Recent technological advances have made magnetic resonance images (MR) of the knee a clinical reality. MR is rapidly replacing the conventional arthrography as the imaging modality of choice of the knee joints. To evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of MR in the internal derangement of the knee. MR findings of 244 menisci and 488 ligaments of 122 knees were correlated with those of subsequent arthroscopy or surgery in all cases. The sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of MR diagnosis for the medial meniscus were 87%, 93%, 91%, for the lateral meniscus 91%, 95%, 93%, for the anterior cruciate ligament 80%, 97%, 92%, for the posterior cruciate ligamant 73%, 99%, 97%, for the medial collateral ligament 67%, 100%, 99%, for the lateral collateral ligament 100%, 100% and 100%. These results imply that MR is an excellent diagnostic modality in the preoperative evaluation of clinically suspected internal derangement of the knee.
Anterior Cruciate Ligament ; Arthrography ; Arthroscopy ; Collateral Ligaments ; Diagnosis ; Knee ; Knee Joint ; Lateral Ligament, Ankle ; Ligaments ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging* ; Menisci, Tibial ; Sensitivity and Specificity

Recent technological advances have made magnetic resonance images (MR) of the knee a clinical reality. MR is rapidly replacing the conventional arthrography as the imaging modality of choice of the knee joints. To evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of MR in the internal derangement of the knee. MR findings of 244 menisci and 488 ligaments of 122 knees were correlated with those of subsequent arthroscopy or surgery in all cases. The sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of MR diagnosis for the medial meniscus were 87%, 93%, 91%, for the lateral meniscus 91%, 95%, 93%, for the anterior cruciate ligament 80%, 97%, 92%, for the posterior cruciate ligamant 73%, 99%, 97%, for the medial collateral ligament 67%, 100%, 99%, for the lateral collateral ligament 100%, 100% and 100%. These results imply that MR is an excellent diagnostic modality in the preoperative evaluation of clinically suspected internal derangement of the knee.
Anterior Cruciate Ligament ; Arthrography ; Arthroscopy ; Collateral Ligaments ; Diagnosis ; Knee ; Knee Joint ; Lateral Ligament, Ankle ; Ligaments ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging* ; Menisci, Tibial ; Sensitivity and Specificity

A case of contact dermatitis due to herb onintment is described in a 24 year-old female patient. After topical application of herb ointment, she developed erythematous papules and plaques on the face and neck. Patch test revealed positive reactions to ammoniated mercury, thimerosal, and the herb ointment. Energy-dispersive X-ray microanalysis of the herb ointment showed a striking peak for mercury.
Dermatitis, Contact* ; Electron Probe Microanalysis ; Female ; Humans ; Neck ; Patch Tests ; Strikes, Employee ; Thimerosal ; Young Adult

To evaluate the value of MR imaging in the examination of ligament injury of the knee, we retrospectively analysed the MR images of 61 injured knees of 60 patients. The presence of tear was determined by arthroscopy in all cases. Anterior/posterior cruciate ligaments(ACL/PCL) were demonstrated by sagittal images. Media/lateral collateral ligaments(MCL/LCL) were evaluated on coronal images. The diagnostic accuracy were 91.8%, 96.7% and 100% for ACL, PCL and MCL, respectively. The specificity for the lateral collateral ligament was 100%. It is concluded that magnetic resonance imaging is an accurate method in detecting injury of the ligaments of the knee.
Arthroscopy ; Humans ; Knee* ; Lateral Ligament, Ankle ; Ligaments* ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Methods ; Retrospective Studies ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Tears

To evaluate the role of magnetic resonance(MR) imaging in the diagnosis of the discoid meniscus, the authors reviewed 31 cases of discoid menisci diagnosed by MR imaging among which 16 cases received arthroscopy. Using knee surface coil, sagittal T1, T2, & protein density images and coronal T1 weighted images were obtained with 18 cm FOV & 4mm/1 mm thickness/gap. A discoid meniscus was considered if three or more contiguous sagittal images demonstrated continuity of the meniscus between the anterior and posterior horns or the diameter of the mid-portion of the meniscus exceeded 15 mm on the coronal image. The authors also observed the associated abnormalities including tears of meniscus and ligament, meniscal cyst, and osteochondral defects. All discoid menisci were lateral menisci and torn discoid lateral menisci were present in 26 cases(83%). In two cases, tears of the contralateral medial meniscus were present. The tears of anterior and posterior cruciate ligaments, meniscal cyst, and osteochondral defects were present in 4, 2, 4, and 5 cases respectively. All collateral ligaments were intact. In conclusion MR imaging was useful for the detection of discoid meniscus and associated abnormalities.
Animals ; Arthroscopy ; Collateral Ligaments ; Diagnosis ; Horns ; Knee* ; Ligaments ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging* ; Menisci, Tibial ; Posterior Cruciate Ligament ; Tears

