Objective: Orthostatic hypotension (OH) is one of the most common autonomic dysfunctions in Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients. However, many patients with OH are asymptomatic. Conversely, orthostatic dizziness (OD) is not always associated with OH. We investigated the effects of positional changes on cerebral perfusion in patients with PD and OH. Methods: We enrolled 42 patients, comprising 31 PD patients and 11 healthy controls. All the subjects underwent the following clinical assessments: the OH questionnaire, head-up tilt test (HUTT) with transcranial Doppler (TCD), near-infrared spectroscopy, measurement of the change in oxygenated hemoglobin (ΔHboxy) during the squat-to-stand test (SST), measurement of the time derivative of total hemoglobin (DHbtot), and time taken to reach the peak (peak time [PT]) of DHbtot after restanding. Results: The mean flow velocity change (ΔMFV) in the TCD during the HUTT failed to differentiate between the PD-OH(+) and PD-OH(-) groups. The change in oxygenated hemoglobin ΔHboxy was greater in the PD-OH(+) group, which persisted for 9 min until the end of the HUTT only in the left hemisphere. During SST, PT was significantly delayed in the left hemisphere in PD-OH(+) patients. Conclusion Although TCD demonstrated no significant difference in ΔMFV, the parameters measured by near-infrared spectroscopy, such as ΔHboxy during HUTT and PT during the SST, significantly increased ΔHboxy or delayed PT in the left hemisphere of PD-OH(+). Positional changes have a detrimental effect on cerebral hemodynamics in patients with PD and OH, especially in the left hemisphere.

Background: Daily usage of facial masks during coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic influenced on facial dermatoses. Objective: This study investigated the impact of mask-wearing habits on facial dermatoses. Methods: A nationwide, observational, questionnaire-based survey was conducted from July through August 2021, involving 20 hospitals in Korea. Results: Among 1,958 facial dermatoses, 75.9% of patients experienced aggravation or development of new-onset facial dermatoses after wearing masks. In aggravated or newly developed acne patients (543 out of 743), associated factors were healthcare provider, female gender, and a long duration of mask-wearing. Irritating symptoms, xerosis, and hyperpigmentation were more frequently observed in this group. Aggravated or newly developed rosacea patients (515 out of 660) were likely to be female, young, and have a long duration of mask-wearing per day. Seborrheic dermatitis patients who experienced aggravation or de novo development (132 out of 184) were younger, and they more frequently involved the chin and jaw in addition to the nasolabial folds and both cheeks. Contact dermatitis patients (132 out of 147) with aggravation or de novo development tended to be female, involve both cheeks, and complain of pruritus. Aggravated or newly developed atopic dermatitis patients (165 out of 224) were more likely to be female, and had a higher baseline investigator global assessment score before mask-wearing. Conclusion Clinical features and factors related to aggravation were different according to the types of facial dermatoses.

Purpose: The incidence and prevalence of neurodevelopmental disorders have rapidly increased, indicating an urgent need for assistance through parenting interventions. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of a sociodrama-based communication enhancement program on mothers of children with neurodevelopmental disorders.Method: A non-randomized controlled experimental study design was employed. The experimental and control groups had 16 and 18 participants, respectively. The once-a-week six-session intervention was conducted from September to November 2017, in South Korea. The effects of group, time, and group-by-time interactions among the groups were verified using generalized estimating equations with an autoregressive correlation structure. Results: There was a significant decrease in the parenting burden, alongside a significant improvement in parent-child communication and parenting competence in the experimental group compared to the control group. Conclusion The sociodrama-based communication enhancement program was found to positively influence the parenting burden, communication, and parenting competence of mothers of children with neurodevelopmental disorders. These findings suggest that sociodrama-based programs may be an effective intervention strategy for parents of children with neurodevelopmental disorders. The sociodrama-based communication enhancement program can be applied to decrease parenting burden and improve parent-child communication and parenting competence. Through continuous parenting interventions, an improvement in expressive language and an increase in the attachment behaviors of children with neurodevelopmental disabilities could be expected.

