Static and Dynamic Plantar Pressure Distribution in 94 Patients with Different Stages of Unilateral Knee Osteoarthritis Using the Footscan® Platform System: An Observational Study.

BACKGROUND Plantar pressure analysis is widely used in the study of knee osteoarthritis (KOA). The present study aimed to investigate the static and dynamic plantar pressure distribution in patients with different stages of unilateral KOA using the Footscan® platform system. MATERIAL AND METHODS We recruited 94 patients aged 61.75±7.23 years old with different stages of unilateral KOA for static and dynamic analysis using the Footscan® platform system. The static pressure (%) of the left, right, anterior, posterior, and the pelvic rotation (°) was assessed. The peak pressure (PP, kPa) was investigated in 10 areas of the foot: medial heel (MH), lateral heel (LH), midfoot (MF), first to fifth metatarsals (M1-M5), hallux (T1), and toes 2-5 (T2-5). The correlation between KOA stages and plantar pressure distributions was investigated. RESULTS The results revealed that static pressure on the unaffected side and pelvic rotation were positively correlated with KOA stages. In addition, there was a positive correlation between KOA stages and PP of M5, MF, and LH zones on the affected side and PP of M2, M3, and M4 zones on the unaffected side, and a negative correlation between KOA stages and PP of T1 and T2-5 zones on the affected side. CONCLUSIONS With the progression of KOA, static plantar pressure tends to distributed on the unaffected side, and the dynamic plantar pressure tends to be distributed laterally on both feet. The plantar pressure distributions in unilateral KOA patients are abnormal and are closely related to the severity of KOA.

Biological Differentiation of Dampness-Heat Syndromes in Chronic Hepatitis B: From Comparative MicroRNA Microarray Profiling to Biomarker Identification.

Increasing interest is aroused by traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) treatment of chronic hepatitis B (CHB) based on specific TCM syndrome. As the most common CHB syndromes, spleen-stomach dampness-heat (SSDH) syndrome and liver-gallbladder dampness-heat (LGDH) syndrome are still apt to be confused in TCM diagnosis, greatly hindering the stable exertion of TCM effectiveness. It is urgently needed to provide objective and biological evidences for differentiation and identification of the two significant syndromes. In this study, microRNA (miRNA) microarray analyses coupled with bioinformatics were employed for comparative miRNA profiling of SSDH and LGDH patients. It was found that the two syndromes had both the same and different significantly differentially expressed miRNAs (SDE-miRNAs). Commonness and specificity were also both found between their SDE-miRNA-based bioinformatics analyses, including Hierarchical Clustering, Gene Ontology (GO), Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathways, and miRNA-GO/pathway networks. Furthermore, syndrome-specific SDE-miRNAs were identified as the potential biomarkers, including hsa-miR-1273g-3p and hsa-miR-4419b for SSDH as well as hsa-miR-129-1-3p and hsa-miR-129-2-3p for LGDH. All these laid biological and clinical bases for classification and diagnosis of the two significant CHB dampness-heat syndromes including SSDH and LGDH, providing more opportunities for better application of TCM efficacy and superiority in CHB treatment.

Novel non-synonymous mutations of PAX8 in a cohort of Chinese with congenital hypothyroidism.

BACKGROUND: The transcription factor paired box 8 (PAX8) was associated with type 2 congenital non-goitrous hypothyroidism (CHNG2), a clinical phenotype of congenital hypothyroidism (CH). Though studied in a few regions with different ethnicities, the incidence of PAX8 mutations varied, even among Chinese cohorts in different regions. This study aimed to identify and characterize PAX8 mutations and explore the prevalence of its mutations in another cohort of CH. METHODS: The 105 unrelated Chinese patients with CH were collected from four major hospitals. Exomes of the 105 samples were sequenced by Hiseq 2000 platform to identify mutations of PAX8 on genomic DNAs extracted from peripheral blood samples. Luciferase reporter assays were used to assess the effects of mutations on the transcription of thyroid peroxidase (TPO). RESULTS: Three PAX8 mutations in four subjects were identified in 105 samples. One variant, rs189229644, was detected in two subjects, and categorized as uncertain significance. The other two missense mutations (275T>C/Ile92Thr and 398G>A/Arg133Gln) were not detected in three large-scale genotyping projects, namely 1000 Genome Project, Exome Aggregation Consortium and GO Exome Sequencing Project. Functional studies for the two mutations revealed that they could impair the transcription ability of PAX8 on one of its target genes, TPO. Therefore, the two mutations were causative for the pathogenesis of CHNG2. After combining the studies of PAX8 mutations, an average frequency of 1.74% (21/1209) could be obtained in Chinese patients with CH. CONCLUSION: The study specifically demonstrates the role of two mutations in impairing the transcription ability of PAX8, which should be considered as pathogenic variants for CH.

[A survey of perception differences of malocclusion between 16 to 22-year-old young adults and orthodontists].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate 16 to 22-year-old young adults' perception of malocclusion, dental health and aesthetic firstly. To investigate the perception differences between young adults and orthodontists, and factors on perception difference. METHODS: A sample of 16 to 22-year-old young adults was selected randomly in Department of Stomatology, Hospital of Nanjing Army Command College. A questionnaire, which consisted of socioeconomic status, index of orthodontic treatment need and dental health component (DHC) questionnaire, was proposed to them. Index of orthodontic treatment need comprised aesthetic component (AC) and DHC. An orthodontist measured orthodontic dental models of participants. Participants chose AC degree and DHC degree by their subjective perception. An orthodontist chose AC degree and DHC degree by their objective measurement. RESULTS: 71.08% and 70.59% of 204 participants respectively chose 'no need treatment' of AC degree and DHC degree by their subjective perception. 19.12% and 9.80% of participants were respectively chosen 'no need treatment' of AC degree and DHC degree by orthodontist's objective measurement. Objective measurement degree of orthodontist was higher than subjective perception degree of participants. Subjective perception of participants was little related to objective measurement of orthodontists. AC degree of male participants' subjective perception was lower than the female. DHC degree of urban participants' subjective perception was higher than the rural. DHC and AC degree of only child participants' subjective perception was higher than non-only child. CONCLUSION: Perception about malocclusion, dental health and aesthetic had significant difference between 16 to 22-year-old young adults and orthodontists. Young adults tended to think that their teeth were more beautiful and healthy. The female young adults than the male tended to think that their teeth were not enough beautiful. Urban young adults were more unsatisfactory about their dental health than the rural. Only child young adults were more unsatisfactory about their dental aesthetic and health than the non-only child.