We aimed to evaluate the long term trantment of enalapril on the vascular response in the isolated aorta, and in anesthetized or pithed spontaneously hypertensive rats(SHR). In the isolated aorta, the increase in tension provoked by addition of KC1 16.7mM was attenuated by enalapril treatment(3mg/kg/day for 6 weeks), whereas the increment by addition of NE 0.1uM tension was not influenced. The frequency-dependent vasoconstricution induced by electrical field stimulation of aorta was also attenuated by enalapril treatment. In pithed SHR, the frequency-related hypertension provoked by electrical stimulation(10sec, 1ms with 40V) of sympathetic pregnglionic nerve was also attenuated by enalapril treatment. Neither dose-related vasorelaxation by acetylcholine addition in the aorta nor decrease of DBP by intravenously(i.v.)-injected aetylcholine was altered by enalapril treatment. However, beta2-agonist, salbutamol-induced vasorelaxation in enalapril-treated group, was more remarkable than that in control group. The hypotension by i.v.-but not by intracerebroventricularly-injected salbutamol strengthened by enalapril treatment. These results suggest that the suppression of development of hypertension by enalapril treatment may result from the reduction of adrenergic neurotransmission and activity to voltage dependent calcium channel by acting on vascular smooth muscle itself.
Acetylcholine ; Albuterol ; Aorta ; Blood Pressure* ; Calcium Channels ; Enalapril* ; Hypertension ; Hypotension ; Muscle, Smooth, Vascular ; Rats, Inbred SHR* ; Synaptic Transmission ; Vasodilation

PURPOSE: This study was undertaken to evaluate the clinical results of pars plana vitrectomy on posterior segment complications in posterior uveitis. METHODS: We reviewed the records of 20 eyes of 19 uveitis patients who were followed up for 6 months or more after vitrectomy. RESULTS: The mean follow-up period was 20 months. Final visual acuity improved in 10 eyes (50%), was maintained in 6 (30%), and decreased in 4 (20%). The mean improvement of vision was 1.6 lines (p=0.019). Detached retina was reattached in 8 (80%) among the 10 eyes with primary surgery. Postoperative complications were cataract (7 eyes), macular degeneration (2 eyes), retinal detachment (2 eyes), and recurrence (1 eye). CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that pars plana vitrectomy may be a safe and effective treatment for posterior segment complications in posterior uveitis, but that early and complete vitrectomy should be considered for a better visual prognosis.
Cataract ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Macular Degeneration ; Postoperative Complications ; Prognosis ; Recurrence ; Retina ; Retinal Detachment ; Uveitis ; Uveitis, Posterior* ; Visual Acuity ; Vitrectomy*

BACKGROUND: Clinically apparent thyroid nodule is a very common disease in adults. Patients are often treated with thyroxine in order to reduce the size of the nodule, but the efficacy of thyroxine-suppressive therapy with thyroxine remains uncertain. We investigated the efficacy of thyroxine-suppressive therapy and the hormonal characteristics during thyroxine therapy to find out whether such measurement could be used to determine the effectiveness of this therapy in patients with benign solitary thyroid nodule proved by aspiration biopsy. METHODS: In this study, 54 patients were randomly assigned to receive L-thyroxine (Group I, n=24) or placebo (GroupII, n=30) for 1 year. High resolution ultrasonography (10MHz) was used to measure the size of the nodules at six month intervals. Thyroid hormones and thyroglobulin assay and FNA (fine needle aspiration) was done at the same time. The dose of thyroxine was 200ug/day. Patients were followed at 6 month intervals. RESULTS: The results were as follows: 1) 13 (54.1%) out of 24 Group I patients after adequate TSH suppression had a statistically significant reduction of nodule size and before-to-after nodule volume ratios were significantly different between the Group I and Group II patients. 2) In the responders among Group I patients, the before-to-after therapy ratio of the nodule volume was not related to the pretreatment nodule size, thyroid hormones and thyroglobulin levels. CONCLUSION: Thus we concluded that an adequate suppressive dose of L-thyroxine significantly altered the volume of the benign solitary thyroid nodules 12 months later.
Adult ; Biopsy, Needle ; Humans ; Needles ; Thyroglobulin ; Thyroid Gland* ; Thyroid Hormones ; Thyroid Nodule* ; Thyroxine* ; Ultrasonography

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the stress patterns within fractured mandibles generated by reduction forceps and to determine the optimal position of the reduction forcep. Twenty-seven mandibular models were fabricated using a photoelastic resin. Each of the three sets of mandible models prepared was osteotomized according to one of three different fracture types(symphysis, parasymphysis and body fractures). After reducing the cut segments, a reduction forcep was placed into different engagement holes to compress the segments. Photoelastic stress analysis was used to visualize the stress patterns within the fractured mandiblular models generated by the reduction forcep. In the case of symphysis or parasymphysis fractures, an optimum distribution of stress over the fracture site was achieved when placing the reduction forcep more than 12.5 mmon either side of the fracture line between the midway level bisecting the mandible and 5 mm below the level. In the case of body fractures, optimum stress distribution was achieved when the reduction forcep was placed more than 15 mm from the fracture line on the midway level. In conclusion, a correct use of reduction forceps helps to provide a precise three-dimensional reduction for mandibular fractures.
Mandible ; Mandibular Fractures* ; Surgical Instruments*

