BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: The outcome of asthma treatment has traditionally been assessed by measuring the conventional clinical parameters such as symptoms, expiratory flow rates and needs for medications. But none of them tells us whether the patients are actually able to function properly in their lives. Only assessment of the quality of life (QOL) can reflect the parts of patients lives affected by the disease. However, there is no measure to assess the quality of life of patients with any chronic diseases in Korea yet. We developed the QOL Questionnaire for Korean Asthmatics and evaluated its measurement properties. METHOD: The questionnaire was composed of 18 items in four domains : i.e. activity limitation (6 items), symptoms (5 items), emotional function (3 items) and environmental stimuli (4 items). At our out-patient clinic, 32 adults with moderate to severe persistent bronchial asthma were enrolled. The study design consisted of 4 week unblinded single cohort with visits at 0 and 4 weeks, and the patients were asked to answer the questionnaire by self administration method at the two separate visits. Forced expiratory volume for 1 second (FEV1) and peak expiratory flow rate (PEFR) were recorded at each visit. According to the patients and physicians global assessment, the patients were divided into two groups, i.e. stable and changed (improved). The responsiveness, reproducibility and validity of the questionnaire were evaluated. RESULTS: The total QOL scores at the second visit in the changed group were significantly higher than those at the first visit. The score differences between the two visits in the changed group were higher than in the stable group. In the stable group, the responses to the questionnaire were reproducible. The QOL scores showed good longitudinal correlation with the expiratory flow rates, whereas FEV1 did not correlate with the QOL in cross-sectional analysis. CONCLUSION: The questionnaire proved to be reproducible, responsive and valid in the subjects. It could be recommended for the outcome evaluation of Korean asthmatics.
Adult ; Asthma ; Chronic Disease ; Cohort Studies ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Forced Expiratory Volume ; Humans ; Korea ; Outpatients ; Peak Expiratory Flow Rate ; Quality of Life* ; Self Administration ; Surveys and Questionnaires

A 42-year-old man presented with severe pancytopenia and uncontrolled epistaxis. The diagnosis of SLE was made and the pancytopenia was found to be due to myelofibrosis. The pulse therapy with methylprednisolone and maintenance therapy with prednisolone reversed both pancytopenia and myelofibrosis. Although myelofibrosis has been described in SLE, this coexistence must be very rare since there has been only 19 cases showing this combination. We report a case of SLE with myelofibrosis which was reversed by the treatment with glucocorticoid.
Adult ; Diagnosis ; Epistaxis ; Humans ; Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic* ; Methylprednisolone ; Pancytopenia ; Prednisolone ; Primary Myelofibrosis*

BACKGROUND: Oral allergy syndrome(OAS) is composed of it,ching sense and edema in oral cavity, lips, throat, pharynx, and larynx following eating some fresh fruits or vegetables. It has been known that most of patients with OAS are allergic to pollens. Common epitopes were found among pollens, fruits and vegetables. Although OAS is a common farm of food allergy in adults, this is the first epidemiologic study of OAS in Korea. MATERIAL AND METHOD: One hundred and fifty one patients who showed positive skin reaction to pollens were telephone-interviewed. Investigation of the prevalence and clinical manifestations of OAS was possible in 81 patients. RESULT: The prevalence of OAS among these patients was 34.6% (28/81). OAS was found in 24(48%) out of 50 patients sensitized to tree pollens, whereas 4(13%) of 31 grass or weed pollen-sensitized paients had OAS. Most common causative food was apple and all of 17 apple- OAS patients were sensitized to tree pollens. Peach was the second common food and 14 of 15 peach-OAS patients were sensitized to tree pollens. Besides oral symptoms, rhinitis, asthma, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting or generalized urticaria were accompanied in half of the OAS patients (14/28). Some patients showed OAS to some unique Korean foods such as dropwort, taro and Aster. CONCLUSION: OAS was very common in pollen-sensitized patients. Larger epidemiologic studies are needed to find unique Korean foods and their antigensm causing OAS.
Adult ; Asthma ; Colocasia ; Diarrhea ; Eating ; Edema ; Epidemiologic Studies ; Epitopes ; Filipendula ; Food Hypersensitivity ; Fruit ; Humans ; Hypersensitivity* ; Korea ; Larynx ; Lip ; Mouth ; Nausea ; Pharynx ; Poaceae ; Pollen* ; Prevalence ; Prunus persica ; Rhinitis ; Skin ; Urticaria ; Vegetables ; Vomiting

