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Septoplasty is widely used in the treatment of structural nasal obstructions, and it also has a good effect and a high degree of postoperative satisfaction. However, there a large number of structures demonstrate abnormalities related to structural nasal obstruction, including the external nose, maxilla, nasal cavity and paranasal sinus. Nasal septum deviation is only one signs of structural nasal obstruction and does not represent all possible structural abnormalities of the nasal cavity and its surrounding structure. Septoplasty is only performed to correct deviations of the nasal septum, which in many cases is obviously insufficient in restoring the symmetry of the nasal structure. Therefore, septoplasty alone is not suitable for the treatment of most structural nasal obstructions. Nasal ventilation expansion surgery, which typically covers more abnormal structural correction procedures than septoplasty, should be used when describing the treatment of structural nasal obstruction.

To investigate the asymmetry of the inferior turbinate (IT) in patients with nasal septum deviation (NSD). The paranasal sinus computed tomography (CT) of 100 patients with NSD were retrospectively investigated from February 2018 to December 2019. The thickness of IT, IT mucosa and IT bone, the distance between the IT and the midline were measured on both the concave and convex sides, and which correlation with NSD was analyzed. The widths of the IT, IT bone and IT medial mucosa on the concave side were larger than those on the convex side (all P

We investigated the mechanisms underlying the therapeutic effects of Yiqi Jiemin decoction (YJD), a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), in the ovalbumin (OVA)-induced allergic rhinitis (AR) model in guinea pigs. YJD significantly decreased infiltration of mast cells and eosinophils into the nasal mucosa of AR model guinea pigs. YJD also increased expression of TGF-β in the nasal mucosa, restored the balance of Th1/Th2 immune cell responses, and decreased serum levels of various pro-inflammatory mediators, including histamine (HA), neuropeptide Y (NPY), acetylcholine (ACH), norepinephrine and immunoglobulin E (IgE). Metabolic analyses using liquid chromatography coupled with high-resolution mass spectrometry revealed that YJD improved cellular metabolism in AR model guinea pigs and increased serum levels of glycocholic acid while decreasing levels 1-palmitoyl lysophosphatidic acid. RNA-sequencing analysis identified BPIFB2 as a potential diagnostic biomarker and therapeutic target for AR. Functional enrichment analyses showed that YJD significantly inhibited cytokine secretion pathways in AR model guinea pigs. These findings demonstrate that YJD protects against OVA-induced AR in guinea pigs by suppressing inflammation in the nasal mucosa, restoring Th1/Th2 balance, and improving cellular metabolism.

An initially single phase high entropy alloy (HEA) Al0.3CoCrFeNi was irradiated by 3 MeV Au ions to a fluence of 6 × 1015 cm−2 (∼31 dpa at damage peak) at four different temperatures ranging from 250 °C to 650 °C. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and Atom probe tomography (APT) were employed to study the evolution of structural damage and phase stability with irradiation temperature. Al0.3CoCrFeNi exhibited a similar evolution of irradiation-induced defects with temperature as compared with conventional FCC alloys. At 250 °C and 350 °C, most of the visible irradiation-induced defects were faulted 1/3〈111〉 dislocation loops. As the irradiation temperature increased to 500 °C, perfect 1/2〈110〉 dislocation loops were observed along with the faulted loops. At the highest irradiation temperature 650 °C, only dislocation lines and networks could be observed. Regarding phase stability, the 3 MeV Au irradiation was observed to suppress the precipitation of (Ni, Al)-enriched nano clusters and the L12 ordered structure at irradiation temperatures 250 °C to 500 °C whereas precipitation of the B2 ordered structure was accelerated at 650 °C. This resulted in qualitatively opposite precipitation behavior between the ion irradiated damage region and unirradiated region at 500 °C and 650 °C. The opposite phase stability of the ion-irradiated damage region and unirradiated region at different temperatures is attributed to the competing effects of ballistic dissolution vs irradiation enhanced diffusion on precipitation.

Introduction: Posttransplant lymphoproliferative disorder (PTLD) is a serious disease that usually occurs after solid organ transplant and stem cell transplant. Posttransplant lymphoproliferative disorder often involves the head and neck, but it is rare to present as a nasal deformity. Here, we describe a case of external nasal enlargement resulting from PTLD. Case report: A 40-year-old man presented with an enlarged external nose half a year ago. The nasal ala thickened, and the external nose was gradually enlarged, accompanied by bilateral nasal obstructions. A biopsy was taken under endoscopy procedure, and the result suggested a diagnosis of PTLD. Discussion: Posttransplant lymphoproliferative disorder usually appears in lymphoid tissues that form Waldeyer’s rings or cervical lymph nodes in the head and neck. The early involvement of other head and neck subpoints is considered rare. This case is the first report of PTLD presenting as an external nasal deformity. The symptoms and clinical manifestations of PTLD in otorhinolaryngology are usually diverse and nonspecific but are early symptoms in the clinical course of PTLD.

