BACKGROUND: Although studies on dental fear in relation to sex and age have been conducted, there have been few nationwide studies particularly on the youth sector. In addition, no validity and reliability verifications have been implemented for new research groups on the Korean version of the Dental Fear Survey (K-DFS). Therefore, this study aimed to apply the K-DFS developed in a previous study on Korean youth to draw conclusions on dental fear among the youth.METHODS: This study used the K-DFS, a Korean translation of Kleinknecht's Dental Fear Survey for elementary school, middle school, and high school students. This study selected 2,161 young people of various ages as participants and increased the validity of the research results by expanding nationwide the scope of the study area.RESULTS: Differences in fear levels according to sex were higher in boys fear behavior scores than in girls' regarding dental treatment (P < 0.05). Students with dental fear had higher scores on items associated with dental treatment and fear of dental stimuli compared with students without dental fear (P < 0.05). Differences were observed among the three groups (P < 0.05). However, the results of logistic regression analysis showed no statistically significant differences for dental visits based on sex, grade, and other subcomponents (P > 0.05).CONCLUSION: By verifying the validity of the newly developed K-DFS, this research confirmed its utility as a dental fear questionnaire. Therefore, there can be no objection that the grounds for criticism have been established according to conventional wisdom. In the future, however, developing and studying the limits of K-DFS that overcome the factors of dental fear, especially pain, will help reduce dental fear in adolescents.
Adolescent ; Dental Anxiety ; Humans ; Logistic Models ; Reproducibility of Results ; Surveys and Questionnaires

This study was understand in order to examine the effect of hardness on stress-causing factors, defined in this study as burnout in nursing. The subjects were 248 nurses working in three general hospitals in Taejon. The instruments used for this study were a survey of general characteristics, modified Health-Related Hardiness Scale(HRHS) (25 items), job stress scale (63 items), and burnout scale(20 items). Analysis of data was done through the mean, percentage, Person correlation coefficient, and stepwise multiple regression done with a SAS program. The results of this study are as follows. 1) The average item score for the job stress was high at 4.44. In the subcategories, the highest degree of stress was night duty(5.11), and work overload(4.70), responsibility for extra affairs(4.70), conflict in nurse-doctor relationships(4.69), and low reward (4.63) in that order. 2) In the stepwise multiple regression analysis, hardiness(11.55%) was a significant determinant of burnout along with job stress(17.24%) and job duration(12.94%). The results of this study show that hardiness has an effect on psychological distress caused by stress.
Daejeon ; Hardness ; Hospitals, General ; Humans ; Nursing ; Reward

We present a rare case of abdominal compartment syndrome due to a bulimic attack in a 19-year-old female patient with bulimia nervosa. She was admitted to our emergency room with complaints of progressive abdominal pain following bulimia. Computed tomography showed dilated stomach with food and air pressed other visceral organs and major abdominal vessels. Decompression using nasogastric tube or gastric lavage tube failed. At laparotomy, we performed gastrotomy and decompression was performed. After decompression, she fell into hypovolemic shock due to bleeding in the intra-gastric and peritoneal cavity. Twelve hours after the operation, the patient died due to refractory hypovolemic shock from uncontrolled bleeding following decompression of abdominal compartment. It should keep in mind that binge-eating habits in patients with bulimic nervosa could cause abdominal compartment syndrome due to gastric distension and this may be a potentially fatal condition.
Abdominal Pain ; Bulimia ; Bulimia Nervosa ; Compartment Syndromes ; Decompression ; Emergencies ; Female ; Gastric Lavage ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Intra-Abdominal Hypertension ; Laparotomy ; Peritoneal Cavity ; Reperfusion Injury ; Shock ; Stomach ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effects of intra-articular injection of shoulder and subscapularis motor point block on painful hemiplegic shoulder. METHOD: Thirty painful hemiplegic shoulder of recent onset stroke were divided randomly into three groups, i.e. group I: range of motion (ROM) exercise only, group II: intra-articular injection with ROM exercise, group III: subscapularis motor point block with ROM exercise. The intra-articular injection of shoulder was done with 20 ml of normal saline, 5 ml of 1% lidocaine, and 40 mg of triamcinolone. The subscapularis motor point block was done with 5 ml of 5% phenol under electromyographic guide. The ROM in external rotation and simple X-ray of shoulder in full abduction were checked in three groups at pre-treatment and post-treatment 3 week, and the glenohumeral abduction and scapulohumeral rhythm were obtained from the shoulder X-ray. RESULTS: There were significant (p<0.05) improvements of glenohumeral abduction, external rotation, and scapulohumeral rhythm of shoulder in group II and III, but improvement of only glenohumeral abduction was significant in group I. Angular increment of glenohumeral abduction and external rotation was most significant in group III compared with other two groups. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that the intra-articular injection of shoulder and subscapularis motor point block are potentially useful techniques in the prevention and management of the painful hemiplegic shoulder.
Injections, Intra-Articular* ; Lidocaine ; Phenol ; Range of Motion, Articular ; Shoulder* ; Stroke ; Triamcinolone

