Overview of ocular complications in patients with electrical burns: An analysis of 102 cases across a 7-year period

Background

Ocular complications from electrical burns are uncommon. Thus far, there has been no systematic review on ocular electrical trauma with emphasis on patients’ ophthalmic complications and visual symptoms. Herein, we retrospectively analyzed records of patients with electrical injuries to summarize the ophthalmic characteristics and explore their relationships with visual symptoms.

Methods

We collected the medical records of 102 patients who consulted from 557 electrical burn patients between 2004 and 2010. Ophthalmic, systemic and demographic factors associated with electrical burns were identified in the patient who underwent the ophthalmic consultations. Two sets of comparisons were used to determine the demographic and systemic factors that were related to ophthalmic complications and the subjective outcome of visual impairment.

Results

There were 53 eyes (29 patients) with ophthalmic complication were identified. Corneal epithelial erosion was the most common ocular electrical injury and the primary reason for subjective visual symptoms. Electrical burns affecting the head and neck were significantly related to subjective symptoms of visual disturbances.

Conclusion

Present study indicates that earlier involvement of ophthalmologists in the case of any patient who has suffered a facial burn is advisable. Appropriate management would be helpful to prevent future complications and alleviate visual symptoms.     

The Prognostic Relevance of Psammoma Bodies and Ultrasonographic Intratumoral Calcifications in Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma

Background

Although psammoma bodies (PB) are found in up to 50 % of papillary thyroid carcinomas (PTC), their clinicopathological significance remains uncertain. The aim of the present study was to determine the clinicopathological significance of PB and the correlation between PB and ultrasonographic intratumoral calcification in PTC.

Methods

The clinicopathological parameters, ultrasonographic calcifications, and the presence of PB were evaluated in 258 surgically resected conventional PTC.

Results

Psammoma bodies were found in 141 of 258 PTC (54.7 %). The presence of PB was significantly correlated with tumor multifocality, extrathyroidal extension, and lymph node metastasis (P = 0.009, P = 0.004, and P < 0.001, respectively), but not with the BRAF^V600E mutation. Higher incidences of both intratumoral and extratumoral PB were found in overt PTC (>1 cm) than in papillary microcarcinomas (≤1 cm) (P < 0.001 and P = 0.015, respectively). Extratumoral PB were only identified in 48.9 % of 141 PTC with PB, and PTC with extratumoral PB showed higher incidences of tumor multifocality, extrathyroidal extension, and nodal metastasis compared to PTC with intratumoral PB (P = 0.014, P = 0.005 and P = 0.001, respectively). Ultrasonographic intratumoral calcification corresponded to clusters of intratumoral PB (P < 0.001) and was associated with nodal metastasis (P = 0.026).

Conclusions

The findings of the present study suggest that the presence of PB may be a useful prognostic indicator of aggressive PTC behaviors. In addition, confirmation of ultrasonographic intratumoral calcification would be a useful decision-making criterion when determining the need for preoperative or intraoperative surveillance of nodal metastasis.     

A new Centiloid method for 18F-florbetaben and 18F-flutemetamol PET without conversion to PiB

European Journal of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging - We developed a new method to directly calculate Centiloid (CL) units of 18F-florbetaben (FBB) and 18F-flutemetamol (FMM) without...     

Nitric oxide expression in airway epithelial cells in response to tubercle bacilli stimulation

Abstract In order to investigate the role of airway epithelial cells in pulmonary tuberculosis, inducible nitric oxide synthetase (iNOS) expression and nitric oxide (NO) production were studied in A549 cells. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) from normal volunteers were separated and cultured for 24h with LPS or tubercle bacilli (H37Rv, H37Ra). Thereafter, A549 cells were stimulated for another 24h with culture supernatant fluids of PBMC. iNOS messenger RNA (mRNA) expression was measured with Northern blot analysis and NO production was measured with the Griess reaction, which can measure nitrite concentration. iNOS mRNA expression and NO production were minimal in the control cells. iNOS mRNA expression and NO production were significantly increased with LPS ( P < 0.05) or tubercle bacilli ( P < 0.01) stimulation. However, there was no difference in iNOS mRNA expression and NO production between H37Rv and H37Ra stimulations. Interestingly, iNOS mRNA expression and NO production were greater in A549 cells stimulated with tubercle bacilli-conditioned media than in the cells stimulated with LPS-conditioned media. IL-1β, tumour necrosis factor-alpha and interferon gamma concentrations were increased in culture supernatant fluids of PBMC stimulated with tubercle bacilli. These findings suggest that airway epithelial cells may play a certain role in the pathogenesis of pulmonary tuberculosis by producing NO. However, the role of airway epithelial cells, regarding the virulence of tubercle bacilli, was not clear in this study.     

