• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.248-250
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• 1996

Stellate ganglion block(SGB), cervicothoracic sympathetic block, is the most widely practiced procedure in pain clinics. We experienced a case of 47 year old male patient who had received SGB & developed prolonged complication of Horner's syndrome. The patient was an anesthesiologist at our clinic who's medical history was unremarkable except mild hypertension. He wanted to experience the general effect of SGB and to evaluate the influence of SGB on blood pressure. After 15 days, he recovered spontaneously from Horner's syndrome. As with this case, it is necessary to assure patients they will recover from complications within several months, at the longest, without any sequelae.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.128-131
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• 1999

Stellate ganglion block is a well established method for the management of certain pain syndromes (e.g., chronic regional pain syndrome, facial pain) in the cervicothoracic region and upper extremity. The stellate ganglion resides between the C7 transverse process and the head of the first rib. Anesthetic injections for the stellate ganglion block are typically made at the level of the transverse process of either the C6 or C7 vertebrae to avoid the pleura, vessels, and nerve roots. Method of positioning the needle tip directly at the ganglion has been described, but are problematic because of the risk of injury to or injection into adjacent structures. It is necessary to know the exact anatomic position of the stellate ganglion when permanent blockade is required by means of radiofrequency thermocoagulation. Whereas fluroscopy shows only bony feature, computerized tomography also images nerves, vessels, and lung, allowing accruate needle placement. We report a case of the percutaneous radiofrequency thermocoagulation of the stellate ganglion after computerized tomography-guided localization.

• Korean Journal of Bronchoesophagology
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.76-79
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• 2001

A 60-year-old male was admitted due to cervical spine injury (C7-T1 fracture dislocation) and quadriparesis after slip down. During conservative management in department of neurologic surgery, he complainted of fever, dyspnea, neck swelling. Follow up cervicothoracic CT revealed abscess pocket in paraglottic, retropharyngeal, anterior cervical spaces and mediastinum. Also noted bilateral pleural effusions. Under impression of descending necrotizing mediastinitis (DNM). cervical drainage and bilateral chest tube insertion was performed immediately. On next day. mediastinal drainage through mediastinotomy was performed with careful handling of cervical spine. Escherichia coli was identified in bacteriologic culture. Wire fixation of dislocated C7-T1 spine through Posterior approach was performed on 30th days after mediastinotomy. Right chest tube was removed on 40th days. At now, the patient is on rehabilitation and physical training program. DNM is relatively rare, but lethal disease with high mortality. Immedate and sufficient mediastinal drainage is essential in treatment.

• Journal of Trauma and Injury
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.136-139
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• 2008

A great variety of penetrating injuries is happening due to the increasing population and violence today. An optimal surgical approach is the key factor for successful repair of a complicated penetrating injury. A 23-year-old woman fell down the stairs from the second floor and received cervico-thoracic penetration injury due to a metalic bar. The metalic bar ruptured the right jugular vein and penetrated the left upper and lower lung. Under cervico-median sternotomy, neck vessels were repaired and the left thorax was successfully entered to repair the damaged lung through the mediastinal pleura. With this approach, the patient's position did not need to be changed during operation, while reduced the operation time compared to the conventional approach (cervical incision and standard thoracotomy).

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.55 no.4
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• pp.215-217
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• 2014

Synovial cysts are recognized as an uncommon cause of radicular and myelopathic symptoms. They are most frequently found in the lumbar region. The cervical spine or cervicothoracic junction is a rare location for a degenerative intraspinal synovial cyst as compared with the lumbar spine. At given cervical spinal levels, synovial cysts probably share clinical features with disc herniation and stenosis. However, the pathogenesis of synovial cysts remains still controversial. Here, we report a rare case of a synovial cyst in the lower cervical spine presented as Brown-Sequard syndrome and include a brief review of the literature. To the best of our knowledge, no previous report has been issued in the English literature on a synovial cyst presenting with Brown-Sequard syndrome. Neurologic function recovered completely after complete removal of the cyst and expansive laminoplasty.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.162-169
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• 1994

