• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.29 no.7
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• pp.741-746
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• 1996

Diffuse interstitial lung disease due to a wide variety of conditions are amenable to diagnosis by means of clinical evaluation, bronchoalveolar lavage, transbronchial biopsy and lung biopsy. The recently introduced technique of thoracoscopic wedge biopsy provides the potential advantages of greater selection of biopsy site and reduced postoperative chest pain compared with the standard open lung biopsy Video assisted thoracoscopic lung biopsy was performed in twenty patients for diagnosis of diffuse in- terstitial lung disease during the period from January 1993 to June 1994. The ages of the patients ranged from 18 to 69 years(mean 48.5 years), and the patients consisted of 10 males and 10 females. In all twenty, thoracoscpic lung biopsy samples were obtained; 9 from left lower lobe, 7 from right lower lobe, 2 from right upper lobe, 1 from left upper lobe, and 1 from right middle lobe. All patients were correctly diagnosed. The two common diseases were usual in erstitial pneumonia(UIP)(8120) and mil- liary tuberculo si s(4120) . Mean duration of the chest drainage was 3.2 days. There was no complication.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.64 no.3
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• pp.215-218
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• 2008

Tumor lysis syndrome is a life-threatening complication of anti-cancer therapy that typically occurs in patients with large, rapidly growing and treatment-sensitive tumors such as high-grade lymphomas and acute leukemias. However, its incidence in solid tumors has been known to be very low. Tumor lysis syndrome in solid tumors has a high mortality rate owing to the lack of prophylactic therapy to prevent this complication. We report a case of fatal tumor lysis syndrome developed during chemotherapy in extensive-stage small cell lung cancer, along with a brief review of the relevant literature considering the rarity of this manifestation in solid tumor.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.44 no.1
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• pp.44-50
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• 2011

Background: Cardiovascular complications are major causes of morbidity and mortality following non-cardiac thoracic operations. Recent studies have demonstrated that elevation of N-Terminal Pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) levels can predict cardiac complications following non-cardiac major surgery as well as cardiac surgery. However, there is little information on the correlation between lung resection surgery and NT-proBNP levels. We evaluated the role of NT-proBNP as a potential marker for the risk stratification of cardiac complications following lung resection surgery. Material and Methods: Prospectively collected data of 98 patients, who underwent elective lung resection from August 2007 to February 2008, were analyzed. Postoperative adverse cardiac events were categorized as myocardial injury, ECG evidence of ischemia or arrhythmia, heart failure, or cardiac death. Results: Postoperative cardiac complications were documented in 9 patients (9/98, 9.2%): Atrial fibrillation in 3, ECG-evidenced ischemia in 2 and heart failure in 4. Preoperative median NT-proBNP levels was significantly higher in patients who developed postoperative cardiac complications than in the rest (200.2 ng/L versus 45.0 ng/L, p=0.009). NT-proBNP levels predicted adverse cardiac events with an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.76 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.545~0.988, p=0.01]. A preoperative NT-proBNP value of 160 ng/L was found to be the best cut-off value for detecting postoperative cardiac complication with a positive predictive value of 0.857 and a negative predictive value of 0.978. Other factors related to cardiac complications by univariate analysis were a higher American Society of Anesthesiologists grade, a higher NYHA functional class and a history of hypertension. In multivariate analysis, however, high preoperative NT-proBNP level (>160 ng/L) only remained significant. Conclusion: An elevated preoperative NT-proBNP level is identified as an independent predictor of cardiac complications following lung resection surgery.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.36 no.7
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• pp.527-530
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• 2003

Reexpansion pulmonary edema is a rare complication of the treatment of lung collapse secondary to pneumothorax, pleural effusion, or atelectasis. But occasionally, severe morbidity and death may result. Reexpansion pulmonary edema occurs when chronically collapsed lung is rapidly reexpanded by evacuation of large amounts of air or fluid. In the treatment of the chronically collapsed lung, physicians must remember the possible events and prevent the complications. When the difference in airway resistance or lung compliance between the two lungs is exaggerated, conventional mechanical ventilation might lead to preferential ventilation with hyperexpansion of one lung and gradual collapse of the other. Differential ventilation has been advocated to avert this problem. By differential lung ventilation, we successfully treated a severe reexpansion pulmonary edema in two patients. Therefore we suggest that differential lung ventilation is the treatment of choice for severe reexpansion pulmonary edema.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.69 no.6
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• pp.465-468
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• 2010

