Volume 102  ·   Issue 05  ·  1989

In this study the dynamic changes of the pulmonary surfactant system in guinea pigs were observed by scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy and special electron stain for surfactant. The results showed that in the early stage of instillation of elastase, the pulmonary surfactant decreased. After one week, it increased gradually. Type II epithelial cells proliferated and their secretion in- creased. By the 25th day, the pulmonary surfactant system tended to return to normal,indicating that the changes of the pulmonary surfactant system may have some effect during the developing process of emphysema.

In 15I chickenpox patients treated with live attenuated measles vaccine, the cure rate was 100%. In 145 cases of herpes zoster, the effective rate was 100% (completely cured in 91.7% and improved in 8.3%). In the treated group, the time needed for the subsidence of fever and skin rash and the duration of the disease were markedly shorter than those in the control group (P<0.01). It is particularly effective for alleviating pain, preventing and relieving postherpetic neuralgia in patients with zoster. The application of measles vaccine to the patients in the chickenpox incubation period might prevent the development of the disease, and decrease the incidence and death rate of varicella zoster virus infection in highly susceptible patients. The mechanism of its anti-viral action and production of interferon in the body is discussed.

A hemorrheologic investigation on 186 healthy native and immigrants at an altitude of 3 658 M above sea level revealed that hemorrheologic indexes are statistically higher in males than in females irrespective of natives or immigrants, except that hemoglobin in male immigrants is higher than in male natives. For females, all indexes in immigrants are higher than in natives. In addition, the difference between males and females may be related to the function of androgen in polycythemia due to oxygen shortage.

We studied the electron microscopic and immunohistochemical findings in two elderly patients with spindle cell carcinoma of the cornea and conjunctiva. By light microscopy, correct diagnosis was made by finding the transition between the pleomorphic spindle shaped tumor cells and the overlying squamous epithelium. Ultrastructural findings indicated that squamous ceIJ origin included tonofilament-associated desmosomes and keratohyaline granules in the tumor cells. Positive immunohistochemical staining with antikeratin antibodies provided further evidence to prove the origin of spindle cell carcinoma. Follow-up of the two patients showed the malignant tumor to be quite aggressive in terms of intraocular invasion in the first patient and local recurrence in the second.

149 Chinese children (70 boys, 79 girls) with Down's syndrome and congenital heart disease were studied. Diagnosis of the cardiac abnormality was made by cardiac catheterisation in 119, two-dimensional echocardiography in 23 and autopsy in 7. The commonest lesion was ventricular septal defect which was present in 43.6%, a higher frequency than that reported in Caucasians. Other common lesions included atrioventricular septal defect (15.4%), atrial septal defect (13.4%), tetralogy in Fallot (13.4%) and patent ductus arteriosus (12.1%). Multiple lesions occurred in 36% of the cases, with patent ductus arteriosus, the most frequent coexisting lesion. Other cyanotic congenital heart conditions were very rare and coarctation of aorta was not seen. An aberrant right subclavian artery arising from the descending aorta was present in 16.5% and abnormalities of the radial artery at the wrist were found in 19%. The literature on patterns of congenital heart diseases seen in Down's syndrome was reviewed.

We found binucleated neurons in 8 autopsied brains and one surgical specimen with the numbers varying from one to several. All were found in the brain stem, mostly in the pons, next in the thalamus, and the least in the mid-brain and medulla. None was found in the cerebrum and cerebellum. The ages of the patients varied from 24 days postpartum to 74 years. More binucleated neurons were found in new born babies. The patients suffered from various disease which might be related to ischemic state of the brain. The binucleated neurons might be an abortive hyperplasia of the nerve cells reacting to unfavorable circumstances. According to our observations, binuclcated neurons are not very rare.

Five patients from 3 families with Becker muscular dystrophy (BMD) were reported. The main clinical and laboratory findings were in common. Pairs of affected brothers are quite resembled each other. However, there are also some variations among different families. The disease occurred later in the first pair of brothers and was accompanied by macroglossia and red-green color blindness, while the second pair got the disease earlier, which was accompanied by heart impairment. It is interesting that both myogenic and neurogenic changes of EMG can be found in the same patient with BMD in our series.

A rare type of annular pancreas, in which the tail of the annular duct is fused with the dorsal pancreatic duct to form the main duct, and its diagnostic imagings of endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography, hypotonic duodcnography, computed tomography and ultrasound are described. Annular pancreas is an anomaly embryologically formed by the ventral anlage of the pancreas as the duodenum rotates, mainly due to hypertrophy of the left ventral bud. According to the fusion pattern of the ventral and dorsal pancreatic ducts, annular pancreas can be divided into three types: type I, divisional annular pancreas; type II, branch annular pancreas; and type III, main duct annular pancreas. Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography, hypotonic duodenography, computed tomography and ultrasound can show the imagings of annular pancreas from different aspects, but the final diagnosis must be based on the evidence of endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography or hypotonic duodenography combined with computed tomography or ultrasound.

This is a study of the correlation between the age of animals and the osteogenic potential of free periosteal autograft. The tibial periosteum of 27 rabbits, ranging in age from 4-104 weeks, was stripped and implanted into the quadriceps. Radiographic and histologic examination demonstrated that new bone was formed in both the young and adult rabbits. The morphologic basis and mechanism of bone formation of periosteum are discussed. Maintenance of integrity of the cambium layer of the periosteal graft is emphasized. Free periosteal graft of adult rabbits in the "resting" state can retain its osteogenic potential and produce new bone.

In China, progress in researches of cardiovascular diseases is relatively rapid. In the present overview an attempt is made to include the main advances of the last 5 years.