Long-term chorioretinal changes following strabismus surgery——possible occult needle penetration

Dear Editor,cleral penetration during strabismus surgery was k3 first reported over 50 years ago[1].Early manuscripts reported the incidence of this complication around 10%[1].However,more recent studies suggest that this rate may have decreased[2-3].

Effect of long-term low dose of aspirin on severity of disease following onset of acute cerebral infarction

BACKGROUND： Aspirin can decrease the incidence risk of high-risk crowdgroup of cerebral infarction, but there are still controversy if it might decrease the degree of disease in degree of patients with acute cerebral infarction. OBJECTIVE： To observe the effect of lower dose of aspirin during taking for a long time on disease degree of disease following onset of acute cerebral infarction. DESIGN： Grouping according to the admission time and 1：1 paired observation.SETTING ： Department of Neurology, Qilu Hospital of Shandong University.PARTICIPANTS ： The participants in present study were 321 patients with acute cerebral infarction who received treatments in the Department of Neurology, Qilu Hospital of Shandong University from January 1999 to June 2000. There were 190 male and 131 female ,with mean （65±11 ）years of age. Inclusive criteria： ① A focal neurological disturbance occurred suddenly and had lasted for more than 24 hours, patients were admitted within 3 days after onset of disease; ② A computed tomography of the brain was performed and excluded hemorrhage in all patients; ③ The patients were proved internal carotid occlusions by clinical features and image findings; ④ The functions of limbs were normal （before the first stroke） or almost normal （before the second stroke）. Exclusive criteria：①The patients who had have cardiogenic cerebral embolism; ②The patients who had taken warfarin orally and other platelet agglutination drugs. METHODS ：①All the patients were divided into 2 groups according to whether they had taken aspirin before： aspirin-treated group （n=110） and blank control group （n=211）. there were 70 male and 40 female in aspirin-treated group, with average（65±10） years of age.All patients had taken 50-100 mg/d aspirin for 6 months to 10 years before onset. There were 120 male and 91 female in blank control group, with average （65±13） years of age. Patients received a clinical scoring within 3 days and similar therapeutic measures （such as anti-platelet agglutination, improving cerebral circulation and metabolism-promoting reagent）. Two groups of patients had the same basic conditions except for taking aspirin or not before. ②The matched pairs were made between 50 cases selected from aspirin-treated group and 50 cases from non-aspirin-treated groups according to age, gender, and other stroke risk factors. ③ Evaluation： Degree of disease after onset was evaluated by means of Acute Cerebral Infarction Clinical Neurologic Impairment Degree Scoring Standard of Carotid Artery System. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES： Acute Cerebral Infarction Clinical Neurologic Impairment Degree Scoring Standard of Carotid Artery System. RESULTS ： All 321 patients entered the stage of analysis with no loss in the midway. ① The symptom following onset of acute cerebral infarction was evaluated with clinical neurologic impairment scoring criteria, there were no significant differences between aspirin group and blank control group [（17.39±9.90） vs （16.22 ± 9.98） （t=1.025, P〉 0.05）]. ② No significant differences were found in 1：1 matched pairs of 100 cases from aspirin group and blank control group （t=1.74, P 〉 0.05）. CONCLUSION ： Taking a lower dose of aspirin during long time may not decrease the degree of disease following onset of acute cerebral infarction.

Long-term prognosis in patients with severe late radiation enteropathy:A prospective cohort study

AIM: To assess persistent symptoms and mortality in a cohort of patients with severe (grade 3-4) radiation enteropathy,59 patients were followed up after 15-18 years. METHODS: Fifty-nine patients were prospectively enrolled by twelve surgical departments. Primary malignant disease,radiation therapy and surgical management were recorded at inclusion. The cause of death or persistence of symptoms was examined in public death records or by interview of survivors. RESULTS: Thirty-nine patients had received radiation therapy for gynaecological cancers,twelve for urological cancers,four for gastrointestinal cancers and four for other malignancies. Forty-five patients (76%) required surgical intervention. Complications occurred in 11 (25%) operated patients. Forty-seven patients had died at the time of follow-up,seven (12%) died as a direct result of radiation enteropathy,while radiation enteropathy contributed to death in an additional seven patients. Four of the twelve surviving patients suffered from chronic debilitating symptoms of radiation enteropathy,while three had moderate symptoms. CONCLUSION: Patients with severe delayed radiation enteropathy have a high risk of persistence of symptoms after surgery. At least one in ten patients dies from radiation-induced bowel injury.

Prospects of China's Agricultural Development

Remarkable achievements have been made in China＇s agricultural development since the late 1970s. Nevertheless, deep-rooted problems are arising from inefficient farming practices. From mid- and long-term perspectives, migration of China＇s agricultural labor will slow and large-scale operation of farmland will accelerate. Although grain supply and demand have maintained a tight balance, new potentials still exist in improving grain production. Under the pressures of resource and environmental constraints, advancing the green and efficient transition of agriculture will become a new trend in China＇s agricultural development. In this context, the treatment of agricultural pollution, supply-side structural reform and innovation of agricultural subsidy policy are of strategic significance to the transition and upgrade of China＇s agriculture.

Radiological Evaluation of Spinal Instrumentation as Treatment for Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis, a Single Saudi Center 5-Year Experience

Aim of the Study: The aim of this work is to radiologically evaluate the postoperative outcomes of spinal instrumentation performed as a treatment for Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis (AIS) on 5-year follow up basis, and to correlate with different clinical scenarios. Materials and Methods: One hundred (100) AIS consecutive patients treated with spinal instrumentation were included in this study. The study period was from 2012 to 2017. All patients had radiological evaluations including total spine x-rays, low dose CT scan using Orthopedic Metal Artifact Reduction (OMAR) software and MRI, after obtaining the informed consents and approval of the institution ethical board. Radiological evaluation included Cobb angle measurement assessed pre, postoperatively and at regular intervals within the 5-year period. Results: Of the 100 patients included, 24 were females and 76 were males. The average age at operation was 16.5 years. Sixty seven (67%) patients showed good correction and maintenance of the spinal curves where the mean Cobb angle was 68°?preoperatively and 21°postoperatively, representing a correction rate of 74%. Thirty three (33%) patients showed complications including postoperative infection (13), surgical revision (4), pseudarthrosis (3), neurological deficits (5), screw loosening (7) and complete hardware failure (1);in whom the preoperative mean Cobb angle was 56°compared to the patients with no complications (p = 0.288). In males, there were postoperative complications in 27 out of 76 and in females 5 out of 24, (p = 0.027). The average duration of follow-up was 3.7 years for all cases. Conclusion: Five-year follow up of patients with AIS treated with spinal instrumentation demonstrates good improvement and maintenance of the corrected spinal curves in two thirds of patients, one third showed variable minor and major complications. Low dose CT scan with OMAR provided an effective modality for evaluation.