Umbilical cord blood cell characteristics in very preterm neonates for autologous cell therapy of preterm-associated complications.

BACKGROUND: There are emerging clinical evidence for umbilical cord blood mononuclear cells (UCBMNCs) intervention to improve preterm complications. The first critical step in cell therapy is to obtain high-quality cells. This retrospective study aimed to investigate the quantity and quality of UCBMNCs from very preterm infants (VPIs) for the purpose of autologous cell therapy in prevention and treatment of preterm complications. METHODS: Very preterm infants (VPIs) born in Guangdong Women and Children Hospital from January 1, 2017, to December 8, 2022, from whom cord blood was successfully collected and separated for public or private banking, were enrolled. The UCBMNCs characters from route cord blood tests performed in cord blood bank, impact of perinatal factors on UCBMNCs, the relationship between UCBMNCs characteristics and preterm outcomes, and the correlation of UCBMNCs characteristics and peripheral blood cells in VPIs were analyzed. RESULTS: Totally, 89 VPIs underwent UCB collection and processing successfully. The median cell number post processing was 2.6 × 108. To infuse a dose of 5 × 107 cells/kg, only 3.4% of infants required a volume of more than 20 mL/kg, which exceeded the maximum safe volume limit for VPIs. However, when infusing 10 × 107 cells/kg, 25.8% of infants required a volume of more than 20 ml/kg volume. Antenatal glucocorticoids use and preeclampsia was associated with lower original UCBMNCs concentration. Both CD34+ hematopoietic stem cells (HSC) frequency and colony forming unit - granulocyte and macrophage (CFU-GM) number correlated negatively with gestational age (GA). UCBMNCs characters had no significant effect on preterm outcomes, whereas a significant positive correlation was observed between UCBMNCs concentration and total white blood cell, neutrophil, lymphocyte and PLT counts in peripheral blood. CONCLUSION: UCBMNCs collected from VPIs was feasible for autologous cell therapy in improving preterm complications. Setting the infusion dose of 5 × 107 cells/kg guaranteed a safe infusion volume in more than 95% of the targeted infants. UCBMNCs characters did not affect preterm complications; however, the effect of UCBMNCs concentration on peripheral blood classification count should be considered when evaluating the immunomodulation of UCBMNCs transfusion.

Comparison of intravitreal injection of Ranibizumab versus Conbercept in the treatment of retinopathy of prematurity / 国际眼科杂志(Guoji Yanke Zazhi)

AIM: To compare the efficacy of intravitreal injection of ranibizumab(IVR)and intravitreal injection of conbercept(IVC)in children with retinopathy of prematurity(ROP).METHODS: Retrospective study. A total of 1 100 eyes with ROP treated with intravitreal anti-VEGF at our hospital from January 2015 to June 2023 were included. According to the different therapeutic drugs, the children were divided into two groups: IVR group and IVC group. According to the degree of ROP, the patients were divided into three groups: aggressive ROP(A-ROP), Zone Ⅰ type 1 ROP and Zone Ⅱ type 1 ROP. The reactivation and retreatment between the two groups were compared after propensity score matching(PSM)analysis, and they were followed-up for at least 3 mo after surgery.RESULTS: In Zone Ⅱ type 1 ROP, there was a statistically significant difference in the rates of reactivation and retreatment between the IVR and IVC groups(P<0.05); however, in A-ROP and Zone I type 1 ROP, there were no statistically significant differences in the rates of reactivation and retreatment between the two groups(P>0.05). The risk of reactivation and retreatment of Zone I type 1 ROP was higher than the Zone II type 1 ROP. Furthermore, the use of drugs and corrected gestational age of first treatment were influencing factors of lesion recurrence and retreatment.CONCLUSION: There is a significant difference in the initial cure effect between the two drugs in Zone II type 1 ROP, with the reactivation and retreatment rates of the IVC group being much lower than those of the IVR group.

Prevention for moderate or severe BPD with intravenous infusion of autologous cord blood mononuclear cells in very preterm infants-a prospective non-randomized placebo-controlled trial and two-year follow up outcomes.

