BACKGROUND: Aseptic meningitis is a common illness of children. It seems that viruses are the usual etiologic agents. The distribution of these agents mainly depends on the isolated time and region area. This study was performed to isolate the causative viruses from patients with aseptic meningitis in Gwangju area during recent one year. METHODS:A total of 130 patients with aseptic meningitis were evaluated. Stool and/or cerebrospinal fluid specimens from patients were inoculated into rhabdomyosarcoma (RD), HEp2 and Vero cell lines. The virus propagation was examined by the presence of cytopathic effects. Neutralizing tests using enterovirus serum pool were done on each viral isolates. RESULTS: The isolation rate of enterovirus was 24.6% (32/130). The enterovirus isolates were obtained mostly from stool specimens (29/32). Twenty-two isolates were identified by neutralizing test. Ten isolates disclosed 'untyping' by neutralizing test. The distribution of isolates was coxsackievirus group B2 (11 stains, 34.4%), echovirus 30 (4 strains, 12.5%), echovirus 6 (3 strains, 9.4%), echovirus 9, 11, 25 and coxsackievirus group A16 (1 strain, respectively). These strains were predominantly isolated during summer season (June to July). CONCLUSIONS: The causative viruses from patients with aseptic meningitis in Gwangju area during recent 1 year were coxsackievirus group B2, echovirus 30, 6, 9, 11, 25 and coxsackievirus group A16 which were mostly isolated from stool specimens in summer season.
Cerebrospinal Fluid ; Child ; Coloring Agents ; Echovirus 6, Human ; Echovirus 9 ; Enterovirus ; Enterovirus B, Human ; Gwangju* ; Humans ; Meningitis, Aseptic* ; Rhabdomyosarcoma ; Seasons ; Vero Cells

No abstract available.
Progeria*

Injuries to extensor tendons can be as serious as those of digital flexors. These injuries require accurate approximation, appropirate splinting and careful mobilization. Scarring which always occurs following injury can provoke greater problems in digital extensor injuries than in flexor tendons. The loss of 2mm of excursion of extensor tendon at level of the proximal interphalangeal joint may results in a 50 percent loss of motion of the finger. A special problem associated with extensor tendon healing is loss of gliding. This study was carried was carried out to evaluate the results of the extensor injuries according to their etiology, location and type of treatment. Seventy six lesions in fifty patients treated for extensor tendon injuries were analysed for the comparison of the results of specific treatment. The follow up was from 1 to 3 years with average of 19 months. Following results were obtained. l. Among 50 patients, 16 cases (32%) were acute and 34 cases (68%) were chronic. 2. The etiology were crushing in 19 cases (30%), knife or glass in 20 cases (40%), and avulsion in 8 cases (16%) etc. 3. Mallet finger were observed in 14 tendons, buttonhole in 10 tendons. Nine tendons were injured at the metacarpophalangeal level and 16 tendons were injured at wrist level. 4. Percentage of satisfactory result which means less than 15 degrees of extension loss were 68.1 % in primary repair and plication, and 30.7% in tendon transfer or graft. 5. Prognosis was better when the lesion was proximal to MP joint, and results were more favorable in primary repair and plication than tendon transfer graft.
Cicatrix ; Fingers ; Follow-Up Studies ; Glass ; Humans ; Joints ; Prognosis ; Splints ; Tendon Injuries ; Tendon Transfer ; Tendons ; Transplants ; Wrist

BACKGROUND: It has been reported that in 62.5% of cases of incurable cancer pain, the complaint is due to myofascial pain syndrome. Trigger point injections using dibucaine hydrochloride help patients with such cancer pain. This study evaluated the efficacy of trigger point injections for alleviating pain in patients with advanced cancer. METHODS: Twenty patients with advanced cancer who had a life expectancy of 6 months or less and had been diagnosed with myofascial pain syndrome were treated with trigger point injections. Prior to treatment, a Visual Analog Scale (VAS) was used to measure the resting pain level and discomfort upon application of pressure on the site of pain. These values were compared with last treatment measurements. RESULTS: The mean pre-treatment VAS scores for pain at rest and upon application of pressure on the pain site were 7.3 and 9.0, respectively. These scores decreased significantly to 1.95 and 3.2, respectively, after the treatment (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: Trigger point injection is an alternative and effective pain control modality for advanced cancer patients with myofascial pain syndrome.
Dibucaine ; Humans ; Life Expectancy ; Myofascial Pain Syndromes ; Trigger Points ; Visual Analog Scale

