In the March 2009 edition of the Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society, we published an article entitled "Unilateral Lumbosacral Facet Interlocking without Facet Fracture" (Volume 45, pages 182-184). Fig. 1B on page 183 was supposed to be printed in color, but it was printed in black by mistake. We apologize to the authors and readers of JKNS for any inconvenience.

Acute traumatic spondylolisthesis at L5-S1 level is a rare condition, almost exclusively the result of major trauma, frequently associated with transverse process fractures and severe neurologic deficits. Recently, open reduction and internal fixation with posterior stabilization has been the method of treatment most frequently reported. We report a rare case of traumatic L5-S1 pondylolisthesis with a unilateral facet locking with a review of literatures.
Neurologic Manifestations ; Spondylolisthesis

Eighteen patients with symptomatic intracranial arachnoid cysts underwent 27 surgical procedures between January 1990 and December 1995. These were analysed with respect to their surgical procedures and results, complications and prognosis retrospectively, with an attempt assess the efficacy of each surgical procedure. Thirteen patients underwent excision of the inner and outer membranes with fenestration procedures to the basal cisterns(primary excision group), resulting in excellent or good outcomes in 12 cases, of which three patients were subjected to secondary shunt procedures due to symptom recurrence in two and persistence of the cyst in one during follow-up radiological study. There were no significant complications in this primary excision group. Four patients out of five in the primary shunt group had good or excellent results. But shunt revisions had to be performed in two patients;of these two patients, one died from subdural empyema and sepsis while the outcome of the other one was satisfactory. The results of this study suggested that excision and fenestration should be considered as the primary procedure in patients with symptomatic intracranial arachnoid cyst, especially in the pediatric age group.
Arachnoid Cysts* ; Empyema, Subdural ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Membranes ; Prognosis ; Recurrence ; Retrospective Studies ; Sepsis

Ventriculo-peritoneal(V-P) shunt operation has been accepted as the most effective and safe procedure for the relief of increased intracranial pressure in hydrocephalic patients of various etiologies. A variety of complications have been reported in association with these relatively easy surgical procedures. Overdrainage induced effusions occur commonly in the subdural and rarely in the epidural spaces. Six cases of epidural hematoma(EDH) have been reported thus far in the literature following shunt operation remote from the catheter implantation. We report another case of this extremely rare complication of such procedures in a 16-year-old girl.
Adolescent ; Catheters ; Epidural Space ; Female ; Hematoma* ; Humans ; Hydrocephalus ; Intracranial Pressure

