The purpose of this study was to investigate the displacements of cast framework by torch soldering and electric soldering techniques. Specimen had two cylinders and connecting bar that had sectioned with 0.3mm gap at mid point. 10 of total specimens were divided into two groups. In torch soldered group, soldering investment block was made and conventional torch soldering procedure was carried out. In electric soldered group, electric soldering was carried out on the master cast without soldering investment block by using electric soldering machine(Dentapunkt DP 7, Kulzer, Germany). After soldering procedure, three dimensional coordinates of two centroids of each cylinder were measured by three dimensional coordinate measuring machine. The intercentroidal displacement and global displacement were calculated and then, these values were compared and evaluated. The results were obtained as follows: 1. Intercentroidal distances of specimens decreased after both soldering procedures, and the decrease in intercentroidal distance was greater for torch soldered group than for electric soldered group 2. Global displacements of torch soldered group were greater than those of electric soldered group
Investments

Background: The absence of effective antiviral medications and vaccines increased the focus on non-pharmaceutical preventive behaviors for mitigating against the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. To examine the current status of non-pharmaceutical preventive behaviors practiced during the COVID-19 outbreak and factors affecting behavioral activities, we compared to the 2015 Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) outbreak in Korea. Methods: This was a serial cross-sectional population-based study in Korea with four surveys conducted on June 2 and 25, 2015 (MERS-CoV surveys), and February 4, and April 2, 2020 (COVID-19 surveys). Of 25,711 participants selected using random digit dialing numbers, 4,011 participants (aged ≥ 18 years) were successfully interviewed, for the 2020 COVID-19 (n = 2,002) and 2015 MERS-CoV (n = 2,009) epidemics were included. Participants were selected post-stratification by sex, age, and province. The total number of weighted cases in this survey equaled the total number of unweighted cases at the national level. We measured the levels of preventive behaviors (social distancing [avoiding physical contact with others]), and practicing transmission-reducing behaviors such as wearing face mask and handwashing. Results: Between the surveys, respondents who reported practicing social distancing increased from 41.9%–58.2% (MERS-CoV) to 83.4%–92.3% (COVID-19). The response rate for the four surveys ranged between 13.7% and 17.7%. Practicing transmission-reducing behaviors (wearing face masks and handwashing) at least once during COVID-19 (78.8%, 80.2%) also increased compared to that during MERS-CoV (15.5%, 60.3%). The higher affective risk perception groups were more likely to practice transmission-reducing measures (adjusted odds ratio, 3.24–4.81; 95 confidence interval, 1.76–6.96) during both COVID-19 and MERS-CoV. Conclusion The study findings suggest markedly increased proportions of non-pharmaceutical behavioral practices evenly across all subgroups during the two different novel virus outbreaks in Korea. Strategic interventions are needed to attempt based on preventive behavior works.

PURPOSE: The most important step for patients who come to the emergency department with ureter stones is acute pain management. There have been insufficient studies on what factors affect acute pain management for ureteral colic the most. In this study, patients with ureteral colic were divided into two groups: one group, in which the pain was first managed with an analgesic, and another group with unmanaged pain, to find factors that most affect additive analgesics administration for ureter stones. METHODS: There were 121 patients, eventually confirmed for the presence of ureter stones through a computed tomography CT scan, included in this study. When ureter stones were suspected after the initial patient evaluation, initial pain was assessed through numerical rating scale (NRS) and the first analgesic was administered once. Pain was reassessed through NRS after 30 minutes. At that time, if the pain was managed, the patient was assigned to Group 1. If the pain persisted, another analgesic was administered for the second and third time, and the patient was assigned to Group 2. Finally, ureter stones were identified through CT scan. RESULTS: There were 58 patients (47.9%) in Group 1 and 63 patients (52.1%) in Group 2. There were no statistically significant differences in average age, serum creatinine, size of ureter stone, and severity of hematuria between the two groups. The differences in NRS measured initially and after 30 minutes were statistically significant (7.6+/-1.4 vs. 8.6+/-1.2, p<0.001; 1.4+/-1.3 vs. 6.6+/-1.9, p<0.001, respectively). The presence of hydronephrosis and perirenal edema were also statistically significant (p<0.001, p=0.007). The affecting factor for the administration of additive analgesics was hydronephrosis (odds ratio 7.213, p<0.001). CONCLUSION: Hydronephrosis is an important factor in the treatment of patients with additive analgesics. It can also be used as a predictive index to assess the severity of pain in patients with ureter stones.
Acute Pain ; Analgesics ; Creatinine ; Edema ; Emergencies ; Hematuria ; Humans ; Hydronephrosis ; Renal Colic ; Ureter ; Urolithiasis

