For severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), methodologies are yet to be established for prompt diagnostic testing, treatment and prevention by means of vaccination. Such being the situation, it is necessary to implement stringent measures in preventing the transmission of this infectious disease based on a correct understanding of its epidemiological characteristics. The pathways of transmission are by droplet and by contact. Risk factors include social contacts with SARS cases within a radius of 2 meters or household contacts, badly ventilated rooms, touching contaminated objects and surfaces, exposure to body fluids. The major clinical symptoms of the acute respiratory disease include, like influenza, fever, chill, tiredness (malaise), muscle aches, trepidation, nausea and headache. Compared with patients who contract influenza, SARS patients often had dyspnea and diarrhea, but rarely complain of pharyngalgia and pituita. A close correlation has been noted between the stage of SARS and its infectivity, capability. During the incubation period, which lasts 2 to 10 days, the disease is asymptomatic and reportedly almost no infectious. But there is general agreement among experts that SARS becomes highly infectious when it enters the lower airway infection period and begins to produce such symptoms as fever and dry cough, dyspnea.
As the main points of the measures to prevent SARS from spreading, we would like to refer to triage and prevention of cross infection. A triage system should be adopted as the need arises. Under the system, patients suspected to have SARS are separated from other patients and given priority in medical treatment. Standard precautions should not be forgotten. The use of alcohol-based hand rubs and the wearig of surgical masks are effective means to cut off the route of infection. These efforts would make it possible to effectively prevent the infectious diseases like SARS from being spread form person to person and thus protect the public from the pandemic.

For severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), methodologies are yet to be established for prompt diagnostic testing, treatment and prevention by means of vaccination. Such being the situation, it is necessary to implement stringent measures in preventing the transmission of this infectious disease based on a correct understanding of its epidemiological characteristics. The pathways of transmission are by droplet and by contact. Risk factors include social contacts with SARS cases within a radius of 2 meters or household contacts, badly ventilated rooms, touching contaminated objects and surfaces, exposure to body fluids. The major clinical symptoms of the acute respiratory disease include, like influenza, fever, chill, tiredness (malaise), muscle aches, trepidation, nausea and headache. Compared with patients who contract influenza, SARS patients often had dyspnea and diarrhea, but rarely complain of pharyngalgia and pituita. A close correlation has been noted between the stage of SARS and its infectivity, capability. During the incubation period, which lasts 2 to 10 days, the disease is asymptomatic and reportedly almost no infectious. But there is general agreement among experts that SARS becomes highly infectious when it enters the lower airway infection period and begins to produce such symptoms as fever and dry cough, dyspnea.As the main points of the measures to prevent SARS from spreading, we would like to refer to triage and prevention of cross infection. A triage system should be adopted as the need arises. Under the system, patients suspected to have SARS are separated from other patients and given priority in medical treatment. Standard precautions should not be forgotten. The use of alcohol-based hand rubs and the wearig of surgical masks are effective means to cut off the route of infection. These efforts would make it possible to effectively prevent the infectious diseases like SARS from being spread form person to person and thus protect the public from the pandemic.
Infection as complication of medical care ; Prevention ; symptoms <1> ; strategy ; seconds

The presence of matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) in dentin has been reported, but its distribution and activity level in mature human coronal dentin are not well understood. The purpose of this study was to determine the MMP-2 distribution and relative activity in demineralized dentin. Crowns of twenty eight human molars were sectioned into inner (ID), middle (MD), and outer dentin (OD) regions and demineralized. MMP-2 was extracted with 0.33 mol x L(-1) EDTA/2 mol xL(-1) guanidine-HCl, pH 7.4, and MMP-2 concentration was estimated with enzyme-linked immunoabsorbant assay (ELISA). Further characterization was accomplished by Western blotting analysis and gelatin zymography. The mean concentrations of MMP-2 per mg dentin protein in the dentin regions were significantly different (P = 0.043): 0.9 ng (ID), 0.4 ng (MD), and 2.2 ng (OD), respectively. The pattern of MMP-2 concentration was OD > ID > MD. Western blotting analysis detected -.66 and -72 kDa immunopositive proteins corresponding to pro- and mature MMP-2, respectively, in the ID and MD, and a -66 kDa protein in the OD. Gelatinolytic activity consistent with MMP-2 was detected in all regions. Interestingly, the pattern of levels of Western blot immunodetection and gelatinolytic activity was MD > ID > OD. The concentration of MMP-2 in human coronal dentin was highest in the region of dentin that contains the dentinoenamel junction and least in the middle region of dentin. However, levels of Western blot immunodetection and gelatinolytic activity did not correlate with the estimated regional concentrations of MMP-2, potentially indicating region specific protein interactions.
Blotting, Western ; Dentin ; enzymology ; Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel ; Enzyme Precursors ; analysis ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Matrix Metalloproteinase 2 ; analysis ; metabolism ; Molar, Third ; enzymology ; Tissue Distribution ; Tooth Crown ; enzymology ; Tooth Demineralization ; enzymology

BACKGROUND: We determined the epidemiological characteristics of erythromycin (EM)-resistant Streptococcus pyogenes (group A streptococci, GAS) strains isolated from Korea and Japan, using emm genotyping and multilocus sequence typing (MLST). METHODS: Clinical isolates of GAS had been collected from 1992 to 2012 in Korea and from 2004 to 2009 in Japan. EM resistance was determined by the microdilution method, and resistance genotypes were assessed by PCR. The emm genotyping and MLST were performed by DNA sequencing. RESULTS: The emm genotypes and sequence types (STs) were concordant in 143 (85.1%) of 168 EM-resistant GAS strains from Korea. ST36/emm12 (35.1%), ST52/emm28 (22.6%), and ST49/emm75 (16.1%) were the most common types. Most of the ST36 (93.9%) and ST52 (95.8%) strains harbored erm(B), whereas strains ST49, ST42, and ST15 contained mef(A). The concordance between emm genotypes and STs was 41 (93.2%) among 44 EM-resistant GAS strains from Japan. ST36/emm12 (34.1%), ST49/emm75 (18.2%), and ST28/emm1 (15.9%) were the major types. ST36 isolates harbored either erm(B) (56.3%) or mef(A) (37.5%), whereas isolates ST28, ST49, and ST38 carried only mef(A). The proportion of erm(B) and mef(A) was 66.1% and 33.3% in Korea and 22.7% and 68.2% in Japan, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The common STs in Korea and Japan were ST36 and ST49, whereas ST52 was present only in Korea and ST28 only in Japan. Genotype erm(B) was predominant in Korea, whereas mef(A) was frequent in Japan. There were differences between Korea and Japan regarding the frequencies of emm genotypes, STs, and EM resistance genes among the EM-resistant GAS.
Anti-Bacterial Agents/*pharmacology/therapeutic use ; Bacterial Proteins/*genetics ; Bacterial Typing Techniques ; *Drug Resistance, Bacterial ; Epidemiologic Studies ; Erythromycin/*pharmacology/therapeutic use ; Genotype ; Humans ; Japan/epidemiology ; Microbial Sensitivity Tests ; Multilocus Sequence Typing ; Republic of Korea/epidemiology ; Streptococcal Infections/drug therapy/*microbiology ; Streptococcus pyogenes/drug effects/*genetics/isolation & purification