The routine of endoscopy in the evaluatien of gastrointestinal bleeding demonatratd that telangiectasia in the upper gastrointestinal tract may be responsible for the chronic recurrent bleeding. If the bleeding lesion within the reach of the endoscaiye, it is amenahle to endoscopic therapy, One of the several treatment modalities that has been employed is laser photocoagulation. We report a case of ef fective laser therapy in a 63-years old woman presented with a about 3 years history of recurrent upper gastrointestinal bleeding and persistent iron deficieney anemia in gaatic multiple telangeictasias. An upper gastrointestinal endoscopy demonstrated variable sized multiple bleeding telangectatic lesions in the entire stomach. Nd-YAG laser photocoagulation was appligd in 0.5 seconds pulse of 60-70W power(2300 joules and total 7 sessions). All legions in the stomach were treated. Local epinephrine injection prior to laser treatment was carried out in the telangiectatie lesions greater than 1 cm. Follow-up endoscopy 5 months after laser treatment demonstrated no telangiectatic lesions in the stomach and no episodes of upper gastrointestinal bleeding were noted and the other symptoms improved.
Anemia ; Endoscopy ; Endoscopy, Gastrointestinal ; Epinephrine ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Iron ; Laser Therapy ; Lasers, Solid-State ; Light Coagulation* ; Middle Aged ; Stomach ; Telangiectasis* ; Upper Gastrointestinal Tract

The routine of endoscopy in the evaluatien of gastrointestinal bleeding demonatratd that telangiectasia in the upper gastrointestinal tract may be responsible for the chronic recurrent bleeding. If the bleeding lesion within the reach of the endoscaiye, it is amenahle to endoscopic therapy, One of the several treatment modalities that has been employed is laser photocoagulation. We report a case of ef fective laser therapy in a 63-years old woman presented with a about 3 years history of recurrent upper gastrointestinal bleeding and persistent iron deficieney anemia in gaatic multiple telangeictasias. An upper gastrointestinal endoscopy demonstrated variable sized multiple bleeding telangectatic lesions in the entire stomach. Nd-YAG laser photocoagulation was appligd in 0.5 seconds pulse of 60-70W power(2300 joules and total 7 sessions). All legions in the stomach were treated. Local epinephrine injection prior to laser treatment was carried out in the telangiectatie lesions greater than 1 cm. Follow-up endoscopy 5 months after laser treatment demonstrated no telangiectatic lesions in the stomach and no episodes of upper gastrointestinal bleeding were noted and the other symptoms improved.
Anemia ; Endoscopy ; Endoscopy, Gastrointestinal ; Epinephrine ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Iron ; Laser Therapy ; Lasers, Solid-State ; Light Coagulation* ; Middle Aged ; Stomach ; Telangiectasis* ; Upper Gastrointestinal Tract

