Basal cell carcinomas(BCCs) are usually treated with ablative proccdures, but a nonsurgical treatment would conserve tissue and obtain a better cosmetic out come as well as treat patients who refuse surgery or those who are not good surgical candidates. Because of inadequate drug penetration, low cure rates, high recurence rates, and adverse reactions, such as contact dermatitis, topical 5-fluorouracil(5-FU) is unsaitble to treat nodular BCCs. But, int,ralesional 5-FU has been reported to be effective for nodular BCCs. The efficacy and safety of intralesional injection of 5-FU have been evaluated for treatment of BCCs. The results revealed that intralesional injection of 5-FU seems to be effective in the treatment of various premalignant and malignant skin lesions as well as BCCs without side effects.
Carcinoma, Basal Cell* ; Dermatitis, Contact ; Fluorouracil* ; Humans ; Injections, Intralesional* ; Skin

Twenty-three cases of the scaphoid fracture which were treated at the Department of the Orthopaedic Surgery, Catholic University Medical College during the period of december 1978 to december 1987 were analysed. The main purpose of this study was to clarify the significant factors affecting the union rate of the scaphoid fracture. The results obtained were as follows ; 1. The great majority of 23 cases was male with mean age 31. 2. Ulnar deviated stress oblique view with msking a fist was the most reliable means for diagnosing the fracture, location of fracture and stability of wrist after scaphoid fracture. 3. Union rate was obtained from 88.8% in undisplaced fresh fracture, 85.7% in displaced fresh fracture and 71.4% in old neglected fracture. 4. The union rate and associated factors affecting the prognosis after scaphoid frscture seems to be depended on the location of fracture, the severity of initial displacement of fracture fragments, time elapsed of treatment after fracture and accompanied injuries around the ipsilateral wrist.
Humans ; Male ; Prognosis ; Wrist

Schizophrenia is a devastating mental illness that can lead to deterioration in the social and occupational functioning of affected individuals with a major cost to society. A wide range of studies suggest a genetic component to the inheritance of schizophrenia. The molecular genetic studies on schizophrenia have been actively performed since late 1980s. In linkage studies, no loci were replicated across studies and there were no loci surpassing genome-wide significance. Candidate gene association studies showed generally inconsistent results and there were no enrichment of smaller P-values. In the GWAS era, the community has coalesced into large international consortia. The largest schizophrenia GWAS to date is 50,000 samples and efforts are ongoing to accumulate 50,000 cases and 50,000 controls as part of 'PGC2' collaboration. With the limitation of GWAS results, several alternatives are being explored. In genotyping, the concepts of allelic spectrum including from common polygenic to rare penetrant variation are emerging. Phenotypes include all phenomena beyond DNA. The developments in transcriptomic & proteomic approach and intensive research on endophenotype will bring crucial insights into the nature of schizophrenia in the future. But there still remains our task about research on many factors including environment that influence gene expression (epigenetics), age, and gender.
Cooperative Behavior ; DNA ; Endophenotypes ; Epigenomics ; Gene Expression ; Genetic Association Studies ; Molecular Biology ; Phenotype ; Schizophrenia ; Wills

Psoriasis is a relatively common disorder that affects at least 1-2% of the population, however, the pathogenesis is not fully understood yet. Histopathologically, psoriatic lesion is characterized by hyperplasia of keratinocyte, intraepidermal neutrophil accumulation and activated T lymphocyte infiltration in the dermis. Among many cytokines, IL-8 is known to play a role for the activation and migration for neutrophil and T lymphocyte and for the proliferation of keratinocyte. We performed immunohistochemical staining with anti-IL-8 monoclonal antibody for the active lesion, stable lesion and normal-looking skin of ten psoriatic patients and ten healthy controls. Strong expression of IL-8 in the epidermis and dermis was noted from the active as well as stable psoriatic skins. In the normal-looking skin of the psoriatic patients, only faint expression which is not different from healthy control skin, was noted. These observations indicate that the expression of IL-8 is increased in psoriatic lesion, and IL-S is important for the initiation and maintenance of psoriasis.
Cytokines ; Dermis ; Epidermis ; Humans ; Hyperplasia ; Interleukin-8* ; Keratinocytes ; Lymphocytes ; Neutrophils ; Psoriasis ; Skin*

No abstract available.
Meningioma* ; Neoplasm Metastasis*

PURPOSE: Atopy is a state of allergic response, mediated by IgE, to common environmental allergens. In recent decades, there has been an increase in prevalence of atopic disorders in children in developed countries. The factor associated with the rise of atopy incidence may be declining exposure to some infection opportunities. The aim of this study is to determine if the immune response to Mycobacterium tuberculosis can suppress atopy by investigating the association between tuberculin responses and serum IgE. METHODS: We divided the patients into two groups according to tuberculin skin test. Group A showed positive response (induration diameter > or =10mm), while Group B showed negative response (induration diameter< l0mm). A comparison was made between the two groups in terms of age, sex, serum total IgE and allergen-specific IgE. RESULTS: Twenty-one patients comprised Group A and 72 comprised Group B. The mean serum total IgE concentration and the number of patients showing positive MAST in Group B was significantly higher than that of Group A (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: In our study, there was an inverse association between delayed hypersensitivity to Mycobacterium tuberculosis and atopy.
Allergens ; Child ; Developed Countries ; Humans ; Hypersensitivity, Delayed ; Immunoglobulin E* ; Incidence ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis ; Prevalence ; Skin Tests ; Tuberculin*

