No abstract available.

No abstract available.
Autoantibodies* ; Humans*

No abstract available.
Autoantibodies* ; DNA*

Extrarenal Wilms' tumor is extremely rare and occurs predominantly in children. There are less than 50 well-documented cases of extrarenal Wilms' tumor in the literature. Herein, a case of extrarenal Wilms' tumor, whose mass was found in the inguinal region during an operation for the cryptorchidism, is reported in a 2 year old child with a brief review of literature. This case report illustrates the importance of pathologic examination of similar soft masses, found incidentally during operations.
Child ; Child, Preschool ; Cryptorchidism ; Humans ; Male ; Wilms Tumor*

When a patient with severe trauma is admitted to the emergency room (ER), they are evaluated before transfer to either the intensive care unit (ICU) or operating room. To minimize the time until a definitive treatment can be provided, direct operating room resuscitation can be performed. In this hospital the ER was closed during the hospital’s transition to a coronavirus disease 2019-dedicated hospital, and direct ICU resuscitation for patients with trauma was performed for a short period. To perform effective trauma resuscitation, all ICU beds were reorganized to achieve a modified, experienced nurse: patient ratio (1:2-3) and 2 beds were assigned for trauma ICU resuscitation alone. The equipment for initial resuscitation was installed and ICU nurses received training. Consultations with the hospital administration, nursing, and pharmaceutical departments were completed in advance to avoid formal problems. Conversion of the ICU for direct resuscitation procedures was performed in 4 patients.

From 1981 to 1993, one hundred and thirty eight patients had been treated by free flap or island flap, for the tissue defects of the extremities. Among these 138 patients, vascularized bone graft was 29 cases, soft tissue free flap 40, replantation 22, local island flap 45, and lymphovenous shunt 2. Average age at the time of operation was 27 years(1-66 years), and men were 110, women 28. Average duration of follow-up was 2 years and 8 months(4 months-11 years and 8 months). Twenty nine cases of vascularized bone graft was consisted of fibular graft in 15 patients, ilium 8, joint transplantation 4, thumb reconstruction using big toe 1, and rib 1. Four of them were failed. Among 40 patients of soft tissue free flap, latissimus dorsi flap was 12 cases, dorsalis pedis flap 11, scapular flap 8, wraparound procedure 7 and gracilis flap 2. Seven of them were failed. The levels of replantations were both lower extremities in one patient, leg 1, arm 2, distal forearm 2, and finger(s) 16. In six patients, replantation was nor successful. Among 45 patients of local island flap, lateral supramalleolar island flap was performed in 8 patients, dorsalis pedis flap 2, Chinese flap 10, reverse ulnar artery flap 4, reverse posterior interosseous artery flap 3, neurovascular island flaps for fingers 14, and others 4. Two of them were failed. Two cases of lymphovenous shunt for the treatment of lymphedema were successful. As a whole, 119 cases were successful(86%) among 138 cases including local island flap 45 cases.
Arm ; Arteries ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Extremities ; Female ; Fingers ; Follow-Up Studies ; Forearm ; Free Tissue Flaps ; Hallux ; Humans ; Ilium ; Joints ; Leg ; Lower Extremity ; Lymphedema ; Male ; Replantation ; Ribs ; Superficial Back Muscles ; Surgical Flaps ; Thumb ; Transplants ; Ulnar Artery

Coronavirus disease was first reported in December 2019, and the World Health Organization declared it as a pandemic on March 11, 2020. The virus is known to attack various vital organs, including the respiratory system. Patients sometimes require positive pressure ventilation and tracheostomy. Because tracheostomy is a droplet-spreading procedure, medical staff should protect themselves against the risk of transmission of this contagious viral disease. In our case, we performed tracheostomy for a 70-year-old man with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) who had required more oxygen with gradual weakness of respiratory muscle to maintain his arterial oxygen saturation. We focused on the risks of the medical staffs and patients, and minimized them at the same time using temporary balloon over-inflation, pre-operative adjustment of endotracheal tube position, and attachment of a transparent film dressing to the surgical field without stopping the ventilator while following routine safety measures. Fourteen days after the tracheostomy, all participating medical staff members were healthy and asymptomatic. The patient was discharged 105 days after the COVID-19 diagnosis.