Blockade of cervicothoracic sympathetic ganglion (stellate ganglion controls pain on face, head, neck, shoulder, upper limbs, and upper chest, including their viscera and sympathetically maintained pain. This procedure also increases blood flow to the above areas and relieves hyperreactivity of sympathetic nervous system. Clinically, repeated stellate ganglion blocks with local anesthetic agent may become difficult with complications such as accidental intravascular or subdural injection, recurrent laryngeal nerve or bracheal plexus paralysis, pneumothorax and edema on injection site. Therefore, at times long-term cervicothoracic ganglion block with neurolytics is necessitated but its applications are prohibited by the critical structures surrounding ganglion. There are also few reports of neurolytic stellate ganglion block. This study was performed to observe the complications, gross changes of surrounding structures, and microscopic findings of ganglion cells after neurolytic block and to certify the possibility of clinical use of neruolytic stellate ganglion block. The unilateral superior cervical sympathetic ganglion of rabbit was blocked with absolute ethyl alcohol 0.4 ml at the level of cricoid cartilage. Normal ganglion was used as a control and 5 animals were sacrificed at each intervals of 7, 15 and 50 days after block. The results were as follows; 1) All experimental animals showed no specific changes of behavior, motor function. No necrotic tissues were present in the block area during the observation period. There were some gross scar tissues along the fascia of muscles surrounding the needle injection site, but gross atrophy of muscles or injured major vessels were not found. 2) Microscopically, structures of normal ganglion of rabbit were very similar to those of humans. Seven days after absolute ethyl achohol injection there were marked edema of ganglion cells and nuclei with irregular nuclear membrane. Some of the ganglion cells lost their nuclei and showed degenerative changes. Fifteen days after block, cell edema were decreased and loss of the Nissl's body was prominant. The ganglion cell structures looked close to normal but the cytoplasm and nucleus were generally contracted 50 days after block. These results suggest absolute ethyl alcohol injection on cervical sympathetic ganglion with above method mainly blocks pre- and post-synaptic fibers and the long-term neurolytic blockade of this ganglion may be possible in rabbits.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.183-187
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• 2012

The use of fluoroscopy guidance together with the loss of resistance technique during epidural injections has been advocated lately; moreover, epidural injections in the absence of fluoroscopic guidance have a high rate of inaccurate needle-tip placement during the injections. However, the approach to the lower cervical and upper thoracic epidural space may be challenging due to its obscure lateral fluoroscopic views from overlying normal tissue structures. In this case, we report an alternative oblique C-arm fluoroscopy guided view approach to supplement the standard anterior-posterior and lateral fluoroscopic views to facilitate successful needle placement and precise anatomical localization of the epidural space.

• Journal of the Korean Academy of Clinical Electrophysiology
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.61-70
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• 2005

The purpose of study correlation between 3D-surface topography and Cobb angle in scoliotic patients. It would be recognizing possibility of clinical application with 3D-surface topography with scoliosis assessment and correlation analysis of obtained Cobb angle through measured results of surface topography and took X-ray of subjects with scoliosis, which used to 3D-surface topography of laser scan method. A scoliosis subjects 16(males 4, females 12) agreed for study's purport volunteer our study that diagnose the scoliosis through 3D-surface topography and X-ray. The results were as follow: It was shown that the relation of Cobb angle of scoliosis and itemized 3D-surface topography measurement in horizontal view(p<0.01). top difference of cervicothoracic and lumbar in anterior-posterior view(p<0.05), the top difference of thoracic, thoracolumbar(p<0.01). These results suggest that an itemized 3D-surface topography measurement was highly correlated with Cobb angle. It would be a useful diagnosis method and assessment of physical therapy plan.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.274-279
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• 2000

A 35-year-old female patient who had been paraplegic since her upper thoracic cord injury one and a half years before was presented with a syringomyelia involving C7 to T2 cord segments on follow-up magnetic resonance imaging(MRI). Her pain on the chest and bilateral axilla worsened since about 2 years after initial injury, and MRI demonstrated a progressively enlarging cystic syrinx cavity of the cervicothoracic cord. The posttraumatic syringomyelia was managed operatively by lysis of the arachnoid adhesions, myelotomy, and expansile duraplasty. Post-operatively her pain was relieved, and MRI showed decrease in size of the syrinx, and digital infrared thermographic imaging(DITI) showed diminution of the hyperthermic area on the anterior chest. In conclusion, the posttraumatic syringomyelia can be managed successfully without shunt operation. It seems apparent that expansile duraplasty is effective in controlling the posttraumatic syrinx.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.29 no.9
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• pp.1184-1187
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• 2000

Spontaneous spinal epidural hematoma is rare disease and usually presents with a progressive neurological syndrome for which surgical decompression is usually indicated. The cause of bleeding in epidural hematoma remains unknown in most of the cases. The most frequently identified risk factor is coagulopathy or treatment with anticoagulants. Recently, authors experienced a case of spontaneous spinal epidural hematoma with intraoperative profuse bleeding at the cervicothoracic location. Laboratory examination showed no evidence of coagulopathy or hepatic disease. On neurologic examination, left hemiparesis(Grade : II) and left side sensory change were noted. On MRI scan, there was a mass of high signal intensity in T2WI and isosignal intensity in T1WI compressing the cord to left side. The patients had good surgical outcome after decompressive laminectomy and hematoma removal.