Intestinal Helminthic Infections Diagnosed by Colonoscopy in a Regional Hospital during 2001-2008

The present study investigated characteristics of 24 parasite infection cases detected during colonoscopy in a regional hospital from January 2001 to December 2008. Sixteen patients were confirmed with Trichuris trichiura infection, 6 patients were with Ascaris lumbricoides infection, 1 patient with Enterobius vermicularis infection, and 1 patient with Anisakis infection. Among them, 7 patients (43.8%) were asymptomatic. Colonoscopy findings were normal in 18 patients (75.0%). Among the patients with T. trichiura infection, colonoscopy showed several erosions in 2 patients (8.3%) and non-specific inflammation of the affected segment of the colon in 3 patients (12.5%). In 1 patient with anisakiasis, colonoscopy revealed a markedly swollen colonic wall. Stool examinations were performed before treatment in 7 patients (29.2%) and were all negative for parasite eggs or worms. These results suggest that colonoscopy is a useful diagnostic approach for parasitic infections even for asymptomatic patients and for patients with negative stool examinations.

Erratum: The usefulness of ischemia modified albumin as an early ischemic marker to detect coronary artery disease in patients with chest pain presenting to the emergency department / 대한내과학회지

No abstract available.

A Case of Rectus Sheath Hematoma and Intraperitoneal Hematoma Induced by Cough / 결핵및호흡기질환

Rectus sheath hematoma (RSH) is a rare condition that's caused by a sudden disruption of the deep epigastric vessels or direct damage to the rectus abdominis muscle. This condition is associated with old age, childbirth, abdominal surgery, severe cough, severe sneezing, anticoagulation therapy and/or coagulation disorders. RSH is characterized by abdominal pain and an abdominal mass, so that this is often misdiagnosed as a surgical condition such as appendicitis, intraabdominal abscess, torsion of the ovary and ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm; this can lead to unnecessary surgery. Thus, we have to be cautious not to miss RSH when a patient with predisposing factors is suffered from abdominal pain and an abdominal mass. We report here on a case of rectus sheath hematoma that was induced by severe cough in a patient who was taking warfarin.

A Case of ST-Segment Elevation Myocardial Infarction Mimicking Stress-Induced Cardiomyopathy

ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) is a disease decribed by typical chest pain, ST-segment elevation on eletrocardiogram, elevated cardiac enzymes, along with wall motion abnormality under echocardiographic findings, and it is caused by vulnerable plaques. However, stress induced cardiomyopathy (SICM) may show similar clinical symptoms, but specific echocardiographic findings (i.e. transient left ventricular regional wall motion abnormalities with peculiar apical ballooning appearance) and normal coronary angiography may differentiate it from STEMI. Therefore, one may mistake STEMI for SICM, and lead to serious error in diagnosis and treatment of the disease. We report a case of STEMI mimicking SICM, and suggest an idea to approach the patient with SICM.

A Case of Radiolucent Foreign Body (Temporary Resin Bridge) Aspiration Accompanied by Inflammatory Polyps / 결핵및호흡기질환

This case demonstrates the rare occurrence of a radiolucent temporary resin bridge aspiration in adults while they are in a conscious and awaken state and the resultant formation of inflammatory polyps. Although no unique findings were noted in a chest x-ray, careful history taking accompanied by physical examinations can lead to clinical suspicion of foreign body aspiration in an earlier stage. Moreover, flexible bronchoscopy is a tool useful not only for the evaluation process but also for managing the aspirated foreign material.

The usefulness of ischemia modified albumin as an early ischemic marker to detect coronary artery disease in patients with chest pain presenting to the emergency department / 대한내과학회지

BACKGROUND: A diagnosis of coronary artery disease (CAD) in the early phase of acute chest pain is often difficult in an emergency department (ED) due to the lower sensitive ECG and delayed expression of the cardiac necrosis markers. Ischemia modified albumin (IMA) has recently been reported to be an early sensitive biochemical marker of ischemia. The aim of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic value of IMA in patients with suspected CAD and less sensitive ECG/delayed cardiac necrosis markers. METHODS: 100 consecutive patients (mean age: 5413 years, male: 66%) presenting to the ED with suspected CAD and chest pain within 6 hours of chest pain were enrolled in this study. An ECG check and blood sampling for IMA and CK-MB, cardiac troponin-T (TnT) were done within 1 hour at the ED. The diagnosis of CAD was based upon the clinical findings, results of serial ECG/TnT and coronary angiography. The ideal cutoff value of IMA for CAD was calculated by the Receiver Operator Characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. RESULTS: CAD including acute coronary syndrome was diagnosed in 69/100 (69%). The optimum diagnostic cutoff point for the IMA levels in these study populations was found by ROC analysis to be 99.5 U/mL. The ROC curve area for the IMA test was 0.901 (95% confidential interval, 0.840-0.961, p=0.001). The IMA levels >99.5 U/mL demonstrated a sensitivity of 86%, specificity of 81%, positive predictive value of 90% and negative predictive value of 74% for the diagnosis of CAD. The combination of IMA-ECG-CKMB/TnT increased the sensitivity for detecting ischemia to 94%, with a negative predictive value of 85%. IMA is a highly sensitive with a high negative predictive value, and might improve the utility of standard biomarkers for CAD. CONCLUSIONS: IMA might be a useful ischemic marker of coronary artery disease in patients presenting within 6 hours after the onset of chest pain.