No abstract

BackgroundThe relationships between dietary fiber, whole grains, carbohydrate, glycemic index (GI), glycemic load (GL), and prostate cancer risk are unclear. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to investigate these associations.MethodsRelevant studies were identified by a search of PubMed database and EMBASE database up to April 2015. A random effects model was used to calculate the summary relative risks (RRs) and their corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs).ResultsTwenty-seven epidemiological studies (18 case–control studies and nine cohort studies) were included in the final analysis. The pooled RRs of prostate cancer were 0.94 (95% CI 0.85–1.05, P=0.285), 1.13 (95% CI 0.98–1.30, P=0.095), 0.96 (95% CI 0.81–1.14, P=0.672), 1.06 (95% CI 0.96–1.18, P=0.254), and 1.04 (95% CI 0.91–1.18, P=0.590) for dietary fiber, whole grains, carbohydrate, GI, and GL, respectively. There was no evidence of significant publication bias based on the Begg’s test and Egger’s test.ConclusionThe findings of this meta-analysis indicate that, based on available information, dietary fiber, whole grains, carbohydrate, GI, and GL are not associated with the risk of prostate cancer.

The present study aimed to retrospectively analyze the safety and efficacy of the early surgical management of thoracic tuberculosis (TB) in patients with neurological deficits. The medical data of patients with thoracic TB exhibiting neurological deficit in the Chest Hospital of Hebei Province were retrospectively reviewed. A total of 234 cases, including 123 males and 115 females, were recruited in the present study. Their pre- and postoperative neurological deficit and pain levels were assessed using the 2002 American spinal injury association (ASIA) impairment scale and visual analog scale, respectively. Patients were divided into two groups according to whether their preoperative standardized anti-TB treatment time was ≥4 weeks or <4 weeks. There was no difference in blood loss and operation time between the two groups. The erythrocyte sedimentation rate was higher in patients receiving standard anti-TB <4 weeks prior to and 1 month following surgery compared with the ≥4 weeks group, but the difference was not significant 6 months following surgery. ASIA scale scores all increased significantly 1 month following surgery in the <4 weeks group compared with the ≥4 weeks group (P=0.001) though there was no difference between the scores prior to surgery. ASIA scale scores improved to 4.4±0.5 and 4.5±0.4 in patients with anti-TB treatment times of ≥4 weeks and <4 weeks, respectively, 24 months following surgery (P=0.0895). The present study demonstrated that for patients with thoracic TB exhibiting neurological deficit, early surgical management following <4 weeks' standard anti-TB treatment is recommended. It may relieve spinal cord compression and also benefit the early recovery of neurological function in these patients.

While China's economic progress and social transformation demand an urgent refurbishment of its social welfare system, after a decade of development community centers have gradually become the major infrastructure of service delivery in urban China. In this article, the authors examine the social and historical context of the development of community services in urban China, and then focus on the community center as an emerging force in a society undergoing considerable change. A study of community centers in Jinan, a large city in eastern China, is reported, which reveals major difficulties that hinder the development of these centers as the principal hubs of community life. The authors outline the possible future directions of community service in China and, in particular, consider the role of community centers in the new social welfare sector of this nation.

No abstract