No abstract available.
Thyroid Gland* ; Thyroid Nodule*

PURPOSE: To evaluate the treatment outcomes of the modified extension block technique for bony mallet finger. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study included 16 patients who had been treated with the modified extension block technique for bony mallet finger from December 2002 to January 2004. The average duration of follow up was 13 (12~17) months. The indication of operation was the presence of a large bony fragment invading more than 1/3 of the articular surface or the palmar subluxation in the distal interphalangeal joint. RESULTS: The average extension lag was 2.3 degrees, and the range of motion of the distal interphalangeal joint was 68.8 degrees. Radiograph showed bony union state in all cases. By the Crawford's evaluation criteria, 12 cases (75%) was excellent or good. Postoperative complications occurred in 3 cases, which were reduction loss within postoperative 2 weeks in 2 cases and mild pain with motion in 1 case. CONCLUSION: The modified extension block technique is a easy and simple method. It shows a good result without complications from skin incision. So, it seems a useful method for bony mallet finger.
Fingers* ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Joints ; Postoperative Complications ; Range of Motion, Articular ; Skin

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the care status of the amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) patients with long-term use of tracheostomy tube by caregivers of ALS patients. METHODS: A survey was conducted in the form of questionnaires to ALS patients and their caregivers. All measurements were performed by two visiting nurses. For statistical analysis, SPSS ver. 22.0 and Mann-Whitney U test on non-normal distribution were used. RESULTS: In total, 19 patients (15 males and 4 females) and their caregivers participated in the survey. In the case of patients, the average duration of care was 5.9+/-3.7 years, and the mean periods of illness and tracheostomy were 5.3+/-3.2 years and 3.0+/-2.6 years, respectively. Replacement intervals were 14 days in 11 patients, 7 days in 4 patients, 28 days in 2 patients, and 21 days in 1 patient. One patient was unable to provide an accurate replacement interval. Eighteen (99%) caregivers had experience of adding volume to a cuff without pressure measure in the following instances: due to patients' needs in 7 cases, air leakage in 7 cases, and no reason in 4 cases. Mean pressure of tracheostomy cuff was 40+/-9.4 cmH2O, and air volume of tracheostomy cuff was 6.7+/-3.2 mL, but real mean volume was 7.0+/-2.9 mL. The number of suctioning for airway clearance was a mean 27.5+/-18.2 times a day. CONCLUSION: According to this survey, we notice that almost all the patients and caregivers had an erroneous idea about cuff volume and pressure. Moreover, education and long-term professional care of tracheostomy cannot be overemphasized in this manner.
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis ; Caregivers ; Education ; Humans ; Long-Term Care ; Male ; Nurses, Community Health ; Suction ; Tracheostomy*

Monoclonal gammopathy occurs in one-third of the patients with mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue lymphoma (MALT lymphoma). However, monoclonal gammopathy has been rarely reported in Korea. Paraprotenemia accompanying MALT lymphoma is strongly correlated with involvement of the bone marrow, and this involvement leads to the progression of the disease. Here, we present a case of a 66-yr-old man diagnosed with IgM monoclonal gammopathy and stage IV extranodal marginal zone lymphoma of the small intestine, with the involvement of the bone marrow.
Aged ; Antineoplastic Agents/therapeutic use ; Bone Marrow/pathology ; Drug Therapy, Combination ; Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin M/analysis ; Intestinal Neoplasms/complications/drug therapy/*pathology ; Lymphatic Metastasis ; Lymphoma, B-Cell, Marginal Zone/complications/drug therapy/*pathology ; Male ; Neoplasm Staging ; Paraproteinemias/blood/complications/*pathology ; Positron-Emission Tomography ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to compare the arthroscopic findings between autograft group and allograft group minimal 1 year after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From Jul. 1999 to Feb. 2002, we performed second look arthroscopy to 55 patients(60 knees), who had already received anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction minimal 1 years ago(average 16 months) in our hospital. All patients visited our hospital just for removal of tibial hardware. Among 60 knees, 24 cases had operated using bone-patellar tendon-bone autograft(group 1), 36 cases using Achilles tendon allograft(group 2). We evaluated the clinical results by instability, subjective complaint and level of activity. Also we analyzed the second look arthroscopic findings by graft revascularization, fissuring, laxity and intraarticular general status. RESULTS: There was no differene in clinical results except 2 patients who complained mild anterior knee pain in group 1. At second look arthroscopy, well vascularized cases were 13 cases(54%) in group 1 and 15 cases(41%) in group 2 respectively. Fissuring of graft was more prominent in group 2(5 cases, 14%) rather than group 1(3 cases, 9%). Fibrous tissue formation around graft was found in 3 cases(14%) of group 1 and 7 cases(20%) of group2. According to Outerbridge grading system of articular cartilage, more than grade II change in patellofemoral joint were detected more prominently in group 1(7 cases, 32%) than group 2(7 cases, 21%). CONCLUSION: In clinical results, there was no difference between Achilles allograft and Bone-Patellar tendon-Bone autograft used for reconstruction of anterior cruciate ligament. On second look arthroscopy, patellofemoral arthrosis was more prominent in autograft group, but revascularization of graft and the change of perigraft tissue showed more favorable result.

