No abstract available.
Humans ; Infant, Newborn*

We present a case of ovarian leiomyoma without related clinical symptoms in a 68-year-old woman. Leiomyoma arising primarily in the ovary is rare. However, it is believed that there are actually more cases than those reported because this condition is usually mistaken for a fibrothecoma or parasitic leiomyoma. Most cases previously reported were incidentally presented and coexisted with other ovarian lesions. The present case was characterized by a 9 cm, round lobulated mass that totally replaced the left ovary without uterine leiomyoma or coexisting ovarian lesions.
Aged ; Female ; Humans ; Leiomyoma* ; Ovary*

During inflammation of the colon, cells of the gut mucosa produce or express numerous inflammatory mediators, such as tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), interleukin-1beta (IL-1 beta), and intercellular adhesion molecule 1 (ICAM-1). These mediators have been implicated as contributory factors to the inflammatory process, which results in colitis during inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Rebamipide is an anti-gastric ulcer drug with anti-inflammatory properties in vivo and in vitro. The effects of Rebamipide on IBD have not been largely evaluated. Therefore, this study investigated the potential of Rebamipide to regulate the production of inflammatory mediators such as TNF-alpha, IL-1beta, and ICAM-1. Mice with trinitrobenzene sulfonic acid (TNBS)-induced colitis (IBD animal model), were treated intrarectally with 2 mM Rebamipide. Body weight, macro- and micro-histological scores, and activity were evaluated. As an index of tissue edema, the thickness of the colonic wall was measured between the serosal surface and the luminal surface of the mucosa. TNF-alpha, IL-1 beta, and ICAM-1 were detected by immunohistochemical staining. Rebamipide treatment of mice exhibiting TNBS-induced colitis dramatically improved the clinical and histopathological findings of inflammation. In addition, Rebamipide suppressed TNF-alpha, IL-1 beta, and ICAM-1 expression in TNBS-treated animals. Taken together, these findings suggest that Rebamipide is a potential therapeutic agent for treating patients with IBD.
Animals ; Body Weight ; Colitis ; Colon* ; Down-Regulation* ; Edema ; Humans ; Inflammation ; Inflammatory Bowel Diseases ; Intercellular Adhesion Molecule-1* ; Interleukin-1beta ; Mice ; Mucous Membrane ; Phenobarbital ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha* ; Ulcer

BACKGROUND: Macrophages are a component of a tumor's microenvironment and have various roles in tumor progression and metastasis. This study evaluated the relationships between tumor-associated macrophage (TAM) density and clinical outcomes in 14 different types of human cancers. METHODS: We investigated TAM density in human tissue microarray sections from 14 different types of human cancers (n = 266) and normal thyroid, lung, and breast tissues (n = 22). The five-year survival rates of each cancer were obtained from the 2011 Korea Central Cancer Registry. RESULTS: Among 13 human cancers, excluding thyroid cancer, pancreas, lung, and gallbladder cancers had the highest density of CD163-positive macrophages (7.0+/-3.5%, 6.9+/-7.4%, and 6.9 +/- 5.5%, respectively). The five-year relative survival rates of these cancers (pancreas, 8.7%; lung, 20.7%; gallbladder, 27.5%) were lower than those of other cancers. The histological subtypes in thyroid cancer exhibited significantly different CD163-positive macrophages densities (papillary, 1.8 +/- 1.6% vs anaplastic, 22.9 +/- 17.1%; p < .001), but no significant difference between histological subtypes was detected in lung and breast cancers. Moreover, there was no significant difference in CD163-positive macrophages densities among the TNM stages in lung, breast, and thyroid cancers. CONCLUSIONS: Cancers with higher TAM densities (pancreas, lung, anaplastic thyroid, and gallbladder) were associated with poor survival rate.
Breast ; Gallbladder ; Gallbladder Neoplasms ; Humans ; Korea ; Lung ; Macrophages* ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Pancreas ; Prognosis ; Survival Rate* ; Thyroid Gland ; Thyroid Neoplasms

