We report a case of actinic granuloma in a 70-year-old woman with diabetes mellitus. Several annular lesions developed in both shins and persisted for five years, and similar lesions developed later mainly in sun-exposed areas. Histopathological study from the annular plaques of the shoulder showed actinic granuloma composed of numerous giant cells with disappearance of elastic fibers. Histopatholoc finding from the shin showed actinic granuloma of several foci of necrobiosis. From this case, we observed two different patterns of actinic granuloma in the same patient.
Actins* ; Aged ; Diabetes Mellitus ; Elastic Tissue ; Female ; Giant Cells* ; Granuloma* ; Humans ; Necrobiotic Disorders ; Shoulder

Since the first report on infective endocarditis by Rokitansky in 1985, this subject has been extensively dealt with in the world literature. Nowadays by use of echocardiography, there has been a high discovery rate of vegetation, and thus made it a valuable tool in diagnosis, treatment, and the evaluation of the patient. However in Korea, there have been only a few case reports and even fewer studies on infective endocarditis. This study is a clinical analysis of 87 infective endocarditis cases, which were admitted and treated at the department of Pediatrics and Internal medicine, diagnosed as infective endocarditis, during the period from january 1975 through February 1984. 1) The mean age was 24.8 years and male to female ratio was 1.49:1. 2) Annual incidence showed no increment during the period and it was 1:2500. 3) Underlying heart diseases consisted of rheumatic heart disease(52.3%), congenital heart disease(39.7%), no underlying heart disease(8%), previous infective endocarditis(4.6%), and prosthetic valve endocarditis(3.4%). 4) Frequent clinical manifestations on admission were high fever, heart murmur, congestive heart failure and frequent laboratory findings were positive blood culture results, anemia, positive C-reactive protein, and hematuria. 5) Blood culture was positive in 75.9% and the most common infecting organism was alpha-streptococcus, which represented 42.4% of total positive cases. S. aureus and S. epidermidis were next common and these three organisms consisted of 71.2% Culture positivity was not significantly related to the type and incidence of complications. 6) Antibiotics sensitivity of the major isolated organisms were performed. Alpha-streptococcus was sensitive to almost all antibiotics except Tetracycline. Group D-streptococcus was sensitive to Chloramphenicol and Cephalosporin. S. aureus and S. epidermidis showed same results, which showd sensitivity to Chloramphenicol, Cephalosporin and Methicillin and resistence to penicillin. 7) Echocardiography was performed in 55 cases and showed vegetation in 58.2%. Complications related to the echocardiographic identification of the vegetations showed difference only in the mortality rate, which was greater by 3 times in the positive cases than in the negative. 8) Peripheral embolizations occurred in 29.9% of cases, and by far the mostcommon site was the brain, where 63% of the embolism was localized. 9) Sufficient duration of hospitalization(4-6 weeks) and judicious antibiotics administration was done in 43.7%. The initial response to therapy was noted in 48.5% of total febrile cases. 10) The mortality rate of the cases was 13.8% of the patients died. However, as many patients were discharged against advice because of socio-economic factors, precise therapeutic results of these cases could not be obtained.
Anemia ; Anti-Bacterial Agents ; Brain ; C-Reactive Protein ; Chloramphenicol ; Diagnosis ; Echocardiography ; Embolism ; Endocarditis* ; Female ; Fever ; Heart ; Heart Diseases ; Heart Failure ; Heart Murmurs ; Hematuria ; Humans ; Incidence ; Internal Medicine ; Korea ; Male ; Methicillin ; Mortality ; Pediatrics ; Penicillins ; Tetracycline

PURPOSE: To evaluate whether or not previously known CT criteria for differentiating malignant and benign pleural diseases are useful in the differentiation of diffuse malignant pleural diseases and tuberculosis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed CT scans of 42 patients comprising 20 cases of malignant pleural diseases and 22 cases of tuberculous pleural diseases, according to previously known CT criteria for differentiating malignant and benign pleural diseases. RESULTS: The most common shape of pleural effusion was crescentic in malignant pleural diseases and loculated in tuberculosis. The aggressive nature of pleural effusion, pleural rind, and pleura thickenign was 1.5 times more frequently observed in malignant pleural diseases than in tuberculosis. Smooth thickening or smooth nodular pleural thickening and extrapleural deposition of fat were 1.5 times more frequently found in tuberculous than in malignant pleural diseases. Interruption of pleural thickening was found twice as frequently in malignant pleural diseases as in tuberculosis. Decreased lung volume was found twice as frequently in tuberculous as in malignant pleural diseases. Anatomical mediastinal pleural involvement was three times, and irregular nodular pleural thickening nine times more frequent in malignant pleural diseases than in tuberculosis. The sensitivity and specificity of CT findings above 70%, and thus suggesting malignant pleural diseases, were as follows: 1) aggressive nature of pleural fluid collection extending to the azygoesophageal recess or tongue of the lung (51.5%, 75%); 2) involvement of anatomical mediastinal pleura (69.2%,73.7%); 3) irregular nodular pleural thickening (87.5%, 69%). CONCLUSION: Although there in overlap between previously known CT criteria for the differentiation of benign and malignant pleural diseases, the aggressive nature of pleural fluid collection extending to the azygoesophageal recess or tongue of the lung, the involvement of anatomical mediastinal pleura and irregular nodular pleural thickening may suggest malignant pleural diseases.
Humans ; Lung ; Pleura ; Pleural Diseases* ; Pleural Effusion ; Retrospective Studies ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed ; Tongue ; Tuberculosis*

