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Abstract. Computed tomography (CT) is most commonly used as a noninvasive approach in diagnosis of internal organ injures. Use of multi-slice spiral CT becomes more popular in diagnosis of trauma because of its ability to generate 3D volumetric information. This study evaluated the diagnostic value of multi-slice spiral computed tomography (MSCT) with enhanced scanning in renal trauma. In total, 126 patients with kidney injury underwent MSCT scanning from a single hospital in the southern of China between January 2012 and February 2016. According to kidney injury grading standards of American Association for the Surgery of Trauma (AAST), 30 were diagnosed and classified in level I, 26 in level II, 42 in level III, 17 in level IV, 11 in level V. The outcomes of MSCT enhanced scanning achieve a 100% diagnostic accuracy rate, which was confirmed by surgical findings. We concluded that the enhanced MSCT scan permits reliable detection of renal trauma and the associated organ or tissue injuries, providing important clinical value for the diagnosis and classification of renal trauma or internal organ injures.

The aim of this study was to explore the value of serum amyloid A protein (SAA) and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) testing in the diagnosis and treatment of children with influenza A. Methods: Specimens were collected from 85 children with influenza A, 85 children with a bacterial infection, and 86 healthy children. The levels of SAA and C-reactive protein (CRP) were measured, and routine blood tests were performed. Results: The levels of SAA and CRP in the bacterial infection group were significantly higher than those in the influenza A group, and the levels in the influenza A group were higher than those in the healthy children. The NLR level in the influenza A group was not different from that in the bacterial infection group, but the NLR levels in the influenza A group and the bacterial infection group were higher than that in the healthy controls. The number of white blood cell (WBC) in the influenza A group was not different from that in healthy children, while the WBC counts in the control and bacterial infection groups were higher than that in the influenza A group. The distribution width of red blood cells in the bacterial infection group was higher than that in healthy controls. The receiver operating characteristic curve analysis showed that the area under the curve for the diagnoses of influenza A for SAA, NLR, and CRP was 0.806, 0.768, and 0.699, respectively. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, and accuracy of SAA/NLR (SAA and NLR in the series) were 68.24%/76.47% (57.65%), 84.88%/72.09% (96.76%), 81.69%/73.03% (96.08%), 73.00%/75.61% (70.00%), and 76.61%/74.27% (77.78%), respectively. Conclusion: In the early diagnosis of children with influenza A, the values of SAA and NLR are high. Thus, they could be used for monitoring and efficacy evaluation during the course of the disease.

Objective The present study aimed to explore the clinical value of serum amyloid A (SAA) in the diagnosis, treatment, and assessment of ankylosing spondylitis (AS). Methods Seventy-eight patients with AS were enrolled as the case group, while the control group consisted of 80 healthy individuals enrolled during the same time period. According to the criteria of the Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index (BASDAI), patients in the case group were divided into those in the remission phase (36 patients) and those in the active phase (42 patients). Levels of SAA, C-reactive protein (CRP), and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) were measured in all enrolled subjects and analyzed. Results SAA levels were significantly higher in the AS group (39.65 ± 12.32 ng/mL) than in the control group (7.64 ± 1.32 ng/mL) (p =0.011) and in patients in the active phase (56.18 ± 17.25 ng/mL) compared with those in the remission phase (20.36 ± 5.36 ng/mL) (p =0.015). The sensitivity and specificity of SAA were 79.49% and 77.50%, respectively. There was a positive correlation between SAA level and the BASDAI grade (r = 0.77, p =0.005), CRP level (r = 0.68, p =0.011), and ESR (r = 0.62, p =0.012). Conclusion Not only is SAA a reliable indicator for the presence of AS, it may also be useful for monitoring the activity of this disease.