PURPOSE:Carotid endarterectomy may benefit patients with bilateral carotid stenosis by improving cerebrovascular hemodynamics of ipsilateral as well as contralateral cerebral hemispheres. We investigated cerebrovascular hemodynamics after carotid endarterectomy in patients with contralateral carotid occlusion by acetazolamide stress brain SPECT. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Subjects were 14 symptomatic patients (all men, mean age 66 yrs) with carotid stenosis (> 50%) with contralateral carotid occlusion. Acetazolamide stress Tc-99m ECD brain SPECTs were performed within 2 weeks before and after carotid endarterectomy using one day protocol. Cerebral blood flow (CBF) and cerebrovascular reserve (CVR) were assessed visually. In 12 patients, correlation between the patency of proximal anterior cerebral or anterior communicating arteries (A1/A-comm) and the improvement of CBF or CVR after endarterectomy was assessed. RESULTS: Preoperative SPECT showed reduced CBF in 2 ipsilateral and 10 contralateral hemispheres. CVR was reduced in 4 ipsilateral and 9 contralateral hemispheres. Of 12 hemispheres with reduced CBF, 2 hemispheres (16.7%) showed improvement of CBF after endarterectomy. However, reduced CVR was improved in all 4 ipsilateral and 7 of 9 (78%) of contralateral hemispheres after endarterectomy. Three of 4 with stenotic A1/A-comm and 4 of 8 with patent A1/A-comm had reduced contralateral CVR. Reduced contralateral CVR improved in all 3 patients with stenotic A1/A-comm and 3 of 4 with patent A1/A-comm. CONCLUSION: Acetazolamide stress brain SPECT demonstrated improvement of compromised cerebrovascular reserve in not only ipsilateral but also contralateral hemispheres of patients with contralateral carotid occlusion after carotid endarterectomy, and may, therefore, be useful for evaluating cerebral blood flow and cerebrovascular reserve after carotid endarterectomy.
Acetazolamide* ; Arteries ; Brain Ischemia ; Brain* ; Carotid Stenosis* ; Cerebrum ; Endarterectomy ; Endarterectomy, Carotid* ; Hemodynamics ; Humans ; Male ; Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon*

Among several diagnostic tests, a Helicobacter pylori stool antigen (HpSA) test may offer a useful noninvasive method for diagnosing infection without sacrificing animals. In this study, male C57BL/6 mice (n=6) were infected with H. pylori ATCC 49503 (1x10(8) CFU/mouse) by intragastric inoculation three times at 2-day intervals, and H. pylori infected stool specimens were collected 1, 3, 5, 7, 14, 21 days after infection to assess reliability of the HpSA test. Five of six specimens were positive at 5-21 days after infection, and the sensitivity of the HpSA test was 83.33%. The presence of H. pylori infection was confirmed by the rapid urease test and genomic DNA polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and showed the same results as the HpSA. However, the rapid urease test and genomic DNA PCR are invasive tests and require animal sacrifice to detect H. pylori in gastric biopsy samples. We suggest that an HpSA test kit would be useful and effective for monitoring H. pylori in various laboratory animals, as H. pylori can be easily monitored without sacrificing animals.
Animals ; Animals, Laboratory ; Biopsy ; Diagnostic Tests, Routine ; DNA ; Helicobacter ; Helicobacter pylori ; Humans ; Male ; Mice ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Urease

PURPOSE: Combination therapy of alpha-blockers and 5alpha-reductase inhibitors (5-ARIs) is widely used for the treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). We aimed to study the effect on prostate volume and symptoms of shifting to monotherapy in patients who previously received a combination therapy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A prospective study was conducted of 60 patients who were diagnosed with BPH. Patients were aged 45 years or older and had a prostate volume of 30 cc or more, International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS) of 12 or above, maximal flow rate (Qmax) of 15 ml/s or less, and prostate-specific antigen (PSA) level of less than 10 ng/ml. The patients initially received a combination therapy of doxazosin 4 mg/day and finasteride 5 mg/day for 3 months and were then randomly assigned to receive monotherapy for 3 months. The factors were then compared. RESULTS: A total of 30 patients were assigned to doxazosin (group 1) and 30 to finasteride (group 2) after the combination therapy. The percentage changes in prostate volume, IPSS, and Qmax during the period from post-combination therapy to post-monotherapy were not significantly different between the two groups (p=0.052, 0.908, 0.081), whereas PSA significantly decreased in group 2 (p<0.001). IPSS was not significantly different at post-combination therapy and at post-monotherapy in both groups (p=0.858, 0.071). The prostate volume significantly increased from 40.97 cc at post-combination therapy to 44.29 cc at post-monotherapy in group 1 (p=0.001) and insignificantly increased from 38.32 cc to 38.61 cc in group 2 (p=0.696). CONCLUSIONS: Although the duration of drug administration was short in this study, 5-ARI monotherapy could maintain the alleviated symptoms and reduce the risk of acute urinary retention and surgery due to prostate regrowth in BPH patients whose symptoms improved with combination therapy.
Adrenergic alpha-Antagonists ; Aged ; Doxazosin ; Finasteride ; Humans ; Prospective Studies ; Prostate ; Prostate-Specific Antigen ; Prostatic Hyperplasia ; Urinary Retention

