No abstract available.

BACKGROUND: In biological structures, application of a constant alternating low current results in an impedance to the spread of the current that is frequency dependent. The living organism consists of intra- and extracellular fluids that behave as electrical conductors, and cell membranes that act as electrical condensers. Body fluids and electrolytes are responsible for electrical conduction. METHODS: We studied body impedance and fluid loss during hemodialysis in 20 patients with chronic renal failure. Two pairs of electrodes with a thin layer of electrolyte gel were placed on the dorsal surfaces of the hands and feet. 50KHz 800uA current was applied via the distal electrodes of each pair and the voltage drop was measured by proximal electrodes and impedance was derived from Ohms law. We measured body impedance and fluid loss at every one hour during hemodialysis. RESULTS: Body impedance value according to weight before hemodialysis changed in inveise ratio. During hemodialysis the rate of increase of body impedance according to body fluid loss revealed individual variance, but it was nearly constant in each individual patient. CONCLUSIONS: The method assessing total body water by body impedance is very simple, safe, rapid and noninvasive. The change of total body water can be predicted with body impedance method in individual patient by continuous monitoring, and this method may be useful particularly in critically ill patient. Further validation of this method is required for clinical application.
Body Fluids ; Body Water* ; Cell Membrane ; Critical Illness ; Electric Impedance* ; Electrodes ; Electrolytes ; Extracellular Fluid ; Foot ; Hand ; Humans ; Jurisprudence ; Kidney ; Kidney Failure, Chronic* ; Renal Dialysis* ; Renal Insufficiency

Docosahexaenoic acid(DHA) is a major fatty acid of the gray matter in brain, especially of the synaptic membranes. Modification of membrane fatty acids by dietary fatty acids may influence membrane characteristics and metabolism of neurotransmitters including it's release and reuptake. The effect of w3/w6 fatty acids in maternal diet on the brain neurotransmitters of the offsptings and their behavioral development were investigated in this study. Adult female rats were fed experimental diets with different contents of w3 and w6 fatty acids throughtout pregnancy and lactation and up to 16weekss of pup's age. Experimental diets consisted of 10 wt% fat: cornoil (CO: source of w6, LA), perilla oil (PO: source of w3, a-LNA) and fish oil(FO: source of lonfg chain w3, EPA & DHA). At 3,7 and 16weeks of age, frontal cortex, corpus striatum, thaltmus and cerebellum were dissected out of the whole brain, and the concentrations of 5-hydroxytryptamines(5-HT), catechoamines,and their metabolites were measured by HPLC-ECD. At 16weeks of age, fatty acid compositions of whole brain were determined by GLC. Physical development test in Y-water maze were performed at 15weeks of pup's age. The concentrations of 5-HT in thalamus & hypothalamus was found to be most significiantly correlated with learning ability(r=0.508, p<0.05). At 15weeks of age, the PO group showed higher learning ability compared to the CO or the FO group. Evemn though the DHA level stays rather constant in thhe brain tissue, the ratios of arachidoni c acid(AA,w6)/EPA+DHA(w3) vary significiantly with dietary fatty acids. DHA is known to fulfill very important structural and/or metabolic funtion in membrane system of the brain and AA and its metabolites may also act as transsynaptic messenger and/or second messenger and as the substrate for the production of many biologically active compounds, such as prostaglandins. Therefore, to accomplish full development of brain, proper supply of AA as well as DHA must be considered. Much more studies are needed to clarify th.
Adult ; Animals ; Brain ; Cerebellum ; Corpus Striatum ; Diet ; Fatty Acids* ; Female ; Humans ; Hypothalamus ; Lactation ; Learning ; Membranes ; Metabolism ; Neurotransmitter Agents* ; Perilla ; Pregnancy ; Prostaglandins ; Rats* ; Second Messenger Systems ; Serotonin ; Synaptic Membranes ; Thalamus

Mucinous cystadenocarcinoma (MCA) is a malignant tumor that mainly occurs in the breast or ovary, but MCA is internationally rarely reported in head and neck region. Especially MCA in minor salivary gland of oral cavity is even more rare. It is characterized by cystic spaces lining of epithelial cells containing intracytoplasmic mucin. We report a case of MCA in the labial mucosa of upper lip considered to develop from minor salivary gland with a review of literatures.

