After extracapsular cataract extraction and posterior chamber intraocular lens implantation on 62 high myopic patients(79 eyes) whose axial lengths were more than 26.0mm, the authors investigated the differences between the calcualted, predicted, peroperative values and measured postoperative values retrospectively. The patients were divided into 2 groups according to their axial lengths; Group C is 35 patients (44 eyes) with 26.0-28.4mm. Group D is 27 patients(35 eyes) with more than 28.4mm. Group A, as control group, is 70 patients(81 eyes) with 22.0-24.4mm and group B, as control group, is 37 patients(44 eyes) with 24.5-25.9mm. Autorefractive examination and manifest refraction was done at 1week, 1month, 3 months postoperatively. Preoperative intraocular lens diopter was calculated by SRK-II and SRK/T formula. After the scleral incision, continuous circumlinear capsulorhexis, and phacoemulsification, one-piece PMMA lens was implanted in the bag. At postoperative 3 months, all patients had the tendency of myopic shift and the shift calculated by SRK-II was much more than that by SRK/T. The difference was statistically significant. In conclusion, it is better to apply SRK/T formula when axial length is more than 26.0mm, in order to acheive goal diopter postoperatively.
Capsulorhexis ; Cataract Extraction ; Cataract* ; Humans ; Lens Implantation, Intraocular ; Lenses, Intraocular ; Phacoemulsification ; Polymethyl Methacrylate ; Retrospective Studies

Fine needle biopsy of nodules on the thyroid is simple diagnostic method and it is generally a safe procedure. The main side effect is pain and hematoma. Secondary hemangioma development after biopsy is extremely rare. A 63-year-old woman presented with a 5-year history of solitary erythematous papule on neck. Spontaneous bleeding recorded six times within 5 years. There is not vascular anastomosis in ultrasonographic imaging. A histopathologic study showed vessel-like arteriole around small veins in dermis. No arteriovenous hemangioma case has been previously reported to be related to fine needle biopsy. Our case showed possibilities of arteriovenous hemangioma developments after fine needle biopsy.
Arterioles ; Biopsy ; Biopsy, Fine-Needle ; Dermis ; Female ; Hemangioma ; Hematoma ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Neck ; Thyroid Gland ; Veins

PURPOSE: Although high-dose-rate intracavitary radiotherapy (HDR ICR) has been used in the treatment of cervical cancer, the potential for increased risk of late complication, most commonly in the rectum, is a major concern. We have previously reported on 136 patients treated with HDR brachytherapy between 1995 and 1999. The purpose of this study is to upgrade the previous data and confirm the correlation between late rectal complication and rectal dose in cervix cancer patients treated with HDR ICR. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A retrospective analysis was performed for 222 patients with cervix cancer who were treated for curative intent with external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) and HDR ICR from July 1995 to December 2001. The median dose of EBRT was 50.4 (30.6~56.4) Gy with a daily fraction size 1.8 Gy. A total of six fractions of HDR ICR were given twice weekly with fraction size of 4 (3~5.5) Gy to A point by Iridium-192 source. The rectal dose was calculated at the rectal reference point using the barium contrast criteria. in vivo measurement of the rectal dose was performed with thermoluminescent dosimeter (TLD) during HDR ICR. The median follow-up period was 39 months, ranging from 6 to 90 months. RESULTS: Twenty-one patients (9.5%) experienced late rectal bleeding, from 3 to 44 months (median, 13 months) after the completion of RT. The calculated rectal doses were not different between the patients with rectal bleeding and those without, but the measured rectal doses were higher in the complicated patients. The differences of the measured ICR rectal fractional dose, ICR total rectal dose, and total rectal biologically equivalent dose (BED) were statistically significant. When the measured ICR total rectal dose was beyond 16 Gy, when the ratio of the measured rectal dose to A point dose was beyond 70%, or when the measured rectal BED was over 110 Gy3, a high possibility of late rectal complication was found. CONCLUSION: Late rectal complication was closely correlated with measured rectal dose by in vivo dosimetry using TLD during HDR ICR. If data from in vivo dosimetry shows any possibility of rectal bleeding, efforts should be made to reduce the rectal dose.
Barium ; Brachytherapy* ; Follow-Up Studies ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Radiotherapy ; Rectum ; Retrospective Studies ; Uterine Cervical Neoplasms*

