Prior to 1988, endometrial cancer was clinically staged but there was the considerable discrepancy between clinical and aetual stage. FIGO surgical staging classification of endometrial cancer(I988) provides the advanatage of recognizing the true disease distribution and extension, and more rational treatraent can be accomplished. This retrospective study was based on a clinical review of 73 patients with endometrial carcinoma from l982 through 1991 who underwent primary surgical evaluation. A11 cases were restaged ueing the newly adopted FIGO surgical staging. The distribution of FIGO clinical staging was as follows:85 patients(89.1%) were with stage I, 5(6.9%) with stage II, 2(2.7%) with stage III and 1(l.3%) with stage IV. Surgical restaging according new FlG0 classification reveald 56(76.7%) patients with stage I, 1(1.4%) with stage II, 14(19.2%) with stage III and 2(2.7%) with stage IV. Surgery upstaged 12.3% of clinical stage I patients, In clinical stage II patients, 80.0% was doenstaged. There wes no stage changing in cliaical stage III and IV patients. The acturial survival rates for surgical stages I a, I b, I c, and III were 80.0%, 77.2%, 68.4A%, and 35.0% respectively. By using FIGO surgical staging, the initial extent of endometrial cancer can be more accurately evaluated and we may predict prognosis and survival relatively well.
Classification ; Endometrial Neoplasms* ; Female ; Humans ; Prognosis ; Retrospective Studies ; Survival Rate

No abstract available.
Appendicitis* ; Barium* ; Enema*

The pathological lesion in spinal injury is usually more severe in the central gray matter and spreads centrifugally to surrounding white matter. Opiate antagonists, naloxone, by blocking the pathophysiologic effect of endorphins, should increase both mean arterial pressure and spinal cord blood flow and limit neurologic injury. Naloxone produce increase of lateral column blood flow and ameliorate the central gray matter ischemia. We have investigated the effects of naloxone on histopathological change in cats subjected to thoracic cord contusion. The histopathological evaluation of the injured spinal cords in naloxone-treated cats had less tissue damage than would be observed in time-matched standards. The acute histopathology in saline-treated cats had lesions typical of what we would expect in untreated cats, but the chronic histopathology had slightly better than typical that.
Animals ; Arterial Pressure ; Cats ; Contusions ; Endorphins ; Ischemia ; Naloxone* ; Spinal Cord Injuries* ; Spinal Cord* ; Spinal Injuries

Telomerase is an enzyme that maintains telomeres and prevents telomere shortening, and may be linked with cellular proliferation or the aging process. The purpose was to examine telomerase activity in human chorionic villi from early and term normal pregnancies, and to analyze the correlation of telomerase activity (TA) with MIB-1 & bcl-2. A total of 37 placentae were obtained from 16 early and 21 term pregnancies. TA was assayed by telomeric repeat amplification protocol, and immunohistochemical staining was performed for MIB-1 & bcl-2 expression. TA & MIB-1 expression were strong in early placenta, but bcl-2 was highly expressed in term placentae. Thirteen (81.25%) of 16 early placentae showed TA, but only 2 (9.52%) of 21 term placentae expressed TA (p<0.01). MIB-1 was observed in nuclei of cytotrophoblast, and the expression rate was 16.09% in early placentae and 2.87% in term placentae (p<0.01). bcl-2 was observed only in the cytoplasm of syncytiotrophoblast. Term placenta demonstrated stronger expression of bcl-2 compared to early placentae (p<0.05). These findings suggest that TA, MIB-1 & bcl-2 expression are critically regulated over the course of gestation: cytotrophoblast, main cells of early chorionic villi, may be a common source of telomerase and proliferative activity. The TA showed good correlation with cellular proliferative activity. Syncytiotrophoblast, may be a main source of bcl-2 expression which is stronger in the term placentae.
Aging ; Cell Proliferation ; Chorion* ; Chorionic Villi* ; Cytoplasm ; Humans* ; Placenta ; Pregnancy* ; Telomerase* ; Telomere ; Telomere Shortening ; Trophoblasts

No abstract available.
Drug Therapy* ; Ovarian Neoplasms*

Fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva (FOP) is a rare connective tissue disorder characterized by congenital malformation of the great toes and by progressive heterotopic ossification of the tendons, ligaments, fasciae and skeletal muscles. We document the radiologic manifestation of FOP passed from a sporadically affected father to each of his two children (a son and a daughter). Previous consideration of a genetic etiology was based on the fact that the disease has been reported in several sets of monozygotic twins and that increased paternal age has been associated with sporadic occurrence of the disorder. Although autosomal-dominant transmission has long been suspected, the findings in this family provide confirmation for such inheritance and a basis for the diagnosis and counseling of patients with FOP.
Child ; Connective Tissue ; Counseling ; Diagnosis ; Fascia ; Fathers ; Humans ; Ligaments ; Muscle, Skeletal ; Myositis ; Myositis Ossificans* ; Ossification, Heterotopic ; Paternal Age ; Tendons ; Toes ; Twins, Monozygotic ; Wills

