The antiphospholipid syndrome is characterized by arterial thrombosis, venous thrombosis, pregnancy wastage, and thrombocytopenia associated with a persis tently positive lupus anticoagulant and/or moderate to high positive anticardiolipin antibodies(IgG or IgM). The antiphospholipid antibodies have been detected in many medical conditions, but the antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) has mainly been restricted to the primary antiphospholipid syndrome and APS associated with systemic lupus erythematosus. Rarely, the APS has been reported in other autoimmune disorders in the literature. We describe a woman with a limited form of scleroderma and the APS manifested by complete occlusion of left axillary artery with probable thrombotic occlusive nature, thrombocytope nia, prolonged aPTT, and persistently positive lupus anticoagulant.
Antibodies, Antiphospholipid ; Antiphospholipid Syndrome* ; Axillary Artery ; Female ; Humans ; Lupus Coagulation Inhibitor ; Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic ; Pregnancy ; Scleroderma, Limited* ; Thrombocytopenia ; Thrombosis ; Venous Thrombosis

PURPOSE: This study was a descriptive research to assess the level of and the relationship of related factors in the performance of end-of-life care by intensive care unit (ICU) nurses. METHODS: Participants were 238 ICU nurses from university and general hospitals. Data were collected, using structured questionnaires, and collected data were analyzed using t-test, ANOVA, Scheffé test, Pearson correlation coefficients, and multiple regression analysis with SPSS/WIN 22.0. RESULTS: There were significantly positive effects between performance of end-of-life care and end-of-life care attitudes. Performance end-of-life care was negatively associated with end-of-life care stress and obstacles. Factors that significantly influenced ICU nurses' performance of end-of-life were end-of-life care stress, medical team in obstacles related to end-of-life care, and end-of-life care attitudes, which explained about 53% of the variance in the performance of end-of-life care. CONCLUSION: Findings indicate that hospital organizations should carry out stress management and counseling programs in order to lower ICU nurses' end-of-life care stress, and to enhance end-of-life care attitudes. In addition, concern needs to be given to the medical team which was one of the obstacles to end-of-life care. It is also necessary to decrease the heavy workload and increase the communication with medical workers.
Counseling ; Hospitals, General ; Intensive Care Units ; Terminal Care

No abstract available.
Candidemia* ; Humans

Pulmonary embolism can occur in various situations and it can result in severe hemodynamic instability, including cardiac arrest. Because of its fatality, diagnosis and treatment should be immediate and proper. We report a case of pulmonary embolism just after combined spinal epidural anesthesia. We diagnosed pulmonary embolism by echocardiogram, spiral CT and pulmonary angiography. Besides immediate use of heparin, tissue plasminogen activator therapy was started with 10 mg bolus and 90 mg intravenous infusion during 2 hours. Despite the therapy, pulmonary embolism was not resolved and the patient was expired.
Anesthesia, Epidural ; Angiography ; Heart Arrest ; Hemodynamics ; Heparin ; Humans ; Infusions, Intravenous ; Plasminogen ; Pulmonary Embolism ; Tissue Plasminogen Activator ; Tomography, Spiral Computed

