Impaction of an intrathoracic kidney acted as a shield against herniation of the abdominal viscera in a case of right congenital diaphragmatic hernia

We describe a case of an intrathoracic kidney combined with right congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) that was diagnosed at 32 weeks of gestation. Although it has been well established that a right CDH shows a poorer outcome than a left CDH, our present case showed a good outcome because there was no herniation of other abdominal viscera, except for the right kidney. Our findings in this case indicate that impaction of the intrathoracic kidney may act as a 'shield' against further herniation of other abdominal viscera into the thoracic cavity.

Mercury induced the Accumulation of Amyloid Beta (Abeta) in PC12 Cells: The Role of Production and Degradation of Abeta

Extracellular accumulation of amyloid beta protein (Abeta) plays a central role in Alzheimer's disease (AD). Some metals, such as copper, lead, and aluminum can affect the Abeta accumulation in the brain. However, the effect of mercury on Abeta accumulation in the brain is not clear. Thus, this study was proposed to estimate whether mercury concentration affects Abeta accumulation in PC12 cells. We treated 10, 100, and 1000 nM HgCl2 (Hg) or CH3HgCl2 (MeHg) for 48 hr in PC12 cells. After treatment, Abeta40 in culture medium increased in a dose- and time-dependent manner. Hg and MeHg increased amyloid precursor protein (APP), which is related to Abeta production. Neprilysin (NEP) levels in PC12 cells were decreased by Hg and MeHg treatment. These results suggested that Hg induced Abeta accumulation through APP overproduction and reduction of NEP.

Perinatal Complications of Mothers and Neonates Resulting from Inadequate Prenatal Care / 대한주산의학회잡지

OBJECTIVE: With improvement in the social and economic states of Korea, most of the pregnancies have been appropriately examined but there are a few mothers and newborns who have not received proper prenatal care. The aim of this study was to investigate obstetrical and neonatal complications resulting from inadequate prenatal care. METHODS: The medical records of 107 neonates who had received prenatal care lesser than 3 visits and admitted to the neonatal intensive care units of Korea University Ansan Hospital from January 2004 to December 2009 were retrospectively reviewed. Obstetrical complications, neonatal gestational age, birth weight, neonatal complications were analyzed. We compared neonatal complications of the inadequate prenatal care group and those of the adequate prenatal care group lesser than 34 weeks' gestational age neonates. RESULTS: In obstetrical complications, there were twenty women with anemia, fifteen cases with premature rupture of membranes, and fourteen chorioamnionitis. In neonatal complications, there were forth-four premature infants, and forty-four low birth weight infants. Respiratory distress syndrome, small for gestational age, severe intraventricular hemorrhage were more common in the inadequate prenatal care group than the adequate prenatal care group. Thirty-seven infants (34.5%) were sent to the adoption agency. Fifty infants (46.6%) received medical expense support by the social service. CONCLUSIONS: Obstetrical and neonatal complications and social burden were increasing when the pregnancies had not received adequate prenatal care. To reduce perinatal complications of mothers and neonates in low socioeconomic classes, practical nation's policies and social supports for adequate prenatal care should be provided.

Obstetric and Neonatal Outcomes of the Teenage Pregnancy

PURPOSE: In recent years, Korea has showed a steady increase in the frequency of teenage births, while the overall birth rate has declined. As the teenage birth is known as a high risk pregnancy itself, we examined perinatal complications of teenage mothers and whose neonates in aspects of medical problem, and social status and support. METHODS: We examined the perinatal characteristics of teenage mothers and whose babies, who were hospitalized at Korea University Ansan Hospital from January 2004 to July 2009 using medical records retrospectively. Twenty-seven teenage mothers and their 28 babies were enrolled in this study. RESULTS: Teenage mothers were all unmarried and showed high rates of preterm labor, maternal anemia, and unexpected delivery. Among them, 11 (40.7%) were from families that were separated. Eleven mothers (40.7%) did not have any antenatal care. There were high rates of prematurity and low birth weight (60.7% and 64.3%, respectively). The complication included: respiratory distress syndrome, patent ductus arteriosus and necrotizing enterocolitis. Fourteen babies (51.9%) were not going to be brought up by their biological parents. CONCLUSION: Teenage pregnancy had high rates of preterm labor and associated complications, often caused by the lack of proper antenatal care. Babies from unmarried mothers were likely to be adopted and this could be a social burden. Therefore, to reduce unplanned teenage pregnancy and births, sex education and social supports should be provided to all teenagers.

