BACKGROUND: Although the pericentric inversion of chromosome 9, inv(9)(p11q13), is generally considered a normal variation, it is also associated with solid tumors and several hematologic malignancies such as biphenotypic acute leukemia, ALL, AML, and myeloproliferative neoplasms. However, to the best of our knowledge, there have been no reports that suggest an association between CML and constitutional pericentric inversion of chromosome 9. The purpose of this retrospective study was to investigate the frequency and clinical features of CML patients with concomitant inv(9) and t(9;22)(q34;q11.2) variation at our institution. METHODS: We reviewed the bone marrow chromosome database entries between October 2006 and December 2008 to identify patients with concomitant inv(9) and t(9;22) variations. Laboratory and clinical data of the patients were obtained from the electronic medical record system. RESULTS: Among the 51 CML patients, 4 (7.8%) had concomitant inv(9) and t(9;22) variations. CONCLUSIONS: Although the association between inv(9) variation and CML is still controversial, we believe that hematologists should consider the role of constitutional inv(9) variation in CML patients to avoid overlooking the impaired engraftment potential of hematopoietic stem cells harboring inv(9). Therefore, we suggest that more effort should be invested to develop cytogenetic tests for detecting constitutional inv(9) variation in CML patients.
Adult ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group/*genetics ; Centrosome ; *Chromosome Inversion ; *Chromosomes, Human, Pair 9 ; Female ; Humans ; Karyotyping ; Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute/diagnosis/*genetics ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Republic of Korea ; Retrospective Studies ; Translocation, Genetic

OBJECTIVES: This study was performed to survey worker's demands for worksite medical care and agency's intention for offering worksite medical care in Group Health Service Agency. METHODS: One study subjects were employers, workers and office personnels in 167 factories. They were asked for medical care utilization behavior and worksite medical care demand. 121 employers(72.5%), 145 office personnels(86.8%) and 816 workers(60.5%) answered the questionnaire. The other subjects were doctors, nurses and administrators in 66 Group Health Service Agencies nationwide. They were asked for intention of offering worksite medical care in Group Health Service Agency through the mail survey. 31 doctors(47.0%), 38 nurses(57.6%) and 34 administrators answered the questionnaire. RESULTS: 87 percentage of doctors and 94 percentage of nurses had experiences of being requested to prescribe and laboratory examination. All nurses, 94 percentage of administrators and 76 percentage of doctors thought that it was necessary to give medical treatment at worksite. Also in worksite 85 percentage of employers, 86 percentage of office personnels and 81 percentage of workers answered that they accepted the worksite medical care when it would be given. CONCLUSIONS: Worksite medical care should be permitted because almost of all workers and employers requested worksite medical care, and doctors and nurses in Group Health Service Agency were willing to give worksite medical care and there was necessity to prevent occupational cerebrovascular disease.
Administrative Personnel ; Health Services* ; Humans ; Intention* ; Postal Service ; Questionnaires ; Workplace*

BACKGROUND: Exon deletions of Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) gene account for most of the alterations found in DMD and Becker muscular dystrophy (BMD). This study was to evaluate the usefulness of dual priming oligonucleotide multiplex PCR (DPO PCR) in detection of exon deletions of DMD gene. METHODS: Thirty-seven DMD or BMD patients who had known exon deletions detected by conventional multiplex PCR (conventional PCR) and nine control subjects were enrolled in this study. When a discrepancy was shown between the results of conventional PCR and DPO PCR, the multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MLPA) technique was performed as a confirmation test. RESULTS: The same deletions previously identified by conventional PCR in 32 out of 37 subjects were also detected by DPO PCR. For the five subjects (13.5%) showing discrepant results between the conventional PCR and DPO PCR, MLPA was performed and its results were found to correlate better with those of DPO PCR. The discrepancies were due to false positive or false negative results of the conventional PCR. CONCLUSIONS: DPO PCR shows a high agreement of results with the conventional PCR and is considered an adequate method to be used as a primary genetic test for the diagnosis of DMD. Because of an improved accuracy, especially for determining the boundaries of DMD gene deletions, DPO PCR can be very useful as a supplement to the conventional PCR.
*DNA Mutational Analysis ; DNA Primers ; Dystrophin/*genetics ; Female ; Gene Deletion ; Genetic Screening ; Humans ; Male ; Muscular Dystrophy, Duchenne/*diagnosis/genetics ; Nucleic Acid Amplification Techniques ; Oligonucleotide Probes ; Polymerase Chain Reaction/*methods ; Reagent Kits, Diagnostic ; Reproducibility of Results

