OBJECTIVE: Most patients wear cervical braces regardless of any anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) technique for cervical disc herniation, even in the plating. We compared clinical and radiological results in patients with cervical disc herniations. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of plate insertion during ACDF and determine if this could eliminate the need for external cervical braces after ACDF. METHODS: In this study, we evaluated 67 patients treated for single level cervical disc herniation with radiculopathy. The patients were divided into two groups: 30 patients treated with ACDF using a Solis(R) cage with plating who did not wear a cervical brace after the operation (Group I: Plated group), and 37 patients treated with ACDF using a Solis(R) cage without plating who wore a cervical brace for 3 months (Group II: Non-plated group). Clinical outcomes were assessed using the neck disability index (NDI), and visual analogue scale (VAS) for neck and arm pain at different times after the surgery. In addition, modified MacNab's grading criteria were used to assess the subjective patients' outcome at the last follow-up. Fusion was assessed at 6, 12, and 18 months after the surgery using upright AP, lateral, and flexion-extension views. RESULTS: Excellent or good results were achieved in the most patients from both groups. Patients in both groups showed marked pain relief in terms of neck and arm pain scores over all time intervals. The NDI scores in both groups significantly improved when compared to preoperative scores; however, at 1 and 2 months after the surgery, patients in Group I (Plated group) had significantly better NDI scores compared to Group II (Non-plated group). Higher rates of fusion were reported in Group I over all time intervals although none of these were statistically significant. There were two patients who required second surgery for cage subsidence in Group II. CONCLUSION: Our study demonstrates that anterior cervical fusion with plating for cervical radiculopathy is a safe and effective treatment which can eliminate unnecessary need for an external cervical brace.
Arm ; Braces ; Diskectomy ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Neck ; Radiculopathy

In most cases, subdural hematoma (SDH) is regarded as a complication of head injury and nontraumatic causes are rare. Moreover, spontaneous chronic SDH in child or adolescent is very unusual. Here, we present the case of a healthy 14-year-old girl who was diagnosed as a spontaneous chronic SDH. The patient presented with severe headache following blurring of vision two weeks ago without any history of trivial head injury. Computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging depicted a chronic SDH. The cause of the hematoma was not established. After performing burr hole drainage of the hematoma, the patient made an uneventful recovery. We explore the potential risk factors and pathophysiology implicated in this condition. Possible pathogenic mechanisms of this unique case are discussed and a review of the pertinent literature is included.
Adolescent ; Child ; Craniocerebral Trauma ; Drainage ; Headache ; Hematoma ; Hematoma, Subdural ; Hematoma, Subdural, Chronic ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Risk Factors ; Vision, Ocular

PURPOSE: To report a case of fibrotic obstruction of scleral orifice in Ex-PRESS shunt. CASE SUMMARY: A 57-year-old male presented with elevated intraocular pressure in his left eye. In the past, laser photocoagulation was performed at a local clinic due to retinal venous occlusion in his left eye. During observation, he was transferred to our hospital due to uncontrolled intraocular pressure despite antiglaucoma medications. He was diagnosed with neovascular glaucoma in the left eye. Since intravitreal injection of anti-vascular endothelial growth factor with maximal medical therapy did not lower the intraocular pressure, an Ex-PRESS shunt device was implanted. Two weeks postoperatively, the bleb was flat and diffuse with shallow anterior chamber and intraocular pressure was below 5 mm Hg. Therefore, we performed scleral flap revision and intraocular pressure was sustained between 10 and 15 mm Hg. Two months postoperatively, the patient experienced high intraocular pressure and no elevated bleb, thus we performed bleb revision. During the surgery, although we removed fibrotic adhesions between the conjunctiva and episclera using a 30-gauge needle, aqueous outflow was not observed. Therefore, we opened the scleral flap and found the scleral orifice of the Ex-PRESS shunt was obstructed by fibrous scar tissue. After scar tissue removal and achieving aqueous outflow through the scleral opening, intraocular pressure decreased to a satisfactory level. CONCLUSIONS: In patients with elevated intraocular pressure after implantation of the Ex-PRESS shunt, the scleral opening of the Ex-PRESS shunt should be examined for obstruction.
Anterior Chamber ; Blister ; Cicatrix ; Conjunctiva ; Endothelial Growth Factors ; Glaucoma, Neovascular ; Humans ; Intraocular Pressure ; Intravitreal Injections ; Light Coagulation ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Needles ; Retinaldehyde

