Tai Chi for Chronic Pain Conditions: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

Several studies reported that Tai Chi showed potential effects for chronic pain, but its role remains controversial. This review assessed the evidence regarding the effects of Tai Chi for chronic pain conditions. 18 randomized controlled trials were included in our review. The aggregated results have indicated that Tai Chi showed positive evidence on immediate relief of chronic pain from osteoarthritis (standardized mean difference [SMD],-0.54; 95% confidence intervals [CI],-0.77 to-0.30; P < 0.05). The valid duration of Tai Chi practice for osteoarthritis may be more than 5 weeks. And there were some beneficial evidences regarding the effects of Tai Chi on immediate relief of chronic pain from low back pain (SMD,-0.81; 95% CI,-1.11 to-0.52; P < 0.05) and osteoporosis (SMD,-0.83; 95% CI,-1.37 to-0.28; P = 0.003). Therefore, clinicians may consider Tai Chi as a viable complementary and alternative medicine for chronic pain conditions

Carbon-enhanced stars with short orbital and spin periods

Many characteristics of dwarf carbon stars are broadly consistent with a binary origin, including mass transfer from an evolved companion. While the population overall appears to have old-disc or halo kinematics, roughly 2 per cent of these stars exhibit Hα emission, which in low-mass main-sequence stars is generally associated with rotation and relative youth. Its presence in an older population therefore suggests either irradiation or spin-up. This study presents time-series analyses of photometric and radial-velocity data for seven dwarf carbon stars with Hα emission. All are shown to have photometric periods in the range 0.2–5.2 d, and orbital periods of similar length, consistent with tidal synchronisation. It is hypothesised that dwarf carbon stars with emission lines are the result of close-binary evolution, indicating that low-mass, metal-weak or metal-poor stars can accrete substantial material prior to entering a common-envelope phase

A survey in rural China of parent-absence through migrant working: the impact on their children's self-concept and loneliness

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Following the rapid increase of migrant workers in China, the number of "absent migrant parents" children is also rising fast. The "absent migrant parents" children might have an insecure relationship with their parents, have a different view of them, and be prone to have the feeling of loneliness. The purpose of the study was to compare the self-concept and loneliness between the "absent migrant parents" children and comparison children, to examine the relationship between self-concept and loneliness among the two groups, and to study the predictors of self-concept among the two groups.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Participants were 230 "absent migrant parents" children and 250 comparison children in the rural area of a county, China. The self-concept and loneliness of children were assessed using Piers-Harris Self-Concept Scale and Childhood Loneliness Scale.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The "absent migrant parents" children were more likely to dislike their parents or be uncertain whether they like their parents, and they reported less time spent in physical and leisure time activities, higher loneliness and lower self-concept in comparison with the comparison children. Loneliness was significantly negatively correlated with all the dimensions of self-concept among the two groups. Regression analysis showed that self-concept was positively related to the relationship with parents and guardians and time spent in physical and leisure activities among the "absent migrant parents" children. The same factors (except the relationship with guardians) were found for self-concept among the comparison children.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The "absent migrant parents" children were more inclined to have lower self-concept and higher loneliness. The lower self-concept seemed to contribute to the higher loneliness of the "absent migrant parents" children. The lower self-concept of the "absent migrant parents" children was mainly related with their relationship with parents and guardians. The acceptance and support from their parents could not be fully replaced by that from their guardians.</p

Identification and validation of oncologic miRNA biomarkers for Luminal A-like breast cancer

Introduction: Breast cancer is a common disease with distinct tumor subtypes phenotypically characterized by ER and HER2/neu receptor status. MiRNAs play regulatory roles in tumor initiation and progression, and altered miRNA expression has been demonstrated in a variety of cancer states presenting the potential for exploitation as cancer biomarkers. Blood provides an excellent medium for biomarker discovery. This study investigated systemic miRNAs differentially expressed in Luminal A-like (ER+PR+HER2/neu-) breast cancer and their effectiveness as oncologic biomarkers in the clinical setting. Methods: Blood samples were prospectively collected from patients with Luminal A-like breast cancer (n=54) and controls (n=56). RNA was extracted, reverse transcribed and subjected to microarray analysis (n=10 Luminal A-like; n=10 Control). Differentially expressed miRNAs were identified by artificial neural network (ANN) data-mining algorithms. Expression of specific miRNAs was validated by RQ-PCR (n=44 Luminal A; n=46 Control) and potential relationships between circulating miRNA levels and clinicopathological features of breast cancer were investigated. Results: Microarray analysis identified 76 differentially expressed miRNAs. ANN revealed 10 miRNAs for further analysis ( miR-19b, miR-29a, miR-93, miR-181a, miR-182, miR-223, miR-301a, miR-423-5p, miR-486-5 and miR-652 ). The biomarker potential of 4 miRNAs ( miR-29a, miR-181a , miR-223 and miR-652 ) was confirmed by RQ-PCR, with significantly reduced expression in blood of women with Luminal A-like breast tumors compared to healthy controls (p=0.001, 0.004, 0.009 and 0.004 respectively). Binary logistic regression confirmed that combination of 3 of these miRNAs ( miR-29a, miR-181a and miR-652 ) could reliably differentiate between cancers and controls with an AUC of 0.80. Conclusion: This study provides insight into the underlying molecular portrait of Luminal A-like breast cancer subtype. From an initial 76 miRNAs, 4 were validated with altered expression in the blood of women with Luminal A-like breast cancer. The expression profiles of these 3 miRNAs, in combination with mammography, has potential to facilitate accurate subtype- specific breast tumor detection

The time-dependent expression of keratins 5 and 13 during the reepithelialization of human skin wounds