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to determine the reference ranges of serum albumin levels depending on the gestational ages of preterm infants. We also intended to compare the mean serum albumin levels between groups of preterm infants that did not develop clinical disorders later, and groups that did develop clinical disorders such as respiratory distress syndrome, intraventricular hemorrhage, retinopathy of prematurity, apnea and bronchopulmonary dysplasia. We also examined the significance of serum albumin as a predictor for the development of clinical disorders. METHODS: The records of 208 neonates with gestational ages from 23 weeks to 41 weeks were reviewed retrospectively. The mean albumin concentrations with reference ranges by gestational ages were determined. Statistics for each two of group were compared. Logistic regression analysis was used to model odd ratio, and 95 percent confidence interval as a mean of the association between predictors and outcome. RESULTS: Serum albumin levels were at 23-24 weeks gestation was 2.36 g/dL, rising to 3.43 g/dL in full term babies. There were significant mean differences between the clinical groups and control groups for each clinical disorder such as respiratory distress syndrome, intraventricular hemorrhage, retinopathy of prematurity and apnea in premature babies of 30-36 weeks of gestation. Low serum albumin appeared to be associated with increased risks of clinical disorders. CONCLUSION: The normal serum albumin levels in preterm infants should be defined according to the gestational ages. Lower albumin levels increase the risks of the later development of clinical disorders, which are common in premature infants.
Apnea ; Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia ; Gestational Age* ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Infant, Newborn ; Infant, Premature ; Logistic Models ; Pregnancy ; Reference Values ; Retinopathy of Prematurity ; Retrospective Studies ; Serum Albumin*

Paragangliomas (PGs) of the thyroid are very rare tumors. Based on the medical literature, thyroid PGs invariably affected women and they were always thought to be benign, and they have always been mistaken for other more common lesions. We report here on the first case of PG of the thyroid in a 45-year-old man in Korea. Ultrasonographically, the tumor showed hypoechoic features. Microscopically, the tumor showed the typical zellballen pattern. The small to medium-sized tumor cells contained moderate amounts of finely granular eosinophilic cytoplasm and round to oval nuclei with fine chromatin. The tumor invaded the thyroid capsule and the extrathyroidal tissue with vascular and perineural invasion. Immunohistochemically, the tumor showed positivity for chromogranin, S-100 protein, CD56a, and synaptophysin and negativity for calcitonin, thyroglobulin, galectin-3, p53, CK19, and EMA. The Ki-67 labeling Index was 10%. We concluded that our case has a high potential of metastasis, and a close follow up would be important.
Female ; Male ; Humans

Although one of the major physiological functions of taurine (2-aminoethanesulfonic acid) is the inhibitory action on the central nervous system (CNS), the mechanism of taurine in controlling the neuronal excitation in the CNS has been in controversy. Electrically evoked pEPSP and spontaneous activity induced by the perfusion of low Mg++/-ACSF were recorded in the CA1 pyramidal cell layer of the hippocampal slice. To test the inhibitory effect of taurine on spontaneous responses, taurine was treated for 2 min at various concentrations(1 mM-10 mM). Taurine reduced the spontaneous activity by 22.2% at 1 mM, and 100% at 2 mM in low Mg++/-ACSF. Evoked response was induced by electrical stimulation of Schaffer collateral-commissural fibers. Taurine reduced the evoked response by 11.68% at 3 mM, and 24.25% at 5 mM. Even 20 mM of taurine reduced the evoked response only by 24% after 5 min treatment. That is, the inhibitory efficacy was much higher in spontaneous activity than in evoked response. The GABAA receptor antagonist, 100 muM bicuculline, blocked the inhibitory action of taurine, while GABAB receptor antagonist, 700 muM phaclofen, did not. Taurine blocked the spontaneous activity in the presence of CNQX, and did not block the electrically evoked response in the presence of APV. The results suggest that taurine causes hyperpolarization in the cell by binding to GABAA receptor and preferentially attenuates NMDA receptor-mediated hyperexcitation, leaving synaptic transmission unmodified.
6-Cyano-7-nitroquinoxaline-2,3-dione ; Animals ; Bicuculline ; CA1 Region, Hippocampal ; Central Nervous System ; Electric Stimulation ; gamma-Aminobutyric Acid ; Hippocampus ; N-Methylaspartate ; Neurons ; Perfusion ; Rats* ; Synaptic Transmission ; Taurine*