No abstract available.
Uterine Prolapse*

No abstract available.
Leiomyoma*

The analgesic effect of epidural pentazocine for the postoperative pain relief was studied. In our previous report, we used the pentazocine diluted to normal saline, however in this study, pentazocine was diluted with distilled water and made to 10ml mixture. Fourty patients were divided into four groups (n=10) as follows: Group I: control, distilled water of 10 ml, Group II: pentazocine 0.2 mg/kg, Group III: pentazocine 0. 3mg/kg, Group IV: pentazocine 0.4mg/kg, all pentazocine groups were diluted to 10ml of distilled water. We have carried out the study to see the effects on the time of peak analgesia, the duration of analgesia, the degree of analgesia and the side effects. The results are as follows: 1) Seven cases (70%) in the control group showed rapid but short duration of analgesia. 2) The pentazocine 0.3 and 0.4 mg/kg groups were significantly different from the control group (p< 0.05). 3) In the pentazocine 0.3 and 0.4 mg/kg groups, the time of peak analgesia occured 8-9 minutes, the duration of analgesia was 10 hours and the degree of analgesia showed moderate to good degree. 4) Nine cases (90%) in the control group complained of back pain during epidural injection and 16 cases (53%) in the pentazocine group conplained of drowsiness.
Analgesia ; Back Pain ; Humans ; Injections, Epidural ; Pain, Postoperative* ; Pentazocine* ; Sleep Stages ; Water

Enflurane is metabolized in the liver by the hepatic microsomal enzyme system, cytochrome P-450 and induces enzyme during the enflurane exposure. Enhanced biotransformation might occur after enflurane itself and several other drugs, isoniazid (INH), ethanol and cholorpromazine. Increased inorganic fluroide, one of the enflurane metaboites, could impair renal function. The possibility of increased enflurane defluorination follwing treatment with isoniazid, isoniazid group (n=10) and control group (n= 11) was investigated by the measuring the serum and urine F in the preoperative period and 2 hrs after anesthesia, immediate postoperative and 24th postoperative hour. According to the serum inorganic fluoride concentration, the isoniazid group was divided again into INH high F- and INH low F- groups. In the preoperative, immediate postoperative period and 24th postoperative hour, the changes of renal function were measured by the BUN and creatinine and liver function was measured by the SGOT and SGPT. The results were as follows: 1) Serum inorganic fluoride increased in enflurane anesthesia significantly in all three groups and decreased in the 24th postoperative hour. Among the three groups, enhanced defluorination was the highest in the INH high F group. 2) Urine inorganic fluoride was increased in the control and INH high F group. 3) There were no changes in renal and hepatic function after enflurane anesthesia. Our study indicated that enflurane does not harm the INH treated patient.
Alanine Transaminase ; Anesthesia* ; Aspartate Aminotransferases ; Biotransformation ; Creatinine ; Cytochrome P-450 Enzyme System ; Enflurane* ; Ethanol ; Fluorides ; Humans ; Isoniazid* ; Liver ; Postoperative Period ; Preoperative Period

PURPOSE: This descriptive study was conducted to investigate awareness and attitudes toward 'Do-Not-Resuscitate (DNR)'. METHODS: Study data were collected from July 24 to September 30, 2011 using structured questionnaires. Study subjects were 209 patients suffering from cancer at "C" Univ. hospital located in Seoul and Cancer Patient Coalition in Seoul. The purpose of the study was explained directly to them. All the data of 209 questionnaires were collected and analyzed without dropping out. RESULTS: In terms of awareness toward DNR, 61.5% said DNR is "necessary" because "their recoveries are impossible" (51.7%) and "they want dignified deaths" (41.1%). When it comes to ethical attitudes toward DNR according to demographic characteristics, there were significant differences both between genders (p<.032) on "Medical staff should tell hopeless patients their conditions openly" and between level of education and monthly income (p<.013) on "DNR decision should be made according to the guideline, if needed". CONCLUSION: The result of this study suggests that decisions on DNR should be made not by only families and doctors but by patients themselves as well. For this, sufficient explanations and education programs for DNR need to be developed and DNR decision including both patient's and family's demand should be standardized.
Education ; Ethics ; Humans ; Seoul ; Surveys and Questionnaires

The laparoscopic cholecystectomy has been rapidly accepted as the standard treatment for gallbladder stones because its minimally invasive nature offers a significant advantage over an open cholecystectomy in terms of postoperative morbidity & recovery. The endoscopic sphinterotomy has become the primary treatment for common bile duct stones, yielding a duct clearance rate of approximately 90%. The laparoscopic cholecystectomy combined with the preoperative endoscopic sphinterotomy is becoming more widely employed as a therapeutic option for the management of gallbladder stones & common bile-duct stones. The authors retrospectively analyzed 71 patients who had been treated by an open cholecystectomy and a common bile-duct exploration (group A) and 35 patients who had been treated by a laparoscopic cholecystectomy plus endoscopic sphinterotomy (group B) at the Department of Surgery, Jungang Gil Hospital, from March 1993 to January 1996. The diagnotic procedures performed were ultrasonography ERC and DISIDA scan, and abdominal computed tomography. Intraoperative cholangiograms were successfully performed in 59 cases from group A and in 5 cases from group B. Successful duct clearance was achieved in 87.3% of the group A cases and in 87.5% of the group B cases. The operation time, the postoperative hospital stay, and postoperative complications were significantly lower for group B than for group A. The major postoperative complication was wound pain & infection for both groups. We conclude that in comparison with group A, group B appeared to have a similar clearance rate, a much lower morbidity, a shorter hospital stay, an earlier return to working fitness, and a better cosmetic result.
Cholecystectomy ; Cholecystectomy, Laparoscopic ; Choledocholithiasis* ; Cholelithiasis* ; Common Bile Duct ; Gallbladder ; Humans ; Length of Stay ; Postoperative Complications ; Retrospective Studies ; Return to Work ; Ultrasonography ; Wounds and Injuries

