Sequence polymorphisms of Plasmodium vivax ookinete surface proteins (Pvs25 and Pvs28) from clinical isolates in Korea.

The Ookinete surface proteins of Plasmodium vivax (P. vivax), Pvs25 and Pvs28, were candidates for the transmission blocking vaccine (TBV), which exhibited great antigenic diversities among various isolates. Polymorphisms of these genes in the isolates from Republic of Korea (ROK) were analysed, which provided valuable baseline data for the field trials of TBV-based vaccines.

Central neck lymph node dissection for papillary thyroid cancer: the reliability of surgeon judgment in predicting which patients will benefit.

Background: The role of routine prophylactic central-neck lymph node dissection (CLND) for papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) remains controversial. We perform CLND for PTC only in patients with enlarged nodes as determined by preoperative ultrasound and intraoperative inspection and palpation.

Methods: We identified all patients with PTC who underwent CLND during thyroidectomy (group 1) at our institution, and then we identified an equivalent number of demographically matched patients who underwent thyroidectomy without CLND (group 2) and compared the outcomes of the 2 groups.

Association of estrogen receptor-alpha gene polymorphism with pathogenesis of osteoporosis in Korean vegetarian men.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between two genetic polymorphisms (PvuII and XbaI restriction fragment length polymorphisms, RFLPs) of the estrogen receptor-alpha (ER1) gene and the quantitative ultrasound (QUS) parameters at the calcaneus.

Subjects And Methods: Two hundred and sixty-six Korean vegetarian men, mean age 50.9+/-12.

Central neck lymph node dissection for papillary thyroid cancer: comparison of complication and recurrence rates in 295 initial dissections and reoperations.

Background: The American Thyroid Association recently changed its management guidelines for papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) to include routine central neck lymph node dissection (CLND) during thyroidectomy. We currently perform CLND during thyroidectomy only if enlarged central nodes are detected by palpation or ultrasonography; we perform CLND in the reoperative setting for recurrence in previously normal-appearing or incompletely resected nodes. Critics of this approach argue that reoperative CLND has higher complication and recurrence rates than initial CLND.

Antineoplastic effects of decitabine, an inhibitor of DNA promoter methylation, in adrenocortical carcinoma cells.

Hypotheses: Decitabine recovers expression of silenced genes on chromosome 11q13 and has antineoplastic effects in adrenocortical carcinoma (ACC) cells.

Design: NCI-H295R cells were treated with decitabine (0.1-1.

Clinical features and genetic predisposition to hereditary nonmedullary thyroid cancer.

Background: Approximately 5% of the nonmedullary thyroid cancers are hereditary. Hereditary nonmedullary thyroid cancer may occur as a minor component of familial cancer syndromes (familial adenomatous polyposis, Gardner's syndrome, Cowden's disease, Carney's complex type 1, Werner's syndrome, and papillary renal neoplasia) or as a primary feature (familial nonmedullary thyroid cancer [FNMTC]). The goal of this article was to review our current knowledge on the hereditary nonmedullary thyroid cancer.

Clinical spectrum of pheochromocytoma.

Background: Pheochromocytomas vary in presentation, tumor size, and in catecholamine production. Whether pheochromocytoma size correlates with hormone levels, clinical presentation, and perioperative complications is not known. The goal of this study was to determine if tumor size and hormone level correlate according to the clinical presentation at diagnosis.

Distinct loci on chromosome 1q21 and 6q22 predispose to familial nonmedullary thyroid cancer: a SNP array-based linkage analysis of 38 families.

Background: Familial nonmedullary thyroid cancer (FNMTC) is associated with earlier onset and more aggressive behavior than its sporadic counterpart. Although candidate chromosomal loci have been proposed for isolated families with variants of FNMTC, the etiology of most cases is unknown. We aimed to identify loci linked to FNMTC susceptibility using single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) array-based linkage analysis in a broad sampling of affected families.

The impact of environmental noise on robot-assisted laparoscopic surgical performance.

Background: An operating room is a noisy environment. How noise affects performance during robotic surgery remains unknown. We investigated whether noise during training with the da Vinci surgical robot (Intuitive Surgical, Inc.

Diagnostic markers and prognostic factors in thyroid cancer.

There has been considerable progress identifying biomarkers in thyroid tumors that improve the accuracy of fine-needle aspiration biopsy and also help predict tumor aggressiveness or behavior. In this review we address both the clinical potential of molecular biomarkers and their usefulness, based on the most recent literature. We describe the current best clinical staging systems and the common somatic mutations in thyroid cancer.

Detection of Plasmodium vivax infection in the Republic of Korea by loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP).

Loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) is a novel technique that rapidly amplifies target DNA in isothermal conditions. In a previous study, the sensitivities and specificities of LAMP, microscopy, and nested PCR were compared in the context of rapid malaria detection. In the present study, LAMP detected vivax malaria parasites in 115 of 117 microscopically positive samples (sensitivity, 98.

Candidate genes associated with malignant pheochromocytomas by genome-wide expression profiling.

