The authors described a case of male schizophrenia who developed myoclonic jerk repeatedly and one episode of convulsive seizure during the treatment of clozapine. According to literatures and reported cases, myoclonic jerks induced in a small amount of clozapine may precede and predict the development of a convulsive seizure. Therefore clinicians have to pay attention to the development of a myoclonic jerk during the administration of clozapine. They may decrease the dosage of clozapine step by step at first in the convulsive state, and observe EEG changes of patients frequently.
Clozapine* ; Electroencephalography ; Humans ; Male ; Myoclonus ; Schizophrenia ; Seizures*

No abstract available.
Pregnancy*

[Background] Over the last thirty years, majority of researches on clinical effectiveness of acupuncture have been explanatory (or experimental) randomized controlled trial. The benefits of acupuncture in clinical trials are stillcontroversial and most studies concluded that further control studies were required. Standardized combinations of acupuncture points for all the experimental subjects in various past studies have been criticized because such treatments do not reflect current routine clinical treatment.
[Objective] This paper aims to review pragmatic clinical trials on the effect of acupuncture treatment and to develop the ideal clinical research methodology of acupuncture study.
[Method] Clinical studies of acupuncture relevant with pragmatic or individualized trials were searched mainly in Pubmed and Science direct databases. All articles were fully reviewed by researchers, and data were evaluated by usage of a standardized form.
[Results & Suggestion] Pragmatic acupuncture researches were tried for various symptoms (eg. low back pain, hypertension, depression during pregnancy, sleep quality in HIV disease, chronic poststroke leg spasticity, headache, etc). Individualized acupuncture treatments based on oriental disease pattern diagnosis reflexes practical treatments which is more effective than unified and fixed acupuncture treatments without any theoretical basis of oriental medical philosophy.
[Conclusion] To overcome the controversies and limitations of past explanatory acupuncture trials, more individualized and tailored acupuncture trials with the theoretical basis of oriental medical diagnosis is highly recommended. Also clear definition and categorization of pattern identification should be established for further active clinical researches and applications of acupuncture.

PURPOSE: We assessed our laparoscopic experiences for the children with nonpalpable testis to evaluated the advantages of performing laparoscopy and we suggest a surgical management guideline for them. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of a total of 83 children (97 testes) who underwent diagnostic laparoscopy for nonpalpable testes. We analyzed the surgical decisions and outcomes according to the laparoscopic findings. RESULTS: On the laparoscopic examination, 48 (49.5%) testes were located in the abdominal cavity. We subsequently performed inguinal orchiopexy (28), laparoscopic orchiopexy (8), Fowler-Stephens orchiopexy (10, one or two stage), or orchiectomy (2). The other 40 (41.2%) were suspected to be testicular nubbin, and we managed this by excision of the testicular nubbin by the inguinal (29) or scrotal (10) approach, except for one viable testis in the inguinal canal. When blind-ending vessels were observed, we stopped the procedure under the diagnosis of vanishing testis in 9 cases (9.3%). The testicular survival rates were 92.6% (25/27) for inguinal orchiopexy, 100% (8/8) for laparoscopic orchiopexy and 60% (6/10) for Fowler-Stephen orchiopexy. CONCLUSIONS: We preferred laparoscopic orchiopexy for treating intraabdominal testis when the location was > or=2.5cm from the internal ring. When the testicular location was closer to the internal ring, we recommend inguinal orchiopexy as a viable option. In cases with high riding testis or very short internal spermatic vessels, we recommend Fowler-Stephens orchiopexy. For the suspected testicular nubbin, we preferred trans-scrotal excision when the nubbin was identified in the scrotum. Otherwise, we recommend inguinal exploration.
Abdominal Cavity ; Child ; Diagnosis* ; Humans ; Inguinal Canal ; Laparoscopy ; Medical Records ; Orchiectomy ; Orchiopexy ; Retrospective Studies ; Scrotum ; Survival Rate ; Testis*

