BioMed research international
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Regenerative medicine is considered an attractive prospect for the treatment of intervertebral disc (IVD) degeneration. To assess the efficacy of the regenerative approach, animal models of IVD degeneration are needed. Among these animal models, chemonucleolysis based on the enzymatic degradation of the Nucleus Pulposus (NP) is often used, but this technique remains far from the natural physiopathological process of IVD degeneration. ⋯ The enzyme treatment leads to a rapid and acute process of IVD degeneration. Conversely, laser radiation induced more progressive and less pronounced degeneration. It can be concluded that laser treatment provides an instrumental in vivo model of slowly evolving IVD degenerative disease that can be of preclinical relevance for assessing new prophylactic biological treatments of disc degeneration.
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Background. Nosocomial pneumonia due to carbapenem-resistant Gram-negative bacteria (CRGNB) is a growing concern because treatment options are limited and the mortality rate is high. The effect of tigecycline (TGC) on nosocomial pneumonia due to CRGNB in patients who have received inappropriate initial empiric antibiotic treatment (IIAT) is unclear. ⋯ High-dose TGC therapy had a higher clinical success rate [65.0% (13/20) versus 18.2% (2/11), P = 0.023] and a lower ICU mortality rate [30.0% (6/20) versus 72.7% (8/11), P = 0.031] than the standard-dose therapy. Conclusions. TGC, especially a high-dose regimen, might be a justifiable option for critically ill patients with nosocomial pneumonia due to CRGNB who have received IIAT when the options for these patients are limited.
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This study aimed to investigate the endothelial function in a canine model of burn injury combined with seawater immersion. The model of burn injury was established. The dogs were randomly divided into four groups including dogs with burn injury (B group), or burn injury combined with seawater immersion (BI group), or only immersion in seawater (I group), or control animals with no injury or immersion (C group). ⋯ The von Willebrand factor (vWF) activity, plasminogen activator inhibitor (PAI-1), and the ratio of thromboxane B2 (TXB2) to 6-keto-prostaglandin F1α (6-K-PGF1α ) in BI group had a marked increase after injury, and the tissue-type plasminogen activator (tPA) in the BI group decreased. Microscope observations revealed thrombus formation in lungs of the animals in BI group, but not in C, I, or B groups. Burn injury causes endothelial dysfunction, and seawater immersion lastingly aggravates this injury, leading to a higher risk of developing thrombosis.
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Background. The purpose of this experiment was to develop a peripheral nerve interface using cultured myoblasts within a scaffold to provide a biologically stable interface while providing signal amplification for neuroprosthetic control and preventing neuroma formation. Methods. ⋯ Desmin staining confirmed the preservation and maturation of myoblasts within the RPNIs. Conclusions. RPNI demonstrates significant myoblast maturation, innervation, and vascularization without neuroma formation.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study
Low-Volume Brachial Plexus Block Providing Surgical Anesthesia for Distal Arm Surgery Comparing Supraclavicular, Infraclavicular, and Axillary Approach: A Randomized Observer Blind Trial.
Background. Distal arm surgery is widely performed under regional anesthesia with brachial plexus block. The preponderance of evidence for the efficacy relies upon injection of local anesthetic in excess of 30 mL. ⋯ Conclusion. Supraclavicular and infraclavicular blocks exhibited favorable characteristics compared to the axillary block. Supraclavicular brachial plexus block with the multiinjection intracluster technique exhibited significantly reduced total anesthesia-related time and higher success rate without any early adverse events.