No abstract available.

Cancer is the most common cause of death in Korea. Therefore, the care of terminally ill cancer patients represents a major issue of Korean welfare. Because of lack of hospice and palliative care education and government support, most terminally ill cancer patients are not given proper care with due human dignity. The hospice and palliative care education include a change of physicians attitudes toward patients and their family members control of symptoms, such as pain, for a high quality of life, total care with a team approach, and home care. When the physicians' attitudes become changed, the patient and his or her family would feel that they still retain human dignity and experience the best quality of life with the help of team approach. For the symptom control in terminally ill cancer patients, control of pain is most important and is possible in 97% of patients with opioids. Also, the medical costs are highest in terminal stage of cancer and hospice may be a solution to reduce the cost. The hospice insurance for the terminally ill cancer patients is covered by government in many oriental countries, such as Japan, Hongkong, Singapore, and Taiwan, because it can reduce medical costs and improve the welfare of patients. The joint committee of Korean Society of Hospice·Palliative care, Korean Hospice Care, and Catholic Hospice Care have been asking for the national hospice insurance to the Korean government since 1988, to no effect. In conclusion, the hospice and palliative care should be supported by government as well as medical field.
Analgesics, Opioid ; Cause of Death ; Education ; Home Care Services ; Hong Kong ; Hospice Care ; Hospices ; Humans ; Insurance ; Japan ; Joints ; Korea ; Palliative Care ; Personhood ; Quality of Life ; Singapore ; Taiwan ; Terminally Ill

BACKGROUND: Squamous cell carcinoma(SCC) is one of the most conimon forms of skin cancer that arises from the surface epidermis. Although many authors have reported on the incidence and clinical features of SCC, we could not find any reports concerning the widerange of histopathologic features of a number of cases of SCC in Korean dermatologic literature. OBJECTIVE: We examined the histopathologic features of SCC. METHOD: Twenty six biopsy specimens from 26 patients with SCC were examined microscopically including the tumors themselves and surrounding epidermis and dermis on routine histologic staining. RESULTS: Grade 1 tumor was found in 15 cases, grade 2 in 8 casese, and grade 3 in 3 cases. Eighteen cases showed keratin pearls, and 11 cases showed squamous eddies. P cantholysis of tumor cells was found in all 26 cases, but glandular structure was found only in 5 cases. The epidermis overlying the tumor showed hyperkeratosis and parakeratosis in all 26 cases, follicular plug in 13 cases, and ulceration in 18 cases. The dermis beneath the tumor showed vessel dilataticn, hemorrhage, and infiltration of inflammatory cells in all 26 cases, and basophilic degeneration in 1.3 cases, fibrosis in 20 cases, lichenoid reaction in 6 cases, and necrosis in 6 cases. Rare dermal findings were abscess, foreign body reaction calcification and Russell body. CONCLUSION: The histopathologic findings of SCC were variable not inly those of the tumors themselves, but also those of the surrounding epidermis and dermis.
Abscess ; Basophils ; Biopsy ; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell* ; Dermis ; Epidermis ; Fibrosis ; Foreign-Body Reaction ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Incidence ; Necrosis ; Parakeratosis ; Skin Neoplasms ; Ulcer

Poor R-Wave Progression(PRWP) of precordial leads is frequently encountered electrocardiographic findings of uncertain significance and has simply been deemed as suggestion of anterior myocardial infarction without concrete ground. 217 cases with poor R-Wave Progression have been analyzed on clinical records and results are as follows. 1) PRWP was most frequently found in fifties and sixities, comprising 63.9% of the subjects. 2) Co-existent disease entities with PRWP were classified into three categories, cardiovascular diseases, chronic lung diseases and normal variants. 3) The cardiovascular diseases related with PRWP were mainly hypertensive diseases, comprising 59.8% of cardiovascular diseases, followed by ischemic heart disease, valvular heart disease and cardiomyopathies. 4) PRWP may be an early sign of acute myocardial infarction in a certain part of cases, which was endorsed by typical clinical symptoms and enzyme studies. 5) As the criterion of PRWP, V3R equal to or less than 3 mm was thought more adequate for higher specificity rather than 4 mm.
Cardiomyopathies ; Cardiovascular Diseases ; Electrocardiography ; Heart Valve Diseases ; Lung Diseases ; Myocardial Infarction ; Myocardial Ischemia ; Sensitivity and Specificity

