Child ; Child, Preschool ; Cleft Lip ; Cleft Palate ; Congenital Abnormalities ; Consensus ; Humans ; Infant ; Leukocyte Count ; Male ; Palate ; Surgery, Oral

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of electroacuuncture stimulation therapy in the pain threshold of the subjects. 20 patients were randomly assigned to two experimental groups. Measurement of perception and pawn threshold of post-operative patients were taken during 7 days. They were written into preformed formula by themselves. Experiments were peformed with non-acupuncture stimulated group(10 patients) and with acupuncture stimulated group(10 patients). Acupuncture stimulation is applied with 2Hz, 30minutes, 12mA, biphasic wave, combined mix, and bilaterally to meridian points(LI4, CV24, S5 etc). The following results are obtained ; 1. The visual analogue scale of pain threshold was decreased with a time both control and experimental group. 2. The statistical significance was observed between control group and experimental group at 5, 6, 7 days(P<0.05). 3. The Pearson correlation coefficency of experimental group was higher than control group (P<0.05).
Acupuncture ; Electroacupuncture* ; Humans ; Pain Threshold

Acupuncture ; Cicatrix ; Diagnosis ; Facial Nerve ; Humans ; Hypertrophy ; Masseter Muscle ; Mouth

The establishment of DNA microarray technology has enabled high-throughput analysis and molecular profiling of various types of cancers. By using the gene expression data from microarray analysis we are able to investigate diagnostic applications at the molecular level. The most important step in the application of microarray technology to cancer diagnostics is the selection of specific markers from gene expression profiles. In order to select markers of immortalization and transformation we used c-myc and H-ras(V12) oncogene-transfected NIH3T3 cells as our model system. We have identified 8751 differentially expressed genes in the immortalization/transformation model by multivariate permutation F-test (95% confidence, FDR <0.01). Using the support vector machine algorithm, we selected 13 discriminative genes which could be used to predict immortalization and transformation with perfect accuracy. We assayed H-ras(V12)-transfected "transformed" cells to validate our immortalization/transformation classification system. The selected molecular markers generated valuable additional information for tumor diagnosis, prognosis and therapy development.
Classification ; Diagnosis ; Gene Expression ; Microarray Analysis ; Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis ; Prognosis ; Transcriptome ; Support Vector Machine

OBJECTIVE: A subdural drain using urokinase after a burr hole hematoma evacuation was performed for subacute subdural hematoma (SASDH), and its effectiveness and safety in elderly patients were evaluated. METHODS: Between January 2013 and May 2015, subdural drains using urokinase after burr hole hematoma evacuation were performed in 19 elderly patients. The inclusion criteria were as follows: 1) a subdural hematoma occurring between 4 and 20 days after injury; 2) worsening neurological symptoms, from mild to moderate or severe, due to injury during the subacute stage; 3) a mix of solid clots (high-density lighter shadow) and fluid hematoma (low-density darker shadow) on the computed tomography (CT) scan; 4) a score of ≥9 on the Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) assessed immediately before surgery; and 5) an age of ≥65 years. When the majority of the hematoma was evacuated on the CT, we removed the catheter. RESULTS: Under local anesthesia, a catheter was inserted into the hematoma through a burr hole. The mean age of the patients was 73.7 years (range, 65-87 years). The mean preoperative GCS score was 11.2 (range, 10-13), and the mean Glasgow Outcome Scale score for all patients was 5 at discharge. No recurrences of hematomas or surgical complications were observed. CONCLUSION: A subdural drain using urokinase after burr hole hematoma evacuation under local anesthesia is thought to be an effective and safe method of blood clot removal with low morbidity. This surgical method is less invasive for treating elderly patients with SASDH.
Aged* ; Anesthesia, Local ; Catheters ; Drainage ; Glasgow Coma Scale ; Glasgow Outcome Scale ; Hematoma ; Hematoma, Subdural* ; Humans ; Methods ; Recurrence ; Urokinase-Type Plasminogen Activator*

Most popular incisions for open reduction of mandibular condylar fractures are submandibular approach, preauricular approach, Risdon approach, and retromandibular approach etc. These methods are selected according to the location of condylar fracutre, condylar segments displacement, and preference of the surgeon. We performed the open reduction and rigid fixation by means of retromandibular approach for the treatement of mandibular condyle fracture in the 9 patients (8 cases were performed by direct reduction and rigid fixation, and 1 case was performed by Dr. Nam's method). The retromandibular approach has many advantages. This is more easier approach to the fracture site, better visibility and accessibility, less wound exposure, less muscle retraction, and more comfortable to patient because lesser sensory and motor nerve injury.
Humans ; Mandibular Condyle* ; Wounds and Injuries

