Adhesion formed between tendon and its sheath after repair often impairs functional recovery. There have been many attempts to reduce adhesion around a repaired tendon, but most results have been unsatisfactory or impractical in clinical application. Moreover, most attempts were focused on extrinsic tendon healing. whereas studies on the intrinsic tendon healing are sacrce in the literature. We have previously reported that fibrotic tendon adhesion after repair was decreased by decorin, a natural inhibitor of TGF-beta. Accordingly, the serial tensile strength was measured after complete tensection and repair of the tendon severance in order to confirm the effect of decorin inhibition of intrinsic healing capability. Forty White Leghorn chickens were subject to complete transection and repair of the third toe flexor digitorum profundus tendon in Zone II. In the experimental group, 0.5ml of diluted decorin(50microgram/ml) was injected around the repaired site, and the same volume of saline solution in the control group. Tendons were harvested at 1, 3, 5 and 7 weeks. The disrupting force of the repair site was analyzed using tensiometry(LLOYD LR 30K, U.K). The tensile strength of repaired tendon was similar in both groups for all postoperative periods. This indicates that intrinsic healing proceeds normally within the decorin group in spite of the blockade of TGF-betaactivity. Decorin, a natural inhibitor of TGF-beta, showed a significant inhibitory effect on reducing post-repair tendon adhesions, without disruption of intrinsic healing in the chicken flexor tendon injury model. Therefore, decorin is expected to be a useful agent for preventnion on tendon adhesion after the repair in clinical usage.
Chickens ; Decorin* ; Postoperative Period ; Sodium Chloride ; Tendon Injuries ; Tendons* ; Tensile Strength* ; Toes ; Transforming Growth Factor beta

No abstract available.
Facial Asymmetry

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: The clinical manifestation of Henoch-Schonlein purpura and existance of renal involvement may influence on its course and prognosis. To verify prevention with early administration of steroid, we studied the efficacy of corticosteroid treatment. MATERIAL AND METHOD: We analysed 65 children under 15 years of age with Henoch-Scho nlein purpura according to their age, sex, and seasonal incidence. Forty children showed typical skin lesions, arthralgia and abdominal pain. We have divided them two groups. Group A consisted of 20 children who received 1 mg/kg of prednisolone/perday for 2 weeks and group B did not. We carried out their physical examination and urinalysis monthly for a year. RESULT: The main clinical manifestations were skin rash(100% ), abdominal symptoms(41.5 %), joint symptoms (49.2%), and renal involvement(34%). As for gastrointestinal symptoms, abdominal pain(66.7% ) was most commonly observed one and others were nausea or vomiting (44.7%) and melena(25.9%). The joint involvement was observed mostly in knee(56.3%) and ankle joint(31.3% ), Hematuria was observed in all cases with renal involvement and proteinuria, in 28% of them. The improvement of renal manifestations were noted in 84.2% of them within 4 months. Mild elevation of IgA was more frequently observed in renal involvement group than non-involved group (p< 0.01). There were no significant differences in immonologic parameters such as IgG, IgM, IgE, duration of the acute phase and severity of cutaneous symptoms between two growps. None of steroid treated growp showed progression of nephropathy. Of the 20 non-steroid treated growp, 2(10%) developed nephropathy. Conclusion We may suggest that existance of renal involvement in Henoch-Schonlein purpura influences its course and prognosis.
Abdominal Pain ; Ankle ; Arthralgia ; Child ; Hematuria ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin A ; Immunoglobulin E ; Immunoglobulin G ; Immunoglobulin M ; Incidence ; Joints ; Nausea ; Physical Examination ; Prognosis ; Proteinuria ; Purpura* ; Purpura, Schoenlein-Henoch ; Seasons ; Skin ; Urinalysis ; Vomiting

BACKGROUND: The incidence of Cutaneous malignant tumors has increased recently and they have varied in their developing patterns according to social and environmental influences. However, we have little clinical data about the cutaneous malignant tumors in the Chonnam provinee. OBJECTIVE: Our purpose was to analyze the clinical characteristics of cutaneous malignant tumors observed in the Chonnam province and to compare them with the data previously reported in Korea. METHOD: We clinically analyzed 427 cases of cutaneous malignant tumors during a 10 year period betwecn January 1987 and Oetober 1996, at the Department of Dermatology, Chonnam Univemity Hospital in Kwangju. RESULTS: 1. The average armual incidence of cutaneous malignant tumors among the total number of outpatients was 1.00+/- 0.25%. The incidence tended to increase with time from 0.90+/-0.29% in the first 5 year-period to 1.15+/-0.09% in the late 5 year-period. The increasing rate was most pronmient in basal cell carcinoma. 2. The most common tumor in the 427 patients with malignant tumor was basal cell carcinoma (52.5%), followed by squamous cell carcinoma (19.9%), malignant melanoma (13.3%), metastatic carcinoma (3.7%), malignant lymphoma (2.3%). 3. The mean age of onset was 60.7+/-16.0 years old (male; 59.6+/-15.0, female; 61.9+/-17.1) in the in the group as a whole; 63.9 in BCC, 63.3 in SCC and 55.8 in malignant melanoma. The ratio of men to women was 1.14:l. 4. The most common site of a11 malignant tumors was the head and neck (64.6%), where 89.3% of BCC, 58.8% of SCC, and 15.8% of malignant melanoma developed. The next common site was the lower exlremities and feet (15.7%) followed by the trunk (7,7%), and upper extremities and hands (7.3%).
Age of Onset ; Carcinoma, Basal Cell ; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell ; Dermatology ; Female ; Foot ; Gwangju ; Hand ; Head ; Humans ; Incidence ; Jeollanam-do* ; Korea ; Lymphoma ; Male ; Melanoma ; Neck ; Outpatients ; Upper Extremity

