PURPOSE: The aim of this study is to prepare medical staff in order to prevent medical malpractice litigation through analysis of litigation cases related to the department of surgery in Korea. METHODS: A total of 94 litigation cases related to the department of surgery, where a certain amount of payment was ordered to the defendant between 2005 through 2010, were analyzed. We examined time of occurrence, amount claimed and awarded in damages, plaintiff claims, and court opinion. RESULTS: An average of 3.2 years was spent from the date of the incident occurring to the end of the litigation procedures. The average amount awarded in judgments for damages was 59,708,983 ± 67,307,264 (range, 1,700,000–365,201,482) Korean won. Cases were found involving the following opinion of the court: violation of duty of care (49 cases), violation of informed consent (7 cases), violation of duty of care and informed consent (5 cases), and settlement, reconciliation, and others (32 cases). By analyzing defendants' negligence in court opinions, diagnosis (30.8%) was the most common, followed by post-operation management (27.7%). CONCLUSION: Physicians have to conduct treatment and surgery based on exact diagnosis and be careful to observe patients' conditions and symptoms after surgery. It is essential to identify the current status and characteristics of medical litigation for reducing further litigation and improving patient safety. In order to create a safe medical environment, national efforts should be made not only by individuals but also at the national level.
Awards and Prizes ; Diagnosis ; Humans ; Informed Consent ; Judgment ; Jurisprudence ; Korea* ; Malpractice ; Medical Staff ; Patient Safety

BACKGROUND: Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH) is a rare disease that involves a clonal proliferation of Langerhans cells. LCH has a predilection for hypothalamo-pituitary axis (HPA) dysfunction, and this leads to diabetes insipidus (DI) and/or anterior pituitary dysfunction. Here, we describe the endocrine dysfunction and clinical characteristics of adult patients with LCH and we analyzed the differences between an adult-onset type and a childhood-onset type. METHODS: The data was obtained from a retrospective chart review of the patients with LCH that involved the HPA and who attended Seoul National University Hospital. The patients were classified into the adult-onset type (age at the time of diagnosis > or = 16) and the childhood-onset type (age at the time of diagnosis < or = 15). RESULTS: Ten patients (9 males and 1 female) were diagnosed with LCH involving the HPA. Five patients were classified as an adultonset type and the other five patients were classified as a childhood-onset type. The median follow-up duration was 6 (3-12) years for the adult-onset type and 16 (15-22) years for the childhood-onset type. All the patients presented with DI as the initial manifestation of HPA involvement. Four adult-onset patients and three childhood-onset patients had a multi-system disease. Panhypopituitarism developed in three adult-onset patients and in one childhood-onset patient. The pituitary lesion of the three adult-onset patients had spread to the brain during the follow-up duration. In contrast, the pituitary lesion of the other two adult-onset patients without panhypopituitarism and all the childhood-onset patients had not changed. CONCLUSION: DI was the initial presentation symptom of HPA involvement. Anterior pituitary hormone deficiency followed in some patients. Compared with the childhood-onset patients, the adult-onset patients were more likely to have panhypopituitarism and a poor prognosis.
Adult ; Brain ; Diabetes Insipidus ; Follow-Up Studies ; Histiocytosis, Langerhans-Cell ; Humans ; Hypopituitarism ; Langerhans Cells ; Male ; Prognosis ; Rare Diseases ; Retrospective Studies ; Axis, Cervical Vertebra

PURPOSE:Worldwide incidence of type 2 diabetes mellitus in youth is increased for last 3 decades. We reviewed the clinical characteristics of the patients and their long term complications. METHODS:We reviewed the medical data of 69 patients who were diagnosed type 2 diabetes mellitus at Seoul National University Children's Hospital before the age of 18 years between January 1991 and December 2007. RESULTS:Forty seven patients (68.1%) developed after 2000. The mean age of onset was 13.1+/-2.0 years. Forty seven (69.1%) patients had family history of diabetes mellitus and forty six (66.6%) patients had overweight or obesity. Thirteen (22.4%) patients were small for gestational age but their body mass index wasn't increased compared to that of appropriate for gestational age at the onset of disease. There were 7 patients who had microvascular complication and the mean disease duration was 9.1+/-3.3 years. Hemoglobin A1c was not increased in the complication group compared to the complication-free group. CONCLUSION:The number of childhood and adolescence onset type 2 diabetes mellitus was increased. The proportion of small for gestation age was high and the long term complication developed in adolescence or early adult life. Early intervention of the risk factors and regular evaluation of the complications are needed and systematized follow-up of small for gestational age is also necessary.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Age of Onset ; Body Mass Index ; Diabetes Complications ; Diabetes Mellitus ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 ; Early Intervention (Education) ; Follow-Up Studies ; Gestational Age ; Hemoglobins ; Humans ; Incidence ; Infant ; Obesity ; Overweight ; Pregnancy ; Risk Factors

