PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of asymptomatic nasopharyngeal carriages in children using a multiplex reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (mRT-PCR) assay kit. METHODS: We obtained nasopharyngeal swabs from 33 children without any underlying disease from July 25 to July 28, 2008. The children were free from the signs of respiratory tract infections at the time of sampling. DNA was extracted from the swabs and subjected to multiplex RT-PCR using a primer set for the detection of pneumococci (Seeplex(R) PneumoBacter ACE Detection Seegene, Seoul, Korea). The amplified PCR products were separated on 2% agarose gels and stained with either ethidium bromide or screen tape system (Lab901 Scotland, UK). RESULTS: A total of 33 children (male, 15 female, 18) aged between 3.2 and 16.3 (median, 8.2) years were included in this study. The mRT-PCR detected colonized bacteria (Streptococcus pneumoniae, Hemophilus influenzae, Chlamydia pneumoniae, and Bordetella pertussis) in 30 children (90.9%). Of these, 13 children (39.4%) showed more than 2 bacteria: 12 children were positive for 2 bacteria (S. pneumoniae and H. influenzae) and 1 child was positive for 3 bacteria (S. pneumoniae, H. influenzae, and C. pneumoniae). CONCLUSION: mRT-PCR was found to be a sensitive tool for the detection of asymptomatic nasopharyngeal carriages. Clinical significances of the bacteria detected by mRT-PCR will have to be evaluated in the future.
Aged ; Bacteria ; Bordetella ; Child ; Chlamydophila pneumoniae ; Colon ; DNA ; Ethidium ; Female ; Gels ; Haemophilus influenzae ; Humans ; Influenza, Human ; Nasopharynx ; Pneumonia ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Prevalence ; Respiratory Tract Infections ; Scotland ; Sepharose ; Streptococcus pneumoniae

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to investigate whether embryonic stem (ES) cells can be established from isolated blastomeres of mouse embryos. METHODS: Blastomeres were separated from mouse (C57Bl/6J) 2- or 4-cell embryos. Isolated blastomeres or whole 4-cell embryos were co-cultured with mitosis-arrested STO feeder cells in DMEM supplemented with recombinant murine leukemia inhibitory factor and ES-qualified fetal bovine serum. After the tentative ES cell lines were maintained from isolated blastomeres or whole embryos, some of them were frozen and the others were sub-cultured continually. Characteristics of tentative ES cell lines as were evaluated for specific gene expressions with immunocytochemistry and RT-PCR. RESULTS: One ES cell line (3.0%) was established from isolated blastomere of 2-cell embryo and one cell line (4.0%) from isolated two blastomeres of 4-cell embryo. And five cell lines (16.7%) were established from whole 4-cell embryos. Both cell lines from isolated blastomere and whole embryo expressed mouse ES cells specific markers such as SSEA-1, Oct-4 and alkaline phosphatase. Marker genes of three germ layers were expressed from embryoid bodies of both cell lines. CONCLUSION: This study suggests that mouse ES cells could be established from isolated blastomeres, although the efficiency is lower than whole embryos. This animal model could be applied to establishment of autologous human ES cells from biopsied blastomeres of preimplantation embryos in human IVF-ET program.
Alkaline Phosphatase ; Animals ; Antigens, CD15 ; Blastocyst* ; Blastomeres* ; Cell Line ; Embryoid Bodies ; Embryonic Stem Cells* ; Embryonic Structures ; Feeder Cells ; Gene Expression ; Germ Layers ; Humans ; Immunohistochemistry ; Leukemia Inhibitory Factor ; Mice* ; Models, Animal

BACKGROUND: Etanercept is a recombinant human soluble tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) receptor fusion protein that inhibits TNF-alpha, a major mediator in the pathogenesis of graft-versus-host disease (GVHD). The purpose of our study was to evaluate the safety and efficacy of etanercept therapy in children with steroid-refractory acute GVHD (aGVHD) (n=5) and chronic GVHD (cGVHD) (n=3). METHODS: Five males and 3 females were enrolled and their median age was 14.4 years (range, 2.1~18.8). Etanercept 0.4 mg/kg per dose (maximum dose, 25 mg) was given subcutaneously twice weekly for 4 weeks followed by 0.4 mg/kg per dose (maximum dose, 25 mg) weekly for 4 weeks. At the time of initiation of etanercept, 5 patients had aGVHD grade III to IV (III=4, IV=1) and 3 patients had moderate to severe cGVHD (moderate=1, severe=2). RESULTS: Overall, 6 of 8 patients (75%) responded to the treatment with etanercept, including 5 patients with aGVHD [n=3 complete response (CR), n=2 partial response (PR)] and 1 patient with cGVHD [n=1 PR, n=2 no response (NR)]. Clinical responses were most commonly seen in patients with refractory gut aGVHD. CMV reactivation occurred in 2 patients, bacterial infection in 1 patient, and fungal infection in 1 patient. CONCLUSION: Our preliminary data indicate that etanercept is well tolerated and can induce a high response rate in patients with steroid refractory aGVHD, particularly in the setting of intestinal involvement.
Bacterial Infections ; Child ; Female ; Graft vs Host Disease ; Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin G ; Male ; Receptors, Tumor Necrosis Factor ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha ; Etanercept

