Objective To discuss the application of Chinese version of Speech intelligibility rating (SIR) in e-valuating the speech intelligibility of Chinese children with hearing disorder ,and analyze its scorer reliability .Meth-ods 50 children with cochlear implants or hearing aids were interviewed using SRI Chinese version .Each child was rated by a parent and a speech and language therapist .The reliability of scores was analyzed with Spearman correla-tion coefficient ,Kendall's coefficient of concordance and Kappa coefficient .Results The complete agreement was foud in 34 cases(68% ) ,with a disagreement of one category in 14 cases(28% ) ,and a disagreement of 2 categories was found in 2 cases (4% ) .Spearman correlation coefficient was 0 .885 ,Kendall's coefficient of concordance was 0 .801 ,Kappa coeffi-cient was 0 .593 ,the result was statistically significant (P<0 .001) .Conclusion SRI Chinese version has good reliability and is helpful in evaluating Chinese speech producing ability of children with hearing disorder in everyday life .

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to examine risk factors for pathological gambling of horse race participants. METHODS: The participants, 508 horse race gamblers, completed the DSM-IV criteria of pathological gambling, Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT-K) and Symptom Checklist-47-Revision (SCL-47-R). Data were analyzed using t-test, chi2-test, Fisher's exact test, and logistic regression analyses. Behaviors related to horse racing, alcohol abuse, and mental health were analyzed between problem or pathological gamblers compared to recreational gamblers. RESULTS: The prevalence rates of recreational, problem, and pathological gambling were 36.6%, 39.4%, and 24.0%, respectively. Frequency of gambling (> or =4/day), frequency of racetrack visiting (> or =3/month), accompaniment (alone), and mental health (SCL-47-R scores) were all associated with increased risks of problem and pathological gambling. Expenditure on betting (> or =200,000 won/day) and alcohol abuse (AUDIT-K 8-20 scores) group members had higher levels of gambling pathology than recreational gamblers. CONCLUSION: Problem and pathological gambling are highly associated with alcohol abuse and mental health disorders, suggesting that clinicians should carefully evaluate this population.
Adult ; Alcoholism ; Female ; Gambling/*psychology ; Humans ; Logistic Models ; Male ; Mental Health ; Middle Aged ; Risk Factors

After aseptic or septic meningitis, some neurologic complications such as convulsions, delirium, rigidity, cerebral infarctions and cerebral hemorrhage can be developed. The cerebral infarction after meningitis is caused by arterial or venous occlusions. Involvement of small perforating arteries leads to ganglionic infarcts while severe sapsm of major vessels may lead to massive infarctions in the distribution of middle and/or anterior cerebral arteries. Cortical venous and/or dural thrombosis (especially in the superior sagittal sinus) produces typical features, including multiple areas of white matter hemorrhagic infarction. These neurologic complications are common in bacterial meningitis and very rare in aseptic meningitis. We experienced a case of cerebral infarction in MCA/ACA territory and subdural hemorrhage in occipital lobe after aseptic meningitis in 10 month-old-boy. We report a case with a brief review of related literature.
Anterior Cerebral Artery ; Arteries ; Cerebral Hemorrhage ; Cerebral Infarction* ; Delirium ; Ganglion Cysts ; Hematoma, Subdural* ; Infarction ; Meningitis ; Meningitis, Aseptic* ; Meningitis, Bacterial ; Occipital Lobe ; Seizures ; Thrombosis

