No abstract available.
Animals ; Cytoskeleton* ; Epithelial Cells* ; Estrogens* ; Rats*

Previous applications of laser bone and cartilage ablation have focused largely on the CO2 and the Nd:Yag lasers, using both the continuous wave and rapid superpulsed mode, which revealed severe thermal damage such as tissue necrosis and carbonization of the remaining tissue. In contrast, Excimer lases have provided better histologic results with minimal or no thermal damage, but the ablation rate and cutting efficiency have remained unsatisfactory. Though arthroscopic partial menisectomy has become the accepted technique for dealing with tears in menisci, division of the meniscus is sometimes difficult in the confined joint space of the knee and is associated with iatrogenic injury to the articular cartilage. The ability to quickly and safely divide or remove meniscal tissue would be a distinct advantage. The Holmium:Yag laser has many potential advantages over the CO2 laster, the Nd:Yag laser and the Excimer laser. Its principal advantages include minimal mechanical trauma to the articular cartilage, greater access to tight or restricted area of the knee joint, and its ability to function in a saline medium and to resect meniscus with minimal tissue necrosis. We have evaluated the effectiveness of the Holmium:Yag laser 74 partial menisectomies of 57 patients. Among 74 meniscal tears, there were 35 medial and 39 lateral meniscal tears. The average operation time was 33 minutes in the menisectomy and hospital stay was average 3 days. There was no significant carbonization on the surrounding tissue. Menisectomy of the posterior horn was safe and easy and there was minimal iatrogenic articular cartilage damage.
Animals ; Carbon ; Cartilage ; Cartilage, Articular ; Holmium ; Horns ; Humans ; Joints ; Knee ; Knee Joint ; Lasers, Excimer ; Lasers, Solid-State ; Length of Stay ; Necrosis ; Tears

The authors experienced one case of Gronblad-Strandberg syndrome with subretinal neovascularization which showed characteristic signs of pseudoxanthoma elasticum(PXE) and angioid streak. PXE is an uncommon hereditary disorder which involves the elastic tissue of the dermis and may also involve the eye and the cardiovascular system. Angioid streaks are red or dark-brown jagged irregular lines extending in spoke like fashion toward periphery from an area of peripapillary atrophy. We report a case of Gronblad-Strandberg syndrome with subretinal neovasculari zation in a 49 year old korean female.
Angioid Streaks ; Atrophy ; Cardiovascular System ; Dermis ; Elastic Tissue ; Female ; Humans ; Middle Aged ; Pseudoxanthoma Elasticum*

To evaluate the availability of n-butyl-2-cyanoacrylate as an adhesive in limbal wound repair, we used 15 rabbits(30 eyes). A limbal incision exactly 9mm long was made and the wound of one eye was tightly closed with seven equally apaced corneoscleral sutures of 10-0 nylon(nylon group), The wound of the other eye was closed by two(6.5mm spaced, 11 and 1 o'clock) corneoscleral sutures of 8-0 vicryl and the outer surface of this limbal wound was thinly coated with a small amount of Histoacryl(Histo-acryl group). The average disrupting pressure in nylon group was 0.87 +/- 0.11 kg/cm2 and that in Histoacryl group was 0.79 +/- 0.17 kg/cm2. The average refractive change in nylon group was 2.5 diopter with-the-rule astigmatism, and that in Histoacryl group was 0.9 diopter against-the-rule astigmatism. A moderate inflammatory reaction was noted at the histopathologic findings of the wounds closed with Histoacryl 14 days after operation. From the results, post-operative inflammatory changes indicated that the Histoacryl seemed to be rather unsuitable for clinical application.
Adhesives* ; Astigmatism ; Cyanoacrylates* ; Enbucrilate ; Nylons ; Polyglactin 910* ; Rabbits* ; Sutures ; Wounds and Injuries*

