Gua Sha, An Asian Traditional Therapy That Could Mimic Physical Injury / 대한법의학회지

Gua Sha is a traditional Asian medicine with different names in many Asian countries. It is a treatment to scrape the petechiae of the skin with ointment. It has generally been administered to patients with upper respiratory infections, heat syndrome, and pain. Herein, we report the case of a 31-year-old Cambodian man who was found dead at a farm accommodation. During the autopsy, multiple linear intradermal hemorrhages without subcutaneous damage were observed in the upper chest and both shoulders. The cause of death was sudden unexpected nocturnal death syndrome because he was a young Asian man who died while sleeping without specific findings. Since it is an unfamiliar traditional medicine in Korea compared to other Asian countries, forensic officers without background knowledge about Gua Sha initially suspected that he was severely assaulted or pressed against a particular object enough to cause crush asphyxia. Because of the difficulty of going to the hospital during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, Gua Sha was used to treat headaches and mild fever. Therefore, this case shows that understanding the culture of other countries could be helpful for investigations especially with the increase of multicultural families in Korea.

B Cell Immunophenotyping and Transcriptional Profiles of Memory B Cells in Patients with Myasthenia Gravis

Myasthenia gravis (MG) is an autoimmune neuromuscular junction disorders mediated by various autoantibodies. Although most patients with MG require chronic immunosuppressive treatment to control disease activity, appropriate surveillance biomarkers that monitor disease activity or potential toxicity of immunosuppressants are yet to be developed. Herein, we investigated quantitative distribution of peripheral blood B cell subsets and transcriptional profiles of memory B cells (CD19+ CD27+) in several subgroups of MG patients classified according to the Myasthenia Gravis Foundation of America (MGFA) Clinical Classification. This study suggests potential immunologic B-cell markers that may guide treatment decision in future clinical settings.

Sarcopenic Obesity in Elderly Korean Women: A Nationwide Cross-sectional Study

BACKGROUND: Sarcopenia causes loss of muscle mass in the elderly and is associated with development of metabolic syndrome in those with obesity. This study evaluated the prevalence of sarcopenic obesity (SO) in healthy Korean elderly women. METHODS: This study was based on data from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey IV and V, 2008–2011. Whole body dual energy X-ray absorptiometry and body mass index measurement were performed for all patients. Women aged 65 years or older were included in this study. Total appendicular extremity muscle mass was used to determine the skeletal muscle mass index. RESULTS: Of 2,396 women aged 65 years or older, a total of 1,491 (62.2%) were underweight, normal weight, or overweight, while 905 (37.8%) were obese. The prevalence of sarcopenia using a cut-off value of 5.4 kg/m2 was 64.9% (63/97) in underweight women, 38.2% (320/838) in normal weight women, 17.1% (95/556) in overweight women, and 6.1% (55/905) in obese women. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of sarcopenia was different among groups. The prevalence rate in obese women was lower than that in non-obese women. SO is a new category of obesity in older adults with high adiposity coupled with low muscle mass. The prevalence of SO was lower than that in previous studies because of differences in the definition. A consensus definition of SO needs to be established.

Sarcopenia: Neurological Point of View

Sarcopenia is an age-related geriatric syndrome which is characterized by the gradual loss of muscle mass, muscle strength, and muscle quality. There are a lot of neurologic insults on sarcopenia at various levels from the brain to the neuromuscular junctions (NMJs) to generate a volitional task. Dopaminergic downregulation, inadequate motor programming and motor coordination impairment lead to decline of supraspinal drive. Motor unit reorganization and inflammatory changes in motor neuron decrease conduction velocity and amplitude of compound muscle action potential. Furthermore, NMJ remodeling and age related neurophysiological alterations may contribute to neuromuscular impairment. Sarcopenia is an age-associated, lifelong process which links to multiple etiological factors. Although not all the causes are completely understood, we suggest that compromised nervous system function may be one of the important contributors to the sarcopenia.

Freezing of Gait in Extrapontine Myelinolysis

A 65-year-old female visited us due to gait disturbance. A neurological examination showed cognitive impairment, dystonia, myoclonus, bradykinesia, postural instability, and freezing of gait (FOG). She was diagnosed with extrapontine myelinolysis based on her history of hyponatremia and high signal intensities (HSIs) in both striata on T2-weighted images. Her neurological problems including FOG improved over 25 days. In a follow-up MRI 50 days after the onset, HSIs disappeared in the striata but new ones appeared in the pons. FOG may have been related to striatal dysfunction in this patient.

A Fatal Case of Full-Blown Neuro-Behcet Disease / 대한임상신경생리학회지

We reported a 48-year-old man with Behcet disease, who presented with right hemiparesis. His first brain MRI showed multiple enhanced lesions. During the recovery, he had an episode of left 6th nerve palsy without new lesions in a follow-up MRI. Third episode was cervical myelitis, resulting in respiratory difficulty and quadriplegia without any reflexes. The myelitis was not responsive to immunotherapy. He died of respiratory failure complicated with pneumonia. This is a rare case of full-blown neuro-Behcet disease.

Regrowth of Internal Carotid Artery Aneurysm after Neck Clipping Surgery Presenting with Compressive Optic Neuropathy / 대한임상신경생리학회지

No abstract available.

Superior Rectus-Levator Palpebrae Complex Myositis Presenting as Isolated Painless Ptosis

No abstract available.