OBJECTIVE: Several lines of evidence suggest that brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) plays a role in the pathophysiology of anxiety. We analyzed the association of the BDNF gene polymorphism, G196A (val66met), in the coding region of exon XIIIA in chromosome 11p13, and generalized social anxiety disorder (GSAD). METHODS: Patients with GSAD (n=73) and age-matched control subjects (n=152) were tested for the BDNF (val66met) polymorphism. A clinical interview and a Mini-International Neuropsychiatric Interview were conducted by trained psychiatrists in order to diagnose GSAD. The symptomatic characteristics of the GSAD patients were assessed with the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale, the Beck Anxiety Inventory, the Retrospective Self Report of Inhibition, the Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, and the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale. RESULTS: There were no significant differences in the frequencies of the genotypes (chi2=0.961, degree of freedom [df]=2, p=0.619), alleles (chi2=0.415, df=1, p=0.519), or allele (methionine) carriers (chi2=0.019, df=1, p=0.889) between the patients and controls. In addition, when we compared the severity of social anxiety symptom as determined by the clinical scales with the genotypes of the BDNF gene, we could not find any significant differences between the genotypes or allele carriers. CONCLUSION: These results do not support the hypothesis that the BDNF gene might be a candidate gene for susceptibility or severity of GSAD in the Korean population in this study.
Alleles ; Anxiety ; Anxiety Disorders ; Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor ; Clinical Coding ; Exons ; Freedom ; Genotype ; Humans ; Psychiatry ; Retrospective Studies ; Self Report ; Weights and Measures

BACKGROUND: The identification of in vitro hemolysis (IVH) using a hematology analyzer is challenging because centrifugation of the specimens cannot be performed for cell counts. In the present study, we aimed to develop a scoring system to help identify the presence of hemolysis in anticoagulated blood specimens. METHODS: Thirty-seven potassium EDTA anticoagulated blood specimens were obtained, and each specimen was divided into 3 aliquots (A, B, and C). Aliquots B and C were mechanically hemolyzed by aspirating 2 and 5 times, respectively, using a 27-gauge needle and then tested; aliquot A was analyzed immediately without any hemolysis. After the cells were counted, aliquots B and C were centrifuged and the supernatants were tested for the hemolytic index and lactate dehydrogenase levels. RESULTS: The 4 hematologic parameters were selected and scored from 0 to 3 as follows:< 34.0, 34.0-36.2, 36.3-38.4, and > or =38.5 for mean cell hemoglobin concentration (MCHC, g/dL); <0.02, 0.02, 0.03, and > or =0.04 for red blood cell ghosts (10(12)/L); <0.13, 0.13-0.38, 0.39-1.30, and > or =1.31 for difference value (g/dL) of measured hemoglobin and calculated hemoglobin; and <0.26, 0.26-0.95, 0.96-3.34, and > or =3.35 for difference value (g/dL) of MCHC and cell hemoglobin concentration mean. The hemolysis score was calculated by adding all the scores from the 4 parameters. At the cutoff hemolysis score of 3, the IVH of aliquots B and C were detected as 64.9% and 91.9%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The scoring system might provide effective screening for detecting spurious IVH.
Anticoagulants/*pharmacology ; *Blood Specimen Collection ; Edetic Acid/pharmacology ; Hemoglobins/analysis ; Hemolysis/drug effects ; Humans

