Sudden Death and Ventricular Arrhythmias in Heart Failure With Preserved Ejection Fraction

Heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) accounts for approximately half of all heart failure (HF) cases. The prevalence of HFpEF is increasing due to an aging population with hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and obesity. HFpEF remains a challenging clinical entity due to a lack of effective treatment options. Traditional HF medications have not been shown to reduce mortality of patients with HFpEF, and an implantable cardioverterdefibrillator is not indicated due to normal ejection fraction. Sudden death is the most common mode of death in patients with HFpEF; however, the underlying mechanisms of sudden death are not fully elucidated. Although ventricular arrhythmias are responsible for the majority of sudden deaths in general, their contribution to sudden deaths in HFpEF patients is likely less significant. The mechanisms of ventricular arrhythmias in HFpEF are 1) reduced conduction velocity due to ventricular hypertrophy, 2) delayed repolarization due to potassium current down-regulation, 3) calcium leakage due to altered excitation-contraction coupling, and 4) increased ventricular fibrosis caused by systemic inflammation. Hypertension and subsequent ventricular hypertrophy reduce the conduction velocity in HFpEF hearts via heterogeneous distribution of connexin 43. Delayed repolarization caused by potassium current down-regulation in HFpEF hearts provides a window for early afterdepolarization to trigger ventricular arrhythmias. Altered excitation-contraction coupling in HFpEF can cause calcium to leak and trigger delayed afterdepolarization. Increased systemic inflammation and subsequent ventricular fibrosis provide substrates for re-entry. Further research is warranted to investigate the detailed mechanisms of ventricular arrhythmias in HFpEF.

Development of atrial flutter after induction of general anesthesia and conversion to atrial fibrillation: A case report

The most frequent perioperative cardiovascular event is cardiac dysrhythmia, defined as an abnormality of cardiac rate, rhythm or conduction. Although the occurrence of arrhythmia during the perioperative period is not uncommon, a case of newly developed perioperative atrial flutter which spontaneously converts to atrial fibrillation is rare. We report a case of atrial flutter that developed immediately after induction of general anesthesia, in a 70-year-old male patient who previously had a normal sinus rhythm. Atrial flutter changed spontaneously to atrial fibrillation after discharge to the recovery room. Dysrhythmia was unresponsive to drug therapy, and the atrial fibrillation disappeared after electric cardioversion.

Surgical Treatment of Pancreatic Trauma in Children

Debates exist about the appropriate treatment for pancreatic trauma in children. We intended to examine the safety of the operation of pancreatic trauma in children. This is a retrospective study of 13 patients, younger than 15, who underwent surgery for pancreatic trauma, between 1993 and 2011 in Seoul National University Children's Hospital. Medical records were reviewed for mechanism of trauma, clinical characteristics, radiological findings, operation and outcomes. Organ injury scaling from the AAST (American Association for Surgery of Trauma) was used. All injuries were caused by blunt trauma. Patients with grade III, IV, and those who were difficult to distinguish grade II from IV, underwent surgery due to severe peritonitis. Three patients with grade II were operated for reasons of mesenteric bleeding, tumor rupture of the pancreas, and progression of peritonitis. Distal pancreatectomy was performed in 10 patients and subtotal pancreatectomy and pylorus preserving pancreaticoduodenectomy in 1 patient each. The remaining one underwent surgical debridement because of severe adhesions. The location of injury, before and after operation, coincided in 83.3%. The degree of injury, before and after the operation, was identical in all the patients except for those who were difficult to tell apart grade II from grade IV, and those cannot be graded due to severe adhesion. Postoperative complications occurred in 23.1%, which improved with conservative treatment. Patients were discharged at mean postoperative 12(range 8~42) days. Even though patients with complications took longer in time from diagnosis to operation, time of trauma to operation and hospital stay, this difference was not significant. In conclusion, When pancreatic duct injury is present, or patient shows deterioration of clinical manifestation without evidence of definite duct injury, or trauma is accompanied by other organ injury or tumor rupture, operative management is advisable, and we believe it is a safe and feasible method of treatment.

