Background: Patients with ischemic stroke may experience early neurological deterioration (END) during the acute phase. This study aimed to identify association between asymptomatic vascular stenosis and END in single subcortical infarction patients. Methods: The study included 562 patients admitted within 48 hours of symptom onset between January 2015 and August 2022. END was defined as a decrease of ≥1 point in the National Institutes of Health stroke scale (NIHSS) motor score or ≥2 points in the total NIHSS score within the first 48 hours after stroke onset. Clinical characteristics, including age, sex, smoking habits, underlying vascular risk factors, initial NIHSS score, trial of Org 10172 in acute stroke treatment classification, laboratory parameters, and presence of vascular stenosis or occlusion, were analyzed to identify predictors of END. Results: END occurred in 115 patients (20%) with single subcortical infarction. Age (odds ratio [OR], 1.0; p=0.011), female sex (OR, 1.7; p=0.042), location of cerebral infarction at corona radiata (OR, 3.0; p=0.023), systolic blood pressure (OR, 1.0; p=0.011) and presence of asymptomatic vascular stenosis (OR, 2.2; p=0.019) were independently associated with END in multivariable logistic regression. Conclusions This study suggests that age, sex, location of cerebral infarction, systolic blood pressure and the presence of asymptomatic vascular stenosis are independent predictors of END.

Meningioma is one of the most common types of benign primary brain tumors in older adults, and multiple meningiomas are reported in fewer than 1% to 10% of cases. However, there is no definitive treatment guideline for patients with multiple meningiomas. An 80-year-old man presented with abruptly impaired cognition and was found to have two distinct meningiomas located in the temporal and frontal lobes. A single frontotemporal craniotomy was performed to remove both tumors. Pathological analysis revealed different subtypes and World Health Organization grades for each mass. The patient showed symptomatic improvement, experienced no postoperative complications, and exhibited no signs of recurrence during a 1-year follow-up period with evaluations at 3-month intervals. Despite the absence of a standard treatment for multiple meningiomas, surgical resection in a single procedure is feasible in selected patients.

Objective: Decompression with instrumented fusion is a common approach for treating spinal metastatic disease. However, in many cases, poor bone quality and compromised general condition increase the likelihood of mechanical failure and other complications. This study investigated complications, including those related to surgery, following decompression and fusion in patients with spinal metastatic disease. Methods: A study at a single tertiary medical center focusing on surgical details and perioperative complications was performed on 35 patients who underwent spinal surgery due to metastatic spinal disease based on a review of a prospective database. Data on patients' underlying conditions and the status of the primary tumors were collected, and various complications that occurred within the first month after surgery were analyzed. Results: During the study, 35 patients (mean age, 66.5 years; 26 men) were enrolled. The most frequent primary cancers were lung (34%) and prostate cancer (17%), followed by liver and breast cancer and others. The overall complication rate was 37% (14% surgery-related complications, 23% general complications). In all cases, surgery was performed due to lower extremity weakness, and 59% of patients showed improvements in motor function after surgery. Furthermore, 23% of patients regained the ability to walk. Conclusion Surgery for spinal metastasis is frequently performed as an emergency due to the severity of symptoms such as lower extremity weakness. Despite a high risk of acute complications, the procedure has significant benefits, including improvement in weakness and recovery of walking ability. Therefore, proactive treatment using appropriate surgical techniques is recommended.

Background: Patients with ischemic stroke may experience early neurological deterioration (END) during the acute phase. This study aimed to identify association between asymptomatic vascular stenosis and END in single subcortical infarction patients. Methods: The study included 562 patients admitted within 48 hours of symptom onset between January 2015 and August 2022. END was defined as a decrease of ≥1 point in the National Institutes of Health stroke scale (NIHSS) motor score or ≥2 points in the total NIHSS score within the first 48 hours after stroke onset. Clinical characteristics, including age, sex, smoking habits, underlying vascular risk factors, initial NIHSS score, trial of Org 10172 in acute stroke treatment classification, laboratory parameters, and presence of vascular stenosis or occlusion, were analyzed to identify predictors of END. Results: END occurred in 115 patients (20%) with single subcortical infarction. Age (odds ratio [OR], 1.0; p=0.011), female sex (OR, 1.7; p=0.042), location of cerebral infarction at corona radiata (OR, 3.0; p=0.023), systolic blood pressure (OR, 1.0; p=0.011) and presence of asymptomatic vascular stenosis (OR, 2.2; p=0.019) were independently associated with END in multivariable logistic regression. Conclusions This study suggests that age, sex, location of cerebral infarction, systolic blood pressure and the presence of asymptomatic vascular stenosis are independent predictors of END.

