Rash in Psychiatric and Nonpsychiatric Adolescent Patients Receiving Lamotrigine in Korea: A Retrospective Cohort Study

OBJECTIVE: Lamotrigine is a widely used medication for psychiatric disorders and epilepsy, but the adverse effects of this drug in adolescent Korean patients have not yet been investigated. In the present study, we sought to compare the incidence and impact of lamotrigine-induced skin rashes and different pattern of adverse events in psychiatric and nonpsychiatric adolescent patients. METHODS: Using a retrospective cohort design, all of the charts were reviewed for adolescents (13 to 20 years old), treated with lamotrigine during the previous 2 years in the Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Clinic and Pediatric Neurologic Clinic of the Ulsan University Hospital in South Korea. RESULTS: Of the 102 subjects, 23 patients developed a skin rash. All of these rashes were observed within 7 weeks of the initiation of the lamotrigine therapy. Only one subject developed a serious rash, which was diagnosed as Stevens-Johnson syndrome. Although the psychiatric subjects were administered statistically lower doses of lamotrigine during weeks 1 through 5 and at week 12, the likelihood of developing a rash was not significantly different between the psychiatric and nonpsychiatric patients. CONCLUSION: Careful dose escalation and close observation of side effects for the first 7 weeks of treatment is important. The present study reveals the tolerability of lamotrigine in an adolescent population, although a double-blind, controlled trial is needed to confirm these findings.

Switching from Methylphenidate-Immediate Release (MPH-IR) to Methylphenidate-OROS (OROS-MPH): A Multi-center, Open-label Study in Korea

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of methylphenidate HCL OROS extended-release (OROS-MPH) among children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) who had been previously treated with methylphenidate HCL immediate-release (MPH-IR). METHODS: The sample included 102 children aged 6-12 (9.4+/-2.6) years who had been diagnosed with ADHD according the criteria of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-Fourth Edition (DSM-IV; American Psychiatric Association, 1994) and who were attending seven centers in Korea. All participants had been medicated with a stable dose of MPH (10-60 mg/day) for at least 3 weeks before entry into the study. Doses of OROS-MPH were comparable to daily doses of MPH. Efficacy was assessed at baseline (day 0) and at day 28 with the Inattentive-Overactive with Aggression (IOWA) Conners Rating Scale, which was completed by parents/caregivers and teachers, the Peer Interaction Rating Items, which were completed by teachers, and the Clinical Global Impression (CGI) scale, which was completed by child psychiatrists. Paired t-tests were used, and P-values were set at the 0.05 level. RESULTS: Of the subjects, 92.2% were boys and 79.4% were students in the first to fourth grades of elementary school. 72% were diagnosed with the combined type of ADHD, 23% were diagnosed with the inattentive type, and 5% were diagnosed with the hyperactive-impulsive type. The results of the parents' responses to the Inattention/Hyperactivity (I/H) and Oppositional/Defiant (O/D) subscales of the IOWA Conners scale indicated statistically significant improvement in childrens behavior after 4 weeks of treatment with OROS-MPH (t=6.28, p<.001, t=4.12, p<.001). However, the teachers' responses to the Conners I/H and O/D subscales indicated no significant improvement at 4 weeks. The teachers also reported no significant improvements under the OROS-MPH compared with the MPH-IR condition with respect to peer interactions. Scores on the CGI scale showed that 46.1% of children with ADHD were rated by psychiatrists as "minimally improved", 27.5% as "much improved," 1.0% as "very much improved," 3.9% as "minimally worse," and 16.7% as showing "no change". Children exhibited significantly fewer tics with OROS-MPH treatment than with MPH-IR treatment (19.6% vs. 27.7%). We found no differences between in sleep and appetite problems according to medication. CONCLUSION: The results of this study indicated that an MPH-IR regimen can be successfully changed to a once-daily OROS-MPH regimen without any serious adverse effects. The changes in parent/caregiver IOWA Conners ratings suggested that OROS-MPH improved the control of symptoms after school, a finding that is consistent with the 12-h duration of action of this medication. Because the therapeutic effect of OROS-MPH is sufficiently longer than that of a b.i.d. dose of MPH-IR, OROS-MPH had significant positive effects on oppositional/defiant behavior in addition to its effects on the core symptoms of ADHD.

The Side Effects and Correlates of OROS-Methylphenidate in the Treatment of Children and Adolescents with ADHD

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of the clinical and demographic variables such as body weight, dosage, family history of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and psychiatric co-morbidity on the side-effects of OROS-Methylphenidate (OROS-MPH), and to evaluate the relationship between drug response and side effect severity. METHODS: A total of 144 children (ages 6-18) with diagnosed ADHD were treated with OROS-MPH. Children were examined at baseline and after 1, 3, 6, 9, and 12 weeks of each treatment condition. The stimulant drug side effect rating scale (SERS), pulse rate, systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, and electrocardiogram (ECG) were evaluated to assess side effect profiles. Changes in these parameters from baseline were examined and analyzed. RESULTS: Anorexia (30.95%) and insomnia (13.10%) were the most commonly reported side effects during this study. Insomnia and loss of appetite score increased at one week follow-up, but was sustained or decreased as treatment progressed. Small but significant increases in pulse rate and diastolic blood pressure were observed during treatment; however, no clinically meaningful changes in ECG parameters were noted during the study. Low body weight, high dosage of OROS-MPH, and family history of ADHD were associated with cardiovascular side effect. In contrast, there was no significant relationship between OROS-MPH treatment response and the severity of side effect and no difference resulted between the responder and non-responder groups with respect to OROS-MPH dosage in the 12 weeks of follow-up. CONCLUSION: To the best of our knowledge, this study is the first Korean study to investigate comprehensive side effect profiles and their correlates in OROS-MPH treatment for ADHD children. OROS-MPH was well tolerated with no clinically significant side effects during the treatment period. In conclusion, low body weight, high dosage of OROS-MPH, and family history of ADHD could be used as predictive factors in increasing pulse rate and blood pressure.

