BACKGROUND: The Chinese hamster ovary cells transfected with human TSH receptor cDNA (hTSHR-CHO), expressing functional human TSH receptors, are known to be more sensitive in detection of thyroid stimulating antibodies than FRTL-5 cells. There has been no report on the usefulness of these cells to measure thyroid stimulation blocking antibody (TSBAb) activity which is frequently found in patients with primary myxedema, METHODS: We established the optimal assay condition of measurement of TSBAb using hTSHR-CHO cells, and simultaneously measured TSBAb activities with FRTL-5 cells and with hTSHR-CHO cells in 49 patients with primary myxedema, compared them with their thyrotropin binding inhibitor immunoglobulin (TBII) activities. RESULTS: 1) hTSHR-CHO cells specifically bound bTSH and were stimulated by bTSH in terms of cyclic AMP generation in a dose dependent manner. 2) Myxedema IgG suppressed TSH-stimulated cAMP production of hTSHR-CHO cells in a dose dependent manner reaching plateau at the concentration of I g/L. Normal pooled IgG has no suppressive action at the concentration of less than 1 g/L, but caused significant suppression at the concentration of greater than 1g/L. 3) TSBAb activities measured by hTSHR-CHO cells in 49 patients with primary myxedema were as follows: Four of 25 TBII-negative cases (16%) and 22 of 24 TBII-positive cases (92%) had TSBAb activities. Most of TSBAb positive patients (95%), especially in TBII positive cases, showed very high activities of more than 90%. 4) TSBAb activities measured by hTSHR-CHO cells and those by FRTL-5 cells were both positive in 24 patients (49%), both negative in 18 patients (37%), and were discrepant in 7 patients (14%). The TSBAb activities measured with hTSHR-CHO cells and those measured with FRTL-5 cells were significantly correlated (r=0.71, p< 0.01). 5) Forty five percent of patients with primary myxedema had all of 3 kinds of activities (TBII, hTSHR-CHO cell TSBAb, FRTL-5 cell TSBAb), 37% of them had none of 3 activities and 18% of them had 1 or 2 kinds of activities only. CONCLUSION: The usefulness of hTSHR-CHO cells in measurements of TSBAb activities were confirmed. The TSBAb activities of most patients with primary myxedema measured by hTSHR-CHO cells were concordant with those measured by FRTL-5 cells. However, a small subset of patients (18%) had discrepant results in assays of TSH receptor antibodies according to the differences in TSH receptors (rat, human and porcine) used in assay. Such discrepancy may be explained by heterogeneity in epitopes for blocking TSH receptor antibodies.
Animals ; Antibodies ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group* ; Cricetinae ; Cricetulus* ; Cyclic AMP ; DNA, Complementary ; Epitopes ; Female ; Humans ; Humans* ; Hypothyroidism* ; Immunoglobulin G ; Immunoglobulins ; Immunoglobulins, Thyroid-Stimulating ; Myxedema ; Ovary* ; Population Characteristics ; Receptors, Thyrotropin* ; Thyroid Gland* ; Thyrotropin

No abstract available.
Thumb*

No abstract available.
Ixodes* ; Tick Bites* ; Ticks*

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to evaluate the differences in patients with positional dependent sleep apnea according to their non-supine apnea-hypopnea index (AHI, > or =5 vs. <5). METHODS: 92 patients with positional sleep apnea were evaluated. The patients were divided into two groups : group I was non-supine AHI having > or =5 ; group II was non-supine AHI having less than 5. Statistical analysis was performed to find the difference between two groups. RESULTS: In 92 patients, the number of group I patients was 11 (12%) and the number of group II patients was 81 (88%). In the severe AHI group, percentage of group I was dominated (70%) and showing a significant difference compared with the mild and moderate AHI groups (p<.05). In the severe body mass index (BMI) group, percentage of group I was dominated (54.5%) and showing a significant difference compared with of the mild and moderate BMI groups (p<.05). The percentage of group I was significantly higher than group II (p<.05) in the AHI, supine AHI, non-supine AHI and snore time. CONCLUSIONS: In patients with positional sleep apnea, severe OSA and high BMI are more common in patients with non-supine AHI> or =5 than non-supine AHI<5.
Body Mass Index ; Humans ; Sleep Apnea Syndromes ; Sleep Apnea, Obstructive

The appendiceal mucocele is very rare disease of 0.2% incidence. About 24% of patients are asymptomatic and symptomatic patients present with pain in the right lower quadrant of abdomen in 64%, plapable maas in the right lower quadrant of abdomen in 50%, and rarely, melena, hematochezia, anemia, diarrhea, malaise, and abdominal distension. The gastrointestinal bleeding may be presented in the patient with intussusception, but the massive bleeding is generally absent. We report a case of appendiceal mucocele accompanying with gastrointestinal bleeding and review of literature.
Abdomen ; Anemia ; Diarrhea ; Gastrointestinal Hemorrhage ; Hemorrhage* ; Humans ; Incidence ; Intussusception ; Melena ; Mucocele* ; Rare Diseases