Gangliosides are ubiquitous components of the membranes of mammalian cells that are thought to play important roles in various cell functions such as cell-cell interaction, cell adhesion, cell differentiation, growth control, and signaling. However, the role that gangliosides play in the immune rejection response after xenotransplantation is not yet clearly understood. In this study, the regulatory effects of human leukocytes on ganglioside expression in primary cultured micro-pig aortic endothelial cells (PAECs) were investigated. To determine the impact of human leukocytes on the expression of gangliosides in PAECs, we performed high-performance thin layer chromatography (HPTLC) in PAECs incubated with FBS, FBS containing human leukocytes, human serum containing human leukocytes, and FBS containing TNF-alpha. Both HPTLC and immunohistochemistry analyses revealed that PAECs incubated with FBS predominantly express the gangliosides GM3, GM1, and GD3. However, the expression of GM1 significantly decreased in PAECs incubated for 5 h with TNF-alpha (10 ng/mL), 10% human serum containing human leukocytes, and 10% FBS containing human leukocytes. Taken together, these results suggest that human leukocytes induced changes in the expression profile of ganglioside GM1 similar to those seen upon treatment of PAECs with TNF-alpha. This finding may be relevant for designing future therapeutic strategies intended to prolong xenograft survival.
Cell Adhesion ; Cell Communication ; Chromatography, Thin Layer ; Endothelial Cells ; Gangliosides ; Humans ; Immunohistochemistry ; Leukocytes ; Membranes ; Rejection (Psychology) ; Transplantation, Heterologous ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Substantial time and attention are required to read and interpret the recordings of capsule endoscopic images. A suspected blood identification system (SBIS) has been developed to assist in the reading of capsule images. This software automatically marks "red tags" that correlate with suspected blood or red areas. However, the sensitivity and accuracy of the system have not been well characterized. We investigated the usefulness of the SBIS in capsule endoscopy according to various small bowel bleeding lesions. METHODS: Two expert endoscopists reviewed the capsule images. Angiodysplasias, ulcers and erosion were considered as significant lesions, and active bleeding lesions were considered when bleeding or blood clots were seen in the capsule images. The red tags that were automatically marked by the use of the rapid software were compared to the significant lesions reviewed by the endoscopists. RESULTS: A total of 95 patients were enrolled in the study. The endoscopists identified 159 significant lesions and 71 lesions marked by red tags were identified by the SBIS. Among the 71 lesions, 31 lesions correctly coincided with the significant lesions. The overall sensitivity and positive predictive value of the use of the SBIS were 20% and 44%, respectively. The sensitivities of active ulcers and active bleeding lesions were 83% and 93%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The SBIS should be considered as a rapid screening tool to identify active bleeding lesions, and a complete review of capsule images by a physician is still needed.
Angiodysplasia ; Capsule Endoscopy ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Mass Screening ; Ulcer

Follicular lymphoma (FL) is one of the most common non-Hodgkin's lymphomas in the United States, but it is relatively rare in Asia. FL typically arises in lymph nodes together with spleen, liver, and bone marrow involvement. So, primary extra-nodal FL without peripheral nodal involvement is rare. Histologically, it shows nodular aggregates of lymphoma cells and positivity for CD 10, CD 20 and bcl-2. Not only the stage, but also the grade is associated with the survival rate. Grade 3 FL presents a worse prognosis than does grade 1 and 2 FL and this should be treated with an anthracycline based CHOP regimen. We report here on a case of primary follicular lymphoma arising in the rectum; this was observed in a 58-year-old woman who complained of anorexia, dyspepsia and diarrhea.
Anorexia ; Asia ; Bone Marrow ; Diarrhea ; Dyspepsia ; Female ; Humans ; Liver ; Lymph Nodes ; Lymphoma ; Lymphoma, Follicular* ; Lymphoma, Non-Hodgkin ; Middle Aged ; Prognosis ; Rectum* ; Spleen ; Survival Rate ; United States

BACKGROUNDS/AIMS: In some patients with chronic hepatitis, liver stiffness (LS) findings do not reflect fibrosis stage. This study was performed to evaluate whether acute liver inflammation could influence LS findings. METHODS: Patients with acute hepatitis A admitted to our hospital were included. Hepatitis was classified on admission using serum ALT and bilirubin levels as inflammation phase, jaundice phase, or recovery phase. Patients who admitted during the recovery phase (whose ALT and bilirubin levels fell continuously during hospitalization) and therefore, their peak-ALT and peak bilirubin levels could not be determined were exduded. Enrolled patients underwent FibroScan during hospitalization and after discharge. RESULTS: Seventy-six patients with acute hepatitis A were enrolled (median age, 29 years; 46 men and 30 women). Among them, 33 (43.4%) and 43 (56.6%) patients were admitted during the inflammation phase and jaundice phase, respectively. For patients admitted during the inflammation phase, mean (+/-SD) time from symptom-onset day to maximum ALT level was 7 (+/-3) days. For all patients, mean time from symptom-onset to maximum bilirubin level was 11 (+/-4) days. Mean LS during admission was 8.9 (+/-Pa (median, 8.4 kPa). LS was significantly correlated with serum bilirubin level, which was the only factor found to be significantly associated with the increased LS (>7.08 kPa). In all patients, LS increased gradually from the symptom-onset and peaked at 8-9 days later. CONCLUSIONS: Severe hepatic inflammation can affect the LS findings and thus, care is required when assessing fibrosis stage using LS measurement in patients with severe inflammation.
Acute Disease ; Adult ; Alanine Transaminase/blood ; Bilirubin/blood ; *Elasticity Imaging Techniques ; Female ; Hepatitis A/complications/*ultrasonography ; Humans ; Liver/pathology/*ultrasonography ; Male ; Retrospective Studies

