Biomedical subjects

Y J Ho

Publications and source records attributed to Y J Ho.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

PubMed2000

Transient increase in alveolar epithelial permeability induced by volatile anesthesia with isoflurane.

Fifteen patients undergoing surgery and receiving volatile anesthesia with isoflurane were enrolled as the study group. At the same time, 15 patients undergoing surgery with intravenous anesthesia drugs were included as a control group to compare each other. Before surgery, 1 h after surgery, and 1 week after surgery, we investigated these two groups of patients with technetium-99m-labeled diethylene triamine pentaacetic acid radioaerosol inhalation lung scan (DTPA lung scan), a test to evaluate lung ventilation (LV), which was evaluated by the first and equilibrium lung ventilation image and alveolar epithelial permeability (AP) which was evaluated by the half time (T1/2, minutes) of Tc-99m DTPA radioaerosol lung clearance. No significant change and abnormality of LV before surgery, 1 h after surgery, or 1 week after surgery was found in either group of patients. In addition, no significant change in AP before surgery (T1/2 = 64.0 +/- 17.3 min), 1 h after surgery (64.5 +/- 19.6 min), or 1 week after surgery (63.6 +/- 17.6 min) was found among the control group patients (p values > 0.05). However, a significant transient increase in AP was found in the study group 1 h after surgery (71.7 +/- 17.5 versus 51.2 +/- 16.4 min), but it recovered 1 week after surgery (51.2 +/- 16.4 versus 70.9 +/- 16.0 min) (p values < 0.05). We conclude that volatile anesthesia with isoflurane can induce transient increase of AP.

Administration, Inhalation↗

PubMed2000

Ensuring seamless care at hospital discharge: a national survey.

AIM: To identify the services that hospital pharmacies were providing in 1999 to facilitate seamless care upon patient discharge. DESIGN: Postal questionnaire containing closed and open questions. SUBJECTS AND SETTING: U.K. Trust hospitals. Questionnaire addressed to Chief Pharmacists to be completed by themselves or most appropriate deputy, then returned anonymously in prepaid envelope. RESULTS: The response rate was 73.4% (163/222). 71.2% of responses came from general hospitals and 23.3% from teaching hospitals. Junior medical staff members were responsible for preparing virtually all discharge prescriptions, which were checked against the ward prescription chart by pharmacists in three-quarters of U.K. Trusts. Hospitals used a wide variety of methods to communicate information about medicine regimens to GPs. There was also wide variation in the provision of discharge counselling, telephone 'help-lines' and clear medication records to patients. Few hospitals involved community pharmacies routinely in the discharge process. CONCLUSION: There is still wide variation within hospital pharmacy practice in meeting the medicines-related needs of patients at discharge.

Communication↗

PubMed2000

Decreased salivary function in patients with end-stage renal disease requiring hemodialysis.

It has been speculated that impaired salivary flow is common in patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) requiring hemodialysis (HD). The aim of this study is to investigate the relation between oral manifestations and salivary function in patients with ESRD undergoing HD. Salivary function was measured by quantitative salivary scintigraphy in 60 patients with ESRD undergoing HD, as well as in 36 age- and sex-matched healthy controls for comparison. The 60 patients with ESRD undergoing HD were separated into two subgroups: group 1, 30 patients with oral manifestations, and group 2, 30 patients without oral manifestations. After an intravenous injection of 5 mCi of technetium 99m pertechnetate, sequential images at 1 minute per frame were acquired for 30 minutes. The 1- and 15-minute uptake ratios were calculated as the tracer uptakes in the four major salivary glands over the background regions of interest. Saliva excretion was stimulated by one 200-mg tablet of ascorbic acid administered orally 15 minutes post-tracer injection, then the maximal excretion ratios of the four major salivary glands were calculated. Our results show significantly poorer salivary function in patients with ESRD with oral manifestations compared with patients with ESRD without oral manifestations and healthy controls by means of objective and quantitative salivary scintigraphy.

Female↗

PubMed2000

Cytokeratin fragment 19 and squamous cell carcinoma antigen for early prediction of recurrence of squamous cell lung carcinoma.

Sixty patients with squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the lung, including 25 cases with recurrence and 35 cases without recurrence 1 year after operation, were enrolled in this study. The serial serum levels of cytokeratin fragment 19 (CYFRA 21-1) and SCC antigen were measured before operation and 1 week, 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, 9 months, and 12 months after operation for early detection of recurrence. The results revealed that 1) mean serum values of CYFRA 21-1 were significantly higher at early and any times after operation in 25 patients with recurrent SCC when compared with 35 patients without recurrent SCC; and 2) mean serum values of SCC antigen were significantly higher until 9 and 12 months after operation, in 25 patients with recurrent SCC when compared with 35 patients without recurrent SCC. We conclude that CYFRA 21-1 is a better marker than SCC antigen for early prediction of SCC recurrence in the lung.