BACKGROUND: The serum should be tested with a platelet panel for identification of platelet specific alloantibodies. Such platelet panels are not available from commercial sources and can usually be made using platelets from local donor population. We prepared the platelet panel by DNA genotyping for 5 major platelet specific antigens and evaluated the detection ability of panel with clinical samples from patients showing the refractoriness to platelet transfusion. METHODS: DNA genotyping of five major platelet specific alloantigens (PlA, Ko, Bak, Pen, Br) was performed for ninety three donors by reverse dot blot hybridization technique. For the evaluation of the panel we prepared, we used the antiplatelet antibody positive sera detected by modified antigen capture ELISA. RESULTS: The most frequently encountered genotypes of platelets are PlA1/PlA1, Kob/Kob, Baka/Bakb, Pena/Pena, Brb/Brb (36% of ninety three donor platelets tested). PlA2 and Penb alleles were not identified in this study. Two cases of anti-Koa were identified using panel we prepared. CONCLUSION: The genotyping of platelet alloantigens circumvented the limitation of immunophenotyping by the general lack of quality typing antisera. It is impossible to make a good panel which was composed entirely of five major platelet specific alloantigen systems because the PlA2, Penb, and Bra are very rare alleles in Koreans. But our panel can be used for the identification of antibodies against Ko and/or Bak platelet antigen in patients with platelet alloimmunization.
Alleles ; Antibodies ; Antigens, Human Platelet ; Blood Platelets* ; DNA* ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Genotype ; Humans ; Immune Sera ; Immunophenotyping ; Isoantibodies ; Isoantigens ; Platelet Transfusion ; Tissue Donors

This study is concerned with a comparison of lower tibial and fibular epiphyseal growth and deformities of the ankles in normal and paralysed children. The data were based on 87 children with residual paralysis due to poliomyelitis an 20 non-paralysed children who were admitted to Severance Hospital and Sam Yook Children's Rehabilitation Center. The difference in level between the lower tibial and fibular ends and between the lower epiphysial lines of the tibia and fibula in X-rays of the ankles were measured in order to investigate the growth pattern of the lower tibio-fibular epiphysis. The difference between the level of the lower ends of the fibula was an avergage of 15.3mm in the normal and 6.2mm in paraysed children. Thus the fibular ends in paralysed limbs was an average of 9.1mm less than that of the normal. The difference between the level of the lower epiphyseal lines of the tibia and the fibula was an average of 13.7mm in normal and 5.5mm in paralysed children. Therefore, the level of the fibular epiphyseal lines in paralysed limbs was sn average of 8.2mm less than that of normal. In paralysed limbs, the lower tibial epiphyses showed lateral epical wedge shaped deformities. The tilting angle of the ankles and the wedging angle of the of the lower tibial epiphyses were measured in erder to investigate the degree of deformities of the ankles and the lower tibial epiphyses in paralysed limbs. The tilting angle of the ankles averaged 1.3° in normal and 7.6° in paralysed limbs. The wedging angle of the lower tibial epiphyses averaged 3.7° in normal and 11.5° in paralysed limbs. In paralysed children, muscle strength examination was performed to clarify the relationship between the degree of growth disturbance and the severity of the muscular paraysis. This lead us to conclude that: 1. In paralysed children, the growth disturbance of the lower fibular epiphyses was greater than that of the lower tibial epiphyses. 2. The difference of the growth disturbance between the tibial and fibular epiphyses was not due to muscle imbalance of the foot invertors and evertors but to muscle weakness. 3. In paraysed children, the shape of the lower tibial epiphyses changed to a wedge shape, a deformity which might be considered secondary to growth disturbance of the fibula. 4. In paralysed children, the lower tibial ends were tilted upward and laterally. This was thought to be the cause of valgus deformities of the ankles. 5. The relationship between the degree of muscle paralysis and the deformities of the ankles was not proved in this study.
Ankle ; Child ; Congenital Abnormalities ; Epiphyses ; Extremities ; Fibula ; Foot ; Humans ; Muscle Strength ; Muscle Weakness ; Paralysis ; Poliomyelitis ; Rehabilitation Centers ; Tibia

