This study was carried out to investigate the intricate mechanisms of intraalveolar fibrosis, leading to the alveolar structural remodeling, of rat lungs treated with paraquat. Sixty-three male Sprague-Dawley rats, maintained on a stock diet, weighing 200.0 gm, average, were divided into 4 experimental groups. Group 1. Control group (10 rats). Intraperitoneal injections of 2-4 ml normal saline only. Group 2(13 rats). 10, 20, 25, 30 and 40 mg per kg of body weight was administered intraperitoneally. Animals were sacificed 5 hours. 1 and 3 days after paraquat treatment. Group 3(16 rats). 20, 25, 30 and 40 mg per kg of body weight was administered to the animal, and animals died 2-5 days after paraquat administration. Group 4(24 rats). The same amount of paraquat was administered to the animal as in the group 2. Animals were sacrificed 1, 2, 6, 8 and 10 weeks after paraquat treatment. Sacrificed animal lung was examined by gross, light-microscopic, immunohistochemical, ultrastructural observation, along with cellular and chemical analyses of bronchoalveolar lavage fluid. The results were as follows: Grossly, 6 rats of chronic stage (1-10 weeks survival) developed multiple wedge-shaped scars on both lungs. These scars were situated mainly along the bronchial trees, blood vessels and subpleural regions. Light microscopically, the salient features found of the chronic stage lungs were intraalveolar fibrosis. Intraluminal buds or polypoid masses projecting into the alveolar lumen and ducts. Elsewhere, loose connective tissue masses were found to fuse together to alveolar wall, obliterating the alveolar spaces with resultant severe alveolar structural remodeling. Immunohistochemically, fibronectin was found in the center of intraalveolar buds and polypoid mass, projecting into the alveolar lumen, and in the adjacent proliferating alveolar macrophages. An attempt to measure the amount of fibronectin in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid failed. Electron microscopically, the chronic stage lung revealed marked proliferation of both alveolar macrophages and fibroblasts in the alveolar spaces, the latter containing actin-like microfilaments and collagen fibers arranged in bundles and spirals. In areas, myofibroblasts and smooth muscle cells also present. Cellular analysis of the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid in chronic stage lungs revealed no significant findings. It can be concluded, therefore: That intraalveolar fibrosis of the paraquat-treated lungs of the rat is probably mediated by intraalveolar migrations of the interstitial cells, the main task force being the connective tissue cells, passing through the defects created in the epithelial lining surface to its basement membrane, which were inflicted upon the alveolar wall by paraquat toxicity. Fibronectin, released by activated alveolar macrophages, may be responsible for the migrations of fibroblasts and myofibroblasts into the alveolar spaces to form the intraalveolar fibrosis with subsequent alveolar structural remodeling,
Male ; Humans ; Rats ; Animals

No abstract available.
Humans

A 53-year-old man had skin-colored linear serpiginous plaque within brownish patch on his left thigh for one year. He habitually drank natural spring water for 3 years. We diagnosed this case as sparganosis infiltrated within dermis by histologic and parasitologic diagnosis. The skin lesion mimicked the cutaneous larva migrans by showing dermal migration of sparganum to pro-duce itchy linear serpiginous plaque. We report an interesting case of sparganosis mimicking cutaneous larva migrans.
Dermis ; Diagnosis ; Humans ; Larva Migrans* ; Middle Aged ; Natural Springs ; Skin ; Sparganosis* ; Sparganum ; Thigh ; Water

This study was carried out to determine the effect of long term administration of vitamin A on the changes of lipids in liver tissue and serum in rat. The animals were fed with control diet(200 ug/day) and high vitimin A diet(2, 000 ug/day) for 24 weeks. Vitamin A contents of liver in high vitamin A fed rats were increased linearly accordance with duration of the vitamin A administration, but levels of serum vitamin A showed unremarkable changes during the experimental period. Contents of cholesterol and triglycerides of vitarnin A fed rats were significantly higher than those of controls. Levels of HDL-triglycerides in v:itamin A fed rats were significantly higher than those of control rats during experimental period, while levels of HDL-cholesterol and HDL-phospholipids showed unremarkable changes during experimental period. Levels of individual cholesteryl esters showed undremarkable changes during experimental period in both animal groups.
Animals ; Cholesterol ; Cholesterol Esters ; Liver* ; Rats* ; Triglycerides ; Vitamin A* ; Vitamins*