Respiratory involvement in Crohn disease (CD) is rare condition with only about a dozen reported cases. We report the first case of CD with tracheal involvement in Korea. An 18-year-old woman with CD was hospitalized because of coughing, dyspnea, and fever sustained for 3 weeks. Because she had stridor in her neck, we performed computed tomography of the neck, which showed circumferential wall thickening of the larynx and hypopharynx. Bronchoscopy revealed mucosal irregularity, ulceration, and exudates debris in the proximal trachea, and bronchial biopsy revealed chronic inflammation with granulation tissue. Based on these findings, we suspected CD with tracheal involvement and began administering intravenous methylprednisolone at 1 mg/kg per day, after which her symptoms and bronchoscopic findings improved.
Adolescent ; Biopsy ; Bronchoscopy ; Cough ; Crohn Disease* ; Dyspnea ; Exudates and Transudates ; Female ; Fever ; Granulation Tissue ; Humans ; Hypopharynx ; Inflammation ; Inflammatory Bowel Diseases ; Korea* ; Larynx ; Methylprednisolone ; Neck ; Respiratory Sounds ; Trachea ; Ulcer

The publisher wishes to apologize for incorrectly displaying the author (Ju Hyung Lee) name.

Background/Aims: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a common arrhythmia and is associated with cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. It is important to identify and control the modifiable risk factors of AF. We aimed to examine the association of exercise capacity with the risk of incident AF within 3 years in healthy subjects. Methods: We evaluated asymptomatic adults who had undergone more than two consecutive health checkups. We included subjects who exhibited normal sinus rhythm on the first health examination and who developed AF on the second or subsequent health examinations. Subjects who underwent cardiopulmonary exercise testing within 3 years before the diagnosis of AF were examined. Results: The study population in the analyses included 428 cases (mean age 58.4 ± 7.6 yr, male 95.6%). There were significant differences in maximal systolic blood pressure (SBP; case 169.4 ± 24.2 vs. control 173.9 ± 22.3 mmHg), peak VO2 (29.5 ± 5.4 vs. 30.4 ± 4.8 mL/kg per minute), and maximal metabolic equivalents (METs; 8.5 ± 1.6 vs. 8.7 ± 1.4) between the two groups. In the multivariable logistic models, adjusted odds ratios were 0.99 for maximal SBP (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.98–0.99), 0.97 for peak VO2 (95% CI 0.95–0.99), and 0.91 for maximal METs (95% CI 0.83–0.98). Conclusions We demonstrated that poorer exercise capacity was associated with the development of AF in a healthy population. A prospective, systematic trial is necessary to confirm that appropriate exercise training will be beneficial in preventing the development of AF in such patients.

A total of 1,132 pleural fluid culture results obtained from October 2012 to July 2014 were analyzed to elucidate the microbiological characteristics according to transudative and exudative pleural fluid. The pleural fluid cultures were performed using aerobic and anaerobic blood culture bottles. The blood and pleural fluid for total protein, lactate dehydrogenase, and glucose measurement were submitted to laboratory at the same time with pleural fluid cultures. The rates for culture positivity, anaerobes isolation, and polymicrobials between transudative and exudative pleural fluid were 5.2% vs. 10.4%, 14.8% vs. 7.8%, and 14.8% vs. 10.9%.
Exudates and Transudates ; Glucose ; L-Lactate Dehydrogenase

This study was conducted to determine whether the size of an enterprise can make a difference to workers' health and to examine those factors, which influence workers' health. The subjects of this study included 26,324 workers employed in manufacturing industry who received medical examinations at the Industrial Health Center at Yonsei University in 1995, 1996 and 1997. Medical examination data were used as a measure of health. Each enterprise was classified by size into three categories: Small scale enterprises (SSE) that employ no more than 50 regular employees; middle scale enterprise (MSE) that employ from 50 to 300 regular employees; and large scale enterprise (LSE) that employ more than 300 regular employees. Health conditions, according to the size of the enterprise, were determined by comparing prevalence rates, and direct standardization methods were used based upon the Korean population, as a standard population, in order to adjust for differences in population structure. 1. The findings of the medical examinations showed that, the prevalence rate in SSEs was higher than in MSEs or LSEs, but that this relationship was reversed after standardizing for sex and age. 2. Logistic regression analysis showed that, although subjects of advanced age, prolonged work history, and male gender had higher risks of disease, the size of the enterprise had no significant effect upon these risks.
Adult ; Aged ; Female ; *Health Status ; Human ; Logistic Models ; Male ; Middle Age ; *Occupational Health Services ; *Physical Examination ; Prevalence