We examined the nuclear overexpression of p53 protein by immunohistochemical analysis of the deparaffinized tumor tissue specimens from 45 patients with transitional cell carcinoma of the bladder. The data were then correlated with conventional prognostic variables such as histologic tumor grade, stage and DNA ploidy. In addition, we related the expression of the 53 protein to indicators of cellular proliferative activity, including proliferating cell nuclear antigen(PCNA), mean number of silver-binding nucleoar organizer regions(AgNORs) per nucleus, flow cytometric S-phase fraction(SPF) and proliferation index(PI). Survivals of the patients according to mutant p53 protein expression, stratified by histologic tumor grade and stage were analyzed.None of the urothelial cells from normal bladder specimens showed nuclear expression of mutant p53 protein. Mutant p53 protein expression was not associated with histologic tumor grade, stage, flow cytometric SPF and PI, but there was an association between mutant p53 protein expression and flow cytometric DNA ploidy with marginal statistical significance(p=0.0892) There was statistically significant difference of mutant p53 protein expression between low and high AgNORs counts per nucleus(p=0.0108), but here was no significant correlation between mutant p53 protein expression and PCNA expression rate. Using Kaplan-Meier analysis, we could not identify the statistically significant difference of survivorship between patients with and without mutant p53 expression. These results suggest that immunohistochemical analysis of bladder cancer specimens could be a good method of screening for the presence of mutant p53 protein, and mutant p53 protein expression may be an indicator of bladder cancer with more proliferative and/or aggressive activity, but it may not be an clinically useful prognostic factor in patients with bladder TCC.
Carcinoma, Transitional Cell ; DNA ; Humans ; Immunohistochemistry* ; Kaplan-Meier Estimate ; Mass Screening ; Mutant Proteins ; Nucleolus Organizer Region* ; Ploidies ; Prognosis ; Proliferating Cell Nuclear Antigen* ; Survival Rate ; Urinary Bladder Neoplasms ; Urinary Bladder*

PURPOSE: Allium sativum (AS) has been known to have widespread benefits in reducing some human cancer risk by immune stimualtion and anticarcinogenic activity. In the present study, we evaluated the preventive and antitumor properties of AS as an effective anticancer modifier for human prostate cancer in vivo. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Subcutaneous prostate cancers were established in athymic nude mice with 5x10(5) PC-3 human androgen-indenpendent prostate cancer cells. AS was injected at the site of tumor transplantation on day 1 and one week intervals up to 5 weeks (Experiment I), and into the established tumors sized by 50-60mm(3) weekly for 5 weeks (Experiment II). Therapeutic responses and efficacies of AS for prostate cancers in vivo were determined in separate controlled experiments, and definite histopathological studies were also performed. RESULTS: In vivo studies indicated statistically significant reduction in the incidence of tumor formation with programmed and continuous AS intralesional treatment. For established prostate cancer, AS treatment also demonstrated an inhibitory effect of tumor growth compared with control. Histomorphological and immunohistochemical studies demonstrated marked apoptosis after 5 weeks-AS continuous treatment in Experiment II. CONCLUSIONS: AS had a definite antitumor activity to inhibit tumorigenesis and may modulate tumor growth of prostate cancer in vivo. It is non-toxic, readily avaliable and inexpensive. AS, in the future, may be developed as a novel and effective treatment in chemoprevention for human prostate cancer.
Allium* ; Animals ; Apoptosis ; Carcinogenesis ; Chemoprevention ; Garlic ; Growth and Development* ; Humans ; Incidence ; Mice ; Mice, Nude ; Prostate* ; Prostatic Neoplasms*

No abstract available.
Prospective Studies* ; Prostate*

Slipped femoral capital epiphysis is a disease in which the femoral capital epiphysis is displaced downward and backward and occurs during the adolescent rapid growth period when the epiphyseal growth plate is weakened. This relatively rare disease was first reported by Ambrose Pare in 1572. Numerous cases have since been reported in the literature throughout the world. In Korea, although, rare a few cases have also been reported. The authors report here a case of bilateral slipped femoral capital epiphysis in a 14 year old boy with pain when walking. He manifested the Frolich body type with underdeveloped genitalia. Both hips showed a positive Patricks test with limited range of motion, especially in abduction and internal rotation. Three Hage pins were inserted on each side.
Adolescent ; Epiphyses ; Genitalia ; Growth Plate ; Hip ; Humans ; Korea ; Male ; Range of Motion, Articular ; Rare Diseases ; Somatotypes ; Walking

BACKGROUND: The growth of elderly population increased the need for oral health care. Elderly patients with poor teeth alignment needs more attention with orthodontic treatment METHODS: Elderly patients visiting department of orthodontics, Kangdong Sacred Heart Hospital between 2000-2004 were treated with fixed appliances in one or both dental arches. Treatment plans were different from than that of younger patients and included uncommon and strategic removals of teeth and prosthesis. RESULTS: There was decrease in orthodontic treatment forces with increasing age, and the observation made from this study was favorable in the patients' as well as in the orthodontist's, point of view. It was possible to move the remaining teeth considerably, and the retention was made with various fixed appliances. CONCLUSIONS: Orthodontic treatment is not limited by patient age. However, it is wise not to extend treatment goals too far beyond the patients' objective needs
Aged* ; Dental Arch ; Heart ; Humans ; Oral Health ; Orthodontics ; Prostheses and Implants ; Tooth

