简介：BACKGROUND:Clinicaldiagnosisofvariousneurologicaldisordersinvolvingthesensorynervesdependsprimarilyonsubjectivedescription,whichcannotbequantitativelyevaluated,andisalsolessreproducibleandspecific.QuantitativesensorytestingmethodscanovercometheseshortcomingsandiscurrentlyusedtoidentifythefunctionoftheC-andA-fibers.OBJECTIVE:Toapplythequantitativesensorytestingmethodforanalyzingchangesintemperaturesensation,cryalgesia,thermalgesia,andvibrationsenseontheskinsurfaceofhemiplegicpatientswithpost-strokeshoulder-handsyndrome,andtoanalyzetherelationshipbetweenthesechangesandshoulder-handsyndrome.DESIGN,TIMEANDSETTING:Anon-randomized,concurrent,controlstudywasperformedattheClinicandInpatientDepartmentoftheThirdXiangyaHospital,CentralSouthUniversity,betweenJune2000andApril2001.PARTICIPANTS:Thirtypost-stroke,hemiplegicpatientsweredividedintoshoulder-handsyndromeandcontrolgroups,accordingtowhetherpatientsexhibitedshoulder-handsyndrome,with15patientsineachgroup.METHODS:ATSA2001quantitativesensorytestingdevice(Medoc,Israel)wasusedforquantitativesensorytesting.Allsensorytestingemployedlimits,testingtemperaturesenseonthepalmthenareminenceandvibrationsenseonthethumbmetacarpal.Coldthresholdwas≤28℃,warmththresholdwas≥36℃,cold-evokedpainthresholdwas≤5℃,heat-evokedpainthresholdwas≥51℃,vibrationthresholdwas≥5μm/s;ifapatientmetoneoftheseitems,he/shewasconsideredtobehypoanesthesia.MAINOUTCOMEMEASURES:Cold,warm,cold-evokedpain,heat-evokedpainandvibrationthresholdchangesonskinfromtheparalyzedupperextremitywasmeasuredintheshoulder-handsyndromeandcontrolgroups.RESULTS:Incidenceofsensorydisabilityintheshoulder-handsyndromegroupincreasedmoresignificantlythaninthecontrolgroup(P<0.05),withtheprimarymanifestationsbeingdecreasedcoldthreshold(P<0.

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简介：BACKGROUND:ItisknownthatacupuncturetherapycandecreaseplasmaneuropeptideY(NPY)levelsinpatientswithcerebralinfarction,butdifferenttypesofacupuncturetherapyusedinvariousstagesofcerebralinfarctionhavenotbeenevaluated.OBJECTIVE:Toexploretheeffectofacupuncturetherapyonresuscitation(XingnaoKaiqiao)andplasmaNPYlevelsinpatientswithveryearlystageacutecerebralinfarction.DESIGN,TIMEANDSETTING:Thiscase-controlledstudywasperformedattheAffiliatedHospitaloftheMedicalCollegeoftheChinesePeople'sArmedPoliceForcebetweenSeptember2004andOctober2005.PARTICIPANTS:Sixtypatientswithacutecerebralinfarctionof≤6hourswereusedinthisstudy.Patientswererandomlydividedintoanacupuncturetherapygroup(n=30)andaroutinetreatmentgroup(n=30).Another30healthysubjectswereusedasthecontrolgroup.METHODS:TheacupuncturetherapyofXingnaoKaiqiaousedintheacupuncturetherapygroupwasbasedonroutinewesternmedicaltreatmentandwasperformedatbilateralNeiguan(PC6)usingthetwirling,reinforcing-reducingmethod,Renzhong(DU26)usingheavybird-peckingneedling,Sanyinjiao(SP6)usingreinforcingandreducingbyliftingandthrustingtheneedle,Jiquan(HT1),Weizhong(BL40)andChize(LU5)usingreinforcingandreducingbyliftingandthrustingtheneedle.Theacupuncturelastedfor14days.Patientsintheroutinetreatmentgroupunderwentroutinemedicaltreatmentandnointerventionwasgiventosubjectsinthecontrolgroup.MAINOUTCOMEMEASURES:A4mLvenousbloodsamplewasobtainedatdifferenttimepoints,i.e.,immediatelyafterhospitalization,thenextmorning,7and14daysaftertreatment,tomeasureplasmaNPYlevelspre-andpost-treatmentusingtheradio-immunitymethod.RESULTS:TheplasmaNPYlevelsweresignificantlyhigherinboththeroutinetreatmentgroupandtheacupuncturetherapygroupthaninthecontrolgrouppre-andpost-treatment(P<0.01).Inparticular,theplasmaNPYlevelsinboththeacupuncturetherapygroupa

