PURPOSE: Leptin, the product of the ob gene is primarily by adipose tissue but also by the human placenta. Leptin may also have a role as a regulator of fetal growth and development during normal pregnancy as well as in pregnancies associated with anomalous fetal growth. Our study aimed to discover whether or not leptin concentration in neonatal cord blood correlates with maternal disorder(preeclampsia, antenatal steroid). METHODS: Seventy newborns - twenty of preeclampsia, twenty of antenatal steroid treatment, ten of diabetes mellitus, twenty of neonatal asphyxia- and their mother were enrolled in this study. Gestational age, birth weight, length and placental weight were measured. Maternal age and weight were measured. Cord blood and maternal venous samples were collected and serum was separated and stored at -70dgreesC. Leptin was measured by radioimmunoassay. RESULTS: Neonatal cord leptin concentration was significantly elevated in infants whose mothers received antenatal steroid, preeclamptic mothers and diabetic mothers Also, neonatal cord leptin concentration was correlated with maternal serum leptin concentration in those maternal disorders. Cord blood leptin concentration in neonatal asphyxia group was significantly elevated, but wasn't significantly correlated with their maternal serum leptin concentration. CONCLUSION: Neonatal cord leptin concentration was significantly increased in mothers with preeclampsia, diabetes mellitus, and exposure of the antenatal steroid. We find that maternal disorders affected leptin concentration in cord blood, and that increased cord blood leptin in neonatal asphyxia was shown to be a product of fetus.
Adipose Tissue ; Asphyxia ; Birth Weight ; Diabetes Mellitus* ; Fetal Blood* ; Fetal Development ; Fetus ; Gestational Age ; Humans ; Infant ; Infant, Newborn ; Leptin* ; Maternal Age ; Mothers ; Placenta ; Pre-Eclampsia* ; Pregnancy ; Radioimmunoassay

Angiogenesis is essential for tumor growth and metastasis, however, the prognostic value of neovascularization is undetermined. The aim of this study is to evaluate the prognostic significance of microvessel density (MVD) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) expression in breast carcinomas. An immunohistochemical stains for CD 31 (DAKO) to estimate MVD and VEGF (Santa Cruz) were done on 40 cases of invasive breast carcinoma. MVD was calculated as an average count of vessels per 200 power field in the most vascularized areas. VEGF expression was interpreted according to staining intensity and number of positive cells. Mean MVD was 35, and MVD was not correlated with lymph node metastasis or histologic grade, but high MVD (mean MVD>35) showed an increasing tendency in cases with larger size, negative ER/PR, and positive cathepsin D. All of the cases showed VEGF expression, but VEGF expression was not correlated with tumor size, histologic grade, lymph node metastasis, ER/PR status, and cathepsin D expression. These results suggest that MVD and VEGF expressions are not reliable prognostic factors.
Breast Neoplasms* ; Breast* ; Cathepsin D ; Coloring Agents ; Lymph Nodes ; Microvessels* ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A*

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship of mothers' recognition of Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), parenting stress and family support in mothers of children diagnosed with ADHD. METHODS: The data were collected from December 24, 2009 to July 23, 2010. The participants were 141 mothers of children diagnosed with ADHD and who lived in D city. Descriptive statistics, t-test, ANOVA, Pearson correlation coefficients with SPSS 17.0 were used to analyze the data. To determine the most effective variable (mothers' recognition, parenting stress and family support) to predict parental stress, data were analyzed using canonical correlation with SAS 9.1 TS. RESULTS: Canonical correlation analysis revealed that professional and teachers' roles of the 3 sub-domains of mothers' recognition were the most outstanding variables in predicting parenting stress. Parental distress/parent-child dysfunctional interaction of parenting stress was the most outstanding variable in predicting both mothers' recognition and family support. Spouse cooperation in family support was the most outstanding variable in predicting parenting stress. CONCLUSION: The results suggest that strengthening parents' recognition of ADHD and supporting interventions are important for reducing parenting stress. Professional and teachers' roles, parental distress/parent-child dysfunctional interaction and spouse cooperation should be included in the contents of structured programs.
Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity ; Child ; Humans ; Mothers ; Parenting ; Parents ; Phenothiazines ; Spouses ; Child Health

