From July 1988 to September 1992, we experienced 15 cases of thrombolysoangioplasty (TLA) at Chonnam University Hospital. Among 15 cases, 5 had claudication (Clinical stage II according to Modified Fontaine Classification), pain at rest (III), and gangrene(IV). Duration of symptoms was 1-7 months except patients of clinical stage IV unable to guess occlusion age. The occlusion length was 5-10cm in 8 cases, 10-20cm in 4 cases, and above 30cm in 2 cases. In all cases, thromolytic therapy was performed with intraarterial urokinase infusion. The total amount of urokinase ranged from 300,000 IU to 2,000,000 IU and infusion time ranged from 2 to 50 hours except three cases infused bolus dose only. Complete successful TLA was defined as technical (less than 50% of residual stenosis) and clinical success. Partial success was defined as technical success but clinical failure. Follow-up angiography could be performed in 8 cases. Overall initial success rate was 86.6% (13/15). Among them. Complete success was in 11 cases and partial success was in 2 cases. Recurrence of disease was not noted on all cases(n=8). Severe complications, such as hemorrhage, did not occurred. TLA was considered to be effective and safe way to recanalized chronic long artery occlusion in lower extremity.
Angiography ; Arteries ; Follow-Up Studies ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Jeollanam-do ; Lower Extremity ; Recurrence ; Urokinase-Type Plasminogen Activator

PURPOSE: Spinal cord injuries can lead to varying degrees and patterns of neurologic deficits, which depend on the level of the injury, duration, completeness. So we analyzed the relationship between the types of neurogenic bladder and the level of injury in the spinal cord injury. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From June 1997 to August 2002, one-hundred twenty seven spinal cord injury patients were studied by neurological and urological examination and video-urodynamic evaluation. The neurogenic bladder in spinal cord injury were analyzed into five types according to the injured level. RESULTS: The 94 males and 33 females had a mean age of 45.7+/-15.1 years (range 15 to 92). Mean follow up interval after injury was 33.9+/-48.4 months. Injured level was classified into five levels; cervical, thoracic, lumbar, and sacral. Of the 127 patients 37 (29.1%) was cervical, 18 (14.2%) was thoracic, 33 (26.0%) was lumbar, and 39 (30.7%) was sacral. When all patients were divided suprasacral and infrasacral lesion. Typically, suprasacral lesions show detrusor hyperreflexia, and infrasacral lesions have detrusor areflexia. 30 (37.5%) of 88 suprasacral lesions and 12 (30.8%) of 39 infrasacral lesions were presented to atypical. 35.7% of patients have combine spinal lesion, but 47.6% of patients have no causes for atypical patterns. 3 (27.3%) of 11 patients were followed up, they changed neurogenic pattern. CONCLUSIONS: In our results, video urodynamic findings showed that about 30 percent patients had atypical patterns of neurogenic bladder, and they have underlying disease about 52.4%. And 27% of followed patients changed neurogenic pattern of bladder. So, urodynamic study have an important role in the spinal cord injury for diagnosis of neurogenic pattern and selection proper treatment, catching out the interval change and correction of treatment method, and evaluation of prognosis.
Diagnosis ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Male ; Neurologic Manifestations ; Prognosis ; Reflex, Abnormal ; Spinal Cord Injuries* ; Urinary Bladder ; Urinary Bladder, Neurogenic ; Urodynamics

BACKGROUND: In korea, tsutsugamushi disease is one of the common diseases which occurs in more than 40% among acute febrile diseases during Autumn. The diagnosis is confirmed with Rickettsia tsutsugamushi antibody, and is characterised by fever, chill, headache, myalgia, skin rash, escha and lymphadenopathy. METHODS: We have conducted a survey on 16 clinically and serologically confirmed cases of Tsutsugamushi disease occurring during the period of October -November, 2000. RESULTS: Of 16 cases,7 were males and 9 were females with an average age of 67.76. Most patients had fever, chill, headache, myalgia, sore throat, cojunctival injection, cough, abdominal, pain, nausea, vomiting, hematuria in order of frequency. The physical findings were eachar (81.257) and skin rash (62.77) . Serologically 7 cases (43.75%) of 16 cases were confirmed positively R.tsutsugamushi antibody. General hematologic findings were decreased platelet count (37.57) , increased or decreased WBC (31.25% and 25% each other) , and anemia (25%) , Test for liver function included elevated AST, ALT (68.76%) , alkaline phosphatase (62.6%) , hypoalbuminemia (12.6%) , and hyperbilirubinemia(6.25) . Urinalysis showed hematuria (50%) , proteinuria (50%) , and pyuria (12.67) . Doxyrcycline therapy decreased fever in 2.85 days and after 5-6 days patients were discharged with improvement of almost all symptoms. CONCLUSION: Primary care physician in a community should always consider tsutsugamushi disease when he encounters patients with acute febrile disease in late Autumn and early winter and expect good prognosis with early diagnosis and treatment.
Alkaline Phosphatase ; Anemia ; Cough ; Diagnosis ; Early Diagnosis ; Exanthema ; Female ; Fever ; Headache ; Hematuria ; Humans ; Hypoalbuminemia ; Jeollabuk-do* ; Korea ; Liver ; Lymphatic Diseases ; Male ; Myalgia ; Nausea ; Orientia tsutsugamushi ; Pharyngitis ; Physicians, Primary Care ; Platelet Count ; Prognosis ; Proteinuria ; Pyuria ; Scrub Typhus* ; Urinalysis ; Vomiting

