PURPOSE: Vesicoureteral reflux (VUR) is the major cause of urinary tract infection (UTI) in children. Prolonged untreated UTI associated with VUR may result in serious complications, such as renal scarring, renal atropy, and decreased renal function. Therefore, follow up must be continued until UTI is cured completely, to prevent of serious complication. The authors conducted this study to evaluate results of the follow-up of UTI associated with VUR. METHODS: During the period from March 1991 to July 1996, we had 47 children with urinary tract infection associated with vesicoureteral reflux who were admitted to the Department of Pediatrics and Urology, Presbyterian Medical Center. The patients were managed medically or surgically. RESULTS: 1) There were no differences in sex distribution in the 47 cases with VUR. The intensity of 67 refluxing ureters, classified by the International Reflux Study Committee, grade I, 10 cases; grade II, 11 cases; grade III, 20 cases; grade IV, 17 cases; grade V, 9 cases. 2) The most common causative agent in UTI was E. coli. Fourty-six cases underwent ultrasonography and 24 showed abnormal findings. Fourty-four cases underwent a 99mTc-DMSA renal scan, and 25 showed abnormal findings. The incidence of renal scarring showed a direct correlation with the severity of VUR. 3) The incidence of urinary tract infection during follow-up did not differ between the groups medical management versus surgical management. 4) Fourty-four refluxing ureters were treated primary medically and 38 of them were followed up. Twenty-five of the 38 ureters were disappeared or improved, and 9 persisted. The rest showed aggravation of reflux. Twenty-five of the 32 refluxing ureters showed disappearance or improvement of reflux before 5 years of age, The spontaneous cure rate of vesicoureral reflux seemed to be higher in the cases with a milder grade of reflux. 5) Although refluxing ureter disappeared completely on VCUG, we found that follow-up is continued until the disappearance of reflux is confirmed on two serial VCUG. 6) Thirty-three refluxing ureters were treated surgically and one of them was stationary on follow-up VCUG, while the others were cleared. CONCLUSIONS: As a result of follow-up the 47 patients with VUR, the incidence of urinary tract infection did not differ between the groups medical versus surgical management. Rates of disappearance of VUR in medical and surgical management were 66%, 97%, respectively. The spontaneous cure rate of VUR seemed to be higher in the cases with a milder grade of reflux and before 5 years of age. We found that follow-up is continued until the disappearance of reflux is confirmed on two serial VCUG.
Child ; Cicatrix ; Follow-Up Studies* ; Humans ; Incidence ; Pediatrics ; Protestantism ; Sex Distribution ; Technetium Tc 99m Dimercaptosuccinic Acid ; Ultrasonography ; Ureter ; Urinary Tract Infections* ; Urinary Tract* ; Urology ; Vesico-Ureteral Reflux*

