No abstract available.
Granulomatous Disease, Chronic* ; Trimethoprim-Sulfamethoxazole Combination

Meningioma is usually known to occur stuck to the dura mater, but extradural meningioma occurs rarely. Most of the extradural meningiomas are located in the head and neck and we report a case of the primary intraosseous meningioma in the orbit. A 50-year old woman presented with the left eye hyperemia and exophthalmos. Neuroimaging modalities showed hyperostosis at the left sphenoid and orbital wall. On microscopic view, spindle cells and psammoma bodies between the woven bones were observed. The origin of the intraosseous meningioma is explained with various potent possibilities and differential diagnosis thoroughly explored.
Diagnosis, Differential ; Dura Mater ; Exophthalmos ; Female ; Head ; Humans ; Hyperemia ; Hyperostosis ; Meningioma* ; Middle Aged ; Neck ; Neuroimaging ; Orbit

The aim of this study was to analyse clinical feature and outcome of patients following total abdominal colectomy and ileorectal anastomosis. METHODS: All of 8 patients subjected to surgery during 5 year period from May 1995 to December 1999 were reviewed using retrospective method. RESULTS: All patients had slow colonic transit and 7 patients (male to female, 1:1.6) with a mean age of 54 (range, 27~70) years underwent total abdominal colectomy and ileorectal anastomosis and one patient had right hemicolectomy. Major symptoms were abdominal pain and bloating and mean bowel action was 18.5 days, mean suffered time before operation was 26.3 years. Colonic transit study, defecography and rectal manometry were done in all cases. Pelvic floor dysfunction was combined in 5 patients. Median follow up was 2.7 years. There was one mortality case due to postoperative pneumonia and ARDS in a 70 year old patient. Except one mortality case, there was significant success rate, overall 71%. CONCLUSIONS: Colectomy with ileorectal anastomosis produces a satisfactory outcome in the majority of patients undergoing surgery for chronic idiopathic constipation.
Abdominal Pain ; Aged ; Colectomy* ; Colon ; Constipation* ; Defecography ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Manometry ; Mortality ; Pelvic Floor ; Pneumonia ; Retrospective Studies

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to develop a model of an elderly health promotion center after witnessing the effect of a social support program on dependent variables in older adults at a local community health center. METHOD: The subjects were 60 female adults over 65 years dwelling in a rural area, and they were divided into experimental and control groups each with 30 people. A social support program was implemented 6 hours a day, 3 times a week, for 4 months in the experimental group. Included was health assessment, health education, counseling, consultation, exercise, physical & occupational therapy, primary care, recreation, lunch & transfer service. Data was collected from May 1stto September 14th, 2002 by questionnaires, and analyzed by x2-test, t-test, Pearson's correlation coefficient and stepwise multiple regression using SAS. RESULT: The social support program in the elderly was very effective on all dependent variables of physical health (t= 4.68, p= .001), health knowledge (t= 3.60, p= .001), life satisfaction (t= 8.65, p= .001), and health promoting behaviors (t= 5.23, p= .001). CONCLUSION: The Social Support Program at a Community Health Center was effective on health promoting behaviors in the elderly.
Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; *Community Health Centers ; Female ; Health Behavior ; Health Education ; *Health Promotion ; *Health Services for the Aged ; Humans ; Korea ; *Rural Health Services ; Social Support

We hypothesized that lower proportion of serum phospholipid docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) is inversely associated with increased cardiovascular risk and vascular function in metabolically healthy men. To elucidate it, we first compared serum phospholipid free fatty acid (FA) compositions and cardiovascular risk parameters between healthy men (n = 499) and male patients with coronary artery disease (CAD, n = 111) (30-69 years) without metabolic syndrome, and then further-analyzed the association of serum phospholipid DHA composition with arterial stiffness expressed by brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (ba-PWV) in metabolically healthy men. Basic parameters, lipid profiles, fasting glycemic status, adiponectin, high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and LDL particle size, and serum phospholipid FA compositions were significantly different between the two subject groups. Serum phospholipid DHA was highly correlated with most of long-chain FAs. Metabolically healthy men were subdivided into tertile groups according to serum phospholipid DHA proportion: lower (< 2.061%), middle (2.061%-3.235%) and higher (> 3.235%). Fasting glucose, insulin resistance, hs-CRP and ba-PWVs were significantly higher and adiponectin and LDL particle size were significantly lower in the lower-DHA group than the higher-DHA group after adjusted for confounding factors. In metabolically healthy men, multiple stepwise regression analysis revealed that serum phospholipid DHA mainly contributed to arterial stiffness (β'-coefficients = -0.127, p = 0.006) together with age, systolic blood pressure, triglyceride (r = 0.548, p = 0.023). Lower proportion of serum phospholipid DHA was associated with increased cardiovascular risk and arterial stiffness in metabolically healthy men. It suggests that maintaining higher proportion of serum phospholipid DHA may be beneficial for reducing cardiovascular risk including arterial stiffness in metabolically healthy men.
Adiponectin ; Blood Pressure ; C-Reactive Protein ; Coronary Artery Disease ; Fasting ; Glucose ; Humans ; Insulin Resistance ; Male ; Particle Size ; Pulse Wave Analysis ; Triglycerides ; Vascular Stiffness*

