BACKGROUND: Nursing college students are exposed to information about diseases or drugs, and are likely to have a distorted perception of drug knowledge or behavior. The study aimed to identify knowledge and attitude about drugs and current status of self-medication among nursing students.METHODS: The subjects were 172 nursing students from a university in Busan. Data were collected with structured questionnaires and analyzed using descriptive analysis, t-test, and one-way ANOVA using SPSS 23.0.RESULTS: Nursing students had a high level of knowledge about drugs, but attitudes toward drugs were relatively low. 83.7% of patients had experience of self-medication. The methods to acquire information for self-administration were 29.9% by smart phone and 27.1% by internet. The use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) among self-medication drugs was the highest. The most common reason for self-medication was ‘I thought it to be a mild disease’, and the pharmacists were the most affected by choice of self-medication. The knowledge about drugs was statistically significant according to grade, school life satisfaction and subjective health status. The attitudes about medication were statistically significant according to grade and self-medication experience.CONCLUSION: Nursing college students need drug safety education to improve awareness and practice of correct drug use.
Busan ; Diagnostic Self Evaluation ; Education ; Humans ; Internet ; Nursing ; Pharmacists ; Smartphone ; Students, Nursing

To promote health status, strategies and interventions to improve nutrition should be based on the proper diagnosis of the subject's eating patterns. The elderly usually have traditional food habits and preferences, and it is very difficult to change them. This study was designed to identify dietary behavior and food preference of the elderly, in order to provide baseline data for the Elderly Nutrition Intervention Program for the Public Health Center. A survey questionnaire was made for use by trained interviewers to query 151elderly people from 5 community elderly centers located in Suwon, Korea. The majority of them ate regularly and partook of all available side dishes. Their major dietary problems were frequent consumptions of salty foods, and eating too quickly. They consumed grains and vegetables regularly, but seldomly ate dairy products, fruits, meat and food prepared with oil. They also tended to eschew ready made processed food, high cholesterol food, and fast food. Also they did not dine out as much as younger people. Desirable eating habit score were not significantly influenced by socioeconomic variables and nutrition-related characteristics. These included nutrition knowledge, Nutritional Risk Index(NRI) and a score of health concerns. However, meal balance scores were significantly higher in the younger group(p<.05), the higher household income group(p<.05). According to stepwise multiple regression analysis, NRI was the most important determinant of a desirable eating habit score for the male elderly, whereas the score of health concerns was most important for female elderly subjects. The greatest predictor of the meal f balance score was nutrition knowledge. The elderly liked sweet tasting food, grains, rice, stews and Korean style soups. They disliked sour food, dairy products, processed food, and bread. The results indicate that the Elderly Nutrition Education Program should focus on increasing consumption of dairy products, fruits and food with oil, prepared by traditional Korean cooking methods. It also suggests that the program planning should consider the socioeconomic status of the elderly, such as income and education level, as well as concern for health.
Aged* ; Bread ; Edible Grain ; Cholesterol ; Cooking ; Dairy Products ; Diagnosis ; Eating ; Education ; Family Characteristics ; Fast Foods ; Female ; Food Habits ; Food Preferences* ; Fruit ; Gyeonggi-do* ; Humans ; Korea ; Male ; Meals ; Meat ; Public Health ; Social Class ; Vegetables ; Surveys and Questionnaires

No abstract available.
Gastrointestinal Diseases*

The increased number of elderly in Korea presents great challenges for community nutrition programs. Strategies to enchance elderly nutrition are needed, as well as dietary advice that are reality-based and tailored to the need of the elderly. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the overall effectiveness of an elderly nutrition improvement program(ENIP), by assessing changes in nutrition knowledge, attitudes, and behavior after program completion. ENIP was conducted in Suwon for 4 months in 1998 at 5 centers for the elderly. The program provided individual nutrition counseling and brief biweekly group education sessions. To stimulate participation and motivation, the elderly in two centers were served free milk packs(200ml) three time a week during the program(milk+education group), and the elderly in 3 other centers were served yoghurt on the program day(education group). Altogether, 102 subjects finished the program(milk+education group 67 ; education group 35). Data about nutrition knowledge, dietary attitudes, diet records(24 hour recall) and dietary habit was collected before(baseline) and after the program(follow-up). The Drop-out rate for the milk+education group(2.9%) was significantly lower than that for the education group(30.0%)(p<.001). The Nutrition Knowledge fo females milk+education group increased significantly after the program, but no significant differences were observed in other groups. Over 60% of all the elderly showed positive responses to the healthy eating attitudes. Energy, protein, vitamin A, riboflavin, Calcium and Potassium intakes improved in the male milk+education group. The Vitamin C intake improved in the male education group. Energy and vitamin A intakes improved in the female milk+education group and energy, vitamin A, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, Ca nad P in the female education group. A stepwise multiple regression analysis was performed to examine the effects of food intake changes on overall nutrient quality. For all elderly, the fish intake explained 12.6% of the variance, followed by candy intake and vegetable intake(model R2=19.6%). Dietary habits such as meal time regularity and salty food reduction were markedly improved in both groups. Sixty-one percent of the milk+education subjects stated their participation was voluntary and active, while 51% of education subjects did. Sixty four percent of the subjects stated their interest on diet increased remarkably through program participation. Considering the results, it is conjectured that ENIP had a great impact on nutrient intake, dietary attitudes and habits. Milk supplement showed no direct effects on elderly nutrition improvement, but it encouraged the program by reducting drop-out rates and inducing voluntary participation. Therefore milk supplement could enhance the community nutrition education program. Moreover it is strongly suggested that the ENIP be expanded to other communities.
Aged* ; Ascorbic Acid ; Calcium ; Candy ; Counseling ; Diet ; Eating ; Education* ; Female ; Food Habits ; Gyeonggi-do ; Humans ; Korea ; Male ; Meals ; Milk ; Motivation ; NAD ; Niacin ; Potassium ; Riboflavin ; Vegetables ; Vitamin A ; Yogurt