Aged↗

PubMed2000

Tissue polypeptide-specific antigen and carcinoembryonic antigen for early prediction of recurrence in lung adenocarcinoma.

Fifty patients with lung adenocarcinoma, including 20 cases with recurrence and 30 cases without recurrence 1 year after operation, were enrolled in this study. The serial serum levels of tissue polypeptide-specific antigen (TPS) and carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) were measured before operation and at 1 week, and at 1, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months after operation for early detection of recurrence. The results revealed that: 1) mean serum values of TPS were significantly higher at 1, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months after operation in 20 patients with recurrent adenocarcinoma, when compared with 30 patients without recurrent adenocarcinoma; 2) mean serum values of CEA were significantly higher at 9 months and 12 months after operation in 20 patients with recurrent adenocarcinoma, when compared with 30 patients without recurrent adenocarcinoma. We conclude that TPS is a better marker than CEA for early prediction of adenocarcinoma recurrence in lung within 1 year after operation. However, a longer follow-up study should be encouraged.

Adenocarcinoma↗

PubMed2000

Monitoring the effect of anticoagulants on left atrial thrombi in patients with rheumatic heart disease: assessment with 111In-oxine-labelled platelet heart scintigraphy and transoesophageal echocardiography.

111In-oxine-labelled platelet heart scintigraphy (In-plt) was used to evaluate the activity of left atrial thrombi detected by transoesophageal echocardiography (TEE) in 16 cases of rheumatic heart disease. The effect of anticoagulants on the therapeutic intervention of these patients was evaluated by In-plt and TEE. In-plt was performed in all patients in serial pre- and post-anticoagulant therapy studies with anterior, 45 degrees left anterior oblique and left lateral views taken daily from the second to sixth day after injection of labelled platelets. After discontinuing anticoagulants for at least 1 week, only nine cases of left atrial thrombi were detected among the 16 cases by initial In-plt. After anticoagulants were again used for at least 3 weeks, all nine positive cases became negative on repeat In-plt. These results suggest that the diagnostic sensitivity of In-plt is lower than that of TEE. However, In-plt is more suitable and useful for evaluating the activity of left atrial thrombi after antithrombotic agent therapy and for monitoring the effect of anticoagulant therapy on left atrial thrombi in patients with rheumatic heart disease.

Adult↗

PubMed2000

The role of rhinoscintigraphy in the evaluation of nasal mucociliary clearance function in patients with sinusitis.

Nasal mucociliary clearance is one of the homeostatic systems of the respiratory mucosa. Various rhinopathic conditions may involve alterations in nasal mucociliary clearance. The aim of this study was to assess the clinical role of rhinoscintigraphy in the evaluation of nasal mucociliary clearance function of sinusitis patients in comparison with a healthy control group. A single droplet of 99Tcm-labelled macroaggregated albumin (99Tcm-MAA) was deposited on the floor of the nasal meatus about 1 cm behind the mucocutaneous junction, and its course was followed with a gamma camera. The nasal mucociliary clearance was presented as the velocity (mm x min(-1)) of nasal mucociliary transport of the 99Tcm-MAA droplet. A significant difference in nasal mucociliary clearance was observed between the two groups, with a mean of 4.28+/-1.38 mm x min(-1) (4.3+/-1.35 mm x min(-1) in the right nostril, 4.27+/-1.42 mm x min(-1) in the left nostril) for the controls; and 1.8+/-0.64 mm x min(-1) (1.79+/-0.65 mm x min(-1) in the right nostril, 1.82+/-0.63 mm x min(-1) in the left nostril) for the patients with sinusitis. Rhinoscintigraphy is a safe, easy, quick and reliable imaging method for evaluating the ciliary activity of nasal mucosa and the nasal mucociliary clearance function in patients with sinusitis.

Adult↗

PubMed2000

Evidence of impaired gallbladder function in patients with liver cirrhosis by quantitative radionuclide cholescintigraphy.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to understand gallbladder function in liver cirrhosis. METHODS: Gallbladder function was measured in 45 patients with liver cirrhosis by Tc-99m-labeled imino-diacetic acid analog cholescintigraphy. Gallbladder function was represented by the filling fraction and the ejection fraction (EF). The patients were divided into three groups, based on cirrhotic severity, using the modified Child's classification: A = good, B = fair, and C = poor. Fifteen normal control subjects were selected for comparison. RESULTS: There were no significant differences in filling fraction among all of the study groups. Normal controls had significantly higher 60-min EF values than did liver cirrhosis patients. Among the liver cirrhosis patients, class A patients had the highest EF values, and class C patients had the lowest EF values. CONCLUSIONS: We found that liver cirrhosis may significantly impair the gallbladder emptying, based on the evidence of quantitative Tc-99m-labeled imino-diacetic acid analog cholescintigraphy findings.

