BACKGROUND: The fast EMS helicopter was introduced to Korea in 1996 and from Dec. 1. 1997, it was used far transporting emergent patients. Authors, here upon, report the transporting experiences. METHODS: From Dec. 1, 1996 to Dec. 31,1997, Samsung Medical Centers EMS helicopter was used for air evacuation of critically ill patients. The patients data prospectively analyzed. RESULT: A total of 65 patients were transported. Male to female ratio was 1.95 : 1. The mean transport time was 64.1min(10-160 min). Majority of the evacuated patients was surgical patients (General Surgery'16, Orthopedic surgery : 10, Neurosurgery : 6, Infernal medicine 13, Pediatrics : 3, and others : 3). Twenty-one of the 65 patients transported were admitted to ICU and 31 did not require ICU care. During the air evacuation, one physician and one nurse trained for air evacuation amended The patients. No medical problems or deaths developed during the air evacuation period. CONCLUSION: The first EMS helicopter was introduced to Korea in 1996. From Dec. 1, 1996 to Dec. 31, 1997, Samsung Medical Center's EMS helicopter was used for air evacuation of critically ill patients. The patients data reported.
Aircraft* ; Critical Illness ; Emergencies* ; Female ; Humans ; Korea ; Male ; Neurosurgery ; Orthopedics ; Pediatrics ; Prospective Studies

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to identify awareness and knowledge about hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection among North Korean immigrants who had resided in South Korea. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional, community based study. Data were collected from a convenience sample of 198 North Korean immigrants aged 18 years old through 65 years old among those who had attended community centers, local churches, and gathering places in four cities. The questionnaire included 15 items about participants' knowledge on HBV infection and its consequences, mode of transmission, and preventive measures. RESULTS: The mean score of HBV knowledge was 6.3±3.8 (range 0~15). The items that over 60% of the respondents checked correct answer regarding knowledge about HBV were 'There is blood screening for hepatitis B infection', 'Hepatitis B can be transmitted through sharing needles with infected person'. Multivariate analysis showed that received education for the prevention of HBV infection and disease morbidity were significantly associated with the knowledge of HBV infection. Overall, approximately 11% of total variability in the knowledge of HBV infection could be explained by the 2 variables in this model (R²=.109, p<.001). CONCLUSION: The results showed that North Korean immigrants need more education on HBV infection and prevention to improve their knowledge about HBV.
Education ; Emigrants and Immigrants* ; Hepatitis B virus ; Hepatitis B* ; Hepatitis* ; Humans ; Korea ; Mass Screening ; Multivariate Analysis ; Needles ; Surveys and Questionnaires

BACKGROUND: Experimental data indicate that low-flow reperfusion following prolonged cardiocirculatory arrest may aggravate early cerebral microcirculatory repefusion disorders. We investigated the influence of cerebral repefusion flow change to the ischemic histopathologic damage of brain tissue after incomplete forebrain ischemia in rats. MATERIALS AND METHOD: Anesthetized Sprague-Dawley rats were undergone ligation of both infernal carotid artery by microvascular clamp for 10 minutes. After release of the clamp, reperfusion was started with several different flow levels (0, 10, 20, 30, 50, and 100%) of infernal carotid artery comparing to pre-clamping phase using flowmeter. After 15minutes of reperfusion, rat brains were prepared by perfusion-fixation with 3% formaldehyde. Under light microscopic examination of Hematoxylin-Eosin stained tissue slide, histopathologic damage was examined at cortex, putamen, and hippocampus regions. Categorical hisotopathologic damage scores were derived in each regions by manual counts of ischemic neurons. RESULT: The histopathologic damage scores were 0, 10. 2+/-0.5, 7.6+/-1.5, 5.9+/-1.4, 5.0+/- 2.8, 3.5+/-0.7, and 1.0+/-0.0 in control, 0, 10, 20, 30, 50, and 100% reperfusion groups, respectively(p<0.05). CONCLUSION: Our insults showed significant increment of brain histopathologic damage scores along with decreasing amount of cerebral reperfusion know after incomplete forebrain ischemia. We believe restoration of repefusion flow to pre-ischemic level would be a critical component in attenuation of brain ischemic damage.
Animals ; Brain ; Carotid Arteries ; Flowmeters ; Formaldehyde ; Hippocampus ; Ischemia* ; Ligation ; Models, Animal* ; Neurons ; Prosencephalon* ; Putamen ; Rats* ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Reperfusion*

PURPOSE: We sought to identify the prevalence of sexual dysfunction and to evaluate the six domains of sexual function in female hemodialysis patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We undertook a cross-sectional study based on self-administered questionnaires and reviews of laboratory data that were collected from February to June 2007. A total of 49 women (mean age 52.3 years) from eight dialysis units were enrolled. Sexual function was assessed by the Korean version of the Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI). RESULTS: Forty-one patients (83.7%) reported sexual dysfunction during the prior 6 months. The mean score for sexual function in the sexual dysfunction group was 15.1, much lower than 29.6 for the normal sexual function group (t=10.2, p=0.000). In the six domains of sexual function for the dysfunction group, orgasm (range 0~6.0) was 2.4, desire (range 1.2~6.0) 1.9, and arousal (range 0~6.0) 1.9. The sexual dysfunction group was significantly older in age and lower in serum albumin level as compared with normal sexual function group. CONCLUSIONS: Sexual dysfunction in female patients on hemodialysis was highly prevalent. Interventions to promote orgasm, desire, and arousal in female patients on hemodialysis should be developed.
Arousal ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Dialysis ; Female* ; Humans ; Orgasm ; Prevalence ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Renal Dialysis* ; Serum Albumin

No abstract available.
Tetanus*

No abstract available.

