No abstract available.

No abstract available.

BACKGROUND: Recently elderly people have increased in Korea and increased demands of medical service. This study was carried out to identify diseases and health service utilization patterns of geriatric inpatients to provide better understanding and basis planning to meet the needs of expanding geriatric population. METHOD: We use data of `Patient Survey in Korea` in 1999 and analyzed characteristics of disease structure and utilization patterns of health care service of 54,013 cases of discharged patients aged 65 years or more. RESULT: The proportion of the elderly in total discharged patients is 14.7%. Male to female ratio is 1:1.3 and most common age group was between 65 and 69 years old. 84.2% of elderly patients were admitted at secondary or tertiary health care facilities. The most common disease in geriatric inpatients is malig- nancy in male and vascular disease in female. The average duration of hospitalization is 14.2 days. They stay longer than the nation wide average hospital length and stay longest when they are admitted by mental and behavioral disorders. CONCLUSION: Geriatric patients are admitted mostly with chronic degenerative diseases such as neoplasm and vascular disease. Elders prefer to be admitted to tertiary hospitals and oriental hospitals. They stay more in hospital.
Aged ; Delivery of Health Care ; Female ; Health Services* ; Hospitalization ; Humans ; Inpatients* ; Korea ; Male ; Tertiary Care Centers ; Vascular Diseases

No abstract available.
Apoptosis* ; Prostate* ; Prostatic Hyperplasia* ; Prostatic Neoplasms* ; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-myc*

BACKGROUND: Cytokines such as TNF-a, and IL-1, 6, 8 are thought to mediate many host responses in patients with sepsis through the release of many kinds of inflammatory mediators. Vibrio vulnificus is a virulent, halophilic, marine, and Gram-negative bacterium causing wound infections or primary sepsis with fulminant course. It has been known to produce many exocellular factors, such as cytolysin and exozymes, which are possible causes of shock and tissue damage. OBJECTIVE: Our purpose was to investigate the changes of cytokines(TNF-a, Il-l p, and IL-6) after intravenous administration of V. vulnificus cytolysin which have known to be a major virulent factor for elucidating pathogenesis of septic shock. METHODS: After administration of V. vulnificus cytolysin(20 hemolytic units) and physiologic saline through a mouse tail vein, we obtained blood samples from the heart according to a time course(0, 30, 60, 90, 120, 240, and 360 minutes). We measured serum concentrations of circulating TNF- a, IL-1 p, and IL-6 using commercially available immunoassay kits. RESULTS: The serum concentration of TNF- a peaked at 60 min (1894 pg/ml, as compared with 829 pg/ml after saline administration), began to decrease at 90 min and fell to baseline at 360min. Concentration of IL-6 rose significantly at 90 min(>3,839 pg/ml) and began to decrease at 120 min, whereas the level of IL-1 0 increased slightly and the peaked around 90min(117 pg/ml) after the cytolysin injection. CONCLUSION: We conclude that the host response to cytolysin is associated with a brief pulse of circulating cytokines in the early stage of sepsis caused by V. vulnipcus infection.
Administration, Intravenous ; Animals ; Cytokines* ; Heart ; Humans ; Immunoassay ; Interleukin-1 ; Interleukin-6* ; Mice* ; Perforin* ; Sepsis ; Shock ; Shock, Septic ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha* ; Veins ; Vibrio vulnificus* ; Vibrio* ; Wound Infection

