No abstract available.
Adult* ; Humans ; Ophthalmic Artery*

We report a case of a tick bite by Ixodes nipponensis found on the neck of a 75-year-old female. The tick was thought to be in the lesion for 10 days. Till now 31 cases of tick bites were reported in Korea including the present case. The review of the Korean cases revealed that the ratio of female/male was 1.3 : 1, its age distribution was from 1st to 8th decade, sites of the invasion were trunk, head and neck, extremities, and anogenital area in order of frequency. Its prevalent season was spring and summer and the most common species(17/31) was Ixodes nipponensis.
Age Distribution ; Aged ; Extremities ; Female ; Head ; Humans ; Ixodes ; Korea ; Neck ; Seasons ; Tick Bites* ; Ticks*

BACKGROUND: Hematopoietic stem cells (HSC) remain one of the most promising target cells for gene therapeutic approaches, but is currently limited by a number of issues, including the low gene transfer efficiency. METHODS: We evaluated the effect of recombinant fibronectin fragment (retronectin) and cytokines during retroviral transduction of CD34+ cells and analyzed the characteristics of transduced cells. To rapidly characterize and isolate transduced cells, we used a retroviral vector coding for the truncated form of the low-affinity nerve growth factor receptor (delta LNGFR). RESULTS: The total number of CD34+ cells (1.5~6.3-fold) and the amount of cycling (S+G2/M) cell fractions (2~6-fold) were increased after cytokine prestimulation, especially using thrombopoietin (TPO)-based cytokines. The immunophenotype of CD34+ cells showed no significant differences according to the cytokines. However, CD34+AC133+ cells were more effectively maintained in the presence of TPO. The transduction efficiency of CD34+ cells was significantly increased in the presence of retronectin (6.7+/-2.3% vs 23.1+/-4.4%). Immunomagnetic selection of the transduced cells allowed us to enrich these effectively (6.7+/-2.3% --> 86.3+/-6.5%). Compared with control, delta LNGFR transduction did not influence on the immunophenotype and cloning efficiency of CD34+ cells. Among the delta LNGFR+/-derived colonies, 85.0% were shown to contain an integrated delta LNGFR gene. CONCLUSION: These data show that retronectin and TPO-based cytokines can be used to facilitate retroviral transduction of CD34+ cells. Also, delta LNGFR transduced cells could be rapidly characterized by FACS analysis and effectively enriched by immunomagnetic selection method. Further improvement of transduction conditions for stimulation of HSC proliferation without differentiation and development of new vectors that obviate the requirement for cell division are likely to enhance transduction of primitive HSC.
Cell Division ; Clinical Coding ; Clone Cells ; Cloning, Organism ; Cytokines* ; Fibronectins* ; Hematopoietic Stem Cells ; Nerve Growth Factor ; Thrombopoietin ; Zidovudine*

Upper gastrointestinal bleeding is one of the most common complications in patients with chronic renal failure. Common causes are peptic ulcer, gastritis, duodenitis, esophagitis, Mallory-Weiss tear, and angiodysplasia. However, gastric polyp is a rare cause of upper gastrointestinal bleeding. We diagnosed a bleeding hyperplastic polyp in chronic renal failure patient with melena. He had a bleeding polyp with a Y-shaped stalk. This polyp was treated effectively by endoscopic snare polypectomy.
Angiodysplasia ; Duodenitis ; Esophagitis ; Gastritis ; Hemorrhage* ; Humans ; Kidney Failure, Chronic* ; Mallory-Weiss Syndrome ; Melena ; Peptic Ulcer ; Polyps* ; SNARE Proteins