Female↗

PubMed2000

Evidence of abnormal esophageal motility in syndrome X by radionuclide esophageal transit test.

In 30 patients with syndrome X, esophageal motility was evaluated by radionuclide esophageal transit test (RETT). Esophageal motility measurements included esophageal mean transit time (MTT), residual fraction (RF), and retrograde index (RI). In comparison with 25 age- and sex-matched healthy volunteers, 66% of the patients with syndrome X had abnormal RETT findings including 50% of cases with longer MTT, 50% of cases with higher RF, and 33% of cases with higher RI. In addition, the mean values of MTT, RF, and RI in patients with syndrome X were significantly higher than those of healthy volunteers. We conclude that abnormal esophageal motility occurred in a large portion of syndrome X patients based on an simple and noninvasive RETT.

Adult↗

PubMed2000

Comparison of 18-fluoro-2-deoxyglucose positron emission tomography and computed tomography in detection of cervical lymph node metastases of nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Neck lymph nodes (LNs) from 18 patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) were evaluated with 18-fluoro-2-deoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET). Eighteen NPC patients underwent head and neck FDG-PET and computed tomography (CT) for detection of suspected neck LN metastases. For final diagnosis, biopsies were taken from neck LNs with discordant findings between FDG-PET and CT. Meanwhile, standard uptake values (SUVs) of the FDG-PET images were calculated to differentiate metastatic LNs from benign LNs. A total of 90 neck LNs found on either FDG-PET or CT were evaluated. In addition to 27 concordant positive results and 42 concordant negative LN results, biopsy findings revealed 11 metastatic LNs that were detected by FDG-PET but not by CT. However, the SUVs of the 11 metastatic LNs and 7 benign LNs were not significantly different. The CT scanning showed positive findings for I metastatic LN with negative FDG-PET findings. In addition, the tumor stage was upgraded in 5 patients on the basis of FDG-PET findings. In comparison with CT, FDG-PET has a higher potential for detecting neck LN metastases of NPC and assessing NPC tumor stage.

Adult↗

PubMed2000

Quickly predicting chemotherapy response to paclitaxel-based therapy in non-small cell lung cancer by early technetium-99m methoxyisobutylisonitrile chest single-photon-emission computed tomography.

The purpose of this study was to retrospectively predict the chemotherapy response to paclitaxel in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) using technetium-99m methoxyisobutylisonitrile (Tc-99m MIBI) chest single-photon-emission computed tomography (SPECT) to detect the expression of multidrug-resistance-mediated Mr 170,000 P-glycoprotein. Before chemotherapy with Paclitaxel (Taxol), 30 patients with stage IIIb or IV NSCLC were enrolled in this study. Early chest SPECT 10 min after i.v. injection of Tc-99m MIBI was performed to qualitatively interpret Tc-99m MIBI chest SPECT visually and quantitatively calculate early tumor:normal lung ratios (T:NL) for quick assessment of multidrug-resistant P-glycoprotein expression in NSCLC. On the basis of qualitatively visual interpretation of early Tc-99m MIBI chest SPECT, all of 15 (100%) cases with good response to chemotherapy with Taxol could be detected but 10 (67%) of 15 cases with poor response could not be detected. Early Tc-99m MIBI chest SPECT could correctly predict chemotherapy response in 25 (83%) of 30 of cases. The early T:NL were 3.30 +/- 0.82 for 15 patients with good response and 2.02 +/- 0.19 for 5 patients with poor response. The differences were significant (P < 0.05) by independent Student t tests. However, no significant differences were found for other prognostic factors (age, sex, tumor size, tumor location, stage, and cell type) between good-response and poor-response patients. Early Tc-99m MIBI chest SPECT has the potential to predict chemotherapy response to Paclitaxel.

ATP Binding Cassette Transporter, Subfamily B, Mem↗

PubMed2000

Radionuclide esophageal transit test to detect esophageal disorders in patients with mitral valve prolapse.

