Gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH) is believed to be pivotal hormone in hypothalamo-pituitary gonadal axis and the hypothalamus is believed as the exclusive organ producing GnRH and pituitary is for GnRH re ceptor until recently. Some reported the exptra-hypothalamic GnRH or extra-pituitary GnRH receptors from decades ago. The aims of this study are to confirm the existence of the GnRH receptor in bladder epithelial cancer cell, HT-1197 and HT-1376, and evaluated the possible role of the GnRH on cell cycle. The GnRH and GnRH receptor were detected by immunohistochemical staining and the effect of GnRH on cell cycle change in both cell line were studied by fluorescence activated cell sorter (FACS). The control cells were cultured at media supplemented with normal serum, and experimental group were cultured at media supplemented with charcoal stripped serum (CSS) which excluding peptide hormones except exogenous GnRH with different concentration. The GnRHs and GnRH receptors were detected at both cell lines and the cell cycle analysis showed that there were little difference in proportion of cell cycle among examined 10,000 cells in both cell lines, neither control nor experimental groups. This study shows that the GnRHs and GnRH receptors exist in bladder cancer cells and GnRH did not influence on the cell cycle progression. With this study, we suppose that the bladder cancer cells produce the GnRH and GnRH receptors and the role of the GnRF produced from the bladder cancer cells might be the autocrine rather than endo-or paracrine factor.
Axis, Cervical Vertebra ; Cell Cycle* ; Cell Line ; Charcoal ; Fluorescence ; Gonadotropin-Releasing Hormone* ; Gonadotropins* ; Gonads ; Hypothalamus ; Peptide Hormones ; Receptors, LHRH ; Urinary Bladder ; Urinary Bladder Neoplasms

Finances of health insurance can be explained by factors determining benefit expense and premium collection. This study was conducted to analyze factors contributing to the financial status of rural health insurance. Nationwide 134 health insurance associations except the six pilot project counties were analyzed and obtained the followings. 1. In univariate analysis, statistically significant variables that explain 1) outpatient benefit expenditures include public health center utilization, proportion of pregnant women, premium and collection rate of premium 2) inpatient benefit expenditures include public health center utilization, proportion of old age, proportion of pregnant women, premium and collection rate of premium 3) profits include public health center utilization, proportion of old age, proportion of pregnant women and collection rate of premium. 2. In multiple regression analysis, statistically significant determinants in 1) outpatient benefit include premium and public health utilization 2) inpatient benefit include premium 3) profit include public health center utilization, premium and collection rate of premium.
Female ; Health Expenditures ; Humans ; Inpatients ; Insurance ; Insurance, Health* ; Outpatients ; Pilot Projects ; Pregnant Women ; Public Health ; Regression Analysis ; Rural Health

No abstract available.
Cesarean Section* ; Female ; Pregnancy

PURPOSE: To evaluate the role of CT in the diagnosis of bowel and mesenteric injury we studied the CT findings and its usefulness in patients of abdominal trauma. MATERIALS AND METHODS: CT scans of 27 patients who were confirmed to have bowel and/or mesenteric injury due to abdominal trauma were analyzed retrospectively. Of these 27 patients 15 had bowel injury only and 12 had both bowel and mesenteric injury. CT findings analysed were bowel wall thickening, presence or absence of highly attenuated bowel wall, sentinel clot, mesenteric infiltration, peritoneal fluid collection and free intraabdominal air in cases with bowel injury only and with both bowel and mesenteric injury respectively. Ten patients had other accompanying abdominal injuries, such as liver, spleen, pancreas, kidney, bladder injuries, intraperitoneal abscess or retroperitoneal hemorrhage. RESULTS: Findings observed were bowel wall thickening in 23 cases(85%), peritoneal fluid collection in 21 (78%), highly attenuated bowel wall in 19(70%), mesenteric infiltration in 17(63%), free intraperitoneal air in 10 (37%) and sentinel clot in 7(26%). Pneumoperioneum were observed in 10 of 24 patients(41.7%) having bowel perforation. Two cases did not show any CT findings suggesting bowel and/or mesenteric injury. There was no significant difference in the prevalence of the CT findings between the patient group with bowel injury only and the patient group with both bowel and meseneric injury. CONCLUSION: CT scan is a useful tool in evaluating the degree and extent of bowel and/or mesenteric injury as well as in planning the patient's management.
Abdominal Injuries ; Abscess ; Ascitic Fluid ; Diagnosis ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Kidney ; Liver ; Pancreas ; Prevalence ; Retrospective Studies ; Spleen ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed ; Urinary Bladder

