Effect of intraoperative neuromonitoring on recurrent laryngeal nerve palsy rates after thyroid surgery—A meta-analysis

Though intraoperative nerve monitoring (IONM) during thyroid surgery has gained universal acceptance for localizing and identifying the recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN), its role in reducing the rate of RLN injury remains controversial. In order to assess the effect of IONM during thyroid surgery, its value in reducing the incidence of RLN palsy was systematically evaluated. Methods: Studies were evaluated for inclusion in this analysis by researching PubMed, Embase, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and the references of included studies. The initial screening of article titles and abstracts was independently performed by five reviewers based on the research protocol criteria. Each article was then read in detail and discussed before inclusion in the meta-analysis. Data were independently extracted, including the level of evidence, number of at-risk nerves, allocation method, baseline equivalence between groups, definitions of transient and permanent vocal fold palsy, systematic application of electrodes, etc. The meta-analysis was then performed. Odds ratios were pooled using a random effects model. Results: Five randomized clinical trials and 12 comparative trials evaluating 36,487 at-risk nerves were included. Statistically significant differences in terms of total recurrent laryngeal nerve palsy (3.37% with intraoperative nerve monitoring [IONM] vs. 3.76% without IONM [OR: 0.74; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.59–0.92]) and transient recurrent laryngeal nerve palsy (2.56% with IONM vs. 2.71% without IONM [OR: 0.80; 95% CI: 0.65–0.99]) were identified. The persistent incidence of recurrent laryngeal nerve palsy was 0.78% for IONM versus 0.96% for nerve identification alone (OR: 0.80; 95% CI: 0.62–1.03). Conclusion: Based on this meta-analysis, statistically significant differences were determined in terms of the incidences of total and transient recurrent laryngeal nerve palsy after using IONM versus recurrent laryngeal nerve identification alone during thyroidectomy. However, no statistically significant differences were identified regarding the incidence of persistent recurrent laryngeal nerve palsy between groups

Efficacy of Wallis interspinous dynamic stabilization implant in the treatment of primary lumbar disc herniation: A prospective randomised controlled trial

Purpose:To investigate the efficacy of Wallis implant after lumbar discectomy compared with discectomy alone for patients with primary lumbar disc herniation.Methods: A total of 77 patients with primary lumbar disc herniation were randomly assigned to receive posterior lumbar discectomy combined with (n =40, Wallis group) or without (n =37, control group) Wallis implantation. The primary outcomes were Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), Japanese Orthopedics Association (JOA) score and Oswestry Disability Index (ODI). The secondary outcomes were intervertebral disc height (DH), range of motion (ROM) of operated segments, complications and the time of surgery.Results: No significant difference was found between the two groups for the VAS, JOA and ODI scores at 1 week after treatment (P>0.05). Wallis group had better scores than that for control group at 12 months (P<0.05) and last follow-up time (P<0.05). Wallis group had higher DH than that for the control group at each follow-up moment (P<0.001).Conclusion: Combination treatment may provide benefits comparable to lumbar discectomy alone for patients with lumbar disc herniation by restoring the intervertebral disc height and preserving limited motion of the spine

Construction of Magnetic S‐Doped CoWO4 Composite for Efficient and Selective Recovery of Gold from Wastewater via Adsorption–Reduction Pathway

The design and synthesis of efficient adsorbents for the recovery of precious metals from secondary resources are of great environmental and economic significance. Herein, a magnetic sulfur‐doped composite CoFe2O4@S–CoWO4 (CF@S–CoWO4) is developed through a hydrothermal synthesis method, which is used to selectively recover gold in aqueous media. Significantly, CF@S–CoWO4 exhibits the best overall performance with gold ions adsorption capacity (Qmax) and distribution coefficient (Kd) are 1049 mg g−1 and 4.4 × 106 mL g−1, respectively, which are much higher than those of other gold adsorption materials. The selectivity coefficients (K) toward other metal ions (Pd2+, Ca2+, Mg2+, Cd2+, Al3+, Li+, Ni+) are also higher, which suggests that CF@S–CoWO4 had a preferential selectivity for Au3+ in coexisting ion solutions. Moreover, the antianion interference of the composite follows the order: SO42− > PO43− > NO3− > CO32−, and it also shows very good reusability with adsorption efficiency at 81.78% after four repeated cycles. Based on characterizations and calculation, it is found that Au(III) mainly undergoes chelation and reduction reactions in the S sites in CF@S–CoWO4, which indicates the important role of S sites. Hence the CF@S–CoWO4 composite demonstrates a promising application for the recycling of gold ions from electronic wastewater

MTORC2 controls actin polymerization required for consolidation of long-term memory

A major goal of biomedical research is the identification of molecular and cellular mechanisms that underlie memory storage. Here we report a previously unknown signaling pathway that is necessary for the conversion from short-to long-term memory. The mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) complex 2 (mTORC2), which contains the regulatory protein Rictor (rapamycin-insensitive companion of mTOR), was discovered only recently and little is known about its function. We found that conditional deletion of Rictor in the postnatal murine forebrain greatly reduced mTORC2 activity and selectively impaired both long-term memory (LTM) and the late phase of hippocampal long-term potentiation (L-LTP). We also found a comparable impairment of LTM in dTORC2-deficient flies, highlighting the evolutionary conservation of this pathway. Actin polymerization was reduced in the hippocampus of mTORC2-deficient mice and its restoration rescued both L-LTP and LTM. Moreover, a compound that promoted mTORC2 activity converted early LTP into late LTP and enhanced LTM. Thus, mTORC2 could be a therapeutic target for the treatment of cognitive dysfunction.Fil: Huang, Wei. Baylor College of Medicine. Department of Neuroscience; Estados UnidosFil: Zhu, Ping Jun. Baylor College of Medicine. Department of Neuroscience; Estados UnidosFil: Zhang, Shixing. University Of Houston; Estados UnidosFil: Zhou, Hongyi. Baylor College of Medicine. Department of Neuroscience; Estados UnidosFil: Stoica, Loredana. Baylor College of Medicine. Department of Neuroscience; Estados UnidosFil: Galiano, Mauricio Raul. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Centro de Investigaciones en Química Biológica de Córdoba. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Químicas. Centro de Investigaciones en Química Biológica de Córdoba; Argentina. Baylor College of Medicine. Department of Neuroscience; Estados UnidosFil: Krnjević, Krešimir. McGill Universit; CanadáFil: Roman, Gregg. University Of Houston; Estados UnidosFil: Costa-Mattioli, Mauro. Baylor College of Medicine. Department of Neuroscience; Estados Unido