Tinea incognito is a dermatophytosis of atypical clinical character due to the absence of classic features of ringworm. It is caused by prolonged use of topical or systemic corticosteroids, sometimes prescribed as a result of incorrect diagnosis. We report a case of tinea incognito presented like furunculosis on the chin. The patient had been treated with topical and oral corticosteroid under the impression of atopic dermatitis for 3 years for the eczematous lesion on the face and trunk. Mycologic studies including KOH mount and fungus culture were positive for hyphae and colonies of Trichophyton rubrum. Skin biopsy showed fungal hyphae in follicular keratinous plug and diffuse dermal and perifollicular inflammation. The lesion was treated with terbinafine systemically and cured 3 months later.
Adrenal Cortex Hormones ; Biopsy ; Chin ; Dermatitis, Atopic ; Fungi ; Furunculosis ; Humans ; Hyphae ; Inflammation ; Keratins ; Naphthalenes ; Skin ; Tinea ; Trichophyton

OBJECTIVE: To establish size ranges of normal fetal kidneys by ultrasonogram during pregnancy. METHODS: The A-P diameter and length of each of 450 kidneys in 225 consecutive fetuses between 19 and 41 weeks of gestation were measured on sonogram from March to August 2001 in Samsung Medical Center. Gestational ages were determined by last menstrual period and Crown-Rump Lengths of early stage of pregnancy. Abnormal fetuses, twins, offspring of diabetic mothers, and fetuses with renal pelvic dilatation of 5 mm or greater were excluded to avoid any questionable measurements. RESULTS: The results showed normal distribution and results were similar to previous reports. There was a strong correlation between fetal renal size and gestational age, but no significant difference between right and left renal sizes in fetuses. Average A-P diameter and renal lengths were significantly different when compared across the range of gestational ages (p<.001). CONCLUSION: As long as we know, this was the first report of size of the normal fetal kidney sonographically during pregnancy in Korea. We think that these results can be used to detect abnormality of fetal kidney and to estimate uncertain gestational age.
Crown-Rump Length ; Dilatation ; Fetus ; Gestational Age ; Humans ; Kidney* ; Korea ; Mothers ; Pregnancy ; Ultrasonography*

PURPOSE: Gastric cancer surgery is a common operation in East Asia, such as Korea and Japan, and there has been a significant increase in the need for this procedure due to the aging population. As a result, surgery for the treatment of gastric cancer for elderly patients is expected to increase. This study examined the effect of old age on gastric cancer surgery, and analyzed the operative risk factors for elderly patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From November 2008 to August 2010, 590 patients, who underwent a curative resection for gastric cancers, were enrolled. Patients who underwent palliative or emergency surgery were excluded. A retrospective analysis of the correlation between surgical outcomes and age was performed. The elderly were defined as patients who were over the age of 65 years. RESULTS: The mean age of all patients was 58.3 years, and complications occurred in 87 cases (14.7%). The most common complication was wound infection and severe complications requiring surgical, endoscopic, or radiologic intervention developed in 52 cases (8.8%). The rate of complications increased with increasing age of the patients. Univariate analysis revealed age, comorbidity, extent of resection, operation time, and combined resection to be associated with surgical complications. In particular, age over 75 years old, operation time, and comorbidity were predictive factors in multivariate analysis. In the elderly, only comorbidity was associated with surgical complications. CONCLUSIONS: The patients' age is the most important factor for predicting surgical complications. Surgeons should pay an attention to the performance of gastric cancer surgery on elderly patients. In particular, it must be performed carefully for elderly patients with a comorbidity.
Aged ; Aging ; Comorbidity ; Emergencies ; Far East ; Gastrectomy ; Humans ; Japan ; Korea ; Multivariate Analysis ; Retrospective Studies ; Risk Factors ; Stomach Neoplasms ; Wound Infection

Insulinomas are the most common type of islet cell tumor. Generally, these tumors are benign (90%), intrapancreatic, solitary, and small. Moreover, hyperinsulinemia in infants and children can result in permanent damage to the central nervous system. Thus, early diagnosis and treatment are important. The principal challenge during anesthesia is the avoidance of hypoglycemia, which may occur during tumor manipulation, though hyperglycemia may follow after successful surgical removal of the tumor. Because symptoms of hypoglycemia (systemic hypertension, tachycardia, diaphoresis) may be masked during anesthesia, it is important to monitor blood glucose levels frequently during the perioperative period. Here we report up on the case of a 3 year old female with insulinoma. We monitored blood glucose levels intermittently (about every 15 minutes) using a glucometer (Medisense Optium, Abbott, USA). No hypoglycemic episode occurred during anesthesia. We report this clinical experience and review anesthetic choices and the management of this patient.
Adenoma, Islet Cell ; Anesthesia ; Blood Glucose ; Central Nervous System ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Early Diagnosis ; Female ; Humans ; Hyperglycemia ; Hyperinsulinism ; Hypertension ; Hypoglycemia ; Infant ; Insulinoma* ; Isoflurane ; Masks ; Pancreas ; Perioperative Period ; Tachycardia

