Primary Pulmonary leiomyosarcomas are rare tumors. These tumors may arise at any level of the lung in which smooth muscle fibers are found. The highest incidence of sarcoma is during the fourth decade whereas for bronchogenic carcinoma the maximum incidence is during the sixth and seventh decades. Leiomyosarcomas are aggressive and progressive. Treatment is mainly surgical. The chemotherapy is ineffective and the effectiveness of radiotherapy depends on the total dose of irradiation. Prognosis and significant survival rate are related to the size of the lesion. We report one patient with primary pulmonary leiomyosarcoma involving the right lower lung.
Carcinoma, Bronchogenic ; Drug Therapy ; Humans ; Incidence ; Leiomyosarcoma* ; Lung ; Muscle, Smooth ; Prognosis ; Radiotherapy ; Sarcoma ; Survival Rate

In order to investigate symptoms prevalence related to visual display terminal (VDT) syndrome, and to evaluate the variables affecting the development of the VDT syndrome, a questionnaire survey was conducted on 119 (92 men and 27 women) VDT operators who had been engaged in one plant design company in Seoul. The results were as follows : The average age of questionnaire respondents was 30. The average years of service were 4.3 years, and the working hours per day with VDT for half of them were more than 4 hours with the average being about 4.7 hours. The majority of subjects (71 persons) were working at computer aided design (CAD) or computer programming tasks. Subjective symptoms of VDT syndrome were divided into 4 groups with musculoskeletal, eye, skin, and industrial fatigue according to their major affected organ. 4 high incidence of complaints of eye discomfort was observed. In the 3 subgroups of industrial fatigue symptom, the highest average group score was accounted for by 'dullness and sleepiness', followed by 'difficulty in concentration', 'bodily projection of fatigue' in the order of sequence, suggesting the heavier mental stress of VDT work rather than physical burden. Relationship among these 4 groups of symptoms showed statistically significant correlations one another. This result suggests that VDT syndrome is a multi-organ disease composed of these 4 symptom groups which were commonly caused by the use of VDT. Multiple regression analysis were used to examine the relationship between risk factors and these symptom groups of VDT syndrome. As the result of analysis, the most important risk factor for VDT syndrome was the average daily VDT working hours. The longer was VDT working hours, the higher was symptom prevalence of VDT syndrome. In addition, daily total working hours including VDT working hours and shift of work also affected the health of VDT users. In order to protect workers from VDT syndrome, it is urgently required to implement standard management recommendations including restriction of VDT working hours and allowance of more sufficient resting time for VDT workers.
Computer-Aided Design ; Data Collection ; Fatigue ; Humans ; Incidence ; Male ; Plants ; Prevalence ; Questionnaires ; Risk Factors ; Seoul ; Skin

No abstract available.
Butterflies

Objective: Iterative reconstruction degrades image quality. Thus, further advances in image reconstruction are necessary to overcome some limitations of this technique in low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) scan of the chest. Deep-learning image reconstruction (DLIR) is a new method used to reduce dose while maintaining image quality. The purposes of this study was to evaluate image quality and noise of LDCT scan images reconstructed with DLIR and compare with those of images reconstructed with the adaptive statistical iterative reconstruction-Veo at a level of 30% (ASiR-V 30%). Materials and Methods: This retrospective study included 58 patients who underwent LDCT scan for lung cancer screening.Datasets were reconstructed with ASiR-V 30% and DLIR at medium and high levels (DLIR-M and DLIR-H, respectively). The objective image signal and noise, which represented mean attenuation value and standard deviation in Hounsfield units for the lungs, mediastinum, liver, and background air, and subjective image contrast, image noise, and conspicuity of structures were evaluated. The differences between CT scan images subjected to ASiR-V 30%, DLIR-M, and DLIR-H were evaluated. Results: Based on the objective analysis, the image signals did not significantly differ among ASiR-V 30%, DLIR-M, and DLIR-H (p = 0.949, 0.737, 0.366, and 0.358 in the lungs, mediastinum, liver, and background air, respectively). However, the noise was significantly lower in DLIR-M and DLIR-H than in ASiR-V 30% (all p < 0.001). DLIR had higher signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) than ASiR-V 30% (p = 0.027, < 0.001, and < 0.001 in the SNR of the lungs, mediastinum, and liver, respectively; all p < 0.001 in the CNR). According to the subjective analysis, DLIR had higher image contrast and lower image noise than ASiR-V 30% (all p < 0.001). DLIR was superior to ASiR-V 30% in identifying the pulmonary arteries and veins, trachea and bronchi, lymph nodes, and pleura and pericardium (all p < 0.001). Conclusion DLIR significantly reduced the image noise in chest LDCT scan images compared with ASiR-V 30% while maintaining superior image quality.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Recent studies suggest that the prevalence of erosive esophagitis (EE) is increasing in Asia. The aims of this study were to determine the prevalence of EE among outpatients visiting gastroenterology clinics of secondary and tertiary hospitals in Korea, and to analyze their symptoms. METHODS: From May to July 2003, outpatients undergoing their first upper gastrointestinal endoscopies after visiting gastroenterology clinics in secondary and tertiary hospitals in Korea were enrolled. Prevalence of EE was calculated from their endoscopic findings, and symptoms were analyzed from the validated symptom questionnaire. RESULTS: Among 4,275 cases from 24 hospitals, 506 (11.8%) had EE. Among 836 cases with predominantly typical GERD symptoms, EE was diagnosed in 140 (16.7%). Among 530 cases having predominantly typical GERD symptoms with a frequency of at least twice a week or with a significant impact on their daily lives, EE was found in 104 (19.6%). The prevalence of EE was positively associated with males irrespective of age, old aged (> or =65 years) females, predominantly typical GERD symptoms at least twice a week, and the numbers of typical GERD symptoms. The severity of GERD symptoms did not affect the prevalence of EE. The most common typical and atypical GERD symptoms in cases with EE were regurgitation and epigastric soreness, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of EE among outpatients visiting gastroenterology clinics in Korea was 11.8%. Independent factors associated with increased prevalence of EE were males irrespective of age, old aged (> or =65 years) females, number of typical GERD symptoms, and frequent typical GERD symptoms.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Child ; Data Interpretation, Statistical ; Esophagitis, Peptic/diagnosis/*epidemiology ; Female ; Gastroesophageal Reflux/diagnosis/epidemiology ; Hospitals ; Humans ; Korea ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Prospective Studies ; Questionnaires ; Risk Factors

