• Korean journal of health promotion
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.91-95
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• 2019

Background: Obesity and deterioration of pulmonary function are known to increase all-cause mortality and morbidity associated with chronic diseases. Obesity is a known risk factor for decreasing pulmonary function; however, studies on the effect of changes in body weight or body mass index (BMI) on pulmonary function are rare. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between the change in body weight or BMI and the pulmonary function test (PFT) in Koreans who underwent consecutive screening at a health promotion center. Methods: We enrolled 5,032 patients who underwent consecutive screening health check-ups at a health promotion center in 2015 and 2017. The BMI was calculated as the body weight (kg) divided by the square of the height (m²) in 2015 and 2017. We analyzed the association between the change in body weight or BMI and PFT. Results: In males, PFT and changes in body weight were associated with forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV₁) but not with changes in BMI. In females, FEV₁/forced vital capacity and forced expiratory flow between 25-75% of vital capacity (FEF_25-75%) were significantly associated with the changes in body weight and BMI. A correlation analysis between body weight and BMI showed a negative correlation with FEF_25-75% in males. In females, FEV₁/FVC and FEF_25-75% were negatively correlated. Conclusions: We observed that the increase in body weight and BMI was significantly associated with pulmonary function. This finding suggests that careful monitoring of body weight and BMI may aid in maintaining proper pulmonary function, thereby, reducing mortality and morbidity.

• Advances in pediatric surgery
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• v.1 no.2
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• pp.149-161
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• 1995

The first national survey on esophageal atresia and tracheoesophageal fistula was conducted to access the current status of its incidence, clinical manifestation, preoperative diagnosis and management, type of its anomaly, associated anomalies, and surgical results and course. The 43 members of the Korea Association of Pediatric Surgeons received questionnaires and registration forms to be filled out on each patient who were born during the three years from January 1, 1992 through December 31, 1994. Questionnaires composed of six broad areas which include 1) preoperative diagnosis and management, 2) surgical technic, 3) long gap, 4) postoperative management, and 5) complications and courses. A total of 148 cases was returned by 28 members working at 23 institutions and 27 members returned questionnaires. We obtained the following results by analysis of the 148 cases of tracheoesophageal anomalies. The incidence of tracheoesophageal anomaly was about 1/10,000-11,000 in 1994, which is one third of that of anorectal malformations in Korea and the distribution of the patients was almost proportionate to the size of each province. Both sexes are about equally affected. Majority of the members make diagnosis of tracheoesophageal anomaly by taking a simple infantogram with a radiopaque tube in upper pouch and a little under half(46%) prefers to perform echocardiography as a part of preoperative management to identify congenital heart disease and lateralize the aorta. Esophageal atresia with distal TEF(87.5%) was by far the most common and there were pure esophageal atresia(5.6%), H-type TEF(2.1%), and so on. About half(49%) of the patients had one or more associated anomalies in addition to tracheoesophageal anomalies. Congenital heart disease was associated in 46 cases(31%), anorectral malfomations in 19 cases(13%), musculoskeletal anomalies in 15 cases(10%), genitourinary anomalies in 10 cases(7%) and gastrointestinal anomalies in 7 cases(5%). Postoperatively, parenteral nutrition and assisted ventilation were given in 66% and 52% of patients respectively. Ninety three(74%) of 126 cases who underwent sugical procedure, experienced one or more complications such as respiratory complication(65%), leak(22%), stricture(21%) and so on. The survival rates related to the Waterston risk categories were 90.2% in group A, 71.4-75% in $B_1$, $B_2$, and $C_1$, groups, and 28% in group $C_2$, and the overall survival rate was 71.4%. Thirty six(28.6%) of 126 cases died of pneumonia/sepsis(12 cases), respiratory failure(12 cases), and congenital heart disease(4 cases). With short term follow-up, 69% of patients have been excellent whereas remainders of the cases have suffered from some sort of morbidity related to gastroesophageal reflux, recurrent respiratory infection, and esophageal stricture.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.64 no.2
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• pp.109-124
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• 2008