Background: Bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) is the primary severe complication of preterm birth. Severe BPD was associated with higher risks of mortality, more postnatal growth failure, long term respiratory and neurological developmental retardation. Inflammation plays a central role in alveolar simplification and dysregulated vascularization of BPD. There is no effective treatment to improve BPD severity in clinical practice. Our previous clinical study showed autologous cord blood mononuclear cells (ACBMNCs) infusion could reduce the respiratory support duration safely and potential improved BPD severity. Abundant preclinical studies have reported the immunomodulation effect as an important mechanism underlying the beneficial results of stem cell therapies in preventing and treating BPD. However, clinical studies assessing the immunomodulatory effect after stem cells therapy were rare. This study was to investigate the effect of ACBMNCs infusion soon after birth on prevention for severe BPD and long term outcomes in very preterm neonates. The immune cells and inflammatory biomarkers were detected to investigate the underlying immunomodulatory mechanisms. Methods: This single-center, prospective, investigator-initiated, non-randomized trial with blinded outcome assessment aimed to assess the effect of a single intravenous infusion of ACBMNCs in preventing severe BPD (moderate or severe BPD at 36 weeks of gestational age or discharge home) in surviving very preterm neonates less than 32 gestational weeks. Patients admitted to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) of Guangdong Women and Children Hospital from July 01, 2018 to January 1, 2020 were assigned to receiving a targeted dosage of 5 × 107 cells/kg ACBMNC or normal saline intravenously within 24 h after enrollment. Incidence of moderate or severe BPD in survivors were investigated as the primary short term outcome. Growth, respiratory and neurological development were assessed as long term outcomes at corrected age of 18-24 month-old. Immune cells and inflammatory biomarkers were detected for potential mechanism investigation. The trial was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT02999373). Findings: Six-two infants were enrolled, of which 29 were enrolled to intervention group, 33 to control group. Moderate or severe BPD in survivors significantly decreased in intervention group (adjusted p = 0.021). The number of patients needed to treat to gain one moderate or severe BPD-free survival was 5 (95% confidence interval: 3-20). Survivors in the intervention group had a significantly higher chance to be extubated than infants in the control group (adjusted p = 0.018). There was no statistical significant difference in total BPD incidence (adjusted p = 0.106) or mortality (p = 1.000). Incidence of developmental delay reduced in intervention group in long term follow-up (adjusted p = 0.047). Specific immune cells including proportion of T cells (p = 0.04) and CD4+ T cells in lymphocytes (p = 0.03), and CD4+ CD25+ forkhead box protein 3 (FoxP3)+ regulatory T cells in CD4+ T cells increased significantly after ACBMNCs intervention (p ï¼œ 0.001). Anti-inflammatory factor IL-10 was higher (p = 0.03), while pro-inflammatory factor such as TNF-a (p = 0.03) and C reactive protein (p ï¼œ 0.001) level was lower in intervention group than in control group after intervention. Interpretation: ACBMNCs could prevent moderate or severe BPD in surviving very premature neonates and might improve neurodevelopmental outcomes in long term. An immunomodulatory effect of MNCs contributed to the improvement of BPD severity. Funding: This work was supported by National Key R&D Program of China (2021YFC2701700), National Natural Science Foundation of China (82101817, 82171714, 8187060625), Guangzhou science and technology program (202102080104).

Wnt5a-Flt1 activation contributes to preterm altered cerebral angiogenesis after prenatal inflammation.

OBJECTIVE: Intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) causes morbidity and mortality in preterm infants and prenatal exposure to inflammation contributes to brain injury. Moreover, prenatal exposure to severe inflammation increases the risk of IVH in preterm neonates. The current study investigated whether intrauterine exposure to inflammation affects cerebral angiogenesis and its underlying mechanisms. METHODS: Wnt5a, flt1, and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-A levels in cord blood serum (stored in a bio-bank) of the enrolled patients were measured via enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. A preterm prenatal inflammation exposure model was established in rats by intraperitoneal injection intraperitoneally during pregnancy. Angiogenesis of cerebral tissue was analyzed using immunohistochemistry. Wnt5a, flt1, and VEGF-A expression levels were measured via immunohistochemistry, immunofluorescence, or western blotting. The correlation between Wnt5a and flt1 expression and the cerebral vessel area was also analyzed. RESULTS: The Wnt5a and flt1 levels in the cord blood serum were significantly higher in the amnionitis group than in the non-amnionitis group. The VEGF-A level in the cord blood serum was significantly lower in the amnionitis group. In the rat model, preterm rats in the prenatal inflammation group exhibited increased microglial cell infiltration and decreased vessel area and diameter in the cerebral tissue compared to the control group. Wnt5a was located in microglial cells, and Wnt5a and flt1 expression in brain tissue significantly increased after prenatal lipopolysaccharide (LPS) exposure. VEGF-A expression declined after prenatal LPS exposure. The cerebral vessel area was negatively correlated with Wnt5a and flt1 expression. CONCLUSION: Disordered cerebral angiogenesis is associated with increased Wnt5a-Flt1 activation in microglial cells after exposure to intrauterine inflammation.

Application and prospect of neonatal critical illness score in China / 中国小儿急救医学

Neonatal critical illness score(NCIS) has been published for over 20 years in China and has played an active role in critical neonatal transport, illness severity assessment, and prognosis evaluation.However, there are still some limitations in the scoring system with the development of medical technology, such as failure to include crucial perinatal information, unable to quantify single indicators, difficulty in obtaining PaO 2 without oxygen inhalation, complex evaluation indicators, long evaluation time and data was difficult for scientific research, etc.Therefore, it is necessary to update and simplify it for the clinical treatment and scientific study of critically ill newborns.This review summarized NCIS application in China and compared it with foreign neonatal critical scores such as score for neonatal acute physiology, clinical risk index for babies, etc.Combined with the rising technology of artificial intelligence and deep learning in recent years, it was more straightforward and optimized to enhance its accuracy and applicability, which was aimed to play a more active role in the treatment of critical newborns and scientific research.