PURPOSE: This study examined the effects of aerobic exercise using a flex band on the improvement of physical functions & body image in breast cancer women undergoing radiation therapy after a mastectomy. METHOD: Women with breast cancer(n = 26) were assigned to an experimental group(EG, n = 15) and control group(CG, n = 11). The E.G. participated in an aerobic exercise program with a 60% to 80% intensity of maximal heart rate for 25 minutes during the main exercise, 3 times per week, for 6 weeks. The EG did not exercise regularly for 3 months before participating in this program. The CG received no exercise treatment during the research period. Data were analyzed using the chi-square-test and Mann-Whitney U test by the SPSS version 11.0 program at a 5% significant level. RESULTS: Group analysis revealed that the EGwomen had significantly more improved cardiopulmonary functions, ROM of the affected shoulder joint, and body image compared to the CG. CONCLUSION: Aerobic exercise using a flex band may be an effective rehabilitative measure for mastectomy women with respect to cardio-pulmonary functions, ROM, & body image. Further studies are recommended to study early rehabilitation programs within 10 days post-operatively.
Adult ; *Body Image ; Breast Neoplasms/radiotherapy/*rehabilitation/surgery ; Combined Modality Therapy ; Female ; Heart Rate ; Humans ; *Mastectomy ; Middle Aged ; *Muscle Stretching Exercises/instrumentation ; Oximetry ; Program Evaluation ; *Range of Motion, Articular

OBJECTIVE: Sonography is a noninvasive and safe bedside imaging modality that provides rapid and repeatable real-time radiological evaluations without a radiation hazard. However, sonography has not gained widespread acceptance as a diagnostic tool in adult brain disease because of limited imaging resolution through the bony window. We investigated the diagnostic potential and clinical usefulness of bedside brain sonography through surgical bone defects in neurosurgical patients. METHODS: We evaluated twelve patients, each of whom had undergone a decompressive craniectomy, via bedside sonography, and performed comparison CT or MRI for all patients. RESULTS: We obtained reliable information regarding anatomical structure displacement, ventricle systems, intracranial fluid collection, presence and distribution of cerebral infarctions, and hemorrhages. We performed several interventional trials under sonography guidance, including aspiration of entrapped fluid collection and insertion of an external ventricular drainage catheter into a collapsed and displaced ventricle cavity. CONCLUSION: Bedside sonography through surgically created bone defects is a non-invasive method that physicians can repeat as required with no radiation hazard, and it is of particular value in emergent and critical situations when conventional neuroimages are unobtainable. Bedside sonography can be a first-line monitoring tool, in lieu of CT, for critically ill patients with surgical cranial defects.
Adult ; Brain ; Brain Diseases ; Catheters ; Cerebral Infarction ; Critical Illness ; Decompressive Craniectomy ; Displacement (Psychology) ; Drainage ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Neurosurgery ; Ultrasonography, Doppler

PURPOSE: Local treatment of rectal tumors have become an alternative to the classic radical operation. However, conventional transanal procedures are limited to tumors located in the lower rectum and the precision of the excision is restricted by the limitation of the surgeon's visualization during the procedure. This report will present our surgical management and functional results after TEM, a new minimally invasive technique for the treatment of rectal tumors. METHODS: From December 1994 to January 2000, 136 patients underwent TEM. All patients were evaluated preoperatively with sigmoidoscopy or colonoscopy with biopsy. The indications for TEM were benign rectal tumors and T1 and T2 malignant rectal tumors with well or moderately differentiation. All patients were followed up 1 month postoperatively and every 3 months thereafter. RESULTS: The mean operation time was 56.5 minutes (25~150 minutes) and the mean postoperative hospital stay was 3.6 days (2~10 days). On the basis of the postoperative evaluations, 56 of the 136 patients proved to have benign tumors while the remaining 80 patients had malignant tumors. One hundred thirty five patients were removed with adequate resection margins. One patient had cancer cell involvement at the resection margin. There were no serious complications. After a mean observation time of 29 months (12~42 months), there were five noted recurrences. Functional results were excellent; 24 of the 136 patients complained of impaired continence or defecation disorders in a review one month postoperatively. These problems improved during the first 6 months after the surgery. CONCLUSIONS: We feel that TEM is an adequate method for removal of benign rectal tumors, and properly selected early rectal cancers.
Biopsy ; Colonoscopy ; Defecation ; Humans ; Length of Stay ; Microsurgery* ; Rectal Neoplasms ; Rectum ; Recurrence ; Sigmoidoscopy

