The prognostic role of aberrant serum miRNA expression for predicting response to sorafenib treatment in advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients has not been well characterized. We aimed to identify specific serum miRNAs that are associated with positive radiologic responses or improved survival in sorafenib-treated HCC patients. miR-18a, miR-21, miR-139-5p, miR-221, miR-224, and miR-10b-3p, were selected for analysis. Serum samples from 24 patients with advanced stage HCC and 25 patients with liver cirrhosis (LC) were analyzed. All of the miRNAs except miR-21 were found to be upregulated in serum samples from HCC patients. None of the miRNAs assayed differed significantly in terms of expression between the responder and non-responder groups among HCC patients. However, miR-10b-3p levels were significantly higher in the subgroup of HCC patients with worse overall survival (fold change = 5.8, P = 0.008). Serum miRNA-10b-3p was upregulated in the presence of macrovascular invasion (MVI), and those with higher serum miRNA-10b-3p had significantly shorter survival during treatment (P = 0.042). Although no single serum miRNA was predictive of response to sorafenib treatment, analysis of serum miR-10b-3p levels may be valuable for diagnosis of HCC and prediction of survival of sorafenib-treated patients.
Carcinoma, Hepatocellular* ; Diagnosis ; Humans ; Liver Cirrhosis ; MicroRNAs

BACKGROUND: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common malignancies worldwide. Approximately 10%–15% of the CRC cases have defective DNA mismatch repair (MMR) genes. Although the high level of microsatellite instability status is a predictor of favorable outcome in primary CRC, little is known about its frequency and importance in secondary CRC. Immunohistochemical staining (IHC) for MMR proteins (e.g., MLH1, MSH2, MSH6, and PMS2) has emerged as a useful technique to complement polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analyses. METHODS: In this study, comparison between the MMR system of primary CRCs and paired liver and lung metastatic lesions was done using IHC and the correlation with clinical outcomes was also examined. RESULTS: Based on IHC, 7/61 primary tumors (11.4%) showed deficient MMR systems, while 13/61 secondary tumors (21.3%) showed deficiencies. In total, 44 cases showed proficient expression in both the primary and metastatic lesions. Three cases showed deficiencies in both the primary and paired metastatic lesions. In 10 cases, proficient expression was found only in the primary lesions, and not in the corresponding metastatic lesions. In four cases, proficient expression was detected in the secondary tumor, but not in the primary tumor. CONCLUSIONS: Although each IHC result and the likely defective genes were not exactly matched between the primary and the metastatic tumors, identical results for primary and metastatic lesions were obtained in 77% of the cases (47/61). These data are in agreement with the previous microsatellite detection studies that used PCR and IHC.

BACKGROUND: Mycobacterial culture is the gold standard test for diagnosing tuberculosis (TB), but it is time-consuming. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is a highly sensitive and specific method that can reduce the time required for diagnosis. The diagnostic efficacy of PCR differs, so this study determined the actual sensitivity of TB-PCR in tissue specimens. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed 574 cases. The results of the nested PCR of the IS6110 gene, mycobacterial culture, TB-specific antigen-induced interferon-γ release assay (IGRA), acid-fast bacilli (AFB) staining, and histological findings were evaluated. RESULTS: The positivity rates were 17.6% for PCR, 3.3% for the AFB stain, 22.2% for mycobacterial culture, and 55.4% for IGRA. PCR had a low sensitivity (51.1%) and a high specificity (86.3%) based on the culture results of other studies. The sensitivity was higher (65.5%) in cases with necrotizing granuloma but showed the highest sensitivity (66.7%) in those with necrosis only. The concordance rate between the methods indicated that PCR was the best method compared to mycobacterial culture, and the concordance rate increased for the methods using positive result for PCR or histologic features. CONCLUSIONS: PCR of tissue specimens is a good alternative to detect tuberculosis, but it may not be as sensitive as previously suggested. Its reliability may also be influenced by some histological features. Our data showed a higher sensitivity when specimens contained necrosis, which indicated that only specimens with necrosis should be used for PCR to detect tuberculosis.
Diagnosis* ; Granuloma ; Methods ; Necrosis ; Polymerase Chain Reaction* ; Retrospective Studies ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Tuberculosis*

