• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.91-97
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• 1988

Herein is a review of eigthy six surgical cases from March to August, 1986 which recieved tetracaine hydrochloride spinal anesthesia. In an attempt to relieve postoperative pain, 0.5 mg morphine sulfate was administrated into the lumbar subarachnoid space. Pruritus, a side effect of intraspinal morphine, was explored in detail. The results were as follows : 1) The incidence of pruritus was 67.4%, 65.5% in man and 71.0% in woman. 2) The time of onset of pruritus was between 30 and 120 minutes with an average of 79.1 minutes. 3) Pruritus primary occurred on the face(87.9%), especially on the nasal, perinasal and periocular areas. Other sites included the scalp, neck, chest, abdomen, shoulder, hip, thigh, flank, and whole body. 4) The severity of pruritus was classified as mild and moderate, but 4 cases(6.9%) were regarded as severe and were treated with naloxone. 5) The duration of pruritus was from 15 minutes to 19 hours with an average of 4.7 hours. 6) There was no significant difference in the prevention of pruritus between the group recieving diphenhydramine and the one which received normal saline.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
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• v.45 no.2
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• pp.77-85
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• 2013

Intraoperative Neurophysiological Monitoring (INM) is very useful in monitoring the motorsensory pathway and vascular circulation system during intraspinal, or intracranial neurosurgery. Brainstem Auditory Evoked Potentials (BAEPs) are for detecting the problems along the auditory pathways including, the eighth cranial nerve and brainstem. Motor Evoked Potentials (MEPs) is a useful adjunct to conventional monitoring of Somato-sensory Evoked Potentials (SEPs) during surgery. Visual Evoked Potentials (VEPs) has been regarded as having limited significance for the preservation of visual function during neurosurgical procedures. In this paper, we propose that the most appropriate averaging of the number of inspections in the inspection of each used in the operative field, is good and efficient, functionally.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.569-573
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• 2000

Spinal meningeal cyst of the sacrum is uncommon congenital lesion. We experienced two cases of sacral meningeal cyst, so called Tarlov's cyst, who presented with radiating pain. Magnetic resonance imaging is a highly effective way of locating and approximating the size of these entities, which generally appear as intraspinal masses of low intensity on T1-weighted and high intensity on T2-weighted images, similar to cerebrospinal fluid(CSF). We evaluated 2 patients who had Tarlov's cyst diagnosed with conventional MRI. The clinical features, radiological findings, gross appearances of the lesion at surgery, surgical technique, histopathological features of the cyst wall, and surgical outcome are described. We conclude that excellent result can be expected in the case of symptomatic Tarlov's cyst by surgical decompression.

• Journal of the Korean Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons
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• v.35 no.6
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• pp.494-498
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• 2009

Schwannomas are tumors which originate from the neuroectodermal Schwann cell of cranial, intraspinal, peripheral and autonomic nerve sheaths, and they are solitary, benign, slow growing and well encapsulated neoplasm. Schwannomas are usually asymptomatic. No strong gender or age predominance exists. The incidence of extracranial schwannomas in the head and the neck region varies from 25~45%. In addition, schwannomas are rare in the maxillary sinus or buccal space. In this paper, it diagnosed and treated a 54-years old female patient, who had schwannoma in the maxillary sinus derived from infraorbital nerves, the branch of the left trigeminal nerve, and a 19-years old male patient, who had schwannoma arose in the buccal space derived from the buccal branch of the right facial nerve. There was no particular complication except sensory extinction of the nerve in the female patient and paralysis by the nerve in the male patient. It is determined those two cases of schwannoma in the rare portion is valuable and herein, it reports those with literature discussions.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.255-258
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• 2005

