[Mid-term analysis of prospective cohort study of rivaroxaban in preventing CRT in breast cancer].

Objective: To explore the efficacy and safety of Rivaroxaban in preventing catheter related thrombosis (CRT) in patients with breast cancer who are undergoing central venous catheter chemotherapy, and provide basis for making standardized prevention and treatment strategies. Methods: In this research, a prospective cohort study was adopted, and breast cancer patients who received central venous catheter chemotherapy in Sanhuan Cancer Hospital during September 2020 to March 2022 were selected as a treatment group to take the rivaroxaban anticoagulation therapy with 10 mg.po.qd for one month. The control group got no preventive anticoagulation therapy. Vascular ultrasound examination was taken to confirm the occurrence of CRT, and a chi-square test was done for comparison the disparity between the groups. Logistic regression was applied to analyze the univariate and multivariate factors for the formation of CRT. Results: In the research, a total of 235 patients were selected, and there were a total of 19 035 days of catheterization with 81 days of catheterization on average. While in the control group, the incidence of CRT was 28.0% (33/118), the incidence of CRT in the treatment group was 20.5% (24/117), the difference was no significant (P=0.183). Subgroup analysis results showed that the peripherally inserted central catheter (PICC) was performed in 165 cases with the CRT incidence of 18.2% (30/165) and thrombosis was mostly seen around axillary vein, accounting for 63.3%. Subclavian vein catheterization was performed in 63 cases with the CRT incidence of 39.7% (25/63), and thrombosis was mostly seen around subclavian vein, accounting for 88.0% (22/25). Implantable venous access port was implanted in 7 cases around subclavian vein and internal jugular vein with the CRT incidence of 28.6% (2/7). The patients who developed CRT within 30 days after catheterization accounted for 54.4% (31/57), 22.8% (13/57) in a period during 30 days and 60 days) and 22.8% (13/57) in a period during 60 days and 180 days). The diagnosed CRT patients had been treated with rivaroxaban 15 mg.bid.po for 3 months. During the 3 months, 100.0% of the thrombosis waned, 71.9% (41/57) of the thrombosis waned within 30 days, 19.3% (11/57) in a period during 30 and 60days and 8.8% (5/57) in a period during 60 days and 90 days. Univariate and multivariate analysis indicated that the risk of CRT in subclavian vein catheterization was higher than that in PICC, respectively (OR=2.898, 95% CI:1.386-6.056 P=0.005), and the type of catheterization was an independent factor for the formation of thrombosis. Safety analysis result showed that in the prevention of CRT, rivaroxaban treatment did not induce drug-related bleeding, liver function damage, bone marrow suppression or any other side effects. While CRT diagnosed patients were treated with anticoagulation, they kept the central venous catheter, and the infusion was smooth. These patients all finished the anti-tumor treatment as planned, and no abnormalities like new thrombosis or pulmonary embolism were observed. Conclusions: In the mid-term analysis, the proportion of Rivaroxaban in preventing anticoagulant CRT decreases, but it don't reach statistical significance. The sample size should be further increased for observation. Rivaroxaban is proved effective and very safe in the treatment of CRT, and does not affect the concurrent chemotherapy. Medical personnel should carry out the policy of "early prevention, early detection and early treatment" for CRT so as to improve the patients' quality of life.

[Spatial distribution pattern of local tumor progression analysis after microwave ablation of hepatocellular carcinoma based on three-dimensional magnetic resonance imaging].

