• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.63 no.4
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• pp.372-377
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• 2007

Tuberculous spondylitis is the most common manifestation of musculoskeletal tuberculosis (TB). The progression of the disease is usually slow and insidious. The main symptom, back pain, is not specific, which frequently results in a delayed diagnosis resulting in neurologic deficits and more advanced vertebral destruction. It is more difficult to diagnose the disease if the involved area is an uncommon sites, such as the upper thoracic, cervical or sacral region. It is important to make an early diagnosis and treatment to achieve a better treatment outcome. We reported a 29 year old female with upper thoracic TB spondylitis(T2-8) and pulmonary TB complaining of back pain that persisted for 5 months and fever. TB spondylitis was not suspected to be due to upper thoracic involvement despite her pulmonary tuberculosis. Chest CT for the evaluation of pulmonary TB found T5 destruction and the paravertebral abscess that was consistent with TB spondylitis. Her spine was examined by MRI, which made an early diagnosis before the neurologic deficit had developed. She was treated with surgical intervention due to the spinal instability and anti-TB medication for 1 year with excellent results.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.56 no.2
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• pp.141-145
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• 2014

Vertebral artery (VA) injuries usually accompany cervical trauma. Although these injuries are commonly asymptomatic, some result in vertebrobasilar infarction. The symptoms of VA occlusion have been reported to usually manifest within 24 hours after trauma. The symptoms of bilateral VA occlusions seem to be more severe and seem to occur with shorter latencies than those of unilateral occlusions. A 48-year-old man had a C3-4 fracture-dislocation with spinal cord compression that resulted from a traffic accident. After surgery, his initial quadriparesis gradually improved. However, he complained of sudden headache and dizziness on the 5th postoperative day. His motor weakness was abruptly aggravated. Radiologic evaluation revealed an infarction in the occipital lobe and cerebellum. Cerebral angiography revealed complete bilateral VA occlusion. We administered anticoagulation therapy. After 6 months, his weakness had only partially improved. This case demonstrates that delayed infarction due to bilateral VA occlusion can occur at latencies as long as 5 days. Thus, we recommend that patients with cervical traumas that may be accompanied by bilateral VA occlusion should be closely observed for longer than 5 days.

• Journal of the Korean Orthopaedic Association
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• v.56 no.3
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• pp.208-214
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• 2021

Purpose: Verifying a reliable predictor of the progression of vertebral deformity in patients with acute osteoporotic fractures of the lumbar spine may be useful. A qualitative analysis of the muscle near the spine was performed using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and its correlation with a spinal deformity was determined under the hypothesis that the causes of the kyphotic deformity are associated with muscle reduction in the multifidus and erector spinae. Materials and Methods: The study was performed in a retrospective manner using the electronic medical records of patients who presented to the author's institution between January 2007 and March 2018, and were diagnosed with an acute lumbar fracture. The fat infiltration rates of the multifidus and erector spinae were measured using MRI taken at the time of injury, and the mean value was defined as the total fat infiltration rate (TFI). Based on lateral radiographs of the lumbar spine at the one-year follow-up, the loss of height of the vertebral body, the kyphotic angle and the wedge angle were measured. The statistical significance was confirmed by calculating the Pearson correlation coefficient. Results: One hundred twenty-nine patients, of which 30 were male and 99 were female, were examined. The mean age was 71.28 years. The mean T-score was -3.53±0.79 g/cm², and the mean fat infiltration was 15.20%±11.99%. TFI was positively correlated with age (R=0.373, p<0.001), compression rate (R=0.369, p<0.001), and Cobb's angle (R=0.386, p<0.001) after a one year follow-up, but negatively correlated with the BMD score (R=-0.252, p=0.004). As the fracture progressed to the lower lumbar level, the compression rate (R=-0191, p=0.030) and wedge angle (R=-0.428, p<0.001) at the time of injury tended to decrease. Conclusion: In patients with osteoporotic vertebral fractures, the fat infiltration rate may be an important predictor of conservative treatment. The prognosis of patients with a high-fat infiltration rate should be explained during patient education, and the patients must be monitored closely through short-term outpatient follow-up.

• Journal of Trauma and Injury
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• v.35 no.1
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• pp.56-60
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• 2022

The most common cause of foot drop is lumbar degenerative disc herniation, particularly at L4/5. We present a rare case of spinal cord injury accompanied by a thoracolumbar lesion that presented with bilateral foot drop. A 69-year-old male patient presented with sudden-onset severe bilateral leg pain and bilateral foot drop. Radiologic findings revealed T12 spondylitis compressing the conus medullaris. He had undergone vertebroplasty for a T12 compression fracture after a fall 6 months before. A physical examination showed bilateral foot drop, paresthesia of both L5 dermatomes, increased deep tendon reflex, and a positive Babinski sign. An acute bilateral L5 root lesion and a conus medullaris lesion were suspected based on electromyography. A surgical procedure was done for decompression and reconstruction. After the operation, bilateral lower extremity muscle strength recovered to a good grade from the trace grade, and the patient could walk without a cane. The current case is a very rare report of bilateral foot drop associated with T12 infectious spondylitis after vertebroplasty. It is essential to keep in mind that lesions of the thoracolumbar junction can cause atypical neurological symptoms. Furthermore, understanding the conus medullaris and nerve root anatomy at the T12-L1 level will be helpful for treating patients with atypical neurological symptoms.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.18 no.6
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• pp.1918-1926
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• 2004