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Natural orifice transluminal endoscopic surgery (NOTES) is a new era of minimally invasive surgery which has the potential to offer scarless surgery. So far, numerous reports on various routes to peritoneal organs in NOTES have been published. In case of transgastric approach, it is more inconvenient than transcolonic approach to access upper abdominal organs because of retroflexion. However, most data were subjective and there was no report examining the best access route for the exploration of peritoneal organs. The aim of this study was to evaluate the best access route according to the abdominal organs objectively. METHODS: Six female pigs weighing 30 to 35 kg were placed under general anesthesia. Incisions were made on both anterior wall of stomach body and rectosigmoid colon 15 to 20 cm above anal verge, respectively. Then, via each incision site, we evaluated the endoscopic visibility and checked the elapsed time to access abdominal organs in sequence (gallbladder (GB), spleen, bladder, uterus, and ovary). RESULTS: On comparison of the mean time to approach each organs, GB and ovary showed statistical difference in the mean time to approach between transgastric and transcolonic approaches. It took relatively shorter time to access GB via transcolonic route than transgastric route (352.3+/-80.1 sec vs. 222.2+/-82.0 sec, p=0.021). Next, we evaluated the time to access upper organs (GB and spleen) and lower organs (bladder, uterus and ovary). In case of lower organs, it showed no difference in time between transgastric and transcolonic approaches. However, to explore upper organs, transcolonic route was more favorable than transgastric route (351.8+/-80.7 sec vs. 273.3+/-110.3 sec, p=0.002). CONCLUSIONS: For exploration of lower organs, there is statistically no significant difference in time between transgastric and transcolonic approaches. But, in case of upper organs, transcolonic approach is superior to transgastric approach.
Animals ; Feasibility Studies ; Female ; *Laparoscopy ; Models, Animal ; Peritoneal Cavity/*surgery ; Statistics, Nonparametric ; Surgical Procedures, Minimally Invasive ; Swine ; Time

Background: Although respiratory tract infection is one of the most important factors triggering acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AE-COPD), limited data are available to suggest an epidemiologic pattern of microbiology in South Korea. Methods: A multicenter observational study was conducted between January 2015 and December 2018 across 28 hospitals in South Korea. Adult patients with moderate-to-severe acute exacerbations of COPD were eligible to participate in the present study. The participants underwent all conventional tests to identify etiology of microbial pathogenesis. The primary outcome was the percentage of different microbiological pathogens causing AE-COPD. A comparative microbiological analysis of the patients with overlapping asthma–COPD (ACO) and pure COPD was performed. Results: We included 1,186 patients with AE-COPD. Patients with pure COPD constituted 87.9% and those with ACO accounted for 12.1%. Nearly half of the patients used an inhaled corticosteroid-containing regimen and one-fifth used systemic corticosteroids. Respiratory pathogens were found in 55.3% of all such patients. Bacteria and viruses were detected in 33% and 33.2%, respectively. Bacterial and viral coinfections were found in 10.9%. The most frequently detected bacteria were Pseudomonas aeruginosa (9.8%), and the most frequently detected virus was influenza A (10.4%). Multiple bacterial infections were more likely to appear in ACO than in pure COPD (8.3% vs. 3.6%, p=0.016). Conclusion Distinct microbiological patterns were identified in patients with moderate-to-severe AE-COPD in South Korea. These findings may improve evidence-based management of patients with AE-COPD and represent the basis for further studies investigating infectious pathogens in patients with COPD.