No abstract available.
Atrial Natriuretic Factor ; Body Weight ; Humans ; Infant, Newborn*

Hepatitis G virus (HGV) is a single-strand RNA virus in the Flaviviridae family, it was recently identified from the plasma of a patient with chronic hepatitis. HOV infection may cause acute and chronic liver disease by blood transfusion, drug addicts, hemophilia, and multiple sexual partners. But clinical significance of infectious pathway is still unclear. In this report, we amplified HGV RNA by reverse transcription-PCR (RT-PCR) by primers within the highly conserved 5'-noncoding region (NCR) and used restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) method for the polymorphism analysis of amplified HGV gene. HGV was shown to be present in 7 of 78 (9.0%) from HCV RT-PCR positive serum samples and 5 of 58 (8.6%) from HCV RT-PCR negative serum samples. From the RFLP method HGV divided into four genotypes in 12 positive samples. Therefore, HGV genotype was distributed at least four different types in Korea.
Blood Transfusion ; Drug Users ; Flaviviridae ; GB virus C* ; Genotype ; Hemophilia A ; Hepatitis* ; Hepatitis, Chronic ; Humans ; Korea ; Liver Diseases ; Plasma ; Polymorphism, Restriction Fragment Length* ; RNA ; RNA Viruses ; Sexual Partners

PURPOSE: The study has planned to find out the perceived social support of the families with pneumoconiosis patients. METHOD: The subjects of the study were the 300 family care givers of the pneumoconiosis patients who were hospitalized in Taeback, Donghae and Jeongsun Occupational Medical Center. The Social Support Survey Instrument developed by Park(1985) was adopted. RESULTS: The Direct Perceived Supports showed statistically differences by the age(F=1.70 p=0.01) and the state of the disease(F=3.09 p=0.027) of the patients. The Health Situation Centered Support was different by the marietal situation(F=2.29 p=0.48) of the pneumoconiosis patients. The Indirect Perceived Supports were statistically different by sex(t=3.76 p=0.043) and relation with the patient (F=2.49 p=0.048), group joining(t=3.79 p=0.042) of the family care givers. The DPSs were statistically different by family income(F=2.25 p=0.025), family authority(F=2.81 p=0.031) and health insurance status(F=2.13 p=0.026). RECOMMENDATION: It is recommended to develop an active social support program at the pneumoconiosis care centers for the middle aged female family care givers of the pneumoconiosis patients with the support of Ministry of Labor, Ministry of Health and Welfare and other NGOs of pneumoconiosis.
Caregivers ; Female ; Gangwon-do ; Humans ; Insurance, Health ; Middle Aged ; Pneumoconiosis*

This study was done to identify the effectiveness of a proper positioning on musculoskeletal complication on patient with Stroke by using a quasi-experimental study. A total of 18 patients were selected as a subject from June 1st to October 31th 1998 who had been hospitalized at Intensive Care Units in K medical center. A experimental group consists of 8 patients who were given proper positioning every two hours. A control group consists of 10 patients who were given traditional positioning. The collected data were analyzed by SPSS windows including chi-test(Fisher's exact method), Wilcoxon Rank Sum test and McNemar test. The result of this study was summerized as follows: 1) The experimental group with proper positioning has shown lower shoulder pain score, dorsiflexion contracture score, Shoulder subluxation score and higher Range of Motion and than the control group. 2) The experimental group with proper positioning has shown lower muscle pain score and edema score than the control group, but it was not statistically significant. Therefore, proper positioning could be applied as an independent nursing intervention for patients on Stroke in order to facilitate rehabilitation.
Contracture ; Edema ; Humans ; Intensive Care Units ; Myalgia ; Nursing ; Range of Motion, Articular ; Rehabilitation ; Shoulder ; Shoulder Pain ; Stroke*

We describe cytologic findings of two cases of pilomatrixoma which had been cytologically misdiagnosed as suspicious malignant and malignant lesions in 35 year-old and 22 year-old females who presented a palpable neck mass. The cytologic smears showed many basaloid cells with a high nuclear-cytoplasmic ratio, nuclear hyperchromatism and prominent nucleoli, keratinized squamous cells with pyknotic nuclei, foreign body giant cells, and chronic inflammatory cells in necrotic background. Retrospective view of this aspiration smear revealed that these findings were characteristic features of pilomatrixoma, and the evenly distributed chromatin pattern as well as the lack of nuclear pleomorphism were considered to be the differential points from malignant neoplasm. Pilomatrixoma is a benign neoplasm which should be included in differential diagnosis if the fine needle aspiration cytologic smear of a neck mass or subcutaneous mass of any site showed these features.
Female ; Humans ; Diagnosis, Differential

