OBJECTIVE: This study was designed to evaluate the cause of mortality in patients with dementia, including Alzheimer's disease and multi-infarct dementia, and those without dementia. METHOD: Hospital records of geriatric patients (> or =65) in nursing home having dementia were reviewed retrospectively for 6 years. The total number of patients was 351 (the number of demented patients was 146 and those without dementia was 68). Of the ones with dementia, 146 had dementia of Alzheimer's type, 101 patients had vascular dementia, and 36 patients had non-specific dementia. This study focused on the different complications associated with Alzheimer's disease and cerebrovascular dementia. RESULT: 1) The average age at death of demented patient is higher than the non-demented population;however, there is no difference in age between Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia. 2) There is no difference in time spent in the nursing home among the non-demented group, Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia group from admission to death. The life expectancy of male patients with Alzheimer's disease after admission to the nursing home is significant shorter than their female counterpart. 3) Patients with vascular dementia have a higher incidence of hypertension, atherosclerotic disease, and diabetes than the Alzheimer's patients. 4) The main overall causes of the death (in nursing home patients) are infection and sepsis. In Alzheimer's disease's, sepsis is the major cause of death, while in vascular dementia, atherosclerotic disease is the number one cause. CONCLUSION: Knowledge of the causes of the death in demented patients may help the management of the possible complications associated with the different types of dementia. However, long-term research is then needed to analyze the survival rates of demented nursing home patients.
Alzheimer Disease ; Cause of Death ; Dementia* ; Dementia, Multi-Infarct ; Dementia, Vascular ; Female ; Hospital Records ; Humans ; Hypertension ; Incidence ; Life Expectancy ; Male ; Mortality* ; Nursing Homes* ; Nursing* ; Retrospective Studies ; Sepsis ; Survival Rate

Intravesical therapy is the gold standard in the treatment of nonmuscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC). Despite the efficacy of intravesical therapies, the best treatment options are not determined yet. Development in research of bladder cancer shows several new intravesical drugs and its delivery systems. Additionally, the novel knowledge of bladder cancer immune reaction improves and provides ambitious treatment strategies. The future of NMIBC therapy will be changed by the development of immunotherapy and new technologies for device-assisted treatment. This review focuses on recent advances in the intravesical therapy of NMIBC, viral gene therapy, new technology of intravesical chemotherapy, and drug delivery system.

The aim of this study was to identify a new gene of Haemophilus parasuis that could be used to develop a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test for this porcine pathogen. H. parasuis genomic DNA was cloned into a set of expression vectors, and transformants expressing His-tagged polypeptides were identified by colony blotting. An ABC transporter-like gene was isolated. The cloned DNA fragment is 1,105 base pair and shows 78% similarity at the nucleotide level with an ABC transporter gene of H. ducreyi. Based on this sequence, two PCR primers were designed to amplify the entire 1,105-bp fragment in the proposed diagnostic PCR test. PCR amplification was able to detect a minimum of 1 x 10(4) CFU/ml of H. parasuis organisms. Fifteen different H. parasuis serovars were positive using the PCR test. No amplification was observed when the test was done using DNA from 16 other bacterial species commonly isolated from swine.
Base Pairing ; Clone Cells ; Cloning, Organism ; DNA ; Haemophilus ; Haemophilus parasuis ; Peptides ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Swine

Background: This study aimed to assess the potential efficacy of purified porcine atelocollagen (PAC) for the management of refractory chronic pain due to suspected connective tissue damage. Methods: Patients treated with PAC were retrospectively evaluated. Patients with chronic refractory pain, suspected to have originated from musculoskeletal damage or defects with the evidence of imaging studies were included. Pain intensity, using the 11-point numerical rating scale (NRS), was assessed before the procedure, and 1 month after the last procedure. Results: Eighty-eight patients were finally included for investigation. The mean NRS score was decreased from 5.8 to 4.1 after 1 month of PAC injection (P < 0.001). No independent factor was reported to be directly related to the decrease in NRS score by more than half. Conclusions Application of PAC may have potential as a treatment option for refractory chronic musculoskeletal pain. PAC might promote tissue recovery, act as a scaffold for repair, or directly reduce inflammation.

The heterogeneity of cancer makes it difficult to predict the prognosis of treatment. There is still a lack of preclinical model systems that reflect the clinical characteristics of patients who have heterogenetic tumors. Advances in 3-dimentional (3D) cell culture are leading to discoveries that occur in the development and progression of cancer that has not been known. There are many models including patient-derived xenograft, patient-derived organoid and spheroid, patient-derived explant, scaffold-based model, and system-based model. Each 3D model has its strengths and limitations. One model cannot answer every question, so it seems most reasonable to approach multiple models when studying cancer heterogeneity. Hopefully, 3D tumor modeling will make tremendous progress on this path by fusion of innovative biomaterials and advanced modeling techniques that can partially mimic the heterogeneous environment of real tumors.

Exercise-mediated physical treatment has attracted much recent interest. In particular, swimming is a representative exercise treatment method recommended for patients experiencing muscular and cardiovascular diseases. The present study sought to design a swimming-based exercise treatment management system. A survey questionnaire was completed by participants to assess the prevalence of muscular and cardiovascular diseases among adult males and females participating in swimming programs at sport centers in metropolitan regions of country. Using the Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) technique, weighted values of indices were determined, to maximize participant clarity. A patient management system model was devised using information technology. The favorable results are evidence of the validity of this approach. Additionally, the swimming-based exercise management system can be supplemented together with analyses of weighted values considering connectivity between established indices.
Adult ; Cardiovascular Diseases ; Female ; Humans ; Hydroxyproline ; Male ; Prevalence ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Sports ; Swimming

This study was performed to clarify inf luences of anticentromere antibody (ACA) on clinical phenotypes of primary Sjögren’s syndrome (pSS) patients in Korea. Methods: We assessed 318 patients who met the 2016 American College of Rheumatology/ European League Against Rheumatism classification criteria for pSS. All patients were selected from the Korean Initiative of primary Sjögren’s Syndrome (KISS), a prospective cohort. Among them, 53 patients were positive for ACA, while another 265 patients were not. We compared various clinical data including demographic features, extra-glandular manifestations (EGMs), clinical indices, and laboratory values available from the KISS database between the two groups. Results: Patients in the ACA-positive pSS group were older (p = 0.042), and had higher xerostomia inventory scores (p = 0.040), whereas glandular dysfunction represented with Schirmer I test was more severe in the ACA-negative group. More frequent Raynaud’s phenomenon and liver involvement (both p < 0.001) and less articular involvement (p = 0.037) were observed among the EGMs in the ACA-positive group. Less frequency of leukopenia (p = 0.021), rheumatoid factor (p < 0.001), anti-Ro/SSA antibody positivity (p < 0.001), and hypergammaglobulinemia (p = 0.006), as well as higher positivity rates of anti-nuclear antibody and anti- topoisomerase antibody (p < 0.001 and p = 0.006, respectively) were found in the laboratory data in the ACA-positive pSS group. Conclusions: Considering distinct phenotypes in hematological and serological features and EGMs, we should monitor the occurrence of these clinical features among pSS patients with ACA in caution.