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of implant removal of percutaneous short segment fixation after vertebral fracture consolidation in terms of motion preservation. METHODS: Between May 2007 and January 2011, 44 patients underwent percutaneous short segment screw fixation due to a thoracolumbar burst fracture. Sixteen of these patients, who underwent implant removal 12 months after screw fixation, were enrolled in this study. Motor power was intact in all patients, despite significant vertebral height loss and canal compromise. The patients were divided into two groups by degree of osteoporosis : Group A (n=8), the non-osteoporotic group, and Group B (n=8), the osteoporotic group. Imaging and clinical findings including vertebral height loss, kyphotic angle, range of motion (ROM), and complications were analyzed. RESULTS: Significant pain relief was achieved in both groups at final follow-up versus preoperative values. In terms of vertebral height loss, both groups showed significant improvement at 12 months after screw fixation and restored vertebral height was maintained to final follow-up in spite of some correction loss. ROM (measured using Cobb's method) in flexion and extension in Group A was 10.5degrees (19.5/9.0degrees) at last follow-up, and in Group B was 10.2degrees (18.8/8.6degrees) at last follow-up. Both groups showed marked improvement in ROM as compared with the screw fixation state, which was considered motionless. CONCLUSION: Removal of percutaneous implants after vertebral fracture consolidation can be an effective treatment to preserve motion regardless of osteoporosis for thoracolumbar burst fractures.
Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Methods ; Osteoporosis ; Range of Motion, Articular

A 52-year-old man was taken to the emergency room following a motor vehicle accident. An echocardiogram showed moderate to severe tricuspid regurgitation due to rupture of the anterior chordae. An operation to repair the traumatic tricuspid regurgitation was recommended; however, the patient refused because he was asymptomatic. Two years later, he developed mild generalized edema and dyspnea. The echocardiogram revealed progressive severe tricuspid regurgitation and annular dilatation. We treated the posttraumatic tricuspid regurgitation successfully using artificial chordae and ring annuloplasty.
Dilatation ; Dyspnea ; Edema ; Emergencies ; Humans ; Middle Aged ; Motor Vehicles ; Rupture ; Tricuspid Valve ; Tricuspid Valve Insufficiency

BACKGROUND: Extracorporeal circulation (ECC) can induce alterations in blood viscoelasticity and cause red blood cell (RBC) aggregation. In this study, the authors evaluated the effects of pump flow pulsatility on blood viscoelasticity and RBC aggregation. METHODS: Mongrel dogs were randomly assigned to two groups: a nonpulsatile pump group (n=6) or a pulsatile pump group (n=6). After ECC was started at a pump flow rate of 80 mL/kg/min, cardiac fibrillation was induced. Blood sampling was performed before and at 1, 2, and 3 hours after ECC commencement. To eliminate bias induced by hematocrit and plasma, all blood samples were adjusted to a hematocrit of 45% using baseline plasma. Blood viscoelasticity, plasma viscosity, hematocrit, arterial blood gas analysis, central venous O2 saturation, and lactate were measured. RESULTS: The blood viscosity and aggregation index decreased abruptly 1 hour after ECC and then remained low during ECC in both groups, but blood elasticity did not change during ECC. Blood viscosity, blood elasticity, plasma viscosity, and the aggregation index were not significantly different in the groups at any time. Hematocrit decreased abruptly 1 hour after ECC in both groups due to dilution by the priming solution used. CONCLUSION: After ECC, blood viscoelasticity and RBC aggregation were not different in the pulsatile and nonpulsatile groups in the adult dog model. Furthermore, pulsatile flow did not have a more harmful effect on blood viscoelasticity or RBC aggregation than nonpulsatile flow.
Adult ; Animals ; Bias (Epidemiology) ; Blood Gas Analysis ; Blood Viscosity ; Cardiopulmonary Bypass ; Dogs ; Elasticity ; Erythrocytes* ; Extracorporeal Circulation* ; Hematocrit ; Hematology ; Humans ; Lactic Acid ; Plasma ; Pulsatile Flow ; Viscosity

PURPOSE: To report a case of a primary conjunctival epithelial cyst in the orbit. CASE SUMMARY: A 60-year-old woman was referred for evaluation of proptosis of the left eye, which had developed about 2 years earlier. Upon initial examination, a movable mass was palpated in the medial aspect of the left orbit. Magnetic resonance imaging of the orbit showed a 2.5 cm-sized, ovoid, cystic mass located between the left eyeball and the medial wall of the orbit. Excisional biopsy of the orbital mass was performed. The orbital mass was a well-circumscribed cystic lesion, adherent to the medial rectus muscle. Histological examination revealed that the cyst was lined with multiple layers of cuboidal epithelium with goblet cells. A diagnosis of primary conjunctival cyst was made. CONCLUSIONS: The possibility of primary conjunctival cyst should be considered in the differential diagnosis for an orbital cystic mass.
Biopsy ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Epithelium ; Exophthalmos ; Eye ; Female ; Goblet Cells ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Middle Aged ; Muscles ; Orbit