It has been well known that ischemia reperfusion injury to skeletal muscle following an acute arterial occlusion causes significant morbidity and mortality. There are many causes of reperfusion injury, but the oxygen free radicals have a significant role. During ischemia the ATP is catalyzed to hypoxanthine anaerobically and hypoxanthine dehydrogenase is converted to xanthine oxidase under the presence of O2 resulting in the production of cytotoxic oxygen free radical, which are harmful to muscle. The reactivity of superoxide dismutase(SOD), one of the major antioxidant enzymes, is increased against the formation of the superoxide radical during reperfusion. SOD metabolyzes the superoxide radical to H2 O2 and O2.The severity of ischemic damage deports on the duration of muscle ischemia. The reversible changes in the muscle occur afar 2 hours of ischemia and recover within 24 hours after reperfusion. After 6 hours ischemia, irreversible damage occurs and causes necrosis of muscle. The authors performed the resent study to investigate the changes of Mn-SOD and the effects of allopurinol, the inhibitor of xanthine oxidase, by measuring the immunoreactivitiy of the ischemic reperfused rectus femoris muscle of rats after 2 hours and 6 hours ischemia and timely reperfusion. A total of 176 healthy spraque-Dawley rats weighing from 200 gm to 250 gm were used. Under urthane(3.0 gm/kg.,IP) anesthesia, a lower-abdominal incision was made and the left common iliac artery was ligated by using a vascular clamp for 2 hours and 6 hours. Rectus femoris muscle was obtained at 0 hour, 1 hour, 2 hours, 24 hours, and 48 hours after removal of the vascular clamp. The specimens were sectioned in 14micro miter thickness with a cryostat. The immunoreactivities of Mn-SOD were observed by using Mn-SOD antibodies. The result were as follows. 1. The immunoreactivies of Mn-SOD around sarcolemma were stronger than those on the sarcoplasm. 2. The immunoreactivities of Mn-S0D after 2 hours of ischemia increased to moderate or weak reactivities at 1 hour and 2 hours of reperfusion and returned to week or trace reactivities at 24 hours and 48 hours of reperfusion 3. The pretreatment of allopurinol decreased the immunoreactivies of Mn-SOD during reperfusion. The pattern of changes of SOD immunoreactivies were similar, but the range of changes significantly decreased. 4. The immunoreactivies of Mn-SOD after 6 hours of ischemia increased after 6 hours of ischemia increased after reperfusion and showed peak at 2 hours and 24 hours specimen. After 48 hours in the reperfused group, the reactivities slightly decreased. 5. After 6 hours in the ischemia-reperfused group, the pretreatment of allopurinol decreased the immunoreactivies of Mn-SOD during reperfusion, but the effects were weak. These results suggest that the immunoreactivities of the 6 hours ischemia reperfused group were higher than those of 2-hours ischemia reperfused group in the rectus femoris muscle of rats and that allopurinol pretreatment can be credited with decreasing ischemia reperfusion injury within a reversible period.
Adenosine Triphosphate ; Allopurinol ; Anesthesia ; Animals ; Antibodies ; Free Radicals ; Hypoxanthine ; Iliac Artery ; Ischemia ; Mortality ; Muscle, Skeletal ; Necrosis ; Oxygen ; Quadriceps Muscle* ; Rats* ; Reperfusion Injury* ; Reperfusion* ; Sarcolemma ; Superoxide Dismutase* ; Superoxides ; Xanthine Oxidase

Lead is one of the most widespread environmental toxins and its poisoning in children was considered a rarity, usually resulting from unique circumstances such as inappropriate use of leadbased body cosmetics or direct administration of lead-containing folk medicines. The increasing concern about children with lower levels of lead exposure has developed, but there are no data regarding the mean blood lead levels and the incidence of symptomatic or asymptomatic lead poisoning in Korean children. We analyzed the zinc protoporphyrine (ZPP) values and blood lead concentrations in 163 pediatric inpatients for a prospective study of lead exposure. The blood lead concentrations in all 163 children were 15~54 g/dl, of whom 111 children (68.1%) were 25~54 g/dl which needs decision to chelate based on the EDTA provocation test. Among 111 children whose blood lead concentrations are 25~54 g/dl, 59 children(53.2%) were between 7 months and 3 years of age, which revealed no significant higher incidence of lead exposure than any other age group. The ZPP values in 126 children (77.3%) were above 35 g/dl. The mean blood lead concentration and ZPP values are 27.8 g/dl and 48.8 g/dl, respectively. We conclude that there are many asymptomatic children with increased absorption of lead in the urban area of Korea, and we need further studies regarding lead poisoning. It is important that there must be a national counterplan and that pediatricians continue to pay attention to lead posioning in children.
Absorption ; Child ; Edetic Acid ; Humans ; Incidence ; Inpatients* ; Korea ; Lead Poisoning ; Poisoning ; Prospective Studies ; Zinc

