• Sleep Medicine and Psychophysiology
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.16-24
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• 2016

Background and Objectives: Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is often undiagnosed but is an important risk factor affecting the health of an individual. The level of awareness of the illness among patients with OSA is low and is not correlated with severity of the illness. This study was conducted to compare awareness of OSA symptoms and illness between patients with OSA and simple snorers. Materials and Methods: Two hundred eighty-two patients who were suspected of having OSA participated in this study. All subjects underwent overnight polysomnography. Those with an apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) ${\geq}5$ were classified as the OSA group, while those with an AHI < 5 were classified as the simple snoring group. A sleep questionnaire, which included items on awareness of the illness, OSA, and sleep symptoms, was administered to all subjects and their bed-partners. Results: Simple snorers were much more aware of their symptoms such as snoring, irregular breathing, and apnea than were patients with OSA. Bed-partners of simple snorers were also more aware of the participants' sleep symptoms than were partners of patients with OSA. However, the duration of OSA symptoms was longer in the OSA group. In the correlation analysis, the level of awareness of OSA symptoms was negatively correlated with AHI, age, body mass index, and Epworth Sleepiness Scale score. Among the sleep questionnaire and polysomnography results, only Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index was positively correlated with level of awareness of OSA symptoms. The minority of the respondents had heard about the treatment methods of continuous positive airway pressure and oral appliance and preferred them as treatment options. Conclusion: This study suggests that simple snorers are more aware of their symptoms than are patients with OSA. A higher severity of OSA, represented by a higher AHI, is correlated with lower awareness of one's OSA symptoms.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.49 no.2
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• pp.179-188
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• 2000

Background : The decision to institute mechanical ventilation for patients with COPD is very difficult. The accurate information regarding weaning success and long-term survival will improve communication with patients and family and enhance informed consent. The aims of this study are to describe outcomes and identify variables associated with survival for patients experiencing mechanical ventilation with an acute respiratory failure of COPD. Methods : The 53 cases of mechanical ventilation in the intensive care unit in the National Medical Center from 1989 to 1998 were included. Data were collected retrospectively from medical records. Weaning success rate and 3 month and 1 year survival rates were estimated. Factors associated with weaning success and survival were determined. Results : Weaning sucess was 55%. For success group with 29 cases, 3 months survival rate was 61% and 1 year survival rate 37%. APACHE II scores in weaning success group were significantly lower than those in the failure group. Factors such as age, sex, comorbid-illnes. previous steroid use, causes of respiratory failure, RVH or arrhythmia on EKG, serum albumin level, arterial blood pH, $PaO_2$, $PaCO_2$, $FEV_1$ duration of mechanical ventilation and steroid use during mechanical ventilation were not associated with weaning success. Only age and serum albumin level were associated with 3 month and 1 year survival. No COPD patients of age more than 75 years and serum albumin level less than 3g/dl had survived at 1 year after weaning success. Conclusion : While weaning success from mechanical ventilation can be predicted by APACHE II score in COPD patients, long-term outcomes of survivors may be influenced by nutritional status and age.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.40 no.6 s.275
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• pp.407-413
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• 2007

Background: The brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) level has been reported in some studies to be associated with the occurrence of atrial fbrillation (AF). The aim of this study is to evaluate the potential usefulness of the BNP level as a predictor of the occurrence of postoperative (postop) AF and to assess the relationship of the BNP level with the onset of AF and the restoration of sinus rhythm. Material and Method: From January 1, 2005 to February 28, 2006, 82 patients without a history of atrial arrhythmia that had undergone cardiac surgery were enrolled in the study. Blood samples for plasma BNP were drawn daily for all these patients from the preoperative (preop) day to the 7th postop day. The patient records were reviewed and postop EKGs were checked daily for AF until the time of discharge. Result: Patients were divided into two groups based on development of postop AF. Postoperative AF developed in 26 patients (31.7%). There was no significant statistical difference in age, sex distribution, preop left ventricle ejection fraction, hypertension, left ventricular hypertrophy, or the use of beta blockers between the non-postop AF and postop AF group. More patients in the AF group had undergone valve surgery (39.3% versus 76.9%, p=0.002). The preop left atrium size was significantly larger in the AF patients ($43.8{\pm}10.3 mm$ versus $49.8{\pm}11.5 mm$, p=0.029). The preop plasma BNP levels were higher in the postop AF patients ($144.1{\pm}20.8 pg/mL$ versus $267.5{\pm}68 pg/mL$, p=0.034). In the postop AF group, the plasma BNP level was the highest on the 3rd postop day. Postop AF developed in most patients by the 3rd postop day; restored sinus rhythm developed by the 7th postop day. Conclusion: Elevated plasma BNP levels may lead to the occurrence of postop AF in patients undergoing cardiac surgery. Patients who have a high risk of postop AF should be considered for aggressive prophylactic antiarrhythmic therapy.

• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine Technology
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.3-9
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• 2009

Purpose: It is well-known that stress-induced stunning and reversible perfusion defect have impact on ejection fraction (EF) when performing myocardial perfusion SPECT. Due to these reasons, gated SPECT is recommended at stress and rest studies. And there was many experiments to analyze between Stress and Rest EF by using $^{99m}Tc$-MIBI. The aim of this study is to analyze between stress EF and rest EF at myocardial perfusion SPECT by using $^{201}Tl$ and define possible predictors of EF variability. Materials and Methods: From 2008 June to 2009 February, we analyzed 144 patients undergoing $^{201}Tl$ gated myocardial perfusion SPECT in ASAN medical center. To analyze the data, we use QGS (Quantitative gated SPECT) software, and derived End-systolic volume (ESV), End-diastolic volume (EDV), EF from the result. In this study, we comparatively analyzed stress/rest EF correlation based on stress/rest EF, EDV, ESV and reversibility of myocardial perfusion defect by using paired t-test, Bland-Altman analysis. Results: Mached pairs of stress EF and rest EF demonstrated excellent correlation (r=0.92) with no statistically significant difference (p=0.11). Bland-Altman analysis demonstrated a mean ${\Delta}EF$ was 0.52% (95% confidential interval[CI], -1.17~0.12%). No statistically significant difference between a mean ${\Delta}EF$ and hypothetic mean of 0 (${\Delta}EF$=0) (p=0.10). In the correlation of ${\Delta}EF$ according to stress/rest EDV and ESV, except rest ESV of <28mL (p<0.05), there was no statistically significant difference. In the correlation of ${\Delta}EF$ according to reversibility of perfusion defect, patients with reversible perfusion defect has statistically significant difference of ${\Delta}EF$ (p<0.05). ${\Delta}EF$ of stress/rest EF showed no statistically significant difference except 55% of rest EF (p<0.05). Conclusion: Like studies with $^{99m}Tc$-MIBI, there was generally no statistically significant difference between stress and rest EF in this study results. However a stress EF of <55%, a rest ESV of <28mL and patients with reversible perfusion defect showed statistically significant difference in ${\Delta}EF$. If performing $^{201}T$ myocardial perfusion SPECT to patients with abnormal cardiac function or reversible perfusion defect, consider this study results and apply it. We expect this study results could be useful predictors of ${\Delta}EF$ variability.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.47 no.3
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• pp.356-364
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• 1999

Backgrounds: Previous reports have revealed a high morbidity and mortality in fatal asthma patients, especially those treated in the medical intensive care unit(MICU). But it has not been well known about the predictable factors for the mortality of fatal asthma(F A) with acute respiratory failure. In order to define the predictable factors for the mortality of FA at the admission to MICU, we analyzed the relationship between the clinical parameters and the prognosis of FA patients. Methods: A retrospective analysis of all medical records of 59 patients who had admitted for FA to MICU at a tertiary care MICU from January 1992 to March 1997 was performed. Results: Over all mortality rate was 32.2% and 43 patients were mechanically ventilated. In uni-variate analysis, the death group had significantly older age ($66.2{\pm}10.5$ vs. $51.0{\pm}18.8$ year), lower FVC($59.2{\pm}21.1$ vs. $77.6{\pm}23.3%$) and lower $FEV_1$($41.4{\pm}18.8$ vs. $61.l{\pm}23.30%$), and longer total ventilation time ($255.0{\pm}236.3$ vs. $98.1{\pm}120.4$ hour) (p<0.05) compared with the survival group (PFT: best value of recent 1 year). At MICU admission, there were no significant differences in vital signs, $PaCO_2$, $PaO_2/FiO_2$, and $AaDO_2$, in both groups. However, on the second day of MICU, the death group had significantly more rapid pulse rate ($121.6{\pm}22.3$ vs. $105.2{\pm}19.4$ rate/min), elevated $PaCO_2$ ($50.1{\pm}16.5$ vs. $41.8{\pm}12.2 mm Hg$), lower $PaO_2/FiO_2$, ($160.8{\pm}59.8$ vs. $256.6{\pm}78.3 mm Hg$), higher $AaDO_2$ ($181.5{\pm}79.7$ vs. $98.6{\pm}47.9 mm Hg$), and higher APACHE III score ($57.6{\pm}21.1$ vs. $20.3{\pm}13.2$) than survival group (p<0.05). The death group had more frequently associated with pneumonia and anoxic brain damage at admission, and had more frequently developed sepsis during disease progression than the survival group (p<0.05). Multi-variate analysis using APACHE III score and $PaO_2/FiO_2$, ratio on first and second day, age, sex, and pneumonia combined at admission revealed that APACHE III score (40) and $PaO_2/FiO_2$ ratio (<200) on second day were regarded as predictive factors for the mortality of fatal asthma (p<0.05). Conclusions: APACHE III score ($\geq$40) and $PaO_2/FiO_2$ ratio (<200) on the second day of MICU, which might reflect the response of treatment, rather than initially presented clinical parameters would be more important predictable factors of mortality in patients with FA.