No abstract available.
Gaucher Disease*

PURPOSE:It is important to evaluate the healing process of avascular necrosis (AVN) involving femoral head after treatment. The purpose of this study was to assess the usefulness of pinhole bone scintigraphy in the AVN of femoral head after surgery. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We analyzed the changing pattern of pinhole bone scintigram in 21 femoral heads of 16 patients (14 lesions/11 male, 7 lesions/5 female, mean age: 39.4 yrs) before and after multiple drilling or vascularized bone grafting for AVN of the femoral head. In all patients, pre-operative scintigrams were obtained at 1 to 3 months before treatment and the first post-operative scintigrams were obtained at 1 to 3 months after treatment. All patients were followed for 2 to 4 years after operation. RESULTS: The findings of the pinhole scintigrams were divided into three patterns: 1) curvilinear, 2) scattered spotty and 3) undetermined. The 10 of 11 lesions with curvilinear pattern had good postoperative clinical and radiological follow-up findings. However, all 6 lesions with scattered spotty pattern showed poor postoperative findings, which necessitated total hip joint replacement. Of the 4 lesions with undetermined pattern, 2 required total hip joint replacement. There was significant difference in postoperative prognosis between the curvilinear and scattered spotty patterns (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: We conclude that the pattern of pinhole bone scintigram obtained within 1 to 3 months after multiple drilling or vascularized bone graft operation is a useful prognostic indicator in the AVN of femoral head.
Bone Transplantation ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Head* ; Hip Joint ; Humans ; Male ; Necrosis* ; Prognosis* ; Radionuclide Imaging* ; Technetium Tc 99m Medronate ; Transplants*

PURPOSE: To investigate changes in corneal astigmatism and refractive power in intermittent exotropia after lateral rectus recession with or without medial rectus resection. METHODS: We compared visual acuity, spherical equivalent, refractive power, astigmatism from cycloplegic refraction, and Orbscan corneal topography in two groups consisting of 40 eyes from 20 patients who underwent bilateral lateral rectus recession (Group 1) and 33 eyes from 33 patients who underwent monocular medial rectus resection with lateral rectus recession (Group 2) immediately preoperatively and at 1 and 4 weeks postoperatively. RESULTS: In Group 1, the refractive power changed +0.12 D on average in the horizontal median and -0.08 D on average in the vertical median at 1 week postoperatively. The refractive power changed +0.07 D on average in the horizontal median and -0.04 D on average in the vertical median at 4 weeks postoperatively. No significant change in the corneal astigmatic axis was detected. In Group 2, the refractive power changed +0.4 D on average in the horizontal median and -0.19D on average in the vertical median, and the corneal astigmatic axis significantly shifted by +0.51 D in the 'with-the-rule astigmatism' direction at 1 week postoperatively (p=0.02). However, the refractive power changed +0.2 D on average in the horizontal median and -0.09 D on average in the vertical median, and the corneal astigmatic axis changed +0.2 D at 4 weeks postoperatively, although these values were not statistically significant. CONCLUSIONS: Postoperative refractive power and corneal astigmatism did not change significantly, as compared to preoperative values, at 4 weeks postoperatively in the lateral rectus recession-only or medial-and-lateral rectus recession group.
Astigmatism ; Axis, Cervical Vertebra ; Corneal Topography ; Exotropia ; Eye ; Humans ; Muscles ; Visual Acuity