PURPOSE: Vesicoureteral reflux (VUR) is the major cause of urinary tract infection (UTI) in children. Prolonged untreated UTI associated with VUR may result in serious complications, such as renal scarring, renal atropy, and decreased renal function. Therefore, follow up must be continued until UTI is cured completely, to prevent of serious complication. The authors conducted this study to evaluate results of the follow-up of UTI associated with VUR. METHODS: During the period from March 1991 to July 1996, we had 47 children with urinary tract infection associated with vesicoureteral reflux who were admitted to the Department of Pediatrics and Urology, Presbyterian Medical Center. The patients were managed medically or surgically. RESULTS: 1) There were no differences in sex distribution in the 47 cases with VUR. The intensity of 67 refluxing ureters, classified by the International Reflux Study Committee, grade I, 10 cases; grade II, 11 cases; grade III, 20 cases; grade IV, 17 cases; grade V, 9 cases. 2) The most common causative agent in UTI was E. coli. Fourty-six cases underwent ultrasonography and 24 showed abnormal findings. Fourty-four cases underwent a 99mTc-DMSA renal scan, and 25 showed abnormal findings. The incidence of renal scarring showed a direct correlation with the severity of VUR. 3) The incidence of urinary tract infection during follow-up did not differ between the groups medical management versus surgical management. 4) Fourty-four refluxing ureters were treated primary medically and 38 of them were followed up. Twenty-five of the 38 ureters were disappeared or improved, and 9 persisted. The rest showed aggravation of reflux. Twenty-five of the 32 refluxing ureters showed disappearance or improvement of reflux before 5 years of age, The spontaneous cure rate of vesicoureral reflux seemed to be higher in the cases with a milder grade of reflux. 5) Although refluxing ureter disappeared completely on VCUG, we found that follow-up is continued until the disappearance of reflux is confirmed on two serial VCUG. 6) Thirty-three refluxing ureters were treated surgically and one of them was stationary on follow-up VCUG, while the others were cleared. CONCLUSIONS: As a result of follow-up the 47 patients with VUR, the incidence of urinary tract infection did not differ between the groups medical versus surgical management. Rates of disappearance of VUR in medical and surgical management were 66%, 97%, respectively. The spontaneous cure rate of VUR seemed to be higher in the cases with a milder grade of reflux and before 5 years of age. We found that follow-up is continued until the disappearance of reflux is confirmed on two serial VCUG.
Child ; Cicatrix ; Follow-Up Studies* ; Humans ; Incidence ; Pediatrics ; Protestantism ; Sex Distribution ; Technetium Tc 99m Dimercaptosuccinic Acid ; Ultrasonography ; Ureter ; Urinary Tract Infections* ; Urinary Tract* ; Urology ; Vesico-Ureteral Reflux*

PURPOSE: To determine which perinatal risk factors influence neurodevelopmental outcome, we try to investigate which perinatal risk factors are correlated with Baley mental or psychomotor developmental index using BSID-II test (Baley Scales of Infant Development, II) in long term follow up of very low birth weight who received neonatal intensive care. METHODS: This study was performed on 56 very low birth weight infants with corrected age 24 months who were admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit. We analyzed correlation between perinatal risk factors and neurodevelopmental outcome assessed by mental and psychomotor developmental index. RESULTS: Mean birth weight was 1317.8+/-168.5g : Small for gestational age was 11 cases and appropriate for gestational age was 45 cases : Mean mental developmental index was 93.8+/-10.3 and psychomotor developmental index was 99.9+/-13.2. Mean developmental scale did not show any significant difference between perinatal risk factors, such as sex, ventilator care and its duration, hospitalization days, birth weight, small for gestational age. Mental or psychomotor developmental score was significantly delayed in the subgroup with grade III intraventricular hemorrhages and periventricular cyst. On cranial ultrasonogram, sinificantly low mental, psychomotor developmental score was found on the subgroup with grade III intraventricular hemorrhages and periventricular cyst formation larger than 3mm size (P<0.01). CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that grade III intraventricular hemorrhage and periventricular cyst larger than 3mm size are associated with poor prognostic risk factors regarding to low neurodevelopmental index score.
Birth Weight ; Child ; Child Development ; Follow-Up Studies ; Gestational Age ; Hemorrhage ; Hospitalization ; Humans ; Infant* ; Infant, Newborn ; Infant, Very Low Birth Weight* ; Intensive Care, Neonatal ; Risk Factors* ; Ultrasonography ; Ventilators, Mechanical ; Weights and Measures

The granular cell tumor (GCT) occurs extremely rarely in the mediastinum. Few mediastinal GCT cases have been reported in Japan or other countries. Here, we report a case of a 24-year-old man with superior mediastinal GCT. The mass was located just above the aortic arch. It was firm, oval in shape, and well encapsulated. The tumor was removed completely with video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery, but we had to resect the vagus nerve, which was already included in the tumor, along with the tumor. After the operation, the patient recovered without any specific complications except for a mild degree of hoarseness.
Aorta, Thoracic ; Granular Cell Tumor* ; Hoarseness ; Humans ; Japan ; Mediastinum ; Thoracic Surgery, Video-Assisted ; Vagus Nerve ; Young Adult

