Journal of Korean medical science
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J. Korean Med. Sci. · Oct 2014
Optimal tailored screening protocol after living donor liver transplantation for hepatocellular carcinoma.
The indication for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is expanding in living donor liver transplantation (LDLT). Early detection and effective management of recurrence has become an important issue in LDLT for HCC. This study aimed to find an optimal screening protocol in terms of screening interval and screening tools by analyzing recurrence pattern after LDLT for HCC. ⋯ Across the groups, extra-hepatic recurrence developed in more than 40% of cases and multi-organ recurrence rate was 20%. The screening interval should be different based on the risk of recurrence. Screening should include work-up for extra-hepatic recurrence as well as intra-hepatic recurrence.
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J. Korean Med. Sci. · Oct 2014
Association between adipokines and coronary artery lesions in children with Kawasaki Disease.
Body fat is an important source of adipokine, which is associated with energy balance and inflammatory and immune responses. However, the role of adipokines in coronary artery complications in Kawasaki disease (KD) has not yet been fully explained. We investigated whether serum adipokine level can be a useful marker for patients with KD who are at higher risk of developing coronary artery lesion (CAL). ⋯ In patients with KD, resistin levels were significantly associated with decreased hemoglobin levels (P=0.049) and increased IL-6 levels (P=0.014). The serum IL-6 levels were significantly higher and body mass index was significantly lower in the group of KD with CALs than those without CALs (228.26 ng/mL vs. 39.18 ng/mL and 15.09 vs. 16.60, respectively). In conclusion, resistin is significantly elevated in KD patients, although it has no prognostic value of predicting coronary artery lesion in the acute stage.
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J. Korean Med. Sci. · Oct 2014
The effect of probiotics for preventing radiation-induced morphological changes in intestinal mucosa of rats.
Radiation therapy is an important treatment modality for abdominal or pelvic cancer, but there is a common and serious complication such as radiation-induced enteritis. Probiotics is reported to have positive effects against radiation-induced enteropathy. In this study, morphological changes of bowel mucosa were analyzed in rats to presume the effect of probiotics on radiation-induced enteritis and its correlation with radiation dose. ⋯ The morphological parameters of the small intestine represented significant differences between two solution groups irradiated 10 or 15 Gy, except for villus height of jejunum in 15 Gy-subgroup (P=0.065). There was no significant morphometric difference between two groups irradiated with 20 Gy of radiation. Probiotics appear to be effective for the morphological shortening of small intestinal mucosa damaged by radiation less than or equal to 15 Gy.