Many patients with intractable chest pain visit pain clinics, two of which, with rare cases of an intraspinal tumor and malignant mesothelioma were experiences at our clinic. A 37-year old female patient presented with exacerbating chest pain, but without neurological manifestations, of 15-months duration. Her laboratory findings, such as blood tests, chest X-ray, EKG, abdominal ultrasonography and chest CT, were normal. MRI revealed an intradural extramedullary schwannoma at the T 5 and 6 levels of the thoracic spine. She completely recovered following a laminectomy, with removal of the tumor. The other case was a 65-year old male patient, who presented with chest and back pain in the thoracic area of 6 months duration. He had no cough and dyspnea, and was initially misdiagnosed with intercostal neuralgia; therefore, pain control medication was administered, but all trials were ineffective. Finally, chest CT revealed a malignant mesothelioma, with multiple spine metastases. In conclusion, patients with intractable chest pain should be re-examined both clinically and radiographically.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.42 no.4
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• pp.300-304
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• 2007

Objective : We report experiences and clinical outcomes of 61 cases with spinal canal meningiomas from January 1970 through January 2005. Methods : Thirty-eight patients were enrolled with follow-up duration of more than one year after surgery. There were 7 male and 31 female patients. The mean age was 52 years (range, 19 to 80 years). All patients underwent microsurgical resection using a posterior approach. Results : Twenty-nine (79.4%) cases experienced clinical improvement after surgery. The extent of tumor resection at the first operation was Simpson Grade I in 10 patients, Grade II in 17, Grade III in 4, Grade IV in 6, and unknown in one. We did not experience recurrent cases with Simpson grade I, II, or III resection. There were 6 recurrent cases, consisting of 5 cases with an extent of Simpson grade IV and one with an unknown extent. The mean duration of recurrence was 100 months after surgery. Radiation therapy was administered as a surgical adjunct in four patients (10.5%). Two cases were recurrent lesions that could not be completely resected. The other two cases were malignant meningiomas. No immediate postoperative death occurred in the patient group. Conclusion : We experienced no recurrent cases of intraspinal meningiomas once gross total resection has been achieved, regardless of the control of the dural origin. Surgeons do not have to take the risk of causing complication to the control dural origin after achieving gross total resectioning of spinal canal meningioma.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.40 no.2
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• pp.90-94
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• 2006

Objective : Acute vertebral burst fractures warrant extensive fixation and fusion on the spine. Osteoplasty [vertebroplasty with high density resin without vertebral expansion] has been used to treat osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures. We report our experiences with osteoplasty in acute vertebral burst fractures. Methods : Twenty-eight cases of acute vertebral burst fracture were operated with osteoplasty. Eighteen patients had osteoporosis concurrently. Preoperative MRI was performed in all cases to find fracture level and to evaluate the severity of injury. Preoperative CT revealed burst fracture in the series. The patients with severe ligament injury or spinal canal compromise were excluded from indication. Osteoplasty was performed under local anesthesia and high density polymethylmethacrylate[PMMA] was injected carefully avoiding cement leakage into spinal canal. The procedure was performed unilaterally in 21 cases and bilaterally in 7 cases. The patients were allowed to ambulate right after surgery. Most patients discharged within 5 days and followed up at least 6 months. Results : There were 12 men and 16 women with average age of 45.3[28-82]. Five patients had 2 level fractures and 2 patients had 3 level fractures. The average injection volume was 5.6cc per level Average VAS [Visual Analogue Scale] improved 26mm after surgery. The immediate postoperative X-ray showed 2 cases of filler spillage into spinal canal and 4 cases of leakage into the retroperitoneal space. One patient with intraspinal leakage was underwent the laminectomy to remove the resin. Conclusion : Osteoplasty is a safe and new treatment option in the burst fractures. Osteoplasty with minimally invasive technique reduced the hospital stay and recovery time in vertebral fracture patients.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.30 no.sup1
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• pp.61-67
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• 2001