PURPOSE: This study was undertaken to identify factors that influence 17-OHP levels in preterm infants and to suggest a reasonable follow-up schedule of screening for congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) in preterm infants. METHODS: The 17-OHP concentrations in filter paper blood spots of 427 preterm infants were obtained. The effects of gestational age (GA), systemic diseases, and antenatal dexamethasone on screening and follow-up 17-OHP values were investigated. RESULTS: The screening 17-OHP values were markedly variable (range: 0.1-143.3 ng/mL). The screening 17-OHP levels were negatively correlated with GA (r=-0.535, P<0.01). In infants with GA <32 weeks, the screening 17-OHP levels were significantly higher in sick infants or infant with hypotension than in healthy infants. The screening values of prenatal dexamethasone-treated infants had a tendency to be low. In infants with initial 17-OHP values > or =20 ng/mL, the intervals until rescreening 17-OHP <10 ng/mL or serum 17-OHP <20 ng/mL were negatively correlated with GA (r=-0.541, P<0.01) and were prolonged in infants with bronchopulmonary dysplasia (P<0.01). None of the preterm infants were confirmatively diagnosed with CAH. CONCLUSION: The 17-OHP values of preterm infants were influenced by GA, prenatal dexamethasone, and postnatal diseases. Because the 17-OHP vlues of preterm infants were markedly variable, a follow-up schedule should be developed considering both 17-OHP values and clinical status.
Adrenal Hyperplasia, Congenital ; Appointments and Schedules ; Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia ; Dexamethasone ; Follow-Up Studies ; Gestational Age ; Humans ; Hypotension ; Infant ; Infant, Newborn ; Infant, Premature ; Mass Screening ; Neonatal Screening

PURPOSE: Short stature is an important complication that impairs the quality of life in survivors of childhood brain tumors. We studied their final adult height (FAH) to evaluate risk factors for short stature. METHODS: We reviewed the medical data of 95 survivors of childhood brain tumors (64 males and 31 females) who had been followed up from 1982 to 2006, reached FAH, and had a more than five year-disease-free survival. RESULTS: Final adult height standard deviation score (FAHTSDS: mean+/-SD) of the patients was lower than those of general population (-1.15+/-1.72), HTSDS at diagnosis (-0.13+/-1.57), and target HTSDS (-0.49+/-0.69). FAHTSDS of craniopharyngioma patients did not decrease (0.57+/-1.17), but those of germ cell tumor and medulloblastoma patients were significantly reduced (-1.20+/-1.45, -2.70+/-1.46; P<0.05). The patients treated with craniospinal radiation or chemotherapy had lower FAHTSDS (-1.93+/-1.58, -2.27+/-1.44; P<0.01). In the spinal irradiation group, the younger the age at diagnosis was, the more the loss of FAH (r=0.442, P<0.01). Growth hormone replacement (GHR) didn't improve FAHTSDS, but starting GHR under 12 years was an independent factor for improving FAH once treatment methods were taken into account (P=0.01). CONCLUSION: The younger age at diagnosis, spinal radiation and chemotherapy were all important risk factors of height loss, and height gain was expected in patients who received GHR under the age of 12 years. Therefore, regular check-ups of growth and early intervention with growth hormones are needed for high risk groups to improv
Adult* ; Brain Neoplasms* ; Brain* ; Craniopharyngioma ; Diagnosis ; Drug Therapy ; Early Intervention (Education) ; Growth Hormone ; Humans ; Male ; Medulloblastoma ; Neoplasms, Germ Cell and Embryonal ; Quality of Life ; Risk Factors ; Survivors*

