Publications by authors named "Zheng-Cheng Zhong"

Biomechanical performance of longitudinal component in dynamic hybrid devices was evaluated to display the load-transfer effects of Dynesys cord spacer or Isobar damper-joint dynamic stabilizer on junctional problem based on various disc degenerations. The dynamic component was adapted at the mildly degenerative L3-L4 segment, and the static component was fixed at the moderately degenerative L4-L5 segment under a displacement-controlled mode for the finite element study. Furthermore, an intersegmental motion behavior was analyzed experimentally on the synthetic model under a load-controlled mode.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Rationale: Respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) refers to the symptoms of progressive dyspnea and respiratory failure in newborns shortly after birth. The clinical and genetic characteristics of patients with neonatal RDS have not been extensively reported.

Patient Concerns: A infant was in critical condition with repeated paroxysmal blood oxygen decline.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • The study investigates the clinical features, treatment, and outcomes of COVID-19 and viral pneumonia in children during the pandemic, noting that COVID-19 infections were less common in children compared to adults.
  • A total of 64 children with COVID-19 and 284 children with pneumonia from other viruses were compared in terms of their clinical and epidemiological data, using various statistical tests to analyze the differences.
  • Results showed that COVID-19 affected older children more, had less severe cases compared to other viral pneumonias, and they experienced fewer symptoms like high fever, highlighting differences in the disease presentation between the two groups.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Drowning is a leading cause of accidental injury in children and has a great impact on family and society. The prevention and treatment of drowning is of great importance for reducing mortality rate. This consensus reviews the literature on the epidemiology, rescue, resuscitation, and acute clinical management and prevention of drowning.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Interspinous spacers have been designed to provide a minimally invasive surgical technique for patients with lumbar spinal stenosis or foraminal stenosis. A novel pedicle screw-based interspinous spacer has been developed in this study, and the aim of this finite element experiment was to investigate the biomechanical differences between the pedicle screw-based interspinous spacer (M-rod system) and the typical interspinous spacer (Coflex-F™). A validated finite element model of an intact lumbar spine was used to analyze the insertions of the Coflex-F™, titanium alloy M-rod (M-Ti), and polyetheretherketone M-rod (M-PEEK), independently.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • The study aimed to explore how adipose-derived stem cells (ADSC) and non-methylated CpG-oligodeoxynucleotides (CpG-ODN) affect regulatory T cells in young mice with food allergies, along with their immune system effects.
  • 40 BALB/c mice were divided into four groups (control, allergic, ADSC treatment, and CpG-ODN treatment), and an allergy model was created using ovalbumin (OVA) to assess the effectiveness of treatments.
  • Results showed that both the ADSC and CpG-ODN treatment groups had reduced allergy symptoms and lower OVA-IgE levels compared to the allergic group but still showed higher levels than the control
View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • The study investigates how certain genetic variations in pulmonary surfactant proteins impact serum levels and the likelihood of respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) in preterm infants.
  • Researchers analyzed 100 preterm infants with RDS and 120 without, using genetic testing and serum level quantification of specific surfactant proteins.
  • Findings reveal that specific genetic polymorphisms in SP-A and SP-B are linked to a higher risk of RDS, with reduced SP-A levels potentially serving as biomarkers for the condition.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objective: To investigate the biomechanical effects of the lumbar posterior complex on the adjacent segments after posterior lumbar interbody fusion (PLIF) surgeries.

Methods: A finite element model of the L1-S1 segment was modified to simulate PLIF with total laminectomy (PLIF-LAM) and PLIF with hemilaminectomy (PLIF-HEMI) procedures. The models were subjected to a 400N follower load with a 7.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objective: To investigate the immunoregulatory effect of adipose-derived stem cell (ADSC) transplantation by intraperitoneal injection in food-allergic young mice before and after ovalbumin (OVA) sensitization.

Methods: Thirty-two 3-week-old female Balb/c mice were randomly divided into control, allergic model, ADSC treatment, and ADSC prevention groups (n=8 each). A young mouse model of food allergy was established by OVA sensitization via intraperitoneal injection.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objective: To explore the effect of non-methylated cytosine-phosphate-guanine oligodeoxynucleotides (CpG-ODN) on serum transforming growth factor (TGF)-β and immune regulation in ovalbumin (OVA)-sensitized young mice.

