No abstract available.

No abstract available.
Female ; Humans

BACKGROUND: Intracellular ionized calcium plays a central role in the transduction of external stimuli as a critical second messenger. The spectral properties of fluo-3 allows the analysis of intracellular ionized calcium level by flow cytometers. The aim of this study is to assess the performance of flow cytometer for measuring intracellular ionized calcium level using fluo-3 and to define the reference interval of intracellular ionized calcium level of lymphocytes from healthy people, and to find out the clinical implications according to various disorders. METHODS: For the analytical performance of flow cytometer on determining the concentration of intracellular ionized calcium, precision study, lowest limit of detection, analytical range, and the loading stability of fluo-3 were per foamed. Fifty-four cases of healthy people, 52 cases of renal transplant patients, and 20 cases of diabetes mellitus patients were included in this study. RESULTS: Loading effect of fluo-3 at room temperature was stable upto 5 hours. Lowest limit of detection of ionized calcium concentration was 4.34 nM at in-situ calibration procedure. Within-run and among-day intraindividual CVs of in-situ calibration procedure were 6.67% and 13.99% respectively, and of optical calibration procedure were 13.86% and 16.12% respectively. The reference interval of cytosolic free calcium level for healthy people ranged 73.54 - 155.09 nM without sexual differences. The level of intracellular ionized calcium was lowered by 36.9% on renal transplant group in comparison with healthy control group. But, level of cytosolic free calcium was Increased upto 276.0% on acute rejection group and 159.1% on diabetes mellitus group compared to control group. CONCLUSIONS: These results reveal that in-situ calibration method for intra cellular ionized calcium using flow cytometry with flue-3 can be regarded as an accurate and standardized method. Quantitation of intracellular ionized calcium level might be used as the monitoring test for early detection of acute rejection after renal transplantation.
Calcium* ; Calibration ; Cytosol ; Diabetes Mellitus ; Flow Cytometry* ; Humans* ; Kidney Transplantation ; Limit of Detection ; Lymphocytes* ; Second Messenger Systems

Polymorphic reticulosis(PMR) is a unique clinicopathological entity of unknown etiology, which commonly present as an aggressive, necrotizing lesion of the upper respiratory tract. It is a separate nosologic entity from Wegener's granulomatosis and idiopathic mildine destructive disease. The origin of the cells composing polymorphic reticulosis has been controversial. We reviewed 15 cases of polymorphic reticulosis with respect to clinical and histologic bases, and immunohistochemical studies were done using UCHLI (CD45RO), as a T cell marker, CD-20 as a B cell marker and alpha- I -antichymotrypsin as a histiocytic marker. Almost all cases showed characteristic histologic and immunohistochemical features similar to those of peripheral T cell lymphoma. Thus, this study indidcated that polymorphic reticulosis is a type of malignant lymphoma of T cell lineage.

Recently, duplex sonography has been used as a screening test for the evaluation of carotid arterial disease. If an occlusion of atherosclerosis is located at the bifurcation of the common carotid artery or the lower portion of the internal carotid artery, the luminal change may be directly visualized on high-resolution B-mode sonography or color-Doppler images. But when the lesion is located at the high cervical, petrous or cavernous protion of the internal carotid artery, it is difficult to directly visualize the lesion with the sonography. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the indirect changes on the Doppler patterns of both common carotid arteries with clamping of an internal carotid artery. Thirty common carotid arteries in fifteen normal rabbits were examined with duplex ultrasonography using high-resolution real-time imaging and 7.5MHz pulsed-wave Doppler flow measurements with velocity waveform analysis. Systolic velocity (SV) was 45.4±8.4cm/sec, end-diastolic velocity (EDV) 15.3±4.9cm/sec and resistative index(RI) 0.66±0.08 in the common carotid artery before clamping of the internal carotid artery. SV was 26.3±7.8cm/sec, EDV 6.0±5.2cm/sec and RI 0.78±0.18 in the ipsilateral common carotid artery and SV was 56.6±13.0cm/sec, EDV 22.3±8.2cm. sec and RI 0.61±0.10 in the contralateral common carotid artery after clamping of the internal carotid artery. During clamping of the internal carotid artery, the difference between SV of bilateral common carotid arteries was 30.3±13.8cm/sec and EDV 16.3±9.2cm/sec. There was no difference of the velocity patterns of the common carotid artery between preclamping and declamping of the internal carotid artery. In conclusion, lower SV and EDV in a common carotid artery than that in contralateral side on Doppler patterns strongly suggests an occlusion of ipsilateral internal carotid artery.
Atherosclerosis ; Carotid Artery Diseases ; Carotid Artery, Common* ; Carotid Artery, Internal* ; Constriction* ; Mass Screening ; Phenobarbital ; Rabbits ; Ultrasonography

We report a case of Fournier's gangrene following long-term use of an unqualified vacuum erection device in a 40-year-old man.
Adult ; Fournier Gangrene* ; Humans ; Male ; Penis* ; Scrotum* ; Vacuum*

No abstract available.

No abstract available.
Epidemiology* ; Hip Fractures* ; Hip*

The patella is an important component of the extensor mechanism of the knee. It serves to increase the mechanical advantage of the quadriceps muscle by increasing its lever arm. Therefore, if possible, when the patella is fractured, it should be repaired rather than excised. Present surgical techniques for the patellar fractures utilizes principles of anatomic reduction with repair of any associated retinacular tears, rigid internal fixation, and early institution of joint motion exercises. To compare the efficacies of the commonly used wiring techniques, we performed tension tests with transversely bisected patellar models fixed with circumferential wiring, Magnuson wiring, modified tension band wiring and modified tension band wiring combined with circumferential wiring. Also, we reviewed 66 surgically treated patellar fractures from Jan. 1984 to Dec. 1988, when we had given every effort to preserve the patella using modified tension band wiring or modified tension band wiring combined with circumferential wiring. l. According to the results of the tension tests, modified tension band wiring and Magnuson wiring were more rigid than circumferential wiring and the rigidity of modified tension band wiring was much increased when combined with circumferential wiring. 2. Of the 66 cases, 46 cases were treated with modified tension band wiring combined with circumferential wiring, and the remainder were treated with modified tension band wiring. 3. On the whole, good and excellent results were achieved in 87.9% (58 cases). Unsatisfactory results were obtained in 15.0% of cases treated with modified tension band wiring and in 10.9% of cases treated with modified tension band wiring combined with circumferential wiring. 4. Most of the unsatisfactory cases were so severely comminuted that could not be achieved anatomic reduction, rigid internal fixation and early joint motion exercises.
Arm ; Exercise ; Joints ; Knee ; Methods ; Patella ; Quadriceps Muscle ; Tears

In the assessment of thoracolumbar fractures, computed tomography (CT) is superior to other imaging modalities especially when a more definitive assessment of the posterior elements of the spine or the neural canal is desired. We evaluated 55 patients with acute thoracolumbar burst fractures, and correlated the amount of neural canal impingement (NCI), demonstrated on computed tomographic scans, with each patients neurologic status, level of injury and extent of recovery when neural deficit was present. The results were as follows ; l. Average NCI was significantly higher in cases with neurologic deficits (57.3%) than in cases with no deficit (29.8%). But the range of NCI was much overlapped between the two groups (32-100% with deficits vs. 8-69% with no deficit). 2. In cases with neurologic deficits, average NCI was significantly higher in lumbar spine (75.0%, range; 61-100%) than in thoracolumbar spine (49.2%, range; 32-87%). 3. There was no neurologic deficit in cases with NCI less than 30% in thoracolumbar spine and less than 60% in lumbar spine. 4. In thoracolumbar spine, there was more significant relationship between NCI and patient's neurologic status in T12 than in Ll. 5. The NCI did not directly correlate with the extent of recovery of neurologic deficits when present.
Humans ; Neural Tube ; Neurologic Manifestations ; Spine