The time-dependent reepithelialization of 55 human surgical skin wounds with a wound age between 8h and more than 2 months was investigated by the immunohistochemical localization of cytokeratins 5 and 13. A complete, rebuilt epidermal layer over the wound area was first detectable in a 5-day-old wound, while all wounds of more than 18 days duration contained a completely reepithelialized wound area. Between 5 and 18 days the basal layer of keratinocytes showed — in contrast to normal skin — only some cells positive for cytokeratin 5. In some, but not all lesions with a wound age of 13 days or more, a basal cell layer completely staining for cytokeratin 5 was demonstrable. This staining pattern was found in all skin wounds with a wound age of more than 23 days. The immunohistochemical detection of cytokeratin 13 which can be observed regularly in non-cornifying squamous epithelia provides no information for the time-estimation of human skin wounds, since no significant temporary expression of this polypeptide seems to occur during the healing of human skin wounds

Detecting the orientation of magnetic fields in galaxy clusters

Clusters of galaxies, filled with hot magnetized plasma, are the largest bound objects in existence and an important touchstone in understanding the formation of structures in our Universe. In such clusters, thermal conduction follows field lines, so magnetic fields strongly shape the cluster's thermal history; that some have not since cooled and collapsed is a mystery. In a seemingly unrelated puzzle, recent observations of Virgo cluster spiral galaxies imply ridges of strong, coherent magnetic fields offset from their centre. Here we demonstrate, using three-dimensional magnetohydrodynamical simulations, that such ridges are easily explained by galaxies sweeping up field lines as they orbit inside the cluster. This magnetic drape is then lit up with cosmic rays from the galaxies' stars, generating coherent polarized emission at the galaxies' leading edges. This immediately presents a technique for probing local orientations and characteristic length scales of cluster magnetic fields. The first application of this technique, mapping the field of the Virgo cluster, gives a startling result: outside a central region, the magnetic field is preferentially oriented radially as predicted by the magnetothermal instability. Our results strongly suggest a mechanism for maintaining some clusters in a 'non-cooling-core' state.Comment: 48 pages, 21 figures, revised version to match published article in Nature Physics, high-resolution version available at http://www.cita.utoronto.ca/~pfrommer/Publications/pfrommer-dursi.pd

In-situ observations of flux ropes formed in association with a pair of spiral nulls in magnetotail plasmas

Signatures of secondary islands are frequently observed in the magnetic reconnection regions of magnetotail plasmas. In this paper, magnetic structures with the secondary-island signatures observed by Cluster are reassembled by a fitting-reconstruction method. The results show three-dimensionally that a secondary island event can manifest the flux rope formed with an As-type null and a Bs-type null paired via their spines. We call this As-spine-Bs-like configuration the helically wrapped spine model. The reconstructed field lines wrap around the spine to form the flux rope, and an O-type topology is therefore seen on the plane perpendicular to the spine. Magnetized electrons are found to rotate on and cross the fan surface, suggesting that both the torsional-spine and the spine-fan reconnection take place in the configuration. Furthermore, detailed analysis implies that the spiral nulls and flux ropes were locally generated nearby the spacecraft in the reconnection outflow region, indicating that secondary reconnection may occur in the exhaust away from the primary reconnection site

Successful treatment for acute aortic dissection in pregnancy---bentall procedure concomitant with cesarean section

Acute aortic type A dissection is a life-threatening disease that requires immediate surgical intervention. When dissection occurs during pregnancy, it is of high risk for both the mother and the fetus. In this study, we reported two cases of acute aortic dissection in late pregnancy at 28 weeks and 32 weeks of gestation respectively. After the two patients underwent a cesarean section and delivered a baby, we performed composite graft replacement of the aortic valve, aortic root and ascending aorta, with re-implantation of the coronary arteries into the graft (Bentall procedure) instead of repairing the arch with deep hypothermia and circulation arrest. Both mothers and children survived and recovered well

Modelling Future Coronary Heart Disease Mortality to 2030 in the British Isles.

OBJECTIVE: Despite rapid declines over the last two decades, coronary heart disease (CHD) mortality rates in the British Isles are still amongst the highest in Europe. This study uses a modelling approach to compare the potential impact of future risk factor scenarios relating to smoking and physical activity levels, dietary salt and saturated fat intakes on future CHD mortality in three countries: Northern Ireland (NI), Republic of Ireland (RoI) and Scotland. METHODS: CHD mortality models previously developed and validated in each country were extended to predict potential reductions in CHD mortality from 2010 (baseline year) to 2030. Risk factor trends data from recent surveys at baseline were used to model alternative future risk factor scenarios: Absolute decreases in (i) smoking prevalence and (ii) physical inactivity rates of up to 15% by 2030; relative decreases in (iii) dietary salt intake of up to 30% by 2030 and (iv) dietary saturated fat of up to 6% by 2030. Probabilistic sensitivity analyses were then conducted. RESULTS: Projected populations in 2030 were 1.3, 3.4 and 3.9 million in NI, RoI and Scotland respectively (adults aged 25-84). In 2030: assuming recent declining mortality trends continue: 15% absolute reductions in smoking could decrease CHD deaths by 5.8-7.2%. 15% absolute reductions in physical inactivity levels could decrease CHD deaths by 3.1-3.6%. Relative reductions in salt intake of 30% could decrease CHD deaths by 5.2-5.6% and a 6% reduction in saturated fat intake might decrease CHD deaths by some 7.8-9.0%. These projections remained stable under a wide range of sensitivity analyses. CONCLUSIONS: Feasible reductions in four cardiovascular risk factors (already achieved elsewhere) could substantially reduce future coronary deaths. More aggressive polices are therefore needed in the British Isles to control tobacco, promote healthy food and increase physical activity