BACKGROUND: Soluble IL-2R, soluble CD8 and TNF-alpha are elevated in sera of some patients with hematological malignancies, and a marked elevation of these cytokines could be used to assess disease activity and prognosis in this malignancy group. METHODS: The serum levels of sIL-2R, sCD8 and TNF-alpha were assessed in 28 patients with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) and 32 patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), and 39 cases of healthy control subjects to define clinical usefulness as prognostic markers by sandwich enzyme immunoassay. RESULTS: In MDS patients, serum sIL-2R levels were significantly higher as compared with controls, and a more pronounced increase of serum sIL-2R levels was found in patients with RAEB RAEB-t and CMML as compared with RA and RARS. Serum sCD8 levels were higher as compared with controls, but not related with FAB classification. In patients with leukemic conversion. sCD8 levels tended to be higher as compared with patients with non-conversion. The sIL-2R levels of AML patients were significantly higher than controls, and a significant correlation was detected between the levels of sIL-2R and WBC counts. Higher sIL-2R levels( >2000 U/ml) tended to affect both complete remission rate and survival. Serum sCD8 levels were higher than controls, but not related to FAB classification. No differences of serum TNF-alpha levels were detected as compared with healthy controls. CONCLUSIONS: From these results, this study indicates that serum sIL-2R and sCD8 are significantly increased in some patients with MDS and AML, and increased levels of serum sIL-2R and sCD8 may be useful for predicting prognosis of these patients.
Anemia, Refractory, with Excess of Blasts ; Classification ; Cytokines ; Hematologic Neoplasms ; Humans ; Immunoenzyme Techniques ; Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute* ; Myelodysplastic Syndromes* ; Prognosis ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha*

BACKGROUND: Photodynamic therapy(PDT) is a type of photochemotherapy that is designed to kill targeted tumor cells. OBJECTIVE: The Clinical effects of PDT were analysed for response rates, post-treatment healing and adverse effects on several cutaneous carcinoma in situ. METHOD: PDT with topical 5-aminolevulinic acid-based irradiation of corresponding 630+5nm light was performed in 6 carcinoma in situ patients who had actinic keratosis, Bowen' disease or cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma. RESULT: In all patients the clinical results were exellent with respect to initial complete responses and cosmetic outcome. CONCLUSION: PDT might be chosen as a first line treament for cutaneous carcimoma in situ.
Carcinoma in Situ* ; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell ; Humans ; Keratosis, Actinic ; Photochemotherapy* ; Skin*

PURPOSE: Urinary tract infection (UTI) in children is the most common disease during the infantile period, therefore early diagnosis and treatment are important. Pyuria is a useful clinical parameter for the initial diagnosis of a UTI. In this study we aimed to compare the clinical, laboratory, and imaging findings in relation to the duration of pyuria in infants with UTIs. METHODS: Three hundred seventy-four infants <12 months of age who were admitted between January 1995 and December 2005 for the first episode of a febrile UTI were retrospectively reviewed. Patients were divided into two groups according to the duration of pyuria as follows: group 1, pyuria resolved <3 days after initial treatment; and group 2, pyuria lasted at least 3 days after initial treatment. RESULTS: There were no significant differences between the two groups in relation to gender, age, total duration of fever, and organisms in the urine. Group 2 had a significantly higher peripheral blood leukocyte count (14,360.86+/-5,526.16 cells/mm3 vs. 11,822.55+/-5,687.26 cells/mm3, P<0.001), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (32.81+/-19.34 mm/hr vs. 23.74+/-20.43 mm/hr, P<0.001), and C-reactive protein (6.84+/-5.68 mg/dL vs. 3.78+/-3.99 mg/dL, P<0.001) than group 1. There was a significantly higher incidence of hydronephrosis and a higher grade of vesicoureteral reflux (VUR) in group 2 compared to group 1. CONCLUSION: In infants with UTI, pyuria of longer duration is related to severe UTI and higher grade VUR, therefore aggressive radiologic studies may be necessary.
Blood Sedimentation ; C-Reactive Protein ; Child ; Early Diagnosis ; Fever ; Humans ; Hydronephrosis ; Incidence ; Infant ; Leukocyte Count ; Pyuria ; Retrospective Studies ; Urinary Tract ; Urinary Tract Infections ; Vesico-Ureteral Reflux

No abstract available.
Pancreas*