A total of 33 patients with infective endocarditis were observed in the Guro and Hye Hwa Hospitals of Korea University Between September, 1981 and Feb, 1987. Among thses patients four patients presented with heart murmur and heart failure and had vegetation like findings observed on the two dimensional echocardiography. But these patients did not have any fever or leukocytosis in the peripheral blood and the repeated blood cultures were negative. They showed the immunologic phenomena of infective endocarditis such as microscopic hematuria in 4 patients, rheumatoid factor in 3 patients, false positive VDRL in one patient. The serum complement was decreased in 2 patients in whom it was checked. We report these 4 patients because we think these patients might be in the clinical stage in which the infecting organism is spontaneously cleared but the immunologic sequelae are remained.
Complement System Proteins ; Echocardiography ; Endocarditis* ; Fever ; Heart Failure ; Heart Murmurs ; Hematuria ; Humans ; Korea ; Leukocytosis ; Rheumatoid Factor

PURPOSE: This study was conducted to evaluate the relationship between metabolic syndrome and the prostatic volume. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From January 1997 to December 2006, 555 male out-patients who visited our health care center were investigated and they underwent transrectal ultrasonogram of the prostate. The patients were divided into two groups; group A met the criteria for metabolic syndrome (128 patients) and group B did not meet the criteria (427 patients). The authors compared the age, the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) and the prostate volume between these two groups. RESULTS: There were no statistically significant differences in age and PSA between the two groups. The prostate volume was significantly larger in group A (39.5+/-17.3cc) than in group B (31.7+/-9.6cc). CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study proved that metabolic syndrome and the prostate volume are related. Therefore, proper clinical management of metabolic syndrome should accompany the treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH).
Delivery of Health Care ; Humans ; Male ; Outpatients ; Prostate* ; Prostate-Specific Antigen ; Prostatic Hyperplasia ; Ultrasonography

PURPOSE: For the management of patent ductus arteriosus(PDA) in premature infants, fluid restriction, correction of anemia, mechanical ventilation, diuretics, and surgery have been used, and the closure rate of PDA has improved significantly since the introduction of indomethacin and mefenamic acid as pharmacologic treatments of PDA. We studied to evaluate and compare the therapeutic effects of indomethacin and mefenamic acid in the management of premature infants with PDA. METHODS: 32 inborn premature infants who were hospitalized in NICU and diagnosed as PDA by cardiac sector were retrospectively studied and divided into two groups : An indomethacin treated group and a mefenamic acid treated group. Their gestational age, birth weight, blood urea nitrogen(BUN), creatinine(Cr), platelet count, urine output, fluid therapy, postnatal age, closure rate of PDA, and etc. were examined and conpared through the medical record review. RESULTS: The mean postnatal age on drug use was 4.6 days in intravenous indomethacin treated group(n=18), 9.0 days in oral mefenamic acid treated group(n=14), and the mean gestational age was 32.0 weeks and 32.3 weeks, respectively. After the use of each drugs, platelet count and urine output decreased, whereas blood urea nitrogen and creatinine increased. The closure rate of PDA was 94.4%(17/18) in the indomethacin treated group and 85.7%(12/14) in the mefenamic acid treated group(P=0.568). On the multivariate analysis except for the drugs, the most significant factor on PDA closure in preterm neonates was total amount of intake(P=0.000). CONCLUSION: We conclude that intravenous indomethacin is as effective as oral mefenamic acid in the therapy of preterm infants with PDA.
Anemia ; Birth Weight ; Blood Urea Nitrogen ; Creatinine ; Diuretics ; Ductus Arteriosus, Patent* ; Fluid Therapy ; Gestational Age ; Humans ; Indomethacin* ; Infant, Newborn ; Infant, Premature* ; Medical Records ; Mefenamic Acid* ; Multivariate Analysis ; Platelet Count ; Respiration, Artificial ; Retrospective Studies ; Urea

Tuberculosis can involve any part of the gastrointestinal tract but 80~90% of patients present the disease in the ileocecal region. The cases of colon cancer coexisting with colonic tuberculosis are relatively rare and ascending colon is the predominant site of the combined disease. A 46-year-old man, without specific past medical or family history, showed multiple colonic polyps and ulcers on colonoscopic examination. After surgery, the surgical specimen disclosed adenocarcinoma in the ascending colon, eleven adenomatous polyps throughout the colon, and multiple tuberculous ulcers in the entire colon. Tuberculosis of terminal ileum was also accompanied. The association of colonic tuberculosis and colon cancer with multiple polyps in this case may have been coincidental. The preoperative colonoscopic examination and pathologic diagnosis by frozen section during operation are necessary for the adequate treatment.
Adenocarcinoma ; Adenomatous Polyps ; Colon* ; Colon, Ascending ; Colonic Neoplasms* ; Colonic Polyps ; Diagnosis ; Frozen Sections ; Gastrointestinal Tract ; Humans ; Ileum ; Middle Aged ; Polyps ; Tuberculosis* ; Ulcer

