BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Cardiac myocardium exposed to such sublethal stress as a brief period of ischemia or whole-body hyperthermia resists to ischemia/reperfusion injury (preconditioning effect). Heat shock protein 70 (HSP 70) and manganese superoxide dismutase (MnSOD) may have a role in this mechanism. The aim of this study was to demonstrate the expression of HSP 70 and MnSOD activity in the myocardium of rabbit at 4 hours after ischemic preconditioning and compare them with heat shock model. METHODS: The experimental procedures were undergone in seventeen New Zealand white rabbits. Ischemic preconditioning was performed through three 3-minute episodes of coronary ligation separated by 5 minutes of reperfusion. Whole-body hyperthermia (rectal temperature was raised to 42 Celsius degrees for 15 minutes by wrapping rabbits in an electric warming blanket) was treated to heat shock group. Control rabbits did not undergo ischemic preconditioning or whole-body hyperthermia. Immunohistochemical staining for demonstrating HSP 70 was done with monoclonal antibody. The activity of MnSOD was examined with SOD-525 kit. RESULTS: In ischemic preconditioning group, myocardial HSP 70 expression was significantly increased in ischemic area compared with non-ischemic area (P<0.01). HSP 70 expression in ischemic area was more increased in both ischemic preconditioning and heat shock group(P<0.01) versus the control group. The same trend was observed in non-ischemic area (P<0.01). In ischemic preconditioning group, the activity of MnSOD was significantly enhanced in ischemic area compared with non-ischemic area (3.82+/-0.15 vs 0.11+/-0.16, P<0.05). The MnSOD activity was more enhanced in ischemic area of ischemic preconditioning group than in both heat shock and control group (3.82+/-0.15 vs 0.67+/-0.72, 0.65+/-0.29, P<0.05). CONCLUSION: We found difference between ischemic preconditioning and heat shock in the level of expression of HSP 70 and activity of MnSOD. Both preconditioning effect may have different mechanism on myocardial tolerance to ischemia/reperfusion injury.
Fever ; Heat-Shock Proteins* ; Hot Temperature* ; HSP70 Heat-Shock Proteins* ; Ischemia ; Ischemic Preconditioning* ; Ligation ; Myocardium ; Rabbits ; Reperfusion ; Shock ; Superoxide Dismutase* ; Superoxides*

No abstract available.
Tenosynovitis*

No abstract available.
Arthritis, Rheumatoid* ; Humans

No Abstract available.
Ankle* ; Sarcoidosis* ; Tenosynovitis*

PURPOSE: To assess the prevalence of various radiological reduction methods for childhood intussusception in training hospitals by means of a nationwide phone survey, and to demonstrate recent trends in this area by comparing the findings with those obtained in a survey conducted six years earlier. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Forty-seven radiologists and 36 residents in 83 (university, 54; general, 29) of 91 nationwide training hospitals were asked by telephone 1) to identify their currently used radiological reduction method, and to state 2) whether sedation was used for patient preparation, 3) how many times they had experienced bowel perforation during the previous six years, 4) whether ultrasonography was used for diagnostic purposes and 5) the grade of resident involved in night duty. The results were compared with those obtained during a 1993 survey of training hospitals in Seoul. RESULTS: 1) Air and barium reduction were used with equal frequency (40%, 33/83). Gastrografin reduction was used in six, hospitals (7%) barium reduction and ultrasonography-guided hydrostatic reduction in five (6%), and ultrasonography-guided hydrostatic reduction in four (5%), while in two (2%), air and barium reduction were used to an equal extext. Compared with the results of the 1993 survey, the use of barium reduction had decreased from 62 to 40%, though the use of air reduction showed an increase, from 5 to 40%. The frequency with which other methods were used showed no significant change. 2) In 82% of cases (68/83), patients were not sedated during preparation; the 1993 figure of 87% was thus not significantly different. 3) With regard to the incidence of perforation during the last six years, between one and three cases had been encountered at each of 30 hospitals. Air reduction was used at 17 of these (57%), and barium reduction at ten (33%). At each of five hospitals at which 3 -5 cases had occurred, air reduction had been used in all cases. 4) Ultrasonography was employed for the diagnosis of intussusception at 78/83 hospitals (94%); among these 83, this mode was always employed at 26 (31%). 5) At the majority of hospitals (42%), night duty residents were grade two, while grade one were employed at 30%, grade three at 23%, and grade four at 5%. CONCLUSION: For radiological reduction air and barium are currently used with equal frequency at training hospitals in Korea. Compared with 1993, air reduction is being used more but barium reduction less.
Barium ; Child* ; Diagnosis ; Diatrizoate Meglumine ; Humans ; Incidence ; Intussusception* ; Korea* ; Prevalence ; Seoul ; Telephone ; Ultrasonography

