No abstract available.
Humans

BACKGROUND: Intermediate myasthenia syndrome(IMS) is thought to have clinical importance because it may cause sudden respiratory failure during the recovery phase of a cholinergic crisis of organophosphate poisoning. We designed this study to identify the prevalence, the inducing agent, clinical predictor, and the proposed treatment of IMS. METHODS: Patients who had admitted with the diagnosis of acute organophosphate poisoning from 1992 to 1998 at two teaching hospitals were enrolled in this study. We selected the cases of IMS based on a review of medical records using modified He's criteria. RESULTS: Twelve(12) out of 110 patients with acute organophosphate poisoning were diagnosed for a prevalence at 10.9%. The drug inducing IMS were identified as dichlorvos, fenthion, EPN, methidathion, and phosphamidon. The occurrence of IMS was not related to either the initial treatment with atropine and pralidoxime, or the level of serum cholinesterase. Complications were pneumonia, sepsis, pancreatitis, and pseudomembranous colitis, etc. Eleven(11) patients were discharged without sequelae, and one patient was discharged as a hopeless care. CONCLUSION: This study suggests that IMS is not rare, so close observation is required to detect IMS in organophosphate-poisoning patients. Also, more studies are required to find predictors and treatments.
Atropine ; Cholinesterases ; Diagnosis ; Dichlorvos ; Enterocolitis, Pseudomembranous ; Fenthion ; Hospitals, Teaching ; Humans ; Medical Records ; Organophosphate Poisoning ; Pancreatitis ; Phosphamidon ; Pneumonia ; Prevalence ; Respiratory Insufficiency ; Sepsis

Purpose: To investigate the clinical results of vitrectomy alone as the primary treatment for rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (RD) in patients with atopic dermatitis (AD). Methods: The medical records of patients with AD treated for rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (RD) were retrospectively reviewed. We investigated the characteristics of retinal breaks and detachments, applied surgical methods, and results. Results: Twenty eyes of 14 patients with AD who presented with rhegmatogenous RD and treated by vitrectomy were included in this analysis. Sixteen eyes (80%) were treated with vitrectomy, either alone or in combination with cataract surgery, and the retina was successfully attached to 94% of the eyes. There were four cases in which vitrectomy was combined with encircling. Reoperation was needed in half of the eyes that received vitrectomy with encircling, which presented nearly total detachment, severe proliferative vitreoretinopathy, and pseudophakia. Conclusions Vitrectomy alone, in combination with cataract surgery, may be sufficient to treat rhegmatogenous RD in patients with AD. Additional encircling or buckling should still be considered in complicated cases.

No abstract available.
Cholecystitis ; Emphysematous Cholecystitis* ; Pneumoperitoneum*

Vitiligo has been associated with various disorders including thyroid disease, type I diabetes, alopecia areatal and pernicious anemia. It has been purported to be caused by autoimmune response. Vitiligo and alopecia areata occurring in the same patient has often been found, but colocalization of these two diseases has been rarely reported. It is suggested that this concurrence can result from a nonspecific immune mechanism affecting not only the melanocyte but the epithelium of the hair follicle as well. Thus colocalization can occur due to costimulation of a helper T-cell-mediated immunologic response or through inactivation of a suppressor-mediated response and other composite mechanisms such as neurogenic factors, stress and infection. We report a 17-year-old Korean female who presented with a 1-year history of alopecia and depigmentation on the same site of the left eyebrow. We diagnosed this skin lesion as colocalization of vitiligo and alopecia areata by both clinical and histopathological findings.
Adolescent ; Alopecia Areata* ; Alopecia* ; Anemia, Pernicious ; Autoimmunity ; Epithelium ; Eyebrows ; Female ; Hair Follicle ; Humans ; Melanocytes ; Skin ; Thyroid Diseases ; Vitiligo*

No abstract available.
Cyclosporine* ; Fluorescence Polarization Immunoassay* ; Fluorescence Polarization* ; Fluorescence*

