Subjective well-being amongst migrant children in China: unravelling the roles of social support and identity integration.

Background: Migrant children refer to rural children who accompany one or both parents to urban area. Empirical evidence showed that compared with their urban counterparts, migrant children had poorer developmental, emotional and psychological health.

Method: A sample of 1306 migrant children were recruited to examine the characteristics of migrant children and investigate the effects of identity integration, support and socioeconomic factors (e.

Shared control of a medical robot with haptic guidance.

Purpose: Tele-operation of robotic surgery reduces the radiation exposure during the interventional radiological operations. However, endoscope vision without force feedback on the surgical tool increases the difficulty for precise manipulation and the risk of tissue damage. The shared control of vision and force provides a novel approach of enhanced control with haptic guidance, which could lead to subtle dexterity and better maneuvrability during MIS surgery.

Maximizing Outcomes While Minimizing Morbidity: An Illustrated Case Review of Elbow Soft Tissue Reconstruction.

Background. Injuries to the elbow have led to consequences varying from significant limitation in function to loss of the entire upper limb. Soft tissue reconstruction with durable and pliable coverage balanced with the ability to mobilize the joint early to optimize rehabilitation outcomes is paramount.

Association Between Acute Neuropsychiatric Events and Helicobacter pylori Therapy Containing Clarithromycin.

Importance: There is a concern that Helicobacter pylori therapy containing clarithromycin might be associated with acute neuropsychiatric events.

Objective: To examine the association between H pylori therapy containing clarithromycin and acute neuropsychiatric events.

Design, Setting, And Participants: A self-controlled case series study was conducted using the Clinical Data Analysis and Reporting System database in Hong Kong to explore any association.

Antiangiogenic activity of 2-formyl-8-hydroxy-quinolinium chloride.

Tumour growth is closely related to the development of new blood vessels to supply oxygen and nutrients to cancer cells. Without the neovascular formation, tumour volumes cannot increase and undergo metastasis. Antiangiogenesis is one of the most promising approaches for antitumour therapy.

Semiconductor Electronic Label-Free Assay for Predictive Toxicology.

While animal experimentations have spearheaded numerous breakthroughs in biomedicine, they also have spawned many logistical concerns in providing toxicity screening for copious new materials. Their prioritization is premised on performing cellular-level screening in vitro. Among the screening assays, secretomic assay with high sensitivity, analytical throughput, and simplicity is of prime importance.

Sensitization of to terbinafine by berberine and berberrubine.

() is an opportunistic fungal pathogen, particularly observed in immunocompromised patients. accounts for 50-70% of cases of invasive candidiasis in the majority of clinical settings. Terbinafine, an allylamine antifungal drug, has been used to treat fungal infections previously.

Association between oral fluoroquinolones and seizures: A self-controlled case series study.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate the association and to estimate the crude absolute risk of seizure among patients exposed to fluoroquinolones (FQs) in Hong Kong and the United Kingdom.

Methods: A self-controlled case series study was conducted. Data were collected from the Hong Kong Clinical Data Analysis and Reporting System database and the Clinical Practice Research Datalink.

Two-Stage Latissimus Dorsi Flap with Implant for Unilateral Breast Reconstruction: Getting the Size Right.

Background: The aim of unilateral breast reconstruction after mastectomy is to craft a natural-looking breast with symmetry. The latissimus dorsi (LD) flap with implant is an established technique for this purpose. However, it is challenging to obtain adequate volume and satisfactory aesthetic results using a one-stage operation when considering factors such as muscle atrophy, wound dehiscence and excessive scarring.

Synthesis of hexahydrofuro[3,2-c]quinoline, a martinelline type analogue and investigation of its biological activity.

Background: Candida susceptibility commonly occurs in breast cancer patients. Of which, Candida albicans is considered as a common pathogen causing candidiasis. Martinella iquitosensis (Bignoniaceae) is one of the species belonged to Martinella, distributed widely in Amazon basin.

Medication safety research by observational study design.

Observational studies have been recognised to be essential for investigating the safety profile of medications. Numerous observational studies have been conducted on the platform of large population databases, which provide adequate sample size and follow-up length to detect infrequent and/or delayed clinical outcomes. Cohort and case-control are well-accepted traditional methodologies for hypothesis testing, while within-individual study designs are developing and evolving, addressing previous known methodological limitations to reduce confounding and bias.

Early detection and differentiation of venous and arterial occlusion in skin flaps using visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy and autofluorescence spectroscopy.

Our previous preclinical study demonstrated that both visible diffuse reflectance and autofluorescence spectroscopy, each of which yields a different set of physiological information, can predict skin flap viability with high accuracy in a MacFarlane rat dorsal skin flap model. In this report, we further evaluated our technique for the early detection and differentiation of venous occlusion and arterial occlusion in a rat groin flap model. We performed both diffuse reflectance and autofluorescence measurements on the skin flap model and statistically differentiated between flaps with and without occlusions as well as between flaps with venous occlusion and those with arterial occlusion based on these non-invasive optical measurements.

Housing design and testing of a surgical robot developed for orthopaedic surgery.

Background/objective: Surgical technology has advanced rapidly with the introduction of robot technology. Apart from mechanical and electronic elements, housing design is an essential component that must be thoughtfully considered, bearing in mind the general requirements for medical devices used in operating theatres. The aim of this study was to design a modern and safe housing for a surgical robotic system for orthopaedic applications in Hong Kong that would meet the general requirements for obtaining local regulatory body approval.

Self-Locking Optoelectronic Tweezers for Single-Cell and Microparticle Manipulation across a Large Area in High Conductivity Media.

