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 burden of cardiac complications during endoscopy are growing due to increasing proportion of elderly in the endoscopy target population. This study was conducted to examine the blood pressure changes before and after the endoscopy and to seek better pre-treatments in minimizing cardiac complications. METHODS: One hundred subjects were chosen by consecutive sampling who visited a general hospital for physical examination. Basal, pre-endoscopic, immediate post-endoscopic blood pressure and blood pressure after 10 and 30 minutes were measured utilizing manual BP cuffs and recorded. RESULTS: The subjects included 34 hypertensive patients. Twelve subjects were on anti hypertensive medication. In 5 consecutive measurements, significant variations on blood pressure was noted (P<0.01). Blood pressure kept increasing until immediately after the procedure, followed by a gradual reduction. These changes were observed in both the normotensive and the hypertensive group, but the degree of changes were more pronounced in the hypertrensive group than the normotensive group (P<0.01). The difference between basal and after procedure was 17.6 mmHg for systolic, 13.5 mmHg for diastolic in the normotensive group. However in the hypertensive group, the difference was 21.4 mmHg for systolic, 14.8 mmHg for diastolic. In comparison of medicated and non-medicated group in the hypertensive patients, the degree of changes were marginally, but significantly lower in the treatment group than in the non-treatment group (systolic P=0.056, diastolic P=0.049). CONCLUSION: The stress during endoscopy resulted in blood pressure changes, and the degree of changes was higher in the hypertensive group than the normotensive group. In the hypertensive group, the degree of changes was lower in patients treated with anti hypertensives than the non-treated patients. This sample size, however, was small.
Aged ; Antihypertensive Agents ; Blood Pressure* ; Endoscopy* ; Health Services Needs and Demand ; Hospitals, General ; Humans ; Physical Examination ; Sample Size

A posterior 3-portal arthroscopic approach with the patient in the prone position provides a novel and optimal approach for isolated subtalar arthrodesis. This approach facilitates access to the posterior talocalcaneal facet and facilitates safe access with regard to the posteromedial neuromuscular bundle. The technique involves prone positioning, establishment of two posterolateral portals and one posteromedial portal, arthroscopic posterior talocalcaneal facet debridement, percutaneous morcellized bone grafting and internal screw fixation. Preliminary results have shown high patient satisfaction, an excellent fusion rate and less postoperative morbidity than open subtalar arthrodesis.
Arthrodesis* ; Arthroscopy ; Bone Transplantation ; Debridement ; Humans ; Patient Satisfaction ; Prone Position ; Subtalar Joint

A posterior 3-portal arthroscopic approach with the patient in the prone position provides a novel and optimal approach for isolated subtalar arthrodesis. This approach facilitates access to the posterior talocalcaneal facet and facilitates safe access with regard to the posteromedial neuromuscular bundle. The technique involves prone positioning, establishment of two posterolateral portals and one posteromedial portal, arthroscopic posterior talocalcaneal facet debridement, percutaneous morcellized bone grafting and internal screw fixation. Preliminary results have shown high patient satisfaction, an excellent fusion rate and less postoperative morbidity than open subtalar arthrodesis.
Arthrodesis* ; Arthroscopy ; Bone Transplantation ; Debridement ; Humans ; Patient Satisfaction ; Prone Position ; Subtalar Joint