Objective: To investigate the spatial distribution pattern of local tumor progression (LTP) for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) ≤5 cm after microwave ablation. Methods: A retrospective analysis was performed on 169 HCCs with matched MRI before and after ablation from December 2009 to December 2019. A tumor MRI was reconstructed using three-dimensional visualization technology. LTP was classified as contact or non-contact, early or late stage, according to whether LTP was in contact with the edge of the ablation zone and the occurrence time (24 months). The tumor-surrounded area was divided into eight quadrants by using the eight-quadrant map method. An analysis was conducted on the spatial correlation between the quadrant where the ablative margin (AM) safety boundary was located and the quadrant where different types of LTP occurred. The t-test, or rank-sum test, was used for the measurement data. 2-test for count data was used to compare the difference between the two groups. Results: The AM quadrant had a distribution of 54.4% LTP, 64.2% early LTP stage, and 69.1% contact LTP, suggesting this quadrant was much more concentrated than the other quadrants (P < 0.001). Additionally, the AM quadrant had only 15.2% of non-contact type LTP and 17.1% of late LTP, which was not significantly different from the average distribution probability of 12.5% (100/8%) among the eight quadrants (P = 0.667, 0.743). 46.6% of early contact type LTP was located at the ablation needle tip, 25.2% at the body, and 28.1% at the caudal, while the location distribution probabilities of non-early contact LTP were 34.8%, 31.8%, and 33.3%, respectively. Conclusion: LTP mostly occurs in areas where the ablation safety boundary is the shortest. However, non-contact LTP and late LTP stages exhibit the feature of uniform distribution. Thus, this type of LPT may result from an inadequate non-ablation safety boundary.

[Curative effect of percutaneous microwave ablation therapy on hepatocellular carcinoma survival: a 15-year real-world study].

Objective: To evaluate the long-term efficacy of percutaneous microwave ablation (MWA) therapy for hepatocellular carcinoma. Methods: 2054 cases with Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer (BCLC) stage 0~B at the Fifth Medical Center of the Chinese People's Liberation Army General Hospital from January 2006 to September 2020 were retrospectively collected. All patients were followed up for at least 2 years. The primary endpoint of overall survival and secondary endpoints (tumor-related survival, disease-free survival, and postoperative complications) of patients treated with ultrasound-guided percutaneous MWA were analyzed. Kaplan-Meier method was used for stratified survival rate analysis. Fine-and-Gray competing risk model was used to analyze overall survival. Results: A total of 5 503 HCC nodules [mean tumor diameter (2.6±1.6) cm] underwent 3 908 MWAs between January 2006 and September 2020, with a median follow-up time of 45.6 (24.0 -79.2) months.The technical effectiveness rate of 5 375 tumor nodules was 97.5%. The overall survival rates at 5, 10, and 15-years were 61.6%, 38.8%, and 27.0%, respectively. The tumor-specific survival rates were 67.1%, 47.2%, and 37.7%, respectively. The free tumor survival rates were 25.8%, 15.7%, and 9.9%, respectively. The incidence rate of severe complications was 2.8% (108/3 908). Further analysis showed that the technical effectiveness and survival rate over the passing three time periods from January 2006-2010, 2011-2015, and 2016-September 2020 were significantly increased, with P < 0.001, especially for liver cancer 3.1~5.0 cm (P < 0.001). Conclusion: Microwave ablation therapy is a safe and effective method for BCLC stage 0-B, with significantly enhanced technical efficacy and survival rate over time.

Multiple Mechanisms in Proton-Induced Nucleon Removal at ∼100 MeV/Nucleon.

We report on the first proton-induced single proton- and neutron-removal reactions from the neutron-deficient ^{14}O nucleus with large Fermi-surface asymmetry S_{n}-S_{p}=18.6 MeV at ∼100 MeV/nucleon, a widely used energy regime for rare-isotope studies. The measured inclusive cross sections and parallel momentum distributions of the ^{13}N and ^{13}O residues are compared to the state-of-the-art reaction models, with nuclear structure inputs from many-body shell-model calculations. Our results provide the first quantitative contributions of multiple reaction mechanisms including the quasifree knockout, inelastic scattering, and nucleon transfer processes. It is shown that the inelastic scattering and nucleon transfer, usually neglected at such energy regime, contribute about 50% and 30% to the loosely bound proton and deeply bound neutron removal, respectively. These multiple reaction mechanisms should be considered in analyses of inclusive one-nucleon removal cross sections measured at intermediate energies for quantitative investigation of single-particle strengths and correlations in atomic nuclei.

