BACKGROUND: Metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluRs) participate in the induction of synaptic plasticity phenomena, such as long-term potentiation and long-term depression that are thought to be at the origin of learning and memory. They are also likely to play a role in modulating glutamate-induced neurotoxicity. It will become apparent that mGluRs are excellent targets for the development of drugs that modulate excitatory synaptic transmission. But there were several controversies about the exact role of group 1 mGluRs subtype 5 (mGluR5). This study was designed for evaluation of the neuroprotective role of mGluR5. METHODS: Fifty male Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into three groups, control, MK-801 and lamotrigine. The hippocampus and basal ganglia were removed at 6 hours and 3 days after the one hour transient middle cerebral artery occlusion. The gene expression of mRNA of the brain samples were evaluated by using reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction technique. RESULTS: The gene expression of mGluR5 mRNA in hippocampus was increased by 101.96 +/- 18.45% at 6 hours after ischemia and decreased by 50.70 +/- 15.73% at 3 days after ischemia (p<0.01). MK-801 and lamotrigine attenuated the ischemia-induced increases of gene expression of mGluR5 mRNA. In MK-801 group, the expression in basal ganglia was increased by only 0.23 +/- 5.41% at 6 hours after ischemia and decreased by 9.82 +/- 4.35% at 3 days after ischemia. In MK-801 group, the expression in hippocampus was decreased by 3.45 +/- 8.24% and 9.35 5.69% at 6 hours and 3 days after ischemia. In lamotrigine group, the expressions in hippocampus and basal ganglia were decreased by 26.66 +/- 9.85% and 9.45 +/- 5.22% at 6 hours after ischemia. CONCLUSIONS: From these results, the role of mGluR5 was defined as a mediator for neuronal damage after transient focal cerebral ischemia in hippocampus and basal ganglia.
Animals ; Basal Ganglia ; Brain Ischemia* ; Brain* ; Control Groups ; Depression ; Dizocilpine Maleate ; Gene Expression ; Glutamic Acid* ; Hippocampus* ; Humans ; Infarction, Middle Cerebral Artery ; Ischemia ; Learning ; Long-Term Potentiation ; Male ; Memory ; Neurons ; Plastics ; Rats* ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Receptors, Glutamate* ; Receptors, Metabotropic Glutamate ; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction ; RNA, Messenger ; Synaptic Transmission

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The transsynaptic transfer of neurotropic viruses is an effective tool for tracing chains of connected neurons, because replication of virus in the recipient neurons after the transfer amplifies the "tracer signal". The aim of this study is to identify the central neural pathways projecting to the facial nerve using the Bartha strain of the Pseudorabies virus (PRV-Ba )as a transsynaptic tracer. MATERIALS AND METHODS: PRV-Ba was injected into the facial nerve in the stylomastoid foramen of a rat, and was localized in the rat brain with light microscopic immunohistochemistry using primary antibodies against the PRV-Ba. Sequential tracing was carried out on the retrogradely labeled neurons were done. RESULTS: The shapes of upper motor neurons of facial nerve were mostly ovoid or polygonal. The positive immunoreactive cells observed in the brainstem nuclei included raphe obscurus nucleus, facial nucleus, parvocellular reticular nucleus, spinal trigeminal nucleus, ventral parabrachial nucleus, central gray, and dorsal raphe nucleus. Other positive cells stained in the diencephalon were found in periventricular hypothalamic nucleus, dorsal hypothalamic area, orbital gyri, and infralimbic cortex in the frontal lobe. CONCLUSIONS: These results show the central neural pathways of facial nerve using PRV-Ba.
Animals ; Antibodies ; Brain ; Brain Stem ; Diencephalon ; Facial Nerve ; Frontal Lobe ; Herpesvirus 1, Suid ; Immunohistochemistry ; Motor Neurons ; Neural Pathways* ; Neurons ; Orbit ; Raphe Nuclei ; Rats ; Trigeminal Nucleus, Spinal