Primary gastrointestinal lymphoma primarily confined to gastrointestinal tract is relatively rare diaease. Although the lymphoma primarily involved colorectum or small bowel was commonly reported than primary gastric lymphoma in Korea, the concurrent primary lymphoma of colon and small bowel is very rare in reported cases. We report a case of combined primary malignant lymphoma of the jejunum and cecum, who was admitted due to melena and anemia. She had right hemicolectomy and end-to-side ileotransverse colostomy at 2 months ago, due to primary colon lymphoma. The laparotomy was performed and identified hard, 2 x 3 cm sized masses on distal 25 cm, 80 cm and 150 cm from the Treitz ligament. The histology of these small ma showed histiocytic lymphoma as same as cecal specimen. In general, the small bowel lymphoma shaws poor prognosis than gastric or colorectal lymphoma due to diffieulty in diagnosis and late symptoms, but this problem could be resolved through the knowledge about primary gastrointestinal lymphoma and the development of diagnostic methods.
Anemia ; Cecum ; Colon* ; Colostomy ; Diagnosis ; Gastrointestinal Tract ; Jejunum ; Korea ; Laparotomy ; Ligaments ; Lymphoma* ; Lymphoma, Large B-Cell, Diffuse ; Melena ; Prognosis

No abstract available.
Bile Duct Neoplasms* ; Bile Ducts* ; Bile*

Acute scrotum is any pathologic condition of the scrotum or intrascrotal contents that requires emergency medical or surgical management. Management of each disease entity is different, but the differential diagnosis is very difficult. So many testes were lost due to delay of the adequate diagnosis or unnecessary explorations had been taken under the misdiagnosis. A study was done to evaluate the differential diagnostic value of clinical symptoms and signs, physical examinations, laboratory data and radiologic studies including scrotal Doppler ultrasonography on acute scrotum patients. During the two years, thirty patients were visited to emergency medical center of Ajou university. There were 5 patients with testicular torsion, 16 acute epididymitis, 5 orchitis, 3 edema of scrotum, 1 infected hydrocele, the mean age of total patients was 17 years old. Symptoms and signs, laboratory data showed no specific ability to differentiate each disease entities, but radiographic evaluations were useful to differentiate testicular torsion from non-torsion acute scrotum. We could suggest that scrotal Doppler ultrasonography is useful for early differential diagnosis of the acute scrotum, especially in emergency department.
Adolescent ; Diagnosis ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Diagnostic Errors ; Edema ; Emergencies ; Emergency Service, Hospital ; Epididymitis ; Humans ; Male ; Orchitis ; Physical Examination ; Scrotum* ; Spermatic Cord Torsion ; Testis ; Ultrasonography, Doppler

PURPOSE: This study focused on local communities and the factors influencing injuries requiring hospital admission that affect the quality of life for Koreans. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study used data collected from 4,400 households during the 2001 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES). A stratified multistage probability sampling method was applied and the final sample included 7,924 subjects over 20 years old who had completed the questionnaire regarding factors influencing injuries requiring hospital admission. Multiple logistic regression analysis was used to estimate the risk factors influencing injuries. RESULTS: The incidence of injuries requiring hospital admission in Koreans was higher in men than in women at 2.3% (95% CI: 1.8-2.8) and 1.7% (95% CI: 1.3-2.1), respectively. Statistically significant factors affecting the occurrence of injuries requiring hospital admission were marital status (OR: 2.60, 95% CI: 2.22- 5.56), state of health (OR: 0.63, 95% CI: 0.43-0.92), frequency of heavy drinking (OR: 1.96, 95% CI: 1.01-3.79), normal physical activities (OR: 1.68, 95% CI: 1.07-2.65), and sleep (OR: 1.54, 95% CI: 1.01-2.35). CONCLUSION: The results of this study can be used to develop measures to prevent fatal injuries and be used as basic data for community health programs.

A clinical review was made on 48 cases with cor pulmonale who were admitted to medical department, National Medical Center, between 1973 and 1982, and the results were as follows : 1) Teh age of subjects ranged from 26 to 88, and their mean was 51. male to female ratio was 1.6:1 and majority of them were in their 6th and 7th decade. 2) COPD was the most common cause of cor pulmonale but pulmonary tuberculosis had also a considerable portion. Less commonly it was caused by chest deformity which was mainly from spine tuberculosis and kyphoscoliosis. 3) Almost all patients were admitted with over heart failure. 4) Laboratory features showed indirect evidence of heart failure and pulmonary hypertension in chest X-ray films, RVH patterns in EKG and hypoxia and hypertcapnea with metabolic compensation in arterial gas analysis. 5) The case fatality rate was one-forth and that from kyphoscoliosis was especially high(80%).
Anoxia ; Compensation and Redress ; Congenital Abnormalities ; Electrocardiography ; Female ; Heart Failure ; Humans ; Hypertension, Pulmonary ; Male ; Mortality ; Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive ; Pulmonary Heart Disease* ; Spine ; Thorax ; Tuberculosis ; Tuberculosis, Pulmonary ; X-Ray Film