No abstract available.
Anaphylaxis* ; Aprotinin* ; Thoracic Surgery*

Enhanced cough response has been frequently observed in chronic cough. Recently, extrathoracic airway constriction to inhaled histamine was demonstrated in some chronic cough patients. However, relation between extrathoracic airway hyperresponsiveness (EAHR) and cough sensitivity determined by capsaicin inhalation is unclear in each etiological entity of chronic cough. Seventy-seven patients, with dry cough persisting for 3 or more weeks, normal spirometry and chest radiography, and 15 controls, underwent methacholine bronchial provocation test and capsaicin cough provocation test. Elicited cough number and flow-volume curve was examined after inhalation of capsaicin to evaluate cough sensitivity and EAHR. Thirty-three patients, with postnasal drip, showed normal extrathoracic airway responsiveness, and 27 of them showed normal cough sensitivity to capsaicin. Cough sensitivity was enhanced in 14 patients with cough variant asthma (CVA) who showed bronchial hyperresponsiveness; EAHR to inhaled capsaicin was present in 12 of them. The remaining 30 patients were tentatively diagnosed as idiopathic chronic cough (ICC). Eleven ICC patients showed enhanced cough sensitivity and EAHR to inhaled capsaicin while 19 patients showed normal values. These results indicate that cough sensitivity is closely related with extrathoracic airway responsiveness during capsaicin provocation in some chronic cough patients. EAHR and enhanced cough sensitivity to inhaled capsaicin may be a part of mechanism developing chronic cough.
Administration, Inhalation ; Adult ; Bronchial Hyperreactivity/*etiology/physiopathology ; Bronchial Provocation Tests ; Capsaicin/*administration & dosage ; Case-Control Studies ; Chronic Disease ; Cough/*etiology/physiopathology ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Methacholine Chloride/diagnostic use ; Middle Aged

BACKGROUND: Chronic cough is a common clinical problem to which various etiologies are attributable; postnasal drip, asthma, gastroesophageal reflux (GER) and chronic bronchitis, However, in some cases, no particular etiology can be confirmed. OBJECTIVE: This study was aimed to evaluate cough sensitivity and the clinical manifestations of patients with idiopathic chronic cough. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We recruited 70 non-smoking patients who had been coughing for more than 3 weeks without any history, symptoms or signs of rhinitis, sinusitis, typical asthma, GER or recent upper respiratory infection episodes. Nineteen healthy controls were also enrolled. Bronchial provocation tests with methacholine, capsaicin and distilled water (DW) were performed. RESULTS: Thirteen patients were positive to rnethacholine test (PC20 < 25mg/ml) and defined as cough variant asthma. The others are classified into idiopathic chronic cough. By capsaicin and DW challenge tests, idiopathic cough patients could be divided into two groups, i.e., increased cough sensitivity (ICS) and normal cough sensitivity (NCS) groups. DW- induced cough counts were negatively correlated with C7 (lowest capsaicin concentration inducing continuous 7 or more coughs) (r=-0.739, p<0.001). No difference was found in clinical features such as age, sex, atopy, or peripheral eosinophil counts between these two groups but cough counts per cough burst were significantly higher in the ICS group. CONCLUSION: The heterogeneity in cough sensitivity of idiopathic chronic cough patients may refiect different pathophysiologic mechanisms. It is unclear whether patients with NCS merely have habitual or psychogenic cough or not. These suggest that different therapentic strategies should be established on idiopathic chronic cough patients according to cough sensitivity.
Asthma ; Bronchial Provocation Tests ; Bronchitis, Chronic ; Capsaicin ; Cough* ; Eosinophils ; Gastroesophageal Reflux ; Humans ; Methacholine Chloride ; Population Characteristics ; Rhinitis ; Sinusitis ; Water

Propylthiouracil(PTU) is one of lupus-inducing drugs, though rarely reported. We report a case of PTU-induced lupus, with the review of of previous literatures. Lupus-like symptoms in a 28year-old female patient, who had been suffering from relapsed Graves' disease, were presented during PTU therapy. The results of antinuclear antibody and anti-histone antibody were positive. After symptomatic reatment and discontinuation of PTU, all of the symptoms and the abnormalities in laboratory tests disappeared, which suggested drug-induced lupus.
Antibodies, Antinuclear ; Female ; Graves Disease ; Humans ; Propylthiouracil

