No abstract available.
Gingival Crevicular Fluid* ; Periodontal Diseases*

No abstract available.
Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung* ; Drug Therapy, Combination*

No abstract available.
Diagnosis* ; DNA* ; Polymerase Chain Reaction* ; Tuberculosis*

PURPOSE: The aim of this pilot study was to determine the relationship between the beta-fibrinogen G/A-455 single nucleotide polymorphism and the risk of ischemic stroke in Korea because there are racial differences in polymorphisms and Koreans have never been studied before. METHODS: From March to September 2003, we compared 80(male : female=1.2 : 0.8) patients who were diagnosed with ischemic stroke at Kyung Hee university hospital emergency center had been to 150 control subjects. The genotypes of the beta-fibrinogen G/A-455 polymorphism were confirmed by using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) followed by HaeIII restriction enzyme digestion. RESULTS: The results showed that the patient group had a much higher rate of heterozygotism (GA or AG). A statistical analysis of the genotype frequency showed chi2 to be 6.24, indicating a significant difference between the patient and the control groups (p=0.044). For the allele frequency, the odds ratio was 1.88(95% CI 1.16-3.04), indicating a significant difference between the two groups, and also allele frequency in ischemic stroke patient with or without hyperfibrinogenemia, male sex and smoking history showed odds ratio to be 2.38(95% CI 1.26~4.49), 1.78(95% CI 1.01~3.14)and 1.94(95% CI 1.12~3.35) indicating significant difference. CONCLUSION: The high rate of polymorphisms of the AA genotype of beta-fibrinogen G/A-455 in ischemic stroke patients in our study leads us to the belief of the possibility that beta-fibrinogen G/A-455 polymorphisms in males with a smoking history and hyperfibrinogenemia, if found in advance, could lead to an improved prognosis and reduced clinical expenses by allowing early diagnosis and preventive management.
Digestion ; Early Diagnosis ; Emergencies ; Gene Frequency ; Genetics ; Genotype ; Humans ; Korea ; Male ; Odds Ratio ; Pilot Projects* ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide ; Prognosis ; Smoke ; Smoking ; Stroke*

To evaluate the surgical results, the author made a clinical analysis on 70 patients of postmeningitic hydrocephalus who had been treated surgically. And the results were summarized as follows. 1) The tuberculous meningitis was the most common type causing the postmeningitic hydrocephalus(72.9%). 2) Among 70 patients, 51 were male and 19 were female. About 40% of cases were under 5 years old. 3) The most common clinical symptom was vomiting(67%). Headache, fever and generalized seizure were symptoms in order of frequency. Neurological sings represented neck stiffness, cranial nerve palsy and motor weakness. 4) The most common clinical condition on admission was stage 3 (advanced cases with unconciousness and severe neurological deficits). 5) The spinal fluid analysis showed more abnormal findings comparing to the ventricular fluid. But ventricular pressure was higher than spinal fluid pressure. 6) Plain skull x-rays, carotid angiograms were useful diagnostic methods but CT brain scan was though to be the most accurate, noninvasive method which showed size of ventricle and effectiveness of shunting procedures with Evans'ratio. In enhanced CT brain scans, the basal cistern enhancement was the most common finding beside ventricular enlargement (64.1%). 7) Ventriculoperitoneal shunting was the most common procedure in this series. 8) The initial revision rate was 12/70(19%) and the most of the revision was performed within 6 months after the initial shunting. 9) The revision rate in relation to shunting system and cerebrospinal fluid finding was not statistically significant. 10) The most common cause of the shunt malfuntion was obstruction of the ventricular catheter. 11) Forty one patients(58.6%) showed favorable outcome. The motality rate was 14/70(20%) and they were all belong to the stage 3. About half of the patients in stage 2 and stage 3 showed dramatic improvement after early shunting procedures. So the timing of operation was the most important factor influencing their outcome.
Brain ; Catheters ; Cerebrospinal Fluid ; Cerebrospinal Fluid Pressure ; Child, Preschool ; Cranial Nerve Diseases ; Female ; Fever ; Headache ; Humans ; Hydrocephalus* ; Male ; Neck ; Seizures ; Skull ; Tuberculosis, Meningeal ; Ventricular Pressure ; Ventriculoperitoneal Shunt