It is known that excitotoxicity and oxygen radicals were two major pathogenic events related to mesial temporal sclerosis(MTS), which was the most common histopathologic features in intractable temporal lobe epilepsy. The experiment was designed to investigate the neuroprotective effect of 2-methylaminochroman U-78S17F, a second generation series of nonsteroidal lazaroid compounds, against excitotoxic and oxygen radical injuries on the human fetal hippocampal neurons in vitro. Neuron-enriched cultures were seeded on both 96 well multichamber plates and poly-L-Iysine coated Aclar cover slips to determine cytotoxicity by MTT(3-4, 5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl-2, 5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide) assay and cytopathologic features respectively. Dose-dependent neuronal injuries were developed by treatment of 100, 200, and 500 microM glutamate (p<0.01), and 100 microM hypoxanthine plus 10 to 20 mU xanthine oxidase (p<0.01). The glutamate-induced cytotoxicity was completely blocked by pretreatment of 20 microM MK-801 (p<0.01), however, U-78S17F did not attenuate the glutamate toxicity. The fetal hippocampal neurons were protected from oxygen radical injuries by pretreatment of 2 to 16 microM U-78517F (p<0.01). The cytopathologic changes observed by phase-contrast inverted microscope, neurofilament protein (NF) immunocytochemistry, and MTT stain correlated well with the degree of neuronal injuries in experimental groups. Considerably swollen neurons with disintegrated neurites were noted by the excitotoxic and oxygen radical injuries, however, there was no characteristic cytologic difference between them. These data indicated that U-78S17F had only a significant protective effect from oxygen radical injury on fetal hippocampal neurons in culture, and it was suggested that the early treatment of both glutamate-antagonists and antioxidants would be beneficial to reduce MTS following epileptic seizures.
Antioxidants ; Dizocilpine Maleate ; Epilepsy ; Epilepsy, Temporal Lobe ; Glutamic Acid ; Humans* ; Hypoxanthine ; Immunohistochemistry ; Neurites ; Neurons* ; Neuroprotective Agents* ; Oxygen ; Reactive Oxygen Species ; Xanthine Oxidase

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of bisphosphonate and indomethacin, blockers of bone resorption with different mechanisms, on alveolar bone remodeling. Male rats were divided into control, bisphosphonate and indomethacin groups, and then each group was divided into an experimental side and a control side according to the force application. Bisphosphonate(6.3/kg, 2.52x10(-2)mol/L) and indomethacin (9mg/kg, 2.52x10(-2)mol/L) were injected 6 hours and 1 hour before or 24 hours after the force application. The rats were killed 72 hours after the force application and histologic examination was performed. The values of serum acid phosphatase and lactate dehydrogenase were also measured in the control and experimental groups treated with bisphosphonate or indomethacin 1 hour before the force application. In the experimental side, the least number of osteoclasts was noted in the groups treated 1 hour before the force application with indomethacin or bisphosphonate, while there were no differences between the control and the groups treated with drugs 6 hours before or 24 hours after the force application. In the control side, the number of osteoclasts was not inecreased with no differences among the groups. Histologic examination revealed a severe alveolar bone resorption in the control group and the groups treated with indomethacin 6 hours before or 24 hours after the force application. Indomethacin treatment 1 hour before the force application and bisphosphonate treatment at any time significantly attenuated the bone resorption. Electron microscopically, ruffled border and clear zone of osteoclasts were observed in the control and indomethacin groups, while some osteoclasts were detached from the bone surface and exhibited dull cellular projections in the bisphosphonate groups. The bisphosphonate and indomethacin groups showed lower values of acid phosphatase and lactate dehydrogenase than the control group. The acid phosphatase value in the bisphosphonate group was lower than that in the indomethacin group, whereas there was no difference in the lactate dehydrogenase value between the groups. These results suggest that bisphosphonate reduces the activity of osteoclasts as well as the number of osteoclasts and that indomethacin reduces the number of osteoclasts without affecting the activity of osteoclasts. Bisphosphonate has a larger inhibitory effect on bone resorption and thus less limitation in the application time than indomethacin.
Acid Phosphatase ; Animals ; Bone Remodeling* ; Bone Resorption ; Humans ; Indomethacin* ; L-Lactate Dehydrogenase ; Male ; Osteoclasts ; Rats* ; Tooth Movement

