Sinus venosus is a rare cardiac defect, which may lead to an interatrial shunt. Diagnosis on echocardiography may be difficult requiring an evaluation by a board-certified cardiologist. We report a case of a 41 year-old male who presented with recurrent episodes of hemiparesis (first left sided, second right sided). Surgical correction of sinus venosus led to resolution of his symptoms.
Heart Septal Defects, Atrial

No abstract available.
Takotsubo Cardiomyopathy*

No abstract available.
Adiponectin ; Humans ; Kidney Failure, Chronic ; Plasma

No abstract available.
Humans ; Phosphorus* ; Renal Dialysis*

No abstract available.
Echocardiography, Doppler* ; Reference Values*

BACKGROUND/AIMS: The number of patients with end-stage renal disease in Korea is increasing annually with 63,341 patients in 2011 with 42,596 of these patients undergoing hemodialysis. The purpose of this study was to present a quality control plan for hemodialysis treatment. METHODS: We analyzed 616 hemodialysis units in 2010. The difference between hospitals was analyzed by one-way analysis of variance and the Kruskal-Wallis H test. The factors related to outcome indicators were subjected to multiple regression analysis. RESULTS: The average proportion of physicians with a specialty in hemodialysis was 71.3% and the proportion of nurses with > 2 years experience in hemodialysis units was 76.3%. The average number of hemodialysis sessions performed per day by a physician was 23 and that of a nurse was 4.5. The rate of specialist physicians was significantly related to adequate diastolic blood pressure, integrated outcome indicator, and Hb levels (p < 0.05). Hemodialysis sessions performed by a nurse were significantly related to Hb levels of patients and integrated outcome indicator (p < 0.05). The integrated outcome indicator was significantly related to specialist physicians, the number of hemodialysis sessions performed by a nurse, and compliance with a hemodialysis adequacy and water test cycles (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The appropriate rate of specialist physicians and nurses is important for quality control of hemodialysis treatment. Proper facilities and equipment, as well as regular monitoring of the patient's condition, are also critical. This will require improved indicators and assessment reliability.
Blood Pressure ; Compliance ; Health Facilities ; Humans ; Kidney Failure, Chronic ; Korea ; Medical Staff ; Quality Control* ; Renal Dialysis* ; Specialization ; Water

No abstract available.
Allopurinol* ; Febuxostat* ; Xanthine Oxidase* ; Xanthine*

The number of patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) has rapidly increased, as has the cost of dialysis. Peritoneal dialysis (PD) is an established treatment for ESRD patients worldwide; it has a variety of advantages, including autonomy and flexibility, as well as economic benefits in many countries compared to hemodialysis (HD). However, the long-term survival rate of PD remains poor. Although direct comparison of survival rate between the dialysis modalities by randomized controlled trials is difficult due to the ethical issues, it has always been a crucial point when deciding which dialysis modality should be recommended to patients. Recently, in many countries, including the United States, Brazil, Spain, Australia, and New Zealand, the survival rate in PD patients has significantly improved. PD patient survival in Korea has also improved, but Korean PD patients are known to have higher risk of mortality and major adverse cardiovascular, cerebrovascular events than HD patients. Herein, we further evaluate why Korean PD patients had worse outcomes; we suggest that special attention should be paid to patients with diabetes, coronary artery disease, or congestive heart failure when they choose PD as the first dialysis modality in order to reduce mortality risk.
Australia ; Brazil ; Cardiovascular Diseases ; Coronary Artery Disease ; Dialysis* ; Ethics ; Heart Failure ; Humans ; Kidney Failure, Chronic ; Korea ; Mortality ; New Zealand ; Peritoneal Dialysis* ; Pliability ; Renal Dialysis ; Spain ; Survival Rate ; United States

No abstract available.
Kidney*

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Cheyne-Stokes respiration (CSR) is frequently observed in patients with acute stroke. There have been conflicting opinions about the associations of CSR with the location and size of the lesion. We aimed to better define the clinical relevance and pathogenesis of CSR in acute stroke. METHODS: We investigated patients who had been admitted with acute ischemic stroke and received an overnight sleep apnea test. We collected data on demographics, risk factors, etiologic subtypes, initial vital signs, clinical course of the stroke, and parameters associated with respiratory events during the sleep apnea test. We performed a multivariate logistic regression analysis to determine the factors associated with CSR. RESULTS: Among 182 patients, 35 patients showed CSR in sleep apnea testing. Large-artery atherosclerosis or cardioembolism, bilateral hemispheric involvement, atrial fibrillation, low left-ventricle ejection fraction (LVEF), and left atrium (LA) enlargement were all associated with the presence of CSR. Multivariate analysis revealed that the previous modified Rankin Scale (mRS) score, bilateral hemispheric involvement, low LVEF, and LA enlargement were significantly associated with CSR. Subgroup analysis with large-artery atherosclerosis without cardiac disease revealed that the previous mRS score is the only independent factor associated with CSR. CONCLUSIONS: CSR frequently occurs in strokes involving large arteries or due to cardioembolism, regardless of the location and severity of the stroke. Predisposing conditions such as preexisting neurologic disability, low LVEF, and LA enlargement are associated with CSR in acute stroke.
Arteries ; Atherosclerosis ; Atrial Fibrillation ; Cheyne-Stokes Respiration* ; Demography ; Heart Atria ; Heart Diseases ; Humans ; Logistic Models ; Multivariate Analysis ; Risk Factors ; Sleep Apnea Syndromes ; Stroke* ; Vital Signs