric patients screened, 8 viruses and 4 bacteria were identified. Positive rates were 25% in December, 37% in January, and 20% in February, with pediatric patients having higher positive rates than adults (Ps < 0.001). In pediatric patients, RhV/EnV was the most commonly detected, followed by parainfluenza viruses. Most Mycoplasma pneumoniae infection occurred in pediatric patients. RhV/EnV was the most commonly detected agent in pediatric patients admitted to intensive care units (ICUs), while influenza accounted for the majority of adult cases with critical illness. Noticeably, seasonal coronavirus ranked second in both adult and pediatric patients with ICU admission.ConclusionWhile we focused on the pandemic of COVID-19, common etiologies still accounted for the majority of RTIs and lead to severe diseases, including other seasonal coronaviruses.