No abstract available.
Endometrial Neoplasms* ; Female ; Ovary*

No abstract available.
Kidney*

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Perverted head-shaking nystagmus (HSN) refers to nystagmus that develops in the plane other than that being stimulated by head oscillation, i.e., downbeat or upbeat HSN after head oscillation in the yaw plane. However, the mechanism of perverted HSN is unknown. To elucidate the mechanism of perverted HSN by measuring tilt suppression of the vestibule-ocular reflex (VOR). MATERIALS AND METHOD: Twenty two consecutive patients with perverted HSN from cerebellar lesions (13 circumscribed and 9 diffuse) and 50 normal volunteers underwent recording of spontaneous, head-shaking and positional nystagmus, smooth pursuit, saccades, and the VOR. Tilt suppression method was to pitch patients' head forward further at the end of the step rotation stimuli. RESULTS: HSN was pure downbeat in nine and mixed horizontal-downbeat in 13 patients. The mean VOR time constants did not differ between normal controls and patients. However, tilt suppression of the post-rotatory nystagmus was impaired in the patients (p<0.01). Downbeating (n=12) and central positional nystagmus (n=12) were frequently accompanied findings. CONCLUSION: Uvulonodular dysfunction was frequently observed in patients with perverted HSN from cerebellar lesions. Uvulonodulus may be involved in the spatial organization of the velocity storage mechanism and uvulonodular dysfunction may be responsible for developing perverted HSN in cerebellar lesions.
Cerebellum ; Head* ; Healthy Volunteers ; Humans ; Nystagmus, Physiologic ; Pursuit, Smooth ; Reflex ; Saccades

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Perverted head-shaking nystagmus (HSN) refers to nystagmus that develops in the plane other than that being stimulated by head oscillation, i.e., downbeat or upbeat HSN after head oscillation in the yaw plane. However, the mechanism of perverted HSN is unknown. To elucidate the mechanism of perverted HSN by measuring tilt suppression of the vestibule-ocular reflex (VOR). MATERIALS AND METHOD: Twenty two consecutive patients with perverted HSN from cerebellar lesions (13 circumscribed and 9 diffuse) and 50 normal volunteers underwent recording of spontaneous, head-shaking and positional nystagmus, smooth pursuit, saccades, and the VOR. Tilt suppression method was to pitch patients' head forward further at the end of the step rotation stimuli. RESULTS: HSN was pure downbeat in nine and mixed horizontal-downbeat in 13 patients. The mean VOR time constants did not differ between normal controls and patients. However, tilt suppression of the post-rotatory nystagmus was impaired in the patients (p<0.01). Downbeating (n=12) and central positional nystagmus (n=12) were frequently accompanied findings. CONCLUSION: Uvulonodular dysfunction was frequently observed in patients with perverted HSN from cerebellar lesions. Uvulonodulus may be involved in the spatial organization of the velocity storage mechanism and uvulonodular dysfunction may be responsible for developing perverted HSN in cerebellar lesions.
Cerebellum ; Head* ; Healthy Volunteers ; Humans ; Nystagmus, Physiologic ; Pursuit, Smooth ; Reflex ; Saccades

BACKGROUND: The morbidity and mortality of Legionnaires' disease are not established in Korea, because patients with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) have rarely been investigated for Legionella. An assay for Legionella antigen in urine has been approved as one of the diagnostic criteria of Legionnaires' disease. Binax Now(TM) Legionella Urinary Antigen Test (LUA) was introduced in Asan Medical Center in July 2002. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the clinical relevance of positive LUA. METHODS: During the 39-month period from July 2002 to September 2005, the medical records of LUA-positive patients were reviewed for demographic findings, laboratory findings, clinical diagnosis, antimicrobial treatment, outcome, and acquisition of infections. Diagnosis of Legionnaires' disease was based on National Nosocomial Infections Surveillance (NNIS) criteria for defining nosocomial pneumonia. RESULTS: Seven (0.3%) of the 2443 patients tested for LUA were positive. All 7 patients were consistent with the diagnostic criteria of Legionnaires' disease; six patients were diagnosed with CAP and one patient was admitted due to nosocomial pneumonia. Six patients were treated with azithromycin or ciprofloxacin but one patient was not treated for Legionella infection. With the report of LUApositive results, a Legionella-targeted treatment was started in two patients and an inappropriate empirical therapy was ceased in one patient. All patients treated with Legionella-targeted treatment improved clinically except one who died of adult respiratory distress syndrome at the first hospital day. CONCLUSIONS: Positive LUA is useful in diagnosing Legionnaire's disease at an early stage and in helping to initiate appropriate treatments in a tertiary-care hospital in Korea.
Azithromycin ; Chungcheongnam-do ; Ciprofloxacin ; Cross Infection ; Diagnosis ; Humans ; Korea* ; Legionella* ; Legionnaires' Disease ; Medical Records ; Mortality ; Pneumonia ; Respiratory Distress Syndrome, Adult

