Discordance between Patients and Parents Regarding the Perceived Causes of Clinical Relapse in Young Inflammatory Bowel Disease Patients / 대한소화기학회지

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Relapse in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is not predictable, although several factors have been suggested. The aims of the current study were to assess and compare the possible causes of clinical relapse as perceived by patients and parents. METHODS: Of 107 young (<35 years old) IBD patients, 26 patients who experienced recent (<3 month) relapse and their parents completed a questionnaire at the same time. Baseline characteristics and clinical manifestations were reviewed and the most common causes of relapse as perceived by patients and parents were compared. RESULTS: Median patient age was 22.5 years and the male to female ratio was 17:9. Crohn's disease was diagnosed in 23 patients and ulcerative colitis in the other three patients. Mean disease duration was 39.8+/-30.3 months. Eighteen (69.2%) patients experienced stress before relapse. Fifteen (57.7%) parents thought that their children experienced stress before relapse. Agreement between patients and parents for non-adherence to medication and stress was 100% and 73.1%, respectively. Stress was considered the most likely cause of relapse in both groups. Discordance rate between parents and patients with respect to main causes of relapse was 40.4%. CONCLUSIONS: Stress was perceived to be the most common condition noted before clinical relapse in young IBD patients and their parents. However, the discordance rate between patients and parents with respect to the main causes of relapse was 40.4%. This result suggests a considerable difference in terms of disease understanding between young IBD patients and parents.

The Relationship between Metformin and Cancer in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes

BACKGROUND: Recently, several studies reported that the cancer incidence in type 2 diabetes patients is higher than in the general population. Although a number of risks are shared between cancer and diabetes patients, there have been few studies of its correlation. We evaluated the influences of several factors including low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), albuminuria and use of metformin on the risk of cancer in patients with type 2 diabetes. METHODS: We enrolled 1,320 patients with at least 5 years of follow-up and 73 patients were diagnosed with cancer during this period. The associations of the risk factors with cancer incidence were evaluated by multiple regression analysis. The subjects were placed into two subgroups based on metformin dosage ( or =1,000 mg/day) and we compared cancer incidence using analysis of covariance. RESULTS: LDL-C and albuminuria were not significantly correlated with cancer risk. In contrast, metformin showed a reverse correlation with cancer risk (P=0.006; relative risk, 0.574). In the metformin nonadministration group, smoking, male gender, and high triglyceride levels tended to be contributing factors without statistical significance. Cancer occurence was lower in the low dose metformin group (less than 1,000 mg/day) (P=0.00). CONCLUSION: These results suggest that the administration of low dose metformin in patients with type 2 diabetes may be associated with a reduced risk of cancer.

A Perspective: Role of Targeted Therapy in Colon Cancer / 대한소화기학회지

Colorectal cancer is the third most common malignant disease in incidence according to a report in 2009 from Korea. The 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) remains to be a major chemotherapeutic agents. But, over the last 10-15 years, the treatment pattern for metastatic colorectal cancer changed significantly. Irinotecan and oxaliplatin are cytotoxic drugs, or bevacizumab and cetuximab are monoclonal antibodies against molecular targets. The introduction of novel agents targeting specific molecular features of cancer cells promises more options and marked improvements in efficacy for the treatment of metastatic colon cancer. Bevacizumab has been shown to extend survival in colorectal cancer when used in combination with irinotecan and 5-FU-based chemotherapy, and the addition of cetuximab to irinotecan and 5-FU-based chemotherapy eliminates irinotecan resistance. Better understanding of the tumor biology and the molecular pathway and mechanisms of tumorigenesis has led to the discovery of novel agents with improved outcomes.

A Perspective: Role of Targeted Therapy in Colon Cancer / 대한소화기학회지

Colorectal cancer is the third most common malignant disease in incidence according to a report in 2009 from Korea. The 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) remains to be a major chemotherapeutic agents. But, over the last 10-15 years, the treatment pattern for metastatic colorectal cancer changed significantly. Irinotecan and oxaliplatin are cytotoxic drugs, or bevacizumab and cetuximab are monoclonal antibodies against molecular targets. The introduction of novel agents targeting specific molecular features of cancer cells promises more options and marked improvements in efficacy for the treatment of metastatic colon cancer. Bevacizumab has been shown to extend survival in colorectal cancer when used in combination with irinotecan and 5-FU-based chemotherapy, and the addition of cetuximab to irinotecan and 5-FU-based chemotherapy eliminates irinotecan resistance. Better understanding of the tumor biology and the molecular pathway and mechanisms of tumorigenesis has led to the discovery of novel agents with improved outcomes.

