The evaluation of urinary calculi was done in 84 patients of paraplegia and quadriplegia due to traumatic spinal cord injury. These patients were diagnosed by KUB and intravenous urography at National Veterans Hospital during 6 years from Jan. 1975 to Dec. 1980. The results were as follows; 1. Overall incidence of urinary calculi was 38.1 %; Incidence of renal calculi was 8.3%, ureteral calculi 4.8%, and urinary bladder claculi 32.1%. 2.Relation of neurological level and incidence of urinary calculi were as follows; Cervical injury in 34.8% upper thoracic injury in 40.0%, lower thoracic injury in 45.0%, and lumbar injury in 36.5%. 3. Laterality was not toplay a role information of urinary claculi. 4. The urinary calculi were developed 62.5% during the first 36 months following spinal cord injury. 5. The recurrence of urinary calculi was 40.6%; True recurrence was 15.6% and pseudo recurrence was 25.05.
Hospitals, Veterans ; Humans ; Incidence ; Kidney Calculi ; Paraplegia ; Quadriplegia ; Recurrence ; Spinal Cord Injuries ; Spinal Cord ; Thoracic Injuries ; Ureteral Calculi ; Urinary Bladder ; Urinary Calculi ; Urography

PURPOSE: To compare the incidence between author's first and current report on urinary tract stone in patient with spinal cord injury and to evaluate the effectiveness of recent developed in medical technology and care on in treating the patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We reviewed urinary tract stone in 257 patients with paraplegia or quadriplegia after spinal cord injury. These patients were diagnosed retrospectively by KUB and intravenous urography at the Korea Veterans Hospital during 10years from January, 1984 to December, 1993. We evaluated and compared the overall incidence, incidence of specific location of urinary tract, recurrent rate, incidence according to the level of spinal cord injury, and the duration of development in urinary tract stone. RESULTS: Total patients were 257 with 186(72.4%) paraplegia and 71(27.6%)quadriplegia. Overall incidence of the stone was 16.0% in this study and 38.1% in the first study. Incidence of the stone in individual organ ;5.5% in kidney, 1.2% in ureter, and 13.6% in urinary bladder. The recurrent rate was 29.3% in this study and 40.6% in the first study. Incidence of the stone according to the level of spinal cord injury was as follows;15.6% in cervix, 17.1% in upper thorax, 17.9% in lower thorax and 13.9% in lumbar. The stone developed during the first 4 years and between 12 to 16 years following spinal cord injury was 28.3% each. CONCLUSION: Overall incidence and recurrent rate of urinary tract stone was obviously decreased since the first study. Highest incidence of the stone occurred in urinary bladder and in patient with lower thoracic spinal cord injury, which is similar to first report. Peak incidence of the stone was in the first 4years, and another peak was in 12-16years after spinal cord injury. The decreased overall incidence of urinary tract stone maybe attributable to the development in medical technology and care, and active rehabilitation.
Cervix Uteri ; Female ; Hospitals, Veterans ; Humans ; Incidence ; Kidney ; Korea ; Paraplegia ; Quadriplegia ; Rehabilitation ; Retrospective Studies* ; Spinal Cord Injuries* ; Spinal Cord* ; Thorax ; Ureter ; Urinary Bladder ; Urinary Calculi* ; Urinary Tract* ; Urography

PURPOSE: To compare the incidence between author's first and current report on urinary tract stone in patient with spinal cord injury and to evaluate the effectiveness of recent developed in medical technology and care on in treating the patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We reviewed urinary tract stone in 257 patients with paraplegia or quadriplegia after spinal cord injury. These patients were diagnosed retrospectively by KUB and intravenous urography at the Korea Veterans Hospital during 10years from January, 1984 to December, 1993. We evaluated and compared the overall incidence, incidence of specific location of urinary tract, recurrent rate, incidence according to the level of spinal cord injury, and the duration of development in urinary tract stone. RESULTS: Total patients were 257 with 186(72.4%) paraplegia and 71(27.6%)quadriplegia. Overall incidence of the stone was 16.0% in this study and 38.1% in the first study. Incidence of the stone in individual organ ;5.5% in kidney, 1.2% in ureter, and 13.6% in urinary bladder. The recurrent rate was 29.3% in this study and 40.6% in the first study. Incidence of the stone according to the level of spinal cord injury was as follows;15.6% in cervix, 17.1% in upper thorax, 17.9% in lower thorax and 13.9% in lumbar. The stone developed during the first 4 years and between 12 to 16 years following spinal cord injury was 28.3% each. CONCLUSION: Overall incidence and recurrent rate of urinary tract stone was obviously decreased since the first study. Highest incidence of the stone occurred in urinary bladder and in patient with lower thoracic spinal cord injury, which is similar to first report. Peak incidence of the stone was in the first 4years, and another peak was in 12-16years after spinal cord injury. The decreased overall incidence of urinary tract stone maybe attributable to the development in medical technology and care, and active rehabilitation.
Cervix Uteri ; Female ; Hospitals, Veterans ; Humans ; Incidence ; Kidney ; Korea ; Paraplegia ; Quadriplegia ; Rehabilitation ; Retrospective Studies* ; Spinal Cord Injuries* ; Spinal Cord* ; Thorax ; Ureter ; Urinary Bladder ; Urinary Calculi* ; Urinary Tract* ; Urography

