• Journal of Korean Foot and Ankle Society
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.5-11
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• 1999

We present our experience with the use of nerve block anesthesia in 212 of 484(43.8% ) surgical procedures of the foot and ankle between 1995 and 1997. Nerve block anesthesia was used for surgical procedures of the forefoot, midfoot, hindfoot, and ankle in the setting of elective surgery and trauma. From the viewpoint of the surgeon, nerve block anesthesia was completely successful in 99.5% of the procedures performed. We confirmed that 80% of patients were satisfied with the use of nerve block anesthesia for their operative procedure. There were only one(0.5%) miner complication being toxic neuritis of posterior tibial nerve. With increasing experience, the expanded indications and uses of nerve block anesthesia for foot and ankle surgery are proving to be simple, safe, reliable, and well tolerated by the patient.

• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.447-455
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• 2013

This clinical case reports the effect of Chilgi-tang, a kind of traditional Korean herbal medicine, on $3^{rd}$ degree AV block patients also known as complete heart block. Complete heart block caused by degeneration of electrical conduction system of heart may result in weakness, dizziness, syncope, etc. Two clinical cases reported herein are diagnosed as $3^{rd}$ degree AV block caused by psychological stress with chief complaints of syncope and dyspnea respectively. The chief complains of cases cured remarkably after Chilgi-tang medication. In one case, $3^{rd}$ degree AV block was disappeared. In conclusion, we suggest that Chilgi-tang can be a potential treatment for complete heart block due to psychological stress.

• Journal of Medicine and Life Science
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.112-116
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• 2024

Complete left bundle branch block (CLBBB) is a significant cardiac conduction abnormality often associated with dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM). This case report highlights the improvement in CLBBB and symptom relief through reverse cardiac remodeling in a patient diagnosed with DCM following an optimized heart failure treatment regimen consisting of an angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor, beta-blocker, and mineralocorticoid receptor antagonist. This case highlights the potential of electrical remodeling and conduction system improvement in patients with DCM receiving optimized medical therapy.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.168-172
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• 2012

Background: The aim of the study was to investigate the feasibility of fluoroscopy-guided anterior approach for suprascapular nerve block (SSNB). Methods: Twenty patients with chronic shoulder pain were included in the study. All of the nerve blocks were performed with patients in a supine position. Fluoroscopy was tilted medially to obtain the best view of the scapular notch (medial angle) and caudally to put the base of coracoid process and scapular spine on same line (caudal angle). SSNB was performed by introducing a 100-mm, 21-gauge needle to the scapular notch with tunnel view technique. Following negative aspiration, 1.0 ml of contrast was injected to confirm the scapular notch, and 1 % mepivacaine 2 ml was slowly injected. The success of SSNB was assessed by numerical rating scale (NRS) before and after the block. Results: The average NRS was decreased from $4.8{\pm}0.6$ to $0.6{\pm}0.5$ after the procedure (P < 0.05). The best view of the scapular notch was obtained in a medial angle of $15.1{\pm}2.2$ ($11-19^{\circ}$) and a caudal angle of $15.4{\pm}1.7^{\circ}$ ($12-18^{\circ}$). The average distance from the skin to the scapular notch was $5.8{\pm}0.6$ cm. None of the complications such as pneumothorax, intravascular injection, and hematoma formation was found except one case of partial brachial plexus block. Conclusions: SSNB by fluoroscopy-guided anterior approach is a feasible technique. The advantage of using a fluoroscopy resulted in an effective block with a small dose of local anesthetics by an accurate placement of a tip of needle in the scapular notch while avoiding pneumothorax.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.22 no.3
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• pp.224-228
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• 2009

Background: Shoulder arthroscopic surgery is frequently associated with severe postoperative pain, which can be difficult to manage without the use of high-dose opioids. Although an interscalene brachial plexus block (ISBPB) can be used to provide anesthesia for shoulder arthroscopic surgery, its effect using low-dose mepivacaine on postoperative pain management has not been reported. We hypothesized that ISBPB using a low-dose mepivacaine can provide effective postoperative analgesia for shoulder arthroscopic surgery without the need for high-dose opioids and act as a significant motor or sensory block. Methods: This study examined a total of 40 patients, who underwent shoulder arthroscopic surgery, and received ISBPB with 10 ml of normal saline (group NS; n = 20) or 10 ml of 1% mepivacaine with epinephrine 1:200,000 (group MC; n = 20). The block was performed preoperatively. The postoperative pain score, opioid consumption, and side effect were recorded. Results: The visual analog scale scores were significantly lower in group MC than in group NS at 120 minutes after shoulder arthroscopic surgery ($1.9{\pm}1.0$ versus $4.0{\pm}1.4$). Group MC showed significantly lower fentanyl consumption after shoulder arthroscoic surgery than group NS ($27{\pm}32.6$ versus $79{\pm}18.9{\mu}g$). The degree of motor and sensory block after surgery was minimal. Conclusions: ISBPB using low-dose mepivacaine reduced the level of postoperative pain and fentanyl consumption without significant side effects. ISBPB using low-dose mepivacaine is a useful analgesic technique for shoulder arthroscopic surgery.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.11 no.3
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• pp.326-332
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• 1978

