Both "caowu", the root of Aconitum kusnezoffii, "chuanwu", the main root of Aconitum carmichaeli are believed to possess anti-inflammatory, analgesics and cardiotonic effects. They have been used to treat conditions such as rheumatism, arthritis, bruises, fractures, hemiplegia. They contain the highly toxic C19 diterpenoid alkaloids of aconitine, mesaconitine and hypaconitine. After ingestion, patients may present with neurological, cardiovascular, gastrointestinal sign and symptoms. A case of thirty six-year-olds healthy women with aconitine poisoning due to caowu that is described presented as transient tetraplegia, arrhythmia and hypocalcemia.
Aconitine* ; Aconitum ; Alkaloids ; Analgesics ; Arrhythmias, Cardiac ; Arthritis ; Contusions ; Eating ; Female ; Hemiplegia ; Humans ; Hypocalcemia* ; Poisoning* ; Quadriplegia* ; Rheumatic Diseases

Nocturia is usually considered to be just one of the symptoms included with lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) and is treated with therapy based on LUTS. Recent research suggests, however, that nocturia is not merely a simple symptom of LUTS but is a multifactorial condition with many contributing etiological factors. The causes of nocturia can be classified into bladder storage problems, increased urine output, sleep disturbance problems, and other potential diseases. The frequency-volume chart (FVC) is very important in evaluating and diagnosing nocturia. Patients usually record the volume and timing of voids for a period of 1 to 3 days on the FVC. The FVC data can provide information on voiding patterns and clues about the etiology and treatment of nocturia. It is doubtful that alpha-blockers will have clinical significance for treatment because the difference in nocturia episodes between treatment with alpha-blockers and placebo is too small. Antimuscarinics also exert no effect on nocturnal polyuria, and the evidence supporting the efficacy of antimuscarinics for the treatment of nocturia is limited. However, several randomized placebo-controlled trials have shown the efficacy of oral desmopressin in the treatment of adults with nocturia. Short-acting hypnotics may be helpful for patients with sleep disturbances. Although surgical or interventional therapy is not indicated for nocturia, transurethral resection of the prostate appears to confer a greater improvement in benign prostatic hyperplasia symptoms including nocturia. The management of nocturia may require a team approach by making optimal use of multidisciplinary expertise.
Adult ; Deamino Arginine Vasopressin ; Humans ; Hypnotics and Sedatives ; Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms ; Muscarinic Antagonists ; Nocturia ; Polyuria ; Prostate ; Prostatic Hyperplasia ; Urinary Bladder

Reactive airways dysfunction syndrome (RADS) is a syndrome as a persistent bronchial hyperreactivity with asthmatic dyspnea which occurs after one or more inhalation exposures to a high concentration of irritant gasses, smokes or vapors in subjects who had preciously had no respiratory disease. We report a case of a 34 years old female worker suffering from reactive airways dysfunction syndrome who had been taking charge of guest room cleaning at a condominium. 7 months before, she inhaled high concentration of chlorine gas in confined and poor ventilated working space of bathroom at the condominium. As she was washing a bathroom with a bleaching agent (6 % sodium hypochlorite) without dilution, dyspnea, dizziness, headache, nausea, and coughing developed after work. She still suffer from dyspnea and coughing. All functional tests were normal except for methacholine challenge test which reveals bronchial hyperreactivity. She has some symptoms of dyspnea and coughing when exposed to perfume, cold air, and heavy work.
Adult ; Bronchial Hyperreactivity ; Chlorine* ; Cough ; Dizziness ; Dyspnea ; Female ; Headache ; Humans ; Inhalation Exposure ; Methacholine Chloride ; Nausea ; Perfume ; Smoke ; Sodium

Piper nigrum L. (Piperaceae), which is a well-known food seasoning, has been used as a traditional medicine for the treatment of vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhea and anorexia in Korea, China and Japan. Methanol extract from the fruit of P. nigrum was successively partitioned as n-hexane, methylene chloride, ethyl acetate, n-butanol and H₂O soluble fractions. Among those fractions the ethyl acetate soluble fraction showed the most potent DPPH radical scavenging activity, and piperine was isolated from the ethyl acetate fraction. To know the antioxidant activity of piperine, we tested the activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase together with oxidative stress tolerance and intracellular ROS level in Caenorhabditis elegans. To investigate whether piperine-mediated increased stress tolerance was due to regulation of stress-response gene, we quantified SOD-3 expression using transgenic strain including CF1553. Consequently, piperine enhanced SOD and catalase activities of C. elegans, and reduced intracellular ROS accumulation in a dose–dependent manner. Moreover, piperine-treated CF1553 worms exhibited significantly higher SOD-3::GFP intensity.
1-Butanol ; Abdominal Pain ; Anorexia ; Caenorhabditis elegans ; Caenorhabditis ; Catalase ; China ; Diarrhea ; Fruit ; Japan ; Korea ; Medicine, Traditional ; Methanol ; Methylene Chloride ; Oxidative Stress ; Piper nigrum ; Piper ; Seasons ; Superoxide Dismutase ; Vomiting

OBJECTIVES: This study measures serum prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels in tire-manufacturing workers, and attempts to find occupational or non-occupational factors that related to their PSA levels. METHODS: A total of 1,958 healthy male workers (1,699 were production workers and 259 were office workers) took PSA measurement for analysis. RESULTS: After adjusting for age, body mass index, hypertension, regular exercise, alcohol drinking and smoking, which were significantly related to serum PSA levels or known related factors of serum PSA levels, the geometric mean PSA levels were significantly high in the office workers (p = 0.017), the older age group (p < 0.001), the group with hypertension (p = 0.046) and the group of individuals that do not exercise regularly (p = 0.015) and the office workers were more likely to have a serum PSA level of > or =4.0 (OR 7.73, 95% CI: 2.78-21.46) or 2.5 ng/mL (OR 2.74, 95% CI: 1.49-5.08). After stratifying by age and adjusting aforementioned covariates, office workers 50 years of age and older had the significantly higher geometric mean PSA levels (p = 0.017) and were more likely to have a serum PSA level of > or =4.0 ng/mL (OR 12.90, 95% CI: 3.65-45.64) or 2.5 ng/mL (OR 3.90, 95% CI: 1.64-9.25) than production workers 50 years of age and older. CONCLUSIONS: This study showed that serum PSA levels were significantly higher among the group with hypertension or the group of individuals that did not exercise regularly or group of office workers who were considered to have lesser physical activities.
Alcohol Drinking ; Body Mass Index ; Humans ; Hypertension ; Male ; Motor Activity ; Occupations ; Prostate-Specific Antigen* ; Sedentary Lifestyle ; Smoke ; Smoking

OBJECTIVE: Our aim is to evaluate the usefulness of fluid-attenuated inversion recovery(FLAIR) magnetic resonance(MR) imaging for detection of acute intraventricular hemorrhage(IVH) compared with pre-contrast computed tomography(CT). METHODS: Twenty-eight patients with acute IVH were evaluated with FLAIR MR imaging and precontrast CT. All MR and CT examination were performed within two days from symptom onset. One neurosurgeon and one radiologist evaluated the detectability and conspicuity of acute IVH on FLAIR MR imaging and pre-contrast CT. RESULTS: Acute IVH was detected in all patients on FLAIR MR imaging and in 23(82%) of 28 patients on pre-contrast CT. The conspicuity of IVH on FLAIR MR imaging was as good as or better than that on pre-contrast CT in 28 patient. CONCLUSION: It is suggested that FLAIR MR imaging is superior to pre-contrast CT in the diagnosis of acute IVH.
Diagnosis ; Hemorrhage* ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging*

PURPOSE: Determining the ideal length of a ureteric stent is important to avoid complications associated with stent placement. Clinically, most urologists usually choose the length of a ureteric stent according to the patient's height. On the basis of a Chinese population study, a 22 cm ureteric stent has been recommended for patients smaller than 175 cm. We evaluated the appropriateness of this recommendation in Korean patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 70 patients who were smaller than 175 cm and who underwent ureteroscopic lithotripsy and ureteric stent insertion were studied. The appropriateness of the stent length was determined on the basis of plain film findings. Patient discomfort was measured by use of a visual analogue scale (VAS) before the removal of the ureteric stent. RESULTS: In 29 patients with a 22 cm ureteric stent, 21 patients (72.4%) had an appropriate ureteric stent length and the mean VAS was 4.1. In 36 patients with a 24 cm ureteric stent, 20 patients (55.6%) had an appropriate ureteric stent length and the mean VAS was 4.0. Among 5 patients with a 26 cm ureteric stent, 1 patient (20%) had an appropriate ureteric stent length and the mean VAS was 5.4. CONCLUSIONS: In Korean patients smaller than 175 cm in height, a 22 cm ureteric stent was an appropriate length.
Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Body Height ; Humans ; Lithotripsy ; Stents ; Ureter