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to use meta-analysis to examine recent domestic articles related to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in school-age children. METHODS: After reviewing 213 articles published between 1990 and 2009 from and cited in RISS, KISS, and DBpia, the researchers identified 24 studies with 440 research variables that had appropriate data for methodological study. SPSS 17.0 program was used. The outcome variables were divided into five types: Inattention, hyperactive impulsive, intrinsic, extrinsic, and academic ability variables. RESULTS: Effects size of overall core symptoms was 0.47 which is moderate level in terms of Cohen criteria and effects size of overall negative variables related ADHD was 0.27 which is small level. The most dominant variable related to ADHD was obtained from hyperactive-impulsive (0.70). Also academic ability (0.45), inattention (0.37), and intrinsic variables (0.29) had a small effect whereas extrinsic variables (0.13) had little effect on descriptive ADHD study. CONCLUSION: The results reveal that ADHD core symptoms have moderate effect size and peripheral negative variables related ADHD have small effect size. To improve the reliability of the meta-analysis results by minimizing publication bias, more intervention studies using appropriate study designs should be done.
Adolescent ; Attention ; Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity/*etiology ; Child ; Child Psychology ; Child, Preschool ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Task Performance and Analysis

Purpose: This study used a mixed methods research design in an attempt to verify the effects of robot-assisted rehabilitation on the gait ability of stroke patients with hemiplegia, and thereby further understand the benefits and challenges of stroke patients’ experiences relying on robot-assisted rehabilitation. Methods: An exploratory sequential mixed methods study design was used in order to combine both quantitative and qualitative data. For the quantitative data collection, a total of 30 stroke patients with hemiplegia were recruited from one rehabilitation hospital. Qualitative data were collected through individual interviews using semi-structured questionnaires for a group of 15 patients who were currently undergoing robot-assisted rehabilitation. The data were analyzed through qualitative content analysis. Results: As a result of the quantitative analysis, there were significant differences between the two groups in terms of daily living activity patterns, total number of steps, and average walking speed. As a result of the qualitative analysis, the four main themes derived consisted of, ‘curiosity about the usage of robot-assisted rehabilitation,’ ‘pleasure experienced while using the robots,’ ‘insufficient information about robots,’ and ‘a lack of education about robot-assisted rehabilitation.’ Conclusions Robot-assisted rehabilitation had a significant effect on the walking ability of stroke patients with hemiplegia. Additionally, stroke patients with hemiplegia experienced difficulty during the course of their robot-assisted rehabilitation, due to a lack of sufficient information on correct usage techniques. These quantitative and qualitative findings could provide the basic foundation for the development of an educational program on robot-assisted rehabilitation.

The changes of cerebral blood flow velocity, pulsatility index and resistance index were studied during Enflurane-N2O-O2 anesthesia according to the change of end tidal carbon dioxide tension in 14 gynecologic surgical patients. From the both middle cerebral artery, mean blood flow velocity, resistance index and pulsatility index were checked with transcranial doppler before anesthesia with room air respiration and during anesthesia with controlled ventilation. The anesthesia was controlled with 2.0+/-0.5% Enflurane and 3 liter/min. of nitrous oxide and 2 liter/min. of oxygen. The end tidal CO2 tension was controlled by change of respiratory rate and tidal volume from 30 mmHg to 40 mmHg during anesthesia. Mean blood flow velocity, resistance index, and pulsatility index of middle cerebral artery were compared between unanesthetized room air respirated patient and anesthetized patient. The result were as follows : 1. There were no differences of systolic, diastolic, mean blood flow velocity, resistance index and pulsatility index between right and left middle cerebral artery. 2. The mean blood flow velocity was significantly increased but the pulsatility index and resistance index was decreased during anesthesia compare to preanesthetic values. This may be due to the effect of anesthetics. 3. During steady state of anesthesia the mean blood flow velacity was increased and the pulsatility index and resistance index was decreased according to the change of ETCO2 With this result we can say the effect of carbon dioxide tension to the cerebral blood flow velocity was maintained during Enflurane-N2O-O2 anesthesia, but the flow was also affected by the anesthetics itself.
Anesthesia* ; Anesthetics ; Blood Flow Velocity* ; Carbon Dioxide* ; Carbon* ; Enflurane ; Humans ; Middle Cerebral Artery ; Nitrous Oxide ; Oxygen ; Respiration ; Respiratory Rate ; Tidal Volume ; Ventilation

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to describe the use pattern of alternative therapies in middle aged women. METHOD: The subjects of this study were 530 women from 40 to 64 years of age. The data of this study was patients' records. The data was gathered from April 1st, 2004 to June 30th, 2004. Data was analyzed statistically by using the SPSS/WIN 10.0 program. RESULT: It was shown that 63.5% of the subjects have utilized one or more types of alternative therapy. The most common type of alternative therapy was dietary and nutritional therapy 38.3%, and the place of use was the home 64.1%. The most common reason was a recommendation by friends. The degree of satisfaction after the use of alternative therapy was 95.2%. Among users of alternative therapies, the most frequent responses to each question were as follows; Motive of Use- "for health maintenance and promotion." (62.7%) In the relation ship between general characteristics and utilization of alternative therapy, religion (x2=12.33, p=.02), exercise (x2=8.21, p=004), and health status (x2=14.95, p=.005) showed a significant statistical difference. CONCLUSION: We found that middle aged women used alternative therapies more frequently than other populations. Therefore, it is suggested that medical doctors or nurses verify the true effects or side-effects from the most therapies or nurses verify the true effects or side-effects from the most common complementary or alternative therapies through experiments.
Complementary Therapies ; Female ; Friends ; Humans ; Middle Aged ; Ships

