No Abstract available
Cross Infection*

No Abstract available.
Infection Control* ; Staphylococcus aureus* ; Staphylococcus*

BACKGROUND: Bacteriokiller system(BKS) produces disinfectant which is generated by the mixture of active oxygen and hypochlorous acid with tap water. Previous studies showed that BKS disinfectant is highly bacteridal against clinical isolates in in vitro testings and more effective than general soap and water for the disinfecttion of contaminated handa. This study was performed to evaluate ling-trem effects of BKS as a handwasing agent in clinical settings. METHODS: Five BKS were installed for the 9-month period from June 1995 to February 1996 in 16-bed Neurosurgery Intensive Care Unit. Handwashing was frequency was observed after 1, 6, and 8 month of BKS use. Six-month incidences of nosocomial infecrion before and after BKS installation were compared to evaluate the possible effect of handwashings on nosocomial infection rates. A self-administered questionaire was used to collect data on handwashing frequency and their opinions of the BKS disinfectant at 2 and 8 months after the installation. RESULTS: Handwashing frequency of healthcare workers(HCWs) before and after patient contacts was increased from 34.1%(137/402) to 50.3%(193/384) (p<0.00001). At the same time, the 6-month nosocomial infection rate was down to 10.5%(43/411) from the pre-BKS rate of 13.0%( 51/431) and the patient-day rate was also decreased from 18.3(56/3068) to 15.1(43/2,844). Most (80.5%) of HCWs thought that BKS promote handwashing and "convenience" was the main reason for more frequent handwashing. Ninety three percent of HCWs would recommend the replacement of tne existing sinks and handwashing disinfectants with BKS. NO adverse skin reaction were reported after 8 months. Conclusions: BKS appears to promote handwashing because it is easy to use with no skin irritation and may contribute toward the prevention of nosocomial infections.
Cross Infection ; Delivery of Health Care ; Disinfectants ; Hand Disinfection ; Humans ; Hypochlorous Acid ; Incidence ; Intensive Care Units ; Neurosurgery ; Reactive Oxygen Species ; Skin ; Soaps

No abstract available.
Carcinosarcoma* ; Female ; Ovary*

No abstract available.
Animals ; Babesiosis* ; Clindamycin ; Humans ; Male* ; Quinine

No abstract available.
Animals ; Babesiosis* ; Clindamycin ; Humans ; Male* ; Quinine

BACKGROUND: This is a retrospective, descriptive study, evaluating the observed agreement between 1996 & 2002 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) definitions of nosocomial pneumonia (NP) for medical intensive care unit (MICU) and surgical intensive care unit (SICU) patients. METHODS: A total of 476 adult patients who were over 15 years of age and had been admitted to the MICU & SICU of a university hospital between August 1, 2005 and August 1, 2007 were enrolled. Data were collected from electronic medical records according to the 1996 & 2002 CDC definitions of NP. RESULTS: According to the 1996 CDC definitions of NP, there were a total of 116 NP cases and incidence rate was 11.6 per 1,000 patient-days; when analyzed with the 2002 CDC definitions of NP, 75 cases met the criteria and the incidence rate was 7.5 per 1,000 patient-days. Kappa value measuring agreement between the two definitions was 0.67 (95% confidence interval 0.601-0.706). When 1996 CDC definitions were compared with 2002 CDC definitions, sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value were 93.3, 88.5, 60.3, and 98.6%, respectively. CONCLUSION: Even though the aforementioned NP criteria had been applied to the same study population, the number of patients that met the definitions changed depending on which criteria had been used. Therefore, it is necessary to consider the differences when making a comparison.
Adult ; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (U.S.) ; Electronic Health Records ; Humans ; Incidence ; Critical Care ; Intensive Care Units ; Pneumonia ; Retrospective Studies ; Sensitivity and Specificity