To investigate the asymmetry of the inferior turbinate (IT) in patients with nasal septum deviation (NSD).The paranasal sinus computed tomography (CT) of 100 patients with NSD were retrospectively investigated from February 2018 to December 2019. The thickness of IT, IT mucosa and IT bone, the distance between the IT and the midline were measured on both the concave and convex sides, and which correlation with NSD was analyzed.The widths of the IT, IT bone and IT medial mucosa on the concave side were larger than those on the convex side (all P 0.05). The distance from the IT and IT bone to the midline on the concave side was smaller than those on the convex side (P 0.05, respectively). The degree of NSD had a negative correlation with the widths of the IT and IT bone on the convex side, and the distance between the IT and the midline on the concave side; and a positive correlation with the distance from IT and IT bone to the midline on the convex side, and IT mucosa thickness on the concave side (all P 0.05).The asymmetric IT width is mainly caused by both hypertrophies of the IT mucosa on the concave side and atrophy of the IT bone on the convex side. Therefore, during the surgery of nasal ventilation reconstruction, the IT on the convex side are suggested to be protected from intervention. In contrast, it is necessary to lateralize the IT bone and reduce the IT submucosal tissue on the concave side. However, routine excision of the IT bone is not recommended.

BACKGROUND Rhinitis is the most common clinical manifestation of allergy, affecting more than 400 million people around the world. Rhinitis increases the risk of developing bronchial hyper-responsiveness and asthma. Previous studies have shown that rhinitis is closely related with the physiology, pathology, and pathogenesis of asthma. We analyzed co-expressed genes to explore the relationships between rhinitis and asthma and to find biomarkers of comorbid rhinitis and asthma. MATERIAL AND METHODS Asthma- and rhinitis-related differentially-expressed genes (DEGs) were identified by bioinformatic analysis of GSE104468 and GSE46171 datasets from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database. After assessment of Gene Ontology (GO) terms and pathway enrichment for DEGs, a protein-protein interaction (PPI) network was conducted via comprehensive target prediction and network analyses. We also evaluated co-expressed DEGs and corresponding predicted miRNAs involved in the developing process of rhinitis and asthma. RESULTS We identified 687 and 1001 DEGs in bronchial and nasal epithelia samples of asthma patients, respectively. For patients with rhinitis, we found 245 DEGs. The hub-genes of PAX6, NMU, NTS, NMUR1, PMCH, and KRT6A may be associated with rhinitis, while CPA3, CTSG, POSTN, CLCA1, HDC, and MUC5B may be involved in asthma. The co-expressed DEGs of BPIFA1, CCL26, CPA3, and CST1, together with corresponding predicted miRNAs (e.g., miR-195-5p and miR-125a-3p) were found to be significantly correlated with rhinitis and asthma. CONCLUSIONS Rhinitis and asthma are related, and there are significant correlations of BPIFA1, CCL26, CPA3, and CST1 genes with novel biomarkers involved in the comorbidity of rhinitis and asthma.

The prevalence of unilateral hearing loss(UHL) is higher, and the clinical attention to the hearing rehabilitation of UHL is not enough, resulting in many UHL patients cannot get rehabilitation timely and effectively. Severe to profound UHL(also known as single-sided deafness) patients lack binaural hearing superiority, especially the inadequate ability of sound localization, which will seriously affect their daily life and academic performance. At present, the main rehabilitation methods of UHL include various kinds of bone conduction hearing aids, vibrant soundbridge and cochlear implantation, etc. However, the rehabilitation effect of UHL patients' ability to locate the sound source is affected by the occurrence age, the type, the degree and the duration of the hearing loss. The results of rehabilitation in different literature vary greatly. This paper reviews the effects of different rehabilitation strategies on the ability of sound location and analyzes its possible causes and mechanisms.

