Medicine
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Observational Study
Self-reported oral hygiene practices with emphasis on frequency of tooth brushing: A cross-sectional study of Mexican older adults aged 60 years or above.
The objective of the study was to characterize self-reported oral hygiene practices among Mexican older adults aged ≥60 years, and to measure the association between frequency of tooth brushing and a set of sociodemographic, socioeconomic, and dental variables. We conducted a cross-sectional study of 139 older adults aged ≥60 years in Pachuca, Mexico. A questionnaire and a clinical dental examination were administered to identify specific variables. ⋯ The older adults in our sample exhibited deficient oral hygiene behaviors. The results suggest certain socioeconomic inequalities in oral health. The findings of this study should be considered when designing dental care instructions for older adults.
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This study aims to describe the role of open surgical treatment for focal brainstem gliomas (FBSGs) with the assistance of multimodal neuronavigation and intraoperative neurophysiological monitoring (IOM) in children to investigate the efficacy of microsurgical treatment in pediatric FBSGs. Also the prognostic factors related to the overall survival (OS) of FBSGs to describe the patient and tumor characteristics relevant to prognosis/outcome were focused on. Clinical data of 63 pediatric patients below 16 years of age with FBSGs admitted to the Neurosurgical Unit of Beijing Tiantan Hospital from January 2012 to December 2018 were retrospectively analyzed. ⋯ Multimodal neuronavigation and IOM allow very precise intracranial surgery, contributing to a maximally safe resection that might decrease the postoperative disability and mortality rate. This study also showed that pediatric FBSGs were mostly low-grade tumors with excellent surgical outcomes. Consequently, it is suggested that microsurgery can be used to treat FBSGs in children in order to provide better prognosis and survival outcomes.
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Observational Study
Gallbladder neuroendocrine carcinoma: A single center experience.
Gallbladder neuroendocrine carcinoma (GB-NEC) is a group of rare and heterogeneous neoplasms and there are few reports at present. We analyzed the clinical and pathological features of 7 patients with GB-NEC who were admitted to Zhejiang Provincial People's Hospital from January 2011 to October 2019. The median age of 7 patients was 58 years with male to female ratio of 1:2.5. ⋯ The median survival of all 7 patients was 4.6 months and the 1-, 2-year survival rates were 14.29%, 0%. Surgical resection, including laparoscopic radical cholecystectomy, is feasible for the treatment of advanced GB-NEC in selected patients and has the advantages of prolonging survival in combination with chemotherapy. The elevation of CA-125 can be utilized as an important predictor of poor prognosis, while more investigations are necessary to confirm it.
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Case Reports
Primary gastric squamous cell carcinoma presenting as a large submucosal mass: A case report and literature review.
Primary gastric squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) is rarely encountered clinically. SCC, which presents as a submucosal tumor, is even rarer. Without the support of pathological evidence, it is difficult to make a correct preoperative diagnosis. Due to limited clinical data, the pathogenesis and treatment of gastric SCC remain unclear. ⋯ Large primary gastric SCC could present as a submucosal mass. Gastroscopic mucosal biopsy may not be able to get tumor tissue due to inflammatory reaction.
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Observational Study
Impact of radiotherapy on circulating lymphocyte subsets in patients with esophageal cancer.
Radiotherapy (RT) can affect the immune function of patients with cancer. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of RT on lymphocyte and its subsets in patients with esophageal cancer (EC). All patients received RT with a mean dose of 5369 cGy (gray). ⋯ CD3+T cells after RT were significantly correlated with mean heart dose and heart V50. Our study identified that RT causes changes in lymphocyte subsets, and these changes may indicate differences in immune function between individuals. Radiotherapy plan should be designed to minimize normal tissue dose to reduce the impact on WBC and lymphocytes.