BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to make a comparative analysis of the clinical outcomes after the operative treatment of refractory medial epicondylitis between the suture anchor group and the non-suture anchor group. METHODS: We enrolled 20 patients (7 men and 13 women) with recalcitrant medial epicondylitis who were able to receive operative treatment in a minimum of an 18-month follow-up. The mean age was 48.6 years (range, 36-59 years). The patients were allocated into either the suture anchor group (7 patients) or the non-suture anchor group (13 patients). We evaluated clinical outcomes using the visual analog scale (VAS), the pain grading system of Nirschl and Pettrone, and postoperative grip strength. RESULTS: The VAS score decreased from 8.8 to 2.0 for the suture anchor group and from 8.6 to 1.3 for the non-suture anchor group (p=0.16). The postoperative grip strength was 95%, 93% of the non-treated arm in both groups (p=0.32). The postoperative satisfaction level was good in 5 patients and fair in 2 for the suture anchor group and excellent in 5 patients, good, in 4, and fair, in 4 for the nonsuture anchor group (p=0.43). The clinical outcomes did not show a statistically significant difference between the two groups. CONCLUSIONS: We found that patients with recalcitrant medial epicondylitis were treated reliably with satisfactory clinical outcomes whether or not suture anchors were used. We believe the use of suture anchors when more than 50% of the tendon origin is affected provides an effective and favorable treatment modality.
Arm ; Elbow ; Follow-Up Studies ; Hand Strength ; Humans ; Male ; Suture Anchors* ; Sutures* ; Tendons ; Visual Analog Scale

Hemimasticatory spasm is a rare neurologic disorder characterized by unilateral, paroxysmal involuntary contraction of the masticatory muscles. It can be confused with other unilateral facial spasms. In this report, we present two patients with hemimasticatory spasm who were initially misdiagnosed with other disorders. The first patient was a 54-year-old man with a 9-year history of right facial spasm. He underwent microvascular decompression, without benefit, at another hospital with the diagnosis of hemifacial spasm two years prior to presenting at our hospital.On examination, right masseter and temporalis muscles had irregular contractions with twitches and prolonged spasms. His brain magnetic resonance imaging was normal.He showed a good response to carbamazepine. The second case was a 60-year-old man presented with a 10-year history of jaw-closing movement. Previous treatment for temporomandibular joint disorder was ineffective. He was previously diagnosed as oromandibular dystonia at another hospital, and biperiden and diazepam treatment resulted in slight improvement. There was tonic contraction and hypertrophy of the left masseter. He improved with carbamazepine. These cases illustrate the importance of hemimasticatory spasm as differential diagnosis, and the good response to carbamazepine.
Nervous System Diseases

We assessed the accuracy of Goldmann or Schi-(phi)tz tonometric readings in the gas filled vitrectomized eyes. We performed pars plana vitrectomy with or without lensectomy in 8 rabbit eyes, and in 6 enucleated porcine eyes. Fluid-air exchange was done at the end of the procedure. Intraocular pressure was measured using Goldmann tonometer and Schi-(phi)tz tonometer and was compared with true pressure which was monitored by manometer with indwelling catheter in the intravitreal cavity. Goldmann and Schi-(phi)tz tonometry always showed lower presure value than manometeric one(P<0.05) and the discrepancy was greater at higher range of intraocular pressure. Between these two methods Goldmann tonometry was more accurate in the rabbit eye (P>0.05).
Catheters, Indwelling ; Intraocular Pressure* ; Manometry ; Reading ; Vitrectomy

In male reproducible health, fertility and IVF (in-vitro fertilization), semen analysis has been most important. Semen analysis can be divided into concentration, motional and morphological analysis of sperm. The existing method which was developed earlier to analyze semen concentrated on the sperm motility analysis. To provide more useful and precise solutions for clinical problems such as infertility, semen analysis must include sperm morphological analysis. But the traditional tools for semen analysis are subjective, imprecise, inaccurate, difficult to standardize, and difficult to reproduce. Therefore, with the help of development of microcomputers and image processing techniques, we developed a new sperm morphology analyzer to overcome these problems. In this study the agreement on percent normal morphology was studied between different observers and a computerized sperm morphology analyzer on a slide-by-slide basis using strict criteria. Slides from 30 different patients from the SNUH andrology laboratory were selected randomly. Microscopic fields and sperm cells were chosen randomly and percent normal morphology was recorded. The ability of sperm morphology analyzer to repeat the same reading for normal and abnormal cells was studied. The results showed that there was no significant bias between two experienced observers. The limits of agreement were 4.1%~-3.8%. The Pearson correlation coefficient between readers was 0.79. Between the manual and sperm morphology analyzer, the same findings were reported. In this experiments the slides were stained by two different methods, PAP and Diff-Quik staining methods. The limits of agreement were 7.2%~-5.7% and 6.0%~-6.3%, respectively. The Pearson correlation coefficients ware 0.76 and 0.91, respectively. The limits of agreement was tighter below 20% normal forms. In the experiments of repeatability, 52 cells stained by PAP and Diff-Quik staining methods were analyzed three times in succession. Estimating pairwise agreement, the kappa statistic for the pairs were 0.76, 0.81, 0.86, and 0.75, 0.88, 0.88 respectively. In this study it was shown that there was good agreement between manual and computerized assessment of normal and abnormal cells. The repeatability and agreement per slide of computerized sperm morphology analyzer was excellent. The computer's ability to classify normal morphology per slide is promising. Based on results obtained, this system can be of clinical value both in andrology laboratories and IVF units.
Andrology ; Bias (Epidemiology) ; Fertility ; Humans ; Infertility ; Male ; Microcomputers ; Semen ; Semen Analysis ; Sperm Motility ; Spermatozoa*

