PURPOSE: To evaluate practice patterns for pediatric hydronephrosis of Korean urologists practicing at secondary or university hospitals. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The subjects were asked to complete questionnaires sent by postal mail or e-mail that explored practicing diagnostic and therapeutic strategies in the management of pediatric hydronephrosis and ureteropelvic junction obstruction. The questionnaires of those responding were analyzed according to whether the respondent practiced at a secondary or university hospital, how long they had been urologists, and whether they specialized in pediatric urology or other specific field of urology. RESULTS: Of the 354 questionnaires sent, 97 were returned (response rate 27.4%). Voiding cystourethrography was not routinely recommended by 95.7% of respondents, and diuretic renal scanning was considered necessary for postnatal evaluation of prenatal hydronephrosis by 78.5%. In addition, 72.2% of these doctors did not routinely recommend antibiotic prophylaxis. Follow-up ultrasonography was recommended at 3 to 6 months (61.1%), and follow-up diuretic renal scanning was recommended at 3 to 6 months (38.6%) or 6 to 12 months (32.7%). The reported length of time it took to deem an operation as a success was 3 to 6 months (49.5% and 60.7%) and within 3 months (34.1% and 19.1%) by ultrasonography and diuretic renal scanning, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: This survey documented a certain degree of variability among Korean urologists concerning standard practices of the assessment, follow-up, and treatment for pediatric hydronephrosis. Results from this survey might contribute useful data for establishing proper guidelines for the management of pediatric hydronephrosis.
Antibiotic Prophylaxis ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Electronic Mail ; Follow-Up Studies ; Hospitals, University ; Hydronephrosis ; Pediatrics ; Postal Service ; Urology

Retrorectal cystic harmatoma; Tailgut cyst, is a rare congenital disease typically presented as presacral mass, and malignant change of this disease is extremely rare. Frequently, This disease is misdiagnosed or confused at initial time. So, we have a case of tailgut cyst and report the clinical symptom and the result. A 40-year-old woman has admitted at Severance hospital for the anal pain. About 6cm sized irregular cystic and solid mass in the retrorectal area involving coccygeal bone and right gluteal muscle tendon were detected in magnetic resonance image. Under the impression of malignant tailgut cyst, the patient underwent Hartmann's operation (abdomino-sacral approach) under the sacral resection (S4, 5). The pathology was adenocarcinoma (poorly differentiated) arising from a tailgut cyst involving rectal adventitia, gluteus muscle and sacral bone. For the following 4 months after the operation, The patient is doing well with no evidence of recurrence.
Adenocarcinoma* ; Adult ; Adventitia ; Female ; Humans ; Pathology ; Recurrence ; Tendons

A few authors have reported good clinical results using double crown removable partial denture (RPD) with a few remaining teeth. Hybrid telescopic double crown is a good indication for a patient with poor periodontal condition and/or few remaining teeth after extraction, especially located in cross-arch position. In this case, there was a poor periodontal condition with teeth mobility. Several teeth with poor prognosis were extracted. Remaining anterior teeth was restored with fixed prostheses and edentulism was restored with Kennedy class I removable partial denture in maxilla. In mandible, it was hard to restore with clasp removable partial prostheses because of bilaterally isolated remaining teeth so that hybrid double crown removable partial denture with friction pin was suitable for this case. The objective of this report is to discuss the characteristics and the utility of hybrid double crown prostheses using a few remaining teeth in mandible.
Crowns* ; Denture, Partial, Removable ; Friction* ; Humans ; Mandible ; Maxilla ; Prognosis ; Prostheses and Implants ; Tooth*

The progressive attrition of teeth is a normal process by aging. However, excessive tooth wear with decreased vertical dimension of occlusion and collapse of occlusal plane may cause pathologic pulpal condition, occlusal disharmony and functional disorders. In this case, a patient with severely worn dentition was treated. Diagnostic wax-up was performed at the increased vertical dimension. After evaluation of provisional restorations for 12 weeks, final restorations were fabricated with zirconia crown and routine clinical assessments were made. Esthetically and functionally satisfactory results were obtained.
Aging ; Crowns* ; Dental Occlusion ; Dentition* ; Humans ; Mouth Rehabilitation* ; Mouth* ; Tooth ; Tooth Wear ; Vertical Dimension