Osteoporosis is defined as a progressive systemic skeletal disorder characterized by low bone mineral density, microarchitectual deteriorations of bone and susceptibility to fracture. numerous methods have been used for quantitative assessment of the skeleton in osteoporosis. QCT has been shown to measure changes in trabecular mineral content in the spine with great sensitivity and precision. To provide the normal reference values and changes of lumbar spinal bone mineral density in korean adult spinal bone mineral density was evaluated in 451 women (229 premenopausal and 222 postmenopausal women) and 206 men, aged 20 to 74 years old in Wonkwang hospital from 2000 to 2004, which was carried out by using QCT. women with oophorectomy, vertebral compression fracture, any history of endocrine disease and use of drugs that alter bone metabolism were excluded. According to the WHO definition, a patient is osteoporotic based on a bone mineral density(BMD) measurement that is 2.5 standard deviations (SDs) below typical peak bone mass of young healthy white women. This measurement of standard deviation from peak mass is called the T score. BMD values of normal women in their 20-24 years, 25-29 years, 30-34 years, 35-39 years, 40-44 years, 45-49 years, 50-54 years, 55-59 years, 60-64 years, 65-69 years, over 70 years were 168.95㎎/㏄ K₂PHO₄, 155.41㎎/㏄ K₂PHO₄, 166.87㎎/㏄ K₂PHO₄, 160.67㎎/㏄ K₂PHO₄, 154.06㎎/㏄ K₂PHO₄, 132.04㎎/㏄ K₂PHO₄, 114.05㎎/㏄ K₂PHO₄, 91.78㎎/㏄ K₂PHO₄, 78.61 ㎎/㏄ K₂PHO₄, 61.35㎎/㏄ K₂PHO₄, 50.53㎎/㏄ K₂PHO₄ Mean bone density of normal women was 115.77K₂PHO₄ K₂PHO₄. BMD values of normal men in their 20-24 years, 25-29 years, 30-34 years, 35-39 years, 40-44 years, 45-49 years, 50-54 years, 55-59 years, 60-64 years, 65-69 years, over 70 years were 171.46㎎/㏄ K₂PHO₄, 162.19㎎/㏄ K₂PHO₄, 155.62㎎/㏄ K₂PHO₄, 147.28㎎/㏄ K₂PHO₄, 137.56㎎/㏄ K₂PHO₄, 137.56㎎/㏄ K₂PHO₄, 101.25㎎/㏄ K₂PHO₄, 109.00㎎/㏄ K₂PHO₄, 103.32㎎/㏄ K₂PHO₄, 91.53㎎/㏄ K₂PHO₄, 88.35㎎/㏄ K₂PHO₄ Mean density of normal men was 115.77㎎/㏄ K₂PHO₄. Peak bone density of women and men was in the age group of 20-24 years and 168.95㎎/㏄ K₂PHO₄, 171.46㎎/㏄ K₂PHO₄, respectively. Bone loss was increased with aging and was accelerated in postmenopausal women than that of premenopausal women. The total loss of BMD for women and men was 70.09% and 48.47%, respectively. Postmenopausal women(mean BMD : 85.83㎎/㏄ K₂PHO₄) had significantly lower BMD than premenopausal women(meand BMD : 144.80㎎/㏄ K₂PHO₄)(p<0.001). The annual loss of BMD of women and men was 2.702㎎/㏄ K₂PHO₄ and 1.795㎎/㏄ K₂PHO₄, respectively. This study provided the BMD reference data for normal korean adult. further studies on BMD in healthy adult and comparison with published data are needed.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.58-65
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• 2000

