No abstract available.
Child* ; Humans ; Infant* ; Intussusception*

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the defecation pattern after discharge in stroke patients with bowel problems. METHOD: Subjects were 50 stroke patients who underwent rehabilitation program and discharged to home. The information about the defecation pattern were taken through interview or review of medical records as follows: anatomical lesion site, consciousness, admission period, operation history, co-morbidity, ambulation distance, water & food intake, assistive device use, voiding dysfunction, urine output, stool softner use, fecal incontinence, and defecation frequency. We compared the defecation frequency according to the various factors obtained from the medical records and interview. RESULT: The defecation frequency were significantly higher in patients without co-morbidily or fecal incontinence, with longer-distance ambulation, large amount of water & food intake (p<0.05). There was no significant change in the defecation frequency according to age, sex, anatomical lesion, operation history, admission period, use of assitive devices, consciousness, voiding dysfunction, or urine output (p>0.05). CONCLUSION: Considering the various factors noted above, comprehensive rehabilitation program to relieve bowel problems should be established in the rehabilitation management of stroke patients.
Consciousness ; Defecation* ; Eating ; Fecal Incontinence ; Humans ; Medical Records ; Rehabilitation ; Self-Help Devices ; Stroke* ; Walking ; Water

The short term beneficial effect of arthroscopic excision of synovial tissue in knees with rheumatoid arthritis have been well documented. The purpose of this study to report the results of synovectomy in patients with rheumatoid arthritis who have been observed at least 3 years. We analysed the clinical result with modified Laurin criteria, radiologic change and patients own satisfaction degree with survey. The results were as follows; 1. The preoperative symptoms were pain (100%), swelling (100%), decreased range of motion (83%) and joint tenderness (74%), and those were improved postoperatively to 43%, 60%, 11%, 43% each other. 2. Among the laboratory parameters, C-reactive protein (CRP) was improved most significantly (pvalue =0.026). 3. On simple supine A-P X-rays, the width of medial joint space and lateral joint space were compared to preoperatively and postoperatively. The width of medial joint space was 4.33mm preoperatively, and it was changed to 3.22mm at last follow up (p=0.032). Those of lateral joint space was changed from 4.24mm preoperatively to 3.27mm at last tollow up (p=0.106). 4. The grade of articular cartilage damage was related with severity of preoperative symptoms and the patients with low grade of articular cartilage damage showed more postoperative improvement. The result of operation was related to symptom duration, degree of X-ray change and degree of cartilage damage. 5. 58% ot patients were satisfied to results of synovectomy, 28% were answered neither satisfied nor ansatisfied and 14% were unsatisf'ied to operation. We concluded the arthroscopic synovectomy of the knee joints was effective procedure to improve the clinical symptoms, range of knee motion and to alleviate the inflammatory reaction at mid-term period al'ter the operation. So we consider this procedure is a palliative treatment that modified and alleviate the progression of rheumatoid arthritis of knee joints.
Arthritis, Rheumatoid* ; C-Reactive Protein ; Cartilage ; Cartilage, Articular ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Joints ; Knee Joint* ; Knee* ; Palliative Care ; Range of Motion, Articular

Scapholunate advanced collapse (SLAC) deformity most often occurs with chronic rotary scaphoid instability from scaphoiunate ligament tear and scaphoid fracture. Prior to 1984 when Watson HK reported his concept on SLAC wrist deformity, the most popular procedure for this pathology was scaphoid implant arthroplasty with or without midcarpal fusion. We have reviewed 15 cases of SLAC deformity treated with scaphoid excision and midcarpal fusion from 1984 to 1993. Among them, scaphoid implants made of silicone were inserted in 4 cases. Scaphoid implant arthroplsty without carpal fusion has been excluded. The mean period of follow-up was 8.8 years and the mean age of patients was 47.5 years. Males and right wrists were predominant. Wrist motion was 56% and grip power was 71% of the normal opposite side. On the average overall, 8 patients had no pain and 7 patients had mild pain. The grade of pain was minimal, 0.5 in grade (Rating system: no pain-0, mild- 1, moderate-2, severe-3). However, all of the 4 cases of limited carpal fusion with a scaphoid implant developed silicone particulate induced synovitis and pain. The procedure appears to be effective in maintaining function of the hand with minimal pain up to 5.8 years. However, silicone scaphoid implant appears not to be necessary and is not recommended with a limited carpal fusion for this pathology.
Arthroplasty ; Congenital Abnormalities ; Follow-Up Studies ; Hand ; Hand Strength ; Humans ; Ligaments ; Male ; Pathology ; Silicones ; Synovitis ; Wrist

No abstract available.
Coronary Artery Disease* ; Coronary Vessels* ; Risk Factors*