简介：CurrentevidenceshowsthatapolipoproteinE(APOE),apolipoproteinCI(APOC1)andlowdensitylipoproteinreceptor-relatedprotein(LRP)variationsarerelatedtolate-onsetAlzheimer’sdisease.However,itremainsunclearifgeneticpolymorphismsinthesegenesareassociatedwithcognitivedeclineinlate-onsetAlzheimer’sdiseasepatients.Weperformeda30-monthlongitudinalcohortstudytoinvestigatetherelationshipbetweenAlzheimer’sdiseaseandAPOE,APOC1,andLRP.Inthisstudy,78ChineseHanpatientswithlate-onsetAlzheimer’sdiseasewererecruitedformGuangxiZhuangAutonomousRegioninChina.APOE,APOC1,andLRPgenotypingwasperformedusingpolymerasechainreaction-restrictionfragmentlengthpolymorphisms.TheMini-MentalStateExaminationandClinicalDementiaRatingScalewereusedtoassesspatients’cognitivefunction.Aftera30-monthfollow-upperiod,wefoundasignificantreductioninMini-MentalStateExaminationtotalscore,ahigherproportionofpatientsfulfillingcognitiveimpairmentprogressioncriteria,andahigherproportionofAPOC1H2carriersinAPOEε4carrierscomparedwithnon-carriers.Inaddition,theAPOEε4allelefrequencywassignificantlyhigherinthecognitiveimpairmentprogressiongroupcomparedwiththenon-cognitiveimpairmentprogressiongroup.Inconclusion,APOEε4playsanimportantroleinaugmentingcognitivedecline,andAPOC1H2mayactsynergisticallywithAPOEε4inincreasingtheriskofcognitivedeclineinChinesepatientswithlate-onsetAlzheimer’sdisease.

简介：BACKGROUND:Amyotrophiclateralsclerosis(ALS)isthemostcommonofallthemotorneurondiseasesandtheabsenceofabiologicmarkerhasmadebothdiagnosisandtrackingevolutionofthediseasedifficult.Electrodiagnostictestsplayafundamentalroleinquantifyingpathologicalchangesinthemotorunitpool.OBJECTIVE:Weassesseddistal-proximalMotorUnit(MU)lossandchangesusingthemethodofmotorunitnumberestimation(MUNE).DESIGN,TIMEANDSETTING:Acase-controlstudywasperformedattheDepartmentofNeuroscience,PisaUniversityMedicalSchool,ItalyfromDecember1999toNovember2009.PARTICIPANTS:Atotalof50ALSpatientswererecruited,30males:meanage(59.6±13.3)years20females:meanage(63.9±11.7)years;range(30-82)years;allpatientshadprobableordefiniteALS.Thirtyhealthyvolunteerswererecruitedfromdepartmentstaffs,including20malesand10females;meanage(57.7±13.8)yearsservedascontrols.METHODS:MUNEwasperformedforboththebicepsbrachiiandabductordigitiminimimusclesothesameside.Thetechniqueusedrelayedsubstantiallyonmanualincrementalstimulationofthemotornerve,knownastheMcComastechnique(50mssweepduration,againof2mV/DivforMwave,0.5mV/Divforeachstep;filters10-20kHz).MAINOUTCOMEMEASURES:MUNEresultsweremeasured.RESULTS:FunctioningMUnumbers,measuredbyMUNE,decreasedinthebicepsbrachiiandabductordigitiminimimusclesovertheentireone-yearfollow-upperiod(oneassessmenteverythreemonths)comparedwithbaselinedetermination,therateofMUdecreasewassimilarinbothmuscles,butsteeperdistally.CONCLUSION:MUNEisafeasiblemethodforALSpatientsbothproximallyanddistallytotrackchangesovertimeinmuscleMUsduringthedisease'sevolution.