In the present study, the relationship among iron-availability, antibacterial activity, role of meconium as an iron source and the activity of bacterial iron-uptake system (IUS) for bacterial growth in amniotic fluid (AF) were investigated. Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 6538 and its streptonigrin-resistant (SR) mutant with defective IUS were used as the test strains. The growth of S. aureus in AF was stimulated dosedependently by addition of meconium. Bacterial growth stimulated by meconium was re-inhibited dose-dependently by addition of iron-chelator, dipyridyl and apotransferrin. Iron concentration was correlated with the meconium content in AF (r(2)= 0.989, p=0.001). High-affinity IUS of S. aureus was expressed only in AF but not in AF with meconium. The growth of SR strain was more retarded than that of the parental strain in the iron-deficient brain heart infusion (ID-BHI), clear AF and AF containing apotransferrin. The retarded growth of both strains in the ID-BHI and AF was recovered by addition of holotransferrin, hemoglobin and FeCl3. Taken together, the antibacterial activity of AF is closely related with low iron-availability. Bacterial growth in AF considerably depends on the activity of bacterial IUS. Meconium acts as one of the exogenous iron-sources and thus can stimulate bacterial growth in AF.
Amniotic Fluid/*microbiology ; Antibiotics, Antineoplastic/pharmacology ; Chelating Agents/pharmacology ; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug ; Female ; Ferric Compounds/pharmacology ; Human ; Iron/*metabolism ; Ligands ; Meconium/metabolism ; Mutation ; Pregnancy ; Pregnancy Trimester, Third ; Protein Binding ; Staphylococcus aureus/metabolism ; Streptonigrin/pharmacology ; Support, Non-U.S. Gov't ; Time Factors

PURPOSE: Perinatal complications associated with maternal smoking and alcohol ingestion in pregnancy have been well documented. But until now there has been no clinical data on it collected in our country. In this paper, we tried to research the association between maternal smoking and alcohol ingestion in pregnancy and the physical indices of the neonate at delivery among unmaried mothers from one charitable institution. METHODS: We enlisted 125 unmarried with a history of smoking and alcohol consumption during pregnancy who delivered a baby in National Medical Center from March, 2001 to March, 2004 as a study group. As a control, 174 unmarried mothers without a history of smoking and alcohol were enlisted. Then, we compared the physical indices - birth weight, height, and the head circumference - of the neonates from both groups. Furthermore, we investigated the effects of the period and the quantity of maternal smoking and alcohol ingestion on the physical indices of the neonates from the both groups. RESULTS: Low physical indices of neonates were found in the study group(either smoking group, or drinking group) compared with the control group. The quantity of smoking or drinking and the period of smoking or drinking have no significant effect on physical indices. CONCLUSION: We found that maternal smoking and alcohol result in the low physical index of neonates, and educational initiatives must be directed at expectant mothers to emphasize the harmful effects of smoking and alcohol ingestion in pregnancy.
Alcohol Drinking ; Birth Weight ; Drinking ; Eating ; Head ; Humans ; Illegitimacy ; Infant, Newborn* ; Mothers ; Pregnancy* ; Single Person ; Smoke* ; Smoking*

Tuberculous uveitis is a rare manifestation of tuberculosis infection. Although early diagnosis is important to saving the sight of patients, it is difficult. In dialysis patient, the diagnosis of tuberculosis is often delayed because of non-specific symptoms and extrapulmonary involvements. We report a case involving a 37-year-old man receiving hemodialysis who was presented with persistent fever and left- sided blurred vision. At ophthalmic examination, active papillitis, vitritis, and peripapillary retinal detachment were observed. Neck computed tomography showed multiple necrotic lymphadenopathies (LAPs) in right lateral neck, which was proven as tuberculous lymphadenitis on histological examination. After anti-tuberculosis therapy, fever was subsided and LAPs were improved. Visual acuity was also improved.
Adult ; Dialysis ; Early Diagnosis ; Fever ; Humans ; Hyperthermia, Induced ; Neck ; Papilledema ; Renal Dialysis ; Retinal Detachment ; Tuberculosis ; Tuberculosis, Lymph Node ; Uveitis ; Vision, Ocular ; Visual Acuity