AIM: The origin of chest discomfort in patients with mitral valve prolapse (MVP) is controversial. Our aim was to prospectively determine the incidence of esophageal disorders in MVP patients with or without chest pain. METHODS: Twenty-five MVP patients with chest pain (group A) and 25 MVP patients without chest pain (group B) underwent evaluation of esophageal motility. None of the total of 50 MVP patients had significant coronary artery disease on cardiac catheterization. Esophageal motility including esophageal mean transit time (MTT), residual fraction (RF), and retrograde index (RI) was analyzed by the radionuclide esophageal transit test (RETT). RESULTS: In comparison with 25 age and sex-matched healthy volunteers, the results showed that: (1) 19 patients in group A (76%) had abnormal RETT findings (48% of cases with prolonged MTT, 44% of cases with higher RF, and 60% of cases with higher RI); (2) 3 patients in group B (12%) had abnormal RETT findings (8% of cases with prolonged MTT, 4% of cases with higher RF, and 8% of cases with higher RI). In addition, mean values of MTT, RF, and RI in group A patients were significantly higher than in group B patients and healthy volunteers. CONCLUSION: We found that the chest pain in some MVP patients may be related to abnormal esophageal motility, based on the evidence from a simple and noninvasive RETT.

Adult↗

PubMed2000

Detection of esophagitis by 99mTc-methoxyisobutylisonitrile chest SPECT.

UNLABELLED: Esophagitis is a common complication of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). Unfortunately, an accurate diagnosis of esophagitis usually requires invasive endoscopy. The purpose of our study was to evaluate the use of noninvasive 99mTc-methoxyisobutylisonitrile (MIBI) chest SPECT to detect esophagitis in GERD patients. METHODS: Forty GERD patients who underwent endoscopy for diagnosis and grading of esophagitis according to the Savary-Miller grading system were included in this study. 99mTc-MIBI chest SPECT was performed on all patients to detect and grade esophagitis. RESULTS: On the basis of the endoscopic findings, the sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of 99mTc-MIBI chest SPECT to detect esophagitis were 100%, 77%, and 95%, respectively. The correlation between the Savary-Miller grading system and 99mTc-MIBI chest SPECT grading was found to be good. CONCLUSION: Noninvasive 99mTc-MIBI chest SPECT has excellent sensitivity and good accuracy as a screen for esophagitis.

Adult↗

PubMed2000

Neurogenic intermittent claudication related to spinal stenosis.

BACKGROUND: The pathophysiology of neurogenic intermittent claudication (NIC) is not very well understood. We examined the theory of "two-level" spinal stenosis as the pathologic cause of NIC. METHODS: Forty-five consecutive patients with NIC were chosen for the study group and another 45 patients with chronic low back pain, but without NIC, were consecutively chosen for the control group. All the patients were examined using several methods that included a personal history survey, physical examination, X-ray studies, computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). RESULTS: Two-level central canal stenosis was found on MRI in 88.9% of the study group compared to only 37.8% of the control group (Fisher's exact two-tailed test, P = 0.0000). In the study group, 77.8% of the patients had severe or moderate facet joint degeneration on CT. The remaining 22.2% of patients had mild facet joint degeneration. In the control group, 40% of the patients had severe or moderate facet joint degeneration, while it was mild or normal in the remaining 60% (Fisher's exact two-tailed test, P = 0.0005). On X-ray, 42.2% of the study group compared with 17.7% of the control group had spondylolisthesis (Fisher's exact two-tailed test, P = 0.0129). In 35% of the study group compared with 11.1% of the control group, X-ray findings showed scoliosis (Fisher's exact two-tailed test, P = 0.0115). The lumbosacral angle in the study group was 35.8 degrees +/- 6.1 degrees compared to 33.1 degrees +/- 7.5 degrees in the control group (independent Student's two-tailed t-test, P > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Our study strongly supports pathophysiology for NIC that is closely related to two-level spinal canal stenosis. Degenerative joint disease, spondylolisthesis and scoliosis of the lumbar spine are predisposing factors of NIC.

Humans↗

PubMed1999

Discrepancy between regional cerebral blood flow and glucose metabolism of the brain in systemic lupus erythematosus patients with normal brain magnetic resonance imaging findings.