PURPOSE: To determine whether CT angiography can predict the parent artery of an anterior communicating aneurysm on the basis of characteristics of the aneurysm and precommunicating anterior cerebral artery. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Eighteen patients with anterior communicating aneurysm were studied prospectively using CT angiography and conventional angiography. The parent artery of an aneurysm was predicted by evaluating aneurysm neck location, direction of aneurysm projection, and size of the precommunicating anterior cerebral artery, as seen on CT angiography. A somatom Plus-4 spiral CT scanner was used and shaded-surface display three-dimensional images were constructed. RESULTS: Aneurysm neck was located near the parent artery in 12 cases(66.7%), and aneurysm projection was against the parent artery in 11 cases(61.1 %). The parent artery of the anterior cerebral artery was larger in 15 cases (8 3 .3 %), including ten cases of hypoplasia or agenesis of the contralateral anterior cerebral artery. In 17 of 18 aneurysms(94.4%) the parent artery seen on DSA was correctly predicted by CT angiography. CONCLUSION: Teh parent artery of an anterior communicating aneurysm can be predicted by evaluating a-neurysm neck location, direction of aneurysm projection, and precommunicating anterior cerebral artery, as seen on CT angiography.
Aneurysm ; Angiography* ; Anterior Cerebral Artery ; Arteries* ; Humans ; Imaging, Three-Dimensional ; Intracranial Aneurysm* ; Neck ; Parents* ; Prospective Studies ; Tomography, Spiral Computed

PURPOSE: To evaluate the CT and MR findings of bronchial anthracofibrosis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Forty-one patients with ronchoscopically confirmed bronchial anthracofibrosis were included in this study. Thirty-six were female and five were male, and all were aged between 53 and 89 (mean, 70) years. The CT (n=41) and MR findings (n=5) were retrospectively analysed with regard to bron-chostenosis, atelectasis, air-space consolidation, lymph node enlargement, calcified lymph node, mass and bronchial wall thickening, as seen on CT, and signal intensity of the mass and lymph nodes, as seen on MR. RESULTS: CT scans revealed the presence of bronchostenosis (n=34, 83%), atelectasis (n=24, 59%), pneumonic consolidation (n=26, 63%), enlarged mediastinal lymph node (n=39, 95%), calcified lymph node (n=22, 54%), mass (n=4,10%), and thickening of bronchial wall (n=1, 2.4%). Multifocal involvement of bron-chostenosis, atelectasis, and air-space consolidation occurred in 61%, 50% and 30% of cases, retrospectively. MR imaging showed low signal intensity of mass (n=3) and lymph nodes (n=10) on T1WI and T2WI. but in one case, mass and lymph node showed central high signal intensity on T2WI. CONCLUSION: A multiplicity of bronchostenosis, atelectasis, air-space consolidation and enlarged mediastinal lymph nodes were characteristic CT findings of bronchial anthracofibrosis. Most MR findings included relatively low signal intensity of masses and lymph nodes on T2WI, possibly indicating the benign nature of the diseases
Female ; Humans ; Lung ; Lymph Nodes ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Male ; Pneumoconiosis ; Pulmonary Atelectasis ; Retrospective Studies ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed

Sparganum is a parasite infesting principally in the cats or dogs, but human infestation was also not uncommonly reported. In Korea, the reported cases of sparganosis are over 70. We experienced a case of sparganosis in scrotum. This patient, 47 year-old man, had had episodes of intake raw snakes for 6 years as a tonic since 12 years before. The removed larvae of the parasite revealed milkish-white color, flat, and glistening appearance. Life cycle and route of infection of sparganum mansoni are discussed with review of the literatures.
Animals ; Cats ; Dogs ; Humans ; Korea ; Larva ; Life Cycle Stages ; Middle Aged ; Parasites ; Scrotum* ; Snakes ; Sparganosis* ; Sparganum

After the trauma of frontoethmoidal sinus, post-traumatic mucocele may occur. Surgical removal of the lesions rarely produces cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leakage and even delayed tension pneumocephalus. We experienced a case of fronto-ethmoid mucocele complicated with peri-operative CSF leakage and post-operative tension pneumocephalus which was improved by conservative treatment. It is imperative to take into account the potential for tension pneumocephalus when a patient suffers from severe headache after sinus surgery.
Cerebrospinal Fluid Leak* ; Cerebrospinal Fluid* ; Ethmoid Sinus ; Frontal Sinus ; Headache ; Humans ; Mucocele ; Pneumocephalus*