STUDY DESIGN: The purpose of this study was to determine whether facet joint orientation and/or tropism influences the prevalence of disc degeneration in MRI in young patients. OBJECTIVE: 41 patients with disc degeneration disease including HNP in MRI were assesed on facet joint angles and tropism between 18 and 30 years old. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUD DATA: The patients who had back pain had association between disc degeneration and facet tropism in adults. But some authors have suggested that facet tropism has no clinical relevance. Physiologic aging and premature disc degeneration induce a gradual loss of water and proteoglycan from nucleus pulposus. METHODS: We reviewed the 41 MRI of lumbar spine with disc degeneration and measured facet joint angles on the mid-disc cut, which was parallel to inferior vertebral end-plate of superior vertebra. In simple X-ray, we reviewed relation between the transitional vertebrae and disc degeneration. It was analyzed statistically the facet joint angles and facet tropism in each levels. RESULTS: The mean facet angles was more increased in upper vertebral facet joints but statistically nonspecific. The facet tropism was not significant in all lumbar levels and the effects of transitional vertebrae on disc degeneration were ignorable and unclear. CONCLUSIONS: No statistical relationship was found among the magnitude of the angle and facet tropism and the presence of disc degeneration at any levels in young patients.
Adult ; Aging ; Back Pain ; Equidae ; Humans ; Intervertebral Disc Degeneration ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Prevalence ; Proteoglycans ; Spine ; Tropism* ; Young Adult* ; Zygapophyseal Joint

The experiment was performed to investigate changes of maternal immune status during the pregnancy. We observed the distribution of several immune cells [macrophage, activated B-cell, IgM+ B-cell, Lyt-2+ T-cell and L3T4+ T-cells] in the utero-placental interface and the peripheral blood of Balb/c mice. The experimental animals were divided into seven groups by the gestational ages ; virgin, 2nd, 5th, 8th, 10th, 14th and 19th day of pregnancy. In the utero-placental interface, the distribution patterns of the lymphocytes [both T and B] and macrophages were observed. Histochemical staining by naphthol-AS-MX phosphate sodium salt was used for the detection of activated B-cells. For the detection of macrophage, plasma cell, suppressor cell and helper cell, all the prepared samples reacted with Rat anti-mouse Mac-1, goat anti-mouse IgM, rat anti-Lyt2 and rat anti-L3T4 antibody first, and washed. Second reaction was done with biotinylated anti-rat or anti-mouse IgG anti-bodies, and washed. Avidin-biotin -peroxidase complex and 3, 3`-diamino-benzidine[DAB] were used for the visualization of specific cells. T-cells and B-cells were not observed during the all stages of pregnancy. By contrast, macrophages were observed a few at the perimetrium on the second day of gestation, and they were found at the outermost portion of the trophoblastic layer on the 8th day, and they were observed at the decidua basalis in late pregnancy after the 10th day when the placenta were well developed. In the peripheral blood, activated B-cells were not observed throughout the pregnancy. On the 8th day, the proportion of plasma cells to total mononuclear cells was decreased significantly to 16+/-2.4% compared with the virgin group[22+/-2.6%][p<0.01]. It increased again and it reached 42+/-5.8% on the 14th day and 37+/-4.9% on the 19th day. Helper T-cells were decreased on the 14th day[30+/-2.4%] compared with the normal control[47+/-5.1%]. But, Suppressor T-cells were increased on the 8th day[35+/-2.9%] and the 10th day[33+/-3.6%] compared with the normal controls[27+/-2.3%]. This decrement returned to the level of the normal controls on the 14th day and 19th day. Together with our previous data, we could find the synchronized changes of immune cells in utero-placental interface, uterus draining lymph nodes, peripheral blood and spleen. Therefore, we suggest that macrophages in utero-placental interface may play an important role for the immune responses against the fetal transplantation antigen.
Animals ; B-Lymphocytes* ; Decidua ; Female ; Gestational Age ; Goats ; Immunoglobulin G ; Immunoglobulin M ; Lymph Nodes ; Lymphocytes ; Macrophages* ; Mice* ; Placenta ; Plasma Cells ; Pregnancy ; Rats ; Sodium ; Spleen ; T-Lymphocytes ; T-Lymphocytes, Helper-Inducer ; Trophoblasts ; Uterus

