• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.47 no.3
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• pp.203-209
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• 2010

Objective : The purpose of study was to evaluate the feasibility of brain magnetic resonance (MR) images of the rat obtained using a 1.5T MR machine in several blood-brain barrier (BBB) experiments. Methods : Male Sprague-Dawley rats were used. MR images were obtained using a clinical 1.5T MR machine. A microcatheter was introduced via the femoral artery to the carotid artery. Normal saline (group 1, n = 4), clotted autologous blood (group 2, n = 4), triolein emulsion (group 3, n = 4), and oleic acid emulsion (group 4, n = 4) were infused into the carotid artery through a microcatheter. Conventional and diffusion-weighted images, the apparent coefficient map, perfusion-weighted images, and contrast-enhanced MR images were obtained. Brain tissue was obtained and triphenyltetrazolium chloride (TTC) staining was performed in group 2. Fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC)-labeled dextran images and endothelial barrier antigen (EBA) studies were performed in group 4. Results : The MR images in group 1 were of good quality. The MR images in group 2 revealed typical findings of acute cerebral infarction. Perfusion defects were noted on the perfusion-weighted images. The MR images in group 3 showed vasogenic edema and contrast enhancement, representing vascular damage. The rats in group 4 had vasogenic edema on the MR images and leakage of dextran on the FITC-labeled dextran image, representing increased vascular permeability. The immune reaction was decreased on the EBA study. Conclusion : Clinical 1.5T MR images using a rat depicted many informative results in the present study. These results can be used in further researches of the BBB using combined clinical MR machines and immunohistochemical examinations.

• Journal of Periodontal and Implant Science
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• v.48 no.2
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• pp.92-102
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• 2018

Purpose: This study investigated the validity of the Charlson comorbidity index (CCI) as a predictor of periodontal disease (PD) over a 12-year period. Methods: Nationwide representative samples of 149,785 adults aged ${\geq}60$ years with PD (International Classification of Disease, 10th revision [ICD-10], K052-K056) were derived from the National Health Insurance Service-Elderly Cohort during 2002-2013. The degree of comorbidity was measured using the CCI (grade 0-6), including 17 diseases weighted on the basis of their association with mortality, and data were analyzed using multivariate Cox proportional-hazards regression in order to investigate the associations of comorbid diseases (CDs) with PD. Results: The multivariate Cox regression analysis with adjustment for sociodemographic factors (sex, age, household income, insurance status, residence area, and health status) and CDs (acute myocardial infarction, congestive heart failure, peripheral vascular disease, cerebral vascular accident, dementia, pulmonary disease, connective tissue disorders, peptic ulcer, liver disease, diabetes, diabetes complications, paraplegia, renal disease, cancer, metastatic cancer, severe liver disease, and human immunodeficiency virus [HIV]) showed that the CCI in elderly comorbid participants was significantly and positively correlated with the presence of PD (grade 1: hazard ratio [HR], 1.11; P<0.001; grade ${\geq}2$: HR, 1.12, P<0.001). Conclusions: We demonstrated that a higher CCI was a significant predictor of greater risk for PD in the South Korean elderly population.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.60 no.2
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• pp.155-164
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• 2017

