A retrospective study of inpatients diagnosed with degloving skin and soft tissue injuries.

The overall picture of degloving skin and soft tissue injuries (DSTI) remains a blank space in China. Therefore, a retrospective study was designed to summarize the current situation of this injury. Patients diagnosed with DSTI hospitalized between 2013 and 2018 were identified from the Hospital Quality Monitoring System (HQMS) database, of whom demographics, injury characteristics, hospitalization and cost information were analyzed. A total of 62,709 patients were enrolled in this study. Male sex predominated, with a mean age of 43.01 ± 19.70 years. Peasants seemed to be the most vulnerable. East China and Hubei province had the most patients. The most and least frequently injured anatomic site were lower extremity and torso, respectively. Traffic-related accidents and summer accounted for the highest proportion in terms of injury mechanism and season. The operation rate of DSTI roughly showed a growing trend, and the average length of stay was 22.02 ± 29.73 days. At discharge, 0.93% of DSTI patients ended up in death. Medicine accounted mostly for hospitalization cost, while the proportion decreased year by year. More than half DSTI patients paid at their own charge. This study made a relatively detailed description of DSTI patients nationwide, and might provide enlightenments for better prevention and treatment.

Subvacuum environment-enhanced cell migration promotes wound healing without increasing hypertrophic scars caused by excessive cell proliferation.

Cell migration and proliferation are conducive to wound healing; however, regulating cell proliferation remains challenging, and excessive proliferation is an important cause of scar hyperplasia. Here, we aimed to explore how a subvacuum environment promotes wound epithelisation without affecting scar hyperplasia. Human immortalized keratinocyte cells and human skin fibroblasts were cultured under subvacuum conditions (1/10 atmospheric pressure), and changes in cell proliferation and migration, target protein content, calcium influx, and cytoskeleton and membrane fluidity were observed. Mechanical calcium (Ca2+ ) channel blockers were used to prevent Ca2+ influx for reverse validation. A rat wound model was used to elucidate the mechanism of the subvacuum dressing in promoting healing. The subvacuum environment was observed to promote cell migration without affecting cell proliferation; intracellular Ca2+ concentrations and PI3K, p-PI3K, AKT1, p-AKT 1 levels increased significantly. The cytoskeleton was depolymerized, pseudopodia were reduced or absent, and membrane fluidity increased. The use of Ca2+ channel blockers weakened or eliminated these changes. Animal experiments confirmed these phenomena and demonstrated that subvacuum dressings can effectively promote wound epithelisation. Our study demonstrates that the use of subvacuum dressings can enhance cell migration without affecting cell proliferation, promote wound healing, and decrease the probability of scar hyperplasia.

Two subtypes of surgery-categorized upper-lateral intracavitary pregnancy identified by MRI, a retrospective study.

BACKGROUND: The pregnancy outcomes in women with surgery-categorized upper-lateral intracavitary pregnancy (ULIP), previously named angular pregnancy, demonstrate higher heterogeneity than in women with ultrasonography-categorized ULIP. We aimed to use preoperative MRI and correlated clinical characteristics to explore whether the surgery-categorized ULIP comprises obstetric conditions undefined by the current ultrasonography-based diagnostic criteria. METHODS: This retrospective study involved 28 women with surgically and pathologically confirmed ULIP from January 2016 to July 2022. Two board-certified radiologists, blinded to the patients' information, independently reviewed the MRI images, and determined each MRI feature, including endometrial thickness (EMT) and peri-gestational sac (GS) endometrial interruption. Disagreements were resolved by discussion to achieve a consensus. Based on the cutoff value of EMT (11.5 mm), the patients were divided into above-cutoff EMT (n = 22) and below-cutoff EMT (n = 6) groups. RESULTS: Two subtypes of surgery-categorized ULIP were identified. Type-I ULIP (n = 22; EMT ≥ 11.5 mm), when compared to the type-II ULIP (n = 6; EMT < 11.5 mm), demonstrated lower incidence of peri-GS endometrial interruption (2/22 [9.1%] vs 6/6 [100%]; P = 0.001), higher logarithmic ß-human chorionic gonadotropin (ß-hCG) concentration (4.7 ± 0.4 mIU/ml vs 4.2 ± 0.6 mIU/ml; P = 0.026), lower rate of repeated dilatation and curettage (1/22 [4.6%] vs 4/6 [66.7%]; P = 0.003), less intraoperative blood loss (10.1 ± 6.3 ml vs 28.3 ± 18.3 ml; P = 0.001), and shorter hospital stay (2.8 ± 1.7 days vs 7.5 ± 3.8 days; P = 0.001). The peri-GS endometrial interruption negatively correlated with EMT (Odds ratio [OR] = 0.55; P = 0.001) and logarithmic ß-hCG concentration (OR = 0.08; P = 0.045). The below-cutoff EMT negatively correlated with ß-hCG concentration (OR = 0.06; P = 0.021). CONCLUSIONS: Surgery-categorized ULIP comprised two obstetric conditions among which the type-II ULIP, possessing unique imaging features undocumented in the literature, requires further attention during clinical practice.

