No abstract available.
Adult* ; Humans ; Lung* ; Pneumocytes* ; Pneumonectomy* ; Rabbits*

No abstract available.

OBJECTIVES: The prevalence of smoking in schizophrenic patients (74-92%) is higher than that of all psychiatric patients (34-54%) or general population (30-35%). This higher smoking Prevalence is demonstrated even after controlling for known confounders, such as marital status, alcohol use, and socioeconomic status. This study was conducted to determine whether there would be any difference in nicotine intake and metabolism between schizophrenics and normal controls. METHODS: Sixteen schizophrenic patients and sixteen normal controls were collected. All subjects were supplied with a pack of cigarette a day. Urinary cotinine excretion was measured by using gas chromatographic mass spectrometric method. RESULTS: Cotinine excretion was significantly increased in schizophrenic patients compared to normal controls (p<0.05). None of variables such as age at initial smoking, the average number of cigarettes at initial smoking, pack year (packs daily smoked x smoking year), abstinence history were found to influence cotinine levels when examined via the ANOVA, even when the interaction with diagnosis was considered. CONCLUSION: This result suggests that nicotine intake and consumption are increased in schizophrenic patients compared to normal controls, which can be an attempt to improve sensory inhibition and counteract neuronal effect of antipsychotic medications.
Cotinine* ; Diagnosis ; Humans ; Marital Status ; Metabolism ; Neurons ; Nicotine ; Prevalence ; Schizophrenia ; Smoke ; Smoking ; Social Class ; Tobacco Products

No abstract available.
Gaucher Disease* ; Humans ; Siblings*

BACKGROUND: The P50 which is the oxygen tension corresponding to 50% saturation at pH 7.40, PCO2 40 mmHg and temperature 37oC is an accepted and useful reference to characterize the oxygen affinity for hemoglobin. This study evaluated the accuracy of P50 calculated from a single measurement of pH, PO2 and SO2 compared with linear regression and sigmoid Emax model in patients undergoing general anesthesia. This study also compared P50 of just after anesthetic induction to P50 of 90 min later. METHODS: This study was conducted in 10 patients undergoing total abdominal hysterectomy. Just after induction of anesthesia, 20G catheter was indwelled at cephalic vein of forearm and venous return was occluded with a tourniquet. After 4 min, 6 blood samples were obtained every one minute. After 90 min, 6 blood samples were obtained with same method. All blood samples were analyzed with blood gas analyzer within 30 min after withdrawal. P50 was calculated from three methods of calculation, linear regression and sigmoid Emax model. The difference between the actural P50 and calculated P50 was evaluated. RESULTS: P50's calculated from three methods were 25.8+/-1.1, 26.1+/-1.1, 26.0+/-1.2 mmHg respectively. P50's 90min after anesthetic induction (26.1+/-1.3, 26.3+/-1.2, 26.2+/-1.2 mmHg) were significantly greater than P50's just after anesthetic induction (25.5+/-0.8, 25.8+/-1.0, 25.9+/-1.1 mmHg)(P<0.05). Difference between calculated P50 and actual P50 of 120 blood samples from 10 patients according to SO2 were -5.7+/-4.5 (SO2<20%), 0.0+/-1.9 (20%90%). Sigmoidicity of oxygen dissociation curves from 10 patients with sigmoid Emax model was 2.78+/-0.13 (mean SD). CONCLUSIONS: The method calculating P50 from a single measurement of pH, PO2, SO2 was relatively reliable to estimate the change of oxygen dissociation curve of a patient. The affinity of hemoglobin to O2 was reduced during general anesthesia.
Anesthesia ; Anesthesia, General* ; Catheters ; Colon, Sigmoid ; Forearm ; Humans ; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration* ; Hysterectomy ; Linear Models ; Oxygen ; Tourniquets ; Veins

BACKGROUND: In recent years, Acinetobacter baumannii isolates acquired resistance to cefepime have increased significantly. The aim of this study was to survey the prevalence of PER-1 extendedspectrum beta -lactamase (ESBL)-producing A. baumannii isolates in a University Hospital, Busan, Korea. METHODS: Antimicrobial susceptibilities were tested by the disk diffusion method, and double disk synergy test was performed for screening of ESBL-production. MICs were determined by agar dilution method. The isoelectric points of beta -lactamases were determined by isoelectric focusing. Transferability of cefepime-resistance were tested by conjugation. blaPER-1 and blaPER-2 alleles were detected by PCR, and the DNA sequences of amplified products were determined by using the dideoxy-chain termination method. RESULTS: Among 51 clinical isolates of A. baumannii intermediate or resistant to cefepime, 10 isolates (19.6%) showed positive results in double disk synergy test. PCR-based experiments detected blaPER-1 gene in all the 10 isolates. All the isolates contained three beta -lactamase bands: pI 5.3, 7.9, and 9.4. MICs of ampicillin, piperacillin, cephalothin, cefoxitin, cefoperazone, ceftazidime, cefotaxime, cefepime, and aztreonam were >256 mg/L, respectively, and them of imipenem were 8-16 mg/L. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of PER-1-producing A. baumannii strains in Busan was less than that of in Seoul. But an outbreak of infection caused by this strain in an intensive care unit shows that spread of PER-1-producing A. baumannii strains can be anticipated in a near future. Prevention of hospital infection by these resistant microorganisms are needed.
Acinetobacter baumannii* ; Acinetobacter* ; Agar ; Alleles ; Ampicillin ; Aztreonam ; Base Sequence ; Busan* ; Cefoperazone ; Cefotaxime ; Cefoxitin ; Ceftazidime ; Cephalothin ; Cross Infection ; Diffusion ; Imipenem ; Intensive Care Units ; Isoelectric Focusing ; Isoelectric Point ; Korea* ; Mass Screening ; Piperacillin ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Prevalence* ; Seoul

