• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.53 no.4
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• pp.532-537
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• 2010

Purpose : Early postoperative arrhythmias are a major cause of mortality and morbidity after open heart surgery in the pediatric population. We evaluated the incidence and risk factors of early postoperative arrhythmias after surgery of congenital heart disease. Methods : From January 2002 to December 2008, we retrospectively reviewed the medical records of the 561 patients who underwent cardiac surgery in Kyungpook National University Hospital. We analyzed patients' age and weight, occurrence and type of arrhythmia, cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) time, aortic cross clamp (ACC) time, and postoperative electrolyte levels. Results : Arrhythmias occurred in 42 of 578 (7.3%) cases of the pediatric cardiac surgery. The most common types of arrhythmia were junctional ectopic tachycardia (JET) and accelerated idioventricular rhythm (AIVR), which occurred in 17 and 13 cases, respectively. The arterial switch operation (ASO) of transposition of the great arteries (TGA) had the highest incidence of arrhythmia (36.4%). Most cases of cardiac arrhythmia showed good response to management. Patients with early postoperative arrhythmias had significantly lower body weight, younger age, and prolonged CPB and ACC times ($P$<0.05) than patients without arrhythmia. Although the mean duration of ventilator care and intensive care unit stay were significantly longer ($P$<0.05), the mortality rate was not significantly different among the 2 groups. Conclusion : Early postoperative arrhythmias are a major complication after pediatric cardiac surgery; however, aggressive and immediate management can reduce mortality and morbidity.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.50 no.10
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• pp.976-981
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• 2007

Purpose : Aortic valve or aortic root (AoRo) replacement is occasionally required because of AoRo dilatation and aortic regurgitation (AR) in repaired tetralogy of Fallot (TOF). We evaluated AoRo size and possible factors associated with its hemodynamic nature in patients with repaired TOF. Methods : We investigated 130 repaired TOF patients more than 15 years of age who followed-up by echocardiography from January 2002 to December 2003. Of 130 patients, we identified 17 patients with AoRo dilatation, which was defined as ratio of expected AoRo size by standard nomogram (AoRo ratio) >1.5 (dilator group), and 113 TOF controls, with AoRo ratio <1.5 (non-dilator group). Results : Mean indexed AoRo size ($mm/m^2$) in the first echo was $24{\pm}3.2$ in the dilator group and $18{\pm}3.4$ in the non-dilator group (P<0.0001). AoRo rate of change (mm/year) from the first to latest echo study was $1.6{\pm}3.8$ in dilator group and $0.05{\pm}1.6$ in the non dilator group (P=0.0021). Patients from the dilator group showed a higher prevalence of pulmonary atresia (P=0.031) and a history of aortopulmonary shunt before repair (P=0.048), moderate to severe AR (P=0.0065), and increased left ventricular end-diastolic dimensions (P=0.003). Conclusions : A subset of patients late after TOF repair may show progressive dilatation of AoRo. To identify and prevent long-term sequelae in this patient group, regular follow-up and speculation about AoRo after TOF repair is recommended.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.50 no.2
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• pp.182-189
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• 2007

Purpose : The primary purpose of this study was to evaluate the growth and neuropsychologic function following treatments for pediatric hematologic and oncologic diseases. Healthy monozygotic twins served as ideal controls for comparison to exclude possible confounding factors. Methods : Seven children treated with various hematologic and oncologic diseases were included in the study: acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL; n=2), Diamond-Blackfan anemia twins (n=2), and aplastic anemia (n=3). The median age at the diagnosis was 5.2 (0.3-15) years. The median duration of follow-up was 7.2 (4.9-10) years. Controls were healthy monozygotic twins. Growth was measured and the percentile channels were evaluated sequentially for patients. The K-WISC III was applied and compared in 5 pairs of patients and controls. Results : Similar growth profiles were noted for the twins. The percentiles at diagnosis was 3-10 in 3, 25-50 in 2, and 50-75 in 2 cases. All patients stayed in their growth percentiles through follow-up, except for 1 patient who became obese. For IQ tests, the mean behavioral, verbal and full scale IQ scores of patients were 88.0, 93.8, and 89.8, respectively, and those from their corresponding controls were 92.2, 97.0, and 91.7 (P>0.05). However, 2 children who were treated for ALL had lower IQ scores. Conclusion : Similar growth profiles were observed in the monozygotic twins in terms of height and weight. The IQ scores of patients were similar to those of monozygotic twins. However, prophylactic CNS-directed therapy for leukemia might adversely affect the IQ scores. A further prospective study on larger number of twins is warranted.