No abstract available.
Myelography*

Ultrasonography (US) is a valuable imaging modality used to assess joint and periarticular abnormalities in patients with osteoarthritis (OA). US can detect articular cartilage damage, bony changes, joint effusion, synovitis, and adjacent soft tissue lesions. In addition, US facilitates the monitoring of disease progression and effects of treatments. US is a safe and accessible bedside procedure that can improve diagnosis and management of patients. The objective of this article was to describe the clinical applications of US for patients with OA.
Cartilage ; Cartilage, Articular ; Diagnosis ; Disease Progression ; Humans ; Joints ; Osteoarthritis* ; Synovitis ; Ultrasonography*

The incidence of synchronous gastric cancer is variously reported to be 2.07%, 5.22%, 6.5%, 8.6%, or 9% and has been increasing recently, probably with advance in the diagnosis of gastric cancer. Our case in presentation is a 70-year-old male patient who had total gastrectomy and esopbagiojunostomy done for synchronous four gastric cancer. Each has different histologic types, Some of these lesions are not suspected before operation and are found almost by chance during histologic examinations after surgery performed only to remove main lesion. So we report this case with a review of literatures.
Aged ; Diagnosis ; Gastrectomy ; Humans ; Incidence ; Male ; Stomach Neoplasms*

PURPOSE: To compare the usefulness of contrast-enhanced voiding ultrasonography(US) with that of radiographic voiding cystourethrography(VCUG) for the diagnosis of vesicoureteral reflux(VUR) in children. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Ninety-five kidney-ureter units of 47 patients referred for investigation of VUR underwent contrast-enhanced voiding US followed by radiographic VCUG. After baseline US examination of the urinary tract, residual urine in the bladder was drained through an inserted Foley catheter and the bladder was gravity filled at a height of 1 m with normal saline. A galactose-based, microbubble-containing echo-enhancing agent (Levovist; Schering, Berlin, Germany) was then administered. The amount of this was approximately 10% of bladder capacity, and VUR was diagnosed when microbubbles appeared in the ureter or pelvo-calyceal system. Using radiographic VCUG as a reference point, the accuracy with which contrast-enhanced voiding US detected VUR was calculated. RESULTS: In 87 of 95 kidney-ureter units (91.6%), the two methods showed similar results regarding the diagnosis or exclusion of VUR, which was detected by both in 12 units, but by neither in 75. VUR was shown to occur in a total of 20 units, but in eight of these by one method only. In two units, VUR detected by contrast-enhanced voiding US was not demonstrated by radiographic VCUG; in six units, the reverse was true. In the detection of VUR, contrast-enhanced voiding US showed a sensitivity of 66.7%, a specificity of 97.4%, a positive predictive value of 85.7%, and a negative predictive value of 92.6%. CONCLUSION: Contrast-enhanced voiding US is highly specific and has high positive and negative predictive values; its sensitivity, however, is not sufficiently high. The modality appears to be a useful diagnostic tool for the detection of VUR without exposure to ionizing radiation, though to be certain of its value, more experience of its use is first required.
Berlin ; Catheters ; Child* ; Diagnosis ; Gravitation ; Humans ; Microbubbles ; Radiation, Ionizing ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Ultrasonography* ; Ureter ; Urinary Bladder ; Urinary Tract ; Vesico-Ureteral Reflux*

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES: Retinoic acid (RA) is known as a potent chemopreventive agent in bladder tumor. Recently, RA has gained attention for up-regulation of transduced gene expression via long terminal repeat (LTR) transcriptional promotion. In this study, we investigated the possible dual effect of RA, growth inhibition and up-regulation of transduced gene expression which contains LTR promoter in human bladder carcinoma cell lines. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Human bladder carcinoma cell lines CY-24, J-82, HT-1197, ATCC) were transduced with Moloney murine leukemia virus containing cDNA of TNF-alpha. The growth of transduced and parent cell line was measured by tetrazolium based colorimetric assay (MTF). Transduced TNF-alpha gene expression was determined by ELISA method. RESULTS: TNF-alpha production was increased approximately twofold after treatment with RA (10 uM) in all three cell lines. This increase was dependent on RA concentration. RA treatment of transduced and parent cell line resulted in dose dependent inhibition of cell proliferation(up to 80% inhibitionwith 10 uM RA) in all parental and transduced cell lines. CONCLUSIONS: These results indicate that RA shows dual effect in cytokine gene transduced bladder carcinoma cells with retroviral vector containing LTR promoter and could be a supplement to the gene therapy of bladder cancer.
Cell Line* ; DNA, Complementary ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Gene Expression* ; Genetic Therapy ; Humans* ; Moloney murine leukemia virus ; Parents ; Terminal Repeat Sequences ; Tretinoin* ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha* ; Up-Regulation ; Urinary Bladder Neoplasms* ; Urinary Bladder* ; Zidovudine