PURPOSE: As neoplasia is the result of unbalanced cell growth and cell death, alternations in the growth control pathway including the immunity within the individual host-tumor relationship has been attributed to the development of breast cancer. Interferon(IFN)-gamma based immunity was recently reported to have an antitumor effect and some new methods to assess the state of interferon-gamma based immunity have been introduced. Interferon regulatory factor(IRF)-1 and interferon regulatory factor(IRF)-2 are transcriptional factors that mediate the effects of Interferon-gamma. It was suggested that the loss of IRF-1 expression is associated with the loss of tumor suppression and the development of IRF-2 expression is associated with oncogenic activation. Thus, we studied the significances of the IRF-1 and IRF-2 expressions as they are related with some clinicopathological parameters to determine the biological behavior of breast cancer including the menopausal status, tumor size, lymph node status, histologic grade, the expression of steroid receptors, the expression of c-erb B2 oncoprotein and the expression of p53 protein. METHODS: Formalin-fixed paraffin embedded specimens from 82 patients with invasive ductal carcinoma were used to evaluate the expression of IRF-1 and IRF-2 by performing immunohistochemical staining with using an avidin-biotin-peroxidase complex technique. RESULTS: The expression of IRF-1 was observed in 80.5 % of the study group. However, the expression of IRF-1 did not show any correlation with menopausal status, tumor size, histologic grade, the expression of steroid receptors, the expression of c-erb B2 oncoprotein and the p53 expression. Only lymph node metastasis showed a decreasing tendency of IRF-1 expression, but this was without statistical significance (p=0.075). The expression of IRF-2 was observed in 58.5% of the study group and it did not show any significant relationship with any of the above mentioned clinicopathological parameters. CONCLUSION: This study suggests that the expression of IRF-1 and IRF-2 does not affect the previously established parameters for determining such biological behaviors of breast cancer as the tumor size, lymph node metastasis, the histologic grade, the expression of steroid receptors, the expression of c-erb B2 and the expression of p53. In spite of these results, We'd like to recommend that another study be done to evaluate the role of IRF-1 and IRF-2 for the proper selection of the patients who are suitable for immunotherapy.
Breast Neoplasms* ; Breast* ; Carcinoma, Ductal ; Cell Death ; Humans ; Immunotherapy ; Interferon Regulatory Factors* ; Interferon-gamma ; Interferons* ; Lymph Nodes ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Paraffin ; Receptors, Steroid

No abstract available.
C-Peptide* ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1*

PURPOSE: To report several cases of secondary infection by fungus in herpes simplex keratitis. CASE SUMMARY: A retrospective chart review was performed on 3 eyes of 3 patients who were without improvement and diagnosed with fungal keratitis by smear and culture on prior presentation with herpetic keratitis. Two cases were diagnosed with fungal keratitis, based on the results of culture. Fungal keratitis by Candida albicans was improved with antifungal agents, but a case caused by Fusarium species was more aggravated, regardless of antifungal agents. One case was improved by antifungal medications, which was diagnosed with fungal keratitis by the fungal hyphae manifestation on KOH preparation. CONCLUSIONS: Secondary microbial infection should be considered, when the lesion had no improvement with antiviral agents in herpetic keratitis.
Antifungal Agents ; Antiviral Agents ; Candida albicans ; Coinfection ; Eye ; Fungi ; Fusarium ; Herpes Simplex ; Humans ; Hyphae ; Keratitis ; Keratitis, Herpetic ; Methylmethacrylates ; Polystyrenes ; Retrospective Studies

The mainstay of treatment in primary breast cancer is still a radical mastectomy. In the case of advanced breast cancer, preoperative chemotherapy is an alternative treatment method to induce surgical therapy. Although the number of elderly patients with breast cancer is increasing, the knowledge about the possible differences in the biology and clinical outcomes of breast cancer according to age is limited. In addition, elderly patients have difficulties with surgical treatment because of the higher rate of coincident systemic illness, high anesthetic risk and high rate of operation refusals for an operation than those in young patients. As it was well known that elderly patients have better prognoses than younger patients and more estrogen and progesterone receptors in tumor tissue, it was expected that oral chemoendocrine and radiation therapy could be an alternative in elderly patients who refuse surgery. Good results were experienced in our three elderly breast cancer patients when applying these non-surgical treatments.
Aged* ; Biology ; Breast Neoplasms* ; Breast* ; Drug Therapy ; Estrogens ; Female ; Humans ; Mastectomy, Radical ; Prognosis ; Receptors, Progesterone

