BACKGROUND: It is difficult to manage intractable pain from advanced carcinoma of the upper abdomen. One method used to control pain associated with these malignancies is to block the splanchnic nerve. We investigated that VAS (visual analogue scale) difference before and after splanchnic nerve block (SNB) and pain relief day. Also we studied relationship between VAS before SNB and pain relief day. METHODS: A rewiew of 70 patients who took splanchnic nerve block (SNB) from September 1994 to February 1998 was carried out to assess age, sex, primary diseases, pain sites, VAS before and after SNB, date of diagnosis, date of SNB, date of death and pain relief day, etc. RESULTS: Of 70 patients, 44 were males and the remaining 26 were females. The causes of pain were stomach cancer 28 (40%), pancreatic cancer 18 (25%), gall bladder cancer 7 (10%), hepatoma 6 (8.6%) respcectively. Average day from diagnosis to SNB was 272 and average day from diagnosis to death was 341. So, patients died on the average 69 days after they took the splanchnic nerve block in pain clinic. VAS average before SNB was 8.01 and VAS average after SNB was 3.64. Patients felt pain relief during 35 days after SNB. Pain relief day of patients who had lower VAS before SNB was longer than that of patients who had higher VAS before SNB. CONCLUSION: Early application of splanchnic nerve block will make the patients endure the cancer pain more easily.
Abdomen ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular ; Diagnosis ; Female ; Gallbladder Neoplasms ; Humans ; Male ; Pain Clinics ; Pain, Intractable ; Pancreatic Neoplasms ; Splanchnic Nerves* ; Stomach Neoplasms

OBJECTIVES: Pyrethroids are commonly used pesticides, and acute human poisoning by these insecticides is common in Korea. It has a high affinity to the sodium channel on cell membranes causing blockage, which results in neurotoxicity, hyperexcitation, and death. The purpose of this study was to analyze the clinical characteristics of acute pyrethroid poisoning. METHODS: To evaluate the clinical characteristics (age, sex, causative agents, cause of ingestion, severity of poisoning and its clinical feature, prognosis, complication and results of the treatment), we analyzed the clinical reports of 30 patients with pyrethroid poisoning who were admitted to Soonchunhyang Chunan hospital from January 1992 to July 1997. RESULTS: 1) 18 out of 30 patients with pyrethroid poisoning were male and the largest age group was above 60 years old. 2) The most common cause of ingestion was suicide, in 24 cases (80%). 3) There were 7 classes of causative agents of poisoning and all of these were classified into 2 grades according to the degree of WHO toxicity. Fenvlaerate and cypermethrin were the most common agents. 4) The degree of severity was classified into three groups - mild, moderate and life -threatened. Of these groups, mild poisonig was the most common. There was no significant difference in the age, type of pyrethoid and interval between pyrethroid ingestion and arriving at the emergency room between the three groups. However, the amount of ingestion was significantly higher in the life-threatened group. 5) The most common symptom of the patients was vomiting, in 19 patients. The classification were of three types (5 type I, 11 type II and 1 intermediate type) according to clinical characteristics. 6) There is no specific antidote, therefore therapy is generally supportive. There were three deaths, and the cause of death was respiratory failure. 7) The most common complication was pneumonia, in 3 cases (10%), which occured in almost all patients in the life-threatened group. CONCLUSIONS: The most common age group of poisoing was over 60 years old, and suicide was the most common cause of ingestion. Treatment is supportive, and most causal exposures require only decontamination. There were three deaths, and the cause of death was respiratory failure in each case. The most common complication was pneumonia.
Cause of Death ; Cell Membrane ; Chungcheongnam-do ; Classification ; Decontamination ; Eating ; Emergency Service, Hospital ; Humans ; Insecticides ; Korea ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Pesticides ; Pneumonia ; Poisoning* ; Prognosis ; Pyrethrins* ; Respiratory Insufficiency ; Sodium Channels ; Suicide ; Vomiting

Eosinophilia is defined as the presence of more than 500 eosinophil/mL of blood and is common in the clinical condition such as parasite infestation, drug, allergy, hypereosinophilic syndrome, and malignant diseases. Determining the cause of eosinophilia may be one of the most frustrating endeavors in clinical medicine. Hepatic infiltration of eosinophils and microabscess formation are observed in many disorders. Gastric cancer and intestinal malignancies show frequent liver metastasis and blood eosinophilia. Several cases of an early gastric carcinoma (EGC) with metastasis of the liver have been reported. When multiple intrahepatic lesions of suspicious malignancy appear in radiologic study, clinicians must differentiate malignancy from benign diseases. A case is herein reported of a 56- year-old male patient with synchronously developed, multiple low density hepatic lesions with early gastric carcinoma. He was managed with systemic chemotherapy at another hospital, because he was diagnosed with distant metastasis of early gastric carcinoma. Upon operating these lesions were proved to be EGC combined with hypereosinophilic multiple liver abscesses. This case is herein reported with a review of relevant literatures.
Clinical Medicine ; Drug Therapy ; Eosinophilia ; Eosinophils ; Humans ; Hypereosinophilic Syndrome ; Hypersensitivity ; Liver Abscess* ; Liver* ; Male ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Parasites ; Stomach Neoplasms

Myocardial free wall rupture is the most serious complication of acute myocardial infarction. Although it is not uncommon, it is difficult to treat successfully. We report a case of acute inferior myocardial infarction complicated with left ventricular free wall rupture that occurred 8 hours after onset of chest pain. In this case, progression of mild pericardial effusion to cardiac tamponade was monitored by transhtoracic echocardiography. Pericardiocentesis and draninage failed to treat cardiac tamponade, and surgical repair was performed successfully. The patient discharged uneventfully on 28th day and followed regularly at the outpatient department.
Cardiac Tamponade ; Chest Pain ; Echocardiography ; Heart Rupture* ; Humans ; Inferior Wall Myocardial Infarction* ; Myocardial Infarction ; Outpatients ; Pericardial Effusion ; Pericardiocentesis ; Rupture

Dieulafoy's lesion is an exposed submucosal artery associated with a minute mucosal defect in the stomach, and it is a rare cause of profuse, but intermittent gastrointestinal bleeding. Less commonly, similar lesions have been identified in the duodenum, jejunum, colon, and in rare cases, the rectum. Only four cases of rectal Dieulafoy's lesion have been reported in English Medical literature: one case involved a child, two in otherwise healthy young men, and one in on elderly man. In this report, two elderly men are described, who suffered an massive hematochezia from a small rectal mucosal defect with a visible vessel. Control of the bleeding was successfully achieved with on endoscopic sclerotherapy or hemoclipping. The fact that rectal Dieulafoy disease is one of the causes of massive hematochezia should serve as a reminder in future cases, especially involving alcoholics and elderly men.
Aged ; Alcoholics ; Arteries ; Child ; Colon ; Duodenum ; Gastrointestinal Hemorrhage ; Hemorrhage* ; Humans ; Jejunum ; Male ; Rectum* ; Sclerotherapy ; Stomach