Circumferential resection by performing endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) in the antrum can cause pyloric stenosis. Treatment with balloon dilation usually requires repeated sessions and this may cause bleeding or perforation. There are several studies regarding the treatment of benign pyloric stenosis by the temporary placement of self-expandable metallic stent (SEMS), but these studies did not include any case of pyloric stenosis caused by ESD for treating early gastric cancer (EGC). We experience a case of a man who had EGC encircling the antrum. After ESD, pyloric stenosis occurred and so a SEMS was applied. Eight weeks later, the stent was removed without complications. Stent insertion for benign pyloric stenosis has not been accepted as a standard therapeutic modality. However, continuous dilation of a stenotic lesion can be expected without major complications, except for migration. Therefore, temporary stent insertion can be considered as an alternative treatment option for benign pyloric stenosis. Further study on the long term outcome of this procedure is needed.
Hemorrhage ; Pyloric Stenosis ; Stents ; Stomach Neoplasms

BACKGROUND/AIMS: An association between past history of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection and pancreatic cancer (PC) has recently been reported. We investigated whether HBV and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections are associated with the development of PC in Korea. METHODS: We retrospectively recruited patients with PC and sex- and, age-matched control patients with stomach cancer (SC) during the previous 5 years. Serum HBsAg and anti-HCV were examined, and data on smoking, alcohol intake, diabetes, and the history of chronic pancreatitis (CP) were collected. RESULTS: A total of 506 PC and 1008 SC were enrolled, with respectively 58.1% and 97.3% of these cases being confirmed histologically. The mean age and sex ratio (male:female) were 63.5 years and 1.5:1 in the PC patients and 63.9 years and 1.5:1 in the SC patients respectively (P>0.05). The odds ratios (95% confidence interval, 95% CI) in univariate analysis were 0.90 (0.52-1.56; P=0.70) for HBsAg, 1.87 (0.87-4.01; P=0.11) for anti-HCV, 2.66 (2.04-3.48; P<0.001) for the presence of diabetes, 2.30 (1.83-2.90; P<0.001) for smoking, 1.14 (0.89-1.46; P=0.31) for alcohol intake, and 4.40 (1.66-11.66; P=0.003) for the history of CP. Independent risk factors for PC were presence of diabetes (OR, 2.67; 95% CI, 2.00-3.56; P<0.001), smoking (OR, 2.49; 95% CI, 1.93-3.21; P<0.001) and history of CP (OR, 4.60; 95% CI, 1.56-13.53; P=0.006). CONCLUSIONS: There was no significant association between seropositivity for HBsAg or anti-HCV and PC. Further studies are warranted to clarify the association between HBV infection and PC in regions where HBV is endemic.
Aged ; Case-Control Studies ; Data Interpretation, Statistical ; Female ; Hepatitis B/*complications/diagnosis ; Hepatitis C/complications/diagnosis ; Humans ; Incidence ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Odds Ratio ; Pancreatic Neoplasms/diagnosis/*epidemiology/etiology ; Retrospective Studies ; Risk Factors

Background: The Korean Society of Thoracic Radiology (KSTR) recently constructed a nation-wide coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) database and imaging repository, referred to the Korean imaging cohort of COVID-19 (KICC-19) based on the collaborative efforts of its members. The purpose of this study was to provide a summary of the clinico-epidemiological data and imaging data of the KICC-19. Methods: The KSTR members at 17 COVID-19 referral centers retrospectively collected imaging data and clinical information of consecutive patients with reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction-proven COVID-19 in respiratory specimens from February 2020 through May 2020 who underwent diagnostic chest computed tomography (CT) or radiograph in each participating hospital. Results: The cohort consisted of 239 men and 283 women (mean age, 52.3 years; age range, 11–97 years). Of the 522 subjects, 201 (38.5%) had an underlying disease. The most common symptoms were fever (n = 292) and cough (n = 245). The 151 patients (28.9%) had lymphocytopenia, 86 had (16.5%) thrombocytopenia, and 227 patients (43.5%) had an elevated CRP at admission. The 121 (23.4%) needed nasal oxygen therapy or mechanical ventilation (n = 38; 7.3%), and 49 patients (9.4%) were admitted to an intensive care unit.Although most patients had cured, 21 patients (4.0%) died. The 465 (89.1%) subjects underwent a low to standard-dose chest CT scan at least once during hospitalization, resulting in a total of 658 CT scans. The 497 subjects (95.2%) underwent chest radiography at least once during hospitalization, which resulted in a total of 1,475 chest radiographs. Conclusion The KICC-19 was successfully established and comprised of 658 CT scans and 1,475 chest radiographs of 522 hospitalized Korean COVID-19 patients. The KICC-19 will provide a more comprehensive understanding of the clinical, epidemiological, and radiologic characteristics of patients with COVID-19.