Objective : To evaluate the efficacy of balloon guiding catheter (BGC) during thrombectomy in anterior circulation ischemic stroke. Methods : Sixty-two patients with acute anterior circulation ischemic stroke were treated with thrombectomy using a Solitaire stent from 2011 to 2016. Patients were divided into the BGC group (n=24, 39%) and the non-BGC group (n=38, 61%). The number of retrievals, procedure time, thrombolysis in cerebral infarction (TICI) grade, presence of distal emboli, and clinical outcomes at 3 months were evaluated. Results : Successful recanalization was more frequent in BGC than in non-BGC (83% vs. 66%, p=0.13). Distal emboli occurred less in BGC than in non-BGC (23.1% vs. 57.1%, p=0.02). Good clinical outcome was more frequent in BGC than in non-BGC (50% vs. 16%, p=0.03). The multivariate analysis showed that use of BGC was the only independent predictor of good clinical outcome (odds ratio, 5.19 : 95% confidence interval, 1.07-25.11). More patients in BGC were successfully recanalized in internal carotid artery (ICA) occlusion with small retrieval numbers (<3) than those in non-BGC (70% vs. 24%, p=0.005). In successfully recanalized ICA occlusion, distal emboli did not occur in BGC, whereas nine patients had distal emboli in non-BGC (0% vs. 75%, p=0.001) and good clinical outcome was superior in BGC than in non-BGC (55.6% vs. 8.3%, p=0.01). Conclusion : A BGC significantly reduces the number of retrievals and the occurrence of distal emboli, thereby resulting in better clinical outcomes in patients with anterior circulation ischemic stroke, particularly with ICA occlusion.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.139-148
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• 2012

Objectives : The purpose of this case is to report the improvement of two patients diagnosed with eight and a half syndrome after combination therapy of oriental and western medicine. Methods : We treated the patients with combination therapy of oriental and western medicine such as acupuncture, moxibustion, herbal medication, antithrombotic agents and steroid therapy. Changes of peripheral facial paralysis were evaluated using House-Brackmann facial grading system and the degree of dizziness, tenderness and pain of upper abdomen were assessed using numerous rating scale. Changes in motor grade of upper and lower extremities were evaluated using medical research council scale. Results : We have recently experienced two cases of eight and a half syndrome - a syndrome characterized by the coexistence of one and a half syndrome, a rare ophthalmoparetic syndrome characterized by a conjugate horizontal gaze palsy in one direction and an internuclear ophthalmoplegia in the other, and cranial nerve VII palsy. The one and a half syndrome was caused by acute cerebral infarction. Two patients in this report were improved through combination therapy of oriental and western medicine. Conclusions : We report the clinical course and treatment methods of eight and a half syndrome.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.64 no.1
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• pp.60-68
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• 2021

Objective : Until recently, the transfemoral approach (TFA) was used as the primary method of arterial approach in acute ischemic stroke (AIS). However, TFA resulted in longer reperfusion times and worse outcomes in the mechanical thrombectomy (MT) of patients with complex aortic arches and significant carotid tortuosity. We found that the transradial approach (TRA) is a more favorable alternative approach for MT in such cases. Methods : We performed a retrospective review of our institutional database to identify 202 patients who underwent MT for AIS between February 2015 and December 2019. Patient characteristics, cause of TFA failure, procedure time, intra-procedural complications, and outcomes were recorded. Results : Eleven (5.4%) of 202 patients, who underwent MT for AIS, crossed over to TRA for recanalization, and eight (72%) of 11 achieved successful recanalization (≥modified Treatment in Cerebral Infarction 2b). The mean age (mean±standard deviation [median]) was 82.3±6.6 (76) years, and five of the 11 patients were male. The last seen normal to puncture time was 467.9±264.72 (264) minutes; baseline National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score was 28.9±14.5 (16). Six (55%) of the 11 patients had right vertebrobasilar occlusions, and the remaining five (45%) had anterior circulation occlusive disease. The time from groin puncture to final recanalization time (overall procedural time) was 78.0±20.1 (62) minutes. The mean crossover time from TFA to TRA was 45.2±10.5 (41) minutes. The mean time from radial puncture to final recanalization was 33.8±10.5 (28) minutes. Distal thrombus migration events in previously unaffected territories occurred in 3/8 patients (37%). At 90 days, three patients (28%) had a favorable clinical outcome. Conclusion : Although rare, failure of TFA has been known to occur during MT for AIS. Our results demonstrate that TRA may be an alternative option for AIS intervention for select patients with subsequent timely revascularization. However, the incidence of distal thrombus migration was high, and the first puncture to reperfusion time was prolonged because of the time taken for the crossover to TRA after failure of TFA. This study provides some evidence that the TRA may be a viable alternative option to the TFA for MT of AIS.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.289-299
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• 2016