BACKGROUND: The nm23 gene was originally identified by screening of cDNA libraries from murine melanoma cell lines of varying metastatic potential. Gene expression of nm23 has been investigated in a number of tumors. Its down-regulation has been shown to be associated with metastasis or disease progression in some of the tumors. METHODS: We evaluated the nm23 mRNA levels in 23 surgically resected primary gastric cancers, in the matched adjacent mucosa, and in lymph nodes or distant metastatic foci by using Northern blot analyses and immunohistochemical staining. RESULTS: The expression of nm23 mRNA was lower in the matched normal adjacent mucosa than in the primary tumor. The expressions of the nm23 gene were higher in normal lymph nodes and in lymph nodes with metastasis than in primary tumors. This result was due to the high expression in normal lymph nodes. The expression of nm23 in distant metastatic foci was lower than it was in primary tumor tissues (p<0.05). The expression of the nm23 protein in a primary tumor with distant metastasis was higher than it was in a primary tumor with lymphnode metastasis only (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: It is suggested that down-regulation of the nm23 gene might have a role in distant metastasis in gastric cancer, possibly leading to a poor prognosis.
Blotting, Northern ; Cell Line ; Disease Progression ; Down-Regulation ; Gene Expression ; Gene Library ; Lymph Nodes ; Mass Screening ; Melanoma ; Mucous Membrane ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Prognosis ; RNA, Messenger ; Stomach Neoplasms*

PURPOSE: To assess the long-term outcomes of tension-free vaginal tape (TVT) for stress urinary incontinence (SUI) with intrinsic sphincter deficiency (ISD) and to identify influencing factors for failure in these cases. METHODS: A total of 136 women who underwent TVT procedures with minimum follow-up duration of 3 years were included in the study. Patients were divided into two groups (non-ISD and ISD groups) based on preoperative urodynamic studies. Patient outcomes were assessed from retrospective chart review and telephone research. Cure was defined as the subjective resolution of SUI in any circumstances. Improvement was defined as the subjective improvement of SUI without complete resolution. Failure was defined as the subjective lack of improvement of SUI. Patients in ISD group were subdivided into two subgroups (cure and non-cure groups) and were compared to identify influencing factors for TVT procedure failure. RESULTS: Eighty-nine patients were in non-ISD group, and 47 in ISD group. The mean follow-up durations were 50.3+/-9.2 and 49.7+/-9.7 months, respectively. Subjective cure rate was 75.3% for non-ISD group, and 76.7% for ISD group (P>0.05). Improvement rate was 6.7% for non-ISD group, and 2.1% for ISD group (P>0.05). Satisfaction scores was 3.8+/-1.2 points in the non-ISD group, and 3.5+/-1.2 points in ISD group (P>0.05). In ISD subgroups, VLPP was 41.9+/-12.0 cmH2O for non-cure group, and 50.5+/-8.6 cmH2O for cure group, and was the only factor that showed significant statistical difference between the two subgroups (P=0.011). CONCLUSIONS: With our long-term results, TVT is an effective treatment even in women with ISD. However, ISD patients with low VLPP should be counseled carefully about TVT outcome.
Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Retrospective Studies ; Suburethral Slings ; Telephone ; Urinary Incontinence ; Urodynamics

PURPOSE: To report a case of isolated choroidal cystic lesion in the macula with no interval change for two years. CASE SUMMARY: A 29-year-old woman who had suspicious maculopathy was referred to our clinic. Her best corrected visual acuity was 20/20 in the affected right eye, which showed a choroidal cystic lesion on a fundus exam, fluorescein angiography, USG and OCT. The multifocal ERG showed reduced amplitudes of the cystic area in the right eye, and SLO microperimetry revealed reduced retinal sensitivity in the cystic lesion as well as a stable fixation and spared foveal function. There was no evidence of underlying ocular disease in clinical assessment, and the lesion had not undergone interval change for the past two years.
Adult ; Choroid ; Eye ; Female ; Fluorescein Angiography ; Humans ; Retinaldehyde ; Visual Acuity