OBJECTIVES: Some emotional components, such as self-esteem, depression and anxiety, have been reported to be associated with paranoia in non-clinical population and schizophrenia patients. The aim of this study was to investigate the correlation between self-esteem and paranoia in healthy controls, in ultra-high risk for psychosis and schizophrenia patients. METHODS: 34 subjects with recent onset schizophrenia, 36 subjects with ultra-high risk for psychosis, and 44 healthy volunteers participated in this study. A detailed assessment was made of the paranoia, self-esteem, depression, and anxiety. RESULTS: In all three groups, there were a negative correlation between paranoia and self-esteem, and positive correlations between paranoia and depression and anxiety. In healthy control, lower self-esteem showed a trend to predict higher paranoia, and in ultra-high risk for psychosis, this trend tern on statistically significant level, and in recent onset schizophrenia group, this correlation was disappeared. CONCLUSION: The individual who have lower self-esteem showed higher paranoia tendency under delusional level, but after formation of persecutory delusion, the tendency was disappeared. This result supports the hypothesis that persecutory delusions are a defense against negative affective process.
Animals ; Anxiety ; Charadriiformes ; Delusions ; Depression ; Healthy Volunteers ; Humans ; Paranoid Disorders* ; Psychotic Disorders* ; Schizophrenia*

No abstract available.
Heart Diseases* ; Humans ; Knee* ; Sciatic Nerve*

BACKGROUND: Total knee arthroplasty (TKA) is associated with severe pain postoperatively. Femoral nerve block is commonly used for pain control after TKA. This study investigated whether continuous femoral nerve block (CFNB) can improve postoperative analgesia and functional outcome as compared to intravenous patient controlled analgesia (PCA) in patients with TKA. METHODS: We reviewed the electronic medical records of patients who underwent TKA with spinal anesthesia between March 2014 and February 2015. In Group IV, postoperative pain was managed by IV-PCA. Group CFNB received CFNB-PCA via a device. Thirty patients were enrolled per group. Patient outcomes were assessed by analgesia, functional outcomes, and health-related quality of life factors. RESULTS: Additional analgesics and additional nerve block for adequate pain control were significantly more frequent in the IV than CFNB group (P = 0.015 and P = 0.012, respectively). Range of motion up to 105 degrees was prolonged in the IV group than CFNB group (P = 0.013). EuroQol five dimensions score was improved in the CFNB group than IV group postoperative 3 weeks (P = 0.003). The incidence of transfusion due to postoperative bleeding was significantly frequent in the IV group than CFNB group (P = 0.042). CONCLUSIONS: Postoperative low concentration continuous femoral nerve block for analgesia after TKA improves analgesia, functional outcomes, and incidence of transfusion without falling risk.
Accidental Falls ; Analgesia* ; Analgesia, Patient-Controlled ; Analgesics ; Anesthesia, Spinal* ; Arthroplasty, Replacement, Knee* ; Blood Transfusion ; Electronic Health Records ; Femoral Nerve* ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Incidence ; Nerve Block ; Pain, Postoperative ; Patient Outcome Assessment ; Quality of Life ; Range of Motion, Articular

BACKGROUND: The concept of the effect-site concentration of anesthetic agents is important. The effect compartment model can be explained using the concepts of effect-site concentration and effect-site equilibration rate constant (k e0). This study confirms that the time-to-peak effect (tpe ) can be measured easily in clinical practice by applying a priming dose and train-of-four (TOF) during general anesthesia induction, and k e0 can be calculated from the tpe of the four muscle relaxants that are commonly used in general anesthesia. METHODS: Eighty patients who received general anesthesia were divided into the succinylcholine, rocuronium, atracurium, or vecuronium groups. Priming doses of muscle relaxants were administered. The effects of muscle relaxants were quantified by recording the twitch response of the adductor pollicis muscle after stimulating the ulnar nerve. The tpe was measured at the lowest TOF value. k e0 was calculated from the measured tpe . RESULTS: The k e0 values of the succinylcholine, rocuronium, atracurium, and vecuronium groups were 0.076 (0.030)/min, 0.228 (0.122)/min, 0.062 (0.011)/min, and 0.077 (0.019)/min, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: It is possible to estimate k e0 from the tpe of muscle relaxants using a priming dose and TOF during general anesthesia induction.
Anesthesia, General* ; Anesthetics ; Atracurium ; Humans ; Succinylcholine ; Ulnar Nerve ; Vecuronium Bromide