Structural materials in nuclear systems endure a harsh environment, like high temperature, high stress and intense radiation fluxes. MAX phases have been suggested for advanced nuclear reactor applications due to their excellent irradiation tolerance, especially in high temperature irradiation. To better understand the mechanisms of irradiation tolerance of MAX phases and the evolution of defects in high temperature irradiation, herein, we irradiated Ti 2 AlC and Ti 3 SiC 2 with 3 MeV Au ions at 25 °C, 360 °C and 700 °C to a dose of 1.5 × 10 16 cm −2 , and then thermal annealing at 360 °C and 700 °C were performed for samples irradiated at room temperature to study the defect kinetics. Raman spectrum, GIXRD and TEM were used to characterize microstructural evolution. Our results show that high temperature irradiation causes less damage than room temperature irradiation does in both materials. Fewer defects were produced in Ti 3 SiC 2 than that in Ti 2 AlC during high temperature irradiation. And Ti 2 AlC has a higher defect recovery efficiency than Ti 3 SiC 2 when annealed at high temperature.

In the current work, pure nickel (99.99 wt.%) and Ni-containing single phase equiatomic solid solution alloy Fe-Co-Cr-Ni were irradiated with 190 keV He ions at room temperature with different fluences and He behavior in both materials are compared. At 1 × 1017 cm−2, TEM observation reveals that only isolated and small He bubbles (1–2 nm) are formed in Fe-Co-Cr-Ni alloy while many small suspected “string”-like He bubbles are observed in nickel at the concentration peak region (5.5 at.%). When the fluence is increased to 5 × 1017 cm−2, average bubble size in nickel increases to ∼8 nm which is almost equal to that in Fe-Co-Cr-Ni, but a higher bubble density is observed in nickel. At the highest dose of 1 × 1018 cm−2, numerous surface blisters and exfoliations occur in nickel which are consistent with TEM observation, while the Fe-Co-Cr-Ni alloy only shows a slight surface blister. Bubble coarsening upon annealing at 500 °C (2 h) is observed at 5 × 1017 cm−2 in both alloys, but a significant larger bubble growth is observed in nickel, suggesting a relatively better resistance to He bubble growth for Fe-Co-Cr-Ni alloy.

Structural damage and chemical segregation in Al0.1CoCrFeNi high entropy alloy irradiated at elevated temperatures are studied using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and atom probe tomography (APT). Irradiation-induced defects include dislocation loops, long dislocations and stacking-fault tetrahedra, but no voids can be observed. As irradiation temperature increases, defect density is decreased but defect size is increased, which is induced by increasing defect mobility. APT characterization reveals that ion irradiation at elevated temperatures can induce an enrichment of Ni and Co as well as a depletion of Fe and Cr at defect clusters, mainly including dislocation loops and long dislocations.

Phase transitions induced in hcp Mn+1AXn phases (Ti2AlN, Ti2AlC, and Ti4AlN3) by 1 MeV Au+ ion irradiation were investigated, over a series of ion fluences ranging from 1 × 1014 to 2 × 1016 ions cm−2, by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and synchrotron grazing incidence X-ray diffraction (GIXRD). Irradiation-induced structural evolutions were observed using high-resolution TEM (HRTEM) imaging and selected area electron diffraction (SAED). Based on phase contrast imaging and electron diffraction pattern (EDP) simulations, the atomic-scale mechanisms for the phase transitions were determined. Transformations of the initial hcp phases to the intermediate γ-phases and fcc phases were driven by the formation of Ti/Al antisite defects and extended stacking faults induced by ion irradiation. By comparing the transformation behavior of Ti2AlN with that of Ti2AlC and Ti4AlN3 under the same irradiation conditions, using both the experimental data and first-principles calculations, the role of the X and n parameters in the radiation responses of Mn+1AXn phases were elucidated. The susceptibilities of materials in this Ti-Al-X (X = C, N) system to irradiation-induced phase transitions were determined with respect to the bonding characteristics and compositions of these MAX phases. Ti2AlC is slightly less susceptible to the radiation-induced phase transformation than Ti2AlN, which is attributed to the stronger Ti-Al bond covalency in Ti2AlN. Ti4AlN3 is more resistant to radiation-induced phase transformations than is Ti2AlN, due to the lower Al content and lower anion vacancy ratio in the irradiation-induced solid solution phases.