OBJECTIVES: The dysfunctional neural networks underlying self-evaluation in schizophrenia are overlapped with the neural structures involved in emotion regulation. The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of anhedonia on the self-evaluation attitude of patients with schizophrenia. METHODS: Twenty healthy controls and twenty patients with schizophrenia performed a self-evaluation task, presenting a pair of the face (self, familiar other, and unfamiliar other) and word (negative, neutral, and positive noun) at the same time. Participants were asked to evaluate relevance between the pairs by pressing a corresponding button. Relevance rating scores were compared between the groups and were correlated with the severity of physical and social anhedonia. RESULTS: Patients evaluated the condition of a self face with a negative word and a familiar face with a negative word to be more relevant than healthy controls. In the patient group, the scores of relevance rating in the condition of an unfamiliar other face with a negative word were positively correlated with the anhedonia scale scores (physical : r=0.486, p=0.030 ; social : r=0.499, p=0.025). There was no correlation between the self-evaluation attitude and the severity of anhedonia. CONCLUSION: Patients with schizophrenia evaluate themselves badly in only negative circumstances, and anhedonia is not related to self-evaluation, but rather other-evaluation.
Anhedonia* ; Diagnostic Self Evaluation ; Humans ; Schizophrenia*

Objective: To investigate the relationship between the torque onset angle (TOA) of the isokinetic test for knee extensors in the paretic side and walking related balance in subacute stroke patients. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed patients with first-ever strokes who have had at least two isokinetic tests within 6 months of onset. 102 patients satisfied the inclusion criteria. The characteristics of walking related balance were measured with the Berg Balance Scale sub-score (sBBS), Timed Up and Go test (TUG), 10-m Walk Test (10MWT) and Functional Independence Measure sub-score (sFIM). The second isokinetic test values of the knee extensor such as peak torque, peak torque to weight ratio, hamstring/quadriceps ratio, TOA, torque stop angle, torque at 30 degrees, and peak torque asymmetry ratio between paretic and non-paretic limb were also taken into account. Pearson’s correlation, simple regression and multiple regression analysis were used to analyze the correlation between TOA and walking related balance. Results: TOA of the knee extensor of the paretic limb showed significant correlations with BBS, sBBS, TUG, 10MWT, and sFIM according to Pearson’s correlation analysis. TOA also had moderate to good correlations with walking related balance parameters in partial correlation analysis. In multiple regression analysis, TOA of the paretic knee extensor was significantly associated with walking related balance parameters. Conclusion This study demonstrated that TOA of the paretic knee extensor is a predictable parameter of walking related balance. Moreover, we suggest that the ability to recruit muscle quickly is important in walking related balance.

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to assess the microbiological quality of unchlorinated drinking water in Korea, 2010. One hundred and eighty unchlorinated drinking water samples were collected from various sites in Seoul and Gyeonggi province. METHODS: To investigate bacterial presence, the pour plate method was used with cultures grown on selective media for total bacteria, total coliforms, and Staphylococcus spp., respectively. RESULTS: In the 180 total bacteria investigation, 72 samples from Seoul and 33 samples from Gyeonggi province were of an unacceptable quality (>10(2) CFU/mL). Of all the samples tested, total coliforms were detected in 28 samples (15.6%) and Staphylococcus spp. in 12 samples (6.7%). Most of the coliform isolates exhibited high-level resistance to cefazolin (88.2%), cefonicid (64.7%) and ceftazidime (20.6%). In addition, Staphylococcus spp. isolates exhibited high-level resistance to mupirocin (42%). Species of Pseudomonas, Acinetobacter, Cupriavidus, Hafnia, Rahnella, Serratia, and Yersinia were isolated from the water samples. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study suggest that consumption of unchlorinated drinking water could represent a notable risk to the health of consumers. As such, there is need for continuous monitoring of these water sources and to establish standards.
Acinetobacter ; Bacteria ; Cefazolin ; Cefonicid ; Ceftazidime ; Cupriavidus ; Drinking ; Drinking Water ; Hafnia ; Korea ; Mupirocin ; Pseudomonas ; Rahnella ; Serratia ; Staphylococcus ; Water ; Yersinia