Salmonella spondylitis is a rare illness, and it generally occurs in patients who have already had sickle cell anemia, and it is even rarer in patients who are without sickle cell anemia. A 61-year-old male patient was hospitalized for the evaluation of his renal function and then treatment was started for his back pain. His back pain had developed about 2 months previously without any specific trauma. Only a bulging disc was detected on the initial lumbar MRI. Regarding his fever, it was diagnosed as possible atypical pneumonia, scrub typhus, etc., and multiple antibiotic therapy was administered. At the time of transfer, the leucocytes and hs-CRP were normal and the ESR was elevated. A diagnostic epidural block was performed for his back pain, but his symptoms were not improved. Lumbar MRI was performed again and it showed findings of infective spondylitis. Salmonella D was identified on the abscess culture and so he was diagnosed as suffering from Salmonella spondylitis. After antibiotic treatment, his back pain was improved and the patient was able to walk.
Abscess ; Anemia, Sickle Cell ; Back Pain ; Fever ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Pneumonia ; Salmonella ; Scrub Typhus ; Spondylitis ; Stress, Psychological

Complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) is a chronic painful condition that may arise in the site of an earlier injury or operation to a limb. Like all chronic painful condition, it is associated with depressed mood. Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is a procedure when traditional management with systemic medications, nerve blocks, and behavioral pain management were unsuccessful. ECT has been used in the treatment of chronic pain for over 50 years. CRPS and comorbid depression have also been treated successfully with ECT. However, not much has been done to clarify the ECT target in patients, whether the pain or the depression. We report a case of intractable chronic regional pain syndrome with secondary depression in which both of that were treated successfully with an initial ECT course.
Chronic Pain ; Depression ; Electroconvulsive Therapy ; Extremities ; Humans ; Nerve Block ; Pain Management

PURPOSE: This study was to develop and prove the effects of aself management compliance promotion program for primary hypertension patients who reside in rural communities. METHOD: The content of the self management compliance promotion program developed by this study was as follows: A leader trains patients as a group or individually, in walking, education and green tea therapy from the first to twelfth week. From the thirteenth to twenty fourth week, the patients should perform walking and green tea therapy by themselves. One hundred twenty subjects volunteered to participate in the study, who were among those registered as hypertension patients in the 14 community health clinics located in Chungcheongbuk-do. RESULT: Systolic blood pressure, total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglyceride, step width, and degree of obesity decreased significantly. High-density lipoprotein cholesterol, step length, knowledge of hypertension, and self management compliance significantly increased. CONCLUSION: A self management compliance promotion program for primary hypertensive patients enhances biophysical index and knowledge on hypertension, thus ultimately suggesting a nursing intervention for promoting self management compliance.
Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Female ; Health Promotion ; Humans ; Hypertension/psychology/*therapy ; Life Style ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Patient Compliance ; *Patient Education as Topic ; Rural Population ; *Self Care

Widened palpebral fissure has been regarded as one of the hallmarks of Bell's palsy. However, the palpebral fissure on the affected side may be narrower than that of the unaffected side. The narrowing of the palpebral fissure has been often thought as a sign caused by weakness of the levator palpebrae and Muller's muscles. However, weakness of the frontal muscle may cause drooping of the eyebrow, resulting in the narrowing of the palpebral fissure. We describe a patient of Bell's palsy with a narrowing of the palpebral fissure.
Bell Palsy* ; Eyebrows ; Humans ; Muscles

Secreted protein, acidic, cysteine-rich (SPARC)-related modular calcium binding 1 (SMOC1) has been implicated in the regulation of osteogenic differentiation of human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs). In this study, we found that a peptide (16 amino acids in length), which is located in the extracellular calcium (EC) binding domain of SMOC1, stimulated osteogenic differentiation of human BMSCs in vitro and calvarial bone regeneration in vivo. Treatment of BMSCs with SMOC1-EC peptide significantly stimulated their mineralization in a dose-dependent manner without changing their rate of proliferation. The expression of osteogenic differentiation marker genes, including type 1 collagen and osteocalcin, also increased in a dose-dependent manner. To examine the effect of the SMOC1-EC peptide on bone formation in vivo, the peptide was covalently immobilized onto hydroxyapatite/β-tricalcium phosphate (HA/β-TCP) particles. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis showed that the peptide was successfully immobilized onto the surface of HA/β-TCP. Implantation of the SMOC1-EC peptide-immobilized HA/β-TCP particles into mouse calvarial defects and subsequent analyses using microcomputed tomography and histology showed significant bone regeneration compared with that of calvarial defects implanted with unmodified HA/β-TCP particles. Collectively, our data suggest that a peptide derived from the EC domain of SMOC1 induces osteogenic differentiation of human BMSCs in vitro and efficiently enhances bone regeneration in vivo.
Amino Acids ; Animals ; Bone Marrow ; Bone Regeneration ; Calcium ; Ceramics* ; Collagen Type I ; Humans ; In Vitro Techniques ; Mesenchymal Stromal Cells ; Mice ; Miners ; Osteocalcin ; Osteogenesis ; Photoelectron Spectroscopy ; Regeneration* ; X-Ray Microtomography

Leiomyoma of the cervix is a rare tumor, accounting for 5% of all uterine leiomyomas. We experienced one case of leiomyoma of the cervix, and present it with a brief review of the literatures.
Cervix Uteri ; Female ; Leiomyoma*