BACKGROUND: The C-arm fluoroscope is known as the most important equipment in pain interventions. This study was conducted to investigate the completion rate of education on radiation safety, the knowledge of radiation exposure, the use of radiation protection, and so on. METHODS: Unsigned questionnaires were collected from the 27 pain physicians who applied for the final test to become an expert in pain medicine in 2011. The survey was composed of 12 questions about the position of the hospital, the kind of hospital, the use of C-arm fluoroscopy, radiation safety education, knowledge of annual permissible radiation dose, use of radiation protection, and efforts to reduce radiation exposure. RESULTS: In this study, although most respondents (93%) had used C-arm fluoroscopy, only 33% of the physicians completed radiation safety education. Even though nine (33%) had received education on radiation safety, none of the physicians knew the annual permissible radiation dose. In comparing the radiation safety education group and the no-education group, the rate of wearing radiation-protective glasses or goggles and the use of radiation badges or dosimeters were significantly higher in the education group. However, in the use of other protective equipment, knowledge of radiation safety, and efforts to reduce radiation exposure, there were no statistical differences between the two groups. CONCLUSIONS: The respondents knew very little about radiation safety and had low interest in their radiation exposure. To make the use of fluoroscopy safer, additional education, as well as attention to and knowledge of practices of radiation safety are required for pain physicians.
Surveys and Questionnaires ; Eye Protective Devices ; Eyeglasses ; Fluoroscopy ; Glass ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Radiation Monitoring ; Radiation Protection

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of radial extracorporeal shock wave therapy (rESWT) on hemiplegic shoulder pain (HSP) syndrome. METHODS: In this monocentric, randomized, patient-assessor blinded, placebo-controlled trial, patients with HSP were randomly divided into the rESWT (n=17) and control (n=17) groups. Treatment was administered four times a week for 2 weeks. The visual analogue scale (VAS) score and Constant-Murley score (CS) were assessed before and after treatment, and at 2 and 4 weeks. The Modified Ashworth Scale and Fugl-Meyer Assessment scores and range of motion of the shoulder were also assessed. RESULTS: VAS scores improved post-intervention and at the 2-week and 4-week follow-up in the intervention group (p<0.05). Respective differences in VAS scores between baseline and post-intervention in the intervention and control groups were -1.69±1.90 and -0.45±0.79, respectively (p<0.05), between baseline and 2-week follow-up in the intervention and control groups were -1.60±1.74 and -0.34±0.70, respectively (p<0.05), and between baseline and 4-week follow-up in the intervention and control groups were -1.61±1.73 and -0.33±0.71, respectively (p<0.05). Baseline CS improved from 19.12±11.02 to 20.88±10.37 post-intervention and to 20.41±10.82 at the 2-week follow-up only in the intervention group (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: rESWT consisting of eight sessions could be one of the effective and safe modalities for pain management in people with HSP. Further studies are needed to generalize and support these results in patients with HSP and a variety conditions, and to understand the mechanism of rESWT for treating HSP.
Follow-Up Studies ; Hemiplegia ; High-Energy Shock Waves ; Humans ; Pain Management ; Range of Motion, Articular ; Shock* ; Shoulder Pain* ; Shoulder* ; Stroke ; Visual Analog Scale

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of radial extracorporeal shock wave therapy (rESWT) on hemiplegic shoulder pain (HSP) syndrome. METHODS: In this monocentric, randomized, patient-assessor blinded, placebo-controlled trial, patients with HSP were randomly divided into the rESWT (n=17) and control (n=17) groups. Treatment was administered four times a week for 2 weeks. The visual analogue scale (VAS) score and Constant-Murley score (CS) were assessed before and after treatment, and at 2 and 4 weeks. The Modified Ashworth Scale and Fugl-Meyer Assessment scores and range of motion of the shoulder were also assessed. RESULTS: VAS scores improved post-intervention and at the 2-week and 4-week follow-up in the intervention group (p<0.05). Respective differences in VAS scores between baseline and post-intervention in the intervention and control groups were -1.69±1.90 and -0.45±0.79, respectively (p<0.05), between baseline and 2-week follow-up in the intervention and control groups were -1.60±1.74 and -0.34±0.70, respectively (p<0.05), and between baseline and 4-week follow-up in the intervention and control groups were -1.61±1.73 and -0.33±0.71, respectively (p<0.05). Baseline CS improved from 19.12±11.02 to 20.88±10.37 post-intervention and to 20.41±10.82 at the 2-week follow-up only in the intervention group (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: rESWT consisting of eight sessions could be one of the effective and safe modalities for pain management in people with HSP. Further studies are needed to generalize and support these results in patients with HSP and a variety conditions, and to understand the mechanism of rESWT for treating HSP.
Follow-Up Studies ; Hemiplegia ; High-Energy Shock Waves ; Humans ; Pain Management ; Range of Motion, Articular ; Shock* ; Shoulder Pain* ; Shoulder* ; Stroke ; Visual Analog Scale