A case of chronic subdural hematoma aggravated after cervical myelography is reported. The patient was recovered after simple drainage of the hematoma. Various complications of lumbar puncture and myelography are reviewed.
Drainage ; Hematoma ; Hematoma, Subdural, Chronic* ; Humans ; Myelography* ; Spinal Puncture

No abstract available.
Lung Neoplasms* ; Lung*

This study was designed to investigate the influence of the so-called IMF-related economic stress upon the mental health and to analyze the process of the influence. As the possible variables moderating the stress process, social resource, problem solving style, and hopelessness were included. 221 male and female subjects were recruited according to the intensity of economic stress and classified into four groups(employees of solid companies, employees of the companies at risk, short-term unemployed and long-term unemployed). Relevant measures including economic stress scale, selected SCL-90R subscales(somatization, depression, hostility, anxiety), social support scale, problem-solving scale, and job hopelessness scale were administered. As assumed, it was proved that economic stress had adverse effects on the mental health. In addition to this basic causal relationship, moderating effects of several variables were found as follows: First, social support had the buffering effect upon the economic stress. That is, strong social support played the role suppressing the development of psychiatric symptoms under high stress. Second, men were more vulnerable to the adverse effects of economic stresses than women. Third, economic stresses had influence on the helplessness concerning the problem solving. However other problem solving strategies such as creative style, approach style, avoidance style, etc were proven to have no relationship with the economic stress. Fourth, in the analysis of unemployed group, it was found that hopelessness mediates the relationship between economic stress and mental health. In conclusion, the clinical implications of such findings in economic stress process were discussed and several limitations and the suggestions for future researches were also addressed.
Depression ; Female ; Hostility ; Humans ; Male ; Mental Health* ; Problem Solving

PURPOSE: To report a case of adult-onset Coats' disease which showed decreased retinal edema and improved visual acuity following intravitreal ranibizumab injection. CASE SUMMARY: A 21-year-old woman visited our hospital for decreased visual acuity in left eye from 3 months ago. Her best corrected visual acuity was 1.0 in the right eye, and 0.4 in the left eye. The intraocular pressure was 19 mmHg in the right eye and 16 mmHg in the left eye. At anterior segment examination, no abnormal findings were found. On fundus examination, subretinal exudates, superior retinal edema at posterior pole, and telangiectasia along superortemporal vascular arcade were observed in the left eye. Upon diagnosis as Coats' disease, intravitreal ranibizumab was performed, and laser photocoagulation was done around the retinal telangiectasia and nonperfusion area. Then, the second and third intravitreal ranibizumab injections were performed by a month, and her best visual acuity was improved to 0.8 and optical coherence tomography revealed decreased retinal edema. CONCLUSIONS: We report a case of adult-onset Coats' disease. Intravitreal ranibizumab injection is effective in rapid visual improvement and decrease of retinal edema as combination therapy with laser photocoagulation which was a generalized treatment of choice in Coats' disease.
Diagnosis ; Exudates and Transudates ; Female ; Humans ; Intraocular Pressure ; Light Coagulation ; Macular Edema ; Papilledema ; Ranibizumab* ; Retinaldehyde ; Telangiectasis ; Tomography, Optical Coherence ; Visual Acuity ; Young Adult

The knowledge of gene regulation of serotonin transporter mRNA may provide clues to understanding how antidepressants affect their therapeutic actions. Recently, the effects of antidepressants on the serotonin transporter have been investigated but yielded controversial results. To study this further, we performed in situ hybridization for serotonin transporter mRNA in rats(treatment group, n=5)receiving long term(14 days)treatment with a selective serotonin reuptake inhibiting antidepressant, sertraline(10mg/kg, i.p) Following sertraline treatment, a significant(p<0.05)ncrease in hybridization of serotonin transporter mRNA was observed compared to that observed in vehicle-treated rats(control group, n=5) This result may be interpreted as a compensatory mechanism to reduce synaptic levels of serotonin which were increased by long term sertraline treatment.
Animals ; Antidepressive Agents ; Brain* ; In Situ Hybridization ; Rats* ; RNA, Messenger* ; Serotonin Plasma Membrane Transport Proteins* ; Serotonin* ; Sertraline*