OBJECTIVE: A polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was developed in the detection of Chlamydia(C) trachomatis, Mycoplasma(M) hominis and Ureaplasma(U) urealyticum, which have been common causes of sexual transmitted diseases in the female genital tracts and in neonatal infection. To investigate tbe frequency of these organisms in the female genital tract infection and to know any association of these infections with clinical manifestations, PCR was performed. METHODS: PCR was performed in 300 cases of vaginal swabs and 154 paraffin embedded tissues including 50 cases of chronic endometritis, 50 cases of cleonic salpingitis, 50 cases of ectopic tubal pregnancy and 4 cases of normal endometrium. RESULTS: Among 300 cases of vaginal swabs, C. trachomatis, M. hominis and U. urealyticum were detected in 1.3%, 4.0%, and 29.6%, respectively. Mixed infection was found in 12.0%. the overall positive rate was 47.0%. The cytologic features from C. trachomatis, M. hominis and U. urealyticum positive patients revealed no specific findings. The clinical manifestations between positive and negative cases for these organisms had no differences. In tissue samples, only C. trachomatis was detected 2% of chronic endometritis, 8% of chronic salpingitis and 4% of ectopic tubal pregnancy. CONCLUSION: With the above results, it suggests C. trachomatis can evoke an ascending chronic infection of the female genital tracts and ectopic tubal pegnancy,
Chlamydia trachomatis* ; Chlamydia* ; Coinfection ; Endometritis ; Endometrium ; Female* ; Humans ; Mycoplasma hominis* ; Mycoplasma* ; Paraffin* ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Pregnancy ; Pregnancy, Tubal ; Reproductive Tract Infections* ; Salpingitis ; Ureaplasma urealyticum* ; Ureaplasma*

Control of tuberculosis is threatened by widesread emergence of drug resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Rifampin is a key component among therapeutic regimens for the tuberculosis; therefore patients in whom resistance to this drug develop have a poor outlook, particularly if rifampin resistance is associated with resistance to other tuberculosis drugs. The purpose of this study was to detect the mutation in rpoB gene of rifampin resistant M. tuberculosis in Korea and to evaluate the usefulness of the method in clinical aspects. A sample of 80 M. tuberculosis was studied, and it included 40 rifampin resistance isolates and 40 rifampin sensitive isolates by conventional methods. The detection method involved the amplification by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) of the Rif' region and the identification of mutations by single-strand DNA conformation polymorphism analysis (SSCP) of the amplification products (157 bp). Mutation were identified in 39 of 40 rifampin resistant isolates, and in 1 of 40 rifampin sensitive isolates.
Humans ; Korea ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis* ; Mycobacterium* ; Nucleic Acid Conformation ; Polymerase Chain Reaction* ; Rifampin ; Tuberculosis

Control of tuberculosis is threatened by widespread emergence of drug resistance in Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Understanding the molecular basis of resistance might lead to development of novel rapid methods for diagnosing drug resistance. Rifampin is a key component among therapeutic regimens for the tuberculosis; therefore, patients who have drug resistance do not convalesce satisfactorily. The molecular mechanism of resistance to rifampin in M. tuberulosis has been elucidated. Substitutions of a limited number of highly conserved amino acids encoded by the rpoB gene are responsible for the ""single-step"" high-level resistance of M. tuberculosis to rifampin. Currently, two genotype-based protocols allow drug test from minimally grown cultured materials: (i)mutation identification by direct sequencing of PCR-amplified material. and (ii)mutation screening by PCR-SSCP. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the usefulness of the both methods. A sample of 75 isolates of M. tuberculosis was studied, and it inculded 36 rifampin-resistant strains and 39 rifampin-sensitive strains by conventional methods. Mutaions were identified in 36 rifampin-resistant isolates but in none of 39 sensitive isolates. All mutations were clustered within a region of 23 amino acids. Both methods allow detection of rifampin resistance in 2 to 3 days and will thus help in the early management of infection by M. tuberculosis.
Amino Acids ; Drug Resistance ; Humans ; Mass Screening ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis* ; Mycobacterium* ; Rifampin ; Tuberculosis

We investigated the role of the tumor suppressor genes in the germ cell tumor. Immunohistochemistry (IHC) and polymerase chain reaction-single strand conformational polymorphism (PCR-SSCP) for p53 mutation were done in 46 cases of the germ cell tumor with paraffin embedded tissue. The immunohistochemical staining for Rb protein was also performed in the same specimens. The following results were obtained. The overexpression of the p53 protein was detected in 7 of 46 cases (15%). p53 mutation by PCR-SSCP was detected in 1 of 46 cases (2.2%). Expression of Rb protein was negative in 19 cases (41%). These results suggest that p53 mutation does not play an important role in the initiation and progression of germ cell tumors.
Genes, Tumor Suppressor ; Germ Cells* ; Immunohistochemistry ; Neoplasms, Germ Cell and Embryonal* ; Paraffin ; Retinoblastoma Protein*

No abstract available.
Rupture* ; Subclavian Artery*

The purposes of this study were to identify the significance of a nutrition teacher, to analyze the importance of competence as a nutrition teacher and to evaluate the importance and difficulty for duties of nutrition teachers. The questionnaire was distributed to 554 preliminary teachers and a total of 468 usable data were collected with 84.5% of response rate from August to October 2006. The statistical data analysis was completed by using SPSS Win (ver. 10.0) for descriptive analysis, t-test, ANOVA and chi-sqare-test. The results were as follows: Preliminary nutrition teachers expected that conversion of a school dietitian into a nutrition teacher could lead to systematic and constant nutrition education and come into synergic effect by doing meal service with nutrition education. For a teacher's competence, all three paradigms were perceived as important. It was evaluated to be high for a knowledge factor in the empirical. analytic paradigm, a personality factor in the practical.interpretive paradigm and an attitude factor in the critical.emancipatory paradigm. And 'a knowledge for nutrition and sanitation (4.59)'and 'an ability to raise a selfmanagement capacity for right food habit and dietary life (4.59)'were showed as most important in a nutrition teacher. It appeared that both important and difficult duties of nutrition teachers were nutrition education, nutrition counseling and sanitation quality of nutrition education; the most necessary solution was to develop a reference and program for nutrition education (37.4%). In conclusion, the systematic supports of district offices of education and associated institutions as well as sustained efforts of preliminary nutrition teachers for themselves should lead to establish a successful system of nutrition teachers.
Counseling ; Data Interpretation, Statistical ; Food Habits ; Humans ; Meals ; Mental Competency ; Sanitation ; Surveys and Questionnaires

CD44, also known as the Hermes antigen, H-CAM, pgp-1 antigen, and extracellular matrix receptor ECM-III, is a widely distributed integral membrane protein that exists in a variety of forms with different molecular sizes ranging from 85kd to 160kd. A number of evidence implicates CD44 as a cell adhesion molecule with a possible role in tumor progression. To evaluate the possible roles of CD44 in the metastatic process of gastric carcinoma to the regional lymph nodes, we applicated immunohistochemical stains with the CD44H and CD44v6 primary antibodies onto the 2 groups of gastric adenocarcinomas. Each group was comprised of 22 primary tumors extending to the subserosa, and one group showed nodal metastasis, while the other group did not. Seventeen primary tumors (77%) out of the 22 cases with the nodal metastasis demonstrated positivity to the CD44v6, while only 9 primary tumors (41%) out of the 22 cases without nodal metastasis did. However CD44H immunoreactivity was demonstrated in tumor cells of all cases (100%) of both groups as well as in the normal cell components. These results suggest that CD44H form is not related to the metastasis to the regional lymph nodes of gastric carcinoma. However, the expression of CD44v6 seems to play a certain role in the metastatic process of the gastric carcinoma.
Adenocarcinoma* ; Antibodies ; Cell Adhesion ; Cellular Structures ; Coloring Agents ; Extracellular Matrix ; Lymph Nodes ; Membrane Proteins ; Neoplasm Metastasis

This report is based on analysis of admissions to the department of pediatric at the Wonju Christian Hospital during the 3 3/4-year period from January 1989 to September 1993 with an Isolated ostium secundum ASD. Several methods of assessment of ASD size, namely, echographic, pulmonary-to-systemic flow ratio(Qp:Qs), and angiographic measures, were undertaken in a group of 37 patients, who were being evaluated for transcatheter closure of ASD; the results were compared with the operation diameter. The result of study was as follows : 1) The (Qp:Qs) ratio have no significant(p>0.01) correlation with the operation diameter(r= 0.342) 2) The angiographic size have a significant(p<0.01) correlation with the operation diameter (r=0.842) 3) The echo diameter has the best correlation with the operation diameter(r=0.935; p<0.01) The operation diameter can be estimated by the equation: 1.05 x echo diameter in millimeters+0.93mm. It is concluded that operation diameter of ASD can be estimated accurately by two-dimensional subcostal echo measurements, which in turn could be used for selection of device size for occlusion of the ASD.
Angiocardiography ; Echocardiography* ; Gangwon-do ; Humans

PURPOSE: The research was done to investigate the effect of a horticultural activities program on loneliness and life satisfaction of women who have a disability. METHODS: Participants were 50 disabled women from a welfare center of G district of G city. Data were collected from August 18 to October 20, 2010. The program was provided for 8 weeks. The tool for life satisfaction was Choi's scale (1986) and loneliness was measured with the UCLA Loneliness Scale developed by Russell and translated by Kim & Kim (1989). Data were analyzed using frequency, t-test, and paired t-test with SPSS/WIN 16.0. RESULTS: As a result of the horticultural activities program, the first hypothesis was supported by significantly decreasing of loneliness in the experimental group than in the control one (t=-3.27, p =.002). The second hypothesis was verified by testing variable which was life satisfaction (t=3.39, p =.001). CONCLUSION: The results of the study indicate that this kind of program is effective in decreasing loneliness of women with a disability and in improving their life satisfaction. Horticultural activities programs can be unique interventions leading to a satisfactory life for disabled women.
Female ; Humans ; Loneliness*

Familial lichen planus is an uncommon disease, and there are 104 cases reported in the English literature. Several theories regarding the etiopathogenesis of lichen planus have been proposed. However, immunological mechanisms and genetic susceptibility have been emphasized the most. Several reports showed HLA analysis in lichen planus patients, and recently 2 cases have revealed an increased frequency of DR1 antigen in patients with lichen planus compared to a control group. We observed two brothers with typical skin lesions of lichen planus of almost simultaneous onset. We confirmed lichen planus by skin biopsies in both brothers and analyzed HLA typing. We also observed the occurrence of DR1 antigen in both of them.
Biopsy ; Genetic Predisposition to Disease ; Histocompatibility Testing ; Humans ; Lichen Planus* ; Lichens* ; Siblings ; Skin