A ventriculo-peritoneal shunt is a standard surgical management for hydrocephalus, but complications may impede the management of this disease. Obstruction of the catheter is one of the most common complications and manifests clinically in various ways. Intraparenchymal cyst development after shunt malfunction has been reported by several authors, but the underlying mechanism and optimal treatment methods are debatable. The authors report a case of intraparenchymal cyst formation around a proximal catheter in a premature infant after a ventriculo-peritoneal shunt and discuss its pathogenesis and management.
Catheters ; Humans ; Hydrocephalus ; Infant, Newborn ; Infant, Premature ; Ventriculoperitoneal Shunt

Background and Objectives: A mobile application (app)-based electrocardiogram (ECG) consultation system (InterMD Co., Ltd., Seoul, Korea) using the collective intelligence (CI) and the availability of large-scale digitized ECG data would extend the utility of ECGs beyond their current limitations, while at the same time preserving interpretability that remains critical to medical decision-making. Methods: We developed a new mobile app-based ECG consultation system by CI for general practitioners. We compared the responses of ECG reading between the mobile app-based CI system and the conventional system in a tertiary referring hospital. Results: We analyzed 376 consecutive ECGs between December 2017 and May 2019. Of these, 159 ECGs (42.3%) were interpreted by CI through the mobile app-based ECG consultation system and 217 ECGs (57.7%) were analyzed by cardiologists in the conventional systems based on electronic medical record data in a tertiary hospital. All ECG readings were confirmed by an electrophysiologist (EP). The time to an initial response by the CI system was faster than that of the conventional system (6.6 hours vs. 35.8 hours, p<0.0001). The number of responses of each ECG in CI system outnumbered those of the conventional system in the tertiary hospital (3.1 vs. 1.2, p<0.0001). The consensus of the ECG readings with EP was similar in both systems (98.6% vs. 100%, p=0.158). Conclusions The mobile app-based ECG consultation system by CI is as reliable method as the conventional referral system. It would expand the app of the 12-lead ECG with the collaboration of physicians in clinics and hospitals without time and space constraints.

Background and Objectives: A mobile application (app)-based electrocardiogram (ECG) consultation system (InterMD Co., Ltd., Seoul, Korea) using the collective intelligence (CI) and the availability of large-scale digitized ECG data would extend the utility of ECGs beyond their current limitations, while at the same time preserving interpretability that remains critical to medical decision-making. Methods: We developed a new mobile app-based ECG consultation system by CI for general practitioners. We compared the responses of ECG reading between the mobile app-based CI system and the conventional system in a tertiary referring hospital. Results: We analyzed 376 consecutive ECGs between December 2017 and May 2019. Of these, 159 ECGs (42.3%) were interpreted by CI through the mobile app-based ECG consultation system and 217 ECGs (57.7%) were analyzed by cardiologists in the conventional systems based on electronic medical record data in a tertiary hospital. All ECG readings were confirmed by an electrophysiologist (EP). The time to an initial response by the CI system was faster than that of the conventional system (6.6 hours vs. 35.8 hours, p<0.0001). The number of responses of each ECG in CI system outnumbered those of the conventional system in the tertiary hospital (3.1 vs. 1.2, p<0.0001). The consensus of the ECG readings with EP was similar in both systems (98.6% vs. 100%, p=0.158). Conclusions The mobile app-based ECG consultation system by CI is as reliable method as the conventional referral system. It would expand the app of the 12-lead ECG with the collaboration of physicians in clinics and hospitals without time and space constraints.

Sparganosis is not a common disease. Uncooked snake or frog, infected water and fresh water fish are the usual important source of sparganosis. Most cases of sparganosis are found in subcutaneous or adipose tissue of the abdominal and thoracic wall, and also in the inguinal inguinal regions, but the lesions are rarely found in the breast. We experienced 2 cases of sparganosis in the breast of a 69-year-old female & in the breast of a 37-year-old female. Among them, the 37-year-old female had a history of drinking impure water. The diagnosis was confirmed by surgical excision of the mass, and the plain mammography showed the characteristic finding of an irregular shaped, heterogenous mass lesion. We report here on this case and we briefly review the related literature.
Adipose Tissue ; Adult ; Aged ; Breast ; Diagnosis ; Drinking ; Female ; Fresh Water ; Humans ; Mammography ; Snakes ; Sparganosis* ; Thoracic Wall ; Water