Background: The incidence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is increasing and the disease is becoming an important cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. It is important to implement evidence-based guidelines by primary care physicians (PCPs) to establish qualified management of COPD patients. The aim of this survey is to investigate the pattern of COPD management among PCPs and to apply it to the development of Korean COPD guidelines. Methods: A web-based questionnaire was prepared that consisted of 25 questions on the pattern of COPD management. A total of 217 PCPs participated in the survey from June 2006 to May 2007. Results: Many PCPs (61.8%) possessed a spirometer, but the application rate was relatively low (35.8%) and more than half of the COPD patients (57%) did not receive a diagnosis based on spirometry. Administration of oral medication was preferred than the administration of inhaled medication for both stable COPD and acutely exacerbated COPD. More than 90% of the PCPs endorsed educational measures to quit smoking and vaccinate against influenza. It was noted that 56.7% of the PCPs were aware of the GOLD guidelines, but only 7.3% tended to fully implement the recommendations of the guidelines in daily practice. Conclusion: The results of the survey indicate that despite the high awareness rate of the current COPD guidelines, deficits exist among the PCPs with respect to the diagnosis and treatment of COPD. The results of this survey should be applied for the development of new COPD guidelines in order to decrease the discrepancy between the guidelines and the daily practice of the PCPs.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.38 no.10 s.255
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• pp.699-704
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• 2005

Background: Coronary artery fistula is rare congenital anomaly, which account for $0.27\~0.40\%$ of all congenital heart diseases. We report the clinical observations of 45 patients with coronary artery fistula. Material and Method: We reviewed all patients presented with or without symptoms of coronary artery fistula between 1987 and 2004. Age ranged from 1 to 83 years. Twenty-six patients were female. The patients were divided into 2 groups according to the presenting symptoms. Twelve patients were in group A (asymptomatic) and 33 patients in group B (symptomatic). The most common clinical presentation in group B was angina (18) followed by dyspnea (7), atypical chest pain (5), syncope (1), fatigue (1), and palpitation (1). Twenty-five patients were associated with other cardiac diseases, which were atrial septal defect (4), coronary artery occlusive disease (6), hypertension (12), and valvular heart disease (2). Result: Patients were followed-up for a mean period of $64.8\pm62.7$ months. There was no complication related to coronary artery fistula during the follow-up period in both group. There was no mortality related to coronary artery fistula. Conclusion: In symptomatic patients, early surgical treatment is recommended considering the low perioperative morbidity. In asymptomatic patients receiving medical treatment, close follow up may be necessary.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.42 no.2
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• pp.206-213
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• 2009

Background: Previous series have suggested that younger patients with primary lung cancer exhibit a more aggressive disease course with a worse prognosis, as compared to older patients, although this issue is still debatable. Material and Method: We reviewed the medical records of 79 patients (32 patients 50 years and younger (Group I) and 47 patients 70 years and older (Group II)) who underwent curative resection for primary lung cancer between July 2000 and June 2008. Result: The median age of the patients was 46.5 years in Group I and this was 73 years in Group II. The older patients were more likely to have major comorbidities (44% versus 77%, respectively; p=0.003). Histological examinations identified that the minor histological types (excluding non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC)) were predominantly found in the Group I patients (16% versus 2%, respectively; p=0.037). For the TNM staging of the NSCLC, with excluding the minor histologic types, a higher proportion of patients had stage III disease in Group I (33% versus 13%, respectively; p=0.038). There was no significant difference in major morbidity (16% versus 30%, respectively; p=0.148) and operative mortality (0% versus 4.3%; p=0.512) between the groups. The mean follow-up interval was 33 months (range: $1{\sim}98$ months) for patients in both groups. For the patients with NSCLC, the five-year overall survival rate was 52.3% for Group I and 53.7% for Group II (p=0.955). The rate of freedom from recurrence at five years was significantly lower for the Group I patients than for the Group II patients (39.4% versus 70.4%, respectively; p=0.027), and only being a member of Group I impacted recurrence, based on the Cox proportional hazard analysis (p=0.034). Of the patients who had recurrence, four patients in Group I underwent aggressive surgical treatment. All of these patients exhibited long-term survival (range: $46{\sim}87$ months). Conclusion: In our study, the early outcome and long-term survival were similar for the younger and older patients after curative resection of primary lung cancer. However, we think that younger patients require meticulous follow-up as they had a tendency to proceed to surgery with advanced stage disease, a higher recurrence rate than did the older patients and the survival rates were improved, even for the recurred cases, with early aggressive treatment.

• Childhood Kidney Diseases
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• v.6 no.2
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• pp.155-168
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• 2002

Purpose; Systemic lupus erythematosus(SLE) is an autoimmune disease with multi-system involvement and renal damage is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in children. Renal involvement is more common and severe in children than in adults. Therefore, renal biopsy plays a crucial role in planning effective therapy. In this study, we investigated the clinical and pathological findings of lupus nephritis in children to aid clinical care of the disease. Methods: The clinical and pathological data of 40 patients who were diagnosed as SLE with renal involvement in Shinchon Severance Hospital from Jan. 1990 to Sep. 2002 were analyzed retrospectively. Results: The ratio of male to female patients was 1:3 and the median age at diagnosis was 12.1(2-18) years old. FANA(95.0%), anti-ds DNA antibody(87.5%), malar rash(80.0%) were the most common findings among the classification criteria by ARA. Microscopic hematuria with proteinuria(75.0%), nephrotic syndrome(55.0%), and microscopic hematuria alone(15.0%) were the most common renal presentations in the respective order at diagnosis. There were 27 cases with WHO class IV lupus nephritis confirmed by renal biopsy and 3 cases with pathological changes of WHO class type. Different treatment modalities were carried out : prednisolone only in 5 cases, prednisol-one+azat-hioprine in 9 cases, prednisolone+azathioprine+intravenous cyclophosphamide in 14 cases, prednisolone+cyclosporine A+intravenous cyclophosphamide in 12 cases, plasma exchange in 9 cases and intravenous gamma-globulin in 2 cases. The average follow-up period was $51.8{\pm}40.5$ months. During $51.8{\pm}40.5$ months. During follow-up, 4 patients expired. The risk factors associated with mortality were male, WHO class IV and acute renal failure at diagnosis. Conclusion: Renal involvement was noted in 63.5% of childhood SLE, and 67.5% of renal lesion was WHO class IV lupus nephritis which is known to be associated with a poor prognosis. Therefore aggressive treatment employing immunosuppressant during the early stages of disease could be helpful in improving long-term prognosis. But careful attention should be given to optimize the treatment due to unique problems associated with growth, psychosocial development and gonadal toxicity, especially in children.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.40 no.4 s.273
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• pp.247-255
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• 2007

Background: Lung injury that follows bypass has been well described. It is manifested as reduced oxygenation and lung compliance and, most importantly, increased pulmonary vascular resistance reactivity; this is a known cause of morbidity and mortality after repair of congenital heart disease. Injury to the pulmonary vascular endothelium, and its associated alterations of endothelin-1, is considered to be a major factor of bypass-induced lung injury. Removing endothelin-1 after bypass may attenuate this response. This study measured the concentration of serum and peritoneal effluent endothelin-1 after performing bypass to determine if endothelin-1 can be removed via peritoneal dialysis. Material and Method: From March 2005 to March 2006, 18 patients were enrolled in this study Peritoneal catheters were placed at the end of surgery. Serum samples were obtained before and after bypass, and peritoneal effluents were obtained after bypass. Endothelin-1 was measured by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Result: In the patients with a severe increase of the pulmonary artery pressure or flow, the mean preoperative plasma endothelin-1 concentration was significantly higher than that in the patients who were without an increase of their pulmonary artery pressure or flow (4.2 vs 1.8 pg/mL, respectively, p<0.001). The mean concentration of plasma endothelin-1 increased from a preoperative value of $3.61{\pm}2.17\;to\;5.33{\pm}3.72 pg/ml$ immediately after bypass. After peritoneal dialysis, the mean plasma endothelin-1 concentration started to decrease. Its concentration at 18 hours after bypass was significantly lower than the value obtained immediately after bypass (p=0.036). Conclusion: Our data showed that the plasma endothelin-1 concentration became persistently decreased after starting peritoneal dialysis, and this suggests that peritoneal dialysis can remove the circulating plasma endothelin-1.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.53 no.2
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• pp.173-177
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• 2010