Antibiotics were reported to be able to alter bacterial surface properties in subinhibitory concentrations (sub-MICs). The effects of sub-MICs of certain antibiotics on a bacterial surface property such as hemagglutination, as well as on the cell morphology were studied using Streptococcus gordonii and Staphylococcus aureus. The effect of sub-M1Cs of antibiotics on the binding of these bacteria to immobilized fibrinogen were also investigated. The MICs of antibiotics were determined by culturing S. gordonii and S. aureus in media supplemented with serially diluted drug solutions, and one-half the MIC was used as the sub-MIC of the drugs, unless stated otherwise. Sub-MICs of antibiotics did not affect bacterial agglutination of erythrocytes. Microscopic observation of S. gordonii grown at sub-MIC concentration of 0.02 ug/ml of amoxicillin revealed cell enlargement of 1.6 times those grown without the drug. When grown in the sub-MIC amount of 0.08 ug/ml of cefazolin, most S. gordonii cells were enlarged and elongated into rod-shape, resulting in 3 times the size of the cells grown without the antibiotic. The data from the fibrinogen-binding experiments showed that the binding of S. gordonii to immobilized fibrinogen was increased with all the B-lactam drugs tested; the binding of S. aureus to immobilized fibrinogen, on the other hand, was decreased with the same drugs. The results show that low concentrations of certain B-lactam antibiotics are able to cause alterations in cellular morphology of S. gordonii and affect the binding of S. gordonii and S. aureus to immobilized fibrinogen.
Agglutination ; Amoxicillin ; Anti-Bacterial Agents* ; Bacteria ; Cefazolin ; Cell Enlargement ; Erythrocytes ; Fibrinogen ; Hand ; Hemagglutination ; Staphylococcus aureus* ; Staphylococcus* ; Streptococcus gordonii* ; Streptococcus* ; Surface Properties*

No abstract available.
Calcinosis*

PURPOSE: Food intake of COPD patients decreases because of appetite loss, depression, and breathing problems while eating, which increase the likelihood of patients becoming malnourished. This study investigated the nutrient intake and dietary quality of people with and without COPD in Korea. METHODS: There were 2,160 adults aged 50 and over who participated in the 5~6th Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. The subjects were divided into the COPD group and non-COPD group according to the rate of forced expiratory volume at 1 second (FEV1) against forced vital capacity (FVC). Consumption of food and nutrients were calculated based on the nutrition examination survey. Statistical analyses were conducted using SPSS 19.0. RESULTS: Among individuals in their 50s, intake of vitamin B1 in the COPD group was significantly less than the NCOPD group, while intake of sodium in the COPD group was significantly greater than the NCOPD group. Among individuals in their 60s, the energy intake of the COPD group was significantly less than that of the NCOPD group. The COPD group showed significantly less intake of vitamin B1 and vitamin C, but greater intake of sodium than the NCOPD group. In the group aged 70 and over, The COPD group had significantly less intake of vitamin B1 than the NCOPD group and showed lower nutrient adequacy ratio values in protein, vitamin B1, vitamin B2, and iron than the NCOPD group. CONCLUSION: The COPD group consumed less energy and certain nutrients, and their dietary quality was poor compared to the NCOPD group. Thus, more detailed research is required to understand the concrete relationship between COPD and malnutrition.
Adult* ; Appetite ; Ascorbic Acid ; Depression ; Eating ; Energy Intake ; Forced Expiratory Volume ; Humans ; Iron ; Korea* ; Malnutrition ; Nutrition Surveys* ; Nutritional Status ; Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive* ; Respiration ; Riboflavin ; Sodium ; Thiamine ; Vital Capacity

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effectiveness of the modified constraint-induced movement therapy (CIMT) for inpatient rehabilitation of the stroke patients. METHOD: Twenty-four patients admitted by subacute or chronic stroke were enrolled and divided into two groups, experimental and control groups. The experimental group (n=13) received the CIMT five days a week for 2 weeks. Less affected arm was restrained for 14 hours a day, practicing purposeful activities with more affected arm for 6 hours a day in group setting. The control group (n=11) received conventional occupational therapy for the same period. The outcome was measured by Fugl-Meyer MotorAssessment (FMA), Brunnstrom stage, Jebsen hand function test, grip strength, Box and Block test, nine hole peg test, Functional Independence Measure (FIM), and Motor Activity Log (MAL). RESULTS: The experimental group showed significantly higher improvements (p<0.05) in FMA, Brunnstorm stage, Jebsen hand function test, grip strength, Box and Block test, FIM, and MAL. CONCLUSION: Modified CIMT delivered in group setting is considered to be an effective treatment to improve functional use of the hemiparetic arm of stroke patients in inpatient setting.
Arm ; Hand ; Hand Strength ; Humans ; Inpatients* ; Motor Activity ; Occupational Therapy ; Paresis ; Rehabilitation ; Stroke*

