Yonsei medical journal
-
The anterior clinoid process and the optic strut are often removed during operation on the anterior part of the cavernous sinus. Therefore it is important for neurosurgeons to verify their dimensions and variations. The purpose of this study was to investigate the dimension and the variation of the anterior clinoid process and to describe the locational variation of the optic strut. ⋯ The average thickness of the optic strut was 2.9 +/- 1.15 mm and it was commonly attached to anterior two-fifths of the anterior clinoid process. The complete caroticoclinoid canal was observed in 4.1%, however it was incomplete in 11.6%. The incidence of a caroticoclinoid canal in Koreans was relatively low compared with other races.
-
Yonsei medical journal · Dec 1995
Effects of dexamethasone on laryngeal edema following short-term intubation.
Following short-term intubation for general anesthesia, respiratory difficulty may result from laryngeal or subglottic edema after extubation. We have hypothesized that this problem could be pretreated by administering a high-dose of dexamethasone intravenously before extubation. After glottic injuries were made under direct laryngoscopic view, intubation was performed and maintained for 1 hour in 33 rabbits. ⋯ Histologic sections of the larynges showed less submucosal edema, including other changes in group 1 and 2, than in group 3(P<0.05). In conclusion, administering a high-dose of dexamethasone before extubation, is effective in prophylaxis and treatment of laryngeal injuries following short-term intubation in rabbits. This is especially true in edema.
-
Yonsei medical journal · Nov 1995
Relationship of change in body mass to blood pressure among children in Korea and black and white children in the United States.
Body mass is a major factor in determining blood pressure levels in children. We compared associations of body mass with blood pressure in 121 white and 91 black children in Bogalusa, Louisiana with that of 370 children in Kangwha, Korea. All children were seven years old at entry into the study and were followed for three years. ⋯ Change in blood pressure level was positively associated with change in body mass index for systolic (but not diastolic) levels; however, the association was no stronger for Korean than for U. S. children, except for Korean males vs Bogalusa black males. Cross-cultural studies of other factors, such as diet and physical activity, may explain these differences.
-
Yonsei medical journal · Sep 1995
Mechanism of transmission and modulation of renal pain in cats; effect of nucleus raphe magnus stimulation on renal pain.
Initially, when periaqueductal gray (PAG) is electrically stimulated, analgesia is induced, and this phenomenon is called stimulation-produced analgesia. Nucleus raphe magnus (NRM) as well as PAG are known to be the potent analgesic centers. NRM could modulate the nociceptive response of spinal cord neurons through spinally projecting fibers. ⋯ The main results are summarized as follows: 1) After an electrical stimulation of NRM, spontaneous activities of dorsal horn neurons with renal input were reduced to 73.3 +/- 9.7% of the control value. 2) After an electrical stimulation of NRM, activities of dorsal horn neurons with renal input evoked by a brush, a type of non-noxious stimuli, did not change significantly. But the activities by a squeeze, a type of noxious stimuli, the activities were reduced to 63.2 +/- 7.2% of the control value. 3) After an electrical stimulation of NRM, activities of dorsal horn neurons with renal input evoked by occlusion of ureter or renal artery were reduced to 46.7 +/- 8.8% and 49.0 +/- 8.0% of the control value respectively. 4) The inhibitory effect of NRM on the dorsal horn neurons with renal input did not show any difference between renal A delta fiber and C fiber group. 5) By the electrical stimulation of NRM, the activities evoked by ureteral occlusion showed more reduction in the high threshold cell group than in the wide dynamic range cell group. These results suggest that activation of NRM can alleviate the renal pain as well as the somatic pain by modulating the dorsal horn neurons activities.
-
Yonsei medical journal · May 1995
Mechanism of transmission and modulation of renal pain in cats; effects of transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation on renal pain.
Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) has widely been employed as a method of obtaining analgesia in medical practice. The mechanisms of pain relief by TENS are known to be associated with the spinal gate control mechanism or descending pain inhibitory system. However, most of the studies concerning the analgesic effects and their mechanisms for TENS have dealt with somatic pain. ⋯ The main results are summarized as follows: 1) The renal nerve was composed of A beta, A delta and C fiber groups; the thresholds for each group were 400-800 mV, 1.1-1.5 V, and 2.1-5.8 V, respectively. 2) The dorsal horn cells tested received A and/or C afferent fibers from the kidney, and the more C inputs the dorsal horn cells had, the greater was the response to the stimuli that elicited the renal pain. 3) 94.9% of cells with renal input had the concomitant somatic receptive fields on the skin; the high threshold (HT) and wide dynamic range (WDR) cells exhibited a greater responses than low threshold (LT) cells to the renal pain-producing stimuli. 4) TENS reduced the C-responses of dorsal horn cells to 38.9 +/- 8.4% of the control value and the effect lasted for 10 min after the cessation of TENS. 5) By TENS, the responses evoked by acute occlusion of the ureter or renal artery were reduced to 37.5 +/- 9.7% and 46.3 +/- 8.9% of the control value, respectively. This analgesic effects lasted 10 min after TENS. 6) The responses elicited by squeezing the receptive fields of the skin were reduced to 40.7 +/- 7.9% of the control value and the effects lasted 15 min after TENS. These results suggest that most of dorsal horn cells with renal inputs have the concomitant somatic inputs and TENS can alleviate the renal pain as well as somatic pain.