Nuclear medicine imaging has an unique advantage of absolute quantitation of radioactivity concentration in body. Tracer kinetic analysis has been known as an useful investigation methods in quantitative study of in-vivo physiological function. The use of nuclear medicine imaging and kinetic analysis together can provide more useful and powerful intuition in understanding biochemical and molecular phenomena in body. There have been many development and improvement in kinetic analysis methodologies, but the conventional basic concept of kinetic analysis is still essential and required for further advanced study using new radiopharmaceuticals and hybrid molecular imaging techniques. In this paper, the basic theory of kinetic analysis and imaging techniques for suppressing noise were summarized.
Chimera ; Imidazoles ; Intuition ; Molecular Imaging ; Nitro Compounds ; Noise ; Nuclear Medicine ; Radioactivity ; Radiopharmaceuticals ; Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon

Bilateral diaphragmatic paralysis(BDP) is a rare disorder, which can be secondary to spinal cord injury, motor neuron disease, myopathy, noninfectious polyneuropathy, infection, iced saline cardioplegia performed during cardiac surgery, or idiopathic causes. there may be typical presentations such as dyspnea, paradoxical respiratory movement, and hypercapnic respiratory failure. It needs to exclude above secondary causes to consider idiopathic bilateral diaphragmatic paralysis. We report a 51-years-old man who presented with idiopathic bilateral diaphragmatic paralysis combined with acute pancreatitis. We couldnt, find out the association of these two clinical conditions. The patient was improved by mechanical ventilation.
Dyspnea ; Heart Arrest, Induced ; Humans ; Motor Neuron Disease ; Muscular Diseases ; Pancreatitis* ; Polyneuropathies ; Respiration, Artificial ; Respiratory Insufficiency ; Respiratory Paralysis* ; Spinal Cord Injuries ; Thoracic Surgery

The nuclear receptor superfamily consists of the steroid and non-steroid hormone receptors and the orphan nuclear receptors. Small heterodimer partner (SHP) is an orphan family nuclear receptor that plays an essential role in the regulation of glucose and cholesterol metabolism. Recent studies reported a previously unidentified role for SHP in the regulation of innate immunity and inflammation. The innate immune system has a critical function in the initial response against a variety of microbial and danger signals. Activation of the innate immune response results in the induction of inflammatory cytokines and chemokines to promote anti-microbial effects. An excessive or uncontrolled inflammatory response is potentially harmful to the host, and can cause tissue damage or pathological threat. Therefore, the innate immune response should be tightly regulated to enhance host defense while preventing unwanted immune pathologic responses. In this review, we discuss recent studies showing that SHP is involved in the negative regulation of toll-like receptor-induced and NLRP3 (NACHT, LRR and PYD domains-containing protein 3)-mediated inflammatory responses in innate immune cells. Understanding the function of SHP in innate immune cells will allow us to prevent or modulate acute and chronic inflammation processes in cases where dysregulated innate immune activation results in damage to normal tissues.
Chemokines ; Child ; Child, Orphaned ; Cholesterol ; Cytokines ; Glucose ; Humans ; Immune System ; Immunity, Innate ; Inflammasomes ; Inflammation ; Metabolism ; Orphan Nuclear Receptors ; Social Control, Formal ; Toll-Like Receptors

OBJECTIVES: The dysfunctional neural networks underlying self-evaluation in schizophrenia are overlapped with the neural structures involved in emotion regulation. The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of anhedonia on the self-evaluation attitude of patients with schizophrenia. METHODS: Twenty healthy controls and twenty patients with schizophrenia performed a self-evaluation task, presenting a pair of the face (self, familiar other, and unfamiliar other) and word (negative, neutral, and positive noun) at the same time. Participants were asked to evaluate relevance between the pairs by pressing a corresponding button. Relevance rating scores were compared between the groups and were correlated with the severity of physical and social anhedonia. RESULTS: Patients evaluated the condition of a self face with a negative word and a familiar face with a negative word to be more relevant than healthy controls. In the patient group, the scores of relevance rating in the condition of an unfamiliar other face with a negative word were positively correlated with the anhedonia scale scores (physical : r=0.486, p=0.030 ; social : r=0.499, p=0.025). There was no correlation between the self-evaluation attitude and the severity of anhedonia. CONCLUSION: Patients with schizophrenia evaluate themselves badly in only negative circumstances, and anhedonia is not related to self-evaluation, but rather other-evaluation.
Anhedonia* ; Diagnostic Self Evaluation ; Humans ; Schizophrenia*

The reliability of emergency ultrasonographic(US) detection of hemoperitoneum and solid organ injury in blunt abdominal trauma was evaluated retrospectively. From October 1,1995 to August 31,1996,90 patients were included in the study. Ultra- sonographic findings showed a sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of 97.6%, 97.9%, and 98.1%, respectively, in detecting intraabdominal fluid collection. We believe that US in an emergency center is a quick, safe screening method in the evaluation of blunt abdominal trauma. In our department, US has replaced diagnostic peritonaeal lavage(DPL) and computed tomography(CT) as the screening study of first choice.
Emergencies* ; Hemoperitoneum* ; Humans ; Mass Screening ; Retrospective Studies ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Ultrasonography*