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Objective To determine whether providing education about the disease pathophysiology and drug mechanisms and side effects, would be effective for reducing the use of pain medication while appropriately managing neurogenic pain in spinal cord injury (SCI) patients. Methods In this prospective study, 109 patients with an SCI and neuropathic pain, participated in an educational pain management program. This comprehensive program was specifically created, for patients with an SCI and neuropathic pain. It consisted of 6 sessions, including educational training, over a 6-week period. Results Of 109 patients, 79 (72.5%) initially took more than two types of pain medication, and this decreased to 36 (33.0%) after the educational pain management program was completed. The mean pain scale score and the number of pain medications decreased, compared to the baseline values. Compared to the non-response group, the response group had a shorter duration of pain onset (p=0.004), and a higher initial number of different medications (p

High dose atorvastatin is known to be associated with new onset diabetes mellitus (NODM) in patients with high risk for developing diabetes mellitus (DM). However, low dose atorvastatin is more commonly used as compared with high dose atorvastatin. The aim of this study is to investigate the impact of low dose atorvastatin (LDA, 10mg or 20mg) on the development of NODM up to three years in Asian patients.From January 2004 to September 2009, we investigated a total of 3566 patients who did not have DM. To adjust for potential confounders, a propensity score matching (PSM) analysis was performed using the logistic regression model. After PSM (C-statistics: 0.851), a total of 818 patients (LDA group, n=409 patients and control group, n=409 patients) were enrolled for analysis.Before PSM, the cumulative incidence of NODM (5.8% vs. 2.1%, p0.001), myocardial infarction (0.5% vs. 0.1%, p-value=0.007), and major adverse cardio-cerebral event (MACCE, 1.8% vs. 0.7%, p-value=0.012) at three-years were higher in the LAD group. However, after PSM, there was a trend toward higher incidence of NODM (5.9% vs. 3.2%, p=0.064) in the LDA group, but the incidence of MACCE (1.2% vs. 1.5%, p-value=1.000) was similar between the two groups. In multivariable analysis, the LDA administration was tended to be an independent predictor of NODM (OR: 1.99, 95% CI: 1.00-3.98, p-value 0.050).In this study, the use of LDA tended to be a risk factor for NODM in Asian patients and reduced clinical events similar to the control group. However, large-scale randomized controlled trials will be needed to get the final conclusion.

Whether adverse effect of statins on glycemic indices is common to all statins remains controversial and as yet data for pitavastatin are limited. We sought to assess the impact of pitavastatin on new-onset diabetes (NODM) in non-diabetic acute myocardial infarction (AMI) patients. Among a total 12

Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) is known to be associated with poor outcomes and cardiac valve sclerosis (CVS) is reported to be associated with future cardiovascular events. We evaluated the association of CVS with the clinical outcomes in patients (pts) with PAD who underwent percutaneous

Although previous studies demonstrated the prognostic value of left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) after acute myocardial infarction (AMI), a study assessing long-term clinical outcomes after AMI according to LVEF status is limited and has not been evaluated in larger study populations. We

Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for unprotected left main coronary artery (ULMCA) disease is nowadays considered feasible by a number of randomized clinical trials and previous studies advocated one stent technique in PCI for bifurcated ULMCA disease. However there are limited data

This paper presents the influence of bus bar parasitic circuit effects on motor driving system (MDS). The general MDS consists of three main components: battery, inverter, and motor. In these components, almost all the high frequency noises are generated from pulse-width-modulated (PWM) inverter circuit. Since the noise frequencies from the inverter are high enough, the parasitic impedances in the MDS are no longer negligible for the precise noise analysis of the motor driving system. This paper presents the simulated noise analysis results considering parasitic circuit elements in the MDS, especially with bus bar circuit. Also included is the advanced battery circuit model, which describes the battery characteristics in both frequency and time domain. The results show that there could be a possibility for the bus bar system to be used as a low pass filter in the MDS.

