To measure the birth registration rate and the validity of birth registration data in rural area, all of the 4,014 married women under 49 years of age who had not been sterilized in Gunwee county of Kyungpook province were followed by Myun health workers for 2 years from April 1, 1985 to March 31, 1987 and 766 births were detected. All of the birth registration records of Myun offices were reviewed on September 30, 1987 and 944 births which occurred within the above mentioned period were found. Actual birth date obtained by follow-up study were compared with the birth date on registration card. Among 766 births detected by follow-up study, 576 births(75.2%) which were reported within 6 months after birth were ascertained on the official registration records and 96 births(12.5%) were not found on the records although mother stated that the birth was registered. The registration rate within legal due date was 61.3% among 576 births detected by follow-up study and also ascertained on the official records. The registration rate within legal due date was lower in mothers under 20 years of age and above 35 years and in mothers who had only primary education. It was decreased as the birth order increased. The registration rate was higher in births occurred from October to March than births occurred from April to September. All of the births of 7 neonatal deaths were not reported. The registered birth date was consistent with the actual birth date in 78.0%. Birth date on record was earlier than the actual birth date in 6.8% and later in 15.3%. The consistency rate was lower in mothers above 35 years of age(54.5%), and in infants of 4th birth order and above(56.3%). The rate was increased as the maternal education level increased. The rate of boys was higher than that of girls. A higher percentage(17.4%) of infants born in March was registered with earlier date than the actual birth date and most of these registered birth dates were lunar calendar date. This might be related with the age for entering the primary school. The study findings revealed that the birth registration rate within legal due date and accuracy of report have been increased in recent years, but the infant mortality rate derived from the birth registration seems to be very inaccurate. It is suggested to let the medical personnel who delivered the baby report the birth by mail directly to the current address of parent while infants delivered at home without professional attendant may comply with the present registration system.
Birth Order ; Education ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Gyeongsangbuk-do ; Humans ; Infant ; Infant Mortality ; Linear Energy Transfer ; Mothers ; Parents ; Parturition* ; Postal Service

PURPOSE: Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is a leading cause of blindness with retinal detachment due to oxygen toxicity in preterm infants. Recently advances in neonatal care had to led improved survival rates in premature infants and ROP re-emerged as a significant clinical problem. In the present study, we aimed to determine the protective abilities of minocycline in a animal model of ROP and a primary retinal cell cultures of neonatal rat via anti-apoptotic actions using Western blotting and real-time PCR with Bcl-2, Bax and caspase-3 antibodies and mRNAs. METHODS: In the in vivo oxygen-induced retinopathy (OIR), the cyclic hyperoxia was performed that 80% O2 for 1 day and 21% O2 for 1 day from P1-14 of newborn rats. Minocycline was injected intravitreously for 7 days and sacrificed at P21. In the in vitro OIR, primary retinal cell culture was done using P0-P2 SD rats. Hyperoxia injury was done for 100% O2 exposure for 6 hours. Western blotting and real-time PCR using Bcl-2, Bax and caspase-3 antibody and primer were done in the rat model of ROP and the dispersed retinal cell culture. To identify photoreceptors of retinal cells the immunofluorescence assay photoreceptor marker, IRBP, was used. RESULTS: In the in vivo OIR, the expression of Bcl-2 antibody and mRNA was increased and those of Bax and caspase-3 were reduced in the minocycline-treated group. In the in vitro OIR, the result was the same as above. CONCLUSION: In conclusion, minocycline was suggested to have retinal protective effects for hyperoxic injury via anti-apoptotic mechanism.
Animals ; Antibodies ; Apoptosis ; Blindness ; Blotting, Western ; Caspase 3 ; Cell Culture Techniques ; Diterpenes ; Fluorescent Antibody Technique ; Humans ; Hyperoxia ; Infant, Newborn ; Infant, Premature ; Minocycline ; Models, Animal ; Oxygen ; Rats ; Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Retinal Detachment ; Retinaldehyde ; Retinopathy of Prematurity ; RNA, Messenger ; Survival Rate

PURPOSE: Erythropoietin (EPO) has neuroprotective effects in many animal models of brain injury, including hypoxic-ischemic (HI) encephalopathy, trauma, and excitotoxicity. Current studies have demonstrated the neuroprotective effects of EPO, but limited data are available for the neonatal periods. Here in we investigated whether recombinant human EPO (rHuEPO) can protect the developing rat brain from HI injury via modulation of NMDA receptors. METHODS: In an in vitro model, embryonic cortical neuronal cell cultures from Sprague- Dawley (SD) rats at 19-days gestation were established. The cultured cells were divided into five groups: normoxia (N), hypoxia (H), and 1, 10, and 100 IU/mL rHuEPO-treated (H+E1, H+ E10, and H+E100) groups. To estimate cell viability and growth, a 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl-tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay was done. In an in vivo model, left carotid artery ligation was performed on 7-day-old SD rat pups. The animals were divided into six groups; normoxia control (NC), normoxia Sham-operated (NS), hypoxia- ischemia only (H), hypoxia-ischemia+vehicle (HV), hypoxia-ischemia+rHuEPO before a HI injury (HE-B), and hypoxia-ischemia+rHuEPO after a HI injury (HE-A). The morphologic changes following brain injuries were noted using hematoxylin and eosin (H/E) staining. Real-time PCR using primers of subunits of NMDA receptors (NR1, NR2A, NR2B, NR2C and NR2D) mRNA were performed. RESULTS: Cell viability in the H group was decreased to less than 60% of that in the N group. In the H+E1 and H+E10 groups, cell viability was increased to >80% of the N group, but cell viability in the H+E100 group did not recover. The percentage of the left hemisphere area compared the to the right hemisphere area were 98.9% in the NC group, 99.1% in the NS group, 57.1% in the H group, 57.0% in the HV group, 87.6% in the HE-B group, and 91.6% in the HE-A group. Real-time PCR analysis of the expressions of subunits of NMDA receptors mRNAs in the in vitro and in vivo neonatal HI brain injuries generally revealed that the expression in the H group was decreased compared to the N group and the expressions in the rHuEPO-treated groups was increased compared to the H group. CONCLUSION: rHuEPO has neuroprotective property in perinatal HI brain injury via modulation of N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors.
Animals ; Anoxia ; Brain ; Brain Injuries ; Carotid Arteries ; Cell Culture Techniques ; Cell Survival ; Cells, Cultured ; Eosine Yellowish-(YS) ; Erythropoietin ; Hematoxylin ; Humans ; Ischemia ; Ligation ; Models, Animal ; N-Methylaspartate ; Neurons ; Neuroprotective Agents ; Pregnancy ; Rats ; Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Receptors, N-Methyl-D-Aspartate ; RNA, Messenger

In this study, ethanolic extracts from Hericium erinaceum cultivated with Artemisia capillaris (HEAC) were assessed for their ability to lower the cholesterol levels of male Sprague-Dawley rats fed a high-fat diet. Rats were randomly subdivided into seven test groups. Each group contained eight rats fed a high-fat diet during a growth period lasting 4 wk. Supplementation with the extracts was performed once a day for 2 wk after the high-fat diet. The control group (rats fed a high-fat diet) showed a high efficiency ratio (feed efficiency ratio) value compared to the normal group. Biochemical parameters, including total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-c), and triglyceride (TG) levels dramatically increased in the control group compared to the normal group. High-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-c) content in the control group was also significantly lower relative to the normal group. Two positive control groups, treated with simvastatin and atorvastatin, had lowered TC, LDL-c, and TG levels, and increased HDL-c content compared to the control group. Treatment with the tested extracts, including HEAC, ethanolic extracts from Hericium erinaceum, and ethanolic extracts from Artemisia capillaris reduced TC, LDL-c, and TG levels and elevated HDL-c content in the hyperlipidemia rats. The atherogenic index and cardiac risk factor values for the HEAC-treated group were 0.95 and 1.95, respectively. Simvastatin- and atorvastatin-treated groups showed atherogenic index values of 1.56 and 1.69, respectively, and cardiac risk factor values of 2.56 and 2.69, respectively. These results show HEAC possesses an ability to cure hyperlipidemia in rats and may serve as an effective natural medicine for treating hyperlipidemia in humans.
Animals ; Artemisia ; Cholesterol ; Diet, High-Fat ; Ethanol ; Heptanoic Acids ; Humans ; Hyperlipidemias ; Male ; Pyrroles ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Risk Factors ; Simvastatin ; Atorvastatin Calcium

