Volume 100  ·   Issue 11  ·  1987

A comparison of the efficacy of thienpydin, pyrantel pamoate, mebendazole and albendazole in the treatment of ascariasis and enterobiasis was made among 360 students divided into 9 groups and among 376 children divided into 5 groups under different dosage schedules. Follow-up examination 10 days after treatment indicated that the combination of thienpydin with mebendazole and pyrantel pamoate with mebendazole offered the best effect against ascariasis and enterobiasis.

The changes of hair zinc, copper and manganese contents were studies in 14 male and 11 female fracture patients using proton induced X-ray emission spectrometry and compared with the respective values before trauma. The patients were other-wise normal; none of the female patients were pregnant or lactating. Zinc content of post-fracture hair was higher than the pre-fracture value with a statistically significant difference (p<0.05). Manganese content of post-fracture hair was significantly lower than normal (p<0.05). There was no significant difference between pre- and post-fracture hair copper content.

The inhibitory effect of gossypol acetic acid on the activity of (Na++K+)-ATPase partially purified from the outer medulla of rabbit kidney was examined, the IC50 is 6.5 µM. The enzyme kinetic studies show that gossypol is noncompetitive with ATP, Mg2+, Na+ and K+ with apparent Ki of 15, 13, 14.0 and 4.4 μM respectively. These data suggest that gossypol inhibition of (Na++K+)-ATPase is due to direct catalytic action at the subunit level, it may prevent proper positioning of the catalytic center or decrease the amount of active enzyme.

We have encountered a case of chronic myeloid leukemia with a masked Ph1 chromosome due to complex three-way translocation t(X;11;22). As yet this aberration has not been reported in China.

A two-month-old boy with acute lead encephalopathy was seen at our hospital. The cause of excessive lead intake was due to a herbal powder with high lead content which was applied topically to the buccal mucosa. Health authorities should monitor patent medicines for lead as lead weights may be used to grind bollus pill casings.

An investigation on psychosocial problems was carried out in 2 groups of children in Shanghai. Group 1 was composed of 643 children of 3 and 5 years old selected randomly from two districts of Shanghai, and Group 2 of 413 children aged 3 and 5 years from an area in a district. Symptoms of the two age groups were identified separately. Symptoms of 5 year olds which upset the parents or might hamper the child's future personality development including disobedience, shouting, quarrelsomeness, difficulty in separating from the mother, fears and overdependence occurred in more than 10%. Three-year-old symptoms included hitting others, shouting, aggressiveness, destructiveness, difficulty in separating from mother, quarrelsomeness and disobedience. There was a tendency for aggressive symptoms and developmental immaturity to cluster. While the symptoms listed for 3-year olds persisted to the age of 5, there were significant decreases in occurrence of aggressive symptoms, and significant increases in nail-biting, tooth grinding and nose picking at 5. When an excessive number of symptoms is used as a criterion of abnormality, the frequeney was 6.4% and 6% in 3-years olds and 51 year olds.

Ninety-six fluorescein angiograms were performed on 77 patients with retinal vein occlusion (RVO), of whom 40 had branch retinal vein occlusion (BRVO) and 37 central retinal vein occlusion (CRVO). All patients were given both Western and Chinese herbal medicines to stimulate blood circulation and resolve vascular stasis. The time of follow-up ranged from 2 months to 4 years (mean, 11 months). The relationship between visual acuity and the fluorescein angiographic abnormalities such as arterial perfusion, collateral circulation, neovascularization, and macular edema was studied. It is conclude that the factors influencing prognosis are the site and extent of obstruction, the amount of arterial perfusion and the integrity of the perifoveal capillary bed, the development of collateral circulation, and neovascularization.

This study aims to assess the effects of modifying dietary sodium intake among 73 children aged 3 to 5 years from two kindergartens in Beijing. Diet of the experimental group (kindergarten I) was modified toward a goal of 70 mEq sodium per person per day for six months. Kindergarten II was used as control. The sodium intake and blood pressure of the experimental and control groups were com pared before the experiment and six months later. There was a significant decrease in urinary sodium excretion, diastolic blood pressure and mean arterial pressure after six months in the experimental group (p<0.001), while no significant changes were found in diasotlic blood pressure and mean arterial pressure in the control group. Meanwhile, both groups showed significant increase (p<0.001) in height and weight over the six month period.

Mouse and rat pathological models were produced by injections of thyroid hormone (T3 or T4, Model I) or hydrocortisone (HC, Model II). A single subcutaneous dose of isoproterenol (ISO) caused plasma cAMP to peak in 5-15 min which was significantly higher in mouse Models I and II than in normal mice. Daily oral administration of a decoction of two Yin tonics-Radix Rehmanniae (RR) and Plastrum Testudinis (PT) reduced peak cAMP in both models. 3H-DHA binding assay re vealed significant elevations of the number of β-adrenergic receptors in rat Models I and II. Decoction RR and PT restored the peaks to normal range. Yang tonics Radix Aconiti praeparata (RAP) and Cortex Cinnamomi (CC) showcd contradictory effects on these models. It seems unlikely that the action of the two tonics promotes the clearance of injected hormones, since injected hormone RIA in plasma showed no differences between Yin tonics treated and untreated models. The therapeutic effects of these two Yin tonics on "Yin deficiency" syndrome of hyperthyroidism or hyperfunction of the adrenal cortex is very probably related to their actions on the β-adrenoreceptor-cAMP system as stated.