Child abuse and neglect are also becoming a serious threat to the health of children in Korea. Physicians are in a unique position to detect the injuries and behavioral problems resulting from child abuse or neglect. Physicians and other professionals providing services to children are required by Child Welfare Law to report suspected incidents of child abuse or neglect. Every Province now has a Child Abuse Hotline to make a report by telephone ; the hotline in Korea in area code+1361 (toll free). It is crucial that physicians define their role and develop the appropriate clinical skills to manage child abuse or neglect effectively. The role of physician in the prevention and treatment of child abuse or neglect traditionally has been one of detection, medical diagnosis, and treatment or referral. However, the role can be greatly expanded. They may serve on hospital child protection teams, provide medical services to private service agencies, participate in community multidisciplinary review boards and advisory boards of voluntary agencies, or testify as an expert witness. This article defines the emerging role of physicians in prevention and treatment of child abuse. It reflects the strategic agenda of the Korean Medical Association for promotion of optimal child health and development.
Child ; Child Abuse* ; Child Health ; Child Welfare ; Child* ; Clinical Competence ; Diagnosis ; Expert Testimony ; Hotlines ; Humans ; Jurisprudence ; Korea ; Physician's Role* ; Problem Behavior ; Referral and Consultation ; Telephone

No abstract available.
Adolescent* ; Erotica* ; Humans

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Hepatitis* ; Humans

No abstract available.
Clonidine* ; Depression* ; Growth Hormone* ; Humans ; Panic Disorder* ; Panic*

The purpose of this study is to compare the physical health, anxiety and depression of the Dan-Jeon Breathing trained group with those of a non-trained group and to analyze the relationship between the training period of Dan-Jeon Bre athing method and physical health, anxiety, and depression. The number of people in the Dan-Jeon Breathing trained group over 3 months was 149 and in the non-trained group 142. Data were collected from August to October 1999. As tools, 35 physical symptom questions were chosen from The Cornell Medical Index modified by Nam(1965) and from the Symptom Checklist-90-Revision(SCL-90-R) by Kim(1984); 10 questions on anxiety and 13 questions on depression were used in the study. The statistics of the study were gathered by using SPSS Window; the analysis was made by applying x(2)-test, t-test, Pearson correlation, ANOVA and Scheffe tests. The results were as follows. 1. The Dan-Jeon Breathing trained group had lower physical symptom score and showed less anxiety and depression than the non-trained group, which supported the 1st, 2nd, 3rd hypotheses. 2. The longer the training period of Dan-Jeon Breathing, the lower the physical symptom score, which supports the 4th hypothesis, but the 5th and, 6th hypotheses were not supported because anxiety and depression did not get lower as the training period of Dan-Jeon Breathing got longer. 3. The physical symptom score, anxiety and depression that were made by the general characteristics of Dan-Jeon Breathing trained group were analyzed. As a result, the physical symptom score of women was greater than that of men. Physical symptoms score and the rate of anxiety and depression were different by education levels. The degree of anxiety was different by age. Those who have a religion have a higher physical symtoms score than people who have no religion. There was no difference in physical health score, anxiety and depression according to marital status, economic status and occupations. The results suggest that the physical and mental health status of Dan-Jeon Breathing trained group is better than that of the non-trained group. Physical symptoms scores gets lower as the training period of Dan-Jeon Breathing gets longer which results in the improvement of physical health status.
Anxiety* ; Cornell Medical Index ; Depression* ; Education ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Marital Status ; Mental Health ; Occupations ; Respiration*

Colorectal cancer appears to have rapidly increased over the past two decades in Korea. Environmental factors, characterized by a western life style, seem to be closely related to the increased risk of colorectal cancer. Higher intakes of meat, a lower vegetable intake, a lack of physical activity, obesity, and alcohol drinking have been suggested to be risk factors for colorectal cancer in the numerous epidemiologic studies. Several specific associations have also been observed between genetic polymorphisms and colorectal cancer. Moreover, it has been postulated that environmental factors and a genetic predisposition work in concert in colorectal cancer development. A stronger association between red meat intake and colorectal cancer among those with rapid acetylators at either the NAT1 or NAT2 locus was reported, particularly for colorectal cancer associated with K-ras mutations. The protective effect of the homozygous variant TT form of the MTHFR genotype on the risk of colon cancer seems to be modified by the level of methyl diets, i.e., by folate, which has a protective effect, or conversely by alcohol. The insulin-related pathway, which possibly explains at a mechanistic level the effect of physical activity and obesity on colon cancer, appears to be a common denominator in colon cancer and in other metabolic disorders, such as diabetes mellitus and dyslipidemia. Hyperinsulinemia has been proposed as an explanation for the association between a Western lifestyle and colon cancer risk. Further studies, that incorporate both genetic and environmental factors, are needed to fully explain and identify the underlying pathway of colorectal carcinogenesis.
Alcohol Drinking ; Carcinogenesis ; Colon* ; Colonic Neoplasms* ; Colorectal Neoplasms ; Diabetes Mellitus ; Diet ; Dyslipidemias ; Epidemiologic Studies ; Folic Acid ; Genetic Predisposition to Disease ; Genotype ; Hyperinsulinism ; Korea ; Life Style ; Meat ; Molecular Epidemiology* ; Motor Activity ; Obesity ; Polymorphism, Genetic ; Risk Factors ; Vegetables

Insomnia is the most common sleep problem affecting nearly one-third of the population as either a primary or comorbid condition. Insomnia has been defined as both a symptom and a disorder, and is characterized as sleep that is chronically unrestorative or poor in quality often due to difficulty in initiating sleep, in maintaining sleep, or with waking up too early. Insomnia results in some form of daytime impairment in the patient's normal activites. Although the exact pathophysiology of insomnia is poorly understood, it is often believed to arise from a state of hyperarousal in multiple neurophysiological and/or psychological systems. Population-based studies suggest that while about one-third of the general population complains of sleep disturbance, only 10-15 percent has associated symptoms of daytime functional impairment, and even fewer, only 6-10 percent have impairments sufficient for the diagnostic criteria of insomnia. The cornerstone of the insomnia evaluation and diagnosis is a comprehensive history obtained by the clinical interview with patient and/or family. Additional assessment tools, such as sleep diary or log, various questionnaires, actigraphy, and multichannel polysomnography (PSG) have been used as an aid to diagnosis, although many are limited in their validation. Insomnia causes a significant burden of medical, psychiatric, societal consequences on the individual and societal level. Clinicians in either primary settings or specialized clinics should have knowledge to manage insomnia with confidence.
Actigraphy ; Diagnosis* ; Humans ; Polysomnography ; Prevalence ; Sleep Initiation and Maintenance Disorders* ; Surveys and Questionnaires