Actinomycosis is an indolent, suppurative infection caused by an anaerobic gram-positive organism (usually actinomyces israelii) which usually causes infection in the face, mediastitum, lung, and abdomen. Primary esophageal actinomycosis which is not related with pulmonary or mediastinal actinomycosis, is very rare, especially in immunocompetent host. A 58-year-old woman has been suffered from dysphagia, odynophagia, and chest pain after insertion of esophageal stent in esophageal acid stricture. She underwent a esophagectomy with esophagogastrostomy for above mentioned symptoms. Pathologic diagnosis was a esophageal actinomycosis.
Abdomen ; Actinomyces ; Actinomycosis* ; Chest Pain ; Constriction, Pathologic ; Deglutition Disorders ; Diagnosis ; Esophagectomy ; Female ; Humans ; Lung ; Middle Aged ; Stents*

It is well known that metastatic bone tumor is very rare below knee and elbow joint. Recently, we experienced two cases of metastatic tumor from kidney and lung to the tibia at Koryo General Hospital.
Elbow Joint ; Hospitals, General ; Kidney ; Knee ; Lung ; Tibia

Only a few cases of cyst related to cruciate ligament were reported in the literatrure. It is not only because of rarity but also difficulty of diagnosis by conventional method. Recentely, the precise intraarticular structure of the knee joint became to be seen by introduction of MRI and arthroscope and cycts would bave been found incidentally during the workup of the internal derangement of knee. We have experienced three cases of ganglion around the cruciate ligament in the patients whose symptom was mimic of intemal derangement of knee. We excised the ganglion with good clinical results.
Arthroscopes ; Diagnosis ; Ganglion Cysts ; Humans ; Knee Joint ; Knee ; Ligaments ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Methods

For prevention of limitation of range of motion due to arthrofibrosis of the knee joint after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction, it is accepted in general that the operation should be delayed for about three weeks after injury. We studied the duration form operation to time of full range of motion, and analized the results in forty-eight patients who had undergone arthroscopic anterior cruciate ligament recostruction using the autologous bone-patella tendon-bone graft and early CPM, range of motion exercise during Feb. 1991 and June 1994. The results were as follows: 1. The average interval from injury to operation were 1.3 weeks in acute injury group, 6 weeks in subacute injury group and 20.7 months in chronic group. The average interval from operation to full range of motion were 7.1 weeks in acute injury group, 5.7 weeks in subacute injury group and 3.0 weeks in chronic group. 2. In acute injury group, 14(93.3%) of 15 cases showed full extesion and only 1 case(6.7%) showed the limitation of extension less than 5 degrees. In subacute injury group, 6(85.7%) of 7 cases showed full extension but1 case(14.3%) showed the limitation of extension less than 5 degrees. On the other hand in the chronic injury group, all the 26 cases(100%) of the patients showed full extension. 3. In acute injury group, 14(93.3%) of 15 cases showed full flexion and only 1 cases(6.7%) showed the limitatin of flexion less than 5 degrees. In subacute injury group, 6(85.7%) of 7 cases showed full flexion but 1 case(14.3%) showed the limitation of flexion less than 5 degrees. On the other hand in the chronic injury group, 23(88.5%) of 26 cases could flex to full range of flexion, and 3 cases(11.5%) revealed limitation of flexion less than 5 degrees. 4. The limitation of ROM mainly due to arthrofibrosis can be prevented by early range of motion execise and active rehabilitation in the acute or chronic anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction using the autograft bone-patella-bone graft. Although in acute patients the interval from operation to full ROM can be prolonged, the full ROM can be achieved after all.
Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction ; Anterior Cruciate Ligament ; Autografts ; Hand ; Humans ; Knee Joint ; Patella ; Patellar Ligament ; Range of Motion, Articular ; Rehabilitation ; Transplants

A clinical investigation of the patients with pustulosis palmaris et plantaris (PPP) was made on 36 patients who were seen at the Department of Dermatology, Seoul National University Hospital, from January 1986 through June 1987. The results were summarized as follows : 1. In this series of 36 patients, 14 patients(38.9%) were male and 22 patients (61.1%) were female. Females are more subject to the affection than males. 2. The mean age of onset in male was 30.6 years and in female it was 38.4 years, indicating a earlier onset in male. The peak age of incidence in male was between 20 and 29 years and in female, between 40 and 49 years. 3. The sites of involvement were mostly bilateral hands and feet. 4. the season of the year did not influence the severity of the skin lesions in 68.9%. 5. Nine patients(28.1%) had psoriasis-like skin lesions and 14 patients(43.1%) had nail changes out of 32 patients with PPP. 6. No direct relationship could be found between pustular eruptions and focal infections, such as tonsilitis, otitis, dental abscess and sinusitis. 7. Remmission of the pustular eruptions could be achieved in 5 out of 10 patients treated with etretinate and in 4 out of 11 patients treated with ketoconazole for more than 4 weeks' treatment
Abscess ; Acitretin ; Age of Onset ; Dermatology ; Etretinate ; Female ; Focal Infection ; Foot ; Hand ; Humans ; Incidence ; Ketoconazole ; Male ; Otitis ; Palatine Tonsil ; Psoriasis* ; Seasons ; Seoul ; Sinusitis ; Skin