Application and research progress of SNAP-Ⅱ, SNAPPE-Ⅱ and NCIS / 国际儿科学杂志

The neonatal critical illness scoring system is widely used to assess the severity of neonatal disease, serious complications, neonatal mortality risk, long-term prognosis, and guide transport.At present, the scores widely used at home and abroad include clinical risk index for babies(CRIB), clinical risk index for babies Ⅱ(CRIB-Ⅱ), score for neonatal acute physiology(SNAP), score for neonatal acute physiology Ⅱ(SNAP-Ⅱ), score for neonatal acute physiology, perinatal extension, version Ⅱ(SNAPPE-Ⅱ), and neonatal critical illness score(NCIS), etc.Although there are many neonatal critical illness scoring systems, there is no recognized and ideal score, the most suitable score for assessing the severity of neonatal disease.This paper reviews the application and research progress of the three scoring systems SNAP-Ⅱ, SNAPPE-Ⅱ and NCIS.

Investigation on the IGF-1 and lipid level in term small for gestational age infants within 24 hours postnatally / 中国新生儿科杂志

Objective:To study the insulin-like growth factors-1 (IGF-1) and lipid level of term small for gestational age (SGA) infants within 24 hours postnatally and to explore the correlation between IGF-1 and blood lipids.Methods:A prospective study was conducted on singleton term SGA and appropriate for gestational age infant (AGA) who were delivered and admitted to the neonatal ward of Guangdong Women and Children Hospital within 24 hours after birth from May 2020 to January 2021, and the infants were divided into SGA and AGA groups to compare the differences in IGF-1 and lipid levels within 24 hours after birth and to analyze the correlation between IGF-1 and lipids.Results:A total of 95 cases in the SGA group and 84 cases in the AGA group were included in the study. The proportion of infants with IGF-1 <25 ng/ml was significantly higher in SGA group (87.4%) than in the AGA group (52.4%). It was also found that the proportion of infants with IGF-1 <25 ng/ml in SGA was significantly higher than that in AGA within different gender composition groups, early-term and full-term births groups. The triglyceride (TG) level was higher in the SGA group than that in the AGA group, but the high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) level was lower than that in the AGA group ( P<0.05). IGF-1 level within 24 hours postnatally in SGA and AGA was positively correlated with HDL-C levels ( P<0.01) and negatively correlated with TG ( P<0.01), and HDL-C level was a predictor of IGF-1. Conclusions:Compared with term AGA, SGA term infants showed insufficient IGF-1 and HDL-C secretion and high TG within 24 hours after birth. Nutritional support for SGA should be given promptly after birth to avoid hypoglycemia and to stimulate IGF-1 secretion.

Study on the time of recovery to the respiratory baseline after receiving treatment of retinopathy of prematurity / 中华实用儿科临床杂志

Objective:To analyze the time of recovery to the respiratory baseline after treatment of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) and the possible influencing factors.Methods:The preterm infants with ROP who received ophthalmic treatment from January 2016 to December 2020 in the Department of Neonatology, Guangdong Women and Children′s Hospital were enrolled retrospectively.The baby who received vitreous injection were included in the injection group, and who received laser photocoagulation were included in the photocoagulation group.The patients were divided into two groups according to whether they returned to the respiratory baseline within 48 hours after ROP surgery.Relevant data were collected, including respiratory baseline, the respiratory status 24 hours, 48 hours, 72 hours, 96 hours, 5 days and 7 days after treatment, gestational age, birth weight, gender, corrected gestational age at surgery, weight at surgery, laser points, and treatment location.Wilcoxon signed-rank test was used for continuous variables. Data were expressed as the number and percentage of patients for categorical variables, using Chi-square test or Fisher′ s exact test. Binary Logistic regression analysis was used to analyze the influencing factors.The time taken by preterm infants to return to the preoperative respiratory baseline after treatment and its influencing factors were analyzed. Results:A total of 386 ROP infants were included in this study.There were 157 infants who did not return to the respiratory baseline within 48 hours after treatment.No significant difference in the source, gender, gestational age, birth weight, corrected gestational age at surgery, weight at surgery, and respiratory pressure support required before surgery were found between the group who returned to the respiratory baseline within 48 hours and the group who did not (all P>0.05). However, there were significant differences in treatment methods and location between two groups (all P<0.01). The ratio of returning to the respiratory baseline in the group receiving intravitreal injection was significantly different from that in the group treated with laser therapy at 24 h, 48 h, 72 h, and 96 h after treatment (77% vs.14%, 82% vs.33%, 86% vs.58%, 89% vs.76%; all P<0.01). There was no difference in that ratio between two groups at 5 d and 7 d after treatment (91% vs.86%, 95% vs.92%; P>0.05). Of the 157 infants who did not return to the respiratory baseline within 48 hours after treatment, 108 cases (68.8%) required additional supplemental oxygen, whereas 153 cases (98.5%) required more intensive respiratory support ( P<0.001). According to the multivariate Logistic regression analysis results, the preterm infants who received laser therapy were less likely to return to the respiratory baseline within 48 hours than those who received intravitreal injection ( OR=0.099, 95% CI: 0.060-0.164). A small corrected gestational age at surgery was an independent risk factor for infants not returning to the respiratory baseline within 48 hours ( OR=1.147, 95% CI: 1.009-1.302). Conclusions:Infants with ROP who receive intravitreal injection can return to the respiratory baseline more quickly than those who underwent laser photo-coagulation under. The difference persisted up to 4 days. The smaller the corrected gestational age at treatment, the less likely return to the respiratory baseline within 48 hours in photocoagulation group..

A novel homozygous frameshift mutation in / 亚洲男科学杂志(英文版)

Oligoasthenoteratozoospermia (OAT) refers to the combination of various sperm abnormalities, including a decreased sperm count, reduced motility, and abnormal sperm morphology. Only a few genetic causes have been shown to be associated with OAT. Herein, we identified a novel homozygous frameshift mutation in meiosis-specific nuclear structural 1 (MNS1; NM_018365: c.603_604insG: p.Lys202Glufs*6) by whole-exome sequencing in an OAT proband from a consanguineous Chinese family. Subsequent variant screening identified four additional heterozygous MNS1 variants in 6/219 infertile individuals with oligoasthenospermia, but no MNS1 variants were observed among 223 fertile controls. Immunostaining analysis showed MNS1 to be normally located in the whole-sperm flagella, but was absent in the proband's sperm. Expression analysis by Western blot also confirmed that MNS1 was absent in the proband's sperm. Abnormal flagellum morphology and ultrastructural disturbances in outer doublet microtubules were observed in the proband's sperm. A total of three intracytoplasmic sperm injection cycles were carried out for the proband's wife, but they all failed to lead to a successful pregnancy. Overall, this is the first study to report a loss-of-function mutation in MNS1 causing OAT in a Han Chinese patient.

Improving native human sperm freezing protection by using a modified vitrification method / 亚洲男科学杂志(英文版)

Slow freezing is the most commonly used technique for the cryopreservation of spermatozoa in clinical practice. However, it has been shown to have a negative impact on sperm function and structure. Vitrification as a successful alternative method has been proved to have better protective effects on human embryos, but vitrification of spermatozoa is still subject to low recovery rates. In this study, a modified vitrification method for native spermatozoa was developed. A total of 28 semen samples were included; each sample was divided into three equal parts and assigned to fresh, slow freezing, and vitrification groups. Sperm vitality, motility, morphology, DNA integrity, and acrosome reaction were assessed for each of the groups. The results showed that vitrification achieves better results for several sperm protection parameters than slow freezing; vitrification achieves a higher recovery rate (P < 0.05), motility (P <0.05), morphology (P <0.05), and curve line velocity (P <0.05) than slow freezing. Furthermore, DNA fragmentation was decreased (P <0.05) and better acrosome protection (P <0.05) was exhibited in the spermatozoa after vitrification. Principal component analysis of all sperm parameters revealed that the vitrification cluster was closer to the fresh cluster, indicating that spermatozoa are better preserved through vitrification. In conclusion, while both slow freezing and vitrification have negative effects on sperm function and structure, the vitrification protocol described here had a relatively better recovery rate (65.8%) and showed improved preservation of several sperm quality parameters compared with slow freezing.

Comparative study on the incidence of retinopathy of prematurity in premature infants born in the hospital and transported from other hospitals / 中华实用儿科临床杂志