Background: Patients with ischemic stroke may experience early neurological deterioration (END) during the acute phase. This study aimed to identify association between asymptomatic vascular stenosis and END in single subcortical infarction patients. Methods: The study included 562 patients admitted within 48 hours of symptom onset between January 2015 and August 2022. END was defined as a decrease of ≥1 point in the National Institutes of Health stroke scale (NIHSS) motor score or ≥2 points in the total NIHSS score within the first 48 hours after stroke onset. Clinical characteristics, including age, sex, smoking habits, underlying vascular risk factors, initial NIHSS score, trial of Org 10172 in acute stroke treatment classification, laboratory parameters, and presence of vascular stenosis or occlusion, were analyzed to identify predictors of END. Results: END occurred in 115 patients (20%) with single subcortical infarction. Age (odds ratio [OR], 1.0; p=0.011), female sex (OR, 1.7; p=0.042), location of cerebral infarction at corona radiata (OR, 3.0; p=0.023), systolic blood pressure (OR, 1.0; p=0.011) and presence of asymptomatic vascular stenosis (OR, 2.2; p=0.019) were independently associated with END in multivariable logistic regression. Conclusions This study suggests that age, sex, location of cerebral infarction, systolic blood pressure and the presence of asymptomatic vascular stenosis are independent predictors of END.

Background: s/Aims: Reported incidence of extrahepatic bile duct cancer is higher in Asians than in Western populations. Korea, in particular, is one of the countries with the highest incidence rates of extrahepatic bile duct cancer in the world. Although research and innovative therapeutic modalities for extrahepatic bile duct cancer are emerging, clinical guidelines are currently unavailable in Korea. The Korean Society of Hepato-Biliary-Pancreatic Surgery in collaboration with related societies (Korean Pancreatic and Biliary Surgery Society, Korean Society of Abdominal Radiology, Korean Society of Medical Oncology, Korean Society of Radiation Oncology, Korean Society of Pathologists, and Korean Society of Nuclear Medicine) decided to establish clinical guideline for extrahepatic bile duct cancer in June 2021. Methods: Contents of the guidelines were developed through subgroup meetings for each key question and a preliminary draft was finalized through a Clinical Guidelines Committee workshop. Results: In November 2021, the finalized draft was presented for public scrutiny during a formal hearing. Conclusions The extrahepatic guideline committee believed that this guideline could be helpful in the treatment of patients.

Purpose: We conducted a nationwide, multicenter, prospective registry study for newly diagnosed patients with peripheral T-cell lymphoma (PTCL) to better define the clinical characteristics, treatment patterns, survival outcomes, and the role of upfront autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT) in these patients. Materials and Methods: Patients with PTCL receiving chemotherapy with curative intent were registered and prospectively monitored. All patients were pathologically diagnosed with PTCL. Results: A total of 191 patients with PTCL were enrolled in this prospective registry study. PTCL, not otherwise specified (PTCL-NOS) was the most common pathologic subtype (n=80, 41.9%), followed by angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma (AITL) (n=60, 31.4%). With a median follow-up duration of 3.9 years, the 3-year progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) rates were 39.5% and 60.4%, respectively. The role of upfront ASCT was evaluated in patients who were considered transplant-eligible (n=59). ASCT was performed as an upfront consolidative treatment in 32 (54.2%) of these patients. There were no significant differences in PFS and OS between the ASCT and non-ASCT groups for all patients (n=59) and for patients with PTCL-NOS (n=26). However, in patients with AITL, the ASCT group was associated with significantly better PFS than the non-ASCT group, although there was no significant difference in OS. Conclusion The current study demonstrated that the survival outcomes with the current treatment options remain poor for patients with PTCL-NOS. Upfront ASCT may provide a survival benefit for patients with AITL, but not PTCL-NOS.