No abstract available.
Maxillary Sinus* ; Orbit* ; Orbital Fractures*

A case of 26 years old male having horseshoe kidney associated with giant hydronephrosis due to aberrant vessel was presented with a brief review of the literatures. The patient was managed by division of isthmus and nephrectomy with good result.
Adult ; Humans ; Hydronephrosis* ; Kidney* ; Male ; Nephrectomy

No abstract available.
Maxillary Fractures

Neuroarthropathy has infrequently been associated with diabetic patients. The initial presenting symptoms are in most cases the peripheral neuropathy involving chiefly the sensory components of peripheral nerves, leading to numbness, hyper-or paresthesia, and coldness of the extremity affected. The diabetic arthropathy, once occurred, is apt to show progressive deterioration of the function with destruction of both skeletal and supporting soft tissues Two cases of such arthropathy were presented here, the one was observed in a 29-year-old man with involvement of the left fourth and fifth tarsometatarsal joints and a large ulcer on the dorsal skin of the lesion, and the other in a 35-year-old man with destruction of the right ankle joint. Both of them showed remarkable remission of the symptoms with conservative measures such as arch support, cast immobilization and skin graft.
Adult ; Ankle Joint ; Extremities ; Humans ; Hypesthesia ; Immobilization ; Joints ; Paresthesia ; Peripheral Nerves ; Peripheral Nervous System Diseases ; Skin ; Transplants ; Ulcer

No Abstract Available.
Pterygium*

Kerion celsi caused by Trichophyton(T.) rubrum is rare endemically and there has been no report of it in Korean literatures. We report a case of karion celsi caused by T. rubrum in a 71-year-old male, who showed anindurated, swollen, boggy mass exuding pus on the right parietal scalp for about 7 weeks. The colonies and microconidia were identified as T. rubrum by fungus culture in potato dextrose agar. After administration of itraconazole for 11 weeks, the lesion was healed and the regrowing of new hairs was observed.
Adult* ; Agar ; Aged ; Fungi ; Glucose ; Hair ; Humans ; Itraconazole ; Male ; Rabeprazole ; Scalp ; Solanum tuberosum ; Suppuration ; Tinea Capitis* ; Trichophyton*

Acute Disease ; Diagnosis ; Enterotoxins ; Exanthema ; Fever ; Hypotension ; Shock ; Shock, Septic ; Staphylococcus aureus

Perilla frutescens was empirically used for controlling airway inflammatory diseases in folk medicine. We investigated whether caffeic acid, myristicin and rosemarinic acid derived from Perilla frutescens significantly affect the gene expression and production of mucin from airway epithelial cells. Confluent NCI-H292 cells were pretreated with caffeic acid, myristicin or rosemarinic acid for 30 min and then stimulated with phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) for 24 h. The MUC5AC mucin gene expression and production were measured by reverse transcription - polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), respectively. Additionally, we examined whether caffeic acid, myristicin or rosemarinic acid affects MUC5AC mucin production indued by epidermal growth factor (EGF) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), the other two stimulators of production of airway mucin. The results were as follows: (1) Caffeic acid, myristicin and rosemarinic acid inhibited the gene expression and production of MUC5AC mucin induced by PMA from NCI-H292 cells, respectively; (2) Among the three compounds derived from Perilla frutescens, only rosemarinic acid inhibited the production of MUC5AC mucin induced by EGF or TNF-α, the other two stimulators of production of airway mucin. These results suggest that rosemarinic acid derived from Perilla frutescens can regulate the production and gene expression of mucin, by directly acting on airway epithelial cells and, at least in part, explains the traditional use of Perilla frutescens as remedies for diverse inflammatory pulmonary diseases.
Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Epidermal Growth Factor ; Epithelial Cells ; Gene Expression* ; Lung Diseases ; Medicine, Traditional ; Mucins* ; Necrosis ; Perilla frutescens ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Reverse Transcription