Thyrotoxic periodic paralysis (TPP) is a rare manifestation of hyperthyroidism characterized by muscle weakness and hypokalemia. All ethnicities can be affected, but TPP typically presents in men of Asian descent. The most common cause of TPP in thyrotoxicosis is Graves' disease. However, TPP can occur with any form of thyrotoxicosis. Up to our knowledge, very few cases ever reported the relationship between TPP and painless thyroiditis. We herein report a 25-yr-old Korean man who suffered from flaccid paralysis of the lower extremities and numbness of hands. The patient was subsequently diagnosed as having TPP associated with transient thyrotoxicosis due to painless thyroiditis. The paralytic attack did not recur after improving the thyroid function. Therefore, it is necessary that early diagnosis of TPP due to transient thyrotoxicosis is made to administer definite treatment and prevent recurrent paralysis.
Administration, Oral ; Adult ; Anti-Arrhythmia Agents/therapeutic use ; Humans ; Hypokalemic Periodic Paralysis/*diagnosis/drug therapy/etiology ; Male ; Organotechnetium Compounds/chemistry/diagnostic use ; Potassium Chloride/therapeutic use ; Propranolol/therapeutic use ; Radiopharmaceuticals/diagnostic use ; Thyroiditis/*complications/radiography/ultrasonography ; Thyrotoxicosis/*diagnosis/etiology

OBJECTIVE: In this study, there was an investigation as to whether there is a functional difference in essential tremor (ET), according to responses to beta-blockers, by evaluating regional changes in cerebral glucose metabolism. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Seventeen male patients with ET were recruited and categorized into two groups: 8 that responded to medical therapy (group A); and 9 that did not respond to medical therapy (group B). Eleven age-sex matched healthy control male subjects were also included in this study. All subjects underwent F-18 fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG)-PET, and evaluated for their severity of tremor symptoms, which were measured as a score on the Fahn-Tolosa-Marin tremor rating scale (FTM). The FDG-PET images were analyzed using a statistical parametric mapping program. RESULTS: The mean FTM score 6 months after the initiation of propranolol therapy was significantly lower in group A (18.13 > 8.13), compared with group B (14.67 = 14.67). The glucose metabolism in group A in the left basal ganglia was seen to be decreased, compared with group B. The ET showed a more significantly decreased glucose metabolism in both the fronto-temporo-occipital lobes, precuneus of right parietal lobe, and both cerebellums compared with the healthy controls. CONCLUSION: Essential tremor is caused by electrophysiological disturbances within the cortical-cerebellar networks and degenerative process of the cerebellum. Furthermore, ET may have different pathophysiologies in terms of the origin of disease according to the response to first-line therapy.
Adrenergic beta-Antagonists/*pharmacology/therapeutic use ; Aged ; Brain/*drug effects/metabolism/radiography ; Brain Mapping ; Essential Tremor/*diagnosis/drug therapy/radiography ; Fluorodeoxyglucose F18/*chemistry ; Glucose/*metabolism ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; *Positron-Emission Tomography ; Propranolol/pharmacology/therapeutic use ; Radiopharmaceuticals/*chemistry

Transcatheter arterial radioembolization (TARE) with Yttrium-90 (90Y)-labeled microspheres has an emerging role in treatment of patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma. Although complication of TARE can be minimized by aggressive pre-evaluation angiography and preventive coiling of aberrant vessels, radioembolization-induced gastroduodenal ulcer can be irreversible and can be life-threatening. Treatment of radioembolization-induced gastric ulcer is challenging because there is a few reported cases and no consensus for management. We report a case of severe gastric ulceration with bleeding that eventually required surgery due to aberrant deposition of microspheres after TARE.
Aged ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular/*diagnosis/radiotherapy ; Embolization, Therapeutic/*adverse effects ; Gastrectomy ; Gastrointestinal Hemorrhage/etiology ; Gastroscopy ; Humans ; Liver Neoplasms/*diagnosis/radiotherapy ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Male ; *Microspheres ; Radiopharmaceuticals/therapeutic use ; Stomach/pathology ; Stomach Ulcer/*etiology/surgery ; Yttrium Radioisotopes/chemistry

Nuclear medicine is a rapidly growing discipline that employs advanced novel hybrid techniques that provide unique anatomical and functional information, as well as targets for molecular therapy. Concomitantly, there has been an increase in the attention paid to medical radiation exposure. A radiological justification for the practice of nuclear medicine has been implemented mainly through referral guidelines based on research results such as prospective randomized clinical trials. The International Commission on Radiological Protection recommends diagnostic reference levels as a practical mechanism to optimize medical radiation exposure in order to be commensurate with the medical purpose. The Korean Society of Nuclear Medicine has been implementing radiological optimization through a survey of the protocols on how each hospital determines the dose of administration of each radiopharmaceutical. In the case of nuclear medicine, radiation exposure of caregivers and comforters of patients discharged after administration of therapeutic radiopharmaceuticals can occur; therefore, optimization has been implemented through written instructions for patients, based on international recommendations. The development of patient-radiation-dose monitoring software, and a national registry and management system of patient-radiation-dose is needed to implement radiological optimization through diagnostic reference levels. This management system must work in agreement with the "Institute for Quality Management of Nuclear Medicine", and must take into account the medical reality of Korea, such as low medicine fee, in order to implement reasonable radiological justification and optimization.
Humans ; Neoplasms/diagnosis/radiotherapy ; Positron-Emission Tomography ; *Practice Guidelines as Topic ; Radiation Exposure/*standards ; Radiation Protection ; Radiopharmaceuticals/chemistry/therapeutic use ; Reference Values ; Republic of Korea ; Societies, Scientific ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed