Epiblepharon is frequently encountered n oriental eyelid, especially in children. It is characterized by a horizontal fold of redundant skin and abundant orbicularis muscle near lid margin, which the lashes vertically, or posteriorly towards the eye. Surgical therapy of epiblepharon in correcting the trichiasis includes lid bracing sutures, burried sutures, skin resection, a Hotz procedure or its modification, and a Jones procedure. In our opinion, these procedures are not sufficient, because these procedures will not correct the epicanthal folds. Epicanthal folds have been a one of the characteristics of Asian over 50 percents of population in Japan and South Korea, and it either reduce the aesthetic result of the double-eyelid procedure or make the correction of the entropion and epiblepharon difficult. Although many surgical procedures are available to eliminate epicanthal folds, scarring on the medial canthus is in still and obstacle for surgeons to overcome. From January of 1998 to October of 1998, we used half z-plasty procedures in 5 cases to correct epicanthal folds in epiblepharon. There were few complications in our series. We believe that half z-plasty can get a good result in the correction of epibolepharon and oriental epicanthal folds.
Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Braces ; Child ; Cicatrix ; Entropion ; Eyelids ; Humans ; Japan ; Korea ; Skin ; Sutures ; Trichiasis

Otocephaly is a rare malformations comprising hypoplasia or absence of the mandible (agnathia), ventromedial displacement and often fusion of external ears (synotia or otocephaly), and hypoplasia of the oral cavity (microstomia) and tongue (hypoglassia). This developmental complex represents a malformation of the first and second branchial arches and occurs sometimes with holoprosencephaly. We present the ultrasound detection of otocephaly and holoprosencephaly with cyclopia in a fetus of 27 gestational weeks 6 days. The use of three-dimensional (3-D) ultrasound made additional diagnostic ultrasound tomograms possible, and the volume reconstructions improved the imaging and the understanding of the condition.
Branchial Region ; Diagnosis* ; Ear, External ; Fetus ; Holoprosencephaly ; Mandible ; Mouth ; Tongue ; Ultrasonography

Ginseng root, as a folk medicine, has been used in for eastern countries for thousands of years. Ginseng extract has been shown to have a variety of effects on the activity of the central nervous system, promoting simulation as well as inhibition of the cortical activity. A survey of the relevant literatures has indicated that the putative anxiolytic activity of red ginseng has not been scientifically investigated. Therefore, the present study was designed to assess anxiolytic effect of ginseng total saponinis(GTS). The putative anxiolytic effects of several fractions of GTS were investigated in mice using an elevated plus maze paradigm. Single dose administration of TS Fr.- I showed anxiolytic action in mice. Anxiolytic effect induced by TS Fr.-I was similar to that induced by diazepam. TS Fr.-II, TS Fr.-III and TS Fr.-IV did not show the anxiolytic action compared with that of TS Fr.-I. It was suggested that regulation of GABAergic neurotransmission may be important in the action of GTS. The Interaction of GTS fractions with benzodiazepine receptor was performed using rat cortical membranes. GTS inhibited the binding of [3H] Rp 15-1788 on the benzodiazepine receptor. Among from TS fractions, the binding activity of GTS in the TS Fr.-IV was highest, which did not show the anxiolytic activity. From these results, we conclude that GTS has anxiolytic action, and the is not related to benzodiazepine receptor binding activity.
Animals ; Anti-Anxiety Agents* ; Central Nervous System ; Diazepam ; Medicine, Traditional ; Membranes ; Mice ; Panax* ; Rats ; Receptors, GABA-A ; Saponins* ; Synaptic Transmission

PURPOSE: We reviewed the clinical manifestations, responsiveness to treatment, and prognosis in children with nephrotic syndrome. METHODS: Medical records of 159 children with idiopathic nephrotic syndrome who were admitted to the pediatric department of Chonbuk National University Hospital from January 1979 to December 2000 were retrospectively reviewed. RESULTS: There were 32 females and 127 males. The most common age group was between 3 and 5 years of age among the 159 children with nephrotic syndrome. Generalized edema (75.5%), scrotal edema (20.1%), upper respiratory infection (19.5%), and ascites (28.3%) were frequently observed. After the initial steroid therapy, diuresis occurred within the first two weeks in 138 children, and proteinuria disappeared within the first two weeks in 105 children. Among 159 patients who received initial daily steroid therapy, 110 children were in complete remission, 29 children were in partial remission and 20 children were in poor response state. Hematuria, hypertension and elevated serum creatinine were more frequently observed in the partial and the poor response groups than in the complete remission group. Among 107 children who were followed up for more than one year, 78 children were in complete remission and 55 children were relapsed within the first one year after steroid therapy. Renal biopsy was undertaken in 76 children and 53 children had minimal change nephrotic syndrome. CONCLUSION: Our study showed that most children with idiopathic nephrotic syndrome have a good responsiveness to steroid therapy and even most children show frequent relapse during 1st year after remission, long term prognosis is excellent.
Ascites ; Biopsy ; Child* ; Creatinine ; Diuresis ; Edema ; Female ; Hematuria ; Humans ; Hypertension ; Jeollabuk-do ; Male ; Medical Records ; Nephrosis, Lipoid ; Nephrotic Syndrome* ; Prognosis ; Proteinuria ; Recurrence ; Retrospective Studies