Background: Nilotinib is a tyrosine kinase inhibitor approved by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety for frontline and 2nd line treatment of Philadelphia chromosome-positive chronic myeloid leukemia (Ph+ CML). This study aimed to confirm the safety and efficacy of nilotinib in routine clinical practice within South Korea. Methods: An open-label, multicenter, single-arm, 12-week observational post-marketing surveillance (PMS) study was conducted on 669 Korean adult patients with Ph + CML from December 24, 2010, to December 23, 2016. The patients received nilotinib treatment in routine clinical practice settings. Safety was evaluated by all types of adverse events (AEs) during the study period, and efficacy was evaluated by the complete hematological response (CHR) and cytogenetic response. Results: During the study period, AEs occurred in 61.3% (410 patients, 973 events), adverse drug reactions (ADRs) in 40.5% (271/669 patients, 559 events), serious AEs in 4.5% (30 patients, 37 events), and serious ADRs in 0.7% (5 patients, 8 events). Furthermore, unexpected AEs occurred at a rate of 6.9% (46 patients, 55 events) and unexpected ADRs at 1.2% (8 patients, 8 events). As for the efficacy results, CHR was achieved in 89.5% (442/494 patients), and minor cytogenetic response or major cytogenetic response was achieved in 85.8% (139/162 patients). Conclusion This PMS study shows consistent results in terms of safety and efficacy compared with previous studies. Nilotinib was well tolerated and efficacious in adult Korean patients with Ph + CML in routine clinical practice settings.

Obesity has been known as an independent risk factor for stroke. Effects of high-fat diet (HFD)-induced obesity on neuronal damage in the somatosensory cortex of animal models of cerebral ischemia have not been studied yet. In this study, HFD-induced obesity was used to study the impact of obesity on neuronal damage/loss and microgliosis in the somatosensory cortex of a gerbil model of 5-min transient forebrain ischemia. We used gerbils fed normal diet (ND) and HFD and chronologically examined microgliosis (microglial cell activation) by ionized calcium-binding adapter molecule 1 (Iba-1) immunohistochemistry. In addition, we examined neuronal damage or death by using neuronal nuclear protein (NeuN, a neuronal marker) immunohistochemistry and Fluoro-Jade B (F-J B, a marker for neuronal degeneration) histofluorescence staining. We found that ischemia-induced microgliosis in ND-fed gerbils was increased from 2 days post-ischemia; however, ischemia-mediated microgliosis in HFD-fed gerbils increased from 1 day post-ischemia and more accelerated with time than that in the ND-fed gerbils. Ischemia-induced neuronal death/loss in the somatosensory cortex in the ND-fed gerbils was apparently found at 5 days post-ischemia. However, in the HFD-fed gerbils, neuronal death/loss was shown from 2 days post-ischemia and progressively exacerbated at 5 days post-ischemia. Our findings indicate that HFD can evoke earlier microgliosis and more detrimental neuronal death/loss in the somatosensory cortex after transient ischemia than ND evokes.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Colorectal cancer is associated with different anatomical, biological, and clinical characteristics. We determined the impact of the primary tumor location in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC). METHODS: Demographic data and clinical information were collected from 1,115 patients from the Republic of Korea, who presented with mCRC between January 2009 and December 2011, using web-based electronic case report forms. Associations between the primary tumor location and the patient's clinical characteristics were assessed, and factors inf luencing overall survival were analyzed using Cox proportional hazards regression models. RESULTS: Of the 1,115 patients recruited to the study, 244 (21.9%) had right colon cancer, 483 (43.3%) had left colon cancer, and 388 (34.8%) had rectal cancer. Liver and lung metastases occurred more frequently in patients with left colon and rectal cancer (p = 0.005 and p = 0.006, respectively), while peritoneal and ovarian metastases occurred more frequently in patients with right and left colon cancer (p < 0.001 and p = 0.031, respectively). The median overall survival of patients with tumors originating in the right colon was significantly shorter than that of patients whose tumors had originated in the left colon or rectum (13.7 months [95% confidence interval (CI), 12.0 to 15.5] vs. 18.0 months [95% CI, 16.3 to 19.7] or 19.9 months [95% CI, 18.5 to 21.3], respectively; p = 0.003). Tumor resection, the number of metastatic sites, and primary tumor location correlated with overall survival in the univariate and multivariate analyses. CONCLUSIONS: Primary tumor location influences the metastatic sites and prognosis of patients with mCRC.
Colon ; Colonic Neoplasms ; Colorectal Neoplasms* ; Humans ; Liver ; Lung ; Multivariate Analysis ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Prognosis ; Rectal Neoplasms ; Rectum ; Republic of Korea

