• The Journal of Korean Physical Therapy
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• v.22 no.3
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• pp.79-85
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• 2010

Purpose: Many trials for new therapeutic approaches such as stem cell-based transplantation have been conducted to improve the repair and regeneration of injured cord tissue and to restore functions following spinal cord injury (SCI) in animals and humans. Adipose tissue-derived stromal cells (ATSCs) have multi-lineage potential to differentiate into cells with neuron-like morphology. Most studies of stem cell transplantation therapy after SCI are focused on cellular regeneration and restoration of motor function, but not on unwanted effects after transplantation such as neuropathic pain. This study was focused on whether transplantation of ATSCs could facilitate or attenuate hindpaw pain responses to heat, cold and mechanical stimulation, as well as on improvement of locomotor function in a rat with SCI. Methods: A spinal cord injury rat model was produced using an NYU impactor by dropping a 10 g rod from a height of 25 mm on to the T9 segment. Human ATSCs (hATSCs; approximately $5{\times}10^5$ cells) or DMEM were injected into the perilesional area 9 days after the SCI. After transplantation, hindpaw withdrawal responses to heat, cold and mechanical allodynia were measured over 7 weeks. Motor recovery on the Basso, Beattie, and Bresnahan (BBB) locomotor rating scale and on the inclined plane test were also evaluated. Results: The present study demonstrated that increased hindpaw withdrawal responses to cold allodynia was observed in both groups after transplantation, but the development of cold-induced allodynia in the hATSC transplantation group was significantly larger than in the control group. The difference between the two groups in locomotor functional improvement after SCI was also significant. Conclusion: Careful consideration not only of optimal functional benefits but also of unintended side effects such as neuropathic pain is necessary before stem cell transplantation therapy after SCI.

• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.937-947
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• 2007

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive disorder that causes degeneration of motor neurons of the brain and spinal cord. ALS is a progressive, fatal neuromuscular disease characterized by loss of motor neurons leading to muscle weakness. Sensation and mental function stay intact during the course of the disease. ALS is characterized by both upper and lower motor neuron damage. Diagnosis includes magnetic response imaging (MRI) electromyogram (EMG), muscle biopsy, and blood test. There is no cure for ALS. We recently observed three cases of ALS. The patients were diagnosis with ALS by EMG and symptoms. This report was conducted to evaluate how oriental medical treatment can affect ALS. We report the change of their symptoms through oriental medical treatment compared with taking riluzole.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.22 no.3
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• pp.199-205
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• 2009

Background: A major ingredient of green tea is epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), and this is known to have many beneficial effects for cancer prevention and also on the cardiovascular system and neurodegenerative diseases through its anti-oxidant, anti-angiogenic, anti-inflammatory, lipid-lowering and neuroprotective properties. Its actions on nociception and the spinal nervous system have been examined in only a few studies, and in these studies EGCG showed an antinociceptive effect on inflammatory and neuropathic pain, and a neuroprotective effect in motor neuron disease. This study was performed to investigate the effect of EGCG on acute thermal pain and the development of morphine tolerance at the spinal level. Methods: The experimental subjects were male Sprague-Dawley rats and the Hot-Box test was employed. A single or double-lumen intrathecal catheter was implanted at the lumbar enlargement for drug administration. An osmotic pump was used to infuse morphine for 7 days for induction of morphine tolerance. EGCG was injected repeatedly for 7 days at twice a day through the intrathecal catheter. Results: Intrathecal EGCG increased the paw withdrawal latency (PWL) after repeated administration for 7 days at twice a day, but this did not happen with administering on single bolus injection of EGCG. In addition, the antinociceptive effect of intrathecal morphine was not affected by co-administration with EGCG. A continuous 7-day infusion of morphine caused a significant decrease of the PWL in the control group (M + S, morphine plus saline). In contrast, intrathecal EGCG injection over 7 days blocked the decrease of the PWL in the experiment group (M + E, morphine plus EGCG). Conclusions: Intrathecal ECGC produced a weak antinociceptive effect for acute thermal pain, but it did not change the morphine's analgesic effect. However, the development of antinociceptive tolerance to morphine was attenuated by administering intrathecal EGCG.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.41 no.4
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• pp.405-416
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• 2008