The Ziehl-Neelson's AFB staining method was mainly used for the AFB observation of the diagnosis of leprosy. However, the fluorescent stain performs better and allows the detection of more positive smears. The limitation for its widespread use has been the high cost for fluorescent microscopes. Novel light-emitting diodes (LED) are inexpensive solutions for fluorescent microscopes, and thus fluorescent stain may be a cost-effective step to improve the diagnosis of leprosy in resource-poor countries. And the comparison of auramine and acridine orange for staining of acid-fast bacteria was showed significantly more acid-fast rods after using acridine orange and the number of "false positive" results was somewhat higher on auramine staining. So acridine orange offers a good alternative to auramine which is considered carcinogenic. This study evaluated the comparison of the Ziehl-Neelson's AFB stain and the acridine orange stain in the skin smear based on PCR. As PCR results were taken as gold standard, results of the study revealed that the sensitivity of Ziehl-Neelson's AFB stain was 50% and that of acridine orange stain was 92.2%. This study confirmed that the fluorescence stain method is more sensitive than the Ziehl-Neelsen's staining method. It is suggested that the training of laboratory technicians on fluorescence microscopy should be scaled up for increased disease control.
Acridine Orange* ; Bacteria ; Benzophenoneidum ; Diagnosis ; Fluorescence ; Humans ; Laboratory Personnel ; Leprosy ; Microscopy, Fluorescence ; Mycobacterium leprae* ; Mycobacterium* ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Skin

C1q nephropathy is a rare glomerular disease, defined by characteristic mesangial C1q immune deposition seen in immunofluorescence microscopy with no serological evidence of systemic lupus erythematosus. C1q nephropathy can be diagnosed with a subsequent biopsy, as with IgA nephropathy. There are some cases with an initial diagnosis of hematuria and proteinuria with minimal disease changes, focal segmental glomerulonephritis, and mesangial proliferative glomerulonephritis, but lacking C1q nephropathy, in which C1q deposition on immunofluorescence subsequently develops. We report a case that was diagnosed as diffuse mesangial proliferative glomerulonephritis, but a subsequent biopsy showed C1q nephropathy, with C1q deposition in both immunohistochemistry and electron microscopy (EM). We treated the C1q nephropathy with methylprednisolone and confirmed the disappearance of C1q depositions by both immunohistochemistry and EM in a follow-up biopsy.
Biopsy ; Complement C1q ; Diagnosis ; Fluorescent Antibody Technique ; Follow-Up Studies ; Glomerulonephritis ; Glomerulonephritis, IGA ; Hematuria ; Immunohistochemistry ; Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic ; Methylprednisolone ; Microscopy, Electron ; Microscopy, Fluorescence ; Proteinuria

Acute interstitial pneumonia is a fulminant disease of unknown etiology that usually occurs in a previously healthy person and produces the histologic findings of the organizing phase of diffuse alveolar damage. We experienced an autopsy case of acute interstitial pneumonia of unknown etiology. The patient was a 48 year old man who had been healthy and had not been exposed to organic dusts or other toxic materials. The chief complaints represented were dyspnea and a dry cough for several weeks before hospitalization, and the chest radiographs showed bilateral interstitial infiltrates. Patchy consolidation of air space was also identified and ground-glass attenuation similar to those described in ARDS was detected on high-resolution computed tomography. Steroid pulse therapy, mechanical ventilation, and antibiotics for superimposed bacterial infection were performed, but the symptoms did not improve and the patient died of generalized respiratory insufficiency and severe hypoxemia 2 1/2 months after hospitalization. At autopsy the macroscopic and microscopic findings were confined mainly to the lungs. On the whole, both lungs were firm in consistency and the external surface showed a cobblestone appearance. The cut surface showed almost complete replacement of the normal lung parenchyma with gray to yellow fibrous tissue with a little residual functional area remaining. The pathology of both open lung biopsy and autopsy tissue showed marked hyperplasia of type II pneumocytes, hyaline membrane formation, thickening of the alveolar wall due to extensive fibroblast proliferation, and relatively abundant young collagen deposition in the interstitium. An immunohistochemical stain for cytokeratin revealed epithelial hyperplasia and showed that the alveolar spaces were markedly shrunken by fibrous tissue.
Anoxia ; Anti-Bacterial Agents ; Autopsy* ; Bacterial Infections ; Biopsy ; Collagen ; Cough ; Dust ; Dyspnea ; Fibroblasts ; Hospitalization ; Humans ; Hyalin ; Hyperplasia ; Keratins ; Lung ; Lung Diseases, Interstitial* ; Membranes ; Middle Aged ; Pathology ; Pneumocytes ; Pulmonary Fibrosis ; Radiography, Thoracic ; Respiration, Artificial ; Respiratory Insufficiency