PURPOSE: Reduced growth and microvascular complications have been recognized as consequences of type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM). We assessed the effect of T1DM on growth and factors associated with the development of microvascular complications. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective longitudinal evaluation of 154 patients above 16 years of age. We analyzed factors which affect final height standard deviation scores (SDS) and development of microvascular complications. RESULTS: Final height SDS was -0.11+/-1.15 (-0.26+/-1.33 in females, 0.04+/-0.91 in males). Final height SDS was significantly lower than midparental height SDS and height SDS at diagnosis. There was no difference in final height SDS according to age at onset, existence or nonexistence of complications, or average HbA1C. Height SDS at onset of puberty, midparental height SDS and pubertal growth gain affected final height SDS. The number of patients with complications was 37 (24 percent). Microvascular complications developed at a younger age and after longer duration of diabetes in patients with a prepubertal onset of T1DM compared to patients with pubertal onset. Patients with complications had a higher level of average HbA1C than patients without complications. Patients whose microalbuminuria regressed had lower levels of average HbA1C, systolic BP, second 24h urine microalbumin than patients with persistant or progressed microalbuminuria. CONCLUSION: The results suggest that degrees of glycemic control don't affect final height, but various factors associated with T1DM can impair growth potential. Additionally, the degrees of glycemic control and puberty affect the development of microvascular complications.
Adolescent ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1* ; Diagnosis ; Female ; Humans ; Puberty ; Retrospective Studies

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has been characterized by a wide spectrum of liver damages that span from steatosis to cryptogenic liver cirrhosis and even to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The aims of this study were to determine whether the prevalence of HCC arising from cryptogenic cirrhosis has increased during the last ten years and to characterize the clinical features of cryptogenic HCC in Korea. METHODS: A retrospective and hospital-based analysis of the clinical data was done in 1,145 HCC patients; group A (Jan. 1993-Dec. 1995), group B (Jan. 2000-Dec. 2002). The etiologies of HCC with liver cirrhosis in group A and group B were analyzed. The risk factors of NAFLD such as obesity, type 2 diabetes mellitus, hypertriglyceridemia and hypertension between cryptogenic HCC and HCC with well-defined etiologies were compared. RESULTS: The major leading causes of HCC in each group were hepatitis B virus infection, followed by alcohol, hepatitis C virus and cryptogenic. There was a significant increase in the proportion of cryptogenic HCC in group B (A: 2.3%, B: 5.4%, p<0.05). In the case of HCV, it was 5.3% in group A and 9.9% in group B (p<0.05). Although the prevalence of cyptogenic HCC was significantly increased at an interval of seven years apart, there was no significant difference in the proportions of risk factors of NAFLD between cryptogenic HCC group and well-defined etiology group. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of cryptogenic HCC was significantly increased in Korea during the last decade. Although statistically insignifcant, there was a trend toward the higher proportion of risk factors with NAFLD in patients with cryptogenic HCC. This suggests that increased proportion of risk factors associated for NAFLD may have contributed to the development of cryptogenic HCC.
Aged ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular/*epidemiology/etiology ; English Abstract ; Fatty Liver/complications ; Female ; Hepatitis B/complications ; Hepatitis C/complications ; Humans ; Incidence ; Korea/epidemiology ; Liver Diseases, Alcoholic/complications ; Liver Neoplasms/*epidemiology/etiology ; Male ; Middle Aged

Hansenula anomala is a normal or transient flora of the throat and alimentary tract, and has been reported as an organism causing opportunistic or nosocomial infections in immunocompromised patients, but rarely in immunocompetent hosts. From the review of the literatures, there is no published report on arthritis caused by H. anomala. We experienced a case of H. anomala arthritis in a 59-year old man who had diabetes mellitus and right knee joint swelling with deformity. The findings of magnetic resonance image were consistent with septic arthritis which had bony destruction in distal femur and proximal tibia, abscess formation in joint space, and joint effusion with synovial hypertrophy. A fungus was isolated from a couple of blood cultures and knee joint aspiration fluid, and later identified as H. anomala by yeast biochemical cards. He was successfully treated with extensive debridement and fluconazole for 8 weeks.
Abscess ; Arthritis* ; Arthritis, Infectious ; Congenital Abnormalities ; Cross Infection ; Debridement ; Diabetes Mellitus ; Femur ; Fluconazole ; Fungi ; Humans ; Hypertrophy ; Immunocompromised Host ; Joints ; Knee Joint ; Middle Aged ; Pharynx ; Pichia* ; Tibia ; Yeasts

