Fournier’s gangrene (FG) is a necrotizing fasciitis of the perianal, perineal, and genital regions, leading to necrosis of the fascia and subcutaneous tissue. It is a rare condition, particularly when induced by rectal cancer. Herein, we present a rare case in which FG was discovered incidentally during the physical examination of a patient who complained of general weakness. The patient was diagnosed with FG induced by rectal cancer with liver metastasis and underwent laparoscopic diverting loop ileostomy instead of abdominoperineal resection (APR). After 13 rounds of chemotherapy over 9 months, the condition of the rectal cancer partially improved.Furthermore, FG lesions showed improvement with this treatment plan compared to the initial treatment with dressings and antibiotics. Therefore prompt surgical intervention is important for treating FG induced by rectal cancer.

Background: Normocalcemic primary hyperparathyroidism (NPHPT) was first described in 2008. It is defined as consistently elevated serum parathyroid hormone (PTH) levels with normal serum calcium (sCa) concentration, after excluding secondary causes of PTH elevation. However, the exact definition and management strategy for NPHPT remain controversial. We retrospectively investigated the clinicopathological features and short-term outcomes of NPHPT patients. Methods: A total of 280 patients who were surgically indicated for primary hyperparathyroidism (PHPT) at the Yonsei Severance Medical Center between 2015 and 2019 were included. Patients were classified according to preoperative PTH, corrected sCa, and ionized calcium (iCa) levels as follows: typical primary hyperparathyroidism (TPHPT, elevated PTH, sCa, and iCa, n = 158) and NPHPT (elevated PTH, normal sCa, n = 122). Results: NPHPT was commonly seen in younger individuals (aged < 50 years, P = 0.025);nephrolithiasis and bone fractures were common. Preoperative PTH level was higher in the TPHPT group (P < 0.001). The NPHPT group had higher numbers of multiple parathyroid lesions (P = 0.004) that were smaller (P = 0.011). NPHPT patients were further divided into two subgroups according to iCa levels: the elevated (n = 95) and normal iCa (n = 27) groups. There was no significant difference between the two subgroups regarding symptoms and multiplicity of lesions. Conclusion We found that NPHPT may be a heterogeneous disease entity of PHPT with high rates of multi-gland disease, which appears to be biochemically milder but symptomatic.Intraoperative PTH monitoring might help increase the surgery success rate. Moreover, the short-term outcomes of NPHPT after surgery did not differ from that of TPHPT.

Purpose: Paragangliomas (PGL) are rare neuroendocrine tumors derived from chromaffin cells of the autonomic nervous system. We aim to describe our experience and the long-term outcome of abdominal PGL over the last decade. Methods: A retrospective review of patients diagnosed with PGL in our hospital between November 2005 and June 2017 was conducted. All nonabdominal PGL were excluded and the clinicopathological features and long-term outcomes of the patients were analyzed. Results: A total of 46 patients were diagnosed with abdominal PGL. The average age of diagnosis was 55.4 years and there was no sex predilection. The average tumor size was 5.85 cm and they were predominantly located in the infrarenal position (50%). The mean follow-up period was 42 months (range, 1.8–252 months). All patients with metastases had Pheochromocytoma of the Adrenal Gland Scaled Score (PASS) of ≥4. One patient presented with synchronous metastases while 2 developed local recurrence and distant metastases. One presented with only local recurrence. One patient died 5 years after diagnosis. Conclusion Abdominal PGL is a rare tumor with excellent long-term prognosis. Recurrence although uncommon, can occur decades after initial diagnosis. Long-term follow-up is therefore recommended for all patients with PGL, especially in patients with PASS of ≥4.

Purpose: The use of prophylactic central neck dissection (PCND) and the extent of thyroid surgery in clinically nodenegative (cN0) papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) are controversial. This study aimed to investigate whether the extent of thyroid surgery influences the prognosis of patients with PTC with central lymph node metastasis (N1a), which was cN0 but pathologically confirmed after PCND. Methods: This was a single-center retrospective study using medical records. Patients who underwent thyroid surgery with PCND for the treatment of PTC between 2004 and 2019 were included. Predictive factors and local recurrence rates were analyzed. Results: Of 2,274 patients with cN0 PTC, 436 were confirmed to have pathologic N1a disease after PCND. Among them, 340 patients (78.0%) underwent total thyroidectomy (TT) and 96 patients (22.0%) underwent less than TT. Of the 374 patients who were followed up for >6 months, 5 (1.3%) experienced recurrence. The 15-year recurrence-free survival (RFS) rate was 98.2%. No clinicopathologic factor was predictive of tumor recurrence. RFS tended to be lower in patients who underwent less than TT than in those who underwent TT; however, the difference was not statistically significant. Conclusion Our study showed low recurrence rates in patients with cN0 PTC pathologically confirmed as N1a after PCND.The RFS did not differ according to the extent of thyroid surgery. Considering the low recurrence rate and the surgical morbidity associated with thyroid surgery, less than TT with PCND may be considered for patients with cN0 unilateral PTC even with a pathologic staging of N1a after PCND.