The changes of phospholipase D (PLD) activity were investigated during the courses of apoptotic process induced by tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha or anti-Fas/Apo1 antibody in human premyelocyte HL-60 and murine B cell lymphoma A20 cells. The treatment of recombinant TNF-alpha to HL-60 cells resulted in the increased PLD activity as determined by the phosphatidylethanol formation in the presence of 1% ethanol. The enhancement of PLD activity was also observed in the anti-Fas/Apo1 monoclonal antibody-treated A20 cells. However, the activity of PLD was maximized when HL-60 and A20 cells were treated with either TNF-alpha or anti-Fas/Apo1 monoclonal antibody for 6 h. Both TNF-alpha and anti-Fas/Apo1 monoclonal antibody increased PLD activity in a dose-dependent manner up to 200 U/ml and 200 ng/ml, respectively. When the intracellular activity of protein kinase C (PKC) was interrupted by treatment of calphostin-C, both the PLD activation and the apoptosis induced by TNF-alpha and anti-Fas/Apo1 monoclonal antibody appeared to be inhibited. Since PKC is reported to activate PLD, the results indicate that the intracellular signaling cascade via PLD may play a role in the induction of apoptosis induced by TNF-alpha and anti-Fas/Apo1 monoclonal antibody.
Animal ; Antibodies, Monoclonal/pharmacology ; Antigens, CD95/metabolism* ; Antigens, CD95/immunology ; Apoptosis* ; DNA Fragmentation ; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug ; Enzyme Activation ; HL-60 Cells ; Human ; Leukemia, Promyelocytic, Acute ; Lymphoma, B-Cell ; Mice ; Naphthalenes/pharmacology ; Phospholipase D/metabolism* ; Protein Kinase C/antagonists & inhibitors ; Receptors, Tumor Necrosis Factor/metabolism* ; Signal Transduction ; Tumor Necrosis Factor/pharmacology*

PURPOSE: In an attempt to predict the interpersonal differences of therapeutic response to antipsychotic drugs on pharmaco-genetic bases, this study was designed to investigate the relationship between the therapeutic response to antipsychotic drugs and Taq I A dopamine D2 receptor polymorphism in schizophrenic patients. METHODS: The subjects were 158 patients diagnosed with schizophrenia(DSM-IV). The therapeutic response to antipsychotic drugs was evaluated using the Treatment Response Scale(TRS) retrospectively. Patients were divided into two groups, dopamine receptor antagonist responders, and serotonin-dopamine antagonist responders. The patients' Taq I A dopamine D2 receptor polymorphism was determined by polymerase chain reaction(PCR) and restriction fragment length polymorphism(RFLP). RESULTS: The dopamine receptor antagonist responders had the A1 allele in significantly higher incidences (chi2(1)=4.875, p=0.027, two-tailed). No significant difference was found among the serotonin-dopamine antagonist responders between those with or without the A1 allele. CONCLUSIONS: The patients with the A1 allele responded better to dopamine receptor antagonists than those with no A1 allele. Based on these results, it is suggested that the pharmacological effect of dopamine receptor antagonists can be predicted depending on the presence of the A1 allele in schizophrenic patients.
Alleles ; Antipsychotic Agents* ; Dopamine Antagonists ; Dopamine* ; Humans ; Incidence ; Receptors, Dopamine ; Receptors, Dopamine D2* ; Retrospective Studies ; Schizophrenia

No abstract available.
Knee* ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging*

In an attempt to investigate the regional specificity of effect of pituitary hormones on the activities of tyrosine hydroxylase(TH) and tryptophan hydroxylase(TPH), which are the rate-limiting enzymes in catecholamine and serotonin biosyntheses, respectively, the authors measured enzyme activities after hormonal deprivation, using the hypophysectomized animal model. The results are summarized as follows. First, whereas body weights of sham-operated group were increased gradually over time, those of hypophysectomized group were little changed. Second, the change of TH activity between sham-operated and hypophysectomized groups was not observed in each region of brain. Third, the change of TPH activity between two groups also was not observed in dorsal raphe nucleus and hypothalamus. It appears from the above findings that neural stimuli may be much more significant in the maintenance of normal level of TH and TPH in the brain than hormonal stimuli, and endocrine hormones might not directly affect monoaminergic neurotransmission in the absence of stress.
Adrenal Glands* ; Animals ; Body Weight ; Brain* ; Hypophysectomy* ; Hypothalamus ; Models, Animal ; Pituitary Hormones ; Raphe Nuclei ; Rats* ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Serotonin ; Synaptic Transmission ; Tryptophan ; Tyrosine

In light of recent reports of the effectiveness of Radix puerariae in the alcoholics and recent formulation of a hypothesis that craving far alcohol In the alcohol-dependent individual is mediated by a limbic circuit involving the fronto-thalamic and fronto-striatoaccumbal region, the authors studied the effect of Radix puerariae on craving for alcohol and cerebral blood flow(rCBF) of these regions. The subjects were hospitalized patients with alcohol dependence recovered from acute intoxication and withdrawal symptoms. On the first day of experiment, rCBF in the areas of caudate nuclei, thalamus and orbitofrontal cortices was measured by Single-Photon Emission Computed nomography. On the third day, the same procedure was repeated artier intake of a small priming dose of alcohol. Radix puerariae in dose of 12gm/day for 10 days was given from fourth day of experiment to the thirteenth day and on the eleventh and thirteenth days, the measurements of rCBF were repeated in the same method as in the first and third day, respectively. Immediately before measurements of the rCBF in each experiment, craving far alcohol was measured by means of Visual Analogue Scale. The results were as follows: 1) Before the treatment of radix puerariae, the alcohol-dependent patients developed a significant alcohol-induced alcohol craving and a concomitant increase of rCBF in the right head of caudate nucleus. 2) Radix puerariae significantly lowered alcohol crating and significantly increased rCBF In the right head of caudate nucleus and the left orbitofrontal cortex in alcohol-free, basal condition. 3) After the treatment of radix puerariae, the rCBF after alcohol intake in bilateral caudate nuclei and bilateral hemithalami was significantly decreased. 4) Radix puerariae did not induce post-alcohol craving for alcohol and significantly decreased post-alcohol rCBF in bilateral caudate nuclei. From these results, it is suggested that Radix puerariae decreases basal alcohol craving in the alcohol-dependent patients, and further that there ma!~ exist a significant association between these changes of alcohol craving and concomitant changes of rCBF in the limbic striatim, especially caudate nucleus.
Alcoholics ; Alcoholism* ; Caudate Nucleus ; Head ; Humans ; Pueraria* ; Substance Withdrawal Syndrome ; Thalamus ; Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon