No abstract available.
Cerebral Palsy* ; Child* ; Humans

No abstract available.
Animals* ; Brain* ; Hypothermia* ; Models, Animal*

BACKGROUND: This study was conducted to reveal the health effects of air pollution on the residents living near waste treatment plant. METHODS: We sampled 190 residents as the hogh exposed group, 192 residents as the moderate group, and 139 residents as the low exposed group according to the geographical distances from the waste treatment plant. Self-administered questionnaires for prevalence of respiratory disease, irritation symptoms of mucous membrane (eye, nose, thoat, skin, and respiratory tract), gastrointestinal symptoms, other nonspecific symptoms were conducted. We measured the concentrations of total suspened partcles, Zn, Cu, Cr, Ni, Pb, Cd and As in 3 exposed area. RESULT: Airborne concentrations of total suspended particles measured in exposed area were 485, 365, and 332 micro gram/m(3) which excees the limit value. Airborne concentrations of Zn, Cu, Cr, Ni, Pb, Cd and As were not excees the limit value. The prevalence of respiratory disease of high exposed group (16.8%) was significantly higher than that of moderate group (3.6%) and low exposed group (5.0%). The sysptom score of irrtation sysptoms of mucous membrane, gastrointestinal sysptoms, and other nonspecific sysptoms were increased with exposed level. In multiple linear regression, exposure level was related to all sysptom scores significantly. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that the air pollution of waste treatment plant would influence prevalence of respiratory disease, induce irritation of mucous membrane, gastrointestinal symptoms, and other nonspecific sysptoms.
Air Pollution ; Linear Models ; Mucous Membrane ; Nose ; Plants* ; Prevalence ; Skin ; Surveys and Questionnaires

PURPOSE: We investigated whether psychological factors could influence on the symptoms of chronic prostatitis based on general population that have not previously been examined or treated. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Between August and November 2000, we randomly selected 100 male residents in the area of Chung-nam including Daejoen city. The participants completed self- administered questionnaires. Based on our inclusion criteria, 87 participants were included in this study. RESULTS: Scores of Beck Depression Inventory of participants with higher pain and urinary symptoms domain scores were significantly higher than those with lower pain and urinary symptoms domain scores of the National Institutes of Health-chronic prostatitis symptom index (p=0.001 and p=0.028, respectively). However, anxiety did not influence on the symptoms of chronic prostatitis based on the results of State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. Based on the results of Bem Sex Role Inventory, masculinity score of participants with higher urinary symptoms domain scores were significantly lower than those with lower urinary symptoms domain scores (p=0.042). CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that psychological problems may involve in an early stage of chronic prostatitis and have a causative role in chronic prostatitis.
Academies and Institutes ; Anxiety ; Depression ; Gender Identity ; Humans ; Male ; Masculinity ; Prostatitis* ; Psychology ; Surveys and Questionnaires

Amniotic fluid embolism (AFE) is a rare peripartum complication with a mortality rate of 61 to 86%. The main clinical manifestations include shock, acute pulmonary edema, neurologic signs, and coagulopathies. Most diagnosis of AFE is made on the postmortem examination of the maternal pulmonary vasculature, but antemortem confirmation of amniotic fluid material by aspiration of pulmonary blood is rare. We report the first case in Korea who survived from amniotic fluid embolism confirmed by the identification of amniotic fluid debris in pulmonary artery blood. Serial echocardiographic changes of left ventricle systolic dysfunction are also described with a brief review of literatures.
Amniotic Fluid* ; Autopsy ; Diagnosis ; Echocardiography ; Embolism, Amniotic Fluid* ; Female ; Heart Ventricles* ; Korea ; Mortality ; Neurologic Manifestations ; Peripartum Period ; Pregnancy ; Pulmonary Artery ; Pulmonary Edema ; Shock

BACKGROUND: Excess energy supply induces chronic low-grade inflammation in association with oxidative stress in various tissues including intestinal epithelium. The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of high-fat diet (HFD) on intestinal cell membrane integrity and intestinal tumorigenesis in ApcMin/+ mice. METHODS: Mice were fed with either normal diet (ND) or HFD for 12 weeks. The number of intestinal tumors were counted and biomarkers of endotoxemia, oxidative stress, and inflammation were determined. Changes in intestinal integrity was measured by fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC)-dextran penetration and membrane gap junction protein expression. RESULTS: HFD group had significantly higher number of tumors compared to ND group (P < 0.05). Blood total antioxidant capacity was lower in HFD group, while colonic 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine level, a marker of oxidative damage, was higher in HFD group compared to that of ND group (P < 0.05). The penetration of FITC-dextran was substantially increased in HFD group (P < 0.05) while the expressions of membrane gap junction proteins including zonula occludens-1, claudin-1, and occludin were lower in HFD group (P < 0.05) compared to those in ND group. Serum concentration of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) receptor (CD14) and colonic toll-like receptor 4 (a LPS receptor) mRNA expression were significantly higher in HFD group than in ND group (P < 0.05), suggesting that significant endotoxemia may occur in HFD group due to the increased membrane permeability. Serum interleukin-6 concentration and myeloperoxidase activity were also higher in HFD group compared to those of ND group (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: HFD increases oxidative stress disrupting intestinal gap junction proteins, thereby accelerating membrane permeability endotoxemia, inflammation, and intestinal tumorigenesis.
Animals ; Biomarkers ; Carcinogenesis* ; Cell Membrane* ; Claudin-1 ; Colon ; Colonic Neoplasms ; Connexins ; Diet ; Diet, High-Fat* ; Endotoxemia ; Fluorescein ; Inflammation ; Interleukin-6 ; Intestinal Mucosa ; Membranes ; Mice ; Occludin ; Oxidative Stress ; Permeability ; Peroxidase ; RNA, Messenger ; Toll-Like Receptor 4

There is an error in a grant number in Acknowledgements.

No abstract available.
Humans ; Mycoplasma*

Bacillus species are aerobic, gram-positive, spore forming rods that are widely distributed in soil, dust, stream, and other environmental sources and are regarded as natural organism. But certain species of the genus Bacillus, most notably B.cereus, which is associated with food-borne illness, occasionally have been implicated in the occurrence of fatal illness and complication in a compromised host. We roport a case of pneumonia and bacteremia caused by B.cereus in an 81 year-old man, who had no obvious immunologic compromise. The condition was treated with combination of roxithromycin and gentamicin.
Bacillus cereus* ; Bacillus* ; Bacteremia ; Dust ; Gentamicins ; Pneumonia* ; Rivers ; Roxithromycin ; Soil ; Spores

Leprosy is a chronic granulomatous disease affecting the skin and peripheral nervous system. Because of its variable manifestations, leprosy can be misdiagnosed as syphilis, sarcoidosis, psoriasis and eczema. A 73 year-old man showed erythematous papules on his arms and legs. He had been erroneously treated as eczema before the correct clinicopathological diagnosis of borderline lepromatous leprosy was made. We report this case to suggest that dermatologists should pay careful attention while diagnosing new cases of leprosy.
Arm ; Diagnosis ; Eczema* ; Granulomatous Disease, Chronic ; Leg ; Leprosy* ; Leprosy, Multibacillary* ; Peripheral Nervous System ; Psoriasis ; Sarcoidosis ; Skin ; Syphilis