Biomedical subjects

L Y Chang

Publications and source records attributed to L Y Chang.

129 records · Page 8Linked to original sources

PubMedDate not supplied

A seroepidemiological study of Varicella-Zoster virus in Taipei City.

Varicella has been considered a common and benign disease of children. However, adults tend to have severe disease and in some high risk groups, such as neonates and leukemic patients, varicella infection can be fatal. A large-scale seroepidemiological study on varicella was performed to reveal the current varicella infection status and to serve as a prevaccination survey before the possible implementation of vaccination program in Taiwan. This study included a total of 1384 individuals whose ages ranged from newborns to old adults. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was adopted to determine the IgG antibodies against Varicella-Zoster virus. The results showed: (1) only 24% of infants aged birth to three months had maternal antibodies, (2) the seroprevalence increased slowly during the first 3 years after birth, (3) most infections occurred between 3 and 10 years old, (4) 10% (female) to 20% (male) of adults were still susceptible to varicella infection, and (5) 85% of pregnant women had antibodies against VZV. These data suggest that if varicella vaccination is to be done in Taiwan, the appropriate inoculation age would be between 12 and 24 months. Besides, there exists a pool of uninfected adults who potentially will develop severe illnesses once infected and should be screened and protected by varicella vaccines.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Correlation of quantitative renal cortical echogenicity with renal function in pediatric renal diseases.

Using quantitative echogenicity, the correlation between renal cortical echogenicity and renal function (serum creatinine) was evaluated in pediatric renal diseases. The kidney/liver echogenicity ratio (K/ L ratio) was measured by computerized amplitude histogram in 20 healthy children as well as in 45 children with renal diseases, including 12 glomerulonephritis with chronic renal failure (CRF), 9 anatomic-related CRF, 9 glomerulonephritis with acute renal failure (ARF), 5 nephrotoxic ARF, and 10 glomerulonephritis without renal failure. All children were above six years of age. Simultaneous serum creatinine was available during the procedure in all patients. The overall K/L ratio was 1.38 +/- 0.26 for CRF and 1.14 +/- 0.18 for ARF (p = 0.007), while the overall serum creatinine was 312 +/- 160 mumol/L (3.5 +/- 1.8 mg/dl) and 191 +/- 73 mumol/L (2.2 +/- 0.8 mg/dl), respectively (p = 0.013). K/L ratio was higher in CRF at a higher, or even at a comparable serum creatinine level, than in ARF. For patients with glomerulonephritis, K/L ratio was highest in those with CRF, next in those with ARF. Even in glomerulonephritis without renal failure, the K/L ratio was higher than in normal controls. There was a positive correlation between K/L ratio and serum creatinine concentration in glomerulonephritis with or without renal failure (r = 0.69, p < 0.001). These results suggest that the degree of increased renal echogenicity may reflect the severity of the renal disease. The K/L ratio measured by quantitative echogenicity may provide an additional simple noninvasive method to monitor the progression of glomerulonephritis.

Acute Kidney Injury↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Anomalous pancreaticobiliary ductal union--an etiologic association of gallbladder cancer and adenomyomatosis.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Anomalous pancreaticobiliary ductal union (APBDU) has been proposed as a risk factor of gallbladder cancer. To clarify the frequency and the subtype distribution of APBDU in patients with gallbladder cancer and adenomyomatosis, a retrospective study was performed. METHODOLOGY: The radiograms of endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreaticography of 680 patients with well-documented biliary and pancreatic ducts from April 1992 to November 1996 were reviewed. The length of the common channel and insertion of the pancreatic duct and the bile duct were identified and recorded. RESULTS: Gallbladder cancer and adenomyomatosis were identified in 8 and 12 patients, respectively. Patients with gallbladder cancer were significantly older (mean age: 66.5 years, p<0.01) than those with gallbladder adenomyomatosis (mean age: 42.7 years). APBDU was noted in 59 (8.7%) of 680 cases with complete pancreaticobiliary radiograms. Among them, 5 of 8 patients with gallbladder cancer coexisted with APBDU. Four (80%) belonged to the P-B type. Six of 12 patients with gallbladder adenomyomatosis had APBDU. Five (83.3%) belonged to P-B type. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with gallbladder cancer and adenomyomatosis were frequently associated with APBDU. The close relationship and similar distribution of the P-B type of APBDU in both diseases suggest an etiologic association in various gallbladder diseases.

Adenomyoma↗