PURPOSE: Alarm interventions are effective and safe treatments for nocturnal enuresis when compared with the other treatments. However, the rate of doctors prescribing enuresis alarms is quite low in Korea. This study evaluated the application conditions and treatment results of an enuresis alarm in children with enuresis in Korea. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 147 out of 316 patients who purchased an enuresis alarm through a alarm sales agency in Korea were evaluated retrospectively. The questionnaire had two main categories: items of enuresis(number of episodes during the night, enuresis frequency during a week, etc.) and the items of the enuresis alarm(previous treatment history, a motivation of using enuresis alarm treatment, the period of using the enuresis alarm, initial success, continued success, dropout of using enuresis alarm, nocturia after treatment, etc.). RESULTS: A total 147 children participated in this study. The initial success rate was 30.6% whereas the continued success rate was 34.0%. In addition, the dropout rate was 27.2%. 46.2% of patients purchased the enuresis alarm with a doctor's prescription and 53.8% purchased the alarm without a prescription. Among the factors, the success and dropout rate were affected by only whether the patient visited the hospital. Thirty five patients who took combination therapy with medicine had a significantly lower initial success rate. CONCLUSIONS: In Korea, without a doctor's prescription, 53.7% patients attempt to treat enuresis alarm directly. The initial and continued success rate with the enuresis alarm was approximately 30% and the dropout rate was approximately 30%.
Child ; Commerce ; Enuresis ; Humans ; Korea ; Motivation ; Nocturia ; Nocturnal Enuresis ; Patient Dropouts ; Prescriptions ; Retrospective Studies

OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study was to evaluate the performance of risk-adjusted mortality models for colorectal cancer surgery. METHODS: We investigated patients (n=652) who had undergone colorectal cancer surgery (colectomy, colectomy of the rectum and sigmoid colon, total colectomy, total proctectomy) at five teaching hospitals during 2008. Mortality was defined as 30-day or in-hospital surgical mortality. Risk-adjusted mortality models were constructed using claims data (basic model) with the addition of TNM staging (TNM model), physiological data (physiological model), surgical data (surgical model), or all clinical data (composite model). Multiple logistic regression analysis was performed to develop the risk-adjustment models. To compare the performance of the models, both c-statistics using Hanley-McNeil pair-wise testing and the ratio of the observed to the expected mortality within quartiles of mortality risk were evaluated to assess the abilities of discrimination and calibration. RESULTS: The physiological model (c=0.92), surgical model (c=0.92), and composite model (c=0.93) displayed a similar improvement in discrimination, whereas the TNM model (c=0.87) displayed little improvement over the basic model (c=0.86). The discriminatory power of the models did not differ by the Hanley-McNeil test (p>0.05). Within each quartile of mortality, the composite and surgical models displayed an expected mortality ratio close to 1. CONCLUSIONS: The addition of clinical data to claims data efficiently enhances the performance of the risk-adjusted postoperative mortality models in colorectal cancer surgery. We recommended that the performance of models should be evaluated through both discrimination and calibration.
Adult ; Aged ; Colorectal Neoplasms/*mortality/surgery ; Databases, Factual ; Female ; Hospital Mortality ; Hospitals, Teaching ; Humans ; Logistic Models ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Models, Psychological ; *Models, Theoretical ; Neoplasm Staging ; Odds Ratio ; Quality of Health Care ; Risk Adjustment

