Increased chromosome-type chromosome aberration frequencies as biomarkers of cancer risk in a blackfoot endemic area.
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To examine whether biomarkers such as sister chromatid exchanges (SCEs) and chromosome aberrations (CAs) can predict cancer development, a nested case-control study was performed in a blackfoot endemic area with a known high cancer risk. A cohort of 686 residents was recruited from three villages in the blackfoot endemic area. Personal characteristics were collected, and venous blood was drawn for lymphocyte culture and stored in a refrigerator. The vital status and cancer development were followed using the National Death Registry, Cancer Registry, and Blackfoot Disease Registry. The follow-up period was from August 1991 to July 1995. During this 4-year period, 31 residents developed various types of cancer. Blood culture samples from nine of these subjects were unsuitable for experiments due to improper storage. Finally, a total of 22 cancer cases had cytogenetic samples that could be analyzed. Twenty-two control subjects were selected from those who did not develop cancer in the study period, and these subjects were matched to cases by sex, age, smoking habits, and residential area. The results showed that there was no significant difference in the frequencies of SCE and chromatid-type CAs between the case and control groups. However, the frequencies of chromosome-type CAs, e.g., chromosome-type gaps, chromosome-type breaks, chromosome-type breaks plus exchanges, total chromosome-type aberrations, and total frequencies of CAs in the case group, were significantly higher than those in the control group (P < 0.05). The odds ratio of cancer risk in subjects with more than zero chromosome-type breaks was 5.0 (95% confidence interval = 1.09-22.82) compared to those with zero chromosomal breaks. The odds ratios for more than zero chromosome-type breaks plus exchanges and a frequency of total chromosome-type aberrations of >1.007% were 11.0 and 12.0, respectively (P < 0.05). Subjects with a total CA frequency of >4.023% had a 9-fold increase for cancer risk. These results indicate that chromosome-type CAs are good biomarkers for the prediction of cancer development, whereas SCEs and chromatid-type CAs cannot predict cancer risk. (+info)
Marrow donor registry and bone marrow transplantation from unrelated donors in Taiwan: initial experience of the Tzu Chi Taiwan Marrow Donor Registry (TCTMDR).
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To evaluate the outcomes of unrelated bone marrow transplantation facilitated by TCTMDR, we focused on 48 marrow transplants performed in Taiwan during the period May 1994 to June 1997. Follow-up of these 48 cases was made up to 30 May 1998. The average length of follow-up was 328 days (range 7-1385 days). All the donor/recipient pairs were HLA-A, B and DR matched and were divided into two risk groups based on diagnosis and stage of disease. There were 24 standard risk and 24 high risk patients. Engraftment occurred in 40 patients (83.3%). Acute and chronic GVHD was observed in 80% of evaluable patients and accounts for 41% of deaths. The second leading cause of death was infection, accounting for 35% of deaths. The overall probability of survival for the 48 patients after BMT over 2 years was 33.3% (95% CI 19.67-46.32%). The probability of survival for standard risk and high risk groups was 54% and 8%, respectively. In multivariate analysis, patients who were younger, in the standard risk group, or with a shorter search interval showed a higher survival probability. (+info)
Hepatitis B vaccination in high-risk infants: 10-year follow-up.
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The long-term efficacy of hepatitis B vaccination among high-risk infants was determined in 805 vaccine responders, immunized at birth in Taiwan during 1981-1984 and followed to age 10 years, via life table survival and Cox multivariate analyses. At 10 years, cumulative persistence of antibody to hepatitis B surface antigen (anti-HBs) was 85%, and cumulative incidence of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection was 15%. Three children became carriers. Twelve-month anti-HBs titer was the strongest predictor of efficacy. The higher the initial titer, the lower the risk of anti-HBs loss (relative risk [RR], 0.26 for titer of 100-999 mIU/mL; RR, 0.08 for titer >1000 mIU/mL; P<.001) and HBV infection (RR, 0.55 and 0.27; P<.05). Maternal hepatitis B e antigen positivity but not hepatitis B immunoglobulin dose or gender predicted greater antibody persistence to age 10 years. Because the level of antibody persistence remained high and few became carriers, booster revaccination within 10 years seems unnecessary. (+info)
Aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage in Taiwan.