The purpose of this study is to obtain the clinicopathological characteristics of replication error-positive (RER ) gastric adenocarcinoma in Korean, and to identify the significance of RER in adenoma stage of gastric carcinogenesis. Microsatellite instability was examined at D2S71, D2S119, D3S1067, D6S87, D11S905, DM, AR, VWF, HPRT, and BAT-26 loci. Frameshift mutation of BAX gene was analyzed in RER tumors. Normal and tumor DNA of 76 cases of gastric carcinoma and 25 cases of adenoma were examined. RER was found in 8 of 76 cases (10.5%), and it was more frequently found in adenocarcinoma of female (17.7%) than those of male (4.8%). The frequency of RER was not different between the histologic types, age of the patient, anatomical location of the carcinoma, and the stage. The RER found in adenoma suggests that RER contributes to the malignant transformation early in the adenoma stage of the gastric carcinogenesis. None of the RER tumors revealed frameshift mutation of the BAX gene.
Adenocarcinoma* ; Adenoma ; Carcinogenesis ; DNA ; Female ; Frameshift Mutation ; Humans ; Hypoxanthine Phosphoribosyltransferase ; Male ; Microsatellite Instability

STUDY DESIGN: Prospective controlled study. PURPOSE: The results of conventional open surgery was compared with those from minimally invasive transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (MI-TLIF) for lumbar fusion to determine which approach resulted in less postoperative paraspinal muscle degeneration. OVERVIEW OF LITERATURE: MI TLIF is new surgical technique that appears to minimize iatrogenic injury. However, there aren't any reports yet that have quantitatively analyzed and proved whether there's difference in back muscle injury and degeneration between the minimally invasive surgery and conventional open surgery in more than 1 year follow-up after surgery. METHODS: This study examined a consecutive series of 48 patients who underwent lumbar fusion in our hospital during the period, March 2006 to March 2008, with a 1-year follow-up evaluation using MRI. There were 17 cases of conventional open surgery and 31 cases of MI-TLIF (31 cases of single segment fusion and 17 cases of multi-segment fusion). The digital images of the paravertebral back muscles were analyzed and compared using the T2-weighted axial images. The point of interest was the paraspinal muscle of the intervertebral disc level from L1 to L5. Picture archiving and communication system viewing software was used for quantitative analysis of the change in fat infiltration percentage and the change in cross-sectional area of the paraspinal muscle, before and after surgery. RESULTS: A comparison of the traditional posterior fusion method with MI-TLIF revealed single segment fusion to result in an average increase in fat infiltration in the paraspinal muscle of 4.30% and 1.37% and a decrease in cross-sectional area of 0.10 and 0.07 before and after surgery, respectively. Multi-segment fusion showed an average 7.90% and 2.79% increase in fat infiltration and a 0.16 and 0.10 decrease in cross-sectional area, respectively. Both single and multi segment fusion showed less change in the fat infiltration percentage and cross-sectional area, particularly in multi segment fusion. There was no significant difference between the two groups in terms of the radiologic results. CONCLUSIONS: A comparison of conventional open surgery with MI-TLIF upon degeneration of the paraspinal muscle with a 1 year follow-up evaluation revealed that both single and multi segment fusion showed less change in fat infiltration percentage and cross-sectional area in the MI-TLIF but there was no significant difference between the two groups. This suggests that as time passes after surgery, there is no significant difference in the level of degeneration of the paraspinal muscle between surgical techniques.
Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Intervertebral Disc ; Muscles ; Prospective Studies

Storage of platelet concentrates in platelet additive solution (PAS) with plasma removal has many advantages, including reduction of allergic reactions, contributing to the available plasma pool for fractionation or transfusion, and employment of pathogen reduction technology. In order to decrease platelet activation for improvement of in vivo viability, PAS should be designed for optimization of aerobic metabolism using compounds such as glucose, acetate, citrate, phosphate, and electrolytes. After a thorough discussion, particularly on the efficacy and regulations, use of the buffy coat method as well as application of a new generation of PAS may likely be the future direction of platelet storage in Korea.
Blood Platelets* ; Citric Acid ; Electrolytes ; Employment ; Glucose ; Hypersensitivity ; Korea ; Metabolism ; Plasma ; Platelet Activation ; Social Control, Formal