PURPOSE: In this study, nosocomial bloodstream infection rate and fatality rate for 774 and 386 patients, who whose blood cultivation were obtained after 48 hours of hospitalization between March 1999 and February 2000 in two university hospitals, were sought. A distribution of etiologic agent and risk factors of the nosocoial bloodstream infection were also investigated. METHODS: This study was carried out through medical record review and a structural questionnaire. Besides registers of microbe cultivation in the department of clinical pathology and medical records of patients were checked. The nosocomial bloodstream infection was also checked through medical records of patients using the standard of CDC. Statistical analysis were performed using SAS 6.12. RESULTS: The nosocomial bloodstream infection rate in hospital K and hospital A were 3.9 and 3.5 per 1,000 discharged patients, respectively. Although the rates were increased accoding to patients' age, they were different by medical departments, showing the highest level in the ICU. The fatality rate from nosocomial bloodstream infection in hospital K and hospital A were 12.5% and 21.8%, respectively. A distribution of etiologic agent of the nosocomial bloodstream infection in hospital K was 17 cases(21.8%) of Coagulase negative staphylococcus(CNS), 12 cases(15.0%) of Staphylococcus aureus and 8 cases(10.0%) of Enterococcus spp. For hospital A, it was 14 cases925.4%) of Coagulase negative taphylococcus(CNS), 9 cases(16.4%) of Staphylococcus aureus and 7 cases(12.7%) of Klebsiella pneumoniae. While risk factors of the nosocomial bloodstream infection edentified in hospital K were ICU, intracranial injury and hospitalization period, those for hospital A were a use of the central nenous tube, intracranial injury and hospitalization period. CONCLUSION: It is expected that nosocomial bloodstream infection increases as aged group increases by the change of the population structure, as the usage of invasive instrument increases by development of new medical instrument as well as large scale hospitals. For these reasons, further studies developing countermeasures against nosocomial bloodstream infection are recommended.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (U.S.) ; Coagulase ; Cross Infection ; Enterococcus ; Epidemiologic Studies* ; Hospitalization ; Hospitals, University ; Humans ; Klebsiella pneumoniae ; Medical Records ; Pathology, Clinical ; Risk Factors ; Staphylococcus aureus ; Surveys and Questionnaires

BACKGROUND: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of gemcitabine and cisplatin chemotherapy in advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Forty patients (21 men, 19 women ; age range, 37 to 73 years; median, 63 years) with unresectable stage IIIB to IV NSCLC were evaluated. Patients received cisplatin 60mg/m2 (Day 1), gemcitabine 1200mg/m2 (Day 1 and 8) every 21 days. Eighteen patients had stage IIIB disease and 22 had stage IV. There were 28 patients of adenocarcinoma (70.0%), 11 of squamous cell carcinoma (27.5%), and one of large cell carcinoma (2.5%). RESULTS: Of 40 patients, no patients showed complete response while 15(37.5%) showed partial response, 7(17.5%) had stable diseases, 18(45%) had progressive diseases. During a total of 195 courses of chemotherapy, grade 3 or more granulocytopenia and thrombocytopenia occured in 12.5% and 2.5% of patients respectively. Non-hematologic toxicity was mild and easily controlled. There was one case of treatment-related death by pneumomia. The median survival was 55 weeks (95% CI, 34~75weeks), and the time to progression was 19 weeks (95% CI, 16~23weeks). One year survival rate was 55% and 2 year survival rate was 10%. CONCLUSION: The efficacy of cisplatin and gemcitabine combination chemotherapy was acceptable in the treatment of advanced NSCLC.
Adenocarcinoma ; Agranulocytosis ; Carcinoma, Large Cell ; Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung* ; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell ; Cisplatin ; Drug Therapy ; Drug Therapy, Combination* ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Survival Rate ; Thrombocytopenia

