• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• 제41권3호
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• pp.157-160
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• 2007

Objective : The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of the surgical treatment for lumbar spinal stenosis in elderly patients. Methods : The authors reviewed the medical records of 49 patients older than 65 years of age with lumbar spinal stenosis who underwent surgical treatment from January 2002 to December 2004 in our institute. Results : Average age of patients was 70 years old [32 women, 17 men]. Twenty-four patients had chronic medical disorders. All patients were operated under the general anesthesia of these, 29 patients underwent decompressive laminectomy and decompressive laminectomy with instrumentation and fusion in 20 patients. The mean operation time was 193.5 minutes, mean estimated blood loss was 378cc and mean postoperative hospital stay length was 15.3 days. The mean follow-up duration was 11.9 months. The evaluation of outcome was assessed by Macnab classification. At first month after operation, the outcome showed excellent in 7 [14.3%]. good in 35 [71.4%], fair in 5 [10.2%], and poor in 2 [4.1%]. And at 6 months after operation, 17 patients were lost in follow-up, the outcome showed excellent in 4 [12.5%], good in 25 [78.1%], fair in 3 [9.4%], and no poor cases. There was no significant difference between outcome of laminectomy alone and that of laminectomy with fusion. Six patients [12.2%] experienced postoperative complications which included wound infection [3], nerve root injury [1], disc herniation [1], and reoperation due to insufficient decompression [1]. There were no deaths related to operation. Conclusion : We conclude that the surgical treatment for lumbar spinal stenosis in elderly patients can provide good results with acceptable morbidity when carefully selected. In addition, decision on lumbar spinal fusion should not be against solely on advanced age.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• 제19권2호
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• pp.164-167
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• 2006

Background: There have been an increasing number of reports about infection-related complications after epidural block, and the analysis of these previous reports may offer valuable information for the prevention and treatment of such complications. Methods: We searched for complications about infection that was related to epidural blockade procedures by using the Medline Search program. We analyzed the types of infection-related complications as well as the potential risk factors, the time course from symptom development to treatment, the causative organisms and the treatment outcomes. Results: Seventeen cases were identified. The types of complications were epidural abscess, subdural abscess, spinal arachnoiditis, bacterial meningitis and aseptic meningitis. Five patients received a single block and twelve patients received a continuous block with catheterization. The most common site of epidural catheterization was the lumbar area and eight patients had indwelling catheters for less than fifteen days. Eight patients had a diabetes mellitus as a risk factor and fourteen patients showed less than seven days from the development of symptoms to treatment. Eleven patients received laminectomy and intravenous antibiotics as a treatment and eight patients had full recovery without neurological deficit. Conclusions: Early diagnosis and treatment is essential for the favorable outcome of infection-related complication after epidural block. In addition, absolute sterile technique should always be performed and patient education concerning these potential complications must be accompanied.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• 제2권1호
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• pp.97-99
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• 1989

Epidural block is used extensively in each of the fields of surgical anesthesia, obstetric anesthesia, and diagnosis and management of acute and chronic pain. New developments in the understanding of pain conduction have extended the use of continuous epidural blockade to the administration of drugs that selectively block pain conduction while leaving sensation and motor power essentially unchanged. The safety and the reliability of spinal epidural catheter techniques have permitted relief of acute and chronic pain. However, one of the important aspects of the management of the epidural catheter is the possibility of epidural infection. We have experienced a case of epidural infection during control of post-herpetic neuralgia and discuss management of the epidural catheter in this article.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• 제36권1호
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• pp.4-10
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• 2023

Herpes zoster (HZ) is a common disease in the aging population and immunocompromised individuals, with a lifetime risk of 20%-30% that increases with age. HZ is caused by reactivation of the varicella-zoster virus (VZV), which remains latent in the spinal dorsal root ganglia and cranial sensory ganglia after resolution of the primary VZV infection. The main focus of HZ management is rapid recovery from VZV infection as well as the reduction and prevention of zoster-associated pain (ZAP) and postherpetic neuralgia (PHN). The use of antivirals against VZV is essential in the treatment of HZ. However, limited antivirals are only licensed clinically for the treatment of HZ, including acyclovir, valacyclovir, famciclovir, brivudine, and amenamevir. Fortunately, some new antivirals against different types of Herpesviridae have been investigated and suggested as novel drugs against VZV. Therefore, this review focuses on discussing the difference in efficacy and safety in the currently licensed antivirals for the treatment of HZ, the applicability of future novel antivirals against VZV, and the preventive or therapeutic effects of these antivirals on ZAP or PHN.