No abstract available.
Child* ; Humans

No abstract available.
Female ; Humans ; Middle Aged* ; Myofibroblasts

Making a precise and ideal set-up model is an essential part in the indirect bonding procedure for lingual orthodontic treatment. To evaluate the accuracy of the making a set-up model, 22 adult patients who received lingual orthodontic treatment with 4 bicuspid extractions were selected, and 3 sets of dental models (before, set-up, and after treatment) were measured using the set-up model gauge, an instrument for measuring the inclination and angulation of the clinical crowns on the dental model. Two sets of lateral cephalograms (before and after) from each patient were also evaluated. The mean difference between the before treatment model and the set-up model was -3.93 +/- 6.98 degrees for the inclination and 1.87 +/- 5.79 degrees for the angulation. And the mean difference between the set-up model and the after treatment model was -4.31 +/- 5.91 degrees labiolingually and -2.16 +/- 3.27 degrees mesiodistally. The after treatment model differed from the before treatment model about -8.24 +/- 5.39 degrees in inclination. There were no significant difference between the measured gauge that measured from the dental model using the set-up model gauge and the calculated gauge angle measured from the lateral cephalogram using constructed points and lines. Using the set-up model gauge, it is possible to evaluate the study model 3-dimensionally in relation with the patient's lateral cephalogram and establish whether the doctor's prescription or overcorrection is built in the set-up model precisely.
Adult ; Bicuspid ; Crowns ; Dental Models ; Humans ; Prescriptions

PURPOSE: The aim of our study was to identify the CT features helpful in the differential diagnosis of Iobar consolidation. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We evaluated the CT findings in 52 consecutive patients with Iobar consolidation which were proved to be pulmonary tuberculosis(n=24), malignant obstructive pneumonitis due to bronchogenic carcinoma(n=21), and lung abscess(n=7). We retrospectively reviewed CT scans with respect to 1) number of cavities or low attenuation area suggesting necrosis(we described these as cavity), 2) the contour of cavity, 3) enhancement of the cavity wall, 4) enhancement of pleura, 5) small nodules adjacent to the consolidation, 6) similar lesion in other location in lung, 7) air-bronchogram 8) mediastinal lymph node enlargement, and 9) extrapleural change. RESULTS: The helpful CT fingings in the patients with pulmonary tuberculosis were multiple cavities(more than three;79.2%), small nodules adjacent to the Iobar consolidation(75.0%), similar lesion in another lobe or lung(91.7%), air-bronchogram(91.7%), and mediastinal lymph node enlargement(58.3%). Although extrapleural change had low sensitivity it was highly specific for pulmonary tuberculosis(sensitivity, 43.5%;specificity, 91. 7%). Multiple cavities(61.9%) and mediastinal lymph node enlargement(52.4%) were common findings of malignant obstructive pneumonitis. In the patients with lung abscess, the common findings were small number of cavities(one or two, 85.7%) and air-bronchogram(85.7%). However, other findings of pulmonary tuberculosis were rarely seen in the patients with malignant obstructive pneumonitis or lung abscess. CONCLUSION: The CT findings of Iobar consolidation may be used as useful adjuncts in the differential diagnosis of Iobar consolidation.
Diagnosis, Differential ; Humans ; Lung Abscess* ; Lung* ; Lymph Nodes ; Pleura ; Pneumonia* ; Retrospective Studies ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed ; Tuberculosis* ; Tuberculosis, Pulmonary

No abstract available.
Arteriovenous Fistula*

From February 1996 to May 1997, 18 patients underwent mitral valve repair for mitral regurgitation. There were 9 male and 9 female patients aged from 19 to 68 years (mean, 53). Thirteen patients were in New York Heart Association (NYHA) class III and IV. The cause of mitral regurgitation was degenerative in 12 patients, rheumatic in 5 patients and infective in 1 patient. Fifteen patients were in Carpentier's functional classification II, 2 patients in Carpentier's class III and 1 patient in Carpentier's class I. Surgical procedures included prosthetic ring annuloplasty (16 cases), rectangular resection of posterior leaflet (15 cases), chordal shortening (5 cases), triangular resection of anterior leaflet (2 cases), commissurotomy (2 cases), partial transposition of posterior leaflet (1 case). These procedures were combined in most patients. There was no operative death. These patients have been followed from 1 to 15 months, mean of 6.7 months. There was one late death resulted from low cardiac output following mitral valve replacement. The function of the repaired valve in other 17 patients has remained satisfactory during the observed interval. We consider that mitral valve repair is highly satisfactory in patients with mitral regurgitation.
Cardiac Output, Low ; Classification ; Female ; Heart ; Humans ; Male ; Mitral Valve Insufficiency* ; Mitral Valve*