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a multisystem autoimmune disorder that predominantly affects women of reproductive age. Risk of SLE flare during pregnancy is dependent on disease activity of SLE and proteinuria at the time of conception, which affect pregnancy outcome. We report on three patients who developed renal flares during pregnancy after remission of lupus nephritis before pregnancy. Two patients were treated successfully, with pregnancy outcomes of live births however, another patient's pregnancy was terminated with induced abortion. For SLE patients, family planningis needed until disease activity of SLE has been stable for at least six months prior to the pregnancy. Nevertheless, flares of lupus could develop and influence maternal and fetal outcome. Therefore, renal flares during pregnancy should be recognized and treated immediately.
Abortion, Induced ; Female ; Fertilization ; Humans ; Live Birth ; Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic ; Lupus Nephritis* ; Nephritis ; Pregnancy ; Pregnancy Outcome ; Pregnant Women* ; Proteinuria

Eosinophilic pleural effusion (EPE) is defined as a pleural effusion that contains at least 10% eosinophils. EPE occurs due to a variety of causes such as blood or air in the pleural space, infection, malignancy, or an autoimmune disease. Undifferentiated connective tissue disease (UCTD) associated with eosinophilic pleural effusion is a rare condition generally characterized by the presence of the signs and symptoms but not fulfilling the existing classification criteria. We report a case involving a 67-year-old man with UCTD and EPE, who has been successfully treated with a single intrapleural corticosteroid injection.
Aged ; Autoimmune Diseases ; Connective Tissue Diseases* ; Connective Tissue* ; Eosinophilia ; Eosinophils* ; Humans ; Pleural Effusion*

Although several urinary biomarkers have been validated as early diagnostic markers of acute kidney injury (AKI), their usefulness as outcome predictors is not well established. This study aimed to determine the diagnostic and prognostic abilities of urinary liver-type fatty acid-binding protein (L-FABP) in heterogeneous critically ill patients. We prospectively collected data on patients admitted to medical and surgical intensive care units (ICUs) from July 2010 to June 2011. Urine neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL) and L-FABP at the time of ICU admission were quantitated. Of the 145 patients, 54 (37.2%) had AKI defined by the Acute Kidney Injury Network (AKIN) criteria. AKI patients showed significantly higher level of urinary NGAL and L-FABP and also higher mortality than non-AKI patients. The diagnostic performances, assessed by the area under the ROC curve, were 0.773 for NGAL and 0.780 for L-FABP, demonstrating their usefulness in diagnosing AKI. In multivariate Cox analysis, urinary L-FABP was an independent predictor for 90-day mortality. Urinary L-FABP seems to be promising both for the diagnosis of AKI and for the prediction of prognosis in heterogeneous ICU patients. It needs to be further validated for clinical utility.
Acute Kidney Injury/*diagnosis/mortality/surgery ; Acute-Phase Proteins/urine ; Adult ; Aged ; Area Under Curve ; Biological Markers/urine ; Critical Illness ; Fatty Acid-Binding Proteins/*urine ; Female ; Humans ; Intensive Care Units ; Kaplan-Meier Estimate ; Lipocalins/urine ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Predictive Value of Tests ; Prognosis ; Proportional Hazards Models ; Prospective Studies ; Proto-Oncogene Proteins/urine ; ROC Curve

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to demonstrate changes of subjective medication satisfaction and clinical benefit after once-daily paliperidone extended release (ER) in treatment of schizophrenia. METHODS: In an open-label, observational, and multicenter study, 374 patients with schizophrenia who switched to paliperidone ER due to any reason were recruited. Medication Satisfaction Questionnaire (MSQ), Clinical Global Impression-Severity (CGI-S), Clinical Global Impression-Improvement and visual analogue scale for sleep (VAS) were assessed at baseline, 4 weeks and 8 weeks after treatment. We also examined the type, frequency, and severity of adverse events newly formed. RESULTS: Among 374 patients, 320 patients (76.5%) were included in the intent-to-treat analysis set. The mean dose of paliperidone ER was 5.33+/-2.31 mg/day at the initiation. At the endpoint, the mean dose of paliperidone ER was 6.68+/-3.13 mg/day. The percentages of patients satisfied with medication were changed from 40.9% at baseline to 67.8% at endpoint (p<0.001). Both CGI-S scores and VAS for daytime drowsiness were significantly decreased after 8 weeks (both p<0.0001) and mean scores of MSQ and VAS for sleep quality were improved after 8 weeks (both p<0.0001). CONCLUSION: After switching to paliperidone ER, 67.8% of patients with schizophrenia who had any reason to switch medication showed subjective satisfaction for medication and clinical improvement without significant adverse events. Regarding that medication satisfaction was associated with changes of clinical states, medication satisfaction can be used for measures for clinical scales in the treatment of schizophrenia.
Humans ; Isoxazoles ; Prospective Studies ; Pyrimidines ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Schizophrenia ; Sleep Stages ; Weights and Measures

OBJECTIVE: Henoch-Schonlein purpura (HSP) is a systemic vasculitis, characterized by small-vessel leukocytoclastic vasculitis with the deposition of immune complexes containing IgA. It is the most common acute vasculitic disorder affecting children but is relatively uncommon in adults. We investigated the clinical features and factors affecting the prognosis of adult HSP in Korea. METHODS: From 1996 to 2011 seventy patients over 15 years of age with HSP were retrospectively analyzed. RESULTS: Thirty eight patients (54.3%) were female and the age at disease onset ranged from 15 to 75 years (35.0+/-15.8 years). Purpuric skin rash was observed in all patients and arthralgia was present in 34 patients (48.6%). GI symptoms and kidney involvements were observed in 28 patients (40.0%) and 34 patients (48.6%), respectively. Complete remission was achieved in 46 patients (65.7%). The remission group showed a lower incidence of hematochezia (p=0.044), hematuria (p=0.008), and proteinuria (p=0.011) at diagnosis than the no remission group. About 10% of adult HSP patient progressed to chronic kidney disease (CKD), which showed higher a incidence of nephrotic range proteinuria. Only nephrotic range proteinuria at diagnosis was a significant risk factor for CKD (OR=16.7, p=0.008, 95% CI=2.1~133.1). CONCLUSION: Hematochezia, hematuria and proteinuria at the diagnosis of HSP are important prognostic factors in predicting remission. In addition, HSP patients with nephrotic range proteinuria at diagnosis have an increased risk of renal failure.
Adult ; Antigen-Antibody Complex ; Arthralgia ; Child ; Exanthema ; Female ; Gastrointestinal Hemorrhage ; Hematuria ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin A ; Incidence ; Kidney ; Korea ; Prognosis ; Proteinuria ; Purpura, Schoenlein-Henoch ; Renal Insufficiency ; Renal Insufficiency, Chronic ; Retrospective Studies ; Risk Factors ; Systemic Vasculitis ; Vasculitis ; Vasculitis, Leukocytoclastic, Cutaneous

The latissimus dorsi myocutaneous flap was one of the first methods of breast reconstruction described. However, a standard latissimus dorsi flap alone often does not provide sufficient volume for breast reconstruction and has been performed with an implant to achieve adequate breast volume. The design of an extended latissimus dorsi flap has evolved to include the parascapular and scapular fat-fascia extension in addition to lumbar fat for additional volume. The main advantage of the extended latissimus dorsi flap is that it can provide autologous tissue to the reconstructed breast without an implant and with an acceptable donor site contour and scar. The extended latissimus dorsi flap elevation is of dissection in plane just beneath the fascia superficialis, leaving the deep fat attached to the surface of the muscle. The fat left attached to the surface of the muscle is well vascularized by the perforators coming from the muscle itself. Division of the humeral attachment of the muscle is performed for an adequate excursion of the flap. Denervation of the thoracodorsal nerve is recommended for preventing postoperative involuntary muscle contraction. Patients should be warned of the potential donor site seroma. The extended latissimus dorsi flap proved to be a reliable option for totally autologous breast reconstruction in selected patients. The flap is reliable, and the procedure is technically straightforward and consistent.
Breast ; Cicatrix ; Contracts ; Denervation ; Fascia ; Female ; Humans ; Imidazoles ; Mammaplasty ; Muscle, Smooth ; Muscles ; Nitro Compounds ; Seroma ; Tissue Donors

Hepatitis A virus (HAV) infection is generally a self-limited disease, but the infection in adults can be serious, to be often complicated by acute kidney injury (AKI) and rarely by virus-associated hemophagocytic syndrome (VAHS). Our patient, a 48-yr-old man, was diagnosed with HAV infection complicated by dialysis-dependent AKI. His kidney biopsy showed acute tubulointerstitial nephritis with massive infiltration of activated macrophages and T cells, and he progressively demonstrated features of VAHS. With hemodialysis and steroid treatment, he was successfully recovered.
Acute Disease ; Acute Kidney Injury/diagnosis/therapy ; Antibodies, Viral/analysis ; Hepatitis A/complications/*diagnosis/immunology ; Humans ; Lymphohistiocytosis, Hemophagocytic/complications/*diagnosis/pathology ; Macrophages/immunology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Nephritis, Interstitial/complications/*diagnosis ; Renal Dialysis ; T-Lymphocytes/immunology