Tumor of follicular infundibulum (TFI) is a rare benign cutaneous appendage tumor that does not have characteristic clinical features. It is mainly present in the head, neck, and trunk as a solitary lesion. In particular, TFI typically manifests as a plate-like proliferation with multiple thin epidermal connections comprise of monomorphic cells. TFI do not represent cutaneous characteristics, but have clinical significance because TFI is associated with basal cell carcinoma and Cowden's syndrome. We report a case of TFI in parietal scalp with a review of literatures.

Mucinous cystadenocarcinoma (MCA) is a malignant tumor that mainly occurs in the breast or ovary, but MCA is internationally rarely reported in head and neck region. Especially MCA in minor salivary gland of oral cavity is even more rare. It is characterized by cystic spaces lining of epithelial cells containing intracytoplasmic mucin. We report a case of MCA in the labial mucosa of upper lip considered to develop from minor salivary gland with a review of literatures.

Performing a skin graft is not feasible for tendon-exposed defect reconstruction because tendons are fibrous connective tissues with relatively poor blood supply. This study proposes a method to effectively perform skin graft surgery in tendon-exposed wounds. A 48-year-old male patient with diabetes mellitus had a very large left dorsal foot defect (8×8 cm). The wound bed had healthy granular tissue, with tendon exposure. The tendons were turned over so that the posterior side would behave as the anterior side. The edge of the paratenon was then fixed together to the surrounding granulation tissue or dense remnant fascia using absorbable sutures, and the close granulation tissue was approximated and buried. A split-thickness skin graft was performed after 1 week. The graft site was stably taken on postoperative day 3. A small disruption was then observed at the graft site within 1 week postoperatively, but conservative treatment was continued for 1 month, after which the defect site was completely restored. This technique can increase the success rate of skin grafts for defects with tendon exposure.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to investigate the clinico-radiologic features and microbiologic data of patients with SPE in a tertiary care hospital in Busan. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed clinical and radiologic features of 6 cases with septic pulmonary embolism that occurred from March 2009 to March 2011 in Dong-A university medical center. RESULTS: The mean age of the study population was 58 years, and two men and four women were included. Clinical symptoms included general weakness (5 patients), febrile sensation (4 patients) and pleuritic chest pain (2 patients). Underlying conditions were chemoport infection (4 patients), dental abscess (1 patients), and cellulitis of hip (1 patient). Chest computed tomography revealed bilateral multiple nodular opacities in most patients, and cavitation, central necrosis, feeding vessels were identified. All patients received parenteral antimicrobial therapy with or without central catheter removal, drainage of the extrapulmonary infection. Causative organisms were Pseudomonas aeruginosa (2 patients), Candida albicans (1 patient), Bacillus species (1 patient), and Klebsiella pneumonia (1 patient). CONCLUSIONS: Clinical and radiologic features of septic pulmonary embolism were various and nonspecific. The diagnosis was usually suggested by the presence of a predisposing factor of septic pulmonary embolism and CT findings of bilateral multiple nodular opacities in patients with infectious signs and symptoms. Most important underlying condition was intravascular device infection.
Abscess ; Bacillus ; Candida albicans ; Catheters ; Cellulitis ; Chest Pain ; Drainage ; Female ; Hip ; Humans ; Klebsiella ; Male ; Necrosis ; Pneumonia ; Pseudomonas aeruginosa ; Pulmonary Embolism ; Retrospective Studies ; Sensation ; Sepsis ; Tertiary Healthcare ; Thorax

