BACKGROUND: Smoking increases the risk of respiratory, cardiac diseases and cancer. This study is to ascertain the relationship between passive smoking, the modes of residence, its location and the immunoglobulin values as well as the eosinophil counts in relation to child patients suffering from bronchial or cardiac asthma. METHODS: The research was conducted at a general hospital with cooperation of 242 patients who had been hospitalized 1991 through 1995. We compared the average values of immunoglobulin between the groups of exposed and non-exposed to smoking by T-test. A same work for residential modes was done by T-tests, while the data regarding the residing locality were processed by ANOVA. RESULTS: Each values of TEC, IgE, IgA, and IgM in both groups has been analysed but spelling no significant differences. The group residing in apartments showed lower value of IgM than those of flats. CONCLUSIONS: The reason the IgM value of apartments is lower than that of flats is due to the difference of living quarters. This signifies the modes of residence may as well affect the IgE value.
Asthma ; Child* ; Eosinophils ; Heart Diseases ; Hospitals, General ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin A ; Immunoglobulin E ; Immunoglobulin M ; Immunoglobulins* ; Smoke ; Smoking ; Tobacco Smoke Pollution*

No abstract available.
Humans

No abstract available.
Accidents, Traffic*

No abstract available.

No abstract available.

No abstract available.
Humans ; Somatoform Disorders*

BACKGROUND: Hyperhomocysteinemia as a risk factor for cerebrovascular disease is well known. Our aim of this study was to demonstrate positive association between elevated homocysteine levels and cerebrovascular diseases in Koreans. METHODS: With a case-control design, 186 stroke (infarction 134, hemorrhage 52) patients, diagnosed by brain CT or MRI and 359 control patients were evaluated. We used multiple logistic regression analyses conditioned on the matching variables (sex, age, hypertension, DM, smoking, hyperlipidemia, hyperhomocysteinemia) and calculated odds ratio and 95% CIs. RESULTS: Multivariated adjusted odds ratios (OR) for cerebrovascular diseases associated with hypertension compared with normal blood pressure were 2.45 (95% CI, 1.16 to 5.15) in prehypertension and 3.33 (95% CI, 1.56 to 7.10) in stage 1 hypertension and 3.77 (95% CI, 1.32 to 10.74) in stage 2 hypertension. OR for cerebrovascular diseases associated with hyperhomocysteinemia compared with <10micromol/L were 2.06 (95% CI, 1.09 to 3.91) in 13.0 to 16.9micromol/L and 3.17 (95% CI, 1.70 to 5.90) in > or =17 micromol/L. CONCLUSION: Not only hypertension but also hyperhomocysteinemia was a significant risk factor for cerebrovascular diseases in Koreans.
Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Blood Pressure ; Brain ; Case-Control Studies ; Hemorrhage ; Homocysteine ; Humans ; Hyperhomocysteinemia* ; Hyperlipidemias ; Hypertension ; Logistic Models ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Odds Ratio ; Prehypertension ; Risk Factors ; Smoke ; Smoking ; Stroke

No abstract available.
Humans

PURPOSE: In the last three decades liver transplantation (LT) has been established as a standard procedure for end-stage liver disease. However, the shortage of donor livers is the most significant factor inhibiting further application of clinical liver transplantation. In Korea, where B-hepatitis is endemic, most patients waiting for LT are adult with B-hepatitis associated end stage liver disease. Safe, in situ splitting of a cadaver donor liver for two separate adult recipients would be an attractive way to decrease the deaths of adult patients while waiting for organs. Split grafts weighing more than 1% of the recipient's body weight (Graft to Recipient Weight Ratio, GRWR>1%) should be transplanted in order to adequately meet postoperative metabolic needs. We investigated whether one cadaver liver can be split into two so that each graft has a GRWR>1%. METHODS: Between January 1999 and December 1999 at Guro medical center, we selected 47 patients diagnosed as early gastric cancer (EGC) or early stage colon cancer and reviewed their pre-operative abdominal CT films for use in our study. Pictures of CT films were taken with a digital camera and converted to TIF files in order to calculate the standard liver volumes which were then divided by the plane that represented two operative methods proposed in this study. First, we performed a Rt. lobectomy along the right side of the middle hepatic vein to increase the function of segment IV by preventing venous congestion. Second, we performed a Lt. lobectomy with hepatic IVC to save the volume of the caudate lobe (segment I). RESULTS: The body index of the 47 cases was distributed from -10% to 20%. The standard whole liver volume was 1266+/-299 ml (Mean+/-SD). Rt. lobe volume was 751+/-188 ml, and Lt. lobe volume was 515+/-154 ml. Each result was no less than 1% of 75 kg and 50 kg adult's body weight. CONCLUSION: On average, the GRWR of the Rt. lobe is more than 1% in a 75 kg adult by itself and that of the Lt. lobe can also be above 1% in a 50 kg adult by maximizing the function of segments I and IV using the surgical techniques mentioned above. Therefore, we would be able to successfully spilt a cadaver donor liver to a 75 kg and a 50 kg adult recipient, respectively.
Adult* ; Body Weight ; Cadaver ; Colonic Neoplasms ; End Stage Liver Disease ; Hepatic Veins ; Humans ; Hyperemia ; Korea ; Liver Diseases ; Liver Transplantation* ; Liver* ; Stomach Neoplasms ; Tissue Donors ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed ; Transplants

