To describe the novel technique of ventral inlay substitution urethroplasty for the management of male anterior urethral stricture disease. A 58-year-old gentleman with multifocal bulbar stricture disease measuring 7 cm in length was treated using a ventral inlay substitution urethroplasty. A dorsal urethrotomy was created, and the ventral urethral plated was incised. The edges of the urethral plate were mobilized without violation of the ventral corpus spongiosum. A buccal mucosa graft was harvested and affixed as a ventral inlay to augment the caliber of the urethra. The dorsal urethrotomy was closed over a foley catheter. No intraoperative or postoperative complications occurred. Postoperative imaging demonstrated a widely patent urethra. After three years of follow-up, the patient continues to do well with no voiding complaints and low postvoid residuals. Ventral inlay substitution urethroplasty appears to be a safe and feasible technique for the management of bulbar urethral strictures.
Cystoscopy/methods ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Mouth Mucosa/*transplantation ; Urethra/surgery ; Urethral Stricture/diagnosis/*surgery ; Urologic Surgical Procedures, Male/methods

Purpose: Acetabular and femoral offset (FO) play an important role in total hip arthroplasty (THA). The Sundsvall method has been proposed to account for both FO and cup offset in one global hip offset measurement. In this study, we examine the agreement and inter-observer reliability of the Sundsvall method of hip offset measurement. Materials and Methods: Four hundred and ninety-nine THA patients at a single tertiary academic institution were retrospectively reviewed. Preoperative hip offset was measured on anteroposterior radiographs of the pelvis on the operative and contralateral side. Hip offset was also measured postoperatively on the operative side. Hip offset was measured using the Sundsvall method as the distance between the femoral axis and midline of the pelvis at the height of the lateral most point of the greater trochanter. All measurements were completed by two raters. Intra-class correlation coefficients (ICC) and Pearson’s correlation coefficients were used to evaluate agreement and inter-observer reliability between two raters. Results: There was excellent agreement between raters for preoperative hip offset measurement with an ICC of 0.91 (confidence interval [CI] 0.90-0.93, P<0.01) and R=0.92. There was excellent agreement between raters for postoperative hip offset with an ICC of 0.93 (CI 0.92-0.94, P<0.01) and R=0.93. Conclusion This study confirms the inter-observer agreement and reliability of the Sundsvall method of hip offset measurement. With its high agreement and reliability, the Sundsvall method is an easy and reliable way to measure hip offset that can be applied in future clinical and research settings.

Purpose: Acetabular and femoral offset (FO) play an important role in total hip arthroplasty (THA). The Sundsvall method has been proposed to account for both FO and cup offset in one global hip offset measurement. In this study, we examine the agreement and inter-observer reliability of the Sundsvall method of hip offset measurement. Materials and Methods: Four hundred and ninety-nine THA patients at a single tertiary academic institution were retrospectively reviewed. Preoperative hip offset was measured on anteroposterior radiographs of the pelvis on the operative and contralateral side. Hip offset was also measured postoperatively on the operative side. Hip offset was measured using the Sundsvall method as the distance between the femoral axis and midline of the pelvis at the height of the lateral most point of the greater trochanter. All measurements were completed by two raters. Intra-class correlation coefficients (ICC) and Pearson’s correlation coefficients were used to evaluate agreement and inter-observer reliability between two raters. Results: There was excellent agreement between raters for preoperative hip offset measurement with an ICC of 0.91 (confidence interval [CI] 0.90-0.93, P<0.01) and R=0.92. There was excellent agreement between raters for postoperative hip offset with an ICC of 0.93 (CI 0.92-0.94, P<0.01) and R=0.93. Conclusion This study confirms the inter-observer agreement and reliability of the Sundsvall method of hip offset measurement. With its high agreement and reliability, the Sundsvall method is an easy and reliable way to measure hip offset that can be applied in future clinical and research settings.

Purpose: Acetabular and femoral offset (FO) play an important role in total hip arthroplasty (THA). The Sundsvall method has been proposed to account for both FO and cup offset in one global hip offset measurement. In this study, we examine the agreement and inter-observer reliability of the Sundsvall method of hip offset measurement. Materials and Methods: Four hundred and ninety-nine THA patients at a single tertiary academic institution were retrospectively reviewed. Preoperative hip offset was measured on anteroposterior radiographs of the pelvis on the operative and contralateral side. Hip offset was also measured postoperatively on the operative side. Hip offset was measured using the Sundsvall method as the distance between the femoral axis and midline of the pelvis at the height of the lateral most point of the greater trochanter. All measurements were completed by two raters. Intra-class correlation coefficients (ICC) and Pearson’s correlation coefficients were used to evaluate agreement and inter-observer reliability between two raters. Results: There was excellent agreement between raters for preoperative hip offset measurement with an ICC of 0.91 (confidence interval [CI] 0.90-0.93, P<0.01) and R=0.92. There was excellent agreement between raters for postoperative hip offset with an ICC of 0.93 (CI 0.92-0.94, P<0.01) and R=0.93. Conclusion This study confirms the inter-observer agreement and reliability of the Sundsvall method of hip offset measurement. With its high agreement and reliability, the Sundsvall method is an easy and reliable way to measure hip offset that can be applied in future clinical and research settings.

