CSF Otorrhea Resulting from Osteoradionecrosis of the Temporal Bone in a Patient with Recurrent Meningioma

Osteoradionecrosis of the temporal bone is a very rare but potentially lethal complication of radiotherapy for head and neck or skull base tumors. Only two cases of osteoradionecrosis of the temporal bone complicating cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) otorrhea have been reported in the literature. This report describes a case of CSF otorrhea and osteoradionecrosis of the temporal bone in a patient with meningioma who was treated with tympanomastoid surgery and autologous fat obliteration in the mastoid

Splenic Abscess Associated with Endocarditis in a Patient on Hemodialysis: A Case Report

Splenic abscess is an unusual condition usually seen in immunocompromised patients or associated with intravenous drug abuses. Several conditions including trauma, immunodeficiency, corticosteroid and/or immunosuppressive therapy and diabetes mellitus have been listed under the predisposing factors for a splenic abscess. Splenic abscess in a patient on hemodialysis is a rare but life-threatening condition if not corrected. We describe a case of splenic abscess with bacterial endocarditis on maintenance hemodialysis. He had staphylococcal septicemia secondary to bacterial endocarditis at the mitral valve from the dialysis accesssite infection. Although hematologic seeding from endocarditis has been the predisposing factor for splenic abscess, we postulate that access-site infections may predispose hemodialysis patients to splenic abscess. Splenic abscess may be considered as one of the causes when patients on hemodialysis develop unexplained fever

Enhancement of Gastric Ulcer Healing and Angiogenesis by Cochinchina Momordica Seed Extract in Rats

Cochinchina momordica seed is the dried ripe seed of Momordica cochinchinensis, a perennial vine. The antiulcer effect of an extract from cochinchina momordica seeds (SK-MS10) was evaluated in a rat model of acetic acid-induced gastric ulcers. Gastric ulcers were produced by subserosal injection of acetic acid. SK-MS10 (200 mg/kg) or vehicle was administered orally once per day for 14 days after the acetic acid injection. The stomach was removed and the ulcer size measured at day 7 and 14 of the treatment. Expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) was assessed by real-time RT-PCR and Western blot analysis. In addition, the microvasculature density (MVD) adjacent to the ulcer margin was examined by immunohistochemistry. The treatment with SK-MS10 for 7 and 14 days significantly accelerated ulcer healing and increased the expression of mRNA (at day 7) as well as VEGF protein (at day 14) compared to the vehicle-treated rats. The MVD for factor VIII was also higher in the SK-MS10 treatment group compared to the vehicle-treated rats; however, these differences were not statistically significant. These results suggest that SK-MS10 treatment accelerates the healing of gastric ulcers via upregulation of VEGF and angiogenesis in an acetic acid rat model

Altered presynaptic function and number of mitochondria in the medial prefrontal cortex of adult Cyfip2 heterozygous mice

Variants of the cytoplasmic FMR1-interacting protein (CYFIP) gene family, CYFIP1 and CYFIP2, are associated with numerous neurodevelopmental and neuropsychiatric disorders. According to several studies, CYFIP1 regulates the development and function of both pre- and post-synapses in neurons. Furthermore, various studies have evaluated CYFIP2 functions in the postsynaptic compartment, such as regulating dendritic spine morphology; however, no study has evaluated whether and how CYFIP2 affects presynaptic functions. To address this issue, in this study, we have focused on the presynapses of layer 5 neurons of the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) in adult Cyfip2 heterozygous (Cyfip2+/−) mice. Electrophysiological analyses revealed an enhancement in the presynaptic short-term plasticity induced by high-frequency stimuli in Cyfip2+/− neurons compared with wild-type neurons. Since presynaptic mitochondria play an important role in buffering presynaptic Ca2+, which is directly associated with the short-term plasticity, we analyzed presynaptic mitochondria using electron microscopic images of the mPFC. Compared with wild-type mice, the number, but not the volume or cristae density, of mitochondria in both presynaptic boutons and axonal processes in the mPFC layer 5 of Cyfip2+/− mice was reduced. Consistent with an identification of mitochondrial proteins in a previously established CYFIP2 interactome, CYFIP2 was detected in a biochemically enriched mitochondrial fraction of the mouse mPFC. Collectively, these results suggest roles for CYFIP2 in regulating presynaptic functions, which may involve presynaptic mitochondrial changes.This work was supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) grants funded by the Korea Government Ministry of Science and ICT (NRF-2018R1C1B6001235, NRF-2018M3C7A1024603, NRF-2017M3C7A1048086, and NRF-2020R1A2C3011464) and the KBRI Basic Research Programs (20-BR01-08 and 20-BR-04-01)

Acute viral gastroenteritis in children hospitalized in Iksan, Korea during December 2010-June 2011

PurposeViral etiology is common in cases of children with acute diarrhea, and antibiotic therapy is usually not required. Therefore, it is important to determine the distribution of common viruses among children hospitalized with acute diarrhea.MethodsWe included 186 children who suffered from acute diarrhea and were hospitalized at the Wonkwang University Hospital Pediatric ward from December 1, 2010 to June 30, 2011 in this study. Stool samples were collected and multiplex reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (multiplex RT-PCR) was used to simultaneously determine the viral etiology such as rotavirus, norovirus, astrovirus, or adenovirus.ResultsCausative viruses were detected in 72 of the 186 cases (38.7%). The mean age of the virus-positive cases was 1 year and 9 months (range, 1 month to 11 years). Rotavirus was detected in 50/186 (26.9%); norovirus, in 18/186 (9.7%); and astrovirus, in 3/186 cases (1.6%). Adenovirus was not detected in any of the cases. Proportions of norovirus genogroups I and II were 21.1% and 78.9%, respectively. Four of the 51 rotavirus-positive cases (7.8%) had received rotavirus vaccination at least once. The mean duration of diarrhea was 2.8 days (range, 1 to 10 days) and vomiting occurred in 39 of the 72 cases (54.2%).ConclusionViral etiology was confirmed in about one-third of the children with acute diarrhea, and the most common viral agent was rotavirus, followed by norovirus

Renal cement embolism during percutaneous vertebroplasty

Percutaneous vertebroplasty (PVP) is an effective treatment for lesions of the vertebral body that involves a percutaneous injection of polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA). Although PVP is considered to be minimally invasive, complications can occur during the procedure. We encountered a renal embolism of PMMA in a 57-year-old man that occurred during PVP. This rare case of PMMA leakage occurred outside of the anterior cortical fracture site of the L1 vertebral body, and multiple tubular bone cements migrated to the course of the renal vessels via the valveless collateral venous network surrounding the L1 body. Although the authors could not explain the exact cause of the renal cement embolism, we believe that physicians should be aware of the fracture pattern, anatomy of the vertebral venous system, and careful fluoroscopic monitoring to minimize the risks during the PVP