No abstract available.
Dermatomyositis*

BACKGROUND: The severity of several chronic inflammatory diseases was reported to be associated with polymorphism of the IL-1 receptor antagonist gene(IL-lrn). OBJECTIVE: This study was performed to study the polymorphism of the IL-1rn in vitiligo and in the normal Korean population. METHODS: Thirty one cases of vitiligo and seventy nine normal Koreans as control were studied for the polymorphism of IL-1 rn. RESULTS: The frequency of allele 2 of the IL- I rn in 31 patients with vitiligo was compared with that of the 79 healthy controls. The frequency of allele 2 was 1.6% in vitiligo patients and 3.8% in the normal controls. CONCLUSION: There was no significant difference in the frequency of allele 2 between the vitiligo patients and normal controls.
Alleles ; Humans ; Interleukin-1* ; Vitiligo*

PURPOSE: There still exists controversy as to the most appropriate treatment modality for lower ureteral stone; ureteroscopic removal of stone (URS) versus shockwave lithotripsy (SWL). So we compared clinical results of both procedures to help determine which is more appropriate as initial management for lower ureteral stones. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed 587 patients who had been treated for their lower ureteral stones at our institute. 184 patients were treated under the direct vision of ureteroscope using stone basket or Lithoclast and 403 patients were treated by SWL. We analyzed success rates and complication rates of each procedure. RESULTS: Overall stone free rates were 95.7% with URS and 84.6% with SWL. In SWL group, stone free rate after third session was 88.3% when the stone was smaller than 10mm and 74.0% when the stone was larger than 10mm. But in URS group, the size of stones did not affect to stone free rate. And impaction of stone affected stone free rate. Stone free rates of impacted ureteral stones were 95.2% with URS and 63.8% with SWL. The complications of URS were found in 8.7% but all of them were successfully treated with ureteral stenting for 3 weeks or conservative treatment. While complications in SWL group were minimal. CONCLUSIONS: In our study, URS and SWL were successful and safe treatment modality for lower ureteral stones. And we consider URS as the first line treatment modality when the stone is larger than 10mm or impacted.
Humans ; Lithotripsy* ; Retrospective Studies ; Stents ; Ureter* ; Ureteroscopes ; Ureteroscopy

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the effects of recognition on the restructuring of the psychosocial well-being of the workers. METHODS: 302 employees were recruited by a stratified random sampling method, from a company located in Seoul, which undergoing an administrative evaluation, in 2001. Subjects were asked to fill out questionnaire sheet on their recognition of the restructuring, and were questions on their psychosocial well-being. A one-way ANOVA and a multiple regression analysis were used to analyze the data. RESULTS: For the psychological well-being, the levels of social performance and self-confidence were significantly different relation to age, educational attainment, marital status, insecurity recogni-tion, and competency recognition. According to the result of the multiple regression analysis, the insecurity recognition was found to significantly affect the social performance and self-confidence, depression, sleep disturbance and anx-iety, general well-being and vitality, whereas the competency recognition affected the social perfor-mance and self-confidence, sleep disturbance and anxiety, and overall psychosocial well-being. CONCLUSION: The insecurity and competency recognitions against the restructuring were found to be the major factors affecting the workers psychosocial well-being. It is suggested that a decreased worker's insecurity recognition of the restructuring, and the competency recognition for the workers psychosocial health needs require promoting.
Anxiety ; Depression ; Marital Status ; Questionnaires ; Seoul

No abstract available.

Acinic cell carcinoma is a rare salivary gland carcinoma, usually being found in the parotid gland and is uncommon in the other major and minor salivary glands. The tumor cells consist of either serous or mucous acinar cells with few ductal or myoepithelial cell elements. The tumor is a low-grade malignancy with slow growth potential. Surgical therapy depends on tumor size and the extent of infiltration into neighboring tissues. Superficial parotidectomy or total parotidectomy is the initial method of therapy in case of acinic cell carcinoma on parotid gland. When regional neck lymph nodes are involved, the operation is combined with a neck dissection, or with radiation therapy. In the short follow up period, acinic cell carcinoma has good prognosis with 5 year survival rate after surgery is over 80%. In the long-term follow-up, however, there is a tendency to increase in recurrence or metastasis. We experienced a case of acinic cell carcinoma of the parotid gland in a 57-year-old female, so we report it with literatures review.
Acinar Cells* ; Carcinoma, Acinar Cell* ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Lymph Nodes ; Middle Aged ; Neck ; Neck Dissection ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Parotid Gland* ; Prognosis ; Recurrence ; Salivary Glands ; Salivary Glands, Minor ; Survival Rate