Methods: Thirty female BALB/c mice (2-3 weeks old) were randomly divided into control, model, and CpG-ODN intervention groups. A young mouse model of food allergy was established by OVA sensitization.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

In a finite element (FE) analysis of the lumbar spine, different preload application methods that are used in biomechanical studies may yield diverging results. To investigate how the biomechanical behaviour of a spinal implant is affected by the method of applying the preload, hybrid-controlled FE analysis was used to evaluate the biomechanical behaviour of the lumbar spine under different preload application methods. The FE models of anterior lumbar interbody fusion (ALIF) and artificial disc replacement (ADR) were tested under three different loading conditions: a 150 N pressure preload (PP) and 150 and 400 N follower loads (FLs).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: The adverse effects of annulotomy during lumbar discectomy have been increasingly recognized, and methods are developing to repair the annular defect. Biomechanically, the repair should retain the intra-nuclear pressure, which is doubtful using the current suture techniques. Therefore, a new suture technique was designed and tested to close a simpler type of annular incision.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The Coflex device may provide stability to the surgical segment in extension but does not restore stability in other motion. Recently, a modified version called the Coflex rivet has been developed. The effects of Coflex and Coflex rivet implantation on the adjacent segments are still not clear; therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate the biomechanical differences between Coflex and Coflex rivet implantation by using finite element analyses.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The Dynesys dynamics stabilisation system was developed to maintain the mobility of motion segment of the lumbar spine in order to reduce the incidence of negative effects at the adjacent segments. However, the magnitude of cord pretension may change the stiffness of the Dynesys system and result in a diverse clinical outcome, and the effects of Dynesys cord pretension remain unclear. Displacement-controlled finite element analysis was used to evaluate the biomechanical behaviour of the lumbar spine after insertion of Dynesys with three different cord pretensions.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Lumbar interbody fusion is a common procedure for treating lower back pain related to degenerative disc diseases. The Coflex-F is a recently developed interspinous spacer, the makers of which claim that it can provide stabilisation similar to pedicle screw fixation. Therefore, this study compares the biomechanical behaviour of the Coflex-F device and pedicle screw fixation with transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (TLIF) or anterior lumbar interbody fusion (ALIF) surgeries by using finite element analysis.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • The study used finite element analysis to assess the impact of different screw depths in the Dynesys dynamic stabilization system on the lumbar spine mechanics.
  • It aimed to determine how these screw placements would influence load sharing, range of motion (ROM), and stresses around the spine.
  • Findings indicated that while the Dynesys system stabilizes the surgical level, it may increase stress and movement at adjacent spine levels, potentially leading to complications.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Finite element analysis results will show significant differences if the model used is performed under various material properties, geometries, loading modes or other conditions. This study adopted an FE model, taking into account the possible asymmetry inherently existing in the spine with respect to the sagittal plane, with a more geometrically realistic outline to analyze and compare the biomechanical behaviour of the lumbar spine with regard to the facet force and intradiscal pressure, which are associated with low back pain symptoms and other spinal disorders. Dealing carefully with the contact surfaces of the facet joints at various levels of the lumbar spine can potentially help us further ascertain physiological behaviour concerning the frictional effects of facet joints under separate loadings or the responses to the compressive loads in the discs.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The artificial disc is a mobile implant for degenerative disc replacement that attempts to lessen the degeneration of the adjacent elements. However, inconsistent biomechanical results for the neighboring elements have been reported in a number of studies. The present study used finite element (FE) analysis to explore the biomechanical differences at the surgical and both adjacent levels following artificial disc replacement and interbody fusion procedures.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Spondylolysis is a fracture of the bone lamina in the pars interarticularis and has a high risk of developing spondylolisthesis, as well as traction on the spinal cord and nerve root, leading to spinal disorders or low back pain when the lumbar spine is subjected to high external forces. Previous studies mostly investigated the mechanical changes of the endplate in spondylolysis. However, little attention has been focused on the entire structural changes that occur in spondylolysis.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Study Design: Using finite element models to study the biomechanics of lumbar instrumented posterior lumbar interbody fusion (PLIF) with one or two cages.

Objective: Analyzing the biomechanics of instrumented PLIF with one or two cages as to evaluate whether a single cage is adequate for instrumented PLIF.

Summary Of Background Data: Implantation of a single cage in instrumented PLIF of lumbar spine is still controversial.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

In recent years, degenerative spinal instability has been effectively treated with a cage. However, little attention is focused on the design concept of the cage. The purpose of this study was to develop a new cage and evaluate its biomechanical function using a finite element method (FEM).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF