Hamartoma is a very rare congenital tumor. A few cases of hamartomatous pol yps in the stomach were reported. Most of harrurtomatous polyps in the stomach occur in patients of polyposis coli. We have experienced four cases of gastric hamartomatous polyps without polyposis coli. There are some differences between previously reported cases and ours. In our casee, the distribution of age is from fourth to ninth decade, men and women ratio is 1: 1. The number of polyps are one in three cases and two in one case. The size of polyps is from 5mm to 12 mm. The location of polyps are various, but most common in antrum. We have experienced four cases which were different from previously reported ones and report them with a brief review of literatures.
Adenomatous Polyposis Coli* ; Female ; Hamartoma ; Humans ; Male ; Polyps* ; Stomach

Hamartoma is a very rare congenital tumor. A few cases of hamartomatous pol yps in the stomach were reported. Most of harrurtomatous polyps in the stomach occur in patients of polyposis coli. We have experienced four cases of gastric hamartomatous polyps without polyposis coli. There are some differences between previously reported cases and ours. In our casee, the distribution of age is from fourth to ninth decade, men and women ratio is 1: 1. The number of polyps are one in three cases and two in one case. The size of polyps is from 5mm to 12 mm. The location of polyps are various, but most common in antrum. We have experienced four cases which were different from previously reported ones and report them with a brief review of literatures.
Adenomatous Polyposis Coli* ; Female ; Hamartoma ; Humans ; Male ; Polyps* ; Stomach

BACKGROUND: Patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) is effectively used for postoperative pain control. Fentanyl has a strong analgesic effect but has some side effects. The purpose of this study was to compare the side effects and analgesic effects of fentanyl alone and combination with nalbuphine in patients using intravenous PCA. METHODS: Forty six ASA class 1 or 2 patients were randomly divided into two groups. Group F (n = 23) received fentanyl 1,200microgram in 100 ml of normal saline. Group NF (n = 23) received nalbupine 60 mg and fentanyl 600microgram in 100 ml of normal saline. All patients used the same background infusion rate (2 ml/hr), bolus dose (2 ml) and lockout interval (15 min) just after emergence from general anesthesia. The analgesic effect was evaluated by using a visual analogue scale (VAS) at 1 hr, 6 hr, 12 hr, 24 hr and 48 hr postoperatively. Side effects and satisfaction degree were also checked. RESULTS: No significant differences were observed between the two groups in terms of pain scores and satisfaction degrees. The side effects were similar in both groups except that sedation was significantly (P<0.05) lower in group NF. CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that nalbuphine with fentanyl in combination is a useful method for intravenous PCA. On comparing the incidence of side effects in the two groups, sedation was found to be lower for the combined regimen.
Analgesia* ; Analgesia, Patient-Controlled ; Anesthesia, General ; Fentanyl* ; Humans ; Incidence ; Nalbuphine ; Pain, Postoperative ; Passive Cutaneous Anaphylaxis ; Postoperative Complications

BACKGROUND: Extracellular K+ concentration ([K+]o) can be increased within several mM by the efflux of intracellular K+. To investigate the effect of an increase in [K+]o on vascular contractility, we attempted to examine whether extracellular K+ might modulate vascular contractility, endothelium-dependent relaxation (EDR) and intracellular Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]i) in endothelial cells (EC). MATERIAL AND METHOD: We observed isometric contractions in rabbit carotid, superior mesentery, basilar arteries and mouse aorta. [Ca2+]i was recorded by microfluorimeter using Fura-2/AM in EC. RESULT: No change in contractility was recorded by the increase in [K+]o from 6 to 12 mM in conduit artery such as rabbit carotid artery. whereas resistant vessels, such as basilar and branches of superior mesenteric arteries (SMA), were relaxed by the increase. In basilar artery, the relaxation by the increase in [K+]o from 1 to 3 mM was bigger than that by the increase from 6 to 12 mM. In contrast, in branches of SMA, the relaxation by the increase in [K+]o from 6 to 12 mM is bigger than that by the increase from 1 to 3 mM. Ba2 (30microM) did not inhibit the relaxation by the increase in [K+]o from 1 to 3 mM but did inhibit the relaxation by the increase from 6 to 12 mM. In the mouse aorta without the endothelium or treated with NG-nitro-L-arginine (30microM), nitric oxide synthesis blocker, the increase in [K+]o from 6 to 12 mM did not change the magnitude of contraction induced either norepinephrine or prostaglandin F2alpha. The increase in [K+]o up to 12 mM did not induce contraction of mouse aorta but the increase more than 12 mM induced contraction. In the mouse aorta, EDR was completely inhibited on increasing [K+]o from 6 to 12 mM. In cultured mouse aorta EC, [Ca2+]i was increased by acetylcholine or ATP application and the increased [Ca2+]i was reduced by the increase in [K+]o reversibly and concentration-dependently. In human umbilical vein EC, similar effect of extracellular K+ was observed. Ouabain, a Na+-K+ pump blocker, and Ni2 , a Na+-Ca2+ exchanger blocker, reversed the inhibitory effect of extracellular K+. CONCLUSION: In resistant arteries, the increase in [K+]o relaxes vascular smooth muscle and the underlying mechanisms differ according to the kinds of the arteries; Ba2 -insensitive mechanism in basilar artery and Ba2 -sensitive one in branches of SMA. It also inhibits [Ca2+]i increase in EC and thereby EDR. The initial mechanism of the inhibition may be due to the activation of Na+-K+ pump.
Acetylcholine ; Adenosine Triphosphate ; Animals ; Aorta ; Arteries ; Basilar Artery ; Calcium ; Carotid Arteries ; Dinoprost ; Endothelial Cells ; Endothelium ; Endothelium-Dependent Relaxing Factors ; Humans ; Isometric Contraction ; Mesenteric Artery, Superior ; Mesentery ; Mice ; Muscle, Smooth, Vascular* ; Nitric Oxide ; Nitroarginine ; Norepinephrine ; Ouabain ; Potassium ; Relaxation* ; Umbilical Veins ; Vasodilation

Foeniculum vulgare Mill. (fennel) is used to flavor food, in cosmetics, as an antioxidant, and to treat microbial, diabetic and common inflammation. No study to date, however, has assessed the anti-inflammatory effects of fennel in experimental models of inflammation. The aims of this study were to investigate the anti-inflammatory effects of fennel in model of lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced acute lung injury. Mice were randomly assigned to seven groups (n=7~10). In five groups, the mice were intraperitoneally injected with 1% Tween 80-saline (vehicle), fennel (125, 250, 500micro l/kg), or dexamethasone (1 mg/kg), followed 1 h later by intratracheal instillation of LPS (1.5 mg/kg). In two groups, the mice were intraperitoneally injected with vehicle or fennel (250microl/kg), followed 1 h later by intratracheal instillation of sterile saline. Mice were sacrificed 4 h later, and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) and lung tissues were obtained. Fennel significantly and dose-dependently reduced LDH activity and immune cell numbers in LPS treated mice. In addition fennel effectively suppressed the LPS-induced increases in the production of the inflammatory cytokines interleukin-6 and tumor necrosis factor-alpha, with 500microl/kg fennel showing maximal reduction. Fennel also significantly and dose-dependently reduced the activity of the proinflammatory mediator matrix metalloproteinase 9 and the immune modulator nitric oxide (NO). Assessments of the involvement of the MAPK signaling pathway showed that fennel significantly decreased the LPS-induced phosphorylation of ERK. Fennel effectively blocked the inflammatory processes induced by LPS, by regulating pro-inflammatory cytokine production, transcription factors, and NO.
Acute Lung Injury* ; Animals ; Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid ; Cell Count ; Cytokines ; Dexamethasone ; Foeniculum* ; Inflammation ; Interleukin-6 ; Lung ; Matrix Metalloproteinase 9 ; Mice* ; Models, Theoretical ; NF-kappa B* ; Nitric Oxide ; Phosphorylation ; Transcription Factors ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha

A 50-year-old woman, who had been treated for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) over a 10-year period, suddenly presented with monocular vision loss while the RA had a stable course over many years. She was diagnosed with central retinal artery occlusion (CRAO) based on ophthalmologic examinations including optical coherence tomography and fluorescein angiography. There was no evidence of atherosclerosis, infection, and malignancy that can cause CRAO. Considering the association between CRAO and other rheumatic diseases, such as systemic vasculitis and systemic lupus erythematous in previous reports, it was presumed that her RA might have contributed to the development of CRAO. Although cases of CRAO in patients with RA are extremely rare, these findings suggest that physicians need to be aware of the possibility of CRAO in patients with RA who experience decreased visual acuity.
Arthritis, Rheumatoid* ; Atherosclerosis ; Female ; Fluorescein Angiography ; Humans ; Middle Aged ; Retinal Artery Occlusion* ; Retinal Artery* ; Rheumatic Diseases ; Systemic Vasculitis ; Tomography, Optical Coherence ; Vision, Monocular ; Visual Acuity

BACKGROUND: Previous studies suggest that systemic administration of agmatine, endogenous ligand for imidazoline receptors has anti-hypernociceptive effects in experimental animal. However the peripheral effects of agmatine on inflammatory pain have not yet been elucidated. Here we examined the effects of intra-articular injection of agmatine in the induction and maintenance phase of arthritic pain. In addition, we sought to determine the potential contribution of imidazoline and alpha(2)-adrenergic receptors to the antinociceptive effects using clonidine which is mixed alpha(2)-adrenoceptor and imidazoline receptor agonist. METHODS: To induce arthritis in rats, 2% lambda-carrageenan (50microliter, in saline) was injected into the joint of the right hind limb under enflurane anesthesia. Either agmatine (10, 50, 100microgram/40microliter) or clonidine (10, 50, 100microgram/40microliter) was injected into the knee joint cavity immediately before or 4 hr after carrageenan injection. Weight load tests were performed to measure pain-related behavior in freely walking rats. RESULTS: The intraarticular injection of agmatine into the knee joint had no effects in the both phase of induction and maintenance of arthritic pain at any dose tested. However, injection of clonidine reversed arthritic pain, when injected 4 h after carrageenan injection. CONCLUSIONS: In rats, agmatine has no peripheral effect on inflammatory pain and imidazoline receptors in the periphery may not contribute to the anti-inflammatory pain.
Agmatine ; Anesthesia ; Animals ; Arthritis ; Carrageenan ; Clonidine ; Enflurane ; Extremities ; Imidazoline Receptors ; Inflammation ; Injections, Intra-Articular ; Joints ; Knee ; Knee Joint ; Rats ; Walking

An imported case of Kala-azar in a 26-year-old Korean man is reported. The diagnosis was made by liver needle biopsy. Amastigotes were seen in Kupffer cells under light microscope, and their characteristic ultrastructural features were recognized under the electron microscope. This case represents an imported disease from Saudi Arabia where the patient spent one year as a construction worker, 8 months before the onset of the disease. This report also signifies the second description of Kala-azar in Korea, and the first case of Kala-azar imported from Saudi Arabia. This patient was successfully treated with sodium antimony gluconate (Pentostam), and follow up liver biopsy showed focal fibrous scar and otherwise normal liver without demonstrable organism.
parasitology ; protozoa ; Kala-azar ; Leishmania donovani ; case report ; Saudi Arabia ; electronmicroscopy

BACKGROUND: The essential oil of Ocimum basilicum (EOOB) has a pleasant aroma and is known to have antimicrobial and insecticidal activities. In addition, it is used as a pain reliever in folk medicine. However, there are few reports on the antinociceptive activities of EOOB. METHODS: This study examined the antinociceptive effects of EOOB using formalin and a plantar test in mice. In the formalin test, EOOB (50 mg/kg, 100 mg/kg, 150 mg/kg) was administered intraperitoneally and the licking time of the mice was measured. In the plantar test, intraperitoneal EOOB (50 mg/kg, 100 mg/kg) was administered and the withdrawal latency was measured using the Hargreaves method. RESULTS: In the formalin test, EOOB (50 mg/kg, IP) showed significant decreases in licking time in the second phase. On the other hand, in the plantar test, there were no significant effects in any of the groups examined. CONCLUSIONS: These results support the traditional use of EOOB for the treatment of painful conditions. However, there is a need for more research to determine the active chemical constituents and the precise mechanism.
Animals ; Formaldehyde ; Hand ; Medicine, Traditional ; Mice ; Ocimum ; Ocimum basilicum ; Pain Measurement

BACKGROUND: The efficacy of sumatriptan(SMN) in acute management of migrane has been well established. In Korea, however, a clinical study comparing the utility of oral(PO) and subcutaneous(SQ) regimen had not been conducted yet. This study was directed to compare the two regimens of SMN in terms of the efficacy as well as the adverse events in a singed-out Korea patient group. METHODS: The 91 migrane patients were recruited and randomly assigned to either PO or SQ regimen as the initial treatment of acute migrane attack. Then, they were forwarded to the other regimen as an open cross-over trial. The treatment responses and adverse events were assessed and rated by the subjects. RESULTS: Eighty one patient successfully tried at least one regimen of SMN. Overall, the proportion of excellent treatment response was 90.7%(PO) and 94.1%(SQ), with the occurrence of adverse events being 67.4%(PO) and 76.5%(SQ) respectively. In 18 patients who were able to complete cross-over procedure, the efficacy was 94.4% both in PO and SQ regimen, with the occurrence of adverse events 72.2% in both of two regimen. Although the SQ regimen tends to induce faster treatment response regardless of the cross-over completion, it bears no statistical significance. CONCLUSION: We conclude that the PO and SQ regimens of SMN show very comparable clinical utility in achieving therapeutic responses as well as in producing adverse events. The treatment efficacy was excellent but higher occurrence of side effects in this study, although mostly in mild degree, suggests that optimal dose adjustment strategy needs to be elaborated in Korea.
Humans ; Korea ; Migraine Disorders* ; Sumatriptan* ; Treatment Outcome