Validation of the

The cluster structure of the neutron-rich isotope ^{10}Be has been probed via the (p,pα) reaction at 150 MeV/nucleon in inverse kinematics and in quasifree conditions. The populated states of ^{6}He residues were investigated through missing mass spectroscopy. The triple differential cross section for the ground-state transition was extracted for quasifree angle pairs (θ_{p},θ_{α}) and compared to distorted-wave impulse approximation reaction calculations performed in a microscopic framework using successively the Tohsaki-Horiuchi-Schuck-Röpke product wave function and the wave function deduced from antisymmetrized molecular dynamics calculations. The remarkable agreement between calculated and measured cross sections in both shape and magnitude validates the molecular structure description of the ^{10}Be ground-state, configured as an α-α core with two valence neutrons occupying π-type molecular orbitals.

Observation of a Strongly Isospin-Mixed Doublet in

ß decay of proton-rich nuclei plays an important role in exploring isospin mixing. The ß decay of ^{26}P at the proton drip line is studied using double-sided silicon strip detectors operating in conjunction with high-purity germanium detectors. The T=2 isobaric analog state (IAS) at 13 055 keV and two new high-lying states at 13 380 and 11 912 keV in ^{26}Si are unambiguously identified through ß-delayed two-proton emission (ß2p). Angular correlations of two protons emitted from ^{26}Si excited states populated by ^{26}P ß decay are measured, which suggests that the two protons are emitted mainly sequentially. We report the first observation of a strongly isospin-mixed doublet that deexcites mainly via two-proton decay. The isospin mixing matrix element between the ^{26}Si IAS and the nearby 13 380-keV state is determined to be 130(21) keV, and this result represents the strongest mixing, highest excitation energy, and largest level spacing of a doublet ever observed in ß-decay experiments.

[Progress in platelets and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease].

Platelets-related pathophysiological mechanism and clinical research is one of the research hot topics in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) at home and abroad. Increasing evidence has proved the association between thrombocytosis and COPD. Platelets activation interacts with COPD. Antiplatelet therapy has been shown to have significant effects on both short-term and long-term outcomes in COPD. Platelets inhibition may be an emerging therapeutic target for COPD, and antiplatelet therapy is expected to become an inexpensive and effective treatment for COPD. This article reviewed the research progress in platelets and COPD.

[Diagnostic efficacy of a combined diagnostic model based on extreme gradient boosting algorithm in differentiating the pathological grading of gastric neuroendocrine neoplasms].

Objective: To evaluate the diagnostic efficacy of combined diagnostic model based on extreme gradient boosting (XGBoost) algorithm to determine the pathological grading of gastric neuroendocrine neoplasms (NENs). Methods: A total of 81 gastric NENs patients in the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University confirmed by definite pathological grading from August 2012 to December 2019 were enrolled. The data of clinical and CT findings were collected. The number of lesions, tumor location, shape, lymph node metastasis, thickness, longitude of tumor and CT values in arterial and venous phase were analyzed. ITK-SNAP software and Python 2.1.0 PyRadiomics software were used to perform the image preprocessing and radiomics features extraction from segmented images. XGBoost algorithm was used to build the CT findings model, radiomics model in arterial phase, radiomics model in venous phase and combined diagnostic model. The diagnostic efficacy of CT imaging model, radiomics model in arterial phase, radiomics model in venous phase and combined diagnostic model were evaluated by accuracy, mean squared error (MSE) and mean absolute error (MAE). Results: The subjects were 28.0 to 78.0 (58.6+10.7) years old, including 56 males (69.1%). The number of lesions, tumor location, shape, lymph node metastasis, thickness and longitude of tumor between G1/G2 and G3 patients showed statistic significances (all P values<0.05), while there were no differences in CT values in arterial and venous phase (both P values>0.05). Six most important features in the combined diagnostic model were A_logarithm_glcm_Imc1, P_squareroot_glcm_Maximum Probability, thickness, longitude, A_wavelet-HHL_glrlm_GrayLevelNonUniformity and P_wavelet-LLL_ngtdm_Contrast, respectively. The accuracy of CT findings model, radiomics model in arterial phase, radiomics model in venous phase and combined diagnostic model were 81.8%, 86.0%, 87.8% and 91.0%, respectively; with MSE were 539.41, 490.08, 429.99 and 371.92, respectively; and MAE were 16.72, 15.25, 14.23 and 12.33, respectively. The MAE value of the combined diagnostic model was lower than those of CT findings model and radiomics model in arterial phase (P<0.001 and 0.004, respectively), while no statistically difference was detected compared to radiomics model in venous phase (P=0.111). Conclusion: The combined diagnostic model based on XGBoost algorithm have a good diagnostic efficiency for the pathological grading of gastric NENs.

