Behcet's disease is a recurrent and multisystemic disorder which usually persists over many years. In 1937 Behcet described a chronic relapsing triple symptom complex of recurrent oral ulceration, genital ulceration and ocular inflammation. Other manifestations of the syndrome include arthritis, cutaneous vasculitis, thrombophlebitis, epididymitis, ulcers of gastrointestinal tract and meningoencephalitis. Recently, a case was experienced involving intestinal Behcet's syndrome with duodenal ulcer bleeding. A 32-year-old male patient was admitted due to hematemesis, and epigastric pain. The patient had ulcers on the oral mucosa, soft palate, external genitalia, and anus. An irregularly marginated ulcer with bleeding was found on the anterior of the duodenal bulb through esophago- gastroduodenoscopic examination. The patient was diagnosed with Behcet's disease and was treated with steroids. In this paper, the case of duodenal bulb involvement of Behcet's disease is reported with a review of relevant literature.
Adult ; Anal Canal ; Arthritis ; Behcet Syndrome ; Duodenal Ulcer* ; Epididymitis ; Gastrointestinal Tract ; Genitalia ; Hematemesis ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Inflammation ; Male ; Meningoencephalitis ; Mouth Mucosa ; Oral Ulcer ; Palate, Soft ; Steroids ; Thrombophlebitis ; Ulcer ; Vasculitis

BACKGROUND: Chronic myelogenous leukemia is a chronic myeloproliferative disorder characterized by leukocytosis with myeloid elements at all stages of differentiation, t(9;22)(q34;q11) and bcr/abl rearrangement. We studied hydroxyurea induced apoptotic changes such as externalization of phosphatidylserine, caspase activities on human chronic myelogenous leukemic cell line, K562 cells. METHODS: K562 cells were grown in RPMI 1640 supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum and treated hydroxyurea. Viability was examined by MTT assay. Apoptosis were examined by annexin V stain, caspase (such as caspase-, caspase-, caspase-, caspase-, and caspase-) activities, and DNA fragmentation. RESULTS: The viability of K562 cells were markedly decreased in a dose dependent manner of hydroxyurea. Phosphatidylserine externalization was detected by annexin V stain after 3 hours in hydroxyurea treated K562 cells and the value of lactate dehydrogenase was not significantly changed in their culture media. The upstream effector of caspase- was slightly increased and had influenced on caspase-. And downstream acting caspase protease of caspase- was markedly increased in a time dependent manner at hydroxyurea treated K562 cells. In addition, however the activities of caspase- and caspase- were not increased. We also found DNA fragmentation at hydroxyurea treated K562 cells between 48 hours and 72 hours on agarose gel electrophoresis. CONCLUSIONS: Hydroxyurea induces apoptotic change in K562 cells via externalization of phosphatidylserine, activations of caspase-, caspase-, caspase- proteases, and DNA fragmentation.
Annexin A5 ; Apoptosis ; Cell Line* ; Culture Media ; DNA Fragmentation ; Electrophoresis, Agar Gel ; Humans ; Hydroxyurea* ; K562 Cells* ; L-Lactate Dehydrogenase ; Leukemia, Myelogenous, Chronic, BCR-ABL Positive ; Leukocytosis ; Myeloproliferative Disorders ; Peptide Hydrolases

We present a case of acute prostatitis with abscess. The patient had undergone intravesical bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) immunotherapy for bladder cancer. A prostate biopsy demonstrated tuberculous prostatitis with abscess. This case illustrates that when bladder cancer is treated with BCG, a tuberculous prostate abscess can develop.
Abscess ; Bacillus ; Biopsy ; Humans ; Immunotherapy ; Mycobacterium bovis ; Prostate ; Prostatitis ; Tuberculosis ; Urinary Bladder Neoplasms

OBJECTIVES: Catechol-O-methyltransferase(COMT) is involved in the degradation of catecholamine neurotransmitters and has been investigated as a candidate gene in schizophrenia. Recently, possible relationship between functional COMT gene polymorphism and schizophrenia has been suggested. To address the possible role of functional COMT gene polymorphism in the predisposition to schizophrenia, we carried out an association study in Korean schizophrenic patients and controls. METHODS: One hundred and three Korean inpatients diagnosed as schizophrenia and 103 age and sex matched controls were selected as study subjects. Patients were subgrouped into two groups on the basis of history of aggressive behavior, family history of schizophrenia and related disorders, and age at onset. We determined COMT genotypes using PCR of the relevant region followed by digestion with NlaIII and electrophoresis. RESULTS: No significant differences of allele and genotype frequencies were noted between patients and controls. However, when patients were categorized by the presence of family history of schizophrenia and related disorders, patients with family history showed almost 4-fold higher frequency of having COMT L allele containing genotype compared to controls(p=0.02, OR=3.9, 95% CI=1.10-14.33). CONCLUSION: Although our results do not support an association between functional polymorphism of COMT gene and schizophrenia overall, the findings suggest an association between functional COMT gene polymorphism and familial schizophrenia. Further studies with large samples are needed to confirm this association.
Age of Onset ; Alleles ; Catechol O-Methyltransferase* ; Digestion ; Electrophoresis ; Genotype ; Humans ; Inpatients ; Neurotransmitter Agents ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Schizophrenia*