The osteopoikilosis is commonly known as harmatoma in which metaphyseal and epiphyseal area of long bones and the bone of pelvis, hands, feet and et al, contain islands of dense cortical bone with normal Harversian system without any symptoms. The radiologic findings of the osteopoikilosis is multitude of oval or well-circumscribed areas of increased density, 2 to 10 mm in size, in symmetrical distribution and normal uptake in bone scan. Buschke-Ollendorff syndrome, which is transmitted by autosomal dominant, is characterized by the association of osteopoikilosis and connective tissue nevi which are popular and symmetrically distributed lesions on chest, back, buttock, thigh or arm. Authors report three Buschke-Ollendorff syndrome, studied by CT scan, MRI, bone scan and bone and skin biopsy, among five patients associated with osteopoikilosis found by simple radiologic study from ten members in one family with their pedigree.
Arm ; Biopsy ; Buttocks ; Connective Tissue ; Foot ; Hand ; Humans ; Islands ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Nevus ; Osteopoikilosis ; Pedigree ; Pelvis ; Skin ; Thigh ; Thorax ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed

Prurigo nodularis (PN) is a disease characterized by chronic itch and presence of firm nodules or papules on the skin. The underlying pathophysiology of PN is still under debate, but it has been reported to be due to synergistic neural- and immune-mediated mechanisms. In this review, the authors summarize the etiology, epidemiology, clinical characteristics, and diagnosis of PN and suggest management protocols for patients with PN despite the absence of local guidelines for PN in Korea. The prevalence of PN in Korea was reported as 0.036%, similar to that in other countries. The various etiologies of PN are known to be associated with neural sensitization and inflammation, and the related treatment targets being studied for PN include interleukin-4, 13, 31, and transient receptor potential vanilloid 1 (TRPV1). Understanding of predisposing factors or concomitant diseases is beneficial towards targeted management of patients with PN. In addition, it has been reported that PN is more frequently accompanied by metabolic diseases, or renal disorders compared to other inflammatory skin diseases characterized by itchiness such as atopic dermatitis or psoriasis. The clinical diagnosis of PN is generally based on three core symptoms; chronic pruritus over six weeks, firm lesions, and repeated scratching. To evaluate the severity of PN, the following objective and subjective assessments can be used: Investigator’s Global Assessment for PN or Peak Pruritus Numerical Rating Scale. We propose a localized work-up algorithm for PN. It is expected that the increased awareness of PN can facilitate its diagnosis, thereby reducing the disease burden of patients with PN.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate sympathetic vasomotor response of the hands to cold and warm stress on the foot with Digital Infrared Thermal Imaging (DITI) in normal healthy subjects. METHOD: Fifteen healthy subjects were participated in this study. The DITI was taken during immersing right foot in cold and warm water bath. The thermal images of the dorsal hands were captured at the starting point and then every 5-minute up to 30 minutes. The ratio of temperature between the ending point (30T) and the starting point (0T) was calculated. RESULTS: In cold stress test, the mean 30T/0T ratio were 92.8+/-2.4% and 92.2+/-2.7% in the right and left hands, respectively. There were no statistically significant side to side differences. The temperature of the each hand was significantly lowered at every 5 minutes interval (p<0.05). In warm stress test, the mean 30T/0T ratio were 104.5+/-1.8% and 104.4+/-2.0% in the right and left hands, respectively. The temperature of each hand was significantly increased at the first 5 minutes (p<0.05), and tended to increase until 10 minutes. After then, the temperature was not significantly changed until 30 miniutes. CONCLUSION: We could identify the normal sympathetic vasomotor response to the cold and warm stress with DITI. It might be served as an useful baseline data for the identification of sympathetic dysfunction.
Baths ; Exercise Test ; Foot ; Hand ; Water