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to compare the accuracy of the implant master cast according to the type (pick-up, transfer) and the length (long, short) of the impression copings. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The metal master cast was fabricated with three internal connection type implant analogs (Osstem GS III analog), embedded parallel and with 10degrees of mesial angulation to the center analog. Four types of impression coping were prepared with different combinations of types (transfer, pick-up) and lengths (long, short) of the coping. The impressions were made using vinyl polysiloxane (one step, heavy + light body) with an individual tray, and 10 impressions were made for each group. Eventually, 40 experimental casts were produced. Then, the difference in the distance between the master cast and the experimental cast were measured, and the error rate was determined. The analysis of variance was performed using the SPSS (v 12.0) program (alpha = .05), and the statistical significance was set at P < .05. RESULTS: The ANOVA showed that the pick-up type impression coping exhibited a significantly lower error rate than the transfer type. However, no significant difference was observed with respect to the length of the impression coping. Additionally, no significant difference was observed between the parallel and mesial angulated groups. CONCLUSION: Within the limitations of this study, the pick-up type impression coping exhibited a more accurate implant master cast than the transfer type in parallel group. The accuracy of the implant master cast did not differ for different lengths of impression coping of at least 11 mm. Additionally, the accuracy of the implant cast was not different for the parallel and 10degrees mesial angulated groups.
Light ; Polyvinyls ; Siloxanes

The extract from Smilax china root has been used as medicinal remedy and reported to retain antimicrobial and antimutagenic acitivities. In this study, a possible presence of antioxidant activity of Smilax china root extract was investigated. Methanol extract (Me) revealed the presence of high 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical scavenging activity (IC50 7.4 microg/ml) and protective property of cell's viability. Further fractionation with various solvent extraction and assay showed high levels of DPPH free radical scavenging activity in the ethyl acetate, butanol and water extracted fractions. In addition, V79-4 cells treated with Me of Smilax china root induced an increase of superoxide dismutase, catalase and glutathione peroxidase activities in a dose-dependent manner between 4-100 microg/ml. These results suggest that the medicinal component of the root of Smilax china extracts also contains antioxidant activity.
Animal ; Antioxidants/*pharmacology ; Catalase/drug effects/metabolism ; Cell Line ; Cell Survival ; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug ; Fibroblasts/drug effects/metabolism ; Free Radical Scavengers/chemistry/isolation & purification/*pharmacology ; Free Radicals/metabolism ; Glutathione Peroxidase/drug effects/metabolism ; Hamsters ; Lipid Peroxidation/drug effects ; Lung/cytology ; Plant Extracts/chemistry/*pharmacology ; Plant Roots/*chemistry ; Plants, Medicinal ; Superoxide Dismutase/drug effects/metabolism

The extract from Smilax china root has been used as medicinal remedy and reported to retain antimicrobial and antimutagenic acitivities. In this study, a possible presence of antioxidant activity of Smilax china root extract was investigated. Methanol extract (Me) revealed the presence of high 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical scavenging activity (IC50 7.4 microg/ml) and protective property of cell's viability. Further fractionation with various solvent extraction and assay showed high levels of DPPH free radical scavenging activity in the ethyl acetate, butanol and water extracted fractions. In addition, V79-4 cells treated with Me of Smilax china root induced an increase of superoxide dismutase, catalase and glutathione peroxidase activities in a dose-dependent manner between 4-100 microg/ml. These results suggest that the medicinal component of the root of Smilax china extracts also contains antioxidant activity.
Animal ; Antioxidants/*pharmacology ; Catalase/drug effects/metabolism ; Cell Line ; Cell Survival ; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug ; Fibroblasts/drug effects/metabolism ; Free Radical Scavengers/chemistry/isolation & purification/*pharmacology ; Free Radicals/metabolism ; Glutathione Peroxidase/drug effects/metabolism ; Hamsters ; Lipid Peroxidation/drug effects ; Lung/cytology ; Plant Extracts/chemistry/*pharmacology ; Plant Roots/*chemistry ; Plants, Medicinal ; Superoxide Dismutase/drug effects/metabolism