Twenty newly admitted acute schizophrenic patients were treated with haloperidol for 6 weeks. HVA and 5-HIAA were sampled at baseline, 3days after initial neuroleptic dose, and after 1, 2, 3, 4, 6 weeks of treatment. Nine patients were classified as responders in this prospective haloperidol treatment trial. They had a score of change in the BPRS total scores of 25% or greater. Eleven patients were classified as nonresponders, based on a score of changes in the BPRS total scores of less than 25%. 1) There was no significant difference in plasma HVA/5-HIAA ratio between responder and non-responder before and after haloperidol treatment. 2) There was no significant correlations between plasma HVA/5-HIAA ratio and BPRS total scores. This study could not support the hypothesis that neuroleptic treatment would be effective by changing dopamine and serotonin function and/or by altering their interaction.
Dopamine ; Haloperidol ; Humans ; Hydroxyindoleacetic Acid ; Plasma* ; Prospective Studies ; Schizophrenia* ; Serotonin

No abstract available.

No abstract available.
Diagnosis*

Familial juvenile polyposis is a rare intestinal polyposis characterized by the occurrence of multiple juvenile polyps in the gastrointestinal tract. We report a case of familial juvenile polyposis in a 17-year-old man with a review of the literature. This patient underwent total colectomy due to a 6 years history of rectal bleeding. Grossly, the colon showed 36 variable sized pedunculated polyps, measuring 2.5cm x 2cm from the largest size and 0.2cm x 0.2cm to the smallest size. Histologically, the polyps consisted of cystically dilated glands, lined by normal colonic epithelial cells, scattered in loose, edematous stroma containing inflammatory cell infiltration. There were no areas of tubular adenoma or malignancy in any of the polyp.
Adenoma ; Adolescent ; Colectomy ; Colon ; Epithelial Cells ; Gastrointestinal Tract ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Intestinal Polyposis ; Polyps

Intravesical Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) therapy is an effective immunotherapy used for the treatment and prophylaxis of superficial bladder cancer. The mechanism through which BCG exerts its antitumor activity is not fully understood. However, several studies suggest that antitumor mechanism of BCG is associated with T-cell mediated immunity and lymphokines. In this report, the detection of IL-2(a lymphokine produced in response to BCG) in urine and serum specimens of patients treated with intravesical BCG is reported. Urine specimens of 10 superficial bladder cancers were obtained prior to BCG instillation, 4, 8, and 24 hours afterwards. Serum specimens of same patients were obtained before and 8 hours after BCG instillation. No change of serum IL-2 before and after BCG instillation were observed. Urinary IL-2 production increased significantly 4 and 8 hours (p<0.05) and decreased 24 hours after BCG instillation. Urinary IL-2 levels 24 hours after BCG instillation were similar to baseline values. Between urinary IL-2 of healthy men and cystitis patients were similar. These results suggest that BCG induce IL-2 production with highest level at 4 hours after BCG instillation and IL_2 might play a important role in antitumor mechanism of BCG. However, further studies are necessary to elucidate the antitumor mechanism of BCG.
Bacillus ; Cystitis ; Humans ; Immunotherapy ; Interleukin-2* ; Interleukins* ; Lymphokines ; Male ; Mycobacterium bovis* ; T-Lymphocytes ; Urinary Bladder Neoplasms* ; Urinary Bladder*

OBJECTIVE: Many diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) studies of the corpus callosum (CC) have been performed with a relatively thick slice thickness in the axial plane, which may result in underestimating the fractional anisotropy (FA) of the CC due to a partial volume effect. We hypothesized that the FA of the CC can be more accurately measured by using mid-sagittal DTI. We compared the FA values of the CC between the axial and mid-sagittal DTI. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Fourteen healthy volunteers underwent MRI at 3.0 T. DTI was performed in both the mid-sagittal and axial planes. One 5-mm mid-sagittal image and twenty-five 2-mm axial images were obtained for the CC. The five regions of interest (ROIs) that included the prefrontal (I), premotor and supplementary motor (II), motor (III), sensory (IV) and parietal, temporal and occipital regions (V) were drawn along the border of the CC on each sagittal FA map. The FA values obtained from each region were compared between the two sagittal maps. RESULTS: The FA values of all the regions, except for region V, were significantly increased on the mid-sagittal imaging. The FA values in region IV were significantly underestimated on the mid-sagittal image from the axial imaging, compared with those in the regions I and V (p = 0.037 and p = 0.001, respectively). CONCLUSION: The FA values of the CC were significantly higher on the mid-sagittal DTI than those on the axial DTI in regions I-IV, and particularly in the region IV. Mid-sagittal DTI may provide more accurate FA values of the CC than can the axial DTI, and mid-sagittal DTI may be more desirable for studies that compare between patients and healthy subjects.
Adult ; Analysis of Variance ; Anisotropy ; Brain Mapping/*methods ; Corpus Callosum/*anatomy & histology ; Diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging/*methods ; Female ; Humans ; Image Processing, Computer-Assisted ; Male ; Statistics, Nonparametric