Visual Evoked Potential Study in Amblyopia and Normal Groups

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relationship between the visual acuity and visual evoked potentials of the amblyopia patients and normal persons for the demonstration of the visual disability. METHOD: We performed visual evoked potential study, in 49 eyes of the 43 amblyopia patients and in 76 eyes of 38 normal young adults. Our study was carried out to evaluate the relationship of the visual acuity with N1, P1, N2, P2 latency, P1-N2 amplitude and to compare the latency of N1, P1, N2, P2, and P1-N2 amplitude in amblyopia patients and normal young adults. RESULTS: The mean values of N1, P1, N2, P2 latency were prolonged in amblyopia patients compared to normal young adults (p 0.05), but significant correlation was noted between the visual acuity and P1-N2 amplitude (p <0.05). CONCLUSION: These results showed prolonged latency of N1, P1, N2, P2 in amblyopia group as well as significant correlation between visual acuity and P1-N2 amplitude in both groups. So, P1 latency and P1-N2 amplitude are good parameters in evaluating the visual disability.

Development of the Individualized Health Risk Appraisal Model of Breast Cancer Risk in Korean Women / 한국역학회지

OBJECTIVES: The objectives of this study were to develop a health risk appraisal (HRA) model of breast cancer and to evaluate the model's ability to accurately predict ndividual breast cancer risk. METHOD: The sample data were from a prospective cohort study in Korea with a follow-up period of 8 years in Korea (1995-2002). The cohort was composed of 108,708 Korean women, aged 30 to 64 years, who received health insurance from the Korea Medical Insurance Corporation and who underwent a medical evaluation in 1994. Between 1995 and 2002 (1,138,349 person-year), there were 772 incident cases of breast cancer (67.8/100,000 person-years). First, we developed the HRA based on the Cox proportional hazard models using a prospective cohort data with half-split data (50% random sample). Second, using Cox proportional hazard models, we compared the probability of breast cancer predicted by the model to the actual number of cases observed in the other 50% of the random sample of the study population. RESULTS: The HRA Cox proportional hazard model of breast cancer developed in the study included age, age2, age at menarche, and lactation. Multivariate Cox proportional hazards models were used to test the HRA model validation. Compared with women in the lowest 10 percentile of subjects, women in the highest 10 percentile had an increased risk of breast cancer (relative risk, 3.701; 95% confidence interval, 2.554 to 5.364). CONCLUSION: The model's performance was satisfactory for estimating breast cancer risk for individual women aged 30-64 years.

Isokinetic Evaluation of Shoulder Joint Strength in College Handball Players and General College Students

OBJECTIVE: To obtain the comparison data of the shoulder strength between handball players of college and general college students. METHOD: Fifteen subjects from each group, college handball players and general college students groups were tested. Peak torque, peak torque ratio of internal rotator to external rotator, peak torque to body weight ratio and average work during isokinetic exercise were studied. RESULTS: All of the parameters tested in handball players of college were greater than those of general college students. The peak torque in handball players was greater than that of general college students at 60o/sec, 180o/sec, which was statistically significant (p<0.05). The peak torque ratio of internal rotator to external rotator in dominant side of handball players was greater than the college group (p<0.05). The peak torque to body weight ratio at 60o/sec did not show significant differences between handball players of college and general college students. The average power at 60o/sec did not show significant differences between the two groups. CONCLUSION: The values of peak torque ratio of internal rotator to external rotator of the shoulder joint in dominant side of handball players were greater than those of the general college students. So it was suggested this result have to be considered in selecting handball players and exercise prescription.