This paper predicts electromagnetic susceptibility (EMS) of integrated circuits (ICs) with novel consideration of complex power distribution network (PDN). For accurate simulation performance, the set-up model is derived in detail, especially the PDN. PDN model is extracted from the physical configuration and also in view of the function of system to express the ground bounce exactly since it is a pivot factor in DPI test for EMS. After measurement, comparison with simulation result is applied to validate the proposed model and estimate the electromagnetic susceptibility of ICs.

Busan-Geoje Fixed Link was planed to link Geoje island to Gaduk island in Busan. There are two cable stayed bridges. Lot1 cable stayed bridge has 2x230m main spans and Lot2 cable stayed bridge has 475 main span. They have composite deck girders for superstructure, i.e. edge I-girder type. In this paper, the steel girder design and the details are described mainly regarding the Lot2 cable stayed bridge.

Statin therapy has been known to be associated with a higher incidence of new-onset diabetes mellitus (NODM). However, it is not clear whether atorvastatin increase the incidence of NODM by increasing insulin resistance (IR) in Asian population. We evaluated the impact atorvastatin and other

Background and Objectives We evaluated the prevalence of gastroesophageal reflux diseases (GERD) in noncardiac chest pain (NCCP) patients, risk factors for GERD, and status of prescriptions for GERD in Korean population. Subjects and Methods This was a retrospective non-interventional observational nation-wide 45-center study. Patients with a normal coronary angiogram (CAG) and upper gastroendoscopy within 2 years after CAG were enrolled. The prevalence of GERD was examined. Other gastrointestinal diseases including peptic ulcer diseases or gastritis were also examined. Risk factors for GERD were compared between the GERD group and non-GERD group. The ratio of patients medicated for gastrointestinal diseases (antacids or proton-pump inhibitor) was also examined. Results Nine hundred four patients were enrolled. Among the NCCP patients, GERD was present in 436 (48.2%), peptic ulcer disease in 154 patients (17.0%), and gastritis in 659 (72.9%). There was no difference in risk factors for GERD between the GERD and non-GERD patients. Medications for GERD and other gastrointestinal diseases were prescribed in 742 (82.1%) patients. Conclusion GERD was common (42.8%) in Korean NCCP patients and most (82.1%) received the prescription of gastrointestinal medications. No differences were evident in risk factors between GERD and non-GERD patients.

Purpose: Implant-supported dentures seem particularly appropriate for the predicament of becoming edentulous and cancer patients are no exceptions. As the number of people having dental implants increased in different ages, critical dosimetric verification of metal artifact effects are required for the more accurate head and neck radiation therapy. The purpose of this study is to verify the theoretical analysis of the metal(streak and dark) artifact, and to evaluate dosimetric effect which cause by dental implants in CT images of patients with the patient teeth and implants inserted humanoid phantom. Methods: The phantom comprises cylinder which is shaped to simulate the anatomical structures of a human head and neck. Through applying various clinical cases, made phantom which is closely allied to human. Developed phantom can verify two classes: (i)closed mouth (ii)opened mouth. RapidArc plans of 4 cases were created in the Eclipse planning system. Total dose of 2000 cGy in 10 fractions is prescribed to the whole planning target volume (PTV) using 6MV photon beams. Acuros XB (AXB) advanced dose calculation algorithm, Analytical Anisotropic Algorithm (AAA) and progressive resolution optimizer were used in dose optimization and calculation. Results: In closed and opened mouth phantom, because dark artifacts formed extensively around themore » metal implants, dose variation was relatively higher than that of streak artifacts. As the PTV was delineated on the dark regions or large streak artifact regions, maximum 7.8% dose error and average 3.2% difference was observed. The averaged minimum dose to the PTV predicted by AAA was about 5.6% higher and OARs doses are also 5.2% higher compared to AXB. Conclusion: The results of this study showed that AXB dose calculation involving high-density materials is more accurate than AAA calculation, and AXB was superior to AAA in dose predictions beyond dark artifact/air cavity portion when compared against the measurements.« less

