This study investigated reduction of the bandgap of silica by applying nano-silver doping technique and possible application of such silica as a filler in dental resin. Due to reduce band gap, newly fabricated nano-silver doped silica was able to release ROS in accordance with exposure of visible light. Nano-silver doped silica was composed of below 20 nm size crystal silver nanoparticle and 100~500 nm size amorphous silica. These two components were chemically attached to each other (Si-O-Ag). The reduced bandgap was 2.10 eV, which the value could be interpreted as occurrence of surface plasmon resonance generating ROS in visible light exposure conditions. When such nano-silver doped silica was used as a filler in dental resin, increased antibacterial property of nano-silver ion was observed which was related to releasing of ROS when exposed in visible light. The antibacterial properties were statistically significant following exposure to visible light when 0.7 to 1.5 wt% of nano-silver doped silica were incorporated into resin. When the contents of nano-silver doped silica were below 0.7 wt%, minimal ROS release resulted in no significant increase in antibacterial properties as there would be less exposed nano-silver doped silica on the resin surface by visible light. Meanwhile, more than 1.5 wt% of nano-silver doped silica also resulted no significant increase in antibacterial properties following exposure to visible light as the antibacterial effects from nano-silver ion itself were greater than effects from released ROS. Hence, it was concluded that dental resin containing 0.7 to 1.5 wt% of nano-silver doped silica would provide antibacterial properties when exposed to visible light, significantly greater than in dark conditions.

BACKGROUND: It is a very important social issue for Korea to have a healthy old age as an aged society. Aging causes a lot of physical changes, especially sarcopenia. Sarcopenia is defined as a persistent decrease in skeletal muscle and muscle strength. Sarcopenic obesity is a phenomenon in which fat is replaced instead of muscle. The purpose of this study was to examine the prevalence of sarcopenia and sarcopenic obesity in Korean elderly and to analyze the relationship with chronic disease. METHODS: Data from the 2008 to 2011 the Korea National Health and Nutrition Survey were used. A total of 3,492 patients were classified into 3 groups (non-sarcopenia, sarcopenia, sarcopenic obesity), and general, anthropometry, health behavior, nutrient intake and chronic disease status were compared by the statistical analysis. RESULTS: The rate of moderate exercise was significantly lower in the sarcopenia and sarcopenic-obesity group than in the non-sarcopenia group (P=0.007). The sarcopenic obesity group had significantly higher energy (P=0.005), protein (P=0.046) and fat (P=0.001) intake than the sarcopenic group. The sarcopenic-obesity group had the highest ratio of diabetes (P=0.023) and dyslipidemia (P=0.004) in the 3 groups. Compared with the non-sarcopenia group, in the sarcopenia and sarcopenic obesity groups, the odds ratios (ORs) of diabetes was increased by 1.24 and 2.16 while the ORs of dyslipidemia was increased by 1.12 and 1.50, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Regular exercise and adequate nutrient intake (energy, protein and fat) are essential for the prevention of sarcopenia in Korean elderly, and management of chronic disease in sarcopenic obesity elderly is important.
Aged* ; Aging ; Anthropometry ; Chronic Disease* ; Dyslipidemias ; Health Behavior ; Humans ; Korea ; Muscle Strength ; Muscle, Skeletal ; Nutrition Surveys ; Obesity* ; Odds Ratio ; Prevalence ; Sarcopenia*

Although the prognosis of papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) is extremely good, locoregional recurrences after initial treatment occur. Thyroglobulin (Tg) is a reliable tumor marker to detect recurrence or persistence of PTC. However, occasionally serum Tg may miss the detection of a recurrence. We report a 54-year-old female presented with hoarseness due to cervical recurrence without concomitant elevation of serum Tg and anti-Tg antibody, in contrast to extremely increased needle-washout Tg, who had undergone a total thyroidectomy and radioiodine ablation as initial therapies for PTC. Several factors causing such discrepancy between needle-washout Tg and serum Tg can be suggested including site of recurrence, volume of tumor, interference by some kind of plasma antibodies other than anti-Tg antibody, and any conformational defect of Tg protein. Among them, the most convincing explanation is that any conformational defect of Tg may lead to impaired secretion of Tg to blood. We suggest that more studies are needed to find the cause for potential mechanisms involved in PTC recurrences without increased serum Tg.
Antibodies ; Female ; Hoarseness ; Humans ; Middle Aged ; Plasma ; Prognosis ; Recurrence ; Thyroglobulin* ; Thyroid Neoplasms* ; Thyroidectomy