Objectives : To demonstrate the preventive effect on post-operative spinal deformity of the laminoplasty compared with laminectomy for spinal cord tumor. Methods : Sixteen patients who underwent laminoplasty and 89 patients who underwent lamenectomy were reviewed retrospectively after removal of spinal cord tumors between February 1981 and December 1999. The mean follow-up period after laminoplasty and laminectomy were 29 months(range, 12-49 months) and 66 months(range, 6-120 months) respectively. Patients were observed neurologically and radiologically. Results : Postoperative kyphosis was observed 17 patients(19%) in the laminectomy group, but was not observed in the laminoplasty group. Postoperative slipping was observed 16 patients(18%) in the laminectomy group, but was not observed in the laminoplasty group. Complications such as postoperative scoliosis, rotation, and swan-neck deformity were observed in the laminectomy group, but were not observed in the laminoplasty group. Conclusions : Laminoplasty prevented postoperative spinal deformities after removal of spinal cord tumors, and afforded anatomic reconstruction of the vertebral arch. Additionally, appropriate patient selection maximizes the chance of optimal neurologic outcomes and minimizes complications. Laminoplasty appears to warrant further evaluation as an alternative to wide laminectomies for exposure of intraspinal tumors.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.65 no.4
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• pp.499-506
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• 2022

Objective : We conducted this study with the aim of predicting the biological behavior of meningiomas, and determining the benefits of associating histological subtype and grade with the expression of proliferative markers and tumor suppressor proteins. Methods : The study included 29 patients with primary intracranial and intraspinal meningioma diagnosed in the pathology laboratory of Konya City Hospital between January 2014 and December 2020. Clinicopathological characteristics of the patients including parameters such as age and gender were obtained from the hospital records. Histopathological findings were obtained by re-evaluating the preparations stained with Hematoxylin-Eosin, which were extracted from the archive, and by evaluating new sections obtained from paraffin blocks of patients stained with Ki67, p53, and p57 immunohistochemical stains. Results : A moderate correlation was found between tumor size and Ki67 proliferation index (PI) (p=0.003, r=0.530). There was no significant difference between grade I and grade II tumors in terms of p53 (p=0.184) and p57 (p=0.487) expressions. There were higher levels of Ki67 PI in grade II tumors. The histological subtypes of the tumor had no significant difference with Ki67 PI (p=0.018), p53 (p=0.662), and p57 (p=0.368) expressions. Conclusion : In order to obtain more definitive results, there is a need for studies, which are conducted with a greater number of patients and in multiple centers, and in which a long prospective follow-up is planned. The combination of histological, surgical, and imaging markers could make a more sensitive tool for predicting recurrence, and this could also be tested in future studies.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.46 no.5
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• pp.468-471
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• 2009

Objective : The adolescent presentation of tethered cord syndrome (TCS) is well-recognized, but continues to pose significant diagnostic and management controversies. The authors conducted a retrospective study of clinical outcomes after surgical intervention in 24 school-aged children, adolescents, and young adults with TCS. Methods : All 83 patients with a lipomyelomeningocele (LMMC) underwent untethering surgery for caudal cord tethering between 1987 and 2007. The clinical charts and follow-up data were reviewed. Of these patients, 24 school-aged children, adolescents, and young adults with TCS were studied with respect to the clinical, radiologic, pathologic features, and surgical outcomes. Results : Untethering procedures were performed in 24 patients (age range, 7-25 years) for TCS of various origins (lipoma, lipomyelomeningocele, and tight filum terminale). Specific circumstances involving additional tugging of the already tight conus, and direct trauma to the back precipitated the onset of symptom in 50% of the patients. Diffuse and non-dermatomal leg pain, often referred to the anorectal region, was the most common presenting symptom. Progressive sensorimotor deficits in the lower extremities, as well as bladder and bowel dysfunction, were also common findings, but progressive foot and spinal deformities were noted less frequently. The most common tethered lesions were intradural lipomas, thickened filum and fibrous band adhesions into the placode sac. The surgical outcome was gratifying in relation to pain and motor weakness, but disappointing with respect to resolution of bowel and bladder dysfunction. Of the 24 patients with TCS, pre-operative deficits improved after surgery in 14 (58.3%). remained stable in 8 (33.4%). and worsened in 2 (8.3%). Conclusion : The pathologic lesions of tethered cord syndrome in school-aged children, adolescents, and young adults, are mostly intradural lipomas and tight filum. It is suggested that the degree of cord traction results in neurologic dysfunction in late life due to abnormal tension, aggravated by trauma or repeated tugging of the conus during exercise. Early diagnosis and adequate surgical release might be the keys to the successful outcome in school-aged children, adolescents, and young adults with TCS.