No abstract available.
Blood Platelets*

Ever since Mixter and Barr demonstrated the relationship between disk protrusion and radicular pain nearly 50 years ago, there has been a swing toward mechanical explanations for all problems of this type. Murphy has proposed that inflammation rather than mechanical pressure is the basis of back pain and sciatica, and that the causal irritant is likely to be a chemical product of disk degeneration. That administration of steroids reduces the inflammatory process is well known. The present study was undertaken to acess our experience in using epidural steroid injection ofr patients suffering from diskogenic low back pain. Ten patients with the clinical diagnosis of sciatica and with post larninectomy sequelae were referred to the anesthesia department of Maryknoll hospital. Our routine epidural injection of the lumbar spine(L3-4) consists of 2ml of 2% xylocaine and 120mg of methylprednisolone(Depo medrol). Following the injection of Depo Medrol patients were encouraged to ambulate actively and were asked to evaluate their subsequent pain relief. Of the 10 patients studied, all patients experience pain relief within 10 minutes of the epidural injection. A follow up study of these patients was done between 5 and 10 months after injection. The results were as follows: 1) 3 patients: Complete relief. 2) 3 patients: moderate relief. 3) 3 patients: no relief. 4) 1 patient: technical failure.
Anesthesia Department, Hospital ; Back Pain ; Diagnosis ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Inflammation ; Injections, Epidural ; Intervertebral Disc Degeneration ; Lidocaine ; Low Back Pain ; Methylprednisolone ; Sciatica ; Steroids*

Large-cell acanthoma is a generally hyperkeratotic, sharply demarcated patch on sun-exposed skin with the outstanding pathologic feature being composed of large, relatively uniform keratinocytes. We describe a case of large-cell acanthoma that involved the skin of the nasal bridge. Patient was a 56-year-old women with a tannish brown patch, 2 cm in size and of 5 years' duration. Controversial issues about nosologic entity of large cell acanthoma are discussed.
Female ; Humans

PURPOSE: This study was undertaken to explore sex differences in the risk markers of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and psychosocial factors and the relationships among these variables for the community-residing adults. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted with a total of 114 participants consisting of 65 men aged 42.85 years old and 49 women aged 46.86 years old. Participants were selected by a convenient sampling of at community cultural centers and churches. They completed a structured questionnaire including demographic characteristics, physiologic risk markers of CVD; lifestyle factors; and depression, social support, and stress. RESULTS: The male participants showed significantly higher systolic and diastolic blood pressures than their counterparts. Significantly higher percent of women were currently non-smokers, and practiced moderate alcohol intake, physical activity, and low fat diet. Among women, the higher the scores of depression and stress were and the lower that of the social support was, the higher blood pressure, waist circumference and BMI were. Among men, those who were less depressed and with higher scores of social support had more physical activity. CONCLUSION: The findings suggest further studies to explore sex differences of CVD risk markers and psychosocial factors, and their relationships in a larger sample, and to find the mechanism underlying these differences with a prospective design.
Adult* ; Blood Pressure ; Cardiovascular Diseases ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Depression ; Diet ; Female ; Humans ; Life Style ; Male ; Motor Activity ; Prospective Studies ; Psychology* ; Risk Factors ; Sex Characteristics* ; Waist Circumference

Retinal detachment is a rare and unusual complication of preeclampsia. In 6,194 consecutive deliveries from January 1987 to July 1990 at the Soonchunhuang University Hospital, pregnancy induced hypertension was diagnosed in 223 patients(3.6%), and in 11 cases serous retinal detachment occured. We studied retrospectively the incidence, clinical characteristics and pathophysiology of the retinal detachment in the pregnany induced hypertension. The results were as follows: 1. Retinal detachment was serous type and mostly bilateral(90.9%). 2. Retinal detchment occured principally in primigravid(63.64%). 3. Serotts retinal detachment occured in 11 cases in 6,194 consecutive diliveries(0.18%) with 9 cases in 211 preeclampsia(4.27%) and 2 cases in 12 eclampsia(17.67%). 4. Reattachment of the retina occured at an interval of 7 to 29 days with an average interval of 14 days after delivery. 5. The fluorescein angiographic findings provide clinical evidence that retinal detachment in pregnancy induced hypertension is secondary to choroidal damage.
Choroid ; Female ; Fluorescein ; Hypertension ; Hypertension, Pregnancy-Induced ; Incidence ; Pre-Eclampsia ; Pregnancy* ; Retina ; Retinal Detachment* ; Retinaldehyde* ; Retrospective Studies

Retinal detachment is a rare and unusual complication of preeclampsia. In 6,194 consecutive deliveries from January 1987 to July 1990 at the Soonchunhuang University Hospital, pregnancy induced hypertension was diagnosed in 223 patients(3.6%), and in 11 cases serous retinal detachment occured. We studied retrospectively the incidence, clinical characteristics and pathophysiology of the retinal detachment in the pregnany induced hypertension. The results were as follows: 1. Retinal detachment was serous type and mostly bilateral(90.9%). 2. Retinal detchment occured principally in primigravid(63.64%). 3. Serotts retinal detachment occured in 11 cases in 6,194 consecutive diliveries(0.18%) with 9 cases in 211 preeclampsia(4.27%) and 2 cases in 12 eclampsia(17.67%). 4. Reattachment of the retina occured at an interval of 7 to 29 days with an average interval of 14 days after delivery. 5. The fluorescein angiographic findings provide clinical evidence that retinal detachment in pregnancy induced hypertension is secondary to choroidal damage.
Choroid ; Female ; Fluorescein ; Hypertension ; Hypertension, Pregnancy-Induced ; Incidence ; Pre-Eclampsia ; Pregnancy* ; Retina ; Retinal Detachment* ; Retinaldehyde* ; Retrospective Studies

