PURPOSE: Recently, considering the large number of adolescents suffering from chronic illness, it is important to identify the factors affecting the quality of life (QoL) in order to develop intervention programs. METHODS: Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS 21.0. The general characteristics, psychosocial health status, and life satisfaction distributions of the participants were analyzed using frequency, percentage, mean, and standard deviation. Cronbach's alpha coefficients were calculated to test the reliability of the instrument. The differences in psychosocial health status and life satisfaction according to gender were tested with t-test and Chi-square test. Additionally, multiple regression analysis was used to examine the effect of psychosocial health status on life satisfaction. RESULTS: The multiple regression analysis revealed that depression, ego resilience, and self-esteem were associated with the QoL in both male and female participants. Economic status, subjective health, peer attachment, and smart phone addiction were associated with the QoL in male participants, while exercise time during physical education classes, social withdrawal, and school adaptation were associated with the QoL in female participants. CONCLUSION: The findings suggest that a health promotion program should be developed, which reflects gender differences, to improve the QoL of adolescents with chronic illness.
Adolescent ; Chronic Disease ; Depression ; Diagnostic Self Evaluation ; Ego ; Female ; Health Promotion ; Humans ; Male ; Physical Education and Training ; Quality of Life ; Smartphone ; Social Class

PURPOSE: This study was done to examine sexual autonomy of college students. METHOD: Between October 2012 and November 2012, data related to self-efficacy, health knowledge, attitude to sex, and sexual autonomy orientation, were collected by questionnaire from 232 students. The data analysis was performed using PASW (SPSS) 18.0 program, and included t-test, one-way ANOVA, Pearson correlation coefficients, and multiple stepwise liner regression analysis. RESULTS: The results showed a positive correlation between self-efficacy and sexual autonomy (r=.56, p<.001), sexual health knowledge (r=.50, p<.001), and attitude to sex (r=.29, p=.001). These 4 variables accounted for 48.7% of the variance in sexual autonomy among college students. CONCLUSION: The results of this study indicate that there is a need to develop mental health nursing strategies for college students in order to provide effective counseling on sexuality and sexual health matters.
Counseling ; Humans ; Mental Health ; Orientation ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Reproductive Health ; Sexuality ; Statistics as Topic

Relapsing polychondritis (RP) is a rare, chronic, and potentially fatal multisystemic inflammatory disorder targeting cartilaginous structures. This disorder is frequently associated with rheumatoid arthritis, systemic vasculitis, connective tissue diseases, and hematologic disorders, but renal involvement is unusual. In the literature, associated renal pathology includes mesangial expansion, IgA nephropathy, tubulointerstitial nephritis, and segmental necrotizing crescentic glomerulonephritis. We report a case of a 49-year-old male found to have RP and nephrotic syndrome, with confirmed membranous nephropathy on kidney biopsy. He responded well to corticosteroids and cyclosporine. This is the first case of renal associated RP confirmed by renal biopsy in Korea. Membranous nephropathy associated with RP has never before been reported.
Adrenal Cortex Hormones ; Arthritis, Rheumatoid ; Biopsy ; Connective Tissue Diseases ; Cyclosporine ; Glomerulonephritis ; Glomerulonephritis, IGA ; Glomerulonephritis, Membranous ; Humans ; Kidney ; Korea ; Male ; Nephritis, Interstitial ; Nephrotic Syndrome ; Polychondritis, Relapsing ; Systemic Vasculitis

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to test a model linking infant health problem, mother's depression and marital relationship to infant abuse. METHODS: This study employed a cross-sectional survey design. Data were collected from 2009 Data of Index Studies for Korean Children and Adolescents Development. Survey data from 1,060 infants and their mothers (including infant health status and infant physical illness scale, depression scale, marital relationship scale, and child abuse scale) were used to test the model. The model was tested using path analysis techniques within structural equation modeling. RESULTS: The model fit indices suggested that the original hypothesized model adequately fit the data (chi2 = .33, df = 5, p = .84, Tucker-Lewis Index = 1.04, Comparative Fit Index = 1.00, Root Mean Square Error of Approximation = .00). Infant health problem and mother's depression had a negative direct effect on marital relationship, which in turn had a direct negative effect on infant abuse. Infant health problems directly affected infant abuse and also influenced infant abuse indirectly through the marital relationship. Mother's depression had significant direct effects on infant abuse and also influenced infant abuse indirectly through the marital relationship. CONCLUSION: The findings from this study demonstrate the fundamental importance of infant health as linked to the mother's mental health, and marital relationship and increasing the quality of marital relationship may be the key to infant abuse prevention.
Adult ; Child Abuse/*psychology/statistics & numerical data ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Depressive Disorder/epidemiology/*psychology ; Female ; *Health Status ; Humans ; Infant ; Infant Welfare/*psychology/statistics & numerical data ; Marriage/*psychology/statistics & numerical data ; Middle Aged ; Models, Psychological ; Mothers/*psychology ; Questionnaires ; Republic of Korea/epidemiology

