PURPOSE: The purposes of this article were to analyze curricula of gerontological nurse practitioner(GNP) programs in the United States, to compare the curricula with Korean GNP programs, and to provide suggestions for better GNP programs in Korea. METHODS: Top GNP programs in the United States were identified from the US NEWS and 12 universities were included in the analyses. Class distribution, credit hours, and clinical hours were analyzed and suggestions for Korean GNP programs were made. RESULTS: Average credit hours for class lectures in the US GNP programs were 47 and emphases on physiology, pharmacology, physical assessment, and disease management were identified. Most US GNP programs(75%) provided health concerns for both middle aged and older adults. Not all US GNP programs included 'theory' or 'the introduction to GNP' classes, while these are required classes in the Korean GNP program. The mean clinical hours in the US GNP Programs were 537 which are much higher than those in the Korean GNP program. CONCLUSION: Based on the analyses, we can conclude that Korean GNP programs are lacking in many ways. Further evaluation and curricula modifications are required to settle down the program better and to have the graduates prepared more as internationally competent nurse practitioners.
Adult ; Curriculum* ; Disease Management ; Geriatric Nursing ; Humans ; Korea ; Lectures ; Middle Aged ; Nurse Practitioners* ; Pharmacology ; Physiology ; United States

We experienced a case of adenocarcinoma arising in sacrococcygeal teratoma. The patient was a 52-year-old woman. She was admitted due to one month of sacral pain. She had a sacral mass since birth. On physical examination, anal fistula was present at the perianal area and pus drainage was noted. MR image showed multiple variable-sized cysts with inhomogeneous density. Resected specimen, mesuring 12.5 7.0 cm in diameter, showed multiple variable-sized cystic lesions admixed with grayish solid portion. The cysts contained mucoid material. The microscopic examination showed mature teratoma composed of cysts lined by pseudostratified ciliated columnar epithelium, intestinal mucosa, mature cartilage, bone, and fat tissue. A moderately differentiated adenocarcinoma developed from the cystic area in the mass.
Adenocarcinoma* ; Adult ; Cartilage ; Drainage ; Female ; Humans ; Intestinal Mucosa ; Middle Aged ; Mucous Membrane ; Parturition ; Physical Examination ; Rectal Fistula ; Suppuration ; Teratoma*

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to analyze the correlation of gestational age and birth weight with weight gain of very low birth weight infants(VLBWI) during their hospital stay. METHOD: This is a 5 year retrospective study of which data were collected through review of medical records. Subjects were 124 VLBW infants with a birth weight more than 1000g and less than 1500g who received neonatal intensive care at the university hospital between January 1, 1997 to December 31, 2001. RESULT: After calculating the z scores of birth weights and discharge weights, z scores of discharge weight and birth weight were compared with the median weight of a fetus of comparable gestational age based on an intrauterine growth reference. There was a significant difference between z scores of birth weight and discharge weight(t=11.60, df=122, p=0.000). Regardless of intensive care during the prolonged hospital stay, VLBW infants showed slow growth rate compared with the median weight of a fetus of comparable gestational age. CONCLUSION: VLBW infants developed a poor velocity of weight gain during the prolonged hospital stay after birth. The development worsened during the period of physiological weight loss and regain, and they did not reach to comparable growth rate of normal fetus even at the time of discharge. This poor growth velocity of VLBW infants influence negatively for their future growth. Therefore nureses who work at the neonatal intensive care unit must develop an effective nursing intervention protocol to promote the velocity of weight gain and to conduct the parental educational sessions to emphasize the importance of weight gain for VLBW infants at home.
Birth Weight* ; Fetus ; Gestational Age* ; Humans ; Infant* ; Infant, Newborn ; Infant, Very Low Birth Weight* ; Critical Care ; Intensive Care, Neonatal ; Length of Stay ; Medical Records ; Nursing ; Parents ; Parturition* ; Retrospective Studies ; Weight Gain* ; Weight Loss ; Weights and Measures ; Child Health