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Foreign body (FB) removal is a common indication of therapeutic endoscopy in children. The trend is becoming wider and more rational in application. The spectrum of upper gastrointestinal FB's in children during a recent 2 year period was reviewed in Taegu, Kyungbook Province in order to obtain a the consensus of recent trend of indications and techniques of endoscopic FB removal in children. METHODS: Esophagogastroscopy was performed on 78 children who had been referred to 3 University Hospitals in Taegu for FB ingestion from Oct. 1996 to Sep. 1998. RESULTS: Age between 1~2 year was the peak age group; 22 cases (28%). Male to female ratio was 1.9:1. Thirty four cases (44%) were in the esophagus, 44 cases (56%) in the stomach. The majority (49%) of the FB's were coins, 26 of 34 esophageal FB's and 12 of 44 gastric FB's. Others were 14 sharp/pointed objects, 12 big/long objects, 7 toxic objects, etc. In 67 children (86%) the FB was successfully removed and spontaneous passage through the pylorus was observed in 9 children. CONCLUSIONS: Endoscopic FB removal can be performed safely and effectively in children with minimal or no complications by an experienced endoscopist. Proper arrangement should be conducted with consideration to the property of FB's, expected complication, and the possibility of an emergency situation.
Child* ; Consensus ; Daegu* ; Eating ; Emergencies ; Endoscopy ; Esophagus ; Female ; Foreign Bodies* ; Hospitals, University ; Humans ; Korea* ; Male ; Numismatics ; Pylorus ; Stomach ; Upper Gastrointestinal Tract*

Plasmapheresis has been used for some conditions during pregnancy and puerperium, such as hemolysis, elevated liver enzymes, and low platelet (HELLP) syndrome. We present one case of the HELLP syndrome which was treated with plasmapheresis and also review the indications, complications and guidelines for repetitive plasma exchange.
Blood Platelets ; Female ; HELLP Syndrome* ; Hemolysis ; Liver ; Plasma Exchange ; Plasmapheresis* ; Postpartum Period* ; Pregnancy

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Identifying symptom clusters of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and their clinical significance may be useful in guiding treatment seeking behaviors and in planning treatment strategy. The aim of this study was to identify clusters of acute symptoms and their associated factors that manifested in patients with first-time AMI, and to compare clinical outcomes among cluster groups within 1-year of follow-up. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: A total of 391 AMI patients were interviewed individually using a structured questionnaire for acute and associated symptoms between March 2008 and June 2009 in Korea. RESULTS: Among 14 acute symptoms, three distinct clusters were identified by Latent Class Cluster Analysis: typical chest symptom (57.0%), multiple symptom (27.9%), and atypical symptom (15.1%) clusters. The cluster with atypical symptoms was characterized by the least chest pain (3.4%) and moderate frequencies (31-61%) of gastrointestinal symptoms, weakness or fatigue, and shortness of breath; they were more likely to be older, diabetic and to have worse clinical markers at hospital presentation compared with those with other clusters. Cox proportional hazards regression analysis showed that, when age and gender were adjusted for, the atypical symptom cluster significantly predicted a higher risk of 1-year mortality compared to the typical chest pain cluster (hazard ratio 3.288, 95% confidence interval 1.087-9.943, p=0.035). CONCLUSION: Clusters of symptoms can be utilized in guiding a rapid identification of symptom patterns and in detecting higher risk patients. Intensive treatment should be considered for older and diabetic patients with atypical presentation.
Acute Coronary Syndrome ; Biomarkers ; Chest Pain ; Cluster Analysis ; Fatigue ; Humans ; Myocardial Infarction ; Regression Analysis ; Thorax ; Surveys and Questionnaires

Disseminated Fusarium infection has rarely been encountered in neutropenic cancer patients. The clinical features include fever, positive blood cultures, severe myalgias, disseminated ecthyma gangrenosum-like skin lesions, ocular symptoms and multi-organ-system involvement. The mortality rate reported so far exceeded 70% despite antifungal treatments. We report here the first two cases of disseminated fusarial infections in Korea. The first patient contracted pneumonia during severe neutropenic period following consolidation chemotherapy for acute myelogenous leukemia(AML). Fusarium oxyshrum was cultured from bronchoalveolar lavage fluid. The patient remains free of fungemia after successful antifungal treatment of high-dose amphotericin B and terbinafine. The second patient had relapsed AML and suffered from disseminated fusarial infection involving lungs with characteristic skin lesions. The patient succumbed to refractory leukemia and the fungal infection. A brief review of the literature ensues with the case report.
Amphotericin B ; Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid ; Child* ; Consolidation Chemotherapy ; Ecthyma ; Fever ; Fungemia ; Fusariosis ; Fusarium ; Humans ; Korea ; Leukemia* ; Lung ; Mortality ; Myalgia ; Pneumonia ; Skin