BACKGROUND: Autogenous alveolar bone cell transplantation may be suitable for tissue engineering for alveolar bone reconstruction. This study aimed to isolate human alveolar bone-derived cells (HABDCs) and to evaluate the ability of collagen gels to support HABDC proliferation and differentiation for human alveolar bone tissue engineering applications. METHOD: Cultures of primary HABDCs were established from alveolar bone chips obtained from 10 persons undergoing tooth extraction. These cells were expanded in vitro until passage 3 and used for the in vitro characterization of HABDCs and the in vitro analysis of collagen gels for alveolar bone tissue engineering. RESULTS: Of the 10 attempts made to obtain HABDC cultures, eight were successful. HABDCs expressed the osteoblastic phenotype characterized by alkaline phosphatase activity, osteocalcin expression and the mineralization of the extracellular matrix in vitro. When seeded on collagen gels, HABDCs penetrated into the collagen gel matrices and proliferated inside the gels. Significantly, when HABDCs were embedded into the gels, collagen fibers and mineralization were produced within the gels. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates the feasibility of using cultured HABDCs and collagen gels for human alveolar bone tissue engineering applications.
Alkaline Phosphatase ; Bone and Bones ; Bone Regeneration ; Cell Transplantation ; Collagen ; Extracellular Matrix ; Gels ; Humans* ; Osteoblasts ; Osteocalcin ; Phenotype ; Tissue Engineering* ; Tooth Extraction ; Transplants

Cultures of primary human alveolar bone-derived cells were established from alveolar bone chips obtained from normal individuals undergoing tooth extraction. These cells were expanded in vitro until passage 3 and used for the in vivo assays. Cells were loaded into transplantation vehicles, and transplanted subcutaneously into immunodeficient mice to study the capacities of human alveolar bone-derived cells to form bone in vivo. Transplants were harvested 12 weeks after transplantation and evaluated histologically. Of 10 human alveolar bone-derived cell transplants, two formed a bone-like tissue that featured osteocytes and mineral. Eight of the ten formed no osseous tissue. These results show that cells from normal human alveolar bone are capable of forming bone-like tissue when transplanted into immunodeficient mice.
Animals ; Cell Culture Techniques ; Humans* ; Mice ; Osteocytes ; Osteogenesis* ; Tissue Engineering ; Tooth Extraction ; Transplants

BACKGROUND: In korea the agricultural community widely uses organophosphorous, and organophosphorous poisonings are increasing every year. We compared change in activity of acetylcholinesterase and pseudocholinesterase by organophosphorous and by the interaction of ethanol and organophosphorous. We also compared the effect of reversible anticholinesterase drugs, physostigmine and neostigmine. The object of this study is to investigate the effects of several anticholinesterase drugs and on how ethanol influences the activity of cholinesterase. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Fifteen male university students were randomly selected, and blood samples were taken from the antecubital vein. The acetylcholinesterase in the RBC and the pseudocholinesterase in the serum were extracted and separated. The enzyme activity change was measured by the electrometric method. After adding acetylcholine, the pH change was measured with a pH meter. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: Our results indicated that reversible anticholinesterase drugs decreased the cholinesterase activity more efficiently than organophosphorous. The acetyl cholinesterase and pseudocholinosterase activity were decreased by ethanol. When ethanol was added, oxime a cholinesterase activator, increased acetylcholinesterase activity but dose not increased pseudocholinesterase activity.
Acetylcholine ; Acetylcholinesterase ; Cholinesterase Inhibitors ; Cholinesterases* ; Ethanol* ; Humans ; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration ; Korea ; Male ; Neostigmine ; Physostigmine ; Poisoning ; Pseudocholinesterase ; Veins

BACKGROUND: A diagnosis of malignant pleural effusion is clinically important, as the prognosis of lung cancer patients with malignant pleural effusion is poor. The diagnosis will be difficult if a cytological test is negative. This study was performed to investigate whether the detection of hypermethylation of the p16 (CDKN2A) and retinoic acid receptor b2 (RARB2) genes in pleural fluid is useful for a diagnosis of malignant pleural effusion. METHODS: Pleural effusion was collected from 43 patients and was investigated for the aberrant promoter methylation of the RARB2 and CDKN2A genes by use of methylation-specific PCR. Results were compared with findings from a pleural biopsy and from pleural fluid cytology. RESULTS: Of 43 cases, 17 cases of pleural effusion were due to benign diseases, and 26 cases were from lung cancer patients with malignant pleural effusion. Hypermethylation of the RARB2 and CDKN2A genes was not detected in the case of benign diseases, independent of whether or not the patients had ever smoked. In 26 cases of malignant pleural effusion, hypermethylation of RARB2, CDKN2A or either of these genes was detected in 14, 5 and 15 cases, respectively. The sensitivities of a pleural biopsy, pleural fluid cytology, hypermethylation of RARB2, hypermethylation of CDKN2A, or hypermethylation of either of the genes were 73.1%, 53.8%, 53.8%, 19.2%, and 57.7%, respectively; negative predictive values were 70.8%, 58.6%, 58.6%, 44.7%, and 60.7%, respectively. If both genes are considered together, the sensitivity and negative predictive value was lower than that for a pleural biopsy, but higher than that for pleural fluid cytology. The sensitivity of hypermethylation of the RARB2 gene for malignant pleural effusion was lower in small cell lung cancers than in non-small cell lung cancers. CONCLUSION: These results demonstrate that detection of hypermethylation of the RARB2 and CDKN2A genes showed a high specificity, and sensitivity was higher than for pleural fluid cytology. With a better understanding of the pathogenesis of lung cancer according to histological types at the molecular level, and if appropriate genes are selected for hypermethylation testing, more precise results may be obtained.
Biopsy ; Genes, p16 ; Humans ; Lung Neoplasms ; Methylation ; Pleural Effusion ; Pleural Effusion, Malignant ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Prognosis ; Receptors, Retinoic Acid ; Smoke