Objective:To explore the incidence, diagnosis and treatment of retinopathy of prematurity(ROP) in preterm infants born in the Guangdong Women and Children′s Hospital and transported from other hospital.Method:s Clinical data of 755 premature infants with ROP at Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Guangdong Women and Children′s Hospital from January 2013 to December 2015 were retrospectively analyzed.There were 239 cases born in the hospital and 516 cases transported from other hospitals.Their gestational age, birth weight, gender, severity of ROP lesion and clinical data were collected and compared.Result:s The birth weight in the group of transported from other hospital was lower than that in the group of born in the hospital[(1 290.64±392.87) g vs.(1 586.21±512.74) g], and the difference was statistically significant( P<0.001). The ROP diagnosis of gestational age in the group of transported from other hospital was higher than that in the group of born in the hospital[(35.53±2.81)weeks vs.(34.51±2.17)weeks], and the difference was statistically significant( P<0.001). On the proportion of severe condition [such as lesion area Ⅰ, aggressive posterior retinopathy of prematurity(AP-ROP) and plus combined lesions], in the group of transported from other hospital was higher than that in the group of born in the hospital, and the differences was statistically significant( P<0.001). In the comparison of the proportion of laser photocoagulation, vitreous injection, combination of the two operations and supplementary laser therapy, in the group of transported from other hospital were higher than those in the group of born in the hospital[60.1%(310/516 cases) vs.20.9%(50/239 cases); 10.9%(56/516 cases) vs.2.5%(6/239 cases); 8.1%(42/516 cases) vs.1.7%(4/239 cases); 4.5%(23/516 cases) vs.1.3%(3/239 cases)], and the differences were statistically significant(all P<0.001). Conclusions:Premature infants with ROP transported from other hospitals have lower birth weight, severe ROP lesions and high surgical intervention rate.Improving ROP screening level in primary hospitals, timely diagnosis and efficient transportation can help to effectively prevent the deterioration of ROP in premature infants and improve their quality of life.

Risk factors of aggressive posterior retinopathy of prematurity:a retrospective,longitudinal study / 实用医学杂志

Objective To analyze the risk factors of aggressive posterior retinopathy of prematurity (AP-ROP). Methods A retrospective case-control study was applied. Questionnaire was designed through literature research to collect data of AP-ROP and ordinary ROP(except for AP-ROP)from March,2012 to September, 2014 in the department of neonatology in Guangdong Women and Children′s Hospital. Based on the ratio of 1:2 , the two groups were selected with the matching conditions:the closest date of admission in hospital,ordinary ROP children,collection and analysis of the data. Results Univariate analysis:gestational age(P<0.05),birth weight(P<0.05),oxygen therapy days(P<0.05),days of mechanical ventilation(P<0.05),gestational age<32 w(P<0.05),birth weight<1250 g(P<0.05),oxygen(P<0.05),oxygen≥14 d(P<0.05),mechanical ven-tilation(P < 0.05),mechanical ventilation ≥ 14 d(P < 0.05),PS(P < 0.05),neonatal anemia(P < 0.05), blood transfusion≥2 times(P<0.05),RDS(P<0.05),neonatal pneumonia(P<0.05),apnea(P<0.05), BPD(P < 0.05),intracranial hemorrhage(P < 0.05),metabolic acidosis(P < 0.05),and retinal hemorrhage (P < 0.05) were related to AP-ROP. Multivariate analysis with conditional logistic regression analysis indicated that blood transfusion ≥2 times(OR:14.956,95%CI:4.328~51.684)and apnea(OR:7.590,95%CI:2.507~22.978)were regarded as the independent risk factors for AP-ROP. Conclusions AP-ROP is associated with low gestational age,low birth weight,oxygen therapy and related complications including RDS and retinal hemorrhage. Blood transfusion and apnea are important independent risk factors of AP-ROP.

Effects of perinatal infection on retinopathy of prematurity / 中华实用儿科临床杂志

Objective To explore the effects of perinatal infection on retinopathy of prematurity (ROP).Methods A retrospective cohort study was performed to analyzed the clinical data of 238 preterm infants at gestational age ≤32 weeks who were delivered in Guangdong Women and Children Hospital from November 2014 to October 2015 and ROP screening examinations.Observation was not terminated until they were 45 weeks of corrected gestational age.Mild ROP was defined as having stage 1 or stage 2 ROP in zone Ⅱ or Ⅲ without additional disease,and severe ROP was defined as stage 3 or higher,any ROP in zone Ⅰ,prethreshold/threshold,with additional disease,and aggressive posterior retinopathy of prematurity (AP-ROP).Medical records of eligible preterm infants were retrospectively reviewed and analyzed.Occurrences of ROP,severe ROP,and clinically significant ROP requiring surgical treatment were assessed.Results The mean gestational age of the cohort was (30.10 ± 1.34) weeks (25.29-32.00 weeks) and the mean birth weight was (1 373 ± 272) g(720 ～2 330 g).ROP was diagnosed in 76 of 238 infants (31.9％),including 39 cases with mild ROP (16.4％) and 37 cases with severe ROP (15.5％).Surgical treatment was performed on 22 infants (9.2％).In the patients with ROP,the time to develop ROP from birth was (35.16 ± 14.26) d and the mean time of its most serious stage was (44.62 ± 18.99) d.In 22 patients with ROP who required surgical treatment,the time of surgical treatment was (50.27 ± 17.24) d.In univariate analysis,maternal perinatal infection disease was found to be associated with ROP occurrence (x2 =7.891,P =0.005) and ROP progression requiring surgical treatment (x2 =4.494,P =0.034).Small gestational age,low birth weight and long-term oxygen therapy were found to be asso ciated with ROP occurrence and severe ROP (gestational age:t =-5.803,P ＜ 0.001;t =-5.290,P ＜ 0.001;t =-4.150,P ＜ 0.001;birth weight:t =-4.942,P ＜ 0.001;t =-4.058,P ＜ 0.001;t =-3.126,P =0.002;the duration of oxygen therapy:t =2.351,P =0.020;t =2.473,P =0.018).Apgar scores ≤ 7 at 1 min and 5 min were found to be associated with severe ROP (x2 =4.803,P =0.028).Neonatal sepsis and neonatal fungal infection were found to be associated with ROP occurrence (x2 =6.071,P =0.014;x2 =4.070,P =0.044).Neonatal fungal infection was also found to be associated with severe ROP (x2 =5.479,P =0.019).Multivariate regression analysis indicated that maternal perinatal infection disease was associated with an increased risk of ROP and ROP progression requiring surgical treatment (OR =2.837,P =0.023;OR =4.087,P =0.012).Maternal preeclampsia was also associated with an increased risk of ROP (OR =2.506,P =0.040).Gestational age was an important risk factor for the development of ROP.The smaller the gestational age was,the higher the rate of occurring ROP and severe ROP (OR =0.518,0.508,0.520,all P ＜ 0.001).Conclusions Both fetal and neonatal exposure to infection appear to contribute to the increase of ROP risk in the preterm infants at gestational age ≤ 32 weeks.Maternal perinatal infection disease and maternal preeclampsia were independently associated with ROP occurrence and ROP progression in the preterm infants at gestational age ≤32 weeks.

