BACKGROUND: Sustained-release theophylline, which is generally prescribed as a twice-daily equal-dose regimen, is one of the more common asthma treatments. the development of a sustained-release drug delivery technology that enables improved control of the theophylline blood levels represents a significant advancement in both the efficacy and safety of dosing. METHOD: A crossover study was conducted with 25 adult chronic asthmatic patients requiring daily bronchodilator therapy. The study group included thirteen males and twelve females with ages ranging from 19 to 71 years. The overall approach was to place the patients first on the twice-daily preparation(Etheophyl®) for 28 days at 8 AM and 8 PM, and measure the pulmonary function and theophylline level on the 28th day. the patients were subsequently switched to the once-daily preparation(Uniphyl®) in the same daily dose at 8 PM on the 29th day and the same parameters were measured on the 56th day. RESULTS: the mean serum levels of theophylline were 8.18±1.66µg/ml in the Etheophyl®-treated period and 8.00±1.75µg/ml in the Uniphyl®-treated period. In addition, the FEV1 showed 71.40±7.48 percent in the Etheophyl®-treated and 69.18±9.00 percent in the Uniphyl®-treated period. Thus there were no significant differences between the once-daily and twice-daily preparation. CONCLUSION: The results indicated little clinical differences between the two medication. The two drugs are equally effective in controlling asthma over the four weeks of treatment.
Adult ; Asthma* ; Cross-Over Studies ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Theophylline

Bicoronal approach is adopted as an universal method for reduction and internal fixation of the fractured zygomatic arch in the treatment of complex zygomatic fracture. However bicoronal approach leaves many disadvantages, such as long incision, alopecia, prolonged edema, and paresthesia. Nowadays endoscopically assisted minimal invasive technique has been widespread not only for the aesthetic surgery, but also for the reconstructive surgical fields because of the benefits. We have been recently trying to apply endoscopic surgery to facial bone fracture surgery. Endoscopically assisted minimal invasive technique has been applied to 14 patients who admitted to Chosun university hospital from March 1996 to July 1997. We used 4 mm, 30' endoscope and two 1.5-2 cm temple incisions and a subciliary incision for approaching to the zygomatic arch. Protected drill bit and driver had access to fractured zygomatic arch though tiny(5 mm) stab incision over the zygomatic arch. We have been able to successfully reduce and make fixation of the fracture of zygomatic arch by using endoscopically assisted minimal invasive technique. Follow up for 3 months revealed good maintenance of the reduction. We think that application of the endoscopic technology to midfacial bone fracture will result in significant reduction in morbidity and improve postoperative results.
Alopecia ; Edema ; Endoscopes ; Facial Bones ; Follow-Up Studies ; Fractures, Bone ; Humans ; Paresthesia ; Zygoma* ; Zygomatic Fractures

We analysed a perceiving pain at each step (8 step: traction suture, wound incision, anterior capsulotomy, phacoemulsification, irrigation and aspiration, intraocular lens (IOL) implantation, wound suture, subtenon's injection) of cataract surgery by using visual analogue scale (0-10), prospectively. One hundred cases of cataract surgery were performed from November 1995 to March 1996 at Chonnam national university hospital and topical or retrobulbar anesthesia prior to cataract surgery was applied to each 50 patients. There was no difference of age, sex, running time for surgery, and incision method between topical and retrobulbar anesthesia. Pain scores at phacoemulsi fication. irrigation and aspiration, and subtenon's injection were higher than those at other steps in both types of anesthesia. However, a major range of pain scores at each step except of subtenon's injection was mild (1-3). In topical anesthesia, pain score was higher than retrobulbar anesthesia, but there was no statistically significant difference except a step of subtenon's injection. In conclusion, topical anesthesia might be an adequate anesthetic method for cataract surgery.
Anesthesia* ; Cataract* ; Humans ; Jeollanam-do ; Lenses, Intraocular ; Phacoemulsification ; Prospective Studies ; Running ; Sutures ; Traction ; Wounds and Injuries