Extramammary Paget disease (EMPD) is an uncommon malignancy that occurs in apocrine gland-rich areas of the body. EMPD of the axilla is rare, but a few cases have been reported. Some cases of EMPD have been reported with underlying apocrine adenocarcinoma; rarely, mammary-type ductal carcinoma can accompany EMPD. Here, we report a very rare case of EMPD with apocrine adenocarcinoma and invasive mammary-type ductal carcinoma. A 55-year-old woman was referred with a brownish pigmented plaque accompanying an area of ulceration in the left axilla. A preoperative biopsy indicated Paget disease, and an additional evaluation was performed to determine whether it was of primary or secondary origin. A wide excision was made, and the axilla was reconstructed using a thoracodorsal artery perforator flap. The biopsy showed apocrine adenocarcinoma and invasive mammary-type ductal carcinoma with pagetoid spreading. The patient had no evidence of recurrence or other postoperative complications.

Multiple strictures of small bowel induced by nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), were known as diaphragm disease. The purpose of these case reports is to present 3 cases of diaphragm disease of small bowel and summarize the clinical features of this disease entity. A 34-year-old man, a 63-year-old man, and a 66-year-old woman were admitted to Daegu Catholic University Medical Center because of recurrent intestinal obstructions. Two of these patients had taken heavy NSAIDs use. Capsule endoscopy was performed in all cases and the all capsules were retained by circumferential strictures of the ileum. Segmental resection of the strictures was performed in 2 patients and 1 underwent just enterotomy and capsule removal. In conclusion, clinicians should be aware that diaphragm disease might be a cause of small bowel obstruction especially in patients receiving long term NSAIDs therapy.
Academic Medical Centers ; Adult ; Aged ; Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal ; Capsule Endoscopy ; Capsules ; Constriction, Pathologic ; Daegu ; Diaphragm* ; Enteritis ; Female ; Humans ; Ileum ; Intestinal Obstruction ; Middle Aged ; Mucositis

PURPOSE: Previous gastrectomy has been considered to be a relative contraindication for laparoscopic common bile duct exploration (LCBDE) because of concerns regarding severe adhesions in the operative field and technical complexity. This study evaluated the feasibility and safety of LCBDE in patients with previous gastrectomy. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the clinical outcomes of 58 patients who underwent LCBDE in our institution between January 2005 and December 2014: group I comprised patients with no previous abdominal surgery (n=43) and group II comprised patients with previous gastrectomy (n=15). Patient demographics and perioperative variables were compared between groups. RESULTS: The perioperative variables did not differ significantly between groups. The operating time, open conversion rate, and morbidity rate were similar in groups I and II, despite the more complicated cases in group II. Moreover, the presence of remnant bile duct stones and biliary strictures, and the postoperative hospital stay, did not differ significantly between groups. The mean time to oral intake did not differ between groups, although this diet resumption time was significantly shorter in groups I and II than in a group undergoing open choledocholithomy (p=0.04). CONCLUSION: Laparoscopic common bile duct exploration is safe and effective in patients with histories of gastrectomy.
Bile Ducts ; Choledocholithiasis* ; Common Bile Duct* ; Constriction, Pathologic ; Demography ; Diet ; Gastrectomy* ; Humans ; Laparoscopy ; Length of Stay ; Retrospective Studies