Purpose: Because insertion of a foreign body (FB) into the anus is considered a taboo practice, patients with a retained rectal FB may hesitate to obtain medical care, and attending surgeons may lack experience with removing these FBs. We performed this study to evaluate the clinical characteristics of Korean patients with a retained rectal FB and propose management guideline for such cases based on our experience. Methods: We retrospectively investigated 14 patients between January 2006 and December 2018. We assessed demographic features, mechanism of FB insertion, clinical course between diagnosis and management, and outcomes. Results: All patients were male (mean age, 43 years) and presented with low abdominal pain (n = 2), anal bleeding (n = 2), or concern about a retained rectal FB without symptoms (n = 10). FB insertion was most commonly associated with sexual gratification or anal eroticism (n = 11, 78.6%). All patients underwent general anesthesia for anal sphincter relaxation with the exception of 2 who underwent FB removal in the emergency department. FBs were retrieved transanally using a clamp (n = 2), myoma screw (n = 1), clamp application following abdominal wall compression (n = 2), or laparotomy followed by rectosigmoid colon milking (n = 2). Colotomy and primary repair were performed in four patients, and Hartmann operation was performed in one patient with fecal peritonitis. No morbidity or mortality was reported. All patients refused postextraction anorectal functional and anatomical evaluation and psychological counseling. Conclusion Retained rectal FB is rare; however, colorectal surgeons should be aware of the various methods that can be used for FB retrieval and the therapeutic algorithm applicable in such cases.

Parathyroid carcinoma is an uncommon cause of PTH-related hypercalcemia with a reported incidence of 0.4% to 5% of all cases of primary hyperparathyroidism. Even though the clinical manifestations of hyperparathyroidism are more severe in patients with parathyroid carcinoma than in those with parathyroid adenoma, it is difficult to differentiate carcinoma from adenoma preoperatively. Parathyroid carcinomas are usually larger and firmer than parathyroid adenomas and patients with parathyroid carcinoma have a higher incidence of renal dysfunction, bone disease and gastrointestinal symptoms. Anemia is an uncommon clinical feature of parathyroid carcinoma. There have been no prior cases of ectopic parathyroid carcinomas reported to date. In this article, we report the case of a 26-year-old man who developed severe anemia and acute renal failure due to an ectopic parathyroid tumor and was diagnosed with parathyroid carcinoma postoperatively. His serum calcium levels returned to normal and the anemia resolved postoperatively.
Acute Kidney Injury ; Adenoma ; Adult ; Anemia* ; Bone Diseases ; Calcium ; Humans ; Hypercalcemia ; Hyperparathyroidism ; Hyperparathyroidism, Primary ; Incidence ; Parathyroid Neoplasms* ; Renal Insufficiency*

The fabella is a small sesamoid bone generally located in the tendon of the lateral head of the gastrocnemius behind the lateral condyle of the femur. Fabella syndrome is the occurrence of posterolateral knee pain associated with the fabella. It is a rare cause of knee pain that is often misdiagnosed. Fabella syndrome can be managed with conservative or surgical treatment. We applied radial extracorporeal shock wave therapy as a new treatment strategy for fabella syndrome and achieved a successful outcome.
Femur ; Head ; Humans ; Knee ; Sesamoid Bones ; Shock* ; Tendons ; Ultrasonography