Several recent clinical trials reported that intralymphatic immunotherapy (ILIT) for some allergens, such as cat dander and pollen, induce tolerance more rapidly than conventional subcutaneous or sublingual immunotherapy, have a comparable duration of effect after only 3 injections, and do not provoke serious local or systemic reactions. However, the efficacy and safety of ILIT are using Dermatophagoides farinae (Df), Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus (Dp), and dog, which are indoor allergens that are commonly found globally, need to be evaluated. Furthermore, use of multiple allergens in ILIT should be investigated. We assessed the clinical efficacy and adverse effects of ILIT using aqueous Df, Dp, dog, and cat allergens or mixtures thereof in patients with allergic rhinitis. A total of 11 subjects with AR sensitized to Df, Dp, cat, and/or dog allergens received 3 intralymphatic inguinal injections of sensitized allergen extract (HollisterStier, New Orleans, LA, USA). Clinical parameters were assessed before ILIT, and 4 months and 1 year after the first injection. Rhinitis symptoms were alleviated and quality of life was improved 4 months after ILIT (P=0.012 and P=0.007, respectively), and these improvements lasted for 1 year after ILIT (P=0.047 and P=0.009, respectively). However, we observed 2 cases of anaphylaxis, one case of a moderate-to-severe systemic hypersensitivity reaction and the other case of a severe local reaction at the injection site after ILIT. In conclusion, ILIT can rapidly improve allergy symptoms and quality of life, and this effect lasts for 1 year. In hypersensitized patients, however, ILIT can provoke severe systemic and/or local hypersensitivity reactions when performed using aqueous allergen extracts.
Allergens ; Anaphylaxis ; Animals ; Cats ; Dander ; Dermatophagoides farinae ; Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus ; Dogs* ; Dust* ; Humans ; Hypersensitivity* ; Immunotherapy* ; Pilot Projects* ; Pollen ; Pyroglyphidae* ; Quality of Life ; Rhinitis ; Rhinitis, Allergic ; Sublingual Immunotherapy ; Treatment Outcome

PURPOSE: To evaluate the incidence and clinical features of age-related macular degeneration (AMD) in Korea. METHODS: Web-based (www.armd-nova.or.kr) registration was conducted for AMD patients aged 50 or more who were newly diagnosed by retinal specialists in Korea from August 20, 2005 to August 20, 2006. Patient data including ophthalmologic examination, fundus photography, fluorescein angiogram and/or indocyanin green angiogram (ICG), past medical history, behavioral habit, combined systemic diseases were up-loaded. RESULTS: Among finally enrolled 1,141 newly diagnosed AMD patients, 690 patients (60.5%) were male and 451 patients (39.5%) were female. The average age of AMD patients was 69.7+/-8.0. Early AMD was observed in 190 patients and 951 patients had late AMD. Classic choroidal neovascular membrane (CNVM) was observed in 18.6% of exudative AMD patients and 63.4 % had occult CNVM. Subfoveal CNVM was observed in 80.4% of the patients with CNVM. Among the 580 exudative AMD eyes that performed indocyanin green angiography (ICG), 184 eyes (31.7%) had polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy (PCV) and 36 eyes (6.2%) showed retinal angiomatous proliferation (RAP). Age, male gender, smoking, diabetes and hypertension significantly increased the risk of the AMD among Koreans. CONCLUSIONS: Because of the low rate of participation by retinal specialists, definite incidence of AMD was not obtainable. However, the estimated 1-year AMD incidence in the Pusan area of Korea is at least 0.4%. In contrast to Western people, 31.7% of exudative AMD cases were revealed to be PCV and 6.2% were revealed to be RAP. This discrepancy between ethnic groups should be considered in the diagnosis and treatment modality selection of Korean AMD patients.
Aged ; Angiography ; Choroid ; Ethnic Groups ; Eye ; Female ; Fluorescein ; Humans ; Hypertension ; Incidence ; Korea ; Macular Degeneration ; Male ; Membranes ; Photography ; Retinaldehyde ; Smoke ; Smoking ; Specialization

