BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Doppler indexes of pulmonary venous flow (PVF) have been recognized to be useful in defining left ventricular filling characteristics, but their long-term prognostic value in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is not clear. The purpose of this study was to determine the prognostic significance of Doppler indexes of PVF after AMI. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Doppler echocardiographic examination was performed in 122 patients with AMI between 7 to 10 days after attack, and followed for 30 months. Peak systolic velocity (PVs), peak diastolic velocity (PVd), and peak reverse flow velocity associated with atrial contraction (PVa) of PVF were measured by transthoracic echocardiography. End-points were cardiac death or readmission due to congestive heart failure (re-CHF). RESULTS: There were 9 deaths (7.4%) and 13 patients with re-CHF (10.7%) during the follow-up period. Patients with events had higher PVa (p=0.039). Subgroup analysis of patients with E/A ratio > 1 showed that they had lower PVs/PVd ratio (p=0.029) and higher PVa (p=0.069). Event-free survival was significantly lower in patients with PVs/PVd ratio < 1.3 (30-month survival rate 74% vs. 100% in those with PVs/PVd ratio > or =1.3). Multivariate Cox analysis revealed that Killip class II, and EF <50% were independent predictors of cardiac events; and PVa > or =25 cm/sec as well as age > or =65 years were independent predictors of cardiac mortality in patients with E/A ratio >1. CONCLUSION: PVa and PVs/PVd ratio of PVF were helpful indexes in predicting the prognosis in patients with AMI and an E/A ratio of >1.
Death ; Disease-Free Survival ; Echocardiography ; Follow-Up Studies ; Heart Failure ; Humans ; Mortality ; Myocardial Infarction* ; Prognosis ; Pulmonary Veins ; Survival Rate

BACKGROUND: In patients with systemic lupus erythematosus(SLE), LE-specific cutaneous lesions include malar rashes, widespread/morbilliform erythema, oral ulcer and bullous lesions. OBJECTIVE: Clinical observations were carried out to define cutaneous features of morbilliform erythema and to see possible relevancy of this erythema to disease activity of SLE. METHODS: Examinations were performed on 7 SLE patients with morbilliform erythema regarding the distribution and course of the cutaneous lesions; some SLE-activity related hematologic/immunologic data taken during/around the time of this skin disease were also assessed in each patient. RESULTS: In most of those patients with morbilliform erythema, which covered the trunk and extremities, the skin lesions lasted for about 2 weeks until their disappearance. At or around the time of suffering from this skin disease of acute eutaneous LE, activities of systemic disease were recognized as "in a state of flare-up or aggravation" with hypocomplementemia and high titers of anti-nDNA autoantibodies. CONCLUSION: As with malar rashes, morbilliform erythema of acute cutaneous LE seems to develop more frequently at the time of severe systemic involvement of immunopathological processes of SLE.
Autoantibodies ; Blister ; Erythema* ; Exanthema ; Extremities ; Humans ; Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic* ; Oral Ulcer ; Skin ; Skin Diseases

PURPOSE: To make the guideline for diagnosis and treatment policy of various hepatocytic nodular lesions detected during the imaging diagnosis of cirrhotic liver and to get our own data about hepatocellular carcinoma based on Korean patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed 40 confirmed hepatocellular carcinomas foilwed up with CT more than once without any treatment. Total numbers of follow-up were 50. First, we input the data of initial and follow-up diameter visible on CT images and follow-up interval of each mass to the computer, and got the mean growth rate curve and growth curve of hepatocelluiar carcinoma using a program of Quattro-pro, one of the spreadsheet. And then the doubling time was also calculated using Schwarz's formula. RESULTS: According to the growth rate curve, the tumor under 3 cm in diameter showed relatively show growing pattern but the one above 3 cm in diameter showed rapid growing pattern. Mean growth curve also showed rapid turning point around 3 cm. Overall mean doubling time was 82 days(mean +/- SD = 82.3 +/- 56.2): 119 days in the tumors smaller than 30 mm in diameter, 69 days larger than 30 mm in diameter. CONCLUSION: Hepatocellular carcinoma'is relatively slowly growing tumor and shows rapid increase of its growth rate when it is larger than 30 mm in diameter as a turning point. We think that this fact could make an important role to determine the treatment policy of various hepatocytic nodular lesions suspecting hepatocellular carcinoma.
Carcinoma, Hepatocellular* ; Diagnosis ; Follow-Up Studies* ; Humans ; Liver ; Retrospective Studies

No abstract available.
Korea* ; Tuberculosis*

BACKGROUND: Platelet function is directly influenced by lipoproteins, and platelets from hypercholesterolemic patients display increased reactivity which is related to initiation, progression, and development of thromboembolic complications in atherosclerosis. But the exact mechanism of this effect is unclear. METHODS: In this study, total and activated numbers of platelet glycoprotein (Gp) IIb/IIIa were evaluated in twenty patients (7 men; age, 55.4+/-8.7 years) with hypercholesterolemia (plasma total cholesterol level over 240 mg/dL and normal triglyceride level) and twenty one subjects (8 men; 51.1+/-13.7 years) with normal plasma cholesterol and triglyceride levels. Flow cytometry was used to detect the binding of fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC)-conjugated anti-CD41 or PAC1 to platelet Gp IIb<1/4>/<1/4>IIIa in whole blood. When whole blood was incubated with PAC1, platelets were also activated with adenosine diphosphate (ADP) or thrombin. RESULTS: PAC1 was more bound to unstimulated platelets from patients with hypercholesterolemia (p<0.005), and binding of PAC1 correlated significantly with plasma total cholesteol (r=0.48, p=0.002) and LDL-cholesterol (r=0.47, p=0.002) levels. Binding of PAC1 to unstimulated platelets increased as binding of anti-CD41 increased (r=0.40, p=0.01). On multivariate linear regression analysis, plasma total cholesterol level and binding of anti-CD41 were independent variables that determined binding of PAC1. After ADP- or thrombin-stimulation, binding of PAC1 to platelets and percentage of antibody positive cells were also greater in patients with hypercholesterolemia (p<0.05). There was a significant positive correlation between mean platelet volume and binding of anti-CD41 to unstimulated platelets (r=0.46, p<0.0050), but the latter was not different between hypercholesterolemia and control groups. CONCLUSION: Unstimulated platelets from patients with hypercholesterolemia had similar total number of Gp IIb/IIIa to those from control subjects, but had more activated Gp IIb/IIIa. After ADP- or thrombin-stimulation, platelet Gp IIb/IIIa was also more activated under hypercholesterolemia.
Adenosine Diphosphate ; Atherosclerosis ; Blood Platelets* ; Cholesterol ; Flow Cytometry ; Fluorescein ; Glycoproteins* ; Humans ; Hypercholesterolemia ; Linear Models ; Lipoproteins ; Male ; Mean Platelet Volume ; Plasma ; Thrombin ; Triglycerides

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Regular aerobic exercise plays a role in the prevention of cardiovascular diseases, but the risk of primary cardiac arrest transiently increases during vigorous exercise, particularly in sedentary men. There has been a controversy regarding the effect of exercise on platelet functional behavior, which is related to the pathogenesis of coronary ischemia. We evaluated the cytoplasmic free calcium concentration of platelets in healthy men after treadmill exercise. MATERIALS AND METHOD: Five physically active (group I: age, 24.2+/-2.3 years) and five sedentary men (group II: age, 22.4+/-1.4 years) were included in this study. Platelet calcium was measured with fluorescent dye, quin2 before and after treadmill exercise. RESULTS: Platelet calcium levels were increased from 86.8+/-11.8 nM to 128.8+/-15.0 nM in group I (p<0.05) and from 102.6+/-14.4 nM to 162.4+/-26.5 nM in group II (p<0.05) immediately after exercise. Thereafter, platelet calcium levels were decreased in group I, but continuously increased in group II. At fifteen minutes after exercise, platelet calcium concentrations were significantly higher than baseline values in group II (205.8+/-53.9 nM vs 102.6+/-14.4 nM: p<0.05), but not in group I (115.2+/-15.7 nM vs 86.8+/-11.8 nM). CONCLUSION: Cytoplasmic free calcium concentration in platelets were continuosly increased after treadmill exercise in sedentary men but not in physically active men.
Blood Platelets* ; Calcium* ; Cardiovascular Diseases ; Cytoplasm* ; Exercise ; Heart Arrest ; Humans ; Ischemia ; Male*

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Regular aerobic exercise plays a role in the prevention of cardiovascular diseases, but the risk of primary cardiac arrest transiently increases during vigorous exercise, particularly in sedentary men. There has been a controversy regarding the effect of exercise on platelet functional behavior, which is related to the pathogenesis of coronary ischemia. We evaluated the cytoplasmic free calcium concentration of platelets in healthy men after treadmill exercise. MATERIALS AND METHOD: Five physically active (group I: age, 24.2+/-2.3 years) and five sedentary men (group II: age, 22.4+/-1.4 years) were included in this study. Platelet calcium was measured with fluorescent dye, quin2 before and after treadmill exercise. RESULTS: Platelet calcium levels were increased from 86.8+/-11.8 nM to 128.8+/-15.0 nM in group I (p<0.05) and from 102.6+/-14.4 nM to 162.4+/-26.5 nM in group II (p<0.05) immediately after exercise. Thereafter, platelet calcium levels were decreased in group I, but continuously increased in group II. At fifteen minutes after exercise, platelet calcium concentrations were significantly higher than baseline values in group II (205.8+/-53.9 nM vs 102.6+/-14.4 nM: p<0.05), but not in group I (115.2+/-15.7 nM vs 86.8+/-11.8 nM). CONCLUSION: Cytoplasmic free calcium concentration in platelets were continuosly increased after treadmill exercise in sedentary men but not in physically active men.
Blood Platelets* ; Calcium* ; Cardiovascular Diseases ; Cytoplasm* ; Exercise ; Heart Arrest ; Humans ; Ischemia ; Male*

The prevalence of syphilis was sharply decreased throughout the world since the introduction of penicillin into the treatment of syphilis in 1943, however recent in formations seemed to be increased in incidence of syphilis since about 1960. In Korea, recent trends of syphilis can hardly be assesed because there are few reports of it. In order to know the current incidence of syphilis in Seoul we carried out S.T.S. in 1046 healthy young men living in Seoul. At that we classified the man as syphilitic who has positive serologic test on both VDRL and RPCF and has not recieved regular antisyplulitic treatment in the past. The result reveala that the incidence of syphilitic infection is 1.72%, which is slightiy decreased statistical figure than in 1960s. There are no much differences in incidence between each group of age or educational degree. Among the 653 unmarried men, 62.3% of them had experiences of sexual contact and their sex partners were business girls, students and prostitutes in order of frequency.
Commerce ; Equidae ; Female ; Humans ; Incidence ; Korea ; Male ; Penicillins ; Prevalence ; Seoul* ; Serologic Tests ; Sex Workers ; Single Person ; Syphilis*

No abstract available.
Adolescent* ; Humans ; Korea*

A forty-seven-year-old male miner complained of paresthesia over right hypothenar area and ring and little fiugers for 3 months. On physical examination and electromyography, ulnar nerve dysfunction below elbow was noted. Intraoperatively, an anomalous muscle, the epitrochleoanconeus muscle, was found between the triceps muscle and flexor carpi ulnaris muscle, but it was clearly distinguished from them. Resection of the muscle and medial epicondylectomy were performed. The epitrochleoanconeus muscle is an anomalous muscle which arises from the medial epicondyle of the humerus and inserts into the medial border of the olecranon. The reports on ulnar nerve entrapment syndrome by this muscle were rare. On 14 months follow up, the symptoms and signs were improved.
Elbow ; Electromyography ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Humerus ; Male ; Miners ; Olecranon Process ; Paresthesia ; Physical Examination ; Ulnar Nerve Compression Syndromes ; Ulnar Nerve