• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.52 no.9
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• pp.1005-1014
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• 2009

Purpose:Epilepsy of child may cause high level of psychosocial difficulties for parents including stigmatization and stress and therefore worsen their quality of life (QOL). The purpose of this study was to evaluate the mediating effect of perceived stigma against epilepsy on QOL among parents with epileptic child. Methods:Two hundred and sixty parents of epileptic child recruited from five separated university hospital child neurology clinics specializing in epilepsy completed a demographic questionnaire, a medical questionnaire, a perceived stigma questionnaire and the Ro's Quality of Life Inventory, a popular tool for evaluating QOL of adults in Korea which is composed of 6 domains and 47 questions. Data was analyzed with SPSS 14.0 program using frequency analysis and descriptive analysis and with AMOS 7.0 program using Structural Equation Model (SEM) analysis. Results:The level of parents' QOL was relatively fair. SEM analysis on the quality of life level of parents showed that all variables (especially having religion, the monthly income, employment state, age of child, the leisure time, the perceived stigma level against epilepsy, and seizure frequency) directly affect the quality of life level of parents and that disease-related variables also affect the quality of life level of parents indirectly through the mediating factor (the perceived stigma), where the indirect effect is large with the existence of combined disabilities. The total effect on the quality of life level of parents is large with the existence of combined disabilities, the perceived stigma level, the leisure time, having religion, and the monthly income. Conclusion:The results of this study indicated that many factors including parents' perceived stigma may affect the quality of life of parents with epileptic children directly, and that some disease-related factors may affect indirectly through a mediating factor, the perceived stigma. Multidisciplinary collaboration would be imperative for their welfare.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.28 no.6
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• pp.614-620
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• 2014

Kainic acid (KA) is a excitatory agonist causing epileptic seizure and excitotoxicity in the hippocampus. Gastrodia Elata (GE) is known to have anti-convulsant and anti-oxidant effects. This study was investigated a possible role of GE in suppressing epileptic seizure using KA-induced epilepsy mouse model. Eight-week-old male C57BL/6 mice were administrated GE (50 or 500 mg/kg) once a day for 5 days, and then injected KA (30 mg/kg) intraperitoneally. Behavioral changes in mice by KA were evaluated for 90 minutes immediately after the KA administration. Six hours after the KA administration, their brains were harvested and the expressions of glutamate decarboxylase 67 (GAD-67) and K+-Cl- cotransporter 2 (KCC2) in the hippocampus of the mice were measured by immunohistochemistry.GE delayed the onset of epileptic seizure after KA administration, suppressed the severity of the seizure and decreased the number of severe seizures dose dependently. Moreover, GAD-67 and KCC2 expressions in the cornu ammonis (CA) 1 and CA3 of 500 mg/kg GE administrated mice were significantly increased compared to those in KA-treated mice.GAD-67 and KCC2 play an important role in regulating GABAergic system. Our results suggest that GE has anti-convulsant effect against KA-induced epileptic seizure through enhancing GABAergic system.

• Korean Journal of Acupuncture
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.396-405
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• 2012

Objectives : To confirm whether acupuncture can suppress the degree of seizure and the activation of astrocytes in hippocampi using kainic acid(KA)-induced epilepsy mouse model. Methods : 8 weeks C57BL/6 mice(20~25 g) were given acupuncture once a day at acupoint HT8(Shaofu) bilaterally during 2 days before KA injection. After an intraperitoneal injection of 30 mg/kg KA, acupuncture treatment was subsequently administered once more(total 3 times), and the degree of seizure was observed for 120 min. The neuronal cell death, pERK expression, and astrocyte activation confirmed 1 hour and 24 hours after KA injection. Results : Acupuncture treatment at HT8 suppressed KA-induced epileptic seizure. One hour after KA injection, the pERK expression was increased, which was reduced by the acupuncture treatment. Twenty four hours after injection, the treatment decreased the KA-induced neuronal cell death, the interleukin-$1{\beta}$ expression and the astrocyte activation in the CA3 region of the mouse hippocampus. Conclusions : Acupuncture treatment at HT8 decreases the KA-induced epileptic seizure, the neural cell inflammation and death.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.159-174
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• 2007

Pharmacology of Korean Red ginseng gives us unique possibility to develop new class of antiepileptic drugs today and to improve one's biological activity. The chemical structures of ginsenosides (GS) have some principal differences from well-known antiepileptic new generation drugs. The antiepileptic effect of GS was also demonstrated in all models of epilepsy in rats (young and adult), which have studied, in all models of epilepsy including status epilepticus (SE), induced by lithium - pilocarpine. In our experiments in rats new evidences on protective effects were exerted as a result of premedication by GS. Pre-treatment of several GS could induce decrease of the seizures severity and brain structural damage (by MRI), neuronal degeneration in hippocampus. Wave nature of severity of motor seizures during convulsive SE was observed during lithium-pilocarpine model of SE in rats (the first increase of seizures was 30 min after the beginning of SE and the second - 90 min after. The efficacy of treatment on SE by ginsenoside as expected was observed after no less 3 weeks by daily GS i.p. administration. It is blocked SE or significantly decrease the severity of seizures during SE. The implication of presented data is that combination of ginsenosides from Korean Red ginseng and ginseng cell culture Dan25 that could be applied for prevention of epileptical status development. However, a development of optimal ratio of different ginsenosides $(Rb_1$ Rc, Rg, Rf,) should consummate in the new antiepileptic drug development.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.123-128
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• 2005

