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ABSTRACT: Sodium intake is an important issue for patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). The two most widely used methods to measure sodium are 24-h urinary sodium excretion (24HUNa), which can be difficult to perform routinely, and sodium intake by dietary recall, which can be inaccurate. This study evaluated use of the mean value of three spot urinary sodium (UNa) concentrations to estimate daily sodium intake in patients with CKD.
This cross-sectional study enrolled 305 patients with CKD, none of whom were on dialysis, who visited the nephrology clinic at the Asan Medical Center (Seoul, Korea). We performed three spot UNa tests, three calculations of the UNa/creatinine (UCr) ratio, one measurement of 24HUNa, and one measurement of sodium intake by dietary recall.
The 24HUNa and mean spot UNa values were significantly lower in patients with more advanced CKD (P = 0.006 and P < 0.001, respectively). One-time spot UNa was significantly higher in the evening than in the morning for patients with stage III, IV, or V CKD. Total sodium intake, but not sodium nutrient density (milligrams of sodium per 1000 kcal), was significantly different for patients with different stages of CKD (P = 0.001). The correlation coefficient between 24HUNa and mean spot UNa was 0.477 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.384-0.562, P < 0.001), slightly higher than that between 24HUNa excretion and mean spot UNa/UCr (r = 0.313, 95% CI 0.207-0.465, P < 0.001). There was a linear relation between spot UNa and 24HUNa: mean spot UNa = 0.27 × 24HUNa + 60. Therefore, a 24HUNa excretion of 87 mEq (sodium intake 2 g/d) corresponded to a mean spot UNa level of 83 mEq/L. The correlation coefficient between sodium intake and mean spot UNa was 0.435 (95% CI 0.336-0.524, P < 0.001), significantly higher than that between sodium intake and mean spot UNa/UCr (r = 0.197, 95% CI 0.091-0.301, P = 0.001). Mean spot UNa tended to be better correlated with 24HUNa than with sodium intake.
Mean spot UNa is a simple and effective method that can be used to monitor sodium intake in patients with CKD. A daily intake of 2 g of sodium corresponds to a mean spot UNa level of approximately 83 mEq/L in patients with CKD.
Nutrition 03/2012; 28(3):256-61. · 3.03 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: To identify differences in radiologic assessment methods and determine optimal imaging criteria for response evaluation in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients treated with chemoembolization.
Institutional review board approval was obtained, and patient informed consent was waived. The present study included 332 patients with intermediate stage HCC and Child-Pugh A cirrhosis who underwent serial chemoembolization. All measurable target lesions of 1 cm or larger in diameter were uni- and bidimensionally measured both at baseline and during follow-up. Intermodel agreement among the guidelines of the World Health Organization (WHO), Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (RECIST), the European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL), and modified RECIST (mRECIST) were examined. The most reliable model was selected on the basis of the correlation with survival prediction.
The κ values of comparisons among WHO, RECIST, and mRECIST guidelines were less than 0.20, whereas the κ value for the comparison of EASL and mRECIST guidelines was 0.94. In patients with a partial response (PR), stable disease (SD), or progressive disease (PD), compared with patients with a complete response (CR), hazard ratios (HRs) for survival were 2.99 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 2.14, 4.17), 3.49 (95% CI: 1.71, 7.10), and 15.63 (95% CI: 9.51, 25.69), respectively, for EASL criteria. In patients with a PR, SD, or PD, compared with patients with a CR, the HRs were 2.75 (95% CI: 1.96, 3.87), 6.32 (95% CI: 3.67, 10.90), and 16.06 (95% CI: 9.76, 26.43), respectively, for mRECIST guidelines (P<.001). The C index for the multivariate model was 0.76 (95% CI: 0.72, 0.79) for both EASL and mRECIST guidelines, thus exhibiting satisfactory capability to help predict survival. The Cox regression model revealed that both mRECIST and EASL guidelines were independent predictors of overall survival (P<.001 for both).
The enhancement models more accurately helped predict long-term survival in HCC patients treated with chemoembolization.
Radiology 12/2011; 262(2):708-18. · 5.73 Impact Factor
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Kwi-Sook Choi,
Hwoon-Yong Jung,
Kee Don Choi,
Gin Hyug Lee,
Ho June Song,
Do Hoon Kim,
Jeong Hoon Lee,
Mi-Young Kim,
Byung Sik Kim,
Sung Tae Oh,
Jeong Hwan Yook,
Se Jin Jang,
Sung-Cheol Yun, Seon Ok Kim,
Jin-Ho Kim
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ABSTRACT: Limited data exist regarding the long-term outcomes of EMR compared with gastrectomy.
To compare the long-term outcomes after EMR and surgery.
Retrospective analysis with propensity-score matching.
Tertiary care center.
This study involved 215 patients with intramucosal gastric cancer completely removed by EMR and 843 patients who underwent curative surgical resection between January 1997 and August 2002. Propensity-score matching yielded 551 matched patients.
EMR versus surgery.
Death and recurrence.
