As an optimal quality of the restorations, there should be a least amount of seating discrepancy between the casting and abutment teeth. However, high viscosity of the cementing medium and its resulting thickness ay prevent complete seating of the restoration. The use of die spacing material provides adequate internal relief for the cementing medium. The purpose of this study is to compare the thickness of three commonly used die spacing materials. Materials and Methods : Stone plates were fabricated and divided into 12 sections to be painted with die spacers. Tru-Fit, Whip-Mix and Belle de St. Claire die spacer which are commonly used in dental practice were tested in this study. Each die spacers were painted layer by layer according to the manufacturer's recommendation. The average thickness of each die spacers were measured with light microscope(x100) and compared between them. Results and Conclusions: A silver-colored Tru-Fit die spacer has the lowest value of thickness without statistical significance comparing with a gold-colored Tru-Fit die spacer and a gray layer of Whip-Mix die spacer has the highest value of thickness without any statistical significance comparing with Belle de St. Claire die spacer. Three and four layers of Tru-Fit die spacer and two layers of Whip-Mix and Belle de St. Claire die spacers seem to be in the acceptable range of thickness of 25 to 45micrometer for optimal seating of the restorations. The standard experimental design and method should be further evaluated for more consistent and objective results.
Paint ; Research Design ; Tooth ; Viscosity

Soft tissue expansion technique has been a very useful method for the reconstruction of scalp defects and alopecia since the scalp is an unyielding tissue allowing minimal distension in traditional local flap surgery. As a result, there has been wide use of the tissue expansion method in the reconstruction of scalp defect and treatment of alopecia in the plastic surgery. There have been many concerns about histomorphologic changes of the overlying skin and the underlying structure resulting from tissue expansion. We also know that progressive tissue expansion induces increased mitotic activity of the epidermis and thining of the dermis in the overlying skin, as well as significant gross, histologic bony erosion in the underlying structure. However, little informations have been reported about the changes of the hair and pilocebaceus units in scalp expansion. We compared the horizontal sections of the expanded scalp and its longterm histologic changes with a normal unexpanded scalp specimen as a control. The terminal hair proportions to the vellus hair both increased. There was a 32% decrease in follicular units, a 24% decrease in terminal hair, and a 23% decrease in total hairs 8 week after scalp expansion compared to the normal unexpanded scalp. The perifollicular inflammatory changes and fibrosis observed in the full expanded scalp specimen disappeared within 12 weeks after removal of the expander and the flap transposition. In our observation, tissue expansion at the hair-bearing scalp did not precipitate any adverse changes on the hair follicles. On the contrary, we observed that secondary scalp expasion could be safetly performed 3 months after the first scalp expansion.
Alopecia ; Dermis ; Epidermis ; Fibrosis ; Hair Follicle* ; Hair* ; Humans* ; Scalp* ; Skin ; Surgery, Plastic ; Tissue Expansion*

A 53-year-old woman presented with dyspnea. She had undergone extended thymectomy for an invasive thymoma two months prior. CT revealed numerous small nodules in the lung. After that, she deteriorated owing to acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), and the vascular surgeon planned veno-venous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). During percutaneous cannulation through the left femoral vein, a vascular injury was suspected, and the patient’s vital signs became unstable. Diagnostic angiography showed a ruptured left common iliac vein, and the bleeding was stopped by placement of a stent-graft. May-Thurner syndrome was diagnosed on abdominal CT. Here, we report a rare case of ECMO-related vascular injury in a patient with an unrecognized anatomical variant, May-Thurner syndrome.

Palisaded, encapsulated neuroma is characterized clinically by a solitary, slowly-growing and dome-shaped papule or nodule, usually accompanied by telangiectasia on the surface, and histopathologically by an encapsulated nodule in the dermis and the palisading arrangement of nuclei. A 57-year-old female patient presented with a 1cm-sized, solitary nodule on the right ala nasi which had been present for about 5 years. The nodule had a tendency to slow growth and it became a polypoid nodule. Telangiectasia was shown on the surface of the lesion. Histopathlogical findings showed a well-defined and encapsulated nodule in the dermis, composed of spindle cells with basophilic and plump nuclei in a palisading fashion. On immunohistochemical staining, the tumor cells of the nodule were positive for S-100 protein, while the capsule of the nodule was negative for S-100 protein. Epithelial membrane antigens were focally positive only on the capsule of the nodule. We report herein a case of palisaded, encapsulated neuroma, one case of which has been reported in Korea.
Basophils ; Dermis ; Female ; Humans ; Korea ; Middle Aged ; Mucin-1 ; Neuroma* ; S100 Proteins ; Telangiectasis

We report a case of nevus sebaceus of Jadassohn in a 31-year-old female associated with various epidermal appendage tumors, such as syringocystadenoma papilliferum, sebaceus adenoma and eccrine hidrocystoma. We supposed that the multiple lesions seem to support the concept of nevus sebaceus arising from the pluripotential primary epithelial germ.
Adenoma ; Adult ; Female ; Hidrocystoma ; Humans ; Nevus* ; Nevus, Sebaceous of Jadassohn

