Medicine
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Previous studies have shown that the default-mode network (DMN) has a substantial role in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD). However, there is a shortage of information regarding variations in the functional connectivity (FC) of the DMN of treatment-naive patients with first-episode MDD. The present study aims to explore the FC of the DMN in such patients. ⋯ Our study provided evidence of a negative correlation between abnormal FC in the DMN and severity of depression symptoms measured by HAM-D in treatment-naive MDD patients. This finding could shed some light on the relevance of DMN for understanding the pathophysiology of cognitive impairment in MDD.
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Circular RNAs (circRNAs) play an important role in many neurological diseases and can serve as biomarkers for these diseases. However, the information about circRNAs in Parkinson disease (PD) remained limited. In this study, we aimed to determine the circRNAs expression profile in PD patients and discuss the significance of circRNAs in the diagnosis of PD. ⋯ Collectively, we first characterized the expression profiles of circRNAs and mRNAs in peripheral blood from PD patients and proposed their possible characters in the pathogenesis of PD. These results provided valuable insights into the clues underlying the pathogenesis of PD.
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This study aimed to explore the characteristics of changes in the sagittal arrangement of the spine between adolescent patients with idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) and normal adolescents, the risk factors for AIS and the factors affecting the progress of AIS. X-ray images of the full length of the spine in standing position were taken in AIS patients and normal adolescents. Radiographic measurements made at intermediate follow-up included the following:C1 and C2 cervical lordosis and C2 - C7 curvature of cervical lordosis, C2-C7sagittal horizontal distance (C2-C7SagittalVerticalAxis, C2-C7SVA), TS-CL, after thoracic lobe (Thoracic Kyphosis, TK), thoracic lumbar segment Angle (thoracolumbar kyphosis, [TLK]), lumbar lordosis Angle (Lumbar Lordosis, LL), sacral slope Angle (Sacrum Slope, SS), pelvic tilt Angle (Pelvic Tilt, PT), pelvic incidence (PI), L5 Incidence (Lumbar5 Slope (L5S), L5 incidence (Lumbar5 Incidence (L5I), sagittal horizontal distance (CSVA), lower depression Angle of the 2nd cervical spine. ⋯ L5S is a major risk factor for idiopathic scoliosis in adolescents. The larger PI is, the higher the risk of scoliosis progression is. In AIS patients, lumbar lordosis is increased, cervical lordosis is reduced, and even cervical kyphosis occurs.
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The association of nephropathy with autoimmune thyroid disease (AITD) has been reported previously. However, there is limited information on the relationship between thyroid autoantibodies and nephropathy. A retrospective study was conducted using the medical records of 246 patients with nephropathy, 82 of whom had concurrent AITD. ⋯ The expression of TPO-Ab in the kidneys was more prevalent in the MN group than in the MN with GD group (P = .011). In sum, the expressions of TPO-Ab and TG-Ab were more prevalent in the kidneys of patients with nephropathy and AITD. Our findings indicate that TPO-Ab and TG-Ab may play a role in the development of AITD-related nephropathy.
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This study aimed to evaluate the clinical use of choline-PET/CT for discriminating viable progressive osteoblastic bone metastasis from benign osteoblastic change induced by the treatment effect and evaluating the response of bone metastasis to treatment in metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) patients. Thirty patients with mCRPC underwent a total of 56 11C-choline-PET/CT scans for restaging, because 4 patients received 1 scan and 26 had 2 scans. Using 2 (pre- and post-treatment) 11C-choline-PET/CT examinations per patient, treatment response was assessed according to European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) criteria in 20 situations, in which only bony metastases were observed on 11C-choline-PET/CT scans. ⋯ Of the 2 patients with PSA response of <50%, both 2 showed SMD. Of the 5 patients with PSA response of ≥50%, 1 showed CMR, 2 showed PMR, 1 showed SMD, and 1 showed PMD. Choline-PET/CT is very useful to discriminate viable progressive osteoblastic bone metastasis from osteoblastic change, and assess treatment response of bone metastases in mCRPC.