No abstract available.
Quinolones* ; Vibrio vulnificus* ; Vibrio*

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study is investigate the clinical characteristics and the change of depression and anxiety in pathological gamblers who completed 10-week admission treatment programs. METHODS: To investigate the clinical characteristics, we included 40 pathological gamblers who completed admission treatment programs from Jan 2006 to Jun 2010. To measure the change through treatment, we included 16 patients who completed pre-treatment and post-treatment assessment scales, including the Korean-National Opinion Research Center DSM-IV Screen for Gambling Problems (K-NODS), Beck's Depression Inventory (BDI), and the State-trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), from May 2008 to Aug 2008. RESULTS: Mean age of the patients was 42.9+/-9.0 years and mean intelligent quotient was 109.7+/-10.4. Thirty (75%) patients showed comorbid disorders, including depression (14 patients, 35%), anxiety disorder (five patients, 12.5%), alcohol use disorder (five patients, 12.5%), and personality disorder (four patients, 10%). After treatment, K-NODS, BDI, STAI-I, and STAI-II scores showed improvement, from 9.1+/-1.5 to 7.6+/-2.7, from 23.5+/-5.8 to 11.1+/-3.2, from 52.6+/-10.3 to 41.9+/-7.1, and from 53.7+/-10.6 to 46.0+/-4.4, respectively. CONCLUSION: In treatment of pathological gambling, comorbid psychiatric risk factors, such as depression and anxiety should be considered.
Anxiety ; Anxiety Disorders ; Depression ; Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders ; Gambling ; Humans ; Personality Disorders ; Risk Factors ; Weights and Measures

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the general health status and severity of exposure to hazardous agents - with a focus on heavy metals - of migrant workers utilizing the 2005 Special Health Examination data. METHODS: With data from the 2005 Special Health Examination, we examined the biologic exposure indices and several major clinical exam items of 25,086 migrant workers in the whole country in comparison with those of 19,616 native Korean workers in Kyunggi-do province. Of these we chose homogeneous samples from the same 3 health service centers in Kyunggi-do. (native workers:19,616, migrant workers:1,886) to be more precise. RESULTS: The results from the samples of the 3 centers were as follows. Blood lead (natives: 6.09 microgram/dl migrants: 8.37 microgram/L) and cadmium (natives: 0.29 microgram/dl, migrants: 0.36 microgram/L) were higher in the migrant workers than in the native Korean workers, whereas the biologic exposure indices of organic solvents were higher in the native workers. As for major clinical exam items, the liver battery was worse in the natives with incidence of abnormal AST/ALT level (natives: 8.1/6.8% migrants: 5.7/5.4%, p-value<0.01 for AST). Anemia was more prevalent in the migrant workers (natives: 9.0% migrants: 11.0%, p-value<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Migrant workers in Korea are more frequently or more severely exposed to a hazardous working environment containing heavy metals. However, we were not able to explain the results for the exposure indices or organic solvents, and such an explanation will require further study in the future.
Anemia ; Cadmium ; Health Services ; Humans ; Incidence ; Korea ; Liver ; Metals, Heavy ; Population Groups ; Solvents ; Transients and Migrants

We report a partial fetus-like structure (homunculus) in benign ovarian mature cystic teratoma removed from a 23-yr-old female. The cyst displayed various tissues derived from the three germ layers. The homunculus had a distinguished fetal cranial structure with one upper extremity. A partially developed osteocartilagenous skeleton was identified in the cranial structure of the homunculus. Intracranial structures such as cerebral cortex, retinal pigment, and leptomeninges were extruded from the partially disrupted calvarium.
Adult ; Female ; Human ; Ovarian Cysts/*pathology ; Ovarian Neoplasms/*pathology ; Pregnancy ; Teratoma/*diagnosis/*pathology

OBJECTIVE: Metabolic syndrome (MS) is associated with increased left ventricular (LV) mass and diastolic dysfunction. This study uses relatively load-independent Doppler tissue echocardiography to examine whether MS is associated with decreased longitudinal contractile reserve during dynamic exercise. METHODS: A total of 112 patients with relatively well-controlled, treated hypertension who complained of exertional dyspnea were enrolled (average age, 56.7+/-10.5 years). Fifty-six were non-diabetic patients with MS (group 1), and 56 were age-sex matched hypertensive patients without MS (group 2). Exercise stress echo was performed using a symptom-limited, multistage, supine bicycle exercise test. Multiple Doppler parameters were obtained at baseline, at each stage of exercise. RESULTS: There was no significant difference between the two groups in terms of age, gender, and hemodynamic variables. E/E', an index of LV filling pressure, was significantly higher in the MS group at rest and during exercise. The longitudinal contractile reserve, the change in S' (longitudinal tissue velocity) from baseline to peak exercise, was significantly lower in the MS group (2.00+/-1.65 vs. 2.90+/-1.66, P=0.015). Multiple regression analysis showed independent association of MS with longitudinal contractile reserve when controlled for confounding factors, such as LV mass index, gender, blood pressure, and age (beta=-0.235, P=0.035). CONCLUSION: Longitudinal contractile reserve was reduced in MS patients compared to others, although both groups demonstrated similar longitudinal contractile function at rest. We present the first demonstration that metabolic syndrome is independently associated with LV systolic dysfunction during exercise in hypertensive patients.
Blood Pressure ; Dyspnea ; Echocardiography ; Exercise Test ; Hemodynamics ; Humans ; Hypertension