BACKGROUND: The objective of this study was to explore whether individual variations in the concentration of growth factors (GFs) influence the biologic effects of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) on human mesenchymal stem cells (HMSCs). METHODS: The concentrations of 7 representative GFs in activated PRP (aPRP) were measured using ELISA. The effects of PRP on the proliferation and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity of HMSCs were examined using several concentrations of aPRP from 3 donors; the relationships between the GF levels and these biologic effects were then evaluated using 10% aPRP from 5 subgroups derived from 39 total donors. HMSCs were cultured in DMEM with the addition of aPRP for 4 or 12 days; then, DNA content and ALP activity were measured. RESULTS: The quantity of DNA increased significantly at a 10% concentration of aPRP, but the ALP activity was suppressed at this concentration of aPRP. The GF concentrations varied among donors, and 5 subgroups of characteristic GF release patterns were identified via cluster analysis. DNA levels differed significantly between groups and tended to be higher in groups with higher concentrations of transforming growth factor-beta1 (TGF-beta1) and platelet-derived growth factors (PDGFs). DNA quantity was positively correlated with TGF-beta1 concentration, and was negatively correlated with donor age. ALP activity was negatively correlated with PDGF-BB concentration. CONCLUSIONS: The varying GF concentrations may result in different biologic effects; thus, individual differences in GF levels should be considered for reliable interpretation of the biologic functions and standardized application of PRP.
Alkaline Phosphatase/metabolism ; Blood Donors ; Cell Differentiation ; Cells, Cultured ; Culture Media/chemistry ; DNA/analysis ; Humans ; Intercellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins/*pharmacology ; Mesenchymal Stem Cells/*cytology/drug effects ; Platelet-Derived Growth Factor/pharmacology ; Platelet-Rich Plasma/*metabolism ; Transforming Growth Factor beta1/pharmacology

OBJECTIVE: Disturbances in the biogenic amine pathways have been hypothesized to be the biochemical basis of schizophrenia. Catechol-O-methyl transferase (COMT) gene is an important candidate gene due to its function to metabolically inactivating these amines. We investigated the association between 472 G/A (158val/met) and -287 A/G polymorphisms of COMT gene with response to clozapine treatment in refractory schizophrenia. METHODS: One hundred twenty patients of refractory schizophrenia, who were treated with clozapine longer than six months, were participated in this study. We evaluated treatment response on the basis of the difference of re-hospitalization frequency and hospitalization duration before and after the first clozapine administration day. Genotyping of the 472 G/A and -287 A/G polymorphisms was performed by SNapShot method. RESULTS: In 472 G/A polymor-phism, there were no significant differences of the re-hospitalization frequency and the hospitalization duration between the A (-) group and A (+) group, and also no differences among GG, GA, and AA groups. In -287 A/G polymorphism, there were no significant differences between G (-) group and G (+) group. However, we observed significant differences in the re-hospitalization frequency (F=4.38, p=0.015) and in the hospitalization duration (F=3.90, p=0.024) among three genotype groups. CONCLUSION: We found that the treatment response to clozapine was not associated with COMT 472 G/A polymorphism but was positively associated with -287 A/G polymorphism in refractory schizophrenia. However, This association is not strong enough to conclude the association between -287 A/G polymorphism in COMT gene and clozapine response. Further studies with a large sample are required to verify this positive finding more clearly.
Amines ; Biogenic Amines ; Clozapine* ; Genotype ; Hospitalization ; Humans ; Schizophrenia* ; Transferases*

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Constipation is a condition that can result from intestinal deformation. Because humans have an upright posture, the effects of gravity can cause this shape deformation. Oligosaccharides are common prebiotics and their effects on bowel health are well known. However, studies of the physiological functionality of a product that contains both lactulose and galactooligosaccharides are insufficient. We investigated the constipation reduction effect of a dual-type oligosaccharide, Dual-Oligo, in loperamide-treated rats. MATERIALS/METHODS: Dual-Oligo consists of galactooligosaccharides (15.80%) and lactulose (51.67%). Animals were randomly divided into four groups, the normal group (normal), control group (control), low concentration of Dual-Oligo (LDO) group, and high concentration of Dual-Oligo (HDO) group. After 7 days of oral administration, fecal pellet amount, fecal weight, water content of fecal were measured. Blood chemistry, short-chain fatty acid (SCFA), gastrointestinal transit ratio and length and intestinal mucosa were analyzed. RESULTS: Dual-Oligo increased the fecal weight, and water content of feces in rats with loperamide-induced constipation. Gastrointestinal transit ratio and length and area of intestinal mucosa significantly increased after treatment with Dual-Oligo in loperamide-induced rats. A high concentration of Dual-Oligo tended to produce more acetic acid than that observed for the control group, and Dual-Oligo affected the production of total SCFA. Bifidobacteria concentration of cecal contents in the high-concentration oligosaccharide (HDO) and low-concentration oligosaccharide (LDO) groups was similar to the result of the normal group. CONCLUSIONS: These results showed that Dual-Oligo is a functional material that is derived from a natural food product and is effective in ameliorating constipation.
Acetic Acid ; Administration, Oral ; Alcian Blue ; Animals ; Chemistry ; Constipation* ; Feces ; Gastrointestinal Transit ; Gravitation ; Humans ; Intestinal Mucosa ; Lactulose ; Loperamide ; Oligosaccharides* ; Posture ; Prebiotics ; Rats* ; Water