PURPOSE: Endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR) of abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs) involving the common iliac artery requires extension of the stent-graft limb into the external iliac artery. For this procedure, internal iliac artery (IIA) embolization is performed to prevent type II endoleak. In this study, we investigated the frequency and risk factor of buttock claudication (BC) in patients having interventional embolization of the IIA. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From January 2010 to December 2013, a total of 110 patients with AAA were treated with EVAR in our institution. This study included 27 patients (24.5%) who had undergone unilateral IIA coil embolization with EVAR. We examined hospital charts retrospectively and interviewed by telephone for the occurrence of BC. RESULTS: Mean age of total patients was 71.9±7.0 years and 88.9% were males. During a mean follow-up of 8.65±9.04 months, the incidence of BC was 40.7% (11 of 27 patients). In 8 patients with claudication, the symptoms had resolved within 1 month of IIA embolization, but the symptoms persisted for more than 6 months in the remaining 3 patients. In univariate and multivariate analysis, risk factors such as age, sex, comorbidity, patency of collateral arteries, and anatomical characteristics of AAA were not significantly related with BC. CONCLUSION: In this study, BC was a frequent complication of IIA embolization during EVAR and there was no associated risk factor. Certain principles such as checking preoperative angiogram, proximal and unilateral IIA embolization may have contributed to reducing the incidence of BC.
Aneurysm ; Aortic Aneurysm* ; Aortic Aneurysm, Abdominal ; Arteries ; Buttocks* ; Comorbidity ; Embolization, Therapeutic ; Endoleak ; Extremities ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Iliac Artery* ; Incidence ; Intermittent Claudication ; Male ; Multivariate Analysis ; Retrospective Studies ; Risk Factors* ; Telephone

BACKGROUND: From May to July 2015, the Republic of Korea experienced the largest outbreak of Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) outside the Arabian Peninsula. A total of 186 patients, including 36 deaths, had been diagnosed with MERS-coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection as of September 30th, 2015. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We obtained information of patients who were confirmed to have MERS-CoV infection. MERS-CoV infection was diagnosed using real-time reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction assay. RESULTS: The median age of the patients was 55 years (range, 16 to 86). A total of 55.4% of the patients had one or more coexisting medical conditions. The most common symptom was fever (95.2%). At admission, leukopenia (42.6%), thrombocytopenia (46.6%), and elevation of aspartate aminotransferase (42.7%) were observed. Pneumonia was detected in 68.3% of patients at admission and developed in 80.8% during the disease course. Antiviral agents were used for 74.7% of patients. Mechanical ventilation, extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, and convalescent serum were employed for 24.5%, 7.1%, and 3.8% of patients, respectively. Older age, presence of coexisting medical conditions including diabetes or chronic lung disease, presence of dyspnea, hypotension, and leukocytosis at admission, and the use of mechanical ventilation were revealed to be independent predictors of death. CONCLUSION: The clinical features of MERS-CoV infection in the Republic of Korea were similar to those of previous outbreaks in the Middle East. However, the overall mortality rate (20.4%) was lower than that in previous reports. Enhanced surveillance and active management of patients during the outbreak may have resulted in improved outcomes.
Antiviral Agents ; Aspartate Aminotransferases ; Coronavirus Infections* ; Disease Outbreaks ; Dyspnea ; Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation ; Fever ; Humans ; Hypotension ; Leukocytosis ; Leukopenia ; Lung Diseases ; Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus ; Middle East* ; Mortality ; Pneumonia ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Republic of Korea* ; Respiration, Artificial ; Thrombocytopenia

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of 3-month nutrition education (First Time Intervention, FI) + additional 3-month nutrition education (Repeated Intervention, RI) which was performed after the 8-month follow-up. FI was conducted during 0-3 months and RI for 11-14 months. Ninety-two subjects completed FI program, and 38 out of 92 subjects who received FI finished the RI. Anthropometric data, dietary assessment (24hr recall) and fasting blood analysis were measured at 0 month, 3 months, 11 months and 14 months time points. After FI (3 mo), waist circumference, triglycerides, total cholesterol were significantly decreased. At 11 month follow-up, body weight, BMI, hip circumference, SBP, DBP were significantly rebounced and HDL cholesterol was significantly decreased. Therefore, the effect of short-term nutrition education was not being sustained. After the secondary nutrition intervention (14 mo), waist circumference and hip circumference were again significantly decreased. Total diet quality index-international (DQI-I) score was significantly increased in both FI group and RI group. The changes in DQI-I scores were significantly correlated with the changes in body weight (r = -0.129, p < 0.05) and counts of nutrition education (r = 0.159, p < 0.05), indicating that effective nutrition education helps improve the diet quality leading to a possible role in CVD prevention among male workers. Although a short-term intervention seems to be a success, the effect was not retained in this study. Therefore, we suggest incorporating nutrition education as a routine program for male worker at worksite.
Body Weight ; Cholesterol ; Cholesterol, HDL ; Diet ; Fasting ; Follow-Up Studies ; Hip ; Humans ; Male ; Triglycerides ; Waist Circumference ; Workplace