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to develop an educational program for parents of children with epilepsy. METHOD: The first step was to survey the need for information and social support for these parents. The second step was to design the educational program based on the survey results, literature review, and the theory of chronic sorrow that provided a framework for understanding and working with people suffering a loss of health. RESULT: The information which these parents were most anxiously seeking was information on the causes of seizures, appropriate steps deal with seizures, and appropriate and supportive parental role for their children. The educational program for parents of children with epilepsy included understanding the responses to loss, increasing the parents' knowledge about how to care for their children, managing their stress, enhancing the psychosocial adaptation of children, and encouraging the participation of the family. CONCLUSION: The educational program developed by the researcher can used with parents of children with epilepsy, and is expected to enhance the psychosocial adaptation of these children.
Child* ; Epilepsy* ; Humans ; Parents* ; Program Development ; Seizures

PURPOSE: Infantile hypertrophic pyloric stenosis (IHPS) is a common surgical emergency of infants that exhibits clearly unique characteristic symptoms, but its etiology and pathogenesis are still obscure. The Fredet-Ramstedt pyloromyotomy has gained worldwide acceptance. The advantages of this operation are immediate solution of the problem and few complication. Cosmetically circumumbilical incision or laparoscopic pyloromytomy can be used. METHODS: Forty cases of IHPS admitted to the Chuncheon Sacred Heart Hospital from Jan 1997. to Dec 2002 were reviewed retrospectively. These cases underwent Fredet-Ramstedt's operation. RESULTS: The most prevalent age group was 21~30 days (10 cases: 25%), mean age was 41.4+/-9.9 days, and the males to females ratio was 4.7: 1. Among the 40 cases, 24 (60%) involved the first baby. The mean gestation age was 39.9+/-1.7 weeks and mean birth weight was 3.3+/-0.5 Kg. The mean duration of symptom was 4.1+/-1.6 days. The common symptoms were non-bile stained, projectile vomiting in all cases, an olive-shaped mass in the right upper quadrant abdomen in 21 cases (52.5%), visible peristalsis on epigastrium in 16 cases (40%), and jaundice in 1 case (2.5%). Hypokalemic alkalosis was observed in 3 cases (7.5%). The mean length and thickness of the stenotic canal, as measured in the operation, were 28.8+/-8.5 mm and 4.9+/-0.6 mm, respectively. Postoperative complications were one case each (2.5%) pneumonia, wound seroma, and recurrence. Conclusion: Fredet-Ramstedt's pyloromyotomy for IHPS is an effective operation after the correction of dehydration and electrolyte imbalance.
Abdomen ; Alkalosis ; Birth Weight ; Dehydration ; Emergencies ; Female ; Gangwon-do ; Heart ; Humans ; Infant ; Jaundice ; Male ; Peristalsis ; Pneumonia ; Postoperative Complications ; Pregnancy ; Pyloric Stenosis, Hypertrophic* ; Recurrence ; Retrospective Studies ; Seroma ; Vomiting ; Wounds and Injuries

During the period 1996 to 2006, 51 countries have granted regulatory approvals for genetically modified (GM) crops for import for food and feed use and for release into the environment. A total of 539 approvals has been granted for 107 events for 21 crops. One of the safety concerns regarding GM crops is potential allergenicity of the inserted protein. In safety-assessment of the allergenic potential from GM crops, the allergenic properties of the gene donor and the host organisms should be evaluated. The sequence of the newly introduced protein should be compared with all known allergens. If a sequence homology match to a known allergen is identified for the introduced protein, then this protein should be assessed for immunoreactivity using sera from allergic patients. If no sequence homology to known allergens is identified, then the stability of the protein to digestion and processing is assessed. Currently, laboratory and clinical tests have been reported and the assessment process of GM crops has worked well to prevent the unintended introduction of allergens. However, these tests may still occasionally miss a new allergen from all novel foods containing GM crops. The newly introduced protein in GM crops must be carefully assessed as proteins may induce allergic reactions in humans.
Allergens ; Digestion ; Financing, Organized ; Food Hypersensitivity ; Humans ; Hypersensitivity ; Sequence Homology ; Tissue Donors

Since the era of evidence-based medicine, it has become a matter of course to use statistics to create objective evidence in clinical research. As an extension of this, it has become essential in clinical research to calculate the correct sample size to demonstrate a clinically significant difference before starting the study.Also, because sample size calculation methods vary from study design to study design, there is no formula for sample size calculation that applies to all designs. It is very important for us to understand this. In this review, each sample size calculation method suitable for various study designs was introduced using the R program (R Foundation for Statistical Computing). In order for clinical researchers to directly utilize it according to future research, we presented practice codes, output results, and interpretation of results for each situation.

