BACKGROUND: To investigate the possibie difference, if any, between office blood pressure(BP) and home BP may be important in the diagnosis and treatment of hypersensive patients. This report deails the difference between the two BP's and the usefulness of digital electronic sphygmomanometer(DES) for self-monitoring of home BP. METHODS: The BP's of 14 patients with essential hypertension were measured with mercury sphygmomanometers at outpatient department by physician and with DES at home(twice a day) by the patients. Patients were followed up every 2 weeks for 4 weeks and previous 2 weeks' average home BP's were compared with the office BP's of each 2 weeks' end. RESULTS: There was a significant difference between office and home BP(both systolic and diastolic) ; office average BP(151/95mmHg) was higher than home average BP(136/86mmHg). CONCLUSION: Caution may be needed in the interpretation of office BP unless it is measured several times after adequate rest.
Blood Pressure* ; Diagnosis ; Humans ; Hypertension ; Outpatients ; Sphygmomanometers*

No abstract available.
Teratoma*

OBJECTIVE: Sinus pericranii (SP) is a rare vascular malformation characterized by abnormal communication between the extracranial and intracranial venous systems, usually involving the superior sagittal sinus (SSS) and occasionally, the transverse sinus. CASE REPORT: A 28-year-old man was presented with a round, fluctuant, nonpulsatile scalp mass in the frontal area near the midline, the size of which changed, depending on his head position. Magnetic resonance imaging showed an extracranial vein extending through a bony defect in the vertex of the skull and draining into the superior portion of the sagittal sinus. RESULTS: The lesion was completely removed by surgery. The presence of vascular endothelium in the pathologic specimen suggests a congenital or spontaneous origin. CONCLUSION: SP is a rare vascular malformation that requires surgical or endovascular treatment for the prevention of life-threatening complications.
Adult ; Endothelium, Vascular ; Head ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Scalp ; Sinus Pericranii ; Skull ; Superior Sagittal Sinus ; Vascular Malformations ; Veins

No abstract available.
Blood Coagulation*

No abstract available.
Bronchiolitis* ; Humans

BACKGROUND: Although postmenopausal estrogen replacement therapy is known to reduce cardiovascular mortality, the mechanism is not clear yet. Furthermore, the effect of estrogen on vascular tonus is reportedly variable according to the animal models, vascular beds and agonists used. MATERIALS AND METHOD: Bilateral ovariectomies were performed in 12 week-old, 18 spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) and 18 normotensive Wistar-Kyoto rats (WKY). Rats were divided into three groups according to the dose of 17beta-estradiol (E 2 ) pellets implanted subcutaneously two weeks after ovariectomy: control (no implantation), low-dose (0.5 mg) and high-dose (5 mg) E 2 replacement group. Two weeks after pellet implantation, organ bath experiments were performed using descending thoracic aortae. For endothelium-dependent relaxation, acetylcholine (10(-9) -3x10(-6) M) was cumulatively added into the vessels precontracted with 10(-7) M norepinephrine (NE). For vasoconstrictor responses, cumulative concentration-contraction curves were constructed in quiescent vessels using NE (10(-9) -10(-5) M), U46619 (10(-9) -3x10(-6) M), endothelin-1 (10(-10) -10(-7) M). In addition, contraction to angiotensin II (10(-7) M) was also obtained. Serum 17beta-estradiol levels were measured by radioimmunoassay. Blood pressure was measured by tail-cuff method in some SHRs before ovariectomy and after placebo/E 2 replacement. RESULTS: Endothelium-dependent relaxation to acetylcholine was impaired in WKY treated with 5 mg E 2 (pIC 50 : control vs 5mg E 2 : 7.75+/-0.13 vs 7.27+/-0.16: n=6: p<0.05). No significant effect was noted in SHR. Contraction to angiotensin II was inhibited by low-dose E 2 in WKY and high-dose E 2 in SHR (% of the contraction to 60 mM KCl: WKY: control vs 0.5 mg E 2 : 39+/-5 vs 25+/-2: SHR: control vs 5 mg E 2 : 34+/-4 vs 22+/-2: n=6 and p<0.05 in WKY and SHR). In contrast, NE-induced contraction was enhanced by E 2 replacement (both low- and high-dose) in WKY and SHR (WKY: control vs 0.5 mg E 2 vs 5 mg E 2 : AUC: 280+/-24 vs 387+/-26 vs 374+/-25: maximal contraction: 137+/-8 vs 166+/-8 vs 162+/-3: pD 2 : 7.63+/-0.11 vs 8.17+/-0.13 vs 8.13+/-0.13: SHR: control vs 0.5 mg E 2 vs 5 mg E 2 : AUC: 265+/-17 vs 349+/-16 vs 406+/-19: maximal contraction: 152+/-6 vs 181+/-9 vs 203+/-16: pD 2 : 7.45+/-0.13 vs 7.91+/-0.08 vs 8.04+/-0.04: n=6 and p<0.05 between control and treated groups in WKY and SHR for all parameters). Contraction to U46619 was enhanced by E 2 replacement in SHR (control vs 0.5 mg E 2 : AUC: 478+/-30 vs 574+/-23: maximal contraction: 181+/-9 vs 230+/-10: n=6: p<0.05 for both parameters). Maximal contractile response to endothelin-1 was also enhanced in SHR (control vs 0.5 mg E 2 vs 5 mg E 2 : maximal contraction: 165+/-7 vs 189+/-7 vs 199+/-8: n=6 and p<0.05 between control and treated groups) but not in WKY. Blood pressure was not different between placebo and E 2- treated SHR (171+/-2 vs 174+/-4 mmHg). CONCLUSION: In WKY, chronic high-dose estrogen replacement impairs endothelium-dependent relaxation to acetylcholine.: low-dose estrogen replacement does not affect endothelium-dependent relaxation in SHR and WKY. Estrogen replacement enhances the contraction to most of the contractile agonists tested except angiotensin II in both WKY and SHR. These results suggest that estrogen replacement affect the vascular tonus differently according to the vasoactive substances and/or hormones without significant effect on blood pressure.
15-Hydroxy-11 alpha,9 alpha-(epoxymethano)prosta-5,13-dienoic Acid ; Acetylcholine ; Angiotensin II ; Animals ; Aorta, Thoracic ; Area Under Curve ; Baths ; Blood Pressure ; Endothelin-1 ; Estrogen Replacement Therapy* ; Estrogens* ; Female ; Models, Animal ; Mortality ; Norepinephrine ; Ovariectomy ; Radioimmunoassay ; Rats ; Rats, Inbred SHR* ; Relaxation

