OBJECTIVES: We aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of Er:Cr:YSGG laser therapy on the reduction of dentinal hypersensitivity while taking into account the length and depth of the cervical abrasion. METHODS: We included adults (age, 20-60 years) with at least 2 hypersensitive teeth. The hypersensitive teeth were stimulated with a pressure-indicating probe and an air syringe. The response of the subjects to this stimulation was quantified using a visual analog scale (VAS) and Schiff air sensitivity score. The patients were treated at baseline, immediately after laser treatment, and at 1, 2, and 4 weeks after the Er:Cr:YSGG laser therapy. The results were analyzed by repeated measure analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Bonferroni's post hoc test. RESULTS: The values of tactile test and air blast test showed statistically significant differences between the following time points: baseline and immediately after laser treatment, baseline and first week after treatment, and immediately after laser treatment and first week after treatment (P<0.05). No statistically significant differences were observed in the VAS values of the tactile test and Schiff air sensitivity score of the air blast test between the first and second, first and fourth, and second and fourth weeks after treatment (P>0.05). The depth and width of the cervical abrasion was not statistically significant in dentinal hypersensitivity reduction (P>0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The use of Er:Cr:YSGG laser therapy reduced dentinal hypersensitivity, especially immediately after laser treatment. The depth and width of the cervical abrasion is not statistically significant in dentinal hypersensitivity reduction.
Adult ; Dentin ; Humans ; Hypersensitivity ; Laser Therapy ; Syringes ; Tooth

BACKGROUND: Renal dysfunction is an independent risk factor of cardiac dysfunction and one of common complications after cardiac surgery. This study was designed to evaluate the relationship between serum creatinine (s-Cr) and cardiac troponin I (cTnI) in off-pump coronary artery bypass graft surgery (OPCAB). METHODS: Data, from 13 patients underwent OPCAB, were analyzed in prospective fashion. The levels of s-Cr and cTnI were evaluated before and after OPCAB. The correlations of s-Cr and TnI were analyzed in the patients with cardiac dysfunction assessed by low cardiac output or stroke volume at end of surgery. RESULTS: Patients with preoperatively elevated s-Cr (female, > or =1.2 microg/L; male, > or =1.5microg/L) showed higher incidence of elevated s-Cr and elevated cTnI (> or =0.68microg/L) on arrival at intensive care unit (POD-0), postoperative 12 hours (POD-1) and postoperative 36 hours (POD-2) (P< 0.05). Patients with preoperatively elevated cTnI showed higher incidence of elevated cTnI at POD-0, POD-1 and POD-2 (P< 0.05). In 7 patients with low cardiac index (< 2.0 L/min/m2) or stroke volume index (<40 mL/beat/m2) at end of surgery, the increases of s-Cr and cTnI showed positive correlation at POD-0, POD-1 and POD-2 (correlation coefficient 0.818, 0.864 and 0.785, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: The increases of s-Cr and cTnI showed positive correlation in low cardiac output after OPCAB. The results suggested that elevated s-Cr may be an independent predictor of elevated cTnI representing perioperative myocardial injury.
Cardiac Output, Low ; Coronary Artery Bypass, Off-Pump ; Creatinine ; Humans ; Incidence ; Intensive Care Units ; Male ; Prospective Studies ; Risk Factors ; Stroke Volume ; Thoracic Surgery ; Transplants ; Troponin ; Troponin I

PURPOSE: The aim of the present study was to determine the effects of mitomycin C (MMC) on eyelash regrowth in rats. METHODS: Ten rats were subjected to bilateral eyelid epilation. One drop of 0.04% MMC solution and one drop of normal saline was then administered to the right and left eyelid, respectively. Three months post-epliation, the number of regrown eyelashes was counted, and a section of tissue from each eyelid was examined under light- and electron microscopies. RESULTS: The number of regrown long eyelashes was 1.0 +/- 0.81 on the right, and 12.5 +/- 1.08 on the left. The rate of regrowth was 7.35 +/- 5.55% on the right and 98.45 +/- 3.27% on the left. Histological examination revealed no significant differences between the right and left eyelids, except for the absence of any hair shafts in the follicles on the right. However, electron microscopy revealed mitochondrial damage in the follicles of the right eyelid. These changes were not observed in tissue from the left eyelid. CONCLUSIONS: The application of 0.04% MMC inhibited the regrowth of normal eyelashes in rats following simple epilation. These results suggest that MMC may be a novel therapy for replacing invasive surgery in trichiasis with no malpositioning.
Animals ; Electrons ; Eyelashes ; Eyelids ; Hair ; Hair Removal ; Microscopy, Electron ; Mitomycin ; Rats ; Trichiasis

