New method of local adjuvant therapy with bicarbonate Ringer’s solution for tumoral calcinosis: A case report

BACKGROUND Tumoral calcinosis is a condition characterized by deposits of calcium phosphate crystals in extra-articular soft tissues,occurring in hemodialysis patients.Calcium phosphate crystals are mainly composed of hydroxyapatite,which is highly infilt-rative to tissues,thus making complete resection difficult.An adjuvant method to remove or resolve the residual crystals during the operation is necessary.CASE SUMMARY A bicarbonate Ringer’s solution with bicarbonate ions(28 mEq/L)was used as the adjuvant.After resecting calcium phosphate deposits of tumoral calcinosis as much as possible,while filling with the solution,residual calcium phosphate deposits at the pseudocyst wall can be gently scraped by fingers or gauze in the operative field.A 49-year-old female undergoing hemodialysis for 15 years had swelling with calcium deposition for 2 years in the shoulders,bilateral hip joints,and the right foot.A shoulder lesion was resected,but the calcification remained and early re-deposition was observed.Considering the difficulty of a complete rection,we devised a bicarbonate dissolution method and excised the foot lesion.After resection of the calcified material,the residual calcified material was washed away with bicarbonate Ringer’s solution.CONCLUSION The bicarbonate dissolution method is a new,simple,and effective treatment for tumoral calcinosis in hemodialysis patients.

Fluid resuscitation in acute pancreatitis: Normal saline or lactated Ringer's solution?

AIM: To investigate whether administration of Ringer's solution(RL) could have an impact on the outcome of acute pancreatitis(AP).METHODS: We conducted a retrospective study on 103 patients [68 men and 35 women,mean age 51.2 years(range,19-92 years)] hospitalized between 2011 and 2012. All patients admitted to the Department of Gastroenterology of the Central Clinical Hospital of the Ministry of Interior(Poland) with a diagnosis of AP who had disease onset within 48 h of presentation were included in this study. Based on the presence of persistent organ failure(longer than 48 h) as a criterion for the diagnosis of severe AP(SAP) and the presence of local complications [diagnosis of moderately severe AP(MSAP)],patients were classified into 3 groups: mild AP(MAP),MSAP and SAP. Data were compared between the groups in terms of severity(using the revised Atlanta criteria) and outcome. Patients were stratified into 2 groups based on the type of fluid resuscitation: the 1-RL group who underwent standard fluid resuscitation with a RL 1000 m L solution or the 2-NS group who underwent standard fluid resuscitation with 1000 m L normal saline(NS). All patients from both groups received an additional 5% glucose solution(1000-1500 m L) and a multi-electrolyte solution(500-1000 m L).RESULTS: We observed 64(62.1%) patients with MAP,26(25.24%) patients with MSAP and 13(12.62%) patients with SAP. No significant difference in the distribution of AP severity between the two groups was found. In the 1-RL group,we identified 22(55.5%) MAP,10(25.5%) MSAP and 8(20.0%) SAP patients,compared with 42(66.7%) MAP,16(24.4%) MSAP and 5(7.9%) SAP cases in the 2-NS group(P = 0.187). The volumes of fluid administered during the initial 72-h period of hospitalization were similar among the patients from both the 1-RL and 2-NS groups(mean 3400 m L vs 3000 m L,respectively). No significant differences between the 1-RL and 2-NS groups were found in confirmed pancreatic necrosis [10 patients(25%) vs 12 patients(19%),respectively,P = 0.637]. There were no statistically significant differences between the 1-RL and 2-NS groups in the percentage of patients who required enteral nutrition(23 patients vs 17 patients,respectively,P = 0.534). Logistic regression analysis confirmed these findings(OR = 1.344,95%CI: 0.595-3.035,P = 0.477). There were no significant differences between the 1-RL and 2-NS groups in mortality and the duration of hospital stay(median of 9 d for both groups,P = 0.776).CONCLUSION: Our study failed to find any evidence that the administration of RL in the first days of AP leads to improved clinical outcomes.