There has been considerable controversy over the prognosis of mucinous gastric enocarcinoma (MGC). In this study we analyzed the clinicopathologic fferences between MGC and non-mucinous gastric carcinoma (NMGC). In addition, e relationship between mucin content and other clinicopathologic variables, cluding prognosis in MGC, was also investigated. We reviewed 2118 patients th pathologically-confirmed gastric cancer who underwent gastrectomy at the partment of Surgery, Yonsei University College of Medicine, during the period tween Jan. 1987 and Dec. 1993. Among them, 130 patients had gastric carcinoma th extracellular mucin (MGC) and 1988 patients had gastric carcinoma without tracellular mucin (NMGC). We placed the MGC patients into two groups according mucin content: mucin content involving over 50% of the tumor (dominant type, = 94) and mucin content involving less than 50% of the tumor area (partial pe, n = 36). The results were as follows: MGC was more common in males than GC. The size of the tumor in MGC (mean 5.3 cm) was larger than that of NMGC ean 4.4 cm). The patients with MGC had a higher incidence of Borrmann type IV GC: 16.1%, NMGC: 9.9%), more frequent serosal invasion (MGC: 75.4%, NMGC: .6%), lymph-node metastasis (MGC: 75.4%, NMGC: 50.7%), and peritoneal tastasis (MGC: 10.0%, NMGC: 3.5%) than patients with NMGC. The patients with C were more advanced in stage at the time of diagnosis and had a worse overall -year survival rate (44.9%) than patients with NMGC (54.7%). However, the -year survival rate according to the stage of MGC was similar to that of NMGC. ere were no significant differences between the mucin content and other thologic variables, including prognosis, i.e. similar biologic behavior tween dominant type MGC and partial type MGC. In conclusion, we suggest that C was more frequently diagnosed in advanced stage than NMGC with a poorer ognosis and that it is reasonable to consider the carcinoma with mucin content volving more than 30% of the tumor area as MGC.
Adenocarcinoma/pathology ; Adenocarcinoma/metabolism ; Adenocarcinoma, Mucinous/pathology* ; Adenocarcinoma, Mucinous/metabolism* ; Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Female ; Human ; Male ; Middle Age ; Mucins/metabolism ; Neoplasm Staging ; Stomach Neoplasms/pathology* ; Stomach Neoplasms/metabolism*

Combined resection of the spleen during total gastrectomy for gastric cancer is usually performed to remove the lymph nodes adequately and thereby achieving surgical radicality. However there is still controversy whether a total gastrectomy combined with a splenectomy can improve the survival rate. The authors retrospectively analyzed 557 gastric cancer patients, who underwent total gastrectomy at the Department of Surgery of Yonsei University during the 7-year period between 1987 and 1993, in order to investigate the influence of combined resection of the spleen upon the patients' survival. The patients were followed until March 1996, and the rate of follow up was 90.6%. The number of cases in which the spleen was saved was 101(the spleen conservation group, SC) and the number of cases in which the spleen was resected was 431(the spleen resection group, SR). Twenty-five cases were excluded due to incomplete data. Among the 431 cases for whom splenectomy was done, 343 were cases in which spleen was the only organ removed other than the stomach (SOR). For the other 88 cases, at least 1 more organs were resected along with the stomach and the spleen(Sp combined). There were no significant differences in the clinical characteristics such as age, sex ratio, tumor size, depth of invasion, nodal stage, TNM stage and histological type between SC and SOR group. In terms of the nodes removed during operation, there was significant difference between the SC and the SOR groups. Also, the Sp combined group showed significant differences in terms of tumor size, depth, nodal stage, TNM stage, and removed nodes. The overall 5-yr survival rate for the spleen conservation group(SC, N=101) was 61.2% and the survival rates according to TNM stage were 94.0% for stage I, 94.1% for stage II, 30.0% for III, and 0.0% for stage IV. The overall 5-yr survival rate for the 343 patients with splenectomy(SOR) was 51.9%, and the survival rates according to TNM stages were 88.7% for stage I, 57.0% for II, 44.0% for III, and 10.8% for stage IV. The overall 5-yr survival rate for the 431 patients with splenectomies or with splenectomies and multiple organ resection(SR) was 48.2%, and the survival rates according to the stages were 88.2% for stage I, 60.2% for II, 41.5% for III, and 6.8% for stage IV. The overall 5-yr survival rate was higher in SC group than in the SOR or the SR groups, but there was no statistical significance to this difference (p>0.05). In a compared according to the TNM stage, the SC group showed better survival rates in the relatively early stages (I, II) than the SOR or the SR groups did; in advanced stages (III, IV), the SOR and the SR groups showed better survival rates than the SC group. However, there was no statistically significant differences in survival among the three groups. These results suggest that during a total gastrectomy, it may be better to save the spleen in early stages of gastric cancer and that it may be better to resect the spleen for adquate lymphadenectomy in grossly advanced stages. To identify statistical difference in survival, it might be necessary to perform a randomized prospective study.
Follow-Up Studies ; Gastrectomy* ; Humans ; Lymph Node Excision ; Lymph Nodes ; Retrospective Studies ; Sex Ratio ; Spleen* ; Splenectomy ; Stomach ; Stomach Neoplasms* ; Survival Rate