Rectus sheath hematoma of the abdominal wall is a well-recognized, but uncommon condition, caused by a tear in an epigastric vessel and characterized by sudden onset of severe abdominal pain and palpable mass. In most cases, a precipitating cause can be demonstrated. Causes include external trauma, strenuous activities, coughing, lifting, sneezing, vomiting, straining while urinating or defecating, golfing, pregnancy and the puerperium, anticoagulation therapy, infection, chronic diesase, arteriosclerosis, hypertension, prior paracentesis or laparotomy, inadequate hemostasis or excessive retraction in surgery, and idiopathy. Unfortunately, the correct diagnosis often is missed, and the hematoma is found only during an exploratory laparotomy. Treatment should be conservative in most instances. Although the mortality rate for patients with rectus sheath hematoma is low, the condition may be fatal if the volume of the hemorrhage is large and if treatment is delayed. Hence, it should be included in the differential diagnosis of any patient who presents to the emergency department with acute onset of abdominal pain. Our purpose is to familiarlize emergency physicians with the pathophysiology, the diagnosis, and the treatment of rectus sheath hematoma. We describe a patient with fatal rectus sheath hematoma presenting to the emergency department and give a review of the literature.
Abdominal Pain ; Abdominal Wall ; Arteriosclerosis ; Cough ; Diagnosis ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Emergencies ; Emergency Service, Hospital ; Golf ; Hematoma* ; Hemorrhage ; Hemostasis ; Humans ; Hypertension ; Hypovolemia* ; Laparotomy ; Lifting ; Mortality ; Paracentesis ; Postpartum Period ; Pregnancy ; Shock* ; Sneezing ; Vomiting

BACKGROUND: Intestinal ischemia remains a devastating event despite improvements in clinical recognition and in diagnostic and therapeutic modalities. The ischemic bowel diseases encompass a wide clinical spectrum from mild, reversible disease to severe, irreversible injury. The clinical picture is characterized initially by poorly localized whether an increased serum lactate level is a recognized danger signal marker for intestinal ischemia in patients who present at the emergency department because of abdominal complaints. METHODS: Patients who came to our emergency department with abdominal pain and the risk factors of intestinal ischemia between Apr. 1999 and Nov. 1999 were included in this study. The data analysis included age, sex, final diagnosis, pathogenesis of bowel ischemia, and serum lactate level. RESULTS: The serum lactate level in the intestinal ischemia group was 28.54+/-22.51mg/dl; in non-ischemia group, it was 15.49+/-22.52mg/dl. This difference between the two groups was significatn(p<0.05). An increased serum lactate level had a sensitivity of 88.2% and specificity of 59.2%, a positive likelihood ratio of 4.92, and a negative likelihood ratio of 0.47 as a marker of bowel ischemia. These results do not represent a very meaningful revision of bowel ischemic provability, but may make a small contribution to management of the disease, depending upon their magnitude and the clinical context in which they are applied. CONCLUSION: In patients with abdominal complaints, an increased serum lactate level is usually a useful aid as a diagnostic marker of bowel ischemia.
Abdominal Pain ; Diagnosis ; Early Diagnosis* ; Emergency Service, Hospital ; Humans ; Ischemia* ; Lactic Acid* ; Risk Factors ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Statistics as Topic

BACKGROUND: Inguinal herniorrhaphy remains one of the most common general surgical operations. Mesh repair is advocated by several specialized hernia centers. The purpose of this study was to compare results of mesh and Shouldice repair for inguinal herniae. METHODS: A clinical review was made of 73 cases of inguinal herniae treated during the 3 years from January 1993 to December 1996 at the Department of Surgery, Dae Rim Saint Mary's Hospital, and at the Department of Surgery, Eum Sung Saint Mary's Hospital. We treated 38 patients with mesh repair and 35 patients with a Shouldice procedure. Among 73 cases, 72 cases were males and only one case was a female. All except 8 cases had indirect types of hernias. RESULTS: Mesh repair required less time (80 minutes) and was an easier operative technique than the Shouldice procedure (95 minutes), but postoperative pain was similar between the two procedures. Postoperative pain was relieved after one week in 60% of the patients and after four weeks in 88% of the patients. The complications following the operations were similar between the two procedures: voiding difficulties developed in two cases, wound infection in one case, and a hematoma in two cases. There were no recurrences during the 6 month to 3 year follow up. CONCLUSIONS: Inguinal herniorrhaphy using a mesh repair technique provides is simple, rapid, less painful, and effective.
Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Hematoma ; Hernia ; Hernia, Inguinal ; Herniorrhaphy* ; Humans ; Male ; Pain, Postoperative ; Recurrence ; Saints ; Wound Infection

BACKGROUND: Routine cultures of blood in febrile patients being hospitalized with uncomplicated pyelonephritis are parts of accepted management and are advocated in several textbooks of medicine and in several review articles. For a better understanding of the importance of blood cultures for patients admitted with pyelonephritis, we did a retrospective chart review of patients admitted to a medical center over a 2-year period. METHODS: To evaluate the usefulness of blood cultures in patients admitted with pyelonephritis, we conducted a retrospective chart review of patients who were admitted to hospital from 1998 through 1999 with a primary discharge diagnosis of uncomplicated pyelonephritis. RESULTS: Among the 329 patients admitted, 177 patients were included in the study. Sixteen(9.0%) were men, and 161(91%) were women. The mean age was 52.24+/-18.08. The most common precipitating factor was diabetes mellitus (19.2%). Urinalysis results showed E.coli as the causative agent in 155 patients(87.6%). Positive blood culture results were be seen in 67 patients with a 37.9% sensitivity. The usefulness of blood cultures in acute pyelonephritis was statistically significant only in the case of fever(P=0.003). CONCLUSION: In the setting of uncomplicated pyelonephritis in the adults, if urine cultures can be obtained, blood cultures are not usually necessary. Settings where blood cultures might be appropriate include immunosuppressed patients, patients in whom the diagnosis is not clear, patients in whom bacteremic seeding of the kidney is suspected, and patients who have a prior history of urinary tract infection.
Adult ; Diabetes Mellitus ; Diagnosis ; Female ; Humans ; Kidney ; Male ; Precipitating Factors ; Pyelonephritis* ; Retrospective Studies ; Urinalysis ; Urinary Tract Infections

We identified single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers in the laccase gene to establish a line-diagnostic system for shiitake mushrooms. A total of 89 fungal isolates representing four lines, including Korean registered, Korean wild type, Chinese, and Japanese lines, were analyzed. The results suggest that SNP markers in the laccase gene can be useful for line typing in shiitake mushrooms.
Agaricales ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Humans ; Laccase* ; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide* ; Shiitake Mushrooms*