OBJECTIVE: In this study, 2 updated brain-imaging modalities, technetium-99m hexamethylpropylene amine oxime-single-photon-emission computed tomography (HMPAO-SPECT) and fluorine-18 2-fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose-positron emission tomography (FDG-PET), were used to simultaneously detect regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) and glucose metabolism of the brain in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). METHODS: Twenty-five female SLE patients, ages 25-40 years, were enrolled in this study and assigned to 1 of 2 groups. Group 1 consisted of 13 patients with neuropsychiatric manifestations (7 had major and 6 had minor manifestations). Group 2 consisted of 12 patients without neuropsychiatric manifestations. Serum levels of anticardiolipin antibodies (aCL) and anti-ribosomal P antibodies (anti-P) were measured. All patients had normal brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings. Ten healthy female volunteers also underwent brain MRI, HMPAO-SPECT, and FDG-PET for comparison. RESULTS: 99mTc-HMPAO-SPECT revealed hypoperfusion lesions in 11 (44%) of 25 SLE patients, including 9 (69%) of the 13 patients in group 1, 7 (100%) of the 7 patients with major manifestations, 2 (33%) of the 6 patients with minor manifestations, and 2 (17%) of the 12 patients in group 2. Parietal lobes were the areas most commonly involved. FDG-PET revealed hypometabolism in 7 (54%) of the group 1 patients, 6 (86%) of the 7 patients with major manifestations, and 1 (17%) of the 6 patients with minor manifestations. Temporal lobes were the most commonly involved areas. However, no significant hypometabolism brain lesions were found in group 2 patients. All of the 4 patients with headaches and dizziness or headaches alone had normal findings on HMPAO-SPECT and FDG-PET. Nine (36%) of the 25 patients were positive for aCL. However, the presence of aCL was not related to neuropsychiatric manifestations or to HMPAO-SPECT or FDG-PET findings. Five (20%) of the 25 patients had anti-P antibodies and psychosis/depression. CONCLUSION: In patients with normal brain MRI findings, decreases in glucose metabolism coupled with decreases in rCBF are associated with serious neuropsychiatric SLE (NPSLE) presentations, while normal glucose metabolism with decreases in rCBF may be found in SLE patients with or without NPSLE.

Adult↗

PubMed1999

Cytokeratin fragment 19 (CYFRA 21-1) and carcinoembryonic antigen for early prediction of recurrence of lung adenocarcinoma.

Fifty patients with adenocarcinoma of the lung were enrolled in this study, including 20 patients with recurrence and 30 patients without recurrence 1 year after surgery. Serial serum levels of cytokeratin fragment 19 (CYFRA 21-1) and carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) were measured before the operation and 1 week, 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, 9 months, and 12 months after surgery for the early detection of recurrence. The results revealed that the mean serum values of either CYFRA 21-1 or CEA were significantly higher until 9 and 12 months after surgery in the 20 patients with recurrent adenocarcinoma compared with the 30 patients without recurrent adenocarcinoma. We conclude that CYFRA 21-1 is not a better marker than CEA for early prediction of adenocarcinoma. We conclude that CYFRA 21-1 is not a better marker than CEA for early prediction of adenocarcinoma recurrence in lung.

Adenocarcinoma↗

PubMed1999

Gastric emptying in spinal cord injury patients.

Prolonged gastric emptying half-time (GET1/2) has been observed in several neurological disorders. However, findings of altered gastric emptying (GE) in previous studies on subjects with spinal cord injuries (SCI) have been questioned. Thus, GET1/2 of solid meals in SCI patients was studied by radionuclide imaging. This prospective study was conducted to assess GET1/2 in 50 SCI patients using radionuclide labeled solid meals. GET1/2 was abnormal in 58% of the 50 SCI patients. Age (abnormal GET1/2 in 57% of young vs 59% of old patients) and injury duration (abnormal GET1/2 in 61% of long vs 56% of short duration patients) were not statistically significant factors influencing GET1/2 (P > 0.05). However, the incidences of abnormal GET1/2 in female SCI patients (57%) and patients with high level injury (quadriplegic) (83%) were higher than in male SCI patients (47%) and patients with low level injury (paraplegic) (35%) (P < 0.05). SCI can cause significant prolonged GE of a solid meal, especially in female patients and patients with high level injury.

Adult↗

PubMed1999

Behavioural responses of cockerels to semen collection and their influence on semen characteristics.

One-hundred-and-twenty cockerels of Strain L2 Taiwan Country chicken from the National Chung-Hsing University were tested for their behavioural responses to semen collection at 21 to 30, 34 to 43 and 57 to 66 weeks of age. At every age period, semen was collected from every cockerel 4 times within a 1-week period. 2. Cockerel performances on most semen traits, including volume, concentration, total number of sperm, ease of collection and sensitivity to massage were very consistent within each age period. 3. Males that did not respond nervously to handling or were less sensitive to massage appeared to produce less semen. However, contamination was more serious in males that responded very nervously or were very sensitive to massage. 4. Sensitivity to massage, like semen volume, is an invariant character as indicated by the high correlation between measures taken at different age periods.

Animals↗