BACKGROUND: Several studies have demonstrated that mammographic dense breast is related to the risk of breast cancer and is associated with decreased mammographic sensitivity and specificity. In contrast, studies concerning women with dense breast are virtually non-existent. This study was conducted to evaluate the relationship between mammographic dense breast and other risk factors of breast cancer, and to make a plan for individualized strategies in high risk populations. METHODS: The study subjects were 565 women, aged 20~70 years, who had a screening mammogram from April 2005 to August 2005 at a health promotion center. Data of demographic factors, breast caner risk factors and menstrual status were collected by the self-administered questionnaire. Mammographic breast density was classified according to the American College of Radiology Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System (BI-RADS) fours categories, as measured by the proportion of glandular tissues within the total breast tissue. RESULTS: By BI-RADS categories, 'entirely fat' were 46, 'scattered fibroglandular' were 96, 'heterogenous dense' were 332 and 'extremely dense' were 91 (16.1%). Univariate analysis showed that age, occupation, education level, body mass index, age at menarche, parity, breast feeding, menopausal status and triglyceride had significantly related to dense breast (P<0.05). In the multivariate logistic analysis, only low body mass index (P<0.001), low parity (P=0.009, 0.038) and premenopausal status (P=0.001) were significantly associated with dense breast. CONCLUSION: In Korean women, dense breast was significantly associated with low body mass index, low parity and premenopausal status. Therefore, if women with dense breast have these risk factors, they need to be managed more intensively with regular screening, breast sonogram, and lifestyle modification.
Body Mass Index ; Breast Feeding ; Breast Neoplasms* ; Breast* ; Demography ; Education ; Female ; Health Promotion ; Humans ; Information Systems ; Life Style ; Mass Screening ; Menarche ; Occupations ; Parity ; Risk Factors* ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Triglycerides ; Surveys and Questionnaires

BACKGROUND: As of 2006, the residents of family medicine occupies about 9 percent among the total. However, expansion of more general practice doctors is in demand to conduct desirable general practice. Accordingly, this study was conducted to survey the motivation to apply for family medicine residency and the actual situation. METHODS: A questionnaire survey of 862 residents of nationwide family medicine from June 2006 to July 2006 was performed via e-mails. Hospital, size, years, gender, age, university, career, time and motivation to apply, and existence and nonexistence of lecture in medical school or clinical practice of family medicine for students were reviewed. RESULTS: Among the total, 415 (48.14%) residents from 72 training hospitals answered. For the motivation, 'the necessity to diagnose and treat various patients' was 53.49%, 'advantageous to start practice' was 21.93%, and 'relatively short training period' was 11.33%. For the time, during 'intern' was 49.40%, 'on getting a job' 16.63%, and as a 'student' 15.42%. When they had lectures of family medicine in medical school, decision made as a student was 19.93%, and during clinical practice was 21.61%. CONCLUSION: Among the reasons that motivated to apply for family medicine, 'the necessity to diagnose and treat various patients' was the biggest, which conforms to the training goal of Academy of Family Physicians. Since there is a tendency to select family medicine residency earlier when they are exposed to lectures of family medicine or clinical practices in medical school, the effort to expand substantial lectures and clinical practices is needed.
Electronic Mail ; General Practice ; Humans ; Internship and Residency ; Lectures ; Motivation* ; Physicians, Family ; Schools, Medical ; Surveys and Questionnaires