Magnetoencephalography (MEG) is the measurement of the magnetic fields produced by electrical activity in the brain, usually conducted externally, using extremely sensitive devices such as Superconducting Quantum Interference Device (SQUID). MEG needs complex and expensive measurement settings. Because the magnetic signals emitted by the brain are on the order of a few femtoteslas (1 fT = 10-15T), shielding from external magnetic signals, including the Earth's magnetic field, is necessary. An appropriate magnetically shielded room is very expensive, and constitutes the bulk of the expense of an MEG system. MEG is a relatively new technique that promises good spatial resolution and extremely high temporal resolution, thus complementing other brain activity measurement techniques such as electroencephalography (EEG), positron emission tomography (PET), single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). MEG combines functional information from magnetic field recordings with structural information from MRI. The clinical uses of MEG are in detecting and localizing epileptic form spiking activity in patients with epilepsy, and in localizing eloquent cortex for surgical planning in patients with brain tumors. Magnetoencephalography may be used alone or together with electroencephalography, for the measurement of spontaneous or evoked activity, and for research or clinical purposes.

• Annals of Clinical Neurophysiology
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.82-91
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• 2020

Electroencephalography (EEG) produces time-series data of neural oscillations in the brain, and is one of the most commonly used methods for investigating both normal brain functions and brain disorders. Quantitative EEG analysis enables identification of frequencies and brain activity that are activated or impaired. With studies on the structural and functional networks of the brain, the concept of the brain as a complex network has been fundamental to understand normal brain functions and the pathophysiology of various neurological disorders. Functional connectivity is a measure of neural synchrony in the brain network that refers to the statistical interdependency between neural oscillations over time. In this review, we first discuss the basic methods of EEG analysis, including preprocessing, spectral analysis, and functional-connectivity and graph-theory measures. We then review previous EEG studies of brain network characterization in several neurological disorders, including epilepsy, Alzheimer's disease, dementia with Lewy bodies, and idiopathic rapid eye movement sleep behavior disorder. Identifying the EEG-based network characteristics might improve the understanding of disease processes and aid the development of novel therapeutic approaches for various neurological disorders.

• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine
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• v.35 no.3
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• pp.131-141
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• 2001

Purpose: We evaluated the sensitivity of the F-18 FDG PET by visual assessment and statistical parametric mapping (SPM) analysis for the localization of the epileptogenic zones in frontal lobe epilepsy. Materials and Methods: Twenty-four patients with frontal lobe epilepsy were examined. All patients exhibited improvements after surgical resection (Engel class I or II). Upon pathological examination, 18 patients revealed cortical dysplasia, 4 patients revealed tumor, and 2 patients revealed cortical scar. The hypometabolic lesions were found in F-18 FDG PET by visual assessment and SPM analysis. On SPM analysis, cutoff threshold was changed. Results: MRI showed structural lesions in 12 patients and normal results in the remaining 12. F-18 FDG PET correctly localized epileptogenic zones in 13 patients (54%) by visual assessment. Sensitivity of F-18 FDG PET in MR-negative patients (50%) was similar to that in MR-positive patients (67%). On SPM analysis, sensitivity decreased according to the decrease of p value. Using uncorrected p value of 0.05 as threshold, sensitivity of SPM analysis was 53%, which was not statistically different from that of visual assessment. Conclusion: F-18 FDG PET was sensitive in finding epileptogenic zones by revealing hypometabolic areas even in MR-negative patients with frontal lobe epilepsy as well as in MR-positive patients. SPM analysis showed comparable sensitivity to visual assessment and could be used as an aid in the diagnosis of epileptogenic zones in frontal lobe epilepsy.

