BACKGROUND: The changes of serum TNF-alpha, sTNFR, sIL-2R and sICAM-1 levels have been recently reported in some cancer patients but the clinical significance of these cytokines is not clearly established. To define the changes and clinical significance of these cytokines in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), serum levels of TNF- alpha, sTNFR, sIL-2R and sICAM-1 were measured. METHODS: The serum levels of TNF-alpha, sTNFR, sIL-2R and sICAM-1 were measured before and after transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) by enzyme immunoassay in 20 patients with HCC and 10 adult healthy subjects as controls. These patients were divided into two groups, no response (NR, 14 cases) and partial response (PR, 6 cases) on the basis of changes of tumor size, new growth foci on the ultrasonographic or CT findings, and serum levels of alpha-fetoprotein. RESULTS: Serum levels of TNF-alpha, sTNFR, sIft-2R and sICAM-1 were significantly higher in all patients with HCC than in those of adult healthy controls (p<0.01). Serum levels of TNF-alpha after TACE tended in to be higher in comparison with those before TACE in the NR group (p<0.1), but those were not significantly different between before and after TACE in the PR group. Serum levels of sTNFR, sIL-2R and sICAM-1 were not significantly different between after and before TACE in both groups. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that serum levels of TNF-alpha, sTNFR, sIL-2R and sICAM:-1 in patients with HCC before therapy are significantly increased, compared with those of the control group, and the measurement of serum TNF-alpha levels may become useful in the diagnosis and monitoring of hepatocellular carcinoma in the future.
Adult ; alpha-Fetoproteins ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular* ; Cytokines ; Diagnosis ; Humans ; Immunoenzyme Techniques ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha*

BACKGROUND: The changes of serum TNF-alpha, sTNFR, sIL-2R and sICAM-1 levels have been recently reported in some cancer patients but the clinical significance of these cytokines is not clearly established. To define the changes and clinical significance of these cytokines in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), serum levels of TNF- alpha, sTNFR, sIL-2R and sICAM-1 were measured. METHODS: The serum levels of TNF-alpha, sTNFR, sIL-2R and sICAM-1 were measured before and after transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) by enzyme immunoassay in 20 patients with HCC and 10 adult healthy subjects as controls. These patients were divided into two groups, no response (NR, 14 cases) and partial response (PR, 6 cases) on the basis of changes of tumor size, new growth foci on the ultrasonographic or CT findings, and serum levels of alpha-fetoprotein. RESULTS: Serum levels of TNF-alpha, sTNFR, sIft-2R and sICAM-1 were significantly higher in all patients with HCC than in those of adult healthy controls (p<0.01). Serum levels of TNF-alpha after TACE tended in to be higher in comparison with those before TACE in the NR group (p<0.1), but those were not significantly different between before and after TACE in the PR group. Serum levels of sTNFR, sIL-2R and sICAM-1 were not significantly different between after and before TACE in both groups. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that serum levels of TNF-alpha, sTNFR, sIL-2R and sICAM:-1 in patients with HCC before therapy are significantly increased, compared with those of the control group, and the measurement of serum TNF-alpha levels may become useful in the diagnosis and monitoring of hepatocellular carcinoma in the future.
Adult ; alpha-Fetoproteins ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular* ; Cytokines ; Diagnosis ; Humans ; Immunoenzyme Techniques ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha*

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to identify the influencing factors on postpartum fatigue in the parturient women. METHODS: The data were collected from July to September, 2006 using self-report questionnaires. The sample was 143 healthy parturient women who visited the outpatient clinic at 2 hospitals for a routine follow up after childbirth. The data were analyzed by using SPSS 12.0 Win program. RESULTS: There were significant differences in the postpartum fatigue by age, religion, sleep hour, and complaint of perceived health problem. The postpartum fatigue were significantly correlated with infant care stress(p<0.001), sleep satisfaction(p<0.001), and feeding difficulty(p=0.016). The multiple regression analysis showed that the postpartum fatigue were significantly predicted by the infant care stress, sleep satisfaction and complaint of perceived health problem. These variables explained 31.8% of the variance of postpartum fatigue. The infant care stress was the main predictor of postpartum fatigue. CONCLUSIONS: It could be concluded that the nursing intervention for reducing the infant care stress should be developed to manage the postpartum fatigue for parturient women. Prospective studies are needed to be conducted to verify the causal relationship between infant care stress and postpartum fatigue.
Ambulatory Care Facilities ; Fatigue* ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Infant ; Infant Care ; Nursing ; Parturition ; Postpartum Period* ; Surveys and Questionnaires

