The Learning Curve of Unilateral Biportal Endoscopic (UBE) Spinal Surgery by CUSUM Analysis.

Objective: To assess the learning curve of the unilateral biportal endoscopic (UBE) technique for the treatment of single-level lumbar disc herniation by cumulative summation (CUSUM) method analysis.

Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted to assess 97 patients' general condition, operation time, complications, and curative effect of single segmental UBE surgery performed by a spinal surgeon in his early stage of this technique. The learning curve of operation time was studied using a CUSUM method, and the cut-off point of the learning curve was obtained.

Preparation of polypyrrole-embedded electrospun poly(lactic acid) nanofibrous scaffolds for nerve tissue engineering.

Polypyrrole (PPy) is a biocompatible polymer with good conductivity. Studies combining PPy with electrospinning have been reported; however, the associated decrease in PPy conductivity has not yet been resolved. We embedded PPy into poly(lactic acid) (PLA) nanofibers electrospinning and fabricated a PLA/PPy nanofibrous scaffold containing 15% PPy with sustained conductivity and aligned topography.

Extracellular matrix from human umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cells as a scaffold for peripheral nerve regeneration.

The extracellular matrix, which includes collagens, laminin, or fibronectin, plays an important role in peripheral nerve regeneration. Recently, a Schwann cell-derived extracellular matrix with classical biomaterial was used to mimic the neural niche. However, extensive clinical use of Schwann cells remains limited because of the limited origin, loss of an autologous nerve, and extended in vitro culture times.

[Comparison of three fixations for treatment of intertrochanteric femoral fractures in the elderly].

Objective: To compare the clinical effects of three internal fixations as follows:dynamic hip screw (DHS), proximal femoral nail-A (PFNA) and InterTAN, for intertrochanteric femoral fractures in elderly patients.

Methods: From February 2007 to May 2012,136 elderly patients with intertrochanteric fractures (including 71 males and 65 females, ranging in age from 60 to 88 years old with an average of 69 years old) were treated with DHS (group A, 80 cases), PFNA (group B, 36 cases) and InterTAN (group C, 20 cases). Statistical analysis were applied to compare the 3 groups in operative time, blood loss, fracture healing time, intrraoperative complications and functional outcome (Harris hip score).

Hepatocellular carcinoma that arose from primary Sjögren's syndrome.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) typically originates from HBV or HCV associated liver cirrhosis. Primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS) is a kind of autoimmune disease. A sixty-two year old female patient with mild liver damage was diagnosed with pSS after excluding viral, alcoholic and drug-induced hepatitis according to serum immunological detection and liver biopsy.

Selecting an appropriate interestingness measure to evaluate the correlation between Chinese medicine syndrome elements and symptoms.

To select the best interestingness measure appropriate for evaluating the correlation between Chinese medicine (CM) syndrome elements and symptoms, 60 objective interestingness measures were selected from different subjects. Firstly, a hypothesis for a good measure was proposed. Based on the hypothesis, an experiment was designed to evaluate the measures.

The TCM pattern of the six-zang and six-fu organs can be simplified into the pattern of five-zang and one-fu organs.

Objective: To simplify the TCM pattern of the zang-fu organs.

Methods: A database of zang-fu syndromes was established. The relationship between the zang-fu syndromes was analyzed by means of frequency analysis, association rule, and phi-coefficient correlation.

Nineteen clinical features of fever in Chinese medicine.

Based on the 4,067 descriptions about fever in the medical records of the well-known Chinese medicine physicians throughout the ages, 19 different clinical features of fever are summarized as follows: chilly fever, high fever, low fever, dull fever, bones fever, alternating chills and fever, tidal fever, head fever, face fever, chest fever, back fever, abdomen fever, waist fever, palms and soles fever, lower extremity fever, afternoon fever, evening fever, postpartum fever, and menstrual fever. Although, some of these fever features have not be paid close attention to in Western medicine, stage-division and classification about fever in Western medicine deserve to be used by Chinese medicine for reference.

Cell polarity protein Par3 complexes with DNA-PK via Ku70 and regulates DNA double-strand break repair.

The partitioning-defective 3 (Par3), a key component in the conserved Par3/Par6/aPKC complex, plays fundamental roles in cell polarity. Herein we report the identification of Ku70 and Ku80 as novel Par3-interacting proteins through an in vitro binding assay followed by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. Ku70/Ku80 proteins are two key regulatory subunits of the DNA-dependent protein kinase (DNA-PK), which plays an essential role in repairing double-strand DNA breaks (DSBs).

[A clinical study of abnormal bone metabolism in patients with HBV liver cirrhosis].

Objective: To study the pathogenesis of abnormal bone metabolism in patients with HBV liver cirrhosis.

Methods: NM-300 signal-energy X-ray absorptiometry system was used to measure the bone mineral density (BMD) in 61 liver cirrhosis patients and 30 age-matched healthy controls. The serum levels of 1,25(OH)2D3, parathyroid hormone (PTH), calcitonin (CT), bone gamma-carboxyglutamic acid-containing protein (BGP), IL-1beta, IL-6, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)alpha and urine crosslaps were also detected in these patients.