PURPOSE: Microvascular reconstructive surgery has become an integral part of the treatment of head and neck cancer patients. This review of 121 free flaps for head and neck cancer patients performed over the last 11 years was done to evaluate circulatory crisis, salvage, and secondary reconstruction and to investigate which factors may contribute to these rates. METHOD: Nine emergent explorations among 121 head and neck reconstruction with free flaps were reviewed to analyze detection of vascular crisis, the time interval from detection of circulatory crisis to exploration, operation procedures and results, and secondary reconstructions. Emergent exploration was done with our protocol. RESULT: Nine free flaps exhibited signs of vascular problems between 1 day and 6 days postoperatively. The emergent exploration rate of this series was 7.4% (9/121). The salvage rate was 55.6% (5/9), giving an overall flap viability of 96.7% (117/121). In our study, preoperative radiation therapy, positive smoking history, alcohol consumption history, combined disease such as diabetes mellitus and hypertension, recipient vessels and types of vascular anastomosis were not related to the causes of circulatory crisis. The mean time interval between the onset of clinical recognition of impaired flap perfusion and re-exploration of the salvaged 5 flaps was 3.2 hours, that of failed 4 flaps was 11.25 hours. CONCLUSION: Despite high overall success rate, relatively low salvage rate may be attributed to late detection of circulatory crisis and in long time interval between detection and exploration. We conclude that early detection of circulatory crisis and expeditious re-exploration are a matter of great importance for the success of salvage operation.
Alcohol Drinking ; Diabetes Mellitus ; Free Tissue Flaps ; Head ; Head and Neck Neoplasms ; Humans ; Hypertension ; Neck ; Perfusion ; Smoke ; Smoking

Interstitial ectopic pregnancy is a rare condition of pregnancy and may be very dangerous if not identified and treated urgently. We report a case of successful treatment of an interstitial pregnancy using selective uterine artery embolization. A 27-year-old woman with interstitial pregnancy was treated by uterine artery embolization after failure of systemic methotrexate treatment. Her serum beta-human chorionic gonadotropin (β-hCG) was undetectable one month after the therapeutic embolization and transvaginal sonography 31 days after embolization showed normal endometrium and cornu. The patient achieved a normal pregnancy eight months after embolization.
Adult ; Embolization, Therapeutic/*methods ; Female ; Humans ; Pregnancy ; Pregnancy, Ectopic/*therapy/ultrasonography ; Uterus/*blood supply

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of uterine artery embolization for the treatment of symptomatic leiomyomas in the patients who want to preserve uterus, want fertility or feel fear for operation. METHODS: From January 2003 to June 2005, among the patients with symptomatic uterine leiomyoma, fifteen women who wanted to preserve uterus or wanted fertility or had fear for operation were included in this retrospective study. Bilateral Uterine artery embolization (UAE) was performed. At the preprocedure and at 2, 6, and 12 weeks of postprocedure, transvaginal ultrasonography was performed for all patients. Clinical symptoms and follow-up information for each patient were evaluated. RESULTS: 15 leimyomas were treated with UAE. The initial mean volume of leiomyomas was 55.4 (46.3-67.4) cm3. The mean volume decrease was 58.6+/-9.7%, 77.5+/-12.3%, 86.8+/-23.5% at 2, 6, 12 weeks. The outcome of clinical symptoms were as followed; 'much improved' 20% (3/15), 'somewhat improved' 60% (6/15), 'no improvement' 20% (3/15), 'somewhat worsen's 0% (0/15), and 'much worsen' was 0% (0/15). There was no case of hysterectomy or myomectomy after UAE. And also no case of increasement of volume nor worsening of clinical symptoms were found. Lower abdominal pain was the most common symptoms after UAE, but complications were not detected. CONCLUSION: In this study, UAE to treat patients with uterine leiomyoma is proved to be effective not only in volume reduction, but also in symptom improvement. And it is a relatively less-invasive procedure which decreases the risk of side effects of operation. Above all things, it preserves fecundity in young women. Therefore, UAE is very effective and safe procedure in the treatment of symptomatic uterine leiomyoma.
Abdominal Pain ; Female ; Fertility ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Hysterectomy ; Leiomyoma* ; Retrospective Studies ; Ultrasonography ; Uterine Artery Embolization ; Uterus

