Amiodarone is a potent antiarrhythmic agent that is used to treat ventricular arrhythmias and atrial fibrillation. But it has a wide range of adverse effects, including pulmonary toxicity, thyroid dysfunction, liver toxicity, gastrointestinal events, corneal deposits, peripheral neuropathy and so on. Patients treated with amiodarone should be followed regularly to assess ongoing need for amiodarone, efficacy of the drug, appropriateness of dosage, adverse effects, and potential drug interactions. We experienced a case of severe weight loss due to amiodarone-induced multiple toxicity after a long course of a low dose therapy. So we report this unusual case with literature review.
Amiodarone ; Anorexia ; Arrhythmias, Cardiac ; Atrial Fibrillation ; Drug Interactions ; Humans ; Liver Diseases ; Peripheral Nervous System Diseases ; Thyroid Gland ; Thyrotoxicosis ; Weight Loss

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: The most-common initial manifestation of Miller Fisher syndrome (MFS) is diplopia due to acute ophthalmoplegia. However, few studies have focused on ocular motility findings in MFS. This study aimed to determine the pattern of extraocular muscle (EOM) paresis in MFS patients. METHODS: We consecutively recruited MFS patients who presented with ophthalmoplegia between 2010 and 2015. The involved EOMs and the strabismus pattern in the primary position were analyzed. Antecedent infections, other involved cranial nerves, and laboratory findings were also reviewed. We compared the characteristics of the patients according to the severity of ophthalmoplegia between complete ophthalmoplegia (CO) and incomplete ophthalmoplegia (IO). RESULTS: Twenty-five patients (15 males and 10 females) with bilateral ophthalmoplegia were included in the study. The most-involved and last-to-recover EOM was the lateral rectus muscle. CO and IO were observed in 11 and 14 patients, respectively. The patients were aged 59.0±18.4 years (mean±SD) in the CO group and 24.9±7.4 years in the IO group (p<0.01), and comprised 63.6% and 21.4% females, respectively (p=0.049). Elevated cerebrospinal fluid protein was identified in 60.0% of patients with CO and 7.7% of patients with IO (p=0.019) for a mean follow-up time from the initial symptom onset of 3.7 days. CONCLUSIONS: The lateral rectus muscle is the most-involved and last-to-recover EOM in ophthalmoplegia. The CO patients were much older and were more likely to be female and have an elevation of cerebrospinal fluid protein than the IO patients.
Cerebrospinal Fluid ; Cranial Nerves ; Diplopia ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Guillain-Barre Syndrome ; Humans ; Jupiter ; Male ; Miller Fisher Syndrome ; Ophthalmoplegia ; Paresis ; Strabismus