简介：Moststudiesaddressingthespecificityofmeridiansandacupuncturepointshavefocusedmainlyonthedifferentneuraleffectsofacupunctureatdifferentpointsinhealthyindividuals.Thisstudyexaminedtheeffectsofacupunctureonbrainfunctioninapathologicalcontext.Sixteenpatientswithischemicstrokewererandomlyassignedtotruepointgroup(trueacupunctureatrightWaiguan(SJ5))andshampointgroup(shamacupuncture).Resultsoffunctionalmagneticresonanceimagingrevealedactivationinrightparietallobe(Brodmannareas7and19),therighttemporallobe(Brodmannarea39),therightlimbiclobe(Brodmannarea23)andbilateraloccipitallobes(Brodmannarea18).Furthermore,inhibitionofbilateralfrontallobes(Brodmannarea4,6,and45),rightparietallobe(Brodmannareas1and5)andlefttemporallobe(Brodmannarea21)wereobservedinthetruepointgroup.Activationintheprecuneusofrightparietallobe(Brodmannarea7)andinhibitionoftheleftsuperiorfrontalgyrus(Brodmannarea10)wasobservedintheshamgroup.Comparedwithshamacupuncture,acupunctureatWaiguaninstrokepatientsinhibitedBrodmannarea5onthehealthyside.Resultsindicatedthatthealteredspecificityofsensation-associatedcortex(Brodmannarea5)ispossiblyassociatedwithacentralmechanismofacupunctureatWaiguanforstrokepatients.

简介：BACKGROUND:Intracerebralhemorrhage(ICH)andcoronaryheartdisease(CHD)havethesamepathologicalbase,atherosclerosis,andthesimilarriskfactors,suchassmoking,drinking,hypertension,hyperlipemia,diabetesmellitus,etc;butthedistributionsoftwodiseasesareverydifferentinthepopulations.Thismayberelatedtotheexposureofriskfactorsanddifferenteffectsofriskfactorsontwodiseases.OBJECTIVE:ToanalyzethedistributiondifferenceofriskfactorsforICHandCHDinthepopulationsofTongliaocityofNeiMonggolAutonomousRegion.DESIGN:Retrospectiveanalysis.SETTING:SchoolofRadiationMedicineandPublicHealth,SoochowUniversity;TongliaoHospital,NeiMonggolAutonomousRegion.PARTICIPANTS:Randomsamplingwasusedtoselect6hospitalsfrom10hospitalsaffiliatedtoTongliaoCityofNeiMonggolAutonomousRegion.Totally1672medicalrecordsofpatientswithICHand2195medicalrecordsofpatientswithCHDadmittedtoDepartmentofNeurologyandDepartmentofCardiovascularInternalMedicineofabove-mentioned6hospitalsbetweenJanuary2003andDecember2005werecollectedaccordingtotheinvestigationneed.METHODS:Thesubjects,whosemedicalrecordswereinvolved,wereperformedretrospectiveanalysiswithpre-preparedquestionnaire'StrokeandCoronaryHeartDiseaseEpidemiologicQuestionnaire'.Themaincontentsincluded:①Socialdemographycondition:Thedistributionsofgender,age,nationality,etc.②Previoushistoryofdisease:hypertension,diabetesmellitus,etc.③Relatedriskfactors:systolicbloodpressure,diastolicbloodpressure,totalcholesterol,triglyceride,high-densitylipoproteincholesterol,low-densitylipoproteincholesterol,smoking,drinkingandglucose(GLU).ThedatabaseofEpidatawastransformedtoSPSSdatabase.Single-andmultiple-factornon-conditionalLogisticregressionanalysiswereperformedonthedata,andORvalueand95%CIwerecalculated.Thedistributiondifferencesofriskfactorsfortwodiseaseswerecompared