No abstract available.
Coronary Sinus*

No abstract available.
Infant, Newborn ; Meconium Aspiration Syndrome* ; Meconium* ; Mortality ; Suction*

PURPOSE: This study was done to examine the incidence of pressure ulcers and associated factors, by inspecting the skin of newborn babies in a newborn unit or newborn intensive care unit (NICU). METHODS: The participants were 101 newborn babies in either a newborn unit or NICU in D general hospital. The incidence of pressure ulcer was measured using the skin inspection tool for pressure ulcer, suggested by Agency for Health Care Policy and Research. RESULTS: Incidence rate of pressure ulcer was 19.8%, and 80% of the newborns with pressure ulcers were premature babies. The commonest region of onset was the ear (36.8%), followed by the foot (31.6%), occipital region (15.8%) and knee (15.8%). Those are the regions related to external medical devices like nasal Continuous Positive Airway Pressure and Pulse Oximetry. Factors related to pressure ulcers were gestational period of 37 weeks or less, hospitalization for 7 days or more, birth weight under 2,500 g and a low level of serum albumin. CONCLUSION: The results of the study show that the skin and underlying tissues of premature infants is at risk for pressure-related skin breakdown. As most pressure ulcers are caused by medical devices, nursing interventions are required to prevent further aggravation of the lesions.
Birth Weight ; Continuous Positive Airway Pressure ; Delivery of Health Care ; Ear ; Foot ; Hospitalization ; Hospitals, General ; Humans ; Incidence ; Infant, Newborn ; Infant, Premature ; Intensive Care Units ; Knee ; Nursing Care ; Oximetry ; Pressure Ulcer ; Skin ; Child Health

BACKGROUND: It is well known that systemic blood pressure oscillates with low(0.04~0.1Hz), mid(0.1~0.15Hz), and high(respiratory) frequency range. But there has been no study about oscillation of pulmonary artery pressure(PAP). METHOD: We measured PAP for 5 minutes in 32 patients of ventricular septal defect and stored them to computer files. Power spectral density curve was obtained. Low, mid, respiratory frequency power were measured by integrating the area within each frequency range below the power density curve. RESULT: The incidence of significant low frequency power(more than 5% of total power) were higher in patients of high PAP and hign Rp/Rs than those of low PAP and Rp/Rs(p<0.01 and p<0.005 respectively). The low frequency power positively correlates with PAP and Rp/Rs(r=0.62, p<0.0005 and r=0.61, p=0.0005 respectively). CONCLUSION: It can be said conclusively that as PAP and pulmonary vascular resistance elevates, the PAP tends to definitively oscillate in low frequency range.
Blood Pressure ; Heart Septal Defects, Ventricular ; Humans ; Incidence ; Pulmonary Artery* ; Vascular Resistance