Effects of Percutaneous Coronary Intervention on Depressive Mood in Elderly Patients

BACKGROUND: Depression is a common comorbid condition in patients with coronary artery disease and a well-documented risk factor for recurrent cardiac events and mortality. We examined the impact of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) on depressive mood in elderly patients with chronic stable angina. METHODS: Consecutive patients with chronic stable angina (n=171) who had undergone elective PCI from January 2010 to May 2010 were included in this study. Patients were divided into elderly (> or =65 years) and non-elderly groups (<65 years) and then completed the 21-item Beck Depression Inventory I (BDI-I) at baseline and prior to discharge to assess for depressive symptoms. RESULTS: Seventy-three (43%) patients were assigned to the elderly group and 98 (57%) to the non-elderly group. Using multivariate regression analysis, we found that the elderly group had a higher prevalence of joint, lung, and gastrointestinal diseases; were less religious and less likely to be employed; had lower rates of private health insurance; and were, less frequently, users of regular alcohol, current smokers, and regular exercisers compared to the non-elderly patients. The mean difference in BDI-I scores at baseline and pre-discharge was higher in elderly patients. CONCLUSION: Our study showed a correlation between the extent of depression and elective PCI, especially in elderly patients. This population should be assessed routinely for depressive symptoms and managed accordingly.

A Case of Pulmonary Thromboembolism in a Patient with Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura / 대한내과학회지

Idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) is an autoimmune blood disorder characterized by thrombocytopenia. Common clinical manifestations include bleeding events. Rarely, thrombotic complications may develop in ITP. A 43-year-old man was admitted with dyspnea. His platelet count at admission was 48,000/mm3. The patient had a history of ITP diagnosed 12 years earlier and had been treated with low-dose steroids. Two months before admission, he had been diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis and treated only with clopidogrel due to severe thrombocytopenia. Chest computed tomography showed filling defects in both pulmonary arteries. In the workup for precipitating factors, only lupus anticoagulant was positive. The concomitant administration of warfarin and methylprednisolone was used to treat the pulmonary thromboembolism and ITP, respectively. Six months later, the lupus anticoagulant test remained positive. The patient was confirmed to have a pulmonary thromboembolism due to antiphospholipid syndrome, which might be related to the underlying ITP. After 10 months, his symptoms and radiological findings had improved.

A Case of Elevated Prothrombin Time-International Normalized Ratio (PT-INR) Associated with Concurrent Use of Erlotinib and Warfarin / 대한내과학회지

Erlotinib, an orally active epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI), is indicated for EGFR mutation-positive patients with poor performance status. Erlotinib is also used as a second-line agent in patients who show disease progression after failure of first-line therapy. Warfarin is administered in patients with advanced cancer for the prevention or treatment of venous thromboembolism. Both erlotinib and warfarin are metabolized in the human liver primarily by the CYP3A4 enzyme system. Thus, erlotinib may inhibit the metabolism of warfarin and clinicians should pay attention to the possible interaction between the two drugs when they are administered concurrently. We report the case of a 50-year-old man who showed changes in the prothrombin time-international normalized ratio (PT-INR) after coadministration of erlotinib and warfarin.

An Endobronchial Lipoma Treated by Bronchoscopic Excision / 대한내과학회지

A 68-year-old man presented with partial atelectasis of the right middle lobe on chest X-ray. Computed tomography of the chest revealed a hypodense mass in the middle lobe. Bronchoscopy showed a round mass obstructing the right middle lobe bronchus, and a biopsy specimen revealed only chronic inflammation. The tumor was removed using rigid bronchoscopy, and a diagnosis of endobronchial lipoma was made. An endobronchial lipoma is a very rare benign tumor that may cause parenchymal lung damage due to bronchial obstruction and subsequent pneumonia. We report this case to emphasize the role of endoscopic treatment in the management of endobronchial lipoma.

A Case of Adult Intussusception Induced by Intestinal Tuberculosis / 결핵및호흡기질환

Intussusception primarily occurs in children and is uncommon in adults. Moreover, intussusception caused by intestinal tuberculosis is very rare. We report a case of intussusception induced by intestinal tuberculosis. A 53-year-old man presented to our hospital with complaints of cough and sputum for 2 weeks. We started anti-tuberculosis medication as the patient's sputum acid-fast staining was positive. After 4 days of treatment, the patient developed abdominal cramping pain. Imaging studies showed ileo-ileal type intussusception. The patient underwent segmental resection of the small bowel and intestinal tuberculosis was confirmed on histological examination. He recovered after surgery and was discharged on anti-tuberculosis medication.

A Case of Adult Intussusception Induced by Intestinal Tuberculosis / 결핵및호흡기질환

Intussusception primarily occurs in children and is uncommon in adults. Moreover, intussusception caused by intestinal tuberculosis is very rare. We report a case of intussusception induced by intestinal tuberculosis. A 53-year-old man presented to our hospital with complaints of cough and sputum for 2 weeks. We started anti-tuberculosis medication as the patient's sputum acid-fast staining was positive. After 4 days of treatment, the patient developed abdominal cramping pain. Imaging studies showed ileo-ileal type intussusception. The patient underwent segmental resection of the small bowel and intestinal tuberculosis was confirmed on histological examination. He recovered after surgery and was discharged on anti-tuberculosis medication.

A Large Hematoma Due to Benign Ulcer Perforation of the Gastric Fundus Resembling Submucosal Tumor / 대한소화기내시경학회지

The gastric fundus is a rare site for benign ulcer and perforation to occur. A 47 year-old male presented to the emergency department with epigastric pain. An endoscopic examination revealed a submucosal tumor-like lesion with friable, superficial ulceration in the high body of the stomach. We performed surgical resection to rule out malignancy because of the lesion's large size and we found chronic gastric ulcer perforation, which was pathologically diagnosed. We presumed that the formation of the large hematoma, which mimicked a submucosal tumor, was a result of repeated bleeding, perforation and healing. We report here on a case of a large hematoma due to a benign gastric ulcer perforation in the fundus, and this all mimicked a submucosal tumor.

Synchronous development of KIT positive acute myeloid leukemia in a patient with gastrointestinal stromal tumor

We report a case of synchronous occurrence of KIT-positive acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST). A 63-year-old woman was hospitalized for dizziness, and abdominal computed tomography revealed an exophytic gastric mass and hepatic metastasis. The patient was diagnosed with GIST and was administered imatinib (400 mg/day) for the metastatic unresectable tumor. After 2 weeks of imatinib treatment, the patient developed pancytopenia, which persisted even after the drug was discontinued, thereby necessitating bone marrow biopsy. Biopsy examination indicated AML, and karyotyping revealed a complex karyotype. We did not observe point mutations at residues D816 and N822 of KIT. Therefore, the patient received standard induction chemotherapy, but on the 18th day after completion of chemotherapy, she died of septic shock and multi-organ failure. Since KIT plays an important role in both GIST and AML, we consider that both these malignancies may have been associated with each other.