BACKGROUND: With the increasing numbers of foreign residents and tourists in Korea, the need of medical care systems for foreign patients seems to be growing, but there are few studies related with foreigners staying in Korea so far. This study was conducted to obtain the basic clinical data of foreign patients for the better medical care of them. METHODS: This study is an analysis of 1,405 outpatients in International(Foreign) Clinic of Kangbuk Samsung Hospital from Jan. 1 1994 to Dec. 31 1996. Patient charts were reviewed and analyzed. RESULTS: Of the total of 1,405 cases, 833 cases(59.3%) were males and 572 cases(40.7%) were females. The largest age group was the 4th decades, which were 408 cases(29.0%). By racial grouping, Japanese were the largest, accounting for 507 cases(36.1%) of all, followed by Europeans(including Oceanians) with 384 cases(27.3%) and North Americans with 335 cases (23.8%). The total number of hospital visits was 3,823. According to departments, Family Medicine had 968 visits(25.3%) of all, follewed by Pediatrics with 503 visits(13.2%), Internal Medicine 406visits(10.6%) and Dermatology 355visits(9.3%). The most common diagnoses were preventive medical cares such as general medical examination(6.0%), vaccination(4.5%), antenatal care(3.4%) and special investigations (3.1%), followed by acute infectious diseases such as acute upper respiratory infection including acute pharyngitis(7.4%), bronchitis(5.0%), infectious diarrhea(3.6%) and otitis media(2.9%) among top 20 ranks. preventive medical cares such as general medical examination and vaccination were more common in Family Medicine, and acute infectious diseases such as acute upper respiratory infection and bronchitis were more common in Internal Medicine and Pediatrics. preventive medical cares and acute infectious diseases were common without any differences between advanced countries(North America, Europe and Oceania, Japan) and developing countries(Asia, Africa, Latin America), except infectious diarrhea. Hospital visits due to infectious diarrhea were much more frequent among advanced countries (4.3% in Japan, 3.4% in the others) than developing countries(0.9%). CONCLUSIONS: According to the results, it showed the certain characteristics of the high medical need about preventive medical care and acute infectious diseases among foreign patients staying in Korea. It also shows the need of family physicians who could play important roles in practicing preventive medical care and acute common diseases for foreigners. Therefore it is believed that further studies for foreign patients in Korea will be necessary and should be conducted in the future.
Africa ; Americas ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Bronchitis ; Communicable Diseases ; Dermatology ; Diagnosis ; Diarrhea ; Emigrants and Immigrants ; Europe ; Female ; Humans ; Internal Medicine ; Japan ; Korea ; Male ; Oceania ; Otitis ; Outpatients* ; Pediatrics ; Physicians, Family ; Vaccination

BACKGROUND: With the increasing numbers of foreign residents and tourists in Korea, the need of medical care systems for foreign patients seems to be growing, but there are few studies related with foreigners staying in Korea so far. This study was conducted to obtain the basic clinical data of foreign patients for the better medical care of them. METHODS: This study is an analysis of 1,405 outpatients in International(Foreign) Clinic of Kangbuk Samsung Hospital from Jan. 1 1994 to Dec. 31 1996. Patient charts were reviewed and analyzed. RESULTS: Of the total of 1,405 cases, 833 cases(59.3%) were males and 572 cases(40.7%) were females. The largest age group was the 4th decades, which were 408 cases(29.0%). By racial grouping, Japanese were the largest, accounting for 507 cases(36.1%) of all, followed by Europeans(including Oceanians) with 384 cases(27.3%) and North Americans with 335 cases (23.8%). The total number of hospital visits was 3,823. According to departments, Family Medicine had 968 visits(25.3%) of all, follewed by Pediatrics with 503 visits(13.2%), Internal Medicine 406visits(10.6%) and Dermatology 355visits(9.3%). The most common diagnoses were preventive medical cares such as general medical examination(6.0%), vaccination(4.5%), antenatal care(3.4%) and special investigations (3.1%), followed by acute infectious diseases such as acute upper respiratory infection including acute pharyngitis(7.4%), bronchitis(5.0%), infectious diarrhea(3.6%) and otitis media(2.9%) among top 20 ranks. preventive medical cares such as general medical examination and vaccination were more common in Family Medicine, and acute infectious diseases such as acute upper respiratory infection and bronchitis were more common in Internal Medicine and Pediatrics. preventive medical cares and acute infectious diseases were common without any differences between advanced countries(North America, Europe and Oceania, Japan) and developing countries(Asia, Africa, Latin America), except infectious diarrhea. Hospital visits due to infectious diarrhea were much more frequent among advanced countries (4.3% in Japan, 3.4% in the others) than developing countries(0.9%). CONCLUSIONS: According to the results, it showed the certain characteristics of the high medical need about preventive medical care and acute infectious diseases among foreign patients staying in Korea. It also shows the need of family physicians who could play important roles in practicing preventive medical care and acute common diseases for foreigners. Therefore it is believed that further studies for foreign patients in Korea will be necessary and should be conducted in the future.
Africa ; Americas ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Bronchitis ; Communicable Diseases ; Dermatology ; Diagnosis ; Diarrhea ; Emigrants and Immigrants ; Europe ; Female ; Humans ; Internal Medicine ; Japan ; Korea ; Male ; Oceania ; Otitis ; Outpatients* ; Pediatrics ; Physicians, Family ; Vaccination

Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, a heritable disorder of connective tissue by autosomal dominant mode, is very rare disease in this country. Authors described a typical case in 39 years old woman who had a daughter of 6 years old also affectect by this disorder. The patient had the characteristic hyperelasticity of the skin and hyperextensibility of the jonts especially at metacarpophalangeal joint of the hands. She also revealed hyperterolism and aortic insufficiency on X-ray and E.C.G. examination.
Adult ; Child ; Connective Tissue ; Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome ; Family Characteristics* ; Female ; Hand ; Humans ; Metacarpophalangeal Joint ; Nuclear Family ; Rare Diseases ; Skin

No abstract available.
Schizophrenia*

No abstract available.
Bender-Gestalt Test* ; Hallucinations*

No abstract available.
Arthroplasty, Replacement, Knee* ; Humans

OBJECTIVES: To determine the effect of increased plasma Progesterone(P) level on the day of hCG administration on oocyte /embryo development and implantation after blastocyst transfer in controlled ovarian hyperstimulation (COH) cycle with premature progesterone elevation for IVF-ET. METHODS: Seventy controlled ovarian hyperstimulation cycles for IVF-ET were underwent with GnRH agonist and hMG/FSH in 70 women. Embryos were cocultured up to the blastocyst stage and transferred into the uterine cavity. The cycles were devided into two groups depending on the levels of plasma P on the day of hCG administration, and the clinical results in both groups were analysed and compared each other. High P group was defined when the level of plasma P was higher than 0.9 ng/mL. RESULTS: Fertilization rates, cleavage rates and blastulation rates were similar in the low and high P groups. Blastulation rates were increased in high quality (morphological characteristics) D 2-3 preembryo regardless of the P levels during the late follicular phase(p <0.001). However, clinical pregnancy rate, ongoing pregnancy rate and implantation rate were higher in low P group compared with high P group(p <0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Premature P elevation did not deteriorate the developmental potential of oocyte, but had a harmful effect on pregnancy rate and implantation rate. So we suggest that early ET on the day 2-3 (after ovum pick-up) without delaying another several days to avoid the advanced maturation of secretory endometrium might be better than blastocyst transfer in patients with premature P elevation.
Blastocyst* ; Embryo Transfer* ; Embryonic Structures ; Endometrium ; Female ; Fertilization ; Gonadotropin-Releasing Hormone ; Humans ; Oocytes ; Ovum ; Plasma ; Pregnancy Rate ; Progesterone*

Heart transplantation is an accepted procedure for treatment of end-staged cardiac failure. A return to near-normal quality on life can be expected in many patients with a nonrejecting cardiac allograft, and many of these patients will return to the operating room for noncardiac surgical procedures. Anesthesiologists should be alert to recognizing problems caused by the presence of infection in immunosuppressed patients, modes of presentation of rejection phenomena and how transplanted organs, notably significantly denervated ones, may behave and respond under the pathophysiologic circumstance that arise during surgery, resuscitation and intensive care. The use of regional techniques require adequate preloading to avoid exaggerated hypotension and aseptic technique to avoid infection. Hypobaric spinal anesthesia has some benefit. It does not depress cardiovascular and respiratory system and keep adequate venous return by trendelenberg position. We report herein a case of successfully undergone total hip replacement in a patient who had previously undergone orthotopic heart transplantation under hypobaric spinal anesthesia.
Allografts ; Anesthesia, Spinal* ; Arthroplasty, Replacement, Hip ; Heart Failure ; Heart Transplantation ; Heart* ; Humans ; Hypotension ; Critical Care ; Operating Rooms ; Respiratory System ; Resuscitation

No abstract available.

No abstract available.