PURPOSE: We examined the effect of lowering prostate-specific antigen (PSA) threshold on the number of Korean men requiring a prostate biopsy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We evaluated men who had serum PSA levels tested at routine physical check-ups between 1999 and 2005 at 11 domestic hospitals. Men with PSA> or =10ng/ml or patients with prostate cancer were excluded. A total of 45,074 men(aged 50 to 79 years) were enrolled and split into three age groups: 50-59 years, 60-69 years, and 70-79 years. For each age group, we calculated the number and proportion of men whose PSA level exceeded potential biopsy thresholds: 2.5ng/ml, 3.0ng/ml, and 4.0ng/ml. Results were extrapolated to the 4.992 million men older than 50 years old, or 21.3% of the Korean male population in 2005. RESULTS: The number of biopsy candidates at the threshold of 4.0ng/ml, 3.0ng/ml, and 2.5ng/ml were 1,321(2.9%), 2,248(5.4%), and 3,577(7.9%), respectively. Extrapolating to the male population in Korea, lowering the PSA threshold from 4.0ng/ml to 3.0 or 2.5ng/ml would increase the number of men needing biopsy by 1.75 and 2.49 times, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Lowering the PSA threshold would increase the number of men receiving prostate biopsy despite the low reference age for PSA in Korea. Considering the low incidence of prostate cancer, physicians should be careful in altering the PSA threshold.
Biopsy ; Humans ; Incidence ; Korea ; Male ; Prostate ; Prostate-Specific Antigen ; Prostatic Neoplasms

PURPOSE: We aimed to verify the current status of transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP) in Korea. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The medical records of 1,341 men who underwent TURP in 9 Korean medical centers between 2004 and 2008 were reviewed. The patients were divided into two groups according to time periods: 2004-2005 (group 1) and 2006-2008 (group 2). To verify differences in the two patient groups, age, prostate volume, indications for TURP, preoperative International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS), and resected tissue weight were evaluated. RESULTS: The mean age of the patients was 71.2 years and the mean IPSS was 22.7. The patients' characteristics were not significantly different between the two groups. The annual cases of TURP increased over the study period. The proportion of lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) as an indication for TURP increased up to 58.3% in group 2 compared with 51.6% in group 1 (p=0.019). However, the proportion of patients who presented with acute urinary retention decreased from 35.5% to 30.3% with marginal statistical significance (p=0.051). Other indications such as hematuria, bladder stone, recurrent urinary tract infection, and hydronephrosis were not significantly different between the groups. The mean resected weights of the prostate were similar (17.5 g in group 1 and 18.3 g in group 2, respectively; p>0.05). CONCLUSIONS: TURP has been steadily performed in patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia and it is expected to remain constant. LUTS was the most common indication for TURP in recent years.
Hematuria ; Humans ; Hydronephrosis ; Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms ; Male ; Medical Records ; Prostate ; Prostatic Hyperplasia ; Transurethral Resection of Prostate ; Urinary Bladder Calculi ; Urinary Retention ; Urinary Tract Infections ; Weights and Measures

PURPOSE: The optimal interval at which to repeat prostate-specific antigen (PSA) measurement is controversial. We evaluated the probability of the serum PSA value increasing above specific cutoff values (4.0 ng/ml, 3.0 ng/ml, and 2.5 ng/ml) on annual follow-up visits in men with a lower baseline PSA than each cutoff value. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Between 2002 and 2006, a total of 14,459 men aged 40 to 79 years who underwent serum PSA determinations at least twice during health examinations at 11 medical centers were enrolled in this study. To reduce probable bias, we excluded men with pyuria, those with a baseline or follow-up PSA level of 10.0 ng/ml or more, and those with a history of medication with 5 alpha-reductase inhibitors. Serum PSA underwent logarithmic conversion to work out the normal distribution. The cumulative rate of freedom from increase in PSA above 4.0 ng/ml, 3.0 ng/ml, and 2.5 ng/ml was estimated with the Kaplan-Meier method according to baseline PSA range and age. The significance level was 1%. RESULTS: The rate of increase in PSA was lower in men who had a baseline PSA value in the low range and whose age was in the 40s or 50s. However, the cumulative rate of freedom from increase in PSA decreased as the PSA cutoff value was lowered. The optimal screening interval for men in their 40s and 50s whose baseline serum PSA level was 1.0 ng/ml or lower was 3 years when the significance level for PSA rising above 4.0 ng/ml was 1%. It was 2 years and 1 year, respectively, when the cutoff value was lowered to 3.0 ng/ml or 2.5 ng/ml. An annual PSA screening interval was recommended in men older than their 60s. CONCLUSIONS: The PSA test interval should be individualized according to baseline PSA, age, and PSA cutoff value.
Aged ; Bias (Epidemiology) ; Cholestenone 5 alpha-Reductase ; Follow-Up Studies ; Freedom ; Humans ; Male ; Mass Screening ; Prostate-Specific Antigen ; Pyuria