PURPOSE: For conservative treatment of shaft fractures, the butterfly fragments that were somewhat larger in the closed intra-medullary (IM) nailing. The results of treatment were monitored using radiography separately for the weight-bearing femur and non-weight-bearing humerus. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 27 from Group I and 31 from Group II. In the two groups, the displacement and angulation changes in the fragments, and the degree of improvement of these two factors, were compared using follow-up radiography. RESULTS: The mean angulation of fragments in Groups I and II were 9.2degrees and 9.6degrees, and the mean degree of displacement of the fragments in Groups I and II were 16.7 mm and 21.2 mm, respectively. Follow-up radiography showed that the above factors improved in both groups. The degree of displacement was significantly lower in the normal cases than in the complicated cases (p=0.001). CONCLUSION: Displacement and angulation gradually improved in both groups. It was found that the degree of displacement after the initial reduction is more important than the influence of anatomical position or weight bearing. This indicates that care should be taken when inserting IM nails to prevent displacement or angulation.
Butterflies ; Displacement (Psychology) ; Extremities ; Femur ; Follow-Up Studies ; Fracture Fixation, Intramedullary ; Fractures, Comminuted ; Nails ; Weight-Bearing

OBJECTIVES: The goals of the study were to compare the middle ear (ME) volumes from both normal and lesioned ears, and these ME volumes were measured by a digital image processing computed tomography (CT) program in patients with unilateral chronic otitis media, and we wanted to compare the ME volumes of the lesioned ears by comparing the ME volumes obtained by tympanometry with those ME volumes measured by the digital image processing CT program. METHODS: Forty-four patients who had unilateral chronic otitis media (COM) and contralateral normal tympanic membranes (TM) and 100 subjects with normal TMs were included in the study. The normal volumes of the external auditory canal (EAC) were measured in the normal group. The tympanometric ME volumes in the ears with a perforated TM were calculated as the difference of the tympanometric volumes measured from the both ears in patients with unilateral COM. The CT ME volumes were measured by a digital image processing program. RESULTS: The tympanometric volumes of the EACs in the ears with normal TMs were 1.4+/-0.3 mL. There were no significant differences according to gender, age and the side of the face the ear was on. The tympanometric volumes of the EAC in the normal-side ear of the patients with unilateral COM showed no significant differences when compared with those from the normal group. The ME volumes of the intact ears, as measured by CT, showed significantly higher values than those ME volumes of the lesioned ears. The ME volumes of the lesioned ears, as measured by tympanometry, showed a strong, significant linear correlation with those ME volumes calculated by CT; however, the ME volumes of the lesioned ears, as measured by tympanometry (1.5+/-1.4 mL), were significantly larger than those ME volumes measured by CT (1.1+/-0.8 mL). CONCLUSION: Our results show that chronic otitis media causes reduced ME volumes compared to those ME volumes of the contralateral normal ears. Tympanometry can provide a valuable estimation of the ME volumes in chronic ears, although it tends to overestimate the ME volumes, and especially for the ears with a larger ME volume.
Acoustic Impedance Tests ; Aminocaproic Acids ; Ear ; Ear Canal ; Ear, Middle ; Humans ; Mastoid ; Otitis ; Otitis Media ; Tympanic Membrane

BACKGROUND: The role of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) in the pathogenesis of coronary artery disease (CAD) is still controversial, and the relation between current H. pylori infection and CAD has not been fully examined. This study evaluated the relation between H. pylori infection as confirmed by gastroduodenoscopic biopsy and CAD. METHODS: We determined the presence of H. pylori infections, via gastroduodenoscopy, in 88 patients of the normal coronary angiographic group and also in 175 patients of the CAD group, and the latter patients had more than 50% coronary stenosis angiographically demonstrated. We excluded those patients with a history of previous H. pylori eradication and/or malignancy. A small piece of tissue from the antrum, which was obtained by gastroduodenoscopic biopsy, was stained by Warthin-starry silver stain. We defined a negative staining result that there was no stained tissue in the sample and the stained tissue was also positive for H. pylori infection. RESULTS: There was no significant difference, except for gender, age, smoking and high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c), of the demographic and laboratory characteristics between the groups. Twenty seven (30.7%) patients of the normal control group and 71 (40.6%) patients of the CAD group were positive of H. pylori infection, yet there was no statistical difference. We angiographically followed up the 80 patients of the CAD group who were treated by percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) at 6 to 9 months after their primary intervention. Twenty two (37.9%) of the 58 patients of the H. pylori negative group and 10 (45.5%) of the 22 patients of the H. pylori positive group were treated with reintervention, but reintervention was also not significantly different between the group with H. pylori infection and the group without the infection. CONCLUSIONS: These data indicated that H. pylori infection had a modest influence on CAD and progressive atheroma, but the showed a tendency to increase. Further studies are needed to evaluate the relationship between H. pylori infection and CAD.
Aged ; Angioplasty, Transluminal, Percutaneous Coronary ; Biopsy ; Case-Control Studies ; Coronary Angiography ; Coronary Artery Disease/*microbiology/radiography/therapy ; Duodenoscopy ; Female ; Gastroscopy ; Helicobacter Infections/complications/*microbiology/pathology ; Helicobacter pylori/*isolation & purification ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Pyloric Antrum/pathology ; Time Factors