Purpose : Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is an important pathogen that causes nosocomial infection in NICU. It contributes to neonatal morbidity and mortality with variable complications. This study was conducted to identify the risk factors associated with complicated MRSA bacteremia in neonates. Methods : We reviewed the medical records of 44 neonates with positive blood culture for MRSA who were admitted to the NICU of Pusan National University Hospital from January 2002 to December 2007. We compared various factors of the complicated and uncomplicated MRSA bacteremia cases. Results : Of the 44 neonates, 31 were male and 13, female. The mean gestational age and birth weight were $33.2{\pm}4.9$ weeks and $1,859.9{\pm}962.2g$, respectively. Twenty-one of infants were treated with a mechanical ventilator during a mean of $8.8{\pm}13.8$ days. There were 13 cases of complicated and 31 cases of uncomplicated MRSA bacteremia. Between the 2 groups, we compared the following variables: gestational age, birth weight, ventilator use, umbilical catheter use and central catheter insertion, $O_2$ inhalation, first oral feeding day after birth, underlying disease, transfusion, and initial vancomycin use. The underlying disease and transfusion were the risk factors related to complicated MRSA bacteremia. Conclusion : Complicated MRSA bacteremia is related to underlying disease and transfusion. Since this was a retrospective study with a small sample size, it offered limited capacity to compare complicated and uncomplicated MRSA bacteremia. A prospective study with a larger population is needed to determine the exact characteristics of MRSA bacteremia in NICU.

• Childhood Kidney Diseases
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.30-37
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• 2008

Purpose: The present study is an investigation of the progression and prognosis of acute intrinsic renal failure in neonates and children with a diagnosis of acute renal failure or other diseases on admission. Methods: This research is based on a retrospective analysis conducted on 59 patients(male: female=2.2:1) diagnosed with acute intrinsic renal failure between January 2000 and June 2006 at Busan Paik Hospital. The clinical diagnostic criteria of acute renal failure used was serum creatinine <1.2 mg/dL, oliguria with urine output$\leq$0.5 mL/kg/hr and anuria with urine output <50 mL per day. Results: Among those placed under investigation, 7 patients were neonates, 10 patients were 2 months-2 years old, 12 patients were 3-6 years old, 21 patients were 7-12 years old and 9 patients were 13-16 years old. It took 3.1${\pm}$2.8 days on average until the diagnosis was made. The urine output distribution was 21 persons for the oliguria group, and 36 persons for the non-oliguria group, and 2 persons for the anuria group. For the underlying causes, 30 persons were classified in the primary renal disease group, 14 persons in the infection group, 9 persons in the malignancy group, and 6 persons were categorized in another group. As for age distribution, the infected group was predominantly neonates, whereas the dominant age ranges for the primary renal disease and infection categories were 2 months to 2 years old. Also, the primary renal disease was dominant among older children, aged 3 and up. No difference was detected according to seasonal prevalence. However, there was a high morbidity rate among hemolytic uremic syndrome diagnosed in the summer. Peritoneal dialysis was used to treat 4 patients. It took 10.0${\pm}$6.7 days until the patients improved. 18 patients died. The non-oliguria group's mortality rate was lower than other groups. There was a high mortality rate in the neonates and malignancy group. Conclusion: Acute renal failure in childhood seems to take a better clinical course than in adulthood when there is an early diagnosis and proper treatment of underlying diseases.

• Radiation Oncology Journal
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.1-10
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• 2004

Locally advanced (Stage III) non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) accounts for approximately one third of all cases of NSCLC. Few patients with locally advanced NSCLC present with disease amenable to curative surgical resection. Historically, these patients were treated with primary thoracic radiation therapy (RT) and had poor long term survival rates, due to both progression of local disease and development on distant metastases. Over the last two decades, the use of multidisciplinary approach has improved the outcome for patients with locally advanced NSCLC. Combined chemoradiotherapy is the most favored approach for treatment of locally advanced unresectable NSCLC. There are two basic treatment protocols for administering combined chemotherapy and radiation, sequential versus concurrent. The rationale for using chemotherapy is to eliminate subclinical metastatic disease while improving local control. Sequential use of chemotherapy followed by radiotherapy has improved median and long term survival compared to radiation therapy alone. This approach appears to decrease the risk of distant metastases,, but local failure rates remain the same as radiation alone. Concurrent chemoradiotherapy has been studied extensively. The potential advantages of this approach may include sensitization of tumor cells to radiation by the administration of chemotherapy, and reduced overall treatment time compared to sequential therapy; which is known to be important for improving local control in radiation biology. This approach Improves survival primarily as a result of improved local control. However, it doesn't seem to decrease the risk of distant metastases probably because concurrent chemoradiation requires dose reductions in chemotherapy due to increased risks of acute morbidity such as acute esophageal toxicity. Although multidisciplinary therapy has led to improved survival rates compared to radiation therapy alone and has become the new standard of care, the optimal therapy of locally advanced NSCLC continues to evolve. The current issues in the multidisciplinary management of locally advanced NSCLC will be reviewed in this report.