• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.42-45
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• 2010

Hiccups are an involuntarily powerful spasm of the diaphragm, followed by a sudden inspiration with a closure of the glottis. Hiccups that are caused by gastric distention, spicy foods and neural dysfunction can resolve themselves without any treatment. Some hiccups are associated with certain diseases or they occur postsurgically, and life-restricting intractable hiccups should be treated. The cause of hiccups should be quickly determined so as to administer the proper treatment. Hiccups often remit spontaneously within a short period of time, but they may also occur without remission for a prolonged period in some cases. We report here on a 36-year-old man who suffered with intractable hiccups for 5 years. We administered a single oral dose of baclofen, and then the hiccups disappeared. We conclude that a single dose of baclofen is a good treatment for intractable hiccups.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.105-107
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• 2012

A 41-year-old male patient presented with idiopathic persistent hiccups. The hiccups did not respond to pharmacologic treatments including cisapride, omeprazole, and baclofen. Phrenic nerve block was also ineffective. However, the persistent hiccups were successfully treated with short-term positive pressure ventilation using a short-acting muscle relaxant.

• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.901-907
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• 2010

Hiccups are defined as abrupt involuntary contractions of diaphragm and intercostal muscles with sudden closure of the glottis. Hiccups are one of the common transient symptoms but when hiccups last more than 48 hours, or have no response to treatment, they are defined as intractable hiccups. Intractable hiccups can induce multiple problems such as weight loss, dehydration and sleep disturbance. We report a 76-year-old male patient who suffered from intractable hiccups for 6 days after laparoscopic cholecystectomy. Hiccupping was so severe as to continue all day long and limit sleeping and eating. We succeeded in cure intractable hiccups with acupuncture and herbal formula; Gyulyeohwadam-tang.

• Annals of Clinical Neurophysiology
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.79-82
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• 2008

The etiology of intractable hiccups is most commonly idiopathic. However, they are occasionally associated with some underlying disorders including gastro-esophageal reflux disease. There are a few previous reports describing the association of intractable hiccups with high dose corticosteroid. We experienced an unusual case of intractable hiccups following a high dose intravenous methylprednisolone therapy in a patient with right third nerve palsy. Since methylprednisolone is commonly used in various neurological problems, physicians should be aware of its possible side effect including intractable hiccups.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.222-225
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• 2005

Hiccups are due to an intermittent clonic spasm of the diaphragm. In most cases, hiccups are self-limiting disease, but persistent hiccups may be related to the presence of serious underlying systemic disease. Two patients who had persistent hiccups that were not controled by conventional methods and medications were referred to the pain clinic. We administered a single oral medication of gabapentin, and then the hiccups disappeared in both cases. We concluded that gabapentin should be considered as an alternative therapy to control persistent or intractable hiccup. It could be particularly useful for those patients with solid malignancies, either alone or as an "add-on therapy" with other oral agents.

• Journal of Hospice and Palliative Care
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.104-107
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• 2018

While most benign hiccups can be controlled with empirical therapy, intractable hiccups lasting longer than one month tend to have significant adverse effects with obscure etiology. Treatment strategies for intractable hiccups have not been established. Only a few sporadic cases of bilateral phrenic nerve blockage have been reported. Here, we report a case of intractable hiccups that lasted five weeks in a 56-year-old male patient with a lung cancer above the right diaphragm. We hypothesized that his intractable hiccups were caused by irritation and mass effect caused by the lung cancer. We performed an ultrasound-guided right unilateral phrenic nerve pulsed radiofrequency treatment, and the patient's intractable hiccups were successfully managed without complication.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.131-134
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• 1995

Hiccup is characterized by a myoclonus in the diaphragm, resulting in a sudden inspiration associated with an audible closure of the glottis. The reflex arc in hiccups comprises three pars: an afferent, a central and an efferent part. The afferent portion of the neural pathway of hiccup formation is composed of the vagus nerve, the phrenic nerve, and the sympathetic chain arising from T6 to T12. The hiccup center is localised in the brain stem and the efferent limb comprises phrenic pathways. All stimuli affecting the above mentioned reflex arc may produce hiccups. The pathogenesis of persistent hiccups is not known. Hiccup can present a symptom of a subphrenic abscess or gastric distention, and metabolic alterations may also cause hiccups. Numerous treatment modalities have been tried but with questionable success. We describe a patient whose persistant hiccups was treated successfully by a cervical epidural block.

• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.95-101
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• 2001

Hiccups is one of the omnipresent phenomenon occurring in everyone. Most episodes are time-limited, but, sometimes, they become intractable and protracted for a long time. In most cases, they are idiopathic. But, sometimes there are cases which have diverse kinds of underlying disorders. In this study, the author reports a case of idiopathic and persistent hiccups. He recently encountered a 64 year old male patient with intractable and persistent hiccups for over two weeks. By using the method of 8 Constitutional Acupuncture therapy and herbal medication( Hyangsapyeungwutang) regarding him as RENOTONIA. After 7days of treatment, the symptoms disappeared.

• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.109-112
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• 2001

Hiccups, also known as singultus, are spasmodic involuntary contractions of respiratory muscles that shorten respiration. The characteristic sound is caused by rapid closure of the glottis. In oriental medicine, the mechanism of hiccups is "reversed flow of Ki". Hiccups have been associated with neoplasm, infections, seizures, diabetes. renal failure, alcohol ingestion, various drugs, and ischemic events of the myocardium or central nervous system. We present a case of chronic hiccups after cerebral infarction that was successfully treated using moxibustion therapy.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.222-225
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• 2008

Hiccup is one of common symptoms that remains poorly understood. The hiccups coordinating center is located in the brain-stem reticular formation. Hiccups may be derived from 400 medical origins. Stroke is an infrequent cause of intractable hiccups. Intractable hiccups in pontine infarction remain poorly understood. As for treatments of hiccups, physical stimulating methods, pharmacological therapies and surgery are occidental conventional methods. In Pharmacological therapies, antidepressants, gastric motility stimulants, antispastic drugs are commonly used. Oriental medicines and acupuncture are also used frequently to treat hiccups. We have treated a case of intractable hiccup induced by pontine infarction with herbal medication; Gwakhyangjeonggi-san gami, acupuncture and moxibustion, and successfully improved. This case showed oriental medicine therapy is effective in intractable hiccup induced by pontine infarction.