During a period of about one year (November' 66 to December' 67), the Yonsei University College of Medicine conducted a field trial of the oral contraceptive (Ovulen) in order to study its acceptability and use-effectiveness among IUD drop-outs in Koyang County. We can summarize the outstanding findings from this investigation as follows: 1. 61.4% of the IUD drop-outs interviewed (911 women) wanted to use the pill. Most of the reasons for not wanting to use it (352 women)pertained to either use of other contraceptive methods (98) or subfecundity (150) following IUD terminations. Only 83 out of 911 women gave reasons related to the difficulty of obtaining pills. Therefore, we can state that most IUD dropouts if still in need of a contraceptive methods are in favor of trying the pill, and especially so if this method is conveniently available. 2. The 467 women or 37% of those who terminated IUD use actually visited the clinic for medical screening, and only 11 of them or 2.4% were rejected because of pregnancy and other medical reasons such as cervical erosion, myoma, breast mass, etc. 5.5% or 25 of the 456 women who received the first cycle did not take a single pill during the study period. 3. When we defined those 431 women who took one or more tablets as acceptors we found that women over 30 years with 4 or more children, and/or with a higher educational level were the best prospects for recruitment. 4. In accuracy of use, about two thirds of the users started taking the pi1l on the 5th day as directed for the first thee cycles, but the percentages rose sharply to about 80% in later cycles. Tardiness in starting pill use in the first cycle may have occurred partly because they had to return to the clinic month1y to get each new cycle. Among acceptors who did not quit between cycles, 80 to 90% were regular users, missing two or less tablets in each cycle. 5. More than 60% of the users felt well and sometimes lost their pre-acceptance symptoms, especially dysmenorrhea. However, 27.4% (58 women) had side effects attributable to the pill compound such as nausea, vomiting, indigestion, breast tenderness, decreased lactation or breakthrough bleeding. 25.0% (53 women) also complained of medical diseases or symptoms not related to the pill, especially during the first three cycles. However as the confidence and experience of the client and the field workers grew, the incidence of unrelated medical complaints quickly fell to a lower level in the later cycles. 6. As of the end of this study, on December 31, 1967, 49.2% (212 women) had discontinued the use of the pill for medical reasons as well as for the non-medical reasons. Only one case terminated use due to a pregnancy after taking pills. The cumulative continuation rates (by the life table method) were 58.9%, 51.9%, 41.0% at the end of 3 months, 6 months and 12 months respectively. These rates are 1ower than in the U.S. studies. Even when we add the retaking group to the first segment, the continuation rate goes up only about 5% above the first segment rates mentioned above. Possible explanations are: different dosages, the newerness of the method, and the use of only one point for pill distribution in the county together with a monthly return for cycles 1,2,3, and 4-6, etc. 7. Based on the experiences gained by this field study, the action implications for adding up the pill service to the on-going IUD program were also discussed in connection with the cost, follow-up method, educative and inforamtional methods, record forms and the critieria of eligible population for the pill program.
Adult ; Attitude to Health ; *Contraceptives, Oral ; Female ; Human ; *Intrauterine Devices ; Korea ; Pregnancy ; *Rural Population