OBJECTIVE: We determined the radiographic outcome of distal radius fractures with Acu-loc volar plate. METHODS: Forty-one patients were recruited between August 2009 and September 2010. There were 10 males and 31 females, with a mean age 61.2. Fractures were radiologically classification the Frykman. Fifteen fractures were group 8, eight were group 7, ten were group 6, four were group 5 and four were group 3. Distal part of the fractures was dorsally inclined in 37 wrists and inclined to volar side in four wrists. Lateral and anteroposterior radiographs taken after operated day, the fracture were compared with radiographs of the injured wrist and the differences in palmar tilt, ulnar variance; radial height; radial shift and radial inclination were measured. RESULTS: There was significant improvement in the measurements of radial height, radial inclination, volar tilt, ulnar variance and radial shift postoperatively. The radial height improved from an average of 8.5 mm (range, 3 to 15 mm) to 11.0 mm (range, 8 to 15 mm), the radial inclination improved from an average of 21.5 degree (range, 10 to 40 degree) to 28.1 degree (range, 19 to 44 degree), the palma tilt improved from an average of 12.9 degree (range, 6 to 22 degree) to 17.2 degree (range, 7 to 27 degree), the ulnar variance improved from an average of -2.3 mm (range, -6 to 4 mm) to 1 mm (range, -3 to 7 mm) and the radial shift improved from an average of 18.7 mm (range, 15 to 26 mm) to 17.3 mm (range, 12 to 21 mm). CONCLUSION: Acu-loc volar plate is a safe and effective device.
Female ; Humans ; Male ; Radius ; Radius Fractures ; Palmar Plate ; Wrist

Sparganosis is a parasitic infestation caused by the larval stage of Spirometra erinacei. Human infection results from ingestion of raw or undercooked flesh of any of the numerous intermediate hosts and from application of such flesh as poultices. Sparganosis have been reported from orbit and bulbar conjunctiva. But, urogenital infestation of Sparganum is rarely observed. We report an additional case of the sparganum infestation in the right scrotum.
Conjunctiva ; Eating ; Humans ; Orbit ; Scrotum* ; Sparganosis* ; Sparganum ; Spirometra

The plasmepsins are the aspartic proteases of malaria parasites. Treatment of aspartic protease inhibitor inhibits hemoglobin hydrolysis and blocks the parasite development in vitro suggesting that these proteases might be exploited their potentials as antimalarial drug targets. In this study, we determined the genetic variations of the aspartic proteases of Plasmodium vivax (PvPMs) of wild isolates. Two plasmepsins (PvPM4 and PvPM5) were cloned and sequenced from 20 P. vivax Korean isolates and two imported isolates. The sequences of the enzymes were highly conserved except a small number of amino acid substitutions did not modify key residues for the function or the structure of the enzymes. The high sequence conservations between the plasmepsins from the isolates support the notion that the enzymes could be reliable targets for new antimalarial chemotherapeutics.
Amino Acid Sequence ; Animals ; Aspartic Endopeptidases/*genetics ; Base Sequence ; Cloning, Molecular ; Conserved Sequence ; DNA, Protozoan/chemistry/genetics ; Human ; Molecular Sequence Data ; Plasmodium vivax/*enzymology/genetics/isolation & purification ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Sequence Alignment ; Sequence Analysis, DNA ; Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

Crohn's disease was originally described as a small bowel disorder and has been known to involve the large bowel in approximately 40% of all cases with or without concomitant ileal component. We describe two cases of Crohn's diseas of small intestine and colon with a summary of differential diagnosis with ulcerative colitis. Both cases were originally diagnosed and treated as ileal tuberculosis. Grossly, there were skip lesions in both cases with prominent pseudopolyps and ulcerations in colon. Also noted were typical serpentine lesions in ileum as well as in colon. Microscopically, transmural inflammation was confirmed and one case showed scattered noncaseating granulomas in the wall. Submucosal edema and fibrosis with thickening of the wall was not prominent in colon. Polymerase chain reaction performed on paraffin block for the demonstration of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in one case showed negative reaction.
Colitis, Ulcerative ; Colon* ; Crohn Disease* ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Edema ; Fibrosis ; Granuloma ; Ileum ; Inflammation ; Intestine, Small* ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis ; Paraffin ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Tuberculosis ; Ulcer