• Radiation Oncology Journal
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.59-66
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• 1994

Seventy-five patients with tumors of the head and neck treated with either radiation therapy alone or combined with surgery or chemotherapy were studied prospectively to evaluate the effects of radiation therapy to the neck on thyroid gland between September 1986 and October 1992. All patients were serially monitored for thyroid function tests before and after radiation therapy. Radiation dose to the thyroid gland ranged from 35 to 60 Gy with a median dose of 50 Gy. Median follow-up time was 30 months with a range of 11 to 85 months. The incidence of thyroid dysfunction was 40$ \% $: forty-five patients(60$ \% $) euthyroid, 2 patients(3$ \% $) clinical hypothyroidism, 27 patients(36$ \% $) subclinical hypothyroidism and 1 patient(1$ \% $) hyperthyroidism. No thyroid nodules or thyroid cancer were detected in any patients. Thyroid dysfunction appeared earlier in patients who underwent surgery than in those patients treated with radiation therapy alone or combination of chemotherapy and radiation therapy(P=0.0013). By multivariate analysis, risk factors that significantly influenced a higher incidence of thyroid dysfunction were female sex(p=0.0293) and combination of total laryngectomy and radiation therapy(p : 0.0045). In conclusion, evaluation of thyroid function before and after radiation therapy with periodic thyroid function tests are recommended to detect thyroid dysfunction in time and thyroid hormone replacement therapy is recommended whenever thyroid dysfunction develops.

• Radiation Oncology Journal
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.136-140
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• 1999

Purpose : Prostate specific antigen (PSA) is a useful tumor marker, which is widely used as a diagnostic index and predictor of both treatment and follow-up result in prostate cancer. A prospective analysis was carried out to obtain the period of PSA normalization and the half life of PSA and to analyze the factors influencing the period of PSA normalization. The PSA level was checked before and serially after radical radiotherapy. Materials and Method : Twen쇼 patients with clinically localized prostate cancer who underwent radical external beam radiotherapy were enrolled in this study. Accrual period was from April 1993 to May 1998. Median follow-up period was 20 months. Radiotherapy was given to whole pelvis followed by a boost to prostate. Dose range for the whole pelvis was from 45 Gy to 50 Gy and boost dose to prostate, from 14 Gy to 20 Gy. The post-irradiation PSA normal value was under 3.0 ng/ml. The physical examination and serum PSA level evaluation were performed at 3 month interval in the first one year, and then at every 4 to 6 months. Results : PSA value was normalized in nineteen patients (95%) within 12 months. The mean period of PSA normalization was 5.3 (${\pm}$2.7) months. The half life of PSA Of the nonfailing patients was 2.1 (${\pm}$0.9) month. The nadir PSA level Of the nonfailing Patients waS 0.8 (${\pm}$0.5) ng/ml. The period of PSA normalization had the positive correlation with pretreatment PSA level (R$^{2}$=0.468). The nadir PSA level had no definite positive correlation with the pretreatment PSA level (R$^{2}$=0.075). The half life of serum PSA level also had no definite correlation with pretreatment PSA level (R$^{2}$=0.029). Conclusion :The PSA level was mostly normalized within 8 months (85%). If it has not normalized within 12 months, we should consider the residual disease in prostate or distant metastasis. In 2 patients, the PSA level increased 6 months or 20 months before clinical disease was detected. So the serum PSA level can be used as early diagnostic indicator of treatment failure.

• Radiation Oncology Journal
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.150-156
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• 2000

Purpose : Stereotactic radiation therapy (SRT) can deliver highly focused radiation to a small and spherical target lesion with very high degree of mechanical accuracy. For non-spherical and large lesions, however, inclusion of the neighboring normal structures within the high dose radiation volume is inevitable in SRT This is to report the beam shaping using the partial closure of the independent jaw in SRT and the verification of dose calculation and the dose display using a home-made soft ware. Materials and Methods : Authors adopted the idea to partially close one or more independent collimator jaw(5) in addition to the circular collimator cones to shield the neighboring normal structures while keeping the target lesion within the radiation beam field at all angles along the arc trajectory. The output factors (OF's) and the tissue-maximum ratios (TMR's) were measured using the micro ion chamber in the water phantom dosimetry system, and were compared with the theoretical calculations. A film dosimetry procedure was peformed to obtain the depth dose profiles at 5 cm, and they were also compared with the theoretical calculations, where the radiation dose would depend on the actual area of irradiation. Authors incorporated this algorithm into the home-made SRT software for the isodose calculation and display, and was tried on an example case with single brain metastasis. The dose-volume histograms (DVH's) of the planning target volume (PTV) and the normal brain derived by the control plan were reciprocally compared with those derived by the plan using the same arc arrangement plus the independent collimator jaw closure. Results : When using 5.0 cm diameter collimator, the measurements of the OF's and the TMR's with one independent jaw set at 30 mm (unblocked), 15.5 mm, 8.6 mm, and 0 mm from th central beam axis showed good correlation to the theoretical calculation within 0.5% and 0.3% error range. The dose profiles at 5 cm depth obtained by the film dosimetry also showed very good correlation to the theoretical calculations. The isodose profiles obtained on the home-made software demonstrated a slightly more conformal dose distribution around the target lesion by using the independent jaw closure, where the DVH's of the PTV were almost equivalent on the two plans, while the DVH's for the normal brain showed that less volume of the normal brain receiving high radiation dose by using this modification than the control plan employing the circular collimator cone only. Conclusions : With the beam shaping modification using the independent jaw closure, authors have realized wider clinical application of SRT with more conformal dose planning. Authors believe that SRT, with beam shaping ideas and efforts, should no longer be limited to the small spherical lesions, but be more widely applied to rather irregularly shaped tumors in the intracranial and the head and neck regions.

• Childhood Kidney Diseases
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.203-211
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• 2007

Purpose : We attempted to compare the independent factors such as age, sex, C-reactive protein(CRP), and white blood cell count(WBC) in children with radiologic studies and assess the necessity of performing voiding cystourethrography(VCUG). Method : 98 children who have been diagnosed their first time febrile urinary tract infection from Janurary 2002 to Januray 2005 were enrolled. In all patient, the duration of fever which occurred before and after treatment was recorded, and CRP, WBC, $^{99m}Tc$-2,3-dimercaptosuccinic acid($^{99m}Tc$-DMSA) renal scans, renal ultrasound and VCUG were analyzed. Results : Of the 98 children diagnosed with urinary tract infection(UTI), 52 were male and 46 were female. 18 had abnormalities in VCUG, 17 had abnormalities in kidney ultrasound, and 20 had partial defects or diffuse uptake decrease in $^{99m}Tc$-DMSA renal scans. There were no significant relationship between incidence of radiologic abnormalities and age. The risk of renal scar was significantly higher in children who had a longer febrile period before treatment than in those with shorter period. Both CRP and WBC were significantly elevated in children with the radiological abnormalities. A positive of $^{99m}Tc$-DMSA renal scans and renal ultrasound were highly associated with vesicoureteral reflux(VUR). Conclusion : If there are abnormalities in the kidney ultrasound and $^{99m}Tc$-DMSA renal scan of a child with initial UTI, a VCUG is recommended. Even in cases without abnormal findings in $^{99m}Tc$-DMSA renal scan and renal ultrasound, clinical data such as CRP and WBC should be assessed, and VCUG should be Performed for the undetected VUR.

• Journal of radiological science and technology
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.293-299
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• 2005

