ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Androgenetic alopecia (AGA) has a negative impact on self-image and decrease in quality of life. However, relatively few men have sought treatment for AGA. Improvement in treatment willingness is important for maintaining long-term management in patients with AGA. OBJECTIVES: We aimed to identify the prevalence of patients' perception of hair loss and evaluate various factors that affect the treatment willingness in patients with AGA. METHODS: We conducted a population-based cross-sectional survey of 503 patients with AGA (329 men, 174 women). We collected the various demographic data, family history of AGA, history of past treatment, self-perception of hair loss and treatment willingness using structured questionnaires. Then, we provided the knowledge about AGA to the half of subjects and compared the treatment willingness between educated group and nond-educated group. RESULTS: Two-hundred and forty-seven out of 503 patients (49.1%) did not have illness perception and 262 out of 503 patients (52.1%) did not have treatment willingness in future. The patients with perception of hair loss, accurate information on hair loss and severe hair loss showed 1.745-fold, 1.700-fold, and 2.078-fold higher tendency of receiving treatment in future. CONCLUSION: Our findings imply that patients with perception and greater understanding of AGA tend to pursue treatment for AGA. Thus, these elements should be taken into account when treating patients. In addition, emphasis on education is needed to increase public awareness of the AGA.
Subject(s)
Humans , Male , Alopecia , Cross-Sectional Studies , Education , Hair , Prevalence , Quality of Life , Self ConceptABSTRACT
No abstract available.
Subject(s)
Cluster Headache , Erythema Multiforme , Erythema , Herpes SimplexABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Androgenetic alopecia (AGA) is characterized by patterned hair loss that typically develops in the third to fourth decade of life. Recently, several studies have reported that medical comorbidities such as coronary artery disease and metabolic syndrome are related with early-onset (before the age of 36 years) AGA, although many of the findings are controversial. OBJECTIVE: We investigated the medical comorbidities and serologic test results of patients with AGA who were aged less than 36 years, and compared them with age-matched controls. METHODS: The medical records of 810 patients with AGA and 227 control subjects who visited the Dermatology Clinic at Yonsei University Wonju Severance Christian Hospital between 2003 and 2012 were retrospectively reviewed. RESULTS: Patients from the early-onset AGA group and controls showed no statistically significant differences in their medical comorbidities, average results of serologic tests, and probabilities of having abnormal laboratory results, except for aspartate aminotransferase levels. CONCLUSION: We observed no significant relationship between early-onset AGA and medical comorbidities in the Korean population. Further case-control prospective studies are warranted to evaluate the precise relationship.
Subject(s)
Humans , Alopecia , Aspartate Aminotransferases , Case-Control Studies , Comorbidity , Coronary Artery Disease , Dermatology , Hair , Medical Records , Prospective Studies , Retrospective Studies , Serologic TestsABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Androgenetic alopecia (AGA) is characterized by patterned hair loss that typically develops in the third to fourth decade of life. Recently, several studies have reported that medical comorbidities such as coronary artery disease and metabolic syndrome are related with early-onset (before the age of 36 years) AGA, although many of the findings are controversial. OBJECTIVE: We investigated the medical comorbidities and serologic test results of patients with AGA who were aged less than 36 years, and compared them with age-matched controls. METHODS: The medical records of 810 patients with AGA and 227 control subjects who visited the Dermatology Clinic at Yonsei University Wonju Severance Christian Hospital between 2003 and 2012 were retrospectively reviewed. RESULTS: Patients from the early-onset AGA group and controls showed no statistically significant differences in their medical comorbidities, average results of serologic tests, and probabilities of having abnormal laboratory results, except for aspartate aminotransferase levels. CONCLUSION: We observed no significant relationship between early-onset AGA and medical comorbidities in the Korean population. Further case-control prospective studies are warranted to evaluate the precise relationship.
