Object: To estimate the contrast dispersion short-term clinical efficacy and safety of ultrasound (US)-guided transforaminal steroid injection (TFSI) compared with computed tomography (CT) guidance for the treatment of cervical radicular pain. Method: A total of 430 patients with cervical radicular pain from cervical herniated disk or cervical spondylosis were recruited in the randomized, single-blind, controlled, noninferiority trial. The patients were randomly assigned to receive either the US-guided or CT-guided TFSI for 1 affected cervical nerve. The dispersion pattern of contrast was monitored at the time of TFSI in both groups, using CT. Patients were assessed for pain intensity by numeric rating scale (NrS) and functional disability by Neck Disability Index (NDI) at baseline, 1 and 3 months after the intervention. Complications were also recorded. Results: The satisfactory rate of contrast distribution was respectively 92.1% in US group and 95.8% in CT group. Pain reduction and functional improvement were showed in both groups during follow-up. Statistical difference was not observed in the decrease in NRS pain scores and NDI scores between 2 groups with F=1.050, P=0.306 at 1 month and F=0.103, P=0.749 at 3 months after intervention. No permanent and severe complications were observed. Conclusions: This study demonstrated that US provided a noninferior injectate spread pattern and similar improvement of radicular pain and functional status when compared with CT-guided TFSI. US may be advantageous during this procedure because it allows visualization of critical vessels and avoids radiation exposure.

Background: To investigate the association of BTBD7_hsa_circ_000563 expression in coronary artery segments with atherosclerotic stenosis, and to explore the proteome-wide identification of the BTBD7_hsa_circ_000563-regulated proteins in coronary artery Methods: The coronary artery samples were obtained from two autopsy cases. The epicardial coronary artery of every autopsy was divided into 10 segments, and coronary atherosclerosis grade and extent of the coronary artery segments were analysed by Haematoxylin and Eosin (H&E) staining. The BTBD7_hsa_circ_000563 expression of 8 segments from case 2 was quantified using RT-qPCR analysis. Results: The present study demonstrated that coronary artery segments with severe atherosclerotic stenosis showed extremely low expression of the BTBD7_hsa_circ_000563, compared with normal coronary artery segments. Furthermore, it was predicted that hsa-miR-155-5p, and hsa-miR-130a-3p are targets of the BTBD7_hsa_circ_000563. The results from the present study may laid an epigenetic foundation for studying the underlying mechanisms of the development and progression of coronary artery atherosclerosis. Conclusions: BTBD7_hsa_circ_000563 were involved in atherosclerotic changes in coronary artery segments of human being, and the verification study, mechanism study, and function study are necessary in order for CAD patients to benefit from the personalized medicine in the future.