Microscopic polyangiitis (MPA) is a necrotizing vasculitis involving the small vessels without granulomatous inflammation. Most MPA initially presents with renal involvement without pulmonary involvement. Isolated and initially presenting alveolar hemorrhage is very rare. The patient was a 39-year-old female with a progressive cough, dyspnea, and blood-tinged sputum for the previous 5 days. We determined that her condition was MPA though VATS lung biopsy and renal biopsy. After 2 months of steroid therapy, the chest lesions had improved. We report here a rare case of MPA with isolated and initial involvement of the lung with a review of the literature.
Adult ; Biopsy ; Cough ; Dyspnea ; Female ; Hemoptysis ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Inflammation ; Lung ; Microscopic Polyangiitis ; Sputum ; Thoracic Surgery, Video-Assisted ; Thorax ; Vascular Diseases ; Vasculitis

BACKGROUND: Tumor size in lung cancer is not as good a prognostic factor for adenocarcinoma as it is for other types of lung cancer; therefore it is difficult to estimate the prognosis preoperatively. However, there have recently been some reports on the radiologic findings correlating to the clinicopathologic prognostic factors in peripheral small adenocarcinoma of lung. We tried to evaluate the prognostic importance of High-Resolution CT (HRCT) findings of such adenocarcinoma. MATERIAL ANDMETHOD: One houndred and seventy-six surgically resected small peripheral adenocarcinoma measuring 3 cm or less in greatest dimension were reviewed radiologically and clinicopathologically. RESULT: The patients with greater extent of ground-glass attenuation (GGA) had better clinicopathological factors. The tumors with gross appearance of GGA or bubble-like shape showed better clinicopathological prognostic factors than scar-like or solid shape. CONCLUSION: HRCT findings of small peripheral adenocarcinomas of the lung correlated well with the histologic and clinical prognostic factors. We can predict the post- operative prognosis with the radiologic findings.
Adenocarcinoma* ; Humans ; Lung Neoplasms ; Lung* ; Prognosis

Snapping syndrome has rarely been reported in the knee. A snapping knee mainly occurs in the case of a translation of the lateral meniscus or a lateral discoid meniscus. Other causes include biceps femoris tendon, semitendinosus iliotibial band, and popliteus tendon. We recently experienced a case of a snapping knee caused by the semitendinosus tendon passing over the medial tibial condyle as a result of trauma.
Knee* ; Menisci, Tibial ; Tendons*

A novel combined treatment of conventional chemotherapy with an intratumoral injection of syngeneic dendritic cells (DCs) has emerged as a potent cancer treatment strategy. In this study, we evaluated the synergistic effect of an intraperitoneal (i.p.) injection of a chemotherapeutic drug, paclitaxel, and an intratumoral (i.t.) injection of syngeneic bone marrow- derived DCs for the treatment of pre-existing fibrosarcoma. Subcutaneous tumors were established using MCA102 fibrosarcoma cells in syngeneic C57BL/6 mice. The results demonstrated that the combined treatment of paclitaxel chemotherapy and the injection of DCs led to complete tumor regression, in contrast to only partial eradication of the tumors with chemotherapy or DCs alone. Furthermore, the tumor-free mice were able to resist a repeat challenge with the same type of tumor. These findings suggest that a combination therapy of systemic chemotherapy along with the intratumoral administration of DCs is a potent treatment strategy for fibrosarcoma.
Treatment Outcome ; Transplantation, Isogeneic ; Phenotype ; Paclitaxel/administration & dosage/*therapeutic use ; Mice ; Injections, Intraperitoneal ; Immunologic Memory ; Fibrosarcoma/drug therapy/pathology/*therapy ; Dendritic Cells/cytology/*transplantation ; Combined Modality Therapy ; Cells, Cultured ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Bone Marrow Cells/cytology ; Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic/administration & dosage/*therapeutic use ; Animals