목적: 빈혈은 전 세계적으로 가장 흔한 질환 중 하나이며 악성 종양의 중요한 표지자이다. 빈혈과 악성 종양에 관한 다양한 연구가 있으나 IDA 진단된 남자 환자를 대상으로 한 자료는 충분하지 않다. 이에 저자들은 남자 IDA 환자의 발생원인과 악성 종양의 유병률, 철분제 치료반응에 대해 조사하였고 악성 종양에 의한 IDA 환자의 특성과 악성 종양에 대한 선별 검사로 대변 잠혈 검사의 유용성에 대해 연구하였다. 방법: 2008년 3월부터 2013년 6월까지 고려대학교 구로 병원, 안암병원 혈액내과 외래에 내원하여 IDA로 진단된 남자 환자 202명을 대상으로 하여 임상적 특성과 빈혈의 원인에 대해 조사하였고, 원인에 따라 악성 종양군(Cancer, n = 24)과 악성 종양 이외의 다른 원인군(Non-cancer, n = 178)으로 분류하여 임상적 특성 및 치료반응을 후향적으로 분석하였다. 또한 대변 잠혈 검사의 악성 종양에 대한 민감도, 특이도, 양성 예측도에 대해 분석하였다. 결과: IDA의 원인 중에서 출혈이 86명(42.6%)으로 가장 많았다. 악성 종양 유병률은 11.9% (24명)였고 악성 종양의 상대 빈도는 대장직장암 14명(58.3%), 위암 7명(29.2%) 순이 었다. 연령군별로는 50세 미만 8.3% (2명), 50세 이상 91.7% (22명)였다. 악성 종양과 관련된 요인으로는 다변량 분석에서 고령(OR, 1.05; p = 0.026)과 대변 잠별 검사 양성(OR, 7.48; p = 0.001)이 확인되었다. 치료반응은 경구 철분제 투약 후 Hb 수치가 13이상 상승한 비율은 Cancer군에서 더 낮았지만 (OR, 0.49; 95% CI, 0.146-1.668; p = 0.31) 통계적으로 유의하지 않았고 경구 철분제 투약 후 평균 Hb 수치는 Cancer군에서 12.6 ± 2.2 g/dL, Non-cancer군에서 13.8 ± 1.6 g/dL로 Cancer 군에서 더 낮았고 통계적으로 유의하였다(p = 0.016). 대변 잠혈 검사의 악성 종양에 대한 민감도는 56.3%, 특이도는 81.2%, 양성 예측도는 32.1%였다. 결론: 외래에서 진단된 남자 IDA 환자에서 악성 종양의 유병률은 11.9%로 적지 않았고 이 중에서 91.7%가 50세 이상에서 진단되었으며, 악성 종양에 의한 IDA 환자들은 다른 원인에 의한 IDA에 의한 환자들에 비해 경구 철분제 치료에 대한 반응이 좋지 못하였다. 고령(50세 이상)에 대변 잠혈 검사 양성인 남자 IDA 환자에서는 악성 종양이 진단될 확률이 높으며 특히 대장암의 가능성이 높으므로 기저 질환에 대한 철저한 검사가 필요하다.

Gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) is a rare mesenchymal tumor of the gastrointestinal tract that has been associated with the formation of fistulas to adjacent organs in few case reports. However, GIST with enterohepatic fistula has not been reported. Here we report the case of an enterohepatic fistula that occurred after embolization of a liver mass originating in the distal ileum. An 87-year-old woman was hospitalized for melena. On initial conventional endoscopy, a bleeding focus in the gastrointestinal tract was not found. Because of massive hematochezia, enteroscopy was performed through the anus. A protruding, ulcerative mass was found in the distal ileum that was suspected to be the source of the bleeding; a biopsy sample was taken. Electrocoagulation was not successful in controlling the bleeding; therefore, embolization was performed. After embolization, the patient developed a high fever and severe abdominal tenderness with rebound tenderness. Follow-up abdominopelvic computed tomography revealed an enterohepatic fistula between the liver and distal ileum. The fistula was treated surgically by segmental resection of the distal ileum and unlooping of the liver mass.

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is known to be a risk factor of significant coronary artery disease (CAD). However, there is no currently available data with larger study population regarding long-term clinical outcomes of DM with CAS in real world clinical practice, particularly in a series of Korean