OBJECTIVE: To prospectively evaluate the performance of diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) to monitor bowel inflammation after medical therapy for Crohn's disease (CD). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Before and following 1–2 years of medical therapy, between October 2012 and May 2015, 18 randomly selected adult CD patients (male:female, 13:5; mean age ± SD, 25.8 ± 7.9 years at the time of enrollment) prospectively underwent MR enterography (MRE) including DWI (b = 900 s/mm²) and ileocolonoscopy. Thirty-seven prospectively defined index lesions (one contiguous endoscopy-confirmed inflamed area chosen from each inflamed anatomical bowel segment; 1–4 index lesions per patient; median, 2 lesions) were assessed on pre- and post-treatment MRE and endoscopy. Visual assessment of treatment responses on DWI in 4 categories including complete remission and reduced, unchanged or increased inflammation, and measurements of changes in apparent diffusion coefficient (ΔADC), i.e., pre-treatment–post-treatment, were performed by 2 independent readers. Endoscopic findings and CD MRI activity index (CDMI) obtained using conventional MRE served as reference standards. RESULTS: ΔADC significantly differed between improved (i.e., complete remission and reduced inflammation) and unimproved (i.e., unchanged or increased inflammation) lesions: mean ± SD (× 10⁻³ mm²/s) of -0.65 ± 0.58 vs. 0.06 ± 0.15 for reader 1 (p = 0.022) and -0.68 ± 0.56 vs. 0.10 ± 0.26 for reader 2 (p = 0.025). DWI accuracy for diagnosing complete remission or improved inflammation ranged from 76% (28/37) to 84% (31/37). A significant negative correlation was noted between ΔADC and ΔCDMI for both readers with correlation coefficients of -0.438 and -0.461, respectively (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: DWI is potentially a feasible tool to monitor quantitatively and qualitatively bowel inflammation of CD after medical treatment.
Adult ; Crohn Disease* ; Diffusion ; Endoscopy ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Inflammation* ; Longitudinal Studies* ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Prospective Studies*

PURPOSE: The modification of the cancer classification system aimed to improve the classical anatomy-based tumor, node, metastasis (TNM) staging by considering tumor biology, which is associated with patient prognosis, because such information provides additional precision and flexibility. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We previously developed an mRNA expression-based single patient classifier (SPC) algorithm that could predict the prognosis of patients with stage II/III gastric cancer. We also validated its utilization in clinical settings. The prognostic single patient classifier (pSPC) differentiates based on 3 prognostic groups (low-, intermediate-, and high-risk), and these groups were considered as independent prognostic factors along with TNM stages. We evaluated whether the modified TNM staging system based on the pSPC has a better prognostic performance than the TNM 8th edition staging system. The data of 652 patients who underwent gastrectomy with curative intent for gastric cancer between 2000 and 2004 were evaluated. Furthermore, 2 other cohorts (n=307 and 625) from a previous study were assessed. Thus, 1,584 patients were included in the analysis. To modify the TNM staging system, one-grade down-staging was applied to low-risk patients according to the pSPC in the TNM 8th edition staging system; for intermediate- and high-risk groups, the modified TNM and TNM 8th edition staging systems were identical. RESULTS: Among the 1,584 patients, 187 (11.8%), 664 (41.9%), and 733 (46.3%) were classified into the low-, intermediate-, and high-risk groups, respectively, according to the pSPC. pSPC prognoses and survival curves of the overall population were well stratified, and the TNM stage-adjusted hazard ratios of the intermediate- and high-risk groups were 1.96 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.41–2.72; P < 0.001) and 2.54 (95% CI, 1.84–3.50; P < 0.001), respectively. Using Harrell's C-index, the prognostic performance of the modified TNM system was evaluated, and the results showed that its prognostic performance was better than that of the TNM 8th edition staging system in terms of overall survival (0.635 vs. 0.620, P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The pSPC-modified TNM staging is an alternative staging system for stage II/III gastric cancer.
Biology ; Classification ; Cohort Studies ; Gastrectomy ; Humans ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Neoplasm Staging* ; Pliability ; Prognosis ; RNA, Messenger ; Stomach Neoplasms*