The gray vibrissae of Korean males(n =189) between 15 and 75 years old and females(n =111) between-15 and 74 years old who visited the department of otorhinolaryngology, Konkuk university Chungju hospital during 1996 to 1998, were counted for the purpose of estimating approximate age range in individuals of unknown age . The lowest age appearing gray hairs in both sexes was 15-year-old. The Pearson's correlation coefficient in both sexes was 0.490 (p<0.01). The age appearing gray vibrissae in females was slightly earlier than that of males, however, the differences between right and left sides of nasal cavity were insignificant. This method of counting gray vibrissae would be useful to estimate age range in personal identification together with other methods available until now.
Adolescent ; Aged ; Chungcheongbuk-do ; Female ; Hair* ; Humans ; Male ; Nasal Cavity ; Otolaryngology ; Vibrissae*

No abstract available.
Child* ; Hearing Loss, Sensorineural* ; Humans ; Temporal Bone*

Bart's syndrome was initially described as a genodermatosis characterized by congenital localized absence of the skin with blistering and nail deformities 1-3. However, it is considered as any type of epidermolysis bullosa(EB) with localized congenital absence of the skin on the extremities. A 33-day-old fbmale baby was presented with congenital absence of the skin over the left shin and dorsa of both feet which were covered with the thin, translucent, and brown-red glistening membranes. Blistering of the right calf and left great toe nail deformity were also noted. She was diagnosed as a recessive dystrophic EB by the histopathological, ultra- structural and immunomapping studies.
Blister ; Congenital Abnormalities ; Extremities ; Foot ; Membranes ; Skin ; Toes

Fetal echocardiography is used by means of decleration of fetal cardiac anaztomy, to estabilish the diagnosis of congenital heart disease in utero. We attemped fetal echocardiography to ninty three pregnant women after intra uterine period 24 weeks, and estimated cardiac circumference, cardiac axis, pulmonary atery root diameter, arortic root diameter, diameter of inferior vena cava, diameter of superior ve studied how these estimates associate with following gestational na cava, and fractional shortening of ventricles. We ages. Cardiac axis was on the average 37.28 degree and cardiac apex was located in anterior left side of chest area. Aortic root diameter was 0.227 GA-0.043mm (GA=gestational age) at systolic phase, 0.203 GA+0.421mm at diastolic phase. Pulmonaly root diameter was 0.271 GA-0.029mm at systolic phase, 0.251 GA-0.067mm at diastolic phase. Thoracic aorta diameter was 0.195 GA+0.109mm at systolic phase, 0.198 GA+0.794mm at diastolic phase. Fractional shortening was 0.24 (1 Standard Deviation=0.11) in right ventricle, 0.23(1 SD=0.154) at left ventricle, and so ratio of right and left ventricle was 1.04(1 SD=0.51). Once normal fetal cardiac anatomy is understood, structural defects and/or alternation of function can be evaluated antenatally.
Aorta, Thoracic ; Axis, Cervical Vertebra ; Diagnosis ; Echocardiography* ; Female ; Heart Defects, Congenital ; Heart Ventricles ; Humans ; Pregnant Women ; Thorax ; Vena Cava, Inferior

OBJECTIVE: Adult onset Still s disease is an acute systemic inflammatory disorder. There are no pathognomonic symptoms or specific laboratory abnormalities. In recent reports, serum ferritin concentration is increased in active disease phase and decreased after defervescence. Our purpose was to determine the clinical significance of serum ferritin as an indicator for disease activity. METHODS: Seven patients who were diagnosed as adult onset Still s disease at Samsung Medical Center between October 1994 and March 1997, were reviewed. In these patients we checked leukocyte count, ESR, CRP and serum ferritin concentrations at the time of diagnosis and during follow-up periods and recorded febrile events during follow-up periods. RESULTS: At the time of diagnosis and during febrile periods, the concentrations of ferritin were extremely high(927ng/ml to 96,650ng/ml normal 10-290.8 ng/ml). The values were unrelated to other manifestations of the disease or laboratory findings. The ferritin concentrations decreased rapidly after adequate treatment. Eleven febrile reattacks happened in 7 patients. Serum ferritin concentrations were increased in 8 febrile attacks, while leukocyte count, ESR, and CRP were increased in 5, 5, 6 febrile attacks respectively, There were 10 events of increased serum ferritin concentrations in 7 patients during follow-up periods and 8 events were related with fever. The increases of other laboratory tests were similar. CONCLUSIONS: In all patients, serum ferritin concentrations were increased at the time of diagnosis and closely related to fever. During follow-up periods, serum ferritin concentrations are helpful in monitoring disease activity and guiding decisions about treatment.
Adult* ; Diagnosis ; Ferritins* ; Fever ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Leukocyte Count ; Still's Disease, Adult-Onset*