Relapsing polychondritis, a rare multisystem disease, is characterized by wide spread potentially destructive inflammatory lesions, involving cartilaginous structures throughout the body. Auricular chondritis is the most frequent presenting sign of this disease, with arthritis being the second. Other clinical menifestations include nasal chondritis, scleritis, damage to tracheobroncheal cartilage, and cardiovascular and renal involvement. We experienced three cases of relapsiug polychondritis. One case is 66 year old male with bilateral auricular chondritis with histologic confirmation, episcleritis, polyarthritis, periarterial vasculitis, and sensorineural hearing loss. Another case is 42 year old male with respiratory, nasal, auricular chondritis and psoriasis with arthritis. The third case is 46 year old female with three year history of relapsing polychondritis, presenting bilateral auricular and nasal chondritis and severe respiratory tract involvement with histologic confirmation. We also reviewed the other case reports of relapsing polychondritis in Korea. The major presenting manifestations of relapsing polychondritis in Korea were respiratory tract symptoms of dyspnea, cough, and sputum. That is, auricular chondritis was less frequent thari laryngotracheal-bronchial involvement.
Adult ; Aged ; Arthritis ; Cartilage ; Cough ; Dyspnea ; Female ; Hearing Loss, Sensorineural ; Humans ; Korea ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Polychondritis, Relapsing* ; Psoriasis ; Respiratory System ; Scleritis ; Sputum ; Vasculitis

BACKGROUN: Our aim was to assess the rate of flare in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) during pregnancy, to describe fetal outcomes in lupus in Asan Medical Center and to identify clinical or serological factors that would predict pregnancy loss and poor fetal outcome. METHODS: We retrospectively studied 49 pregnancies in 47 women with SLE. Clinical and laboratory data were identified from medical record. RESULTS: Lupus flare occurred in 30 (61.2%) of the pregnancies, mostly in the second trimester. Flares presented most commonly as involvement of skin or joints, constitutional symptoms. All of the patients with flare were treated with glucocorticosteroid. There was no predictive factor for flare of lupus during pregnancy. There were 37 (75.5%) live births and 12 (24.5%) fetal losses. Of live births, 10 (20.4%) were premature babies, 5 (10.2%) intrauterine growth retardation. Of fetal losses, 5 (10.2%) were spontaneous abortion, 5 (10.2%) therapeutic abortion, 2 (4.1%) still births. Using univariate analysis, predictive factors for adverse fetal outcome include antiphospholipid antibody, renal involvement, active lupus at conception and flare of lupus during pregnancy. Using multivariate analysis, antiphospholipid antibody was the only significant predictor for fetal loss, and lupus flare during pregnancy was the only significant predictor for poor fetal outcome. CONCLUSION: There was no predictive factor for the flare of lupus during pregnancy. Most lupus pregnancies did well, but there was a higher rate of adverse fetal outcome. Antiphospholipid antibody and flare of lupus during pregnancy were the only important predictors of fetal loss and premature birth, respectively.
Abortion, Spontaneous ; Abortion, Therapeutic ; Antibodies, Antiphospholipid ; Chungcheongnam-do ; Female ; Fertilization ; Fetal Growth Retardation ; Humans ; Joints ; Live Birth ; Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic* ; Medical Records ; Multivariate Analysis ; Parturition ; Pregnancy Outcome ; Pregnancy Trimester, Second ; Pregnancy* ; Premature Birth ; Retrospective Studies ; Skin

Idiopathic anaphylaxis is a life-threatening systemic reaction of unknown cause. The pathophysiology has not been established, although it has been postulated that the clinical manifestations of idiopathic anaphylaxis may result from the chemical mediators released by mast cells or basophils. The diagnosis of idiopathic anaphylaxis is made after an appropriate allergic evaluation and exclusion of provocative triggers. We report an unusual case of idiopathic anaphylaxis manifesting with periodically repeated urticaria, angioedema, dyspnea, and hypotension. His symptoms were not related to known causes of anaphylaxis such as foods, drugs, insect stings, or exercise. Other diseases simulating anaphylaxis were excluded by careful history, physical examination, and relevant diagnostic tests. High dose prednisolone, hydroxyzine, salbutamol, ketotifen, and methotrexate were prescribed to prevent recurrent episodes, but the symptoms relapsed 5 months after cessation of the treatment.
Albuterol ; Anaphylaxis* ; Angioedema ; Basophils ; Diagnosis ; Diagnostic Tests, Routine ; Dyspnea ; Hydroxyzine ; Hypotension ; Insect Bites and Stings ; Ketotifen ; Mast Cells ; Methotrexate ; Physical Examination ; Prednisolone ; Urticaria