BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to survey hygiene behavior of healthcare personnel according to the Hygiene Inventory 23 (HI23) and to use the results in education and research for promoting hygiene behaviors. METHODS: We sampled a total of 400 people with 50 from each job category. The sample was obtained through convenient sampling among 8,200 employees working at a tertiary-care hospital with 2,600 beds in Seoul. The HI23 consisted of 5 subscales and 8 questions on general hygiene, 3 on household hygiene, 3 on food-related hygiene, 5 on hand hygiene methods, and 4 on personal hygiene, resulting in a total of 23 questions. The researcher also added 14 questions on the general characteristics of the subjects. The self-administered questionnaires were distributed on October 2009 and analyzed blindly. RESULTS: The average total score for hygiene behavior was 3.04+/-0.44 (maximum of 4). In the subcategory of hygiene behavior, the mean score was 3.20+/-4.24 for general hygiene, 3.07+/-0.68 for household hygiene, 3.07+/-0.68 for food-related hygiene, 2.91+/-0.69 for hand hygiene methods, and 2.97+/-0.48 for personal hygiene. When factors affecting the level of hygiene behavior were identified through multivariate regression analysis, independent factors were found to be gender (female), job category (food-related job), experience in hand hygiene education, and experience in teaching hand hygiene or general hygiene. CONCLUSION: Programs and education adapted to the characteristics of each job category in hospitals are needed to promote hygiene behaviors such as general hygiene, hand hygiene methods, household hygiene, food-related hygiene, and personal hygiene.
Delivery of Health Care ; Family Characteristics ; Hand Disinfection ; Hand Hygiene ; Humans ; Hygiene ; Surveys and Questionnaires

No abstract available.

No abstract available.
Fruit* ; Gardenia* ; Sputum* ; Yeasts*

Osteoarthritic changes in experimental animals has been induced by several different methods. In order to study the changes of the articular cartilage induced by injuries of ligaments and/or meniscus of the knee joints, the author performed the experimental study that section of the medial collateral and anterior cruciate ligaments (group I) and section of the medial collateral and anterior cruciate ligaments combined with excision of the medial meniscus (group II) in twenty adult rabbit's knees caused instability. Histological changes of the articular cartilage were observed up to four months. The results were as follows: 1. The changes of the articular cartilage were gradually advanced depend on the time lapse after experimental procedures, in group I and ll. 2. The changes of the articular cartilage could be noticed from eighth week after experimental procedures in group I and from fourth week in group II, and more severe at sixteenth in group I and at twelfth week in group II. 3. The changes of the articular cartilage in group ll were appeared earlier and more severe than in group l. 4. The changes of the articular cartilage in the medial side of the knee joint were noticed more severe than in the lateral side.
Adult ; Animals ; Anterior Cruciate Ligament ; Cartilage, Articular ; Humans ; Knee Joint ; Knee ; Ligaments ; Menisci, Tibial ; Rabbits

Augumentation rhinoplasty using autogenous cranial bone graft (outer table) can be used more successfully than other methods. In patients with congenital or posttraumatic severe saddle nose deformity and lateral deviation, cranial bone graft is an excellent method of augumentation. The advantages of cranial bone graft compared with traditional method of bone graft are summarized as follows; 1. Easy to reach donor site 2. Abundance of material 3. Little pain and functional disability 4. Shorter hospitalization period 5. Inconspicuous donor scar 6. No secondary deformity of donor site 7.Appropriate curvature can be obtained by proper selection of donor site. With the above advantages, we conclude that augumentation rhinoplasty using split cranial bone graft is a good method in correction of congenital or posttraumatic deformity of nose.
Cicatrix ; Congenital Abnormalities ; Hospitalization ; Humans ; Methods ; Nose ; Rhinoplasty* ; Tissue Donors ; Transplants*

An axial-pattern flap can be transferred as the free-flap and has many merits over a random-pattern local flap. However, this has limitations of available vascular architecture and donor site. To overcome these problems, many types of prefabricated flaps have been designed using vascular bundles. It is possible to convert a random-pattern flap to a neovascularized axial-pattern flap by transferring a vascular pedicle. In an attempt to study the effects of prefabrication using vascular bundles, the survival rate between random-pattern flap and prefabricated axial-pattern flap was compared in this study. The rabbits were divided into two groups. The control group was consisted of the random-pattern flap and the prefabricated group was consisted of the prefabricated axial-pattern flap using femoral vascular pericles of rabbits. Femoral vascular pedicles were transferred under the 5x5cm lower abdominal flaps without any perivascular tissue. Three weeks later, random-pattern flaps were elevated without any axial vascular pedicle and prefabricated flaps were elevated based on the transferred femoral vascular pericles. The survival rate of the flaps in the control group and experimental group was 67.37% and 98.87% respectively. Based on the result of t-test there was significant difference between two groups. According to these results, it is concluded that prefabricated flap using transferred vascular pedicle was more effective than random-pattern flap. We think that this technique is versatile for wound repair and for use in other aspects of plastic and reconstructive surgery.
Humans ; Plastics ; Rabbits* ; Survival Rate ; Tissue Donors ; Wounds and Injuries