Upper gastrointestinal bleeding is one of the most common complications in patients with chronic renal failure. Common causes are peptic ulcer, gastritis, duodenitis, esophagitis, Mallory-Weiss tear, and angiodysplasia. However, gastric polyp is a rare cause of upper gastrointestinal bleeding. We diagnosed a bleeding hyperplastic polyp in chronic renal failure patient with melena. He had a bleeding polyp with a Y-shaped stalk. This polyp was treated effectively by endoscopic snare polypectomy.
Angiodysplasia ; Duodenitis ; Esophagitis ; Gastritis ; Hemorrhage* ; Humans ; Kidney Failure, Chronic* ; Mallory-Weiss Syndrome ; Melena ; Peptic Ulcer ; Polyps* ; SNARE Proteins

Several reports have suggested a geographic difference in the histopathologic characteristics and prognosis of malignant lymphoma around the world. We tried to evaluate the clinical and histopathologic characteristics, therapeutic outcomes, and prognostic features of malignant lymphoma, particularly in Korean patients. Three hundred and seventy-six adult patients with the initial histopathologic diagnosis of malignant lymphoma of Yonsei University College of Medicine over an 8-year period were analyzed, retrospectively, with the following results: 1) There were 47 cases of Hodgkin's disease (HD) (12.5%) and 329 of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) (87.5%) with a 1:7 ratio. The most common histopathologic subtype of HD was mixed cellularity (44.7%), and that of NHL was intermediate grade (70.8%), especially diffuse large-cell type (44.1%), whereas follicular type was less common. In regard to the incidence of extranodal presentation, it is rare in HD (4.2%), but occurs in 49.8% of patients with NHL. 2) The complete remission (CR) rate was 91.5% in HD and 63.6% in NHL, and the 5-year and 7-year disease-free survival rates were 71.3% and 57.0% in HD; 67.0% and 49.6% in NHL. The 5-year and 8-year overall survival rates were 90.7% and 68.0% in HD; 65.2% and 60.2% in NHL. 3) By multivariate analysis, we found that age, performance status, histopathologic grade, stage, serum lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and beta 2-microglobulin were the useful prognostic factors in predicting survival in NHL, while no definite prognostic factors were found in HD. Also, in NHL patients less than 60 years old, stage, serum LDH, and histopathologic grade were closely associated with their therapeutic outcomes. In conclusion, the characteristics of malignant lymphoma in our hospital differ from those in Western countries with respect to the clinical, histopathologic and immunophenotypic patterns, but the prognostic factors and overall therapeutic outcomes were quite comparable to those of other reports from Western countries.
Adolescence ; Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Female ; Human ; Lymphoma/therapy* ; Lymphoma/pathology* ; Male ; Middle Age ; Prognosis ; Survival Analysis ; Treatment Outcome

PURPOSE: The purposes of this study were to evaluate the plain radiologic findings of the childhood intussusception and to evaluate the role of plain abdominal films in predicting the success of air or barium reduction. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed 140 cases with the diagnosis of intussusception in children. The radiological signs that included soft tissue mass, dilatation of small bowel suggesting obstruction, crescent sign, and target sign were evaluated in terms of frequency. The relationship between radiological findings and outcome of reduction was analyzed. The site of soft tissue mass or crescent sign seen on plain radiographs was correlated with the position of the apex of the intussusceptum seen at the beginning of barium enema. The degree of dilated small bowel was evaluated by calculating the proportion of air-filled small bowel occupying peritoneal cavity and measuring the maximal diameter of dilated bowel lumen. The radiological finding for small bowel obstruction is determined by observation of the degree of small bowel dilatation and/or air-fulid levels. RESULTS: Ninety-two cases out of 140 showed one or more radiographic signs. Two most common signs were soft tissue mass and small bowel obstruction. The success rate of air or barium reduction was significantly lower in patients with most severe degree of dilatation of small bowel and/or more than 7 air-fulid levels on erect view. The suspected location of intussusception on plain radiographs correlated well with the true location of intussusception seen in the first few seconds of barium reduction. CONCLUSION: Plain abdominal radiography is useful in the diagnosis of intussusception and provides helpful informations for the reduction procedure as well as for the exclusion of the contraindications such as bowel perforation.
Barium ; Child ; Diagnosis ; Dilatation ; Enema ; Humans ; Intussusception* ; Peritoneal Cavity ; Radiography, Abdominal ; Retrospective Studies