There appears some conduction defects frequently after total correction of Tetralogy of Fallot. Common defect is right bundle branch block due to surgical intervention. We experienced complete A-V block which occured 3 months later after total correction of Tetralogy of Fallot in a 8 year old boy. The patient was completely free of any A-V block after the operation for 3 months, and sudden onset of A-V block with coupled premature ventricular contractions resulted him in shock state during the attack of severe bronchopneumonia for 4 days prior to the second visit. Emergency implantation of Cordis demand type temporary pacemaker was necessary to control the complete heart block with bradyarrhythmia and frequent ventricular fibrillation. Permanent cardiac pacemaker was implanted two weeks later as indicated with Cordis Stanicor lambda demand pacemaker, and the patient was discharged uneventfully on the 8th post implantation day with the heart rate of 72/min. Another 3 months after the implantation, the patient was transported to this hospital as dead on arrival after an accidental fall from a 2 meter height, and all possible cardiopulmonary resuscitation was performed for 60 minutes at the emergency room in vain. Autopsy was done to find out the cause of sudden death and the etiology of complete heart block. Microscopic focal infarctions with scar formation were noted along the course of conduction system in the interventricular septum, which might be the main cause of complete heart block during the attack of severe bronchopneumonia complicated with acute bacterial endocarditis. The tip of the pacemaker wire was slipped from the granulation scar at the apex of the right ventricular cavity, and this might be the direct cause of pacing failure and death.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.603-609
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• 1987

The clinical, investigative, and surgical experiences were reviewed in four patients with congenitally corrected transposition of the great arteries who presented to the National Medical Center between August 1983 and August 1985. This condition is very rare congenital anomaly defined as the combination of atrioventricular discordance and transposition of the great arteries. Examples of primitive [single] ventricle inverted [that is, left sided in situs solitus] with outflow chamber were excluded in this paper. According to the sequential arrangement of the hearts there were two cases of [S,L,L] and two cases of [I,D,D]. The surgical approach should be focused on minimizing the risk of heart block and increasing the degree of relief of pulmonary outflow tract obstruction [POTO]. We experienced complete heart block in two cases of [S,L,L] and significant residual POTO in one case of [S,L,L] and one case of [I,D,D] postoperatively. There were one hospital mortality caused by complete heart block and residual POTO and two delayed mortalities caused by congestive heart failure and sepsis respectively.

• Proceedings of the KIEE Conference
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• 2004.11c
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• pp.325-327
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• 2004

ECG limb lead II signal widely used to diagnosis heart diseases and it is essential to detect ECG events (onsets, offsets and peaks of the QRS complex P wave and T wave) and extract them from ECG signal for heart diseases diagnoses. However, it is very difficult to develop standardized feature extraction formulas since ECG signals are varying on patients and disease types. In this paper, simple feature extraction method from normal and abnormal types of ECG signals is proposed. As a signal features, heart rate, PR interval, QRS interval, QT interval, interval between S wave and baseline, and T wave types are extracted. To show the validity of proposed method, Right Bundle Branch Block (RBBB), Left Bundle Branch Block (LBBB), Sinus Bradycardia, and Sinus Tachycardia data from MIT-BIH arrhythmia database are used for feature extraction and the extraction results showed higher extraction capability compare to conventional formula based extraction method.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.202-206
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• 2006

Background: Stellate ganglion block (SGB) might be associated with changes in the blood pressure (BP) and heart rate (HR). The heart rate variability (HRV) shows the balance state between sympathetic and parasympathetic activities of the heart. The changes in these parameters of the HRV were studied to evaluate the possible mechanism of SGB in changing the BP. Methods: SGB was performed on 26 patients, using a paratracheal technique at the C6 level, and 8 ml of 1% mepivacaine injected. The success was confirmed by check the Horner's syndrome. The BP, HR and HRV were measured before and 5, 15, 30, 45 and 60 minutes after the SGB. Results: The increases in the BP from the baseline throughout the study period were statistically, but not clinically significant. The HR and LF/HF (low frequency/high frequency) ratio were increased at 5 and 45 min, respectively, after the administration of the SGB. In a comparison of left and right SGB, no significant differences were found in the BP, HR and HRV. A correlation analysis showed that an increased BP was significantly related with the changes in the LF/HF ratio and LF at 15 and 30 minutes, respectively, after the SGB. Dividing the patients into two groups; an increased BP greater and less than 20% of that at the baseline INC and NOT groups, respectively, hoarseness occurred more often in the INC group (P = 0.02). Conclusions: It was concluded that SGB itself does not clinically increase the BP and HR in normal hemodynamic patients. However, the loss of balance between the sympathetic and parasympathetic nerve system, attenuation of the baroreceptor reflex and hoarseness are minor causes of the increase in the BP following SGB; therefore, further studies will be required.

• Journal of Dental Anesthesia and Pain Medicine
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.111-116
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• 2023

We provided general anesthesia management to a patient with advanced atrioventricular block, which was discovered in the remote period after open-heart surgery. A 21-year-old man with Noonan syndrome was scheduled to undergo excision of a median intramandibular tumor. At 2 months of age, the patient underwent endocardial repair for congenital heart disease. During our preoperative examination, an atrioventricular block was detected, which had not been previously noted. Emergency drugs were administered, and a transcutaneous pacemaker was placed. During anesthesia induction, mask ventilation was easy, and intubation was performed smoothly using a video laryngoscope. The transcutaneous pacemaker was activated in demand mode at a pacing rate of 50 cycles/min approximately throughout the anesthesia time, and the hemodynamic status remained stable. The effect of intraoperatively administered atropine was brief, lasting only a few seconds. Although body movements due to thoracoabdominal muscle spasm were observed during pacemaker activation, they did not interfere with surgery. In postoperative patients with congenital heart disease, an atrioventricular block may be identified in the remote period, and preoperative evaluation should be based on this possibility. In addition, during anesthesia management, it is important to prepare multiple measures to maintain hemodynamic status.