简介：BACKGROUND:Functionalmagneticresonanceimaging(fMRI)isinitiallyusedforvisualcortexlocation.However,theapplicationoffMRIininvestigatingthedevelopmentofvisualpathwaylesionsneedstobefurtherobserved.OBJECTIVE:Thisstudyistolongitudiallyobservethedynamicchangesincorticalfunctionandwhitematterfibrousstructureofpatientswithvisualpathwaylesionsbybloodoxygenationleveldependent-functionalmagneticresonanceimaging(BOLD-fMRI)combinedwithdiffusiontensorimaging(DTI),andtoanalyzethecharacteristicsofbrainfunctionandstructuralrecombinationatconvalescentperiodoflesions.DESIGN:Randomizedcontrolledobservation.SETTING:DepartmentofRadiology,theGeneralHospitalofNanjingMilitaryAreaCommandofChinesePLA.PARTICIPANTS:Eightpatientswithunilateralorbilateralvisualdisordercausedbyvisualpathwaylesions,whoadmittedtoDepartmentofRadiology,theGeneralHospitalofNanjingMilitaryAreaCommandofChinesePLAfromJanuarytoSeptember2006wereinvolved,andservedasexperimentalsubjects.Thepatients,6malesand2females,wereaged16-67years.Theyhadvisualdisorderconfirmedbyclinicalexamination,i.e.visualpathwaylesion,whichwasfurtherdiagnosedbyMRorCT.Another12subjectsgenerallymatchingtothosepatientsofexperimentalgroupingender,ageandsight,whoreceivedhealthexaminationinsynchronizationwereinvolvedandservedascontrols.Thesubjectshadnohistoryofeyediseases.Theirbinocularvisualacuity(orcorrectedvisualacuity)wasover1.0.Bothroutineexaminationofophthalmologyandexaminationoffunduswerenormal.Informedconsentsofdetecteditemswereobtainedfromallthesubjects.METHODS:SignaExciteHD1.5Tmagneticresonanceimagingsystemwith16passages(GECompany,USA)andcoilwith8passageswereused;brainfunctionalstimulusapparatus(SAV-8800.MeideCompany)wasusedforshowingexperimentalmission.Attheearlystageandconvalescentperiodoflesions,thepatie

简介：Thisstudyadaptedastatisticalprobabilisticanatomicalmapofthebrainforsinglephotonemissioncomputedtomographyimagesofdepressiveend-stagerenaldiseasepatients.Thisresearchaimedtoinvestigatetherelationshipbetweensymptomclusters,diseaseseverity,andcerebralbloodflow.Twenty-sevenpatients(16males,11females)withstages4and5end-stagerenaldiseasewereenrolled,alongwith25healthycontrols.Allpatientsunderwentdepressivemoodassessmentandbrainsinglephotonemissioncomputedtomography.Thestatisticalprobabilisticanatomicalmapimageswereusedtocalculatethebrainsinglephotonemissioncomputedtomographycounts.AsymmetricindexwasacquiredandPearsoncorrelationanalysiswasperformedtoanalyzethecorrelationbetweensymptomfactors,severity,andregionalcerebralbloodflow.ThedepressionfactorsoftheHamiltonDepressionRatingScaleshowedanegativecorrelationwithcerebralbloodflowintheleftamygdale.Theinsomniafactorshowednegativecorrelationswithcerebralbloodflowintheleftamygdala,rightsuperiorfrontalgyrus,rightmiddlefrontalgyrus,andleftmiddlefrontalgyrus.Theanxietyfactorshowedapositivecorrelationwithcerebralglucosemetabolisminthecerebellarvermisandanegativecorrelationwithcerebralglucosemetabolismintheleftglobuspallidus,rightinferiorfrontalgyrus,bothtemporalpoles,andleftparahippocampus.Theoveralldepressionseverity(totalscoresofHamiltonDepressionRatingScale)wasnegativelycorrelatedwiththestatisticalprobabilisticanatomicalmapresultsintheleftamygdalaandrightinferiorfrontalgyrus.Inconclusion,ourresultsdemonstratedthatthediseaseseverityandextentofcerebralbloodflowquantifiedbyaprobabilisticbrainatlaswasrelatedtovariousbrainareasintermsoftheoverallseverityandsymptomfactorsinend-stagerenaldiseasepatients.