No abstract available.
Adolescent* ; Humans ; Love*

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: As previously reported, unstable angina is usually related to characteristic coronary artery lesion's morphology analyzed by coronary angiogram. This takes the form of an eccentrically placed convex stenosis with a narrow neck due to one or more overhanging edges or irregular, scalloped borders, or both. Although most studies were done for lesions with high degree stenosis(>50%), recent studies emphasized the role of vulnerability of plaque in acute coronary syndrome and even mild degree stenotic lesions may progress rapidly to evoke acute coronary syndrome. Therefore in this study, we analyzed the morphological characteristics of coronary artery lesions with mild degree stenosis as well as severe stenosis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We conducted a retrospective study of 96 patients with angina pectoris (42 of stable patients and 54 of unstable patients) who underwent coronary angiography. Each lesions with 25% or greater diameter stenosis were categorized into simple and complex lesion(convex intraluminal obstruction with a narrow neck or irregular borders, diffuse irregularities, ulceration, thrombus). Calcification of coronary artery, extents of lesions were analyzed and stenosis grade and location were categorized by AHA classification. RESULTS: There were no significant differences between the stable angina and unstable angina in risk factors and vessel involvement, numbers of lesions, calcification and total obstruction. In morphologic analysis, complex lesions were more frequent in unstable angina than stable angina (49% vs 33%, p<0.05). The mean of percent diameter stenosis was not signigicantly different between two groups, but severe stenotic lesions with 90% or more stenosis were more frequent in unstable angina (34% vs 22%, p<0.05). Locations of involved vessels were similar between the angina groups. Complex lesions were distributed more frequent in RCA and simple lesions were more in LAD and LCX (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The lesions with both complex morphology and severe degree stenosis are closely implicated in unstable angina.
Acute Coronary Syndrome ; Angina Pectoris ; Angina, Stable ; Angina, Unstable* ; Classification ; Constriction, Pathologic ; Coronary Angiography ; Coronary Vessels* ; Humans ; Neck ; Pectinidae ; Retrospective Studies ; Risk Factors ; Ulcer

PURPOSE: To determine whether triple negative (TN) early stage breast cancers have poorer survival rates compared with other molecular types. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Between August 2000 and July 2006, patients diagnosed with stage I, II early stage breast cancers, in whom all three markers (estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, and human epidermal growth factor receptor [HER]-2) were available and treated with modified radical mastectomy or breast conserving surgery followed by radiotherapy, were retrospectively reviewed. RESULTS: Of 446 patients, 94 (21.1%) were classified as TN, 57 (12.8%) as HER-2 type, and 295 (66.1%) as luminal. TN was more frequently associated with young patients younger than 35 years old (p = 0.002), higher histologic grade (p < 0.0001), and nuclear (p < 0.0001). The median follow-up period was 78 months (range, 4 to 130 months). There were 9 local relapses (2.0%), 15 nodal (3.4%), 40 distant metastases (9.0%), and 33 deaths (7.4%) for all patients. The rates of 5-year OS, DFS, LFS, and DMFS for all patients were 95.5%, 89.9%, 95.4%, and 91.7%, respectively. There were no significant differences in OS, DFS, LFS, and DMFS between triple negative and other subtypes (p > 0.05). CONCLUSION: We found that patients with TN early stage breast cancers had no difference in survival rates compared with other molecular subtypes. Prospective study in homogeneous treatment group will need for a prognosis of TN early stage breast cancer.
Breast ; Breast Neoplasms ; Disease-Free Survival ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Mastectomy, Modified Radical ; Mastectomy, Segmental ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Phenobarbital ; Prognosis ; Receptor, Epidermal Growth Factor ; Receptors, Progesterone ; Recurrence ; Retrospective Studies ; Survival Rate ; Treatment Outcome