[Comparative study of CT relative enhancement value and subjective visual evaluation for intestinal ischemia in patients with closed loop obstruction].

Objective: To compare and evaluate the diagnostic performance of visual evaluation and CT maximal density relative enhancement value in the diagnosis of intestinal ischemia complication in patients with closed loop obstruction and to explore the feasibility of CT maximal density relative enhancement value in quantifying the degrees of intestinal ischemia. Methods: The clinical and CT imaging data of 82 patients, 46 males and 36 females, aged from 19 to 78(52±18) years, with closed loop obstruction were retrospectively analyzed in the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University from July 2017 to July 2019. All patients were classified into three groups: necrosis group (28 cases), ischemia group (22 cases), non-ischemia group(32 cases) using clinicopathologic results as reference standard. CT visual evaluation was performed by two experienced radiologists. The sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values and accuracy of the two observers were calculated respectively. The inter-observer agreement was analyzed by kappa analysis. Maximal density relative enhancement value was defined as the difference CT value of an ROI at dilated obstructed loops between contrast-enhanced and unenhanced CT images. The differences among groups were compared by one-way analysis of variance. Diagnostic performances were evaluated by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. Results: The sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values and accuracy of observer1 were 62.0%, 87.5%, 88.6%, 59.6%, 72.0%, and 58.0%, 93.8%, 93.5%, 58.8%, 72.0%for observer2, respectively. The kappa value of inter-observer agreement was 0.747. The unenhanced CT value of necrosis group, ischemia group and non-ischemia group was (53.7±9.7), (45.7±7.2) and (44.7±7.0) HU, enhanced CT value was (60.5±10.1), (65.0±11.6) and (87.0±15.8) HU, relative enhancement value was(6.8±8.4), (19.2±12.4) and(44.7±16.2)HU, respectively. All had a statistical difference among three groups (all P<0.05). The unenhanced CT value of necrosis group was higher than that of ischemia group and un-ischemia group (both P<0.05). The enhanced CT value of non-ischemia group was higher than that of ischemia group and necrosis (both P<0.05). The relative enhancement value all had a significant difference between groups (all P<0.05). Taking maximal density relative enhancement value below 19.5 HU as diagnosis threshold, the sensitivity, specificity and area under curve(AUC) were 96.9%, 74.0% and 0.947, respectively. Taking enhanced CT value below 66.5 HU as diagnosis threshold, the sensitivity, specificity and AUC were 93.8%, 60.0% and 0.903, respectively; the sensitivity was higher than that of objective visual evaluation. Conclusion: Maximal density relative enhancement value can quantize the bowel wall enhancement, and is a more reliable way in the diagnosis of intestinal ischemia than visual evaluation.

Combined Fracture of Carpal and Volar Divergent Dislocation of the Second to Fifth Carpometacarpal Joints.

The volar divergent dislocation of the second to fifth carpometacarpal joints and involving fracture of carpal is an extremely rare injury. We reported a case of 55-year-old man, victim of a motorbike, who was struck by a car, admitted at the emergency department unable to move his left hand with severe swelling. X-rays and CT scan showed a volar divergent dislocation of second to fifth carpometacarpal joints and involving fracture of carpal. Patient underwent closed reduction and plaster fixation right way, after one week, he received open reduction internal fixation with K-wire and plaster. Functional exercise was started progressively once K-wire and plaster were removed after six weeks. At six months follow-up, results were excellent and patient has regained all of his range of motion and hand activities. Key words: carpometacarpal joint, palmar, divergent, dislocation, hand, wrist.