PURPOSE: The survey aimed to obtain opinions about a proposed implementation of pharmacy skills assessment in Korean pharmacist licensure examination (KPLE). METHODS: A 16-question survey was distributed electronically to 2,738 people including 570 pharmacy professors of 35 pharmacy schools, 550 preceptors from 865 practice sites and 1,618 students who graduated in 2015. The survey solicited responses concerning the adequacy of the current KPLE in assessing pharmacy knowledge/skills/attitudes, deficiencies of pharmacy skills testing in assessing the professional competencies necessary for pharmacists, plans for pharmacy skills tests in the current KPLE, and subject areas of pharmacy practice. RESULTS: A total of 466 surveys were returned. The current exam is not adequate for assessing skills and attitudes according to 42%–48% of respondents. Sixty percent felt that skills test is necessary to assess qualifications and professional competencies. Almost two-thirds of participants stated that testing should be implemented within 5 years. More than 60% agreed that candidates should be graduates and that written and skills test scores can be combined for pass-fail decisions. About 70% of respondents felt that the test should be less than 2 hours in duration. Over half of the respondents thought that the assessor should be a pharmacy faculty member with at least 5 years of clinical experience. Up to 70% stated that activities related to patient care were appropriate and practical for the scope of skills test. CONCLUSION: Pharmacy skills assessment was supported by the majority of respondents.
Humans ; Licensure* ; Patient Care ; Pharmacists* ; Pharmacy* ; Schools, Pharmacy ; Surveys and Questionnaires

There are many complications following gastrectomy and one of the most frequent complications is anastomosis site leakage. Postoperative leakage is a serious complication in patients after they undergo gastric surgery. It can lead to the progressive deterioration in the patient's condition and quality of life and the mortality rate is nearly 60%. We encountered a case of a 75 year-old man who had the leakage of the jejunal end of the Roux limb after total gastrectomy. We performed treatment of the leakage endoscopic clipping and detachable snaring. Hemoclips were fixed at the margin of both sides of the lesion. A detachable snare was used to bind both hemoclips, so the interval was made narrow. After snare binding, five hemoclips were used for final closure of the small interval. After treatment, the leakage of the afferent loop end was completely stopped. He resumed an oral intake and was discharged without complications.
Extremities ; Gastrectomy ; Humans ; Quality of Life ; SNARE Proteins

PURPOSE: To investigate whether allelic polymorphism of haptoglobin (Hp) is associated with premature rupture of membrane (PROM), the Hp phenotypes of pregnant women with PROM were analyzed. PATIENTS AND METHODS: The Hp phenotypes of 221 pregnant Korean women (187 control and 34 PROM patients) were determined by benzidine/hydrogen peroxide staining, following native polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of hemoglobin-mixed sera. The Hp allele frequencies were calculated from the data of Hp phenotypes, and overall association with PROM was evaluated using Pearson Chi-Square test. RESULTS: The polymorphic distribution of the patients cohort who underwent a normal delivery (control group) was similar to that of healthy Koreans. In contrast, however, patients with PROM showed significantly higher occurrence of the Hp 1-1 phenotype than control group (23.5% vs 8.0%). Hp 2-2 phenotype was lower in PROM cohort (38.2%) than in the control group (48.7%). The Hp1 allele frequency in PROM group was significantly higher than that in the control group (0.426 vs 0.297, p = 0.034) with odds ratio of 1.762 (95% CI: 1.038 - 2.991). CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that pregnant Korean women who possess Hp1 allele (expressed as Hp 1-1 phenotype) have higher incidence of PROM than women with Hp2 allele (expressed as Hp 2-2 phenotype). This is the first study that evaluated the significance of Hp polymorphism with respect to the development of PROM.
Adult ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group/*statistics & numerical data ; Female ; Fetal Membranes, Premature Rupture/*ethnology/*genetics ; Gene Frequency ; Genetic Predisposition to Disease/ethnology ; Haptoglobins/*genetics ; Humans ; Incidence ; Infant, Newborn ; Korea/epidemiology ; Phenotype ; *Polymorphism, Genetic ; Pregnancy

Coronary arterioventricular fistula is a rare form of congenital malformation of coronary artery. A 29-year-old man presented with a 4-year history of shortness of breath and recently developed chest discomfort during exertion. A huge, dilated coronary arterioventricular fistula from right coronary artery to left ventricle was diagnosed with transthoracic echocardiography, transesophageal echocardiography and coronary angiography. This finding was confirmed by selective administration of the microbubble into the right coronary artery during transthoracic echocardiography monitoring. The opening of the fistula at the level of left ventricle was obliterated with autologous pericardium and the patient recovered and discharged uneventfully.
Adult ; Coronary Angiography ; Coronary Vessels* ; Dyspnea ; Echocardiography ; Echocardiography, Transesophageal ; Fistula* ; Heart Ventricles* ; Humans ; Microbubbles ; Pericardium ; Thorax