BACKGROUND: Depression is prevalent in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) and continues to increase in elderly adults. Therefore, the aim of our study was to examine the relationship between CKD and depression in older patients. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional study based on 2013 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey data. In total, data of 973 subjects aged ≥65 years were analyzed, and the estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) was calculated using the Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology Collaboration equation. RESULTS: The prevalence of depression in older adults was 4.1% in men and 8.8% in women (P=0.004). The prevalence of depression did not differ according to CKD stage in women (normal eGFR and CKD stages 1 and 2 women, 41/474 [8.6%]) vs. CKD stages 3–5 women, 6/63 [9.5%]); however, the prevalence of depression in men with CKD stages 3–5 (8/83 [9.6%]) was significantly higher than in men with normal eGFR and CKD stage 1 and 2 (10/353 [2.8%], P=0.010). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that the odds ratio for depression in men with CKD stages 3–5 was 3.822 (95% confidence interval, 1.229 to 11.879) after adjusting for social status and chronic diseases (P=0.021). CONCLUSION: The prevalence of depression was higher in elderly women than in men, while the prevalence of depression increased in elderly men with CKD stages 3–5 and was almost equal to that of women. Therefore, elderly men with progressive renal function impairment should be counseled and monitored for psychological problems.
Adult ; Aged* ; Chronic Disease ; Cooperative Behavior ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Depression* ; Epidemiology ; Female ; Glomerular Filtration Rate ; Humans ; Korea* ; Logistic Models ; Male ; Nutrition Surveys* ; Odds Ratio ; Prevalence ; Renal Insufficiency, Chronic*

PURPOSE: To determine the metal plate that has almost the same volume and weight as the conventional plate, but has improved properties by changing the shape using finite element analysis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The bone is assumed to be of 100 mm length, 20 mm outer diameter and 12 mm inner diameter, respectively. There is a fracture line that is perpendicular to the major axis of the bone at the center. The two pieces of bone are joined together using a metallic plate that is made of titanium. Six holes are located, with an interval of 12 mm. We suppose that screws of 2 mm diameter and 25 mm length are inserted in six holes. The metallic plates are of 5 shapes (A, B, C, D and E) in total. Shape A is the standard or nominal type. Shape B and C are thicker at the center of the plate, respectively. Shape D and E are wider at the center. Six types of load are applied to each of those plates: tension, compression, anterior flexion, posterior flexion, lateral flexion and torsion. We compared stress, deformation, maximal stress and maximal deformation, according to the six types of load. RESULTS: Our deliberate investigation using finite element analysis showed that increasing the thickness or width at the center of metallic plates lowered the maximum stress and deformation. In particular, maximal stress and deformation could be reduced by 33.5% and 38.6%, respectively, in the anterior bending situation. Compression showed lower stress and deformation in type C or D, but the absolute quantity was much smaller than others, for example 0.01-0.001 times. CONCLUSION: As for the internal bone fixation plates with the same volume, the wider or thicker in the middle the plate become, the less deformation and yielding it bears.
Axis, Cervical Vertebra ; Bone Plates ; Finite Element Analysis ; Fracture Fixation ; Stress, Mechanical ; Titanium ; Ursidae

BACKGROUND/AIM: Gastric outlet obstruction due to malignancy causes various symptoms and malnutrition and so decreases the quality of life and shortens the survival. The aim of this study was to assess the feasibility, effectiveness, safety, and outcome of a self-expandable metal stent as a palliative methods. METHODS: From January, 2000 to August, 2002, 29 consecutive patients (36 cases of stent insertion) with inoperable gastric outlet obstruction were treated palliatively with through-the scope stents (Nitis Taewoong, Korea, 29 uncovered, 7 covered). All patients had malignancy. We reviewed the success rate, complications and clinical outcome. RESULTS: There were 21 cases with advanced gastric cancer, 5 with pancreatic head cancer and 2 with cholangiocarcinoma. The other one had primary duodenal carcinoma. Technical success was achieved in thirty four cases (94.4%). After successful placement, 26 patients could eat soft or solid foods with careful education about foods impaction. During the follow-up (mean: 2.6 months, range: 1~9 months), there were no procedure related early complication. Seven stent occlusion occurred due to tumor in-growth (6 case) and over-growth (1 case). CONCLUSIONS: Endoscopic self-expandable metal stent placement in patients with inoperable gastric outlet obstruction is a highly successful, safe and effective palliative method.
Cholangiocarcinoma ; Education ; Follow-Up Studies ; Gastric Outlet Obstruction* ; Head and Neck Neoplasms ; Humans ; Korea ; Malnutrition ; Quality of Life ; Stents* ; Stomach Neoplasms