Virtual monochromatic images at high-energy levels have a well-concordant effect of removing metal artifacts, and 120 keV monochromatic images provided an accurate CT number and good subjective score.

Background College drinking has become a significant health issue in China; the current study addressed the gap that no prior research has investigated drinking motives among Chinese undergraduate students. Objectives This study aimed to replicate the four-factor structure of the Drinking Motives Questionnaire-Revised (DMQ-R) reported for Western populations. Additionally, the relationships between drinking motives and alcohol use were investigated. Methods In 2012, 436 participants (mean age = 20.49 and SD = 1.49; 50% male) recruited from a college in China completed a self-administered survey in their classroom setting. Drinking motives were measured by the Chinese version of the DMQ-R; three indicators of alcohol use were assessed. Factor analysis was conducted to examine the factor structure of the DMQ-R, followed by regression analysis to investigate the associations between drinking motives and alcohol-related outcomes. Results Confirmatory factor analysis failed to replicate the measurement model tested, but exploratory factor analysis identified a similar four-dimensional factor structure. Reliability and convergent and discriminant validity of the four factors were acceptable. The results also showed that social motives were related to alcohol use and heavy drinking; conformity motives were related to alcohol use and alcohol-related problems. Enhancement motives were the strongest correlates of alcohol use; coping motives were the strongest correlates of heavy drinking and alcohol-related problems. Conclusions/Importance The DMQ-R was a reliable and valid scale measuring four types of drinking motives among Chinese college students. Findings suggested that the motivational model of alcohol use may apply to studying college drinking in China.

Propagation-based phase-contrast computed tomography (PPCT) utilizes highly sensitive phase-contrast technology applied to X-ray micro-tomography, especially with the extensive use of synchrotron radiation (SR). Performing phase retrieval (PR) on the acquired angular projections can enhance image contrast and enable quantitative imaging. We employed the combination of SR-PPCT and PR for the histopathological evaluation of hepatic alveolar echinococcosis (HAE) disease and demonstrated the validity and superiority of PR-based SR-PPCT. A high-resolution angular projection data set of a human postoperative specimen of HAE disease was acquired, which was processed by graded ethanol concentration fixation (GECF). The reconstructed images from both approaches, with the projection data directly used and preprocessed by PR for tomographic reconstruction, were compared in terms of the tissue contrast-to-noise ratio and density spatial resolution. The PR-based SR-PPCT was selected for microscale measurement and the 3D visualization of HAE disease. Our experimental results demonstrated that the PR-based SR-PPCT technique is greatly suitable for the discrimination of pathological tissues and the characterization of HAE. In addition, this new technique is superior to conventional hospital CT and microscopy for the three-dimensional, non-destructive microscale measurement of HAE. This PR-based SR-PPCT technique has great potential for in situmicroscale histopathological analysis and diagnosis, especially for applications involving soft tissues and organs.

No abstract

Improving the quality of life of patients with complete spinal cord injuries is an urgent objective of the Chinese Department of Health. For better management of spinal cord injuries, it is necessary to understand the background of the patients. A total of 392 patients aged X18 years with traumatic spinal cord injuries (X1 year of history) were attending the rehabilitation center of the Institutes. A total of 7 (2%) patients reported low quality of life, 200 (51%) patients reported moderate quality of life, 181 (46%) patients reported good quality of life, and 4 (1%) patients reported excellent quality of life. Male patients (P=0.042), patients with college or more education (P=0.039), incomplete spinal cord injuries (P=0.045), paraplegia (P=0.046), and absence of pressure injury (P=0.047) were associated with higher quality of life. A total of 81 (21%) patients were dependent on the caregiver, 85 (22%) patients were highly dependent on the caregiver, 155 (40%) patients were moderately dependent on the caregiver, 60 (15%) patients were mildly dependent on the caregiver, and 11 (2%) patients were independent for activities of daily living. An incomplete spinal cord injury (P=0.045) and paraplegia (P=0.041) were associated with higher independence in activities of daily living of patients. The independence in activities of daily living and quality of life of the Chinese population with complete spinal cord injury and tetraplegia are poor (Level of Evidence: IV; Technical Efficacy Stage: 5).