PURPOSE: This study aims to assess the effects of psychosocial work environment and self-efficacy on stress, depression, and burn-out among office workers. METHODS: Survey data were collected from 331 office workers who worked in one workplace from April 10 to 30, 2012. The impact of psychosocial work environment and self-efficacy on stress, depression, and burn-out was analyzed with hierarchical multiple regression using SAS version 9.3. RESULTS: Work-family conflicts and emotional demands were identified as main factors influencing mental health. Other work environment factors influencing mental health were role clarity for stress, possibilities for development, meaning-of work, social support-from supervisors and job insecurity for depression, and social community at work for burn-out. Self-efficacy was correlated with most psychosocial work environment and factor with independent influence on stress and depression. The final models including general characteristics, psychosocial work environment, and self-efficacy accounted for 34%, 44%, and 36% for stress, depression, and burn-out respectively. CONCLUSION: To promote mental health in office workers, there is a need to decrease work-family conflicts and emotional demands and to improve work organization and job contents, social support, and self-efficacy.
Depression ; Mental Health ; Social Work

We report one case of bilateral testicular torsion. A 400 gm male infant, born by cesarean section due to induction failure at 42 weeks gestation, was hospitalized at 9 days of age secondary to bilateral testicular mass. Physical examination revealed an healthy baby with enlarged, firm, nontender mass on both sides of the scrotum. Transillumination of the mass showed no transmission of light. Laboratory data included a normal CBC and a urinalysis. Ultrasonogrophy showed well encapsulated 0.9 x 0.9 x 1.0 cm sized and 1.5 x 1.3 x 1.3 cm sized homogenous hypoechoic solid mass in left and right testicles respectively, remainder testicular parenchyme showed normal structure. Exploration of the testes was performed at 25-days old under general anesthesia. Exploration revealed a infarction of the right testes secondary to spermatic cord torsion, evidenced by clockwise turns outside the tunica vaginalis of 270 degrees. Left testes was infarcted but a quarter of them seemed normal. Orchiectomy on right and fixation on left testes were performed respectively. Left spermatic cord seemed to be detorted spontaneously. Postoperatively the infant did well and discharged 5 days after operation. Follow up examination during the next 3 months have shown appropriated sized testicle with normal colorization and arterial pulse. Testicular scan performed at age 39 days showed good perfusion of left testes.
Anesthesia, General ; Cesarean Section ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Infant ; Infant, Newborn* ; Infarction ; Male ; Orchiectomy ; Perfusion ; Physical Examination ; Pregnancy ; Scrotum ; Spermatic Cord ; Spermatic Cord Torsion ; Testis* ; Transillumination ; Urinalysis

Exercise induced asthma (EIA) is defined as acute, reversible, usually self-limiting airway obstruction which develop after strenous exercise in patients with asthma. EIA is a bigger problem in children than adults due to more active and smaller airways which obstruct more easily when bronchospasm develops. The exercise elicited many change in pulmonary function of asthmatic children. These change could be measured by measurements of PEFR, FEV1, FVC, or SRaw. The propose of this study is to determine the changes and sensitivity of different pulmonary function test in asthmatic children. 37 asthmatic children exercised on free running and pulmonary function tests were performed before and every 5 minutes during 15 minutes after exercise. The results were as follows. 1) In 37 asthmatic children, EIA developed in 23 children (62%) and did not developed in 14 children (38%). The difference in sex, height, weight, total eosinophil count, serum IgF and test between EIA and Non-EIA were not significant (P>0.05). 2) In EIA group, %PEFR was changed from 109.56% to 83.56%, But in Non-EIA group, %PEFR was not changed before and after exercise loading test. 3) In EIA group, %FEV1 was changed from 90.91% to 74.87%. But in Non-EIA group, %FEV1 was not changed before and after exercise loading test. 4) In EIA group, %FVC changed from 91.83% to 75.35%. But in Non-EIA group, %FVC was not change before and after exercise loading test. 5) There was significant difference in pre-exercise specific airway resistance between EIA (6.7+/-1.7) and normal children (5.8+/-2.2)(p<0.05). In EIA group, %SRaw was changed from 115.7% to 161.2%. But in Non-EIA group, %SRaw was not changed before and after exercise loading test. 6) During the post-exercise observation period, increasement of SRaw was greater than changes in any other pulmonary function test. SRaw is the most sensitive test for the ditection of exercise induced airway obstruction is asthmatic children.
Adult ; Airway Obstruction ; Airway Resistance* ; Asthma ; Asthma, Exercise-Induced ; Bronchial Spasm ; Child* ; Eosinophils ; Humans ; Peak Expiratory Flow Rate ; Respiratory Function Tests ; Running