A twenty six months-old boy developed hemophagocytic syndrome during the course of Kawasaki disease. Despite the appropriate treatment modalities for Kawasaki disease, he developed thrombocytopenia, hepatomegaly, high-grade fever, hypertriglyceridemia, peripheral gangrene, and evidence of hemophagocytosis in bone marrow biopsy. Although the course was stormy, he responded well to a combination therapy of corticosteroid and etoposide.
Biopsy ; Bone Marrow ; Etoposide ; Fever ; Gangrene* ; Hepatomegaly ; Humans ; Hypertriglyceridemia ; Lymphohistiocytosis, Hemophagocytic* ; Male ; Mucocutaneous Lymph Node Syndrome* ; Thrombocytopenia

Merkel cell carcinoma is a rapidly growing malignant neuroendocrine tumor with a high rate of recurrence and metastasis for which wide excision is recommended. About 10 cases of spontaneous regression have been reported in the world. We report a case of Merkel cell carcinoma which showed spontaneous regression. The patient was a 68-year-old woman with a two-month history of a rapidly enlarging dusky red tumor on her right cheek. Microscopically, the tumor cells were uniform with round to oval shaped nucleus and scanty cytoplasm, and showed trabecular arrangement. Ultrastructually, dense core neurosecretory granules 100 to 200nm in diameter were found in the cytoplasm of tumor cells. As far as we know, this is the first case of the spontaneous regression of the tumor in the country.
Aged ; Carcinoma, Merkel Cell* ; Cheek ; Cytoplasm ; Female ; Humans ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Neuroendocrine Tumors ; Recurrence

BACKGROUND: It has been shown that subjects with exceptional longevity and their offsprings have a lower incidence and delayed onset of age-related diseases. Cardiovascular protective effect through over-presentation of Apo E2 with lower LDL cholesterol level, high HDL cholesterol, and larger size of HDL and LDL particle with cholesteryl ester transfer protein(CETP) genetic variation were suggested as a mechanism of less cardiovascular disease in exceptional longevity. Objective of this study is to examine what risk factors of cardiovascular diseases were related with exceptional longevity in Korea. METHODS: One hundred seventeen centenarians, 179 nonagenarians, 61 octogenarian regional controls were visited and joined after informed written consent was obtained. Age was first identified by National Residence Registry with help of regional government and verified by visiting researchers with birth year animal, age of first child and neighbor's connection memory. Detailed interview with questionnaires about health status and life style, physical examination, physical and cognitive function, and blood tests were performed. Data about risk factors of cardiovascular disease was analyzed and compared exceptional longevity group with regional control group and 455 octogenarian control data from 2001 National Health and Nutrition Examination. RESULTS: Hypertension and diabetes history, hypercholesterolemia and hypertriglyceridemia, obesity and abdominal obesity, and physical inactivity ratio of longevity groups were significantly less than control group. Level of homocysteine, and C-reactive protein and low serum HDL cholesterol ratio were not much different between longevity and control group. CONCLUSION: Fewer risk factors and delayed onset of cardiovascular disease were observed in Korean exceptional longevity group. Future research about genetic protective effect of cardiovascular disease in longevity is required.
Aged, 80 and over ; Animals ; Apolipoprotein E2 ; C-Reactive Protein ; Cardiovascular Diseases* ; Child ; Cholesterol, HDL ; Cholesterol, LDL ; Genetic Variation ; Hematologic Tests ; Homocysteine ; Humans ; Hypercholesterolemia ; Hypertension ; Hypertriglyceridemia ; Incidence ; Korea ; Life Style ; Longevity* ; Memory ; Obesity ; Obesity, Abdominal ; Parturition ; Physical Examination ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Risk Factors*