Consultation and treatment behaviour of infertile couples in China: a population-based study.

RESEARCH QUESTION: The prevalence of infertility in couples actively trying to conceive is 25%. What is the consultation-seeking behaviour, diagnosis and related treatment in infertile couples across China? DESIGN: Large cross-sectional population-based study in 2010-2011, in which 25,270 couples from eight provinces/municipalities in China were approached by a multistage stratified cluster sampling strategy. RESULTS: Among the 2680 couples reporting infertility, 1246 infertile couples consulted a fertility doctor. Age of the couple, man's body mass index and women's educational level were found to be associated with consultation behaviour. After the fertility work-up, diagnoses were tubal infertility (n = 353, 28.3%), unexplained infertility (n = 311, 25.0%), male infertility (n = 234, 18.8%), ovulatory disorder (n = 194, 15.6%) and endometriosis (n = 34, 2.7%), while 8.6% (n = 107) were not classified. Most couples received non-assisted reproductive technology (ART) fertility treatment (n = 906, 89.3%), with a proportion using traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) (n = 298, 29.4%). Intrauterine insemination (n = 62, 6.1%) and IVF/intracytoplasmic sperm injection (n = 57, 5.6%) were less frequent. Medical treatment and outcomes among five subtypes of infertility were also reported: about 30% of couples with unexplained infertility (n = 94, 30.3%) or male infertility (n = 67, 29.0%) used TCM to treat infertility. Apart from patients with endometriosis, of whom 20.6% (n = 7) received ART, patients with other infertility subtypes rarely received ART. For subsequent fertility outcome, 94% of them did not achieve a pregnancy. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of infertility in China is high, but the uptake of treatment is relatively low.

Inhibitory effect of compound Chuanxiong Kangxian granules on bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis in rats.

BACKGROUND: The diverse medicinal properties of herbal compounds make them suitable candidates to treat multifactorial conditions such as pulmonary fibrosis. We investigated the effects and mechanisms of compound Chuanxiong Kangxian granules (CCKG) on a bleomycin (BLM)-induced pulmonary fibrosis model in rats. METHODS AND RESULTS: Following an intratracheal instillation of BLM, Sprague Dawley rats were intragastrically administrated with different doses of CCKG solution or hydrocortisone for 28 d, while control and BLM-treated rats were administered with saline solution. The effects of CCKG treatment on pulmonary injury were evaluated with lung wet/dry weight ratios, histopathology and levels of hydroxyproline. Oxidative stress was evaluated by detecting serum levels of glutathione and total superoxide dismutase. Inflammation was assessed by measuring levels of tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin (IL)-1ß, and IL-6 in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid. Immunohistochemistry and western blotting was used to analyze protein expressions of matrix metalloproteinase-2, 9, α-smooth muscle actin and transforming growth factor-ß1 in lung tissue. The results indicate that CCKG treatment can ameliorate BLM-induced pulmonary fibrosis and attenuate BLM-induced oxidative stress and inflammation. CONCLUSIONS: We found that CCKG-mediated suppression of fibroproliferation and may contribute to the anti-fibrotic effect by inhibiting oxidative stress and inflammatory responses. Our study indicates a therapeutic potential for CCKG in the treatment of pulmonary fibrosis.

[Effects of artemether and dihydroarteannuin on mouse model of scleroderma].

OBJECTIVE: To study the effects of artemether and dihydroarteannuin on the mouse model of scleroderma. METHOD: Sixty mice were randomly divided into 8 groups: PBS control group, model group, menstruum group (20% Tween-80, 0.4%CMC-Na), positive medicine group (penicillamine 200 mg kg(-1)), low-dose artemether group (5 mg kg(-1)), high-dose artemether group (20 mg kg(-1)), low-dose dihydroarteannuin group (5 mg kg(-1)), high-dose dihydroarteannuin group (25 mg kg(-1)). We have established a mouse model for scleroderma in Balb/c mice by subcutaneous injections of bleomycin 0.1 mL per day (200 mg L(-1) BLM) for 3 weeks. Meanwhile, the administration lasted for 4 weeks. The back skin was removed in the next day after the final administration. Treated skins and lungs were harvested and analyzed for histological sclerosis. The thickness of the skin and fibrosis degree of derma were observed and made an analysis of the contents of collagen and hydroxyproline. RESULT: Compared with the model groups, the high-dose groups markedly inhibited the thickness of derma (P<0.001), furthermore, the contents of collagen and hydroxyproline in the skin were also significantly reduced (P<0.05). Other groups of mice showed improvement on scleroderma. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that administration of artemether or dihydroarteannuin may be an effective approach in preventing systemic sclerosis.

Effect of borneol on the distribution of gastrodin to the brain in mice via oral administration.

Both borneol and gastrodin are bioactive substances derived from traditional Chinese medicine. In this paper, the effect of borneol on the distribution of gastrodin to the brain in mice via oral administration was investigated. Gastrodin concentrations in plasma and gastrodigenin (active metabolite of gastrodin) concentrations in the brain of mice were determined by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography, after intragastric administration of gastrodin (200 mg kg(-1)) alone or combined with different doses (200, 400 and 600 mg kg(-1)) of borneol simultaneously or the same dose (400 mg kg(-1)) of borneol given 20 and 40 min beforehand, respectively. Compared with the administration of gastrodin alone, gastrodin coadministrated with borneol could have been rapidly absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract; the peak time of gastrodin in the plasma became shorter (5-15 vs. 30 min); the bioavailability of gastrodigenin in the brain was increased by 33.6-108.8%; and obvious brain-targeting effect was observed. The enhancing effect was attenuated when the dose of borneol was too high (600 mg kg(-1)), or the time interval between the administration of borneol and gastrodin was longer than 40 min. The results indicate that borneol can accelerate the absorption of gastrodin in the gastrointestinal tract and promote its distribution to the brain. Therefore, borneol is a promising promoter for oral brain-targeting drug delivery.