PURPOSE: The study aimed to identity specific needs for services and programs to help childhood cancer survivors adjust and adapt to life after treatment. METHODS: In-depth interviews were conducted with 31 childhood cancer survivors, diagnosed with cancer before the age of 18 and currently between 15 and 39 years of age. Each survivor had completed his/her cancer treatment. RESULTS: The participating cancer survivors reported needs for services related to psychological counseling, schooling and learning, social skills, mentorship, integrated health management, self support activities, families of survivors, and public recognition and awareness. CONCLUSION: The results of the study indicate a need to better understand childhood cancer survivors, provides a basis for developing various services and programs to improve the quality of life among childhood cancer patients, survivors, and their families, and supports the importance of psychosocial adjustment.
Counseling ; Health Services Needs and Demand ; Humans ; Learning ; Mentors ; Qualitative Research ; Quality of Life ; Social Welfare ; Survival Rate ; Survivors ; Child Health

We report a case of plexiform neurofibroma developed under the overlying speckled lentiginous nevus, which occurred in a 20 year-old man. In this patient and his family no other signs of von Recklinghausens disease were found. Discussion is focussed on the fact that both plexiform neurofibroma and speckled lentigmous nevus, which represent a defect in the neural crest, occurred in the same area of the skin.
Humans ; Neural Crest ; Neurofibroma, Plexiform* ; Neurofibromatosis 1 ; Nevus* ; Skin

Telomere shortening has been suggested as an indicator of aging and psychiatric disorders. However, few studies have explored the relationship between telomere length (TL) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). We investigated the association between TL and IBS in 43 IBS patients using quantitative polymerase chain reaction. The clinical characteristics and severity of IBS, assessed by the visual analogue scale, were also analyzed. The average TL was 4.40 ± 3.87, with TL shortening tending to be associated with female sex and smoking. However, these associations did not reach statistical significance. Correlation analysis showed a negative correlation between IBS severity and TL (r = –0.285, p = 0.083), although this was not statistically significant. No other clinical characteristics were significantly associated with TL. This is the first study to examine the relationship between TL and IBS. Our findings suggest that TL may have potential as a predictor for IBS diagnosis.

Telomere shortening has been suggested as an indicator of aging and psychiatric disorders. However, few studies have explored the relationship between telomere length (TL) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). We investigated the association between TL and IBS in 43 IBS patients using quantitative polymerase chain reaction. The clinical characteristics and severity of IBS, assessed by the visual analogue scale, were also analyzed. The average TL was 4.40 ± 3.87, with TL shortening tending to be associated with female sex and smoking. However, these associations did not reach statistical significance. Correlation analysis showed a negative correlation between IBS severity and TL (r = –0.285, p = 0.083), although this was not statistically significant. No other clinical characteristics were significantly associated with TL. This is the first study to examine the relationship between TL and IBS. Our findings suggest that TL may have potential as a predictor for IBS diagnosis.

Telomere shortening has been suggested as an indicator of aging and psychiatric disorders. However, few studies have explored the relationship between telomere length (TL) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). We investigated the association between TL and IBS in 43 IBS patients using quantitative polymerase chain reaction. The clinical characteristics and severity of IBS, assessed by the visual analogue scale, were also analyzed. The average TL was 4.40 ± 3.87, with TL shortening tending to be associated with female sex and smoking. However, these associations did not reach statistical significance. Correlation analysis showed a negative correlation between IBS severity and TL (r = –0.285, p = 0.083), although this was not statistically significant. No other clinical characteristics were significantly associated with TL. This is the first study to examine the relationship between TL and IBS. Our findings suggest that TL may have potential as a predictor for IBS diagnosis.

Telomere shortening has been suggested as an indicator of aging and psychiatric disorders. However, few studies have explored the relationship between telomere length (TL) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). We investigated the association between TL and IBS in 43 IBS patients using quantitative polymerase chain reaction. The clinical characteristics and severity of IBS, assessed by the visual analogue scale, were also analyzed. The average TL was 4.40 ± 3.87, with TL shortening tending to be associated with female sex and smoking. However, these associations did not reach statistical significance. Correlation analysis showed a negative correlation between IBS severity and TL (r = –0.285, p = 0.083), although this was not statistically significant. No other clinical characteristics were significantly associated with TL. This is the first study to examine the relationship between TL and IBS. Our findings suggest that TL may have potential as a predictor for IBS diagnosis.

