PURPOSE: Polymerase chain reaction(PCR) has generally been more sensitive than traditional tests for the detection of Chlamydia trachomatis which has been a leading cause of sexually transmitted disease. We performed this study to find out if there is an association between C. trachomatis infection and low birth weight(LBW) or prematurity. METHODS: The study included 98 premature or LBW infants admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit of Soonchunhyang Chunan hospital between January and July of 1999. Nasopharyngeal swab specimens were obtained from 98 neonates with a LBW or prematurity. Endotracheal secretions were obtained from 28 LBW or premature infants. Vaginal swabs were collected from 47 mothers who had given birth to LBW or premature infants. We performed the nested PCR with Chlamydia-CR kit(Bioneer, Korea). PCR products were resolved by electrophoresis on 2% agarose gel. These products were observed by their size which was 345 bp. RESULTS: C. trachomatis was not detected by the nested PCR from 98 nasopharyngeal swabs nor 28 endotracheal secretion specimens. But, C. trachomatis was detected in 2(4.2%) out of 47 vaginal swab specimens from mothers who had given birth to LBW or premature infants. CONCLUSION: The nested PCR is a relatively simple, fast and practical tool for the detection of C. trachomatis, but the positive rates of C. trachomatis were low in LBW or premature infants and also in mothers who had given birth to LBW or premature infants. We suggest two possible conclusions from our study. The first is that nasopharyngeal swabs and endotracheal secretions are improper specimens for C. trachomatis. The second is that C. trachomatis infection is lower in our study.
Chlamydia trachomatis* ; Chlamydia* ; Chungcheongnam-do ; Electrophoresis ; Humans ; Infant ; Infant, Low Birth Weight* ; Infant, Newborn ; Infant, Premature ; Intensive Care, Neonatal ; Mothers ; Parturition ; Polymerase Chain Reaction* ; Sepharose ; Sexually Transmitted Diseases

BACKGROUND/AIMS: While surgical resection remains the standard of care in the treatment of upper urinary tract malignancies, nephrectomy is a risk factor for the development of chronic kidney disease (CKD). The aim of this study was to determine whether histologic evaluation of non-neoplastic kidney could enable early identification of unrecognized kidney disease and could be of prognostic value in predicting postoperative renal outcomes. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed 51 patients with upper urinary tract malignancies who received uninephrectomy or uninephroureterectomy. A thorough pathologic evaluation of non-neoplastic kidney including special stains, immunofluorescence, and electron microscopic studies was performed. The degree of parenchymal changes was graded from 0 to 15. RESULTS: Of 51 patients, only 13 showed normal kidney pathology. Fifteen patients showed glomerular abnormalities, 14 showed diabetic nephropathy, and 11 showed vascular nephropathy. There was one case each of reflux nephropathy and chronic pyelonephritis. The median histologic score was 5 points. Only 25.4% of patients had ≤ 3 points. Score more than 5 was observed in 47.1% of patients. Postoperative estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) at 3 to 36 months were obtained from 90.2% of patients, and of those, 34.8% had de novo CKD. Since no one had CKD in partial nephrectomized patients, we determined risk factors for CKD in radical nephrectomized patients. Cox regression analysis revealed that postoperative AKI, preoperative eGFR, and histologic score of non-neoplastic kidney were the independent predictors for CKD. CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that routine pathologic evaluation of non-neoplastic kidney provides valuable diagnostic and prognostic information.
Coloring Agents ; Diabetic Nephropathies ; Fluorescent Antibody Technique ; Glomerular Filtration Rate ; Humans ; Kidney Diseases ; Kidney Neoplasms ; Kidney* ; Nephrectomy ; Pathology ; Pyelonephritis ; Renal Insufficiency, Chronic ; Retrospective Studies ; Risk Factors ; Standard of Care ; Urinary Tract*

BK virus nephropathy has emerged as an important cause of renal allograft dysfunction. Reduction in immunosuppression is the mainstay of BK virus nephropathy treatment. However, decreasing immunosuppressive medications is not sufficient for treatment of BK virus nephropathy. Therefore, there is a need for other treatment strategies such as cidofovir, leflunomide, and intravenous immunoglobulin in combination with immunosuppression reduction. Ciprofloxacin has recently been reported to have antiviral activity and decrease BK viral load in kidney transplant recipients. These findings suggest that the use of ciprofloxacin represents a valuable treatment strategy in patients with BK virus nephropathy. Here, we report on our experience with three patients who developed presumptive BK virus nephropathy after kidney transplantation, who, after 2 months of ciprofloxacin treatment, showed disappearance of BK viremia and improvement in the estimated glomerular filtration rate. Ciprofloxacin may be considered an effective treatment option for BK viremia in kidney transplant recipients.
Allografts ; BK Virus ; Ciprofloxacin ; Glomerular Filtration Rate ; Humans ; Immunoglobulins ; Immunosuppression ; Kidney Transplantation ; Kidney* ; Transplantation* ; Viral Load ; Viremia