Purpose: The purpose of this program is to develop an educational program to improve the nursing management competency of middle-level nursing managers. Methods: The program outline is based on the results of the Importance Performance Analysis (IPA) and Systematic Review (SR). Also performed the content validity accordingly. Results: The result of the concepts are derived from 6 competencies for planning process, 4 competencies for organizing process, 4 competencies for staffing process, 26 competencies for directing process, and 12 competencies for controlling process by integrating IPA and SR. This outline of the program was constructed according to the derived integrated concept and both content validity and structured outline were interpreted as valid. Conclusion This suggests that middle-level managers need a systematic program and support to effectively lead the organization by recognizing the importance rather than performance.

This study was aimed at evaluating the nutritional status of Korean lactating women, who were attending peripheral community clinics in low-income areas, by anthropometric measurement, estimating dietary intakes and analyzing the contents of breast milk components, serum lipid content and fatty acid composition. Regarding anghropometric measurements, maternal circumferences decreased significantly at the trunk but not at the limbs. The skinfold thickness on all regions had the tendency to decrease during lactation. It was found that intakes of energy, protein, lipid and carbohydrates were desirable while calcium, zinc, copper and vitamin A were low and sodium was excessive. The energy % of fat was 22.41% of the total energy which is higher than the RDA for adults but it is proper for lactating women, but energy % from each fatty acid was usually low and an intake ratio of omega6/omega3 fatty acids was desirable. Accordingly, it is thought that dietary fat intake was balanced in quality. Concentrations of the nutrients in matured human milk showed the same range as that reported form different regions with the exception of calcium and magnesium which were relatively low. Serum lipid contents were decreased with the time postpartum and the average serum lipid content of lactating women were similar to the normal range of adults. Serum polyunsaturated fatty acids. especially omega6 fatty acids have gradually increased with the time postpartum, but the composition were not greatly influenced by dietary intakes.
Adult ; Breast* ; Calcium ; Carbohydrates ; Copper ; Dietary Fats ; Extremities ; Fatty Acids ; Fatty Acids, Unsaturated ; Female ; Humans ; Lactation ; Magnesium ; Milk, Human* ; Nutritional Status ; Postpartum Period ; Reference Values ; Skinfold Thickness ; Sodium ; Vitamin A ; Zinc

This essay examines the period between 1897 and 1910, when trachoma, a contagious eye disease, became an "Oriental" problem that justified exclusionary immigration policy against Asians entering the United States. It also investigates the ways in which the public fear and alleged threat of the eye disease destabilized and undermined the rights of Asian immigrants. Many scholars have explored the link between trachoma and southern and eastern European newcomers, in particular Jews, but they have not paid much attention to Chinese or Japanese immigrants, for whose exclusion trachoma played a significant role. This is primarily because the number of Asian immigrants was much smaller than that of their European counterparts and because the Chinese Exclusion Acts, which had already been in place, functioned as a stronger and more lasting deterrent to Asian immigration than exclusion or deportation through medical inspection. Moreover, into the 1910s, medical and scientific innovations for detecting parasitic diseases (e.g. hookworm) helped American authorities exclude Asians in larger numbers. Still, the analysis of the discourses surrounding trachoma and immigration from Asia, though short-lived, demonstrates the role of medical inspection in controlling and regulating Asian immigrants, in particular Chinese and Japanese, into the United States and in constructing their legal and political rights. In 1906, the fear of trachoma justified an order to segregate Japanese students from white children in San Francisco even at the cost of compromising their rights as citizens. Along with fierce criticisms against immigration officials by the American public, the 1910 investigation of the San Francisco Immigration Office problematized the admission of trachoma-afflicted Asian immigrants. Those critical of the Immigration Office and its implementation of American immigration policy called for exclusionary measures to limit the privileges of exempt classes and domiciled aliens and hinder the exertion of their rights to leave and reenter their adopted country. The two examples show that trachoma was a convenient excuse to condemn inefficient immigration policy and regulate allegedly diseased Asian bodies. In 1910, the federal government made a decision to relegate to steamship companies full responsibility for medical inspection at Asian ports. Since they had to pay a fine for every immigrant excluded at American borders for medical reasons, including trachoma, steamship companies carried out more rigorous examinations. With medical advancements and growing interest in parasitic diseases, trachoma soon lost its appeal to immigration authorities. However, the association of immigration, race, and disease has continued to provide a rationale for immigration control beyond American borders.
Emigrants and Immigrants/*history/legislation & jurisprudence ; Emigration and Immigration/*history/legislation & jurisprudence ; Far East/ethnology ; History, 19th Century ; History, 20th Century ; Humans ; Trachoma/ethnology/*history/prevention & control ; United States

