We present here a brief literature review and a case study of postpartum pulmonary arterial hypertension, a rare and progressive disease with a high maternal mortality rate. The patient, a 32-year-old woman, presented with dyspnea and shivering immediately following an uncomplicated vaginal delivery. The patient had no remarkable individual or familial history. She died 4 hours after her delivery, and an autopsy revealed atherosclerosis of the main pulmonary arteries and characteristic plexiform lesions on the lung. The remaining organs showed no remarkable pathology. We reported pulmonary arterial hypertension associated with pregnancy as the cause of death.
Adult ; Atherosclerosis ; Autopsy ; Cause of Death ; Death, Sudden ; Dyspnea ; Female ; Humans ; Hypertension* ; Lung ; Maternal Mortality ; Pathology ; Postpartum Period* ; Pregnancy ; Pulmonary Artery ; Shivering

PURPOSE: Surface finishing of a cemented femoral stem is a subject of controversy even though the contemporary cementing techniques have improved results. Using the Versys Heritage femoral stem, we evaluated the outcome of using a polished surface. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The subjects of this study were 95 hip arthroplasties in 82 patients and we used a cemented polished femoral stem with the 3rd generation cement technique and all the surgeries were done between October 2000 and August 2003. There were 58 male patients (64 hips) and 24 female patients (31 hips). The mean age at the time of the index arthroplasty was 52.3 years (26~74 years), and the average body mass index was 24.2+/-2.75 (19.1~29.8). The average follow up period was 80.7 months (64~109 months). All the hips were evaluated clinically by the Harris hip score and the thigh pain, and they were radiologically assessed by the cement grade and the presence of osteolysis around the femoral stem, as well as the presence of stress shielding of the proximal femur. RESULTS: At the final follow up, the Harris hip score for all the patients had improved from preoperative 58.9 (17-83) to post operative 91.7 (72~100). The cement grade was measured using Barrack's method. Of the 95 hips, 45 (47.3%) cases were grade A, 48 (50.5%) cases were grade B and 2 (2.1%) cases were grade C1 at the final follow up. There was 1 case of definite loosening. Stress shielding was noted in 65 (68.4%) cases of the zero grade and 19 (20.0%) cases of the 1st grade. CONCLUSION: In this study, the cemented polished femoral stem showed excellent results at the mid term with a minimum follow up of 5 years. But a longer-term follow-up study will be needed for further understanding the implications of cemented polished femoral stem.
Arthroplasty ; Body Mass Index ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Hip ; Humans ; Male ; Osteolysis ; Thigh

No abstract available.
Adult* ; Colloids* ; Humans ; Scalp*

This study was designed to investigate the effect of GABA and related substances on the spontaneous contraction of rat small intestine. The rats (Sprague-Dawley), weighing 200-250g, were sacrificed by cervical dislocation, and the small intestine was isolated. Longitudinal muscle strips from duodenum, jejunum and ileum were suspended in Biancani's isolated muscle chambers and myographied isometrically. GABA and muscimol, a GABA A receptor agonist relaxed the duodenum and jejunum significantly, but baclofen-induced relaxation in those muscle strips negligible. The effectiveness of GABA and muscimol in various regions were the greatest on duodenum, and greater on jejunum than on ileum The effect of GABA and muscimol was antagonized by bicuculline, a competitive GABA A receptor antagonist and picrotoxin, a noncompetitive GABA A receptor antagonist. Duodenal relaxation induced by GABA and muscimol was unaffected by hexamethonium, but was prevented by tetrodotoxin. These results suggest that GABA inhibit the contractility of smooth muscle with distinct regional difference of efficacy, and the site of inhibitory action is the GABA A receptor existing at the presynaptic membrane of postganglionic excitatory nerves.
Animals ; Bicuculline ; Dislocations ; Duodenum ; GABA-A Receptor Agonists ; GABA-A Receptor Antagonists ; gamma-Aminobutyric Acid* ; Hexamethonium ; Ileum ; Intestine, Small* ; Jejunum ; Membranes ; Muscimol ; Muscle, Smooth ; Picrotoxin ; Rats* ; Receptors, GABA-A ; Relaxation ; Tetrodotoxin

Five cases of histologically proven polymorphic reticulosis were examined with computed tomography(CT). CT findings were mucosal thickening along the septal and lateral walls of the nasal cavities(n=4), obliteration of the contour of the nasopharynx(n=4), involvement of the paranasal sinuses (n=2), destruction of the nasal septum and/or sinus walls(n=3) and mass in the palate, tonsil or neck (n=1). CT examination was helpful in determining the extent of the disease in the nasal cavity and paranasal sinuses. However, lesions in the palate and tonsils could not be easily evaluated with CT. CT findings of polymorphic reticulosis are nonspecific and granulomatous diseases may show similar CT findings.
Granuloma, Lethal Midline* ; Nasal Cavity ; Nasal Septum ; Neck ; Palate ; Palatine Tonsil ; Paranasal Sinuses

No abstract available.

No abstract available.
Poroma* ; Warts*

We present a patient who developed a pseudolymphoma after ear piercing. A patch test showed gold sensitivity. Therefore, long standing dermal exposure to gold from a pierced-type earring might have produced the patient's disease. This patient did not respond to an intralesional steroid injection and was finally treated with a complete resection of the lesion. It is proposed that every patient with a hyperplastic lesion in the ear lobe should be taken a biopsy in order to rule out the possibility of a pseudolymphoma. When a pseudolymphoma develops in the ear lobe, a complete surgical excision could be the treatment of choice, especially for the prevention of recurrence.
Biopsy ; Body Piercing* ; Ear* ; Humans ; Patch Tests ; Pseudolymphoma* ; Recurrence

No abstract available.
Ear* ; Pilomatrixoma*

No abstract available.
Photochemotherapy* ; Porokeratosis*