Background and purpose: This study evaluated the changes in blood flow velocity in the anterior and posterior intracranial circulations according to the progression of moyamoya disease in adult patients. Methods: We evaluated Suzuki's angiographic stage and mean blood flow velocity (MBFV) changes in intracranial vessels from both sides in 19 adult moyamoya patients. We then analyzed the linearity of MBFV changes from early to late moyamoya stages in each intracranial vessel using piecewise linear regression models. Results: The MBFV in the middle cerebral artery, terminal internal carotid artery, and anterior cerebral artery increased non linearly until stage III, and then decreased progressively up to stage VI. The ophthalmic artery also showed nonlinear velocity changes, with an increase in MBFV up to stage IV, followed by a decrease in MBFV up to stage VI. The MBFV of the basilar artery increased linearly from a normal velocity at an early moyamoya stage to a stenotic velocity at a late stage. There was no statistically significant regression model for the relationship between the MBFV in the posterior cerebral artery and moyamoya stage. Conclusions: The nonlinear and/or linear MBFV changes associated with variable intracranial vessels might be useful in initial and follow-up evaluations of different stages of moyamoya disease.
Adult ; Anterior Cerebral Artery ; Basilar Artery ; Blood Flow Velocity ; Carotid Artery, Internal ; Glycosaminoglycans ; Hemodynamics ; Humans ; Linear Models ; Middle Cerebral Artery ; Moyamoya Disease ; Ophthalmic Artery ; Posterior Cerebral Artery

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Coronary artery stenting actually shows a high efficacy in the treatment of coronary heart disease, but has the major limitation of restenosis. The ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer (EVA), a biocompatible nondegradable copolymer, has been employed as a rate-controlling membrane in several drug delivery systems. Herein, the feasibility of an EVA-coated coronary stent was evaluated as a possible route for localized drug delivery. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 15 rabbits were employed in this study. An uncoated stent was implanted into the non-diseased iliac artery in six rabbits, and an EVA-coated stent into a further nine. On the 30th day following the stent implantations, stented segments of the iliac arteries were removed for histological processing and morphometric analysis. RESULTS: The mean neointimal area of the uncoated and coated groups were 1.009 and 1.011 mm2 (p=0.56), respectively. No inflammatory cells were found in coated group. There were no apparent differences between the two groups. CONCLUSION: The results from this study have demonstrated that an EVA-coated coronary stent might be an appropriate method for the controlled-release of a drug.
Biological Availability* ; Coronary Disease ; Coronary Vessels ; Drug Delivery Systems ; Iliac Artery* ; Membranes ; Polyvinyls ; Rabbits ; Stents*

BACKGROUND: This study was designed to develop a Korean version of the heparin-coated vascular bypass shunt by using a physical dispersing technique. The safety and effectiveness of the thrombo-resistant shunt were tested in experimental animals. MATERIAL AND METHOD: A bypass shunt model was constructed on the descending thoracic aorta of 21 adult mongrel dogs(17.5-25 kg). The animals were divided into groups of no-treatment(CONTROL group; n=3), no-treatment with systemic heparinization(HEPARIN group; n=6), Gott heparin shunt (GOTT group; n=6), or Korean heparin shunt(KIST group; n=6). Parameters observed were complete blood cell counts, coagulation profiles, kidney and liver function(BUN/Cr and AST/ ALT), and surface scanning electron microscope(SSEM) findings. Blood was sampled from the aortic blood distal to the shunt and was compared before the bypass and at 2 hours after the bypass. RESULT: There were no differences between the groups before the bypass. At bypass 2 hours, platelet level increased in the HEPARIN and GOTT groups(p<0.05), but there were no differences between the groups. Changes in other blood cell counts were insignificant between the groups. Activated clotting time, activated partial thromboplastin time, and thrombin time were prolonged in the HEPARIN group(p<0.05) and differences between the groups were significant(p<0.005). Prothrombin time increased in the GOTT group(p<0.05) without having any differences between the groups. Changes in fibrinogen level were insignificant between the groups. Antithrombin III levels were increased in the HEPARIN and KIST groups(p<0.05), and the inter-group differences were also significant(p<0.05). Protein C level decreased in the HEPARIN group(p<0.05) without having any differences between the groups. BUN levels increased in all groups, especially in the HEPARIN and KIST groups(p<0.05), but there were no differences between the groups. Changes of Cr, AST, and ALT levels were insignificant between the groups. SSEM findings revealed severe aggregation of platelets and other cellular elements in the CONTROL group, and the HEPARIN group showed more adherence of the cellular elements than the GOTT or KIST group. CONCLUSION: Above results show that the heparin-coated bypass shunts(either GOTT or KIST) can suppress thrombus formation on the surface without inducing bleeding tendencies, while systemic heparinization(HEPARIN) may not be able to block activation of the coagulation system on the surface in contact with foreign materials but increases the bleeding tendencies. We also conclude that the thrombo-resistant effects of the Korean version of heparin shunt(KIST) are similar to those of the commercialized heparin shunt(GOTT).
Adult ; Animals ; Antithrombin III ; Aorta ; Aorta, Thoracic ; Blood Cell Count ; Blood Platelets ; Fibrinogen ; Hemorrhage ; Heparin ; Humans ; Kidney ; Liver ; Partial Thromboplastin Time ; Protein C ; Prothrombin Time ; Thrombin Time ; Thrombosis