PURPOSE: Appendicitis is the most common abdominal surgical emergency. The diagnosis of appendicitis can be difficult, occasionally taxing the diagnostic skills of even the most experienced surgeon, and especially for diagnosing reproductive women. This study was designed to evaluate the various pathologies of the appendix and the other intraabdominal organs in patients who were preoperatively diagnosed with acute appendicitis, and we wanted to analyze the difference of the perioperative results between the reproductive women and the other patients. METHODS: The study was a retrospective analysis of 1,108 appendectomies that were performed from September 2003 to August 2006. The data were analyzed for the following parameters: the age-related and sex-related incidence of acute appendicitis, the rates of negative appendectomy, negative operation and appendicular perforation, and the incidence of other encountered pathologies. In addition, we present the clinical results of the reproductive women. RESULTS: The diagnostic accuracy for acute appendicitis was 87.2%. The negative appendectomy rate was 11.6% and it was significantly higher (20.8%) in the reproductive women than in the male patients of the same age (P=0.001). On the clinical analyses of the reproductive aged appendicitis group showed they a shorter pain duration and a higher WBC count, and more frequent epigastric discomfort, nausea, vomiting and RLQ tenderness (P< 0.05). CONCLUSION: We noted a high rate of negative appendectomy among reproductive female patients, so more care should be taken to diagnose these patients.
Appendectomy ; Appendicitis* ; Appendix ; Diagnosis ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Emergencies ; Female ; Humans ; Incidence ; Male ; Nausea ; Pathology ; Retrospective Studies ; Taxes ; Vomiting

PURPOSE: To compare the choroidal thickness of unaffected and affected eyes in children with unilateral high myopia when measured using enhanced depth imaging and to analyze the relationship among choroidal thickness and axial length, spherical equivalent and best corrected visual acuity (BCVA). METHODS: Twenty children with high unilateral high myopia who received optical coherence tomography from December 2012 to May 2014 were retrospectively analyzed. Choroidal thickness was measured with a caliper at 500 microm apart from fovea superiorly and inferiorly, 2,500 microm apart nasally and at 2,500 microm apart temporally at 500 microm intervals. For statistical analyses, paired t-test was used for choroidal thickness and linear regression analysis for the relationship among choroidal thickness and axial length, spherical equivalent and BCVA. RESULTS: The patients were 10.4 +/- 3.5 years of age and the average BCVA of myopic eye was 0.38 +/- 0.2. Mean spherical equivalent was -9.8 +/- 1.9D. The choroidal thickness was significantly thinner in the myopic eye (102.5 +/- 16.9 microm) than the fellow eye (282.9 +/- 14.0 microm). The thickest choroid in the myopic eye was the temporal and the thinnest was the nasal area (p = 0.008). Choroidal thickness was significantly associated with axial length and spherical equivalent but not BCVA. CONCLUSIONS: Highly myopic eyes tend to have thinner choroidal thickness than the fellow eyes and choroidal thickness tends to be thicker temporally. Therefore, several anatomical changes in unilateral highly myopic children may exist.
Child* ; Choroid* ; Humans ; Linear Models ; Myopia* ; Retrospective Studies* ; Tomography, Optical Coherence ; Visual Acuity

BET inhibitor, as an epigenetic regulator inhibitor, reduces the expression of oncogenes such as Myc and Bcl-2, which affects cancer growth and development. However, it has modest activity because of the narrow therapeutic index. Therefore, combination therapy is necessary to increase the anti-tumor effect. Paclitaxel, an anti-mitotic inhibitor, is used as second-line therapy for gastric cancer (GC) as a monotherapy or combination. In this study, we performed RNA sequencing of GC cells treated with iBET-151 and/or paclitaxel to identify the differentially expressed genes associated with possible mechanisms of synergistic effect. We also performed Gene Ontology enrichment and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway analyses to determine the most enriched terms and pathways of upregulated and downregulated genes. We found 460 genes in which iBET-151 and paclitaxel combination treatment changed more than single-treatment or no-treatment. Thus, additional functional studies are needed, but our results provide the first evidence of the synergistic effect between iBET-151 and paclitaxel in regulating the transcriptome of GC cells.