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a community-based intervention for prehypertensive adults, to enhance stroke risk awareness and to adopt a preventive lifestyle for primary stroke prevention. METHODS: This was a single-blinded, repeated measures quasi-experimental study with 47 participants (23 in the experimental group and 24 in the control group) recruited through convenience sampling from two urban areas. The stroke risk self-management intervention consisted of three weekly, 2-hour, face-to-face sessions and two booster telephone sessions, utilizing strategies to enhance motivation for behavioral changes based on the Self-Determination Theory. All participants completed a pretest, a 1- month and a 3-month post test of stroke risk awareness and preventive lifestyle including blood pressure self-monitoring, healthy diet, and regular physical activity. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, chi-square test, two sample t test, repeated measures analysis of variance, and Friedman test with PASW Statistics 18.0. RESULTS: After the intervention, significant improvements were found in the experimental group for stroke risk awareness, blood pressure self-monitoring and regular physical activity, and were sustained over time. CONCLUSIONS: Our preliminary results indicate that the stroke risk self-management intervention is feasible and associated with improvement in self-management of stroke risk factors for primary stroke prevention among a prehypertensive population.
Adult ; Behavior Therapy/*education ; Blood Pressure Determination/*methods ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Motivation ; *Patient Education as Topic ; Prehypertension/*nursing ; Primary Prevention/*methods ; Republic of Korea ; Risk Factors ; Self Care/*methods ; Stroke/*prevention & control ; Urban Population/statistics & numerical data

OBJECTIVES: To explore changes in self-reported oral health in middle-aged Koreans over a period of 9 years. METHODS: This study design was a cross-sectional analysis. This study analyzed the data of 18,845 middle-aged (45-64 years) subjects who participated in 4-6th Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (KNHANES). A complex-sample chi-square test was used to analyze self-reported poor oral health according to sex, household income, and education. A complex-sample logistic regression analysis was used to identify the changes in the factors. SPSS 23.0 and the R ver. 3.5.1 statistical package were used for the analyses. RESULTS: Poor oral health have been decreased by 5.3% over the 9-year period. Middle-aged men were more likely to report their oral health as worse than women. The lower income and education groups reported their oral health as poor compared to the higher income and education groups. The factors affecting self-reported poor oral health over the 9-year period were sex, income, and education. CONCLUSIONS: More than half of the aged population reported their oral health as poor. Oral health policies should be established for the aged population, including the middle-aged population, for long-term plans.
Cross-Sectional Studies ; Education ; Family Characteristics ; Female ; Humans ; Korea ; Logistic Models ; Male ; Oral Health

Purpose: This study investigated the differences in physical function, self-efficacy (SE), and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) categorized by disease severity in community-dwelling patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Methods: This cross-sectional study included 182 patients with COPD selected from the pulmonology outpatient department of a tertiary hospital. Disease severity was measured using forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1). Physical function, SE, and HRQoL were measured with the six-minute walking distance, pulmonary rehabilitation self-efficacy (PRAISE), and St. George's Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ). Disease duration, FEV1, and 12-month history of exacerbations were obtained from medical records. Patients were categorized by Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) category. Data were analyzed using the two-sample t-test, χ2 test, and one-way ANOVA. Results: Most of the participants were male and nonsmokers. The disease duration was 10.76 ± 10.03 years, the mean FEV1% was 62.13 ± 22.80, and 70.3% of the participants were in GOLD category 2 (moderate) or milder. Half of the participants reported modified Medical Research Council scores ≥ 2. Patients in GOLD categories 1 and 3 (mild and severe) exhibited significantly higher PRAISE scores than those in the other groups (F = 8.23, p < .001). The total SGRQ scores were highest in GOLD 4 (very severe), indicating the lowest HRQoL. Significant differences were identified among GOLD 1, GOLD 2 and 3, and GOLD 4 (F = 9.92, p < .001). Conclusion We identified potentially useful variables to comprehensively assess disease severity and tailor management strategies, including airflow limitation, and to determine the consequences of COPD from patients’ perspectives.

In treating young women for gestational trophoblastic tumor ( G.T.T. ), all efforts are made to preserve fertility and hysterectomy is avoided unless absolutely essential. However, in some cases the operation may be lifesaving. During the last 20 years among the 310 cases of G.T.T. treated at Il Sin Christian Hospital, there were 3 cases in which hysterectomy was avoided by the excision of a localized uterine lesion thus preserving fertility.
Choriocarcinoma* ; Female ; Fertility ; Humans ; Hysterectomy ; Pregnancy ; Trophoblastic Neoplasms