PURPOSE: To compare prospectively and randomly tension-free vaginal tape(TVT) with transobturator vaginal tape inside-out(TVT-O) for the surgical treatment of female stress urinary incontinence(SUI). MATERIALS AND METHODS: One hundred twenty women with SUI were alternately assigned to either the TVT group(n=60) or TVT-O group(n=60). The preoperative evaluation included urodynamic study and a Korean version of the incontinence quality of life questionnaire(I-QoL). At 1-year after operation, surgical outcome, patient I-QoL parameters, long-term complications and uroflowmetry were evaluated in 2 groups. RESULTS: Preoperative patient characteristics including I-QoL and urodynamic study were comparable in the two groups. The rates of cure(86.8% for TVT vs. 86.8% for TVT-O), improvement(6.6% for TVT vs. 8.2% for TVT-O), and failure (6.6% for TVT vs. 5.0% for TVT-O) were similar for the two groups. The I-QoL parameters one year after surgery were improved significantly in both groups(p<0.001) and there was no difference between the two groups(p>0.05). The rates of the patient satisfaction with the procedure were 93.4% in the TVT group versus 95.0% in the TVT-O group(p>0.05). Mean operation time(11.5+/-1.4 min versus 15.2+/-1.8 min, p<0.05) was significantly shorter in the TVT-O than TVT. There were no long-term complications, such as vaginal erosion and prolonged voiding difficulty, in either group. CONCLUSION: TVT-O appears to be equally effective as TVT for the surgical treatment of stress urinary incontinence in women at a 1-year follow-up.
Female* ; Follow-Up Studies* ; Humans ; Patient Satisfaction ; Prospective Studies* ; Quality of Life ; Suburethral Slings* ; Urinary Incontinence* ; Urinary Incontinence, Stress ; Urodynamics

BACKGROUND: The differentiation of mesial temporal lobe epilepsy (MTLE) from neocortical temporal lobe epilepsy (NTLE) is important in surgical planning of temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE). We tried to find clinical semiology separating one from the other. METHODS: We reviewed 136 seizures of 28 patients who had epilepsy surgery and good clinical outcome (Engel class I or II). We compared the following clinical features between MTLE and NTLE; the history of febrile convulsion, staring, automatism, head version, contralateral dystonic (CLD) and tonic (CLT) posturing, secondarily generalized tonic-clonic seizure (SGTC) frequency, the duration of partial seizures (excluding SGTC part) and time to SGTC and the type of aura (abdominl aura, vertiginous aura, visual aura, gustatory aura, and psychic aura etc.). RESULTS: Eighteen men and ten women were included. Mean age was 29.1+ 8.8 years (11-45). Abdominal aura (p = 0.04), oroalimentary (p < 0.01) and gestural automatism (p < 0.01), CLD (p < 0.01), and CLT posturing (p < 0.01) were seen significantly more often in MTLE and the duration of partial seizure (excluding SGTC) (p < 0.01) was longer in MTLE than NTLE. In NTLE, head version (p < 0.01) and SGTC (p < 0.01) occurred more frequently and the evolution time to SGTC (p = 0.04) was shorter. Duration of automatism and staring and occurrence of unilateral blinking were not different between two groups. CONCLUSION: Abdominal aura, oroalimentary and gestural automatism, CLD and CLT posturing, longer partial seizure duration were more suggesting MTLE, while rapid generalization, frequent SGTC and head version were seen more often in NTLE.
Automatism ; Blinking ; Epilepsy ; Epilepsy, Temporal Lobe* ; Female ; Generalization (Psychology) ; Head ; Humans ; Male ; Seizures ; Seizures, Febrile ; Temporal Lobe*