OBJECTIVE: The aim of our study was to identify graft, obstetric and maternal outcomes of pregnancies in renal transplant recipients at our center. METHODS: A 14-year retrospective study between January 1990 and December 2003, 224 women 15 to 45 years of age had transplantation and were analyzed the outcomes of pregnancies, obstetric complications and graft function. RESULTS: Thirty-four pregnancies occurred in 21 of 224 patients. The mean age at the time of conception was 29.5 years (21 to 36 years) with a mean interval of 61.9 months (one to 162 months). In the pregnancy outcome, there were the 23 live births (67.6%) included 13 preterm and 10 term deliveries, 3 spontaneous abortions (8.8%), 7 artificial abortions (20.5%) and one case of ectopic pregnancy (2.9%). Obstetric complications were; preeclampsia (39.1%), preterm labor (43.4%), urinary tract infections (38.2%) and gestational diabetes (8.6%). Nine pregnancies within 2 years of transplantation had the permissible obstetric outcomes comparing with the others after 2 years (spontaneous abortion: p=0.77, artificial abortion: p=0.88, live birth: p=0.36). In twelve pregnancies appearing renal dysfunction associated with pregnancy, the abortion rate was increased comparing the others with stable renal function (p=0.006). Pre-pregnancy serum creatinine > or =1.4 mg/dl was associated with increased preterm delivery, but not significant (50.0% vs 28.5%, p=0.30). In graft function, serum creatinine 3~6 postpartum was significantly increased comparing pre-pregnancy levels (p=0.04). Five cases of 7 patients with acute rejection episode associated with pregnancy conceived after 4 years of transplantation. Two-year graft survival after delivery was 95.2% (20/21) and chronic rejection and graft failure was diagnosed in one case at postpartum 14 months. CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that, if the graft function is stable, pregnancy within 2 years after renal transplantation might be safe. Pregnancy does not appear to have adverse effects on long term graft survival.
Abortion, Induced ; Abortion, Spontaneous ; Creatinine ; Diabetes, Gestational ; Female ; Fertilization ; Graft Survival ; Humans ; Kidney Transplantation ; Live Birth ; Obstetric Labor, Premature ; Postpartum Period ; Pre-Eclampsia ; Pregnancy ; Pregnancy Outcome* ; Pregnancy* ; Pregnancy, Ectopic ; Retrospective Studies* ; Transplantation* ; Transplants ; Urinary Tract Infections

PURPOSE: Most burn scar contractures are curable with skin grafts, but free flaps may be needed in some cases. Due to the adjacent tissue scarring, local flap is rarely used, and thus we may consider free flap which gives us more options than local flap. However, inappropriate performance of free flap may lead to unsatisfactory results despite technical complexity and enormous amount of effort. The author will discuss the points we should consider when using free flaps in treating burn scar contractures METHODS: We surveyed patients who underwent free flaps to correct burn scar contractures from 2000 to 2007. We divided patients into two groups. The first group was those in which free flaps were inevitable due to exposure of deep structures such as bones and tendons. The second group was those in which free flap was used to minimize scar contracture and to achieve aesthetic result. RESULTS: We performed 44 free flap on 42 patients. All of the flaps were taken well except one case of partial necrosis and wound dehiscence. Forearm free flap was the most common with 21 cases. Most of the cases(28 cases) in which free flaps were inevitable were on the wrist and lower limbs. These were cases of soft tissue defect due to wide and extensive burns. Free flaps were done in 16 cases to minimize scar contracture and to obtain aesthetic outcome, recipient sites were mostly face and upper extremities. CONCLUSION: When using free flaps for correction of burn scar contractures, proper release and full resurfacing of the contracture should be carried out in advance. If inadequate free flap is performed, secondary correction is more challenging than in skin grafts. In order to optimize the result of reconstruction, flap thickness, size and scar of the recipient site should be considered, then we can achieve natural shape, and minimize additional correction.
Burns ; Cicatrix ; Contracture ; Forearm ; Free Tissue Flaps ; Humans ; Lower Extremity ; Necrosis ; Skin ; Tendons ; Transplants ; Wrist