Ketoacidosis with Hypertriglyceridemia-Induced Pancreatitis in a Patient with Gestational Diabetes: A Case Report

Hypertriglyceridemia-induced acute pancreatitis in pregnancy is not a common complication. Moreover, ketoacidosis in gestational diabetes occurs rarely. Here we report a case of ketoacidosis with hypertriglyceridemia-induced pancreatitis in a patient with gestational diabetes that was successfully treated with insulin and supportive care. In this case, a 36-year-old woman (at 32 weeks' gestation) was diagnosed with gestational diabetes 4 weeks prior, but did not have well controlled blood sugar. She complained of severe epigastric pain concomitant with nausea and vomiting. Radiology and laboratory tests found hypertriglyceridemia (1,996 mg/dL), acute pancreatitis, and ketoacidosis with absence of fetal deceleration on a non-stress test. The patient's condition improved with insulin therapy and fluid replacement. To our knowledge, this is the first report of a case of ketoacidosis with hypertriglyceridemia-induced pancreatitis in a patient with gestational diabetes.

Rhabdomyolysis Induced Acute Kidney Injury in a Patient with Leptospirosis / 영남의대학술지

Leptospirosis is a spirochetal infectious disease caused by Leptospira interrogans, and may vary in degree from an asymptomatic infection to a severe and fatal illness. The kidney is one of the principal target organs of Leptospira. Renal disorders caused by Leptospira infection vary from an abnormality in urinalysis to acute kidney injury (AKI). Incidence of AKI in severe leptospirosis varies from 40% to 60%. AKI reflects the severity of leptospirosis and is generally accompanied by cholestatic jaundice. The pathophysiology of AKI in leptospirosis consists of hypovolemia, direct tubular toxicity, and rhabdomyolysis. Most patients with acute leptospirosis experience severe myalgias, and show laboratory evidence of mild rhabdomyolysis. However, occurrence of severe rhabdomyolysis is rare. We report here on a patient with leoptospirosis, who had severe rhabdomyolysis and acute kidney injury without jaundice.

Prevalence, Awareness, and Control of Hypertension among Diabetic Koreans

No abstract available.

The Combination of Fasting Plasma Glucose and Glycosylated Hemoglobin as a Predictor for Type 2 Diabetes in Korean Adults / 당뇨병

BACKGROUND: The oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) for detection of diabetes is difficult to perform in clinical settings. The aim of this study is to evaluate the performance of a more practical detection test, combined fasting plasma glucose (FPG) and glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c), as a predictor of diabetes mellitus (DM) in a Korean sample. METHODS: We examined 2,045 (M = 1,276, mean age = 47.8 +/- 9.0 yrs) medical check-up program participants between January 2002 to December 2003. FPG, HbA1c and a number of other biochemical tests were performed at baseline and four after years after initial screening. Patients who originally presented with diabetes were excluded. The characteristics of newly-diagnosed DM patients and non-diabetic patients were compared. RESULTS: The incidence of newly diagnosed diabetes was 1.6% (32/2,045) after four years of follow up. The subjects in the DM group were older, had higher levels of SBP, DBP, FPG, HbA1c, triglyceride, HDL cholesterol, GGT and LDH (P < 0.05). In multivariate logistic regression analysis, FPG (odds ratio [OR] 1.124) and HbA1c (OR 4.794) were significantly correlated with onset of diabetes (P < 0.05). The interaction parameter between FPG and HbA1c was more than 1.0, indicating that the two effects are synergistic. The predictive cut-off values of HbA1c and FPG were 5.35% (area under curve [AUC] = 0.944) and 102.5 mg/dL (AUC = 0.930), respectively. CONCLUSION: The combination of HbA1c above 5.35% and FPG above 102.5 mg/dL predicted the onset of diabetes in a Korean sample. These results suggest that the combination of FPG and HbA1c may be useful for predicting progression to type 2 diabetes in east Asians.