The primary esophageal lymphoma is extremely rare, and shows various morphologic characteristics. Only a single case of mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) type lymphoma confined to the esophagus has been reported in the literature. A 61-yr-old man was referred to our hospital for evaluation of an esophageal submucosal tumor (SMT) that had been detected incidentally by endoscopy. He had a history of pulmonary tuberculosis with long-term anti-tuberculosis medication 15 yr before, and also had a history of syphilis, which had been treated one year before. He had been taking a synthetic thyroid hormones for the past 10 months because of an autoimmune thyroiditis. Endoscopy showed a longitudinal round and tubular shaped smooth elevated lesion, which was covered with intact mucosa and located at the mid to distal esophagus, 31 cm to 39 cm from the incisor teeth. Endoscopic ultrasonography (EUS) showed a huge longitudinal growing intermediate- to hypo-echoic mass located in the submucosal layer with internal small, various sized honeycomb-like anechoic lesions suggesting germinal centers. Subsequently, he underwent a surgery, which confirmed the mass as a primary esophageal low-grade B-cell lymphoma of MALT type.
Alcoholism/complications ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Esophageal Neoplasms/pathology* ; Esophageal Neoplasms/radiography ; Esophageal Neoplasms/ultrasonography ; Esophagoscopy ; Gastritis/complications ; Helicobacter Infections/complications ; Hemangioma, Cavernous/diagnosis ; Human ; Incidental Findings ; Lymphoma, Mucosa-Associated Lymphoid Tissue/pathology* ; Lymphoma, Mucosa-Associated Lymphoid Tissue/radiography ; Lymphoma, Mucosa-Associated Lymphoid Tissue/ultrasonography ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Mucous Membrane/pathology ; Neoplasm Invasiveness ; Smoking ; Thyroiditis, Autoimmune/complications

Currently accurate test for identification of HCV infection is not yet developed. We examined 1) the relationship between the result of anti-HCV by 3rd generation ELISA (ELISA/3) and of HCV-RNA by PCR from pre-transplant stored serum in 89 living donor renal transplant recipients and 2) the correlation between the result of each or combined tests and the development of post-transplant liver dysfunction (LDF). LDF was defined as the increment of serum transaminase over 100 I.U./ml in two consecutive tests. Patients with clinically or biopsy proven LDF by cyclosporine were excluded. Pre-transplant HCV infection rate assessed by ELISA/3 and PCR was 20.2 and 29.2% respectively. Patients with PCR (+) developed LDF frequently compared with negative partners (50 vs. 27%, p=0.0367). Significant disparity between ELISA/3 and PCR was present. In 71 ELISA/3 (-) patients, 16(22.5%) were positive for PCR. However 8 (44.4%) were negative for PCR in 18 ELISA/3 (+) patients. ELISA/3 (+) or PCR (+) patients developed LDF frequently rather than ELISA/3(-)/PCR(-) ones(50.0 vs. 23.6%, p=0.0106). We could explain these data with 5 possibilities; 1) end-stage renal failure patients had a blunt antibody production, 2) serum sample may be collected during the window period for antibody formation, 3) even ELISA/3 could not detect fine molecular response during the early HCV infection(false negative), 4) significant false positive or serum contamination in PCR test, and finally 5) self-clearing of HCV antigen may be present in the body. In conclusion, HCV detection by PCR method and antibody test by ELISA/3 must be complementary for the accurate evaluation of HCV infection during the recipient evaluation and posttransplantation follow-up period.
Antibody Formation ; Biopsy ; Cyclosporine ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay* ; Follow-Up Studies ; Hepacivirus ; Humans ; Kidney Failure, Chronic ; Kidney Transplantation ; Liver Diseases* ; Liver* ; Living Donors ; Polymerase Chain Reaction* ; Transplantation