Docetaxel versus docetaxel plus cisplatin for non-small-cell lung cancer: a meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials.

Objective: To compare the activity, efficacy and toxicity of docetaxel versus docetaxel plus cisplatin in patients with non-small-cell lung cancer.

Methods: A literature search was performed in the EMBASE, Medline, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, China National Knowledge Internet, Wan-fang databases. The trials that were found were then evaluated for eligibility.

Time-dependent differential expression of long non-coding RNAs following peripheral nerve injury.

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are widely accepted as key players in various biological processes. However, the roles of lncRNA in peripheral nerve regeneration remain completely unknown. Thus, in this study, we performed microarray analysis to measure lncRNA expression in the distal segment of the sciatic nerve at 0, 3, 7 and 14 days following injury.

Gene expression analysis at multiple time-points identifies key genes for nerve regeneration.

Introduction: The purpose of this study was to provide a comprehensive understanding of gene expression during Wallerian degeneration and axon regeneration after peripheral nerve injury.

Methods: A microarray was used to detect gene expression in the distal nerve 0, 3, 7, and 14 days after sciatic nerve crush. Bioinformatic analysis was used to predict function of the differentially expressed mRNAs.

Skeletal cryptococcosis from 1977 to 2013.

Skeletal cryptococcosis, an aspect of disseminated cryptococcal disease or isolated skeletal cryptococcal infection, is a rare but treatable disease. However, limited information is available regarding its clinical features, treatment, and prognosis. This systematic review examined all cases published between April 1977 and May 2013 with regard to the factors associated with this disease, including patient sex, age, and epidemiological history; affected sites; clinical symptoms; underlying diseases; laboratory tests; radiological manifestations; and delays in diagnosis, treatment, follow-up assessments, and outcomes.

Targeting RPTPσ with lentiviral shRNA promotes neurites outgrowth of cortical neurons and improves functional recovery in a rat spinal cord contusion model.

After spinal cord injury (SCI), the rapidly upregulated chondroitin sulfate proteoglycans (CSPGs), the prominent chemical constituents and main repulsive factors of the glial scar, play an important role in the extremely limited ability to regenerate in adult mammals. Although many methods to overcome the inhibition have been tested, no successful method with clinical feasibility has been devised to date. It was recently discovered that receptor protein tyrosine phosphatase sigma (RPTPσ) is a functional receptor for CSPGs-mediated inhibition.

[The efficacy analysis of selective decompression of lumbar root canal of elderly lumbar spinal stenosis].

Objective: To evaluate the effect of the treatments of lumbar spinal stenosis by selective decompression of lumbar root canal and laminectomy.

Methods: From March 2007 to March 2011, 144 lumbar spinal stenosis patients were treated by selective decompression of lumbosacral root canal and laminectomy. All of these patients included 64 male and 80 female patients, age range 60-87 years, average (66 ± 5) years.

Cryptococcosis of lumbar vertebra in a patient with rheumatoid arthritis and scleroderma: case report and literature review.

Background: Although cryptococcosis mainly occurs in the central nervous system and lungs in immunocompromised hosts, it can involve any body site or structure. Here we report the first case of primary cryptococcosis of a lumbar vertebra without involvement of the central nervous system or lungs in a relatively immunocompromised individual with rheumatoid arthritis and scleroderma.

Case Presentation: A 40-year-old Chinese woman with rheumatoid arthritis diagnosed 1 year beforehand and with a subsequent diagnosis of scleroderma was found to have an isolated cryptococcal infection of the fourth lumbar vertebra.

Epidemiological profile of 239 traumatic spinal cord injury cases over a period of 12 years in Tianjin, China.

Study Design: Hospital-based retrospective review.

Objective: To describe the epidemiological characteristics and trends of traumatic spinal cord injury in Tianjin, China.

Setting: Tianjin Medical University General Hospital.