Eccrine angiomatous hamartoma (EAH) is a benign skin nodule characterized by the proliferation of eccrine glands and vascular structures in the dermis. It usually presents as a single papule or nodule on the extremities, and usually arises at birth or in early childhood, but several cases which appeared in adulthood have been reported. A 52-year-old female presented with a tender subungual nodule on the right great toenail for 3 months. Skin biopsy from the lesion showed proliferation of eccrine glands and capillaries in the dermis, and immunohistochemistry confirmed the diagnosis of EAH. We excised it as a treatment, and at the 3-month follow-up, pain by her lesion has resolved without any adverse effects.Our presented case is an adult-onset EAH that occurred as a subungual lesion. Unlike the previous cases, it did not cause any nail deformity or destruction and initially was misinterpreted as some other subungual tender nodule. To the best of our knowledge, we report the first case of adult-onset subungual EAH without nail deformity.

Purpose: We assessed the clinical relevance of waist-height ratio (WHtR) as an indicator of cardiometabolic risk and body fat mass measured by dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) among Korean children and adolescents. Methods: Data from 1,661 children and adolescents aged 10–18 years who participated in the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey were analyzed. Unadjusted Pearson correlation, age- and sex-adjusted Pearson correlation, and multiple linear regression analyses were performed to investigate the relationships between WHtR standard deviation score (SDS) and cardiometabolic risk factors, as well as DXA-assessed parameters. Results: WHtR SDS was correlated with cardiometabolic risk factors, including systolic blood pressure, glucose, total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglyceride, and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, as well as DXA-assessed parameters such as lean mass SDS, fat mass SDS, and fat mass percentage SDS in both whole body and trunk using an adjusted Pearson correlation analyses among all participants (p<0.001). WHtR SDS was strongly correlated with whole-body fat mass and trunk fat mass (r=0.792, p<0.001 and r=0.801, p<0.001, respectively) whereas WHtR SDS had a low correlation coefficient with whole-body lean mass and trunk lean mass SDS (r=0.512, p<0.001 and r=0.487, p<0.001, respectively). In multiple linear regression analyses, WHtR SDS was significantly associated with whole-body and trunk fat mass after adjustment for confounders. Conclusion Cardiometabolic risk factors and body fat mass assessed by DXA in Korean children and adolescents were highly correlated with WHtR. Additionally, WHtR has an advantage in distinguishing fat-free mass. WHtR can be a useful and convenient clinical indicator of cardiometabolic risk factors.

Purpose: We assessed the clinical relevance of waist-height ratio (WHtR) as an indicator of cardiometabolic risk and body fat mass measured by dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) among Korean children and adolescents. Methods: Data from 1,661 children and adolescents aged 10–18 years who participated in the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey were analyzed. Unadjusted Pearson correlation, age- and sex-adjusted Pearson correlation, and multiple linear regression analyses were performed to investigate the relationships between WHtR standard deviation score (SDS) and cardiometabolic risk factors, as well as DXA-assessed parameters. Results: WHtR SDS was correlated with cardiometabolic risk factors, including systolic blood pressure, glucose, total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglyceride, and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, as well as DXA-assessed parameters such as lean mass SDS, fat mass SDS, and fat mass percentage SDS in both whole body and trunk using an adjusted Pearson correlation analyses among all participants (p<0.001). WHtR SDS was strongly correlated with whole-body fat mass and trunk fat mass (r=0.792, p<0.001 and r=0.801, p<0.001, respectively) whereas WHtR SDS had a low correlation coefficient with whole-body lean mass and trunk lean mass SDS (r=0.512, p<0.001 and r=0.487, p<0.001, respectively). In multiple linear regression analyses, WHtR SDS was significantly associated with whole-body and trunk fat mass after adjustment for confounders. Conclusion Cardiometabolic risk factors and body fat mass assessed by DXA in Korean children and adolescents were highly correlated with WHtR. Additionally, WHtR has an advantage in distinguishing fat-free mass. WHtR can be a useful and convenient clinical indicator of cardiometabolic risk factors.