The changes of electroencephalogram(EEG) in patients with dementia are most commonly studied by analyzing power or magnitude in certain traditionally defined frequency bands. However because of the absence of on identified metric which quantifies the complex amount of information, there are many limitations in using such a linear method. According to chaos theory, irregular signals of EEG cal also result from low dimensional deterministic chaos. Chaotic nonlinear dynamics in the EEG can be studied by calculating the correlation dimension. The authors have analyzed EEG epochs from three patients with dementia of Alzheimer type and three matched control subject. The result showed that patients with dementia of Alzheimer type had significantly lower correlation dimension than non-demented controls on 12 channels. Topographic analysis showed that the correlation dimensions were significantly lower in patients with Alzheimer's disease on frontal, temporal, central, and occipital head regions. These results show that brains of patients with dementia with dementia of Alzheimer type have a decreased complexity of electrophysiological behavior. We conclude that the nonlinear analysis such as calculating correlation dimension can be a promising tool for detecting changes in the complexity of brain dynamics.
Alzheimer Disease ; Brain ; Dementia* ; Electroencephalography* ; Head ; Humans ; Nonlinear Dynamics*

No abstract available.
Arthritis* ; Osteoarthritis* ; Transforming Growth Factor beta* ; Transforming Growth Factors*

Although a lot of articles examining concomitant intrauterine and ectopic pregnancy have been presented, we have not found any reports on ectopic implantation of chorionic villi in the vagina with normal intrauterine pregnancy. We experienced a case of chorionic villi on the vaginal wall as a hemorrhagic mass during the second trimester of pregnancy. A pregnant woman (gestational age of 16 weeks and 1 day) visited our hospital due to vaginal bleeding. There was no abnormal finding except vaginal hemorrhagic mass, and the mass revealed a product of conception.
Chorion* ; Chorionic Villi* ; Female ; Fertilization ; Humans ; Pregnancy ; Pregnancy Trimester, Second* ; Pregnancy* ; Pregnancy, Ectopic ; Pregnant Women ; Uterine Hemorrhage ; Vagina

Most renal cell carcinomas are solid but contain small cystic areas. Sometimes the cystic component predominates and such lesions are called cystic renal cell carcinomas. The radiographic and pathologic findings of cystic renal cell carcinoma are often more confusing and less specific than the findings of solid renal cell carcinoma. Multilocular cystic renal cell carcinoma is one form of cystic renal cell carcinoma variants and results from intrinsic multiloculated growth. A presumptive diagnosis of multilocular cystic renal cell carcinoma was made preoperatively in a 38-year-old woman and it was treated with radical nephrectomy, so we report this case with brief review of the literatures.
Adult ; Carcinoma, Renal Cell* ; Diagnosis ; Female ; Humans ; Nephrectomy

No abstract available.
Cervix Uteri* ; Female ; Health Expenditures*

BACKGROUND: Although impaired endothelial function is well known in patients with diabetes mellitus, the precise mechanism and the factors that contribute to this dysfunction remain to be clarified. We examined the effect of acute hyperglycemia on patients with impaired glucose metabolism in vivo by plethysmography. METHODS: Seven patients with diabetes mellitus or impaired glucose metabolism were studied. In each patient, endothelial function was examined in the fasting state and at two levels of hyperglycemia, which were achieved by the infusion of glucose, insulin, and somatostatin. Forearm blood flow was measured while acetylcholine was infused in increasing concentrations(7.5, 15, and 30 microgram/min) through the brachial artery. RESULTS: Glucose concentrations increased accordingly at each stage, from 135.3+/-18.4 mg/dl at stage 1(the fasting state), to 239.0+/-15.2 mg/dl at stage 2(the first level of hyperglycemia), and to 378.3+/-25.3 at stage 3 (the second level of hyperglycemia) [p<0.01]. Maximal acetylcholine-dependent vasodilation achieved by infusion of acetylcholine at 30 microgram/min was significantly aftenuated during stages 2 and 3 compared with stage 1(p<0.05 by AVOVA; forearm blood flow ratio was 2.87+/-0.18 and 2.56+/-0.14 versus 3.58+/-0.21, respectively). This was also evident during the infusion of 15 microgram/min and 7.5 microgram/min of acetylcholine. CONCLUSIONS: Endothelium-dependent vasodilation is significantly aftenuated by acute hyperglycemia in patients with diabetes mellitus or impaired glucose metabolism. Our findings suggest that elevated glucose may contribute to the endothelial dysfunction observed in patients with diabetes mellitus or impaired glucose metabolism.
Acetylcholine ; Brachial Artery ; Diabetes Mellitus* ; Endothelium ; Fasting ; Forearm ; Glucose* ; Humans ; Hyperglycemia* ; Insulin ; Metabolism* ; Plethysmography ; Somatostatin ; Vasodilation*

