PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to investigate partnerships with nurses, social support and readiness for discharge among mothers of premature infants in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and to examine the factors associated with readiness for discharge.METHODS: A survey was conducted among 85 mothers of premature infants hospitalized in a NICU in Seoul, Korea. The collected data were analyzed with descriptive statistics, the t-test, one-way analysis of variance, Pearson' correlation coefficients, and multiple linear regression using SPSS version 25.0.RESULTS: The results of the regression analysis showed that partnerships with nurses (β=.32, p=.011) and parenting experience (β=.32, p=.001) were significantly associated with readiness for discharge.CONCLUSION: To improve the readiness for discharge among mothers of premature infants, developing strategies to strengthen their partnership with nurses and to provide family-centered care will be needed.
Humans ; Infant, Newborn ; Infant, Premature ; Intensive Care Units, Neonatal ; Intensive Care, Neonatal ; Korea ; Linear Models ; Mothers ; Parenting ; Parents ; Patient Discharge ; Seoul

Purpose: : This study is descriptive research investigating the effects of incivility, job stress, and resilience experienced by emergency room nurses on turnover intention. The study will identify the degree of incivility experienced by emergency room nurses and provide data to improve and cope with the impolite situations in emergency room. Methods: : Participants were 203 nurses in the emergency departments of 10 hospitals. The data were analyzed using the SPSS Statistics 24.0 program with descriptive statistics, independent t-test, one-way ANOVA, Scheffé test and Pearson’s correlation coefficients and stepwise multiple regression analysis. Results: : Turnover intention had significant positive correlations with job stress and incivility from various sources including patients and their caregivers, doctors, supervisors, and coworkers. In contrast, turnover intention had a significant negative correlation with resilience. The most influencing factor for increasing turnover intention was nursing job dissatisfaction, followed by neutral job satisfaction, job stress, not wanting to work in the ER, unmarried marital status, and incivility from coworkers. The total explanatory power of these factors was 36.3%. Conclusion : This study indicates that the less incivility experience among the emergency room nurses is associated with less job stress and lower turnover intention. Therefore, nursing organizations must establish specific support strategies to reduce incivility and job stress experienced by emergency room nurses and minimize their turnover intention.

Purpose: This study used raw data from the fifth (2010-2012) Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) to assess the relationship between vitamin D level and glycemic control of diabetes, and to provide basic data about the use of vitamin D for preparation of a treatment plan for diabetes in South Korea. Methods: For this study, data of 1,713 diabetes from KNHANES (2010-2012) were used. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS 18.0 program, and complex sample frequency analysis, descriptive statistics, complex sample cross analysis, complex sample general linear regression, and complex sample logistic regression analysis were performed. Results: It was found that the poor glycemic control group among the diabetes subjects had significantly lower level of blood vitamin D than the good glycemic control group. Factors affecting glycemic control included drinking, vitamin D levels, hypertriglyceridemia, duration of diabetes, and treatment of diabetes. Also, diabetics with vitamin D deficiency or shortage showed 3.55- and 2.61-times higher odds ratios, respectively, to be diagnosed as the poor glycemic control group than diabetics without vitamin D deficiency or shortage. Conclusion This study is significant because it provides rationale and basic data about the use of vitamin D for preparation of a treatment plan for diabetes in South Korea by assessing the dependence of glycemic control on the vitamin D level of diabetics. Additionally, future studies are necessary to determine the appropriate concentration of vitamin D for diabetes prevention and treatment to prevent the side effects of excessive supplementation.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to describe the profile of graduates from accelerated second-degree Bachelor of Science in Nursing programs and to analyze the relative efficiency of nursing colleges using data envelopment analysis. Methods: An online survey link was emailed to the deans of nursing colleges, who were then asked to send the link to graduates of the respective colleges. The survey questionnaire included demographics, reasons for applying to the accelerated second-degree Bachelor of Science in Nursing program, employment after graduation, and nursing career satisfaction. Results: Sixty-two graduates of the accelerated second-degree Bachelor of Science in Nursing program responded to the survey. The mean age at admission was 24.28 (± 3.01) years. Reasons for applying to the accelerated second-degree Bachelor of Science in Nursing program were primarily increasing job security and using it as a stepping stone to another career. Nursing career job satisfaction was 4.81 (± 1.07) and more than 82% recommended this program. The data envelopment analysis found the average efficiency score to be 0.84 (± 0.20) and 4 nursing colleges to be relatively efficient. Conclusion The accelerated second-degree Bachelor of Science in Nursing program can be considered to be an effective means to produce quality nurses with non-nursing bachelor degrees in a short time; however, outcomes of this program need to be systematically monitored to maintain quality level. Through this, competent nurses with knowledge of adjacent studies will be added to the nursing workforce.

