ObjectiveTo investigate the clinical effect of No. 8 blood collection needles in connecting broken balloon tubes. MethodsThirty-six patients who underwent mechanical ventilation in the Intensive Care Unit between January 2010 and December 2013 were included as the study subjects. We divided them into two groups. Patients who had accidental rupture of balloon tube during intubation were regarded as the trial group, while those with normal ventilation were regarded as the control group, with each group having 18 patients. The trial group used No. 8 disposable blood collection needles to connect the balloon tubes. Pressure gauge produced in Germany was used to measure the balloon pressure continuously for four hours. Balloon pressure level, balloon leakage and tube dislocation within 24 hours were observed. ResultsThe balloon pressure at different time periods was not significantly different between the two groups (P > 0.05). The leakage rate and complication rate were also not significantly different between the two groups (P > 0.05). ConclusionsUsing No. 8 blood collection needles for connecting broken balloon tubes is effective, easy, and convenient, and the balloon can be maintained at a constant pressure. It solved many previous clinical problems such as high cost, high complication rate, high death rate and medical disputes.
ObjectiveTo investigate the effects of smoking on Th17/Treg T cell subsets and cytokines expression in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in stable stage. MethodsFrom February 2012 to June 2013, sixty outpatients with stable COPD (20 cases of non-smokers, 40 cases of smokers) and 15 normal volunteers were recruited in the study in the Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital affiliated to Xinjiang Medical University. Th17/Treg level in peripheral blood was detected by flow cytometry method. Cytometric bead array system was used to detect TGF-β, IL-10, IL-17A, IFN-γand other inflammatory factors in serum. ResultsThe patients' age, duration of disease, lung function, disease severity, and other related data were comparable between the smoking COPD group and the non-smoking COPD group (P > 0.05). Th17/Treg level was increased in the smoking COPD group compared with the normal group (P < 0.05), and showed an increasing trend from the normal group to the non-smoking COPD group and the smoking COPD group. The level of IL-2 in the smoking and non-smoking COPD groups was lower than that in the normal group. Compared with the normal group, the level of TNF-αwas significantly decreased in the smoking and non-smoking COPD groups(P < 0.05). ConclusionsSystemic inflammatory response continuously exists in patients with COPD even in the stable phase. Smoking can partly enhance the inflammatory reaction in COPD. The Th17/Treg T cell subsets associated cytokine regulation has gradually tended to a balance in the stable phase, and inflammatory factors related recovery speed is not consistent, suggesting that smoking may play a certain role in the recovery of balance.