Generalized narrowing of the retinal vessels has been recognized for glaucomatous and nonglaucomatous optic neuropathies. To evaluate how closely peripapillary retinal vessel diameters were related to functional and structural optic nerve damage in primary open-angle glaucoma, the data of the vessel diameters were correlated with intra- and peripapillary morphometric parameters and visual field indices. The diameters of the superior temporal and inferior temporal retinal artery and vein were measured at the opticdisc border from optic disc photographs of 234 eyes of 141 patients with primary open-angle glaucoma and 139 eyes of 86 normal subjects. Only one eye per patient and subject was taken for statistical analysis. The diameters of the inferior temporal and superior temporal retinal artery were significantly correlated with the intrapapillary parameters, the peripapillary parameters and the visual field indices. The correlation coefficients were highest for the neuroretinal rim data (r>0.37, p=0.0001), followed by mean deviation, vertical cup to disc ratios, whereas total peripapillary atrophy data, zone beta and zone alpha data were relatively low. Concerning the vessel diameter, the highest correlation coefficients were calculated for the inferior temporal artery, followed by the superior temporal artery. No correlation was found with age and refraction. The results indicate that, in primary open-angle glaucoma, the vessel diameter redduces with decreasing area of the neuroretinal rim, increasing visual field defects and increasing peripapillary atrophy. Its evaluation can be helpful for the diagnosis of glaucoma and possibly also for follow-up.
Atrophy ; Diagnosis ; Glaucoma ; Glaucoma, Open-Angle ; Humans ; Optic Nerve Diseases ; Optic Nerve* ; Retinal Artery ; Retinal Vessels* ; Retinaldehyde* ; Temporal Arteries ; Veins ; Visual Fields

We present a case of severe intracranial hypotension syndrome following lumbar drainage. A 60-year-old woman developed recurrent attacks of vertigo, nausea and vomiting a week prior to admission. Brain MRI revealed a homogeneously well-enhanced mass in the right frontal lobe ; this was found to be a meningioma, and was totally removed. Dural defect was covered with fat and fascia, and postoperative cerebrospinal fluid(CSF) leakage through the frontal sinus was noted. Lumbar drainage was initiated, and about 36 hours later, the patient complained of bouts of headache, nausea and vomiting. Her mental state then gradually deteriorated, and she became stuporous. Brain CT was performed immediately and revealed bifrontal subdural fluid collection and signs of severe brain edema including obliteration of ventricles and basal cisterns. The lumbar drain was then clamped and she regained consciousness 12 hours later. This case clearly demonstrates that to avoid complications such as severe intracranial hypotension syndrome in a patient who has undergone lumbar drainage, the rate and amount of CSF drainage should be closely monitored.
Brain ; Brain Edema ; Consciousness ; Drainage* ; Fascia ; Female ; Frontal Lobe ; Frontal Sinus ; Headache ; Humans ; Intracranial Hypotension* ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Meningioma ; Middle Aged ; Nausea ; Stupor ; Vertigo ; Vomiting

To confirm the value of the peripapillary atrophy(PPA) for the diagnosis and follow-up of patients with glaucoma, we performed magnification-corrected morphometry of photographs of 234 eyes of 141 patients with primary open-angle glaucoma and 139 eyes of 86 normal subjects. For the data analysis, only one eye of each patient was randomly selected. Both groups did not differ significantly in age. refractive error and disc area. According to the neuroretinal rim/disc area ratio, the glaucoma group was divided into four stages(1; more than 0.61, 2; 0.60~0.41, 3; 0.40~0.21, 4; less than 0.20). PPA differentiated into two different zones(alpha and beta). Zone alpha(0.76+/-0.55mm2 vs 0.47+/-0.32mm2) and zone beta(0.50+/-0.63mm2 vs 0.06+/-0.15mm2) and the total PPA(1.26+/-0.97mm2 vs 0.54+/-0.38mm2) were significantly larger(p=0.0001), and zone beta occurred more often(59.5% vs 17.4%, P=0.0001) in the glaucoma group than in the normal group. The area, angular extent and width of both zones enlarged significantly with increasing stage of glaucoma. The frequency of zone beta increased with advancing stage of glaucoma. These findings suggest that both zone alpha and beta increase continuously with advancing neural rim damage. Therefore, the PPA is useful for the diagnosis and progression of glaucomatous nerve damage.
Atrophy* ; Diagnosis ; Follow-Up Studies ; Glaucoma ; Glaucoma, Open-Angle* ; Humans ; Refractive Errors ; Statistics as Topic

No abstract available.
Humans ; Mucocutaneous Lymph Node Syndrome*

No abstract available.
Atrial Natriuretic Factor* ; Humans* ; Lymph Nodes* ; Polymerase Chain Reaction*

