PURPOSE: To examine the effects of a case management program on self-efficacy, depression and anxiety in pregnant women with gestational diabetes mellitus. METHODS: Thirty-seven patients who enrolled in a diabetes outpatient clinic were randomly assigned to either an experimental group (n=19) or a control group (n=18). The experimental group received a 2-week intervention composed of a series of one face-to-face interactive interview and five telephone interviews based on the National standards for diabetes self-management education and Bandura's self-efficacy resources of performance accomplishment, vicarious experience, verbal persuasion, and emotional arousal. The effects of the intervention were assessed by completion of a 9-item self-efficacy questionnaire, a 20-item depression questionnaire and a 20-item anxiety questionnaire prior to, and after the intervention. The statistical significances were examined using t-test. RESULTS: The change in self-efficacy was significantly greater in the experimental group than in the control group. Depression and anxiety changes in the experimental group were significantly greater compared to those in the control group. CONCLUSION: The results of study suggest that a case management program improves self-efficacy, and decreases depression and anxiety in pregnant women with gestational diabetes mellitus.
Ambulatory Care Facilities ; Anxiety ; Arousal ; Case Management ; Depression ; Diabetes, Gestational ; Female ; Humans ; Interviews as Topic ; Persuasive Communication ; Pregnancy ; Pregnant Women ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Self Care

Vulvar leiomyoma is a rare benign solid tumor of the vulva. Their incidence is not known as most reports are of a single case or small series, and their origin is not known exactly. Most cases are asymptomatic and local excision is recommended as initial therapy and also for recurrences. We have experienced vulvar leiomyoma (the labia majora and vestibule of the vagina) in a 51 years old woman and present it with a brief review of the literatures.
Female ; Humans ; Incidence ; Leiomyoma* ; Middle Aged ; Recurrence ; Vulva

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of positive psychological characteristics on posttraumatic stress symptoms after traumatic experiences. METHODS: The subjects were 97 firefighters (83 males and 14 females), who completed the Life Events Scale, the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale, and the Impact of Event Scale-Revised Korean version. Pearson product-moment correlation coefficients were computed to examine the relationships among the variables, and Structural Equation Modeling was used to investigate the mediation process in the relationships among traumatic experiences, positive psychological characteristics, and posttraumatic stress. RESULTS: The results showed that self-esteem had a mediating effect on the relationship between traumatic experiences and posttraumatic stress symptoms. Traumatic experiences affected posttraumatic stress symptoms not only directly, but also through self-esteem to posttraumatic stress symptoms. Therefore the lower firefighters' self-esteem was, the more posttraumatic stress symptoms occurred. Resilience, however, apparently had no function as mediating variable in the relationship between traumatic experiences and posttraumatic stress symptoms. Traumatic experiences and resilience each seemed to affect posttraumatic stress symptoms directly. Hence, the lower firefighters' resilience was, the more posttraumatic stress symptoms occurred. CONCLUSION: This study showed that self-esteem had a mediating effect on the relationship between traumatic experiences and posttraumatic stress symptoms. We also found that resilience affects posttraumatic stress symptoms directly, regardless of the number of traumatic experiences. Likewise, these results showed that we should be concerned in positive psychological characteristics such as self-esteem and resilience in order to prevent posttraumatic stress symptoms.
Firefighters ; Humans ; Male ; Negotiating

OBJECTIVE: The Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC) measures various aspects of psychological resilience in patients with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other psychiatric ailments. This study sought to assess the reliability and validity of the Korean version of the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (K-CD-RISC). METHODS: In total, 576 participants were enrolled (497 females and 79 males), including hospital nurses, university students, and firefighters. Subjects were evaluated using the K-CD-RISC, the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), the Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R), the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES), and the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS). Test-retest reliability and internal consistency were examined as a measure of reliability, and convergent validity and factor analysis were also performed to evaluate validity. RESULTS: Cronbach's alpha coefficient and test-retest reliability were 0.93 and 0.93, respectively. The total score on the K-CD-RISC was positively correlated with the RSES (r=0.56, p<0.01). Conversely, BDI (r=-0.46, p<0.01), PSS (r=-0.32, p<0.01), and IES-R scores (r=-0.26, p<0.01) were negatively correlated with the K-CD-RISC. The K-CD-RISC showed a five-factor structure that explained 57.2% of the variance. CONCLUSION: The K-CD-RISC showed good reliability and validity for measurement of resilience among Korean subjects.
Depression ; Female ; Firefighters ; Humans ; Reproducibility of Results ; Resilience, Psychological ; Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic

An 11-year-old girl was diagnosed with encephalitis due to Epstein-Barr virus(EBV). She was admitted to our hospital due to convulsion and decreased consciousness after several days of fever, sore throat and headache. Cerebrospinal fluid analysis showed lymphocyte-dominant pleocytosis and markedly elevated levels of protein. Magnetic resonance imaging(MRI) finding was normal, except for marked leptomeningeal enhancement. Even though she had signs and symptoms of infectious mononucleosis, EBV infection could not be considered as the underlying cause of the encephalitis until IgM for the viral capsid antigen of EBV had been detected in her blood. After treatment with acyclovir, a high dose of methylprednisolone and intravenous immunoglobulin, the neurological symptoms improved rapidly. She has not suffered from any neurological complications in the four months since being discharged. EBV infection should be considered as the main etiology in cases of childhood encephalitis, although there is no evidence of infectious mononucleosis existed.
Acyclovir ; Capsid ; Child ; Consciousness ; Encephalitis ; Epstein-Barr Virus Infections ; Fever ; Headache ; Herpesvirus 4, Human ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin M ; Immunoglobulins ; Infectious Mononucleosis ; Leukocytosis ; Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy ; Methylprednisolone ; Pharyngitis ; Seizures

OBJECTIVE: We analyzed quantification of mitochondria DNA (mtDNA) to investigate the relationship of mitochondria and pathogenesis of PCOS. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Peripheral blood samples were collected from 28 patients with PCOS who were under the inclusion criteria for PCOS and from 28 healthy controls. Genomic DNA was used to analyze real-time PCR for mtDNA copy number quantification. The mtDNA copy number was compared between the control and PCOS groups. All data was expressed as mean +/- SD. Statistical analysis was assessed by t-test. RESULTS: In this study, the mtDNA CT was 11.67+/-0.422 in PCOS patients and 11.51+/-0.722 in control group, respectively. The mtDNA copy number was 1726410.71+/-407858.591 the patients of in PCOS and 2167887.51+/-252459.28 in control group (p=0.08), respectively. CONCLUSION: In our study, using real-time PCR, there was a tendency of lower mtDNA copy number in the patients of PCOS when comparing to the control group even though statistical difference was not significant. However, more extensive analysis is required to clarity relationship between mtDNA copy number and pathogenesis of PCOS.
DNA ; DNA, Mitochondrial* ; Humans ; Mitochondria ; Polycystic Ovary Syndrome* ; Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction

PURPOSE: This study was conducted to identify the effects of life stress and depression in undergraduates on suicidal ideation. METHODS: The participants in this study were 306 nursing students from three different cities. Collected data were analyzed using t-test, ANOVA, Pearson correlation coefficients, and stepwise multiple regression. RESULTS: The mean score for life stress was 48.48, for depression, 28.59, and for suicidal ideation, 5.90. There were positive relationships between depression and life stress, suicidal ideation and life stress, and suicidal ideation and depression. The four factors of life stress, depression, school life, and gender were identified as factors influencing on suicidal ideation in undergraduates. CONCLUSION: The findings of this study indicate that the establishment of mental health care centers in universities, and development and implementation of nursing intervention programs for suicide prevention would be helpful.
Depression ; Humans ; Mental Health ; Stress, Psychological ; Students, Nursing ; Suicidal Ideation ; Suicide ; Child Health