Sciatic nerve injury can result from intragluteal administration of any kind of antibiotics or other agents therapeutically or prophylactically. This experimental study was conducted in order to observe the histopathological findings of injured sciatic nerve following injection with normal saline, chloromycetin, penicillin and rheumapyrine. Fifty-five experimental normal adult rabbits were divided into 4 groups and various substances were injected intraneurally on the right side and perineurally on the left side. Pathological specimens were then taken at intervals of 1, 3, 7, and 21 days after injection. The results obtained were summarized as follows: 1. Rheumapyrine produced the greatest reaction, penicllin was the next and chlomycetin was the least damaging of the drugs in this study. 2. More conspicuous pathological changes were observed on the right side than on the left side. 3. It was thought that major source of damage to the sciatic nerve was chemical toxicity to the peripheral nerve. 4. Intraneural injections of rheumaphyrine induced irreversible damage on nervous tissue and perineural fibrosis. 5. Intraneural injection of penicillin caused transient reversible damage on nervous tissue with perineural deposition of collagen. 6. Intraneural injection of chloromycetin induced early reversible damage on nervous tissue with persistant inflammatory reaction in soft tissue. 7. Perineural injection of rheumapyrine, penicillin and chloromycetin induced mild damage on nerveus tissue and revealed moderate inflammatory reaction on soft tissue.
Adult ; Anti-Bacterial Agents ; Chloramphenicol ; Collagen ; Fibrosis ; Humans ; Penicillins ; Peripheral Nerves ; Rabbits ; Sciatic Nerve*

We report a case of intracranial dissemination developing approximately 4 months after partial removal of a spinal cord anplastic astrocytoma in a 22-year-old male. He presented with paraplegia on initial admission at a local hospital. Spinal magnetic resonance (MR) images disclosed multiple intramedullary lesions at the T3-11. The tumor was partially removed. The final histologic diagnosis was anaplastic astrocytoma. Four months after the operation, he was admitted with the symptoms of headache and deterioration of consciousness. MR images showed enhanced lesions in the anterior horn of the left lateral ventricle, and septum pellucidum. He underwent computed tomography-guided stereotactic biopsy and histological appearance was consistent with anaplastic astrocytoma. The clinical course indicates that the tumor originated in the spinal cord and extended into the subarachnoid space, first the spinal canal and later intracranial.
Animals ; Astrocytoma ; Biopsy ; Consciousness ; Headache ; Horns ; Humans ; Lateral Ventricles ; Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy ; Male ; Paraplegia ; Septum Pellucidum ; Spinal Canal ; Spinal Cord ; Subarachnoid Space ; Young Adult

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The use of drug-eluting stent implantation for in-stent restenosis (ISR) has shown some promising results. This study investigated the clinical and angiographic results of performing sirolimuseluting stent (SES) implantation for the treatment of patients with ISR as compared with treatment with cutting balloon angioplasty (CBA). SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Forty one patients with ISR (43 lesions) were treated with SES implantation and they were retrospectively compared with a group of patient with matched lesions that were treated with CBA (57 patients with 61 lesions). Routine angiographic follow-up was obtained at about 6 months after treatment and the incidence of major adverse cardiovascular events was evaluated. RESULTS: The baseline clinical characteristics, the patterns of ISR and the minimal luminal diameters (MLD) were not different between the two groups. There was no procedural failure and no immediate major cardiovascular adverse events (MACE) in the two groups. There were two target lesion revascularizations during the clinical follow-up in the CBA group and no MACE was found in the SES group (4% vs. 0%, respectively p<0.001). On the follow-up angiogram, the MLD and the stenosis diameter were significantly lower in the SES group than in the CBA group (2.82+/-0.33 vs. 1.80+/-0.82 mm, p<0.001; and 11.3+/-9.6 vs. 41.2+/-24.8%, p<0.001, respectively). The acute gain was significantly higher and the late loss was significantly lower in the SES group than in the CBA group (2.64+/-0.38 vs. 2.02+/-0.44 mm, p<0.001; and 0.21+/-0.28 vs. 0.71+/-0.73, p<0.001, respectively). CONCLUSION: The sirolimuseluting stent was safe, feasible and highly effective for treating the patients suffering with in-stent restenosis as compared with cutting balloon angioplasty.
Angioplasty ; Angioplasty, Balloon* ; Constriction, Pathologic ; Coronary Restenosis ; Drug-Eluting Stents ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Incidence ; Phenobarbital ; Retrospective Studies ; Sirolimus ; Stents*

No abstract available.
Hypokalemia