Objectives: : Tianeptine is an antidepressant that has drawn attention recently. Unlike traditional monoaminergic antidepressants, tianeptine is known to affect glutamate neurotransmission like ketamine. However, there has been paucity of studies investigating the role of tianeptine on glutamate transporters, especially excitatory amino acid transporter type 3 (EAAT3). Methods: : After expression of EAAT3 by intracellular injection of EAAT3 mRNA, we investigated the effect of tianeptine on the activity of EAAT3, by measuring membrane current in response to L-glutamate administration using Xenopus oocyte expression system and two-electrode voltage clamps.. Results: : Tianeptine (1mM for 72h) significantly reduced Vmax (6.9±0.6 vs. 4.8±0.3mC, n=14-22, p<0.05) without changing Km (27.0±7.6 vs. 23.3±4.9mM, n=14-22, p=0.72). Conclusion : When tianeptine was exposed for 72h, it decreased the activity of EAAT3 in a concentration-dependent manner (1-100mM). Our results suggest that tianeptine decreases EAAT3 activity by reducing the available number or turnover rate of EAAT3.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to investigate the surgical outcomes and safety of robotic sacrocolpopexy (RSC) in patients with uterine/vaginal vault prolapse. METHODS: Between January 2009 and June 2015, 16 women with apical prolapse underwent RSC. Pelvic organ prolapse quantification (POP-Q) examination was performed, and treatment success was defined as the presence of grade 0 or I apical prolapse upon POP-Q examination at the final follow-up. Pelvic floor distress inventory-short form 20 (PFDI-SF 20) was administered at every follow-up. A treatment satisfaction questionnaire was administered by telephone to evaluate patient satisfaction with the operation. RESULTS: Median age was 65 years (interquartile range [IQR], 56–68 years), and follow-up duration was 25.3 months (IQR, 5.4–34.0 months). Thirteen women (81.3%) had ≥grade III apical prolapse. Operation time was 251 minutes (IQR, 236–288 minutes), and blood loss was 75 mL (IQR, 50–150 mL). Median hospital stay was 4 days (IQR, 3–5 days). At the final follow-up, treatment success was reported in all patients, who presented grade 0 (n=8, 57.1%) and grade I (n=6, 42.9%) apical prolapse. Dramatic improvements in PFDI-SF 20 scores were noted after RSC (from 39 to 4; P=0.001). Most patients (12 of 13) were satisfied with RSC. An intraoperative complication (sacral venous plexus injury) was reported in 1 patient, and there was no conversion to open surgery. Mesh erosion was not reported. CONCLUSIONS: RSC is an efficient and safe surgical option for apical prolapse repair. Most patients were satisfied with RSC. Thus, RSC might be one of the best treatment options for apical prolapse in women.
Conversion to Open Surgery ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Intraoperative Complications ; Length of Stay ; Patient Satisfaction ; Pelvic Floor ; Pelvic Organ Prolapse* ; Prolapse ; Robotic Surgical Procedures ; Telephone ; Uterine Prolapse

OBJECTIVE: There is a rich literature confirming the default mode network found compatible with task-induced deactivation regions in normal subjects, but few investigations of alterations of the motor deactivation in patients with intracranial lesions. Therefore, we hypothesized that an intracranial lesion results in abnormal changes in a task-induced deactivation region compared with default mode network, and these changes are associated with specific attributes of allocated regions. METHODS: Blood oxygenation level dependent (BOLD) functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) during a motor task were obtained from 27 intracranial lesion patients (mean age, 57.3 years; range 15-78 years) who had various kinds of brain tumors. The BOLD fMRI data for each patient were evaluated to obtain activation or deactivation regions. The distinctive deactivation regions from intracranial lesion patients were evaluated by comparing to the literature reports. RESULTS: There were additive deactivated regions according to intracranial lesions: fusiform gyrus in cavernous hemangioma; lateral occipital gyrus in meningioma; crus cerebri in hemangiopericytoma; globus pallidus, lateral occipital gyrus, caudate nucleus, fusiform gyrus, lingual gyrus, claustrum, substantia nigra, subthalamic nucleus in GBM; fusiform gyrus in metastatic brain tumors. CONCLUSION: There is increasing interest in human brain function using fMRI. The authors report the brain function migrations and changes that occur in patients with intracranial lesions.
Basal Ganglia ; Brain ; Brain Neoplasms ; Caudate Nucleus ; Globus Pallidus ; Hemangioma, Cavernous ; Hemangiopericytoma ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Meningioma ; Oxygen ; Substantia Nigra ; Subthalamic Nucleus