Chemotherapy, transarterial chemoembolization, and nephrectomy combined treated one giant renal cell carcinoma (T3aN1M1) associated with Xp11.2/TFE3: A case report.

BACKGROUND: Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) with Xp11.2 translocation/TFE3 gene fusion is a rare and distinct subtype of RCC that is classified under tumors with translocation of the microphthalmia-associated transcriptional factor. CASE SUMMARY: We report an adult case of Xp11.2 translocation advanced RCC with metastasis (T3aN1M1), after targeted treatment, alcohol ablation, and transarterial chemoembolization, who eventually underwent successful surgical excision. No recurrence or transfer was seen within one year, and the survival period was more than 3 years. A review of the relevant literature was conducted to improve our understanding of the pathogenesis, epidemiology, clinical manifestations, diagnosis, differential diagnosis, treatment, and other aspects of the disease. CONCLUSION: Transarterial chemoembolization and ablation did not achieve the desired tumor reduction in this patient, but had a significant effect on reducing intraoperative bleeding and inhibiting tumor activity.

Epidemiological retrospective analysis in major burn patients: single centre medical records from 2009 to 2019.

Burns cause a loss of skin barrier function, rendering it prone to infection. The prevention of infection comprises a focus on the treatment of patients with burns. Therefore, we analysed the results of microbiological tests of patients with severe and extremely severe burns to provide a basis for the prevention and treatment of infection in patients with burns. The results of microbiological tests of patients with severe and extremely severe burns admitted to our burn centre between 2009 and 2019 were retrospectively reviewed. The overall positive rate of microbial detection was 40.67% and did not significantly decline over the 10-year study period. The most common positive sites were wounds, sputum, and urine. The most common bacterial species causing the infections were Acinetobacter baumannii, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Furthermore, the predictors of a positive detection, overall and at various sites, mainly included the burn area and depth, inhalation injury, and length of the hospital stay. Positive detection was an important predictor of the prognosis. In particular, a positive blood culture and Klebsiella pneumoniae had better predictive strength for mortality than other sites and strains. This study analysed the microbiological testing results at a single burn centre over a period of 10 years. The results provide information regarding the predictors of a positive detection and the influence of a positive detection on prognosis, and can be used as a basis for the development of clinical infection prevention and treatment strategies, as well as the selection of treatment measures.

Application of Diffusion Kurtosis Imaging and Dynamic Contrast-Enhanced Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Differentiating Benign and Malignant Head and Neck Lesions.

BACKGROUND: Preoperative differentiation of head and neck lesions is important for treatment plan selection. PURPOSE: To evaluate the diagnostic value of diffusion kurtosis imaging (DKI) and dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (DCE-MRI) in differentiating benign from malignant head and neck lesions and subgroups, including lymphoma subgroup (LS), Warthin's tumor subgroup (WS), malignant tumor subgroup (excluding lymphoma) (MTS), and benign tumor subgroup (excluding Warthin's tumor) (BTS). STUDY TYPE: Retrospective. POPULATION: Seventy-four patients with 79 head and neck lesions (44 benign, 35 malignant), divided into four subgroups: LS (14), WS (12), MTS (21), and BTS (32). FIELD STRENGTH/SEQUENCES: A 3.0 T, single-shot echo-planar sequence with 5 b-values for DKI and enhanced T1 high-resolution isotropic volume excitation (eTHRIVE) sequence for DCE-MRI. ASSESSMENT: The mean diffusivity (MD) and mean kurtosis (MK) derived from DKI and the time-signal intensity curve (TIC), peak time (Tpeak ), and washout ratio (WR) based on DCE-MRI were measured. The diagnostic efficiencies of DKI and DCE-MRI, alone and in combination, were calculated and compared. The parameters mentioned above were compared between the four subgroups. STATISTICAL TEST: Mann-Whitney U test, chi-square test, receiver operating characteristic curve, Delong test, one-way analysis of variance test, and Kruskal-Wallis H test. A P value < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS: The combination of TIC and parameters of DKI and DCE-MRI for differentiating benign and malignant lesions with 94.94% accuracy is superior to DKI or DCE-MRI alone with approximately 75% accuracy. MD, MK, Tpeak , and WR showed significant differences among the four subgroups. The accuracy of MD and MK was 91.14% and 92.41% for differentiating BTS from the other three subgroups. WR achieved 100% accuracy for discriminating WS from LS or MTS. MD and MK both differentiated LS from MTS with 97.14% accuracy. DATA CONCLUSION: A combination of DKI and DCE-MRI can effectively differentiate head and neck lesions with good accuracy. EVIDENCE LEVEL: 3 TECHNICAL EFFICACY: Stage 2.

Significance of early lymphocyte-platelets ratio on the prognosis of patients with extensive burns / 中华烧伤杂志

Objective: To analyze the changing trend and characteristics of lymphocyte-platelets ratio (LPR) of early stage in patients with extensive burns, and to explore the prognostic significance of LPR. Methods: A retrospective case series study was conducted. From January 2008 to December 2018, 244 patients with extensive burns were admitted to the First Affiliated Hospital of Naval Medical University, including 181 males and 63 females, aged (44±16) years. The total burned area of patients was 60.0% (42.0%, 85.0%) total body surface area. Platelet and lymphocyte test results of patients were collected on the 1st, 2nd and 3rd day after admission, and LPR of patients was calculated to analyze the changing trend of the three days after admission. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis were conducted to investigate the risk factors or independent risk factors for death of patients, including age, sex, total burn area, area of full-thickness burns and above, inhalation injury, and LPR. According to the 1st day's LPR after admission of patients, the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve predicting death of patients was drawn to find the optimal value of LPR. Patients were divided into high LPR group (n=136) and low LPR group (n=108) based on the optimal value of LPR, and the clinical data of total burn area, area of full-thickness burns and above, inhalation injury, tracheotomy, offline time of patients within 28 days, and mortality in the 2 groups were compared. The surviving curve of patients was drawn by Kaplan-Meier method to predict the difference of the 90-day survival rate between the two groups of patients. Data were statistically analyzed with Student's t test, Mann-Whitney U test, and chi-square test. Results: Within 3 days of admission, the LPR of patients showed a time-dependent upward trend. LPR of patients on the 2nd and 3rd day after admission was 8.6 (5.3, 14.4) and 8.6 (4.9, 13.7), respectively, which were significantly higher than the 1st day's 6.3 (4.2, 9.8), with Z values of -4.25 and -3.43, respectively, P<0.01. Univariate logistic regression analysis showed that age, total burn area, area of full-thickness burns and above, inhalation injury, and LPR were all risk factors for death of patients (with odds ratios of 1.03, 1.73, 1.31, 4.74, and 3.11, respectively, 95% confidence intervals of 1.01-1.06, 1.40-2.13, 1.21-1.42, 1.62-13.86, and 1.41-6.88, respectively, P<0.01). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that age, area of full-thickness burns and above, and LPR were independent risk factors for death of patients (with odds ratios of 1.06, 1.36, and 2.85, respectively, 95% confidence intervals of 1.03-1.09, 1.19-1.55, 1.02-7.97, P<0.05 or P<0.01). The area under ROC curve of the 1st day's LPR, predicting death of patients, was 0.61 (with 95% confidence interval of 0.51-0.71, P<0.05), and the optimal predicted value was 5.8 with corresponding sensitivity of 77% and specificity of 52% respectively. The total burn area, area of full-thickness burns and above, rates of incidence of inhalation injury, tracheotomy, and mortality of patients in high LPR group were significantly higher than those in low LPR group (with Z values of -3.06 and -3.19, χ2 values of 5.42, 11.64, and 8.45, respectively, P<0.05 or P<0.01). The offline time of patients within 28 days in high LPR group was significantly shorter than that in low LPR group (Z=-2.98, P<0.01). Kaplan-Meier survival analysis showed that the 90-day survival rate of admission of patients in low LPR group was significantly higher than that of patients in high LPR group (χ2=8.24, P<0.01). Conclusions: The early LPR of patients with extensive burns showed a time-dependent upward trend. The LPR on the first day after admission that is closely correlated with total burn area, area of full-thickness and deeper burns, inhalation injury, tracheotomy, and mortality of patients, is an independent risk factor for the prognosis of patients with extensive burns. The first day's LPR after admission is significantly correlated with the 90-day survival rate of patients, which can be used as an evaluation index for the severity of extensive burns.

