The Maternal and Fetal Adrenal Effect of 1 cycle Dexamethasone on women with Preterm Labor / 대한산부인과학회잡지

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to determine whether 1 cycle of dexamethasone administration to women at risk of preterm delivery causes adrenal suppression METHODS: Nonpregnant ten control subjects were checked baseline cortisol and stimulated cortisol level after low-dose (1 microgram) ACTH stimulation test. Ten women at risk of preterm delivery had two weekly low-dose (1 microgram) ACTH stimulation tests with the first one at admission. Immediately after the first ACTH stimulation test, we gave each women a 5 mg dexamethasone dose intramuscularly and repeated it 12 hours later for two days. Serum cortisol levels were measured before (baseline) and 30 minutes after ACTH administration. RESULTS: All ten subjects had normal baseline and stimulated cortisol levels for the first ACTH stimulation test. The adrenal suppressed Group was composed of 5 patients. But the remainders was not suppressed. Mean baseline serum cortisol levels decreased from 38.52 microgram/dL (before dexamethasone) to 33.26 microgram/dL (1 week after 1 cycle of dexamethasone) in adrenal suppressed Group. The mean stimulated cortisol levels also decreased from 46.40 microgram/dL (before dexamethasone) to 45.02 microgram/dL (1 week after 1 cycle of dexamethasone) in adrenal suppressed Group. CONCLUSIONS: Antenatal administration of 1 cycle dexamethasone produced slightly adrenal suppression, but no adrenal insufficiency, in some women at risk of preterm delivery and may be harmless to maternal and fetal adrenal function.

A Case of Tuberculosis of the Cervix / 대한산부인과학회잡지

Tuberculosis of the uterine cervix is a rare disorder and the cervix is reported to be involved in 5-15 percent of the case of genital tuberculosis. It is discovered incidentally in most cases. The genital lesions are secondary to tuberculosis elsewhere, usually, the lungs. Primary cervical tuberculosis is very rare. The cytologic diagnosis of cervical tuberculosis is difficult. The histological diagnosis of genital tuberculosis presents no problems when the typical caseating necrosis and Langhans giant cell granulomas are present in tissue. And the presence of tubercle bacilli in biopsy specimens as well as in cultures of one specimen confirmed the diagnosis. We report a case of tuberculosis of the cervix confirmed by histologic examination with brief review.