OBJECTS:We investigated a possible association between the polymorphic trinucleotide repeat(TNR) expansion in neuronal potassium channel gene KCNN3 and schizophrenia. METHODS: CAG/CTG repeat distribution in KCNN3, CTG18.1 and ERDA1 was examined and the copy number of ligation product in repeat expansion detection(RED) was measured in Korean patients with schizophrenia(n=245) and ethnically matched healthy controls(n=116). RESULTS: Longer alleles in the KCNN3 gene were over-represented in patients. The frequency of alleles with CAG repeats longer than 19 copy in the KCNN3 gene was higher in the patients with schizophrenia as compared to controls(73.3% vs. 65.1%;p=0.029, Fisher's exact test). And this difference was more prominent in schizophrenic patients with familial background(p=0.03, Fisher's exact test). We found no difference in the frequency of longer alleles between negative and positive subtypes of schizophrenia. Ligation product size in RED and alleles with CAG repeat number in the CTG18.1 gene was not increased in the patients. The copy number of ligation product in RED was highly correlated with CAG/CTG copies of ERDA1 in the patient group(r=0.45, p<0.001) as well as in the control group(r=0.44, p<0.001). However, CAG repeat length in the KCNN3 gene was not correlated with ERDA1 score. CONCLUSIONS: Our results support the hypothesis that the longer allele of KCNN3 may be considered as a candidate gene for schizophrenia, especially in the case with familial background. And the RED assay results was affected by the CAG copy number of ERDA1.
Alleles ; Humans ; Ligation ; Neurons ; Potassium Channels ; Schizophrenia*

OBJECTIVE: The authors evaluated the effect of direct bypass (superficial temporal artery-middle cerebral artery bypass) in the prevention of rebleeding episodes in patients suffering from hemorrhagic moyamoya disease by comparing this method with indirect bypass. METHODS: Fifteen patients who had hemorrhagic moyamoya without aneurysm comprised the study group. The mean age of patients was 44.4 years and follow up period ranged from 0.8 to 7.1 years (mean; 3.61 years). Revascularization surgery was performed in 21 sides in 15 patients. Direct bypass was performed in 17 sides and indirect bypass in the other 4 sides. RESULTS: During the follow-up period after the revascularization surgery, three sides (14.3%) of the 21 sides presented with rebleeding episode, one of 17 sides (mean follow-up periods; 2.94 years) treated with direct method and 2 of 4 sides (mean follow-up periods; 6.45 years) treated with indirect method. Kaplan-Meier analysis of rebleedingfree survival showed quite different between direct and indirect method but statistically insignificant (p=0.0541). CONCLUSION: Direct bypass may reduce the risk of hemorrhage more effectively than indirect bypass. However, direct bypass cannot always prevent rebleeding.
Aneurysm ; Cerebral Arteries ; Follow-Up Studies ; Hemorrhage* ; Humans ; Kaplan-Meier Estimate ; Moyamoya Disease*

Boerhaave's syndrome, spontaneous esophageal rupture, is lethal and associated with a 70% survival rate despite emergent surgical management in recent reports. Early diagnosis and management is critical for more favorable outcome. But, it is difficult to diagnose early because of the low incidence and lack of specific symptoms and signs. We experienced 37 year-old male patient with Boerhaave's syndrome who was heavy drinker, and suffered from chronic renal failure. He visited a hospital because of hematemesis and severe back pain. He was transferred to our hospital with a nasogastric tube insertion, which was penetrating the distal esophagus. A radiologic examination revealed that the distal tip was located in the left pleural cavity. It was assumed that the tube had passed through the preexisting perforation site. Operation was not performed emergently due to delay in diagnosis and severe hyperkalemia. The patient was in a septic condition, but had recovered slowly after systemic broad spectrum antibiotic therapy, pleural drainage and intrapleural antibiotic injections. An esophagography revealed no leakage of gastro-grafin on the 14th hospital day, and he later completely recovered from sepsis.
Adult ; Back Pain ; Diagnosis ; Drainage ; Early Diagnosis ; Esophageal Perforation ; Esophagus ; Hematemesis ; Humans ; Hyperkalemia ; Incidence ; Kidney Failure, Chronic ; Male ; Pleural Cavity* ; Rupture ; Sepsis ; Survival Rate

