Recently, cell cycle regulators have been suggested as new prognostic factors of the lung cancer. In this study, we evaluated the expression of cyclin D1, p21, and p53 using the X2-test, with regard to the stage of the patients, histologic type, and histologic differentiation in the 135 cases of non-small cell lung carcinomas (NSCLC). To evaluate the confounding effects among cyclin D1, p21, and p53 on X2-test analysis, we used the Mantel-Haenzel test. The NSCLC in this study included 82 cases of squamous cell carcinoma and 53 cases of adenocarcinoma. Each nuclear staining of cyclin D1, p21, and p53 was observed in 65 cases (48.1%), in 54 cases (40.0%), and in 81 cases (60.0%) of NSCLCs, respectively. Only p53 expression was significantly associated with the stage (stage I, II, IIIa) (p<0.05) and squamous cell carcinoma (p<0.05). On the other hand, cyclin D1 expression was significantly associated with the histologic differentiation. The confounding effects among cyclin D1, p21, and p53 revealed that only p21 expression changed the relationship between p53 and stage. In this regard, further study is needed.
Adenocarcinoma ; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell ; Cell Cycle ; Cyclin D1* ; Cyclins* ; Hand ; Humans ; Lung Neoplasms ; Lung* ; Prognosis*

BACKGROUNDS: Prognosis following surgery of gastric cancer has markedly improved as a result of early diagnosis, advances in operative techniques and perioperative managements. However, gastrointestinal surgery in patients with hepatic cirrhosis has continued to be associated with a high operative morbidity and mortality. The purpose of this retrospective study is to evaluate the prognostic factors on postoperative morbidity and survival in gastric cancer patients with hepatic cirrhosis. METHODS: We analysed 24 gastric cancer patients with hepatic cirrhosis between November 1994 and October 1999 (19 patients with Child A, 5 patients with Child B) to evaluate postoperative complications and survivals. RESULTS: There were no significant differences in age, sex, stage, operative types, and range of dissection between Child A and B. Postoperative complications occurred more commonly in the patients with more severe hepatic cirrhosis (Child A 5/19, Child B 4/5, p<0.05). There was no significant difference in 5-year survival rates between patients with Child A and B hepatic cirrhosis. Only the stage of cancer was proved to be the most significant prognostic factor. CONCLUSION: Patients with gastric cancer accompanied by hepatic cirrhosis can be successfully managed surgically on the basis of an appropriate preoperative assessment of hepatic conditions, proper selection of surgical procedures, and careful perioperative management.
Child ; Early Diagnosis ; Humans ; Liver Cirrhosis* ; Mortality ; Postoperative Complications ; Prognosis ; Retrospective Studies ; Stomach Neoplasms* ; Survival Rate

OBJECTIVES: Clinical studies have shown cognitive dysfunctions and soft neurological signs in schizophrenic patients and these findings have been suggested as evidence of organic bases in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. This study was intended to investigate the characteristics of cognitive deficits and soft neurological signs in schizophrenia and, to determine whether any abnormality in these functions can be regarded as a trait marker of the illness which is independent of antipsychotic treatment and clinical improvement. We also investigated the correlation between cognitive deficits and soft neurological signs reflecting cognitive dysmetria, respectively. METHODS: Twenty schizophrenic patients were assessed for the soft neurological signs and cognitive functions before and after neuroleptic treatment. The patients had been medicated for at least 3 weeks with one of the atypical neuroleptics. Cognitive functions were evaluated by Trail making A, B, Stroop test and Word fluency test. Soft neurological signs were assessed by Cambridge Neurological Inventory(Part 2). Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale(PANSS) and Clinical Global Impression(CGI) were used to assess the clinical severity and Extrapyramidal Symtoms Rating Scale was used to estimate the extrapyramidal symptoms. Cognitive functions and soft neurological signs of twenty normal controls were assessed with the same scale. RESULTS: Before treatment, schizophrenic patients showed significant impairments on cognitive function tests(Trail Making A, B, Stroop Test) and soft neurological sign tests(8 items:Grasp reflex, Go/no-go, Finger thumb opposition, Rhythm tapping, Finger agnosia, Fist-edge-palm, Left-right orientation, Extinction). Although significant clinical improvements were observed after the treatment, there were no significant changes in cognitive functions and soft neurological signs(except for Go/no-go test and Finger agnosia). Among the soft neurological signs of the patients, abnormality in Rhythm tapping was significantly correlated with cognitive deficits. CONCLUSION: Schizophrenic patients showed characteristic cognitive deficits and soft neurological signs which were independent of medication and clinical symptoms. And these two characteristics were partly correlated with each other.
Agnosia ; Antipsychotic Agents ; Cerebellar Ataxia ; Fingers ; Humans ; Reflex ; Schizophrenia ; Stroop Test ; Thumb