Subject(s)
Humans , Alopecia , Aspartate Aminotransferases , Case-Control Studies , Comorbidity , Coronary Artery Disease , Dermatology , Hair , Medical Records , Prospective Studies , Retrospective Studies , Serologic TestsABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: The multiple allergosorbent test chemiluminescent assay (MAST-CLA) is a simple system with high sensitivity and specificity for measuring total and allergen-specific IgE antibodies in patients with allergic skin diseases such as urticaria. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate total IgE class, allergen frequencies, and their correlations in MAST-CLA in acute and chronic urticaria. METHODS: We performed a retrospective study using medical documents of 2,028 urticaria patients (average age= 34.85 years) who visited Yonsei Wonju Severance Christian Hospital, Yeongseo Province, Korea, between 2003 and 2012. Positive rates of specific IgE and total serum IgE levels in acute and chronic urticaria patients were analyzed. RESULTS: Among the total 2,028 patients, 1,263 (62.3%) had acute urticaria, and 765 (37.7%) had chronic urticaria. The number of patients with higher than class 2 level of serum total IgE was 1,496 (73.8%): 964 (76.3%) of the acute urticaria group and 532 (69.5%) of the chronic urticaria group. More than half of the patients (1,048; 51.7%) showed a positive reaction to at least one allergen-specific IgE. The positive rate of acute urticaria was 53.0% and chronic urticaria 49.5%. In both acute and chronic urticaria, the most commonly detected allergen was Dermatophagoides farinae, followed by D. pterony and house dust. Most patients showed lower positive reactions to food allergens. Peach was the most common food allergen in both groups. Of the patients who showed positive total IgE, 40.4% did not react to any allergen-specific IgE. Also, 26.3% of the patients who were negative for total IgE showed a positive reaction to more than one allergen-specific IgE. The level of total IgE and the number of positive allergen-specific IgE responses were positively correlated in both acute and chronic urticaria patients. CONCLUSION: Our results showed that the positive rate of total IgE was higher in acute urticaria patients than in chronic urticaria patients. Both acute and chronic urticaria patient groups showed the highest positive rates for D. farinae. Positive rates for response to food allergens, such as soybean, chicken, yeast, tuna, and salmon, were lower in the chronic urticaria group. For inhalant allergens, the positive rates of response to white oak and Aspergillus were higher in the acute urticaria group. The level of total IgE and the number of positive allergen-specific IgE responses showed a positive correlation in both groups. Thus, MAST-CLA appears to be a simple and convenient method for determining causative allergens in the occurrence and exacerbation of urticaria, but other studies are necessary to confirm these preliminary findings.
Subject(s)
Humans , Allergens , Antibodies , Aspergillus , Chickens , Dermatophagoides farinae , Dust , Immunoglobulin E , Korea , Luminescent Measurements , Prunus persica , Retrospective Studies , Salmon , Sensitivity and Specificity , Skin Diseases , Soybeans , Tuna , Urticaria , YeastsABSTRACT
No abstract available.
Subject(s)
Adenocarcinoma , Neoplasm Metastasis , Prostatic NeoplasmsABSTRACT
Codonopsis lanceolata has been used as an herbal medicine for several lung infl ammatory diseases, such as asthma, tonsillitis, and pharyngitis. Previously, we showed the neuroprotective effect of steamed and fermented C. lanceolata (SFC) in vitro and in vivo. In the current study, the treatment of HT22 cells with SFC decreased glutamate-induced cell death, suggesting that SFC protected HT22 cells from glutamate-induced cytotoxicity. Based on these, we sought to elucidate the mechanisms of the neuroprotective effect of SFC by measuring the oxidative stress parameters and the expression of Bax and caspase-3 in HT22 cells. SFC reduced contents of ROS, Ca2+ and NO. Moreover, SFC restored contents of glutathione and glutathione reductase as well as inhibited Bax and caspase-3 activity in HT22 cells. These results indicate that steamed and fermented C. lanceolata (SFC) extract protected HT22 cells by anti-oxidative effect and inhibition of the expression of Bax and caspase-3.