Background: Spinal cord ischemic injury during thoracic and thoracoabdominal aortic surgeries remains a potentially devastating outcome despite using various methods of protection. Neuronal voltage-dependent sodium channel antagonists are known to provide neuroprotection in cerebral ischemic models. This study was designed to compare the neuroprotective effects of phenytoin with those of hypothermia in a rabbit model of spinal cord ischemia. Material and Method: Spinal cord ischemia was induced in New Zealand white rabbits by means of infrarenal aortic cross clamping for 25 minutes. Four groups of 8 animals each were studied. The control group and the hypothermia group received retrograde infusion of saline only ($22^{\circ}C$, 2 mL/min); the normothermic phenytoin group and the hypothermicphenytoin group received retrograde infusion of 100 mg of phenytoin at different rectal temperatures ($39^{\circ}C$ and $37^{\circ}C$, respectively) during the ischemic period. The neurologic function was assessed at 24 and 72 hours after the operation with using the modified Tarlov criteria. The spinal cords were harvested after the final neurologic examination for histopathological examination to objectively quantify the amount of neuronal damage. Result: No major adverse effects were observed with the retrograde phenytoin infusion during the aortic ischemic period. All the control rabbits became severely paraplegic, Both the phenytoin group and the hypothermia group had a better neurological status than did the control group (p < 0.05). The typical morphological changes that are characteristic of neuronal necrosis in the gray matter of the control animals were demonstrated by means of the histopathological examination, whereas phenytoin or hypothermia prevented or attenuated these necrotic phenomena (p < 0.05). The number of motor neuron cells positive for TUNEL staining was significantly reduced, to a similar extent, in the rabbits treated with phenytoin or hypothermia. Phenytoin and hypothermia had some additive neuroprotective effect, but there was no statistical significance between the two on the neurological and histopathological analysis. Conclusion: The neurological and histopathological analysis consistently demonstrated that both phenytoin and hypothermia may afford significant spinal cord protection to a similar extent during spinal cord ischemia in rabbits, although no significant additive effects were noticed.

• The Journal of Korean Physical Therapy
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.15-20
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• 2010

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to measure changes in the H-reflex and V wave under loading conditions (e.g. prone and standing position) and to investigate whether postural change would affect the H-reflex and V wave in post stroke hemiplegic patients. Methods: Thirty persons with hemiplegia resulting from stroke (20 males, 10 females) participated in this study. Electromyography (EMG) was used to electrically stimulate and record the soleus H-reflexes and V waves under various loading conditions. The normality of the distribution of each variable (H latency, $H_{max}/M_{max}$ ratio, $V_{max}/M_{max}$ ratio) was tested using the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test. The means of normally distributed continuous data were assessed by independent t-test (${\alpha}$=0.05). Results: There were statistically significant differences in $H_{max}/M_{max}$ ratio (p<0.01), $V_{max}/M_{max}$ ratio (p<0.01), H latency (p<0.01) among the prone and standing position. Conclusion: We found that the H-reflex and V wave in standing position was more active to weight bearing load than prone position.

• Maxillofacial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
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• v.16 no.3
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• pp.321-347
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• 1994

Muscle spindle afferents from masseter muscle were labelled by the intra-axonal HRP injection and were processed for light microscopic reconstruction. Regions containing terminal arbors scattered in the central portion of the masseteric motor neuron pool (type I a) and those restricted to 2-3 small portion of it (type II) were selected and processed for electronmicroscopic analysis with serial sections. The shape of the labelled boutons was dome or elongated shape. Scalloped or glomerulus shape with peripherial indentation containing pre or postsynaptic neuronal propiles, which is occasionally found in the trigeminal main sensory nucleus and spinal dorsal horn, was not observed. Both type Ia and type II boutons had pale axoplasm and contained clear, spherical vesicles of uniform size(dia : 49-52nm) and occasionally large dense cored vesicles(dia : 87-118nm). The synaptic vesicles were evenly distributed throughout the boutons although there was a slight tendency of vesicles to accumulate at the presynaptic site. The average of short and long diameter(short D. + long D./2) of type I a bouton was smaller than that of type II bouton. All the labelled boutons, which showed prominent postsynaptic density, large synaptic area and multiple synaptic contact, made asymmetrical synaptic contact with postsynaptic neuronal propiles. Most of the type Ia and type II boutons made synaptic contact with only one neuronal propile and boutons which shows synaptic contact or more neuronal propiles was not observed. Most of the type Ia boutons(87.2%) were presynaptic to the soma or proximal dendrite and a few remainder(12.8%) made synaptic contact with dendritic shaft or distal dendrite. In contrast, majority of type II boutons showed synaptic contact with dendritic shaft and remainder with soma or proximal dendrite. In conclusion, terminal boutons which participate in the excitatory monosynaptic jaw jerk reflex made synaptic contact with more proximal region of the neuron, and showed very simple synaptic connection, compared with those from the primary afferenst in the other region of the central nervous system such as spinal dorsal horn and trigeminal main sensory nucleus which assumed to be responsible for the mediating pain, tactile sensation, sensory processing or sensory discrimination.