BACKGROUND: Many countries have been legally prescribing graphic health warning labels on cigarette package as a part of their national policy of smoking cessation. This study was designed to evaluate the effectiveness and appropriateness of graphic health warning labels of Canada, Singapore and European union, in Korean for smoking cessation. METHODS: From February to July in 2005, we surveyed 110 people who were high school students and college students. After showing them the 64 graphic health warning labels (16 from Canada, 6 from Singapore and 42 from European union), the self recorded questionnaires were collected. RESULTS: The effectiveness for smoking cessation was related to the arousal levels of visual effects and it had the same result for each country in which we researched. The high arousal loss-framed graphic health warning labels were more effective than the gain-framed low arousal ones. CONCLUSION: To quit smoking, it can be reasonably concluded that high and negative images of health that were shown on warning labels of cigarette packages were effective. Hereafter, it is recommended more useful and proper designs of graphic warning labels be developed and applied.
Arousal ; Canada ; European Union ; Humans ; Singapore ; Smoke* ; Smoking Cessation* ; Smoking* ; Tobacco Products ; Surveys and Questionnaires

BACKGROUND: We analyzed the data obtained from regular health checkups performed in a university hospital and investigated the effect of serum gamma-GT on hypertension for both Korean males and females. METHODS: A total of 3,288 adult males and females over 20 years of age were selected for this study who visited a health promotion center from April, 2004 to April, 2005. Patients with HBs Ag (+) or anti-HCV Ab (+) and those currently on medication that could affect hepatic function were excluded. The subjects' history of illness and their present health and medication status were examined through questionnaires and history taking. Also, basic physical examinations and laboratory tests were performed on these subjects. RESULTS: Classifying the serum gamma-GT into quartiles, as the gamma-GT classification stage increased, there was an increase in the amount of smoking, alcohol, body mass index, waist circumference, systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, fasting glucose, total cholesterol, triglyceride and low density lipoprotein for males or female (respectively, P for trend <0.01). When odd ratio (95% CI) for hypertension in the highest quartile of gamma-GT was compared to that of the lowest quartile, there was an increased risk of hypertension with an odd ratio of 1.6 (95% CI, 1.0~2.3) and 1.6 (95% CI, 1.0~2.4) for males and females, respectively. CONCLUSION: This study showed that the risk of hypertension was increased according to serum gamma-GT, even though the variable index affecting cardiovascular diseases was adjusted.
Adult ; Blood Pressure ; Body Mass Index ; Cardiovascular Diseases ; Cholesterol ; Classification ; Fasting ; Female ; Glucose ; Health Promotion ; Humans ; Hypertension* ; Lipoproteins ; Male ; Physical Examination ; Smoke ; Smoking ; Triglycerides ; Waist Circumference ; Surveys and Questionnaires

BACKGROUND: It has been reported that H.pylori causes changes in fundic leptin levels and plasma levels of ghrelin, and that eradication of H.pylori infection can increase appetite. There is also a report that showed changes of appetite between before and after eradication of H.pylori in peritoneal dialysis patients. Our study investigated the degree of appetite between H.pylori negative group and H.pylori positive group in adults. METHODS: The subjects included those without appetite- related diseases. We carried out gastroscopy and then performed CLO test in subjects who had no gastric lesions. We interviewed the study subjects about appetite related behavior (three items: desire to eat, hunger before meal, deliciousness) using visual analogue scale. We examined the appetite related behavior between CLO (??) group and CLO (+) group. RESULTS: The difference of age, sex, height, weight, body mass index, alcohol con sumption, blood pressure, hemoglobin, fasting blood sugar, AST, ALT, GGT between CLO (??) group and CLO (+) group were not statistically significant. The difference of appetite related behavior (three items) between CLO (??) group and CLO (+) group was not statistically significant. CONCLUSION: The degree of appetite between CLO (??) group and CLO (+) group was not different.
Adult ; Anorexia ; Appetite* ; Blood Glucose ; Blood Pressure ; Body Weight ; Fasting ; Gastroscopy ; Ghrelin ; Helicobacter pylori* ; Helicobacter* ; Humans ; Hunger ; Leptin ; Meals ; Peritoneal Dialysis ; Plasma