PURPOSE: To analyze the effects of soft contact lenses on central corneal thickness and morphologic characteristics of the corneal endothelium in diabetic patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Ultrasound pachymetry and noncontact specular microscopy were performed on 26 diabetic patients who regularly use soft contact lenses (group 1), 27 diabetic patients who do not use soft contact lenses (group 2) and 30 normal subjects (group 3). We compared the values in each group using the Mann-Whitney test. RESULTS: The central cornea was found to be thicker in diabetic patients, both those who use and do not use contact lenses, than in the normal control group. The central corneal thickness was significantly higher in group 1 (564.73 +/- 35.41 microm) and group 2 (555.76 +/- 45.96 microm) than in the control group (534.05 +/- 27.02 microm), but there was no statistically significant difference between groups 1 and 2. Endothelial cell density was significantly different between the groups, and was smallest in the group of diabetic patients using contact lenses. The coefficient of variation of cell size was significantly higher and the percentage of hexagonal cells was significantly lower in contact lens using diabetic patients than in non-contact lens using diabetic patients and in the control group. CONCLUSION: Central corneal thickness and endothelial cell density is more affected by diabetes mellitus, and corneal endothelial cell morphology is more affected by contact lens use, when compared with normal subjects.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Case-Control Studies ; Contact Lenses, Hydrophilic/*adverse effects ; Cornea/pathology ; Corneal Endothelial Cell Loss/*etiology/pathology ; Diabetes Complications/*etiology/pathology ; Endothelium, Corneal/pathology ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Statistics, Nonparametric ; Young Adult

Pyourachus is an infection of urachal cyst which is one of congenital urachal anormalies. It should bedifferentiated from urachal tumor in adult, and abdominal desmoplastic round cell tumor, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma,and intra-abdominal desmoid tumor in children. The CT findings of pyourachus are characteristic to provide anaccurate preoperative diagnosis. The authors encountered a case of pyourachus in a 58-year-old male and report thecharacteristic CT findings. A large hypodense spherical mass with irregular thickened wall was present in themidline of the lower abdomen under the rectus abdominalis muscle extending from the dome of the urinary bladder tothe level of the umbilicus.
Abdomen ; Adult ; Child ; Diagnosis ; Fibromatosis, Aggressive ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Umbilicus ; Urachal Cyst ; Urachus ; Urinary Bladder

Three anopheline mosquitoes in Korea were studied for their abilities as vectors for Plasmodium vivax. The female mosquitoes of Anopheles lesteri, An. pullus and An. sinensis were allowed to suck malaria patient blood until fully fed, and they were then bred for 2 weeks to develop from malaria parasites to sporozoites. The result from the above confirmed the sporozoites in one An. lesteri of one individual and five An. sinensis of six individuals. We also reconfirmed that An. sinensis was the main vector to transmit malaria and An. lesteri as well as An. sinensis were able to carry Korean malaria parasites. Therefore, we propose that diversified study is needed to manage malaria projects.
Adult ; Animals ; Culicidae/*parasitology/*physiology ; Female ; Humans ; *Insect Vectors ; Korea ; Malaria/parasitology/transmission ; Male ; *Plasmodium vivax

The estimation of age is an important issue in forensic science, and the forensic community has attempted many times to establish methods for solving this issue. Aging leads to alterations in tissues and organs at the molecular level. These alterations at the molecular level may aid forensic scientists to estimate the age of a living person or a dead body. Initially, the focus was on the genetic components of aging, but recently, epigenetic mechanisms have emerged as the key contributors to the alterations in genome structure and function that accompany aging. In particular, DNA methylation is one of the best-understood mechanisms, and it has been suggested as a promising biomarker for age estimation in many studies. In this review, we summarize the recent studies on age-associated DNA methylation changes in different tissues and discuss its possible and practical applications in forensics.
Aging ; DNA ; DNA Methylation ; Epigenomics ; Forensic Sciences ; Genome ; Humans