BACKGROUND: Discrepancies exist in the existing researches regarding the association between social capital and self-efficacy, and most of these researches have been done in developed countries. The aims of this study were to assess the independent association between individual social capital and self-efficacy and to assess the associations between individual social capital, self-efficacy and self-rated health. METHODS: Data were obtained from the Gyeongnam health survey (6,500 persons) conducted in 2008. A self-administered questionnaire was additionally administered to gather information on demographic variables, health behaviors, chronic diseases, self-efficacy, social capital, and self-rated health status. Total study population was 3,843 as those with chronic diseases were excluded. RESULTS: In males, trust was positively associated with confidence and preference to task difficulty, and participation was negatively associated with confidence and positively associated with regulation and preference to task difficulty. In females, trust was positively associated with confidence and preference to task difficulty and negatively associated with regulation. Participation was positively associated with preference to task difficulty. In males, the odds for self-rated health status was better for persons with confidence (95% confidence interval, CI 1.088-1.705), trust (95% CI 1.172-1.821) and participation (95% CI 1.268-2.117). In females, the odds for self-rated health status was better for those with confidence (95% CI 1.250-1.803), preference of task difficulty (95% CI 1.019-1.683) and participation (95% CI 1.024-1.555). CONCLUSIONS: High social capital measured at an individual level may promote self-efficacy and health status.
Chronic Disease ; Developed Countries ; Female ; Health Behavior ; Health Surveys ; Humans ; Male ; Self Efficacy ; Surveys and Questionnaires

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to compare awareness on scaling and satisfaction regarding national health insurance scaling to several general characteristics, to awareness of oral health, and to pre- and post-operative experience of the national health insurance dental scaling program. METHODS: The study was conducted over a 1 month period from August 1, 2014, to September 1, 2014. All subjects were asked to complete a self-administered questionnaire. A total of 261 questionnaires were used in the final analysis (incorrectly completed questionnaires were excluded). The data was subsequently analyzed (including t-test, one way ANOVA, and Pearson's correlation coefficient) using SPSS version 20.0. RESULTS: In total, 91.6% of respondents were aware of the national health insurance scaling program. Furthermore, 81.8% said that they were satisfied with national health insurance scaling. The majority of the respondents (69.0%) were also satisfied with the national health insurance scaling fee. Although 71.6% were satisfied with national health insurance scaling age, only 60.5% were satisfied with the frequency of national health insurance scaling. The disparity in the reported awareness on scaling and on national health insurance scaling was showed to be statistically significant (p<0.05). Moreover, the reported difference between satisfaction on national health insurance scaling and satisfaction with the scaling experience was also significant (p<0.05). Finally, there was a significant difference between reported awareness on scaling, awareness on national health insurance scaling, and satisfaction with national health insurance scaling (p<0.01). CONCLUSIONS: The results presented in this study reveal that awareness of scaling, awareness on national health insurance scaling and satisfaction with national health insurance scaling are important influencing factors. These results should be carefully considered in any plans to expand preventive dental healthcare clinics. In conclusion, a more systematic oral-health policy (especially regarding scaling) needs to be established to improve national oral health and quality of life.
Surveys and Questionnaires ; Delivery of Health Care ; Dental Scaling* ; Fees and Charges ; National Health Programs* ; Oral Health ; Quality of Life

BACKGROUND: Ventricular function is one of the important prognostic factors in patients with coronary artery disease. Among noninvasive approaches for the evaluation of ventricular performance, radionuclide ventriculo-graphy has shown to be of particular values in the patients with myocardial infarction. We have evaluated ven-tricular function with ECG-gated blood pool scan (GBPS) in patients with myocardial infarction of different locations and compared right and left ventricular functions. METHOD: Left and right ventricular function was assessed with multigated blood pool scan in 49 patients at 2-3 weeks after acute myocardial infarction (anterior infarction=23, inferior infarction=19, and lateral infarction=7). Left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), right ventricular ejection fraction (RVEF), maximal emptying rate, maximal filling rate, phase angle and full width at half maximum (FWHM) of phase angles were measured during rest. RESULTS: 1) LVEF was signifi-cantly lower in the patients with anterior myocardial infarction (32.2%) than that of inferior (46.5%, p<0.001) or lateral infarction (45.5%, p<0.05), but not different between inferior and lateral infarction. 2) RVEF was significantly lower in the patients with inferior myocardial infarction (24.6%) than that of anterior (30.5%, p<0.05) or lateral infarction (36.1%, p<0.001), and RVEF of anterior infarction was significantly lower than that of lateral infarction (p<0.05). 3) Phase angle and FWHM of left ventricle and right ventricle phase histogram were not significantly different among the patients groups with different infarct sites. CONCLUSIONS: Ventricular function was differently affected by different infarct sites. Inferior infarction resulted in a greater reduction in right ventricular ejection fraction. In contrast, LVEF was greatly depressed in anterior infarction than in inferior infarction.
Coronary Artery Disease ; Heart Ventricles ; Humans ; Infarction ; Inferior Wall Myocardial Infarction ; Myocardial Infarction ; Stroke Volume ; Ventricular Function ; Ventricular Function, Left ; Ventricular Function, Right*

Diseases of the peripheral nervous system are one of the most difficult subjects in neurology partly in that specific etiologies are often not found. Among peripheral neuropathies of unknown causes, an association of monoclonal gammopathies has been observed. Monoclonal gammopathies are disorders characterized by proliferation of a single clone of plasma cell that produces monoclonal proteins. Here we report two cases of chronic sensorimotor polyneuropathy with monoclonal gummopathy of undetermined significance, who showed no evidences of multiple myeloma, macroglobulinemia, systemic amyloidosis, or other neoplasms. One case is also associated with hyperthyroidism and cryoglobulinemia.
Amyloidosis ; Clone Cells ; Cryoglobulinemia ; Hyperthyroidism ; Monoclonal Gammopathy of Undetermined Significance* ; Multiple Myeloma ; Neurology ; Paraproteinemias* ; Peripheral Nervous System ; Peripheral Nervous System Diseases ; Plasma Cells ; Polyneuropathies* ; Waldenstrom Macroglobulinemia

No abstract available.
Animals ; Cell Count* ; Insulin-Like Growth Factor I* ; Rats* ; Thyroid Gland*

PURPOSE: Heart rate variability (HRV) is a tool used to measure autonomic nervous function; however, there is no evidence that it can be used to define sympathetic hyperactivity in men with lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS). We suspected that LUTS would differ between sympathetic hyperactive and hypoactive patients. Therefore, we measured HRV and divided the LUTS patients into two groups, a sympathetic hyperactive group and a sympathetic hypoactive group according to the low frequency/high frequency (LF/HF) ratio and made clinical comparisons between the groups. METHODS: A total of 43 patients with symptomatic LUTS (International Prostate Symptom Score [IPSS] over 8) and 49 healthy volunteers were enrolled. No subjects had diseases that could affect the autonomic nervous system, such as diabetes or hypertension. Electrocardiographic signals were obtained from subjects in the resting state and HRV indexes were calculated with spectral analyses. We divided the LUTS patients into two groups by an LF/HF ratio of 1.9, which was the median value in the healthy volunteers, and compared the differences in clinical characteristics, IPSS, prostate-specific antigen (PSA), and transrectal ultrasound (TRUS) results. The parameters were compared by independent sample t-test by use of SPSS ver. 19. RESULTS: There were no significant differences in age, serum PSA, or volume of the prostate between the 2 LUTS groups. However, analyzing IPSS questionnaires between two groups showed that there were significant differences in mean of Q2 score (frequency) and storage symptom score ([Q2+Q4+Q7]/3) (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: We suggest that an imbalance of autonomic nervous system activity may be a factor that evokes varieties of symptoms in men with LUTS. LUTS patients with hypoactive sympathetic tone may suffer from frequency and storage symptoms.
Autonomic Nervous System ; Electrocardiography ; Heart Rate ; Humans ; Hypertension ; Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms ; Male ; Prostate ; Prostate-Specific Antigen ; Prostatic Hyperplasia

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Quinolone-induced arthropathy is an unusual toxic effect observed in juvenile animals of multiple species. Such toxic effects are usually found in joint cartilages. The reports of chondrotoxic potential of quinolones in juvenile animals were mainly performed in weight bearing joints such as hips and knees. The purpose of this study was to investigate the morphological changes in the incudomalleolar joint of immature rats dosed with ciprofloxacin, and to draw relationship between the incudomalleolar joint pathology and hearing. MATERIALS AND METHODS: An experimental group of 21-day-old rats were administrated intraperitoneally with 200 mg ciprofloxacin/kg for 10 days. The hearing threshs of the control and experimental animals were determined with auditory brainstem response (ABR). Their ossicles were obtained and fixed, and we observed them with light microscopy (LM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). RESULTS: The ABR threshs were increased in the ciprofloxacin administrated group, and the increased latency of the first waves were identified in the ciprofloxacin administrated group, but there were no differences in the interval of wave I-III. The LM findings of incudomalleolar joint in the ciprofloxacin administrated group showed cartilage lesions such as disrupted articilar surface, irregular cellularity of the chondrocytes, matrix swelling, cleft formation, decreased matrix staining. The TEM findings of the incudomalleolar joint cartilage in the ciprofloxacin administrated group showed decreased bundle-like matrix and cell process, condensed nucleus, and vacuolated cytoplasm. CONCLUSION: From the results of recent works and the present study, we suggest that ciprofloxacin may induce morphological changes in the incudomalleolar joint, and that such morphological changes may induce conductive hearing loss.
Animals ; Cartilage ; Chondrocytes ; Ciprofloxacin* ; Cytoplasm ; Evoked Potentials, Auditory, Brain Stem ; Hearing Loss, Conductive ; Hearing* ; Hip ; Joints* ; Knee ; Microscopy ; Microscopy, Electron, Transmission ; Pathology ; Quinolones ; Rats* ; Weight-Bearing

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Cisplatin is frequently used in the treatment of various forms of malignancies. It's therapeutic efficacy, however, is limited due to the occurrence of sensorineural hearing loss. Little is known about the course of hearing loss after cessation of cisplatin administration. We observed the cochlear duct morphology with normal and cisplatin treated animals. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Healthy rats (strain Sprague-Dawly, weighting 80-100 mg) were used for all experiments. Total 15 rats were selected. They were divided into two groups, a treated group and a control. Four survival groups (n=3, respectively) were assigned as the treated group. After treatment with cisplatin, each survival group was sacrificed 1, 4, 10, 20 days. Except for the normal control (n=3), twelve animals were treated with cisplatin by daily I.P. injection of 1.5 mg/kg for 8 consecutive days. RESULTS: One day after cessation of cisplatin administration, outer hair cells (OHCs) loss and stria vascularis were degenerated especially in the basal turn. At 4, 10, 20 days, the OHCs and stria vascularis morphology of the survival group were similar to those of the survival group at one day. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest cisplatin ototoxicity is predominantly involved in the basal turn of cochlear duct. This finding was significantly correlated with high frequency hearing loss of cisplatin ototoxicity.
Animals ; Cisplatin* ; Cochlear Duct ; Hair ; Hearing Loss ; Hearing Loss, Sensorineural ; Rats ; Stria Vascularis

Brain arteriovenous malformation (AVM) is an abnormal connection between arteries and veins, bypassing the capillary system in the central nervous system. The first symptom of AVM is intracranial hemorrhage, followed by headache and seizure. However, dizziness as a symptom of AVM is very rare. We report a 16-year-old female patient who presented with disequilibrium. She showed down-beating nystamgus on Dix-Hallpike test and falling tendency on Romberg test with eyes open. Magnetic resonance image showed cerebellar AVM.
Adolescent ; Arteries ; Arteriovenous Malformations ; Brain ; Capillaries ; Central Nervous System ; Dizziness ; Female ; Headache ; Humans ; Intracranial Hemorrhages ; Seizures ; Veins

A thyrotropin (TSH)-secreting pituitary adenoma is a rare cause of hyperthyroidism, with an incidence of one case per million. Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) is a chronic inflammatory rheumatic disease of the axial skeleton. Extra-articular manifestations, such as anterior uveitis, may also be prominent features in AS but little is known about the association between AS and thyroid diseases including TSH-secreting pituitary adenomas. We present a case study of a 26-year-old male AS patient who was diagnosed with a TSH-secreting pituitary adenoma using a thyrotropin releasing hormone stimulation test, measurement of the TSH alpha-subunit, and magnetic resonance imaging, and subsequently treated with a transsphenoidal tumor resection.
Adult ; Humans ; Hyperthyroidism ; Incidence ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Male ; Pituitary Neoplasms* ; Rheumatic Diseases ; Skeleton ; Spondylitis, Ankylosing* ; Thyroid Diseases ; Thyrotropin* ; Thyrotropin-Releasing Hormone ; Uveitis, Anterior