BACKGROUND: It is a recent trend that the birth and mortality rates has been decreased and average life span prolonged in proportion to the socioeconomic and scientific advances. The goal of this study is to suggest basic data for comprehensive and continuous management of elderly patients. METHODS: Based upon ICD-10 (International Classification of Disease), the author analysed the outpatient's diseases 19,367 and inpatient's diseases 6,783 beyond the age of 65 who visited outpatient department and were hospitalized to the Kosin University, Kosin Medical Center in Pusan from January to December in 1997 RESULTS: The ratio of elderly patient in outpatient was 4.5% and inpatient was 15.0%. The number of outpatient each disease group were disease of the circulatory system 5,367 (27.7%), neoplasms 4,007 (20.7%), disease of the digestive system 2,635 (13.6%), endocrine, nutritional and metabolic disease 1,798 (9.8%) in order. Frequent diseases in individual system of outpatient were followed; malignant neoplasms of digestive organs 2,642 (13.6%), hypertensive diseases 2,053 (10.6%), diseases of esophagus, stomach and duodenum 1,804 (9.3%), ischemic heart disease 1,101 (5.7%) in order. The number of inpatient each disease group were disease of the neoplasms 2,138 (31.5%), disease of circulatory system 1,191 (17.6%), disease of the digestive system 730 (10.8%), endocrine, nutritional and metabolic disease 489 (7.2%) in order. Frequent diseases in individual system of inpatient were followed; malignant neoplasms of digestive organs 956 (14.1%), malignant neoplasms of respiratory and intrathoracic organs 351 (5.2%), hypertensive diseases 348 (4.2%), diabetes mellitus 325 (4.1%) in older. CONCLUSION: This result indicate that the elderly patients abounded mostly with disease of circulatory, neoplasm, disease of the digestive system and endocrine, nutritional and metabolic disease.
Aged* ; Busan ; Classification ; Diabetes Mellitus ; Digestive System ; Duodenum ; Esophagus ; Humans ; Inpatients ; International Classification of Diseases ; Metabolic Diseases ; Mortality ; Myocardial Ischemia ; Outpatients ; Parturition ; Stomach

BACKGROUND: The present study was performed in order to identify the possible future location of the Department of Emergency Medicine and future demand for and supply of manpower through a survey of the heads of Kwangju City and Chollanam-do hospitals. The survey covered the degrees of recognition and understanding, the necessity, the future prospects, and the direction of development of the Department of Emergency Medicine. METHODS: A total of 33 large-scale general hospitals were selected in county districts having more than 200 sickbeds as of November 1999. Among them, the heads of 29 hospitals responded to the survey. The survey had a total of 31 questions, including 6 questions on the status of the emergency room. Six(6) questions concerned the degree of recognition of the Department of Emergency Medicine. Six(6) questions concerned the degree of understanding of the Department of Emergency Medicine. Six(6) questions concerned the necessity for the Department of Emergency Medicine, and 7 questions concerned the future prospects and direction of development. The results of the survey were analyzed. RESULTS: 1) As to the question of the degree of recognition, the Department of Emergency Medicine was known to all. That is, 50% of the respondents were well aware of the department, and 50% a little. Nineteen(19) respondents(65%) answered that it was convenient to have the Department of Emergency Medicine in a university hospital, among which 16 respondents(55%) answered that it was because of the rapid treatment of emergency patients. 2) As to the question of the degree of understanding, particularly, the areas of medical examination and treatment by the Department of Emergency Medicine, 15 respondents answered that it was for the treatment of patients who needed to receive emergency treatment, while 12 respondents answered that it was for the diagnosis and treatment of all patients who visited the emergency room. Only 7 respondents(24%) answered positively as to the possibility of the Department of Emergency Medicine using thrombolysis medicine. 3) All except for one respondent had a positive view on the necessity for the Department of Emergency Medicine, and all except for 3 respondents wanted to have specialized doctors in emergency medicine work at the corresponding hospital. As to the type of schedule, 10 hospitals(34%) wanted to have only night shifts, and 11 hospitals(38%) wanted to have both day and night shifts. Most hospitals, needed two or more workers in the field. 4) As to the question of the direction of development, many respondents were of the opinion that the hiring of specialized doctors in emergency medicine would not be of greatly help to the finances of the hospital due to increased labor costs. It seems that improvement of the medical system to improve hospital financing is a required prerequisite for the development of the Department of Emergency Medicine. Also, 21 respondents(83%) were of the opinion that it would take a considerable amount of time to activate the Department of Emergency Medicine with respect to the future prospects of the department. CONCLUSION: It was shown in the present survey that the heads of hospitals in Kwangju City and Chollanam-do recognized the Department of Emergency Medicine in a positive way, but it was necessary to establish both a delivery system for emergency medicine and collaboration with and support by other medical areas for its future development. It was estimated that in the future, more than 55 doctors specializing in emergency medicine would be needed as medical manpower for the general hospitals in the districts.
Appointments and Schedules ; Cooperative Behavior ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Diagnosis ; Emergencies* ; Emergency Medicine* ; Emergency Service, Hospital ; Emergency Treatment ; Gwangju* ; Head ; Hospitals, General ; Humans ; Jeollanam-do*

No abstract available.
Critical Illness* ; Hemofiltration* ; Humans

No abstract available.
Catheters* ; Renal Dialysis*

No abstract available.
Female ; Fibronectins* ; Hypertension, Pregnancy-Induced* ; Plasma* ; Pregnancy ; Pregnancy*