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to clarify the clinicopathological differences between T1N1M0 and T2N0M0, particularly the survival rates, and the role of chemotherapy in the stage Ib gastric cancer. METHODS: From January 1992 to December 1999, 118 cases were confirmed as having stage Ib gastric cancer in the Korea University Medical Center. Among them 31 patients were classified as being T1N1M0 and the other 87 cases were T2N0M0. The clinicopathological features and the prognosis were evaluated retrospectively. RESULTS: The overall 5-year survival rate of the stage Ib gastric cancer patients was 94%. Overall 5-year survival rates in T1N1M0 and T2N0M0 were 100% and 91%, respectively. Though T1N1M0 group showed better prognosis, there was no significant difference between two groups (P=0.14). D1, D2, and D2+alpha resections were performed in 28 cases (23.7%), 81 (68.6%), and 9 (7.6%), respectively, and there was no difference in the survival rate (P>0.05). The 5-year survival rates were analyzed according to whether or not they had received chemotherapy. There was a 98% 5-year survival rate with those who had chemotherapy and a 90% 5-year survival rate with those who had not had chemotherapy, but there was no significant difference between them (P=0.18). In the T2N0M0 group, the 5 year survival rates of patients with or without chemotherapy were 97% and 86%, respectively, but there was no significant difference (P=0.16). CONCLUSION: Though T1N1M0 group showed a better prognosis than the T2N0M0 group, there was no significant difference between the two groups (P=0.14). There was no significant survival difference between D1, D2, or D2+alpha procedures. It appears that post operative intravenous chemotherapy does not affect the prognosis of stage Ib gastric cancer, and the role of the chemotherapy in patients with T2N0M0 diseases is minimal.
Academic Medical Centers ; Drug Therapy ; Humans ; Korea ; Prognosis ; Retrospective Studies ; Stomach Neoplasms* ; Survival Rate

A 70-year-old woman underwent cardiopulmonary bypass surgery for aorta dissection. After 10 days she developed a vertical gaze palsy, and 2 months later she presented with dysarthria, bradykinesia, postural instability, blepharospasm, and truncal tilt to the left. Brain imaging indicated old lacunes in the bilateral thalamus. Her symptoms remained unchanged during a 4-year follow-up, which seems to be incompatible with progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP). However, the clinical features of this case were suggestive of PSP-like syndrome after cardiopulmonary bypass surgery.
Aged ; Aorta* ; Blepharospasm ; Cardiopulmonary Bypass ; Dysarthria ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Hypokinesia ; Neuroimaging ; Paralysis ; Parkinsonian Disorders ; Supranuclear Palsy, Progressive ; Thalamus

BACKGROUND: Direct puncture by a needle is a risk factor for nerve damage. This study was designed to demonstrate nerve damage caused by a needle using the synchrotron small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) technique. METHODS: A 15 mm section of rat (Male Spargue-Dawley, about 250 grams) sciatic nerves were involved in this study. The nerve specimen for the experiment (N = 5) was punctured 5 times by a needle (25 G, 100 beveled) under general anesthesia with enflurane. The needle was placed perpendicular to the nerve and the needle bevel was placed parallel to the nerve. The SAXS patterns of the punctured nerves, extracted about 15 min prior to the experiment, were acquired after 1 week. The SAXS patterns of a normal sciatic nerve (N = 5), extracted about 15 min prior to the experiment, were measured in order to provide a comparison. Experiments were carried out at 4C1 beamline at Pohang Accelerator Laboratory in Korea. Incoming X-rays were monochromatized at 11 keV using a double multilayer (WB4C) monochromator; the beam size was around 0.5 (V) x 0.8 (H) mm2. The exposure time was 60 sec, and 8 to 12 images were acquired per sample with a 0.5 mm interval. RESULTS: In the punctured group, the periodic peaks of myelin sheath and collagen fiber were not changed. However, the periodic peaks of interfibrillar distance of collagen were greatly changed. CONCLUSIONS: Direct needle-nerve impalement did not cause damages in myelin sheath and collagen fibers when the needle was placed perpendicular and the needle bevel paralleled to the nerve fiber. This result can imply that the needle slipped into the interfibrillar packing of collagen fibrils.
Anesthesia, General ; Animals ; Collagen ; Enflurane ; Gyeongsangbuk-do ; Korea ; Myelin Sheath ; Needles* ; Nerve Fibers ; Peripheral Nerve Injuries* ; Punctures ; Rats* ; Risk Factors ; Sciatic Nerve* ; Synchrotrons*

