No abstract available.
Allografts*

No abstract available.
Muscle Spasticity* ; Paraplegia*

No abstract available.
Humans ; Muscular Dystrophies*

OBJECTIVE: Study was designed preliminarily to observe the accordance of caregivers strain and depression with other factors such as sex of the patient, caregiver, lesion side, Mini Mental Status Examination (MMSE) score and Beck's Depression Index (BDI). METHOD: We composed a questionnaire with BDI, and the Sense of Competence Questionnaire (SCQ) in order to evaluate the amount of stress and depression of caregivers. Evaluation of the patient was done by interviewing them along with reviewing their medical records and obtaining scores such as the MMSE, Functional Inependence Index (FIM) and the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS). RESULTS: BDI of the caregivers showed a negative correlation with the patients' age. Lesion side nor age, nor the prevalence of hemiplegia of patients did not show statistical relevance with the strain that the caregiver felt. The first subscale of SCQ showed a positive correlation with the caregiving time that the caregiver gave. In accordance to the sex of the caregiver, females showed to spend more time with the patient, showed to be more unsatisfied with the patient but showed a tendency of lesser SCQ score. CONCLUSION: Depression, strain and burden that the caregivers went through showed to have slight correlation with the patient and caregiver factors.
Caregivers* ; Depression* ; Female ; Hemiplegia ; Humans ; Medical Records ; Mental Competency ; Prevalence ; Surveys and Questionnaires

Many authors have been reported that the abdominal trauma, especially injury of the liver and spleen, is frequently found with lower rib fractures, below the ninth rib fractures and the incidence was about 20 to 30%. In cases of rib fractures, Intra- abdominal organs may be injured in the higher rib fractures than the ninth because the diaphragm is elevated at the level of filth intercostal space in expiration period and the intra-abdominal lesions are often delayed evaluated due to the pain of the fractures and masked by the other injuries of the head and the extremities. So above reasons, we were often questioned what the level of rib fracture we must evaluate the intra-abdominal injury was? So we investigated 452 patients with rib fractures who visited our emergency medical center from 1995, January to 1996, December and divided into two groups according to the prescience of intra-abdominal organ injuries by each the level of rib fractures. The number of patients with intra-abdominal organ injuries were 75(16.6%) and the most frequently damaged organ was the liver(25 cases, 33.3%). We calculated the statistical values of each level of rib fractures by the Chi-Square method and got a result that the level of rib fracture we must evaluate the intra-abdominal injuries was the sixth rib fracture. Therefore, if we will meet the patients with rib fracture below the sixth, we must have attentions to the intra-abdominal injuries and evaluate the abdomen closely with various diagnostic methods.
Abdomen ; Attention ; Diaphragm ; Emergencies ; Extremities ; Head ; Humans ; Incidence ; Liver ; Masks ; Rib Fractures* ; Ribs* ; Spleen

Diagnostic peritoneal lavage is a accurate and safe method confirming the intraabdominal injury with head trauma, unstable multiple injuried patients. But the development of imaging technique and the trend in noninvasive diagnostic value is decreasing now. In the emergency room, the emergency physicians are required the rapidity and accuracy' in intial assessment and the decisions for the operation or not. So emergency physicians have been investigating the diagnostic method for intraabdomial injury that is more rapid, safe and accurate. Many diagnostic tools are developed and now accepted and used widely, among them the diagnostic peritoneal lavage is still the best method for unsatble or head injuries patients. But the positive diagnostic criterias are variable by many authors and still remain imperfectly. So our study was reviewed by medical record of patients who were undertaken the diagnostic peritoneal lavage for the diagnosis intraabdominal injury and statistical analyasis was done compared with many criteria of red blood cell and white blood cell for the more actuate way. A retrospective study of diagnostic peritoneal lavage was done of 90 patients with blunt abdominal trauma during 2 years from January, 1996 to December, 1997 and summerized our experience. The results were as follows; 1) There are 73 males and 17 females in sex. The most common type of injury was the traffic accident. 2) With many variable criteria of RBC and WBC, the accuracy and the false positive and false negative were not different in statistical results. The average accuracy was 80.1%. 3) The operations were done in 30(33.3%) cases, and the most frequent injuried organ was the small bowel, 20 cases(66.7%).
Accidents, Traffic ; Craniocerebral Trauma ; Diagnosis ; Emergencies ; Emergency Service, Hospital ; Erythrocytes ; Female ; Humans ; Leukocytes ; Male ; Medical Records ; Peritoneal Lavage* ; Retrospective Studies

Aconitum species have been used in western and eastern medicine for centuries. In present, chinese medicine uses the drug to treat weak constitution, poor metabolism, dysuria, cardiac weakness, gout rheumatism in the limbs, neuralgia. Poisoning may occur from intentional or accidental ingestion, and the concentration of the toxic alkaloids - aonitine, mesaconitine, and hypoconitine - varies depending on species, place of origin, time of harvest, and processing procedure. In addition to cardiac arrhythmias, and hypotension, the alkaloids cause GI upset & neurological symptoms, especially numbness of the mouth and parethesia in the extrimities. The alkaloid causes a prolonged sodium current in cardiac muscle with slowed repolarization. The aconitine acts as a agonist of Na-channel receptor. Vaughan-Williams' classification I antiarrhythmic agents which belong to might be the first choice for the therapy of aconitine induced arrhythmias. The modification of the sodium system by aconitine seems to be responsible for the prolongation of the action potential and the appearance of extrasystoles and fibrillation. We experienced a 67-year-old male patient who suffered chest discomfort and palpitation with ventricular tachycardia through to be caused by aconitine. After treatment for 3days he recovered well and discharged. We report this case with literature review.
Aconitine ; Aconitum ; Action Potentials ; Aged ; Alkaloids ; Arrhythmias, Cardiac ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Cardiac Complexes, Premature ; Classification ; Constitution and Bylaws ; Dysuria ; Eating ; Extremities ; Gout ; Humans ; Hypesthesia ; Hypotension ; Male ; Metabolism ; Mouth ; Myocardium ; Neuralgia ; Poisoning ; Rheumatic Diseases ; Sodium ; Tachycardia, Ventricular* ; Thorax

No abstract available.

No abstract available.

In 17 myotonic cases (16 of myotonic muscular dystrophy and 1 of congenital myotonia), 13 cases showed significant decremental responses on RNS study. The decremental responses had the tendency of more prominence on faster stimulating rate, and in the proximal limb muscles. This result suggests that the RNS test is useful but not specific for the disorder of neuromuscular junction.
Extremities ; Humans ; Muscles ; Muscular Dystrophies ; Neuromuscular Junction