BACKGROUND: Atopic dermatitis (AD) patients suffer from xerosis. Proper skin care, including the use of emollients, may help improve xerosis and minimize disease exacerbation. Lactobacillus sakei probio 65, isolated from the Korean vegetable-based product kimchi, can decrease interleukin 4 and immunoglobulin E levels and inhibit Staphylococcus aureus. Moreover, it has reportedly shown positive dermatological effects in both animal and clinical studies. OBJECTIVE: To compare the effects of an emollient that contains Lactobacillus (treated) with a normal emollient (control) on AD. METHODS: This double-blind, randomized, split-body clinical trial involved 28 patients with AD. The patients applied the Lactobacillus-containing emollient on one side of their body and the control emollient on the other side twice daily for 4 weeks. Trans-epidermal water loss (TEWL) and skin capacitance were evaluated and investigator global assessment and the visual analogue scale (VAS) were administered on weeks 0, 1, 2, and 4. RESULTS: The treated sides had significantly lower TEWL and VAS values and significantly higher skin capacitance values over time than the control sides. CONCLUSION: Topical application of Lactobacillus-containing emollients may improve the skin permeability of patients with AD.
Animals ; Dermatitis, Atopic* ; Disease Progression ; Emollients* ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin E ; Immunoglobulins ; Interleukin-4 ; Lactobacillus* ; Permeability ; Research Personnel ; Skin ; Skin Care ; Staphylococcus aureus ; Water Loss, Insensible

BACKGROUND: Cytokeratins are epithelial markers whose expressions are not lost during malignant transformation. The utility of cytokeratin fragment (Cyfra) 21-1, a new tumor marker, was investigated in 110 patients with lung cancer. The aims of this study were to confirm sensitivity of Cyfra 21-1 in detecting non-small cell cancer, to assess the potential relationship between Cyfra 21-1 and disease stage of the lung cancer. METHODS: We measured serum levels of four tumor marker (NSE, CEA, SCC Ag, Cyfra 21-1) in 110 patients with lung cancer. The measurement of serum level of Cyfra 21-1 was performed with a cut off value of 3.3 ng/mL. An immunoradiometric assay was used to detect a fragment of the cytokeratin 19. The patients were grouped according to the stage of the disease and tumor type. RESULTS: Overall sensitivity of Cyfra 21-1 was relatively high (51.8%) than others tumor markers. Sensitivity of this marker was especially high for adenocarcinoma (63.2%) and squamous cell carcinoma (54.1%). In contrast, sensitiviy of Cyfra 21-1 was relatively low for small cell lung carcinoma (40.0%). Serum levels of Cyfra 21-1 were higher in advanced nonsmall cell lung cancer than early stage disease. CONCLUSION: We conclude that Cyfra 21-1 is a sensitive tumor marker of nonsmall cell lung cancer, especially adenocarcinoma and also may be a useful adjunctive marker for disease monitoring.
Adenocarcinoma ; Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung ; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell ; Humans ; Immunoradiometric Assay ; Keratin-19 ; Keratins ; Lung Neoplasms* ; Lung* ; Small Cell Lung Carcinoma ; Biomarkers, Tumor

