OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the effectiveness and the value of Laparoscopic Assisted Vaginal Hysterectomy, and to evaluate the possibility whether to replace abdominal hysterectomy to LAVH. METHOD: A retrospective study of the surgical procedure was performed by one team with one experienced laparoscopist. The operations were carried out in a private hospital, where operative laparoscopic set was available. All 500 patients underwent LAVH from March 1998 to March 1999 at the department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Eun hospital. Patients were required hysterectomy for uterine fibroid, chronic pelvic pain and carcinoma in situ of cervix,. etc. RESULTS: The average operating time was 56.4+/-11.8 minutes, and the mean estimated postoperative hemoglobin loss was 0.62+/-1.0 g/dL. The mean uterine weight was 223.9+/-129.7 gram (range from 60gram to 800gram). The most common pathologic finding was adenomyosis(59.6%),and the second most pathologic findig was uterine fibroid(47%). No serious complications occured, but 3 vault hematoma cases occured. The combined procedures were salpingoophorectomy, adhesiolysis, and anterior or posterior colporrhaphy, etc. CONCLUSIONS: LAVH that has been possible to replace abdominal hysterectomy, may be valuable for gynecologic uterine diseases, but the experience is important for laparoscopic surgery. The learning curve influences the results of surgery and incidence of complications. Therefore the procedure may only be carried out by experienced laparoscopists, then the maximum value and advantages of laparoscopic surgery can be obtained. Our experience indicates that LAVH is to reduce almost all incidence of abdominal hysterectomy(0.4%)
Carcinoma in Situ ; Cervix Uteri ; Female ; Gynecology ; Hematoma ; Hospitals, Private ; Humans ; Hysterectomy ; Hysterectomy, Vaginal* ; Incidence ; Laparoscopy ; Learning Curve ; Leiomyoma ; Obstetrics ; Pelvic Pain ; Retrospective Studies ; Uterine Diseases

BACKGROUND: Whole body 131I scan is routinely performed in the postoperative evaluation of patients with differentiated thyroid carcinoma to detect recurrence and functioning metastasis. Previous reports suggested that posttreatment whole body scan had higher rate of detecting metastatic lesions that were not visualized by pretreatment images. We observed the frequency of discordance of the two scans and analysed the clinical significances. METHODS: Forty-one patients with differentiated thyroid carcinoma underwent radioactive iodine-131 whole body scans after administration of diagnostic dose (4 mCi) and then therapeutic dose (100~200 mCi of iodine-131). The median age of the patients was 46.9 +/- 15.7 years (range, 17~76). RESULTS: In 16 of the 41 patients (39.0%), pretreatment scan showed additional uptakes that were not seen in the pretreatment scan. Serum thyroglobulin was elevated in 13 of the 16 patients. Of the 22 patients who had been received radioactive iodine therapy previously, eight patients showed new additional lesions in the therapeutic scans but there was no significance according to the history of radioactive iodine therapy, Addisional uptakes after therapeutic dose were noted in neck area in 9 cases, lung in 2 cases, bone in 4 cases and mediastinum in one case. Diffuse hepatic uptake was definitely seen in 7 cases and there were 2 cases whose scans showed liver uptake without any thyroid uptake. CONCLUSION: Posttreatment whole body scan is more sensitive to detect residual tissues and metastasis compared to the usual pretreatment diagnostic whole body scan, and it is suggested that posttreatment whole body scan should be routinely performed after 'I therapy in patients with differentiated thyroid carcinoma for exact evaluation.
Humans ; Iodine ; Liver ; Lung ; Mediastinum ; Neck ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Recurrence ; Thyroglobulin ; Thyroid Gland* ; Thyroid Neoplasms* ; Whole Body Imaging