No abstract available.
Appointments and Schedules*

No abstract available.

The new method is described of extracting various types of cataracts intracapsularly by means of a pencil-shaped metal instrument, named Krwawicz's model cryoextractor. This is refrigerated in a mixture of dry ice and methyl alcohol so that when the ice-coated tip is applied to the lens, the capsule and the underlying cataractous masses adhere firmly to its ball-shaped end and an easy intracapsular extraction is ensured. Fifty extractions of various types of cataracts have been performed by this method. In 49 cases the cataract could be extracted intracapsularly. In only one case did the capsule rupture but it was possible to remove the capsule and lens mass almost completely. The results of the fifty extractions by this method are given.
Cataract Extraction* ; Cataract* ; Dry Ice ; Methanol ; Rupture

One of the complication during or after subclavian vein cannulation is intravascular catheter or wire embolization. Although some studies have reported safety of retaining foreign body embolization, and even death. The intravascular foreign body can be removed surgically or non-surgically. With improvement in instrument technology and technique, percutaneous retrieval of intravascular foreign bodies has become a relatively common procedure. Commonly used methods to remove intravascular foreign bodies are loop snare and basket technique. Sometimes biopy forcep can be used. We have experienced 2 cases of non-surgical removal of intravascular foreign bodies. One of the foreign bodies was 7cm wire fragment in right atrium(RA), the other was a 50cm guide wire. We used the standard loop snare technique for removal of 7cm wire fragment in RA and stone removal basket and 3.0mm ACS PTCA balloon to remove the 50cm short guide wire.
Catheterization ; Catheters ; Foreign Bodies* ; SNARE Proteins ; Subclavian Vein ; Surgical Instruments

In this study, the distribution and reisolation of Mycoplasma pneumoniae(Mp) were observed from the various tissues of BALB/c mice which were intraperitoneally pre-inoculated with Mp. In addition, the effect of Mp on the growth, phagocytic activities and nitric oxide production of microglial cells were also examined. The results were as follows; 1) Mp was reisolated from the various tissues such as lymph node, spleen, liver, kidney, brain and blood from one hour through 48 hours after intra-peritoneal inoculation of Mp in mice by the cultural method. Furthermore, it could also be confirmed from those tissues up to 72 hours by the indirect immunofluorescent antibody method. 2) There was no difference in the phagocytic activities between the control microglial cells and Mp stimulated microglial cells. 3) The growth of microglial cells in the medium was significantly increased by the stimulation with Mp compared with that of the control. 4) Nitric oxide production of mouse microglial cells was increased by the combined treatment if IFN-r and LPS or IFN-r and Mp or IFN-r, LPS and Mp, whereas, no increase was observed by either LPS or Mp alone. 5) Nitric oxide production of microglial cells primed with IFN-r was closely related with the dose of LPS and Mp in the dose dependent manner rather than that of the IFN-r. These results suggest that; i) Mp spreads to the various tissues of mice within one hour after intraperitoneal inoculation, ii) the growth of microglial cells increases by the infection of Mp, iii) microglial cells have phagocytic activities to C.albicans and iv) nitric oxide production of microglial cells was augmented by the infection of Mp. Increased nitric oxide production of microglial cells is regarded as an increase of the intracellular bactericidal activiteis of microglial cells. It is suggested, nonetheless, that the inflammatory response of the Mp infected tissues is augmented by the increase of nitric oxide.
Animals ; Brain ; Kidney ; Liver ; Lymph Nodes ; Mice* ; Mycoplasma pneumoniae* ; Mycoplasma* ; Nitric Oxide* ; Pneumonia, Mycoplasma* ; Spleen

No abstract available.
Animals ; Astrocytes* ; Interleukin-1* ; Interleukin-10* ; Interleukin-12* ; Interleukin-1beta* ; Interleukin-2* ; Interleukin-6* ; Melanoma* ; Mice* ; Mycoplasma pneumoniae* ; Mycoplasma* ; Pneumonia, Mycoplasma*