PURPOSE: A large number of studies have demonstrated that rhinitis and asthma commonly occur together, and that a temporary relationship between the onset of rhinitis and asthma with rhinitis frequently preceding the development of asthma. We studied to know whether there were asthmatic airway inflammations in subjects with allergic rhinitis with bronchial hyperresponsiveness to methacholine who had no asthma symptoms. METHODS: Thirty seven children with an allergic rhinitis who visited the pediatric allergy clinic from January 1998 through June 1999 were enrolled. They were grouped into two groups according to the degree of airway responsiveness to methacholine, and 19 bronchial asthma patients with had no asthma attacks for 2 months were compared as control group.; AR-Mch (+) group (n=19) had a PC20-Methacholine lower than 10 mg/mL: AR-Mch (-) group (n=18) had a PC20-Metacholine greater than 10 mg/mL. The relationship of PEFR variability, sputum eosinophils, and nasal eosinophils with bronchial hyperresponsiveness to methacholine in each groups was compared. RESULTS: 1) The PC20-Methacholine was 5.7+/-3.5 mg/mL in the AR-Mch (+) Group, 1.9+/-2.7 mg/mL in the BA Group. 2) Sputum eosinophil was 14+/-6.9% in the AR-Mch (+) Group, 8.1+/-5.2% in the AR-Mch (-) Group, 29.6+/-16.9% in the BA Group, and sputum eosinophils of the AR-Mch (+) Group was higher than that of the AR-Mch (-) Group. 3) PEFR dinural variation was 7.0+/-2.6% in the AR-Mch (+) Group, 5.0+/-2.9% in the AR-Mch (-) Group, 14.0+/-6.0% in the BA Group, and PEFR dinural variation in AR-Mch (+) Group was higher than that of the AR-Mch (-) Group. 4) The PC20-Methacholine was not correlated with PEFR dinural variation in both the AR-Mch (+) Group and the BA Group. 5) The PC20-Methacholine was correlated with sputum eosinophils only in the BA Group. 6) Nasal eosinophils were not correlated with sputum eosinophils in the AR-Mch (+) and the BA Group. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrated that patients with allergic rhinitis who had bronchial hyperresponsiveness to methacholine might have eosinophilic inflammation in the lower airway and increased dinural PEFR. Further studies are necessary to evaluate whether asthma symptoms will be developed in these allergic rhinitis children.
Asthma ; Child* ; Eosinophils ; Humans ; Hypersensitivity ; Inflammation ; Methacholine Chloride ; Peak Expiratory Flow Rate ; Rhinitis* ; Sputum*

Hypokalemia is a common finding in various clinical settings; it is associated with diuretic use and loss of potassium via the gastrointestinal tract. Less common causes are renal tubular acidosis, diabetic ketoacidosis, excess insulin, primary hyperaldosteronism, and medications, such as amphotericin B. Nafcillin, a narrow-spectrum penicillin class antibiotic, which is selectively prescribed for methicillin-susceptible Staphylococcal aureus infections, and is commonly associated with gastrointestinal side effects, such as nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain. However, in rare cases it can cause hypokalemia, which is usually overlooked. Severe hypokalemia was detected in a 59-year-old male patient hospitalized due to traumatic cerebral hemorrhage who received 12 g of nafcillin per day for more than 2 weeks for sepsis caused by methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus epidermidis. We confirmed the association between nafcillin and hypokalemia through further evaluation and a review of the relevant literature. Clinicians should be aware of hypokalemia as a complication when using high doses of nafcillin.