BACKGROUND: Recently technetium-99m sestamibi (99mTc MIBI), which dose not require withdrawal of thyroid hormone, has been used for imaging of thyroid carcinoma. The aim of this study was to determine the clinical usefulness of Tc MIBI scintigraphy after total thyroidectomy for thyroid carcinoma. The results were compared with those of standard 131I scintigraphy. METHODS: One hundred twelve patients with a median age of 44 years (range, 14-76 years) were included in the study. After optimal endogenous thyroid stimulating hormone stimulation (>50 mIU/mL), whole body scintigraphy using 4 mCi of 'I and 20 mCi of Tc sestamibi were done simultaneously. Concomitantly serum thyroglobulin and anti-thyroglobulin antibody levels were checked. If abnormal findings on any of the scintigraphic methods or high levels of thyroglobulin (> 10ng/mL) were detected, diagnostic imaging studies were done to confirm the existence of the disease. And high dose (150-200 mCi) 'I was administered as therapy and then whole body scans were performed again after the therapy. The presence or absence of thyroid cancer was established by pathologic, radiologic, and/or high dose I scan findings. RESULTS: In 11 patients, Tc MIBI scan revealed positive accumulations which were not found on 131I scan, of whom 6 had elevated thyroglobulin levels. In these cases, 5 cases were interpreted to have normal thyroid remnant and 6 cases showed pathologic findings (2 lung, 1 lymph node, 1 lung and lymph node, 1 local recurrent cancer, and 1 false positive accumulation of 99mTc MIBI). Metastasis or residual cancer were confirmed histologically in 1 and radiologically in 4 cases. Negative 99mTc MIBI scans, despite of positive I scans, occurred in 9 patients, of whom 2 had abnormal thyroglobulin levels. Seven cases were interpreted to have thyroid remnant, 2 cases were confirmed to have lung metastasis, and another one was misinterpreted due to breast shadow. CONCLUSION: In conclusion, these results suggest that 99mTc MIBI scan may have similar sensitivity and specificity for the detection of residual or metastatic differentiated thyroid carcinoma. The 99mTc MIBI scan, especially in cases of negative 131I scan despite of abnormal thyroglobulin levels, can be used as a very useful complementary diagnostic tool.
Breast ; Diagnostic Imaging ; Follow-Up Studies* ; Humans ; Lung ; Lymph Nodes ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Neoplasm, Residual ; Radionuclide Imaging* ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Technetium Tc 99m Sestamibi ; Thyroglobulin ; Thyroid Gland* ; Thyroid Neoplasms* ; Thyroidectomy ; Thyrotropin ; Whole Body Imaging

BACKGROUND: Pertechnetate ( Tc) has been widely employed for thyroid imaging. While pertechnetate and radioiodide have usually similar results in identifying thyroid nodules, occasionally differences have been noted. We intended to observe that the thyroid nodules which appeared to be hot on pertechnetate and to compare them with the images by radioiodide. METHODS: 'I scan was performed to thirty-eight cases (mean age: 48.9 +/- 13.2) presenting as hot nodule on Tc scan. Thyroid function test and pathologic diagnosis were obtained in all patients. RESULTS: Of the 38 patients, 24 had euthyroidism, 13 had hyperthyroidism, and 1 had hypothyroidism. Thirty patients had adenomatous goiter, 4 papillary carcinoma, 3 Hashimotos thyroiditis, and 1 had HQrthle cell tumor. 28 of 38 patients showed similar images, but the remaining 10 patients(26.3%) revealed discordant images on Tc and 131I scan. Among the concordant cases, 23 had adenomatous goiter, 3 had papillary carcinoma, and 2 had Hashimotos thyroiditis. Among the discordant cases, 7 had adenomatous goiter, 1 had papillary carcinoma, 1 had Hashimotos thyroiditis, and 1 had HQrthle cell tumor. The incidence of malignancy was 10.7% of concordant cases, and 20% of discordant cases and was revealed statistically insignificant (p>0.05). CONCLUSION: We observed higher incidence of malignancy in patients presenting hot nodules on 99mTc scan than ever reported. Fine needle aspiration should be performed to all patients with hot nodules and the 'I scan would not be recommended for further diagnostic study.
Biopsy, Fine-Needle ; Carcinoma, Papillary ; Diagnosis ; Goiter ; Humans ; Hyperthyroidism ; Hypothyroidism ; Incidence ; Sodium Pertechnetate Tc 99m ; Thyroid Function Tests ; Thyroid Gland* ; Thyroid Nodule ; Thyroiditis