BACKGROUND: Laparoscopic and pelviscopic techniques have rapidly increased in recent years. Laparoscopy or pelviscopy require carbon dioxide (CO2) insufflation and Trendelenburg or reverse-Trendelenburg position for operational convenience. Many studies were done about the effects of laparoscopic procedures. But simultaneous comparisons of end-tidal CO2 tension (PETCO2), peak airway pressure (Ppeak), plateau pressure (Pplat) and respiratory compliance (Cdyn), between Trendelenburg and reverse-Trendelenburg position are rare. We compared the airway pressure and compliance between the two positions during laparoscopic surgery. METHOD: Eighty patients were divided into 2 groups: for 10o reverse-Trendelenburg position (n=40, Group R) and 10o Trendelenburg position (n=40, Group T). Abdominal pressure was maintained at 10 mmHg by a CO2 insufflator, and minute ventilation was controlled with a constant tidal volume and fixed respiratory rate. We observed the change of PETCO2, Ppeak, Pplat, and Cdyn at 1 minutes before CO2 insufflation (control value), 2 min after position change, 5, 20, 30, 60 minutes after CO2 insufflation, 2 min after CO2 removal, and 2 min after operation. RESULT: PETCO2, Ppeak, and Pplat were increased and Cdyn was decreased significantly after pneumoperitoneum compared with the control in group R. PETCO2, Ppeak, and Pplat were increased significantly under the Trendelenburg compared with the reverse-Trendelenburg, and Cdyn was decreased significantly in Trendelenburg compared with reverse-Trendelenburg. CONCLUSION: PETCO2, Ppeak, Pplat, and Cdyn impedances increased more under the Trendelenburg after pneumoperitoneum compared with reverse-Trendelenburg. We should pay more attention to patient with pulmonary disease, obesity, and old age under the Trendelenburg than reverse-Trendelenburg position.
Carbon Dioxide ; Compliance* ; Head-Down Tilt ; Humans ; Insufflation* ; Laparoscopy* ; Lung Diseases ; Obesity ; Pneumoperitoneum ; Respiratory Rate ; Tidal Volume ; Ventilation

43 cases of pen heart surgery anesthesia done at Kyungpook National University hospital from Jun 1983 to August 1984, were measured for the concentrations of serum Na, K, Cl and CO2 before, during and after bypass. Also these values were analysed according to disease such as A(V)SD, TOF and M(S)I groups. The results were as follows. The mean values for serum sodium level before, during and after bypass were observed to be 124.41+/-8.62, 127.56+/-8.63, and 130.73+/-29.04mEq/G. These values revealed a tendency to elevation and the value after bypass was significantly increased comparied with the value before bypass(p<0.01). The mean values for serum potassium levels of all the cases before, during and after bypass were observed to be 3.84+/-1.01, 4.38+/-1.48, and 3.59+/-0.95mEq/G. The value after bypass was significantly decreased compared with the value during bypass(p<0.001). The mean values for serum chloride level of all the cases before, during and after bypass were observed to be 98.26+/-6.87, 97.10+/-6.59 and 98.35+/-7.94mEq/G and these values showed no significant change. The mean values for serum carbon dioxide levels of all the cases before, during and after bypass were observed to be 20.78+/-3.70, 22.33+/-4.53 and 24.87+/-3.72 mEq/G and these values continuously increased. The value after bypass was significantly increased. The value after bypass was significantly increased compared with the value before bypass. In the changes of serum electrolytes before, during and after bypass according to disease, the serum potassium level after bypass of the A(V)SD group and during bypass of TOF group showed a significant change(p<0.05). The changed values in the serum electrolytes before and during bypass became within normal range after bypass.
Anesthesia* ; Carbon Dioxide ; Electrolytes ; Gyeongsangbuk-do ; Heart* ; Potassium ; Reference Values ; Sodium ; Thoracic Surgery*

Though the aetiology of transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) remains uncertain, proteinase resistant prion protein (PrP-Sc), a converted form of the normal cellular prion protein (PrP-C), accumulates in the lysosome of cells of the nervous systems of animals with TSEs. In this study, clinical and epidemiological examinations of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) were conducted in Korea. During the investigated period, none of the cattle exhibited typical clinical signs of BSE, such as behavioral disturbances, high sensitivity, and abnormal locomotion. Immunohistochemical analysis and western immunoblotting were established to detect PrP-Sc in the brain tissue using monoclonal antibody (MAb) F89/160.1.5, produced by immunizing mice with a synthetic peptide which corresponds to bovine PrP residues 146-159, NH2-SRPLIHFGSDYEDRC-COOH. Although some BSE-like spongiform changes were observed in bovine brains randomly collected from Korean slaughterhouses from 1996 to 1999, no PrP-Sc was detected in those brains with the established immunohistochemistry and western immunoblotting assay. Also, no positive reaction was observed in bovine brains infected with rabies. These immunohistochemical and western immunoblotting methods using MAbs, specifically reactive with conserved epitopes on ruminant PrP, can be used for postmortem diagnosis of BSE. Further, the method can be applied to antemortem and the preclinical diagnosis of ovine scrapie by detecting PrP-Sc in lymphoid tissues, such as the tonsils, third eyelid or peripheral lymph nodes.
Abattoirs ; Animals ; Blotting, Western ; Brain/*pathology ; Brain Stem/pathology ; Cattle ; Encephalopathy, Bovine Spongiform/*epidemiology/pathology ; Immunohistochemistry ; Korea/epidemiology ; PrPSc Proteins/*analysis ; Sheep ; Sheep Diseases/*epidemiology/pathology

OBJECTIVE: To measure the performance of a hospital enterprise resource planning (ERP) system and suggest various system improvements. METHODS: A survey based on a 5-point Likert scale questionnaire and an exclusive interview was administered to 102 employees with a one-year experience of using an ERP system at one university hospital. In order to analyze the factors affecting the ERP system performance, multiple regression analysis and Chi-square test were conducted. RESULTS: All three examined variables-system quality, information quality and integration of hospital information resources-affected the ERP system performance positively. However, the system quality variable had the lowest mean score indicating that the ERP system was difficult to understand for many users. User characteristics were not significantly associated with information quality satisfaction. CONCLUSION: On the basis of the study results, we recommended some suggestions to improve the ERP system performance. In order to reduce users' dissatisfaction with the new system, hospitals should publicize the needs of the ERP system for the employees, design more effective training programs, and provide more decision-supporting information for managers.
Education ; Surveys and Questionnaires