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study is to evaluate the polysomnographic characteristics and prescription status of restless legs syndrome (RLS) patients in naturalistic setting. METHODS: We reviewed medical record of the patients over 18 years olds who (i) satisfied the clinical RLS diagnostic criteria and (ii) had the polysomnography and got treatment related thereto. As a baseline, we evaluated the four diagnostic criteria of the International Restless Legs Syndrome Study Group (IRLSSG) and the International Restless Legs Scale (IRLS) of the subjects. Then the polysomnography and the suggested immobilization test (SIT) were conducted and, after one month of pharmacotherapy using dopamine agonist, the IRLS was evaluated again. RESULTS: A total of 211 subjects participated in this analysis and 94 (44.5%) of them were male and the other 117 (55.5%) were female and the average age of the 211 subjects was 46.9+/-14.2. Out of such 211 subjects, 136 subjects (64.5%) also had the obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), and 53 subjects (25.1%) also had the periodic limb movement disorder (PLMD). 185 subjects (87.7%) out of the 211 subjects had some other sleep disorders except RLS. The results of the polysomnography were as follows : 78.0% of sleep efficiency, 86.8 min of wake after sleep onset, and 3.4% of N3. More specifically, 12.4/h of the average apnea hypopnea index, 14.8/h of the periodic limb movement during sleep (PLMS), 41.2/h of the periodic limb movement during wake during SIT and 21.6/h of total arousal index during sleep. Out of the total subjects, 149 (70.6%) of them took the ropinirole and 47 (22.3%) of them took the pramipexole, and the average dosage of ropinirole was 0.9mg(dosage range 0.125-5 mg) while the average dosage of pramipexole was 0.5 mg (dosage range 0.125-4 mg). The dosage of the ropinirole showed a significant positive correlation with the age (r=0.25, p=0.002) and also with the IRLS (r=0.23, p=0.038). The IRLS at the baseline was 24.9 while the same was decreased down to 13.4 after one month. CONCLUSIONS: Analyzing the result of this study, a majority of clinical RLS subjects demonstrated comorbidity with some other sleep disorder such as the OSA or PLMD. 25.1% of the subjects showed a PLMD, which was less than in previous researches and the average PLMS was not very high as 14.8/h. The dosage of dopamine agonist taken was often a bit more than the amount recommended in Korea. A prospective research using a large scale controlled subjects will be necessary with respect to this topic.
Apnea ; Arousal ; Benzothiazoles ; Comorbidity ; Dopamine Agonists ; Extremities ; Female ; Humans ; Immobilization ; Indoles ; Isothiocyanates ; Korea ; Male ; Medical Records ; Nocturnal Myoclonus Syndrome ; Polysomnography ; Prescriptions ; Restless Legs Syndrome ; Sleep Apnea, Obstructive ; Sleep Wake Disorders

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate association between presence of time preference of headache attack and social jetlag and circadian preference in patients with migraine with or without aura. METHODS: A total of 50 patients of migraine with or without aura who visited for the first time at a single tertiary medical center were examined and interviewed about their sleep pattern on weekdays and weekends and whether they have time preference of headache attack during a day or not. Frequency of headache and measurement for disability of headache such as six-item Headache Impact Test and other sleep profiles such as sleep duration, sleep quality, daytime sleepiness, and insomnia severity were obtained by a booklet of questionnaire. RESULTS: In this pilot study, the time preference of migraine attack during a day was present in 42% among the participants. In the cross-sectional analysis, the group of presence of time preference of attack showed earlier circadian preference (1:36 am±282 min vs. 4:24 am±186 min, p=0.02) and lower social jetlag than the other group (0.4±0.8 hour vs. 1.4±2.2 hour, p=0.04). Other demographic characteristics and frequency and severity of headache was comparable between groups. CONCLUSIONS: Considering an individual circadian preference might be a strategy in integrated management of migraine.
Cross-Sectional Studies ; Epilepsy ; Headache ; Humans ; Migraine Disorders ; Pamphlets ; Pilot Projects ; Sleep Initiation and Maintenance Disorders