Sensorineural hearing loss is one of the most common chronic clinical disorders that we can easily encounter. The etiology of sensorineural hearing loss is multifactorial: congenital, idiopathic, traumatic, noise-induced, head injury induced, infectious disease, drug induced, degenerative, immune disorder, vestibular schwannoma and Meniere's disease. Many people are living with the discomfort of hearing loss because fundamental treatment is has not yet been found. Also due to the progress of medical science, human life span has been extended. As the result, the number of patients suffering from hearing loss has increased. But the present situation does not measure up to the demand for recovery of hearing loss. Hearing loss has a great influence on the quality of life. To overcome this situation, neural prostheses such as the cochlear implant and auditory brainstem implant are helpful for the rehabilitation of total deaf patients. Recently, due to the advancement of studies related to hair cell regeneration and the field of gene therapy on the inner ear has made big progress during the last few years. The purpose of this study is to describe the latest known causes and rehabilitation of sensorineural hearing loss.
Auditory Brain Stem Implants ; Cochlear Implants ; Communicable Diseases ; Correction of Hearing Impairment ; Craniocerebral Trauma ; Ear, Inner ; Genetic Therapy ; Hair ; Hearing Loss ; Hearing Loss, Sensorineural* ; Hearing* ; Humans ; Immune System Diseases ; Meniere Disease ; Neural Prostheses ; Neuroma, Acoustic ; Quality of Life ; Regeneration ; Rehabilitation*

No abstract available.
Hearing Loss, Sensorineural*

BACKGROUND : The purpose of this study was to determine whether the Billroth I method using an EEA stapler is safe, reliable, and easy-to-use for treatment of gastric cancer compared with a distal gastrectomy with conventional manual anastomosis. METHODS : A prospective comparative study was performed between forty patients with EEA stapling and thirty patients with manual suturing during gastroduodenostomies performed during the past three years with respect to operation time, diameter of anastomosis, postoperative clinical course, and post operative complications. RESULTS : The operation time was significantly shortened by about 50 minutes on the average, in the cases where the EEA stapler was used (p<0.001). On postoperative hypotonic duodenography, the diameter of the anastomosis was significantly larger in the cases where the EEA stapler was used (p< 0.001). However, the postoperative clinical course showed no difference between the two groups. Complications, such as anastomotic stenosis and anastomotic leak age were noted only in the cases where manual suturing was used. CONCLUSIONS : A gastroduodenostomy using the EEA stapler might be a faster, simpler and safer pro cedure compared with the gastroduodenostomy using the conventional manual anastomosis.
Anastomotic Leak ; Bezafibrate ; Constriction, Pathologic ; Gastrectomy* ; Gastroenterostomy* ; Humans ; Prospective Studies ; Stomach Neoplasms ; Stomach*

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Supracricoid partial laryngectomy (SCPL), one of the conservative techniques for supraglottic laryngectomy, can be used to control advanced laryngeal cancers extending to paraglottic space, thyroid cartilage with or without epiglottis and preepiglottic space. This procedure can preserve physiologically phonatory and swallowing function, and achieve similar local control rates as total laryngectomy but voice quality is somewhat less efficient than that of normal speakers. Authors evaluated prospectively speech and voice parameters for efficiency of phonation in patients treated with SCPL for recurrent laryngeal carcinoma after primary radiotherapy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Authors compared 5 male patients who underwent SCPL with 8 normal subjects of the same age. RESULTS: No significant difference of phonatory function was found between subjects before or 3 to 6 months after the operation. However, MPT, C/B, jitter and shimmer were significantly different between the normal and post-operative 3 months group (p<0.05) and jitter and shimmer between the normal and post-operative 6 months group (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: All patients complained of breathy voice but could not breathe through the oro-nasal airway and swallow without aspiration within 2 to 3 months after SCPL. In conclusion, SCPL is a recommendable procedure in selected cases of laryngeal cancer which can not be controlled by vertical partial laryngectomy or supraglottic laryngectomy.
Deglutition ; Epiglottis ; Humans ; Laryngeal Neoplasms ; Laryngectomy* ; Male ; Phonation ; Prospective Studies ; Radiotherapy ; Thyroid Cartilage ; Voice ; Voice Quality

Malignancy of the middle ear is rare and its estimated incidence is 0.18 cases per million people in the US, with its most common type being squamous cell carcinoma. Squamous cell carcinoma in situ is thought to be a precursor to squamous cell carcinoma, which is extremely rare in the middle ear. The pathology reports of squamous cell carcinoma have not been well-characterized as it has not been reported to date in Korea. Here, we report a case of squamous cell carcinoma in situ of the middle ear in a 66-year-old man, who presented with otorrhea and tympanic membrane perforation.