A rostro-caudal topography of the oculomotor nerve fascicles is relatively well known in animal but not in human. We experienced two cases of midbrain infarctions presenting with isolated oculomotor nerve palsies. The MRI of the patient who had monocular elevation palsy with ptosis revealed a lesion in the middle to lower midbrain, whereas that of the other who had monocular depression and adduction palsy with pupillary mydriasis showed a discrete lesion in the upper to middle midbrain. We present the rostro-caudal arrangement of the oculomotor fascicles within midbrain based on MRI findings.
Animals ; Depression ; Humans ; Infarction* ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Mesencephalon* ; Mydriasis ; Oculomotor Nerve ; Oculomotor Nerve Diseases ; Paralysis

A total of 33 patients with infective endocarditis were observed in the Guro and Hye Hwa Hospitals of Korea University Between September, 1981 and Feb, 1987. Among thses patients four patients presented with heart murmur and heart failure and had vegetation like findings observed on the two dimensional echocardiography. But these patients did not have any fever or leukocytosis in the peripheral blood and the repeated blood cultures were negative. They showed the immunologic phenomena of infective endocarditis such as microscopic hematuria in 4 patients, rheumatoid factor in 3 patients, false positive VDRL in one patient. The serum complement was decreased in 2 patients in whom it was checked. We report these 4 patients because we think these patients might be in the clinical stage in which the infecting organism is spontaneously cleared but the immunologic sequelae are remained.
Complement System Proteins ; Echocardiography ; Endocarditis* ; Fever ; Heart Failure ; Heart Murmurs ; Hematuria ; Humans ; Korea ; Leukocytosis ; Rheumatoid Factor

A polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method for detection of the pathogenic Yersinia pestis from other Yersinia spp. was developed. Five Y. pestis strains, ninety-two other Yersinia species and twenty-four Enterobacteriaceae strains were collected in Korea and from other countries. Oligonucleotide primers were designed from pathogenic gene of antiphagocytic protein capsule gene (fra 1) and plasminogen activator gene (pla). The 428 bp DNA fragment was amplified from five Y. pestis which contained the fra I gene. No product was amplified from other Yersinia species and other strains of the Enterobacteriaceae. The 439 bp DNA fragment was amplified from three K pestis which contained the pla gene. No product was amplified from two Y. pestis, other Yersinia species and other strains of the Enterobacteriaceae. These showed that the designed primers were specific for detection of Y. pestis among other Yersinia species and Enterobacteriaceae strains. Amplification was successful whether the template was derived from purified DNA or from aliquots of boiled bacterial suspension. The detection limits were 100 pg of DNA and 100 colony forming units (CFU) for fra I and 100 pg DNA and 10 CFU for pla, respectively. Our results prove that the PCR method using specific primers for Y. pestis is a rapid and convenient procedure for routine clinical detection and identification of Y. pestis.
DNA ; DNA Primers ; Enterobacteriaceae ; Korea ; Limit of Detection ; Plasminogen Activators ; Polymerase Chain Reaction* ; Stem Cells ; Yersinia pestis* ; Yersinia*

POEMS syndrome is an unusual plasma cell dyscrasia with multisystemie manifestations featuring polyneuropathy, organomegaly, endocrinopsthy, M protein and skin changes. We have seen a 49-year-old woman presenting with hyperpigmentation, hypertrichosis, hyperhidrosis, and taut thickened skin of the extremities as a skin manifestation of this syndrome. We review the literature and report a case.
Extremities ; Female ; Humans ; Hyperhidrosis ; Hyperpigmentation ; Hypertrichosis ; Middle Aged ; Paraproteinemias ; POEMS Syndrome* ; Polyneuropathies ; Skin ; Skin Manifestations

Phakomatosis pigmentova.scularis is a disease complex with dermal melanocyto sis such as nevus of Ota, nevus of Ito, or Mongolian spots and extensive hemangiomatous change such as nevus flammeus, which are associated with systemic organ involvement. We report a 23-year-old female, who showed bilateral nevus of Ota and nevus of Ito with widespread nevus flammeus and Mongolian spots since birth. She was also associated with megalocornea due to congenitol glaucoma and cataract.
Cataract ; Female ; Glaucoma ; Humans ; Mongolian Spot ; Neurocutaneous Syndromes* ; Nevus ; Nevus of Ota ; Parturition ; Port-Wine Stain ; Young Adult

The distribution of pemphigus subclass autoantibodies in a patient with pemphigus vulgaris (PV) has been investigated by semiquantitative indirect immunofluorescence (IIF), using the HP series monoclonal antibodies specific for four human IgG subclasses on human foreskins. IgG1 and IgG4 intercellular substance-specific autoantibodies were detected in the serum of the patient, whereas IgG2 and IgG3 autoantibodies were absent. In addition to foreskins, human tonsillar epithelia were used as substrates of IIF for detecting the PV autoantibodies and it was one of satisfactory substitutes for monkey esophagus.
Antibodies, Monoclonal ; Autoantibodies* ; Esophagus ; Fluorescent Antibody Technique, Indirect ; Foreskin ; Haplorhini ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin G* ; Pemphigus*