No abstract available.
Consensus ; Hyperthyroidism ; Thyroid Gland

Purpose: The effects of dexmedetomidine on locomotor function and thermal hyperalgesia in sciatic nerve crush injury (SNCI) were investigated using rats. Methods: After exposing the right sciatic nerve, the sciatic nerve was crushed for 1 minute by a surgical clip. One day after nerve injury, dexmedetomidine (5, 25, and 50 µg/kg) was directly applied to the injured sciatic nerve once a day for 14 days. Walking track analysis was used to assess locomotor function and plantar test was conducted to assess thermal pain sensitivity. Immunohistochemistry was performed to determine the expression of c-Fos in the ventrolateral periaqueductal gray (vlPAG) and paraventricular nucleus (PVN). Western blot was used to evaluate the expression level of nerve growth factor (NGF) and myelin basic protein (MBP) in the sciatic nerve. Results: SNCI resulted in deterioration of locomotor function and increased thermal pain sensitivity. The level of c-Fos expression in the PVN and vlPAG was increased and the level of NGF and MBP expression in the sciatic nerve was enhanced by SNCI. Dexmedetomidine treatment improved locomotor function and upregulated expression of NGF and MBP in the sciatic nerve of SNCI. Dexmedetomidine treatment alleviated thermal hyperalgesia and downregulated expression of c-Fos in the vlPAG and PVN after SNCI. Conclusions Dexmedetomidine may be used as a potential new treatment drug for recovery of locomotion and control of pain in peripheral nerve injury.

Osteopetrosis is an uncommon hereditary bone disorder whose prominent radiologic feature characterized by increased bone density. The authors reported a 7-year-old male patient who referred from local dental clinic for dental problems such as early exfoliation of deciduous teeth(#54,73,83) and delayed eruption of permanent teeth(#31,41,36,46). The patient appeared as a poorly developed. Dental X-ray films showed early exfoliation of deciduous teeth, delayed eruption of permanent teeth, and rampant caries. Lateral view of skull demonstrated increased opacity of calvarium, facial bones, and skull base. Generally the skeletal density is greatly increased throughout all bones. Facial CT showed poor development of paranasal sinuses and mastoid air cells. No hematopoietic and neurologic complications such as anemia, thrombocytopenia, blindness and deafness were found. Also mental retardation was not found. The final diagnosis of this case was a osteopetrosis tarda. Sometimes patient with osteopetrosis tarda may be developed dental problems prior to severe systemic symptoms. The dentist can be the first clinician to see the patient. It is very important for the dentist to have the knowledge of the osteopetrosis and to care the patient's dental problems to prevent complication such as osteomyelitis of jaws.
Anemia ; Blindness ; Bone Density ; Child ; Deafness ; Dental Clinics ; Dentists ; Diagnosis ; Facial Bones ; Growth Disorders ; Humans ; Intellectual Disability ; Jaw ; Male ; Mastoid ; Osteomyelitis ; Osteopetrosis* ; Paranasal Sinuses ; Skull ; Skull Base ; Thrombocytopenia ; Tooth ; Tooth Eruption ; Tooth, Deciduous ; X-Ray Film

BACKGROUND: It is not clear whether mild hypothermia (34 degrees C) enhances stress hormonal responses during surgery under general intravenous anesthesia. The purpose of this study was determine how mild hypothermia affects hemodymic and stress hormonal responses introperatively and during extubation in patients undergoing cerebral aneurysm surgery under general intravenous anesthesia. METHODS: Anesthesia was induced intravenously with thiopental sodium 5 mg/kg, succinylcholine 1 mg/kg, and maintained with 50% O2, 50% N2O, and propofol using a target controlled system; Diprifusor(R) (3-5 microgram/ml) and muscle relaxation were administered with intravenous vecuronium intermittently. For the normothermia and the hypothermia groups, body temperatures were maintained at 36.9+/-0.3degrees C and 34.2+/-0.2 degrees C, respectively, up to the recovery room. Hemodynamic changes were recorded continuously. Arterial blood gas analysis, glucose, hemoglobin, stress hormones comprising epinephrine, norepinephrine, ADH, ACTH and cortisol were measured at whilst awake, intraoperatively, and just after extubation. RESULTS: Hemodynamic changes from the awake control state to postextubation were not significantly different between the normothermia and hypothermia groups. In the control awake state, all five hormonal concentrations were similar in the two groups. Intraoperatively and during extubation, all hormonal concentrations tended to be lower in the hypothermia group than in the normothermia group, except epinephrine during extubation. During the same period, all except ACTH decreased sufficiently to reach statistical significance (P < 0.05) versus the awake control state. But no significant differents were found between the two groups. CONCLUSIONS: Our data suggest that intraoperative mild hypothermia dose not significantly affect hemodynamic changes or the plasma concentrations of stress hormones.
Adrenocorticotropic Hormone ; Anesthesia ; Anesthesia, Intravenous* ; Blood Gas Analysis ; Body Temperature ; Epinephrine ; Glucose ; Hemodynamics* ; Humans ; Hydrocortisone ; Hypothermia* ; Intracranial Aneurysm ; Muscle Relaxation ; Neurosurgery ; Norepinephrine ; Plasma ; Propofol ; Recovery Room ; Succinylcholine ; Thiopental ; Vecuronium Bromide