Screening for Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder for Children in Seoul / 신경정신의학

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study is to investigate a cut-off value for screening children with ADHD in community based sample using the Korean Child Behavior Checklist (K-CBCL) and the Korean ADHD Rating Scale (K-ARS). METHODS: Children aged 6 to 8 (n=661) participated in this study. The K-CBCL and the K-ARS were used as the screening instruments. Diagnoses were confirmed through the Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children Version IV (DISC-IV). RESULTS: Of the 189 subjects who underwent the DISC-IV, 26 subjects were diagnosed as ADHD. In the K-CBCL, scores in the attention problems, externalizing problems and total behavioral problems were positively correlated with the total score of the K-ARS. The K-ARS-Parent version (K-ARS-P) and above three scales in the K-CBCL showed significant screening validity in the ROC curve analysis. The reasonable level of sensitivity, specificity, and negative predictive value were obtained in the total scores > or =90th percentile in the K-ARS-Parent and > or =60T scores in the K-CBCL attention problems. The optimal level of specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value were obtained when combined the K-CBCL (> or =60T scores in the attention problems and > or =63T scores in the total problems) and the total scores > or =90th percentile in the K-ARS-P. CONCLUSION: The combined use of the K-CBCL and the K-ARS-P may serve as useful screening methods for ADHD children.

A Case of Anterior uveitis Following Influenza Vaccination

PURPOSE: To report one case of anterior uveitis following influenza vaccination in immunecompromised patient. METHODS: A 63-year-old woman with anterior uveitis following influenza vaccination 9 days after ovarian cancer chemotherapy was examined systematically and treated with 1% prednisolone eyedrop and dexamethasone subconjunctival injection. RESULTS: At the first visit, the corrected vision and intraocular pressure were 0.3 and 23 mmHg in both eyes. And, corneal edema and inflammatory cells in anterior chamber and vitreous were found, but there was no abnormal finding in fundus photography, fluorescein angiography and systemic evaluation. Although the response to steroid treatment was slow, she got better ophthalmologically and no problem in follow checkup 6 months later. CONCLUSIONS: We report a case of anterior uveitis following influenza vaccination in an immunocompromised patient after chemotheraphy and recommend to be cautious in influenza vaccination in the suspicious case of immunecompromized state.

Two Cases of Boston (Dohlman-Doane) Type I Keratoprosthesis

PURPOSE: This article reports two cases of Boston (Dohlman-Doane) Type I Keratoprosthesis procedures that were performed for the first time in Korea. METHODS: Using the Boston Type I keratoprosthesis, we implanted ultimately these to two cases of corneal blinded patients. RESULTS: Two Boston (Dohlman-Doane) Type I Keratoprosthesis procedures were performed successfully. The first case had poor visual prognosis due to preexisting optic neuropathy and vitreous hemorrhage, but was showed better for cosmetic effect. The second case had maintained an uncorrected visual acuity of 0.1 at postoperative 3 months. CONCLUSIONS: We hope to perform additional procedures and long-term follow-ups to further evaluate this new surgical technique for stability and efficiency.

Correlation between Retinal Nerve Fiber Layer Thickness and Visual Field in Normal Tension Glaucoma

PURPOSE: This study was performed to evaluate the validity of optical coherence tomography 3000 (OCT3) in the diagnosis of normal tension glaucoma (NTG). METHODS: One-hundred and eighty eyes with NTG or glaucomatous optic disc changes by direct ophthalmoscope and 51 normal eyes were included. Mean deviation (MD) and pattern standard deviation (PSD) were acquired by the Humphrey visual field analyzer. Mean retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness was measured by OCT3. We analyzed the relationships between MD and mean RNFL thickness, PSD, and mean RNFL thickness. We also analyzed differences in the change of mean RNFL thickness according to the change of visual field defect progression. RESULTS: MD and PSD were proportional to the mean RNFL thickness, using the Pearson correlation coefficient: 0.418 (p=0.001) and -0.397 (p=0.002), respectively. There was a significant decrease in the mean RNFL thickness according to the visual field defect severity. Particular, the RNFL thickness of the superior and inferior quadrants were significantly decreased in the severe visual field defect groups. The difference between the mean RNFL thicknesses in pre-perimetric glaucoma between the normal eye and early glaucoma groups was not statistically significant. CONCLUSIONS: The mean RNFL thickness measured by OCT3 could be considered as valid parameter for the diagnosis of NTG. For early diagnosis of glaucoma, however, visual field test must be considered with OCT3.