Spontaneous pneumothorax (SPTx) associated with primary lung cancer is quite rare, but has been reported as the initial presentation or a complication of disease progression. Moreover, chemotherapy-related SPTx in primary lung cancer occurs at a very low frequency, accounting for less than 0.05% of all cases. Here, we report the first case of erlotinib-related SPTx in a patient with advanced lung adenocarcinoma in Korea. After 3 cycles of cisplatin-based chemotherapy as first-line therapy, erlotinib was administered as second-line treatment. Asymptomatic SPTx accompanied by a significant decrease in tumor size was observed in the left lung 7 weeks later. The patient received continuous administration of erlotinib, without additional treatment. This case showed that SPTx can occur in patients with primary lung cancer receiving erlotinib, and asymptomatic chemotherapy-related SPTx in primary lung cancer may not require therapeutic intervention.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• v.39 no.4
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• pp.206-212
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• 2014

We report here on the results of evaluating the radiation doses using chest computed tomography (CT) for patients with pneumoconiosis complication. For the first time, we visited the 17 MIPs to evaluate the dose-length product (DLP, $mGy{\cdot}cm$), CT unit, and protocols of scanning and image reconstruction those is routinely used for treating patients with pneumoconiosis who have complication. All statistical analysis was performed using the Statistical Program for Social Sciences (SPSS ver. 19.0, Chicago, IL, USA). Mean of total DLP was $727.7mGy{\cdot}cm$, ranging from 272.0 to $1228.7mGy{\cdot}cm$. DLP from obtaining parenchymal lung images was significantly reduced than that from obtaining total lung images (555.9 vs. 707.2, p<0.001). Third quartile of total and pre-scanning DLP was 1036.1 and $504.1mGy{\cdot}cm$, respectively. Chest CT radiation doses for patients with pneumoconiosis complication are similar with korean diagnostic reference level as well as international guidelines.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.50 no.3
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• pp.215-219
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• 2017

Pulmonary arteriovenous fistula (PAVF) is a complication of the Glenn shunt. A 57-year-old tetralogy of Fallot (TOF) patient, who had undergone a Glenn shunt and TOF total correction, complained of dyspnea and cyanosis. PAVFs were present in the rig ht lung, and rig ht lung perfusion was nearly absent. After coil embolization, takedown of the Glenn shunt, and reconstruction of the rig ht pulmonary artery, the patient's symptoms were relieved. Extrapulmonary radioisotope uptake caused by the PAVFs shown in lung perfusion scans decreased, and right lung perfusion increased gradually. Although the development and resolution of PAVFs after a Glenn shunt have been reported in the pediatric population, this may be the first report on this change in old age.

• 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.

• Sleep Medicine and Psychophysiology
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.19-23
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• 2017

Obstructive sleep apnea is a common disorder in which respiratory flow decreases or disappears despite respiratory effort due to occlusion of the upper respiratory tract during sleep. Oxidative stress and systemic inflammatory reaction induced by the obstruction cause complications such as hypertension, coronary artery disease, and diabetes and increase cancer incidence. Furthermore, in patients with interstitial lung disease, obstructive sleep apnea has a very high prevalence and is thought to have a close pathophysiological and clinical correlation. In other words, obstructive sleep apnea could be the cause or a complication of interstitial lung disease ; when these two afflictions coexist, the prognosis of the patient is worse. In patients with interstitial lung disease with obstructive sleep apnea, CPAP treatment significantly improved sleep and quality of life, as well as improved morbidity and mortality in a recent study. Therefore, early diagnosis and treatment of obstructive sleep apnea in patients with interstitial lung disease are very important, and additional studies designed to include patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis as well as patients with advanced interstitial lung disease should be performed.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.70 no.1
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• pp.43-50
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• 2011

Background: Open lung biopsy is used for diagnosis of diffuse infiltrative lung diseases (DILD), but it is invasive and relatively expensive procedure. Fluoroscopy-guided cutting needle lung biopsy (FCNLB) has merits of avoidance of admission and rapid diagnosis. But diagnostic accuracy and safety were not well known in the diagnosis of DILD. Methods: We included 52 patients (37 men, 15 women) having DILD on HRCT with dyspnea, except the patients who could be confidently diagnosed with clinical and HRCT findings. FCNLB was performed using 16G Ace cut needle (length 1.5 cm, diameter 2 mm) at the area of most active lesion on HRCT. Final diagnoses were made by the consensus. Results: The mean interval between the HRCT and FCNLB was 4.5 days. Most cases were performed one biopsy during 5~10 minutes. Specific diagnosis was obtained in 43 of 52 biopsies (83%). The most common diagnosis was nonspecific interstitial pneumonia (11 cases) and followed by cryptogenic organizing pneumonia (7 cases), diffuse alveolar hemorrhage and usual interstitial pneumonia (5 cases in each), hypersensitivity pneumonitis (3 cases), tuberculosis and drug induced interstitial pneumonitis (2 cases in each), the others are in one respectively. Mild complication was developed in 9 patients (8 pneumothorax, 1 hemoptysis). Most of complications were regressed without treatment except one case with chest tube insertion for pneumothorax. Conclusion: Fluoroscopy-guided 16 G cutting needle lung biopsy was an useful method for the diagnosis of DILD.