This study investigated how acculturation varies with demographic variables and is related to dietary habits among Korean Americans. The respondents were 162 Korea Americans aged at least 18 years old residing in the Greater New York metropolitan area. The level of acculturation was measured using a modified Suinn-Lew Asian Self-Identity Acculturation(SL-ASIA) scale. Acculturation was operationally defined to be composed of 6 factors, which are language, media use, friendship, food, pride, and ethnic self-identity. Each factor in the level of acculturation was identified by how it is related to demographics and dietary habits in the method of correlation coefficients and stepwise multiple regressions analyses. The reliability of the modified SL-ASIA scale was high as measured by Cronbach alpha of .92. The level of acculturation was related to place of birth, age, length of residence in the U.S., and education. The younger, the longer they had lived in the U.S., and the more they were educated, the more acculturated. Acculturation could be predictable for 52% of its variance with all demographic variables. Among the 6 factors in the level of acculturation, five of them, language, media use friendship, food, and ethnic self-identity were correlated with dietary habit changes after immigration and type of meals. All 6 acculturation factors could predict 21% of change in dietary habits. the information from this study can be used to describe usual describe usual dietary habits according to various aspects of acculturation to better understand the dynamics among acculturation, demographics, and dietary habits.
Acculturation* ; Adolescent ; Asian Americans* ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Demography* ; Education ; Emigration and Immigration ; Food Habits* ; Friends ; Humans ; Korea ; Meals ; Residence Characteristics

Iron deficient state occurs commonly in the athlets, and the cause may be inadequate iron intake, loss of iron from sweat, blood loss of gastrointestinal tract, and hematuria. The age of the athletes ranged from 11 to 17 years old. I messured red blood cell count, hemoglobin, hematocrit, and related hematologic factors in the 32 adolescent female athletes and 21 female controls. a hematologic comparison was perfomed between the athletes and controls. The results obtained were as follows: 1) A value of hemoglobin were 11.6+/-1.4g/dl in the athletes and 12:4+/-0.8g/dl in controls (p<0.05). 2) Hematocrits were 34.1+/-3.4% in the athletes and 37.4+/-2.3% in controls (p<0.05). 3)A value of red bolld cell distribution width values were 13.9+/-2.1% in the athletes and 12.2+/-1.1% in controls (p<0.05). 4) Serum iron was 87.7+/-30.3ug/dl in the athletes and 121.8+/-39.0ug/dl in controls (p<0.001). 5) Total iron binding capacity was 445:6+/-31.8ug/dl in the athletes and 384:6+/-54.2ug/dl in controls (p<0.001). 6) Mean transferrin saturation values were 19.7+/-6.9% in the athletes and 32.5+/-10.8% in control (p<0.001). 7) Ferritin was 14.5+/-10.0ng/ml in the athletes and 33.9+/-13.9ng/ml in controls (p<0.001). 8) The duration of exercise was 4.8+/-2.5 years in the stage III iron deficiency, whil 3.0+/-2.0 years in normal group in iron deficient state (p<0.05).
Adolescent* ; Athletes* ; Erythrocyte Count ; Female* ; Ferritins ; Gastrointestinal Tract ; Hematocrit ; Hematuria ; Humans ; Iron* ; Sweat ; Transferrin

BACKGROUND: Cathepsin is associated with tumorigenesis, tumor invasion and metastasis through its ability to induce degradation of extracellular matrix components. METHODS: To investigate the correlation between cathepsin expression and tumor progression, invasion depth or nodal metastasis, immunohistochemical staining for cathepsins B, H and L were done on 20 hyperplastic polyps, 48 adenomas, and 67 adenocarcinomas of the colon. Evaluation of the expression of cathepsins B, H and L was based on the percentage of neoplastic cells that stained positive for any given cathepsin. RESULTS: Cathepsin B expression was significantly higher in adenocarcinomas than adenomas (29.33 vs 5.48%), but was not associated with the degree of differentiation, depth of invasion and nodal status of the tumors. Expression of cathepsins H and L was absent or low in both adenomas and adenocarcinomas. CONCLUSIONS: We suggest that cathepsin B is involved in progression of a subset of colonic adenomas, while cathepsins H and L are not.
Adenocarcinoma ; Adenoma ; Cathepsin B ; Cathepsins ; Cell Transformation, Neoplastic ; Colon ; Extracellular Matrix ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Neoplasms, Glandular and Epithelial ; Polyps

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to describe quality of life (QOL) in Korean school-age children by identifying dimensions and attributes of QOL from the child's point of view. METHOD: In-depth interviews with focus questions were used for the study. Twelve children, aged 10 to 13 years, were recruited from Seoul and rural areas. The interviews were audio-taped and transcribed before content analysis. The data were analyzed for themes and attributes. The researchers read the data together and discussed their conclusions until a consensus was reached. RESULTS: Eight dimensions, 57 subdimensions and 101atttributes were identified for QOL in school-age children. The eight dimensions of QOL were physical, social, emotional, learning, leisure, family, self-value, and material aspects. CONCLUSION: The study results can be utilized in developing reliable instruments to measure quality of life specific to school-age children. It is proposed that a consistent and unified policy should be established by school, family, and community for the purpose of improving the QOL of school-age children.
Child* ; Consensus ; Humans ; Learning ; Leisure Activities ; Quality of Life* ; Seoul ; Child Health