The purpose of this study was to provide basic data on elementary school children's lifestyle and to contribute to developing on the health education program in elementary schools. The subjects were 1,412 children in 4 elementary schools in Gangwon-Do and Chonrabuk-Do area. Data collection was done from September to November 2001 by questionnaire and school health documents. The questionnaire corrected for the purpose of this study which had been developed by Bronson School of Nursing(1991), 'Lifestyle Questionnaire for School-age Children'. The questionnaire consists of 3 categories; 'Activities that promote health', 'Injury prevention', 'Feeling'. Cronbach coefficient alpha for the 29 items was .68. The data analyzed to obtain frequency, mean, percentage, t-test, ANOVA and Pearson correlation coefficient by SPSS Win program. The results of this study were as follows. 1. Females(50.2%) of gender, 6th grade(24.2%) of grade, nuclear family(82.0%) of family type, beyond college graduate(54.5%) of father's school career, under high school graduate(58.1%) of mother's school career, first of birth order(47.1%) were majority. Mean of father's age was 41.2 and mother's age was 38.1. 2. The mean of lifestyle was 66.4, feeling was 73.3, activities that promote health was 60.3 and injury prevention was 64.0. The highest degree of activities that promote health was "I eat fruits" and injury prevention was "I look both ways when crossing streets"and feeling was "I enjoy my family". The lowest degree of activities that promote health was "I visit the dentist every tear" and injury prevention was "I wear a helmet when I go on bike trips" and feeling was "I think it is okay to cry". 3. There were significant differences in lifestyle of gender(t=4.309, p=.000), grade(F=6.299, p=.000), father's age(t=2.534, p=.011), father's education(t=-4.933, p=.000), mother's education(t=-3.360, p=.001), birth order (t=5.363, p=.000). There were significant differences in activities that promote health of gender(t=-2.462, P=.014), grade(F=4.893, p=.000), father's education(t=-4.480, p=.000), birth order(t=4.343, p=.000), in injury prevention of gender(t=-4.452, p=.000), grade(F=8.636, p=.000), father's age(t=3.386, p=.001), mother's age(t=2.059, p=.040), father's education(t=-6.051, p=.000), mother's education(t=-5.173, p=.000), birth order(t= 4.417, p=.000) and in feeling of gender (t=-3.285, p=.001), grade(F=7.526, p=.000), mother's age(t=-3.268, p=.001). 4. Activities that promote health was positively correlated with injury prevention(r=.432, p=.000), feeling(r=.210, p=.000), lifestyle (r=.785, p=.000). Injury prevention was positively correlated with feeling(r=.256, p=.000), lifestyle(r=.854, p=.000) also feeling was positively correlated with lifestyle(r=.504, p=.000). These findings suggest the need to develop nursing strategy to promote elementary school children's health. Because helmet use score in injury prevention marked the lowest score, it is necessary to encourage helmet use when planning injury prevention and health promotion.
Birth Order ; Child ; Data Collection ; Dentists ; Gangwon-do ; Head Protective Devices ; Health Education ; Health Promotion ; Humans ; Life Style* ; Nursing ; Parturition ; School Health Services ; Child Health ; Surveys and Questionnaires

BACKGROUND: Macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) is a unique protein, participating in inflammation, immune response, and cell growth. Previous reports showed that MIF-polymorphisms are associated with an increased risk for various inflammatory diseases. OBJECTIVE: This study was designed to investigate the effect of MIF polymorphisms on Behcet's disease (BD). METHODS: A total of 362 patients with BD and 290 healthy controls were genotyped. We also performed RT-PCR analysis, ELISA, and immunohistochemical stain for MIF. RESULTS: We could not find statistically significant differences in the genotype frequencies of the MIF-794[CATT]5-8 repeat polymorphism or MIF-173 G>C polymorphism between BD patients and controls. Immunohistochemical analysis showed that MIF protein was diffusely distributed throughout epidermis and subcutaneous fat tissue from the skin lesions of patients with BD and erythema nodosum. CONCLUSION: Contrary to earlier reports, serum MIF levels were decreased in patients with BD, and the prescence of polymorphisms in the MIF promoter region was not associated with disease susceptibility. Nevertheless, MIF may play a role in cutaneous inflammation in BD.
Disease Susceptibility ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Epidermis ; Erythema Nodosum ; Genotype ; Humans ; Inflammation ; Macrophages ; Promoter Regions, Genetic ; Skin ; Subcutaneous Fat

PURPOSE: For the successful completion of transcatheter closure of atrial septal defects with the Amplatzer septal occluder, shape of the defects should be considered prior to selecting the device. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the results of a transcatheter closure of oval shaped atrial septal defect. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From November 2009 until November 2011, cardiac computed tomography was performed on 69 patients who needed a transcatheter closure of atrial septal defect. We defined an oval shaped atrial septal defect as the ratio of the shortest diameter to the longest diameter < or =0.75 measured using computed tomography. A trans-thoracic echocardiogram was performed one day after and six months after. RESULTS: The transcatheter closure of atrial septal defect was performed successfully in 24 patients in the ovoid group and 45 patients in the circular group. There were no serious complications in both groups and the complete closure rate at 6 months later was 92.3% in the ovoid group and 93.1% in the circular group (p>0.05). The differences between the device size to the longest diameter of the defect and the ratios of the device size to the longest diameter were significantly smaller in the ovoid group (1.8+/-2.8 vs. 3.7+/-2.6 and 1.1+/-0.1 vs. 1.2+/-0.2). CONCLUSION: Transcatheter closure of an oval shaped atrial septal defect was found to be safe with the smaller Amplatzer septal occluder device when compared with circular atrial septal defects.
Echocardiography ; Heart Septal Defects, Atrial/pathology/*surgery ; Humans ; Middle Aged ; Postoperative Complications ; Republic of Korea ; Retrospective Studies ; Septal Occluder Device/*adverse effects ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed ; Treatment Outcome