Ten adult worms of Pharynogostomum cordatum were recovered from a cat instesine purchased in August 1980 at the Namdaemun Market, Seoul, Korea. It is the first case report of cat pharyngostomiasis in Korea.
parasitology-helminth-trematoda ; case report ; cat ; Pharyngostomum cordatum

A 66-year-old female patient had a firm, non-tender, dome shaped mass on the scalp. The lesion had enlarged slowly for 2 years, and measured about 4 × 6 cm. The histologic finding of the skin biopsy specimen demonstrated an infiltration of immature plasma cells in the dermis, which express monoclonal cytoplasmic lambda light chain by immunohistochemical stainings, and staging work-up after the biopsy revealed no evidence of disease in other foci. The mass on the scalp was treated successfully by radiation therapy, with the diagnosis of primary cutaneous plasmacytoma.
Aged ; Biopsy ; Cytoplasm ; Dermis ; Diagnosis ; Female ; Humans ; Plasma Cells ; Plasmacytoma* ; Scalp ; Skin

We report a case of type III hyperlipoproteinemia which is called a broad-beta disease. A 53 year old female patient visited our clinic for the evaluation of multiple yellowish papules on extremities and eyelids. The patient showed various types of xanthoma includiiig eruptive, tuberous, tendinous xanthomas and xanthelasma palpebrarum, xanthoma striatum palmare. The blood chemistry revealed a marked elevstion of cholesterol and triglycerides and agarose gel electrophoresis showed a single peak at prebeta and beta portion without separation. On histopathologic studies, typical foam cells were showen.
Chemistry ; Cholesterol ; Electrophoresis, Agar Gel ; Extremities ; Eyelids ; Female ; Foam Cells ; Humans ; Hyperlipoproteinemia Type III* ; Hyperlipoproteinemias ; Middle Aged ; Triglycerides ; Xanthomatosis

To know the amplification pattern according to relative concentration ratio in mixed samples, two STRloci, vwF locus and MBP locus and two VNTR loci, D1S80 locus and d17S5 locus were amplified in DNA with various concentration of two individuals were easily identified. But when the concentration of one person were lowered to 1/20-1/40 of the other's the intensity of product bands diminshed and hardly discernible. Also different amplification efficiency according to the template length was noted, especially in VNTR loci. Using automatic sequencer and RFLP scan program, the intensity OD of each PCR product band could be calculated, and this correlates the felative amplification efficiency of each allele. By using this we could construct quantitative PCR for the mixed samples. This could be used in practical case work for forensic purpose, and also be a valuable candidate for 'chimerism detection' in case of bone marrow transplatation.
Alleles ; Bone Marrow ; DNA ; Humans ; Minisatellite Repeats ; Polymerase Chain Reaction* ; Polymorphism, Restriction Fragment Length

To study the basic pathological changes of small intestine in metagonimiasis, light- and electron microscopic studies were made, using a total of 21 cats which were experimentally infected with metacercariae of Metagonimus yokogawai. The metacercariae were obtained from naturally infected sweetfish (Plecoglossus altivelis) by digestion technique. The cats were divided in control, light-infection(10,000 metacercariae infected) and heavy-infection(50,000 metacercariae infected) groups. Cats were killed at the 5th, 10th, 15th day, and 4th, 8th and 10th week after the infection. And the small intestine was prepared for the study. Pathological studies comprised gross examination, worm distribution pattern, light microscopic examination and both transmission and scanning electron microscopic examinations. The results obtained were summarized as follows. Gross morphologic changes were the most marked during the first 2 weeks after infection. The gross abnormalities were severer in the heavily infected animals. The changes were dryness and listlessness of serosal surface due to dehydration, mushy and/or watery intestinal content, effacement of transverse nodes and enlargement of mesenteric lymph folds and Peyer's patches. After 4 weeks of infection, these changes became less marked showing a tendency to return to normal. The sectioned flukes were distributed from duodenum to proximal ileum. However, individual variation was marked in distribution. In the heavy-infection group, the locality of parasitism tended to extend more distally. The locality of M. yokogawai in the intervillous space was mostly in the lower-most portion of intervillous space, where they compressed and eroded epithelial cells probably due to mechanical damage to the structure. Very rarely the worms were found in lumen of Lierberkuehn's crypt, and reaching, in two occasions, into proprial lymphoid tissue. Light-microscopically the lesion was restricted in mucosa: Early mucosal changes were shortening, blunting, fusion, and thickening of the villi, crypt hypertrophy with consequent decrease of villus/crypt ratio, as well as stromal changes of edema, capilliary ectasia and marked inflammatory cell infiltration of lymphocytes and plasma cells. Goblet cells were markedly reduced in number as with depletion of its cytoplasmic content. In the later stages of infection, mucosa restored its normal configuration in spite of persistent parasitism of the worms. At the infection stage of 5-15 days, there was significant shortening of the microvillous height with varible destruction of glycocalyx in electron microscopic examination. With lapse of infection time, microvilli became to restore the normal pattern. With these morphological changes, it appears that diarrhea in experimental metagonimiasis would be related to the decrease of absorptive surface of the small intestine particularly in the early phase of infection. The significant changes seen in villi and microvilli might be due to massive intrusion or invasion of Metagonimus worms into the crypts, causing direct mechanical and possible host-immune response to the small bowel mucosa.
parasitology-helminth-trematoda ; metagonimiasis ; Metagonimus yokogawai ; pathology ; cat-intestine ; edema ; lymphocytes ; plasma cells ; goblet cell

