Intracranial fibro-osseous lesion, also reported as calcifying pseudoneoplasm of the neural axis, is an uncommon lesion of the central nervous system. Since the discovery of this entity by Rhodes and Davis in 1978, there have been a total of 21 cases reported in the literature. We encountered one such case in a 28 year old male, who presented with left hemiparesis for 1 year. By the MR images, a 1.5 cm sized round mass was found at right parietal lobe near motor cortex. The mass lesion enhanced well, homogenously and revealed clear, slightly irregular margin. Excisional biopsy of the mass was performed. Microscopically the lesion was composed of calcified fibrous tissue with an amorphous gray-blue, coarsely fibrillar to chondromyxoid nodular areas. Sparse spindle cells, immunohistochemically negative for GFAP, vimentin and S-100, were scattered within the amorphous material. Palisading spindle or polygonal cells were present at the more cellular periphery of the lesion, which were vimentin positive but S-100 negative. There was no evidence of the pilocytic astrocytes, Rosenthal fibers, or GFAP positive hypertrophic astrocytes. Intracranial fibro-osseous lesions are apparently slow-growing with generally excellent prognosis after wide excision. The etiology remains unclear, but most investigators favor a reactive rather than neoplastic process.
Adult ; Astrocytes ; Axis, Cervical Vertebra ; Biopsy ; Central Nervous System ; Humans ; Male ; Motor Cortex ; Paresis ; Parietal Lobe ; Prognosis ; Research Personnel ; Vimentin

We report herein a case of smooth muscle hamartoma associated with Beckers nevus in a 5-year-old female. The child presented with a slight.ly brownish. 2 x 3 cm sized, pigmentecl patch with follicular accentuation on the right forearm, witch had been observecl since age of 2. Histopathologic findings showed the epidermal changes most consistent with Becker's nevus and the presence of irregularly arranged hyperplastic smooth muscle hundless in the dermis.
Child ; Child, Preschool ; Dermis ; Female ; Forearm ; Hamartoma* ; Humans ; Muscle, Smooth* ; Nevus*

Two patients with cutaneous leishmaniasis were treated with itraconazole. One patient was a 24-year-old man who had several erythematous papulonodules on the extremities for 1 month, which revealed cutaneous leishmaniasis, histopathologically. He was treated with itraconazole (200 mg/day) for 2 months. After treatment he showed clinical healing and the biopsy specimens no longer showed leishmania organisms. The other patient was a 27-year-old female who had several erythematous papulonodules on the face and neck for 3 months. The skin lesions revealed leishmania organisms in the tissue sections and culture media. She was also treated with itraconazole (200 mg/day) for 2 months. After treatment she also showed satisfying clinical healing and the biopsy specimens revealed no leishmania organisms. No specific side effects were encountered in both patients during the treatment. From these results, itraconazole is considered to be one of the promising anti-leishmanial drugs.
Adult ; Biopsy ; Culture Media ; Extremities ; Female ; Humans ; Itraconazole* ; Leishmania ; Leishmaniasis, Cutaneous* ; Neck ; Skin ; Young Adult

BACKGROUND: Neuronal death in acute-phase cerebral ischemic injury is caused by necrosis. However, neuronal injury after reperfusion can be associated with apoptosis. METHODS: We used Sprague-Dawley rats whose brains were reperfused after middle cerebral artery occlusion for either 30 min or 2 h. We examined a relationship between apoptosis and the expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) in the brain tissue from 3 h to 14 days after reperfusion in both groups. RESULTS: TUNEL and iNOS positivity were closely related in both groups. The 2-h ischemia group exhibited increases in the amount of TUNEL and iNOS-positive cells for up to 3 days after reperfusion, at which the TUNEL and iNOS-positive cells decreased. The 30-min ischemia group exhibited peak positivity 24 h after reperfusion, followed by a similar decrease. iNOS mRNA expression peaked 3 h after reperfusion in the 30-min ischemia group, at which time it decreased. In the 2-h ischemia group, iNOS mRNA increased 3 h after reperfusion, peaked 24 h after reperfusion, and then decreased. CONCLUSION: These results indicated the occurrence of delayed apoptosis in transient cerebral ischemia. Increased expression of iNOS is closely associated with this apoptosis, and oxygen free radical-producing materials, such as nitric oxide, may play an important role in the induction of this apoptosis.
Apoptosis* ; Brain ; Brain Ischemia* ; In Situ Nick-End Labeling ; Infarction, Middle Cerebral Artery ; Ischemia ; Ischemic Attack, Transient ; Necrosis ; Neurons* ; Nitric Oxide ; Nitric Oxide Synthase Type II* ; Oxygen ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Reperfusion ; RNA, Messenger

BACKGROUND: Since the bioavailability of itraconazole capsule is influenced by patients gastric acidity, it results in treatment failure due to its low dissolution and subsequent low absorption when administered in fasting. Itraconazole Melt-Extrusion tablet has been lately developed in order to improve its dissolution profile. It is the first clinical study to evaluate the efficacy and safety of itraconazole Melt-Extrusion tablet in Korea. OBJECTIVE: This study was conducted to evaluate the efficacy and safety of itraconazole melt-extrusion tablet 400mg daily for 1 week(pulse therapy) for hyperkeratotic type of tinea pedis and manus. METHODS: A clinical and mycological investigation was made of 812 outpatients with hyperkeratotic type of tinea pedis and/or tinea manus who had visited at 52 general hospitals under the lead of the Korean Dermatological Association from June to December, 1998. Patients confirmed by clinically and microscopically as hyperkeratotic type of tinea pedis and/or tinea manus were administered 2 tablets twice a day for one week and followed up for 8 weeks from the start of the medication. RESULTS: The results were summarized as follows; 1. Clinical symptoms of hyperkeratotic type of tinea pedis and/or tinea mauns were significantly improved at the end of study, week 8(p<0.001). 2. Clinical response rate, defined as more than 50% decrease of the sum of the clinical symptom scores, was 79.3%(512/646). 3. Mycological cure rate, dafined as both culture and KOH negative at week 8, was 78.2%(244 /312). 4. 40(5.5%) patients, of the 727 patients evaluable for drug safety evaluation, were reported to have adverse event. CONCLUSION: Itraconazole Melt-Extrusion tablet 400mg/day for 1 week (pulse therapy) is effective and safe in the treatment of hyperkeratotic type of tinea pedis and/or tinea manus.
Absorption ; Biological Availability ; Fasting ; Gastric Acid ; Hospitals, General ; Humans ; Itraconazole* ; Korea ; Outpatients ; Tablets ; Tinea Pedis* ; Tinea* ; Treatment Failure