BACKGROUND: Medical skin care is essential for the treatment of skin diseases all over the world. Medical skin care is also part of medical practice and this must be differentiated from the simple skin care that is given for normal healthy skin. OBJECTIVE: We wanted to discuss medical skin care and the related medical devices and legal issues. METHODS: We reviewed the related laws and regulations, we consulted experts and associations and we analyzed the result of the survey. RESULTS: Legally, medical skin care and simple skin care are well classified. However, many illegal procedures are still performed by non-medical personnel and many adverse effects have been reported as a result. Furthermore, there are no legal restrictions for the performer based on the grade of each medical skin care procedure. CONCLUSION: For the best results and safe procedures, medical skin care must be performed by approved medical equipment under the supervision of a physician or medical personnel. Continuous control and guidance by the government is strongly needed.
Jurisprudence ; Organization and Administration ; Skin ; Skin Care ; Skin Diseases ; Social Control, Formal

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to identify and compare the difference and related factors with general characteristic and health behaviors, a experience of diagnosis and treatment of chronic diseases between rural and urban among elderly in Korea. METHODS: We used the data of Community Health Survey 2017 which were collected by the Korean Center for Disease Control and Prevention. The study population comprised 67,835 elderly peopled aged 65 years or older who participated in the survey. The chi-square test, univariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis were used to analyze data. RESULTS: We identified many significant difference of health behaviors, an experience of diagnosis and treatment with chronic diseases between rural and urban. Compared to urban elderly, the odds ratios (ORs) (95% confidence interval) of rural elderly were 1.136 (1.092–1.183) for diagnosis of diabetes, 1.278 (1.278–1.386) for diagnosis of dyslipidemia, 0.940 (0.904–0.977) for diagnosis of arthritis, 0.785(0.736–0.837) for treatment of arthritis, 1.159 (1.116–1.203) for diagnosis of cataracts, and 1.285(1.200–1.375) for treatment of cataracts. In the experience of diagnosis and treatment of chronic diseases, various variables were derived as contributing factors for each disease. Especially, there were statistically significant difference in the experience of diabetes diagnosis, arthritis diagnosis, cataract diagnosis and dyslipidemia except for hypertension diagnosis (p<0.01) between urban and rural elderly. There were statistically significant differences in the experience of treatment for arthritis and cataract (p<0.01), but there was no significant difference in the experience of treatment for hypertension, diabetes, dyslipidemia between urban and rural elderly. CONCLUSION Therefore, it would be necessary to implement a strategic health management project for diseases that showed significant experience of chronic diseases with diagnosis and treatment, reflecting the related factors of the elderly chronic diseases among the urban and rural areas.

Characteristics of stroke cases, acute stroke care, and outcomes after stroke differ according to geographical and cultural background. To provide epidemiological and clinical data on stroke care in South Korea, we analyzed a prospective multicenter clinical stroke registry, the Clinical Research Center for Stroke-Fifth Division (CRCS-5). Patients were 58% male with a mean age of 67.2+/-12.9 years and median National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score of 3 [1-8] points. Over the 6 years of operation, temporal trends were documented including increasing utilization of recanalization treatment with shorter onset-to-arrival delay and decremental length of stay. Acute recanalization treatment was performed in 12.7% of cases with endovascular treatment utilized in 36%, but the proportion of endovascular recanalization varied across centers. Door-to-IV alteplase delay had a median of 45 [33-68] min. The rate of symptomatic hemorrhagic transformation (HT) was 7%, and that of any HT was 27% among recanalization-treated cases. Early neurological deterioration occurred in 15% of cases and were associated with longer length of stay and poorer 3-month outcomes. The proportion of mRS scores of 0-1 was 42% on discharge, 50% at 3 months, and 55% at 1 year after the index stroke. Recurrent stroke up to 1 year occurred in 4.5% of patients; the rate was higher among older individuals and those with neurologically severe deficits. The above findings will be compared with other Asian and US registry data in this article.
Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Humans ; Korea ; Length of Stay ; Male ; National Institutes of Health (U.S.) ; Stroke ; Tissue Plasminogen Activator

No abstract available.
Intracranial Hemorrhages* ; Stroke*

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: In a recent pooled analysis of randomized clinical trials (RCTs), intravenous tissue plasminogen activator (TPA) improves the outcome in patients aged > or =80 years. However, it is uncertain whether the findings are applicable to clinical practice in Asian populations. METHODS: From a multicenter stroke registry database of Korea, we identified patients with acute ischemic stroke who were aged > or = 80 years. Using multivariable analysis and propensity score (PS)-matched analyses, we assessed the effectiveness and safety of intravenous TPA within 4.5 hours. RESULTS: Among 2,334 patients who met the eligible criteria, 236 were treated with intravenous TPA (mean age, 83+/-5; median NIHSS, 13 [IQR, 8-17]). At discharge, the TPA group compared to the no-TPA group had a favorable shift on the modified Rankin Scale (mRS) score (multivariable analysis, OR [95% CI], 1.51 [1.17-1.96], P=0.002; PS-matched analysis, 1.54 [1.17-2.04], P=0.002) and was more likely to achieve mRS 0-1 outcome (multivariable analysis, 2.00 [1.32-3.03], P=0.001; PS-matched analysis, 1.59 [1.04-2.42], P=0.032). TPA treatment was associated with an increased risk of symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage (multivariable analysis, 5.45 [2.80-10.59], P<0.001; PS-matched analysis, 4.52 [2.24-9.13], P<0.001), but did not increase the in-hospital mortality (multivariable analysis, 0.86 [0.50-1.48], P=0.58; PS-matched analysis, 0.88 [0.52-1.47], P=0.61). CONCLUSIONS: In the setting of clinical practice, intravenous TPA within 4.5 hours improved the functional outcome despite an increased risk of symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage in very elderly Korean patients. The findings, consistent with those from pooled analysis of RCTs, strongly support the use of TPA for this population.
Aged* ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Hospital Mortality ; Humans ; Intracranial Hemorrhages ; Korea ; Propensity Score ; Stroke* ; Thrombolytic Therapy ; Tissue Plasminogen Activator*