Chancroid is an acute localized, autoinoculable venereaI disease caused by Haemophilus ducreyi, characterized clinicaIly by painful ulceration at the site of incubation, and frequently accompanied by regional lymphadenopathy, and short incubation period. Three cases of chancroid were seen in Won Ju city, Kangwondo, Korea. All of the patients were male, and painful ulcers developed on genital region in 2 to 3 days after sexual contacts. Direct smear showed the characteristic "school-of-fish" arrangement of Haemophilus ducreyi by Gram stain. There were no regional lymphadenopathies and VDRL test were negative. Treatments were done with sulfisoxazole (Gantrisin) in case I, with sulfamethoxydiazine(Bayrena) and streptomycin in case 2, and with sulfamethoxydiazine and tetracycline in case 3 with exccllent results.
Chancroid* ; Gangwon-do ; Haemophilus ducreyi ; Humans ; Korea ; Lymphatic Diseases ; Male ; Streptomycin ; Sulfameter ; Sulfisoxazole ; Tetracycline ; Ulcer

BACKGROUNDS: An inhibitory effect of magnesium L-ascorbyl-2-phosphate (VC-PMG, a stable derivative of ascorbic acid) on melanogenesis has been described. Furthermore, glabridin in licorice is known to have inhibitory effects on melanogenesis and widely used for raw materials for depigmenting agents. OBJECTIVE: The purposes of this study are to provide objective data by measuring the visual clinical effects of VC-PMG with the colorimeter and to promote the development of de-pigmenting agents. METHODS: 20 volunteers joined the study. With an artificial UVB irradiation, eight tanned areas were made on the inner side of the forearm. During two months, each tanned area was treated with five whitening cosmetics with 3% VC-PMG and increasing concentration of licorice from 0% to 3%. Darkness degree of each area was measured weekly by the colorimeter and the visual assessment. RESULTS: For all cosmetics, whitening effect was measured by colorimeter and visual as-sessment. The cosmetic containing VC-PMG 3% and licorice 1% had more whitening effect than any other cosmetics of different concentrations. Moreover, VC-PMG 3% alone also had whitening effect in some volunteers. CONCLUSION: VC-PMG was clinically found to have whitening effect.
Ascorbic Acid* ; Darkness ; Forearm ; Glycyrrhiza ; Magnesium* ; Triacetoneamine-N-Oxyl ; Vitamins* ; Volunteers

No abstract available.

No abstract available.

We have experienced a case of neurofibromatosis with unusual giant pigmentation, which presents itself as a 28 cm x 40 cm sized, serrated bordered light brownish patch speckled with small dark hyperpigmented macules on his back. Histopathologic examinations of light brown patch and speckles showed only an increase in basal melanin pigmentation.
Melanins ; Neurofibromatoses* ; Pigmentation*

We report a case of drug eruption and liver damage due to diaminodiphenyl suIfone(DDS) ingestion in a 17-year-old female. This patient had taken DDS for 20 days, 100mg-200mg daily to treat an unknown skin disease. Thereafter, she had generalized erythematous eruption on whole body, icteric sclera and fever. Liver function test showed abnormality (SGOT 514 unit, SGPT 710 unit, alkarine phosphotase 4. 3 B.U., total biIirubin 7. Oml/dl, direct bilirubin 4. 8mg/dl). The adverse reactiions to DDS are gastrointestinal intolerance, hemolytic, anemia, methemoglobinemia, agranulocytoais, hepatitis, neuritis, psychosis and a skin rash described as a fixed drug eruption, erythema multiforme, exfoliative dermatitis and toxic epidermal necrolysis. In Korea, DDS has been used for the treatment of skin diseases of various types for a long time without prescription, especially in rural areas. This trend is a significant sociomediical problem in Korea.
Adolescent ; Alanine Transaminase ; Anemia ; Bilirubin ; Dermatitis, Exfoliative ; Drug Eruptions* ; Eating ; Erythema Multiforme ; Exanthema ; Female ; Fever ; Hepatitis ; Humans ; Korea ; Liver Function Tests ; Liver* ; Methemoglobinemia ; Neuritis ; Prescriptions ; Psychotic Disorders ; Sclera ; Skin Diseases ; Stevens-Johnson Syndrome

No abstract available.
Tomography, X-Ray Computed* ; Ultrasonography*

No abstract available.
Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel* ; Immunoblotting* ; Korea* ; Rickettsia typhi* ; Rickettsia*

We report herein three cases of vesicular pemphigoid that is a varient of bullous pemphigoid, occuring in 38-year old female, 51-year old male, and 35-year old female patients. They had recurrent and moderate to severe pruritic tense vesicles with symmetrical distribution chiefly on the head and neck areas. The histological findings showed subepidermal bullae which contained a few eosinophils and the direct irnmunofluorescent tests revealed linear deposition of IgG, IgM and C, on the basement mernbrane zone. Futhermore, all the patients showed a good response to dapsone.
Adult ; Dapsone ; Eosinophils ; Female ; Head ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin G ; Immunoglobulin M ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Neck ; Pemphigoid, Bullous* ; Transcutaneous Electric Nerve Stimulation

Serovars of 22 leptospiral field isolates from rats trapped in Korea were identified by cross-agglutinin absorption test (CAAT). Genomic characteristics of 7 selected isolates and 6 antigenically closely related reference serovars of lai, yeonchon, birkini, gem, mwogolo, and canicola were differentiated by arbitrarily primed PCR (AP-PCR) and southern blot hybridization using 16S rRNA gene probe from Borrelia burgdorferi. Among the 22 isolates, 21 strains were identified as serovar lai by CAAT, while the serological reactivity of NR13 did not accord with that of serovar lai. Results of AP-PCR using primers RSP, KF and PB-1 were in general agreement with those obtained by serological identification, and all 7 isolates including NR13 showed the same profile with serovar lai or yeonchon. In the southern blot hybridization with 16S rRNA gene probe, the isolates were divided into two ribotype groups when HindIII and BamHI digests were employed: isolates NR4, NR13, and serovar lai showed the same profile, and isolates JR34, JR57, KR48, JR77, and JR82 were classified as the another ribotype group. Isolate NR13 and serovar yeonchon, which were isolated in Korea and showed serological differences with serovar lai, were indistinguishable from serovar lai in this DNA study using AP-PCR and ribotyping. These results demonstrate that Korean leptospiral isolates were closely related in DNA level, and ribotyping would be useful for subgrouping of field isolates.
Absorption ; Animals ; Blotting, Southern ; Borrelia burgdorferi ; DNA ; Genes, rRNA ; Korea ; Leptospira* ; Polymerase Chain Reaction* ; Rats ; Ribotyping*