Macular Infarction Associated with Reactive Arthritis

A 53-year-old woman visited the Department of Rheumatology with a chief complaint of a 3-day history of fever and chills and also presented with pain occuring in both knees at the time of outpatient visit. Based on rheumatologic and hematological lab studies, ultrasonography, and a needle aspiration biopsy of the articular cavity, the patient was diagnosed with reactive arthritis. On hospitalization day 3, consultation with the Department of Ophthalmology was requested regarding decreased visual acuity lasting for 3 days. Upon ophthalmologic examination, the corrected visual acuity was 0.1 in the right eye and 0.05 in the left eye. Upon slit lamp microscopy, there were no abnormal findings in the anterior segment. Upon fundus examination, however, there were yellow-white lesions in the macular area of both eyes. Fluorescein angiographywas performed to assess the macular lesions, and the findings were suggestive of macular infarction in both eyes. Due to a lack of other underlying disease, a past surgical history, and a past history of drug administration, the patient was diagnosed with macular infarction in both eyes associated with reactive arthritis. To date, there have been no other such cases reported. In a patient with reactive arthritis, we experienced a case of macular infarction in both eyes, which occurred without association with a past history of specific drug use or underlying disease. Herein, we report our case, with a review of the literature

Valsalva Retinopathy Associated With an Oratorical Contest

A 17-year-old man presented to us with a chief complaint of decreased visual acuity accompanied by central scotoma. There was nothing unusual in his medical history other than a recent oratorical contest. At the time of initial diagnosis, the corrected visual acuity was 20/20 in the right eye and 20/100 in the left eye. No significant findings were apparent on ophthalmic evaluation. On fundoscopy, there was a dumbbell-shaped macular bleed with a well-defined margin in the left eye. The clinical course was closely monitored along with drug therapy. Four weeks post presentation, the pre-retinal hemorrhage had nearly resolved. On fluorescein angiography, no significant findings were observed. In the left eye, the corrected visual acuity had improved to 20/25. Valsalva retinopathy is a pathology that occurs when a sudden increase in intra-thoracic pressure or abdominal pressure occurs in an otherwise healthy person. Here we report a case of Valsalva retinopathy occurring following an oratorical contest along with a review of the relevant literature

An unconventional platform for two-dimensional Kagome flat bands on semiconductor surfaces

In condensed matter physics, the Kagome lattice and its inherent flat bands have attracted considerable attention for their potential to host a variety of exotic physical phenomena. Despite extensive efforts to fabricate thin films of Kagome materials aimed at modulating the flat bands through electrostatic gating or strain manipulation, progress has been limited. Here, we report the observation of a novel $d$-orbital hybridized Kagome-derived flat band in Ag/Si(111) $\sqrt{3}\times\sqrt{3}$ as revealed by angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy. Our findings indicate that silver atoms on a silicon substrate form a Kagome-like structure, where a delicate balance in the hopping parameters of the in-plane $d$-orbitals leads to destructive interference, resulting in a flat band. These results not only introduce a new platform for Kagome physics but also illuminate the potential for integrating metal-semiconductor interfaces into Kagome-related research, thereby opening a new avenue for exploring ideal two-dimensional Kagome systems.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figure

Congenital and multiple hobnail hemangiomas

Hobnail hemangioma (targetoid hemosiderotic hemangioma) is a vascular tumor affecting the limbs or trunk. Characteristically, the lesion has a "targetoid" clinical feature and dilated vascular spaces lined by hobnail endothelial cells at histologic examination. The age of onset is widely variable, form 5~67 years, typically occurring in young or middle-aged persons. It is usually apparent as a small solitary lesion. However, multiple lesions are identified sometimes. Herein, we report two cases of hobnail hemangioma in 7-year-old and 15-year-old males. Of note, the former case had a congenital lesion and the latter, multiple acquired lesions, which are both rare atypical presentations of the disease.OAIID:oai:osos.snu.ac.kr:snu2011-01/102/2008000790/11SEQ:11PERF_CD:SNU2011-01EVAL_ITEM_CD:102USER_ID:2008000790ADJUST_YN:NEMP_ID:A079501DEPT_CD:801CITE_RATE:.531FILENAME:hobnail hemangiomas.pdfDEPT_NM:의학과SCOPUS_YN:NCONFIRM:

Pneumatosis intestinalis after adult liver transplantation

Pneumatosis intestinalis is an uncommon disorder characterized by an accumulation of gas in the bowel wall. We described three cases undertaking liver transplantation. The patients developed diarrhea in three cases and high fever in two. An abdominal X-ray and computed tomography scan demonstrated extensive pneumatosis intestinalis in the colon with pneumoperitoneum mimicking hollow organ perforation. However, the patients had no abdominal symptoms and there was no evidence of peritonitis. The infection work-up was negative except one case with cytomegalovirus antigenemia. After one week of conservative management including bowel rest and antibiotic therapy, their pneumoperitoneum resolved spontaneously without any complication. Pneumatosis intestinalis should be considered as a differential diagnosis after adult liver transplantation with patients suffering from watery diarrhea and fever. Pneumoperitoneum, air-density in mesentery and retroperitoneum in patients with pneumatosis intestinalis without signs of peritonitis improved with conservative management, which included bowel rest and antibiotic therapy

The Expression of Thymidine Phosphorylase in Cancer-infiltrating Inflammatory Cells in Stomach Cancer

Thymidine phosphorylase (TP) has shown to be up-regulated in several cancers and to play a role in angiogenesis and invasion. Most studies regarding TP have focused on cancer cells. Recently, evidences suggest that TP in cancer-infiltrating inflammatory cells (CIICs) also affect the cancer cell behavior. To evaluate the significance of TP expression of CIICs in gastric cancer, we assessed TP expression of cancer cells and CIICs separately using immunohistochemical assay on 116 paraffin-embedded tissue samples from stomach cancer patients and investigated their clinical significance. When subjects were divided into 4 groups according to the TP expression: cancer/matrix (+/+), C/M (+/-), C/M (-/+), and C/M (-/-), intratumoral microvessel density scores were higher in the C/M (+/-) group than in the C/M (-/-) group (p=0.02). For lymph node metastasis and survival, there were no significant differences among the 4 groups. However, there were significant differences in survival (p=0.035) and LN metastasis (p=0.023) between the two groups divided by TP expression of CIICs alone irrespective of TP expression of cancer cells. Taken together, this study suggested the TP expression in CIICs could affect lymph node metastasis and patients' survival in gastric cancer