No abstract available.
Liver Abscess* ; Liver*

The prevalence of right-sided infective endocarditis is increasing with a growing number of intravenous drug abusers. A case of right-sided endocarditis is reported in a 18-year-old female heroin addict. Tricuspid valve vegetation, septic pulmonary emboli and staphyloccus aureus in blood cultures are noted. During antimicrobial therapy, she developed remittent fever and skin rash due to vancomycin. After a change of the antibiotic to teicoplanin, she was freed from fever and discharged in an improved condition.
Adolescent ; Drug Users ; Endocarditis* ; Exanthema ; Female ; Fever ; Heroin ; Humans ; Malaria ; Prevalence ; Pulmonary Embolism* ; Teicoplanin ; Tricuspid Valve* ; Vancomycin

OBJECTIVE: This study was performed to evaluate C to T substitution at nucleotide 677 of meth-ylenetetrahydrofolate reductase gene in Korean women, which is genetically homogeneous, with preeclamptic or normotensive pregnancies. METHODS: Methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase genotypes were determined in 63 Korean women with severe preeclamptic pregnancies and 60 controls with normotensive pregnancies, using polymerase chain reaction and restriction enzyme analysis. RESULTS: The methylentetrahydrofolate reductase genotype and allele frequencies in preeclamptic and control women did not differ significantly. The frequency of the T677 allele was 38.1% in the preeclamptic group and 41.7% in the control group, and TT homozygosity was found in 12 preeclamptic women (19.0%) and 10 controls (16.7%). CONCLUSION: It seems like that there is no evidence of association of preeclampsia with meth-ylenetetrahydrofolate reductase gene polymorphism, at least in the Korean population.
Alleles ; Female ; Gene Frequency ; Genotype ; Humans ; Methylenetetrahydrofolate Reductase (NADPH2)* ; Oxidoreductases ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Pre-Eclampsia* ; Pregnancy ; Restriction Mapping

Nearly 100% of monochorionic twin pregnancies have vascular anastomoses and a fourth of those has clinical features of twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome. Cerebral palsy, microcephaly, porencephaly, and multicystic periventricular leukomalacia are serious antenatal neurologic complications associated with vascular communications in monochorionic twin gestation. It is most likely that such neurological damage is caused by intrauterine cerebral ischemic necrosis. The intermittent blood flow reversal or sudden hypotension in one twin, or emboli of thromboplastic material originating in the dead fetus could cause in utero cerebral damage in the other twin. In this report, we present a case of antenatal periventricular leukomalacia in monochorionic twin pregnancy complicated with twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome.
Cerebral Palsy ; Female ; Fetofetal Transfusion* ; Fetus ; Humans ; Hypotension ; Infant, Newborn ; Leukomalacia, Periventricular* ; Microcephaly ; Necrosis ; Pregnancy ; Pregnancy, Twin*

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Neuronal dissociation culture is an important tool for the study of neuronal cell survival and apoptosis. To establish the culture methods, the cultured cells should be proved to have the same characteristics as the spiral ganglion neurons in vivo. This study was aimed to establish the culture systems for the spinal neuronal cells and to characterize the cultured cells using different neuronal marker. Materials and Methods: Dissociated spiral ganglion cells were harvested from Sprague Dawley rats in postnatal 5 or 6 days and cultured for 48 hours. To prepare in vivo section, the harvested cochlea was embedded in paraffin and sectioned in 4 nm thickness. Both cultured cells and paraffin sections were labeled with several monoclonal antibodies (NSE, NF-200, NF-160, S-100) and compared by the immunohistochemical and immunoflourescent staining methods. RESULTS: Each of the antibodies was used to stain both cultured cells and paraffin sections. NSE was used to stain the nuclei of neuronal cells. Either NS or NR was used to stain both neuronal perikarya and neurite. The Schwann cells were stained by S-100. There was no significant difference in the immunostaining pattern between cochlea tissue and dissociated cells of spiral ganglion. CONCLUSION: A dissociated culture system for the spiral ganglions was established. In the culture system, the dissociated spiral ganglion neurons preserve the neuronal characteristics. This dissociation culture system can be used for the study of neuronal cell biology.
Animals ; Antibodies ; Antibodies, Monoclonal ; Apoptosis ; Cell Survival ; Cells, Cultured ; Cochlea ; Neurites ; Neurons ; Paraffin ; Rats* ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Schwann Cells ; Spiral Ganglion*

BACKGROUND: Analysis of mutations in the epidermal growth factor receptor gene (EGFR) is important for predicting response to EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitors. The overall rate of EGFR mutations in Korean patients is variable. To obtain comprehensive data on the status of EGFR mutations in Korean patients with lung cancer, the Cardiopulmonary Pathology Study Group of the Korean Society of Pathologists initiated a nationwide survey. METHODS: We obtained 1,753 reports on EGFR mutations in patients with lung cancer from 15 hospitals between January and December 2009. We compared EGFR mutations with patient age, sex, history of smoking, histologic diagnosis, specimen type, procurement site, tumor cell dissection, and laboratory status. RESULTS: The overall EGFR mutation rate was 34.3% in patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and 43.3% in patients with adenocarcinoma. EGFR mutation rate was significantly higher in women, never smokers, patients with adenocarcinoma, and patients who had undergone excisional biopsy. EGFR mutation rates did not differ with respect to patient age or procurement site among patients with NSCLC. CONCLUSIONS: EGFR mutation rates and statuses were similar to those in published data from other East Asian countries.
Adenocarcinoma ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Biopsy ; Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung* ; Diagnosis ; Epidermal Growth Factor* ; Female ; Humans ; Lung Neoplasms ; Mutation Rate ; Pathology ; Protein-Tyrosine Kinases ; Receptor, Epidermal Growth Factor* ; Smoke ; Smoking