No abstract available.
Humans

Sodium pentachlorophenol (Na-PCP) has been used in China for years as a molluscacide to kill on-comelania, which is an intermediate host of schistosome. Large amounts of the powerful pesticide spayed over vast areas to control schistosomiasis contaminated the surface water sources, soil, sediment, animals and plants. Also it intruded into human body through food chain. Recently many studies that concern the endocrine disrupting effects of pentachlorophenol (PCP) were conducted. Animal studies showed that PCP/ Na-PCP could interfere in the normal function of thyroxine in many species, but without any effects on estrogen and testosterone. It was also found that PCP/ Na-PCP could effectively inhibit the activity of the human progesterone receptor (hPR) in yeast and interfere with the binding of physiological ligands to steroid receptors and binding proteins. Some epidemiologic data showed that PCP might interfere the normal endocrine function of female and paternal occupational exposure to PCP/Na-PCP could be associated with an increased risk of congenital anomalies or other adverse reproductive outcomes in offspring. All these findings indicate that pentachlorophenol could disrupt the normal function of endocrine system, but to con-firm that pentachlorophenol is one kind of endocrine disruptor and understand thoroughly the mechanism of PCP on endocrine system, more studies are needed.

Guidelines as Topic ; Humans ; Medical Oncology ; standards ; Neoplasms

Humans ; Neoplasm Recurrence, Local ; prevention & control ; therapy ; Rectal Neoplasms ; pathology ; Reoperation

BACKGROUND: There is increasing concern in many countries about the problem of drug-resistant tuberculosis. Prevalence of primary drug-resistant tuberculosis is the optimal epidemiological indicator for long term monitoring of national tuberculosis control program. Our purpose was The purpose of our study is to assess clinical characteristics and socioeconomic status of patients with drug-resistant tuberculosis. METHODS: We studied 68 cases with durg-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection diagnosed at the Ewha Womans University Mokdong Hospital from March, 1995 to February, 2000. RESULTS: Patients with primary drug-resistant tuberculosis(PDR) were younger(39.6±16.3 years vs. 48.2±16.5 years; p<0.05), had more population of less than more were under the age of 40 years aged-group(62.9% vs. 36.4%; p<0.05) and were more highly educated than those with acquired drug-resistant tuberculosis(ADR)(38.9% vs. 11.1%; p<0.05). In patients with ADR, the rates of familial history of tuberculosis and living in a rented house residence in a rented house were increased higher than compared with to those of patients with PDR. Patients with ADR had more involved lobes(2.0±0.8 vs. 1.4±0.7; p<0.01) and longer treatment duration than those with PDR(18.3±7.2 months vs. 10.6±6.3 months; p<0.05). Patients with ADR showed larger numbers of resistant were resistant to more number of drugs, lower hospitalization rate and higher rate of self-interruption of medication than those with PDR. In patients with PDR, mono-drug resistance was increased, whereas poly-and multi-drug resistances were decreased compared with those with ADR. Resistance to isoniazid was the highest among antituberculosis drugs, and resistance to isoniazid in patients with ADR was higher than that in patients with PDR(90.9% vs. 71.4%; p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Patients with ADR were more likely to include more population be of lower socioeconomic class, and patients with PDR seem seemed to be young and socially active population. For control of drug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection, proper isolation and prevention of patient with drug-resistant tuberculosis are needed.
Female ; Hospitalization ; Humans ; Isoniazid ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis ; Prevalence ; Social Class ; Tuberculosis ; Tuberculosis, Multidrug-Resistant*

The correlation of metaplasia to dysplasia and carcinoma in the gallbladder has attracted the attention of many investigators. We mapped and examined a total of 263 cholecystectomized gallbladders to analyze the mucosal changes in the carcinogenesis of the gallbladder. Stones were present in 59.7%, hyperplasia in 28.5%, metaplasia in 55.5% (gastric 37.6%, intestinal 17.9%), dysplasia in 17.1% (low grade 9.1%, high grade 8%) and carcinoma in 7.6%. Metaplasia was more frequently identified in the stone-positive group (62.4%) than in the stone-negative group (45.3%) (P<0.05). Especially, the incidence of intestinal metaplasia was significantly higher in the stone-positive group. Dysplasia and carcinoma were more frequent in the metaplasia-positive group (dysplasia 26.7%, carcinoma 11%) than in the metaplasia-negative group (dysplasia 5.1%, carcinoma 3.4%) (P<0.05). Their incidences were significantly higher in the intestinal metaplasia than in the gastric metaplasia. Forty four percent of the dysplasia-positive cases were associated with carcinoma in the adjacent mucosa but carcinoma was absent in the dysplasia-negative cases. Hyperplasia did not reveal any significant correlation with metaplasia, dysplasia and carcinoma. These results suggest that gallstone is causally related to the metaplasia in the gallbladder and the metaplasia-dysplasia- carcinoma sequence exists in the gallbladder.
Adenocarcinoma* ; Carcinogenesis ; Gallbladder* ; Gallstones ; Humans ; Hyperplasia* ; Incidence ; Metaplasia* ; Mucous Membrane ; Research Personnel

No abstract available.
Pneumothorax*

Twenty cases of gallbladder cancers were examined using 5 mm stepwise tissue sections. We analyzed the clinicopathologic findings of the early (stage 1, II) and advanced carcinoma (stage III, IV, V) and those of carcinoma with or without metaplasia in the tumor. We also performed CEA and p53 immunohistochemical staining and compared their findings with those of normal mucosa and preneoplastic lesions. The results were as follow: 1) All of the early carcinomas (n=5) were incidentally diagnosed after the resection for the gallstone. They were compared to advanced carcinoma (n=15) in the absence of the lymphatic or angioinvasion, recurrence, metastasis and death. 2) Metaplastic and non-metaplastic carcinoma did not reveal any difference of the clinicopathologic findings except age distribution. 3) CEA and p53 were positive in preneoplastic and malignant lesions. The extent of staining was related to the degree of the atypia. From the above results, an early detection of gallbladder cancer is very important for the prognosis of the patients. Since preoperative diagnosis is difficult, thorough pathologic examination of routinely resected gallbladder is necessary for the early diagnosis. CEA and p53 immunohistochemical staining may be helpful in the differential diagnosis of non-neoplastic and neoplastic lesion of the gallbladder.
Age Distribution ; Diagnosis ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Early Diagnosis ; Gallbladder Neoplasms* ; Gallbladder* ; Gallstones ; Humans ; Metaplasia* ; Mucous Membrane ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Prognosis ; Recurrence

To investigate the involvement of expression of the Fragile Histidine Triad(FH1T) gene product in the process of carcinogenesis and progression in cervical carcinoma, we examined its expression by immunohistochemical method in 15 cervical invasive carcinomas, 10 low grade cervical intraepithelial neoplasias(CINs) and 30 high grade CINs(CMI and III). We detected expression of FHIT gene product in 4 of 15(27%) of invasive carcinomas, 3 of 10(30%) low grade CIN and 7 of 30(23%) of high grade CIN, while we detected expression of FHIT gene product in 28 of 45(62%) normal and metaplastic epithelium near the tumor. Thesc data indicate that loss of expression of FH1T gene product has some role in the early tumorigenesis of uterine cervical carcinoma, but not the consequence of the pregression of the tumor.
Carcinogenesis ; Epithelium ; Histidine* ; Immunohistochemistry

No abstract available.
Peptic Ulcer Perforation* ; Peptic Ulcer*