Hypokalemia is a common finding in various clinical settings; it is associated with diuretic use and loss of potassium via the gastrointestinal tract. Less common causes are renal tubular acidosis, diabetic ketoacidosis, excess insulin, primary hyperaldosteronism, and medications, such as amphotericin B. Nafcillin, a narrow-spectrum penicillin class antibiotic, which is selectively prescribed for methicillin-susceptible Staphylococcal aureus infections, and is commonly associated with gastrointestinal side effects, such as nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain. However, in rare cases it can cause hypokalemia, which is usually overlooked. Severe hypokalemia was detected in a 59-year-old male patient hospitalized due to traumatic cerebral hemorrhage who received 12 g of nafcillin per day for more than 2 weeks for sepsis caused by methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus epidermidis. We confirmed the association between nafcillin and hypokalemia through further evaluation and a review of the relevant literature. Clinicians should be aware of hypokalemia as a complication when using high doses of nafcillin.

The association of Graves' disease and idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura(ITP) is a rather rare, but well documented condition, and has also been reported a few times in Korea. At present, two main hypothetical mechanisms are used to explain the association of the two diseases; the presence of autoimmunity, which leads to both diseases, and activation of the reticuloendothelial system by thyroid hormone. A 33 year old female patient visited our hospital with mucosal bleeding and purpura over her entire body of 3 days duration. Her initial platelet count was 2x109/L, and the thyroid function tests showed a suppressed TSH level of 0.09 mU/L(0.4~3.1) and elevated levels of triiodothyronine and free thyroxine. The levels of anti-thyroglobulin Ab anti-TPO Ab, and anti-TSH receptor Ab were also elevated. The clinical, laboratory and bone marrow findings were compatible with Graves' disease associated with ITP. She was treated with methylprednisolone and propylthiouracil, after which her platelet count increased and thyroid function normalized. We report a case of Graves' disease associated with ITP, which was treated well by glucocorticoid and antithyroid medications
Adult ; Autoimmunity ; Bone Marrow ; Female ; Graves Disease* ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Korea ; Methylprednisolone ; Mononuclear Phagocyte System ; Platelet Count ; Propylthiouracil ; Purpura ; Purpura, Thrombocytopenic, Idiopathic* ; Thyroid Function Tests ; Thyroid Gland ; Thyroxine ; Triiodothyronine

PURPOSES: There have been many efforts to improve the service of emergency centers. In spite of these, no evidence is showing any landmark advancement of emergency services, especially in the hospital stage, exists. We need some efficient standard criteria to evaluate emergency service in the hospital stage, and a useful method might utilize the overcrowding index. We want to know the change in the overcrowding index at a regional emergency center after injury area administration. Injury area means an area in which only an assigned duty physician manages patients with injuries such as those from traffic accidents, falls, assualts, collisions, lacerations, amputations, burns, intoxication, asphyxia, drowning, animal bites, sexual assualts, etc. METHODS: We started to operate an injury area in our emergency department from late 2004, and from January to June in 2004 and in 2005, we collected patients' data, age, sex, assigned department, and result from hospital order communication system to figure out overcrowding indices and result indices. We found the daily number of patients, the turnover rate, the admission rate, the ICU admission rate, the emergency operation rate, the ED stay duration, and the ED patient volume to be overcrowding indices. Also we found the withdrawal rate, the transfer rate, and mortality to be result indices. We compared these indices between 2004 to 2005 by using a t-test. RESULTS: There was a significant increase in the daily number of visiting patients in 2005, overcrowding indices, such as the turnover rate, the admission rate, the ICU admission rate, and the emergency operation rate, also showed statistically significant increases in 2005 (P<0.001). As for the result indices, there was a noticeable decrease in the number of withdrawals (11.77/day in 2004 to 4.53/day in 2005). CONCLUSION: Operating an injury area in a mildly overcrowded local emergency center is beneficial. Evaluating the effect of operating an injury area and it's impact on hospital finances by conducting a similar study analyziing patients for a longer duration would be valuable.
Accidents, Traffic ; Amputation ; Animals ; Asphyxia ; Burns ; Drowning ; Emergencies* ; Emergency Service, Hospital* ; Humans ; Lacerations ; Mortality

In the multidisciplinary cancer treatment (MCT), it is necessary that radiologists participate in the patients' care, and they might be directly involved to the new practice methods including outpatient clinics. Face-to-face MCT is the most desirable practice method because satisfaction and compliance of the patients is high. However, it should be restrictively expanded due to practical problems such as lack of manpower. As a practical alternative, there is non-face-to-face MCT, like a tumor board, and it has many advantages to overcome the limitations of face-to-face MCT. Therefore, it is necessary to establish policies to support that both two types of MCT are stimulated so that the patients are able to get the optimized cancer management.
Ambulatory Care Facilities ; Compliance ; Humans