Postprandial hypotension is an important minor clinical problem. It is a common disorder that causes unexplained dizziness, falls, lightheadedness, syncope, angina pectoris, and even transient ischemic attacks of the brain. It is often defined as a decrease in systolic blood pressure by more than 20 mmHg within 2 hours after a meal. The mechanism of postprandial hypotension is splanchnic blood pooling via the loading of glucose in the intestine and decompensation of the autonomic nervous system. The best tool for detecting a fall in systolic blood pressure is 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring. Acarbose, an alpha-glucosidase inhibitor, is very useful for preventing postprandial hypotension. We experienced a case of postprandial hypotension that presented with postprandial dizziness. The patient was treated successfully with acarbose before each meal.
Acarbose ; alpha-Glucosidases ; Angina Pectoris ; Autonomic Nervous System ; Blood Pressure ; Blood Pressure Monitoring, Ambulatory ; Brain ; Dizziness ; Glucose ; Humans ; Hypotension ; Intestines ; Ischemic Attack, Transient ; Meals ; Syncope

Real-time ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration biopsy in 137 solid breast masses was performed. Sonographic findings were categorized into three group and aspirates were categorized into three cytologic groups. The cytologic result was reported benign masses (cytologic group 1) in 71 cases (52%), malignant masses (cytologic group 2 and 3) in 44 cases (32%) and insufficient specimens in 22 cases (16%). Insufficient specimens were treated as benign masses. Excisional biopsy in 44 malignant masses and 3 benigh masses according to cytologic results, clinical findings and follow up study was performed. The result was reported 41 malignant masses and 6 benign masses. Based on cytologic criteria, sensitivity for detection of malignancy was 93% and specificity was 94%. In conclusion, the high specificity provided by ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration biopsy could markedly reduce unnecessary surgical excisions for benign masses and it should be routinely performed, since it can give physical and emotional benefits to patients and lead to earlier and cost effective diagnosis of breast cancer.
Biopsy ; Biopsy, Fine-Needle* ; Breast Neoplasms ; Breast* ; Diagnosis ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Ultrasonography

A 63-year-old woman was referred to a breast surgeon with a breast mass discovered incidentally during follow-up study after colon cancer surgery. Invasive adenocarcinoma was revealed on core needle biopsy. Wide excision of the breast including the tumor was performed. On standard histological examination the tumor showed features of moderately differentiated adenocarcinoma. The immunohistochemistry study revealed positive results for cytokeratin (CK)20 and CDX2, but negative for CK7. These are typical characteristics for colon cancer. Considering her history of subtotal colectomy for sigmoid colon cancer, it is presumable that the mass in the breast was of colonic origin, and it was an extremely rare case of metastasis to the breast from primary colorectal neoplasm. Although the instance is rare, clinicians should keep the possibility of breast metastasis from colorectal cancer in mind for early and correct diagnosis.
Adenocarcinoma ; Biopsy, Large-Core Needle ; Breast ; Colectomy ; Colon ; Colonic Neoplasms ; Colorectal Neoplasms ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Immunohistochemistry ; Keratins ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Sigmoid Neoplasms

Desmoid tumor is rare neoplasm originated from fibrous sheath or musculoaponeurotic structure. It is classified as benign tumor histologically, but clinically, it has malignant characteristics due to its infiltrative growth to adjacent organ and frequent local recurrence. Especially, mesenteric desmoid tumor shows poor prognosis because of its symptoms of pain, intestinal obstruction, ureter obstruction and fistula formation and high frequency of recurrence. We experienced a case of mesenteric desmoid tumor in a 64-year-old woman with a painless abdominal mass. Laparoscopic exploration was performed and 10 cm sized mesenteric mass was identified, which resected widely and the diagnosis was confirmed with desmoid tumor by pathologic report. We reviewed the feature of the mesenteric desmoid tumor, that is, pathophysiology, clinical presentations, diagnosis, treatment and prognosis.
Female ; Fibromatosis, Aggressive ; Fistula ; Humans ; Intestinal Obstruction ; Laparoscopy ; Mesentery ; Prognosis ; Recurrence ; Ureter

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to describe technological development, caring attributes and professional self-concept as perceived by nurses in YanBian. METHOD: Data were collected using an instrument containing 137 Likert items was administered to 477 RN's working in general hospitals in YanBian. The instrument contained sections which examined technological influences questionnaire(TIQ), caring attributes questionnaire(CAQ), and professional self-concept nursing inventory(PSCNI). RESULT: Descriptive and inferential statistics revealed by marital status and position. Married, working special ward nurses reported a higher TIQ score than that of unmarried and working general ward and OPD. PSCNI and CAQ score of head or supervisor nurses were higher than that of staff nurses. Subjects revealed very low score of CAQ, while PSCNI score was higher than that of other Asian countries such as Korea, Beijing China, HongKong China and Japan as proved in former study. CONCLUSION: Useful information for educators and nurse administrators is provided from this results. Further study needs to be done to discuss in the light of cultural and environmental differences between YanBian(Korean-Chinese) and Korean nurses.