PURPOSE: To compare power and conventional color Doppler sonography for depiction of the vasculature of solidbreast lesions, and to evaluate the usefulness of power Doppler sonography for differential diagnosis of malignantbreast lesions. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In order to detect vascularity, 82 cases of solid breast lesions wereevaluated by power and color Doppler sonography. Fifty-eight pathologically proven cases (37 benign and 21malignant lesions) were analyzed for the amount and patterns of Doppler signals, morphology of vessels, and thediagnostic accuracy. RESULTS: In 45 of 82 cases, power Doppler sonography depicted flow better than did colorDoppler sonography, while in 37 cases, depiction was equal. On power Doppler sonography, the incidence of markedblood flow in malignant lesions was three times higher than in benign lesions. The pattern of vasculature was morepredominantly central (85.5 %) and penetrating (61.9 %) in malignant lesions than in benign lesions. Branching(57.1 %) and disordered vessels (33.3 %) were more frequent in malignant lesions than in benign. For the diagnosisof malignancy, sensitivity for power Doppler sonography was 65 %, specificity was 79 % and diagnostic accuracy was74.1 % ; for color Doppler sonography, the corresponding figures were 76.9 %, 75.6 % and 75.9 %. CONCLUSION: Power Doppler sonography was more sensitive than color Doppler sonography for the detection of flow in solidbreast lesions. For the differentiation of benign from malignant lesions, however, there was no difference indiagnostic accuracy between the two modalities. findings of central and penetrating distribution patterns ofDoppler signals, and branching and disordered shapes of vessels, along with other sonographic criteria, arehelpful for predicting malignancy.
Breast* ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Incidence ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Ultrasonography

BACKGROUND: Weight reduction is a lifestyle intervention that has been introduced for prevention and management of chronic kidney disease (CKD). We investigate the additive anti-proteinuric effect of weight reduction on the usage of angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs) and its potential mechanisms in hypertensive CKD patients. METHODS: This study is a subanalysis of data from an open-label, randomized, controlled clinical trial. Among the 235 participants, 227 were assigned to subgroups according to changes in body weight. RESULTS: Fifty-eight participants (25.6%) were assigned to group 1 (≥1.5% decrease in body weight after 16 weeks), 32 participants (14.1%) were assigned to group 2 (1.5–0.1% decrease in body weight), and 136 participants (59.9%) were assigned to group 3 (≥ 0.0% increase in body weight). Characteristics at enrollment were not different among the three groups, but mean differences in weight and percent changes in urinary sodium excretion over the period were statistically different (P < 0.001 and P = 0.017). Over the study period, unintentional weight loss independently increased the probability of reduced albuminuria (group 1, relative risk 6.234, 95% confidence interval 1.913–20.315, P = 0.002). Among urinary cytokines, only podocalyxin level decreased significantly in participants who lost weight (P = 0.013). CONCLUSION: We observed that weight loss had an additive effect on the anti-proteinuric effects of ARBs in nondiabetic hypertensive CKD patients, although it was minimal. An additive effect was shown in both obese and non-obese participants, and its possible mechanism is related to reduction of podocyte damage.
Albuminuria ; Angiotensin II* ; Angiotensin Receptor Antagonists* ; Angiotensins* ; Body Weight ; Cytokines ; Humans ; Hypertension ; Life Style ; Podocytes ; Proteinuria* ; Receptors, Angiotensin* ; Renal Insufficiency, Chronic* ; Sodium ; Weight Loss*

BACKGROUND: In the Korean healthcare system, medical care for HIV patients was provided by a few university affiliated hospitals. Access to these tertiary hospitals by homeless people living with HIV was difficult due to socioeconomic reasons. Consequently, proper treatment for homeless subjects living with HIV was not delivered in a timely manner. This study compares the degree of disease progression of HIV infection/AIDS between homeless and non-homeless patient groups. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Out of 605 HIV/AIDS patients who visited the Center for Infectious Disease, National Medical Center, Seoul, Korea from August 2003 to May 2010, 295 subjects were included for this study. Referred cases (n=310) were excluded. The study subjects were further classified into three socioeconomic groups: National Health Insurance beneficiaries, Medical Aids beneficiaries, and the homeless. Status of HIV/AIDS disease progress was evaluated by peripheral blood CD4 cell count and the presence of AIDS defining illnesses at the first visit. RESULTS: There were 220 National Health Insurance beneficiaries (male 94.1%), 45 Medical Aids beneficiaries (male 88.9%), and 30 homeless people (male 96.7%). CD4 cell counts of the homeless (median: 119/microL, interquartile range: 44-383/microL) were significantly lower than those of the National Health Insurance beneficiaries (median: 267/microL, interquartile range: 159-397/microL; P=0.024). In addition, the proportion of patients whose CD4 cell counts <200/microL was significantly higher in homeless subjects (53.3%) compared to those in the National Health Insurance beneficiaries (27.3%) and the Medical Aids beneficiaries (28.9%) (P=0.004; P=0.033 respectively). Also, the frequency of AIDS defining illnesses was higher in the homeless (73.3%) than for those in other groups (the Health Insurance beneficiaries: 24.5%; the Medical Aids beneficiaries: 40.0%) (P<0.001; P<0.005 respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Homeless people living with HIV tend to seek medical care in far advanced stage, which may attribute to poor prognoses. More organized and strategic interventions are necessary to find and treat homeless people living with HIV at the early stage.
Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome ; CD4 Lymphocyte Count ; Communicable Diseases ; Delivery of Health Care ; Disease Progression ; HIV ; Homeless Persons ; Humans ; Insurance, Health ; Korea ; National Health Programs ; Prognosis ; Tertiary Care Centers