Objective: To improve our understanding of the molecular mechanisms involved in malignant pheochromocytoma by examining differences in the gene expression profile between benign and malignant tumors.

Background: The molecular events involved in the malignant transformation of pheochromocytoma are poorly understood. There are also no reliable and uniformly accepted histopathologic criteria to distinguish benign from malignant pheochromocytoma.

Two hundred and two consecutive operations for secondary hyperparathyroidism: has medical management changed the profiles of patients requiring parathyroidectomy?

Background: Because of improvements in the medical management of end-stage renal disease, some surgeons perceive that they now perform fewer operations for secondary hyperparathyroidism, and that current patients have more advanced disease.

Methods: One hundred and seventy-two patients undergoing 202 operations for secondary hyperparathyroidism between 1988 and 2007 were reviewed. Patients operated on in the past decade (1998-2007) were compared with those from the previous decade (1988-1997).

Blood pressure is a major risk factor for renal death: an analysis of 560 352 participants from the Asia-Pacific region.

Chronic kidney disease is a major worldwide public health problem that causes substantial morbidity and mortality. Studies from the Asia-Pacific region have reported some of the highest chronic kidney disease prevalence rates in the world, but access to dialysis is limited in many countries, making it imperative to identify high-risk individuals. We performed a participant-level data overview of prospective studies conducted in the Asia-Pacific region to quantify the magnitude and direction of the associations between putative risk factors and renal death.

Intraoperative diagnostic strategy to distinguish parathyroid adenomas from metastatic thyroid cancer.

Objective: To report the limitations of frozen section examination and the value of intraoperative tissue aspiration for parathyroid hormone assay to distinguish parathyroid adenomas from metastatic thyroid carcinoma.

Methods: We describe 2 patients with a biochemical diagnosis of primary hyperparathyroidism who underwent intraoperative frozen section analysis of suspected parathyroid tumors. Parathyroid gland aspiration for parathyroid hormone was also performed for confirmation.

The influence of eccentric scanning of optical coherence tomography on retinal nerve fiber layer analysis in normal subjects.

Aim: To investigate the influence of eccentric scanning on retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) analysis using Stratus optical coherence tomography (OCT) in normal Koreans when the eccentricity of scanning occurs in 4 different directions.

Methods: Thirty-one eyes of 31 persons underwent 1 concentric disk-centered and 4 superiorly, inferiorly, nasally and temporally eccentric RNFL OCT scans.

Results: The average RNFL thickness measured by temporally eccentric scanning (115.

Gene-expression profiling of adrenocortical carcinoma.

Adrenocortical carcinoma (ACC) is a rare malignancy of the adrenal cortex, associated with a generally dismal prognosis owing to its aggressive behavior. The clinical management of ACC is complicated by the inadequacy of current diagnostic modalities to accurately distinguish benign from malignant adrenocortical tumors. In addition, efforts to better predict clinical tumor behavior are limited by the lack of a better understanding of the molecular mechanisms of adrenocortical carcinogenesis.

Smoking and the risk of upper aero digestive tract cancers for men and women in the Asia-Pacific region.

Although smoking is an established causal factor for upper aero digestive tract cancer (UADTC), most of the evidence originates from the West. Thus, we analysed data from 455,409 subjects in the Asia Pacific Cohort Studies Collaboration. Over a median of around six years follow-up, 371 deaths from UADTC were observed.

Consistency of performance of robot-assisted surgical tasks in virtual reality.

The purpose of this study was to investigate consistency of performance of robot-assisted surgical tasks in a virtual reality environment. Eight subjects performed two surgical tasks, bimanual carrying and needle passing, with both the da Vinci surgical robot and a virtual reality equivalent environment. Nonlinear analysis was utilized to evaluate consistency of performance by calculating the regularity and the amount of divergence in the movement trajectories of the surgical instrument tips.

A virtual reality training program for improvement of robotic surgical skills.

The purpose of this study was to use a simulated virtual reality environment for training of surgical skills and then to identify if the learning that occurred was transferable to a real world surgical task. The virtual surgical tasks consisted of bimanual carrying, needle passing and mesh alignment. In this ongoing study, the experimental group (n = 5) was trained by performing four blocks of the virtual surgical tasks using the da Vinci surgical robot.

[C-reactive protein and carotid intima-media thickness in a population of middle-aged Koreans].

Objectives: This study was performed to evaluate the relationship between C-reactive protein (CRP) and carotid intima-media thickness (carotid IMT) in a population of middle-aged Koreans.

Methods: A total of 1,054 men and 1,595 women (aged 40-70 years) from Kanghwa County, Korea, were chosen for the present study between 2006 and 2007. We measured high-sensitivity CRP and other major cardiovascular risk factors including anthropometrics, blood pressure, blood chemistry, and carotid ultrasonography.

[Association between hypertension and pulmonary function in rural adults in Korea].

Objectives: Whilst hypertension exerts a negative effect on several organs there have been few studies regarding its effect on pulmonary function. The objective of this study was to examine the relationship between hypertension and pulmonary function in rural Korean adults.

Methods: In 2006, 2534 people were recruited, aged 40 to 70, in Kangwha County.