Rhabdomyolysis is the consequence of extensive muscle injury with the release of muscle cell constituents into plasma. It can arise from trauma and also from a variety of nontraumatic causes. Trauma, drugs, toxins and infection are the major causes of rhabdomyolysis, but it is rarely associated with metabolic disorders such as severe electrolyte disturbance, diabetic ketoacidosis, hyperosmolar nonketotic coma, hypothyroidism and thyrotoxicosis. There have been several reported cases of metabolic rhabdomyolysis, but panhypopituitarism as a cause has never been identified. We experienced a case of acute rhabdomyolysis associated with panhypopituitarism. Thus, So we report this case with the review of related literature. Metabolic disorder is a rare cause of rhabdomyolysis, but it should always be considered in a patient having and unexplained increased of the creatine kinase concentration
Coma ; Creatine Kinase ; Diabetic Ketoacidosis ; Humans ; Hypothyroidism ; Muscle Cells ; Plasma ; Rhabdomyolysis* ; Thyrotoxicosis

Kallmann's syndrome is defined as the combination of hypogonadotropic hypogonadism and anosmia/hyposmia. The syndrome is a result of defect in the embryonic migratory pathway of gonadotropin-releasing hormone, which synthesizes neurons and olfactory axons. The hypogonadotropic hypogonadism results due to absence of or incomplete pubertal development and may be associated with anosmia, hyposmia, midline defect(color blindness, cleft-lip, cleft-palate, unilateral renal agenesis, sensorineural deafness), cryptorchidism and skeletal anomaly. Till date in Korea, few cases of Kallmann's syndrome have been reported but there are no available reports on cases of Kallmann's syndrome with unilateral renal aplasia and diabetes mellitus. We handled a case of Kallmann's syndrome associated with unilateral renal agenesis and diabetes mellitus. In the current work, we present a peculiar case as afore mentioned with the review of related literature.
Axons ; Blindness ; Cryptorchidism ; Diabetes Mellitus* ; Gonadotropin-Releasing Hormone ; Hypogonadism ; Kallmann Syndrome* ; Korea ; Male ; Neurons ; Olfaction Disorders

Focal adhesion kinase (FAK) is a tyrosine kinase that is found in cellular structures called focal adhesions. FAK appears to be a key element in signal transduction pathways involved in cell adhesion and locomotion. FAK is overexpressed in various tumors, including tumors derived from regions of the head and neck, colon, breast, prostate, and liver. In this study, we investigated immunohistochemically whether FAK expression was increased in thyroid cancers. FAK staining was not seen in any of the 20 normal thyroid tissues or the 6 nodular hyperplasia specimens. In contrast, FAK staining was observed in all of 17 papillary carcinomas, 9 follicular carcinomas, 8 medullary carcinomas, and 2 anaplastic carcinomas. Nine of 17 follicular adenomas showed FAK immunoreactivity. FAK was not expressed in normal tissue and nodular hyperplasia, but was expressed in some of the follicular adenoma, and all of the follicular, papillary, medullary and anaplastic thyroid carcinoma. This result indicates that the up-regulation of FAK may play a role in the development of thyroid carcinogenesis.
Adenoma/*metabolism/pathology ; Adult ; Aged ; Carcinoma, Papillary/*metabolism/pathology ; Female ; Humans ; Immunohistochemistry ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Protein-Tyrosine Kinase/*metabolism ; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't ; Thyroid Neoplasms/*metabolism/pathology ; Tumor Markers, Biological/*metabolism

Hyperthyroidism may be associated or present with a variety of neuromuscular disorders, including thyrotoxic myopathy, exophthalmic ophthalmoplegia, periodic paralysis and myasthenia gravis. In contrast to muscle, peripheral nerve involvement in hyperthyroidism is exceedingly rare, and has received little attention. Paraplegia-like weakness during severe hyperthyroidism was first described by Charcot in 1889, and called Basedow's paraplegia' by Joffory in 1894. However, there has been no reported case in Korea. A 38-year-old woman was admitted for evaluation of progressive weakness and a gait disturbance. Her endocrinological results were compatible with hyperthyroidism. The polyneuropathy was also confirmed with sequential electrophysiological studies of the nerves and muscles. Drug therapy for hyperthyroidism resulted in resolution of the clinical neurological symptoms and progressive improvement of electrophysiological findings. Hyperthyroidisms are common medical disorders, which are often accompanied by diverse types of neurological and neuromuscular dysfunctions. All of these neurological manifestations are important, as they can serve as important clues to the diagnosis of a thyroid disorder. Furthermore, they are often related to the patient's presenting complaint. Therefore, the physician must be alert to the diverse manifestations of thyroid dysfunction, as they can lead to the diagnosis of potentially serious but treatable disorders. Herein is reported a case of myopathy and neuropathy associated with hyperthyroidism (Basedow's paraplegia), with a review of the literature
Adult ; Diagnosis ; Drug Therapy ; Female ; Gait ; Humans ; Hyperthyroidism ; Korea ; Muscles ; Muscular Diseases ; Myasthenia Gravis ; Neurologic Manifestations ; Ophthalmoplegia ; Paralysis ; Paraplegia* ; Peripheral Nerves ; Polyneuropathies ; Thyroid Gland