BACKGROUND: Recently, the number of thyroid surgery cases has been increasing; consequently, the number of patients who visit plastic surgery departments with a chief complaint of swallowing deformity has also increased. We performed a scar correction technique on post-thyroidectomy swallowing deformity via platysma flap with Z-plasty and obtained satisfactory aesthetic and functional outcomes. METHODS: The authors performed operations upon 18 patients who presented a definitive retraction on the swallowing mechanism as an objective sign of swallowing deformity, or throat or neck discomfort on swallowing mechanism such as sensation of throat traction as a subjective sign after thyoridectomy from January 2009 till June 2012. The scar tissue that adhered to the subcutaneous tissue layer was completely excised. A platysma flap as mobile interference was applied to remove the continuity of the scar adhesion, and additionally, Z-plasty for prevention of midline platysma banding was performed. RESULTS: The follow-up results of the 18 patients indicated that the definitive retraction on the swallowing mechanism was completely removed. Throat or neck discomfort on the swallowing mechanism such as sensation of throat traction also was alleviated in all 18 patients. When preoperative and postoperative Vancouver scar scales were compared to each other, the scale had decreased significantly after surgery (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Our simple surgical method involved the formation of a platysma flap with Z-plasty as mobile interference for the correction of post-thyroidectomy swallowing deformity. This method resulted in aesthetically and functionally satisfying outcomes.
Cicatrix ; Congenital Abnormalities ; Deglutition ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Neck ; Neck Muscles ; Pharynx ; Sensation ; Subcutaneous Tissue ; Surgery, Plastic ; Thyroid Gland ; Thyroidectomy ; Traction ; Weights and Measures

PURPOSE: Since November 2006, imipenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii isolates have increased in Kyung Hee University Hospital in Seoul, Korea. The purpose of this study was to determine the genetic basis and molecular epidemiology of outbreak isolates. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Forty-nine non-repetitive isolates of the 734 IRAB strains were investigated in order to determine their characteristics. The modified Hodge and the ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA)-disk synergy test were performed for the screening of carbapenemase and metallo-beta-lactamase production. Multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays were performed for the detection of genes encoding for OXA-23-like, OXA-24-like, OXA-58-like and OXA-51-like carbapenemase. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) was performed for strain identification. RESULTS: All isolates showed 100% resistance to ciprofloxacin and gentamicin, 97.9% resistance to cefepime, piperacillin/tazobactam, aztreonam, ceftazidime and piperacillin, 93.9% resistance to tobramycin and 57.1% resistance to amikacin. All of the 49 isolates (100%) showed positive results in the modified Hodge test and negative results in the EDTA-disk synergy test. They all (100%) possessed the encoding gene for an intrinsic OXA-51-like carbapenemase and an acquired OXA-23-like carbapenemase in the multiplex PCR assay. PFGE patterns revealed that all isolates were clonally related from A1 to A14. CONCLUSION: It is concluded that all of the 49 IRAB isolates acquired resistance to imipenem by producing OXA-23 carbapenemase and they might have originated from a common source.
Acinetobacter Infections/epidemiology/*microbiology ; Acinetobacter baumannii/*drug effects/genetics ; Anti-Bacterial Agents/*pharmacology ; Cephalosporins/pharmacology ; Ciprofloxacin/pharmacology ; Disease Outbreaks ; Drug Resistance, Multiple, Bacterial/genetics/physiology ; Electrophoresis, Gel, Pulsed-Field ; Gentamicins/pharmacology ; Humans ; Imipenem/*pharmacology ; Korea/epidemiology ; Microbial Sensitivity Tests ; beta-Lactamases/genetics/*metabolism ; beta-Lactams/*pharmacology

A 26-year-old man visited our emergency medical center with dyspnea, and he was diagnosed with pulmonary embolism. He did not have any specific risk factor. His job was a computer programming. Pulmonary embolism is rare at such young age. Predisposing risk factors in pulmonary embolism patients include a history of venous thromboembolism, history of malignancy, complicating infections, increasing age, thrombophilia, and obesity. Prolonged seated immobility at work is another risk factor for venous thromboembolism like economy class syndrome. We report a case of pulmonary embolism in a young patient who had no risk factor.
Adult ; Dyspnea ; Emergencies ; Humans ; Immobilization ; Obesity ; Pulmonary Embolism ; Risk Factors ; Software ; Thrombophilia ; Venous Thromboembolism