Isolated invasive Aspergillus tracheobronchitis (iIATB) is an uncommon clinical form of invasive Aspergillosis in which Aspergillus infection is limited entirely or predominantly to the tracheobronchial tree. In the present study, we retrospectively analyzed the medical records of 19 patients who had histological documented iIATB in the Department of Respiratory Medicine of Changhai Hospital between October 2000 and February 2008. Malignancy was the most common underlying disease, which existed in 14 patients (73.7%) in our series. Most patients had impaired airway structures or defence functions, whereas the systemic immune status was relatively normal. Only three patients (15.8%) had neutropenia. The clinical manifestations and chest radiograph were nonspecific. We classified iIATB into four different forms according to the bronchoscopic features of intraluminal lesions: superficial infiltration type (Type I, n = 4), full-layer involvement type (Type II, n = 2), occlusion type (Type III, n = 6) and mixed type (Type IV, n = 7). Type IV was the largest group in our study, followed by Type III. All patients with iIATB of Type IV had definite airway occlusion. Fourteen patients (73.7%) had a good response to antifungal treatments and five (26.3%) died as a result of the progression of Aspergillosis, all of whom had full-layer invasion of the involved bronchi. In conclusion, we found that iIATB could occur in moderately or non-immunocompromised patients with impaired airway structures or defence functions and may be an early period of invasive pulmonary Aspergillosis. Most of the iIATB patients had a favourable prognosis with early diagnosis and effective antifungal treatment. The morphological features of intraluminal lesions might be of prognostic value.

This trial showed an obviously higher rate of large and giant aneurysm obliteration with the Tubridge FD over Enterprise stent-assisted coiling. However, this higher obliteration rate came at the cost of a nonsignificantly higher rate of complications. Investigational site comparisons suggested that a learning curve for flow-diverter implantation should be recognized and factored into trial designs.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE:The Tubridge flow diverter is a novel device developed in China and aimed at reconstructing the parent artery and occluding the aneurysm. We conducted this study to evaluate its feasibility, safety, and efficacy for the treatment of large or giant internal carotid artery aneurysms, which are still challenging with conventional therapy.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE:The Y-stent technique, including crossing-Y and kissing-Y, is a promising therapeutic option for some complex bifurcation aneurysms. Here, its efficacy and safety are evaluated on the basis of 11 bifurcation aneurysms.

Our goal was to analyze the anatomical parameters of the lumbar spine spinous process for an interspinous stabilization device designed for the Chinese population and to offer an anatomical basis for its clinical application. The posterior lumbar spines (T12-S1) of 52 adult cadavers were used for measuring the following: distance between two adjacent spinous processes (DB), distance across two adjacent spinous processes (DA), thickness of the central spinous processes (TC), thickness of the superior margin of the spinous processes (TS), thickness of the inferior margin of the spinous processes (TI), and height of the spinous processes (H). Variance and correlation analyses were conducted for these data, and the data met the normal distribution and homogeneity of variance. DB decreased gradually from L1-2 to L5-S1. DA increased from T12-L1 to L2-3 and then decreased from L2-3 to L4-5. The largest H in males was noted at L3 (25.45±5.96 mm), whereas for females the largest H was noted at L4 (18.71±4.50 mm). Usually, TS of the adjacent spinous process was lower than TI. Based on the anatomical parameters of the lumbar spinous processes obtained in this study, an “H”-shaped coronal plane (posterior view) was proposed as an interspinous stabilization device for the Chinese population. This study reports morphometric data of the lumbar spinous processes in the Chinese population, which provides an anatomical basis for future clinical applications.

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