The causes of the missing teeth are classified as congenital missing, trauma and extraction due to dental caries, variable problems are occured clinically by the missing teeth. The missing of the upper incisors especially would assume a serious aspect, and could be treated by three methods of orthodontic treatment, prosthodontic treatment and autotransplantation of the premolar teeth. The patient of this report had the skeletal class II malocclusion with the left upper central incisor missing, and have been treated with the fixed appliance after extraction of the right upper central incisor and both lower second premolars. The results were obtained as follows: 1. Treatment was done for 1 year 6 months. 2. Normal overbite and overjet were achieved. 3. Cuspal interdigitation was obtained normally. 4. Space problem was resolved with resin restoration of the upper lateral incisors. 5. The upper canines were used as the upper laterals after cuspal contouring. 6. Retention would be required with adequate retainers for a long time to prevent relapsing after treatment.
Autografts ; Bicuspid ; Dental Caries ; Humans ; Incisor* ; Malocclusion* ; Overbite ; Prosthodontics ; Tooth

Tooth movement would be impeded by frictional force arised between archwire and tube, bracket or elastics in the fixed orthodontic appliances, which could be changed variably by such several factors as the contact area, normal (perpendicular) force and the condition of contact surface. There were many literatures about frictional force in the orthodontic region, but different results were obtained from little controlled research so that was very difficult in clinical application. Therefore we have reviewed comprehensively previous literatures about frictional force and thus several results were obtained as follows: 1. For use species of the orthodontic wire, frictional force was influenced mainly by surface roughness of wire in the absence of binding, while that was influenced mainly by normal force in high binding angulation. 2. For the cross-section and diameter of the wire, the contact area influenced mainly on frictional force in the absence of binding, while wire stiffness influenced mainly on frictional force in high binding angulation. 3. The greater the bracket width, the greater frictional force, and frictional force of the plastic bracket was larger than that of the metal bracket. 4. For ligation type, frictional force of the stainless steel ligation was larger than that of the elastic ligation, and frictional force was directly proportional to ligation force. 5. Variable frictional force were occured from the saliva combined with such another factors as normal force and mode of surface oxide et al.
Friction* ; Ligation ; Orthodontic Appliances* ; Orthodontic Wires ; Plastics ; Saliva ; Stainless Steel ; Tooth Movement* ; Tooth*

No abstract available.
Respiratory Insufficiency* ; Ventilators, Mechanical* ; Weaning*

Public attitudes and awareness toward epilepsy were surveyed in Kwang-ju area. A representative population of 587 persons aged over 18 years was selected in a systematic sampling procedure from the Kwang-ju telephone directory published in 1991. The social background of the respondents did not deviated significantly from that of the general population in this age range. The questionnaire consisted of 34 guestions designed to determine the respondent's social background, acquaintance with epileptic patients, awareness of epilepsy, and opinions and attitudes about the disorder. The result from this survey was as follows; 1) The prejudice and misunderstanding toward epilepsy in our society were much more serious than those in other societies reviewed in this study, which may be due to our own peculiar cultural background. 2) Although social discrimination against persons with epilepsy was due mainly to social stigma on epilepsy based on extra-ordinary misunderstanding of people, a very passive and pessimistic attitude of the patient himself may be contributed to it considerably. 3) Even if the epileptic seizure was well controlled with appropriate antiepileptic drugs, the social attitude toward occupational activity of persons with epilepsy was very negative. 4) The negative attitude toward epilepsy in our society was closely correlated to the level of education and age of respondents; the older or less educated they were, the more objections they had.
Anticonvulsants ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Education ; Epilepsy* ; Gwangju* ; Humans ; Prejudice ; Social Discrimination ; Social Stigma ; Telephone