BACKGROUND: Despite the development of medical knowledge and technology, it has long been pointed out that the treatment guidelines are not sufficiently based on evidence. It has not been yet studied how evidence based medicine is implemented when physicians make their therapeutic decision. The purpose of this study was to determine the degree of evidence based interventions in a university based family medicine outpatient clinic. METHODS: The degree of evidence based practice was evaluated using Ellis and Gills' method developed by the Evidence - Based Medicine Center in Oxford. The Patients' records of an outpatient clinic of a university hospital were reviewed on the primary diagnosis - intervention. The evidence based guidelines were defined as traditional textbooks and the results of randomized controlled trials found on databases such as Medicine, Clinical evidence, Best evidence, and Cochrane. ln case where there were no guidelines, consultation with the specialists was done. The degree of the evidence based therapeutic interventions was assessed by three levels. RESULTS: There were 179 primary diagnosis - intervention pairs, among them, 125 pairs (69.8%) of interventions were based on randomized controlled trial evidence and 19 pairs (10.6%) based on convincing non-experimental evidence. No evidence was found for 35 pairs (19.6%) . As a result, 80.4% of the total 144 pairs were regarded as evidence - based medicine. CONCLUSIONS: The result showed that considerable portion of the total cases were evaluated as based on clinical evidence, which is similar to the conclusions of the previous studies in other countries. We hope that future similar studies will be conducted in other institutions as well as in other specialities.
Ambulatory Care Facilities* ; Clinical Medicine ; Diagnosis ; Evidence-Based Medicine ; Evidence-Based Practice ; Hope ; Humans ; Outpatients* ; Specialization

BACKGROUND: Hypertension is a common, chronic disease that poses as a main risk factor of coronary artery disease. Therefore, it requires accurate diagnosis. This study attempted to examine the problem of misclassification and accurate diagnosis of hypertension in primary care settings and to consider the relationship between variability of blood pressure and number of measurements. METHODS: Among the 168 patients with initially high blood pressure who visited health screening center of one university hospital from May to November, 1999, 97 persons who corresponded to the following conditions were chosen for this study. We classified hypertension as stage 1 and 2. The subjects were not previously diagnosed as hypertensive and had no past history of use of antihypertensive medication. Blood pressure was measured according to 1999 WH0/1SH Hypertension Guideline, and two or more measures were performed at each visit on five separate occasions at one week intervals RESULTS: The mean of initial blood pressure was 169.6 mmHg in systole, 96.3 mmHg in diastole. The mean of subsequent blood pressure was 165.0 mmHg, 146.1 mmHg, 143.4 mmHg, 138.7 mmHg in systole and 92.5 mmHg, 88.4 mmHg, 87 mmHg, 85.1 mmHg in diastole, which showed the tendency to be lower. In both systole and diastole, the mean differences between first and second measurements, second and third measurements were significant, but insignificant between third and forth measurements, and forth and fifth measurements. We divided systolic and diastolic pressures into two subgroups according to stage 1,2 classification of hypertension. In stage 1 subgroup, the means of blood pressures were lower from 151.3mmHg to 135.4 mmHg in systole, from 95.1 mmHg to 85.3 mmHg in diastole, but there were not significant. In stage 2 subgroup, the mean blood pressure was lower from 169.7 mmHg to 142.5mmHg in systole, from 105.4 mmHg to 87.8 mmHg in diastole, and the mean differences between first and second measurements, second and third measurements were significant, but not significant between third and forth measurements, and forth and fifth measurements. CONCLUSION: Blood pressure tends to be checked significantly lower until subsequent third measurements, but not thereafter. We think that more studies to find out how many blood pressure measurements are needed for diagnosing hypertension in consideration of patient's blood pressure level and risk factors.
Blood Pressure* ; Chronic Disease ; Classification ; Coronary Artery Disease ; Diagnosis* ; Diastole ; Humans ; Hypertension* ; Mass Screening ; Primary Health Care ; Risk Factors ; Systole

No abstract available.
Ambulatory Care Facilities* ; Humans ; Outpatients*

No abstract available.

No abstract available.