OBJECTIVE: There are currently limited treatment options for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB). In the process of pursuing further treatment strategies for this subgroup of patients, it is prudent to study what medications have been commonly prescribed, particularly for disease modifying anti-rheumatic agents (DMARDs) in Korea. METHODS: We analyzed the Korean National Health Insurance claims database (2007~2009) of RA patients through co-working with the Clinical Research Center for RA (CRCRA). Patients with CHB were defined by an algorithm including prescription information, blood tests, and the ICD-10 code. RESULTS: There were 8,677 CHB patients (3.8%) among 226,592 RA patients in the database. The age distribution or gender difference in CHB patients was comparable to the general RA population. Hydroxychloroquine was the most frequently (66.2%) prescribed DMARD. Thirty four percent of CHB patients had been prescribed with methotrexate (MTX) during the study period; most of them without concomitant anti-viral treatment. About 3% of RA patients with CHB were prescribed with TNF inhibitors. CONCLUSION: Apart from the published expert recommendations, MTX still seems to be one of the main DMARDs prescribed to Korean RA patients with CHB. This is most likely due to the lack of evidence-based, effective treatment strategies for this subgroup of patients.
Age Distribution ; Antirheumatic Agents ; Arthritis, Rheumatoid ; Hematologic Tests ; Hepatitis B, Chronic ; Hepatitis, Chronic ; Humans ; Hydroxychloroquine ; International Classification of Diseases ; Methotrexate ; National Health Programs ; Prescriptions

OBJECTIVE: There are currently limited treatment options for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB). In the process of pursuing further treatment strategies for this subgroup of patients, it is prudent to study what medications have been commonly prescribed, particularly for disease modifying anti-rheumatic agents (DMARDs) in Korea. METHODS: We analyzed the Korean National Health Insurance claims database (2007~2009) of RA patients through co-working with the Clinical Research Center for RA (CRCRA). Patients with CHB were defined by an algorithm including prescription information, blood tests, and the ICD-10 code. RESULTS: There were 8,677 CHB patients (3.8%) among 226,592 RA patients in the database. The age distribution or gender difference in CHB patients was comparable to the general RA population. Hydroxychloroquine was the most frequently (66.2%) prescribed DMARD. Thirty four percent of CHB patients had been prescribed with methotrexate (MTX) during the study period; most of them without concomitant anti-viral treatment. About 3% of RA patients with CHB were prescribed with TNF inhibitors. CONCLUSION: Apart from the published expert recommendations, MTX still seems to be one of the main DMARDs prescribed to Korean RA patients with CHB. This is most likely due to the lack of evidence-based, effective treatment strategies for this subgroup of patients.
Age Distribution ; Antirheumatic Agents ; Arthritis, Rheumatoid ; Hematologic Tests ; Hepatitis B, Chronic ; Hepatitis, Chronic ; Humans ; Hydroxychloroquine ; International Classification of Diseases ; Methotrexate ; National Health Programs ; Prescriptions

OBJECTIVES: Fast-setting pozzolan cement (Endocem, Maruchi) was recently developed. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of various root canal irrigants on the washout of Endocem in comparison to the previously marketed mineral trioxide aggregate (ProRoot; Dentsply) in a furcal perforation model. MATERIALS AND METHODS: ProRoot and Endocem were placed into acrylic molds on moist Oasis. Each mold was then immediately exposed to either physiologic saline, 2.5% sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl), or 2% chlorhexidine (CHX) under gentle shaking for five minutes. Washout testing was performed by scoring scanning electron microscope (SEM) images. RESULTS: Endocem exhibited higher washout resistance compared to ProRoot, especially in the NaOCl group. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that Endocem can be considered a useful repair material for furcal perforation, especially in a single-visit scenario.
Acrylic Resins ; Aluminum Compounds ; Calcium Compounds ; Chlorhexidine ; Dental Pulp Cavity* ; Drug Combinations ; Fungi ; Oxides ; Pyrroles ; Root Canal Irrigants* ; Silicates ; Sodium Hypochlorite ; Vinyl Compounds