Trigger effect of hMG and hCG in the treatment of unexplainable non-obstructive azoospermia / 中华男科学杂志

Objective@#To investigate whether the trigger effect of human menopausal gonadotropins (hMG) and human chorionic gonadotropins (hCG) attributes to the treatment of unexplainable non-obstructive azoospermia (NOA).@*METHODS@#We retrospectively analyzed the clinical data about 282 cases of unexplainable NOA treated in the Maternity and Child Health Hospital of Guizhou Province from January 2010 to May 2017. All the patients underwent trigger treatment by intramuscular injection of hMG at 75 IU 3 times a week for 2 weeks, followed by hCG at 2 000 IU twice a week for another 2 weeks, and meanwhile took vitamin E, Levocarnitine and Tamoxifen as an adjunctive therapy. The treatment lasted 3－12 months.@*RESULTS@#Fifty-eight of the 255 patients that completed the treatment were found with sperm in the semen after treatment, all with severe oligoasthenospermia. Forty-seven of the 58 cases received assisted reproductive technology (ART), of which 18 achieved clinical pregnancy. Semen centrifugation revealed no sperm in the other cases, of which 6 were found with epididymal sperm at epididymal and testicular biopsy after treatment and 3 of them achieved clinical pregnancy after ART. Sperm was found in the semen or at epididymal or testicular biopsy in 64 of the patients after treatment, with an effectiveness rate of 25.1%.@*CONCLUSIONS@#Trigger treatment by injection of hMG and hCG combined with adjunctive oral medication has a certain effect on unexplainable NOA.

Differences in gene expression profiles of hypoxic human embryonic retinal microvascular endothelial cells induced by cobalt chloride / 中华实用儿科临床杂志

Objective To study the differentially expressed genes and analyze its functional pathways of retinopathy of prematurity(ROP),in order to discover the pathogenesis and provide the theoretical basis for the prevention and treatment of ROP.Methods Fetal eyeballs of induced labor were obtained and retinal microvascular endothelial cells were isolated and cultured.The endothelial cells were divided into 7 groups according to the medium of cobalt chloride (CoC12) concentration (0 μ mol/L,100 μ mol/L,150 pμmol/L,200 μmol/L,250 pμmol/L,300 μmol/L,350 μmol/L),and 150 μmol/L CoCl2 was finally used to induce ROP model in vitro.Retinal microvascular endothelial cells were verified by adopting Ⅷ factor and CD31 antibody fluorescence staining.RNA purification,gene chip hybridization and signi-ficant analysis of microarrays were performed to screen differentially expressed genes.Genes functional pathways were studied by using gene ontology analysis software.Results (1) The proliferation activity of vascular endothelial cells decreased when CoCl2 ≥ 150 μmol/L(F =21,P ＜ 0.05).(2) In 150 μmol/L CoC]2 group,blue nucleus and green cytoplasm were visible in the second and the third generation vascular endothelial cells stained by factor Ⅷ antibody,and red fluorescence could also be observed in the cytoplasm by means of CD31 monoclonal antibody staining.However,only blue nucleus was detected in the group without CoCl2.(3)There were 326 genes differently expressed in retinal micro vascular endothelial cells induced by CoCl2 in vitro,among whom,198 genes were up-regulated and 128 genes were down-regulated.Up-regulated expression genes were 1.5 times more than those of the down-regulated genes.(4)Ten biological pathways including cell hypoxia,angiogenesis suppression and iron ion transport etc.may play important roles in ROP pathogenesis.Conclusions Hypoxic retinal microvascular endothelial cells induced by CoCl2 can successfully be used to induce cell model of ROP in vitro.Differentially expressed genes may play an important role in ROP development.Functional pathway such as hypoxic cells,inhibition of angiogenesis,iron ion transport may be associated with ROP pathogenesis.