PURPOSE: To determine if routine otorhinolaryngologic referral prior to endonasal dacryocystorhinostomy (EN-DCR) is necessary. METHODS: Two hundred thirty-seven eyes of 178 patients who were supposed to undergo EN-DCR were prospectively analyzed. Nasal endoscopy was performed by an ophthalmologist and the patients who had severe abnormality were referred to an otorhinolaryngologist. The patients were classified into 3 groups after a preoperative examination by an ophthalmologist and an otorhinolaryngologist; the number and success rate of each group were then investigated. Group A consisted of patients who had no nasal cavity abnormality, Group B consisted of patients with a nasal cavity abnormality but who received no treatment, and Group C consisted of patients who had a nasal cavity abnormality and received otorhinolaryngologic treatment. RESULTS: The number of subjects in each group was 156 in Group A (87.7%), 12 in Group B (6.7%), and 10 in Group C (5.6%). The number of patients who were referred to the otorhinolaryngologist was 22 (12.3%). There was no statistical significance of success rate between the groups. CONCLUSIONS: Routine nasal endoscopic examination should be performed by an ophthalmologist prior to EN-DCR. Only patients with severe abnormal findings should be referred to an otorhinolaryngologist as the results from the present study show the percentage of patients having significant nasal abnormalities was found to be low (12%) and the success rate of EN-DCR revealed no statistical significance between the groups. This could help patients by saving time and expense.
Dacryocystorhinostomy ; Endoscopy ; Eye ; Humans ; Nasal Cavity ; Prospective Studies ; Referral and Consultation

OBJECTIVE: Resveratrol, a polyphenolic phytoalexin, is extracted abundantly from the red wine and grapes and biosynthesized as a defense agent to infection, ultraviolet and ozon etc. Recently, The cancer-preventive, anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidative effects of resveratrol have been reported. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of resveratrol on the expression of nitric oxide synthases in hypoxic-ischemic brain injury in the neonatal rat model. METHODS: Embryonic cortical neuronal cell culture of rat brain was performed with pregnant Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats at 18 days of gestation (E18) for in vitro approaches. In addition, unilateral carotid artery ligation was induced in seven-days old neonatal rats for in vivo approaches. The real-time PCR using iNOS, eNOS and nNOS primer, and the western blotting using the same antibodies were done to identify the effects of resveratrol. RESULTS: The expression of iNOS, eNOS and nNOS in both cell culture and animal model of neonatal HI brain injury revealed that, as indicated by western blotting and real-time PCR, the expression of iNOS was decreased in the hypoxia group while those of eNOS and nNOS were increased in the hypoxia group compared with the normoxia group. The expression of iNOS was increased in the resveratrol-treated group while those of eNOS and nNOS decreased in the resveratrol-treated group compared with a hypoxic group. CONCLUSION: The present study demonstrates resveratrol might affect nitric oxide synthases expression in HI injury of the perinatal period
Animals ; Anoxia ; Antibodies ; Blotting, Western ; Brain ; Brain Injuries ; Carotid Arteries ; Cell Culture Techniques ; Ligation ; Models, Animal ; Neurons ; Nitric Oxide ; Pregnancy ; Rats ; Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Sesquiterpenes ; Stilbenes ; Vitis ; Wine

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the usefulness of infrared thermography in patients with carpal tunnel syndrome by comparing with electrodiagnostic and ultrasonographic findings.METHOD: From January 2014 to October 2017, electrodiagnosis, ultrasound, and digital infrared thermal image (DITI) of unilateral carpal tunnel syndrome diagnosed in a single hospital were retrospectively analyzed. The subjects with bilateral symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome, peripheral vascular disease, diabetes, thyroid disease, fibromyalgia, rheumatic disease, systemic infection, inflammation, malignant tumor, and other musculoskeletal disorders such as finger osteoarthritis, peripheral neuropathy, cervical radiculopathy, and the previous history of surgery were excluded.RESULTS: Of 53 patients diagnosed with carpal tunnel syndrome, 11 were male and 42 were female. The visual analogue scale was 4.9 ± 1.9, and the duration of symptom was 11.8 ± 12.5 months. There was no statistically significant difference in the body surface temperature between the unaffected and affected sides. The severity of symptoms, electrodiagnostic findings, and cross-sectional area of the median nerve significantly correlates to each other. The temperature difference between the second fingers of the affected and unaffected sides showed a weak correlation with the amplitude of sensory nerve action potential and onset latency of compound muscle action potential, when there was no significant correlation with the other parameters.CONCLUSION: The difference in temperature on the surface of the body, which can be confirmed by DITI, is little diagnostic value when DITI is performed in unilateral carpal tunnel syndrome patients, especially when compared with ultrasonography.
Action Potentials ; Carpal Tunnel Syndrome ; Electrodiagnosis ; Female ; Fibromyalgia ; Fingers ; Humans ; Inflammation ; Male ; Median Nerve ; Methods ; Osteoarthritis ; Peripheral Nervous System Diseases ; Peripheral Vascular Diseases ; Radiculopathy ; Retrospective Studies ; Rheumatic Diseases ; Thermography ; Thyroid Diseases ; Ultrasonography

PURPOSE: Mycophenolic acid (MPA), the active metabolite of mycophenolate mofetil (MMF), is a potent inhibitor of inosine-monophosphate dehydrogenase (IMPDH), a new immunosuppressive drug used. It was reported that MPA protected neurons after excitotoxic injury, induced apoptosis in microglial cells. However, the effects of MPA on hypoxic-ischemic (HI) brain injury has not been yet evaluated. Therefore, we examined whether MPA could be neuroprotective in perinatal HI brain injury using Rice-Vannucci model (in vivo) and in rat brain cortical cell culture induced by hypoxia (in vitro). METHODS: Cortical cells were cultured using a 18-day-pregnant Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats and incubated in 1% O2 incubator for hypoxia. MPA (10 microgram/mL) before or after a HI insult was treated. Seven-day-old SD rat pups were subjected to left carotid occlusion followed by 2 hours of hypoxic exposure (8% O2). MPA (10 mg/kg) before or after a HI insult were administrated intraperitoneally. Apoptosis was measured using western blot and real-time PCR for Bcl-2, Bax, caspase-3. RESULTS: H&E stain revealed increased brain volume in the MPA-treated group in vivo animal model of neonatal HI brain injury. Western blot and real-time PCR showed the expression of caspase-3 and Bax/Bcl-2 were decreased in the MPA-treated group In in vitro and in vivo model of perinatal HI brain injury, CONCLUSION: These results may suggest that the administration of MPA before HI insult could significantly protect against perinatal HI brain injury via anti-apoptotic mechanisms, which offers the possibility of MPA application for the treatment of neonatal HI encephalopathy.
Animals ; Anoxia ; Apoptosis ; Blotting, Western ; Brain Injuries* ; Brain* ; Caspase 3 ; Cell Culture Techniques ; Incubators ; Models, Animal ; Mycophenolic Acid* ; Neurons ; Neuroprotective Agents* ; Oxidoreductases ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction

PURPOSE: Taurine is a simple sulfur-containing amino acid and enriched in brain, retina, heart and skeletal muscles. In the central nervous system, taurine has been implicated in major phenomena. Current studies have demonstrated the neuroprotective effect of taurine in adult rat model, but limited data are available for those during the neonatal periods. The aim of this study was to determine whether taurine could reduce hypoxic-ischemic (HI) brain injury in the developing brain via modulation of nitric oxide synthase. METHODS: In in vitro model, embryonic cortical neuronal cell culture procedure was done in Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats at 18 days of gestation. The cells were divided into the hypoxia group, taurine-treated group before and after a hypoxic insult. The each groups compared with normoxia group. In in vivo model, left carotid artery ligation was done in 7-day-old SD rat pups. the pups were exposed to hypoxia, received an injection of 30 mg/kg of taurine, and sacrificed at day 1, day 3, day 7, day 14 and day 28. We assayed the expression of iNOS, eNOS and nNOS mRNA using real-time PCR and western-blotting. RESULTS: In in vitro model, brain cell damage of hypoxia group was more than in the normoxia group. Cell damage's recovery was more in the taurine-treated group before a hypoxic insult than in the taurine-treated group after a hypoxic insult. The expression of iNOS mRNA was less in the hypoxia group than in the normoxia group both in vitro and in vivo models. The expression of eNOS and nNOS was more in the hypoxia group. CONCLUSION: Taurine has neuroprotective property over perinatal HI brain injury due to modulation of NOS, as evidenced by causing a decrease in eNOS and nNOS and increase in iNOS expression. The neuroprotective effect of taurine administration was maximal at day 7 and day 14 after a hypoxic injury.
Adult ; Animals ; Anoxia ; Brain ; Brain Injuries ; Carotid Arteries ; Cell Culture Techniques ; Central Nervous System ; Heart ; Humans ; Ligation ; Muscle, Skeletal ; Neurons ; Neuroprotective Agents ; Nitric Oxide ; Nitric Oxide Synthase ; Pregnancy ; Rats ; Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Retina ; RNA, Messenger ; Taurine

There are several cases of partial monosomy or partial trisomy derived from maternal balanced translocation, but partial monosomy 6q and partial trisomy 14q derived from maternal balanced translocation has not been reported around the world. The authors experienced a case of partial monosomy 6q and partial trisomy 14q derived from maternal reciprocal balanced translocation t (6;14) in a neonate with multiple anomalies including intrauterine growth retardation, facial and cardiac anomalies. We report the case with a brief review of associaed lieratures.
Chromosome Deletion ; Chromosomes, Human, Pair 6 ; Fetal Growth Retardation ; Humans ; Infant, Newborn ; Trisomy