BACKGROUND: Nm23 gene was identified by the hybridization between two murine melanoma cell lines which had low or high metastatic potential and was located in chromosome 17q22. A number of tumor cohort studies have shown an inverse relationship between the levels of expression of nm23 protein and disease aggressiveness and tumor metastatic potential. METHODS: In order to determine the significance of overexpression of the antimetastatic gene nm23 protein in human-lymph node-negative breast cancer and to compare it with established clinicopathologic prognostic factors such as the tumor size, histologic grades, TNM stages, and hormonal receptor status, we analyzed the nm23 protein expressions by immunohistochemical staining in 53 lymph-node-negative breast-cancer tissue specimens. RESULTS: The nm23 protein expression was positive in 35 cases (66%). There was no relationship between nm23 protein overexpression and menopause status, tumor size, histologic grade, and hormonal receptor status, but tumor stage correlated with nm23 protein overexpression. Also, overexpression of the nm23 protein was significantly correlated with a longer disease-free survival rate. CONCLUSION: Expression of nm23 protein may be of value for predicting the long-term disease-free survival rate in lymph-node-negative breast-cancer patients.
Breast Neoplasms ; Breast* ; Cell Line ; Cohort Studies ; Disease-Free Survival ; Female ; Humans ; Lymph Nodes* ; Melanoma ; Menopause ; Staphylococcal Protein A*

OBJECTIVE: The study shows that the DFS is a questionnaire that almost effortlessly can be completed within 60-90 seconds during any moment of labor and delivery. The aim of the present study was to test the validity and reliability of the DFS, to identify its factor structure in Korea. METHODS: Review of the medical records from the department of obstetrics and gynecology from January to April 2005, a confirmed 51 patients with the diagnosis of singleton pregnancy without medical or obstetrical complications, being in 37-42 weeks. 22 primiparous and 29 multiparous women answered the Delivery Fear Scale (DFS) once during active labor, and the STAI (State-Trait Anxiety Inventory) after delivery. Reliability test to calculate Chronbach alpha and validity test to measure correlation between DFS and STAI was done. Then factor analysis was applied with the method of principal component analysis and varimax rotation. RESULTS: Korean version of DFS proved to be a reliable and valid scale statistically: Cronbach's alpha was 0.7182 in study. CONCLUSION: Women's psychological experiences during the actual process of labor and delivery are essential part of obstetrical care. Nevertheless, studies examining psychological variables concerning childbirth, are mostly performed before or after labor. The DFS measures fear during labor and delivery in an effortless and fast away. The development of the Korean version of DFS which is reliable and valid, and consists of three sub-factors may facilitate future research in the field.
Anxiety ; Diagnosis ; Female ; Gynecology ; Humans ; Korea ; Medical Records ; Obstetrics ; Parturition* ; Pregnancy ; Principal Component Analysis ; Surveys and Questionnaire ; Reproducibility of Results

PURPOSE: Obesity has become a pandemic and especially the prevalence of childhood obesity has increased remarkably over the past years. Childhood obesity is often accompanied by the expected morbidities such as hyperlipidemia, fatty liver and glucose intolerance. We evaluated the pattern of alteration in the body mass index (BMI), serum adiponectin concentration, insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), and complication rates after one year follow-up. METHODS: Forty two obese children (age: 8-15 years, 95th percentile of BMI for age and sex) were examined twice annually on June, 2004 and July, 2005. The body mass index (BMI) and sexual maturity rating (SMR) were determined annually by the same examiner and serum fasting glucose, liver enzyme, lipid profiles, adiponectin, insulin and HOMA-IR were measured and annual results were compared. Upper abdominal sonography was performed to detect fatty liver. RESULTS: BMI (25.3+/-2.9 kg/m2 vs. 26.0+/-2.9 kg/m2) and HOMA-IR (3.6+/-1.8 vs. 4.7+/-1.9) have increased significantly after one-year follow-up. The serum adiponectin concentration (17.2+/-5.2 g/mL vs. 12.6+/-5.2 g/mL) has decreased after one year. The prevalence of hyperlipidemia and fatty liver were not changed significantly but that of hyperinsulinemia increased after one-year. HOMA-IR showed a positive correlation with BMI and SMR, but was negatively correlated with serum adiponectin concentration. CONCLUSION: Obese children in our study showed significant increment of insulin resistance during one year. These results suggest that well-organized and continuous obesity control is required especially for obese adolescent to prevent complication of obesity.
Adiponectin* ; Adolescent* ; Body Mass Index ; Child* ; Fasting ; Fatty Liver ; Follow-Up Studies* ; Glucose ; Glucose Intolerance ; Humans ; Hyperinsulinism ; Hyperlipidemias ; Insulin Resistance* ; Insulin* ; Liver ; Obesity ; Pandemics ; Pediatric Obesity ; Prevalence