OBJECTIVES: This study was conducted to review the validity of the need for the application of the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS) to household chemical products in Korea. The study also aimed to assess the severity of health and environmental hazards of household chemical products using the GHS. METHODS: 135 products were classified as 'cleaning agents and polishing agents' and 98 products were classified as 'bleaches, disinfectants, and germicides.' The current status of carcinogenic classification of GHS and carcinogenicity was examined for 272 chemical substances contained in household chemical products by selecting the top 11 products for each of the product categories. In addition, the degree of toxicity was assessed through analysis of whether the standard of the Republic of Korea's regulations on household chemical products had been exceeded or not. RESULTS: According to GHS health and environmental hazards, "acute toxicity (oral)" was found to be the highest for two product groups, 'cleaning agents and polishing agents', and 'bleaches, disinfectants, and germicides' (result of classification of 233 household chemical products) at 37.8% and 52.0% respectively. In an analysis of carcinogenicity assuming a threshold of IARC 2B for the substances in household chemical products, we found 'cleaning agents and polishing agents' to contain 12 chemical substances and 'bleaches, disinfectants, and germicides' 11 chemical substances. CONCLUSION: Some of the household chemical products were found to have a high hazard level including acute toxicity and germ cell mutagenicity, carcinogenicity, and reproductive toxicity. Establishing a hazard information delivery system including the application of GHS to household chemical products in Korea is urgent as well.
Classification* ; Disinfectants ; Family Characteristics* ; Germ Cells ; Hazardous Substances ; Korea* ; Social Control, Formal

BACKGROUND: Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) mutations may regulate the progression and chemosensitivity of leukemia. Few studies regarding mitochondrial aberrations and haplogroups in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and their clinical impacts have been reported. Therefore, we focused on the mtDNA length heteroplasmies minisatellite instability (MSI), copy number alterations, and distribution of mitochondrial haplogroups in Korean patients with AML. METHODS: This study investigated 74 adult patients with AML and 70 controls to evaluate mtDNA sequence alterations, MSI, mtDNA copy number, haplogroups, and their clinical implications. The hypervariable (HV) control regions (HV1 and HV2), tRNA(leu1)gene, and cytochrome b gene of mtDNA were analyzed. Two mtDNA minisatellite markers, 16189 poly-C (¹⁶¹⁸⁴CCCCCTCCCC¹⁶¹⁹³, 5CT4C) and 303 poly-C (³⁰³CCCCCCCTCCCCC³¹⁵, 7CT5C), were used to examine the mtDNA MSI. RESULTS: In AML, most mtDNA sequence variants were single nucleotide substitutions, but there were no significant differences compared to those in controls. The number of mtMSI patterns increased in AML. The mean mtDNA copy number of AML patients increased approximately 9-fold compared to that of controls (P < 0.0001). Haplogroup D4 was found in AML with a higher frequency compared to that in controls (31.0% vs. 15.7%, P=0.046). None of the aforementioned factors showed significant impacts on the outcomes. CONCLUSION: AML cells disclosed more heterogeneous patterns with the mtMSI markers and had increased mtDNA copy numbers. These findings implicate mitochondrial genome instability in primary AML cells. Therefore, mtDNA haplogroup D4 might be associated with AML risk among Koreans.
Adult ; Cytochromes b ; DNA, Mitochondrial ; Genome, Mitochondrial* ; Humans ; Leukemia ; Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute* ; Minisatellite Repeats

Background/Aims: Infliximab treatment failure in patients with inflammatory bowel disease may result from sub-optimal infliximab trough level. An understanding of pharmacokinetics (PKs) is important to maintain an optimal trough level. PK studies of the switch to subcutaneous (SC) infliximab from intravenous (IV) infliximab using real-world data are lacking. We aimed to develop a population PK model of IV and SC infliximab to predict individual infliximab exposure during maintenance therapy. Methods: We used data from prospectively collected data on IV and SC infliximab concentrations in patients with inflammatory bowel disease receiving maintenance treatment from February 2020 to December 2022 at Samsung Medical Center. Population PK analysis was conducted by using a two-compartment model with first-order absorption and first-order elimination. Goodness-of-fit plots and visual predictive check were used to evaluate the PK model. Results: A total of 2,132 samples from 181 patients (149 Crohn’s disease and 32 ulcerative colitis) were analyzed. We developed an infliximab population PK model using body mass index, albumin, C-reactive protein level, and the anti-drug antibody level and validated its predictive performance. Conclusions It may be possible to predict the infliximab trough level of both IV and SC infliximab in patients with inflammatory bowel disease during maintenance treatment by using our model in real-world practice.

