No abstract available.
Fingers* ; Toes*

No abstract available.
Fingers* ; Toes*

Peripartum cardiomyopathy is defined as a syndrome of cardiac failure occurring in tbe latter part of pregnancy or in the puerperium, without obvious cause and without prior evidence of heart disease. Despite its infrequency, this clinical problem may have devastating consequences upon maternal and fetal outcome. It is important to recognize the association of cardiac failure and pregnancy as a separate syndrome so that, once identified, peripartum cardiomyopathy can be treated promptly and aggressively. We experienced two cases of peripartum cardiomyopathy, and report these cases with a brief review of the literatures.
Cardiomyopathies* ; Heart Diseases ; Heart Failure ; Peripartum Period* ; Postpartum Period ; Pregnancy

The development of drug resistance is a major obstacle in effective cancer chemotherapy. Multidrug resistance(MDR) is a widely studied phenomenon of interest to both clinicians and research workers because many different cancer chemotherapeutic agents are involved and the genetic basis of MDR is understood to a large extent. Several studies show that the P-glycoprotein (P-gp), multidrug resistance-associated protein(MRP), glutathione-s-transferase-pi(GST-pi), and DNA topoisomerase II(topo II) have a complex role for the malignant phenotypes and MDR. Clearly, there is a need to investigate links between the diverse characteristics of tumors and the emergence of drug resistance. We have therefore used reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction(RT-PCR) assay to analyze expressions of MDR-related genes including the mdr1, MRP, topo II and GST-t gene in normal testis and testis tumors. The results are as follows: 1. The expression levels of topo II and GST-n genes in testis tumors, especially in the nonseminomatous germ cell tumor(NSGCT), were significantly higher than in normal testis(p=0.015 and 0.025, respectively). 2. The MDR-related gene expressions in testis tumors did not appear to be correlated with stage(p>0.05 in each case) and chemotherapy status(p>0.05 in each case). 3. MRP expression levels in primary tumors were much higher than in metastatic tumors. 4. In NSGCT, the coexpressions of the topo II and GST-r or MRP genes were significantly correlated but, seminoma showed no correlation between MDR-related genes in the same sample. Although the mechanism of these connection are not known, the results suggest that these expression patterns and higher GST-rexpression in NSGCF compared to seminoma confer diverse characteristics including difference in the presentation of tumor markers and the responsiveness to chemotherapy on NSGCF and seminoma.
DNA Topoisomerases, Type I ; DNA Topoisomerases, Type II ; Drug Resistance ; Drug Therapy ; Gene Expression* ; Germ Cells* ; Neoplasms, Germ Cell and Embryonal* ; P-Glycoprotein ; Phenotype ; Seminoma ; Testis* ; Biomarkers, Tumor

No abstract available.
Animal Experimentation* ; Animals* ; Botulism* ; Humans

No abstract available.
Humans* ; Metalloproteases ; Prostate* ; Prostatic Neoplasms

Acute scrotum is defined as an acute painful swelling of the scrotum or its content. There are many conditions it may cause acute scrotum, but since a delay in the diagnosis and treatment may led to necrosis and its loss, the possibility of torsion of the spermatic cord should be ruled out in the first place. In a retrospective study of 32 childhood patients with acute scrotum presenting to Chungbuk National University Hospital from March 1992 to March 1995, we evaluated general aspects of acute scrotum including the result of follow up. The incidence of acute epididymitis, testicular torsion, mumps orchitis, and torsion of a testicular appendage were 66%, 19%, 9% and 6%, respectively. Of the eight scrotal explorations performed, 6 had testicular torsion, and 2 had torsion of appendages. With the exception of cases of far advanced necrotic testes, both color Doppler ultrasound and radioisotope imaging were highly specific diagnostic modalities. But, because of the potentially devastating outcome of a false-negative result of imaging studies, we continue to believe that physical exam is the best guide regarding the necessity of surgical exploration and all patients with unequivocal examinations are best served by prompt surgical therapy.
Acute Pain ; Child* ; Chungcheongbuk-do ; Diagnosis ; Epididymitis ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Incidence ; Male ; Mumps ; Necrosis ; Orchitis ; Retrospective Studies ; Scrotum* ; Spermatic Cord ; Spermatic Cord Torsion ; Testis ; Ultrasonography ; Ultrasonography, Doppler, Color*

No abstract available.
Mycoplasma pneumoniae* ; Mycoplasma* ; Pneumonia* ; Pneumonia, Mycoplasma*

A possible therapeutic effect of acetyl-L carnitine (ALCAR) on peripheral nerve injuries and the expression of Jun, the protein products of immediate-early genes(IEGs), in the spinal cord were investigated after sciatic nerve injury in Sprague-Dawley rats. Experimental animals were divided into 3 groups: intact sciatic nerve as a control group, surgical repair alone, and surgical repair with ALCAR treatment. Toe-spreading response, pinprick response, and compound action potential were measured to evaluate the recovery of sciatic nerve injury. Recovery of behavioral function and electrophysiological function both improved in the surgical repair with ALCAR treatment group. Weak basal expression of Jun was shown in the ventral horn the of spinal cord in the control group. In the surgical repair alone group or the surgical repair with ALCAR treatment group, Jun expression persisted until 28 days after injury in the ventral horn of the spinal cord. Moreover, the surgical repair with ALCAR treatment group showed more increased expression of Jun than the surgical repair alone group. These results suggest that ALCAR facilitates the functional recovery after peripheral nerve injury.
Acetylcarnitine ; Action Potentials ; Animals ; Carnitine* ; Horns ; Peripheral Nerve Injuries ; Rats* ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Sciatic Nerve* ; Spinal Cord

Pseudoxanthoma elasticum (PXE) is an uncommon heritable disorder of elastin characterized by cutaneous, ocular and vascular abnormalities. Typical skin lesion shows yellowish papules and redundant skin folds on the neck, axilla and groin due to degeneration and calcification of elastic fibers in deep dermis. As in all heritable disorders of connective tissue, no curative therapy is presently know. Redundant and unsightly skin folds about the neck can be improved by surgery, but irregular papular lesion on skin does not improved by surgery. A-44-year-old female who had a skin lesion and angioid streak was treated as follows: Skin folds on the neck were excised successfully without any significant problem such as intraoperative bleeding, wound dehiscence or hypertrophic scar formation. To evaluate whether we could smooth the irregular skin surface due to multiple papules, laserbrasion with a SLT contack Nd:YAG laser system was performed experimentally on a limited area which was located on the right supracla-vicular area about 2 x 3cm in size. An acceptable aesthetic appearance was achieved with surgical excision 12 months after the operation. Biopsy of the laserbrasion site revealed disappearance of the calcium deposit. This study emphasizes the possibility of using laserbrasion in solving troblesome skin lesion of the PXE.
Angioid Streaks ; Axilla ; Biopsy ; Calcium ; Cicatrix, Hypertrophic ; Connective Tissue ; Dermis ; Elastic Tissue ; Elastin ; Female ; Groin ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Neck* ; Pseudoxanthoma Elasticum ; Skin ; Wounds and Injuries