The influence of intravesica1 pressure on urine for-mation was studied in dogs and rabbits prepared with ureteral fistulae and in man following ureteral cathe-terization. Reduction of urinary output following distension of the bladder occurred in all except two dogs. The mean rate of reduction in sixteen dogs was 37.3 +/- 4.9 per cent. The response was not blocked by tetracaine applied to the bladder mucosa or by systemic hexamethonium. The renal blood flow showed a significant reduction following distension of the bladder. After denervation or celiac ganglionectomy, the reduction of urinary output or of renal blood flow was prevented in the ipsilateral kidney. Coloring of the renal cortex by intravenously injected indigo carmine does not occur in animals with distended bladders. Adrenaline and serotonin produced and enhanced the effect on the urinary response of the distended bladder. The injection of a small amount of blood or urine from animals with distended bladders into undistended animals produced a significant decrease in urine formation in the recipients. In five human subjects, a marked reduction of urine flow was noted following bladder distension. We conchlde that the intravesical pressure may regulate the formation of urine through a short vesico-renal reflex mediated by the celiac ganglion and through a long vesico-hypothalamic reflex which releases the antidiuretic hormone.
Animals ; Denervation ; Dogs ; Epinephrine ; Fistula ; Ganglia, Sympathetic ; Ganglionectomy ; Hexamethonium ; Humans ; Indigo Carmine ; Kidney ; Mucous Membrane ; Rabbits ; Reflex ; Renal Circulation ; Serotonin ; Tetracaine ; Ureter ; Urinary Bladder

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The Chronic Ear Survey (CES) has been known to be a valid, disease-specific measure for the evaluation of health status and treatment effectiveness for chronic otitis media patients. As part of this study, we developed a Korean version by adapting from this CES, determined its reliability and validity. MATERIALS AND METHOD: The development of the Korean version of CES (K-CES) included the processes of standard independent translation and cross-cultural adaptation to check for cultural inconsistency. The finalized K-CES was administered to 166 patients visiting 10 referral hospitals in a prospective manner. K-CES was validated by using the Cronbach's alpha coefficient, confirmatory factor analysis and test-retest analysis for reliability and validity. The 36-Item Short Form Health Survey Instrument (SF-36) was assessed and the result was used to evaluate the criterion validity. RESULTS: The K-CES demonstrated good test-retest reliability and internal consistency (Cron-bach's alpha=0.850). Scale-item correlation coefficient was even higher than 1.0, which shows a very high reliability of K-CES. The validity of K-CES, checked by confirmatory factor analysis, also showed good construct validity. There was high correlation between SF-36 and the scores of K-CES, which indicates high criterion validity. CONCLUSION: We concluded that K-CES is a valid tool for clinical use and research studies in Korean patients with chronic otitis media.
Ear ; Health Surveys ; Humans ; Otitis Media ; Prospective Studies ; Referral and Consultation ; Reproducibility of Results ; Treatment Outcome

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: This study has been performed to determine the reliability and validity of the Korean version of Hearing Handicap Inventory for the Elderly (HHIE), which has been adapted to the Korean population. SUBJECTS AND METHOD: For the Korean version of HHIE (K-HHIE), the processes of independent forward translation, backward translation and reconciliation were standardized using subjects older than 65 years old were recruited from the 10 referral-hospitals. Reliability and validity were evaluated by Cronbach's alpha coefficient, confirmatory factor analysis and test-retest analysis. Hearing impairment was assessed using pure tone audiometry, and the result was used as the gold standard. RESULTS: The recruited K-HHIEs were 169. The reliability of K-HHIE, checked by Cronbach's alpha coefficient, was as high as 0.95. Scale-item correlation coefficient was even higher than 0.97, which shows very high reliability of K-HHIE. Test-retest reliability and the correlation coefficients of social/situational, emotional and total scores of K-HHIE were as high as 0.73, 0.82 and 0.78, respectively. The validity of K-HHIE, checked by confirmatory factor analysis, also showed good construct validity. There was high correlation between hearing level and the scores of K-HHIE, which is another indicative result of its high validity. CONCLUSION: We have developed and validated Korean version of HHIE, which has good reliability and validity. It seems to be suitable enough for clinical use and research studies in patients with hearing impairment.
Aged ; Audiometry ; Hearing ; Hearing Loss ; Humans ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Reproducibility of Results

Background: This study aimed to describe the maternal, obstetrical, and neonatal outcomes in pregnant women with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and identify the predictors associated with the severity of COVID-19. Methods: This multicenter observational study included consecutive pregnant women admitted because of COVID-19 confirmed using reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test at 15 hospitals in the Republic of Korea between January 2020 and December 2021. Results: A total of 257 women with COVID-19 and 62 newborns were included in this study. Most of the patients developed this disease during the third trimester. Nine patients (7.4%) developed pregnancy-related complications. All pregnant women received inpatient treatment, of whom 9 (3.5%) required intensive care, but none of them died. The gestational age at COVID-19 diagnosis (odds ratio [OR], 1.096, 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.04–1.15) and parity (OR, 1.703, 95% CI, 1.13–2.57) were identified as significant risk factors of severe diseases. Among women who delivered, 78.5% underwent cesarean section. Preterm birth (38.5%), premature rupture of membranes (7.7%), and miscarriage (4.6%) occurred, but there was no stillbirth or neonatal death. The RT-PCR test of newborns’ amniotic fluid and umbilical cord blood samples was negative for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2. Conclusion At the time of COVID-19 diagnosis, gestational age and parity of pregnant women were the risk factors of disease severity. Vertical transmission of COVID-19 was not observed, and maternal severity did not significantly affect the neonatal prognosis.