Optoelectronic tweezers (OET) has advanced within the past decade to become a promising tool for cell and microparticle manipulation. Its incompatibility with high conductivity media and limited throughput remain two major technical challenges. Here a novel manipulation concept and corresponding platform called Self-Locking Optoelectronic Tweezers (SLOT) are proposed and demonstrated to tackle these challenges concurrently.

Cardiovascular outcomes associated with use of clarithromycin: population based study.

Study Question: What is the association between clarithromycin use and cardiovascular outcomes?

Methods: In this population based study the authors compared cardiovascular outcomes in adults aged 18 or more receiving oral clarithromycin or amoxicillin during 2005-09 in Hong Kong. Based on age within five years, sex, and calendar year at use, each clarithromycin user was matched to one or two amoxicillin users. The cohort analysis included patients who received clarithromycin (n=108,988) or amoxicillin (n=217,793).

A virtual surgical training system that simulates cutting of soft tissue using a modified pre-computed elastic model.

This work presents a surgical training system that incorporates cutting operation of soft tissue simulated based on a modified pre-computed linear elastic model in the Simulation Open Framework Architecture (SOFA) environment. A precomputed linear elastic model used for the simulation of soft tissue deformation involves computing the compliance matrix a priori based on the topological information of the mesh. While this process may require a few minutes to several hours, based on the number of vertices in the mesh, it needs only to be computed once and allows real-time computation of the subsequent soft tissue deformation.

Family caregivers and outcome of people with schizophrenia in rural China: 14-year follow-up study.

Objective: This study examined the differences in 14-year outcomes of persons with schizophrenia with and without family caregiver(s) in a rural community in China.

Methods: All participants with schizophrenia (n = 510) aged 15 years and older were identified in a 1994 epidemiological investigation of 123,572 people and followed up in 2004 and 2008 in Xinjin County, Chengdu, China.

Results: Individuals without family caregiver in 1994 had significantly higher rate of homelessness (23.

Carbon-ionogel supercapacitors for integrated microelectronics.

To exceed the performance limits of dielectric capacitors in microelectronic circuit applications, we design and demonstrate on-chip coplanar electric double-layer capacitors (EDLCs), or supercapacitors, employing carbon-coated gold electrodes with ionogel electrolyte. The formation of carbon-coated microelectrodes is accomplished by solution processing and results in a ten-fold increase in EDLC capacitance compared to bare gold electrodes without carbon. At frequencies up to 10 Hz, an areal capacitance of 2.

Development and Validation of Two Screening Assays for the Hepatitis C Virus NS3 Q80K Polymorphism Associated with Reduced Response to Combination Treatment Regimens Containing Simeprevir.

Persons with hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotype 1a (GT1a) infections harboring a baseline Q80K polymorphism in nonstructural protein 3 (NS3) have a reduced virologic response to simeprevir in combination with pegylated interferon-alfa and ribavirin. We aimed to develop, validate, and freely disseminate an NS3 clinical sequencing assay to detect the Q80K polymorphism and potentially other HCV NS3 drug resistance mutations. HCV RNA was extracted from frozen plasma using a NucliSENS easyMAG automated nucleic acid extractor, amplified by nested reverse transcription-PCR, and sequenced using Sanger and/or next-generation (MiSeq) methods.

Brief Report: Databases in the Asia-Pacific Region: The Potential for a Distributed Network Approach.

Background: This study describes the availability and characteristics of databases in Asian-Pacific countries and assesses the feasibility of a distributed network approach in the region.

Methods: A web-based survey was conducted among investigators using healthcare databases in the Asia-Pacific countries. Potential survey participants were identified through the Asian Pharmacoepidemiology Network.

Recent advances in research of natural and synthetic bioactive quinolines.

Many natural products that consist of quinoline core are found to be bioactive and the versatility of quinoline and its derivatives have attracted great attention in the field of drug development. As a result, in recent years, many green and sustainable synthetic approaches for the synthesis of structurally diverse quinolines have been developed. This review covers four main aspects, namely bioactive quinoline alkaloids, the biological activity and mechanism of action of quinoline-based compounds as well as various quinoline syntheses.

Increasing the accuracy of orbital reconstruction with selective laser-melted patient-specific implants combined with intraoperative navigation.

Purpose: Advances in technology have allowed increasing degrees of accuracy in the treatment of orbital deformities. The purpose of this study was to compare the accuracy of pre-bent titanium mesh (PBTM) and selective laser-melted patient-specific implants (PSIs) in unilateral orbital reconstruction after traumatic injury. The authors hypothesized that selective laser-melted PSIs would more accurately reconstruct the orbit.

Bilateral Ovarian Burkitt's Lymphoma: Successful Treatment with Preservation of Ovarian Function.

Background: Bilateral ovarian Burkitt's lymphoma was diagnosed in a 10-year-old girl who presented with abdominal pain, constipation, and signs of ovarian torsion.

Case: Left salpingo-oopherectomy and biopsy of the right ovary were carried out as initial surgical intervention. She remained well in first complete remission at 25 months after multiagent chemotherapy, with pubertal development on clinical examination, hormonal measurements, and pelvic sonography.

The loss of cellular junctions in epithelial lung cells induced by cigarette smoke is attenuated by corilagin.

Cigarette smoke (CS) contains over 4700 compounds, many of which can affect cellular redox balance through free radicals production or through the modulation of antioxidant enzymes. The respiratory tract is one of the organs directly exposed to CS and it is known that CS can damage the integrity of lung epithelium by affecting cell junctions and increasing epithelium permeability. In this study, we have used a human lung epithelial cell line, Calu-3, to evaluate the effect of CS on lung epithelial cell junctions levels, with special focus on the expression of two proteins involved in intercellular communication: connexins (Cx) 40 and 43.