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of suction drain use following arthroscopic rotator cuff repair by comparing early pain score and range of motion (ROM) between groups with and without suction drains. METHODS: The study included 153 patients with rotator cuff tears who underwent arthroscopic repairs at our clinic from April 2014 to March 2015. Following surgery, a suction drain was used in 85 patients (group D) and not used in 68 patients (group ND). There was no statistical difference between the groups in terms of age, gender, or total operation time. The clinical outcome with regard to pain (assessed by pain scores and analgesic requests) and passive ROM was assessed preoperatively and postoperatively. RESULTS: Immediate postoperative analgesic requirement was significantly higher in group D (p=0.001), although there was no difference in pain outcomes between the groups during the 3-month follow-up period. A statistically significant difference in passive ROM was observed at the postoperative 2- and 6-week follow-ups (p=0.036, 0.035, and 0.034 in forward elevation (FE), external rotation at the side (ER) and 90 ER at weeks 2, respectively; 0.045 and 0.009 in FE and ER at weeks 6, respectively); however no significant difference was observed at the end of 3 months. During the study period, no complication was reported in either group. CONCLUSIONS: Use of suction drains after arthroscopic rotator cuff repair provided little benefit in terms of ROM or pain in the early postoperative period (up to 3 months).
Arthroscopy ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Postoperative Period ; Range of Motion, Articular ; Rotator Cuff* ; Shoulder ; Suction* ; Tears

BACKGROUND: Direct observation of healthcare workers is commonly used in hospitals to investigate hand hygiene compliance. However, the hand hygiene compliance rate may increase due to the Hawthorne effect, which is the modification of behavior simply because subjects become aware that they are being observed. The objective of this study was to investigate the occurrence of the Hawthorne effect when directly observing hand hygiene compliance in intensive care unit (ICU) healthcare personnel. METHODS: A total of 87 staff members from the coronary care unit and cardiac surgery ICU of a general hospital in Seoul were included in this study: 24 residents and interns, 55 nurses, and 8 nursing assistants. Both covert and overt observations, where subjects were either unaware or aware of any direct observation, were performed on separate occasions. RESULTS: A total of 1,052 covert and 1,336 overt observations were documented over 30 and 34 occasions, respectively. Overall hand hygiene compliance was significantly higher with overt observation than with covert observation (1,041/1,336, 77.9% vs. 659/1,052, 62.6%, P<0.001). The Hawthorne effect was present in all professions and behaviors, with the exception of nursing assistants, and prior to touching a patient. CONCLUSION: Direct observation of hand hygiene compliance was associated with the Hawthorne effect when observations were made overtly and this was likely to contribute to an overestimation of compliance rate.
Compliance ; Coronary Care Units* ; Delivery of Health Care* ; Effect Modifier, Epidemiologic* ; Hand Hygiene* ; Health Personnel ; Hospitals, General ; Humans ; Intensive Care Units* ; Nursing ; Seoul ; Thoracic Surgery*

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Pancreaticoduodenectomy is the procedure of choice in patients with periampullary cancers. Marked improvements in morbidity and mortality rates following pancreaticoduodenectomy have been reported in recent years. However, pancreatic leakage still occurs in 5% to 25% of patients and is a major cause of morbidity and mortality. METHODS: Between January 1990 to June 1999, eighty-two patients underwent pancreaticoduodenectomy. We compared preoperative, intraoperative characteristics as well as postoperative sandostatin usage in those patients who experienced (n=21) versus those who did not experience pancreatic leakage (n=61). Information was retrospectively collected from hospital record. RESULTS: The clinical leakage rate in this series was 25.6% (n=21). There were no significant differences in preoperative characteristics comparing those with versus those without pancreatic leakage. Among intraoperative characteristics, duct stenting and transfusions were significantly associated with the pancreatic leakage. Finally, postopeative sandostatin usage was able to reduce significantly the incidence of pancreatic leakage. CONCLUSION: Although consensus among surgeons does not exist as to opeative tenchnique and postoperative management, stenting and less bleeding as well as sandostatin usage had better results in this study.
Consensus ; Hemorrhage ; Hospital Records ; Humans ; Incidence ; Mortality ; Octreotide ; Pancreatic Fistula ; Pancreaticoduodenectomy* ; Retrospective Studies ; Stents