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to compare the efficacy of dexpanthenol in postoperative patients. Dexpanthenol, the alcohol derivative of pantothenic acid, is believed to be a precursor of acetylcholine through its incorporation into coenzyme-A. METHODS: From June 2005 to December 2005, 130 curative abdominal surgery, which were divided into a dexpanthenol group with 65 patients and a control group with 65 patients, were prospectively and randomly studied for recovery of bowel motility. RESULTS: No significant difference was found between the two groups as to incidence of postoperative ileus (16.9% vs. 15.4%, P=0.081), the time to flatus (77.2+/-38.4 vs. 77.9+/-31.9 hours, P=0.90), the time to defecation (5.3+/-2.7 vs. 5.1+/-2.6 days, P=0.77), the time to resumption of meals (7.9+/-4.0 vs. 8.9+/-4.2 days, P=0.17), and the duration of hospital stay (16.4+/-7.8 vs. 17.9+/-11.5 days, P=0.39). CONSLUSIONS: Since no differences in the postoperative bowel motility were observed between the two groups, dexpanthenol is not recommended for general surgical use.
Acetylcholine ; Defecation ; Flatulence ; Humans ; Ileus ; Incidence ; Length of Stay ; Meals ; Pantothenic Acid ; Prospective Studies

In order to evaluate the cytogenetic hazard among hospital workers potentially exposed to low dose of radiation, the analysis of chromosome aberrations(CA) and sister chromatid exchanges(SCE) in lymphocytes were performed in 79 hospital workers and 79 non-exposed workers. The mean frequency of chromosomal exchange and deletion(respectively, 0.20X10-2/cell and 0.39X10(-2)/cell) in the exposed group were significantly higher than those(0.07X10(-2)/cell and 0.23X10-2/cell) in control group. The frequency of sister chromatid exchanges was 5.04/cell in the control vs. 6.57/cell in the exposed group. There were also significant differences in the mean frequencies of CA and SCE adjusted for age, sex, smoking, drinking between two groups. There were no evidence of significant increase of CA and SCE according to the department or duration of employment. But the frequency of cells having chromosome aberration was significantly higher in the exposed group than in the control group related to duration of employment. There was no dose-effect relationship between the cumulative doses and the frequency of CA and SCE. But in the case of last 1 yr cumulative dose, there were evidence of significant dose-dependant increase of chromosome type CA and percentage of cells with aberration. The result suggest that there is cytogenetic hazard in risk group like hospital workers handling low dose radiation. And the analysis CA and SCE are useful biological indicators for the exposure of low dose level of radiation.
Chromatids ; Chromosome Aberrations* ; Cytogenetics ; Drinking ; Employment ; Humans ; Lymphocytes ; Siblings* ; Sister Chromatid Exchange* ; Smoke ; Smoking

In patients with type 2 diabetes, oxidative stress could be increased by their metabolic changes. Elevated plasma homocysteine is considered as one of markers of enhanced oxidative stress. Due to oxidative stress, some complications like cardiovascular or renal diseases may develop in type 2 diabetes patients. Plasma homocysteine concentration may be increased if folate status were inadequate. Protective effects against oxidative stress may be diminished if the status of anti-oxidative nutrient as vitamin C was poor. It is, therefore, important to maintain adequate status of folate and vitamin C in type 2 diabetes patients. Thus, this study was performed to determine the effects of supplementation of folate and/or ascorbate on blood glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) level, serum concentrations of homocysteine and cholesterol, plasma oxidized low density-lipoprotein (LDL), concentration and plasma glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activity in the patients with type 2 diabetes. A total of 92 type 2 diabetes patients participated voluntarily with written consents. They were divided into one of the four experimental groups; Control (C), Folate-supplemented (F), Ascorbate-supplemented (A), and Folate plus ascorbate-supplemented (FA). The subjects in C were taken placebo, those in F were supplemented 1 mg of folate, those in A received 1,000 mg of ascorbate, and those in FA were given 1 mg of folate plus 1,000 mg of ascorbate daily for 4 weeks. Supplementation of folate or ascorbate resulted to increase serum folate level or plasma ascorbate concentration apparently, respectively. Folate supplementation not ascorbate seemed to decrease plasma concentrations of homocysteine and oxidized LDL and reduce plasma GSH-Px activity. There might not be synergic effect of the supplementation of folate plus ascorbate. The results indicate that oxidative stress in the patients with type 2 diabetes may lower mainly by folate supplementation.
Ascorbic Acid ; Cholesterol ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 ; Folic Acid ; Glutathione Peroxidase ; Hemoglobins ; Homocysteine ; Humans ; Lipoproteins, LDL ; Oxidative Stress ; Plasma

Almost all reported incidences of herpes simplex virus (HSV) infection in newborns result as a complication of rupture of the amniotic membranes or the delivery of the baby, but infection via the placenta and amniotic membranes is rare. Ventriculomegaly was detected at 36 weeks of gestation by prenatal ultrasonography, and an emergency cesarean section was then performed at 36 weeks of gestation. We report a case of herpes simplex encephalitis detected at 36 weeks of gestation by prenatal ultrasonography, which was confirmed by a postnatal serologic test and CSF test with a brief review of literature.
Amnion ; Cesarean Section ; Emergencies ; Encephalitis, Herpes Simplex* ; Female ; Herpes Simplex* ; Humans ; Incidence ; Infant, Newborn ; Placenta ; Pregnancy ; Pregnancy Trimester, Third* ; Rupture ; Serologic Tests ; Simplexvirus ; Ultrasonography* ; Ultrasonography, Prenatal