Hyponatremia, well known as a serious medical condition, is the most frequent electrolyte disorder in clinical medicine. The aim of this study is to bring to readers affecting factors in hyponatremia treatment and to suggest effective treatment guideline. We studied general characteristics, associated serum potassium change, relationship of sodium concentration in urine, and affecting factors on serum sodium correction in 76 hyponatremic patients who had admitted Hanyang University Kuri Hospital. These 73 hyponatremic patients were divided into 10 groups according to cause and treatment by retrospective analysis(1 group : G-I origin, 2 group : CRF, 3 group : CHF, 4 group: LC, 5 group : adrenal origin, 6 group : diuretics use, 7 group : CHF with di- uretics use, 8 group : LC with diuretics use, 9 group : polydypsia, 10 group : SIADH). Serum sodium were 124.2+/-6.9mEq/L in initial diagnosis, 125.6 +/-7.7mEq/L after 48 hour, and 129.8+/-6.3mEq/L in final evaluation. Among these hyponatremic patients, thirty patients' (41.1%) sodium correction rate were below 0.5mEq/L/hr during initial 48 hour and fifteen patients(20.5%) were corrected above 135mEq/l in serum sodium Initial serum potassium was average 4,07mEq/L, and 15 patients in 73 hyponatremic patients were hypokalemic feature. Eight patients of 15 hypokalemic patients were corrected to normal potassium level and in addition, four patients of 8 corrected patients were corrected to normal sodium level above 135mEq/L. The disease frequency were highest in GI origin (31.5%), followed by SIADH(20.5%) and LC(12.3%). In our study, hyponatremia correction was not related to patient sex, age, and initial serum sodium concentration. In conclusion, Hyponatremia prognosis was not related to initial serum sodium concentration and corection rate, but related to treatment of underlying disease. And hypokalemia acompanied by hyponetremia was corrected after correction of hyponatremia.
Clinical Medicine ; Diagnosis ; Diuretics ; Humans ; Hypokalemia ; Hyponatremia* ; Potassium ; Prognosis ; Retrospective Studies ; Sodium

Patients suffering from idiopathic or self-induced edema are uniformly characterized by chronic use of furosemide, which leads to vicious cycle of edema. Among chronic furosemide users who don't have any other specific edema forming diseases, 9 patients from the outpatient clinic(OC) and 6 patients examined at the emergency room(ER) used it mainly for weight reduction and for cyclical edema, respectively. All of the ER group patients were presented with severe hypokalemia(2.04+/-0.2mEq/L; range 1.3 to 2.7 mEq/L) and alkalosis(748+/-0.01; range 7.44 to 7.51) but none from the OC group showed such results. Other baseline parameters including Plasma renin activity(PRA) and aldosterone level on recumbency, and FEn(2)were similar in both groups. In contrast, daily working hours(6.1+/-0.5 vs 10+/-0.6hr, p<0.01), average body weight gain between AM and PM(0.4+/-0.1 vs 0.9+/-0.lkg, p<0.01), peak weight gain interval(9+/-0.8 vs 5+/-0.1day, p<0.05), PRA(7.6+/-1.5 vs 23.5+/-7.2ng/ml/h, p<0.05) and aldosterone level(22.1+/-4.2 vs 64.8+/-10.4 ng/dl, p<0.01) on ambulation, and FEk. on normokalemia(ll+/-2A vs 36+/-7.7%, p<0.01) were statistically different between the two groups. In comparison to the OC group, both the amout of urine(617+/-39 vs 358+/-26ml, p<0.01) and the percent change of PRA(-14+/-4 vs -3+/-2%, p<0.05) and al-dosterone level(-17+/-5 vs -4+/-3%, p<0.05) after saline loading(lL over 1hr, IV) following ambulation were smaller in the Elt group. Moat of the ER group patients(5/6) required aldosterone antagonist (spironolactone) added to K+ supplement, but all of the OC group patients were managed to maintain an edema-free status with conservative treatment. In conclusion, patients with idiopathic edema seem to have more fluid transudation out of intravascular space during orthostasis with a prominent degree of deranged renin-aldosterone axis and K+ metabolism than those with self-induced edema.
Aldosterone ; Axis, Cervical Vertebra ; Body Weight ; Dizziness ; Edema* ; Emergencies ; Furosemide* ; Humans ; Metabolism ; Outpatients ; Plasma ; Renin ; Walking ; Weight Gain ; Weight Loss