PURPOSE: Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) represent a distinct and the most important subset of, mesenchymal tumors of the GI tract. Stromal tumors of the gastrointestinal tract have long been a source of confusion and controversy, with regard to their classification, differentiation, criteria of malignancy and prognostic features. METHODS: The 26 case studies of patients treated for a Gastrointestinal mesenchymal tumor, including leiomyomas, leiomyosarcomas and GISTs, between 1994 and 2002 at Keimyung University Hospital, were evaluated retrospectively. The cases were confirmed as leiomyomas, schwannomas, or GISTs by pathological re-examination. 20 of the cases were diagnosed as GISTs, from the pathological examination, and were chosen for the evaluation of their clinicopathological and immunohistochemical characteristics, using CD34, CD117, alpha-SMA and S-100 done. RESULTS: The new diagnoses of the mesenchymal tumors were a leiomyoma in 3 cases, a schwannoma in 3 and gastric stromal tumors in all 20. The immunohistochemical studies were positive for CD117 and CD34 in 95 and 75% of the gastric stromal tumors, respectively. The histopathological findings showed 5 benign tumors, 3 borderline tumors, and 12 malignant tumors in the 20 patients. CONCLUSION: The immunohistochemical marker (CD117) for KIT is a specific marker for GISTs among the tumors occurring in the stomach, and can be used to distinguish GISTs from true leiomyomas and gastric schwannomas. We also found that severe cellularity, atypism, intratumoral hemorrhage and necrosis, large size and a high mitotic count correlate with malignant behaviour and a poor prognosis.
Actins* ; Classification* ; Diagnosis ; Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors* ; Gastrointestinal Tract ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Leiomyoma ; Leiomyosarcoma ; Muscle, Smooth* ; Necrosis ; Neurilemmoma ; Prognosis ; Retrospective Studies ; Stomach

PURPOSE: The effect of corticosteroid on severe pneumonia caused by 2009 pandemic influenza (H1N1) A virus is controversial. This study was aimed to present the effects of early, short-term corticosteroid treatment for severe pneumonia with this virus infection. METHODS: A retrospective analysis was performed on severe pneumonia patients (37 patients) who had severe respiratory distress at presentation requiring oxygen therapy and received intravenous methylprednisolone (MP, 8-10 mg/kg, divided in 4 doses/day for 2-3 days) with oseltamivir. The clinical and laboratory characteristics of the patients were evaluated through the medical records and chest radiographic findings. RESULTS: The mean age and male-to-female ratio of the patients were 6.5+/-2.9 years of age, and 3.4:1 (male 29 patients), respectively. The 5-9 aged group was predominant among the age groups (25 patients, 67.6%). Duration of fever prior to admission was 1.4+/-0.6 days and dyspnea developed within 24 h after beginning of respiratory symptoms in all patients. All patients were previously healthy and received oseltamivir within 48 h. Thirteen patients (35.1%) developed dyspnea during oseltamivir treatment. Following MP infusion, all 37 patients including 13 progressive pneumonia patients during oseltamivir treatment showed an immediate halt in the progression of pneumonic infiltration with rapid clinical improvement. There were no side-effects following steroid use. CONCLUSION: For severe pneumonia patients, early corticosteroid treatment halted clinical exacerbation, and possibly prevented progression to acute respiratory distress syndrome. Further controlled clinical studies are needed for the role of corticosteroids and antivirals on severely affected patients with influenza virus infections.
Adrenal Cortex Hormones ; Aged ; Antiviral Agents ; Child ; Dyspnea ; Fever ; Humans ; Influenza, Human ; Medical Records ; Methylprednisolone ; Orthomyxoviridae ; Oseltamivir ; Oxygen ; Pandemics ; Pneumonia ; Respiratory Distress Syndrome, Adult ; Retrospective Studies ; Thorax ; Viruses

PURPOSE: This study was performed to evaluate the clinical usefulness of femoral double tunnel PCL reconstruction using the tibial inlay technique. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From January 2001 to August 2002, 21 patients underwent femoral double tunnel PCL reconstruction using the tibial inlay technique and were followed for more than 21 months. The mean age was 37 years old (range 16 to 60 years old). The clinical results were evaluated with the Lysholm score and the Tegner activity score. Radiologic analysis was performed using the posterior stress and Telos stress views. RESULTS: The average preoperative Lysholm and Tegner activity scores were 46.0 and 2.3, respectively, and improved to 94.5 and 5.3, respectively, at the final follow-up. The average preoperative scores of the combined posterolateral ligament injury group was 40.6 and 1.5, which improved to 77.1 and 3.5 at the final follow-up. Preoperatively, two cases were grade II, 13 cases were grade III, 6 cases were grade IV, and posterior translation was an average of 14.6 mm. Postoperatively, 18 cases were grade I, 3 cases were grade II, and posterior translation was an average 2.9 mm. In a push view using the Telos device (15 kg) at 30o and 90o of knee flexion, there were no differences in posterior translation. Complications were limitation of flexion (3 cases), limitation of extension (1 case) and quadriceps atrophy (mean, 2.6 cm). CONCLUSION: It is suggested that femoral double tunnel PCL reconstruction with the tibial inlay technique using anterolateral and posteromedial bundles is an effective technique for the restoration of knee function, stability, and activity. However long-term evaluation of patients and comparisons with femoral single tunnel reconstruction are required to confirm the effectiveness of this procedure.
Adult ; Atrophy ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Inlays* ; Knee ; Ligaments ; Posterior Cruciate Ligament*