HIV-1 p24 was cloned into multiple cloning site of pMV261, extrachromosomal expression vectors carrying BCG replication origin and BCG-specific heat-shock promoter, and then introduced into BCG and E. coli. Western blot experiments showed that the p24 efficiently expressed in recombinant BCG (rBCG), but not in E. coli. Recombinant p24 expression induced by a single heat-shock of rBCG was maintained longer than 3 weeks. Immunoblot experiments with intact rBCG did not show any distinctive positive signal, suggesting that the recombinant protein was not secreted or exposed at the surface of BCG. The guinea pigs immunized with live rBCG showed delayed type hypersensitivity (DTH) by the systemic area as well as an effective humoral immunity, suggesting that tbis rBCG is believed to elicit eKcient immune responses against p24, even though the expression is restricted only in the cytoplasm as reported previously with other antigen. These results demonstrate that BCG can be developed as a live recombinant vaccine vector against a broad spectrum of infectious disease.
Animals* ; Blotting, Western ; Clone Cells ; Cloning, Organism ; Communicable Diseases ; Cytoplasm ; Guinea Pigs ; HIV* ; HIV-1 ; Hypersensitivity ; Immunity, Humoral ; Mycobacterium bovis* ; Replication Origin

BACKGROUND AND SIGNIFICANCE: Fungal infection of the central nervous system can be attributable to Cryptococcus, Nocardia, Mucor, Candida, and rarely Aspergillus. The types of nervous system involvement by Aspergillus can be divided into 4 groups : meningitis, meningoencephalitis, brain abscess, and single solid granuloma. Aspergillosis involving the central nervous system is a rare disease. Aspergillosis presenting as cerebral infarction has been rarely reported. We experienced one case of intracerebral abscess caused by Aspergillus, presenting as cerebral infarction. CASE: A 54-year-old male, with a history of diabetes mellitus for 7 years, was admitted with headache for 1 month. Initial CSF findings showed pleocytosis(180/ul), and increased protein(79mg/dl). On the 2nd admission day, the patient showed left hemiparesis, left facial palsy of central type and drowsiness. Brain MRI revealed right MCA infarction. Neurologic status was stationary for almost 2wks. The WBC count of CSF was increased to 1150/ul on the 14th admission day, and antituberculous medication was started. On the 27th admission day, deep drowsy mentality was noted. Treatment with steroid was done and then mentality was improved to drowsiness. Brain abscess was found in right frontotemporal area and there were herniation signs on the 29th admssion day. Aspiration was done. Aspergillus fumigatus was grown on fungus culture of CSF and amphotericin B was started. CONCLUSION: We report a rare case of intracerebral Aspergillosis, manifested by right MCA infarction and brain abscess.
Abscess* ; Amphotericin B ; Aspergillosis ; Aspergillus fumigatus ; Aspergillus* ; Brain ; Brain Abscess ; Candida ; Central Nervous System ; Cerebral Infarction* ; Cryptococcus ; Diabetes Mellitus ; Facial Paralysis ; Fungi ; Granuloma ; Headache ; Humans ; Infarction, Middle Cerebral Artery ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Male ; Meningitis ; Meningoencephalitis ; Middle Aged ; Mucor ; Nervous System ; Nocardia ; Paresis ; Rare Diseases ; Sleep Stages

BACKGROUND: Purinergic and cholinergic agonists elicit negative-inotropic and chronotropic effects, anticip-ating their protective action from the damage of overloaded myocardium. However, the actions of the agents during the ischemic insults are not yet clearly informed. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of the purinergic and cholinergic agonists on the simulated ischemic myocardium of the rat atrial fiber preparations. METHOD: Various action potential parameters (maximum diastolic potential MDP;action potential amplitude APA;velocity of phase 0 depolarization dV/dtmax;action potential duration APD90) were measured and compared in electrically paced, normal (NPSS) and modified physiological salt solution (MPSS) superfused rat atrial fibers in vitro, using conventional 3M-KCl microelectrode technique. Ischemia-simulated modified physiologic solutions were prepared by changing the solution's composition. RESULTS: Hypoxic-and/or hyperkalemic-MPSS decreased all the action potential (AP) variables. However, no significant changes of the AP variables were developed by the acidic-or glucose-free MPSS. Adenosine (Ado) and cyclopentyladenosine (CPA) only decreased the APD90 in a dose-dependent manner. Acetylcholine (Ach) and carbachol (Cch) hyperpolarized the MDP, increased the dV/dtmax with certain doses, and decreased the APD90 dose-depen-dently. The potency for APD90-decrease was greater in order, CPA>Cch>Ach>Ado. Ado and CPA did not affect the hypoxic, hypokalemic MPSS-induced dV/dtmax-decrease. On the other hand, Ach and Cch sig-nificantly inhibited the dV/dtmax-decrease by the hypoxic hypokalemic-MPSS. Ado, CPA, Ach and Cch sig-nificantly augmented the hypoxic, hypokalemic MPSS-induced APD90-decrease. The inhibition by the Ach and Cch on the MPSS-induced dV/dtmax-decrease was not affected by DPCPX, but atropine significantly attenuated the inhibition by the cholinergic agonists. DPCPX inhibited the augmentation by the Ado and CPA on the MPSS induced APD90-decrease, and atropine inhibited the effect of the cholinergic agonists. CONCLUSION: Both purinergic and cholinergic agonists not only shorten the AP duration by themselves but also enhance the AP-shortening effect elicited by the ischemia, and therefore, it is inferred that both agonists prevent further tissue damage from the ischemic insults.
Acetylcholine ; Action Potentials ; Adenosine ; Animals ; Atropine ; Carbachol ; Cholinergic Agonists* ; Hand ; Ischemia ; Microelectrodes ; Myocardium* ; Rats*

Bartter's syndrome is a rare tubular disorder characterized by hypokalemic, hypochloremic metabolic alkalosis, hyperreninemic hyperaldosteronism, hyporesponsiveness to pressor agents, and juxtaglomerular apparatus hyperplasia. We report here a case of Bartter's syndrome in a 5 month-old male infant who improved with potassium supplements. In addition to a case report, brief review of related literatures was done.
Alkalosis ; Bartter Syndrome* ; Humans ; Hyperaldosteronism ; Hyperplasia ; Infant ; Juxtaglomerular Apparatus ; Male ; Potassium