In an attempt to clarify the relationshop between left ventricular function and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease(COPD), systolic time intervals were measured in 79 control subjects and 60 patients with COPD who had no evidence of organic heart disease. The patients with COPD were divided into three groups based on the percent predicted forced expired volume in one second. Significant differences in pre-ejection period index(PEPI) and left ventricular ejection time index(LVETI) existed between the control subjects and the patients with the most severe lung disease(Group III). A highly significant difference in PEP/LVET existed between these two groups. The abnormalities of systolic time intervals demonstrated in these patients are characteristic of left ventricular dysfunction and indicate that left ventricular dysfunction is frequently present in patients with moderate obstructive lung disease.
Heart Diseases ; Humans ; Lung ; Lung Diseases, Obstructive ; Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive* ; Systole* ; Ventricular Dysfunction, Left ; Ventricular Function, Left

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Methylation of CpG islands is associated with delayed replication, condensed chromatin and inhibition of transcription initiation in many human cancers. Another concern with regards to CpG methlation is unilateral chromosomal losses in head and neck cancer. In this study, we investigated the extent of chromosomal losses and the status of CpG methylation in head and neck cancer in relation with clinicopathologic factors. SUBJECTS AND METHOD: Both normal mucosa and tumor tissue samples were secured from 17 cases to a total of 34 samples to be examined with a methylation- specific PCR on 15 cancer-linked genes. A total of 29 cases were analyzed for PCR-based loss of heterozygosity (LOH) using a panel of 41 microsatellite markers on 8 chromosomes. RESULTS: The pattern of methylation changes between the paired normal mucosa and tumor site was variable. Of the total of 206 cases examined for the methylation status of non-CpG island, 34 cases showed hypomethylation changes, 26 cases hypermethylation changes, and 31 cases no methylation changes. Regions containting CpG islands had 8 cases showing hypomethylation changes, 17 cases hypermethylation changes, and 31 cases of no methylation changes. The relationship between methylation and lymph node invasion revealed that, in the event of lymph node invasion, p16 downstream 0.7 kbp, p16 upstream 1.0 kbp, and hMLH1 upstream 1.0 kbp showed hypomethylation, whereas BGLAP upstream 4.5 kbp, Runx3 upstream 1.7 kbp, KIAA downstream 0.4 kbp showed hypermethylation. However, the rest of the genes were not changed. In 29 tumor foci, a LOH was found most frequently on the chromosomes 3p, 8p, 9p, and 13q. Interestingly, although other previous reports have not reported the detection of 8p chromosomal loss in head and neck cancer, this study frequently detected 8p chromosomal loss. Chromosomal loss yielded an overall mean value of 4.79+/-2.2 per tumor focus. A special relationship could not be drawn based on the relationship between the methylation and LOH. But in several genes such as p16 and hMLH1, there were differences between the hypomethylation. Genetic instability was raised when hypomethylation increased. CONCLUSION: This study showed that the head and neck cancer and its progression generally need the proper level of chromosomal losses to accomplish cancer progression or development. Methylation pattern and LOH might be important rules and target event in head and neck cancer. In the future, experiments to find the point of genetic modification will help the way to prevent the cancer.
Carcinoma, Squamous Cell* ; Chromatin ; CpG Islands ; Head and Neck Neoplasms ; Head* ; Humans ; Loss of Heterozygosity ; Lymph Nodes ; Methylation* ; Microsatellite Repeats ; Mucous Membrane ; Neck* ; Polymerase Chain Reaction

BACKGROUND: Air trapped in left ventricle(LV) after cardiopulmonary bypass(CPB) is a major source of air embolism. We tried to measure the length of time(T) to remove the air bubbles from release of aortic cross clamp(ACC) and to find the factors affecting the length of time. METHODS: With Institutional Review Board(IRB) approval, 125 patients undergoing valvular replacement and repair of atrial septal defect(ASD) were included in this prospective study. After induction of anesthesia, a 5-MHz phased-array transesophageal echocardiographic(TEE) probe was inserted into the esophagus and then connected to the TEE system. TEE was continuously monitored from the time of release ACC to the end of operation. And the length of time from release of ACC to disappearance of the air bubbles in LV was recorded. RESULTS: The mean T was 27.5+/-12.0 minutes and was statistically longer in patients undergoing mitral valve replacement than in patients with ASD. There was significant difference in T between surgeon 1 and surgen 2. In patients with atrial fibrillation(A-fib) the air bubbles were removed more slowly than in patients with normal sinus rhythm preoperatively and there was negative correlation between preoperative ejection fraction(EF) and the length of time to remove air bubbles(r= 0.23). CONCLUSIONS: Careful management to remove the air bubbles from the LV after release of ACC is required in patients with low EF or A-fib preoperatively and surgeon's attention is required because they are the important factor affecting the length of time to remove the air bubble.
Anesthesia ; Cardiopulmonary Bypass* ; Echocardiography* ; Echocardiography, Transesophageal ; Embolism ; Embolism, Air ; Esophagus ; Heart Ventricles* ; Humans ; Mitral Valve ; Prospective Studies

The authors represented a clinical analysis of 3 rd decade male 47 patients with intracranial tumors who had been histologically confirmed after operation and biopsy at the department of neurosurgery of Capital Armed Forces General Hospital From Feb. 1985 to Jan, 1988. We classified the intracranial tumors according to Russell and Rubinstein's classification. The results were as follows: 1) Among the intracranial tumors, gliomas were found most frequently(40.4%), and followed by pituitary adenomas(19.2%), pinealomas(10.6%), osteomas(6.4%), medulloblastomas(4.3%), craniopharyngiomas(4.3%), blood vessel tumors(4.3%). Pituitary adenomas occupied 19.2% of all intracranial tumors and as a single entity these were the highest incidence. 2) Tumors of the pineal region constitutes 10.6% of intracranial tumors. It was relatively high incidence compared with other reports. 3) Intracranial tumors occurred more frequently in supratentorial region(85.1%). The most frequent location was sellar and parasellare region(23.4%), and followed by frontal(14.9%), parietal(12.7%), pineal gland(10.6%), temporal(8.5%), cerebellar region(8.5%) in order. 4) The most common duration of symptoms were within 3 months(42.6%). The main clinical symptoms and signs were headache(80.9%), nausea or/and vomiting(55.3%), papilledema(44.7%), so called symptoms triad of the brain tumor, and other ophthalmic symptoms, gait disturbance, motor dysfunction,cerebellar sign in order.
Arm ; Biopsy ; Blood Vessels ; Brain Neoplasms ; Classification ; Gait ; Glioma ; Hospitals, General ; Humans ; Incidence ; Korea* ; Male* ; Nausea ; Neurosurgery ; Pinealoma ; Pituitary Neoplasms