Helium bubble formation was examined by scanning/transmission electron microscopy (S/TEM) in Fe-9/10Cr binary alloys and two dispersion strengthened nanostructured alloys (CNA3 and 14YWT containing 5–10 nm diameter carbide and oxide particles, respectively) after ex-situ and in-situ He implantation to ~10,000 appm at 500 to 900 °C. The combination of high-resolution STEM images and electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS) revealed that the Y-Ti-O nanoparticles in 14YWT were uniformly distributed and exhibited a one-to-one relationship for bubble attachment to the nanoclusters. In the in-situ experiment at 900 °C, grain boundary cracking was severe in the Fe-10Cr model alloy, but not in the nanostructured alloys. From 500 to 900 °C, the bubble size generally increased with increasing irradiation temperature, while the bubble density decreased with increasing temperature. At the same temperatures, the bubble size in the implanted materials was in the order of Fe-9/10Cr > CNA3 > 14YWT, while the bubble density showed the opposite order. The observed bubble number densities for the nanostructured alloys are comparable to the nanoparticle density, suggesting that the nanoparticles in both alloys were effective in trapping He. Our results indicate that very high He concentrations can be managed in nanostructured alloys by sequestering the helium into smaller bubbles (which leads to a lower volume swelling value) and to shield He from the grain boundaries. This can be attributed to the much higher sink strength associated with the nanoclusters or the He trapping ability between different types of nanoclusters.

The microstructural evolutions of Ti 4 AlN 3 induced by 1 MeV Au + ions irradiation over a wide fluence range were investigated by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The high-resolution TEM (HRTEM) images and selected area electron diffraction (SAED) results clearly reveal the process of irradiation-induced partial phase transitions from the original hexagonal-close-packed (hcp) structure into face-centered-cubic (fcc) structure, with the formation of stacking faults. The mechanism for the phase transitions of Ti 4 AlN 3 is proposed based on the phase contrast images and electron diffraction pattern (EDP) simulation. The remained hcp structure without amorphization after high fluences irradiation suggest that Ti 4 AlN 3 exhibits excellent radiation tolerance.

Unilateral auditory deprivation results in lateralization changes in the central auditory system, interfering with the integration of binaural information and thereby leading to a decrease in binaural auditory functions such as sound localization. Principal neurons of the lateral superior olive (LSO) are responsible for computing the interaural intensity differences that are critical for sound localization in the horizontal plane. To investigate changes caused by unilateral auditory deprivation, electrophysiological activity was recorded from LSO principal neurons in control rats and rats with unilateral cochlear ablation. At one week after unilateral cochlear ablation, the excitability of LSO principal neurons on the side ipsilateral to the ablation (the ablated side) was greater than that on the side contralateral to the ablation (the intact side); however, the input resistance increased on both sides. Furthermore, by analysing the miniature inhibitory postsynaptic currents and miniature excitatory postsynaptic currents, we found that unilateral auditory deprivation weakened the inhibitory driving force on the intact side, whereas it strengthened the excitatory driving force on the ablated side. In summary, asymmetric changes in the electrophysiological activity of LSO principal neurons were found on both sides at postnatal day 19, one week after unilateral cochlear ablation.

The Vickers hardness test has been widely used for neutron-irradiated materials while nanoindentation for ion-irradiated materials. Comparing the Vickers hardness and nanohardness of the same materials quantitatively and establishing a correlation between them is meaningful. In this study, five representative materials, pure titanium (Ti), nickel (Ni), tungsten (W), 304 coarse-grained stainless steel (CG-SS) and 304 nanocrystalline austenitic stainless steel (NG-SS) are investigated for comparison. The results show that the relationship between Vickers hardness and nanohardness does not conform the mathematical geometric relationship because of the sink-in and pile-up effects confirmed by the finite element analysis (FEA) and optical microscope results. Finally, one new method was developed by excluding the effects of sink-in and pile-up in materials. With this improved correction in the projected area of the Vickers hardness and nanohardness, the two kinds of hardness become identical.

In the present study, Fe–9Cr model alloys were irradiated by 275 keV He+ ions at 500 to 800 °C to a peak damage level and implanted helium content of 0.5 dpa and 0.75 at% He, respectively. Effects of temperature on He bubble behaviour were studied by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) to reveal the temperature effects. The bubble spatial distribution changes from homogenous at 500 and 600 °C to heterogeneous at 700 and 800 °C, due to preferential bubble precipitation on dislocations and grain boundaries at high temperature. Faceted bubbles with low energy faces along the {001} planes were present at all four temperatures and are attributed to surface energy minimization. Bubble precipitation on the GBs became more pronounced with increasing temperature. Meanwhile, the cavity swelling increased with increasing temperature, from 0.59% at 500 °C to 8.21% at 800 °C with a sharp increase above 700 °C. By analysing the temperature dependence of bubble size and density, a transition temperature between low and high temperature regimes was obtained in terms of different activation energies which are related to different bubble nucleation and formation mechanisms.