Purpose: Acetabular and femoral offset (FO) play an important role in total hip arthroplasty (THA). The Sundsvall method has been proposed to account for both FO and cup offset in one global hip offset measurement. In this study, we examine the agreement and inter-observer reliability of the Sundsvall method of hip offset measurement. Materials and Methods: Four hundred and ninety-nine THA patients at a single tertiary academic institution were retrospectively reviewed. Preoperative hip offset was measured on anteroposterior radiographs of the pelvis on the operative and contralateral side. Hip offset was also measured postoperatively on the operative side. Hip offset was measured using the Sundsvall method as the distance between the femoral axis and midline of the pelvis at the height of the lateral most point of the greater trochanter. All measurements were completed by two raters. Intra-class correlation coefficients (ICC) and Pearson’s correlation coefficients were used to evaluate agreement and inter-observer reliability between two raters. Results: There was excellent agreement between raters for preoperative hip offset measurement with an ICC of 0.91 (confidence interval [CI] 0.90-0.93, P<0.01) and R=0.92. There was excellent agreement between raters for postoperative hip offset with an ICC of 0.93 (CI 0.92-0.94, P<0.01) and R=0.93. Conclusion This study confirms the inter-observer agreement and reliability of the Sundsvall method of hip offset measurement. With its high agreement and reliability, the Sundsvall method is an easy and reliable way to measure hip offset that can be applied in future clinical and research settings.

OBJECTIVES: A distributed research network (DRN) has the advantages of improved statistical power, and it can reveal more significant relationships by increasing sample size. However, differences in data structure constitute a major barrier to integrating data among DRN partners. We describe our experience converting Electronic Health Records (EHR) to the Observational Health Data Sciences and Informatics (OHDSI) Common Data Model (CDM). METHODS: We transformed the EHR of a hospital into Observational Medical Outcomes Partnership (OMOP) CDM ver. 4.0 used in OHDSI. All EHR codes were mapped and converted into the standard vocabulary of the CDM. All data required by the CDM were extracted, transformed, and loaded (ETL) into the CDM structure. To validate and improve the quality of the transformed dataset, the open-source data characterization program ACHILLES was run on the converted data. RESULTS: Patient, drug, condition, procedure, and visit data from 2.07 million patients who visited the subject hospital from July 1994 to November 2014 were transformed into the CDM. The transformed dataset was named the AUSOM. ACHILLES revealed 36 errors and 13 warnings in the AUSOM. We reviewed and corrected 28 errors. The summarized results of the AUSOM processed with ACHILLES are available at http://ami.ajou.ac.kr:8080/. CONCLUSIONS: We successfully converted our EHRs to a CDM and were able to participate as a data partner in an international DRN. Converting local records in this manner will provide various opportunities for researchers and data holders.
Clinical Coding ; Data Accuracy* ; Dataset ; Electronic Health Records* ; Epidemiologic Methods ; Hospitals, Teaching* ; Humans ; Informatics ; Sample Size ; Vocabulary

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: 2018 ESC/ESH Hypertension guideline recommends 2-drug combination as initial anti-hypertensive therapy. However, real-world evidence for effectiveness of recommended regimens remains limited. We aimed to compare the effectiveness of first-line anti-hypertensive treatment combining 2 out of the following classes: angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors/angiotensin-receptor blocker (A), calcium channel blocker (C), and thiazide-type diuretics (D).METHODS: Treatment-naïve hypertensive adults without cardiovascular disease (CVD) who initiated dual anti-hypertensive medications were identified in 5 databases from US and Korea. The patients were matched for each comparison set by large-scale propensity score matching. Primary endpoint was all-cause mortality. Myocardial infarction, heart failure, stroke, and major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events as a composite outcome comprised the secondary measure.RESULTS: A total of 987,983 patients met the eligibility criteria. After matching, 222,686, 32,344, and 38,513 patients were allocated to A+C vs. A+D, C+D vs. A+C, and C+D vs. A+D comparison, respectively. There was no significant difference in the mortality during total of 1,806,077 person-years: A+C vs. A+D (hazard ratio [HR], 1.08; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.97−1.20; p=0.127), C+D vs. A+C (HR, 0.93; 95% CI, 0.87−1.01; p=0.067), and C+D vs. A+D (HR, 1.18; 95% CI, 0.95−1.47; p=0.104). A+C was associated with a slightly higher risk of heart failure (HR, 1.09; 95% CI, 1.01−1.18; p=0.040) and stroke (HR, 1.08; 95% CI, 1.01−1.17; p=0.040) than A+D.CONCLUSIONS: There was no significant difference in mortality among A+C, A+D, and C+D combination treatment in patients without previous CVD. This finding was consistent across multi-national heterogeneous cohorts in real-world practice.
Adult ; Angiotensin Receptor Antagonists ; Antihypertensive Agents ; Calcium Channel Blockers ; Calcium Channels ; Cardiovascular Diseases ; Cohort Studies ; Diuretics ; Heart Failure ; Humans ; Hypertension ; Korea ; Mortality ; Myocardial Infarction ; Propensity Score ; Stroke