Primary intraosseous carcinoma(PIOC) is defined as a squamous cell carcinoma arising within the jaw, having no initial connection with the oral mucosa. The squamous cell carcinoma within the bone can be presumably developed from residues of the odontogenic epithelium, therefore, it is seen in the jaw only. Metastatic carcinoma from another primary site should be excluded in the diagnosis of Primary Intraosseous Carcinoma. This is a case of 62-year-old man, who initially diagnosed as odontogenic cyst on maxilla, but its pathologic examination was diagnosed as squamous cell carcinoma with odontogenic cyst. We treated this patient with partial maxillectomy, modified radical neck dissection(mRND), and postoperative radiation therapy.
Carcinoma, Squamous Cell* ; Diagnosis ; Epithelium ; Humans ; Jaw ; Maxilla* ; Middle Aged ; Mouth Mucosa ; Neck ; Odontogenic Cysts*

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Combined esophageal variceal ligation and sclerotherapy has been hypothesized to be more effective for the control of bleeding esophageal varices than ligation alone. The present study was to compare the combined therapy with ligation alone in terms of variceal eradication, rebleeding, complication and survival rates in patients with bleeding esophageal varices. METHODS: Thirty-eight patients with bleeding esophageal varices were randomly assigned to receive ligation alone in 20 patients or the combined therapy in 18 patients. The clinical and endoscopic characteristics of patients in the ligation group were similar to those of patients in the combination group. In the combination group, 1-3 mL of ethanolamine was injected proximal to each ligated site. Treatments were repeated every 2- to 3-month until varices were eradicated. RESULTS: No significant differences were found between the ligation and combination groups in variceal eradication rates (70% vs. 72%), numbers of endoscopic sessions required to achieve eradication (3.5+/-0.33 vs. 3.3+/-0.31), rebleeding rates (30% vs. 28%) or 2-yr cumulative survival rates (95% vs. 75%). There were significantly more complications in the combination group (25% vs. 89%, p=0.001). CONCLUSION: Ligation alone is recommended rather than the combined ligation and sclerotherapy because of its lower complication rates.
Esophageal and Gastric Varices* ; Ethanolamine ; Hemorrhage* ; Humans ; Ligation* ; Sclerotherapy* ; Survival Rate ; Varicose Veins

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Combined esophageal variceal ligation and sclerotherapy has been hypothesized to be more effective for the control of bleeding esophageal varices than ligation alone. The present study was to compare the combined therapy with ligation alone in terms of variceal eradication, rebleeding, complication and survival rates in patients with bleeding esophageal varices. METHODS: Thirty-eight patients with bleeding esophageal varices were randomly assigned to receive ligation alone in 20 patients or the combined therapy in 18 patients. The clinical and endoscopic characteristics of patients in the ligation group were similar to those of patients in the combination group. In the combination group, 1-3 mL of ethanolamine was injected proximal to each ligated site. Treatments were repeated every 2- to 3-month until varices were eradicated. RESULTS: No significant differences were found between the ligation and combination groups in variceal eradication rates (70% vs. 72%), numbers of endoscopic sessions required to achieve eradication (3.5+/-0.33 vs. 3.3+/-0.31), rebleeding rates (30% vs. 28%) or 2-yr cumulative survival rates (95% vs. 75%). There were significantly more complications in the combination group (25% vs. 89%, p=0.001). CONCLUSION: Ligation alone is recommended rather than the combined ligation and sclerotherapy because of its lower complication rates.
Esophageal and Gastric Varices* ; Ethanolamine ; Hemorrhage* ; Humans ; Ligation* ; Sclerotherapy* ; Survival Rate ; Varicose Veins

The segmental spread of epidural analgesia was measured in seventeen surgical patients aged between 17 and 52 years, and in fourteen patients between 60 and 77 years. The upper level in the young was 6.29(+/-1.56) thoracic vertebra level, but in the elderly was 4 (+/-0.65_ thoracic vertebra level at 20 minutes after epidural injection of 1.5% lidocaine 20 ml. A given volume of solution spreads to 0.9, 1.07, 1.54, 2.29 segments greater upper extent at 5, 10, 15, 20 minutes after epidural injection and 0.57, 1.07 segments greater lower extent at 5, 10 minutes in the elder than young. So with increasing age relatively small amounts of solution are required, to produce the same extent of anesthesia in the young.
Aged* ; Analgesia, Epidural* ; Anesthesia ; Humans ; Injections, Epidural ; Lidocaine ; Spine