A study on the analgesic effects and safety of continuous intravenous infusion of fentanyl in laser photocoagulation for retinopathy of prematurity / 中国新生儿科杂志

Objective To study the safety and efficacy of continuous intravenous infusion of fentanyl in laser photocoagulation of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP).Methods From March,2014 to January,2015,ROP infants hospitalized for laser photocoagulation in Guangdong Women and Children hospital were randomly (using envelope method)assigned into the fentanyl groupand the control group.In the fentanyl group,the patients were given fentanyl combined with topical anesthesia,while onlytropical anesthesiain the control group.Premature infant pain profile (PIPP)scores,heart rate,mean artery pressure and complications within 3 days after operation were recorded. The concentration of epinephrine, norepinephrine and cortisol in the blood were measured before and after the operation.Student′s t test,non-parameter rank and chi-square test were used to compare the differences between the two groups.Results A total of 82 infants were enrolled in the study,42 in the fentanyl group and 40 in the control group.In the fentanyl group,11 .9% infants had maximum PIPP score ≥6 and 70.0% in the control group,the difference was statistically significant (P <0.05).In the fentanyl group,the PIPP score at the beginning of operation, the maximum PIPP score during operation and the PIPP score at the end of operation were 2.0,3.0and 1 .5, respectively.In the control group,these scoreswere 8.0,8.0and 8.0 respectively.The differences were statistically significant (P <0.05 ).No significant differences existed between the concentration of epinephrine,norepinephrine and cortisol before and after operationin the fentanyl group.However,these concentrations were elevated after the operation than before the operation in the control group (P <0.05).The incidence of complications within three days after operation was 19.0% in the fentanyl group and 40.0% in the control group,and the difference was statistically significant (P <0.05 ).Conclusion Comparing with topical anesthesia,fentanyl combined with topical anesthesia has lower pain scores,less stress responses and fewer complications during ROP laser photocoagulation.Fentanyl combined with topical anesthesia is a safe and effective analgesic method during ROP laser photocoagulation.

Neonatal dengue fever:four cases report / 临床儿科杂志

Objective To explore the clinical characteristics of neonatal dengue fever. Methods The clinical data from 4 neonates with dengue fever who were admitted and treated in 2014 were retrospectively analyzed and the related literatures had been reviewed. Results Four cases of neonatal dengue fever were all males. Three cases were mother to child transmission, the age at onset was 1 to 7 days after birth, and their mothers suffered with prenatal fever and were diagnozed of dengue fever during perinatal period. One case was community acquired, the age at onset was day 21 after birth and the neonate was bit by mosquito the day before. All four neonates had fever, two cases had rash, and one case had hemorrhagic spot. None of them had jaundice or cough. All of them had thrombocytopenia ( 30-125 )× 109/L, prolonged activated partial thromboplastin time ( 44 . 0-89 . 8 s), and increased aspartate aminotransferase (AST) ( 46-71 U/L). Three cases had declined ifbrinogen ( 1 . 36-2 . 53 g/L). Two cases had increased CK-MB ( 29-86 U/L). Two cases had increased CRP ( 3 . 00-46 . 05 mg/L). After the treatment of anti-infection and intravenous immunoglobulin, all of them were cured and discharged. The duration of hospital stay was 4-17 days. Conclusion The clinical manifestations of neonatal dengue fever were mainly fever and blood coagulation dysfunction, clinical symptoms are mild and lack of speciifcity, and prognosis are good. Mother to child transmission is one of the ways of dengue virus infection.

Present situation of retinopathy in premature infants in Guangdong Province / 中华实用儿科临床杂志

Objective To investigate the present situation of retinopathy of the prematurity(ROP)in Guang-dong Province.Methods A total of 1 52 hospitals engaged in neonatal medical service were selected from 1 3 cities in Guangdong Province by stratified random sampling method.The questionnaires of present situation and influential factors for ROP in Guangdong Province were distributed to the hospital officers to survey the special equipment in the Neonato-logy Department,ROP specialists and their training collected,the collected related equipment and the present situation of the disease,et al.Eventually,1 22 questionnaires was collected,and the return rate was 80.26%.One hundred and twenty -two hospitals entered into the study,including 50 tertiary hospitals,72 secondary and primary hospitals.Statisti-cal analysis was done with SPSS 1 9.0.Results Tertiary hospitals were better than secondary and primary hospitals in terms of conducting the oxygen monitoring (χ2 =1 8.639,P <0.01 ),ROP screening (χ2 =40.054,P <0.01 )and ROP treatment(χ2 =8.262,P <0.05).The restriction factors in the present situation of ROP were lack of specialists,tech-nology and equipment,especially the first two factors.The difference in lack of specialists and technology between tertia-ry hospitals and the lower -level hospitals was significant(χ2 =4.520,P <0.05).There were 63 hospitals able to con-duct ROP screening,and 1 6 hospitals without equipment could carry out ROP screening through referral or inviting the experts from other hospitals.Fifty -nine hospitals which couldn′t carry out ROP screening had to refer patients to other hsopitals or invite the experts from other hospitals for consultation of high risk patients.Conclusions The present situation of ROP in the tertiary hospitals in Guangdong Province is generally satisfactory,while that in the secondary and primary hospitals stays behind.The constraints for present situation of ROP examination and treatment were lack of spe-cialists,technology and equipment.The hospitals that can′t implement ROP screening should establish regional co -operation by referral and resource sharing to improve the present situation of ROP in Guangdong Province.