p27kip1, a cyclin dependent kinase inhibitor, has been recognized as a negative regulator of cell cycle. To investigate the role of p27kip1 on progression of cancer and apoptotic pathway, we analyzed p27kip1 expression using immunohistochemical stain in 40 cases of prostatic adenocarcinoma and apoptotic index by TUNEL method in 30 cases of prostatic adenocarinoma. Both were correlated with Gleason grade and Gleason score. Loss of p27kip1 expression was more frequent in prostatic adenocarcinomas of higher score (Gleason score 7 to 10) (60.7%) than in those of lower score (Gleason score 4 to 6) (33.3%) (p<0.05). The value of mean apoptotic index of carcinoma was 1.13+/-0.26, 1.80+/-0.91, 2.06+/-0.79, and 2.12+/-0.82 in grade 2, 3, 4, and 5, respectively, and was positively correlated with grade of carcinoma (p<0.05). Mean apoptotic index of higher Gleason score (score 7 to 10; 2.05+/-0.63) was also significantly increased than in lower Gleason score (score 4 to 6; 1.34+/-0.39) (p<0.05). Mean apoptotic index in cases with and without p27kip1 expression was 1.92+/-0.86 and 1.89+/-0.81, respectively (p>0.05). These results suggest that loss of p27kip1 expression and increased apoptotic index may be the morphologic markers to predict the behavior of prostatic adenocaricnoma. The role of p27kip1 on apoptotic pathway seems to be meager in this study and needs further study.
Adenocarcinoma* ; Cell Cycle ; Cyclins ; In Situ Nick-End Labeling ; Neoplasm Grading ; Phosphotransferases

The purpose of this study is to analyze the effects of exercise therapy on serum lipid levels and antioxidants of obese and normal college female students. The subject group composed of ten normal-weight students(below 30% body fat ratio) and ten obese students(above 30% body fat ratio). After a pilot test, the subjects were given an eight-weeks exercise program. Before and after the exercise program, the subjects were given test for serum lipid and antioxidants were analyzed. The SAS program was used in the data analysis. The statistical measurements employed here were T-test, Wilcoxon signed rank test, and Wilcoxon rank sum test. The results of this research are as follows. 1) The effects of exercise therapy on serum lipid levels; Before the exercise therapy, the levels of Total-cholesterol, Triglyceride and LDL-cholesterol of the obese group were higher than those of the normal-weight group. However, the HDL-cholesterol levels were higher in the normal-weight group than in the obese group, but these differences were not significant. With the exercise therapy, the levels of Total-cholesterol increased gradually. The HDL-cholesterol increased gradually, the LDL-cholesterol level decreased in both groups, However, the Triglyceride level decreased in the obese group and increased in normal group, but the difference was not significant. 2) The effects of the exercise therapy on serum antioxidants; Before exercise therapy, the serum FR and GSSG levels of the obese group were significantly higher than those if the normal-weight group(p=0.00, p=0.04). The serum GSH level of the normal-weight group was higher than that of the obese group, and the serum MDA level of the obese group was higher than that of the normal-weight group. Again these differences were not significant. With exercise therapy, serum FR level was reduced and serum GSSG level significantly increased in both group(obese group p=0.01, normal-weight group p=0.01), The serum GSH level of the obese group significantly increased(p=0.01), and serum MDA level significantly increase in the obese group(p=0.01), but the difference in the normal-weight group was not significant. These results show that regular exercise therapy reduces serum FR levels and activation of antioxidant systems, and suppress oxidative stress. These effects were slightly higher in the obese group than in the normal-weight group. The regular exercise therapy decrease the serum Triglyceride levels more in the obese group than in the normal-weight group. However the improvement of the serum lipid profile may require a longer exercise period than eight weeks. The results show that the exercise therapy was overall more effective in the obese group than the normal-weight group.
Adipose Tissue ; Antioxidants* ; Exercise Therapy* ; Female* ; Glutathione Disulfide ; Humans ; Oxidative Stress ; Statistics as Topic ; Triglycerides

