Obtaining a complete and accurate history is one of the most crucial steps in the initial diagnosis and subsequent management of the poisoned patients. This information can then be integrated with physical evidence, clinical examination, laboratory and toxicological data in designing a therapeutic approach. Such information may include patient data, product information, and nature of exposure. The basic treatment for acute poisoning, whether of drug or chemical, is mainly symptomatic and supportive. The four cardinal principles of good management are ① identification of the causative drug or chemical as quickly as possible, ② evacuation of the poison from the stomach, except when contraindicated, ③ administration of an antidote if available, and ④ symptomatic and supportive therapy as indicated. Management in most cases of toxicity consists of supportive care, symptomatic treatment, and avoidance of exposure to the toxic material. In cases of life-threatening toxicity, maintenance of cardiopulmonary function and fluid and electrolyte balance are important. There are limited specific methods of treatment, or "antidotes". Use of oxygen counters the foxic effect and enhances the elimination of carbon monoxide. In cases acute cyanide of hydrogen sulfide poisoning, nitrites may be used to generate formation of cyanmethemoglobin or sulfmethemoglobin. Hydroxocobalamin can also be used as an antidote for cyanide. Atropine and pralidoxime can be life-saying in reversing the acute cholinesterase-inhibiting effects of organophosphate pesticides. Chelating agents may reverse acute toxicity caused by some metals.
Atropine ; Carbon Monoxide ; Chelating Agents ; Diagnosis ; Humans ; Hydrogen Sulfide ; Hydroxocobalamin ; Metals ; Nitrites ; Oxygen ; Pesticides ; Poisoning* ; Stomach ; Water-Electrolyte Balance

No abstract available.
Occupational Diseases*

This study was conducted to evaluate the relations between alcohol intake and blood lipid level in a group of 1,138 Korean adult men, ages 20 to 69 years. Total number of each of a variety of drinks in the previous two weeks was obtained by questionnaire and converted into grams of alcohol consumed in a week. The levels of blood lipid such as Cholesterol, HDL-Cholesterol, Triglyceride and LDL-Cholesterol were examined by enzyme method. We also observed the effects of various variables such as age, body mass index, smoking, exercise and blood pressure on blood lipid level. The results obtained were as follows; 1. Average weekly alcohol intake was 129.0+/-167.4 gm and that of 30-39 age group was the highest as 149.3+/-170.4gm. 2. Levels of Cholesterol, Triglyceride and LDL-Cholesterol tended to increase with increasing age, but level of HDL-Cholesterol showed no significant relationship with age. 3. The positive linear regressions of alcohol intake on HDL-Cholesterol and Triglyceride were noted statistically significant. 4. Multiple regression analysis demonstrated that the effect of alcohol on HDL-Cholesterol and Triglyceride was statistically significant and the contribution rates were 5.0% and 0.8%, respectively. And, in the case of HDL-Cholesterol, the alcohol intake was the most significant independent variable.
Adult* ; Blood Pressure ; Body Mass Index ; Cholesterol ; Humans ; Linear Models ; Male ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Smoke ; Smoking ; Triglycerides

Low back pain patients an controls of shipyard workers were surveyed between June 1995 and september 1995 to identify risk factors of industrial low back pain. The patients were 17 male workers who had got medical treatment for over 3 days because of industrial back pain controls were 51 male workers who had not have musculoskeletal disorder for one year before the survey. By univariate analysis, the workers who did overtime work 4 times or more for the last 2 weeks showed odds ratio of 3.67 on low back pain with the workers who did less overtime work. Carrying heavy materials was also associated with the low back pain and the odds ratio increased with the increase of carrying weight. work space and work posture were not associated with the low back pain significantly. The welder had higher odds ratio than the other workers on low back pain. The duration of employment and job satisfaction did not affect the risk of low back pain. Multiple logistic regression analysis showed that frequency of overtime work for the last 2 weeks and carrying heavy materials among the risk factors were associated significantly with the low back pain. We found that important risk factors of low back pain of shipyard workers are work intensity factors such as overtime work and carrying heavy weight.
Back Pain ; Employment ; Humans ; Job Satisfaction ; Logistic Models ; Low Back Pain* ; Male ; Odds Ratio ; Posture ; Risk Factors*