PURPOSE: The object of this study is to compare the patient satisfaction in the view of scarring, cost, and hospital stay between the conventional suture method and a method using Histoacryl(R) (2-N-butylcyanoacrylate) adhesive for treating facial lacerations in the emergency department. METHODS: This study is a randomized prospective trial, which was conducted from December 2009 to January 2010. The participants include 109 patients who visited the emergency room in Deajon Eulji Medical Center. The ages ranged from 1 to 59 (mean age of 18.7), and all had facial lacerations of less than 3 cm. In order to treat the facial lacerations, an emergency medicine doctor used tissue adhesive (2-N-butylcyanoacrylate, Histoacryl(R)) for 41 patients in the experimental group, and a plastic surgeon performed conventional suturing for 68 patients in the control group. The ER-stay and the primary treatment fee were compared in the two groups, and the scarring was evaluated 10 to 11 months from suturing by using the Modified Hollander Method and the 10-cm scaled VAS (visual analogue scale: score 0=no scar, score 10=very severe scar). RESULTS: The ER stay was 76 minutes for the experimental group and 107 minutes for the control group, showing that statistically significantly less time of 31 minutes was taken in the experimental group. The cost of the experimental group was 40000 won (50.1%) more expensive than the control group, with an average cost of 121900 won for the experimental group and 81200 won for the control group. As for scar evaluation, 10.56 months after suturing, the experimental group showed a better result with a score of 2.6 compared to a score of 3.4 in the control group; however, this difference was not statistically significant (p<0.05). As to a detailed evaluation of scar characteristics, the experimental group had a statistically significantly better result in scar elevation, with a score of 0.6 compared to a score of 1.65 for the control group. CONCLUSION: If appropriate patients are selected, the method using tissue adhesive directly applied by an EM doctor not only decreases ER stay but also creates similar patients satisfaction, with statistically better result in scar elevation, compared to the conventional suture method; thus, ultimately general patient satisfaction is increased.
Adhesives ; Cicatrix ; Emergencies ; Emergency Medicine ; Fees and Charges ; Humans ; Lacerations ; Length of Stay ; Netherlands ; Patient Satisfaction ; Prospective Studies ; Sutures ; Tissue Adhesives

PURPOSE: The object of this study is to compare the patient satisfaction in the view of scarring, cost, and hospital stay between the conventional suture method and a method using Histoacryl(R) (2-N-butylcyanoacrylate) adhesive for treating facial lacerations in the emergency department. METHODS: This study is a randomized prospective trial, which was conducted from December 2009 to January 2010. The participants include 109 patients who visited the emergency room in Deajon Eulji Medical Center. The ages ranged from 1 to 59 (mean age of 18.7), and all had facial lacerations of less than 3 cm. In order to treat the facial lacerations, an emergency medicine doctor used tissue adhesive (2-N-butylcyanoacrylate, Histoacryl(R)) for 41 patients in the experimental group, and a plastic surgeon performed conventional suturing for 68 patients in the control group. The ER-stay and the primary treatment fee were compared in the two groups, and the scarring was evaluated 10 to 11 months from suturing by using the Modified Hollander Method and the 10-cm scaled VAS (visual analogue scale: score 0=no scar, score 10=very severe scar). RESULTS: The ER stay was 76 minutes for the experimental group and 107 minutes for the control group, showing that statistically significantly less time of 31 minutes was taken in the experimental group. The cost of the experimental group was 40000 won (50.1%) more expensive than the control group, with an average cost of 121900 won for the experimental group and 81200 won for the control group. As for scar evaluation, 10.56 months after suturing, the experimental group showed a better result with a score of 2.6 compared to a score of 3.4 in the control group; however, this difference was not statistically significant (p<0.05). As to a detailed evaluation of scar characteristics, the experimental group had a statistically significantly better result in scar elevation, with a score of 0.6 compared to a score of 1.65 for the control group. CONCLUSION: If appropriate patients are selected, the method using tissue adhesive directly applied by an EM doctor not only decreases ER stay but also creates similar patients satisfaction, with statistically better result in scar elevation, compared to the conventional suture method; thus, ultimately general patient satisfaction is increased.
Adhesives ; Cicatrix ; Emergencies ; Emergency Medicine ; Fees and Charges ; Humans ; Lacerations ; Length of Stay ; Netherlands ; Patient Satisfaction ; Prospective Studies ; Sutures ; Tissue Adhesives