PURPOSE: This study was performed to identify lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS), and to evaluate the factors affecting LUTS in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). METHODS: The cross sectional study was used with a structured questionnaire to collect data through interviews with 181 T2DM patients and their clinical data from a university hospital diabetes clinic from October 2010 to April 2012. LUTS were measured using the International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS), depression using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D), and glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) from the clinical data. RESULTS: Of all patients with T2DM, the mean IPSS of LUTS was 9.34 +/- 6.86. Concerning the reported severity of LUTS, 53.6% of the subjects were in the moderate and severe group. In each symptom score of LUTS (range 0-5), nocturia was the highest 2.04, weak stream 1.62, and frequency 1.45. LUTS was significantly predicted by HbA1c and depression, and 14.3% of the variance in LUTS was explained. CONCLUSION: HbA1c and depression were found to be very important factors associated with LUTS in T2DM patients.
Depression ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2* ; Epidemiologic Studies ; Hemoglobin A, Glycosylated ; Humans ; Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms* ; Nocturia ; Prostate ; Rivers

BACKGROUND: Naringin, one of the flavonoids in citrus fruit peels, is known to have antioxidant and hepatotonic effects in animal studies. We evaluated the effect of naringin on 1) blood lipid profiles, 2) regression of fatty streak of aorta, and 3) liver toxicity in diet-induced hypercholesterolemic rabbits. METHODS: New Zealand White Rabbits (2.0 - 2.5 Kg) were divided to three groups; group without treatment, group treated with 100 mg/kg/d or 500 mg/kg/d naringin, and group treated with 1 mg/kg/d or 20 mg/kg/d lovastatin. They were fed on 0.25% or 1.0% cholesterol-containing diet for 8 weeks and then sacrificed. Blood samples were collected for measurement of total cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol, triglyceride, serum GOT and GPT. Aortas and livers were harvested for evaluation of fatty streak and pathologic examination. RESULTS: 1)Feeding of 1% cholesterol diet for eight weeks significantly increased the cholesterol level upto 20 folds. Neither lovastatin nor naringin did lower these marked hypercholesterolemia. But both naringin (500 mg/kg/d) and lovastatin (1 mg/kg/d) significantly reduced the area of fatty streak by 75% and 58%, respectively. Naringin was more effective in inhibition of fat infiltration into liver than lovastatin which showed hepatotoxicity as increase of serum GPT level (p=0.01). 2)Feeding of 0.25% cholesterol diet for eight weeks significantly increased the cholesterol level upto 17 folds. Total cholesterol and triglyceride levels tended to decrease by treatment with naringin (500 mg/kg/d) and lovastatin (20 mg/kg/d), but this decreases were not statistically significant. However, areas of fatty streak significantly decreased by treatment with naringin and lovastatin by 64 and 82%, respectively (p<0.05). Microscopic analysis revealed that foam cell infiltration into intima was significantly reduced by naringin and lovastatin. In contrast to lovastatin, naringin significantly reduced the level of serum GPT (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: Like lovastatin, naringin has strong antiatherogenic action which may not be associated with its very mild lipid lowering action. In contrast to lovastatin, naringin does have hepatoprotective effect.
Animals ; Aorta ; Cholesterol ; Citrus ; Diet ; Flavonoids ; Foam Cells ; Hypercholesterolemia ; Liver ; Lovastatin ; Rabbits* ; Triglycerides

PURPOSE: This study was done to provide fundamental data for nursing interventions to prevent and reduce fatigue and to identify fatigue and kidney disease symptoms in female patients on hemodialysis and evaluate factors associated with this fatigue. METHOD: A cross-sectional study design was used with self-administered questionnaires which included general characteristics and the fatigue scale developed by Brown, Dittner, Findly, & Wessely (2005) (Cronbach's alpha=0.98 and for present study alpha=0.96) and a review of laboratory data. From eight dialysis units, 84 women were enrolled. Data were analyzed using the SAS program. RESULTS: Mean score for fatigue was 49.4 (range 16~78) and fatigue by research variables was significantly different by age (0.046), employment status (0.041), menopause (0.009), hypoalbuminemia (0.022), length of time on dialysis (0.48) and kidney disease symptoms (0.000). Correlations between fatigue and lack of strength, dizziness, and cramps after dialysis were significantly higher. Factors affecting fatigue were kidney disease symptoms and length of time on dialysis, explaining 49.2% of fatigue. CONCLUSION: A comprehensive approach considering kidney disease symptoms, length of time on hemodialysis, age, menopause, and hypoalbuminemia are required for interventions to reduce fatigue in female patients on hemodialysis.
Cross-Sectional Studies ; Dialysis ; Dizziness ; Employment ; Fatigue* ; Female* ; Humans ; Hypoalbuminemia ; Kidney Diseases* ; Kidney* ; Menopause ; Muscle Cramp ; Nursing ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Renal Dialysis*

Purpose: To determine associations of illness symptoms, perception of illness, coping with quality of life (QOL) of thyroid cancer patients and identify factors affecting their QOL. Methods: A cross-sectional study was performed using a self-administered questionnaire for 111 thyroid cancer patients after thyroidectomy. They were recruited from the outpatient clinic of one university hospital.Data collection was conducted from August 2018 to November 2018. Results: The QOL was significantly associated with interpersonal coping (β= 0.31, p< .001), monthly household income (β= 0.30, p< .001), illness symptoms (β= -0.22, p= .017), perception of illness (β= -0.20, p= .031), and education (β= 0.18, p= .037) in stepwise multiple regression. These factors explained 33.1% of QOL of thyroid cancer patients. Conclusion Interpersonal coping is a major contributing factor to QOL. Therefore, thyroid cancer patients need good interpersonal coping for better quality of life.