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In 1993, the annual report about prospective survey and registry of stroke revealed there were 439 cases of ruptured intracranial aneurysms in Taiwan area. Thirty-two of them had multiple aneurysms; therefore, totally 476 aneurysms occurred in these cases. The anatomic distribution of these aneurysms were as the following: internal carotid artery-posterior communicating artery 32%, anterior communicating artery 30%, middle cerebral artery 18%, carotid bifurcation 6%, anterior cerebral artery 4%, carotid-ophthalmic artery 2%, intracavernous carotid artery 2%, and vertebrobasilar system 6%. 364 cases received surgical or interventional treatment, which 88% was clipping procedure, 8% was interventional procedure with coil, and 4% was wrapping. The surgical mortality was 13%. (+info)
Molecular typing of Vibrio parahaemolyticus isolates, obtained from patients involved in food poisoning outbreaks in Taiwan, by random amplified polymorphic DNA analysis.
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Vibrio parahaemolyticus is one of the most important food-borne pathogens in Taiwan, Japan, and other countries with long coastlines. This paper reports on the development of a new random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) method for the molecular typing of this pathogen. The 10-mer primer 284 (5'-CAG GCG CAC A-3') was selected to generate polymorphic amplification profiles of the genomic DNA at an annealing temperature of 38 degrees C. A total of 308 clinical isolates of V. parahaemolyticus collected during food poisoning outbreaks in Taiwan, mostly occurring between 1993 and 1995, plus 11 environmental and clinical reference strains were analyzed by this RAPD method. A total of 41 polymorphic RAPD patterns were recognized, and these patterns were arbitrarily grouped into 16 types (A to P). Types A, B, C, D, and E were the major types, and subtypes C3, C5, E1, B1, D2, and A2 were the major patterns. The major types were phylogenetically more closely related to each other than to any of the minor types. (+info)
High prevalence of TT virus infection in healthy children and adults and in patients with liver disease in Taiwan.
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A newly identified DNA virus, named TT virus (TTV), was found to be related to transfusion-associated hepatitis. We conducted the following experiments to evaluate its pathogenic role in liver disease and potential modes of transmission. We used PCR to detect TTV DNA in serum. The rates of TTV viremia in 13 patients with idiopathic acute hepatitis, 14 patients with idiopathic fulminant hepatitis, 22 patients with chronic hepatitis, and 19 patients with cirrhosis of the liver were 46, 64, 55, and 63%, respectively, and were not significantly different from those in 50 healthy control subjects (53%). PCR products derived from seven patients with liver disease and three healthy controls were cloned and then subjected to phylogenetic analyses, which failed to link a virulent strain of TTV to severe liver disease. TTV infection was further assessed in an additional 148 subjects with normal liver biochemical tests, including 30 newborns (sera collected from the umbilical cord), 23 infants, 16 preschool children, 21 individuals of an age prior to that of sexual experience (aged 6 to 15 years), 15 young adults (aged under 30 years), and 43 individuals older than 30 years. The rates of TTV viremia were 0, 17, 25, 33, 47, and 54%, respectively. These findings suggest that TTV is transmitted mainly via nonparenteral daily contact and frequently occurs very early in life and that TTV infection does not have a significant effect on liver disease. (+info)
Low incidence of transplant coronary artery disease in Chinese heart recipients.
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OBJECTIVES: This study sought to assess the incidence of transplant coronary artery disease (CAD) in Chinese heart recipients. BACKGROUND: The prevalence of transplant CAD detected by angiography at 1, 2 and 4 years after heart transplantation was 11%, 22% and 45%, respectively. The incidence of transplant CAD in Chinese heart recipients has not been reported. METHODS: For those recipients surviving for more than 1 year after transplantation, coronary angiography was performed annually for surveillance of transplant CAD. The recipient characteristics, donor characteristics, rejection episodes, medication and human leukocyte antigen (HLA) mismatches were recorded. RESULTS: Fifty patients were included in this study. Thirteen (26%) recipients had ischemic heart disease. Two patients (4%) had active cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection after transplantation. The mean number of rejection episodes in the 1st year after transplantation was 1.15. Among 47 patients with complete data of donor and recipient histocompatibility antigens, there were seven patients (14.9%) with two or fewer HLA mismatches. Among 74 angiograms of 50 patients reviewed, only one patient had discrete stenosis less than 50% in the middle portion of the left anterior descending artery at 1 year after transplantation. The cumulative incidence of transplant CAD was 2% at 1 year and 2% at 2 and 4 years after transplantation. CONCLUSIONS: The incidence of transplant CAD was low in Chinese heart transplant recipients. Low percentage of ischemic heart disease in recipients, low occurrence of active CMV infection and rejection episodes after transplantation, less racial disparity, and lower HLA mismatches may be the important factors. (+info)
Sentinel surveillance for enterovirus 71, Taiwan, 1998.
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Outbreaks of enterovirus 71 have been reported around the world since 1969. The most recent outbreak occurred in Taiwan during April-July 1998. This hand, foot, and mouth disease epidemic was detected by a sentinel surveillance system in April at the beginning of the outbreak, and the public was alerted. (+info)