Purpose: The aim of this study was (1) to compare the reverse engineering technique with other existing measurement methods and (2) to analyze the effect of implant angulations and impression coping types on implant impression accuracy with reverse engineering technique. Materials and methods: Three different master models were fabricated and the distance between the two implant center points in parallel master model was measured with different three methods; digital caliper measurement (Group DC), optical measuring (Group OM), and reverse engineering technique (Group RE). The 90 experimental models were fabricated with three types of impression copings for the three different implant angulation and the angular and distance error rate were calculated. One-way ANOVA was used for comparison among the evaluation methods (P < .05). The error rates of experimental groups were analyzed by two-way ANOVA (P < .05). Results: While there was significant difference between Group DC and RE (P < .05), Group OM had no significant difference compared with other groups (P > .05). The standard deviations in reverse engineering were much lower than those of digital caliper and optical measurement. Hybrid groups had no significant difference from the pick-up groups in distance error rates (P > .05). Conclusion The reverse engineering technique demonstrated its potential as an evaluation technique of 3D accuracy of impression techniques.

Purpose: The aim of this study was (1) to compare the reverse engineering technique with other existing measurement methods and (2) to analyze the effect of implant angulations and impression coping types on implant impression accuracy with reverse engineering technique. Materials and methods: Three different master models were fabricated and the distance between the two implant center points in parallel master model was measured with different three methods; digital caliper measurement (Group DC), optical measuring (Group OM), and reverse engineering technique (Group RE). The 90 experimental models were fabricated with three types of impression copings for the three different implant angulation and the angular and distance error rate were calculated. One-way ANOVA was used for comparison among the evaluation methods (P < .05). The error rates of experimental groups were analyzed by two-way ANOVA (P < .05). Results: While there was significant difference between Group DC and RE (P < .05), Group OM had no significant difference compared with other groups (P > .05). The standard deviations in reverse engineering were much lower than those of digital caliper and optical measurement. Hybrid groups had no significant difference from the pick-up groups in distance error rates (P > .05). Conclusion The reverse engineering technique demonstrated its potential as an evaluation technique of 3D accuracy of impression techniques.

PURPOSE: Response time is an important factor in determining the quality of prehospital Emergency Medical Services (EMS). Our objective was to analyze the Daegu Korean Fire Department's ambulances' response time by use of the Geographic Information System (GIS) and to suggest general factors for quality improvement of EMS. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed computerized ambulance calls of the Daegu Korean Fire Department. During the period from July 2006 to June 2007, computerized ambulance calls could be pinpointed geographically by the GIS. Patients were divided into injury and disease groups. And each group was subdivided into emergency and non-emergency groups at triage. We reviewed the EMS response time, response velocity, distance from 119 safe center to scene, and distance from scene to hospital. RESULTS: Of 46,606 patients, 27,825 patients could be pinpointed geographically by the GIS. The mean response time was 5.5+/-18.9 minutes. Among injury patients, there were no significant differences between emergency and non-emergency groups in mean response time and mean response velocity. In disease patients, however, emergency group response time was shorter than for the non-emergency group, and response velocity was faster for the emergency group. Distance from 119 safe center to scene and from scene to hospital was greater among all total patients for the emergency group than for the non-emergency group. CONCLUSION: Using GIS, we evaluated response velocity as a measure of the quality of prehospital EMS. We found that in injury patients, prehospital triage and transportation were not properly managed. We suggests that EMS could be more effective if GIS is used as a tool for the improvement of EMS quality.
Ambulances ; Emergencies ; Emergency Medical Services ; Fires ; Geographic Information Systems ; Humans ; Quality Improvement ; Reaction Time ; Retrospective Studies ; Transportation ; Triage

PURPOSE: To determine changes in the square index of the liver segments of liver cirrhosis(LC) patients, as seen on CT, and the value of this indicator during follow-up. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Twenty-three patients with LC were included in this study. Abdominal CT scans were performed twice in each patient and the mean follow-up period was 15 (6-36) months. We measured the square index of the right lobe, the caudate lobe, and the medial and lateral segment of the left lobe of the liver, as seen on initial and follow-up CT images, and compared the results. The square index was obtained by deter-mining the product of the transverse and longitudinal diameters. According to the Child-Pugh classification, the condition was classified as either progressive or non-progressive, and the square index was compared between the two groups. RESULTS: The square index of the left lobe medial segment showed a significant decrease in both the progression group(n=13) and non-progression group(n=10), while that of the right lobe was significantly lower only in the progression group. There was no significant change in the square index of the caudate lobe or the lateral segment of the left lobe. CONCLUSION: For predicting the progression of LC, the square index of the medial segment of the left lobe is a more sensitive index than the Child-Pugh classification. For ascertaining the progression of the condition, the square index of the right lobe is a valuable deferminant.
Classification ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Liver ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed

No abstract available.