BACKGROUND: Fanconi's anemia(FA) is an autosomal recessive disease characterized by aplastic anemia and congenital malformations. As up to 30% of patients have no physical stigmata, the modern diagnosis of FA rests on chromosomal breakage of patient's cells induced by chemical clastogens such as diepoxybutane(DEB) or mitomycin-C(MMC). METHODS: We reviewed the clinical manifestations, laboratory findings, diagnostic methods, treatment and outcome of 6 patients diagnosed to have a FA at the Chonnam University Hospital for the last 6 years. RESULTS: Six cases(16.2 %) were found to have FA among 37 aplastic children who were diagnosed during the same period. The mean age at diagnosis was 6.3 years which was the usual onset of hematologic findings. All patients had features of aplastic anemia, and had one or more anomalies, such as low birth weight, hyperpigmentation, cafeau-lait spots, mental retardation, developmental delay, peculiar face(broad nasal bases, epicanthal folds, micrognathia), polydactyly, microcephaly, short stature, and dislocation of hip. We found increased breaks in cultured cells with DEB and MMC in 5 cases tested. The median duration of follow-up was 30 months. Oxymetholone and prednisolone treatment was partially beneficial in three cases. Immunosuppressive treatment with ALG/ATG was not successful in two cases tried. Four cases are living now, without transfusion in three. Two patients were died of disseminated fungal infection and transplant-related problems, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Fanconi's anemia should be sought carefully in any patients with aplastic anemia because the prognosis, treatment modality, and the approach to bone marrow transplantation are quite different when the hematologic disorder is inherited rather than acquired.
Anemia, Aplastic ; Bone Marrow Transplantation ; Cells, Cultured ; Child ; Christianity ; Chromosome Breakage ; Diagnosis ; Dislocations ; Fanconi Anemia* ; Follow-Up Studies ; Hip ; Humans ; Hyperpigmentation ; Infant, Low Birth Weight ; Infant, Newborn ; Intellectual Disability ; Jeollanam-do ; Microcephaly ; Mitomycin ; Mutagens ; Oxymetholone ; Polydactyly ; Prednisolone ; Prognosis

About a third of the patients with decompensated liver cirrhosis have reduced arterial oxygen saturation and are sometimes cyanosed in the absence of any apparent lung or heart disease; There is a reduction of diffusing capacity without a restrictive ventilatory defect. The aim of this study was to determine diffusing capacities in patients with chronic liver- diseases. The diffusing capacities and arterial oxygen saturations were measured in 25 patients with chronic active hepatitis(CAH), 9 early cirrhotics (early LC), 36 cirrhotics(Child's class A) and 11 cirrhotics(Child's class B). The anterior tibial area was observed for pitting edema, and Thallium-201 test per rectum(shunt index) was done. Hypoxemia was not observed in all subjects. The number of cases with decreased pulmonary diffusing capacity (DLco) is 3/25(12.0%) for CAH, 3/9(33.3%) for CAH with early liver cirrhosis(LC), 17/36(47.2%) for LC(Child's class A) and 6/11(54.5%) for LC(Child's class B). The mean+/-standard deviation of Dlco(% predicred) are 93.1+/-12.1 for CAH, 85.7+/-12.3 for CAH with early LC, 82.2+/-14.7 for LC(Child's class A) and 80.4+/-6.9 for LC(Child's class B), There is a significant difference between DLco in CAH and that in LC(Child's class A)(p<0.01). Patients with higher shunt index(>0.3) had significantly lower DLco than these with lower shunt index(<0.3)(76.4+/-9.7% vs. 89.3+/-13.3%)(p<0.01). The DLco was also lower in patients with pitting edema(77.3+/-10.2%) than in those without pitting edema(85.5+/-13.8%) (p<0.01). These results summarized that the DLco was low in patients with cirrhosis and with higher shunt index(>0.3) or pitting edema. This may be due to an increased systemic blood flow shunt and an increased generalized interstitial edema. Pulmonary function tests including diffusing capacity may be useful as prognostic parameters in patients with chronic liver disease, especially in those with CAH or early LC.
Anoxia ; Edema ; Fibrosis ; Heart Diseases ; Humans ; Liver Cirrhosis* ; Liver Diseases ; Liver* ; Lung ; Oxygen ; Pulmonary Diffusing Capacity* ; Respiratory Function Tests