The metabolic syndrome (MS) has been characterized as a cluster of risk factors that includes dyslipidemia, hypertension, glucose intolerance and central obesity. This syndrome increases the risk of cardiovascular disease. Augmentation index (AIx), a composite of wave reflection form medium-sized muscular arteries is related to the development of coronary artery disease. The aim of this study is to examine the change on central aortic waveforms in subjects between patients with metabolic syndrome and normal subjects. Using the non-invasive technique of pulse wave analysis by applantation tonometry, we investigated central aortic waveforms in 45 patients with MS and 45 matched controls. The MS was defined by NCEP-ATP III criteria. Age did not differ between the two groups. AIx was significantly elevated in patinets with MS compared with controls (21.91 +/- 11.41% vs 18.14 +/- 11.07%; P < 0.01). Subendocardial viability ratio (SEVR) (158.09 +/- 28.69 vs 167.09 +/- 30.06; P < 0.01) was significantly decreased in patients with MS compared with controls. Only the fasting glucose (r = 0.317, P = 0.03) among the components of MS and age (r = 0.424, P = 0.004) had a positive correlation with AIx. AIx increased as the number of MS components increased. These results show that the MS increased systemic arterial stiffness. Age and fasting blood glucose are independent risk factors of arterial stiffness in MS. The individual MS components, except for fasting blood glucose, do not affect arterial stiffness independently. But the clustering of MS components might interact to synergistically affect arterial stiffness.
Arteries ; Blood Glucose ; Cardiovascular Diseases ; Coronary Artery Disease ; Dyslipidemias ; Fasting ; Glucose ; Glucose Intolerance ; Humans ; Hypertension ; Manometry ; Obesity, Abdominal ; Pulse Wave Analysis ; Risk Factors ; Vascular Stiffness

PURPOSE: Clinical features of Pancreatic Neuroendocrine Tumors (PETs) vary according to the hormone secreted and to the heredity of the tumors. Malignant PETs are common among nonfunctioning PETs (NFTs) whereas the majority of functioning PETs (FTs) are benign. Our goal was to determine the clinical features and prognosis of PETs stratified by the WHO classification scheme and AJCC-UICC 7TH TNM staging. METHODS: We selected for study 30 patients with PETs, including one case of nesidiolastosis, who presented at our clinic between April 1992 and June 2010. Clinicopathological features were studied retrospectively. PETs were classified as benign, uncertain malignant, well differentiated carcinoma, or poorly differentiated carcinomas by the WHO classification. For statistical analysis, Student's t-test, the Chi-square test, and the Kaplan-Meier method were utilized. RESULTS: Nine cases were FTs and twenty one cases were NFTs. The average size of the FTs was smaller than that of the NFTs (1.71 vs 4.33, p=0.04). The head of the pancreas was most commonly involved (33.3% of FTs; 47.6% of NFTs) but the locations of the tumors were not different. Insulinoma was the most common (66.7%, 6/9) among FTs. The incidence of malignant tumors was 33.3% and 55.0% among, respectively, FTs and NFTs. The 5-year disease-free survival rate of patients with benign PETs (FTs and NFTs), and of patients with functioning well-differentiated carcinomas was 100%. However, the 5-year disease-free survival rates of patients with nonfunctioning well- and poorly-differentiated carcinomas were 66.7% and 0%. CONCLUSION: Among patients with Pancreatic Neuroendocrine Tumors, malignant tumors are more common among NFTs than FTs. Poorly-differentiated carcinomas have a worse prognosis while all FTs regardless of their WHO classification fail to show any disease recurrence.
Disease-Free Survival ; Head ; Heredity ; Humans ; Incidence ; Insulinoma ; Neoplasm Staging ; Neuroendocrine Tumors ; Pancreas ; Prognosis ; Recurrence ; Retrospective Studies

Tailgut cysts (TGCs) are rare congenital cysts that occur in the retrorectal or presacral spaces. Although most tailgut cysts have been reported as benign, there have been at least 9 cases associated with malignant change. We report herein on an unusual case of a 40-year-old woman with a carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) -producing adenocarcinoma arising within a TGC who underwent surgical resection and local radiation therapy. Despite the complete resection, metastatic adenocarcinoma developed five months after surgery. CEA-producing adenocarcinoma from a TGC is extremely rare and only two cases, including this case, have been reported in the English medical literature. Besides CEA, the serum levels of CA 19-9 became markedly elevated in this patient. Given that the serum CEA level decreased to the normal range after complete resection of tumor and that the tumor recurrence was associated with a rebound of the CEA serum level, our case shows that serial measurements of serum CEA can be used for treatment planning and for assessing the patient's treatment response for this rare disease.
Adenocarcinoma/blood/pathology/*therapy ; Adult ; CA-19-9 Antigen/blood ; Carcinoembryonic Antigen/*blood ; Cysts/blood/pathology/*therapy ; Female ; Hamartoma/blood/pathology/*therapy ; Humans ; Rectal Neoplasms/blood/pathology/*therapy ; Sacrococcygeal Region