No abstract available.
Female ; Fertilization in Vitro* ; Follicular Fluid*

This study is an attempt to provide fundamental information on how to manage menstruation discomforts by surveying the subjective viewpoints on menstruation from female college students. Utilizing 40 Q-samples in Seoul between May 1 and June 30, 2001, data has been collected from 30 randomized P-samples. Data analysis involves the PC QUANL Program, Q-factor analysis, and Principal Component Analysis. The result of the data analysis gives four types of categorization as follows: The first is the "inconvenience-recognizing" type that includes 10 subjects out of 30. During menstruation, this type of subject usually complained of physical discomfort such as pain in the lower back and abdomen. Even though they considered menstruation to be troublesome, they did nothing about the inconvenience. The second is the "positively-accepting" type that includes 7 subjects out of 30. This type of subject takes menstruation as natural and even a privilege for a woman. They think they are blessed to conceive a new life through their biological cycle. Therefore unlike other types, they rarely complained of any physical and psychological discomfort caused by menstruation. The third is the "destined course" type that includes 6 subjects out of 30. This type of subject endures the discomfort caused by menstruation without any medication or medical treatment. They appeared to take menstruation as fate without having any specially negative or positive attitude. The fourth is the "negatively-accepting" type that includes 7 out 30. This type of subject takes menstruation as negative, even if it is unavoidable for a woman. Menstruation, very negatively taken, felt uncomfortable and caused them to have pain in the lower back and abdomen and an oversensitive nervous system. The four types of attitude towards menstruation show their own characteristic features in dealing with menstruation. Understanding these features in detail will enhance nursing implementation which is related to menstruation. This study is intended to provide fundamental information with which nurses can deal with menstruation problems by investigating subjective viewpoints about menstruation. This study is a stepping stone on which further study on this subject can build to develop an effective and efficient way to deal with menstruation discomforts.
Abdomen ; Female* ; Humans ; Menstruation* ; Nervous System ; Nursing ; Principal Component Analysis ; Seoul ; Statistics as Topic

PURPOSE: This study was designed to explore the perceptions of quality nursing care among nurses. METHOD: The data were analyzed using content analysis. The data were collected from 19 nurses who worked at diverse clinical areas in 8 general and university hospitals with over 400 beds. RESULT: 1. The attributes of quality nursing care were categorized into 7 hierarchies in the order of 'caring' (40.65%), 'specialty' (29.03%), 'nurse attainments' (15.48%), 'patient- centered nursing management' (6.45%), 'sincerity' (5.16%), 'kindness' (2.58%), 'satisfaction' (0.65%). 2. The concept of quality nursing care were defined as 'giving a satisfaction both to patients and nurses through patient-centered nursing management with specialty and caring in the ground of the kindness and sincerity'. CONCLUSION: Based on there findings, we suggest that the study results should be used for development of a quality assurance tool in nursing practice, patient care in hospital setting, education of nurses and nursing students. In addition, further repeated studies need to be conducted.
Education ; Hospitals, University ; Humans ; Nursing Care* ; Nursing* ; Patient Care ; Patient-Centered Care ; Students, Nursing

Erectile dysfunction (ED) is a highly prevalent disorder that affects millions of men worldwide. ED is now considered an early manifestation of atherosclerosis, and consequently, a precursor of systemic vascular disease. This study was designed to investigate the effects of male silkworm pupa powder (SWP) on the levels of nitric oxide synthase (NOS) expression, nitrite, and glutathione (GSH); lipid peroxidation; libido; and erectile response of the corpus cavernosum of the rat penis. We induced ED in the study animals by oral administration of 20% ethanol over 8 weeks. The SWP-treated male rats were divided into 3 groups that were orally administered 200, 400, and 800 mg/kg. The libido of the SWP-administered male rats was higher than that of the ethanol control group. In addition, the erectile response of the corpus cavernosum was restored in males on SWP administration, to a level similar to that of the normal group without ED. The testosterone concentration did not increase significantly. The lipid peroxidation in the corpus cavernosum of the male rats administered SWP decreased significantly. In contrast, compared to the ethanol group, SWP-administered male rats showed increased GSH levels in the corpus cavernosum. The level of nitrite and NOS expression in the corpus cavernosum of SWP-administered male rats increased significantly. These results indicated that SWP effectively restored ethanol-induced ED in male rats.
Administration, Oral ; Animals ; Atherosclerosis ; Bombyx ; Erectile Dysfunction ; Ethanol ; Glutathione ; Humans ; Libido ; Lipid Peroxidation ; Male ; Nitric Oxide Synthase ; Penis ; Pupa ; Rats ; Testosterone ; Vascular Diseases

The development of gastric cancer (GC) is closely related to chronic inflammation caused by Helicobacter pylori infection, and herpes virus entry mediator (HVEM) is a receptor expressed on the surface of leukocytes that mediates potent inflammatory responses in animal models. However, the role of HVEM in human GC has not been studied. Previously, we showed that the interaction of HVEM on human leukocytes with its ligand LIGHT induces intracellular calcium mobilization, which results in inflammatory responses including induction of proinflammatory cytokine production and anti-bacterial activities. In this study, we report that leukocytes from GC patients express lower levels of membrane HVEM (mHVEM) and have lower LIGHT-induced bactericidal activities than those from healthy controls (HC). In contrast, levels of soluble HVEM (sHVEM) in the sera of GC patients were significantly higher than in those of HC. We found that monocyte membrane-bound HVEM is released into the medium when cells are activated by proinflammatory cytokines such as TNF-alpha and IL-8, which are elevated in the sera of GC patients. mHVEM level dropped in parallel with the release of sHVEM, and release was completely blocked by the metalloprotease inhibitor, GM6001. We also found that the low level of mHVEM on GC patient leukocytes was correlated with low LIGHT-induced bactericidal activities against H. pylori and S. aureus and production of reactive oxygen species. Our results indicate that mHVEM on leukocytes and sHVEM in sera may contribute to the development and/or progression of GC.
Aged ; Cells, Cultured ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Female ; Flow Cytometry ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Monocytes/metabolism ; Neutrophils/metabolism ; Reactive Oxygen Species/metabolism ; Receptors, Tumor Necrosis Factor, Member 14/*blood ; Stomach Neoplasms/*blood/metabolism ; Tumor Necrosis Factor Ligand Superfamily Member 14/blood

Constipation is one of the most common functional digestive complaints worldwide. We investigated the laxative effects of figs (Ficus carica L) in a beagle model of constipation induced by high protein diet and movement restriction. The experiments were consecutively conducted over 9 weeks divided into 3 periods of 3 weeks each. All 15 beagles were subjected to a non-treatment (control) period, a constipation induction period, and a fig paste treatment period. We administered fig paste (12 g/kg daily, by gavage) for 3 weeks following a 3-week period of constipation induction in dogs. Segmental colonic transit time (CTT) was measured by counting radiopaque markers (Kolomark) using a radiograph performed every 6 h after feeding Kolomark capsules, until capsules were no longer observed. Fig paste significantly increased fecal quantity in constipated dogs, and segmental CTT was also reduced following fig paste administration. There were no significant differences in feed intake, water intake, body weight, or blood test results, between the constipation and fig paste administration periods. Our results demonstrate that fig is an effective treatment for constipation in beagles. Specifically, stool weight increased and segmental CTT decreased. Fig pastes may be useful as a complementary medicine in humans suffering from chronic constipation.
Animals ; Body Weight ; Capsules ; Carica ; Colon ; Complementary Therapies ; Constipation ; Diet ; Dogs ; Drinking ; Ficus ; Hematologic Tests ; Humans ; Ointments ; Stress, Psychological