This study was conducted to estimate the prevalence of antimicrobial prescribing for acute upper respiratory tract infections (URI) among pediatric outpatients and to identify the national patterns of its use from 2009 to 2011 in Korea. Using National Patients Sample database from 2009 to 2011, we estimated the frequency of antibiotics prescribing for URI in pediatric outpatients with diagnoses of acute nasopharyngitis (common cold), acute sinusitis, acute pharyngitis, acute tonsillitis, acute laryngitis/tracheitis, acute obstructive laryngitis/epiglottitis, and acute upper respiratory infections of multiple and unspecified sites. The proportions of each antibiotic class were calculated by year and absolute and relative differences were estimated. Also, we investigated daily amount of prescribed antibiotics per defined population according to the type of medical care institution, physician specialty, and geographic region. The overall antibiotic prescribing proportion was 58.7% and its annual proportion slightly decreased (55.4% in 2011 vs. 60.5% in 2009; adjusted odds ratio, 0.82; 95% confidence interval, 0.82-0.83). Variations by the type of medical care institution were observed. Tertiary hospitals (45.0%) were less likely to prescribe antibiotics than primary care clinics (59.4%), hospitals (59.0%), and general hospitals (61.2%); they showed different tendencies in choosing antibiotics. Variations by physician specialty and region were also observed. Prevalence of antimicrobial prescribing for pediatric URI is still considered higher than that of western countries and varies by the type of medical care institution, physician specialty, and geographic region.
Acute Disease ; Anti-Bacterial Agents/*therapeutic use ; Databases, Factual ; Drug Prescriptions/*statistics & numerical data ; Hospitals ; Humans ; Odds Ratio ; Physicians/trends ; Practice Patterns, Physicians' ; Republic of Korea ; Respiratory Tract Infections/*drug therapy

PURPOSE: To evaluate the relationship between internal derangement and osteoarthrosis in the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). MATERIALS AND METHODS: One hundred and six MR images of TMJs in 53 patients were evaluated. Disc displacements and osseous changes of the TMJs were assessed. Lateral and rotational disc displacements were also evaluated on coronal images. RESULTS: No significant differences in the frequency of osseous changes of the TMJs between disc displacement with reduction and disc displacement without reduction groups were found. The erosion of the condylar head and the sclerosis of the articular eminence were more frequent in the internal derangement group than in the no disc displacement group. The flattening was the most frequently observed osseous change of both the condylar head and articular eminence. CONCLUSION: The relationship between internal derangement and osteoarthrosis is obscure, but it is thought that both disorders adversely affect each other.
Head ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging* ; Osteoarthritis* ; Sclerosis ; Temporomandibular Joint Disc ; Temporomandibular Joint*

The retrograde approach through a collateral artery is now thought to improve the success rate of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for coronary chronic total occlusion (CTO), and different kinds of strategies for this technique have been developed. However, the basic principles of PCI for CTO, such as firm back-up support with a guiding catheter and fine control of the guide wire, should be adhered to more strictly to succeed with this complex procedure. We present a case in which a CTO of the proximal left anterior descending artery was successfully opened by the retrograde approach through a collateral from the left circumflex artery, during which two guiding catheters were simultaneously used in the same coronary artery for the purpose of strong back up support for the retrograde device and fine control for the antegrade device.
Angioplasty, Balloon, Coronary ; Arteries ; Catheters ; Coronary Occlusion ; Coronary Vessels ; Percutaneous Coronary Intervention

OBJECTIVES: Social support was previously regarded as acting only a stress modifier, but many recent studies have found a direct effect on stress. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the role of social support on job stress and psychosocial stress to determine whether it acts via direct effect or indirect effect. METHODS: This study was performed in May 2003. The study population consisted of 425 male workers in an automobile factory in Korea. Data were collected with structured self-administered questionnaires. We used JCQ(Job Contents Questionnaires) to measure job stress and social support, and PWI-SF(Psychosocial Well-being Index-Short Form) to measure stress outcome. We analysed the relationships using Structural Equation Modeling software AMOS4. RESULTS: It was found that social support acts both as a direct stressor and an indirect stressor via job stress. However the direct effect was double the indirect effect. CONCLUSIONS: The direct effect of social support on stress was the more major. Therefore social support is an independent stressor rather than a stress modifier in automobile factory workers.
Automobiles* ; Humans ; Korea ; Male ; Questionnaires

Laparoscopic cholecystectomy has now rapidly replaced open cholecystectomy. Rarely a calculus may arise from a metallic surgical clip migrated into the common bile duct (CBD) after this surgical procedure was performed. We report a 50-year-old man with CBD stone formed around a surgical clip, who had undergone a laparoscopic cholecystectomy because of acute calculous cholecystitis 14 months before. Abdominal CT revealed a single stone in mildly dilated CBD. A high density core within the CBD stone, was suspected to be a surgical clip. The stone was removed using a retrieval balloon catheter and basket after endoscopic sphincterotomy.
Cholecystectomy, Laparoscopic/adverse effects/*instrumentation ; Choledocholithiasis/*etiology ; *Foreign-Body Migration ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Surgical Instruments/*adverse effects