This study is aimed to report two cases of chronic kidney disease treated with Korean traditional medicine. We treated the patients with traditional herbal medicine and other treatments including acupuncture. We measured serum creatinine, estimated glomerular filtration rate(eGFR), blood urea nitrogen(BUN), albumin, red blood cell count(RBC), hemoglobin for several times during admission. Case 1 patient was diagnosed with right medulla infarction, bladder stone, chronic kidney disease. The symptoms were quadriplegia, right side dysesthesia, drowsiness and edema. Case 2 patient was diagnosed with acute cerebral infarction, hypertension, chronic kidney disease. The symptoms were right side weakness, delusion, anorexia, low back pain. Case 1 patient was hospitalized for 80 days, and case 2 patient was for 31 days. Korean traditional medicine decreased serum creatinine and BUN level, improved eGFR, increased RBC and hemoglobin. The symptoms of chronic kidney disease such as edema, general body weakness and anorexia were also improved. These cases suggest that Korean traditional medicine can be effective and safe for patients with chronic kidney disease.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.31 no.12
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• pp.1159-1164
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• 1998

Background: Although operative outcome is progressing due to the development of operative techniques and myocardial protection, some patients face an increased morbidity and mortality. Therefore, it has become increasingly important to predict the operative morbidity and mortality. Material and Method: This retrospective study reports the results of risk factor analysis of morbidity and mortality of 137 consecutive patients who were underwent coronary artery bypass graft surgery(CABG). Preoperative variables were age, sex, preoperative myocardial infarction, operative priority, left ventricular ejection fraction, obesity and triple vessel disease. Postoperative morbidities were arrhythmia, wound infection, cerebral infarction, prolonged postoperative hospitalization, pneumonia, acute renal failure, prolonged use of ventilator and operative death. Result: The mean age of total patients was 56.7 years, from 27 to 74. The overall mortality was 6.6%(9 of 137) with the mortality of 3.9%(5 of 128) for elective operation, and 44.4%(4 of 9) for emergent or urgent cases. The morbidity of patients over 65 years was stastistically higher than that of under 65 years. Sex distribution showed no difference in morbidity, however operative mortality rate was slightly higher in women (5/41, 12.19%) than in men(4/96, 4.17%). Morbidity of emergent or urgent operation was 100%, much higher than that of the elective operation. Mortality of the patients whose left ventricular ejection fraction was under 50% was higher than that of those over 50%. Conclusion: We concluded that the risk factors of morbidity after CABG were old age above 65 years and emergent or urgent operation, and that risk factors of mortality were low left venticular ejection fraction under 50% and emergent or urgent operation.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.44 no.3
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• pp.215-219
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• 2011

Background: Selective antegrade perfusion via axillary artery cannulation along with circulatory arrest under deep hypothermia has became a recent trend for performing surgery on the ascending aorta and aortic arch and when direct aortic cannulation is not feasible. The authors of this study tried using moderate hypothermia with right brachial and femoral artery perfusion to complement the pitfalls of single axillary artery cannulation and deep hypothermia. Materials and Methods: A retrospective analysis was performed on 36 patients who received ascending aorta or aortic arch replacement between July 2005 and May 2010. The adverse outcomes included operative mortality, permanent neurologic dysfunction and temporary neurologic dysfunction. Results: Of these 36 patients, 32 (88%) were treated as emergencies. The mean age of the patients was 61.9 years (ranging from 29 to 79 years) and there were 19 males and 17 females. The principal diagnoses for the operation were acute type A aortic dissection (31, 86%) and aneurysmal disease without aortic dissection (5, 14%). The performed operations were ascending aorta replacement (9, 25%), ascending aorta and hemiarch replacement (13, 36%), ascending aorta and total arch replacement (13, 36%) and total arch replacement only (1, 3%). The mean cardiopulmonary bypass time was $209.4{\pm}85.1$ minutes, and the circulatory arrest with selective antegrade perfusion time was $36.1{\pm}24.2$ minutes. The lowest core temperature was $24{\pm}2.1^{\circ}C$. There were five deaths within 30 post-op days (mortality: 13.8%). Two patients (5.5%) had minor neurologic dysfunction and six patients, including three patients who had preoperative cerebral infarction or unconsciousness, had major neurologic dysfunction (16.6%). Conclusion: When direct aortic cannulation is not feasible for ascending aorta and aortic arch replacement, the right brachial and femoral artery can be used as arterial perfusion routes with the patient under moderate hypothermia. This technique resulted in acceptable outcomes.