• Physical Therapy Korea
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• 제12권4호
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• pp.48-57
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• 2005

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the general characteristics, complications and level of social adaptation of spinal cord injured patients. The subjects were one hundred forty five members who were inpatients or outpatients from October 1, 2004 to April 30, 2005 in general hospitals and municipal welfare centers for the handicapped located in the metropolitan city of Gwangju. The following results were obtained using Modified Barthel Index (MBI). 1) Gender distribution was 77.9% male and 22.1% female. The mean age at the time of injury was 35.4 and the mean age during the study was 44.2. 2) The degree of paralysis among the subjects was as follows: 49.0% had complete paralysis and 51.0% suffered incomplete paralysis. The most frequently injured lesion among the subjects was cervical (49.0%), followed by thoracic (35.9%), and lumbar (15.2%). 3) The mean MBI score was 63.5. There was statistically significant difference in the MBI score in the relation between complete and incomplete paralysis, the relation between cervical, thoracic, and lumbar injury, and the relation between a recovery period of less than three years and more than three years according to the characteristics of injury (p<.05). 4) There was statistically significant difference in the MBI score of subjects who had complications concerning spasticity, deformity, urinary tract infection, and sexual dysfunction (p<.05). 5) The most serious emotional pain after spinal cord injury resulted from economic issues, which affected 35.2% of the subjects. The group having a shorter recovery period after spinal cord injury complained of psychological matters, the group having a longer recovery period complained about the surrounding environment (lack of convenient facilities), suggesting statistically significant difference (p<.05). 6) The most common activities of the group with injuries more than ten years old included meeting schoolmates and working, while most common activities of the group with injuries less than three years old included attending religious functions and miscellaneous others (watching TV, spending time with family), suggesting statistically significant difference (p<.05).

• Investigative Magnetic Resonance Imaging
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• 제18권3호
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• pp.263-268
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• 2014

Neurosyphilis is a rare infection of the brain and spinal cord caused by a spirochete named Treponema pallidum. We describe the magnetic resonance imaging of a 53-year-old man with syphilis who manifested as both meningovascular, and spinal meningomyelitic types, which involved the optic, trigeminal, facial and vestibulocochlear nerves, both middle and left posterior cerebral arteries, thoracic spinal cord and meninges of the lumbar spine. This case report suggests that neurosyphilis should be considered as a possible diagnosis in patients showing complex brain and spinal imaging features. These features include enhancing meningeal lesions with multiple cranial nerve involvement, stenoses in large to medium size cerebral arteries, and intramedullary and meningeal lesions of spine.

• The Korean Journal of Rehabilitation Nursing
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• 제3권1호
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• pp.71-79
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• 2000

The purpose of this study was to examine the knowledge and practice of the Clean Intermittent Self Catheterization (CIC) conducted by Spinal Cord Injury Patients (SPIC) or their significant others as an activity of daily living at their homes or working places. Forty-seven patients were participated in this study. Three questionnaires developed by researchers for this study were used to collect demographic data, knowledge and practice skill of CIC. Descriptive statistics and ANOVA were used to analyze the data. Nineteen (19) patients experienced Urinary Track Infection (UTI) during the last one years and two of them have had several times of UTI. Knowledge level of the participant was not high enough to perform correct CIC. Some evidences indicated that the knowledge did not apply to their practice. Systematic analysis and development of educational content based on this study results was recommended and the systematic instructional design before actual patient education was strongly recommended.

• IMMUNE NETWORK
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• 제13권6호
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• pp.289-294
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• 2013

Lipocalin-2 (LCN2) is an acute-phase protein induced by injury, infection, or other inflammatory stimuli. LCN2 binds small hydrophobic ligands and interacts with cell surface receptor to regulate diverse cellular processes. The role of LCN2 as a chemokine inducer in the central nervous system (CNS) has been previously reported. Based on the previous participation of LCN2 in neuroinflammation, we investigated the role of LCN2 in formalin-induced nociception and pathological pain. Formalin-induced nociceptive behaviors (licking/biting) and spinal microglial activation were significantly reduced in the second or late phase of the formalin test in Lcn2 knockout mice. Likewise, antibody-mediated neutralization of spinal LCN2 attenuated the mechanical hypersensitivity induced by peripheral nerve injury in mice. Taken together, our results suggest that LCN2 can be therapeutically targeted, presumably for both prevention and reversal of acute inflammatory pain as well as pathological pain.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• 제24권3호
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• pp.169-171
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• 2011

Postherpetic neuralgia is the most frequent complication of herpes zoster. Treatment of this neuropathic pain syndrome is difficult and often disappointing. Although postherpetic neuralgia is generally a self-limited condition, it can last indefinitely. Continuous epidural blockade for patients with acute zoster can shorten the duration of treatment. However, continuous epidural block has some complications such as infection, dural puncture, and total spinal and nerve damages. We report a case of myoclonus during continuous epidural block with ropivacaine, morphine, and ketamine in an acute zoster patient.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• 제9권1호
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• pp.275-278
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• 1996

The placement of epidural catheter may cause complications such as epidural hematoma, epidural abscess and neural damage. Among the above complications, epidural abscess is a rare but serious complication. This report pertains to a diabetic metlitus patient who developed spinal epidural and subdural abscess after continuous epidural catheterization for management of pain caused by reflex sympathetic dystrophy. The patient experienced urinary incontinence, as a neurologic sign, 8 days after epidural catherization. In was considered that the poor prognosis was due to a combination effects of a delayed visit to the hospital for treatment, rapid progression of abscess and uncontrolled blood sugar level. We therefore recommend aseptic technique and proper control of blood sugar level to prevent infection during and after epidural catheterization for diabetic patients. Early diagnosis of epidural abscess following surgical procedure must be required to avoid sequelae.