OBJECTIVES: There are 3 subtypes of natriuretic peptide (NP) receptors: type A natriuretic peptide receptor (NPRA), NPRB, and NPRC. The NPRA gene polymorphism, consisting of substition of methionine (ATG) to isoleucine (ATC) at nucleotide 1023 (M341I) of exon 3 was revealed to be associated with increased risk for essential hypertension (EH) in Japanese people. The purpose of this study is to investigate association between EH and the M341I polymorphism in the NPRA gene in Korea. METHODS: Eighty patients in whom type B natriuretic peptide (BNP) was measured were enrolled in this study. 66 patients had EH and 14 patients did not. The polymorphism of M341I was evaluated by multiplex genotyping polymerase chain reaction and by sequencing analysis. RESULTS: The overall distribution of alleles was not significantly different between the control and EH groups. However, the C/C homozygous genotype was found only in the EH group. In the EH group, patient carrying the C/C homozygous genotype had the trend of having higher systolic and diastolic BP levels regardless of the previous treatment, even though other laboratory markers including BNP levels had no significant differences according to the genotypes. CONCLUSION: This would be meaningful for the first identification of the M341I polymorphism in the NPRA gene and for the first suggestion of association of the EH with it in Korea.
Alleles ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Exons ; Genotype ; Humans ; Hypertension ; Isoleucine ; Korea ; Lifting ; Methionine ; Natriuretic Peptide, Brain ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Receptors, Peptide ; Biomarkers

PURPOSE: This study tried to understand discourses of life-sustaining treatments in general daily and healthcare newspapers. METHODS: A text-network analysis was conducted using the NetMiner program. Firstly, 572 articles from 11 daily newspapers and 258 articles from 8 healthcare newspapers were collected, which were published from August 2013 to October 2016. Secondly, keywords (semantic morphemes) were extracted from the articles and rearranged by removing stop-words, refining similar words, excluding non-relevant words, and defining meaningful phrases. Finally, co-occurrence matrices of the keywords with a frequency of 30 times or higher were developed and statistical measures—indices of degree and betweenness centrality, ego-networks, and clustering—were obtained. RESULTS: In the general daily and healthcare newspapers, the top eight core keywords were common: “patients,” “death,” “LST (life-sustaining treatments),” “hospice palliative care,” “hospitals,” “family,” “opinion,” and “withdrawal.” There were also common subtopics shared by the general daily and healthcare newspapers: withdrawal of LST, hospice palliative care, National Bioethics Review Committee, and self-determination and proxy decision of patients and family. Additionally, the general daily newspapers included diverse social interest or events like well-dying, euthanasia, and the death of farmer Baek Nam-ki, whereas the healthcare newspapers discussed problems of the relevant laws, and insufficient infrastructure and low reimbursement for hospice-palliative care. CONCLUSION: The discourse that withdrawal of futile LST should be allowed according to the patient's will was consistent in the newspapers. Given that newspaper articles influence knowledge and attitudes of the public, RNs are recommended to participate actively in public communication on LST.
Advisory Committees ; Bioethics ; Delivery of Health Care ; Euthanasia ; Farmers ; Hospice and Palliative Care Nursing ; Hospice Care ; Hospices ; Humans ; Jurisprudence ; Life Support Care ; Palliative Care ; Periodicals ; Proxy ; Semantics

No abstract available.
Magnetic Resonance Imaging* ; Neurons*

PURPOSE: Apoptosis is a process of natural cell death that can occur under both normal and neoplastic conditions and increased apoptosis in neoplastic conditions is a feature of the increasing malignant potential. We investigated the possible relationship between the apoptotic index(AI) and Gleason grade, T stage of prostatic carcinoma. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 31 patients with untreated prostatic carcinoma diagnosed by TURP, transrectal needle biopsy and radical prostatectomy was evaluated. We used in situ end labeling method for apoptotic staining. AI was compared with Gleason grade and T stage. RESULTS: The values of mean AI according to Gleason grade were grade I, 1.3+/- 0.13, II, 1.38+/-0.11, III, 1.92+/-0.20, IV, 2.0+/-0.20, V, 2.01 +/-0.28. A positive correlation was noted between apoptotic index and Gleason grade, but not between apoptotic index and T stage. CONCLUSIONS: We found a positive correlation between AI and Gleason grade and the possibility that AI may serve as an important morphological marker to predict the behavior of prostatic carcinoma.
Apoptosis ; Biopsy, Needle ; Cell Death ; Humans ; Prostate* ; Prostatectomy ; Prostatic Neoplasms ; Transurethral Resection of Prostate