No abstract available.
Nevus, Pigmented*

PURPOSE: The best option for varicocele treatment is controversial. We evaluate our experience using laparoscopic varicocelectomy & inguinal varicocelectomy, and then compared the two methods. We started this study to find the best treatment for varicocele patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Between July 2002 and July 2008, 168 cases (Group I) were treated with laparoscopic varicocelectomy and 157 cases (Group II) were treated with the inguinal approach. We assessed the two methods according to operative time, hospital stay, recurrence rate, complication rate, and cost effectiveness. RESULTS: The mean operative time was 30.2+/-10.9 min for laparoscopic varicocelectomy and 62.6+/-13.3 min for inguinal varicocelectomy (p<0.05). The recurrence rate was 2% for laparoscopic varicocelectomy and 8% for inguinal varicocelectomy (p>0.05). The complication rate was 10.7% for laparoscopic varicocelectomy and 12.7% for inguinal varicocelectomy (p>0.05). The cost of laparoscopic varicocelectomy was 401,870 won, but inguinal varicocelectomy was 256,480 won (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The laparoscopic varicocelectomy required a shorter operative time but no superior outcomes compared to inguinal varicocelectomy. The laparoscopic approach cannot be replaced with the routine open approach but it is thought to be worth consideration in selective cases.
Laparoscopy ; Length of Stay ; Operative Time ; Recurrence ; Varicocele

STUDY DESIGN: Case report. OBJECTIVES: To report a rare posterior arch hypoplasia of the atlas and review the clinical significance. SUMMARY OF LITERATURE REVIEW: Congenital hypoplasia of posterior arch of the atlas is uncommon. In particular, the combined fracture of the odontoid process has not been reported. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A 56-year-old man developed severe neck pain after a traffic accident. Cervical CT scan revealed a fracture of the odontoid process and hypoplasia of posterior arch of the atlas. RESULTS: Bony union was achieved after halo vest immobilization for three months. CONCLUSIONS: Hypoplasia of posterior arch of the atlas is determined incidentally in asymptomatic patients. However, the patients should be evaluated in detail with a 3D CT and MRI to avoid a misinterpretation as fracture, instability or misdiagnosis.
Accidents, Traffic ; Diagnostic Errors ; Humans ; Immobilization ; Middle Aged ; Neck Pain ; Odontoid Process

A 31-year-old woman with surgically proven spinal extradural granulocytic sarcoma was examined with magnetic resonance (MR) imaging. This patient had no evidence of systemic leukemia. The signal intensities of the mass on T1-weighted and gradient echo images were higher than those of spinal cord, which were different from iso-intensity of cases reported by other authors.
Adult ; Female ; Humans ; Leukemia ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging* ; Sarcoma, Myeloid* ; Spinal Cord

BACKGROUND: Proximal humerus fracture is considered to be the third most common fracture for patients aged 65 years or older. Conservative treatment has been known to treat most of humerus fracture. However, fractures with severe displacement or dislocation may require surgical treatment. Intramedullary fibular allograft with a locking plate is frequently used in patients accompanying medial metaphyseal disruption. In this study, author intends to evaluate clinical and imaging results based on patients who underwent surgical treatment using fibular allograft with a locking plate. METHODS: This study is conducted prospectively at Wonju Severance Christian Hospital, targeting patients who previously underwent surgical treatment using open reduction and intramedullary fibular allograft with a locking plate between 2011 and 2015. A total of 26 patients were evaluated on the following: postoperational clinical assessment measuring Constant score, American Shoulder and Elbow Society (ASES) score, and the Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand (DASH) score. Postoperational imaging assessments are evaluated via measuring the neck-shaft angle. The study subject were Neer classification type 3, 4 proximal humerus fracture cases with disrupted medial hinge and having cortical comminution in the region of the surgical neck. RESULTS: The average period of progression was 22.5 months, and the average age of patients was 72.6 years. At the final follow-up, the average Constant, average ASES, and average DASH scores were 80.1, 78.5, and 20.6 respectively. The average neck-shaft angle was 127.5°. CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion, fibular allograft augmentation with a locking plate showed satisfying results in both clinical and imaging studies.