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of chronic deprivation of estradiol on the serotonin level in Sprague-Dawley rat's cerebral cortex and hippocampus. METHODS: One hundred of female Sprague-Dawley rats were taken care for seven to eight weeks, then they were randomly assigned into two group; fifty rats underwent bilateral oophorectomy & the remaining rats were the control group. Six months after oophorectomy, brain tissue was extracted from cerebral cortex and hippocampus and then homogenated: this was done in the both groups. The upper layer of the homogenated substance was taken and frozen and finally dried up. The next process was marking with PITC, quantification through HPLC and comparing with authentic serotonin. Protein quantity was measured by using Bradford method. RESULTS: Comparison between the bilateral oophorectomy group and the control group for serotonin content in the cerebral cortex was 134.2+/-14.3 nmol/mg protein(mean+/-SEM) and 122.5+/-11.6 nmol/mg protein in each group. As for the serotonin content in the hippocampus was 148.8+/-13.9 nmol/mg protein and 132.9+/-13.7 nmol/mg protein in each group. It shows that, there was no significant difference in the serotonin level, in the two areas mentioned above. CONCLUSION: The effect of estradiol on the serotonin level may be dependent on the hormonal change duration. Chronic effect of hypoestrogenism might have no effect on tryptophan hydroxylase and monoamine oxidase, thus not changin the serotonin level. These data supported the previous findings that chronic hypoestrogenism had no effect on serotonin level.
Animals ; Brain ; Cerebral Cortex* ; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid ; Estradiol ; Female ; Female* ; Hippocampus* ; Humans ; Monoamine Oxidase ; Ovariectomy* ; Rats* ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley* ; Serotonin* ; Tryptophan Hydroxylase

The objective of this study is to examine the correlation between the tolylene concentration in the work environment of organic solvents and the concentration of hippuric acid in urine of workers exposed toluene, and to acquire the fundamental materials of workers' health care and to assist the assessment of the biological permissible exposure limit. The control groups are 72 workers who had never been exposed to toluene and the case groups are 101 workers who had been exposed to toluene. This study was conducted to examine the correlation between the concentration of toluene in work environment and workers' hippuric acid concentration, to investigate the complaint difference of subjective symptoms by means of questionnaire, between the case groups and control groups. The results and conclusions are as follows: 1) The highest mean concentration of toluene in the air is 544.13+/-7.75 ppm in the Printing Department of mixing organic solvents. The concentrations of the others are 463.27+/-5.24 ppm in Department of mixture for organic solvents, and 393.56+/-45.69 ppm in the Printing Department(1), and 248.38+/-45.16 ppm in the Printing Department(2), and 159.38+/-18.51 ppm in the Printing Department(3). 2) The highest mean concentration of hippuric acid in urine is 6034.84+/-1298.35 mg/l in the Printing Department with mixing organic solvents. The concentrations of the others are 4798.44+/-784.53 mg/l in Department of mixture of organic solvents, and 2883.06+/-701.90 mg/l in the Printing Department(1), and 1449.98+/-905.19 mg/l in the Printing Department(2), and 598.52+/-299.43 mg/l in the Printing Department(3). 3) As the toluene concentration in the work environment becomes higher, the concentration of hippuric acid in urine also becomes higher. It is found that the coefficient of correlation between toluene concentration and the concentration of hippuric acid are positive (r=0.868, Y=7.18X+349.57). 4) It is found that the case groups complain of much more subjective symptoms than the control groups.
Delivery of Health Care ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Solvents ; Toluene*