Magnetic resonance imaging(MRI) is accepted as a useful tool for the diagnosis of injury of the knee recently. The anterior cruciate ligament tear is accompanied by the damage of the osseous and soft tissue of the knee. The occult osseous lesion is found on magnetic resonance imaging as bone density change that is not found on the simple radiograph. From Jan. 1992 to Apr. 1994, magnetic resonance imaging was performed on 44 patients with acute anterior cruciate ligament tears. MRI was done within 6 weeks of the index anterior cruciate ligament injury. The criteria of decreased signal intensity on the Tl weighted image and increased signal intensity on the T2 weighted image was applied for the incidence assessment of the occult osseous lesion. After arthroscopy with or without ACL reconstruction, follow-up simple radiograph was checked every 3 months. Occult osseous lesions were documented in 32(73%) of the 44 patients. Of the 32 patients with bony lesion, 81% had lesions of the lateral compartment. Lateral femoral condyle was involved in 15 cases(46.9%), and lateral tibial plateau in 22 cases (68.8%). Follow-up X-ray revealed no joint deperession in all of the 32 patients with the occult osseous lesion. This result suggests that there is a high correlation between the occult osseous lesion of lateral compartment of the knee on magnetic resonance imaging and anterior cruciate ligament tear. The presence of the occult osseous lesion in the patient with acute anterior cruciate ligament tear did not affect rehabilitation and weight bearing.
Anterior Cruciate Ligament ; Arthroscopy ; Bone Density ; Diagnosis ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Incidence ; Joints ; Knee ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Rehabilitation ; Tears ; Weight-Bearing

Horizontal tear of the meniscus occurs most commonly in older patients. The tear begins initially with a simple horizontal cleavage which divides the meniscus into superior and inferior leaves resembling a fish mouth and which may become a flap or more complex tear with time if subjected to repeated injury. Thirty-four patients(36knees/40menisci) with horizontal tear of the meniscus, treated with arthroscopic partial meniscectomy except in 3 extensive tears at Ulsan University Hospital from Jan. 1993 to Jun. 1996, were analyzed to investigate the factors that may be associated with this type of meniscal tear, and the results were as follows; 1. The tears commonly occurred in labor workers(61.7%) and without obvious trauma history(67.6%), and the average age at the time of surgery was 44 years. 2. The most common site of the tear was posterior horn of the medial meniscus (62.5%). 3. The 40 horizontal tears consisted of 12 horizontaVcleavage(30%), 3 horizontaVflap(7.5%), and 25 horizontaUdegenerative complex tears(62.5%). 4. Degenerative changes were frequently noted in both arthroscopy(69.5%) and roentgenography (72.2%).
Animals ; Horns ; Humans ; Menisci, Tibial ; Mouth ; Radiography ; Ulsan

Between August 1994 and June 1995, seventeen patients diagnosed as having partial or complete ruptures of the anterior cruciate ligament on MRI were managed by non-operative methods. Among them four patients were excluded due to operation during follow-up and the results were evaluated at a one year follow-up. We selected the patients prospectively for non-operative care using the selection criteria of age, degree of instability, activity level and patient compliance. The average age of them was 37.7 years. Initially knee stress test and MRI were checked, and Cybex study and Lysholm knee scoring were done at post-trauma one year follow-up. They were managed conservatively by ROM and muscle strengthening exercises and a brace fitting schedule for three months. Among them, six cases had partial tears and seven had a complete tear initially. At the one year follow-up, five of six cases who had shown partial ruptures, and two of seven cases with complete tears, recovered continuity of the ruptured ACL on MRI. Their Lysholm knee score was 84.4, and the Cybex test showed no difference in muscle power between the injured and uninjuried side. Those patients who had loss of continuity on follow-up MRI showed Lysholm score of 57.4 and decreased muscle power on Cybex study. Although there are still controversies about the adequate management of ACL injuries, our study suggests that conservative management is a viable alternative to surgery as long as the patients are selected prudently. For more concrete results, however, careful analysis based on a longer follow up period is necessary.
Anterior Cruciate Ligament* ; Appointments and Schedules ; Braces ; Exercise ; Exercise Test ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Knee ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Patient Compliance ; Patient Selection ; Prospective Studies ; Rupture*

In Korea, all domestic made test systems for detecting antibodies in HIV-1 contain the antigens from human immunodeficiency type 1 (HIV-1) subtype B. However, because HIV-1 subtype O is significantly different in amino acid sequences from all other subtypes of HIV-1, there has been a need for developing a test for detecting antibodies in subtype O. For this purpose, the entire nucleotide sequence corresponding to the extracellular domain of the transmembrane glycoprotein of HIV-1 subtype O was synthesized with consideration of Escherichia coli cordon usage. Various regions of the extracellular domain were cloned into E. coli expression vectors and tested for levels of protein production. The nucleotide sequence, named ECTM, that can encode a 129 amino acid-long peptide, was found to be expressed at a high level in E. coli. The protein of approximately 17 kDa specifically reacted with sera from individuals infected with HIV-1 subtype O. The ECTM protein was purified to near homogeneity by the CM-T gel chromatography, using concentrated, denatured inclusion bodies. In Western blot analysis, the purified viral antigen reacted with sera from individuals infected with subtype O more efficiently than subtype B. The enzyme linked immunoabsorbent assay (ELISA) system was developed using the subtype O viral protein and compared with the commercially available kit lacking the antigens from subtype O. The ELISA kit containing the subtype O antigen ECTM alone efficiently reacted with sera from individuals infected with subtype O. The subtype O antigen-containing kit produced a positive absorbence even when sera were diluted 512-fold, suggesting a high sensitivity. The commercially available kit also reacted with subtype O sera, but produced a negative result at a dilution of 8-fold. Our results suggest that the currently available kit may not be able to efficiently detect subtype O sera and that the viral protein developed in this study may be added to the current system to maximize the detection of sera from individuals infected with subtype O.
Amino Acid Sequence ; Antibodies ; Base Sequence ; Blotting, Western ; Chromatography, Gel ; Clone Cells ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Escherichia coli ; Glycoproteins ; HIV* ; HIV-1* ; Humans* ; Inclusion Bodies ; Korea ; O Antigens

No abstract available.
Knee* ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging*