Articles: disease.
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Primary malignant melanoma of esophagus (PMME) is a rare malignant tumor of esophagus. This study aimed to investigate the clinic pathologic characteristics and analyze the factors that might affect the prognosis of PMME patients. A total of 20 PMME patients who underwent surgical treatment in our hospital from 1975 to 2017 were analyzed. ⋯ Multivariate analysis showed that tumor node metastasis (TNM) staging was the independent prognostic factor for survival of PMME patients (hazard ratio [95% confidence interval], 4.15 [1.36-12.67]; P = .012). For PMME patients, tumors with deeper invasion were more likely to have LNM, and TNM staging was an independent predictor of prognosis for survival. Early detection of the disease and radical resection of the tumor are critical for better survival of the PMME patients.
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Small dense low-density lipoprotein (sdLDL) is a distinct low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol subclass that has been reported to be associated with metabolic disease. On the other hand, the relationship between the sdLDL level and the nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) severity is unclear. In this study, the sdLDL level was measured in patients with NAFLD to assess its potential as a biomarker for evaluating NAFLD. ⋯ In addition, the fatty liver index also showed a significant positive correlation with the sdLDL/LDL ratio (r = 0.448, P = .000). In this study, the sdLDL level measured by a blood test of NAFLD patients showed a positive correlation with the CAP value and LS, which indicate the degree of hepatic steatosis and fibrosis. These results suggest the possibility of the sdLDL level as a new biomarker of NAFLD, but further studies will be needed to support these results.
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Preterm birth is the most important cause of neonatal mortality and morbidity worldwide. The aim of this study was to identify factors associated with preterm birth and examine the heterogeneity and interactions between these factors. We collected data from 1607 pregnant women treated at Nanjing Maternity and Child Health Care Hospital in China. ⋯ The interaction between different factors over the course of preterm birth cannot be ignored. When independent risk factors are combined with other diseases, such as PE combined with PROM or chorioamnionitis in this study, it may more likely result in preterm birth. Thus, this situation deserves particular clinical attention.
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Case Reports
Successful management of a pregnant woman with Kasabach-Merritt syndrome and preeclampsia: A case report.
Kasabach-Merritt Syndrome (KMS) is an extremely rare disease in adults, which lead to consumptive coagulopathy characterized by severe hypofibrinogenemia and thrombocytopenia. PATIENT CONCERNS:: a 25-year-old Chinese pregnant women complicated by preeclampsia and KMS presented with refractory postpartum hemorrhage and incision bleeding after cesarean section. ⋯ Pregnancy complicated by preeclampsia and surgery may have contributions for the development of Kasabach-Merritt syndrome. Corticosteroid is indicated in the episode of acute Kasabach-Merritt syndrome after the failure of massive blood transfusion.
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Observational Study
Associations between the psoas major muscle index and the presence and severity of coronary artery disease.
The associations between the presence and severity of coronary artery disease (CAD) and measurements of the psoas major muscle (PMM) as assessed by multidetector row coronary computed tomography angiography (MDCT) are not known. We enrolled 793 patients who were clinically suspected to have CAD or had at least one cardiac risk factor and had undergone MDCT. The number of significantly stenosed coronary vessels (VD) and measurements of the PMM index (PMMI) were determined using MDCT. ⋯ When male patients were divided into 2 groups according to median value of age, that is, relatively younger (53.4 ± 9.2 years) and older (72.6 ± 5.7 years) groups, the presence of CAD was independently associated with PMMI in the younger group by a multiple logistic regression analysis. The cut-off level of PMMI that gave the greatest sensitivity and specificity for the diagnosis of CAD in younger males was 8.3 cm/m (sensitivity 0.441, specificity 0.752). In conclusion, PMMI may be an imaging marker for evaluating the presence and/or severity of CAD in males, and particularly in the non-elderly.