No abstract available.
Chest Pain* ; Thorax*

Genotoxic agents can induce various DNA lesions. DNA-Protein Crosslinks(DPCs) were known as the important DNA lesions which could impair gene expression because DPCs had a high probability of resisting repair and persisting through cell cycle. This repair resistance of DPCs could have biological significance but had not been evaluated clearly yet. Most of the studies that have evaluated the repair of DPCs only compared the extent of DPCs repair with other DNA lesions. We injected K2CrO4, a genotoxic agent, into Sprague-Dawley rats intraperitoneally(5mg/kg) and isolated blood lymphocytes 12 hours later. These lymphocytes were cultured in the mitogen added growth media and mitogen free media separately. The degree of the repair of DPCs was monitored for 4 days by the K-SDS assay. 4 day later, the amount of DPCs decreased by 4.6% in the mitogen added media but in creased by 10.9% in the mitogen free media. These results showed that DPCs induced by K2CrO4 were not repaired easily and the DPCs were biologically significant DNA lesions. We thought the decrease of DPCs in the mitogen added media was not due to the repair of DPCs, but from the increase of normal cell proliferation. Therefore, it is very important to consider the proliferation of normal cells when estimating the repair of DPCs.
Animals ; Cell Cycle ; Cell Proliferation ; DNA ; Gene Expression ; Lymphocytes* ; Rats* ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley

No abstract available.
Humans ; Male* ; Smoke* ; Smoking*

No abstract available.
Occupational Diseases*

We performed case-control studies for the 1, 138 Korean adult men. According to the results of UGIS, we classified the gastritis into the erosive gastritis, superficial gastritis, and hypertrophic gastritis. And then, we selected controls among non-gastritis group after matching. Alcohol intake and smoking history was obtained by questionnaire. And we observed the effects of alcohol intake and smoking to the each gastritis. The results obtained were as follows; 1. Smokers had a risk of getting erosive gastritis more than twice (2.6) than non-smokers and there was dose-response relationships between smoking and erosive gastritis. Alcohol intake, however, had no significant relation with the erosive gastritis. 2. Both smoking and alcohol intake had no significant relations with superficial gastritis. 3. Smoking had no significant relation with hypertrophic gastritis, but dividing between those who drank more than 100gm of alcohol a week and those who drank less, we obtained the odds ratio of 3. 4 suggesting that there existed a significant relation between moderate or excessive alcohol intake and hypertrophic gastritis. 4. Among the gastritis patients, those who had erosive gastritis smoked most heavily, and those who had hypertrophic gastritis drank most excessively.
Adult* ; Case-Control Studies* ; Gastritis* ; Gastritis, Hypertrophic ; Humans ; Male ; Odds Ratio ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Smoke* ; Smoking*

BACKGROUND: Domestic violence once considered an infrequently occurring event existing only in deviant relationships, it has been more recently recognized as a widely distributed phenomenon resulting from multiple cultural, social, psycological factors. According to declining world economics, family violence rises with a simultaneous curtailment of agencies available to assist battered persons and there is increasing pressure on emergency departments to serve those who might otherwise have sought help from public agency. In Korea, we don't have any clinical data about domestic violence, and authors analysed clinical pictures of domestic violence victims who came to the emergency department of Korean University medical center. METHOD: We reviewed the victims of the domestic violence retrospectively, who visited in ED, Korean Univ. Hospital from Jan. 1996 to the Dec. 1996. We Analysed data to Age, sex, Injury severity score, location of injury, mechanism, perpetrator. RESULTS: During the study period, total 134 domestic violence victims were identified. The young, females were predominantly victimized. And married women were more commonly violated. (about 70%). ISS was relatively mild (2.491), face and head were mainly injured by punching and objects throwing. The Prevalence of domestic violence victims almost presented at Emergency department between 6:00/P.M. and 8:00 A.M.. CONCLUSION: Emergency physicians suspect domestic violence victims who injured at face and head by punching or hitted would. In these patients, we need more detail history and physical exam. And in case of repeated domestic violence, refer to neuropychatry dept and social workers with perpetratrs, and need mere concerte social programs for domestic violence.
Academic Medical Centers ; Domestic Violence* ; Emergencies* ; Emergency Service, Hospital* ; Female ; Head ; Humans ; Injury Severity Score ; Korea ; Prevalence ; Retrospective Studies ; Social Workers