PURPOSE: This study explored and described the living spiritual experience and was attempted to gain an understanding of spirituality. This was done by eliciting participants' verbal descriptions of their experiences. METHOD: Data was obtained from in-depth interviews with one cancer patient, one pastor, and three missionaries after obtaining informed consent from each. Interviews were tape recorded and transcribed verbatim. The transcripts were analyzed using Colaizzi's phenomenological method. Sandelowski's evaluation criteria for qualitative research, such as reliability, suitability and auditability, were also used to establish reliability and validity of this study. RESULT: The five major theme clusters that designated the essence of the spiritual experience, "spiritual awareness," "interconnectedness," "love," "transcendent energy," "purpose and meaning in life," emerged from the analysis. CONCLUSION: This study revealed that spirituality was activated by awareness through introspection and interconnectedness with a Supreme Being. The interconnectedness with a Supreme Being played an important role in harmonious relationships with others and self. It also resulted in revealing the other beneticial attributes of spirituality. Love, the core concept of the interconnectedness, worked as a transcendent energy. Also, the ability to see beyond reality and resulted in finding meaning in life and accomplishing well being.
Humans ; Informed Consent ; Love ; Missions and Missionaries ; Qualitative Research ; Reproducibility of Results ; Spirituality*

BACKGROUND: Cardiovascular disease is the major cause of morbidity and mortality. It is well known that androgen and sex hormone-binding globulin(SHBG) in women were associated with risk factors for cardiovascular disease such as obesity, central fat accumulation and atherogenic lipid profile. High resolution B-mode ultrasonography can visualize directly both luminal and vessel wall characteristics, and ultrasonic measurement of carotid intima-medial thickness(IMT) can be used to investigate the atherosclerosis of coronary, cerebral and peripheral arteries. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between the serum dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate(DHEA-S) and SHBG, and body fat distribution pattern, cardiovascular risk factor and carotid atherosclerosis in women. METHODS: Blood pressure, fasting serum glucose, insulin, lipid profile, SHBG and DHEA-S were measured. Body fat distribution pattern was assessed by waist to hip ratio, waist to thigh ratio and subscapular to triceps skin fold thickness ratio, faf mass measured by bioelectric impedance analyzer, subcutaneous fat area, visceral fat area, and visceral to subcutaneous fat area ratio(VSR) at the level of umbilicus using the computed tomography. The IMT of the carotid artery was measured by high resolution B mode ultrasound as a marker of atherosclerosis. RESULTS: 1) There was no significant difference of age-adjusted values of carotid IMT among subjects with NGT(0.426+/-0.09mm), IGT(0.46+/-10.09mm) and NIDDM(0.453+/-0.11mm). 2) In postrnenopausal women, carotid IMT was greater(0.484+/-0.11mm, p=0.05) than premenopausal women(0.426+/-0.08mm), but it was not significant after age adjustment. Serum SHBG and DHEA-S levels in postmenopausal women were significantly lower(p<0.05) than premenopausal women, but they were not significant after age adjustment. 3) Carotid IMT was significantly correlated with age(r=0.37, p<0.01), fasting serum glucose (r=0.32, p<0.01), total cholesterol(r= 0.25, p<0.05), LDL-cholesterol(r=0.26, p<0.05), visceral fat area(r=0.35, p<0.01) and VSR(r=0.31, p<0.05). 4) By the stepwise multiple regression analysis, carotid IMT was positively and significantly associated with age(p<0.01) and serum DHEA-S concentration(p<0.05) in dent of age, body mass index, waist to hip ratio, fasting serum glucose. CONCLUSION: Carotid IMT was associated with age and serum DHEA-S concentration in women without cardiovascular disease. Therefore, serum DHEA-S may be one of risk factors for cardiovascular disease in women. However, we could not conclude its cause-result relationship because of cross sectional nature of our study, and prospective study will be needed.
Arteries ; Atherosclerosis ; Blood Glucose ; Blood Pressure ; Body Fat Distribution ; Body Mass Index ; Cardiovascular Diseases ; Carotid Arteries ; Carotid Artery Diseases* ; Dehydroepiandrosterone Sulfate* ; Dehydroepiandrosterone* ; Electric Impedance ; Fasting ; Female ; Humans ; Insulin ; Intra-Abdominal Fat ; Mortality ; Obesity, Abdominal ; Phenobarbital ; Risk Factors ; Sex Hormone-Binding Globulin* ; Skin ; Subcutaneous Fat ; Thigh ; Ultrasonics ; Ultrasonography ; Umbilicus ; Waist-Hip Ratio