A clinical study was performed of the respiratory care of 1309 critically ill patients who had been admitted to respiratory intensive care units (RICU) in 1986 and 1987. 1) The number of patients who needed respiratory care was 691 and the mortality in RICU was 1.45% (10 case) in 1986, and 618 and 2.59% (16 cases) in 1987, respectively. 2) The average duration of ventilatory support was 2.1 days in 1986, and 1.9 days in 1987. The patients of thoracic surgery needed respiratory support for 2.6 days in 1986, and 2.3 days in 1987. 3) The mortalities according to department were:1.42% (6 of 424 cases) in thoracic surgery, 1.89% (2 of 107 cases) in general surgery, 20% (1 of 5 cases) in pediatry surgery, and 7.14% (1 of 14 cases) in gynecology in 1986. In 1987, 2.56% (8 of 312 cases) in thoracic surgery, 4.0% (6 of 150 cases) in neurosurgery, 0.96% (1 of 104 cases) in general surgery, and 7.69% (1 of 13 cases) in urology. 4) The most frequently used ventilator was Bear II, followed by Benett MA-I. 5) The major causes of death in RICU were low cardiac output syndrome, sepsis, respiratory failure, and brain damage.
Brain ; Cardiac Output, Low ; Cause of Death ; Critical Illness* ; Gynecology ; Humans ; Intensive Care Units ; Critical Care* ; Mortality ; Neurosurgery ; Respiratory Insufficiency ; Sepsis ; Thoracic Surgery ; Urology ; Ventilators, Mechanical

OBJECTIVES: This study was conducted to be identify the effects oral hygiene improvement of the elderly by caregiver in a rural. METHODS: It recruited Fifty three elderly patients were recruited who admitted at a long-term hospital located in Mokchon city, Chungchungnam-do province. as the intervention group. Fifty two elderly patients group were selected another one long-term care hospital in Daegu city as control group. study was conducted for seven months. long-term care hospital. for seven months from Dec. 2007 to June 2008. For three months, the caregivers provide tooth brushing and cleaning artificial teeth once a day, to intervention group. once a day for three months. RESULTS: Before the program there was no significant difference between the control and the intervention groups in general characteristics, prevalence rates of diseases, oral sanitary condition. Dental plague score was decreased significantly (p<0.001) before and after intervention in the intervention group. Using analysis of covariance for evaluation of the effect of the intervention, a significant difference was observed between the intervention group and the control group (p<0.01). CONCLUSIONS: These results were thought to be used as important basic data to develop oral health management program for elderly patients who needed long-term care.
Aged ; Caregivers ; Humans ; Long-Term Care ; Oral Health ; Oral Hygiene ; Plague ; Prevalence ; Tooth ; Tooth, Artificial

PURPOSE: We tried to find the relationships between the fetal beta-cell function and neonatal birth weight, anthropometric measures, and maternal characteristics, and to observe role of insulin as fetal growth factor in offsprings of mothers who have normal glucose metabolism. METHODS: We measured umbilical cord blood insulin and C-peptide concentrations in 236 neonates delivered at Cheil General Hospital from Jan. 1 to Jan. 31 1994. Their mothers had normal glucose metabolism during pregnancy. The birth weight and other anthropometric measures were performed within 24 hours after birth by same pediatrician. RESULTS: 1) The mean gestational age was 39.5+/--0.1 wk and mean birth weight was 3.3+/--0.2 Kg. According to birth weight percentile, the numbers of small for gestational age(SGA), adequete for gesational(AGA), and large for gestational age(LGA) infans were 3(1.3%), 178(75.4%), and 55(23.3%), respectively. There were no differences in gestational age, birth weight, length, head circumference, chest circumference, Ponderal index, and symmerty index between male and female infants. 2) The maternal weight gain during pregnancy was related to neonatal birth weight, length, and head circumference, but not to Ponderal index and symmetry index. 3) The mean cord blood insulin and C-peptide concentrations were 5.1+/--0.1uU/ml and 1.3+/--0.1 ng/ml. There was a significant positive correlation between insulin and C-peptide concentrations. 4) There were no significant differences in cord blood insulin and C-peptide concentrations among the SGA, AGA, and LGA group. 5) The cord blood insulin and C-peptide concentrations had weak positive correlations with neonatal birth weight, obesity, and gestational age, but nor with maternal weight gain during pregnancy. CONCLUSIONS: Although insulin has a significant role in fetal growth in diabetic pregnancy or intrauterine growth retardation(IUGR), our results suggest that it does not have a significant effect on fetal growth in offsprings of mothers who have normal glucose metabolism.
Birth Weight ; C-Peptide ; Female ; Fetal Blood* ; Fetal Development ; Gestational Age ; Glucose* ; Head ; Hospitals, General ; Humans ; Infant ; Infant, Newborn ; Insulin ; Male ; Metabolism* ; Mothers* ; Obesity ; Parturition ; Pregnancy ; Thorax ; Umbilical Cord* ; Weight Gain

No abstract available.
Galectin 3* ; Skin*