Background: The fear of falling (FOF) has been reported in a high percentage of elderly people. An excessive FOF is a major concern among the elderly because it can lead to permanent disability. However, the impact of FOF on mortality has been insufficiently studied. The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of FOF on mortality among the elderly in Korea. Methods: This was a prospective study carried out using the database of the Korean Longitudinal Study of Aging, a nationwide study of community-dwelling adults in Korea. Study participants included 3,421 adults, aged 65 years or older, without either severe cognitive impairment (Korean version of Mini-Mental Status Examination ≥10), or previous history of cancer. We used Cox proportional hazards models to investigate the association between FOF and all-cause mortality. Results: This study included 1,474 men and 1,947 women. Cox regression showed that participants with FOF had an increased risk of mortality (mild: hazard ratio [HR], 1.25; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.01−1.54; moderate: HR, 1.59; 95% CI, 1.23−2.05) after adjusting for confounding variables. In a subgroup analysis, FOF was still a significant risk factor of mortality for patients with no previous history of falling after adjusting for other risk factors, as in the full model, except for history of falling (HR, 1.65; 95% CI, 1.27−2.13). Conclusion We found that FOF was a significant risk factor for mortality in the elderly in Korea. Further studies on the effects and mechanism of FOF on mortality are needed.

Extraskeletal chondrosarcoma is rare, making up only 1% of reported chondrosarcoma. We experienced 3 cases of extraskeletal chondrosarcoma, especially in vulva. They were suspected as lipoma of the vulva. The patients had noticed a small but growing mass on their vulva which had been palpated earlier. The masses were excised with a 2 cm resection margin. The final pathological reports confirmed extraskeletal mesenchymal chondrosarcoma (EMC) of the vulva revealing no microscopic lesions on the resection margins. After 24 months of following from the initial diagnosis, the patients remain without evidence of any recurrent. Management of EMC is not well studied due to the rare and variable nature of the disease. However, the surgery, such as we had, is the mainstay of local treatment with studies showing better survival in patients who undergo wide surgical resection. The establishment of adjuvant systemic pharmacotherapy could be expected in the future.
Chondrosarcoma ; Chondrosarcoma, Mesenchymal ; Humans ; Lipoma ; Vulva

OBJECTIVES: This retrospective study evaluated bone mineral density (BMD) in postmenopausal endometrial cancer patients without bone metastases. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed the BMD of spinal bone and the femur in 26 endometrial cancer patients and 32 control women. All of the patients and control women had reached their menopause. The control group was treated with benign uterine myoma whose age and body mass index are consistent with the case group. All BMD was measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry.
Absorptiometry, Photon ; Alkaline Phosphatase ; Body Mass Index ; Bone Density ; Calcium ; Endometrial Neoplasms ; Estrogens ; Female ; Femur ; Humans ; Leiomyoma ; Menopause ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Osteoporosis ; Retrospective Studies ; Spine

Purpose: This study aimed to compare the therapeutic effects of corticosteroid irrigations and normal saline irrigations in the early inflammatory state of the salivary gland. Materials and Methods: Adult male Wistar rats were divided into experimental (n=6) and control (n=3) groups. Inflammation was induced in the experimental subjects on both sides of the submandibular gland with ligation. After 14 days, both sides of the glands were de-ligated and retroductal irrigation using saline (n=3) and a corticosteroid (n=3) was performed on the left sides only. The controls (n=3) were used to normalize the gland state for the effects of diet and aging. Magnetic resonance imaging was performed to confirm inflammation and post-irrigation gland recovery by measuring relative signal intensity (SI). The glands were excised for histological examination. Results: All experimental animals showed inflamed glands with increased SI and subsequent recovery of the gland with decreased SI to varying degrees. The SI of the controls showed no significant changes during the overall period. The mean SI change of the irrigated gland was higher than that of the non-irrigated side, without a significant difference. The corticosteroid-irrigated glands showed a greater change in SI than that of the saline-irrigated glands. Histology revealed that inflammation was not observed in most of the irrigated glands, while mild to moderate quantities inflammatory cells were found in non-irrigated glands. Conclusion Corticosteroid irrigation mitigated the early stages of salivary gland inflammation more effectively than normal saline.

No abstract available.
Humans ; Multiple Myeloma ; Plasma Cells ; Plasma ; Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma

OBJECTIVES: This study evaluated the effect on bone mineral density (BMD) in postmenopausal invasive cervical cancer patients treated with radical operation and concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT). METHODS: We analyzed the BMD of spinal bone and the femur in 48 invasive cervical cancer patients treated with CCRT after radical operation. All BMD was measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. For comparison with control women, 96 patients without gynecological disease whose age and body mass index are consistent with the case group were selected. The measurement interval was 1 year. All of the patients and control women had reached their menopause. RESULTS: Age, height, body weight and body mass index were not significantly different between the two groups. The serum levels of calcium and phosphate were not significantly different between the patients with cervical cancer and control women before and after treatment. On the other hands, the concentrations of total alkaline phosphatase and osteocalcin of patients with invasive cervical cancer were significantly lower (P<0.05) than those of control women after treatment. BMD showed inconsistent outcomes, but there is a trend of decrease after operation and CCRT in invasive cervical cancer. CONCLUSIONS: Our study suggests that invasive cervical cancer patients treated with radical operation and CCRT have a lower BMD, resulting in an increased risk of osteoporosis.
Absorptiometry, Photon ; Alkaline Phosphatase ; Body Height ; Body Mass Index ; Bone Density ; Calcium ; Chemoradiotherapy ; Female ; Femur ; Hand ; Humans ; Menopause ; Osteocalcin ; Osteoporosis ; Uterine Cervical Neoplasms