Influence of heat treatment on microstructure and electrochemical behaviors of Mg-Zn binary alloys prepared by gas-phase alloying technique

Mg-Zn binary alloys fabricated by the gas-phase alloying technique under vacuum condition were investigated in the state of initial state and after heat treatment for the microstructure and electrochemical behaviors.Different from the traditional Mg-Zn alloys preparation methods,alloys prepared by gas-phase alloying have a large number of intermetallic compounds,such as MgZn,Mg7Zn3 and MgZn2.After solution treatment,the boundary of the eutectic disappeared and the size ofα-Mg increased from 100μm to 150μm.At the same time,the value of the resistance of charge transfer increased,which indicates that the resistance of the charge transfer and the corrosion resistance of the alloys increased.After artificial aging treatment,the distribution ofα-Mg was more uniform and its size was reduced to about 50μm,and there was new eutectic structure formed.The newly formed eutectic structure forms galvanic cells with the alloy matrix,which makes the corrosion resistance of the alloy weaken.

Pyruvate-fortified resuscitation stabilizes cardiac electrical activity and energy metabolism during hypovolemia

AIM: To test the hypothesis that fluid resuscitation with Ringer's solution enriched with pyruvate(PR), a physiological antioxidant and energy substrate, affords protection of myocardial metabolism and electrophysiological performance superior to lactated Ringer's(LR) during hypovolemia and hindlimb ischemia-reperfusion.METHODS: Male domestic goats(25-30 kg) were exsanguinated to a mean arterial pressure of 48 ± 1 mm Hg. Right hindlimb ischemia was imposed for 90 min by applying a tourniquet and femoral crossclamp. LR or PR, infused iv, delivered 0.05 mmol/kg per minute L-lactate or pyruvate, respectively, from 30 min hindlimb ischemia until 30 min post-ischemia. Time controls(TC) underwent neither hemorrhage, hindlimb ischemia nor resuscitation. Goats were sacrificed and left ventricular myocardium biopsied at 90 min fluid resuscitation(n = 6 per group) or 3.5 h later(n = 9 LR, 10 PR, 8 TC).RESULTS: Myocardial 8-isoprostane content, phosphocreatine phosphorylation potential, creatine kinase activity, and heart rate-adjusted QT interval(QTc) vari- ability were evaluated at 90 min resuscitation and 3.5 h post-resuscitation. PR sharply lowered pro-arrhythmic QTc variability vs LR(P < 0.05); this effect persisted 3.5 h post-resuscitation. PR lowered myocardial 8-isoprostane content, a product of oxidative stress, by 39 and 37% during and 3.5 h after resuscitation, respectively, vs LR. Creatine kinase activity fell 42% post-LR vs TC(P < 0.05), but was stable post-PR(P < 0.02 vs post-LR). PR doubled phosphocreatine phosphorylation potential, a measure of ATP free energy state, vs TC and LR(P < 0.05); this energetic enhancement persisted 3.5 h post-resuscitation.CONCLUSION: By augmenting myocardial energy state and protecting creatine kinase activity, pyruvateenriched resuscitation stabilized cardiac electrical function during central hypovolemia and hindlimb ischemiareperfusion.

人工模拟体液中Ti,Ti-6Al-4V合金和Ti-Ni形状记忆合金的缝隙腐蚀行为（英文）

采用电化学方法研究了工业纯钛、Ti-6Al-4V合金和Ti-Ni SMA在Ringer’s人工模拟体液中缝隙腐蚀行为。Ringer’s人工体液中恒电位400 m V的试验结果表明,工业纯钛、Ti-6Al-4V合金和Ti-Ni SMA缝隙试样均发生缝隙腐蚀,随着介质温度的升高,缝隙腐蚀倾向加剧。在Ringer’s人工模拟体液中Ti-6Al-4V合金的腐蚀电位较正,反应电阻增大,阳极极化性能优于工业纯钛和Ti-Ni SMA,提高了抗缝隙腐蚀性能。在Ringer’s人工模拟体液中推导出工业纯钛、Ti-6Al-4V合金和Ti-Ni SMA缝隙试样的缝隙腐蚀动力学方程为:iT,CPTi=0.028 e-2×10-4 t,iT,Ti-6Al-4V=0.0149 e-3×10-4 t,和iT,Ti-Ni SMA=0.4712 e-7×10-4 t表明缝隙腐蚀过程受缝隙表面氯化物盐膜的溶解控制。