Large Isospin Asymmetry in

ß-delayed one-proton emissions of ^{22}Si, the lightest nucleus with an isospin projection T_{z}=-3, are studied with a silicon array surrounded by high-purity germanium detectors. Properties of ß-decay branches and the reduced transition probabilities for the transitions to the low-lying states of ^{22}Al are determined. Compared to the mirror ß decay of ^{22}O, the largest value of mirror asymmetry in low-lying states by far, with δ=209(96), is found in the transition to the first 1^{+} excited state. Shell-model calculation with isospin-nonconserving forces, including the T=1, J=2, 3 interaction related to the s_{1/2} orbit that introduces explicitly the isospin-symmetry breaking force and describes the loosely bound nature of the wave functions of the s_{1/2} orbit, can reproduce the observed data well and consistently explain the observation that a large δ value occurs for the first but not for the second 1^{+} excited state of ^{22}Al. Our results, while supporting the proton-halo structure in ^{22}Al, might provide another means to identify halo nuclei.

Discovery of an Aedes (Stegomyia) albopictus population and first records of Aedes (Stegomyia) aegypti in Canada.

A population of Aedes (Stegomyia) albopictus (Skuse) (Diptera: Culicidae), a vector of chikungunya, dengue, yellow fever, and Zika and West Nile viruses, has been detected in Windsor, Ontario, Canada from 2016 onwards. Here, we describe its seasonal distribution, as well as the various aquatic habitats from which this species was collected and its larval co-habitation. We collected immatures from tires, treeholes, extruded polystyrene foam containers, discarded plastic cups, old recycling bins and oviposition traps. Aedes albopictus larvae were collected with Aedes japonicus (Theobald), Anopheles punctipennis (Say), Culex pipiens Linnaeus, Ochlerotatus hendersoni (Cockerell), Ochlerotatus triseriatus (Say) and Orthopodomyia signifera (Coquillett). Adult female and male specimens were collected from Biogents sentinel traps (Biogents AG, Regensburg, Germany), as well as Centers for Disease Control and Prevention miniature light traps (CDC, Atlanta, GA, U.S.A.), and also as they alighted on the investigators. Peak adult collections occurred in September during epidemiological week 37. We also collected Aedes (Stegomyia) aegypti (Linnaeus), a new record for Canada, in 2016 and from two new collection sites in 2017. The 2017 collections were 3.5 km north and 19.4 km south of the index site. The present study adds to the increasing number of studies reporting range expansions of these mosquito species.

[The value of spectral CT-based radiomics in preoperative prediction of lymph node metastasis of advanced gastric cancer].

Objective: To investigate the spectral CT-based radiomics in predicting preoperatively the lymph node metastasis (LNM) of advanced gastric cancer. Methods: From January 2014 to October 2018, the spectral CT imaging and clinical data of 196 gastric adenocarcinoma patients confirmed by pathology in the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University were retrospectively enrolled (training set and test set were randomly divided according to the ratio of 1∶1). These 196 patients include143 males and 53 females, aged from 28 to 81 years, with an average age of (59±11) years, and were divided into nodular metastasis group and non-metastasis group according to clinicopathological data. The spectral parameters were measured and calculated, and the CT-reported lymph node (LN) status from CT images were obtained. 273 radiomics features were extracted from the dual-phases CT images in different energy level (40, 65 and 100 keV) to build the radiomics signature respectively. Univariate analysis was used to compare the differences of spectral parameters and radiomics features between two groups, and then the significant indicators were put into multivariable logistic regression analysis to construct combined prediction model and radiomics nomogram. In addition, the performance of prediction model in training and test set were measured using the receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curves and were compared using DeLong test. Results: Both in training set and in test set, the iodine concentration (IC) of tumor in venous phase (VP) in nodular metastasis group were higher than that in non-metastasis group [training set: 22.98 (100 mg/L)>20.31 (100 mg/L), P=0.086; test set: 25.14 (100 mg/L)>21.07 (100 mg/L), P=0.009]. The CT-reported LN status showed significant differences between the two group (P<0.001, P=0.001). The radiomics signatures 40 keV-arterial phase, 65 keV-venous phase, IC-VP of tumor and CT-reported LN status were independent indicators for prediction of preoperative LNM of advanced gastric cancer in combined prediction model (P<0.05). The radiomics nomogram predicated LNM with an area under curve (AUC) and 95% confidence interval (CI) of 0.822 (0.739-0.906) in training set and 0.819(0.732-0.906) in test set, and there were no significant differences in AUC between two sets (P>0.05). Conclusions: The spectral CT-based radiomics can be used to quantitatively predict the LNM of advanced gastric cancer preoperatively.