PURPOSE: To evaluate the effect of dorzolamide-timolol and latanoprost on redox cycle of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and ascorbic acid in the aqueous humor of the rabbit. METHODS: Group 1 (20 eyes of 10 rabbits) was instilled with dorzolamide-timolol in the right eye and Group 2 (20 eyes of 10 rabbits) was instilled with latanoprost in the same manner. Four weeks after instillation, SOD activity and ascorbic acid concentration were analyzed. RESULTS: In Group 1, SOD activity and ascorbic acid concentration of the right eye and left eye were 15.7% and 19.3% (p=0.27), 2.7 pM and 2.6 pM (p=0.47), respectively. In Group 2, SOD activity and ascorbic acid concentration of the right and left eye were 22.3% and 27.6% (p=0.14), 2.3 pM and 2.1 pM (p=0.89), respectively. CONCLUSIONS: There was no significant difference of SOD activity and ascorbic acid concentration between both eyes in Group 1 and 2.
Aqueous Humor ; Ascorbic Acid ; Eye ; Oxidation-Reduction ; Prostaglandins F, Synthetic ; Superoxide Dismutase

PURPOSE: To compare the visual function and postoperative refraction between two aspheric intraocular lenses (IOLs) after microcoaxial cataract surgery. METHODS: A prospective analysis of 60 eyes of 58 patients who had undergone microcoaxial phacoemulsification and implantation of aspheric IOLs (AcrySof IQ, 30 eyes; Akreos MI60, 30 eyes) was performed. The best corrected visual acuity (BCVA), spherical equivalent, intraocular pressure (IOP), corneal thickness, endothelial cell density (ECD), predictability of postoperative spherical equivalent, higher order aberrations, contrast sensitivity test, satisfaction, and glare were evaluated during the follow-up period of three months. RESULTS: There were no significant differences in BCVA, spherical equivalent, IOP, corneal thickness, or ECD (p>0.05). The predictability of the postoperative spherical equivalent in the AcrySof IQ and Akreos MI60 IOL groups was not significantly different (p=0.59), and the two groups showed good anterior-posterior stability during the postoperative three months. There were no significant differences in higher order aberrations, contrast sensitivity test, satisfaction or glare (p>0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Both AcrySof IQ and Akreos MI60 implantation groups showed similar visual functions and postoperative spherical equivalents after microcoaxial cataract surgery.
Cataract ; Contrast Sensitivity ; Endothelial Cells ; Eye ; Follow-Up Studies ; Glare ; Humans ; Intraocular Pressure ; Lenses, Intraocular ; Phacoemulsification ; Prospective Studies ; Visual Acuity

PURPOSE: To investigate the results of surgical treatment of the symptomatic accessory navicular in adolescent. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 11 patients who were 11~16 years old with symptomatic accessory navicular were identified between 2001 and 2009. Six cases were diagnosed after trauma and 8 cases were diagnosed by accident with painful bony protrusion on medial aspect of foot. In cases after at least 3 months of ineffective conservative treatment, patients were treated by resection of accessory navicular and reattachment of tibialis posterior tendon to the apex of the medial longitudinal arch using periosteum and ligamentous soft tissue without transposition of its course. And then short leg cast was applied for correction of the flat foot (if it is combined) which was molded into the longitudinal arch with the talonavicular joint released and foot inverted during about 6 weeks. RESULTS: All were type II accessory navicular without tibialis posterior tendon lesions. In most cases pain was improved, results were excellent in seven and good in four. Calcaneal pitch angle and talus-first metatarsal angle was improved about 4.64degrees and 5.79degrees in average. CONCLUSION: Symptomatic accessory navicular in adolescent might not be associated with the tibialis posterior tendon lesions. The surgical treatment composed of excision of the accessory navicular with simple replication of the tibialis posterior tendon without altering its course led to good results in most cases. The procedure has a low rate of complications. And it is easy to be performed with a good satisfaction.
Adolescent ; Flatfoot ; Foot ; Fungi ; Humans ; Joints ; Leg ; Ligaments ; Metatarsal Bones ; Periosteum ; Tendons