Para-aortic Lymphadenectomy in the Management of Preoperative Grade 1 Endometrial Cancer Confined to the Uterine Corpus

Background  

The aim of this study was to determine the risk of para-aortic lymph node metastasis in surgically staged patients presenting with preoperative grade 1 endometrial cancer and to assess the impact of para-aortic lymphadenectomy.     

Therapeutic effects of strengthening exercise on gait function of cerebral palsy

Purpose. To assess the effectiveness of strengthening exercises of the lower limbs on improvement of muscle strength and gait function.

Method. Those included were diagnosed as spastic diplegic or hemiplegic type of cerebral palsy (CP) and verified as grade 2 or 3 of the Gross Motor Function Classification System (GMFCS). Participants were divided into an experimental group (n = 9) or a control group (n = 8). The experimental group completed a 5-week strengthening program and the control group took part in conventional physical therapy. Muscle tone and strength of lower limb, Gross Motor Function Measure, lateral step up, squat to stand, and three dimensional gait analysis were tested at pre-training, post-training, and 6 week follow up.

Results. Maximal hip extensor strength, and number of squat to stand were significantly increased at post-training and 6 weeks follow up in the experimental group compared with the control group. GMFM score D and E significantly improved in the experimental group at post-training. The experimental group demonstrated significant increase of gait speed and stride length and decrease of double support phase at post-training and 6 weeks follow up.

Conclusions. Strengthening exercises could be a useful method to improve gait function of patients with spastic CP.     

Adrenomedullin Inhibits IL-1β-Induced Rheumatoid Synovial Fibroblast Proliferation and MMPs,COX-2 and PGE2 Production

To determine the effects of adrenomedullin (AM) on interleukin (IL)-1β-induced proliferation of rheumatoid synovial fibroblasts (RASFs) and production of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), cyclooxygenase (COX) and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) by RASFs. The RASFs proliferation was evaluated with CCK-8 reagent in the presence of IL-1β with/without AM (1-52) and AM inhibitor (AM (22-52)). MMPs, tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase (TIMP-1), COXs, PGE2 and intracellular mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signalings, including p-ERK, p-p38, p-JNK were examined by immunoblotting or semiquantitative RT-PCR and ELISA. AM (1-52) inhibited IL-1β-induced RASFs proliferation and inhibited MMP-1, 3, COX-2 and PGE2 production. AM (1-52) also inhibited IL-1β-induced phosphorylation of ERK-1/2, p38, JNK. AM 22-52 inhibited the effects of AM (1-52) on proliferation of RASFs and production of MMP-1, 3, COX-2 via MAPKs. These results suggest that AM might involved joint destruction in rheumatoid arthritis and indicate that it might be a new therapeutic modality for management of this disease.     

Difference of Body Compositional Changes According to the Presence of Weight Cycling in a Community-based Weight Control Program

Many obese people who try to control body weight experience weight cycling (WC). The present study evaluated the importance of WC in a community-based obesity intervention program. We analyzed the data of 109 Korean participants (86% women) among 177 subjects who had completed a 12-week intervention program at two public health centers in Korea from April to December, 2007. Completion of a self-administrated questionnaire at baseline was used to obtain anthropometric measurements, and laboratory testing was done before and after the program. Differences in body composition change and obesity-related life style between the two groups were compared with respect to WC and non-weight cycling (NWC). After 12 weeks, both groups showed reductions in weight, waist circumference, and body mass index. The group differences were not significant. However, significant differences were evident for the WC group compared to the NWC group in fat percent mass (WC vs. NWC, -3.49±2.31% vs. -4.65±2.59%, P=0.01), fat free mass (WC vs. NWC, -0.95±1.37 kg vs. -0.38±1.05 kg, P=0.01), and total cholesterol (WC vs. NWC, -3.32±14.63 vs. -16.54±32.39, P=0.005). In conducting a community-based weight control program that predominantly targets women, changes of body composition and total cholesterol may be less effective in weight cyclers than in non-weight cyclers.     

Granulocyte colony-stimulating factor for recalcitrant postherpetic neuralgia: a prospective, open, pilot study in three patients

Recent experimental studies have shown that granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) has neuroprotective and regenerative properties in neuronal cells, suggesting its use as a potential treatment for recalcitrant postherpetic neuralgia (PHN). We evaluated the efficacy and safety of G-CSF in patients with recalcitrant PHN. Three patients with recalcitrant PHN were treated with subcutaneous injection of recombinant human G-CSF 10 μg/kg once daily for 5 days. Assessments were performed at baseline and at weeks 1, 4, 8, 12 and 48 using the Brief Pain Inventory (BPI) and the Clinician Global Impression (CGI) score. All patients found improvement in BPI and CGI scores throughout the study. We suggest that G-CSF may help alleviate neuropathic pain and improve the overall quality of life in patients with PHN.