[Application of a multi-material artifact reduction algorithm in a wide-detector CT in the evaluation of the portal venous angiography of postoperative TIPS and embolization].

Objective: To assess the effect of monochromatic images and metal artifact reduction (MAR) on the image quality of spectral CT portal venous angiography in patients with operation of after the performing transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic stent shunt(TIPS) and embolization. Methods: From December 2017 to April 2018, the examination data of 28 patients with portal hypertension due to cirrhosis who underwent portal vein angiography 1 month after TIPS and embolization were prospectively collected. After spectral CT scanning in revolution CT, the monochromatic energy levels(60 keV, 120 keV), 60 keV + 120 keV, 120kV-like + 120 keV fused images combined with MAR algorithm were reconstructed. Quantitative parameters such as image artifact index (AI) and qualitative visual evaluation scores were recorded and compared. Results: The 120 keV monochromatic images showed the lowest AI value(30.8±8.5, 18.2±4.3) and highest metal artifacts reduction effect. The 60 keV monochromatic images showed the highest AI value (57.3±15.7, 32.1±7.9) and the lowest metal artifacts reduction effect. The AI value of 60 keV + 120 keV fused images was lower than that of 60 keV images(26.2%, 24.7%). The difference of AI value between each group was statistically significant(all P<0.05). The interobserver agreement in the subjective image scores was moderate with kappa value of 0.824. The overall image quality score of 60 keV + 120 keV fused image and the noise score of 120 kV-like+120 keV were higher than the remaining groups. The differences of the subjective scores among each group were statistically significant(all P<0.05). Conclusion: The spectral CT with MAR algorithm can effectively improve the image quality of portal vein angiography after the TIPS and embolization therapy and the 60 keV + 120 keV fused images can eliminate artifacts and ensure a clear display of blood vessels.

[Relationship between one-stop CT spectral perfusion imaging parameters and expression of lymphatic microvessel density and vascular endothelial growth factor-C in axillary lymph nodes of rabbit VX2 breast cancer].

Objective: To analyze the correlation between quantitative parameters of one-stop spectral perfusion computed tomography imaging and the expression level of vascular endothelial growth factor-C(VEGF-C) and MLVD in metastatic lymph nodes of rabbit VX2 breast cancer. Methods: Thirty New Zealand purebred female rabbits were used to establish the lymph node metastasis model of rabbit VX2 breast cancer, one-stop spectral and perfusion CT imaging protocol was performed.The axillary lymph nodes were selected for corresponding image markers. The observed morphology of conventional HE staining and the EnVision method were used to quantitatively analyze VEGF-C expression and calculate MLVD.Pearson linear correlation was used to analyze the perfusion parameters of metastatic lymph node energy spectrum and the correlation of MLVD and VEGF-C expression. Results: Twenty-four experimental rabbits were successfully modeled and performed a one-stop CT scan on the 28th day. A total of 39 metastatic lymph nodes were included. The VEGF-C of metastatic lymph node was 20.0%±2.8%,and the MLVD was 12.5±3.5. There was a positive correlation between BF, AP(λHU), IC(VP), NIC(VP), VP(λHU) of metastatic lymph node and VEGF-C and MLVD (P<0.05). There was a positive correlation between lymph node IC(AP) and MLVD (P=0.027) and no correlation with VEGF-C expression (P=0.386).There was no correlation between BV, NIC(A)P and VEGF-C, MLVD(P>0.05). The correlation between VP(λHU) and MLVD was higher (r=0.448, P=0.001). Conclusions: One-stop CT spectral perfusion imaging quantitative parameters and pathological indicators have a good correlation, and it can reflect lymphatic vessel metastasis in lymph nodes.