OBJECTIVES: Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia(PCP) is one of the most common life-threatening opportunistic infections in patients with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome(AIDS). This study reports the clinical charac teristics of PCP in the patients with AIDS and prognostic factors for short-term survival of them. METHODS: We investigated 43 patients of AIDS to evaluate the frequency of PCP in patients in AIDS by retrospective analysis, and classified the 17 patients with PCP into survivors and non-survivors to compare epide miology, clinical characteristics and laboratory findings. We also analyzed whether the these findings influenced the short-term survival in patients with PCP that was combined with AIDS. RESULTS: In this retrospective study of 43 patients of AIDS, the frequency of PCP in AIDS patients was relatively high as 17 patients(39%), of whom eight pa tients(47%) died of PCP. The epidemiologic findings such as age, route of human immunodeficiency virus(HIV) infection and co-existing disease were not significantly different between survivors and non-survivors. Coughing was the most common symptom and bilateral infiltrates of lung was the most common form in the chest X-ray examination. But these clinical features were similar in the both groups. Total lymphocyte count, CD4 cell count, serum albumin level and arterial oxygen tension were decreased and serum LDH was increased in patients with PCP that was the first episode in patients with AIDS. Lymphocyte and CD4 cell count were significantly lower in the non-survivor group (p=.002 and p=.03, respec tively). Survivors had higher serum albumin level and arterial oxygen tension than non-survivors (p=.02 and p=.04, respectively). And non-survivors were found to have higher serum LDH level than survivors (p=.02). CONCLUSION: Lymphocyte and CD4 cell counts, serum albumin and LDH, and arterial oxygen tension may be considered as the prognostic factors for short-term sur vival of patients with PCP that is combined with AIDS.
CD4 Lymphocyte Count ; Cough ; Humans ; Lung ; Lymphocyte Count ; Lymphocytes ; Opportunistic Infections ; Oxygen ; Pneumocystis carinii* ; Pneumocystis* ; Pneumonia, Pneumocystis* ; Retrospective Studies ; Serum Albumin ; Survivors ; Thorax

Bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) has emerged as a useful technique for the study of pulmonary interstitial disorders. Several types of information are provided by the evaluation of lavage fluid. Identification of cellular constituents helps to separate inflammatory process. Recently we have studied cellular constituents of BAL from three cases with histologically confirmed pulmonary sarcoidosis, idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis and hypereosinophilic syndrome. Pulmonary sarcoidosis showed a marked increase in lymphocytes, idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis revealed a predominance of neutrophils, and hypereosinophilic syndrome presented a marked increase in eosinophils in the lavage fluids.
Bronchoalveolar Lavage ; Child* ; Eosinophils ; Humans ; Hypereosinophilic Syndrome ; Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis ; Lymphocytes ; Neutrophils ; Sarcoidosis ; Sarcoidosis, Pulmonary ; Therapeutic Irrigation ; Urinary Tract Infections* ; Urinary Tract*

PURPOSE: To evaluate the tear meniscus in aqueous tear-deficient dry eye patients using Fourier-domain optical coherence tomography (FD-OCT) and to investigate the clinical usefulness of tear meniscus values. METHODS: The present study included 79 aqueous tear-deficient dry eyes and 50 normal eyes. Tear meniscus height (TMH), tear meniscus depth (TMD), and tear meniscus area (TMA) were imaged using FD-OCT and measured with computer calipers. Schirmer's test, tear break-up time, and corneal fluorescein staining were also performed and the correlations between the tests were analyzed. Additionally, the diagnostic power of tear meniscus values was compared using area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC). RESULTS: Tear meniscus values were significantly decreased in the aqueous tear-deficient dry eye group (p < 0.05). TMH, TMD, and TMA were positively correlated with Schirmer's test and tear break-up time (p < 0.05), and TMH and TMD were negatively correlated with corneal fluorescein staining in the aqueous tear-deficient dry eye group (p < 0.05). The AUROCs of TMH, TMD, and TMA were 0.978, 0.788, and 0.957, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Tear meniscus values measured using FD-OCT were significantly lower in aqueous tear-deficient dry eyes and were correlated with Schirmer's test, tear break-up time, and corneal fluorescein staining. Tear meniscus measurements obtained using FD-OCT can be useful clinical parameters for the diagnosis and treatment of aqueous tear-deficient dry eye.
Diagnosis ; Fluorescein ; Humans ; ROC Curve ; Tears* ; Tomography, Optical Coherence*

Glial cells are receiving much attention since they have been recognized as important regulators of many aspects of brain function and disease. Recent evidence has revealed that two different glial cells, astrocytes and microglia, control synapse elimination under normal and pathological conditions via phagocytosis. Astrocytes use the MEGF10 and MERTK phagocytic pathways, and microglia use the classical complement pathway to recognize and eliminate unwanted synapses. Notably, glial phagocytosis also contributes to the clearance of disease-specific protein aggregates, such as β-amyloid, huntingtin, and α-synuclein. Here we reivew recent findings showing that glial cells are active regulators in brain functions through phagocytosis and that changes in glial phagocytosis contribute to the pathogenesis of various neurodegenerative diseases. A better understanding of the cellular and molecular mechanisms of glial phagocytosis in healthy and diseased brains will greatly improve our current approach in treating these diseases.
Astrocytes ; Brain* ; Complement Pathway, Classical ; Microglia ; Neurodegenerative Diseases ; Neuroglia* ; Phagocytosis ; Protein Aggregates ; Synapses