PURPOSE: To assess the efficacy and resulting complications of tetracycline sclerotherapy in renal, hepatic, ovarian, and perivesical cysts. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed 23 cases of benign cysts (16 renal, 4 hepatic, 2 ovarian, and 1 perivesical) in 22 patients in whom the condition was diagnosed or confirmed by either ultrasound, CT, or cytology, and who underwent percutaneous tetracycline sclerotherapy. Using a 21-gauge Chiba needle, the target cyst was punctured under ultrasound guidance. Prior to the injection of 1500 mg of tetracycline diluted in 5 ml of normal saline, almost all the cystic content was aspirated, and at the end of the procedure the tetra-cycline was left in the cyst. During a period of between 3 and 22 months, 18 of the 23 cases were followed up. RESULT: In six of the 18 cases followed up, the cysts either decreased in size by 10%, or collapsed completely. In seven cases a collapse of over 50% was noted, and in the remaining five the cyst recurred. In one of these, complete collapse occurred after retreatment at ten months, and the patient with a perivesical cyst underwent surgery six months after recurrence. Thus, treatment was effective (a collapse of at least 50%) in 13 of 18 cases (72.2%). This total of 13 comprised ten of 12 renal cysts (83.3%), two of two ovarian (100%), and one of three hepatic (33.3%). Percutaneous therapy was unsuccessful in five cases (two hepatic cysts, one renal, one para-pelvic and one perivesical). Complications occurring during the procedure or follow-up period included discomfort or mild pain, vomiting, and transient fever, though these subsided within 24 hours. In one patient with severe pain, this subsided after four days. CONCLUSION: As single-shot injection of tetracycline provides safe and effective treatment for renal and ovarian cysts, but for hepatic cysts is unsuccessful.
Female ; Fever ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Needles ; Ovarian Cysts ; Recurrence ; Retreatment ; Retrospective Studies ; Sclerotherapy* ; Tetracycline* ; Ultrasonography ; Vomiting

A-57-year-old male patient suddenly developed cramping pain in the left lower abdomen with a slight abdominal distension. He had undergone a laparoscopic nephrectomy for transitional cell carcinoma 7 days earlier. An abdominal CT scan revealed a dilated small bowel loop and an internal hernia was suspected. Surgery revealed a herniation of the jejunal loop through defects in the retroperitoneum, which was successfully reduced. We report a case of an internal hernia following a laparoscopic nephrectomy. To the best of our knowledge, this is the only reported case of an internal hernia as a complication of laparoscopic nephrectomy.
Abdomen ; Carcinoma, Transitional Cell ; Hernia* ; Humans ; Laparoscopy ; Male ; Muscle Cramp ; Nephrectomy* ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed

No abstract available.
Carcinoma, Transitional Cell* ; Tuberculosis, Renal* ; Ureter*

Broncholithiasis is uncommon in patients with silicosis. Bronchoesophageal fistula complicated by broncholithiasis is especially rare and only one case has been reported in Korea. Surgical treatment of broncholithiasis should be as conservative as possible to preserve the adequate pulmonary function. Meticulous dissection and division of the fistula with the interposition of viable tissues will prevent recurrence. We report a rare case of bronchoesophageal fistula complicated by broncholithiasis in a patient with silicosis.

