Neurovascular Compression Caused by Popliteus Muscle Enlargement Without Discrete Trauma

Popliteal entrapment syndrome caused by isolated popliteus muscle enlargement is very rare, although its occurrence has been reported after discrete trauma. However, popliteal artery stenosis with combined peroneal and proximal tibial neuropathy caused by popliteus muscle enlargement without preceding trauma has not been reported. A 57-year-old man presented with a tingling sensation and pain in his left calf. He had no previous history of an injury. The symptoms were similar to those of lumbosacral radiculopathy. Calf pain became worse despite treatment, and the inability to flex his toes progressed. Computed tomography angiography and magnetic resonance imaging of the lower extremity showed popliteal artery stenosis caused by popliteus muscle enlargement and surrounding edema. An electrodiagnostic study confirmed combined peroneal and proximal tibial neuropathy at the popliteal fossa. Urgent surgical decompression was performed because of the progressive neurologic deficit and increasing neuropathic pain. The calf pain disappeared immediately after surgery, and he was discharged after the neurologic functions improved.

Neurovascular Compression Caused by Popliteus Muscle Enlargement Without Discrete Trauma

Popliteal entrapment syndrome caused by isolated popliteus muscle enlargement is very rare, although its occurrence has been reported after discrete trauma. However, popliteal artery stenosis with combined peroneal and proximal tibial neuropathy caused by popliteus muscle enlargement without preceding trauma has not been reported. A 57-year-old man presented with a tingling sensation and pain in his left calf. He had no previous history of an injury. The symptoms were similar to those of lumbosacral radiculopathy. Calf pain became worse despite treatment, and the inability to flex his toes progressed. Computed tomography angiography and magnetic resonance imaging of the lower extremity showed popliteal artery stenosis caused by popliteus muscle enlargement and surrounding edema. An electrodiagnostic study confirmed combined peroneal and proximal tibial neuropathy at the popliteal fossa. Urgent surgical decompression was performed because of the progressive neurologic deficit and increasing neuropathic pain. The calf pain disappeared immediately after surgery, and he was discharged after the neurologic functions improved.

Lower Extremity Radicular Pain Caused by Entrapped Sigmoid Colon Between L5 and S1 Vertebrae

Intestinal entrapment between two vertebral bodies is very rare. In all previous cases, it occurred by major trauma. However, the bowel entrapment between two vertebral bodies without trauma has never been reported, not to mention as the cause of lower extremity radicular pain. We describe the case of an 82-year-old female patient with right lower extremity radicular pain without recent trauma history. The patient was diagnosed sigmoid colon entrapment between the L5 and S1 vertebrae by lumbar spinal computerized tomography and magnetic resonance imaging, and showed improvement in radicular pain after manual reduction of interpositioned colon during surgery. Intestinal entrapment between two vertebrae without trauma is caused by degenerative and vacuum changes of the intervertebral disc combined with the anterior longitudinal ligament injury.

Clinical Features of Acinetobacter Baumannii Keratitis

PURPOSE: Acinetobacter species are common aerobic gram-negative bacterium that contain polymorphisms. Acinetobacter baumannii keratitis has recently received attention, and has various clinical features. Therefore, it is crucial to determine the appropriate medical treatment for Acinetobacter baumannii keratitis. CASE SUMMARY: There were two infectious crystalline keratitis patients, two other patients that were co-infected with fungus, and the last patient who had the peripheral corneal ulcer type of keratitis. CONCLUSIONS: Acinetobacter baumannii keratitis demonstrates multiple clinical features. It forms a biofilm that can bring possible resistance to therapy, and it can also co-infect with fungus. In contrast to general bacterial keratitis which occurs in the form of a central corneal ulcer, we found Acinetobacter baumannii to take on the form of a peripheral corneal ulcer in our experiments on the five keratitis patients. Although Acinetobacter species were originally found to be multidrug-resistant, such resistance was not found in our experiments. However, due to the various problems associated with Acinetobacter baumannii, it is always critical for medical staff to take infection of Acinetobacter baumannii into consideration in keratitis patients.

Analgesic Effect of Intrathecal Gabapentin in a Rat Model of Persistent Muscle Pain

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the analgesic effect of intrathecal gabapentin therapy on secondary hyperalgesia in a rat model of persistent muscle pain. METHODS: Intrathecal catheters were implanted into rats. Mechanical secondary hyperalgesia was induced by repeated intramuscular injections of acidic solution into the gastrocnemius muscle. Gabapentin was administrated intrathecally. Rats were allocated to control and experimental (gabapentin 30, 100, 300, and 1,000 microg) group. After gabapentin administration, mechanical withdrawal threshold was measured every 15 minutes and the motor function was measured 30 minutes later. RESULTS: Mechanical hyperalgesia was evoked after the second acidic buffer injection. There was a significant improvement on the mechanical threshold after administration of 100, 300, and 1,000 microg gabapentin compared to pre-injection and the control group. The analgesic effect continued for 105, 135, and 210 minutes, respectively. To discern side effects, motor function was measured. Motor function was preserved in both groups after gabapentin administration, except for rats who received 1,000 microg gabapentin. CONCLUSION: Intrathecal gabapentin administration produces dose-dependent improvements in mechanical hyperalgesia in a persistent muscle pain rat model. This implicates the central nervous system as having a strong influence on the development of persistent mechanical hyperalgesia. These results are helpful in understanding the pathophysiology of secondary hyperalgesia and in the treatment of patients with chronic muscle pain.

The Effect of One Myopic Eye on Visual Field Testing

PURPOSE: To investigate the effect of lens-corrected myopia on Humphrey Matrix and Humphrey Field Analyser (HFA). METHODS: A total of 59 lens-corrected myopic eyes of 59 normal volunteers underwent Humphrey Field Analyser and Humphrey Matrix (FDP) testing. Spherical equivalent divided into 3 groups: -3 < or = D < 0, -6 < or = D < -3, D < -6. HFA and FDP sensitivity for mean deviation (MD) and pattern standard deviation (PSD), as well as axial length and astigmatism, were compared between these 3 groups. RESULTS: The MD of the fields as determined by the HFA decreased significantly as the refractive errors increased, despite correction. However, there were no significant differences in MD or PSD of FDP, or in the PSD of HFA. There were no significant differences in axial length or astigmatism as calculated by MD and PSD for HFA and FDP. CONCLUSIONS: The spherical equivalent showed that lens correction alters the MD for HFA but not for FDP.

Mass spectrometry based proteomic analysis of human stem cells: a brief review

Stem cells can give rise to various cell types and are capable of regenerating themselves over multiple cell divisions. Pluripotency and self-renewal potential of stem cells have drawn vast interest from different disciplines, with studies on the molecular properties of stem cells being one example. Current investigations on the molecular basis of stem cells pluripotency and self-renewal entail traditional techniques from chemistry and molecular biology. In this mini review, we discuss progress in stem cell research that employs proteomics approaches. Specifically, we focus on studies on human stem cells from proteomics perspective. To our best knowledge, only the following types of human stem cells have been examined via proteomics analysis: human neuronal stem cells, human mesenchymal stem cells, and human embryonic stem cells. Protein expression serves as biomarkers of stem cells and identification and expression level of such biomarkers are usually determined using two-dimensional electrophoresis coupled mass spectrometry or non-gel based mass spectrometry.