No abstract available.

Treatment modalities for herniated lumbar intervertebral disc are the conservative method, chemonucleolysis, percutaneous diskectomy and operation. Conservative treatment is effective in 70–80% of the acute stage and the other 20% requires chemonucleolysis, percutaneous diskectomy or operation. Indications for operation are cases not improved after conservative treatment, recurrent cases and cauda equina syndrome. Mixter and Barr(1934) demonstrated that laminectomy and surgical removal of disc material could relieve symptoms, but spinal segmental instability, incomplete removal of the disc and postoperative adhesion of the nerve root caused low back pain after long-term follow up. Thus, the authors evaluated the plain X-ray and computed tomographic findings in 21 cases of failed laminectomy to determine the cause of failure. The results were as follows ; 1. Among 21 cases, 18 cases complained of low back pain with sciatica and 3 cases complained of low back pain. 2. In all cases, disc space narrowing was detected on plain X-ray. Total laminectomy and diskectomy promote insufficiency and instability of the lumbar and lumbosacral spine. Whenever one attempts to do total laminectomy and diskectomy, it is recommended that spine fusion be performed in same operating field. 3. Several findings were detected on CT scan : 8 disc protrusions in the operation site, 6 disc protrusions in the operation site and spinal stenosis, 4 extradural scars, 1 extradural scar and other site disc protrusion and 2 cases of spinal stenosis and spondyloisthesis. 4. Computed tomography in cases of failed laminectomy offers more information than has been available by any other imaging method.
Cicatrix ; Diskectomy ; Diskectomy, Percutaneous ; Follow-Up Studies ; Intervertebral Disc ; Intervertebral Disc Chemolysis ; Laminectomy ; Low Back Pain ; Methods ; Polyradiculopathy ; Sciatica ; Spinal Stenosis ; Spine ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed

No abstract available.
Cytogenetics*

No abstract available.
Blood Platelets* ; Diagnosis* ; Flow Cytometry* ; Integrin beta3* ; Thrombasthenia*

No abstract available.
Gangwon-do* ; Hepacivirus* ; Hepatitis C* ; Hepatitis* ; Liver Diseases* ; Liver* ; Prevalence*

A case of a 21-year old female with Maffucci's syndrome is presented where the patient developed multiple cutaneous spindle-cell hemangioendotheliomas. She had multiple pea to walnut sized, non-tender, normal skin colored or slight bluish nodules and bony mass-like lesions on the left upper extremity and hand. A histological examination of the lesions showed that they were composed of irregularly dilated, thin walled cavernous blood spaces containing phleboliths and collapsed vascular spaces separated by spindled fibroblastic cells. Radiologically, the bony lesions showed radiolucent densities with calcified spots within the second proximal phalanx and metacarpal bone of the left hand, which were consistent with enchondromas.
Chondroma ; Female ; Fibroblasts ; Hand ; Hemangioendothelioma* ; Humans ; Juglans ; Peas ; Skin Pigmentation ; Upper Extremity

BACKGROUND: The keratinocyte growth factor(KGF) is a recently identified mitogen for epithelial cells produced by nomal stromal fibroblasts. ln the skin, KGF has been shown to stimulate keratinocyte proliferation and differentiatian. Dendritic epidermal T cells(DETC) are skin-specific members of the epithelial y 8 T-cell family that reside normally in the murine epidermis. The DETCs recognize antigen expressed by damaged or diseased neighboring keratinoctyes and consequently secrete cytokines sueh as IFN- y, lL-2, IL-4, GM-CSF. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to observe the expression of KGF mRNA in keratinocyte and DETC as well as to investigate the cytokine-mediated intercellular communication between kerati- nocyte and DETC. METHODS: Using a RT-PCR(reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction), we examined the expression of KGF mRNA in keratinocyte and DETC, and compared the level of KGF mRNA between resting and activated DETC with Con-A (concanavalin A).
Cytokines ; Epidermis ; Epithelial Cells ; Fibroblast Growth Factor 7* ; Fibroblasts ; Granulocyte-Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor ; Humans ; Interleukin-4 ; Keratinocytes* ; RNA, Messenger* ; Skin ; T-Lymphocytes

Twenty-nail dystrophy is an idiopathic nail dystrophy in which all twenty nails are uniformly and simultaneously affected with excess longitudinal ridging and loss of lustre. The pathogenesis is controversial, and the treatment is unsuccessful. It is thought to have a self-limiting and reversible nature when it develops in childhood, but in adults, it is unusual and exists persistently. We re-port here two cases of adult patients with dystrophy of all twenty nails, whose ages were 58 and 55. The disease had been present for one year and may be associated with alopecia areata in the 58 year old and an idiopathic condition in the 55 year old. Negative results were obtained on mycological studies. Biopsies taken from the nail bed revealed marked hyperkeratosis consistent with nail dystrophy.
Adult ; Alopecia ; Alopecia Areata ; Biopsy ; Humans

We evaluated the relationship between the surgical success of idiopathic macular hole and sex, age, duration, epiretinal membrane, preoperative visual acuity, size of the hole, and surgical method. Of all 25 eyes in 23 patients, 14 eyes(56%)showed anatomical success(disappearance of the hole), and 17 eyes(68%)functional success(the final visual acuity of 0.15 or more with more than one line improvement). There were statistically significant differences of anatomical(p=0.001)and functional success(p=0.020)between the Group I where its macular hole was less than one-fourth of the optic disc in size and the other group, and anatomical success(p=0.039)between the group with the age of less than 70 years(Group A)and the other group. In Group I, anatomical and functional success were both 92%(11 eyes/12 eyes). In Group A, anatomical and functional success were 72%(13 eyes/18 eyes)and 77%(14 eyes/18 eyes), respectively, and there was statistically significant relationship between size of the hole and anatomical success(p=0.024), and difference of anatomical success between the group with duration of less than 6 months and the other group(p=0.023). Good surgical result may be expected in the idiopathic macular hole of the age of less than 70 years with about 350 micrometer or less in size and duration of less than 6 months.
Epiretinal Membrane ; Humans ; Retinal Perforations* ; Visual Acuity