Background: Osteoporosis is a disease that affects the quality of life and imposes a high socioeconomic burden. Studies have reported that statins, a HMG CoA reductase inhibitor, have a positive or negative effect on osteoporosis. The purpose of this study was to analyze the correlation between statins and osteoporosis risk. Methods: We used the total patient sample data of the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service (HIRA-NPS-2018). We analyzed the prevalence of osteoporosis in adult patients of Korea who were diagnosed with dyslipidemia and were prescribed statins at the same time. The odds ratio (OR) according to the intensity and type of statin was used to confirming the prevalence. Results: Among the 1,138,899 patients included in the study, 143,895 patients used statins and 27,524 patients (19.13%) were diagnosed with osteoporosis in the statin group. The OR value of statin group was 0.96 (95% CI 0.94-0.98), confirming that the prevalence of osteoporosis decreased, and a significant decrease was seen in all statin intensity. Some of the moderate-intensity statins rather increased the prevalence of osteoporosis, but atorvastatin and rosuvastatin obtained positive results at both medium- and high-intensity doses, and lovastatin, a low-intensity statin, showed the greatest reduction in the prevalence of osteoporosis. Conclusion We found that the prevalence of osteoporosis was reduced in the statin group, and there was a constant correlation regardless of gender or age. However, a large, prospective, double-blind and randomized study is needed for a long period of time to demonstrate the effectiveness of statins.

Euglycemic diabetic ketoacidosis (EDKA) can be difficult to recognize during surgery, particularly when the anion gap (AG) is within the normal range. A 73-year-old female patient with type 2 diabetes mellitus underwent surgical adhesiolysis and enterostomy for intestinal obstruction. The patient showed a normal serum glucose level and hyperchloremic acidosis but had an accumulation of unmeasured anions (UA) detected by partitioning of the standard base excess (SBE). This prompted testing for serum ketones, which confirmed the presence of EDKA during surgery. The calculation of the hyperchloremic base deficit as a percentage of the total acidifying base deficit revealed a significant contribution of hyperchloremic acidosis to the severity of mixed metabolic acidosis. The AG approach can misdiagnose high AG metabolic acidosis (HAGMA) with hyperchloremic acidosis as hyperchloremic acidosis only. Partitioning of the SBE can be useful for detecting UA when both HAGMA and hyperchloremic acidosis are present, and it may help determine the necessity of treating hyperchloremia during EDKA.

BACKGROUND: The authors have performed ultrasound-guided stellate ganglion block (SGB) in our clinic using a lateral paracarotid approach at the level of the 6th cervical vertebra (C6). Although SGB at C6 is a convenient and safe method, there are ongoing concerns about the weak effect of sympathetic blockade in the ipsilateral upper extremity. Therefore, ultrasound-guided SGB was attempted using a lateral paracarotid approach at the level of the 7th cervical vertebra (C7). This prospective study aimed to compare changes in skin temperature after SGB was performed at C6 and C7, and to introduce a lateral paracarotid approach for SGB.METHODS: Thirty patients underwent SGB twice: once at C6 and once at C7. For every SGB, the skin temperature of the patient's hypothenar area was measured for 15 min at 1-min intervals. Skin temperatures before and after SGB and side effects were compared between C6 and C7 groups.RESULTS: The temperature of the upper extremity increased after SGB was performed at C6 and C7. There were significant differences between mean pre-SGB and the largest increases in post-SGB temperatures (0.50±0.38℃ and 1.41±0.68℃ at C6 and C7, respectively; p < 0.05). Significantly increased post-SGB temperatures (difference >1℃) were found in 5/30 (16.7%) and 24/30 (80%) cases for C6 and C7, respectively (p < 0.05). There were no significant differences in side effects between SGB performed at C6 or C7 (p>0.05).CONCLUSION: The lateral paracarotid approach using out-of-plane needle insertion for ultrasound-guided SGB performed at C7 was feasible and more effective at elevating skin temperature in the upper extremity than SGB at C6.
Autonomic Nerve Block ; Cervical Vertebrae ; Female ; Humans ; Methods ; Needles ; Prospective Studies ; Skin Temperature ; Spine ; Stellate Ganglion ; Ultrasonography ; Upper Extremity

BACKGROUND: The authors have performed ultrasound-guided stellate ganglion block (SGB) in our clinic using a lateral paracarotid approach at the level of the 6th cervical vertebra (C6). Although SGB at C6 is a convenient and safe method, there are ongoing concerns about the weak effect of sympathetic blockade in the ipsilateral upper extremity. Therefore, ultrasound-guided SGB was attempted using a lateral paracarotid approach at the level of the 7th cervical vertebra (C7). This prospective study aimed to compare changes in skin temperature after SGB was performed at C6 and C7, and to introduce a lateral paracarotid approach for SGB. METHODS: Thirty patients underwent SGB twice: once at C6 and once at C7. For every SGB, the skin temperature of the patient's hypothenar area was measured for 15 min at 1-min intervals. Skin temperatures before and after SGB and side effects were compared between C6 and C7 groups. RESULTS: The temperature of the upper extremity increased after SGB was performed at C6 and C7. There were significant differences between mean pre-SGB and the largest increases in post-SGB temperatures (0.50±0.38℃ and 1.41±0.68℃ at C6 and C7, respectively; p < 0.05). Significantly increased post-SGB temperatures (difference >1℃) were found in 5/30 (16.7%) and 24/30 (80%) cases for C6 and C7, respectively (p < 0.05). There were no significant differences in side effects between SGB performed at C6 or C7 (p>0.05). CONCLUSION The lateral paracarotid approach using out-of-plane needle insertion for ultrasound-guided SGB performed at C7 was feasible and more effective at elevating skin temperature in the upper extremity than SGB at C6.