The purpose of this study was to evaluate new bone formation and healing process in rat calvarial bone defects using BioMesh(R) membrane and DFDB. Forty eight rats divided equally into 4 groups of 1 control group and 3 experimental groups. Standardized transosseous circular calvarial defects (8 mm in diameter) were made midparietally. In the control group, the defect was only covered with the soft tissue flap. In the experimental group 1, it was filled with DFDB only, in the experimental group 2, it was covered BioMesh(R) membrane only, and in the experimental group 3, it was filled DFDB and covered with membrane. At the postoperative 1, 2, 4, 8 weeks, rats were sacrificed and histologic and histomorphometric analysis were performed. These results were as follows. In histomorphometric analysis, It showed the greatest amount of new bone formation through experimental in the experimental group 3 (P < 0.001). The amount of new bone formation at the central portion of the defect was greater in the experimental group 3 than experimental group 2. BioMesh(R) membrane began to resorb at 1 week and resorbed almost completely at 8 weeks after operation. The collapse of membrane into the defect was observed through the experimental periods in the experimental group 2. In the area of collapsed membrane, new bone formation was restricted. These results suggest that maintenance of some space for new bone to grow is required in the use of BioMesh(R) membrane alone in the defect. It is also thought that use of the membrane may promote new bone growth in DFDB graft.
Animals ; Bone Development ; Bone Regeneration* ; Membranes* ; Osteogenesis ; Rats* ; Skull ; Transplants

PURPOSE: Magnetic resonance diffusion tensor imaging-based three-dimensional fiber tractography (DTI-FT) is a new method which demonstrates the orientation and integrity of white matter fibers in vivo. However, clinical application on children with cerebral palsy is still under investigation. We present various abnormal patterns of DTI-FT findings and accordance rate with clinical findings in children with hemiplegic cerebral palsy, to recognize the usefulness of DTI-FT. METHODS: The thirteen children with hemiplegic cerebral palsy evaluated at Yeungnam University hospital from March, 2003 to August, 2007 were enrolled in this study and underwent magnetic resonance DTI-FT of the corticospinal tracts. Two regions of interest (ROI) were applied and the termination criteria were fractional anisotropy > or =0.3, angle< or =70degrees. RESULTS: The patterns and distribution of abnormal DTI-based corticospinal tractographic findings were interruption(10 cases, 76.9%), reduction of fiber volume (8 cases, 61.5%), agenesis of corticospinal tract (3 cases, 23.1%), transcallosal fiber (2 cases, 15.4%) and, aberrant corticospinal tracts (4 cases, 30.8%). Abnormal DTI-based corticospinal tractographic findings were in accordance with the clinical findings of cerebral palsy in 84.6% of the enrolled patients. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that DTI-FT would be a useful modality in the assessment of the corticospinal tract abnormalities in children with hemiplegic cerebral palsy.
Anisotropy ; Cerebral Palsy ; Child ; Diffusion ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy ; Orientation ; Pyramidal Tracts

Retroperitoneal fibrosis (RPF) is a rare disease characterized by marked fibro-inflammatory tissue in the retroperitoneum. Approximately 70% of cases of RPF are idiopathic, while the rest can be secondary to several other causes. The diagnosis is mainly obtained by imaging modalities such as computed tomography (CT). However, histological examination should be considered when the clinical manifestations and imaging studies suggest malignancy. In particular, in malignant diseases with retroperitoneal metastases, abnormal collagen plaques are formed from an exuberant desmoplastic response, which may not be distinguishable from RPF on CT scans. Therefore, even if CT suggests RPF, biopsy is essential to identify malignant disease because it typically results in a fatal prognosis. Here, we report a case of metastatic adenocarcinoma of unknown primary site that developed only in the retroperitoneum and was initially diagnosed as RPF based on CT findings.
Adenocarcinoma ; Biopsy ; Collagen ; Diagnosis ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Neoplasms, Unknown Primary ; Prognosis ; Rare Diseases ; Retroperitoneal Fibrosis* ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed

Treatment options for patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) are currently limited; therefore, there has been significant interest in applying mesenchymal stem/stromal cell (MSC)-based therapy to treat CKD. However, MSCs harvested from CKD patients tend to show diminished viability and proliferation due to sustained exposure to uremic toxins in the CKD environment, which limits their utility for cell therapy. The application of melatonin has been demonstrated to improve the therapeutic efficacy of MSCs derived from and engrafted to tissues in patients suffering from CKD, although the underlying biological mechanism has not been elucidated. In this study, we observed overexpression of hexokinase-2 (HK2) in serum samples of CKD patients and MSCs harvested from an adenine-fed CKD mouse model (CKD-mMSCs). HK2 upregulation led to increased production levels of methylglyoxal (MG), a toxic metabolic intermediate of abnormal glycolytic processes. The overabundance of HK2 and MG was associated with impaired mitochondrial function and low cell proliferation in CKD-mMSCs. Melatonin treatment inhibited the increases in HK2 and MG levels, and further improved mitochondrial function, glycolytic metabolism, and cell proliferation. Our findings suggest that identifying and characterizing metabolic regulators such as HK2 in CKD may improve the efficacy of MSCs for treating CKD and other kidney disorders.