Experimental study on the treatment of rabbit corneal melting after alkali burn with Collagen cross-linking

AIM: To evaluate the effect of Collagen cross-linking on the prevention of melting in rabbit corneas after alkali burn. METHODS: Twenty New Zealand white rabbits were randomly divided into model control group and collagen cross-linking treatment group. The second group of rabbits received collagen cross linked treatment. Both groups were applied with antibiotic eye drops to prevent infection. The corneas were evaluated for melting, opacity, pathological and immunohistochemistry, record the changes when 28 days after the animals were killed. RESULTS: In the control group, 6 out of 8 rabbits showed corneal melting after injury (14 +/- 4) days, while two corneal perforated. In collagen cross-linking treatment group, one rabbit showed corneal melting after injury 23 days, without corneal perforation; corneal dissolution rate between the two groups was significantly different (P <0.05). Pathological examination suggested that in the treatment group, mild corneal edema, mild damage to collagen fibers, inflammatory cell infiltration was significantly less than the control group. Immunohistochemistry showed that corneal collagen fibers arranged in neat rows in the control group. CONCLUSION: Collagen cross-linking treatment not only can prevent and delay the corneal melting after alkali burn, but also can reduce the destruction of corneal collagen fibers and infiltration of inflammatory cells in the corneal tissue.

A systematic review and meta-analysis of the safety and efficacy of uterine artery embolization vs. surgery for symptomatic uterine fibroids

Purpose: The aim of this study was to systematically review the safety and efficacy of uterine artery embolization(UAE) versus surgery for symptomatic uterine fibroids. Materials and Methods: An electronic search of the Cochrane Library, PubMed, Embase and Web of Science databases was conducted from their inception to May 2017 for randomized controlled trials(RCTs) that assessed UAE versus surgery for the treatment of symptomatic uterine fibroids. The references of the included studies were also retrieved. Two reviewers independently screened the studies based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria, extracted the data, and assessed the methodological quality. The meta-analysis was conducted using RevMan 5.3 software. Results: A total of seven RCTs involving 859 patients were included. The results of the meta-analysis showed a shorter hospital stay and recovery time for UAE as compared to surgery. Surgery was not reported to be better for improving health-related quality of life in any of the included studies. There were no significant differences in patient satisfaction(1-2 and 5 years), and intra-procedural complications or major complications(1 year). However, the rates of minor complications(1 year) and further interventions(2 and 5 years) were significantly higher in patients who underwent UAE rather than surgery. The rates of pregnancy and live births were significantly lower among patients who underwent UAE than surgery. Conclusion: UAE is safe and effective, and has the advantages of shorter hospital stay and recovery time as compared to surgery. However, UAE has the risk of re-intervention, and lower pregnancy and live birth rates.

Prevalence, awareness, treatment, and control of hypertension in the non-dialysis chronic kidney disease patients

Background Data on the epidemiology of hypertension in Chinese non-dialysis chronic kidney disease （CKD） patients are limited.The aim of the present study was to investigate the prevalence,awareness,treatment,and control of hypertension in the non-dialysis CKD patients through a nationwide,multicenter study in China.Methods The survey was performed in 61 tertiary hospitals in 31 provinces,municipalities,and autonomous regions in China （except Hong Kong,Macao,and Taiwan）.Trained physicians collected demographic and clinical data and measured blood pressure （BP） using a standardized protocol.Hypertension was defned as systolic BP ≥140 mmHg and/or diastolic BP ≥90 mmHg,and/or use of antihypertensive medications.BP 〈140/90 mmHg and 〈130/80 mmHg were used as the 2 thresholds of hypertension control.In multivariate logistic regression with adjustment for sex and age,we analyzed the association between CKD stages and uncontrolled hypertension in non-dialysis CKD patients.Results The analysis included 8927 non-dialysis CKD patients.The prevalence,awareness,and treatment of hypertension in non-dialysis CKD patients were 67.3%,85.8%,and 81.0%,respectively.Of hypertensive CKD patients,33.1% and 14.1% had controlled BP to 〈140/90 mmHg and 〈130/80 mmHg,respectively.With successive CKD stages,the prevalence of hypertension in non-dialysis CKD patients increased,but the control of hypertension decreased （P〈0.001）.When the threshold of BP 〈130/80 mmHg was considered,the risk of uncontrolled hypertension in CKD 2,3a,3b,4,and 5 stages increased 1.3,1.4,1.4,2.5,and 4.0 times compared with CKD 1 stage,respectively （P〈0.05）.Using the threshold of 〈140/90 mmHg,the risk of uncontrolled hypertension increased in advanced stages （P〈0.05）.Conclusions The prevalence of hypertension Chinese non-dialysis CKD patients was high,and the hypertension control was suboptimal.With successive CKD stages,the risk of uncontrolled hypertension increased.