No abstract available.
Child* ; Humans ; Joints* ; Tuberculosis, Osteoarticular*

A case of pulmonary alveolar proteinosis is reported. Most of the alveolar spaces were filled with amorphous deep eosinohilic material which revealed strong positive reaction to periodic acid-Schiff staining. Electron microscopic observation of this material showed numerous lamellar bodies in the alveolar spaces and cytoplasms of alveolar macrophages. A part of them were concentric multilamellated type A lamellar bodies and the other were finger printlike type B bodies. Combined type A and type B lamellar bodies were rarely present. From the above features it is suggested that both type A and B lamellar bodies could be transformed one another and those lamellar bodies may be originated from pulmonary surfactant.

BACKGROUND: In diagnosis or monitor of the airway obstruction in bronchial asthma, the measurement of FEV1 in the standard method because of its reproducibility and accuracy. But the measurement of peak expiratory flow(PEF) by peak flow meter is much simpler and easier than that of FEV1 especially in children. Yet there have been still no data of the predicted normal values of PEF measured by peak flow meter in Korean children. This study was conducted to provide equations to predict the normal value of PEF and correlation between PEF and FEV1 in healthy children. METHOD: PEF was measured by MiniWright peak flow meter, and the forced expiratory volume and the maximum expiratory flow volume curves were measured by Microspiro HI 501(Chest Co.) in 346 healthy children (age:5-16 years, 194 boys and 152 girls) without any respiratory symptoms during 2 weeks before the study. The regression equations for various ventilatory parameters according to age and/or height, and the regression equations of FEV1 by PEF were derived. RESULTS: 1. The regression equation for PEF(L/min) was:12.6×age(year)+3.4×height(cm)-263(R2=0.85) in boys, and 6×age(year)+3.9×height(cm)-293(R2=0.82) in girls. 2. The value of FEFmax(L/sec) derived from the maximum expiratory flow volume curves was multiplied by 60 to compare with PEF(L/min), and PEF was faster by 125 L/min in boys and 118 L/min in girls, respectively. 3. The regression equation for FEV1(ml) by PEF(L/min) was:7×PEF-550(R2=0.82) in boys, and 5.8×PEF-146(R2=0.81) in girls, respectively. CONCLUSION: This study provides regression equations predicting the normal values of PEF by age and/or height in children. And the equations for FEV1, a gold standard of ventilatory function, was predicted by PEF. So, in taking care of children with airway obstruction, PEF measured by the peak flow meter can provide useful information.
Airway Obstruction ; Asthma ; Child* ; Diagnosis ; Female ; Forced Expiratory Volume ; Humans ; Reference Values

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to evaluate the sensory and motor nerve block achieved by epidural anesthesia using 0.475% ropivacaine and 0.75% ropivacaine. METHODS: Fifty-six patients undergoing cesarean section were randomly allocated to group I (0.75% ropivacaine) or group II (0.475% ropivacaine). We assessed changes in sensory and motor block using the Bromage scale over 180 minutes after epidural anesthesia. The incidence of nausea, vomiting and the total dosage of ephedrine used were also recorded. Sensory changes, motor blockade and the total dosage of ephedrine used were compared using the t-test (P < 0.05). RESULTS: No significant differences were found between the two groups at the sensory block level except at 30 and 60 minutes after epidural anesthesia. However, the motor blockade of group I was significantly more intense than that of group II at 15, 20, 25, 30, 60, 120 and 180 minutes after epidural anesthesia. No significant differences were observed between the two groups in the incidences of nausea, vomiting or the total dosage of ephedrine used. CONCLUSIONS: The use of 0.475% ropivacaine instead of 0.75% ropivacaine in epidural anesthesia for cesarean section did not reduce the incidence of nausea, vomiting or the total dosage of ephedrine used. The sensory block achieved using 0.75% ropivacaine was similar, but the motor blockade achieved using 0.475% ropivacaine was less intense with a shorter duration and an earlier recovery to normal than that of 0.75% ropivacaine. These results suggest that 0.475% ropivacaine may be more useful in epidural anesthesia for cesarean section than 0.75% ropivacaine.
Anesthesia, Epidural* ; Cesarean Section* ; Ephedrine ; Female ; Humans ; Incidence ; Nausea ; Nerve Block* ; Pregnancy ; Vomiting