Methemoglobinemia is an uncommon but potentially fatal disorder. Most cases have no adverse clinical consequence and require no treatment, but methemoglobinemia is often overlooked as a cause of low oxygen saturation, and often mistaken for the more common causes of hypoxia by anesthesiologists despite simple bedside tests that indicate the presence of this treatable abnormality. We present a 68-year-old female patient who underwent gastrectomy for advanced gastric cancer with bleeding. In the preoperative period, the patient showed cyanosis and oxygen saturation was 85% by pulse oximeter, but oxygen saturation by arterial blood gas analysis was 100%. After tracheal intubation, the methemoglobin level was 18.3%. Ascorbic acid and methylene blue were administered. During preanesthetic evaluation, the patient had not informed the anesthesiologist that she had been taking dapsone.
Aged ; Anesthesia, General ; Anoxia ; Ascorbic Acid ; Blood Gas Analysis ; Cyanosis ; Dapsone ; Female ; Gastrectomy ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Intubation ; Methemoglobin ; Methemoglobinemia ; Methylene Blue ; Oximetry ; Oxygen ; Preoperative Period ; Stomach Neoplasms

PURPOSE: To evaluate the clinical and radiological results and to analyze the survivorship after closing wedge proximal tibial osteotomy(PTO) using miniplate staple. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From November 1993 to August 2003, sixty closing wedge PTO using miniplate staple were performed in forty patients. The average follow-up period was 7.2 years(range, 2.8~12.5 years). According to the post- operative femorotibial angle(FTA), group I was defined as the cases whose FTA was less than 7 degrees of valgus(25 cases) and group II was defined as the cases whose FTA was more than 7 degrees of valgus(35 cases). The HSS score, FTA and survivorship were compared between group I and II. RESULTS: Average HSS score at the last follow up were 75.3 in group I and 85.9 in group II(p=0.006). Average FTA at the last follow up were 0.8 degrees in group I and 7.7 degrees in group II(p=0.006). The overall 7-year survivorship was 92.6% and 12-year survivorship was 75.5%. The 7-year survivorship and 12-year survivorship of group I were 86.7% and 54.2%, respectively. Group II have no failure at last follow up(p=0.0489). CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that the desirable postoperative FTA was more than 7 degrees of valgus, considering the long term satisfactory result and survivorship of the closing wedge PTO using miniplate staple for the osteoarthritic knees.
Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Knee ; Osteotomy* ; Survival Rate*

PURPOSE: To analyze the causes and clinical outcomes associated with re-revision total knee arthroplasty. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Eighteen cases of re-revision total knee arthroplasty (TKA) were performed between June 1996 and September 2006. The average patient age was 69.8 years, and the average follow-up period was 3.4 years. We evaluated the time interval between revision and re-revision arthroplasty and the causes of re-revision. Clinical outcomes were assessed using the Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) knee rating score and determining the range of motion in the knee. RESULTS: The mean interval between revision and re-revision arthroplasty was 9 years 1 month. Causes of re-revision included 9 cases of polyethylene wear, 6 cases of aseptic loosening, 1 case of infection, and 2 cases of other causes. The average HSS score was 89.1, and the average range of motion was 111.1 degrees. For 5 cases of revision undertaken secondary to infected TKA, the interval between revision and re-revision arthroplasty was 9 years 3 months, and the cause of re-revision surgery was aseptic loosening in all cases. CONCLUSION: The main causes of re-revision surgery were polyethylene wear and aseptic loosening. Reasonable restoration of function was achieved in re-revision arthroplasty using appropriately selected implants, metal augmentation, structural allografts, and stems. When revising an infected TKA, it is important to achieve structural stability in the implant because of the possibility of late aseptic loosening.
Arthroplasty ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Knee ; Polyethylene ; Range of Motion, Articular ; Transplantation, Homologous

Objective: The study investigated the effects of severe human rights abuses in North Korean on Posttraumatic-stress disorder (PTSD) in North Korean Refugees (NKRs). Methods: The study included 300 NKRs (245 females and 55 males) who completed self-report questionnaires that assessed PTSD, experiences of imprisonment, and exposure to inhumane treatment, by authorities in North Korea. A moderation analysis was conducted using a hierarchical multiple regression model to determine whether a moderation effect existed. In the next step, a post-hoc probing procedure of the moderation effect was performed using multiple regression models that included conditional moderator variables. Results: The influence of the frequency of being imprisoned on PTSD varied as a function of recurrent exposure to inhumane treatment or punishment by authorities. Experiences of imprisonment were associated with PTSD only among those who were exposed to recurrent violence, such as beating or torture, by North Korean authorities. Conclusion The present findings highlight the significant effects of human rights violations, such as the inhumane treatment of prisoners in North Korea, on the PTSD of NKRs.

OBJECTIVE: We investigated the opinions of experts to identify problems and prepare an improvement plan when applying the Korean Triage and Acuity Scale (KTAS) to pediatric patients in the emergency department. METHODS: The experts comprised 15 researchers at a pediatric emergency center designated by the Ministry of Health and Welfare and research team members of the Korean Society of Pediatric Emergency Medicine. The first survey was an open-ended question about the problems, application results, and remedies of applying KTAS to children through e-mail. The problems were categorized by topic, and degree of agreement was presented using a 9-point Likert scale. RESULTS: In the first survey, 67% of experts participated and 18 problems were identified. In the second survey, 73% of experts participated and eight problems were identified in four categories, validity, reliability, feasibility and other opinions. All experts pointed out that resources were not considered during pediatric triage in the KTAS. Ninety-one percent of experts said that peak expiratory flow rate measurement and Glasgow Coma Scale evaluation were unlikely to be feasible. Moreover, 91% experts were concerned that the triage level could be distorted if KTAS was interlocked with medical costs. Eighty-two percent of the respondents pointed to the high triage result of febrile children and the difference in pain score between the evaluators, etc. CONCLUSION: Based on the problems pointed out by experts and the reality of Korea's emergency departments, it is necessary to consider revision of KTAS for children.
Child ; Delphi Technique ; Electronic Mail ; Emergencies ; Emergency Medicine ; Emergency Service, Hospital ; Glasgow Coma Scale ; Humans ; Peak Expiratory Flow Rate ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Triage