Uterine artery embolization for the treatment of uterine leiomyomas is gaining acceptance as an effective alternative to surgical treatment in preserving uterus and reducing symptoms. Vaginal expulsion of leiomyomas after UAE is uncommon, and has been regarded as a side effect of the procedure, as well as a natural phenomenon of treatment response. A-28-year-old unmarried woman who has been suffered from menorrhagia underwent UAE. MRI revealed the remnant leiomyomas were reduced in size and volume and also symptoms of leiomyomas were much improved. After 6 month, We've made sure about non-visualization of leiomyoma on follow-up pelvic dynamic MRI. We report this rare case of vaginal expusion of intramural leoimyoma with a brief literature.
Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Leiomyoma* ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Menorrhagia ; Single Person ; Uterine Artery Embolization* ; Uterine Artery* ; Uterus

OBJECTIVE: The prevalence of Parvovirus B19 antibody in Korea has not been known. The aim of this study is to analyze variation of prevalence according to area, job and maternal age. METHODS: A prospective study of the pregnant women was performed at first & second trimester. This study was an analysis of 221 pregnant women who lived in Seoul, Bucheon, Cheonan, and Gumi in South Korea. All serum samples were drawn during first and second trimester. Presence of parvovirus B19 IgG antibodies and IgM antibodies was determined by ELISA using Parvovirus B19 IgM-3rd Generation EIA, Parvovirus B19 IgG-3rd Generation EIA, Parvovirus B19 Quantitative IgG Calibrators Kit (Biotrin International, Ireland). Data and level of significance were analysed by chi-square test using the SPSS program. RESULTS: In total, 118 (53.3%) of the 221 pregnant women were IgG antibody positive for parvovirus B19 during first and second trimester. Only 1 (0.5%) of 221 pregnant women was IgM antibody positive. There were no nonimmune fetal hydrops, spontaneous abortion and stillbirth in acutely infected woman. There were no statistically significant differences in Parvovirus IgG positive rate according to maternal age, area, parity and gestational age. CONCLUSION: This study has confirmed seroprevalence rate of human parvovirus B19 in South Korea comparable to the rate found in Asian countries. But positive rate of Parvovirus IgG was higher than other Asian countries. This study also showed that a proportion of adults of childbearing age was still susceptible to the virus and serological data also showed evidence of infection occurring in this age group. It will be of interest for the obstetricians in this country to note the role of Parvovirus B19 in relation to the extent of stillbirths and hydrops fetalis and to if there is any need for a vaccine to reduce fetal wastage.
Abortion, Spontaneous ; Adult ; Antibodies ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Chungcheongnam-do ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Female ; Gestational Age ; Gyeonggi-do ; Gyeongsangbuk-do ; Humans ; Hydrops Fetalis ; Immunoglobulin G ; Immunoglobulin M ; Korea* ; Maternal Age ; Parity ; Parvovirus B19, Human ; Parvovirus* ; Pregnancy ; Pregnancy Trimester, Second ; Pregnant Women* ; Prevalence ; Prospective Studies ; Risk Factors* ; Seoul ; Seroepidemiologic Studies* ; Stillbirth