Bacterial meningitis is a rare event in children with cochlear implants. A 7-year-old child who underwent cochlear implantation (CI) for the right ear 6 years ago was admitted to our hospital with the chief complaint of intermittent fever and headache for 6 months. Cochlear implant infection was suspected. The right cochlear implant removal and middle ear exploration were performed. Postoperatively, the bacterial cultures of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), cochlear implant and inserting electrodes all suggested Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The body temperature of the child was controlled within 2 weeks after the operation by using meropenem, and other symptoms like headache and abdominal pain disappeared. During 20-month follow-up visit, the child did not suffer any discomforts. In conclusion, we reported a child who developed Pseudomonas aeruginosa meningitis following head injury after CI. This case should serve as a reminder for clinical doctors.

Nanostructured materials have great potential for use as structural materials in advanced nuclear reactors due to the high density of grain boundaries that can serve as sinks to absorb irradiation-induced defects. In the present study, the irradiation tolerance of a La-doped nanocrystalline 304 austenitic stainless steel (NC-La) with a grain size of about 40 nm was investigated under an irradiation of 6 MeV Au ions to 1.5 × 1016 ions cm−2 at 600 °C and room temperature. Compared to its coarse-grained counterpart, in La-doped nanocrystalline steel no visible voids were observed at high-temperature irradiation, and no significant difference in extended defects, such as irradiation-induced dislocation loops or clusters, were found between irradiated and unirradiated areas at room temperature irradiation. Furthermore, the nano grain remains stable under irradiation, and no significant grain growth occurs at both irradiation temperatures. The excellent irradiation tolerance of the La-doped nanocrystalline alloys is attributed to the abundant grain boundaries and enhanced stability of nano grains induced by the Zener pinning effect and La segregation on grain boundaries. This study therefore demonstrates the superior irradiation tolerance of the La-doped nanocrystalline steel.

Although the concept of united airway disease has been widely accepted, most scholars emphasize only the effect of rhino-sinusitis while ignoring the pharyngeal factors to the lower airway, especially to the allergic pharyngitis (AP), which still lacks enough awareness. First of all, absence of unified diagnostic standard leads to the lack of epidemiological data, which, results in doctors' personal experience but no guideline in treatments. In addition, it is still not clear that the role of AP in the allergic airway diseases and its relationship with asthma. However, the number of patients with AP has been increasing obviously in daily clinic practice. Combined with the previous observation, this paper does a systematic review about the clinical problems of AP, expecting to give a hand to the clinical diagnosis and treatment of AP.

The datas of epidemiological, clinical, and immunopathology demonstrate there is an important link between upper and lower airways. The upper airways diseases including the allergy rhinitis, the professional rhinitis, the sleep apnea and hypoventilation syndrome, nose polyposis (with/without aspirin sensitive), the chronic rhinosinusitis and so on, have an important contacting with lower airways diseases. Understanding how the upper airway does affect the lower airway disease, has the influential role to diagnosis, the treatment and the prognosis. This article made the brief summary on the important relation about among the nose, the paranasal sinus and the lung recent years.

In this experiment, 97 patients with obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome were divided into three groups (mild, moderate, severe) according to minimum oxygen saturation, and 35 healthy subjects were examined as controls. Cognitive function was determined using the mismatch negativity paradigm and the Montreal Cognitive Assessment. The results revealed that as the disease worsened, the mismatch negativity latency was gradually extended, and the amplitude gradually declined in patients with obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome. Importantly, mismatch negativity latency in severe patients with a persistent time of minimum oxygen saturation < 60 seconds was significantly shorter than that with a persistent time of minimum oxygen saturation > 60 seconds. Correlation analysis revealed a negative correlation between minimum oxygen saturation latency and Montreal Cognitive Assessment scores. These findings indicate that intermittent night-time hypoxemia affects mismatch negativity waveforms and Montreal Cognitive Assessment scores. As indicators for detecting the cognitive functional status of obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome patients, the sensitivity of mismatch negativity is 82.93%, the specificity is 73.33%, the accuracy rate is 81.52%, the positive predictive value is 85.00%, the negative predictive value is 70.21%, the positive likelihood ratio is 3, and the negative likelihood ratio is 0.23. These results indicate that mismatch negativity can be used as an effective tool for diagnosis of cognitive dysfunction in obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome patients.