PURPOSE: Lgr5 is a well-known stem cell marker in colorectal cancer (CRC). This retrospective study evaluated the expressions of Lgr5 in CRC specimens, and examined whether these expressions were associated with survival outcomes.METHODS: We used immunohistochemistry to retrospectively examine expressions of Lgr5 in paraffin-embedded specimens from 337 patients with CRC between January 2009 and December 2013. All clinicopathologic data were collected by retrospective review based on medical records. The correlation between its expression and clinicopathological data as well as clinical outcomes of patients was analyzed.RESULTS: Low expression and high expression of Lgr5 in 337 patients were 175 (51.9%) and 162 (48.1%), respectively. There was no statistically significant difference in the association of Lgr5 expression with clinicopathologic factors (age, tumor location, lymphatic invasion, vascular invasion, perineural invasion, TNM stage, and differentiation). In the survival analysis, the high expression group of Lgr5 showed a better prognosis than the low expression group in disease-free survival (P=0.044). However, overall survival was not significantly different between the two groups (P=0.087). In multivariate analysis, we found that high expression of Lgr5 was independent prognostic factor for tumor relapse (hazard ratio, 0.601; 95% confidence interval, 0.388–0.929; P=0.022).CONCLUSION: In present study, high expression of Lgr5 is an independent predictor of favorable prognosis in patients with CRC. So, further well designed, prospective, large scale studies are needed to examine the value of Lgr5 as a prognostic biomarker for CRC.
Colorectal Neoplasms ; Disease-Free Survival ; Humans ; Immunohistochemistry ; Medical Records ; Multivariate Analysis ; Neoplastic Stem Cells ; Prognosis ; Prospective Studies ; Recurrence ; Retrospective Studies ; Stem Cells

BACKGROUND: We evaluated the clinical relevance of pretransplant donor-specific HLA antibodies (DSA) in renal transplantation patients who had negative T-cell cytotoxicity crossmatches. METHODS: From 328 consecutive renal transplant recipients, we selected 28 patients who had positive pretransplant (historical or at the time of transplantation) flow cytometry crossmatches, but negative T-cell cytotoxicity crossmatches at the time of transplantation. The presence of DSA and its level at the time of transplantation were retrospectively tested using Luminex single antigen assays. RESULTS: DSA was present in 16 (57.1%) of 28 patients. Biopsy-proven acute rejection (9 patients) occurred more frequently in patients with DSA than in those without DSA (56.3% vs. 0.0%; P=0.003). The positivity rate of class II DSA was significantly higher in patients with antibody-mediated rejection (AMR) than in those without AMR (100% vs. 21.7%; P=0.003). However, the positivity rate of class I DSA was not different between the two groups (40% vs. 40.9%). Among patients with class II DSA, those with AMR tended to have higher antibody levels (median fluorescence intensity, MFI) than those without AMR (16,359 vs. 5,910; P=0.056). A cut-off MFI value of 4,487 for class II DSA predicted the occurrence of AMR with good sensitivity and specificity (100% and 87.0%). CONCLUSIONS: In patients with negative T-cell cytotoxicity crossmatches, the presence of class II DSA and its level at the time of transplantation were associated with the occurrence of AMR. Pretransplant DSA measurement with Luminex single antigen assay would be useful in renal transplantation.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Antibodies/*immunology ; Female ; Graft Rejection/immunology ; HLA-DQ Antigens/*immunology ; HLA-DR Antigens/*immunology ; Histocompatibility Testing ; Humans ; Kidney Transplantation/immunology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; T-Lymphocytes, Cytotoxic/*immunology ; Tissue Donors ; Young Adult

Methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR), a critical enzyme in folate metabolism, plays an important role in DNA methylation. It has been suggested that abnormal DNA methylation contributes to the pathogenesis of schizophrenia and congenital anomalies. The previous findings regarding the genetic relationship between MTHFR and schizophrenia are controversial. This study investigated the association of the two functional polymorphisms of MTHFR, C677T and A1298C, with the risk for schizophrenia. Furthermore, we conducted an updated meta-analysis on the two polymorphisms. In addition, we investigated the relationship between the polymorphisms and minor physical anomaly (MPA), which may represent neurodevelopmental aberrations in 201 schizophrenia patients and 350 normal control subjects. There was no significant association between either of the two polymorphisms and the risk of schizophrenia (chi-square = 0.001, df = 1, P = 0.971 for C677T; chi-square = 1.319, df = 1, P = 0.251 for A1298C). However, in meta-analysis, the C677T polymorphism showed a significant association in the combined and Asian populations (OR = 1.13, P = 0.005; OR = 1.21, P = 0.011, respectively) but not in the Korean and Caucasian populations alone. Neither polymorphism was associated with MPAs measured by the Waldrop scale (chi-square = 2.513, df = 2, P = 0.285). In conclusion, the present findings suggest that in the Korean population, the MTHFR polymorphisms are unlikely to be associated with the risk for schizophrenia and neurodevelopmental abnormalities related to schizophrenia.
Adult ; Alleles ; Case-Control Studies ; Congenital Abnormalities/*genetics ; DNA Methylation ; Female ; Gene Frequency ; Genetic Association Studies ; Genetic Predisposition to Disease ; Genotype ; Humans ; Male ; Methylenetetrahydrofolate Reductase (NADPH2)/*genetics ; Middle Aged ; *Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide ; Republic of Korea ; Schizophrenia/*genetics/pathology

No abstract available.