• Korean Journal of Radiology
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• v.22 no.11
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• pp.1875-1885
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• 2021

Objective: Central nervous system involvement in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been increasingly reported. We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate the incidence of radiologically demonstrated neurologic complications and detailed neuroimaging findings associated with COVID-19. Materials and Methods: A systematic literature search of MEDLINE/PubMed and EMBASE databases was performed up to September 17, 2020, and studies evaluating neuroimaging findings of COVID-19 using brain CT or MRI were included. Several cohort-based outcomes, including the proportion of patients with abnormal neuroimaging findings related to COVID-19 were evaluated. The proportion of patients showing specific neuroimaging findings was also assessed. Subgroup analyses were also conducted focusing on critically ill COVID-19 patients and results from studies that used MRI as the only imaging modality. Results: A total of 1394 COVID-19 patients who underwent neuroimaging from 17 studies were included; among them, 3.4% of the patients demonstrated COVID-19-related neuroimaging findings. Olfactory bulb abnormalities were the most commonly observed (23.1%). The predominant cerebral neuroimaging finding was white matter abnormality (17.6%), followed by acute/subacute ischemic infarction (16.0%), and encephalopathy (13.0%). Significantly more critically ill patients had COVID-19-related neuroimaging findings than other patients (9.1% vs. 1.6%; p = 0.029). The type of imaging modality used did not significantly affect the proportion of COVID-19-related neuroimaging findings. Conclusion: Abnormal neuroimaging findings were occasionally observed in COVID-19 patients. Olfactory bulb abnormalities were the most commonly observed finding. Critically ill patients showed abnormal neuroimaging findings more frequently than the other patient groups. White matter abnormalities, ischemic infarctions, and encephalopathies were the common cerebral neuroimaging findings.

• Journal of radiological science and technology
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• v.32 no.3
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• pp.313-323
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• 2009

Diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) has been demonstrated to be a practical method for the diagnosis of various brain diseases such as acute infarction, brain tumor, and white matter disease. In this study, we used two techniques to examine the average signal intensity (SI) and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) of the brains of patients who ranged in age from 10 to 60 years. Our results indicated that the average SI was the highest in amygdala (as derived from DWI), whereas that in the cerebrospinal fluid was the lowest. The average ADC was the highest in the cerebrospinal fluid, whereas the lowest measurement was derived from the pons. The average SI and ADC were higher in $T_2^*$-DW-EPI than in FLAIR-DW-EPI. The higher the b-value, the smaller the average difference in both imaging techniques; the lower the b-value, the greater the average difference. Also, comparative analysis of the brains of patients who had experienced cerebral infarction showed no distinct lesion in the general MR image over time. However, there was a high SI in apparent weighted images. Analysis of other brain diseases (e.g., bleeding, acute, subacute, chronic infarction) indicated SI variance in accordance with characteristics of the two techniques. The higher the SI, the lower the ADC. Taken together, the value of SI and ADC in accordance with frequently occurring areas and various brain disease varies based on the b-value and imaging technique. Because they provide additional useful information in the diagnosis and treatment of patients with various brain diseases through signal recognition, the proper imaging technique and b-value are important for the detection and interpretation of subacute stroke and other brain diseases.