PURPOSE: The conventional surgical treatment for thyroid disease requires long skin incision with skin flap that can result in prominent scar, parethesia, hypesthesia in the neck. With recent developement in surgical techniques for thyroid tumors, several apporaches have been applied to neck surgery. We performed thyroid operations with 3 different methods and evaluated the role of respective operation method. METHODS: Three different surgical methods; conventional, minimally invasive open, and endoscopic thyroidectomy with axillary approach, were performed on 60 patients who were admitted to Ajou medical center from June to December 2003. All patients were diagnosed as having a benighn mass in unilateral lobe of thyroid gland preoperatively by ultrasonography and fine needle aspiration cytology. We compared the clinical results of respective 3 operation methods each other. RESULTS: Hospital stay and the operation time for minimal invasive open thyroidectomy was significantly shorter than those for endoscopic thyroidectomy (P<0.000). Amounts of post operative analgesics were the lowest in minimal invasive open thyroidectomy than other groups (P<0.019). The patients who was treated by using endoscopic procrdure were more satisfied with the cosmetic result. There was no significant complication in three groups. CONCLUSION: Minimally invasive open thyroidectomy and endoscopic thyroidectomy can be performed safely with cosmetic benefit, and then recommanded as a alternative operative method in selected patients.
Analgesics ; Biopsy, Fine-Needle ; Cicatrix ; Humans ; Hypesthesia ; Length of Stay ; Methods ; Neck ; Skin ; Thyroid Diseases ; Thyroid Gland* ; Thyroidectomy ; Ultrasonography

PURPOSE: Breast cancers frequently undergo distant metastasis during the early phase, on which the survival of patients is greatly dependent. It has been suggested that the occurrence of micrometastasis relates with other prognostic features of breast cancer, such as lymph node metastasis and the presence of vascular invasion. The aim of this study was to examine the presence of keratin-19 and mammaglobin mRNA in bone marrow aspirates obtained from breast cancer patients, and their possible correlation with tumor staging and disease free survival. METHODS: Bone marrow samples were obtained from 254 breast cancer patients at the time of surgery. We separated the mononuclear fraction from the samples and carried out nested reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction for the detection of keratin-19 and mammaglobin mRNA using two different pairs of primers. We also studied the possible correlations between the tumor size, nodal involvement, stage, and distant metastasis. RESULTS: Seventy-five of the 254 samples were studied for cytokeratin 19 and the others for cytokeratin and mammaglobin. The median follow-up time was 21.1 months. Sixty-five (26%) of the 254 samples were cytokeratin 19 positive and 25 (14.3%) of the 175 were mammaglobin positive. Eight cases (12.3%) in the cytokeratin positive group showed a recurrent disease in distant organs. Whereas, six (3.2%) out of 185 cytokeratin negative patients had distant recurrences. Mammaglobin positivity was not correlated with distant metastasis. The stage, nodal status, and estrogen receptor were independent of bone marrow micrometastasis. CONCLUSION: Bone marrow micrometastasis, detected by nested RT-PCR for cytokeratin 19, could be a useful predictive marker for the distant metastasis of breast cancer.
Bone Marrow* ; Breast Neoplasms* ; Breast* ; Disease-Free Survival ; Estrogens ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Keratin-19* ; Keratins* ; Lymph Nodes ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Neoplasm Micrometastasis* ; Neoplasm Staging ; Recurrence ; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction ; RNA, Messenger