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: 2018 ESC/ESH Hypertension guideline recommends 2-drug combination as initial anti-hypertensive therapy. However, real-world evidence for effectiveness of recommended regimens remains limited. We aimed to compare the effectiveness of first-line anti-hypertensive treatment combining 2 out of the following classes: angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors/angiotensin-receptor blocker (A), calcium channel blocker (C), and thiazide-type diuretics (D). METHODS: Treatment-naïve hypertensive adults without cardiovascular disease (CVD) who initiated dual anti-hypertensive medications were identified in 5 databases from US and Korea. The patients were matched for each comparison set by large-scale propensity score matching. Primary endpoint was all-cause mortality. Myocardial infarction, heart failure, stroke, and major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events as a composite outcome comprised the secondary measure. RESULTS: A total of 987,983 patients met the eligibility criteria. After matching, 222,686, 32,344, and 38,513 patients were allocated to A+C vs. A+D, C+D vs. A+C, and C+D vs. A+D comparison, respectively. There was no significant difference in the mortality during total of 1,806,077 person-years: A+C vs. A+D (hazard ratio [HR], 1.08; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.97−1.20; p=0.127), C+D vs. A+C (HR, 0.93; 95% CI, 0.87−1.01; p=0.067), and C+D vs. A+D (HR, 1.18; 95% CI, 0.95−1.47; p=0.104). A+C was associated with a slightly higher risk of heart failure (HR, 1.09; 95% CI, 1.01−1.18; p=0.040) and stroke (HR, 1.08; 95% CI, 1.01−1.17; p=0.040) than A+D. CONCLUSIONS There was no significant difference in mortality among A+C, A+D, and C+D combination treatment in patients without previous CVD. This finding was consistent across multi-national heterogeneous cohorts in real-world practice.

Purpose: Serological tests of tissue transglutaminase (TTG) and deamidated gliadin (DGP) antibodies for celiac disease diagnosis show conflicting correlation with histology in young children and in type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM). Tests' ability to predict histology and cutoff values based on age and T1DM was evaluated. Methods: A retrospective study of children who had celiac serological tests between 6/1/2002 and 12/31/2014 at a pediatric hospital. Results: TTG IgA displayed similar results in predicting histology between <4.0 and ≥4.0 years age groups with sensitivity 98% and 93%, and specificity 88% and 86%, respectively. In children <4.0 years old, sensitivity for DGP antibodies was 100% and specificity 94%; in ≥4.0 years age groups, sensitivity was 60%, 88% for DGP IgA and IgG and specificity 95%, 96%, respectively. TTG IgA had low specificity in patients with T1DM compared with non-T1DM, 42% vs. 91%. Positive TTG IgA with normal histology was associated with higher T1DM prevalence at 36% compared with negative tests at 4%. Finally, the TTG IgA cutoff value was higher in T1DM at 36 vs. 16.3 units in non-T1DM. DGP IgG cutoff showed similar values between age groups; TTG IgA and DGP IgA cutoffs were lower in <4.0 years at 8.3 and 11.9 units than ≥4.0 years at 23.4 and 19.9, respectively. Conclusion TTG IgA is sufficient for the <4.0 years age group and DGP antibodies had no advantage over TTG IgA in older children. The cutoff value to determine a positive TTG IgA should be higher for children with T1DM.

Purpose: Serological tests of tissue transglutaminase (TTG) and deamidated gliadin (DGP) antibodies for celiac disease diagnosis show conflicting correlation with histology in young children and in type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM). Tests' ability to predict histology and cutoff values based on age and T1DM was evaluated. Methods: A retrospective study of children who had celiac serological tests between 6/1/2002 and 12/31/2014 at a pediatric hospital. Results: TTG IgA displayed similar results in predicting histology between <4.0 and ≥4.0 years age groups with sensitivity 98% and 93%, and specificity 88% and 86%, respectively. In children <4.0 years old, sensitivity for DGP antibodies was 100% and specificity 94%; in ≥4.0 years age groups, sensitivity was 60%, 88% for DGP IgA and IgG and specificity 95%, 96%, respectively. TTG IgA had low specificity in patients with T1DM compared with non-T1DM, 42% vs. 91%. Positive TTG IgA with normal histology was associated with higher T1DM prevalence at 36% compared with negative tests at 4%. Finally, the TTG IgA cutoff value was higher in T1DM at 36 vs. 16.3 units in non-T1DM. DGP IgG cutoff showed similar values between age groups; TTG IgA and DGP IgA cutoffs were lower in <4.0 years at 8.3 and 11.9 units than ≥4.0 years at 23.4 and 19.9, respectively. Conclusion TTG IgA is sufficient for the <4.0 years age group and DGP antibodies had no advantage over TTG IgA in older children. The cutoff value to determine a positive TTG IgA should be higher for children with T1DM.