Purpose: To propose standardized and feasible imaging protocols for constructing artificial intelligence (AI) database in acute stroke by assessing the current practice at tertiary hospitals in South Korea and reviewing evolving AI models. Materials and Methods: A nationwide survey on acute stroke imaging protocols was conducted using an electronic questionnaire sent to 43 registered tertiary hospitals between April and May 2021. Imaging protocols for endovascular thrombectomy (EVT) in the early and late time windows and during follow-up were assessed. Clinical applications of AI techniques in stroke imaging and required sequences for developing AI models were reviewed. Standardized and feasible imaging protocols for data curation in acute stroke were proposed. Results: There was considerable heterogeneity in the imaging protocols for EVT candidates in the early and late time windows and posterior circulation stroke. Computed tomography (CT)-based protocols were adopted by 70% (30/43), and acquisition of noncontrast CT, CT angiography and CT perfusion in a single session was most commonly performed (47%, 14/30) with the preference of multiphase (70%, 21/30) over single phase CT angiography. More hospitals performed magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-based protocols or additional MRI sequences in a late time window and posterior circulation stroke. Diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) and fluid-attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR) were most commonly performed MRI sequences with considerable variation in performing other MRI sequences. AI models for diagnostic purposes required noncontrast CT, CT angiography and DWI while FLAIR, dynamic susceptibility contrast perfusion, and T1-weighted imaging (T1WI) were additionally required for prognostic AI models. Conclusion Given considerable heterogeneity in acute stroke imaging protocols at tertiary hospitals in South Korea, standardized and feasible imaging protocols are required for constructing AI database in acute stroke. The essential sequences may be noncontrast CT, DWI, CT/MR angiography and CT/MR perfusion while FLAIR and T1WI may be additionally required.

BACKGROUNDS: A dysembryoplastic neuroepithelial tumor (DNT) is an important cause of the intractable epilepsy. The prognosis after epileptic surgery was excellent when the epileptogenic zones were completely excised. But, the exact epileptogenic zones in epilepsy patients with DNT are not well known. The purpose of this study was to investigate where the epileptogenic zones were in epilepsy patients with DNT. That results might be helpful in having good results of epileptic surgery of DNT. METHODS: Six patients with medically determined intractable epilepsy due to DNT were studied retrospectively. They had undergone epileptic surgery after video-EEG monitoring not only with scalp electrodes but also with invasive subdural electrodes. DNTs were located in the temporal lobe and pathologically proven in all patients. We analyzed distributions of ictal onset zones and irritative zones with non-invasive and invasive Video-EEG monitoring. Also, we reviewed the clinical features, neuroimaging features, neuropsychological tests, Wada tests and pathological findings. The operative strategy included complete resection of DNT, ictal onset and irritative zones in all patients. In two patients, modified operative strategy including amygdalohippocampectomy was done due to mesial involvement. A modified Engel's classification was used to determine surgical outcomes. RESULTS: The irritative zones (included only more than 10% of total interictal discharges during the monitoring) showed various patterns from multifocal to unobserved. Ictal onset zones were multiple in 5 patients (dual: 3 patients, triple: 2 patients). In 1 patient, contralateral hemispheric mirror focus was observed. Mesial temporal involvement was seen in 2 patients from EEG and in 1 patient from pathology. There were discrepancies between ictal onset zones and irritative zones in 4 patients. The EEG seizures without clinical events were recorded in 1 patient. Postoperatively 5 patients were free of seizure, 1 patient had rare seizures. CONCLUSION: Not only the wide or multiple distribution of epileptogenic zones around or in the lesion but also dual pathology of hippocampus are possible in epilepsy patients with DNT. The operative strategy including the epileptogenic zones can yield a good surgical outcome.
Classification ; Electrodes ; Electroencephalography ; Epilepsy* ; Hippocampus ; Humans ; Neoplasms, Neuroepithelial* ; Neuroimaging ; Neuropsychological Tests ; Pathology ; Prognosis ; Retrospective Studies ; Scalp ; Seizures ; Temporal Lobe