Peritoneal dialysis for acute renal failure in premature infants / 中华围产医学杂志

Objective To investigate the effectiveness and safety of peritoneal dialysis(PD) in premature infants with acute renal failure(ARF).Methods In the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) of Guangdong Province Maternal and Children Hospital, 12 premature infants underwent continuous PD due to ARF from March 2012 to March 2015, without using any antibiotics in the dialysis fluid.Before and after dialysis, the changes of serum urea nitrogen, creatinine, potassium and pH were compared.The complications (blockage, leakage, infection and necrotizing enterocolitis) and gastrointestinal nutrition situation were observed.Wilcoxon signed rank sum test was used for statistical analysis.Results Among the 12 premature infants, the underlying causes of ARF were sepsis (n=9), perinatal asphyxia (n=2), twin twin transfusion syndrome (n=l).The average gestational age was (30.9±3.2) weeks, the average body weight (before PD) was (1 461 ±525) g, the duration of PD was (3.8±2.6) d.Complications associated with PD included leakage (n=3) and peritonitis (n=2) in which Candids albicans and Klebsiella pneumonia were identified in ascites.Gastrointestinal nutrition was built up in six cases within one to four days after dialysis, among which one developing necrotizing enterocolitis on the 7th d after feeding.Finally, eight babies died (six died after initiative discontinued treatment and two died because of critically illness) and four patients were cured and discharged.Lower serum urea nitrogen and potassium levels and higher pH value were shown after dialysis than before [(9.16 ± 3.15) vs (12.71 ±6.98) mmol/L;(4.36±0.82) vs (6.24± 1.72) mmol/L;7.32±0.17 vs 7.21 ±0.17;Z=-2.118,-2.197 and-2.981, all P ＜ 0.05).Conclusion PD is an alternative safe and effective treatment for premature infants with ARF due to its simplicity both in manipulation and equipment requirement.

Effects of nasal intermittent positive pressure ventilation compared with continuous positive airway pressure for respiratory distress syndrome in low birth weight preterm infants / 中华围产医学杂志

Objective To investigate the effects of early nasal intermittent positive pressure ventilation (NIPPV) compared with early continuous positive airway pressure (NCPAP) in low birth weight preterm infants with respiratory distress syndrome (RDS).Methods We performed a prospective,randomized controlled trial involving 364 low birth weight preterm infants with respiratory distress syndrome within 6 hours of birth.The infants were randomly assigned to NIPPV (n=188) or NCPAP (n=176) groups.Non invasive ventilation was initiated in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).The rate of mechanical intubation (within 3 days or 7 days),the use of pulmonary surfactant (PS),the rate of complications and mortality were compared between the two groups.Mann Whitney U,t and Chi-square tests were used for statistical analysis.Results The average time of invasive mechanical ventilation in NIPPV group were lower than that in NCPAP group[2.0 (1.0-4.0) d vs 7.0 (3.0-8.5) d,U=-3.457,P=0.001].The need for intubation and mechanical ventilation by day 3 and day 7 in the NIPPV group were less than those in the NCPAP group [day 3:4.8％ (9/188) vs 10.8％ (19/176),x2=4.621,P=0.032; day 7:9.0％ (17/188) vs 16.5％ (29/176),x2=4.551,P=0.033].In the NIPPV group,infants who got PS therapy was less than that in the NCPAP group [3.2％ (6/188) vs 8.5％ (15/176),x2=4.752,P=0.029].There was no significant difference in the fatality rate between the NIPPV and the NCPAP group [12.8％ (24/188) vs 10.8％ (19/176),P ＞ 0.05].There were no significant difference in the incidence of air leak,intracranial hemorrhage,periventricular leukomalacia,retinopathy of prematurity,necrotizing enterocolitis,patent ductus arteriosus,and bronchopulmonary dysplasia between the NIPPV group and the NCPAP group.Conclusion Among low birth weight prcterm infants with RDS,the early use of NIPPV reduces the need for PS,intubation and invasive ventilation compared with NCPAP.