BACKGROUND: Germline mutations in the breast cancer-associated genes BRCA1 and BRCA2 confer susceptibility and a lifetime risk of breast. Several morphological and clinical features have been attributed to hereditary tumors. However, in sporadic breast cancer, the interrelationship between the loss of heterozygosity (LOH) of these loci and clinical features remains to be fully elucidated. METHODS: Microdissected paraffin-embedded tissue blocks of 48 cases of surgically resected breast carcinoma were investigated to identify the LOH of BRCA1 and BRCA2 using microsatellite markers. RESULTS: Of 48 cases, 22 (45.9%) exhibited LOH at BRCA1 locus while in 29 out of 48 (60.4%) cases LOH was observed for the BRCA2 region. There was no significant correlation between LOH at BRCA1/2 and the patient's age, tumor size, histologic grade or lymph node metastasis. When comparing the frequency of LOH with the expression of several prognostic factors, such as p53, c-erb B2 protein, estrogen and progesterone receptor using immunohistochemical stain, there was only correlation with LOH at BRCA2 and the progesterone receptor. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that allelic deletion play a role to the development of sporadic breast cancers.
Breast Neoplasms* ; Breast* ; Estrogens ; Germ-Line Mutation ; Loss of Heterozygosity* ; Lymph Nodes ; Microsatellite Repeats ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Paraffin* ; Receptors, Progesterone

This study was made to identify compliance in self-medication, and factors influencing the self-medication of pulmonary TB patients. Self-medication of pulmonary TB patients is a very important factor for the cure of the patients. In this study, variables were used from three theories of health behavior. These were the Health Belief Model, Health Locus of Control, Theory of Planned Behavior. These were included to examine their effect on self-medication. Data were collected during the period from July 1 to August 20, 1994 using a structured questionnaire. And they were analyzed by mean, standard deviation, ANOVA, Pearson Correlation Coefficient, and Multiple Regression analysis using the SAS program. The result were as follows : 1. The mean on the self-medication scores ranging from 6.0 to 12.0 was 10.93. The mean for the self-evaluation scores of the self-medication ranging from 50.0 to 100.0 was 86.51. 2. There were significant associations between the scores on self-medication and age(F=2.34, p=0.033), and method of treatment(F=4.65, P=0.018). And there were significant associations between the self-evaluation scores of self-medication and age (F=3.79, P=0.000), and presence of TB patients among family(F=4.92, P=0.000). 3. (a) The relationship between the scores on self-medication and perceived barrier in health belief revealed a significant correlation(r=-.2046, p=0.0082). (b) The relationship between the scores on self-medication and other-dependency in LOC revealed a significant correlation(r=0.2322, p=0.0018). (c) The relationship between the self-evaluation score of self-medication and other-dependency in LOC revealed a significant correlation(r=0.1946, p=0.0122). (d) The relationship between the attitude in self-medication of the subjects and the self-evaluation score of self-medication revealed a significant correlation(r=0.2102, p=0.0066). 4. (a) 14.8% of the score of compliance in self-medication of the subjects was explained by five variables : Behavioral Intention, Duration of Treatment, Age, Perceived Sensitivity and Perceived Sensitivity and Perceived Barrier. (b) 8.7% of the score of self-evaluation of self-medication was explained by three variables : Perceived Control, Perceived Sensitivity, and Age. In conclusion : This study provides insights and information which may be valuable for motivation and instruction to improve compliance in self-medication among pulmonary TB patients.
Compliance* ; Diagnostic Self Evaluation ; Health Behavior ; Humans ; Intention ; Internal-External Control ; Motivation ; Tuberculosis, Pulmonary* ; Surveys and Questionnaires