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: A myocardial bridge(MB) is an anatomical arrangement in which an epicardial coronary artery becomes engulfed for a limited segment by myocardial fibers. Although it has generally been felt that most instance of bridge are benign. Recent reports have suggested that MB can be associated with evidence of myocardial ischemia, myocardial infarction, arrhythmia and sudden death. This study investigated clinical characteristics of myocardial bridge and significance of treadmill test(TMT). METHOD: Among 4317 consecutive coronary angiograms performed from November 1995 to June 1999, 52 patients had a myocardial bridge. For the patients with MB, the clinical data, coronary angiography and the results of treadmill tests were reviewed. RESULT: The overall prevalence of myocardial bridge was 1.22%. Stable angina, atypical chest pain, variant angina, AMI were 33(63%), 15(29%), 2(4%), 2(%) cases, respectively. Electrocardiographic finding were normal in 31 cases(59%), ST-T change in 20 cases(38%), OMI in 1 case(3%). Mean systolic stenosis of MB was 54%, Mean length of segment of MB was 11.96 4.96mm and all patients had MBs of left anterior descending(LAD) coronary artery. Among 23 cases which had been performed TMT, 17 were positive(77%). There was no significant statistical difference between TMT(+) and TMT(-) in clinical characteristic and coronary angiographic data. We divided the patients with MB into two groups [group I(34 cases): systolic compression < 50%(mean 35.1 10.7%), group II(18 cases): systolic compression 50%(mean 63.6 14.7%)] and there were no statistical difference in clinical characteristics, TMT and angiographic data. CONCLUSION: The patients with MB present variable clinical characteristics of stable angina, atypical chest pain, variant angina, acute myocardial infarction. There is no relationship between the degree of systolic compression and TMT positive in MB. We think that symptoms of MB are not developed only by mechanical compression but concerned with other variable mechanism.
Angina, Stable ; Arrhythmias, Cardiac ; Chest Pain ; Constriction, Pathologic ; Coronary Angiography ; Coronary Vessels ; Death, Sudden ; Electrocardiography ; Exercise Test ; Humans ; Myocardial Infarction ; Myocardial Ischemia ; Prevalence

Splenic infarction caused by malaria is a rare complication and this is mostly caused by plasmodium falciparum. We report here on a 38 year-old female patient who developed symptomatic splenic infarction that was caused by vivax malaria. She presented with fever and left upper quadrant pain. Computed tomography showed multiple low density areas in the spleen, and the peripheral blood smear revealed plasmodium vivax infestation. We examined for other causes of splenic infarction, but all were negative. This is just the second report of symptomatic splenic infarction that was caused by vivax malaria only. Unlike the previous case, the levels of D-dimer and fibrinogen degradation factor were elevated. This may be related with the hypercoagulable state caused by malaria. Treatment was conservative and the further course was uneventful.
Female ; Fever ; Fibrin Fibrinogen Degradation Products ; Fibrinogen ; Humans ; Malaria ; Malaria, Vivax ; Plasmodium falciparum ; Plasmodium vivax ; Spleen ; Splenic Infarction

BACKGROUND: Consensus guidelines clearly define how epinephrine is administered during cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). In South Korea, it is not known whether epinephrine is administered in accordance with the current advanced cardiovascular life support (ACLS) guidelines during actual practice. We sought to investigate adherence to ACLS guidelines during actual CPR in terms of the dose of epinephrine and the interval between doses. METHODS: A retrospective review of medical records was performed on 394 adult cardiac arrest patients who received CPR at an emergency room. Data including the duration of CPR, the dose of epinephrine, and the interval between doses was collected from CPR records. RESULTS: Standard-dose epinephrine (1 mg) was used in 166 of 394 patients (42.1%). In 58.8% of patients, the average between-dose interval was within the 3-5 min recommended in the guidelines, whereas it was shorter than 3 min in 31.4% of patients. As a whole, epinephrine was administered in accordance with the current ACLS guidelines in only 96 of 394 patients (24.4%). Logistic regression analysis revealed the duration of CPR to be an independent factor affecting the use of standard-dose epinephrine and the adequate between-dose interval. CONCLUSIONS: Epinephrine was not administered according to the ACLS guideline in most patients. A national multi-center study is required to determine whether the poor adherence to the ACLS guideline is a widespread problem. In addition, efforts to improve adherence to the ACLS guideline are required.
Adult ; Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation ; Compliance ; Consensus ; Emergencies ; Epinephrine ; Heart Arrest ; Humans ; Logistic Models ; Medical Records ; Republic of Korea ; Retrospective Studies