An epidemiological study on brugian filariasis was carried out in endemic areas including Cheju Island in Korea, with a brief review of literatures.The results showed that the incidence among residents has remarkably decreased in Cheju Island, which was the main endemic area. Reviewing available informations on the prevalence of filariasis reported in recent years and also judging from the present socio-economic conditions which enable people to practice personal protection against mosquitos, it can be said with confidence that filariasis has almost disappeared from Cheju Island and inland areas. The disease is considered to remain at a low level of endemicity in Hugsan Islands. Certainly mass diethylcarbamazine (DEC) treatment carried out in Cheju Island in the 1960s and 1970s and remarkable economic growth followed by improved living standard and altered life-style of inhabitants could all have combined effects on the disappearance of this mosquito-borne diseae in this island. If the present trends go on, the possibility of resurgence of filariasis in Cheju Island is hardly postulated.
parasitology-helminth-nematoda ; Brugia malayi ; filariasis ; epidemiology

PURPOSE: The pharmacologic effect of atropine on HPS can be considered to control pyloric muscle spasm. Therefore, we studied the effects of intravenous atropine sulfate on the clinical course of HPS, and periodically observed the ultrasonographic appearance of the pyloric muscles after atropine treatment. METHODS:From April 1998 to May 1999, 14 infants who were diagnosed with HPS were treated with intravenous atropine sulfate. Intravenous atropine sulfate was administered at an initial dose of 0.04mg/kg/day, which was divided into 8 equal doses. The daily dose was increased by 0.01 mg/kg/day until vomiting was controlled for an entire day while infants received unrestricted oral feeding. Ultrasonographic examinations were performed during hospitalization and repeated at least every 2 months until normalization of pyloric muscles was confirmed. RESULTS: Intravenous atropine was effective in 12 of 14 infants with HPS and the conditions of 9 of them improved. Two infants who were not free from vomiting despite a week of intravenous atropine sulfate treatment underwent pyloromyotomy. A series of ultrasonographic examinations were done after vomiting had improved with intravenous atropine sulfate. The ultrasonographic findings showed good passage of gastric contents through pyloric canals despite thickening of the pyloric muscles. CONCLUSION: Intravenous administration of atropine sulfate is an effective therapy for HPS and can be an alternative to pyloromyotomy. (J Korean Pediatr Soc 2000;43:763-768)
Administration, Intravenous ; Atropine* ; Hospitalization ; Humans ; Infant ; Muscles ; Pyloric Stenosis, Hypertrophic* ; Spasm ; Vomiting

No abstract available.
Anesthesia, Spinal* ; Arthroplasty*

BACKGROUND: Phagocytosis is probably the first step for mycobacteria to be virulent in host because virulent strains are more readily phagocytosed by macrophage than attenuated strains. According 13 the traditional concept, multi-drug resistant strains have been regarded as less virulent. However, this concept has been challenged, since recent studies(reported) showed that the degree of virulence and drug-resistance is not related. The purpose of this study is to evaluate whether the phagocytic activity of M. tuberculosis by peripheral blood mononuclear cells(PBMC) is different according to drug-resistance or host factor. To evaluate this, we estimated the difference of phagocytic activity of drug-resistant and drug-sensitive M. tuberculosis and also estimated the phagocytic activity of PBMC from intractable tuberculosis patients and healthy controls. METHODS: PBMC from ten intractable tuberculosis patients and twelve healthy control and three different strains of heat-killed M. tuberculosis, ie, ADS(all drug sensitive), MDR(multi-drug resistant), and ADR(all drug resistant) were used. After incubation of various strains of M. tuberculosis with PBMC, the phagocytic activity was evaluated by estimating proportion of PBMC which have phagocytosed M. tuberculosis. RESULTS: Drug-resistant strains of M. tuberculosis were phagocylosed easily than drug sensitive strains(Percentage of PBMC phagocytosed M. tuberculosis in healthy control : ADS : 32.3α2.9%, ADR : 49.6α3.4%, p=0.0022, Percentage of PBMC phagocytosed M. tuberculosis in intractable tuberculosis patients : ADS : 34.9α3.6%, ADR : 50.7α4.5%), p=0.0069). However, there was no difference in phagocytic activity of PBMC from healthy control and intractable tuberculosis patients. CONCLUSION: Drug-resistant strains of M. tuberculosis were phagocytosed easily than drug sensitive strains and host factors does not seems to influence the phagocytosis of M. tuberculosis.
Humans ; Macrophages ; Monocytes* ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis* ; Mycobacterium* ; Phagocytosis* ; Tuberculosis ; Virulence

Fibrovascular polyp of the esophagus is a rare and benign pedunculated intraluminal tumor. The tumor consists of varying amount of vascular fibrous and adipose tissue that arises in the submucosa and is covered by squamous epithelium. We report the typical radiographic, CTand MR findings of a case of giant fibrovascular polyp of the esophagus.
Adipose Tissue ; Epithelium ; Esophagus* ; Polyps*

Surgical and anesthetic management in patients with complex vascular lesions is often challenging. Cardiopulmonary bypass followed by total circulatory arrest, deep hypothermia and barbiturate cerebral protection are efficacious adjuncts in the surgical treatment of giant basilar artery aneurysm. These techniques were utillized in two large basilar artery aneurysm patients with good results, and the surgical and anesthetic considerations are reviewed.
Aneurysm* ; Basilar Artery* ; Cardiopulmonary Bypass ; Humans ; Hypothermia* ; Intracranial Aneurysm