Association of Preadmission Statin Use and Mortality in Critically Ill Patients: A Meta-Analysis of Cohort Studies.

Background: A large number of studies have been conducted to determine whether there is an association between preadmission statin use and improvement in outcomes following critical illness, but the conclusions are quite inconsistent. Therefore, this meta-analysis aims to include the present relevant PSM researches to examine the association of preadmission use of statins with the mortality of critically ill patients. Methods: The PubMed, Web of Science, Embase electronic databases, and printed resources were searched for English articles published before March 6, 2020 on the association between preadmission statin use and mortality in critically ill patients. The included articles were analyzed in RevMan 5.3. The Newcastle-Ottawa Scale (NOS) was used to conduct quality evaluation, and random/fixed effects modeling was used to calculate the pooled ORs and 95% CIs. We also conducted subgroup analysis by outcome indicators (30-, 90-day, hospital mortality). Results: All six PSM observational studies were assessed as having a low risk of bias according to the NOS. For primary outcome-overall mortality, the pooled OR (preadmission statins use vs. no use) across the six included studies was 0.86 (95% CI, 0.76-0.97; P = 0.02). For secondary outcome-use of mechanical ventilation, the pooled OR was 0.94 (95% CI, 0.91-0.97; P = 0.0005). The corresponding pooled ORs were 0.67 (95% CI, 0.43-1.05; P = 0.08), 0.91 (95% CI, 0.83-1.01; P = 0.07), and 0.86 (95% CI, 0.83-0.89; P < 0.00001) for 30-, 90-day, and hospital mortality, respectively. Conclusions: Preadmission statin use is associated with beneficial outcomes in critical ill patients, indicating a lower short-term mortality, less use of mechanical ventilation, and an improvement in hospital survival. Further high-quality original studies or more scientific methods are needed to draw a definitive conclusion.

Liver Imaging and Data System (LI-RADS) Version 2018 and Other Imaging Features in Intrahepatic Cholangiocarcinoma in Chinese Adults with vs. without Chronic Hepatitis B Viral Infection.

Purpose: To describe liver imaging reporting and data system (LI-RADS) version 2018 and other MRI imaging features in intrahepatic mass-forming cholangiocarcinoma (iCCA) in Chinese adults with vs. without chronic hepatitis B viral (HBV) infection. Methods: We retrospectively enrolled 89 patients with pathologically proven iCCA after multiphase imaging performed between 2004 and 2017 at a tertiary medical center in southern China. Based on whether patients had chronic HBV, iCCA was divided into two subgroups: HBV-positive (n = 50 patients, including 9 with cirrhosis) vs. HBV-negative (n = 39 patients, including 14 with hepatolithiasis and 25 with no identifiable risk factor for iCCA; none had cirrhosis). Two independent abdominal radiologists in consensus reviewed the largest mass in each patient to assign LI-RADS v2018 features; they also scored each observation's shape and location. Imaging features were compared using chi-square or Fisher's exact tests. Results: Most iCCAs in HBV-positive (88% (44/50)) and HBV-negative (97% (38/39)) patients had at least one LR-M feature. Compared to iCCAs in HBV-negative patients, iCCAs in HBV-positive patients were more likely to have at least one major feature of HCC (46% (23/50) vs. 8% (3/39), P < 0.001) and more likely to be smooth (42% (21/50) vs. 10% (4/39), P = 0.001). Six of 50 (12%) iCCAs in HBV-positive patients and 1/39 (3%) iCCAs in HBV-negative patients had at least one major feature of HCC without any LR-M feature. Conclusions: In this retrospective single-center study in Chinese adults, iCCAs in HBV-positive patients were more likely to resemble HCCs than iCCAs in HBV-negative patients.