Pulsatilla koreana is a member of the buttercup familly(Ranuculaceae) which contains the unsaturated lactone, protoanemonin(C3H4O2), formed after injury to the plant by the breakdown of the glycoside ranunculin. It has been prescribed as a herbal medicine or a folk medicine for antipyretic, analgesic, anti-inflammatory, astringent and hemostatic effects in Korea. A 20 year-old famale patient presented with confluent vesicobullae on the erythematous base with a burning sensation on her upper back. This was caused by contact with crushed Pulsatilla koreana, a folk medicine for the treatment of left facial nerve palsy, that had occurred 10 days before her visit. A provocation patch test with Pulsatilla koreana upon a heathy male volunteers upper back showed strong positive reactions with the stalk and leaf in fresh and frozen stat.e and after thaw ing resptively. However no reaction was seen when the folk medicine was used in a dried form or with the root in any state. This case indicates that misadvice and ignorant folk remedies could cause misfortunate results to innocent people.
Burns ; Dermatitis, Irritant* ; Facial Nerve ; Herbal Medicine ; Humans ; Korea ; Male ; Medicine, Traditional ; Paralysis ; Patch Tests ; Plants ; Pulsatilla* ; Sensation ; Volunteers ; Young Adult

PURPOSE: This study is to identify the factors that affect middle-aged workers' health promoting behaviors. METHODS: 214 middle-aged workers participated in surveys, and the data were collected from August to September 2012 and analyzed by using descriptive statistics, Pearson's correlation coefficient, and multiple regression analysis with PASW 18.0 program. RESULTS: It was found that among the factors, the degree of job stress (t=7.69, p<.001) and depression (t=6.23, p<.001) were significantly high for type D individuals, while non type D showed meaningful degree of self-related health status (t=-3.66, p<.001) and health promoting behaviors (t=-4.71, p<.001). The notable variable that affected the health promoting behaviors of the middle-aged workers was depression for both type D (beta=-.357, p= .029) and non type D (beta=-.325, p<.001) individuals, and this variable accounted for 24.1% and 18.2% respectively. CONCLUSION: The study revealed that the middle-aged workers showed high degree of job stress and depression that influenced on their health promoting behaviors. Thus, they are recommended to receive health management programs that offer treatment through consulting considering their individual personalities.
Depression ; Health Behavior

In anesthetized cats the effects of lactate-activated muscle spindle upon the group Ia muscular afferent fibers were studied. Laminectomy was done from L5 to Sl spinal cord level. Extracellular recording was done at dorsal root to record the impulse discharge from group Ia muscular afferent fibers. 1) Muscle spindle of Gastrocnemius-Soleus muscle were activated by lactate injection and exhibited increased impulse discharge through group Ia muscular afferent fibers. 2) There was latency of 7-12 seconds before muscle spindle is activated by lactate injection. But the whole response was not dose related. 3) The response pattern after lactate injection was divided into three groups which were excitation, inhibition and inhibition with preceding excitation. 4) Some responses were similar to those of bradykinin, sympathetic stimulation (adrenaline injection) and succinylcholine injection. 5) It was suggested that muscle spindle has characteristics of polymodal receptor which has responses to not only mechanical stimulation but also chemical stimulation.
Animals ; Bradykinin ; Cats ; Lactic Acid ; Laminectomy ; Muscle Spindles ; Spinal Cord ; Spinal Nerve Roots ; Stimulation, Chemical ; Succinylcholine

The etiology of spontaneous hemarthrosis of the knee joint in elderly pattents is still unknown. This report discusses seven spontaneous hernarthroses, three that were managed witla conservative measures such as aspiration, rest and knee immobilization because of poor general condition and four in which arthroscopic evaluation and treatment were performed. These patients were elderly indi.viduals without an obvious history of trauma. The roentgenograms of each involved knee demonstrated degenerative osteoarthritic changes of knee joint. Arthroscopic examination revealed denuded articular cartilage and subchondral bone exposure in four operative cases and degenerative meniscal tear in one case of four. These patients underwent mthroscopic debridement and did not experience recurrenees of the hemarthrosis. We think that the origin of the bleeding was most likely from the subchondral cancellous bone which was exposed due to degenerative change of the knee joint and the senile changes of the vessels around the knee joint with aging process may contribute the spontaneous bleeding into the knee joints.
Aged* ; Aging ; Cartilage, Articular ; Debridement ; Hemarthrosis* ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Immobilization ; Knee Joint ; Knee*

No abstract available.
Hidrocystoma* ; Syringoma*