The present study was undertaken to evaluate the anthelmintic effects of fenbendazole against intestinal nematode; Ascaris lumbricoides, hookworm and Trichuris trichiura, and to compare the efficacy in fenbendazole, oxantel-pyrantel pamoate and placebo by means of double blind method. Out of 114 subjects harbouring Ascaris lumbricoides, hookworm and Trichuris trichiura, 36 cases were treated with single dose of fenbendazole, 38 cases with oxantel-pyrantel pamoate, and the remaining 40 cases had received the placebo. The results were as follows: In the group treated with fenbendazole (30-50 mg/kg), the cure rates were 83.9 percent in 31 subjects with Ascaris lumbricoides and 83.3 percent in 18 subjects with hookworm, and only 28.6 percent in 28 subjects with T. trichiura respectively. In the group treated with a single dose of oxantel-pyrantel pamoate (10 mg/mg), the cure rates were 96.7 percent in 30 subjects with A. lumbricoides, 95.2 percent in 21 subjects with hookworm, and 54.6 percent in 33 subjects with T. trichiura. Egg reduction rate was 85.7 percent in T. trichiura cases. On the other hand, the egg negative conversion rates in placebo group were 9.7, 8.3 and 33.3 percent in Ascaris, Trichuris and hookworm infections respectively. The above results showed that fenbendazole was highly effective against Ascaris and hookworm. However, incomparisom with oxantel-pyrantel pamoate, fenbendazole was less effective in regards of A. lumbricoides, hookworm and T. trichiura infections.
parasitology-helminth-nematoda ; chemotherapy ; Ascaris lumbricoides ; hookworm ; Trichuris trichiura ; fenbendazole ; oxantel-pyrantel pamoate

No abstract available.
Prevotella*

This study was conducted to investigate the effects of Tissue Culture Medium 199 (TCM) and Dulecco's Modified Eagle Medium (DMEM) on the blastulation and grade of human oocytes on Vero cells in vitro. A cohort of 79 and 93 oocytes in metaphase II stage were used in TCM 199 and DMEM respectively. No differences were found in the nurser of oocytes showing two-pronuclei between TCM (82.3%) and DMEM (86.0%). The number of fertilized oocytes reaching the blastocyst was not significant in TCM (60.0%) and DMEM (63.1%).4 total of 89 blastocysts were categorized into the four grades (BG1, BG2, BG3 and early) depending on their morphology. The number of embryos achieving the blastocyst grade 1 (BG1) was significantly higher (p<0.05) in DMEM (50.8%) than TCM (15.0%). It is concluded that cultured oocytes in DMEM with glutamine on Vero cells should be significantly increased BG1.
Blastocyst ; Cohort Studies ; Eagles ; Embryonic Structures* ; Glutamine* ; Humans* ; Metaphase ; Oocytes ; Vero Cells*

Although ceftriaxone can be used safely in most instances, it can sometimes induce biliary sludge or stone formation. Most of the patients remain asymptomatic and children are more susceptible to develop this condition, but adults can be affected as well. Because sludge or stones disappear after discontinuing ceftriaxone, this condition is referred to as ceftriaxone-associated pseudolithiasis. A 54-year-old woman was admitted to a local clinic for management of ileus. During admission, she had received ceftriaxone and metronidazole, and had been on nil per os for the past 6 days. She was then referred to our hospital for cholecystectomy due to persistent right upper quadrant pain. Although imaging studies showed gallbladder sludge, pseudolithiasis was suspected because of ceftriaxone administration history and prolonged fasting. After careful watch-and-wait, the condition resolved spontaneously after ceftriaxone discontinuation. Our clear understanding on ceftriaxone-associated gallbladder pseudolithiasis allowed us to avoid an unnecessary cholecystectomy. Herein, we report the case of a 54-year-old woman with ceftriaxone-associated gallbladder pseudolithiasis that was successfully managed by ceftriaxone discontinuation alone.
Adult ; Aged ; Anti-Bacterial Agents/*adverse effects ; Ceftriaxone/*adverse effects ; Cholecystectomy ; Cholecystolithiasis/*diagnosis/epidemiology/etiology ; Female ; Gallbladder/ultrasonography ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Retrospective Studies ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed

The branches of the axillary artery have been studied in 38 Korean female cadavers. 1. The superior thoracic artery arose from the first part and the second part of the axillary artery in 84% of sides. 2. The thoracoacromial artery arose from the axillary artery near the superomedial border of the axillaly artery more often (91%) than from any other source. 3. The lateral thoracic artery was found on 64% of the sides as a main axillary artery, usually arising from the second part of the axillary artery(61%). It arose from the subscapular artery in 28%. 4. The subscapular artery was seen as the lagrgest of the axillary artery. It arose from the second part (42%) and the third (58%) of the axillary artery. 5. The posterior circumflex humeral artery was a direct branch of the third part of axillary artery in 37% of sides. In 21% fo sides the posterior circumflex humeral artery arose by a common stem from the third part of the axillary artery. In 33% of sides the posterior circumflex humeral artery arose from the subscapular artery. 6. The anterior circumflex humeral artery was found more constantly at the third part of the axillary artery than the posterior circumflex humeral artery was. It arose from a direct branch of the third part of the axillary artery in 70% of sides.
Arteries ; Axillary Artery* ; Cadaver ; Female* ; Humans ; Thoracic Arteries

No abstract available.
Neurofibromatoses* ; Neurofibromatosis 1*