Medicine
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The study was designed to reveal the relationship of toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4, rs1927914 and rs1927907) polymorphisms with risk of age-related macular degeneration (AMD), as well as the adjustment of this association by some environmental and lifestyle factors in Chinese Han population. TLR4 polymorphisms were genotyped by polymerase chain reaction-restricted fragment length polymorphisms and direct sequencing method in 138 AMD patients and 146 healthy controls. Genotype distribution in the control group was checked with Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. ⋯ Strong linkage disequilibrium existed between rs1927914 and rs1927907 polymorphisms. C-C haplotype was negatively associated with AMD risk (OR = 0.242, 95% CI = 0.121-0.485; OR = 0.242, 95% CI = 0.120-0.488). CC genotype and C allele of rs1927914 were significantly associated with the decreased AMD susceptibility.
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CYP2D6 genetic variations could result in alteration of CYP2D6 enzyme activity, leading to dissimilarity among individuals in regard of drug metabolism. This study aims to detect all genetic variants, allele, and genotype frequencies of CYP2D6 gene in 136 unrelated healthy Kinh Vietnamese volunteers. All single nucleotide variants (SNVs) and structural variations (SVs) of CYP2D6 gene were identified by Sanger sequencing and multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MLPA) assay. ⋯ The most common alleles were the CYP2D6*10 (43.75%), *1 (18.75%), and tandem arrangement *36-*10 (12.13%). This study provides best information on CYP2D6 polymorphism comprising the newly discovered SNVs, structural variations, and their frequencies in Kinh Vietnamese. These new data would be valuable in view of precise dosing of CYP2D6 metabolized drugs and giving better treatment outcome.
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Observational Study
Three-dimensional navigation (O-arm) versus fluoroscopy in the treatment of thoracic spinal stenosis with ultrasonic bone curette: A retrospective comparative study.
Three-dimensional intraoperative navigation (O-arm) has been used for many years in spinal surgeries and has significantly improved its precision and safety. This retrospective study compared the efficacy and safety of spinal cord decompression surgeries performed with O-arm navigation and fluoroscopy. The clinical data of 56 patients with thoracic spinal stenosis treated from March 2015 to April 2017 were retrospectively analyzed. ⋯ The O-arm navigation group had significantly higher screw placement accuracy than the fluoroscopy group (P < .05). O-arm navigation is superior to fluoroscopy in the treatment of thoracic spinal stenosis with ultrasonic bone curette in terms of screw placement accuracy. However, the two surgical modes have similar rates of intraoperative complications and postoperative neurologic functions.
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Observational Study
The association between adherence and dementia in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
Our previous studies have shown that patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) have an increased risk of dementia and that COPD combined with dementia confers an increased risk of acute respiratory dysfunction, severe sepsis, and hospital mortality. The aim of this study was to investigate whether medication adherence can decrease the risk of dementia in COPD. This retrospective study enrolled COPD patients from 1 million beneficiaries randomly sampled from all beneficiaries in Taiwan. ⋯ In the high PDC group, 226 (18.74%) patients had acute exacerbations of COPD and were hospitalized within 1 year after diagnosis. Compared with the PDC <80% group, the PDC ≥80% group had a risk of dementia with an adjusted hazard ration of 0.88, but there were no statistically significant differences (95% confidence interval, 0.57-1.35). Medication adherence to bronchodilators may not modify the risk of dementia in patients with COPD.