In the matched cohort, there were no significant between-group differences in the risk of death (hazard ratio [HR] for the EMR group 1.39; 95% CI, 0.87-2.23) or recurrence (HR 1.18; 95% CI, 0.22-6.35). Although patients who underwent EMR had higher risk of metachronous gastric cancers (HR 6.72; 95% CI, 2.00-22.58), all recurrent or metachronous gastric cancers after EMR were successfully re-treated without affecting overall survival. Although complication rates were similar (odds ratio 0.84; 95% CI, 0.41-1.70), there were no mortalities in the EMR group compared with 2 in the surgery group. The EMR group had a significantly shorter hospital stay (median 8 days, interquartile range [IQR] 6-11 days vs 15 days, IQR 12-19 days; P<.001) and lower cost of care ($2049, IQR $1586-2425 vs $4042, IQR $3458-4959; P<.001).
Retrospective, nonrandomized study.
EMR was comparable to surgery in terms of risk of death and recurrence. Because of its lower medical costs and shorter duration of hospital stay, EMR has advantages over surgery.
Gastrointestinal endoscopy 03/2011; 73(5):942-8. · 6.71 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: The clinical manifestations of severe asthma are heterogeneous. Some individuals with severe asthma develop irreversible fixed airway obstruction, which is associated with poor outcomes. We therefore investigated the factors associated with fixed airway obstruction in Korean patients with severe asthma.
Severe asthma patients from a Korean adult asthma cohort were divided into two groups according to the results of serial pulmonary function tests. One group had fixed airway obstruction (FAO) [forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1)/forced vital capacity (FVC) ratio < 0.7, n = 119] and the other had reversible airway obstruction (RAO) [FEV1/FVC ratio ≥ 0.7, n = 116]. Clinical and demographic parameters were compared between the two groups.
Multivariate analysis showed that longer duration of disease, greater amount of cigarette smoking and absence of rhinosinusitis were significantly related to the development of FAO in severe asthmatics. Other parameters, including atopic status, pattern of airway inflammatory cells in induced sputum, and frequency of asthma exacerbations did not differ between the FAO and RAO groups.
Severe asthma patients with longer disease duration and the absence of rhinosinusitis are more likely to develop FAO. This study also demonstrates the importance of quitting smoking in order to prevent irreversible airway obstruction. Further investigation is required to determine the mechanism by which these factors can modify the disease course in Korean patients with severe asthma.
Respiratory research 01/2011; 12:1. · 3.36 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: In this prospective study, we compared the long-term cognitive and behavioral effects of lamotrigine (LTG) and carbamazepine (CBZ) in patients with newly diagnosed or untreated partial epilepsy.
This was a multicenter, open-label, randomized study that compared monotherapy with LTG and CBZ in newly diagnosed or untreated patients with partial epilepsy. We employed an 8-week titration period and a 40-week maintenance period. Neuropsychological tests, Symptom Check List-90, and QOLIE-31 were assessed at baseline, 16 weeks, and 48 weeks after drug treatment. A group-by-time interaction was the primary outcome measure and was analyzed by use of the linear mixed model.
A total of 110 patients were eligible and 73 completed the 48-week study (LTG, n=39; CBZ, n=34). Among the cognitive tests, significant group-by-time interaction was identified only in phonemic fluency of Controlled Oral Word Association Task (p=0.0032) and Stroop Color-Word Interference (p=0.0283), with a significant better performance for LTG group. All other neuropsychological tests included did not show significant group-by-time interactions. Among the subscales of Symptom Check List-90, significant group-by-time interactions were identified in Obsessive-Compulsive (p=0.0005), Paranoid Ideation (p=0.0454), Global Severity Index (p=0.0194), and Positive Symptom Total (p=0.0197), with a significant improvement for CBZ group. QOLIE-31 did not show significant group-by-time interactions.
Our data suggest that epilepsy patients on LTG have better performance on phonemic fluency and the task of Stroop Color-Word Interference than do patients on CBZ, whereas patients on CBZ had more favorable behavioral effects on two subscales and two global scores of Symptom Check List-90 than did patients on LTG.
Seizure 11/2010; 20(1):49-54. · 1.80 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: Vitiligo and nevus depigmentosus (ND) present similar hypopigmented macules with significantly different prognoses. Although the distinction between the two diseases is important, differential diagnosis relies on medical history and physical examination, which is far from decisive in some cases. The Mexameter is an objective skin color-measuring device, and has been reported to provide a reproducible and sensitive means of quantifying small skin color differences. In this study, we investigated the usefulness of a Mexameter for discriminating these diseases.
A selection of 202 hypopigmented skin lesions (182 from vitiligo and 20 from ND) were the objects of this study. Using a Mexameter, MIs were obtained from lesions and symmetrically located control skin. RMIs, ratios of the MIs of lesional skins to control skins, were calculated.
The mean MIs and RMIs were significantly different for vitiligo and ND. The mean RMI of ND lesions was 74+/-13, which was significantly higher than that of vitiligo lesions (50+/-24). No ND lesion had an RMI of <50%.
This study shows that the Mexameter, an objective pigment-measuring device, can be used to achieve a more accurate diagnosis of hypopigmentary disorders, and that the relative melanin index (RMI), which represents the relative pigment levels, might be a more effective parameter than the melanin index (MI) itself for comparing pigmentation differences.
Skin Research and Technology 11/2006; 12(4):298-302. · 1.71 Impact Factor
