No abstract available

We evaluated the role of endoseopic balloon dilatation for esophageal strictures caused by postoperative anastomosis in 5 cases, sclerotherapy in 4 cases, caustic injury in 6 cases, and malignancy in 16 cases. The success rate of balloon dilatation was 100% in postoperative anastomotic and post-scle- rotherapy strictures, 16.7% in caustic stricture, and 62.5% in malignant stricture. The addition of bougienage increased the final success rate of dilatation therapy from 16.7 to 66.7% in caustic stricture, and 62.5 to 93.8% in malignant stricture. The overall one-year recurrence rate in benign stricture was 34.5%. All of the recurrent strictures were successfully retreated by balloon dilatation. In conclusion, endoscopic balloon dilatation is a safe, effective, and easy method for the management of benign esophageal strictures except longstanding caustic stricture, and can be used as an auxiliary therapy prior to more definitive treatments such as esophageal intubation in malignant stricture.
Constriction, Pathologic* ; Dilatation ; Esophagus ; Intubation ; Recurrence ; Sclerotherapy

No abstract available.
Infertility* ; Laparoscopy*

PURPOSE: This study was conducted to determine the risk factors among patients with depression with Crohn's disease. METHODS: Data were collected by questionnaire from 276 patients who were diagnosed with Crohn's disease at a tertiary hospital located in Seoul. Measurements included patients' demographic characteristics, clinical characteristics, depression level, and health-related quality of life. Data were analyzed using t-test, chi2-test, Wilcoxon rank sum test, and logistic regression analyses. RESULTS: The incidence rate of depression (BDI-II> or =14scores) was 31.9% (n=88). Univariate analysis revealed that being a woman, school graduation status, economic status (low), BMI(<18.5Kg/m2), disease duration (> or =3 years), CDAI (> or =150 scores), frequency of hospital admission (> or =2), extra-intestinal manifestation (arthralgia, stomatitis), administration of 5-aminosalicylic acid, and disease related quality of life (SIBDQ<50 scores) were associated with depression. Multivariate analysis revealed that economic status (low), school graduation status, and quality of life (SIBDQ<50 scores) were more likely to report high level of depression. CONCLUSION: Future research should consider managing depression as an essential component of comprehensive care for patients with Crohn's disease. In addition, further research is needed to develop strategies to better improve quality of life among patients with Crohn's disease who are depressed.
Adult ; Arthralgia/etiology ; Body Mass Index ; Crohn Disease/complications/drug therapy/*psychology ; *Depression ; Female ; Humans ; Logistic Models ; Male ; Mesalamine/therapeutic use ; Quality of Life ; Questionnaires ; Risk Factors ; Socioeconomic Factors ; Stomatitis/etiology ; Young Adult

No abstract available.
Lymphangioma*

No abstract available.

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a disease of unknown origin that causes chronic inflammation of the intestines and is classified as either ulcerative colitis or Crohn’s disease. The incidence and prevalence of IBD in Korea have been rapidly increasing during the past three decades. This paper describes the current status of IBD in Korea.Current Concepts: Compared with western countries, genotypes and phenotypes of IBD in Korea demonstrate some distinct features, which may have an impact on the diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis of IBD. We continue to experience some difficulties in making early and accurate diagnoses of IBD in Korea due to a low awareness of the disease and the high prevalence of infectious enterocolitis, such as intestinal tuberculosis, which needs to be differentiated from IBD. The treatment of IBD can be influenced by differences in genetic, environmental, and social factors. NUDT15 variants limit the use of thiopurines. Infectious diseases, including tuberculosis, hepatitis B, and cytomegalovirus colitis, are usually more common in Asia than in western countries and can adversely influence the management of IBD. Biologic agents, which have changed the treatment paradigm of IBD, are equally efficacious in Asian patients as in Western patients. However, their use is limited due to a strict Korean government health insurance reimbursement policy. The prognosis of ulcerative colitis in Korea may be better than that in western countries, as indicated by a lower colectomy rate. However, this difference is less distinct in Crohn’s disease.Discussion and Conclusion: IBD in Korea differs from that in western countries in many respects. With rapid increase in the prevalence of IBD in Korea, medical costs for IBD are expected to become a significant financial burden. Koreans need to be prepared for this eventuality.

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a disease of unknown origin that causes chronic inflammation of the intestines and is classified as either ulcerative colitis or Crohn’s disease. The incidence and prevalence of IBD in Korea have been rapidly increasing during the past three decades. This paper describes the current status of IBD in Korea.Current Concepts: Compared with western countries, genotypes and phenotypes of IBD in Korea demonstrate some distinct features, which may have an impact on the diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis of IBD. We continue to experience some difficulties in making early and accurate diagnoses of IBD in Korea due to a low awareness of the disease and the high prevalence of infectious enterocolitis, such as intestinal tuberculosis, which needs to be differentiated from IBD. The treatment of IBD can be influenced by differences in genetic, environmental, and social factors. NUDT15 variants limit the use of thiopurines. Infectious diseases, including tuberculosis, hepatitis B, and cytomegalovirus colitis, are usually more common in Asia than in western countries and can adversely influence the management of IBD. Biologic agents, which have changed the treatment paradigm of IBD, are equally efficacious in Asian patients as in Western patients. However, their use is limited due to a strict Korean government health insurance reimbursement policy. The prognosis of ulcerative colitis in Korea may be better than that in western countries, as indicated by a lower colectomy rate. However, this difference is less distinct in Crohn’s disease.Discussion and Conclusion: IBD in Korea differs from that in western countries in many respects. With rapid increase in the prevalence of IBD in Korea, medical costs for IBD are expected to become a significant financial burden. Koreans need to be prepared for this eventuality.

Over the past decades, there has been a rapid increase in the incidence and prevalence of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) in Asia. The natural history of IBD in Asian patients could be different from that in Western patients due to variations in disease phenotypes and genotypes as well as the healthcare environment between the 2 populations. To adequately cope with this disease, it is important to fully understand the potential differences in its natural history among different populations. In this review, we evaluated the differences in the clinical course of IBD between Asian and Western patients with regards to phenotypic progression, hospitalization, major surgery, risk of colorectal cancer, and mortality, mainly based on the results of population-based studies. The findings of our narrative review suggest that the clinical course of Asian patients with IBD, especially ulcerative colitis, is better than that of Western patients, as indicated by the lower rates of major surgery and hospitalization. In addition, similar to Western patients, the clinical course of Asian patients with IBD has been improving as evidenced by the decreasing rates of disease behavior progression (in Crohn’s disease), hospitalization, and major surgery.

Ulcerative colitis is an idiopathic chronic inflammatory disease of the colon that has traditionally been considered rare in Korea. The incidence of ulcerative colitis, however, has increased recently. According to the latest population-based epidemiologic study in Korea, the annual incidence rate of ulcerative colitis has increased from 0.22/100,000 inhabitants in 1886 to 3.62/100,000 inhabitants in 2005. The median age at diagnosis of ulcerative colitis is 35 years and the age-adjusted incidence rate does not differ by sex. Although the incidence of ulcerative colitis is still low in Korea compared to Western countries, it has been increasing rapidly for the past two decades. Moreover, patients with ulcerative colitis usually require lifelong medical management and their life expectancy is similar to that of the general population. Therefore, it is expected that the prevalence of ulcerative colitis in Korea will rise remarkably
Berberine Alkaloids ; Colitis, Ulcerative ; Colon ; Epidemiologic Studies ; Humans ; Incidence ; Korea ; Life Expectancy ; Prevalence ; Ulcer