BACKGROUND: Monocytes/macrophages play a central role in determining the host response during Gram-negative infection through secretion of a variety of mediators after stimulation of LPS. Even though cytokine production has been shown to play an important role in host defense during sepsis cytokine release may also lead to tissue injury. Thus, regulation of macrophage response to LPS is critical for host survival during Gram-neg-alive sepsis. In animals exposed to nonlethal doses of endotoxin a characteristic hyporesponsiveness to subsequent administration of endotoxin has been observed. This phenomenon was knowm as 'LPS tolerance'. However, little information is availavble regarding the underlying mechanism of U)S tolerance. METHOD: Peripheral blood monocyte(PBMC) was isolated from peripheral blood of normal volunteers by adhesion purification method. To evaluate conditions to obtain LPS tolerance. preculture was carried out with LPS at 10ng/ml for 24 hours. For stimulation culture plates were washed two times and were stimulated with LPS at 1ng/ml for 4, 6 and 26 hours. To assess the underlying mechanisms of LPS tolerance, autologous serum, PMA, anti-CD14 Ab, Indomethacin or PGF2 were added to preculture solution respectively. Cytokine concentrations in culture supernatants were measured using ELISA for TNF-α and IL-8 and mRNA of TNF-α and IL-8 were determined by Northern blot analysis. RESULTS: The exposure of PBMC to low dose of LPS suppressed the cytokine production and mRNA expression of TNF-α, but not IL-8. Anti-CDl4 Ab partially recovered production of TNF-α which was suppressed by preculture with low dose LPS. The preculture with PMA induces US tolerance, as preculture with low dose LPS. CONCLUSION: LPS tolerance to TNF-α is regulated pretranslationally and is influenced by protein kinase C pathway and CD14.
Animals ; Blotting, Northern ; Dinoprost ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Healthy Volunteers ; Indomethacin ; Interleukin-8* ; Macrophages ; Monocytes* ; Protein Kinase C ; RNA, Messenger ; Sepsis ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha*

OBJECTIVES: We propose here a classification system for external auditory canal cholesteatoma (EACC). We classified the EACC by the computed tomography findings and clinical findings of the patients, and we evaluated the EACC characteristics by the proposed staging system. METHODS: Stage classification was done according to the results of temporal bone computed tomography and the clinical findings of the patients. Stage I indicates that the EACC lesion is limited to the external auditory canal. Stage II indicates that the EACC lesion invades the tympanic membrane and middle ear. Stage III indicates that the EACC lesion creates a defect of the external auditory canal and it involves the air cells in the mastoid bone. Stage IV indicates that the EACC lesion is beyond the temporal bone. Between 1996 and 2006, 29 patients with EACC and who underwent surgery were prospectively collected. This study was comprised of 16 males and 13 females with a mean age of 22.8+/-15.0 yr. We reviewed the characteristics and results of surgery by our proposed staging system. RESULTS: A total of 29 patients who underwent operation due to EACC were classified by this system, and the number of stage I, II, III, and IV cases was 14, 3, 10, and 2, respectively. Symptoms such as otorrhea, hearing impairment and otalgia occurred in 12, 17, and 17 cases, respectively. The most common wall invaded by EACC was the inferior wall. The number of cases that had a spontaneous, congenital, post-traumatic, post-inflammatory or tumorous origin was 14, 9, 2, 2, and 1, respectively. Cholesteatoma recurred in 2 patients after surgery. Both cases were stage 1 and both were caused by congenital disease. There were 3 cases with meatal stenosis after surgery, and their primary disease was congenital. CONCLUSION: This proposed staging is simple and easily applicable for use when deciding the treatment plan for patients with EACC.
Cholesteatoma ; Constriction, Pathologic ; Ear Canal ; Ear, Middle ; Earache ; Female ; Hearing Loss ; Humans ; Male ; Mastoid ; Prospective Studies ; Temporal Bone ; Tympanic Membrane

Optic pits are congenital craterlike holes or indentation in the surface of the optic disc. They are oval in shape and located in the inferior temporal quadrant of the optic disc. The authors experienced a case of congenital optic pit of the left eye of 18 year old male-patient. Fluorescein angiography showed hypofluorescence of the pit in early arteriovenous phase, becomming hyperfluorescence in the late phase. Ophthalmoscopic view of the diseased eye showed no abnormality of macular area. There was no visual field defect except the enlarged physiologic blind spot. Here we briefly report a case of congenital optic pit. referring the literature relating to the optic pit.
Adolescent ; Fluorescein Angiography ; Humans ; Optic Disk ; Visual Fields

The chordoid glioma is a recently recognized rare neoplasm of the third ventricle and hypothalamus and, as the name implies, has a chordoid appearance. Using histological, immunohistochemical and ultrastructural studies, we report a case of a 32-year-old man with a chordoid glioma in the third ventricle. Magnetic resonance T1-weighted images of the brain with homogenous contrast enhancement revealed a well circumscribed, isointense mass occupying the third ventricle. Histologically, the tumor showed cords and clusters of epithelioid cells within a mucinous background along with lymphoplasmacytic infiltrate, and appeared to be reminiscent of a chordoma or chordoid meningioma. Immunohistochemically, the tumor cells were immunoreactive for glial fibrillary acidic protein, vimentin and CD34 but negative for epithelial membrane antigen. Ultrastructural study revealed round to spindle shaped cells with abundant cytoplasmic intermediate filaments and cytoplasmic zonation.
Adult ; Brain ; Chordoma ; Cytoplasm ; Epithelioid Cells ; Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein ; Glioma* ; Humans ; Hypothalamus ; Intermediate Filaments ; Meningioma ; Mucin-1 ; Mucins ; Third Ventricle ; Vimentin