OBJECT: There are lots of studies on the cognitive impairments in patients with dementia of Alzheimer type in our country, but those on the psychopathology in them are very scanty. We investigated the psychopathology such as psychotic symptoms, depression, and anxiety and their correlations with the severity of cognitive impairments in our urban subjects with dementia of Alzheimer type. METHODS: Our subjects(N=34) with dementia of Alzheimer type in an area of Pusan, aged over 65, are screened with MMSE-K(below 24) and Hachinski's Ischemic Scale(below 4) and enrolled in this study when they met with the criteria of dementia of DSM-IV. They were devided into the mild(N=16) and severe dementic group(N=18) according to their scores of MMSE-K(cut-off point 20/21). The severities of psychiatric symptoms in the two groups were evaluated by using sets of clinical symptom rating scales such as BPRS, HAM-D, and HAM-A and the frequencies of aggressive behaviors and sleep disturbances in them were also rated at that time by two psychiatrists. Data of the two dementic groups were compared with those of healthy control subjects(N=40). RESULTS: The mean total score of BPRS, scores of thinking disturbance and withdrawal retardation subscale were lowest in the healthy control group and highest in the severe dementic group(p<0.05). Mean score of anxious depression subscale of mild dementic group was higher than that of other two groups(p<0.05). There were no ststistical differences in the mean score of hostile suspiciousness subscale among the three groups. The mean total scores of HAM-D and HAM-A tended to be higher in mild dementic group than in other two groups, but the differences were not reached to the statistical significance. These findings were thought to be identical with those of following. The total frequency of insomnia only tended to be higher, but the frequency of initial insomnia and that of using hypnotics were highest in mild dementic group(p<0.05). The frequency of aggressive behaviors tended to be higher in mild dementic group than in other two groups, but the differences were not reached to the statistical significance. CONCLUSION: Patients with dementia of Alzheimer type suffered from several psychiatric problems such as psychotic symptoms, depression, anxiety, insomnia, and aggressive behaviors from the initial stage of the illness. Clinicians should be more aware of those symptoms which need proper pharmacological and social interventions, especially in patients with mild cognitive impairment.
Anxiety ; Busan ; Dementia* ; Depression ; Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders ; Humans ; Hypnotics and Sedatives ; Mild Cognitive Impairment ; Psychiatry ; Psychopathology* ; Sleep Initiation and Maintenance Disorders ; Thinking ; Weights and Measures

No abstract available.
Adenoma, Oxyphilic*

The transplantation of dopaminergic neurons in the brain has been attempted in experimental animals and humans as the new treatment modality of Parkinson's disease. Before the trial of dopaminergic neuronal transplantation in human, the authors proceeded with the animal experiment of fetal dopaminergic cell transplantation in a rat Parkinson's disease model. The aims of this experiment were to confirm the availability of fetal mesencephalic cells as the donor, to compare the viability of cells according to different cell manipulation methods, and to follow up the functional recovery in the transplanted Parkinson's disease model. As a result, the authors concluded that the simple enzyme digestion method had a better cell survival rate than the multiple enzyme digestion method. Also, the transplanted mesencephalic cells could not only survive in the host animal but also promote functional recovery.
Animal ; Corpus Striatum/*physiology ; Dopamine/*metabolism ; *Fetal Tissue Transplantation ; Male ; Mesencephalon/cytology/*embryology/metabolism ; Neurons/metabolism/*transplantation ; Parkinson Disease/*surgery ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

A severe, but reversible encephalitis associated with antibodies to the N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) was identified recently in young women with ovarian teratoma. This condition has not been reported previously in Korea. A 31-year-old woman presented with fever and behavioral disturbances; she became comatose several days later, and dyskinesia and dysautonomia developed thereafter. Antibodies to the NMDAR were positive and abdominal computed tomography detected a large ovarian teratoma. The patient improved dramatically after the removal of the teratoma and administration of corticosteroid therapy.
Adult ; Anti-N-Methyl-D-Aspartate Receptor Encephalitis ; Antibodies ; Coma ; Dyskinesias ; Encephalitis ; Female ; Fever ; Humans ; Korea ; N-Methylaspartate ; Primary Dysautonomias ; Teratoma

We report a case of pulmonary fungal ball of Pseudallescheria boydii (Scedosporium apiospermum, the anamorph) and the result of LSU rDNA D2 region sequencing of the clinical isolate. An immunocompetent 58-year-old female suffered 2-year history of hemoptysis. Her symptom persisted despite the administration of oral itraconazole, even though the clinical, radiological, and histological findings suggested Aspergilloma. In the fungal culture, the typical morphology of S. apiospermum was observed. Even though the sequencing using LSU rDNA D2 region identified the organism as Pseudallescheria ellipsoidea, one of the P. boydii complex, the further investigation of ours suggested that the species in P. boydii complex could not be differentiated from each other by the sequencing of LSU rDNA D2 region.
DNA, Ribosomal ; Female ; Hemoptysis ; Humans ; Itraconazole ; Middle Aged ; Pseudallescheria ; Scedosporium