• Korean Journal of Psychosomatic Medicine
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• v.5 no.2
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• pp.205-213
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• 1997

The aim of this study is to find the relationship between interictal psychiatric symptoms and seizure-related variables such as structural changes, regional interictal perfusion changes, the number of interictal epileptic discharges and the presence of accompanying generalized tonic clonic seizure(GTC). The subjects were 75 patients (47 males : mean age $28.3{\pm}7.7$) with intractable epilepsy, Interictal psychiatric symptoms were rated by Symptom Checklist-90-R(SCL-90-R). Each of 4 seizure variables was measured by MRI, $^{99m}TC-HMPAO$ SPECT and the prolonged EEG monitoring. The mean SCL-90-R subscale T-scores and the ratio of the patients with definite psychiatric symptoms(T-score > 65 at any one subscale of SCL-90-R) were compared among the groups with different seizure variables. Demographic variables and clinical variables were not statistically different among the groups with different seizure variables. The patients with right mesial temporal sclerosis had higher mean SCL-90-R scores for obsessive compulsive symptom, interpersonal sensitivity, depression, hostility and psychotic symptoms than the patients with left mesial temporal sclerosis, and they also showed higher ratio of definite psychiatric symptoms. The presence of interictal epileptic discharges was related with higher T-scores of paranoid subscale. The areas of hypoperfusion, the presence of the GTC, and other clinical seizure variables showed no significant influences on the mean SCL-90-R subscale T-scores. from these results, the authors speculated that interictal subictal epileptic dischrages may be related with psychiatric symptoms of the intractable epileptic patients, especially with right mesial temporal sclerosis.

• Korean Journal of Acupuncture
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.260-270
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• 2012

Objectives : Hippocampus, a region of temporal lobe, plays an important role in the pathogenic mechanisms of brain diseases such as Alzheimer's disease, depression and temporal lobe epilepsy. This research is designed to investigate hippocampal changes after acupuncture stimulation at Shinmun(HT7) using 2-dimensional gel electrophoresis(2-DE). Methods : On postnatal-day 15, rat pups were randomly devided into Normal(NOR) or HT7 group. All of Pups kept with their mothers for 7 days, but pups in HT7 group received acupuncture stimulation at HT7 daily. On postnatal-day 21, hippocampus of each rat pup was dissceted 30 minutes after last acupuncture stimulation and the protein expressions were investigated using 2-DE. Results : After acupuncture stimulation at HT7, expression of 20 proteins were significantly increased. Succinate semialdehyde dehydrogenase, glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase-like, transketolase, aconitate hydratase and phosphoglucomutase-1 were related to glucose methabolism. Eukaryotic initiation factor(eIF) 4A-II, eIF 4A-III, mitochondrial Tu translation elongation factor and chain A of crystal structure of the 70-Kda heat shock cognate protein involve in the protein synthesis in ribosome. Tubulin ${\beta}$-4 chain, tubulin T ${\beta}$-15 and tubulin ${\alpha}$-1B chain comprise cytoskeleton. Glutathione S-transferase(GST) ${\omega}$-1, GST P and GST Yb-3 can reduce oxidative stress. ${\beta}$-soluble N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive fusion protein attachment protein is required for vesicular transport between the endoplasmic reticulum and the Golgi apparatus, glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase plays a major role in lipid biosynthesis, creatine kinase U-type catalyses the conversion of creatine and consumes adenosine triphosphate to create phosphocreatine and adenosine diphosphate. Platelet-activating factor acetylhydrolase IB subunit alpha and voltage depedent anion-selective channel protein 2 were also increased. Conclusions : The results suggest that acupuncture stimulation at HT7 may enhance glucose and lipid metabolism, protein synthesis, cytoskeletal substance and anti-oxidative stress in hippocampus.

• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.28-39
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• 1999

Purpose: We investigated the difference of glucose metabolism of medial and lateral temporal lobes of patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) utilizing quantitative comparison of regional metabolic activities using asymmetric index. Materials and Methods: We studied 19 pathologically proven mesial TLE and 25 lateral TLE patients. Lateral TLE patients were either normal on magnetic resonance imaging (cryptogenic: n=14) or had structural lesions (lesional: n= 11). Asymmetric index (ASI) was calculated as [(ipsilateral-contralateral)/(ipsilateral+contralateral)]${\times}200$. Results: ASI of medial and lateral lobes of mesial TLE was decreased ($-16.4{\pm}8.3$ and $-12.1{\pm}5.5$, respectively). In cryptogenic lateral TLE, ASI of lateral temporal lobe was decreased ($-11.8{\pm}4.7$), whereas that of medial temporal lobe was not decreased ($-4.6{\pm}6.3$). ASI of medial lobe of lesional lateral TLE was $-7.3{\pm}9.1$, which was significantly different from that of mesial TLE (p<0.05). Patients with lesional lateral TLE had evident metabolic defects or decrease (ASI: $-22{\pm}10.5$) in lateral temporal lobe. While we could not find the difference of metabolic activity in lateral temporal lobes between cryptogenic lateral TLE and mesial TLE patients, the difference of metabolic activity was significant in medial temporal lobes which was revealed by ASI quantitation. Conclusion: Asymmetric decrease of metabolic activity in both medial and lateral temporal lobes indicates medial temporal epilepsy. Symmetry of metabolic activity in medial temporal lobe combined with asymmetry of that in lateral temporal lobe may give hints that the epileptogenic zone is lateral.