In the present investigation, we analyzed the data of 1,318 patients (2,636 images) who underwent mammographic examinations and obtained the distribution of the patient age and compressed breast thickness. We measured also average glandular doses (AGD) as function of compressed breast thickness. In order to obtain the values of AGD, we measured half value layer (HVL) and tube output (mR/mAs) for each kVp and target/filter combination. Entrance surface air kerma (ESAK) was calculated from the tube output as measured for each voltage used under clinical conditions and from the tube loading (mAs). AGD per exposure were calculated by multiplying the ESAK values by the conversion factors tabulated by Dance. We obtained in this study the following conclusions. The mean value of compressed breast thickness for cranio-caudal (CC) view was 35.8mm and that for medio-lateral oblique (MLO) view was 43.3 mm. The mean value of AGD for CC view was 1.55 mGy and that for MLO view was 1.70 mGy. The AGD for MLO view was 0.15 mGy (10%) higher than that for CC view because the thickness for MLO view was on average 4.8 mm higher than that for CC view. The values of AGD increased with increasing compressed brest thickness. The increased AGD value was on average 0.34 mGy per 10 mm in the thickness ranges $10{\sim}80\;mm$, therefore differences between the AGD values of each thickness were relative large. Thus, it is considered to need limited doses for mammography with the upper end of exposure range at several different compressed brest thickness.

• Journal of radiological science and technology
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.5-12
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• 2004

I. Introduction : The constipation is one of the common gastrointestinal symptoms seen in the clinical practice. When people come to the clinic complaining of the constipation, it is generally one of the cases of infrequent, painful or difficult evacuation as well as the hardened feces and unsatisfactory evacuation sense. Since the constipation is heavily influenced by dietary habit as well as the social and medical environment, the diagnostic radiology is useful to establish the objective and standardized definition in consideration of those various factors before diagnosis and treatment of the constipation patient. This paper describes the study of such diagnosis. II. Main Subject : Testing of CTT (colon transit time) is key study of the colon performance. CTT is very helpful in classifying the pathologic physiological types and defining the treatment plan for the chronic constipation. The study methods include using the radipaque marker, multiple marker technique and scintigraphic measurement. The defecography is the functional radiologic examination a that provides not only the anatomical information of anorectal but also performance of the pelvic floor and rectal change during evacuation. Study of dynamic movement of the anorectal during evacuation is helpful for diagnosis and treatment planning as well as follow-up testing for the constipation patient. One of the issues essential for the case history is the thorough observation of whether the patient shows the psychic psychological symptoms such as the behavior disorder or emotional disturbance. In that case, the decision must be made whether or which type of medication is needed for such psychiatric problem. III. Conclusion : The main causes of the constipation are insufficient intake of fiber or liquid. The key objective of such tests is to check etiology of the constipation. In general, the radiological examination does not provde the colon or anorectal performance information. It is envisaged that this study will provide the information to decide the testing and treatment plans and predict the prognosis of the patient by classifying the pathologic physiological types.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.15-20
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• 2003

Myasthenia gravis is a rare autoimmune disease involving acetylcholine receptor and its autoantibody on neuromuscular junction. The methods of treatment are medical treatment and surgical thymectomy. In this paper we analyzed the result of thymectomy and the factors affecting the postoperative symptom improvement. Material and method : This study obtained medical records of 37 patients who received the thymectomy for myasthenia gravis from March 1986 to December 1998. Result Out of 37 cases, 21 cases(57%) showed improvement, of which 8 cases (50%) in the group of thymoma(n=16), and 13 cases (62%) in the group of thymic hyperplasia(n=21) showed the improvement of symptoms. Postoperative complications were respiratory insufficiency due to aggravation of symptoms after operation, including tracheal intubation for ventilator support in 9 cases, pneumonia in 3 cases, pneumothorax in 2 cases and left vocal cord palsy in 1 case. There was one postoperative mortality. The relation between postoperative improvement and sex(P=0.3222), age(P=0.7642), thymic pathologic variants,(P=0.4335) and classification of thymoma(P=0.20) showed no statistically significant correlation. However, the lower grade of preoperative symptoms can predict the lower grade of postoperative symptoms significantly(P=0.0032). Follow up study to 36 postoperative survivors was performed in October 2002 based on the out-patient records and call with patients. Out of 36 cases, 33 cases(91.7%) could be investigated and 3 cases could not. Mean follow up period was 83.2 months. Out of 33 cases, 25 cases(75.8%) showed symptomatic improvement, of which 8 cases(53.3%) in the group of thymoma(n=15) and 17 cases(94.4%) in the group of thymic hyperplasia(n=18) showed the improvement of$\boxUl$ symptoms. Conclusion : In myasthenia gravis, thymectomy showed the good improvement, and more important factor affecting the improvement of symptoms was the grdae of preoperative symptoms. Also midterm and long term follow up results showed good symptomatic improvement.