Epithelial salivary gland tumors: Utility of radiomics analysis based on diffusion-weighted imaging for differentiation of benign from malignant tumors.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the utility of radiomics analysis for differentiating benign and malignant epithelial salivary gland tumors on diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI). METHODS: A retrospective dataset involving 218 and 51 patients with histology-confirmed benign and malignant epithelial salivary gland tumors was used in this study. A total of 396 radiomic features were extracted from the DW images. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) and least-absolute shrinkage and selection operator regression (LASSO) were used to select optimal radiomic features. The selected features were used to build three classification models namely, logistic regression method (LR), support vector machine (SVM), and K-nearest neighbor (KNN) by using a five-fold cross validation strategy on the training dataset. The diagnostic performance of each classification model was quantified by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve and area under the ROC curve (AUC) in the training and validation datasets. RESULTS: Eight most valuable features were selected by LASSO. LR and SVM models yielded optimally diagnostic performance. In the training dataset, LR and SVM yielded AUC values of 0.886 and 0.893 via five-fold cross validation, respectively, while KNN model showed relatively lower AUC (0.796). In the testing dataset, a similar result was found, where AUC values for LR, SVM, and KNN were 0.876, 0.870, and 0.791, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Classification models based on optimally selected radiomics features computed from DW images present a promising predictive value in distinguishing benign and malignant epithelial salivary gland tumors and thus have potential to be used for preoperative auxiliary diagnosis.

Diagnostic performance of LI-RADS version 2018 in differentiating hepatocellular carcinoma from other hepatic malignancies in patients with hepatitis B virus infection.

The diagnostic performance of the Liver Imaging Reporting and Data System (LI-RADS) in differentiating hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) from other hepatic malignancies has not been investigated in Chinese patients with chronic liver disease from hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. The aim of this study was to evaluate the accuracy of the LI-RADS version 2018 in differentiating HCC, intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICCA), and combined HCC-cholangiocarcinoma (cHCC-CCA) in Chinese patients with HBV infection. Seventy consecutive HBV-infected patients with ICCA (n = 48) or cHCC-CCA (n = 22) who underwent contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (CE-MRI) between 2006 and 2017 were enrolled along with a comparison cohort of 70 patients with HCC and CE-MRI-matched for tumor size (10-19 mm, 20-30 mm, 31-50 mm, and >50 mm). Imaging feature frequencies for each tumor type were compared using Fisher's exact test. The classification accuracy of LR-5 and LR-M was estimated for HCC versus non-HCC (ICCA and cHCC-CCA). The interobserver agreement was good for LI-RADS categories of HCC and moderate for non-HCC. After consensus read, 66 of 70 (94%) HCCs were categorized LR-5 (including tumor in vein [TIV] with LR-5), while 42 of 48 (88%) ICCAs and 13 of 22 (59%) cHCC-CCAs were categorized LR-M (including TIV with LR-M) (p < 0.001). Thus, assignment of LR-5 provided 94% sensitivity and 81% specificity for HCC. LR-M provided 79% sensitivity and 97% specificity for non-HCC (ICCA and cHCC-CCA); and the sensitivity and accuracy were lower in differentiating HCC from non-HCC (tumor size <20 mm). LI-RADS v2018 category 5 and M reliably differentiated HBV-related HCC from ICCA. However, a substantial proportion of cHCC-CCAs were categorized LR-5 rather than LR-M. While management is controversial for these combined tumors, accurate prospective differentiation is desired for optimal treatment.

