Neuropathic joint, which was originally described by Charcot in 1868, has been reported by many authors since that time. Charcot's joint is a feature of various conditions, such as syringmyelia, diabetes mellitus, congenital indifference to pain and leprosy, but it is mostly depended upon tertiary syphilis. In the past few decades. the occurance of this arthropathy however, seemed to decrease with the discovery of antibiotics and efficient control of syphilis in many countries. But syphilis has become popularized in recent years because of the rapid development of transportation and an offence against public deoency throughout the world. Authors experienced 3 cases of Charcots joint in Our Lady of Mercy Hospital, Catholic Medical College, two of them were tabetic, one diabetic in origin, which affected four knee joints, two ankle joints and one tarsometatarsal joint. The patients were treated conservatively without surgical intervention on the affected joints. One was lost for foIlow up after being discharged from the hospital against medical advice and the res two cases have been on follow up. This paper is auned to illustrate the importance of clinical aspects of neuropathic joints which seemed to be in the tendency of increase in recent years. in spite of development of efficient managements of the causative diseases.
Ankle Joint ; Anti-Bacterial Agents ; Arthropathy, Neurogenic ; Diabetes Mellitus ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Joints ; Knee Joint ; Leprosy ; Pain Insensitivity, Congenital ; Syphilis ; Transportation

No abstract available.
Trophoblastic Neoplasms* ; Trophoblasts*

Understanding depth of anesthesia is essential for the anesthesiologist. Although electroencephalogram (EEG) has been proposed and studied as a method of determining anesthetic depth, major limitations restrict its usefulness. For example, spectral edge frequency (SEF) dose not correlate well with the level of sedation. However, recently introduced bispectral index (BIS) which is derived from frequency, amplitude and coherence of the EEG is strongly correlated with clinical measurements of sedation and hypnosis. BIS monitoring may be used to guide the titration of anesthetic agents to achieve effective dosing without increasing the risk of awareness and to allow a better balance of hypnotic and analgesic administration. We report two cases of successful BIS monitoring for the measurement of intraoperative hypnotic state of patient during propofol target controlled infusion (TCI).
Anesthesia ; Anesthesia, General* ; Anesthetics ; Electroencephalography ; Humans ; Hypnosis ; Propofol*

Behcet's disease (BD) is characterized by recurrent oro-genital ulcers, skin lesions, and intraocular inflammation, but can also affect various internal organs. Vascular BD usually presents with luminal stenosis, thrombosis, or aneurysm formation in aorta and peripheral arteries. However, intracranial artery involvement has been uncommonly reported in patients with BD and BD cases with lenticulostriate artery aneurysm have been rarely described in the English-language literature. We hereby reported the first case of a Korean BD patient presenting with a ruptured lenticulostriate artery aneurysm, who received medical treatment, and reviewed the literature on reported cases of BD with intracranial aneurysms.
Aneurysm* ; Aorta ; Arteries* ; Basal Ganglia Cerebrovascular Disease ; Constriction, Pathologic ; Humans ; Inflammation ; Intracranial Aneurysm ; Phenobarbital ; Rupture* ; Skin Ulcer ; Thrombosis

PURPOSE: Cinacalcet is effective for treating refractory secondary hyperparathyroidism (SHPT), but little is known about the response rates and clinical factors influencing the response. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A prospective, single-arm, multi-center study was performed for 24 weeks. Cinacalcet was administered to patients with intact parathyroid hormone (iPTH) level greater than 300 pg/mL. Cinacalcet was started at a dose of 25 mg daily and titrated until 100 mg to achieve a serum iPTH level <300 pg/mL (primary end point). Early response to cinacalcet was defined as a decrease of iPTH more than 50% within one month. RESULTS: Fifty-seven patients were examined. Based on the magnitude of iPTH decrease, patients were divided into responder (n=47, 82.5%) and non-responder (n=10, 17.5%) groups. Among the responders, 38 achieved the primary end point, whereas 9 patients showed a reduction in serum iPTH of 30% or more, but did not reach the primary end point. Compared to non-responders, responders were significantly older (p=0.026), female (p=0.041), and diabetics (p<0.001). Additionally, early response was observed more frequently in the responders (30/47, 63.8%), of whom the majority (27/30, 90.0%) achieved the primary end point. Multivariate analysis showed that lower baseline iPTH levels [odds ratio (OR) 0.96, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.93-0.99], the presence of diabetes (OR 46.45, CI 1.92-1125.6) and early response (OR 21.54, CI 2.94-157.7) were significant clinical factors affecting achievement of iPTH target. CONCLUSION: Cinacalcet was effective in most hemodialysis patients with refractory SHPT. The presence of an early response was closely associated with the achievement of target levels of iPTH.
Adult ; Aged ; Biomarkers, Pharmacological/blood ; Calcium/blood ; Female ; Humans ; Hyperparathyroidism, Secondary/*drug therapy ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Naphthalenes/adverse effects/*therapeutic use ; Parathyroid Hormone/*blood ; *Renal Dialysis ; Treatment Outcome