Conventional high-dose antipsychotics tend to result in more side effects, negative symptoms and dysphoria, and at the same time lower the cognitive function which is already impaired in most schizophrenics. Florid psychotic symptoms, negative symptoms and cognitive impairment greatly impede psychosocial performance and eventual reintegration int society. The reduction of symptom and the improvement of cognitive funtions and social skills are therefore central to the psychiatric rehabilitation process. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the dose-reduction effects of antipsychotics more than 1,500mg equivalent of chlorpromazine. Fifty-one chronic schizophrenics who maintained high-does antipsychotics for more than three months were randomly assigned to two groups : 20 patients comprised the dose-maintaining group and 31 patients made the dose-reduction group. Over a sixteen weekperiod Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale(PANSS), Extrapyramidal Symptom(EPS), Nurses' Observation Scale for Inpatient Evaluation(NOSIE-30), Continuous Performance Test(CPT), Quality of Life(QOL), and haloperidol/reduced haloperidol blood levels were determined at the base line and after 2, 4, 6, 8, 12, 16 weeks to evaluate the dose reduction effects of high-dose antipsychotics. The results were as follows: 1) Dose-reduction is highly effective in reducing positive and negative symptoms, and general psychopathology. Effects were most prominent at 8, 12, 16 weeks. Among the dose reduction group, positive symptoms in positive symptom group and negative symptoms in negative symptom group were more reduced. 2) Extrapyramidal symptoms showed no significant difference between two groups. But EPS was reduced time after time within two groups. 3) Hit rates of Continuous Performance Test, which indicate attentional capacity, increased significantly after dose reduction. 4) Haloperidol and reduced haloperidol blood levels decreased until the 4th week, after which they were constant. 5) Total scores of Nurses' Observation Scale for Inpatient Evaluation were unchanged between the two groups. But among the indices, social interest and personal neatness were improved in the dose-reduction group and retardation was aggrevated in the dose-maintaining group. 6) Total quality of life scores were unchanged between two groups. But in the dose maintaining group, satisfaction scores of attention, autonomy, and interpersonal relationship decreased progressively. These findings suggest that the dose reduction of antipsychotics for chronic schizophrenics on programs of high-dose antipsychotics were effective. Dose reduction should therefore be implemanted to spread the rehabilitation and improve quality of life for chronic schizophrenics.
Antipsychotic Agents* ; Chlorpromazine ; Haloperidol ; Humans ; Inpatients ; Psychopathology ; Quality of Life ; Rehabilitation

Recently posterior stabilization with various instrumentation and fusion has been used for fractures of the thoracolumbar spine involving anterior and middle columns. However, these methods are sometimes inadequate to gain anatomical reduction and complete decompression especially in burst fractures. So anterior decompression and interbody fusion were frequently added as a second operation. Biomechanically a rigid anterior spinal instrument such as kaneda device can provide enough anterior decompression through partial or total corpectomy and adequate correction of kyphosis as an one stage operation. We have experienced 27 cases of Kaneda instrumentation via anterior approach for thoracolumbar fracture, most of them were burst fractures, from Jan. 1989 to June 1990. Of there 27 cases, 12 were followed up at least 1 year and reviewed. The results were as followed: l. Anterior spinal approach using Kaneda instrumentation provided sufficient anterior neural decompression and adequate correction of kyphotic deformity. It eliminates the second posterior procedure in most cases and enhances early solid union. Simultaneously, it allows early mobilization of patient with an application of brace. 2. Post-operative courses were eventful in most cases except a case of pathological fracture. 3. This procedure seemed to be one of the most suitable method for the treatment of burst fractures of the thoracolumber region. 4. Complications by Kaneda device itself were not developed in the early evaluation stage. However, on longer follow-up study over 1 year revealed some complications including 2 cases of screw breakage and one lateral wedging deformity.
Braces ; Congenital Abnormalities ; Decompression ; Early Ambulation ; Follow-Up Studies ; Fractures, Spontaneous ; Humans ; Kyphosis ; Methods ; Spine

Alveolar soft part sarcoma is a clinically and morphologically distinct soft tissue tumor that was first defined and named by Christopherson et al in 1952. Since 1953, alveolar soft part sarcoma invading bone have been reported sporadically. We experienced a case of alveolar soft part sarcoma with metastasis to femoral shaft, which was treated by wide resection & vascularized fibular strut graft.
Neoplasm Metastasis ; Sarcoma, Alveolar Soft Part ; Transplants

Three anopheline mosquitoes in Korea were studied for their abilities as vectors for Plasmodium vivax. The female mosquitoes of Anopheles lesteri, An. pullus and An. sinensis were allowed to suck malaria patient blood until fully fed, and they were then bred for 2 weeks to develop from malaria parasites to sporozoites. The result from the above confirmed the sporozoites in one An. lesteri of one individual and five An. sinensis of six individuals. We also reconfirmed that An. sinensis was the main vector to transmit malaria and An. lesteri as well as An. sinensis were able to carry Korean malaria parasites. Therefore, we propose that diversified study is needed to manage malaria projects.
Adult ; Animals ; Culicidae/*parasitology/*physiology ; Female ; Humans ; *Insect Vectors ; Korea ; Malaria/parasitology/transmission ; Male ; *Plasmodium vivax

No abstract available.
Biopsy, Fine-Needle* ; Humans ; Pathology, Surgical* ; Thyroid Gland* ; Thyroid Nodule*