A case or right occipital lobe infarction initially detected by the visual field examination and confirmed with the computerized tomography is presented. Reduction of significance of visual field test for identification of intracranial lesion as, the initial diagnostic procedure after the orientation of computerized tomography is unlikely. An occipital lobe lesion developed following posterior cerebral artery thrombosis has introd uced silgnificant ophthalmic symptom, namey, visual field defect, diplopia, ipsilateral ocular pain, visual hallucination, photophobia, and Anton's syndrom, etc. A characteristic feature of left homonymous hemianopsia with macular sparing due to right posterior cerebral artery thromb osis is demonstrated.
Diplopia ; Hallucinations ; Hemianopsia ; Infarction* ; Occipital Lobe* ; Photophobia ; Posterior Cerebral Artery ; Thrombosis ; Visual Field Tests ; Visual Fields

PURPOSE: We used computed tomography (CT) scans to describe normal Korean lacrimal gland volume and lacrimal gland size and then examined their correlations with patient age. METHODS: CT scans were obtained in 213 orbits of 111 patients who underwent CT from January to August of 2013. Aquarius iNtuition (TeraRecon, Foster City, CA, USA) software was used to outline the lacrimal gland in consecutive axial slices and to calculate the volume. RESULTS: The mean volume of the lacrimal gland was 0.589 cm3 in right orbits (SD = 0.090), 0.583 cm3 in left orbits (SD = 0.289), 0.596 cm3 in males (SD = 0.083), and 0.575 cm3 in females (SD = 0.094). There was no significant difference in mean lacrimal gland volume according to laterality (p = 0.614) or sex (p = 0.102) (2-sample t-tests). We investigated mean lacrimal gland volume in 3 age groups. Mean lacrimal gland volume was 0.630 cm3 (SD = 0.080) for the 20 to 40 year old group, 0.553 cm3 (SD = 0.734) for the 41 to 60 year old group, and 0.544 cm3 (SD = 0.885) for the older than 60 years old group. There was an inverse relationship between gland volume and age (Pearson r = -0.384, p = 0.00). CONCLUSIONS: The mean volume of the lacrimal gland decreased with age and there was no significant difference between right and left orbits or between male and female patients.
Aging ; Female ; Humans ; Intuition ; Lacrimal Apparatus* ; Male ; Orbit* ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed

BACKGROUND: Direct wet mount examination of vaginal secretion, widely applied for the diagnosis of Trichomonas vaginalis infection in woman patients, is rapid and economical. However, the sensitivity of this technique is not so high. In this study enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA) was employed for the detection of serum anti-T. vaginalis IgG antibodies from vaginal trichomoniasis patients. METHODS: Eighty sera from trichomonoasis patients who visited a Dr. Yoon Kyong's Obstetric & Gynecologic Clinic in Songnam and 30 non-infected healthy men were tested for detection of anti-T. vaginalis IgG antibody. Soluble lysate and excretory-secretory antigen prepared by mixing of six isolates of T. vaginalis, and lysate from one isolate(KT4) were used as antigen for ELISA. RESULTS: The sensitivity of ELISA using lysate of six isolates was 95.0%, and the sensitivity of the lysate from KT4 and mixed excretory-secretory antigen from 6 isolates were 86.4% and 76.3%, respectively. Specificities of ELISA by three 93.3%, 96.3% and 92.0%, respectively. CONCLUSION: It is suggested that ELISA using mixed lysate of T. vaginalis six isolates could be useful tools for the diagnosis of trichomoniasis.
Antibodies ; Diagnosis ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Female ; Gyeonggi-do ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin G* ; Male ; Trichomonas vaginalis ; Trichomonas*

Synovial sarcoma is a distinct and generally recognized soft tissue tumor that it’s origin still raises controversy. The synovial origin of synovial sarcoma has not been determined despite the accepted terminology implying synovium as stem cell. Three cases of primary synovial sarcoma (2 fibrous monophasic, 1 biphasic type) were studied with a panel of antibodies against different types of cytokeratin and other markers (EMA, CEA, vimentin, S-100 protein, lysozyme, 1-antichymotrypsin). Spindle shaped-cell in monophasic synovial sarcoma showed reactivity for CK7 and pancytokeratin. Epithelial cells lining of glands in biphasic synovial sarcoma reactive for CK7, pancytokeratin, EMA, and focally CEA but spindle cells only positive for vimentin. By electron microscopy, fibrous monophasic synovial sarcoma showed pseudogland formation with intercellular junctions of paired subplasmalemmal destiny and discontinuous basal lamina. These results indicate that synovial sarcoma showes epithelial differentiation. We believe that synovial sarcoma arises in pluripotential connective tissue cells that is able to be differentiated into both mesenchymal and epithelial components. So, synovial sarcoma have been considered carcinosarcoma of soft tissues depending on the type of differentiation.
Antibodies ; Basement Membrane ; Carcinosarcoma ; Connective Tissue Cells ; Epithelial Cells ; Immunohistochemistry ; Intercellular Junctions ; Keratins ; Microscopy, Electron ; Muramidase ; S100 Proteins ; Sarcoma, Synovial ; Stem Cells ; Synovial Membrane ; Vimentin