Malignancy of the middle ear is rare and its estimated incidence is 0.18 cases per million people in the US, with its most common type being squamous cell carcinoma. Squamous cell carcinoma in situ is thought to be a precursor to squamous cell carcinoma, which is extremely rare in the middle ear. The pathology reports of squamous cell carcinoma have not been well-characterized as it has not been reported to date in Korea. Here, we report a case of squamous cell carcinoma in situ of the middle ear in a 66-year-old man, who presented with otorrhea and tympanic membrane perforation.
Aged ; Carcinoma in Situ ; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell ; Ear, Middle ; Epithelial Cells ; Humans ; Incidence ; Korea ; Pathology ; Tympanic Membrane Perforation

Background: s: This study was performed to analyze the main key words of newspaper articles related to COVID-19 in 2020 for each category of quarantine measures according to the epidemic period of COVID-19. Methods: We analyzed articles related to COVID-19 in three major newspapers of Korea between February 17 and December 31, 2020. We targeted the front page articles on mondays and thursdays. The analysis of the relationship between the two variables was confirmed through the chi-square test. Results: As a result of analyzing the main key words for each category of quarantine measures, non-pharmaceutical intervention were the most common at 54.3%, followed by 3Ts(test, tracing, treatment and vaccine) at 31.9%. In the category of non-pharmaceutical intervention, social distancing was the most common at 33.9%. In the categories such as 3Ts(test, tracing, treatment) and vaccine, diagnostic tests were the most common at 41.8%. Conclusions It was identified that non-pharmaceutical intervention were the most common, and there was a difference in the reporting of main key words by category of quarantine measures for each epidemic period related to COVID-19 in 2020.

Keloids are abnormal wound reactions, which develop from connective tissue as a result of skin trauma such as inflammation, burns, piercing or surgery in predisposed individuals. This fibrous growth extends beyond the boundaries of the original wound and rarely regresses. Keloids have a thick and glassy appearance. These characteristics distinguish keloids from hypertrophic scars, which are confined to the original wound and show spontaneous regression. Despite of various treatment options, there is no consensus on the best way to treat keloids. Surgical excision followed by radiation therapy is considered to be the most effective treatment available for severe recurrent keloids. We present three cases of patients with recurred keloids in the auricle, which were treated with surgical excision and adjuvant radiation therapy.
Burns ; Cicatrix, Hypertrophic ; Connective Tissue ; Consensus ; Humans ; Inflammation ; Keloid ; Recurrence ; Skin

PURPOSE: This research was performed to investigate the relationship between CD44 and cancer cell invasion depth, histologic differentiation, tumor size and lymph node metastasis in the gastric carcinoma. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In 20 cases of early gastric cancer and 40 cases of advanced gastric cancer, the immunohistochemical staining for CD44v3 and CD44v5 was performed. RESULTS: 1. In all 60 cases, the positive rates for CD44v3 and CD44v5 were 18.3% and 71.7% respectively. 2. CD44v5 was expressed in 45% of early gastric cancer and 85% of advanced gastric cancer. 3. Larger tumor exhibited higher positive rates for CD44v5. 4. There were 28 cases of lymph node metastases out of 43 cases of CD44v5-positive primary gastric carcinoma (65.1%), and were 4 cases of lymph node metastases out of 17 CD44v5-negative cases (23.5%). 5. The 5 year survival rate was low in CD44v5- positive cases (p-value=0.039). CONCLUSION: The tumors that exhibit deep invasion and have large size and lymph node metastases tend to have more frequent expression of CD44v3 and CD44v5. In especially CD44v5. We found a good correlation between he expression of CD44v5 and the established prognostic factors. Actually we can use the CD44v5 rather than CD44v3 as a prognostic factor in advanced gastric cancer.
Lymph Nodes ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Stomach Neoplasms* ; Survival Rate

This study investigated the relationship between hemoglobin concentration and the incidence of cardiovascular diseases (CVD). A total of 407,858 subjects (256,851 men, aged 30-94 yr), who underwent physical examination at 17 Korean nationwide health examination centers, was included in this study. Data regarding CVD incidence were obtained from the Korean National Health Insurance database. In Cox proportional hazard models, men with lower or higher hemoglobin level showed higher hazard ratios (HR) with total CVD (HR, 1.14; 95% Confidence interval [CI], 1.08-1.21 for the 1st quintile; HR, 1.14; 95% CI, 1.09-1.21 for the 5th quintile), ischemic heart disease (HR, 1.16; 95% CI, 1.07-1.26 for the 1st quintile; HR, 1.16; 95% CI, 1.07-1.25 for the 5th quintile), and stroke (HR, 1.13; 95% CI, 1.02-1.25 for the 1st quintile; HR, 1.18; 95% CI, 1.07-1.30 for the 5th quintile) compared to those with mid-level of hemoglobin (3rd quintile). Women with higher hemoglobin level showed higher HR with total CVD (HR, 1.15; 95% CI, 1.01-1.31 for pre-menopausal women; HR, 1.08; 95% CI, 1.01-1.16 for post-menopausal women). We found an independent U-shaped association between hemoglobin level and CVD incidence in Korean population.
Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Cardiovascular Diseases/*epidemiology/etiology ; Databases, Factual ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Hemoglobins/*analysis ; Humans ; Incidence ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Proportional Hazards Models ; Republic of Korea ; Risk Factors