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to obtain a clearer understanding of spirituality and examine the process of spirituality through defining the meaning and attributes of spirituality. METHOD: Concept analysis was done in the three phases, theoretical phase, fieldwork phase, and analytical phase suggested in the Hybrid Model. Five people participated in the fieldwork phase. RESULTS: Spirituality is activated through self-awareness which occurs as spirit being activated through self-introspection, and through restoration of the relationship with Supreme Being. This interconnectedness with Supreme Being has an absolute impact on one's harmonious interconnectedness with self and neighbors, thus leads all the critical attributes of spirituality to be revealed. The core energy of this harmonious interconnectedness is love. When activated, it has a great impact on an individual as integrative energy, leads one to go beyond everyday experience as well as to have new perspectives, and to live a satisfactory life in every aspect. CONCLUSION: The results of this study suggest that promotion of connectedness is the most important element in spiritual nursing interventions. The results can also be used effectively in developing spirituality assessment scales and theory.
*Spirituality ; *Models, Psychological ; *Mind-Body Relations (Metaphysics) ; Korea ; Humans

No abstract available.
Humans ; Pneumoconiosis*

Hughes-Stovin syndrome is an extremely rare entity. We present a case of a 42-year-old man, who developed deep vein and inferior vena cava (IVC) thrombosis, repeated internal bleeding and pulmonary artery aneurysms (PAAs). The patient presented with massive hemoptysis and with PAAs of a 2.5 cm maximum diameter. We describe the successful percutaneous transhepatic venous embolization of the PAAs due to occluded common vascular pathways to the pulmonary artery.
Adult ; Aneurysm* ; Hemoptysis ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Pulmonary Artery* ; Thrombosis ; Veins ; Vena Cava, Inferior

PURPOSE: To evaluate the effect of age wearing prescription glasses on changes in refractive error in accommodative esotropia. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the charts of 63 patients with accommodative esotropia. The patients were divided into three groups according to their age when glasses were prescribed. Changes of the refractive error between the three groups were compared. RESULTS: The mean age at the first visit was 4.1+/-2.0 years and the mean follow-up period was 5.7+/-2.7 years. In children that began wearing glasses before two years of age, the spherical equivalent (SE) refractive error initially increased, peaked 2.5 years after starting to wear glasses, and slowly decreased thereafter. In children who started wearing glasses after two years but not before four years of age the SE refractive error increased and peaked 1.5 years after starting to wear glasses. For children who began wearing glasses after four years of age the SE refractive error increased and peaked after one year. Changes in the refractive error in the youngest age group were significantly different from the other two groups (p=0.064). CONCLUSIONS: The age when glasses are prescribed may influence normal emmetropization in accommodative esotropia. However, further studies with longer follow-ups will be needed to determine the effect of wearing glasses on the final SE refractive error.
Child ; Esotropia ; Eyeglasses ; Follow-Up Studies ; Glass ; Humans ; Prescriptions ; Refractive Errors ; Retrospective Studies