Human papillomavirus(HPV) has implicated in the development of cervical cancer. Several studies has suggested a strong correlation between HPV 16, 18 and cervical intraepithelial neoplasia(CIN). For detecting and typing HPV DNA in cervical tissues, recently the chemiluminescent molecular hybridization assay method has been widely used. This study was performed to determine the usefulness of hybrid capture assay for detecting high-risk HPV in cervical epithelial cells, and to compare the correlation among cervical cytology, biopsy finding and HPV infection, and to determine whether the addition of the hybrid capture assay to cytologic test would improve the ability to identify significant lesions. This study included 267 patients who visited the colposcopic clinic of the department of obstetrics and gynecology, Chonbuk University Hospital from May, 1997 to October 199S. Pap smears hybrid capture assays, and colposcopically directed biopsy were performed concurrently on al1 women. The results obtained were as follow; l. Using hybrid capture assay, the detection rate of high-risk HPV of all patients was 37.1%(99/267). There was no statistical significance in the detection rate of HPV between the age groups. 2. The false negative rate of Pap Smear was 53.3% and showed significant discrepancies between the cytologic and histologic diagnosis. 3. According to the cytologic diagnosis, the detection rates of high-risk HPV were 7.1% in normal, 25.3% in ASCUS or LSIL, and 61.6% in HSIL. In each cytologic group, the patients who had positive results for high-risk HPV showed higher incidence rate of high grade lesions than those with negative results(P<0.05). 4. According to the histologic diagnosis, the detection rates of high-risk HPV were 0.1% in normal, 11.1% in CIN I, and 72.7% in CIN II or CIN III. In each histologic group, the patients who had positive results for high-risk HPV showed higher incidence rate of high grade lesions than those with negative results(P<0.05). 5. According to the comparison of histologic diagnosis between positive and negative results of high-risk HPV test due to each cytology, there was no statistical significance in the incidence rate of cervical neoplasia, Above results suggest that high-risk HPV test using hybrid capture assay may be a useful method in supplement the pitfalls of cervical cytology. This test might also have prognostic value in the management of patients with CIN.
Biopsy ; Diagnosis ; DNA ; Epithelial Cells* ; Female ; Gynecology ; Human papillomavirus 16 ; Human Papillomavirus DNA Tests* ; Humans ; Incidence ; Jeollabuk-do ; Obstetrics ; Uterine Cervical Neoplasms

OBJECTIVE: Unilateral percutaneous vertebroplasty is a widely accepted treatment for osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures (VCFs). However, bone cement may fail to fill both hemivertebra from the single needle. We assessed the radiographic and clinical outcome of hemivertebroplasty (HVP) and evaluated the factors that affect subsequent VCFs after HVP. METHODS: Fifty two patients who underwent HVP were reviewed. VCFs were identified based on clinical and radiological findings. The patients were grouped into two groups: 1) no subsequent VCFs, 2) subsequent VCFs. We evaluated the association between age, sex, body mass index (BMI) and bone mineral density (BMD) and subsequent VCFs. We also assessed the impact of location, type and grade of fracture, endplate fracture, burst fracture, bone cement volume on subsequent VCFs. We analyzed the compression ratio, wedge angle, kyphotic angle, and visual analogue scale (VAS) score in both groups. RESULTS: There were no significant differences in age, gender, BMI, and BMD between two groups. No significant difference was also found in pre-existing VCF, location, type and grading of fracture, endplate fracture, burst fracture, amount of bone cement, and radiological findings such as compression ratio, wedge angle, and kyphotic angle between two groups. The final mean VAS scores of patients with or without subsequent VCFs were 3.11 and 4.02, respectively. CONCLUSION: No major risk factors for the subsequent VCFs after HVP were found. However, we identified adjacent fractures, refractures, and remote fractures after HVP in chronological order. Therefore, long-term follow-up is necessary to evaluate the effectiveness of HVP to osteoporotic VCFs.
Body Mass Index ; Bone Density ; Follow-Up Studies ; Fractures, Bone ; Fractures, Compression ; Humans ; Needles ; Osteoporotic Fractures ; Risk Factors ; Vertebroplasty

Mycoplasma pneumoniae and Chlamydia pneumoniae have been suggested to take part in the acute exacerbation of bronchial asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Several studies have questioned whether they may play pathogenic roles in connection with bronchial asthma and COPD. This study was designed to evaluate the seroprevalences of M. pneumoniae and C. pneumoniae in stable asthma and COPD patients, and to compare with control patients. The medical records of one hundred forty patients who underwent M. pneumoniae and C. pneumoniae serology were retrospectively reviewed. Seroprevalences of M. pneumoniae and C. pneumoniae in the asthma group (11.1% and 8.3%, respectively) were higher than in the control group (4.4% and 2.2%, respectively) without statistical significance. The seroprevalence of M. pneumoniae in the COPD group (16.9%) was significantly higher than in the control group, and the seroprevalence of C. pneumoniae in the COPD group (3.4%) was higher than in the control group without statistical significance. This study raises important questions about the relation of M. pneumoniae and C. pneumoniae infection with stable asthma or COPD.
Adult ; Aged ; Asthma/*microbiology ; Chlamydophila Infections/*epidemiology ; Chlamydophila pneumoniae/immunology ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Pneumonia, Mycoplasma/*epidemiology ; Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive/*microbiology ; Seroepidemiologic Studies