The Overlap syndrome is characterized by a combination of the major hepatobiliary autoimmune diseases such as autoimmune hepatitis, primary biliary cirrhosis and primary sclerosing cholangitis. It is frequently accompanied by inflammatory bowel disease. Chronic lymphoplasmacellular osteomyelitis is characterized by recurrent episodes of bacterial osteomyelitis and is associated with autoimmune diseases (especially inflammatory bowel disease). We report the case of a girl who was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis and autoimmune hepatitis at 4 years of age and with the overlap syndrome with primary sclerosing cholangitis at 6 years. At 9 years, she was diagnosed with chronic lymphoplasmacellular osteomyelitis.
Autoimmune Diseases ; Child* ; Cholangitis, Sclerosing ; Colitis, Ulcerative ; Female ; Hepatitis, Autoimmune ; Humans ; Inflammatory Bowel Diseases ; Liver Cirrhosis, Biliary ; Osteomyelitis

OBJECTIVE: This study is to report our experience of 40 cases of spinal schwannoma. METHODS: From 1995 to 2006, medical records were retrospectively reviewed in 40 cases of spinal schwannoma. RESULTS:We treated 40 spinal schwannomas in 38 (22 male and 16 female) patients. The mean age was 50.2. Four cases were sited in the cervical spine, 11 cases in the thoracic spine, and 25 cases in the lumbar spine. Two patients showed recurrences. Thirty-eight cases were intradural-extramedullary type and 2 cases were extradural. Two cases (5%) including 1 recurred case had no postoperative motor improvement. Ninety-five percents of patients improved on postoperative motor grade. CONCLUSION: Spinal schwannoma is mostly benign and extramedullary tumor. There were 2 recurred cases (5%) that had history of previous subtotal removal at first operation and had shown worse prognosis compared with the cases without recurrence. To reduce the recurrence of spinal schannoma, total excision of tumor mass should be done.
Humans ; Male ; Medical Records ; Neurilemmoma ; Prognosis ; Recurrence ; Retrospective Studies ; Spine

PURPOSE: The traditional belief that obesity is protective against osteoporosis has been questioned. Recent epidemiologic studies show that body fat itself may be a risk factor for osteoporosis and bone fractures. Accumulating evidence suggests that metabolic syndrome and the individual components of metabolic syndrome such as hypertension, increased triglycerides, and reduced high-density lipoprotein cholesterol are also risk factors for low bone mineral density. Using a cross sectional study design, we evaluated the associations between obesity or metabolic syndrome and bone mineral density (BMD) or vertebral fracture. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 907 postmenopausal healthy female subjects, aged 60-79 years, were recruited from woman hospitals in Seoul, South Korea. BMD, vetebral fracture, bone markers, and body composition including body weight, body mass index (BMI), percentage body fat, and waist circumference were measured. RESULTS: After adjusting for age, smoking status, alcohol consumption, total calcium intake, and total energy intake, waist circumference was negatively related to BMD of all sites (lumbar BMD p = 0.037, all sites of femur BMD p < 0.001) whereas body weight was still positively related to BMD of all sites (p < 0.001). Percentage body fat and waist circumference were much higher in the fracture group than the non-fracture group (p = 0.0383, 0.082 respectively). Serum glucose levels were postively correlated to lumbar BMD (p = 0.016), femoral neck BMD (p = 0.0335), and femoral trochanter BMD (p = 0.0082). Serum high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDLC) was positively related to femoral trochanter BMD (p = 0.0366) and was lower in the control group than the fracture group (p = 0.011). CONCLUSION: In contrast to the effect favorable body weight on bone mineral density, high percentage body fat and waist circumference are related to low BMD and a vertebral fracture. Some components of metabolic syndrome were related to BMD and a vertebral fracture.
Aged ; Blood Glucose/metabolism ; Body Composition ; Body Mass Index ; Body Weight ; *Bone Density ; Female ; Humans ; Middle Aged ; Obesity/*complications/diagnosis ; Overweight ; *Postmenopause ; Republic of Korea ; Risk Factors ; Spinal Fractures/*complications/diagnosis