BACKGROUND: There is a substantial evidence that anatomical connections and functional interactions exist between vestibular and autonomic systems. The nature of these interactions, however, is complex and has not been fully defined. Heart rate variability (HRV) was used to investigate the physiological role of the vestibular system on control of heart rate. METHODS: HRV including mean, standard deviation, coefficient of variation (CV), power spectrum was analyzed from R-R intervals of ECG during vestibular stimulation in rabbits. RESULTS: Urethane anesthesia increased heart rate and maintained regular R-R intervals, however, low frequency region/high frequency region (LF/HF) was not changed. In anesthetized rabbits, electrical stimulation of the vagus nerve decreased heart rate and decreased LF/HF by increasing HF. On the contrary, electrical stimulation of the cervical sympathetic nerve increased heart rate and increased LF/HF by increasing LF. Atropine, cholinergic blocker, increased heart rate and increased LF/HF by reducing HF, and propranolol, beta-adrenergic blocker, decreased heart rate and decreased LF/HF by reducing LF. In unanesthetized rabbits, stimulation of the vestibular system induced by rotation or caloric increased heart rate and increased LF/HF by increasing LF. Also electrical stimulation of the vestibular nerve produced the same effects as rotation or caloric in anesthetized rabbits. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that stimulation of the vestibular system increased heart rate not by inhibiting the parasympathetic nerve but by activating the sympathetic nerve.
Anesthesia ; Atropine ; Autonomic Nervous System ; Electric Stimulation ; Electrocardiography ; Heart Rate* ; Heart* ; Propranolol ; Rabbits* ; Urethane ; Vagus Nerve ; Vestibular Nerve

No abstract available.
Animals ; Rats*

No abstract available.
Cholecystitis ; Emphysematous Cholecystitis* ; Pneumoperitoneum*

BACKGROUND: Obesity is an important metabolic abnormality as a pathogenesis of non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus(NIDDM), and genetic factors have been suggested to be involved in the development of obesity and NIDDM. beta 3-adrenergic receptor gene polymorphism has been reported to be related to an earlier onset of NIDDM and increased capacity of weight gain in obesity. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relation of beta 3-adrenergic receptor gene polymorphism to body fat distribution pattern and insulin resistance in female nondiabetic offpsring of patients with NIDDM. METHODS: We assessed the patterns of body fat distribution by anthropometric measurement, bioelectric impedence analysis and computed tomogram; insulin sensitivity by using frequently sampled intravenous glucose tolerance test and the minimal model analysis. We inverstigated the beta 3 -adrenergic receptor gene polymorphism by PCR and RFLP. RESULTS: 1) The frequency of beta 3 adrenergic receptor gene polymorphism was as follows; wild type (Trp64Trp) 69.8%, Trp64Arg heterozygote 26.4%, Arg64Arg homozygote 3.8% in the offspring of patients with NIDDM. According to obesity, there was no significant difference of distribution of Arg64 allele between nonbese and obese subjects. 2) In the mutant subjects with Arg64 allele, the concentrations of total and LDL cholesterol were significantly increased (p<0.01), but fasting serum glucose and insulin, percent body fat, visceral fat area and visceral to subcutaneous fat area ratio were insignificantly increased, SI were insiginificantly decreased. 3) Multiple regression analysis showed that Arg64 allele did not significantly associated with visceral obesity and insulin resistance. CONCLUSION: The beta 3-adrenergic receptor gene polymorphism was related to dyslipidemia, but not related to visceral adiposity or insulin resistance in nondiabetic offspring women of patients with NIDDM. Further prospective studies in these subjects will be needed for the clarification of pathogenetic role of beta 3-adrenergic receptor gene polymorphism in the development of insulin resistance and NIDDM.
Adipose Tissue* ; Adiposity ; Alleles ; Blood Glucose ; Body Fat Distribution* ; Cholesterol, LDL ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2* ; Dyslipidemias ; Fasting ; Female* ; Glucose Tolerance Test ; Heterozygote ; Homozygote ; Humans ; Insulin Resistance* ; Insulin* ; Intra-Abdominal Fat ; Obesity ; Obesity, Abdominal ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Polymorphism, Restriction Fragment Length ; Receptors, Adrenergic ; Subcutaneous Fat ; Weight Gain