BACKGROUND: A large number of children with psychosocial dysfunction are not recognized within schools or primary care settings. In several research, an increasing amount of attention has been paid to the importance of low family support as a predictor of psychosocial dysfunction in children. Our study examined the agreement and relationship between the lack of family support as measured by the Family APGAR and child psychosocial dysfunction as screened by the Pediatric Symptom Checklist(PSC). Therefore, We studied the usefulness of Family APGAR as a screening tool of child psychosocial dysfunction. METHODS: We set 643 children that are engaged in elementary school. We gave a questionnaire to their parents and made them record the questionnaire which contained the sociodemographic data, past history of child and parents, the Family APGAR and the translated Pediatric Symptom Checklist(PSC). Finally, we analysed only 506 complete data. We use the SAS/PC 6.12 that is a statistical analysis program. RESULTS: Children with a lack of family support(APGAR) were 5.1 times as likely to receive scores indicating dysfunction on the PSC(PSC). Families with a lack of support were significantly more likely to report low parental educational achievement and low income. Sixty percent of children from families with a lack of support were identified as having a psychosocial dysfunction by the PSC rating; however, only 24% percent of the children identified with psychosocial dysfunction by the PSC had scores indicating poor family functioning on the Family APGAR. Families with a lack of support had significantly higher total scores on PSC(mean=20.2) than families with adequate support(mean=11.9). The strength of the agreement between the Family APGAR and the PSC was k=.29. CONCLUSION: A lack of family support is associated with child psychosocial dysfunction as assessed by the PSC. However, the Family APGAR was not a sensitive measure of child psychosocial dysfunction, and thus it supplements, but does not replace the PSC.
Child* ; Educational Status ; Humans ; Mass Screening ; Parents ; Primary Health Care ; Surveys and Questionnaires

A case of retinoblastoma and Coats' disease in the same eye is presented. Coexisitence of the retinoblastoma and Coats' disease is very rarely seen, though the retinoblastoma or the Coats' disease are not uncommon diseases. After the enucleatIon under the clinical diagnosis of retinoblastoma, the careful histopathological study disclosed the unusual findings of a typical Coats' disease containing predominent telangiectasis adjacent to the undifferentiated retinoblastoma cell mass. Differentiation of Coats' disease to the so-called Coats' reaction associated with a certain retinal disorders is emphasized on the histological view point.
Diagnosis ; Retinaldehyde ; Retinoblastoma* ; Telangiectasis

Toxoplasma gondii is an obligate intracellular protozoan parasite, which invades a wide range of hosts including humans. The exact mechanisms involved in its invasion are not fully understood. This study focused on the roles of Ca2+ in host cell invasion and in T. gondii replication. We examined the invasion and replication of T. gondii pretreated with several calcium modulators, the conoid extrusion of tachyzoites. Calmodulin localization in T. gondii were observed using the immunogold method, and Ca2+ levels in tachyzoites by confocal microscopy. In light microscopic observation, tachyzoites co-treated with A23187 and EGTA showed that host cell invasion and intracellular replication were decreased. The invasion of tachyzoites was slightly inhibited by the Ca2+ channel blockers, bepridil and verapamil, and by the calmodulin antagonist, calmidazolium. We observed that calcium saline containing A23187 induced the extrusion of tachyzoite conoid. By immunoelectron microscopy, gold particles bound to anti-calmodulin or anti-actin mAb, were found to be localized on the anterior portion of tachyzoites. Remarkably reduced intracellular Ca2+ was observed in tachyzoites treated with BAPTA/AM by confocal microscopy. These results suggest that host cell invasion and the intracellular replication of T. gondii tachyzoites are inhibited by the calcium ionophore, A23187, and by the extracellular calcium chelator, EGTA.
Animals ; Calcium/*physiology ; Calcium Channel Blockers/pharmacology ; Calmodulin/antagonists & inhibitors ; Chelating Agents/pharmacology ; Hela Cells ; Host-Parasite Relations ; Humans ; Ionophores/pharmacology ; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't ; Toxoplasma/drug effects/pathogenicity/*physiology

