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Background: The nutrition and epidemiologic transition has been associated with an increasing incidence of preterm birth in developing countries, but data from large observational studies in China have been limited. Our study was to describe the trends and factors associated with the incidence of preterm birth and infant mortality due to prematurity in Hubei Province, China.Methods: We conducted a population-based survey through the Maternal and Child Health Care Network in Hubei Province from January 2001 to December 2012. We used data from 16 monitoring sites to examine the trend and risk factors for premature birth as well as infant mortality associated with prematurity.Results: A total of 818,481 live births were documented, including 76,923 preterm infants (94 preterm infants per 1,000 live births) and 2,248 deaths due to prematurity (2.75 preterm deaths per 1,000 live births). From 2001 to 2012, the incidence of preterm birth increased from 56.7 to 105.2 per 1,000 live births (P for trend < 0.05), while the infant mortality rate due to prematurity declined from 95.0 to 13.4 per 1,000 live births (P for trend < 0.05). Older maternal age, lower maternal education, use of assisted reproductive technology (ART), higher income, residence in urban areas, and infant male sex were independently associated with a higher incidence of preterm birth (all p values < 0.05). Shorter gestation, lower birth weight, and lower income were associated with a higher mortality rate, while use of newborn emergency transport services (NETS) was associated with a lower preterm mortality rate (all p values < 0.05).Conclusion: An increasing incidence of preterm birth and a parallel reduction in infant mortality due to prematurity were observed in Hubei Province from 2001 to 2012. Our results provide important information for areas of improvements in reducing incidence and mortality of premature birth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Limited evidence has been provided on the trajectories of length, weight, and bone mineral density (BMD) among preterm infants in early life in Asian countries. Methods: We conducted a longitudinal study, which included 652 late preterm (gestational age: 34-36.9 weeks), 486 moderate preterm (32-33.9), 291 very preterm (28-31.9), 149 extremely preterm infants (=28.9) and 1434 full-term peers (=37) during the first 12 months of corrected age in Wuhan, China. Weight and length were measured at birth, once randomly before term, and every month thereafter. BMD was examined at 3, 6, 9 and 12 months using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. Results: From birth to 12 months of corrected age, growth peaks in length and weight were observed at 1-3 months among preterm infants. No catch-up growth in length, weight, and BMD was observed among preterm infants. However, accelerated growth in length, weight, and BMD was found. Among extremely preterm infants, relative to full-term infants, length was -6.77 cm (95% CI: -7.14, -6.40; P for trend < 0.001) lower during the first 12 months; weight was -1.23 kg (-1.33, -1.13; P for trend < 0.001) lower; and BMD was -0.070 g/cm²(-0.087, -0.053; P for trend < 0.001) lower; however, average growth rates of these measures were higher (Ps < 0.05). Small gestational age and low birth weight were independently associated with lower length, weight, and BMD. Conclusion: Growth peaks in length and weight among preterm infants were observed at 1-3 months. No catch-up growth in length, weight, and BMD was observed, however, there was accelerated growth in length, weight, and BMD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the study on the validity of the Asthma Control Test (ACT) for clinical asthma control evaluation in Chinese patients in primary care settings. The study employed 403 asthma patients who had completed the ACT, Asthma Control Questionnaire (ACQ), and spirometry testing. Results of the study revealed the reliability, validity and practicability of ACT for assessing asthma control in the given setting.

An isolate of a new tospovirus species, causing concentric zoned ringspots on fruits and necrotic lesions on leaves of infected plants, was characterised based on particle morphology, host range and serological properties. The complete nucleotide sequences of large (L), medium (M), and small (S) RNAs of this virus were found to contain 8919, 4945, and 3279 nts respectively. The L RNA encoded the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) (2885 aa, 332.7 kDa). The M RNA encoded a non-structural (NSm) protein (309 aa, 34.4 kDa) and a viral glycoprotein precursor (Gn/Gc) (1122 aa, 127.4 kDa). The S RNA encoded a non-structural protein (NSs) (459 aa, 51.9 kDa) and the nucleocapsid (N) protein (278 aa, 30.6 kDa). This N protein shared amino acid identities of 80.9% with those of calla lily chlorotic spot virus. Our results suggest that the virus studied here belongs to a new tospovirus species, for which the name tomato zonate spot virus is proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article reports on descriptive study concerning medical care research in Shanghai with interaction between China and U.S. The study is carried out on-site by Chinese field team of 25 scientists and health workers, together with American team of two scientists. The information obtained for the study includes historical and current data from Shanghai County Bureau of Health. It also includes data from special surveys of the outcomes of pregnancy, fertility patterns of women in one commune, and the use of health services in factories. Accordingly, the study reveals that special household survey is carried out to assess the patterns of illness and use of health services.