PURPOSE: To evaluate the diagnostic role of a three-dimensional MR cholangiopancreatography(MRCP) over endoscopic retrograde cholangio- pancreatography(ERCP) in various extrah-epatic biliary disease. MATERIALS AND METHODS: MRCP and ERCP were performed in 45 consecutive patients with suspected extrahepatic biliary diseases. MRCP was obtained using a reverse fast imaging with a steady-state free precession (reverse FISP : PSIF) sequences, and then images were reconstructed by standard MIP algorithm. The predictability of biliary dilatation and level of obstruction of MRCP was evaluated using ERCP as a gold standard. The accuracy distinguishing malignant from benign lesions, and overall diagnostic accuracy were compared between MRCP and ERCP. RESULTS: The sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of MRCP in predicting biliary dilatation were 94.6%, 75.0% and 91.1%, respectively. The level of obstruction was accurate in 87.0% with MRCP. The sensitivity, specificity and accuracy MRCP and ERCP in distinguishing malignant from benign lesions were 76.2%, 87.5% and 82.2% and 71.4%, 83.3% and 77.8%, respectively. The overall diagnostic accuracy was 60.0% with MRCP and 55.6% with ERCP. CONCLUSION: 3D MRCP shows a good diagnostic value compared to that of ERCP, and can replace a ERCP.
Cholangiopancreatography, Endoscopic Retrograde* ; Dilatation ; Humans ; Sensitivity and Specificity

OBJECTIVES: Since the 1990s, drug-resistant bacteria have become common pathogens of hospital-acquired infections. In recent years, healthcare-associated infections have come to the fore, and it is reported that distribution rates of these bacteria are comparable to those of hospital-acquired infections. However, there have been few studies on differences in resistant bacteria depending on the size of hospitals. Thus, the authors studied differences in drug-resistant bacteria between a tertiary hospital and smaller medical institutions. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed the clinical findings and sputum culture results of patients transferred from tertiary hospitals (group A, n=74) and those transferred from smaller medical institutions (group B, n=65). RESULTS: The number of patients with malignancy was higher in group A than in group B. The length of intensive care unit stay was longer in group A than in group B. Antibiotic therapy and mechanical ventilation were more frequently used in group A than in group B. There were no significant differences between the 2 groups in bacterial species (Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa) and their resistance rates to carbapenem, while there were significant differences between the 2 groups in the bacterial species (Acinetobacter baumannii) and its resistance rate to carbapenem. CONCLUSION: In this study, there were significant differences between the 2 groups in the bacterial species and resistance rates to carbapenem for A. baumannii infection unlike other bacterial infections. Further studies on risk factors and patient classification are needed to confirm our results.
Acinetobacter baumannii ; Bacteria ; Bacterial Infections ; Drug Resistance, Bacterial* ; Escherichia coli ; Humans ; Intensive Care Units ; Klebsiella pneumoniae ; Pseudomonas ; Respiration, Artificial ; Retrospective Studies ; Risk Factors ; Tertiary Care Centers*

Tuberculosis is still remains an important cause of morbidity and mortality throughout the world. Calvarial tuberculosis is a rare entity and when the primary lesion is in the calvarium without any detectable pulmonary lesion, it is even exeedingly rare. The authors present a case of a 60-year-old female patient presenting with headache and an area of painful protrusion in the left parietal scalp. Plain skull radiographs, computerized tomography(CT) scan and magnetic resonance(MR) image of the brain revealed an osteolytic lesion in the left parietal bone with an outward growth of the outer table. Chest radiograph was normal. At operation, the osteolytic lesion of the skull and the abnormal soft tissue were removed completely. Histopathological report on the surgical specimen confirmed the tuberculosis of the calvarium.
Brain ; Female ; Headache ; Humans ; Middle Aged ; Mortality ; Parietal Bone ; Rabeprazole ; Radiography, Thoracic ; Scalp ; Skull ; Tuberculosis*

PURPOSE: It is known that deficiency of metallothionein (MT) and manganese-containing superoxide dismutase (Mn-SOD), scavengers of reactive oxygen species, results in aging and carcinogenesis by inducing DNA damage. Paraquat can produce reactive oxygen species and induce antioxidants in human. In this study, an attempt was made to verify the relation between gastric carcinogensis and the induction rates of these antioxidants. METHODS: Peripheral blood of 24 randomly selected patients with gastric cancer, who were treated at Chosun University Hospital between Febuuary 1999 and December 1999, was examined. 3 male and 3 female patients in each decade from 40 to 70 years were selected. Twenty-four (24) volunteers with no laboratory, chemical, radiologic and endoscopic abnormalities during the same period were used for the normal control group. White blood cells were isolated from peripheral blood and incubated in culture media, including paraquat, for 18 hours at 37oC. MT and Mn-SOD mRNA expressions were examined using the reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) method. RESULTS: The induction rates of MT and Mn-SOD mRNA in the cancer group due to paraquat were lower than those in the control group. Also, the rates decreased in both groups with age. CONCLUSION: The inducibilities of MT and Mn-SOD mRNA by paraquat may play a role in the carcinogenesis of gastric cancer and in the aging process. Based on this result, patients with a high risk of gastric cancer should be screened actively for early detection.
Aging ; Antioxidants ; Carcinogenesis ; Culture Media ; DNA Damage ; Female ; Humans ; Leukocytes* ; Male ; Metallothionein* ; Paraquat* ; Reactive Oxygen Species ; RNA, Messenger ; Stomach Neoplasms* ; Superoxide Dismutase* ; Superoxides* ; Volunteers