Background/Aims: Infliximab treatment failure in patients with inflammatory bowel disease may result from sub-optimal infliximab trough level. An understanding of pharmacokinetics (PKs) is important to maintain an optimal trough level. PK studies of the switch to subcutaneous (SC) infliximab from intravenous (IV) infliximab using real-world data are lacking. We aimed to develop a population PK model of IV and SC infliximab to predict individual infliximab exposure during maintenance therapy. Methods: We used data from prospectively collected data on IV and SC infliximab concentrations in patients with inflammatory bowel disease receiving maintenance treatment from February 2020 to December 2022 at Samsung Medical Center. Population PK analysis was conducted by using a two-compartment model with first-order absorption and first-order elimination. Goodness-of-fit plots and visual predictive check were used to evaluate the PK model. Results: A total of 2,132 samples from 181 patients (149 Crohn’s disease and 32 ulcerative colitis) were analyzed. We developed an infliximab population PK model using body mass index, albumin, C-reactive protein level, and the anti-drug antibody level and validated its predictive performance. Conclusions It may be possible to predict the infliximab trough level of both IV and SC infliximab in patients with inflammatory bowel disease during maintenance treatment by using our model in real-world practice.

Background/Aims: Infliximab treatment failure in patients with inflammatory bowel disease may result from sub-optimal infliximab trough level. An understanding of pharmacokinetics (PKs) is important to maintain an optimal trough level. PK studies of the switch to subcutaneous (SC) infliximab from intravenous (IV) infliximab using real-world data are lacking. We aimed to develop a population PK model of IV and SC infliximab to predict individual infliximab exposure during maintenance therapy. Methods: We used data from prospectively collected data on IV and SC infliximab concentrations in patients with inflammatory bowel disease receiving maintenance treatment from February 2020 to December 2022 at Samsung Medical Center. Population PK analysis was conducted by using a two-compartment model with first-order absorption and first-order elimination. Goodness-of-fit plots and visual predictive check were used to evaluate the PK model. Results: A total of 2,132 samples from 181 patients (149 Crohn’s disease and 32 ulcerative colitis) were analyzed. We developed an infliximab population PK model using body mass index, albumin, C-reactive protein level, and the anti-drug antibody level and validated its predictive performance. Conclusions It may be possible to predict the infliximab trough level of both IV and SC infliximab in patients with inflammatory bowel disease during maintenance treatment by using our model in real-world practice.

Background/Aims: Infliximab treatment failure in patients with inflammatory bowel disease may result from sub-optimal infliximab trough level. An understanding of pharmacokinetics (PKs) is important to maintain an optimal trough level. PK studies of the switch to subcutaneous (SC) infliximab from intravenous (IV) infliximab using real-world data are lacking. We aimed to develop a population PK model of IV and SC infliximab to predict individual infliximab exposure during maintenance therapy. Methods: We used data from prospectively collected data on IV and SC infliximab concentrations in patients with inflammatory bowel disease receiving maintenance treatment from February 2020 to December 2022 at Samsung Medical Center. Population PK analysis was conducted by using a two-compartment model with first-order absorption and first-order elimination. Goodness-of-fit plots and visual predictive check were used to evaluate the PK model. Results: A total of 2,132 samples from 181 patients (149 Crohn’s disease and 32 ulcerative colitis) were analyzed. We developed an infliximab population PK model using body mass index, albumin, C-reactive protein level, and the anti-drug antibody level and validated its predictive performance. Conclusions It may be possible to predict the infliximab trough level of both IV and SC infliximab in patients with inflammatory bowel disease during maintenance treatment by using our model in real-world practice.

Background/Aims: Fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) is a promising therapy for inducing and maintaining remission in patients with ulcerative colitis (UC). However, FMT has not been approved for UC treatment in Korea. Our study aimed to investigate patient perceptions of FMT under the national medical policy. Methods: This was a prospective, multicenter study. Patients with UC ≥ 19 years of age were included. Patients were surveyed using 22 questions on FMT. Changes in perceptions of FMT before and after education were also compared. Results: A total of 210 patients with UC were enrolled. We found that 51.4% of the patients were unaware that FMT was an alternative treatment option for UC. After reading the educational materials on FMT, more patients were willing to undergo this procedure (27.1% vs. 46.7%; p < 0.001). The preferred fecal donor was the one recommended by a physician (41.0%), and the preferred transplantation method was the oral capsule (30.4%). A large proportion of patients (50.0%) reported that the national medical policy influenced their choice of FMT treatment. When patients felt severe disease activity, their willingness to undergo FMT increased (92.3% vs. 43.1%; p = 0.001). Conclusions Education can increase preference for FMT in patients with UC. When patients have severe disease symptoms or their quality of life decreases their willingness to undergo FMT increases. Moreover, national medical policies may influence patient choices regarding FMT.