Risk Factors for Asymptomatic Colon Diverticulosis.

BACKGROUNDS/AIMS: The etiology of colon diverticulosis is related to a range of genetic, biological, and environmental factors, but the risk factors for asymptomatic diverticulosis of the colon are unclear. This study examined the risk factors for asymptomatic colon diverticulosis. METHODS: This retrospective study included examinees who underwent a colonoscopy for screening at the health check-up center of SAM Hospital between January 2016 and December 2016. The examinees with colon diverticulosis found by colonoscopy were compared with those without diverticulosis. The comparison factors were age, gender, alcohol consumption, smoking status, medical history, lipid profile, body mass index, visceral fat area, waist-hip ratio, and severity of a fatty liver. RESULTS: This study included 937 examinees and the overall prevalence of diverticulosis was 8.1% (76/937). Fatty liver was found in 69.7% (53/76) in cases of colon diverticulosis and 50.3% (433/861) in the control group (p=0.001). The average waist-hip ratio was 0.92±0.051 in colon diverticulosis and 0.90±0.052 in the control group (p=0.052). Multivariate analysis revealed the waist-hip ratio (OR=1.035, 95% CI 1.000-1.070, p=0.043), moderate fatty liver (OR=2.238, 95% CI 1.026-4.882, p=0.043), and severe fatty liver (OR=5.519, 95% CI 1.236-21.803, p=0.025) to be associated with an increased risk of asymptomatic colon diverticulosis. CONCLUSIONS: The waist-hip ratio, moderate fatty liver, and severe fatty liver are risk factors for asymptomatic colon diverticulosis. Central obesity, which can be estimated by the waist-hip ratio, and fatty liver might affect the pathogenesis of asymptomatic colon diverticulosis.

Anesthetic efficacy of an inferior alveolar nerve block in soft tissue and correlation between soft tissue and pulpal anesthesia.

OBJECTIVES: This study was aimed at evaluating the anesthetic success rates in various regions of soft tissue after inferior alveolar nerve (IAN) block and comparing the success rates of soft tissue anesthesia with those of pulpal anesthesia to find correlations. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Fifty-nine dental students received an IAN block injection. A total of four test sites were used for soft tissue anesthesia using a pressure algometer (PA): the corner of the lower lip vermilion border (LL); the buccal-attached gingiva of the lateral incisor (BGI), the molar (BGM), and the lingual gingiva (LG). The lateral incisor (LI) and the first molar (M1) were evaluated for pulpal anesthesia using an electric pulp tester. To evaluate whether soft tissue anesthesia can be an indicator of pulpal anesthesia, the positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) were calculated. RESULTS: The highest success rate for soft tissue anesthesia was seen on the LG (93.9%), followed by LL (79.6%), BGI (53.1%), and BGM (14.3%). The PPVs of LL for the M1 and Ll were 74.4 and 59.0%. The NPVs for the M1 and LI were much higher in the LL (90.0 and 100%, respectively) than in the BGI (56.5 and 69.6%, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: The highest success rate was found in the LG. Lip numbness was not an indicator of pulpal anesthesia of M1 and LI. However, if the LL was not anesthetized, the probabilities of failed pulpal anesthesia were very high in the LI and M1. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: The clinicians need to consider not doing an additional lingual nerve block after IAN block.

Characterizing the Lateral Border of the Frontalis for Safe and Effective Injection of Botulinum Toxin.

BACKGROUND: The forehead is a common site for injection of botulinum neurotoxin type A (BoNT-A) to treat hyperactive facial muscles. Unexpected side effects of BoNT-A injection may occur because the anatomy of the forehead musculature is not fully characterized. OBJECTIVES: The authors described the lateral border of the frontalis in terms of facial landmarks and reference lines to determine the safest and most effective forehead injection sites for BoNT-A. METHODS: The hemifaces of 49 embalmed adult Korean cadavers were dissected in a morphometric analysis of the frontalis. L2 was defined in terms of FT (the most protruding point of the frontotemporal region), L0 (the line connecting the infraorbital margin with the tragus), and L1 (the line parallel to L0 and passing through FT) such that L2 was positioned 45° from L1 and passed through FT. RESULTS: The distance from FT to the superior margin of the orbicularis oculi was 12.3 ± 3.3 mm. The frontalis extended more than 5 cm along L2 in 49 of 49 cases (100%), more than 6 cm in 47 cases (95.9%), more than 7 cm in 34 cases (69.4%), more than 8 cm in 11 cases (22.4%), and more than 9 cm in 3 cases (6.1%). The lateral border of the frontalis ran parallel to and within 1 cm of the medial side of L2. CONCLUSIONS: Surface anatomy mapping can assist with predicting the lateral border of the frontalis to minimize the side effects and maximize the efficiency of BoNT-A injections into the forehead.

Apical-sparing variant of stress cardiomyopathy: Integrative analysis with multidetector row cardiac computed tomography in dual-energy mode.

Stress cardiomyopathy is a unique reversible cardiac syndrome that is frequently precipitated by a physical or emotionally stressful event and has a clinical presentation that is indistinguishable from a myocardial infarction. We describe the case of a patient with apical sparing variant of stress cardiomyopathy in whom dual energy cardiac CT identified characteristic regional wall motion abnormality without concomitant coronary artery disease and myocardial perfusion defects.

Increased expression of intracystic matrix metalloproteinases in brain tumors: relationship to the pathogenesis of brain tumor-associated cysts and peritumoral edema.

Although several types of brain tumors are commonly associated with cyst formation, the pathogenesis of tumor-associated cysts (TAC) is unknown. We investigated the matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) expression of cyst fluids to elucidate the pathogenesis of TAC in brain tumors. We also examined the relationship between the severity of peritumoral edema and the expression of intracystic MMP. We collected 40 cyst fluid samples from 34 patients with TAC and studied the expression of MMP-2 and -9 in the cyst fluid using gelatin zymography. Radiological studies were used to estimate the severity of the peritumoral edema and to determine the presence of TAC. Although gelatin zymography of the cyst fluid showed high levels of MMPs, there was no correlation between the expression of MMPs in the cyst fluid and that in the tumor tissue. The level of MMP expression in the cyst fluid did not reflect the pathologic grade of the individual tumors. However, the total and activated MMP-9 levels were significantly associated with the severity of the peritumoral edema (p<0.05). These results suggest that MMPs may be partly involved in the pathogenesis of TAC and peritumoral edema in brain tumors.