Fucoidan, a sulfated polysaccharide is found in several types of edible brown algae. It has shown numerous biological activities; however, the molecular mechanisms on the activity against atopic dermatitis have not been reported yet. We now examined the effects of fucoidan on chemokine production co-induced by TNF-alpha/IFN-gamma, and the possible mechanisms underlying these biological effects. Our data showed that fucoidan inhibited the TNF-alpha/IFN-gamma-induced production of thymus and activation-regulated chemokine (TARC) and macrophagederived chemokine (MDC) mRNA in human keratinocytes HaCaT cells. Also, fucoidan suppressed phosphorylation of nuclear factor kappa B (NF-kappaB) and activation of signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT)1 in a dose-dependent manner. In addition, fucoidan significantly inhibited activation of extracellular-signal-regulated kinases (ERK) phosphorylation. These data indicate that fucoidan shows anti-inflammatory effects by suppressing the expression of TNF-alpha/IFN-gamma-induced chemokines by blocking NF-kappaB, STAT1, and ERK1/2 activation, suggestive of as used as a therapeutic application in inflammatory skin diseases, such as atopic dermatitis.
Chemokine CCL17 ; Chemokines ; Dermatitis, Atopic ; Humans* ; Keratinocytes* ; NF-kappa B* ; Phaeophyta ; Phosphorylation ; Phosphotransferases ; RNA, Messenger ; Skin Diseases ; STAT1 Transcription Factor ; Transducers

The clinical staging systems for laryngeal cancer is limited as a prognostic indicator because of different biological characteristics of cancer in this region. To determine biological characteristics of laryngeal cancer and whether the matrix metalloproteinase-2(MMP-2), tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-2(TIMP-2) and angiogenesis can be used as prognostic indicators, the authors performed immunohistochemical staining of MMP-2, TIMP-2 and factor VIII related antigen in 20 cases of surgically treated squamous cell carcinoma of the larynx. The results are as follows: (1) The positive rates of MMP-2 and TIMP-2 expression in laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma were 55% and 95% respectively.(2) As the clinical stage was advanced, the expression of MMP-2 and TIMP-2 increased significantly(p=0.043, p=0.014).(3) The microvessel count(MVC) did not correlate with the clinical stage and histopathologic grading.(4) As the MVC increased, the expression of MMP-2 and TIMP-2 increased significantly(p=0.0004, p=0.0025). In conclusion, MMP-2 and TIMP-2 can be used as a prognostic indicator of laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma. As MMP-2 increases, so does neovascularization. And as neovascularization increases TIMP-2 does also in order to inhibit it. Since TIMP is an expression of the host response to a tumor and this response is different in each tumor, studies on MMP, TIMP and angiogenesis in other tumors should also be encouraged.
Carcinoma, Squamous Cell* ; Humans* ; Laryngeal Neoplasms ; Larynx ; Matrix Metalloproteinase 2* ; Microvessels ; Population Characteristics ; Tissue Inhibitor of Metalloproteinase-2* ; von Willebrand Factor

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to compare the diagnostic accuracies of chest radiographs and chest CTin the diagnosis of a solitary pulmonary nodule(SPN), and to determine the role of CT and CT findings which aid inthe differential diagnosis of nodules. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A retrospective study was done on 54 patients inwhom SPN was found on chest radiographs and chest CT was carried out. The study involved 25 benign and 29 malignant nodules, confirmed histopathologically and clinically. Chest radiographs and CT scans were reviewed separately in randomized order by two chest radiologists who for each film listed the three most likely diagnose sin descending order. The radiologists recorded the confidence value of the most probable diagnosis, and also the marginal and internal characteristics of nodules and their size, as nodules seen on chest CT scans. RESULTS: Diagnostic rates in the differential diagnosis of benign and malignant nodules were 65.7% by radiography and 77.8% by CT. Correct first-choice diagnosis was by radiography in 30.6 % of cases, and by CT in 41.7%. Using radiographs, and the correct diagnosis was among the top-three choices in 61.1% of cases ; with CT, the corresponding figure was 76.8%. Overall, a confident diagnosis was reached more often with the CT(41.7%) than with the chest radiograph(21.4%) ; diagnaotic accuracy was 60.0% and 52.2%, respectively. CT findings which imply abenign nodule include smooth margins and diffuse internal calcifications, whereas marginal lobulations, air-bronchograms, internal low density without cavitation, eccentric calcifications, and large size suggest malignancy. We faund that CT findings such as well-defined margins, spiculations, pleural tail or internal homogeneity did not contribute in the differentiation between benign and malignant nodules. CONCLUSION: CT issuperior to chest radiography in the differential diagnosis of the solitary pulmonary nodule. Using CT, diagnosis was accurate and made with a high level of confidence, especially with the application of CT findings which aid inthe differential diagnosis of nodules.
Diagnosis ; Diagnosis, Differential* ; Humans ; Radiography* ; Radiography, Thoracic ; Retrospective Studies ; Solitary Pulmonary Nodule* ; Thorax* ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed