PURPOSE: To evaluate risk factors of falls and related injuries for home-staying elderly people in a rural community, and to provide basic data to minimize injuries after falls. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We surveyed for 479 subjects aged 65 or more in the region of two cites of Kyungbuk, and analyzed risk factors of falls, which more divided into intrinsic and extrinsic variables. RESULTS: Of the participants, 219 (45.7%) fell during past year. Most falls occurred during walking (50.2%), on the road (28.8%), at sunset (36.1%), and in winter (44.7%). Of 219 people, 72.6% were injured in falls, 31.5% sustained serious injuries including fractures (14.6%). The lower extremities (35.2%) were most frequently injuried. 14.6% were admitted to hospital. 76.6% who experienced falls were afraid of recurrence, and 39.7% reduced physical activity after falls. CONCLUSION: Up to these days, we have only treated patients who visited hospital, but from now on we must make effort for preventive activity. We suggest that more systemic prevention and study for intrinsic and extrinsic factors of falls are needed to minimize a degree of injury after falls in elderly people.
Aged ; Humans ; Lower Extremity ; Motor Activity ; Recurrence ; Risk Factors ; Rural Population ; Walking

The authors report a case of far lateral disc herniation at L4-5 found one year after percutaneous laser lumbar discectomy. The patient was found to be suffering from new-onset right lumbar radiculopathy 6 months after his first operation, and post operative lumbar MRI confirmed a far lateral extraforaminal disc herniation at L4-5, with compression of the nerve. This corresponded to the nucleotomy site of the probe. The patient underwent surgery employng the combined paraspinal intertransverse and interlaminar approach, and his symptoms were relieved. This case emphasizes the importance of removing nuclear material, and shows that remaining material can herniate through a percutaneous discectomy window.
Diskectomy* ; Diskectomy, Percutaneous ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Radiculopathy

No abstract available.
Albendazole/therapeutic use ; Anthelmintics/therapeutic use ; Biopsy ; Combined Modality Therapy ; *Cysts/diagnostic imaging/parasitology/therapy ; *Echinococcosis, Hepatic/diagnostic imaging/parasitology/therapy ; Hepatectomy ; Humans ; *Liver/diagnostic imaging/drug effects/parasitology/surgery ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed ; Treatment Outcome

PURPOSE: Multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) is an emerging threat to human beings. However, there is little data on the current status of MDR-TB in Korea. This study investigated the current status of MDR-TB in Korea using a survey of all the data from drug susceptibility tests (DST) performed across the country over the last three years. METHOD: The DST results between Jan. 2000 and Dec. 2002 from 7 laboratories, which were in charge of all antituberculous DSTs across the country as of March 2002, were collected and analyzed to determine the actual number of drug-resistant or MDR-TB patients, annual trend, degree and pattern of resistance against anti-TB drugs, etc. RESULTS: Six laboratories used the absolute concentration method for DST and one used the proportional method. 59, 940 tests had been performed over the 3 year study period. The number of DST performed annually was 18,071, 19,950, and 21,919 in 2000-2002, respectively. The number of resistant tuberculosis patients (resistant against at least one anti-TB drug) had increased by 16.9% from 6,338 in 2000 to 7,409 in 2002. The rate of resistant tuberculosis among all DST results was 35.1% in 2000, 34.5% in 2001, and 33.8% in 2002. The number of MDR-TB patients (resistant against at least both isoniazid and rifampin) showed an increasing trend (14.5%) from 3,708 in 2000 to 4,245 in 2002. CONCLUSION: Approximately 4,000 MDR-TB cases are newly identified by DST annually and the number is showing an increasing trend. This study suggests that in order to cope with the current MDR-TB situation, the DST methods will need to be standardized and more aggressive measures will be required.
Humans ; Isoniazid ; Korea* ; Tuberculosis ; Tuberculosis, Multidrug-Resistant*

One hunderd and ten patients who had undergone surgery for lumbar spinal stenosis between March, 1988 and March, 1991 were evaluated in terms of radiological findings, classification, clinical features, coexisting disease and postoperative results. The overall mean age was 60 years, and patients with lateral stenosis were, an average, 11years younger than those with central canal stenosis. There was a high incidence of coexisting disease but its effect on symptoms and disease progression was statistically not significant. Characteristic radiological features were disc height decrease, facet joint hypertrophy, facet joint arthrosis, diffuse bulging disc, and ligamentum flavum hypertrophy, but no significant difference between the sexes was seen Nor were there differences between the symptoms of patients with lateral and central stenosis, though claudication was found mainly in patients with multiple level stenosis. The relief of symptoms by decompressive surgery more significantly successful in lateral than in central stenosis, and the surgical success rate was 74%.
Classification ; Constriction, Pathologic ; Disease Progression ; Humans ; Hypertrophy ; Incidence ; Ligamentum Flavum ; Spinal Stenosis* ; Zygapophyseal Joint