Background: and Purpose Oral anticoagulants are needed in stroke patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) for the prevention of recurrent stroke. However, the risk of major events or bleeding may be greater in stroke patients than in those without, because the presence of cerebral atherosclerosis or small vessel disease may increase these risks. This study aimed to investigate the outcomes of apixaban-treated stroke patients with AF and assess whether these factors are associated with the outcome. Methods: This was a sub-analysis of stroke patients with AF enrolled in a prospective, open-label, multicenter, post-marketing surveillance study in South Korea, who were treated with apixaban and underwent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) (Clinical trial registration: NCT01885598). Results: A total of 651 patients (mean age, 72.5±8.7 years) received apixaban for a mean duration of 82.7±37.4 weeks. Fifty-three bleeding events occurred in 39 patients (6.0%), and 10 (1.5%) experienced major bleeding. Seventeen patients (2.6%) had major events (stroke, n=15, 2.3%; all ischemic), systemic embolism (n=1, 0.2%), and death (n=3, 0.5%). MRI data showed no significant association between white matter ischemic changes and microbleeds, and major events or bleeding. Patients with cerebral atherosclerotic lesions had a higher rate of major events than those without (4.6% [n=10/219] vs. 1.7% [n=7/409], P=0.0357), which partly explains the increased prevalence of major outcomes in this group versus patients without stroke (0.7%, P=0.0002). Conclusions Apixaban is generally safe for patients with ischemic stroke. Increased primary outcomes in stroke patients may in part be attributed to the presence of cerebral atherosclerotic lesions, suggesting that further studies are needed to establish therapeutic strategies in this population.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the impact of fibroids on the blood flow of the uterine and subendometrial arteries and in vitro fertilization (IVF) outcomes. METHODS: In this study, we analyzed 86 IVF/intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) cycles in which a gonadotropin-releasing hormone antagonist protocol was used for controlled ovarian stimulation between January 2008 and March 2009. The subjects comprised 86 infertile women with (fibroid group, n=43) or without (control group, n=43) uterine fibroids. RESULTS: Patient characteristics were similar between the fibroid and control groups. The IVF/ICSI outcomes in patients with fibroids were similar to those of patients in the control group. The resistance index (RI) and pulsatile index (PI) of the uterine and subendometrial arteries on the day of embryo transfer were also comparable between the two groups. IVF outcomes and uterine hemodynamics in patients with multiple (> or =2) fibroids were similar to those of patients with a single fibroid. However, clinical pregnancy and implantation rates were significantly lower in patients with fibroids who experienced uterine cavity distortion than in patients with fibroids who had a normal uterine cavity (both p<0.05). The RI and PI of the subendometrial artery were significantly higher on the day of embryo transfer in patients with fibroids who experienced uterine cavity distortion than in patients with fibroids who had a normal uterine cavity (both p<0.05). CONCLUSION: Fibroids which distorting the uterine cavity might impair the subendometrial artery blood flow clinical pregnancy rate and embryo implantation rate in infertile patients undergoing IVF. Otherwise, IVF outcomes were not influenced by the presence of uterine fibroids.
Arteries ; Embryo Implantation ; Embryo Transfer ; Female ; Fertilization in Vitro* ; Gonadotropin-Releasing Hormone ; Hemodynamics* ; Humans ; Leiomyoma* ; Ovulation Induction ; Pregnancy ; Pregnancy Rate ; Spermatozoa