Visualization analysis of citespace knowledge maps regarding prevention and treatment of postmenopausal osteoporosis with traditional chinese medicine / 中国组织工程研究

BACKGROUND: Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has a long history of preventing and treating postmenopausal osteoporosis. With the social development, research in relevant fields is gradually developed. However, there are few analysis and systematic reviews regarding publications, core authors, and research strength in this field. OBJECTIVE: Using visualization method of CiteSpace knowledge map to analyze the relevant literature about prevention and treatment of postmenopausal osteoporosis with TCM, to understand the development, research hot spots and trend of this field, and to offer evidence and advice for the subsequent development. METHODS: The relevant literature about prevention and treatment of postmenopausal osteoporosis with TCM (1993-2019) was retrieved from CNKI and exported in Refworks format. We analyzed the annual number of papers published, scientific research funding, and high-frequency cited literature. CiteSpace V software was used to create knowledge maps of the authors, research institutions and keywords, for visualization analysis. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: A total of 453 articles were included. The research of this field started from 1993 and was gradually addressed. Journal articles were the main form of research literature in this field. Natural Science Foundation of China was the most financial support. There were 12 core authors in this field. Zheng Hongxin, Liang Wenna, and Ge Jianrong were the main researchers who established their own research team. The most important research institutions included Orthopaedic Hospital Affiliated to Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine and Liaoning University of TCM. Nine typical clusters of keywords were formed and there was a shift in research direction. To conclude, the research on the prevention and treatment of postmenopausal osteoporosis with TCM have been developed for over 20 years and is still on the rise with the formation of multiple research forces and research themes. It is expected to promote and boom the development of TCM by integrating the research of TCM into national development strategies, by strengthening cooperation between regions and institutions, and by exploiting the characteristics of TCM.

Role of Intravoxel Incoherent Motion in Discriminating Hepatitis B Virus-Related Intrahepatic Mass-Forming Cholangiocarcinoma from Hepatocellular Carcinoma Based on Liver Imaging Reporting and Data System v2018.

Backgroud: Intravoxel incoherent motion (IVIM) could be used to characterize benign and malignant hepatic lesions and predict the histological grade of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). To evaluate IVIM-derived parameters for differentiating between hepatitis B virus (HBV)-related intrahepatic mass-forming cholangiocarcinoma (IMCC) and HCC based on the Liver Imaging Reporting and Data System (LI-RADS) v2018. Materials and Methods: 20 IMCC patients and one-to-one matched control HCC patients were retrospectively assessed. IVIM scanning with 11 b-values (from 0 to 1500 s/mm2) was obtained using a 3.0-T magnetic resonance scanner. Apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) and IVIM parameters, including diffusion coefficient (D), pseudodiffusion coefficient (D*), and perfusion fraction (f), were compared between IMCC and HCC. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was performed to assess the diagnostic performances of ADC, D, f, and D*. The LI-RADS features and a final category were also compared using LI-RADS v2018. Results: ADC and D were significantly higher in IMCC than in HCC (p = 0.012 and p = 0.007, respectively); f was significantly higher in HCC than in IMCC (p = 0.004). The area under the ROC curve values for ADC, D, and f for differentiating HBV-related IMCC from HCC were 0.724, 0.753, and 0.741, respectively. Conclusion: The majority of HBV-related IMCCs can be categorized as LR-M by using LI-RADS. However, atypical IMCCs may be classified as non-LR-M. ADC, D, and f values may be helpful in differentiating HBV-related IMCC from HCC, and similar diagnostic performances were obtained for these values.

The diagnostic value of combining conventional, diffusion-weighted imaging and dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI for salivary gland tumors.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the diagnostic value of combining conventional MRI, diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) and dynamic contrast enhanced MRI (DCE-MRI) in salivary gland tumors. METHODS: 45 patients with salivary gland tumors were evaluated with conventional MRI, DWI and DCE-MRI prior to surgery and confirmed by pathologic findings. The apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) was calculated from DWI that was obtained with a factor of 0 and 1000 s mm-2. A time-intensity curve (TIC) was obtained from DCE-MRI. RESULTS: In conventional MRI, benign tumors often showed well-defined and clear margins, malignant tumors showed irregular margins or infiltration into the surrounding tissue. There were significant differences with regard to the ADC values between pleomorphic adenoma (1.72 ± 0.29 × 10-3 mm2 s-1) and malignant tumors (0.95 ± 0.09 × 10-3 mm2 s-1, p < 0.05) and between adenolymphoma (0.74 ± 0.05 × 10-3 mm2 s-1) and malignant tumors (p < 0.05). However, there was no significant differences in term of the ADC values between benign tumors (1.33 ± 0.52×10-3 mm2 s-1) and malignant tumors. DCE-MRI showed benign tumors with A-type, B-type and D-type of TICs, and the malignant tumors with C-type TICs. A combination of all of these parameters yielded sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, and positive and negative predictive values of 90%, 97%, 95%, 90 and 97%, respectively. CONCLUSION: An evaluation combining MRI morphologic findings and functional MRI (ADCs and TIC) appears to be useful in differentiating benign from malignant tumors in salivary gland tumors. Advances in knowledge: The study firstly dealt with the combination of conventional MRI, DWI-MRI with DCE-MRI in salivary gland tumors.

