Causes of Hand Tingling in Visual Display Terminal Workers

OBJECTIVE: To offer the basic data about the causes and distribution of hand tingling, symptoms and physical findings, and pressure pain threshold in desk workers. METHODS: Five physiatrists participated in the screening test composed of history and physical examination. A total of 876 desk workers were evaluated and of them 37 subjects with hand tingling were selected. For further analyzing, detailed history taking and meticulous physical examination were taken. Pressure pain threshold (PPT) at the infraspinatus, upper trapezius, flexor carpi radialis, rhomboideus, and flexor pollicis longus were examined. PPT measurements were repeated three times with two minute intervals by a pressure algometer. Electrodiagnostic study was done to detect potential neurologic abnormalities. RESULTS: The causes of hand tingling in order of frequency were: myofascial pain syndrome, 68%; cervical radiculopathy, 27%; rotator cuff syndrome, 11%; tenosynovitis, 8%; and carpal tunnel syndrome, 5%. The location of trigger points in the myofascial pain syndrome, which were proven to evoke a tingling sensation to the hand in order of frequency were: infraspinatus, 65.4%; upper trapezius, 57.7%; flexor carpi radialis, 38.5%; rhomboideus 15.4%; and flexor pollicis longus 11.5%. The PPT of the affected side was significantly lower than that of the unaffected side in myofascial pain syndrome (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: The most common cause of hand tingling in desk workers was myofascial pain syndrome rather than carpal tunnel syndrome. Common trigger points to evoke hand tingling were in the infraspinatus and upper trapezius.

The Effect of Leflunomide on Cold and Vibratory Sensation in Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the prevalence and risk factors of peripheral neuropathy in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) treated with leflunomide (LEF) by quantitative sensory testing (QST). METHOD: A total of 94 patients were enrolledin this study, out of which 47 patients received LEF. The other 47 patients received alternative disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs and served as the control group. The demographic characteristics, laboratory findings, concomitant diseases, and medication history were evaluated at the time of QST. The cooling (CDT) and vibratory detection threshold (VDT) as the representative components of QST were measured. RESULTS: Age, gender, RA duration, ESR, and CRP did not show any significant differences between the two groups. VDT did not demonstrate any significant difference in both groups. However, CDT in LEF group was significantly higher than that of the control group (8.6+/-2.7 in LEF vs. 5.6+/-3.8 in control). The proportion of RA patients in the LEF group showing abnormally high CDT was over 2 times greater than that of the control group, but these findings were not statistically significant. Age, RA duration (or LEF medication in LEF group), ESR, and CRP did not show significant correlation with CDT in both groups. VDT significantly correlated with age in both groups. CONCLUSION: LEF treatment in patients with RA may lead to abnormal CDT in QST. CDT value was not affected by age, RA duration, disease activity, or LEF duration. It remains to be determined whether QST may be a valuable non-invasive instrument to evaluate the early sensory changes in patients with RA taking LEF.

The Prevalence and Characteristics of Depression in Work-related Musculoskeletal Disease

OBJECTIVE: To reveal the relationship between depression and WMSD. METHOD: Five physiatrists participated in the workplace musculoskeletal survey and diagnosed 724 office workers with WMSD by performing detailed history taking and physical examination. All subjects were asked to answer the Korean version of the Beck depressive inventory (K-BDI), and to express their pain according to the visual analogue scale (VAS) score. We categorized the subjects into 4 groups, myofascial pain syndrome (MPS), herniated intervertebral disk (HIVD), tenosynovitis, and others, and investigated the prevalence of depression in desk workers and relationship between WMSD and depression, and we compared pain intensity between the depression and non-depression groups. Correlation analysis was carried out between K-BDI and VAS scores in each group. RESULTS: The mean K-BDI score were 8.7+/-6.68. The prevalence of depression was higher in females than in male, and there was no relationship between age and depression. There was a significant connection between HIVD and depression (p<0.05). However, the other groups did not have significant connection to depression. The VAS score (5.02) of the depression group was significantly higher than that (4.10) of the non-depression group. In addition, there was a significant difference of VAS scores between the depression group and non-depression group in each disease group. CONCLUSION: The mean VAS score of the depression group in WMSD was significantly higher than in the non-depression group. The correlation between BDI and VAS scores in the subjects was present, and the highest was in the HIVD group.

The Effect of Equilibration Temperature and Exposure Time on the Ultrarapid Freezing of 1-cell Mouse Zygote / 대한불임학회지

The present study was to assess the effect of ultrarapid freezing on the development of 1-cell mouse zygote using cryoprotectants, DMSO (dimethyl sulfoxide) or PROH (1,2-propanediol). We investigated the effect of the type and concentration of cryoprotectant, and of the temperature and time of prefreezing equilibration on their capacity to develop to the blastocyst stage in vitro. The concenration, the equilibration temperature, and the exposure time seemed to serve as an important factor in ultrarapid freezing of 1-cell mouse zygotes. In addition to the exposure time and the concentration of cryoprotectant appeared to play a key role in the development of the embryo. In general, the development of the embryo was more effective at 3degrees C than 23degrees C and 4.5 M than 3 M for 3 to 5 minutes. At 23degrees C the development of the embryo was stimulated by DMSO while at 3degrees C it was stimulated by PROH. Thus it has been suggested that there exists a correlation between the concentration of cryoprotectants and exposure time in the development of the embryo. In conclusion, we found that for ultrarapid freezing of mouse 1-cell embryos in DMSO, or PROH-based solution, viability shown optimum depending on the cryoprotectant, the concentration of the cryoprotectant and on the temperature and the duration of equilibration.

A clinical and statistical analysis on acute appendicitis in children

No abstract available.