耐一线药物及注射药物对耐多药结核病治疗效果的影响

背景和目的:最近的研究结果表明,对其他一线药物和注射类药物(如卡那霉素、卷曲霉素)等耐药是影响耐多药结核病(MDR-TB)患者治疗效果的独立危险因素.本研究旨在明确耐其他一线药物和注射类药物对韩国不合并人免疫缺陷病毒(HIV)感染的MDR-TB患者临床疗效的影响.方法:采用回顾性队列研究分析1996年1月至2005年12月首尔国家大学附属医院治疗的211例MDR-TB患者治疗效果,排除7例丢失和7例迁出,对197例患者进行了最终分析.     

Effects of ambient particulate matter on peak expiratory flow rates and respiratory symptoms of asthmatics during Asian dust periods in Korea

OBJECTIVE: Dust generating events frequently produce ambient dust particles that are less than 10 microm in diameter, and these have been linked to adverse effects in the general population. However, the evidence linking these particles to adverse effects on the airways of asthmatic individuals is limited. The objective of this study was to investigate the possible adverse effects of Asian dust events on the respiratory functions and symptoms of subjects with bronchial asthma. METHODOLOGY: From March to June 2002, individuals were enrolled who had been diagnosed as having asthma by bronchial challenge or by their bronchodilator response. The patients were divided into three groups according to asthma severity: mild, moderate and severe. Patients with other major disease states were excluded. Patients completed twice-daily diaries monitoring PEF, respiratory symptoms, and daily activities. The daily and hourly mean levels of particulate matter <10 microm in diameter (PM(10)), as well as nitrogen dioxide (NO(2)), sulphur dioxide (SO(2)), ozone (O(3)) and carbon monoxide (CO) were measured at 10 monitoring sites in Incheon, Korea. RESULTS: Dust events occurred 14 times during the study period. On dusty days there were increased levels of PM(10), decreased levels of NO(2) and SO(2), and no change in the CO levels, compared to the levels on control days. An increase in PM(10) concentration was associated with increases in PEF variability of >20% (P<0.05), more night-time symptoms (P<0.05), and a decrease in the mean PEF (P<0.05), calculated by longitudinal data analysis. In contrast, there was no association between the PM(10) levels and bronchodilator inhaler use or daytime respiratory symptoms. Using a general additive Poisson regression model, a borderline association was noted between PM(10) and respiratory symptoms, with a relative risk of 1.05 (95% confidence interval (CI), 0.99--1.17). There was no association between the PM(10) concentrations and PEF measurements, with PEF variability of >20% between the morning and evening values and a relative risk of 1.05 (95% CI, 0.89--1.24) in all subjects. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides evidence that Asian dust events are impacting on the respiratory symptoms of subjects with bronchial asthma, and ambient air pollution, particularly elevated PM(10), might be one of the aggravating factors.     

ACQUIRED PHARYNGEAL DIVERTICULUM FOLLOWING ANTERIOR CERVICAL FUSION OPERATION

SUMMARY We report an unusual case of a pharyngeal diverticulum arising as a result of extrusion of a bone graft inserted during anterior cervical fusion operation. The dense scar tissue at the site of extrusion of the bone graft probably caused traction on the posterior pharyngeal wall, with the development of a pharyngeal pouch. This is believed to be the first case with acquired pharyngeal diverticulum following anterior cervical fusion to be recorded in the literature.