Abstract: Since a 1981 review of health status and health services in Shanghai County, there have been considerable social and economic changes in the People's Republic of China. A major question currently is the impact of the new economic "responsibility system," which was introduced in 1982, on the cooperative health structure and the "barefoot doctors" (BFDs). Investigators in other areas of China have repot[ed the collapse of the cooperative systems and a shift in the role of the BFDs as a result of incentives for them to spend more time in agricultural production. In Shanghai County, however, BFDs continue essentially full time as before, salaried by the brigade, with fee-for-service charges prohibited. Recent evidence from Shanghai County shows that the health care system and those who direct it can remain flexible and respond positively to changes in the social, economic, and political structures. (Am J Public Health 1985: 75:768-770.) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article provides information on the study concerning the future of the U.S.-China collaboration in health services research. The author infers that the descriptive study of health services in Shanghai County and the subsequent workshop held at the Shanghai First Medical College were seen by both countries as very successful. It demonstrates a strong mutual interest in robust collaboration, free exchange of ideas, and eagerness to proceed into further cooperative activities. The categories of further collaborative work between the said countries are also discussed.

Human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-G plays an important role in promoting transplant tolerance and helping human cytomegalovirus (CMV) to subvert host defenses. Strong evidence suggests that HLA-G 14-bp insertion/deletion polymorphism influences the stability of HLA-G mRNAs and levels of protein expression. We hypothesized that HLA-G 14-bp polymorphism of recipients has an influence on the risk of acute rejection (AR) and CMV infection. We investigated the impact of HLA-G 14-bp polymorphism on a total of 363 unrelated Chinese Han individuals who included 42 kidney transplant recipients with AR, 43 recipients with CMV infection, 102 recipients with stable allograft function (STA), and 176 healthy controls (HC). No statistically significant difference was found between all kidney transplant patients and HC (P=0.149). But, our data showed an increased frequency of homozygous genotype + 14/+14 bp (Pc=0.004) and allele + 14 bp (Pc=0.002) in patients with AR when compared with STA, with the odds ratio of 3.17 and 2.28, respectively. Moreover, we found that the frequency of the -14/-14 bp genotype (Pc = 0.008) and the -14 bp allele (Pc=0.016) was increased in patients with CMV infection when compared with STA, with the OR of 2.66 and 1.96, respectively. Multivariate analysis further demonstrated that HLA-G homozygous + 14 bp and -14 bp genotypes were an independent risk factor for allograft rejection and CMV infection, respectively. In conclusion, this study identified an important genetic risk factor for acute allograft rejection, and it was the first to show a significant correlation between HLA-G 14-bp polymorphism and CMV infection after kidney transplantation from northwestern China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The aim of this study was to measure and analyze the anatomic characteristics of the pulp chamber of Chinese permanent anterior teeth radiographically., Methods: There were 137 human permanent anterior teeth to be used. The crown length, crown width and crown thickness were measured by vernier caliper. Labial-lingual and mesial-distal radiographs were obtained by parallel technique and Photoshop 8.0 was adopted for measuring the largest labial-lingual length, the largest mesial-distal length, the pulp chamber height and the distance between the lingual surface of the crown and the corresponding wall of the pulp chamber; the ratios of the largest labial-lingual length to the crown thickness, the largest mesial-distal length to the crown width and the pulp chamber height to the crown length were calculated. Finally the coefficients of variance were caculated., Results: (1) The ratios of the largest mesial-distal length to the crown width of maxillary and mandibular canines were statistically different from those of the other anterior teeth. There was not statistically significant difference for those ratios either between maxillary and mandibular canines or among incisors. (2) Indexes of the pulp chamber had higher variance than those of the external morphology. (3) The distance between the lingual surface of the crown and the corresponding wall of the pulp chamber had the smallest coefficient of variance. (4) The largest mesial-distal length of the pulp chamber had the largest coefficient of variance, except for the mandibular canines., Conclusion: This study provided anatomical basis for clinical work; the distance between the lingual surface of the crown and the corresponding wall of the pulp chamber could be used as a depth reference for the endodontic access, and the access should not be extended excessively in mesial-distal direction.