Subject(s)
Asthma , Caspase 3 , Cell Death , Codonopsis , Glutathione , Glutathione Reductase , Herbal Medicine , Lung , Neuroprotective Agents , Oxidative Stress , Palatine Tonsil , Pharyngitis , Steam , TonsillitisABSTRACT
Codonopsis lanceolata (Campanulaceae) traditionally have been used as a tonic and to treat patients with lung abscesses. Recently, it was proposed that the extract and some compounds isolated from C. lanceolata reversed scopolamine-induced memory and learning deficits. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the improvement of cognitive enhancing effect of C. lanceolata by steam and fermentation process in scopolamine-induced memory impairment mice models by passive avoidance test and Morris water maze test. The extract of C. lanceolata or the extract of steamed and fermented C. lanceolata (SFCE) was orally administered to male mice at the doses of 100 and 300 mg/kg body weight. As a result, mice treated with steamed and fermented C. lanceolata extract (SFCE) (300 mg/kg body weight, p.o.) showed shorter escape latencies than those with C. lanceolata extract or the scopolamine-administered group in Morris water maze test. Also, it exerted longer step-through latency time than scopolamine treated group in passive avoidance test. Furthermore, neuroprotective effect of SFCE on glutamate-induced cytotoxicity was assessed in HT22 cells. Only SFCE-treated cells showed significant protection at 500 microg/ml. Interestingly, steamed C. lanceolata with fermentation contained more phenolic acid including gallic acid and vanillic acid than original C. lanceolata. Collectively, these results suggest that steam and fermentation process of C. lanceolata increased cognitive enhancing activity related to the memory processes and neuroprotective effect than original C. lanceolata.
Subject(s)
Animals , Humans , Male , Mice , Body Weight , Codonopsis , Fermentation , Gallic Acid , Learning , Lung Abscess , Maze Learning , Memory , Neuroprotective Agents , Phenol , Scopolamine , Steam , United Nations , Vanillic AcidABSTRACT
PURPOSE: For patients with Dukes' stage B and C rectal cancer, surgery followed by adjuvant chemoradiotherapy is considered to be the standard treatment. However, the drugs used in combination with 5-fluorouracil (5-FU), the method of administration, duration of adjuvant therapy and the frequencies of administration presently remain controversial topics. We investigated (1) the efficacy and safety of adjuvant radiotherapy and 5-FU/leucovorin (LV) chemotherapy for patients who had undergone curative resection and (2) the effect of dose related factors of 5-FU on survival. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 130 rectal cancer patients with Dukes' B or C stage disease who were treated with curative resection were evaluated. The adjuvant therapy consisted of two cycles of 5-FU/LV chemotherapy followed by pelvic radiotherapy with chemotherapy, and then 4~10 more cycles of the same chemotherapy regimen were delivered based on the disease stage. The cumulative dose of 5-FU per body square meter (BSA), actual dose intensity and relative dose intensity were obtained. The patients were divided into two groups according to the median value of each factor, and the patients' survival rates were compared. RESULTS: With a median follow-up duration of 52 months, the 5-year disease-free survival and overall survival rates of 130 patients were 57% and 73%, respectively. Loco- regional failure occurred in 17 (13%) of the 130 patients, and the distant failure rate was 27% (35/130). The chemotherapy related morbidity was minimal, and there was no mortality for these patients. The cumulative dose of 5-FU/ BSA had a significant effect on the 5-year overall survival for Dukes' C rectal cancer patients (p=0.03). Multivariate analysis demonstrated that only the performance status affected the 5-year overall survival (p=0.003). CONCLUSION: An adjuvant therapy of radiotherapy and 5-FU/LV chemotherapy is effective and tolerable for Dukes' B and C rectal cancer patients. A rospective, multicenter, randomized study to evaluate the effects of the cumulative dose of 5-FU/BSA on survival is required.