OBJECTIVES: This study determined the work schedules of public project workers who work an irregular shift and assessed the effect of these schedules on depression. METHODS: Study subjects were 2934 laborers who are members of seven labor unions. Each was given a questionnaire requesting basic personal information, habits, socioeconomic status, and work schedules. Information gathered on work schedules included daytime, nighttime, and weekend work hours. Depression was evaluated using the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), with Laborers who checked "not depressed" and "slightly depressive" categorized to a low-risk group, whereas laborers who checked "depressed" and "severely depressed" were categorized to a high-risk group. We used the Chi-square test and multivariate logistic regression to examine associations between work schedules and depression. RESULTS: Laborers on an irregular work schedule averaged 47.8 hours/week and laborers who working over 48 hours/week comprised over half (54.5%) of the total population. Laborers performing night work, Sunday work, and Saturday work more than once in a month made up 25.7%, 30.8% and 33.5% of the examined population, respectively. A high-risk for depression was identified in 10.4% of laborers. Using logistic regression, depression was statistically associated with working : over 10 hours a day (OR=1.63, 95% CI 1.10~2.43), night work (OR=2.20, 95% CI 1.46~3.32), Sunday work (OR=1.81, 95% CI 1.15~2.85) and Saturday work (OR=1.82 95% CI 1.18~2.82). CONCLUSION: A significant number of laborers with irregular working shifts work long hours and on weekends. Depression was significantly associated with this type of work schedule.
Appointments and Schedules ; Depression ; Humans ; Labor Unions ; Logistic Models ; Public Sector ; Questionnaires ; Social Class

Vibrio vulnificus infects susceptible individuals who eat contaminated seafood or have an open wound that is exposed to seawater. The common symptoms are necrotizing wound infection, primary septicemia, and gastroenteritis. A 52-year-old man visited the emergency department complaining of drowsiness. Based on a cerebrospinal fluid analysis, he was diagnosed with acute bacterial meningitis. V. vulnificus was isolated from a blood culture. The patient responded to treatment with ceftriaxone and ciprofloxacin. We report a rare case of acute bacterial meningitis caused by V. vulnificus that was treated successfully.
Ceftriaxone ; Ciprofloxacin ; Emergencies ; Gastroenteritis ; Humans ; Meningitis ; Meningitis, Bacterial ; Middle Aged ; Seafood ; Seawater ; Sepsis ; Sleep Stages ; Vibrio ; Vibrio vulnificus ; Wound Infection

If ventricular fibrillation develops after acute myocardial infarction, it should be treated immediately with the external electrical cardioversion and antiarrhythmic agents, followed by the rapid correction of the reversible and underlying cause. Nevertheless, if ventricular fibrillation recurs, ICD(implantable cardioverter-defibrillator) therapy is necessary. ICD is an important nonpharmacological option in the treatment of malignant ventricular arrhythmias. A 53 year old man was admitted into our hospital with a severe chest pain of 9 days. On cardiac catheterization, a significant stenosis at the mid-left anterior descending coronary artery and a huge ventricular aneurysm were found. Then PTCA(percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty) with a stent was taken. Three days later, two episodes of ventricular fibrillation developed and it was treated with electrical cardioversion and antiarrhythmic agents. On the second look of cardiac catheterization, a subacute closure of the stented site was detected and then the culprit leision was recanalized with repeated PTCA and another stent was implanted. But ventricular fibrillation recurred although the stented lesion still patent on the third look of cardiac catheterization. After all, we implanted ICD on him. 46 Episodes of ventricular fibrillations developed at the same day and the next day of ICD implantation. All of the episodes of ventricular fibrillation were successfully converted to sinus rhythm with shocks from ICD. Since then, the frequency of ventricular fibrillation decreased with IABP(intraaortic balloon pump) therapy. We report the first case of malignant ventricular fibrillation after myocardial infarction which was uncontrolled with conventional therapy, but effectively treated with ICD.
Aneurysm ; Arrhythmias, Cardiac ; Cardiac Catheterization ; Cardiac Catheters ; Chest Pain ; Constriction, Pathologic ; Coronary Vessels ; Electric Countershock ; Humans ; Middle Aged ; Myocardial Infarction* ; Shock ; Stents ; Ventricular Fibrillation*