Multilevel Diversity Coding with Secure Regeneration: Separate Coding Achieves the MBR Point.

The problem of multilevel diversity coding with secure regeneration (MDC-SR) is considered, which includes the problems of multilevel diversity coding with regeneration (MDC-R) and secure regenerating code (SRC) as special cases. Two outer bounds are established, showing that separate coding can achieve the minimum-bandwidth-regeneration (MBR) point of the achievable normalized storage-capacity repair-bandwidth trade-off regions for the general MDC-SR problem. The core of the new converse results is an exchange lemma, which can be established using Han's subset inequality.

Elastic intramedullary nail for treating 22-A fracture in the forearm of adults / 中国组织工程研究

BACKGROUND: Elastic intramedullary nail is commonly used in the treatment of fractures of children, but few studies concern the elastic intramedullary nail for treating fractures in adults. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the repair effect of elastic intramedullary nail in the treatment of 22-A fracture in forearm of adults. METHODS: From January 2015 to April 2016, a total of 21 adult patients with the 22-A fracture (35 fractures) were treated with manipulative reduction and elastic intramedullary nail fixation in the First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine. The follow-up time was 12-18 months. Radiographs were taken and the guidance of the limb function training was given at regular intervals. The Andserson scoring system was used to evaluate the patients' forearm limb function. Fracture healing, elbow, wrist joint activity and forearm rotation were recorded. The satisfactory questionnaires were recorded. The patients were divided into three grades as satisfaction, general satisfaction and dissatisfaction; simultaneously, reasons were recorded. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: (1) The Andserson scoring was satisfactory in 16 cases accounted for 76%, general satisfaction in 3 cases accounted for 14%, dissatisfaction in 2 cases accounted for 10%. (2) Wrist joint activity increased from (172±4)° before the operation to (181±3)° at the end of the follow-up. Elbow joint activity increased from (102±18)° before the operation to (124±13)° at the end of the follow-up. Forearm rotation activity increased from (84±11)° before the operation to (155±13)° at the end of the follow-up (P < 0.05). (3) In the follow-up of the 21 patients, 13 patients were satisfied with the result of surgery; 5 patients were generally satisfied; 2 patients were dissatisfied because the limited limb functions; and 1 patient was dissatisfied because of the nail irritability; the dissatisfaction rate accounted for 14%. (4) Elastic intramedullary nail can obtain affirmative effect in the treatment of adult 22-A fracture of the forearm; and clinical application should be based on the type of fracture.

Ionic Liquid-Assisted Electropolymerization for Lithographical Perfluorocarbon Deposition and Hydrophobic Patterning.

We developed a novel approach for hydrophobic patterning: combining the photolithography technique with ionic-liquid (IL)-based electropolymerization to fabricate a hydrophobic pattern. Perfluoro-functionalized 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene (EDOT-F) dispersed in ILs was directly electropolymerized on substrates, which were patterned in advance with positive photoresists. The positive photoresists did not dissolve in ionic liquids during the electropolymerization process, and the poly(EDOT-F) film created hydrophobic domains, which resulted in hydrophobic patterning. This approach provides desired patterns with a lateral resolution consistent with the mask for photolithography. Two kinds of modified indium-tin-oxide-coated glass (ITO-glass) substrates were used to demonstrate the feasibility of process for creating a hydrophobic pattern: ITO-glass substrates coated with nanostructured PEDOT, and the same substrates coated with Au nanoparticles. By confining water droplets on these two patterned substrates to form droplet arrays, we demonstrated two potential applications: multiple droplet-type electrochemical cells and surface-enhanced Raman scattering platforms. In addition, we also applied this approach to create hydrophobic patterning on ITO-coated polyethylene terephthalate (ITO-PET) substrates. The droplet arrays remained well-organized on the ITO-PET substrates even when the substrates were bent. Our work successfully introduced ILs into the photolithography process, implying great potential for these green solvents.