Endovascular procedures have been proposed as minimally invasive alternative treatments, allowing safe and effective aortic aneurysm repair. Despite the potential benefits, endovascular stent grafting may elicit an unexpected systemic inflammatory response, called postimplantation syndrome (PIS). The main features of PIS include fever, elevated C-reactive protein levels, leukocytosis and/or coagulation disturbances, perigraft air on abdominal computed tomography, and no evidence of infection. The main management of PIS is supportive care. Antibiotics have no clinical benefit. We report a case of PIS after endovascular aortic aneurysm repair in an elderly patient.
Aged* ; Anti-Bacterial Agents ; Aortic Aneurysm* ; Blood Vessel Prosthesis ; C-Reactive Protein ; Endovascular Procedures ; Fever ; Humans ; Leukocytosis

Periaortitis is a very rare disease, characterized by a fibro-inflammatory tissue which develops around abdominal aorta and iliac arteries, and spreads into the structures of retroperitoneum. Computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is the modality of choice for the diagnosis. Here, we report a case of periaortitis diagnosed with abdomen CT in patient with malignant fibrous histiocytoma.
Abdomen ; Aorta, Abdominal ; Histiocytoma, Malignant Fibrous ; Histiocytosis ; Humans ; Iliac Artery ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Rare Diseases ; Retroperitoneal Fibrosis

BACKGROUND: Previous studies have reported that obesity increases heart rate variability. Body mass index (BMI) has been reported to affect blood pressure variability (BPV) over 24 hours. However, the diurnal variation in the effect of BMI on BPV has not been evaluated. This study aimed to clarify the diurnal variation in the effect of BMI on BPV. METHODS: A total of 2,044 patients were consecutively enrolled in this study, and the data were analyzed retrospectively. All patients underwent 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring. We divided patients into two groups according to BMI (non-obese group: n = 1,145, BMI < 25; obese group: n = 899, BMI > or = 25). We compared BPV during daytime and nighttime between the non-obese and obese groups. We also evaluated the impact of BMI on BPV by multivariate regression analysis. RESULTS: On univariate regression analysis, there was no significant difference in BPV during daytime (systolic BP [SBP] variability: 20.7 vs. 21.7, p = 0.511; diastolic BP [DBP] variability: 16.8 vs. 17.5, p = 0.539). However, both SBP variability (13.8 vs. 17.6, p = 0.009) and DBP variability (11.7 vs. 14.3, p = 0.042) during nighttime were affected significantly by BMI. After adjusting other compounding variables (age > 60 years, current smoking habit, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and use of calcium channel blockers and renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system blockers), multivariate analysis showed that BMI was an independent factor associated with increase in BPV during the night (SBP variability: p = 0.039; DBP variability: p = 0.034). CONCLUSIONS: Obesity increased BPV during nighttime.
Blood Pressure Monitoring, Ambulatory ; Blood Pressure* ; Body Mass Index ; Calcium Channel Blockers ; Diabetes Mellitus ; Heart Rate ; Humans ; Hypertension ; Multivariate Analysis ; Obesity* ; Renin-Angiotensin System ; Retrospective Studies ; Smoke ; Smoking

A 27-year-old man presented to the emergency department with sudden onset of massive gross hematuria and urinary retention. Contrast-enhanced computed tomography imaging showed uneven, dilated calices and a narrowing of the renal pelvis in the left kidney; in addition, a large hematoma was noted in the urinary bladder. An emergency cystoscopy was performed following detection of the hematoma and blood clots were removed. A lesional biopsy, a tuberculosis (TB) culture, and urine cytology showed positive results for Mycobacterium tuberculosis. The clinical manifestations of genitourinary tuberculosis are nonspecific and are usually detected at a chronic stage. In conclusion, we report an unusual cause of acute kidney injury associated with a subacute stage of genitourinary tuberculosis that caused mucosal erosion and bleeding in the bladder.
Acute Kidney Injury ; Biopsy ; Cystoscopy ; Emergencies ; Hematoma ; Hematuria ; Hemorrhage ; Kidney Pelvis ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis ; Tuberculosis ; Urinary Bladder ; Urinary Retention

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to elucidate the effect of a bovine hydroxyapatite/collagen (BHC) block in one-wall intrabony periodontal defects in dogs. METHODS: A one-wall intrabony periodontal defect (4 mm wide and 5 mm deep) was prepared bilaterally at the mesial side of the mandibular fourth premolar in five beagle dogs. After thorough root planing, block-type BHC (4x5x5 mm) was placed on one side. The contralateral defect area did not receive any material as a sham-surgery control. Histological analysis of the sites was performed after an 8-week healing period. RESULTS: Two of five samples in the experimental group healed well without dissipation of the graft materials, and histological analysis revealed excellent regeneration of the periodontal tissues. However, most of the grafted materials had been displaced in the other three samples, leaving only a small portion of the graft. The measured parameters exhibited large standard deviations, and the mean values did not differ significantly between the experimental and sham-surgery control sides. CONCLUSIONS: The application of BHC alone-without a barrier membrane-to wide, one-wall intrabony periodontal defects yielded inconsistent results regarding both periodontal regeneration and substantivity of the graft materials. Thus, the use of a barrier membrane for noncontained-type defects is recommended to improve the stability of the grafted material, and to condense it.
Animals ; Bicuspid ; Collagen ; Dogs ; Guided Tissue Regeneration ; Membranes ; Regeneration ; Root Planing ; Transplants