A Case of Pituitary Abscess that was Difficult to Diagnose due to Repeated Symptomatic Responses to Every Corticosteroid Administration

Pituitary abscess is a rare pathology, but it is a potentially life-threatening condition. Therefore, timely intervention, including antibiotics and an operation, can prevent the morbidity and mortality in such cases. A 31-year-old woman, who was 16 months after her second delivery, presented with intermittent headache for 3 months. Amenorrhea, polyuria and polydipsia were noticed and the endocrinological hormone studies were compatible with panhypopituitarism and diabetes insipidus. Pituitary MRI demonstrated a 2.3 cm sized cystic mass with an upper small nodular lesion. Her symptoms such as headache and fever were repeatedly improved whenever corticosteroid was administered, which led us to suspect the diagnosis of an inflammatory condition like lymphocytic hypophysitis. During the hormone replacement therapy, her cystic pituitary mass had grown and her symptoms progressively worsened for another two months. The patient underwent trans-sphenoidal exploration and she turned out to have a pituitary abscess. At the 3-month follow-up, amenorrhea was noticed and her residual function of the pituitary was tested by a combined pituitary stimulation test. The results were compatible with panhypopituitarism. She received levothyroxine 100 microg, prednisolone 5 mg and desmopressin spray and she is being observed at the out-patient clinic. The authors experienced a patient with primary pituitary abscess that was confirmed pathologically and we report on its clinical course with a literature review.

Average Daily Risk Range-Index of Glycemic Variability-Related Factor in Type 2 Diabetic Inpatients / 당뇨병

BACKGROUND: It is known that chronic sustained hyperglycemia and its consequent oxidative stress causes diabetic complication in type 2 diabetes. It has been further proven that glycemic variability causes oxidative stress. The aim of this study is to measure the average daily risk range (ADDR)-index of glycemic variability, and to evaluate relevant variables. METHODS: We measured the blood glucose level of type 2 diabetic patients who were treated with multiple daily injections from January to July, 2008. The blood glucose levels were checked four times a day for 14 days and were conversed according to the ADRR formula. The degree of glycemic variability was categorized into non-fluctuation and fluctuation groups. We collected patient data on age, sex, duration of diabetes, body mass index, HOMA(IR), HOMA(betacell) and HbA1c. RESULTS: A total of 97 patients were enrolled in this study. The mean age, duration of diabetes, HbA1c and mean ADRR were 57.6 +/- 13.4, 11.5 +/- 8.5 years, 10.7 +/- 2.5%, and 26.6 +/- 9.8, respectively. We classified 18.5% of the patients to the non-fluctuation group, and 81.5% to the fluctuation group. ADRR was significantly correlated with duration of diabetes, fasting and postprandial glucose, fructosamine, HbA1c and BMI and HOMAbetacell. In addition, this study confirmed that BMI, HOMAbetacell and HbA1c were ADRR-related independent variables. CONCLUSION: ADRR can be used as an index for blood glucose fluctuation in type 2 diabetic patients. Measuring ADRR in patients with low BMI and a long duration of diabetes is helpful to improve the effectiveness of their care.