INTRODUCTION: Adult stem cells generate differentiated cells beyond their own tissue boundaries. To prove that stem cells derived from bone marrow is capable of therapeutic application in cerebral ischemic patients, we performed this study. MATERIAL AND METHOD: We transplanted adult stem cells derived from bone marrow of the patient's iliac bone to 5 patients with cerebral infarction. Of 5 patients, two patients had internal carotid artery occlusion, two patients had severe stenosis of the middle cerebral artery, remaining one patient had occlusion of the branch of the middle cerebral artery. At first, we performed extracranial-intracranial bypass surgery in all patients, and then implanted bone marrow stem cell in the infarcted brain and boder zone area directly under the microscopic navigator and also injected bone marrow stem cells through the grafted vessel to the infarcted area. Two weeks after bypass surgery, we confirmed the patency of bypass graft with external carotid angiography. In the same setting, mesenchymal stem cells acquired from autologous bone marrow were superselectively injected into the bypass graft via a microcatheter. Postoperative evaluation of the patients was decided to the neurological status and the degree of reduction of the high signal area on the T2 image of the postoperative MRI. RESULT: All patients who underwent bypass surgery with stem cell implantation had an uneventful postoperative course and showed some improvement of preoperative neurologic dysfunction. Postoperative significant improvement of cerebral vasoreactivity to acetazolamide was showed in all patients. On postoperative 3 months MRI, three patients showed significant reduction of the high signal area on the T2 image, and also improved neurological status on those patients. Other one patient showed moderate degree of the reduction of the high signal area on T2 image of the postoperative MRI, but neurological status of that patient slightly improved. Remaining one patient who showed poor circulation via bypass graft does neither reduction of the high signal area on T2 image of the postoperative MRI nor improvement of the neurological status of that patient. CONCLUSION: In patients of fixed cerebral infarction with major neurologic deficit, EC-IC bypass surgery is not effective, even though infarcted area filled by grafted vessel extensively. In those patients, autologous bone marrow stem cell implantation combined with bypass seems to be expect neuronal regeneration.
Acetazolamide ; Adult Stem Cells ; Angiography ; Bone Marrow* ; Brain ; Carotid Artery, Internal ; Cerebral Infarction* ; Constriction, Pathologic ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Mesenchymal Stromal Cells ; Middle Cerebral Artery ; Neurologic Manifestations ; Neurons* ; Regeneration* ; Stem Cell Transplantation* ; Stem Cells* ; Transplants

OBJECTIVES: Extracranial-intracranial (EC-IC)bypass procedures have proved useful in selected patients with cerebral ischemia. We have experienced EC-IC bypass procedures in 85 patients with hemodynamic cerebral ischemia, moya moya and complicated aneurysm. In this study, complications after EC-IC bypass procedures was investigated. METHODS: Authors performed EC-IC bypass surgery for augmentation of cerebral blood flow in 85 patients for recent 7 years. Of 85 patients, the pathologic lesions were artherosclerotic hemodynamic cerebral ischemia in 60, moya moya in 14, complicated aneurysm in 9, and traumatic occlusion of the carotid artery in 2. An superficial temporal artery-middle cerebral artery (STA-MCA) anastomosis was performed in 67 cases and graft bypass with saphenous vein or radial artery in 18 cases. RESULTS: Of 85 patients who underwent bypass surgery, 63 had an uneventful postoperative course. Fifteen patients had hyperperfusion syndrome that included temporary neurologic deficit in 7, reperfusion hemorrhage in 3, seizure in 3, and neusea and vomiting in 2. Five patients had wound problems. Permanant neurologic deficit and complete obstruction of the preoperative stenotic lesion occured in one respectively. All patients except three cases of reperfusion hemorrhage and one case of permanent neurologic deficit recovered completely. Two of three cases of reperfusion hemorrhage and one case of permanent neurologic deficit recovered with minor neurologic deficit, and the remaining one case of reperfusion hemorrhage died. CONCLUSION: EC-IC bypass surgery is a reliable and reasonably safe method for establishing new pathways of collateral circulation to the brain. However, this operation can have potential complications by relative hyperperfusion of chronically hypoperfused and presumably dysautoregulated region, and new flow pattern after bypass. Bypass is deferred to 8 weeks till impaired autoregulation is restored after acute cerebral infarction. And blood pressure should be controlled closely throughout the immediate postoperative period.
Aneurysm ; Blood Pressure ; Brain ; Brain Ischemia ; Carotid Arteries ; Cerebral Arteries ; Cerebral Infarction ; Collateral Circulation ; Hemodynamics ; Hemorrhage ; Homeostasis ; Humans ; Neurologic Manifestations ; Postoperative Period ; Radial Artery ; Reperfusion ; Saphenous Vein ; Seizures ; Transplants ; Vomiting ; Wounds and Injuries