BET inhibitor, as an epigenetic regulator inhibitor, reduces the expression of oncogenes such as Myc and Bcl-2, which affects cancer growth and development. However, it has modest activity because of the narrow therapeutic index. Therefore, combination therapy is necessary to increase the anti-tumor effect. Paclitaxel, an anti-mitotic inhibitor, is used as second-line therapy for gastric cancer (GC) as a monotherapy or combination. In this study, we performed RNA sequencing of GC cells treated with iBET-151 and/or paclitaxel to identify the differentially expressed genes associated with possible mechanisms of synergistic effect. We also performed Gene Ontology enrichment and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway analyses to determine the most enriched terms and pathways of upregulated and downregulated genes. We found 460 genes in which iBET-151 and paclitaxel combination treatment changed more than single-treatment or no-treatment. Thus, additional functional studies are needed, but our results provide the first evidence of the synergistic effect between iBET-151 and paclitaxel in regulating the transcriptome of GC cells.

Infectious scleritis by Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a well-known vision-threatening disease. In particular, scleral trauma following pterygium surgery may increase the risk of sclera inflammation. Surgical debridement and repair is necessary in patients who do not respond to medical treatments, such as topical and intravenous antibiotics. We reports herein the effectiveness of an autologous perichondrium conchal cartilage graft for infectious scleritis caused by Pseudomonas aeruginosa. This procedure was performed on four eyes of four patients with infectious scleritis who had previously undergone pterygium surgery at Gyeongsang National University Hospital (GNUH), Jinju, Korea from December 2011 to May 2012. Pseudomonas aeruginosa was identified in cultures of necrotic scleral lesion before surgery. The conchal cartilage perichondrium graft was transplanted, and a conjunctival flap was created on the scleral lesion. The autologous perichondrium conchal cartilage graft was successful and visual outcome was stable in all patients, with no reports of graft failure or infection recurrence. In conclusion, autologous perichondrium conchal cartilage graft may be effective in surgical management of Pseudomonal infectious scleritis when non-surgical medical treatment is ineffective. Further studies in larger, diverse populations are warranted to establish the effectiveness of the procedure.
Anti-Bacterial Agents/therapeutic use ; Autografts ; Cartilage/surgery ; Communicable Diseases ; Debridement ; Eye Infections, Bacterial/etiology/*therapy ; Female ; Humans ; Ophthalmologic Surgical Procedures ; Postoperative Complications ; Pseudomonas Infections/microbiology/*therapy ; Pseudomonas aeruginosa/*isolation & purification ; Pterygium/surgery ; Republic of Korea ; Sclera/*surgery/transplantation ; Scleritis/microbiology/*therapy ; Surgical Wound Infection/microbiology/*therapy ; Transplantation, Autologous ; Treatment Outcome

Background and Objectives: The colonic epithelial layer is a complex structure consisting of multiple cell types that regulate various aspects of colonic physiology, yet the mechanisms underlying epithelial cell differentiation during development remain unclear. Organoids have emerged as a promising model for investigating organogenesis, but achieving organ-like cell configurations within colonic organoids is challenging. Here, we investigated the biological significance of peripheral neurons in the formation of colonic organoids. Methods: and Results: Colonic organoids were co-cultured with human embryonic stem cell (hESC)-derived peripheralneurons, resulting in the morphological maturation of columnar epithelial cells, as well as the presence of enterochromaffin cells. Substance P released from immature peripheral neurons played a critical role in the development of colonic epithelial cells. These findings highlight the vital role of inter-organ interactions in organoid development and provide insights into colonic epithelial cell differentiation mechanisms. Conclusions Our results suggest that the peripheral nervous system may have a significant role in the development ofcolonic epithelial cells, which could have important implications for future studies of organogenesis and disease modeling.

During mid-life, women experienced not only physical but also neurological transition. Because of this, many women suffer from physiological and/or psychological menopausal symptoms. Although hormone therapy (HT) was broadly used to alleviate menopausal symptoms, HT showed inconsistent effects in case of psychological symptoms. Moreover, mid-life women’s brains have distinct characteristics than in other periods of life, it is needed to study psychological symptoms in shifted brain network of mid-life women. As an alternative, inhalation of fragrances may alleviate psychological menopausal symptoms. To characterize the alleviation mechanism by fragrances, we tested the effect of fragrances on menopausal symptoms using electroencephalographic (EEG) methods. We hypothesized that fragrance could restore mid-life women’s brain response to stressful situations. We tested six fragrance conditions, including no-odor condition (solvent only) in twenty-eight mid-life women (49.75 years±3.49).Our results showed that fragrances increased alpha power and decreased β/α ratio depending on the severity of menopausal symptoms in a stressful situation. Our study would be helpful in psychological menopausal symptom alleviation as well as fragrance screening for well-being in mid-life.