Malignant melanoma comprises 1.2% of all malignant tumors and more than 90% of malignant melanoma arises in the skin. About 1% of all malignant melanomas occur in the nasal cavity and paranasal sinuses. Mucosal melanoma of head and neck are rare and show poor prognosis. Although melanoma in the oral cavity sometimes tends to be neglected more than similar lesions on the skin and other locations, pigmented melanoma is usually easy to diagnose clinically because of its red to black or brown color and its irregular outline. However, amelanotic melanoma with lack of pigmentation, often defies correct clinical diagnosis initially before confirmation by biopsy. The authors have recently experienced a case showing good clinical result to the present, after total maxillectomy and split thickness skin graft and postoperative radiotherapy in the mucosal amelanotic melanoma involving the nasal cavity and right maxillary sinus, so report this case with a review of literature
Biopsy ; Diagnosis ; Head ; Maxillary Sinus* ; Melanoma ; Melanoma, Amelanotic* ; Mouth ; Nasal Cavity* ; Neck ; Paranasal Sinuses ; Pigmentation ; Prognosis ; Radiotherapy ; Skin ; Transplants

Tamoxifen, which is often used in breast cancer therapy, has also been used in the treatment of patients with advanced and recurrent endometrial carcinoma. Tamoxifen has been shown to have significant benificial effects in the treatment of breast cancer patients as hormonal therapy. However, there is evidence that tamoxifen may affect other hormone sensitive organs, including the uterus and ovaries. An increased risk of endometrial polyps, endometrial hyperplasia and endometrial cancer has been reported in tamoxifen treated women. We are able to make this report because we have experienced uterine endometrial carcinosarcoma which is developed in a patient treated with tamoxifen for five years following a modified radical mastectomy due to breast cancer in our hospital.
Breast Neoplasms* ; Breast* ; Carcinosarcoma* ; Endometrial Hyperplasia ; Endometrial Neoplasms ; Endometrium* ; Female ; Humans ; Mastectomy, Modified Radical ; Ovary ; Polyps ; Tamoxifen* ; Uterus

BACKGROUND: Since the bioavailability of itraconazole capsule is influenced by patients gastric acidity, it results in treatment failure due to its low dissolution and subsequent low absorption when administered in fasting. Itraconazole Melt-Extrusion tablet has been lately developed in order to improve its dissolution profile. It is the first clinical study to evaluate the efficacy and safety of itraconazole Melt-Extrusion tablet in Korea. OBJECTIVE: This study was conducted to evaluate the efficacy and safety of itraconazole melt-extrusion tablet 400mg daily for 1 week(pulse therapy) for hyperkeratotic type of tinea pedis and manus. METHODS: A clinical and mycological investigation was made of 812 outpatients with hyperkeratotic type of tinea pedis and/or tinea manus who had visited at 52 general hospitals under the lead of the Korean Dermatological Association from June to December, 1998. Patients confirmed by clinically and microscopically as hyperkeratotic type of tinea pedis and/or tinea manus were administered 2 tablets twice a day for one week and followed up for 8 weeks from the start of the medication. RESULTS: The results were summarized as follows; 1. Clinical symptoms of hyperkeratotic type of tinea pedis and/or tinea mauns were significantly improved at the end of study, week 8(p<0.001). 2. Clinical response rate, defined as more than 50% decrease of the sum of the clinical symptom scores, was 79.3%(512/646). 3. Mycological cure rate, dafined as both culture and KOH negative at week 8, was 78.2%(244 /312). 4. 40(5.5%) patients, of the 727 patients evaluable for drug safety evaluation, were reported to have adverse event. CONCLUSION: Itraconazole Melt-Extrusion tablet 400mg/day for 1 week (pulse therapy) is effective and safe in the treatment of hyperkeratotic type of tinea pedis and/or tinea manus.
Absorption ; Biological Availability ; Fasting ; Gastric Acid ; Hospitals, General ; Humans ; Itraconazole* ; Korea ; Outpatients ; Tablets ; Tinea Pedis* ; Tinea* ; Treatment Failure