No abstract available.
Humans ; T-Lymphocyte Subsets*

BACKGROUND: Surgical endarterectomy had been known to be the standard treatment modality in management of carotid stenosis. However, endarterectomy had several limitations in high-risk patients, particulary with coronary artery disease. Carotid angioplasty and stenting has been suggested to be a safer and more cost-effective alternative to carotid endarterectomy in the management of symptomatic carotid artery disease. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the feasibility and safety of elective carotid artery stent implantation in patients with carotid artery stenosis. METHOD: We treated 19 patients with symptomatic and asymptomatic stenosis of >60% in 19 carotid arteries with balloon angioplasty followed by elective stent implantation. Of all carotid stenting procedures, 18 stents were implanted in obstructing atherosclerotic plaques and in one for Takayasu's arteritis. Of all patients, 10 patients were symptomatic with a history of stroke or transient ischemic attacks which were ipsilateral to the treated carotid artery. 12 patients represented a high-risk subset with myocardial infarction, previous coronary artery bypass graft and coronary artery stenosis. 6 months follow up angiogram was done in 7 patients, a patient(Takayasu's arteritis) showed restenosis. Result: Angiographic and procedural success rate were 100%, and there were no acute or subacute stent thrombosis. Immediately after initial carotid stenting, the mean(+/-SD) stenosis was reduced from 74.9+/-13.6% to 10.2+/-8.7% and the minimal luminal diameter was increased from 1.4+/-0.8mm to 5.3+/-1.0mm corresponding to an acute gain of 3.9mm. There were no major or minor stokes during follow-up. CONCLUSION: Percutaneous carotid angioplasty with stenting is a safe and feasible procedure. It is associated with high immediate success rates and relatively low complications in the management of carotid artery stenosis. Carotid stenting seems to be a reasonable alternatives to medical management for the treatment of carotid stenosis in patients deemed to be poor candidates for standard carotid endarterectomy.
Angioplasty ; Angioplasty, Balloon ; Carotid Arteries* ; Carotid Artery Diseases ; Carotid Stenosis* ; Constriction, Pathologic ; Coronary Artery Bypass ; Coronary Artery Disease ; Coronary Stenosis ; Endarterectomy ; Endarterectomy, Carotid ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Ischemic Attack, Transient ; Myocardial Infarction ; Phenobarbital ; Plaque, Atherosclerotic ; Stents* ; Stroke ; Takayasu Arteritis ; Thrombosis ; Transplants

No abstract available.
Humans ; Liver Cirrhosis* ; Liver* ; Sepsis* ; Vibrio cholerae* ; Vibrio*

PURPOSE: A study of university students was conducted to explore their prejudice toward AIDS, social interaction with AIDS patients, and intention to practice AIDS preventive measures. METHOD: This study used a cross-sectional descriptive survey design. A self-reported questionnaire was completed by 145 university students. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, t-test, and ANOVA with SPSS 11.5. RESULT: The mean score for prejudice toward AIDS was 23.54, implying a low level of prejudice toward AIDS by the subjects. The mean score for social interaction with AIDS patients was 20.92, indicating a moderate level of intention for social interaction with AIDS patients. The mean score for intention to practice AIDS prevention was 24,74, assuming a strong intention to practice AIDS prevention. Those who had higher mean scores for AIDS Knowledge showed significantly higher mean scores for social interaction with AIDS patients and intention to practice prevention than those who had lower scores. CONCLUSION: Research findings showed that university students had a low level of prejudice toward AIDS, a moderate level of social interaction with AIDS patients and a high level of intention to practice AIDS prevention. Therefore, a specially designed AIDS education program is needed for university students so as not to provoke fear or stigma toward AIDS patients and to support AIDS patients.
Education ; Humans ; Intention* ; Interpersonal Relations* ; Prejudice* ; Questionnaires

Arthroscopic shoulder surgery has become a common and routine procedure because it provides several advantages for the diagnosis and therapy of shoulder injuries. However, shoulder arthroscopy is not a technique that's void of complications. We describe here a unique case of a patient who experienced pleural effusion caused by extravasation of irrigation fluid during arthroscopic shoulder surgery, and this surgery was done under general anesthesia.
Anesthesia, General ; Arthroscopy ; Humans ; Pleural Effusion ; Shoulder

Ulcerative colitis is a chronic relapsing inflammatory disease of the colonic and rectal mucosa, which affects children as well as adults. Inflammation caused by ulcerative colitis is limited to the colon and rectum, to the mucosa and submucosa, and is involved continuously, with varying degrees of ulceration, hemorrhage, edema, and regenerating epithelium. Ulcerative colitis most commonly presents with the onset of diarrhea, later associated with hematochezia, but usually without systemic signs of fever, weight loss, or hypoalbuminemia. Approximately 30% of cases have moderate signs of systemic illness. Although less commonly seen than in Crohn's disease, the first sign of ulcerative colitis may be growth failure characterized by decreased linear growth velocity. We experienced a case of ulcerative colitis with growth disturbance and treated with sulfasalazine. During follow up for a year, the symptoms subsided, and the height and weight increased.
Adult ; Child ; Colitis, Ulcerative* ; Colon ; Crohn Disease ; Diarrhea ; Edema ; Epithelium ; Fever ; Follow-Up Studies ; Gastrointestinal Hemorrhage ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Hypoalbuminemia ; Inflammation ; Mucous Membrane ; Rectum ; Sulfasalazine ; Ulcer* ; Weight Loss

No abstract available.
Hepacivirus* ; Hepatitis C* ; Hepatitis* ; Humans