Objective : Thoracolumbar junction is second most common level of injury next to cervical spine. The object of this study is to study the usefulness of surgical titanium mesh instead of bone graft, as well as to evaluate the correction of spinal deformity and safety of early ambulation in patients with injury at thoracolumbar junction. Patients and Methods : This review included 51 patients who were operated from July 1994 to December 1997. The injured spine is considered to be unstable, if it shows involvement of two or more columns, translatory displacement more than 3.5mm, decrease more than 35% in height of vertebral body and progression of malalignment in serial X-ray. The decision to operate was determined by (1) compression of spinal cord or cauda eguina, (2) unstable fracture, (3) malalignment and (4) fracture dislocation. The procedure consisted of anterior decompression through corpectomy and internal fixation with anterior instrument and surgical titanium mesh which was impacted with gathered bone chip from corpectomy. Results : Fifty-one patients were followed up for at least 12 months. The main causes of injury were fall and vehicle accident. The twelfth thoracic and the first and the second lumbar vertebrae were frequently involved. Complete neural decompression was possible under direct vision in all cases. Kyphotic angulation occurred in a patient. Radiologic evaluation showed correction of deformity and no distortion or loosening of surgical titanium mesh with satisfactory fixation postoperatively. Conclusions : We could obtain neurological improvement, relief of pain, immediate stabilization and early return to normal activities postoperatively. Based on these results, authors recommend anterior decompression and internal fixation with surgical titanium mesh in thoracolumbar unstable spine injuries.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.202-205
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• 2008

Background: Lumbar radicular pain is a frequent and often debilitating event. Although many treatment methods have been described in several studies, the available evidences regarding efficacy is not sufficient enough to draw definitive conclusions on an optimal therapy regime. Pulsed radiofrequency (RF) treatment was found to exert a beneficial effect on intractable radicular pain in individuals. The purpose of this study was to assess the efficacy of pulsed RF of the dorsal root ganglion for chronic lumbar radicular pain. Methods: Twenty five patients with chronic lumbar radicular pain that was refractory to selective nerve root blockage met the inclusion criteria of our study and received pulsed RF treatment. The average numeric rating scale (NRS) for leg pain during usual activities and the Oswestry disability index (ODI) were measured at 1 and 3 months after the procedure. Results: Of the 25 patients accepted for pulsed RF treatment, one dropped out due to a vertebral compression fracture during this study. ODI and NRS showed a positive trend in favor of the pulsed RF treatment. No significant complications were observed during the study period. Conclusions: It appears that pulsed RF treatment of the lumbar spinal dorsal root ganglion may be an effective treatment method for patients suffering from lumbar radicular pain, and who were not responsive to selective nerve root blockage.

• Journal of Korean Medicine Rehabilitation
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.87-96
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• 2011

Objectives: This study aims to systematically evaluate the effectiveness of Eastern-Western integrative medicine for musculoskeletal disorders compared with Eastern or Western Medicine. Methods: Systematic sea-mes of 9 major Korean databases were conducted for articles published up to July 2011. Searching keyword was "Integrative Medicine". Prospective studies dealt with musculoskeletal disorders by Eastern-Western integrative medicine were included. Quality assessment of included studies was evaluated by Cochrane risk of bias tool. Results: 470 studies in total were seamed, Amalg them 7 studies met our inclusion criteria(3 randomized controlled clinical trials, 2 non-randomized controlled trials and 2 uncontrolled clinical trials). Included studies dealt with lumbar pan(3), shoulder pain(2), pain after traffic injury(1), spinal compression fracture(1). Eastern-Western integrative medicine showed better or equal effect for the treatment of various muscloskeletal disorders compared with Eastern or Western medicine alone. Conclusions: There is very weak evidence for the effectiveness of Eastern-Western integrative medicine for musculoskeletal disorders compared with Eastern or Western medicine alone. Well designed randomized controlled trials with rigorous methodology are needed to evaluate the effectiveness of Eastern-Western integrative medicine objectively in the future.

• Journal of Korean Medicine Rehabilitation
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.59-71
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• 2013

Objectives The aim of this review is to figure out which acupoints are frequently used to treat low back pain and which exercises are effective to low back pain. Methods We searched the three electronic database (RISS, KISS, KTKP) and manually checked related Korean journals and reference lists up to June 2013. We investigated the frequency of acupoints for using treatment of low back pain. We Introduce exercise therapies we can do easily at home without professional skills for treatment low back pain. Results We included 72 articles in this study. The most frequently adopted acupoints were BL25, BL23, BL24, GB30, BL40, BL26, BL60, GB34, BL52, BL57, GB39. The most frequently adopted meridian pathways were BL, GB, GV, ST. The most frequently adopted disease causing low back pain were HIVD (Herniated intervertebral disc), Lumbar sprain, Spinal stenosis, Compression fracture, Cauda equina syndrome, Spondylolisthesis, Ankylosing spondylitis. There are many exercise therapies (Lumbar stabilizing exercise, Resistance exercise, Bareunmom physical exercise, Mckenzie exercise, Williams exercise, Emblass exercise, Swiss ball exercise, Thera band exercise, Yoga) for treatment low back pain. Conclusions These results suggest that most frequently adopted acupoints were foot taeyang urinary bladder channel acupoints. Beacuse foot taeyang urinary bladder channel is passes through the waist, it will be effective for treatment of low back pain. Also exercise therapy is effective for enhance Muscular strength. In order to treatment of low back pain, Acupuncture treatment is also important, as well as exercise therapy.