Treatment of Failed Internal Fixation of Intertrochanteric Fractures of Femur

PURPOSE: To compare the result of failed internal fixation of intertrochanteric fractures treated with arthroplasty and 95degrees angled blade plate. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From June 2000 to may 2003, there were 12 cases with failed internal fixation of intertrochanteric fractures among 185 cases treated with dynamic hip screw and followed up for more than 1 year. The 4 cases were treated with bipolar hemiarthroplasty, 1 case with total hip arthroplasty, and other 7 cases were treated with 95degrees angled blade plate with allograft, evaluated clinically the operation times, blood loss, walking ability and complication. RESULTS: In the 7 cases, which treated with 95degrees angled blade plate, the average operation time was 109 minutes, the average blood loss was 431 ml. The result of keeping abreast of 1 year, no aid ambulation was 4 cases, the cane ambulation was 2 cases, the walker ambulation was 1 case, and there was no pain in 3 cases, mild pain in 4 cases, and no moderate pain. In the 5 cases, which treated with arthroplasty, the average operation time was 157 minutes, the average blood loss was 618 ml. During 1 year, no aid ambulation was 3 cases, the cane ambulation was 1 case, the walker ambulation was 1 case, and no pain in 2 cases, mild pain in 1 case, moderate pain in 1 case. CONCLUSION: Both 95degrees angled blade plate and arthroplasty can be useful for failed internal fixation of intertrochanteric fractures, and the choice of implant must be determined with caution, considering the surgical conditions of patient, as well as benefits of each devices

A Case of Spontaneous Bacterial Peritonitis as the Presenting Feature in a Patient with Nephrotic Syndrome / 대한신장학회잡지

Although spontaneous bacterial peritonitis is a frequent complication in the childhood nephrotic syndrome, it is very rare in adults with nephrotic syndrome. It frequently develops when the patients are either in relapse or receiving steroid therapy at the time peritonitis is diagnosed. We report an unusual case of a spontaneous bacterial peritonitis as the presenting feature in a 15-year-old male patient with nephrotic syndrome. He presented with diffuse abdominal pain and distension for 15 days. Abdominal paracentesis revealed the diagnostic laboratory findings of peritonitis, and the bacterial culture of the ascites showed a mixed growth of Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruzinosa. His serum albu- min level was 1.6gldL and the amount of 24 hours proteinuria was 21.0g/day. Although he was treated with adequate antibiotics for 3 weeks, the peritonitis was more aggravated. We decided to insert a catheter into the peritoneal cavity for continuous drainage of the intractable ascites. Two weeks after drainage, the peritonitis improved as the peritonitis subsided, the proteinuria disappeared completely without a steroid therapy. Six months after spontaneous remission, the proteinuria have recurred, and the kidney biopsy then showed focal segmental glomerulorsclerosis.

A study on the correlationship of submentovertex view and lateral cephalogram measurements / 대한치과교정학회지

Cephalometric measureements have disadvantage of representing cranio-facial structures in two dimension only and therefore they pose limitations in describing three-dimentional structures of cranio-facial region. More interests have been put on the correlation between the two planes. This study evaluated correlations between facial type score, which allows effects on malocclusion, growth change prediction and establishment of treatment method and prognosis, and measurements from submentovertex view. Cephalometric view and submentovertex view were taken of skeletal Class I adults with optimal profile and correlations between them have been observed. Following results were obtained: 1. To learn about factors that influence average condylar angulation, FACE, INT-CO-ANG, MN-CORPUS, CON-RATIO, GON-RATIO, MN-RATIO were used as variables and underwent multiple regression analysis. As a result, the following equation was obtained : CON-AVE=.l73(FACE)-.322(INT-CO-ANG)+36.34(GON-RATIO) +.420(MN-CORPUS) (R2=.85451) 2. The following equation was obtained concerning facial type score. FACE= .050(CON-ANG)+.023(INT-CO-ANG)-.075(MN-CORPUS)(R2=.31547) 3. Among the submentovertex measurements, MN-CORPUS, CON-RATIO, GON-RATIO, MN-RATIO showed close correlations. (P<0.05) 4. Average condylar angualtions were 23.37degrees on the right and 20.71degrees on left. There was a difference between the two. FACE: facial type soore. CON-ANG: mean value of condylar angulation. CON-AVE: mean value of Rt. Lt condylar angulation. INT-CO-ANG: angle between Rt. Lt condylar axis. MN-CORPUS : angle formed between RT. Lt gonion & pogonion. CON-RATIO: lntercondylar distance/mandibular body length. GON-RATIO: intergonion distanoe/mandibular body length. MN-RATIO: lntermylohyoid distance/mandibular body length. MX-RATIO: intermaxillary tuberosity distance/ANS-PNS distance.