PURPOSE:Prolonged cold ischemia has been shown to be an important factor in the development of post-transplant renal dysfunction. The exact mechanisms have not been completely defined. The expression of ICAM-1 (CD-54) in rat kidneys stored at 0, 4, 12, 24 and 48 hours in University of Wisconsin (UW) solution was studied in an attempt to correlate ischemia time with increased immunogenicity of the graft. METHODS: Kidneys from male Lewis rats were perfused with UW solution, removed and bathed in UW solution at 4 degrees C for 4, 12, 24, and 48 hours respectively. For the evaluation of expression of ICAM-1, immunohistochemical staining, Western blotting and RT-PCR were performed. RESULTS: Immunohistochemical staining in normal non-ischemic kidneys revealed that glomerular capillaries expressed ICAM-1 but that tubular cells did not. The preserved kidneys were analyzed with immunohistochemistry, Western blotting and semi-quantitative RT-PCR and showed increased transcription and expression of ICAM-1 in the cortex of the kidney. This expression reached a maximum at 24 hours and declined at 48 hours. The ICAM-1 protein expression in the preserved kidney cortex was increased at 4 hours (1.68+/-0.60 fold of control kidneys, (p=0.06)), 12 hours (2.38+/-0.90 fold, (p=0.02)), 24 hours (3.70+/-1.29 fold, (p=0.01)), and 48 hours (2.00+/-0.54 fold, (p=0.01)). The mRNA expression (the ratio of ICAM-1/GAPDH) in preserved kidneys cortex relative to control kidneys was increased at 4 hours (1.19+/-0.14 fold of control kidneys), 12 hours (1.38+/-0.16 fold),24 hours (1.77+/-0.29 fold), and 48 hours (1.19+/-0.12 fold) (p<0.05 for all time points). CONCLUSION: We conclude that cold preservation of rat kidneys in UW solution induces increasing levels of ICAM-1 cell surface expression and gene transcription. This increase in adhesion molecule expression can be a contributing factor in the development of post-transplant renal dysfunction by increasing the immunogenicity of the graft.
Animals ; Baths ; Blotting, Western ; Capillaries ; Cold Ischemia ; Humans ; Immunohistochemistry ; Intercellular Adhesion Molecule-1* ; Ischemia ; Kidney Cortex ; Kidney Transplantation ; Kidney* ; Male ; Rats* ; RNA, Messenger ; Transplants ; Wisconsin

BACKGROUNDS/AIMS: Standard liver volume (SLV) is an important parameter that has been used as a reference value to estimate the graft matching in living donor liver transplantation (LDLT). This study aimed to determine a reliable SLV formula for Korean adult patients as compared with the 15 SLV formulae from other studies and further estimate SLV formula by gender and body mass index (BMI). METHODS: Computed tomography liver volumetry was performed in 1,000 living donors for LDLT and regression formulae for SLV was calculated. Individual donor data were applied to the 15 previously published SLV formulae, as compared with the SLV formula derived in this study. Analysis for confounding variables of BMI and gender was also performed. RESULTS: Two formulae, "SLV (ml)=908.204xBSA-464.728" with DuBois body surface area (BSA) formula and "SLV (ml)=893.485xBSA-439.169" with Monsteller BSA formula, were derived by using the profiles of the 1,000 living donors included in the study. Comparison with other 15 other formulae, all except for Chouker formula showed the mean volume percentage errors of 4.8-5.4%. The gender showed no significant effect on total liver volume (TLV), but there was a significant increase in TLV as BMI increased. CONCLUSIONS: Our study suggested that most SLV formulae showed a crudely applicable range of SLV estimation for Korean adults. Considering the volume error in estimating SLV, further SLV studies with larger population from multiple centers should be performed to enhance its predictability. Our results suggested that classifying SLV formulae by BMI and gender is unnecessary.
Adult* ; Body Mass Index ; Body Surface Area ; Confounding Factors (Epidemiology)* ; Humans ; Liver Transplantation ; Liver* ; Living Donors ; Reference Values ; Tissue Donors ; Transplants