BACKGROUND: For the diagnosis of tuberculosis (TB), a variety of tests based on the patients' immune response has been introduced. We evaluated the clinical usefulness of combined anti-tuberculosis antibody (anti-TB Ab) test and Interferon-gamma release assay (IGRA), evaluating humoral and cellular immune response to Mycobacterium tuberculosis, respectively. METHODS: Among patients tested for IGRA, 78 patients diagnosed as TB and treated with anti-TB drug and 80 non-TB patients were included in this study. We used QuantiFERON-TB GOLD (QFT, Cellestis limited, Australia) for IGRA and an immunochromatographic assay, Easy Test TB (ASAN PHARM, Korea), for anti-TB Ab test. RESULTS: The sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values of Easy Test TB were 23.1%, 98.8%, 94.7% and 56.8%, respectively. QFT had a significantly higher sensitivity than Easy Test TB (67.9% vs. 23.1%; P<0.05). The agreement between the two assays was poor (69.6%, k=0.190). Of the 18 cases with positive Easy Test TB, six (33%) showed negative QFT results. The combination of Easy Test TB and QFT had a significantly higher sensitivity than single QFT (75.6%, vs. 67.9%; P=0.031). CONCLUSIONS: The combination of Easy Test TB and QFT could be used to aid in a rapid diagnosis and early treatment of TB.
Humans ; Immunity, Cellular ; Immunochromatography ; Interferon-gamma ; Interferon-gamma Release Tests ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Tuberculosis

BACKGROUND: There is a clinical need for a simpler measurement of global cardiac function incorporating elements of both systole and diastole. Doppler time index is theoretically regarded as a sensitive index of global left ventricular perfomance and defined as the sum of isovolumetric contraction time (IVCT) and isovolumetric relaxation time (IVRT) divided by ejection time (ET). This study was designed to determine the clinical usefulness of the Doppler time index in patients with left ventricular diastolic dysfunction as well as systolic dysfunction. METHODS: The study population consisted of 23 patients with hypertension as a diastolic dysfunction group, 16 patients with low ejection fraction as a systolic dysfunction group and 31 subjects with normal LV function. The ejection fraction (EF) was measured using M-mode echocardiography. Doppler profiles such as IVCT, IVRT and ET were obtained from Doppler echocardiography. The Doppler time index [ (IVCT+RT)/ET] was calculated from each Doppler velocity profiles. RESULTS: IVRT, IVRT/ET and (IVCT+VRT)/ET were significantly increased in the diastolic dysfunction group (120.5+/-19.5 msec, 0.45+/-0.1, 0.64+/-0.2, respectively:p<0.001, p<0.001, p<0.001, respectively) compared with normal subjects (66.1+/-17.4 msec, 0.25+/-0.0, 0.41+/-0.1). IVCT and IVRT were significantly increased and ET was significantly shortened in systolic dysfunction group (75.4+/-25.7, 144.0+/-39.5 msec, 242.7+/-46.5 msec respectively:p<0.001, p<0.05, p<0.05, respectively) compared with diastolic dysfunction group (50.4+/-23.0 msec, 120.5+/-19.5 msec, 276.8+/-44.6 msec, respectively). IVCT/ET, IVRT/ET and (IVCT+IVRT)/ET also were increased in patients with systolic dysfunction group (0.32+/-0.1, 0.61+/-0.2, 0.93+/-0.2 respectively:p<0.01, p<0.01, p<0.001, res-pectively) compared with diastolic dysfunction group (0.19+/-0.1, 0.45+/-0.1, 0.64+/-0.2). Ejection fraction calculated by M-mode parameters was significantly correlated with (IVCT+IVRT)/ET (correlation coefficient - 0.605, p<0.001). CONCLUSION: The Doppler time index was significantly difficient from normal subjects in patients with isolated LV diastolic dysfunction as well as in those with systolic dysfunction. Thus, this index can be used as a sensitive indicator of myocardial performance.
Diastole ; Echocardiography ; Echocardiography, Doppler ; Humans ; Hypertension ; Relaxation ; Systole ; Ventricular Dysfunction, Left