[A functional magnetic resonance imaging study of exercise addiction].

Objective: To investigate the brain activities of exercise addiction (EA) group people with the task-functional magnetic resonance image (task-fMRI). Methods: A total of 29 exercise addicts (addiction group, average age 46±4 years) and 26 non-exercise addicts (control group, average age 46±6 years) matched by sex, age, average education level and sports dependence degree were selected by using exercise addiction index (EAI) through questionnaires to members of Jiangsu Local Fitness and Long-distance Running Association between January 2018 and June 2018. The participants were scanned with fMRI while watching sports pictures or non-sports pictures. The brain responses of the two groups under two stimulation tasks were analyzed and compared. Results: Compared with the control group, while watching sports pictures, the right fusiform gyrus (MNI:x=30, y=-87, z=0), left posterior central gyrus (MNI:x=-51, y=-21, z=54), left medial superior frontal gyrus (MNI:x=-9, y=54, z=30), and right middle occipital gyrus (MNI:x=42, y=-72, z=36) were significantly inhibited in the addiction group (t-test, all P<0.05). When watching non-sports pictures, the addictive group showed the left superior frontal gyrus (MNI:x=-12, y=54, z=30), left middle frontal gyrus (MNI:x=-30, y=18, z=45), right inferior frontal gyrus (MNI:x=42, y=33, z=-12), right occipital gyrus (MNI:x=42, y=-72, z=36), and they were more significantly inhibited than the control group (t-test, all P<0.05). Conclusion: Compared to the control group, the EA group shows significant brain inhibition with visual stimulation, particularly with non-sports pictures.

[Study on the expression and roles of nucleolin in cardiac injury in septic mice].

Objective: To explore the expression and roles of nucleolin in cardiac injury in septic mice. Methods: C57BL/6 mice (WT mice) and myocardium-specific expression of nucleolin transgenic mice (TG mice) were randomly divided into sham group (n=10, sham-operated) and sepsis group (n=15, animal model). Cecal ligation and puncture (CLP) was adopted to produce animal models of sepsis. The expression of nucleolin was detected by Western blotting analysis at 0, 12, 24, 48 hours after the operation. The 7-day survival rate, haemodynamic measurement, levels of isoenzyme of creatinekinase-MB (CK-MB) and cardiac troponin I (cTnI) in serum and levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and malondlaldehyde (MDA) in myocardium were evaluated 24 hours after the operation. The data were compared between groups with t test. Results: The expression of nucleolin in myocardium up-regulated significantly in WT+CLP group when compared with that in the WT+Sham group(2.57±0.34 vs 1.00±0.15, t=7.468, P<0.01). Compared with those in the WT+Sham group, the survival rate decreased (33.3% vs 100%, χ(2)=13.375, P<0.01), maximal rate of pressure development (+dp/dtmax) declined (t=4.993, P<0.01), but the serum levels of CK-MB and cTnI and the levels of ROS and MDA in myocardium increased in the WT+CLP group(t=5.031, 4.335, 3.365, 2.375, all P<0.05). Compared with that in WT+CLP group, the 7-day survival rate of mice increased in TG+CLP group (60.0% vs 33.3%, χ(2)=8.227, P=0.004), and the cardiac function improved (t=2.337, P=0.019), but the serum levels of CK-MB and cTnI and the levels of ROS and MDA in myocardium in TG+CLP group reduced significantly (t=2.127, 3.347, 2.115, 2.224,P<0.05). Conclusion: The expression of nucleolin is up-regulated in the myocardium of septic mice, and the overexpression of nucleolin can inhibit oxidative stress injury, attenuate the cardiac injury and dysfunction, and reduce mortality in septic mice.