Myocardial scintigraphy is a widely used noninvasive procedure with high sensitivity for the detection of patients with suspected coronary artery disease. The purpose of this study was to determine the prognostic value of a normal myocardial scintigraphy in 292 patients (150 males, 142 females, mean age 53+/-12 years) with chest pain who were followed from 7 to 58 (mean 25) months. Myocardial SPECT was performed with Tc-99m MIBI in 173 patients, with Tc-99m tetrofosmin in 74 patients and with T1-201 in 45 patients. During the follow-up period, there were 2 cardiac deaths and 2 nonfatal myocardial infarctions resulting in cardiac event rate of 1.37% (0.66% per year). The cardiac event rate was not different in patients with angiographically normal coronary arteries (1/30, 3.3%) and in those who had significant coronary a disease (2/27, 7.4%) (p=0.60). In conclusion, patients with chest pain and normal myocardial scintigraphy have a low cardiac event rate, and there was no significant difference of cardiac event rates between patients with normal and abnormal coronary angiograms.
Chest Pain* ; Coronary Artery Disease ; Coronary Vessels ; Death ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Male ; Myocardial Infarction ; Myocardial Perfusion Imaging ; Perfusion Imaging* ; Perfusion* ; Prognosis ; Thorax* ; Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon

It has been shown that both rest and stress myocardial perfusion imagings with technetium agents can be performed on the same day using two different doses injected within few hours. The purpose of this study was to compare the two protocols (stress-rest and rest-stress) in detecting coronary artery diseases. One hundred and sixty patients (101 males, 59 females, mean age 57+/-9 years) and 120 patients (79 males, 41 females, mean age 59+/-10 years) underwent stress-rest myocardial perfusion SPECT and rest-stress myocardial perfusion SPECT, respectively All of them underwent both myocardial perfusion SPECT and coronary angiography within 1 month. A coronary stenosis was considered significant when it compromised the luminal diameter by> or =50%. The chi square test was used to compare differences in sensitivity, specificity and accuracy between the two groups. The overall sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of stress-rest protocol were 99%, 35%and 68%, respectively. Those of rest-stress protocol were 96%, 47%, and 78%, respectively. There was no difference between the two protocols in identifying individual diseased coronary artery branches. Therefore, one day stress-rest and rest-stress myocardial SPECT using Tc-99m agents were comparable and were very sensitive tests in detecting coronary artery diseases.
Coronary Angiography ; Coronary Artery Disease* ; Coronary Stenosis ; Coronary Vessels* ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Perfusion Imaging ; Perfusion* ; Phenobarbital ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Technetium ; Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon

Despite advance in detection and management of prostate cancer, this disease remains a major cause of morbidity and mortality in men. Increasing attention has focused on the role of chemoprevention for prostate cancer, ie the administration of agents that inhibit one or more steps in the natural history of prostate carcinogenesis. Chemoprevention of prostate cancer is currently being tested in a wide range of clinical trials, and have focused on the role of dietary factors, vitamins and trace elements in prostate cancer. These studies have the potential to fundamentally alter the current approach to prostate cancer management. The current status of clinical trials investigating the use of interventions designed to reduce the risk of prostate cancer is reviewed.
Carcinogenesis ; Chemoprevention* ; Humans ; Male ; Mortality ; Natural History ; Prostate ; Prostatic Neoplasms ; Trace Elements ; Vitamins

BACKGROUND: Brief episode of coronary artery occlusion (i.e., ischemic preconditioning) makes the heart more resistant to injury from a subsequent ischemic insult. Although a great deal of effort has been made in studying ischemic preconditioning, the underlying mechanism of ischemic preconditioning and its effect on hypothermic insult has not been elucidated. This study was performed to see whether ischemic preconditioning protects against the depression of cardiac contractility induced by hypothermic cardioplegic arrest/reperfusion. And recently, adenosine was known to have some correlation with the mechanism of preconditioning. If so, does this effect remain after the blockade of adenosine receptor by 8-phenyl theophylline? METHOD: Twenty-four Sprague-Dawley rat weighed 250-350g were used and divided into three groups. Rat hearts were removed rapidly, and each isolated heart paced with a rate of 180/min was perused by modified Krebs-Hensleit buffer(KHB) solution on a Langendorff apparatus far an hour. After obtaining baseline data including left ventricular pressure(LVP), dp/dt, and coronary flow, cardiac arrest was induced by perfusion of 0degrees C crystalloid cardioplegic(St Thomas) solution. After that, all hearts were stored in the same St Thomas solution at salute temperature far 2 hours. In group I (control group), the hear was reperfused by KHB solution. In group II(preconditioning group), the heart was subjected to two 2-minute episode of global ischemia followed by 5 minute reperfusion with KHB solution(preconditioning) before cardiac arrest. In group III(phenyl theophylline group), the heart was subjected to preconditioning procedure and 8-phenyl theophylline at 10muM in concentration was added to KHB solution at time of reperfusion. Observing parameter was obtained in each group at 10, 20, 40 and 60 minutes after starting reperfusion and compared statistically by use of one way ANOVA test(STASTICA, release 4.5). P-value less than 0.05 was considered significant. RESULTS: Although depressed LVP, dp/dt, and Coronary flow were seen in all groups during the reperfusion period, the preconditioned group showed more effective recovery of LVP than that of the control group, especially at 10, 20 and 40 minutes(p<.05). We failed to demonstrate the difference between the phenyl theophylline group and the control group(p=NS). CONCLUSION: These results suggest that ischemic preconditioning has protective effect on recovery state of hypothermic cardioplegic arrest/reperfusion. Its protective effect was limited during early reperfusion stage and was blocked by adenosine blocker.
Adenosine ; Animals ; Coronary Vessels ; Depression ; Heart Arrest ; Heart* ; Ischemia ; Ischemic Preconditioning* ; Myocardium* ; Perfusion ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Receptors, Purinergic P1 ; Reperfusion ; Theophylline

No abstract available.