Purpose: Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is the most common hematologic malignancy worldwide. Although substantial improvement has been achieved by the frontline rituximab-based chemoimmunotherapy, up to 40%-50% of patients will eventually have relapsed or refractory disease, whose prognosis is extremely dismal. Materials and Methods: We have carried out two prospective cohort studies that include over 1,500 DLBCL patients treated with rituximab plus CHOP (#NCT01202448 and #NCT02474550). In the current report, we describe the outcomes of refractory DLBCL patients. Patients were defined to have refractory DLBCL if they met one of the followings, not achieving at least partial response after 4 or more cycles of R-CHOP; not achieving at least partial response after 2 or more cycles of salvage therapy; progressive disease within 12 months after autologous stem cell transplantation. Results: Among 1,581 patients, a total of 260 patients met the criteria for the refractory disease after a median time to progression of 9.1 months. The objective response rate of salvage treatment was 26.4%, and the complete response rate was 9.6%. The median overall survival (OS) was 7.5 months (95% confidence interval, 6.4 to 8.6), and the 2-year survival rate was 22.1%±2.8%. The median OS for each refractory category was not significantly different (p=0.529). Conclusion In line with the previous studies, the outcomes of refractory DLBCL patients were extremely poor, which necessitates novel approaches for this population.

In this study, the Ti6Al4V specimens were fabricated using selective laser melting (SLM) method (Ti6Al4V-AS group). These specimens were performed to heat treatment at 950℃ and 550℃ using vacuum electric furnace (Ti6Al4V-HT group). The mechanical properties, metallographic shape, crystalline structure, and chemical compositions of the alloy specimens before and after heat treatment were analyzed. The Ti6Al4V-AS group showed ultimate tensile strength (UTS) and low elongation values. Acicular crystal grains were observed in metallographic image and the α'-Ti phase was dominant. After heat treatment (Ti6Al4V-HT group), the UTS was lowered and the elongation was increased. In addition, a lamellar structure in which columnar crystal grains are arranged was observed, α+β-Ti phase was formed, and crystallinity increased. As a result of analyzing the chemical composition, the Ti6Al4V-AS specimen contained a higher carbon content than the Ti6Al4V-HT specimen. This high carbon content could be related to the formation of α'-phase, high strength and low elongation of the Ti6Al4V-AS specimen. Ti6Al4V-HT specimen showed that the overall carbon content was low, but the carbon content was locally high in the α-Ti phase region. Therefore, it is necessary to control effectively the incorporation of carbon gas in the production of Ti6Al4V specimens using SLM.

Background: and Purpose: The Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) has been known as a screening test for detecting mild cognitive impairment (MCI) better than Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE). However, in previous domestic studies, no significant difference was found in the discriminability between MoCA and MMSE. Researchers have suggested that this might be because older Koreans are less educated than older Westerners. This study was conducted to examine the effect of education on the discriminability of MoCA compared to the MMSE. Methods: Participants were 123 cognitively normal elderly, 118 with vascular MCI, 108 with amnestic MCI, 121 with vascular dementia, and 113 with dementia of the Alzheimer’s type.The Korean-MoCA (K-MoCA) and Korean-MMSE (K-MMSE) were administered. Multiple regression analyses and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analyses were performed. Results: In all participants, education significantly affected both K-MoCA and K-MMSE scores along with age. The effect of education was re-examined by subgroup analysis after dividing subjects according to the level of education. Effect of education on K-MoCA and K-MMSE was only shown in the group with <9 years of education. ROC curve analyses revealed that the discriminability of K-MoCA to differentiate between vascular MCI and normal elderly was significantly higher than that of K-MMSE. When re-examining subgroups divided by education level, however, this higher discriminability of K-MoCA disappeared in the group with <9 years of education. Conclusions These results indicate no difference in discriminating cognitive deficits between K-MoCA and K-MMSE in Korean elderly with <9 years of education.