Histogram analysis of stretched-exponential and monoexponential diffusion-weighted imaging models for distinguishing low and intermediate/high gleason scores in prostate carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: Noninvasive measures to evaluate the aggressiveness of prostate carcinoma (PCa) may benefit patients. PURPOSE: To assess the value of stretched-exponential and monoexponential diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) for predicting the aggressiveness of PCa. STUDY TYPE: Retrospective study. SUBJECTS: Seventy-five patients with PCa. FIELD STRENGTH: 3T DWI examinations were performed using b-values of 0, 500, 1000, and 2000 s/mm2 . ASSESSMENT: The research were based on entire-tumor histogram analysis and the reference standard was radical prostectomy. STATISTICAL TESTS: The correlation analysis was programmed with Spearman's rank-order analysis between the histogram variables and Gleason grade group (GG). Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) regression was used to analyze the ability of these histogram variables to differentiate low-grade (LG) from intermediate/high-grade (HG) PCa. RESULTS: The percentiles and mean of apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) and distributed diffusion coefficient (DDC) were correlated with GG (ρ: 0.414-0.593), while there was no significant relation among α value, skewnesses, and kurtosises with GG (ρ:0.034-0.323). HG tumors (ADC:484 ± 136, 592 ± 139, 670 ± 144, 788 ± 146, 895 ± 141 mm2 /s; DDC: 410 ± 142, 532 ± 172, 666 ± 193, 786 ± 196, 914 ± 181 mm2 /s) had lower values in the 10th , 25th , 50th , 75th percentiles and means than LG tumors (ADC: 644 ± 779, 737 ± 84, 836 ± 83, 919 ± 82, 997 ± 107 mm2 /s; DDC: 552 ± 82, 680 ± 94, 829 ± 112, 931 ± 106, 1045 ± 100 mm2 /s). However, there was no difference between LG and HG tumors in α value (0.671 ± 0.041 vs. 0.633 ± 0.114), kurtosises (ADC 0.09 vs. 0.086; DDC -0.033 vs. -0.317), or skewnesses (ADC -0.036 vs. 0.073; DDC -0.063 vs. 0.136). The above statistics were P < 0.01. ADC10 with AUC = 0.840 and DDC10 with AUC = 0.799 were similar in discriminating between LG and HG PCa at P < 0.05. DATA CONCLUSION: Histogram variables of DDC and ADC may predict the aggressiveness of PCa, while α value does not. The abilities of ADC10 and DDC10 to discriminate LG from HG tumors were similar, and both better than their respective means. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 3 Technical Efficacy: Stage 1 J. MAGN. RESON. IMAGING 2018;48:491-498.

Risk factors of haemoglobinuria after microwave ablation of liver tumours.

AIM: To explore the risk factors predicting haemoglobinuria after ultrasound-guided percutaneous microwave ablation (MWA) of liver tumours and discuss the treatments and outcomes. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The present study comprised 2,829 patients admitted for liver tumours treated with MWA from Jan 2011 to April 2017. Ethics committee approval was waived and informed consent for treatment procedures were obtained from the patients. Haemoglobinuria after MWA was found in 149 patients. The influence of 19 risk factors was assessed. Binary logistic regression and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis were used for statistical analysis. The treatments and outcomes of patients with haemoglobinuria were summarised. RESULTS: By univariate analysis, histopathology, liver cirrhosis, MWA volume, MWA energy, and MWA duration were significant risk factors. By multivariate analysis and ROC curve, MWA energy, duration, and volume were identified as predictors of haemoglobinuria after MWA. Drug treatments including kidney protection, adequate hydration, alkalisation of urine, and diuresis were administrated to the patients with haemoglobinuria. One patient progressed to acute kidney injury (AKI) while others had good clinical outcomes. CONCLUSION: Haemoglobinuria is a controllable side effect after MWA of liver tumours, which is related to high MWA energy, long MWA duration, and great MWA volume. It usually caused few side effects on renal function with correct treatment.