No abstract available.
Humans ; Methacholine Chloride* ; Rhinitis*

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Few studies have provided evidence of the association between diet quality and dental caries. This study aimed to examine the association between diet quality and untreated dental caries in a Korean representative population. SUBJECTS/METHODS: The study population included a sample of 13,815 participants, aged ≥ 19 from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey during 2013–2015. The explanatory variable was diet quality and the outcome variable was untreated dental caries.Untreated dental caries were defined by the number of decayed teeth recorded according to the criteria established by the World Health Organization. Diet quality was defined by using the Korean Healthy Eating Index (KHEI) through the 24-h recall methods. We assessed the association between diet quality and untreated dental caries while adjusting for age, sex, education, income, smoking status, dental visits, toothbrushing frequencies, obesity, and diabetes mellitus. RESULTS: The mean overall KHEI scores in the untreated dental caries group were significantly lower than those in the group without untreated dental caries. Significant differences were observed in the untreated dental caries group based on the KHEI quartiles (P < 0.001). After adjusting for potential confounders, the quartiles of KHEI scores showed an association with untreated dental caries, demonstrating a dose-effect trend (odds ratio [OR], 1.57; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.35–1.84 for 1st quartile; OR, 1.38; 95% CI, 1.19–1.59 for 2nd quartile; OR, 1.32; 95% CI, 1.14–1.53 for 3rd quartile; reference quartile highest]). CONCLUSIONS The findings indicated an inverse association between diet quality and untreated dental caries in Korean adults. Healthcare providers should take into account the significant role of diet quality in preventing and managing oral health.

Necrolytic migratory erythema (NME) is a typical cutaneous manifestation of glucagonoma syndrome. The entire syndrome consists of NME, glucose intolerance, weight loss, anemia, glossitis, diarrhea, and increased glucagon levels. We herein report a patient with glucagonoma syndrome who was diagnosed as having NME. A 48-year-old male presented with a 2-month history of painful erythematous, desquamative, erosive papules and plaques on both lower extremities. Histological examination revealed an intraepidermal cleft, the presence of vacuolated, pale epidermal cells, and necrosis in the upper epidermis. His glucagon level was 2650 pg/ml, with the upper limit of a normal range being 250 pg/ml. The patient was treated with octreotide, and showed an improvement of the skin eruption with normalization of the glucagon level within 4 weeks.
Anemia ; Diarrhea ; Epidermis ; Glossitis ; Glucagon ; Glucagonoma* ; Glucose Intolerance ; Humans ; Lower Extremity ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Necrolytic Migratory Erythema* ; Necrosis ; Octreotide ; Reference Values ; Skin ; Weight Loss

Direct coronal CT scans of the body have been carried out in 78 cases of the thoracic and abdnominal diseases. The results are as follows: 1. Among total 78 patients, 66 cases were successfully scanned by the direct coronal CT. 2. Direct co ronal CT scan most accurately detected retroperitoneal diseases, especially renal diseases. 3. In comparison with multiplanar reformating (MPR) image, direct coronal CT of the body has three advantages: (a) improved image quality: (b) improved definition of the coronal anatomy : (c) shorter examination time. 4. Direct coronal CT has advantages in evaluation of the mass nature and relationship with other organs. 5. Disadvantages or limitations of the direct coronal CT are as follows: in creased radiation exposure and insufficient positioning for disabled patients. 6. In our experience, direct coronal CT is considered as helpful method for presurgical evaluation and the rapeutic management of various diseases, especially gross tumor of the retroperitoneum.
Humans ; Methods ; Radiation Exposure ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed

Colorectal cancer is the third most common cause of cancer related death in the world. Multiple lines of evidence suggest that there is an association between consumption of dietary fat and colon cancer risk. Not only the amount but also the type and the ratio of fatty acids comprising dietary fats consumed have been implicated in the etiology and pathogenesis of colon cancer. Omega-3 (n-3) polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), such as docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), have been known to inhibit development of colon cancer by downregulating the expression of genes involved in colon carcinogenesis and also by altering the membrane lipid composition. Data from laboratory, epidemiological, and clinical studies substantiate the beneficial role of n-3 PUFAs in preventing colitis and subsequent development of colon cancer. In addition, recent studies suggest that some n-3 PUFAs can be effective as an adjuvant with chemotherapeutic agents and other natural anticancer compounds in the management of colon cancer. In this review, we discuss chemopreventive and therapeutic effects of fish oil derived long chain n-3 PUFAs, particularly EPA and DHA, with focus on synergetic effects of which they exert when combined with chemotherapeutic agents and other natural compounds.
Carcinogenesis* ; Colitis ; Colon* ; Colonic Neoplasms ; Colorectal Neoplasms ; Dietary Fats ; Eicosapentaenoic Acid ; Fatty Acids ; Fatty Acids, Omega-3 ; Fatty Acids, Unsaturated* ; Fish Oils* ; Membranes ; Therapeutic Uses

OBJECTIVE: To localize the site of motor points within human biceps brachii muscles through surface mapping using electrophysiological method. METHOD: We recorded the compound muscle action potentials of each lattice of the biceps brachii in 40 healthy subjects. Standardized reference lines were made as the following: 1) a horizontal reference line (elbow crease) and 2) a vertical reference line connecting coracoid process and mid-point of the horizontal reference line. The Compound muscle action potentials were mapped in reference to the standardized reference lines. The locations of motor points were mapped to the skin surface, in the ratio to the length of the vertical and the half of the horizontal reference lines. RESULTS: The motor point of the short head of biceps was located at 69.0+/-4.9% distal and 19.1+/-9.5% medial to the mid-point of horizontal reference line. The location of the motor point of the long head of the biceps was 67.3+/-4.3% distal and 21.4+/-8.7% lateral. The motor point of the short head of the biceps was located more medially and distally in the male subjects compared to that in the female (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: This study showed electrophysiological motor points of the biceps brachii muscles through surface mapping. This data might improve the clinical efficacy and the feasibility of motor point targeting, when injecting botulinum neurotoxin in biceps brachii.
Action Potentials ; Botulinum Toxins ; Female ; Head ; Humans ; Male ; Muscles ; Skin