The purpose of this study was to identify the relationship between self reported climacteric symptoms, knowledge of menopause, menopausal management, in middle-aged women. The subjects of this study were 209 women from 40 to 64 years of age. The data was analyzed using SPSS program for t-test, ANOVA and Pearson's correlation coefficients. The results of the study were as follows : 1. The characteristic variables significantly related to self reported climacteric symptoms were education(F=6.371, p<0.001), income (F=4.481, p<0.05), mensturation state(t= -2.004, p<0.05), mensturation cycle(t=-2.039, p<0.05), hormone therapy(t=2.107, p<0.05), health condition(F=21.111, p<0.001).2. The characteristic variables significantly related to knowledge of menopause were education(F=6.580, p<0.001), health condition (F=3.487, p<0.05).3. The characteristic variable significantly related to menopausal management was income(F=3.080, p<0.05). 4. The relationship between self reported climacteric symptoms and menopausal management was statistically significant with a negative correlation(r=-0.323, p<0.05).In conclusion, climacteric symptoms - based complaints by middle-aged women was negatively correlated to menopausal management. Therefore, health promotions designed to increase climacteric women's health should be a planned program based on results of the study.
Climacteric* ; Female ; Health Promotion ; Humans ; Menopause* ; Self Report ; Women's Health

OBJECTIVE: In view of the facts that education about diseases and realization of the need for drugs can improve compliance of the patients, we assessed the knowledge about drugs and medication compliance in psychiatric outpatients. In addition, we investigated factors that influence patients' compliance to develop a model of medication compliance. METHODS: One-hundred twelve male and eighty female psychiatric outpatient were asked about drug information using questionnaires. We developed a model that predicts medication compliance using chi square tests and multiple regression analysis. RESULTS: More than a hart of the patients knew at least one of the names and the effects of the drugs they had taken, but many of them didn't know the side effects of drugs. About eighty percent of the patients showed good compliance. Knowledge of side effects, belief in the benefits of drugs, and level of education could predict medication compliance reliably. CONCLUSIONS: Because education level could not be managed by physician, we could enhance compliance through education about drug side effects and benefits of medications.
Compliance ; Education ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Medication Adherence* ; Outpatients* ; Surveys and Questionnaires

PURPOSE: To evaluate the value of MR cholangiography (MRC) and MRC with additional T2-weighted axial imaging for evaluating the cause and determining the therapeutic plan in patients with a focal dilatation of the intrahepatic bile ducts(IHBD). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Forty nine patients (male, 27; female, 22; age range, 12-72 (mean, 51) years) with a focal intrahepatic ductal dilatation confirmed surgically and pathologically (lobectomy, 34; biopsy, 7; surgical finding and T-tube cholangiography, 7; percutanous transhepatic biliary drainage with bile cytology, 1) underwent MRC and T2-weighted axial imaging. The MRC were obtained in one of two ways (a single slab or multi-slice acquisition under chemical fat saturation) using RARE (31 patients, source images and single slice images), or TSE (18 patients, source images and MIP reconstruction images). Two radiologists reviewed the MRC images alone, and the MRC images with the T2-weighted axial images. A diagnosis was determined by consensus. RESULTS: In 37 out of 49 patients, the causes of a bile duct dilation were benign diseases (IHBD stones in 33 cases, liver abscesses with IHBD stones in three cases, one inflammatory pseudotumor). Twelve patients had cholangiocarcinomas (mass-forming type in seven cases, intraductal type in three cases, and periductal infiltrating type in two cases). A correct diagnosis was confirmed in 47 out of 49 cases(96.0%), i.e. all the 37 benign lesions and 10 out of 12 malignant lesions. The addition of the T2-weighted axial image to the MRC did not alter the diagnosis of the causes of the focal intrahepatic ductal dilatation, but was helpful in 10 cases (20.4%). Nine cases (7 cholangiocarcinomas and 2 abscesses), in which MRC showed masses, were visualized more definitely on the additional T2-weighted axial images to the MRC than on the MRC alone. The remaining cases were hepatolithiasis, where stones could be easily differentiated from air by the air-fluid level on the axial images. CONCLUSION: MRC is a good diagnostic modality for evaluating a focal dilatation of IHBD, and the addition of T2-weighted axial image to MRC is helpful.
Bile ; Bile Ducts ; Biopsy ; Cholangiocarcinoma ; Cholangiography* ; Consensus ; Diagnosis ; Dilatation* ; Drainage ; Female ; Humans ; Liver Abscess