No abstract available.
Nails*

Joint cartilage defects do nor heal and lead to post traumatic arthritis or degenerative joint diseases. The clinical problem is that so far, we have been unable to induce true cartilage healing and regeneration. Experimental attempts at repairing joint cartilage defects with various means have usually led to the formation of cartilage-like fibro-hyaline scars. We have recently shown that treatment of lyophilized allografts with recombinant osteoinductive protein-1 (OP-1 also known as BMP 7) induces the regeneration of articular cartilage over the head of lyophilized hemijoint allografts. A standardized 3 mm circular defect was created on the articular surface of the knee joint of 12 NZW rabbits. The defect was into carried as full thickness down to subchondral bone. In a blinded and randomized fashion, the rabbits were divided into four groups. In group l (n=4), the ulcer was left untreated; in group II (n=3), the ulcer was reconstructed with a 3 mm disk of lyophilized cartilage allograft; in group lll(n=2), the allograft used was pre-treated with low dose (20 pg) OP-1, and in group IV (n=3), the allograft used was pre-treated with high dose(100 pg) OP-1. The range of motion was normal in all groups. The gross appearance of the untreated defect was still depressed and appeared like a big crater. The lyophilized allograft has a level surface which was not smooth In high dose OP-1 group, the defect was healed much better than the lower dose treated OP-1 group. Under the histologic examination, untreated ulcer group never heals to the cartilage of around defect, a fissure always remains. Lyophilized allograft and low dose OP-1 treated lyophilized allograft groups seem to inhibit healing and there is fibrous scar in ulcer. In the high dose OP-1 treated lyophilized allograft group, new cartilage heals very well all around of the defect margin without fissure. The cartilage has a normal sequence of cellular maturation. In conclusion, in this study of full thickness joint cartilage defects, we confirmed finding in the literature that untreated defect heals with cartilage like tissue which does not fuse with the surrounding cartilage. We found that lyophilized allograft prevents healing of defect, while lyophilized allograft treated with high dose (100 pg) OP-1 seems to induce regeneration of articular cartilage that heals very well to the surrounding defect without any crack or fissure.
Allografts* ; Arthritis ; Cartilage* ; Cartilage, Articular* ; Cicatrix ; Head ; Joint Diseases ; Joints ; Knee Joint ; Rabbits ; Range of Motion, Articular ; Regeneration ; Ulcer

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to investigate working time of nurses in urban public health center branch, especially for nurses for visiting health service and chronic disease management. METHOD: Daily note, which was developed by this research team, was distributed to nurses at 7 urban public health center branches to be filled out them for 2 weeks during 2 month from June 2007 to August 2007. We analyzed 121 daily notes recorded by visiting nurses and 65 daily notes written by chronic disease management nurses were analyzed. RESULTS: The total working time for visiting nurses at urban public health center branches was 589.85 minutes per day on the average. They spent 147.13 min in actual visiting nursing services, 149.36 min in documenting, 66.94 in preparing, 77.69 min in transferring, and 11.84 min in referring. The total working time for chronic disease management nurses at urban public health center branches was 582.92 minutes per day on the average. They spent 148.77 min in actual chronic disease management services, 120.62 min in documenting, 42.46 min in group education, 37.38 in preparing, and 10.38 min in referring. CONCLUSION: Based on the results of this study, it is recommended to improve documenting systems and to increase community resources linkage were recommended through the results of this study. The results of this study are expected to be used to plan staffing at urban public health center branches in the future.
Chronic Disease* ; Education ; Health Services* ; Korea ; Nurses, Community Health ; Nurses, Public Health ; Nursing Services ; Public Health*

Inappropriate antibiotic use is the most important factor causing increased bacterial resistance to antibiotics, thus affecting patient outcomes. Multidrug-resistant bacteria have become a serious public health threat, causing significant morbidity and mortality worldwide. In Korea, the burden of antibiotic-resistant bacteria has become an important public health issue. There is increasing evidence of overuse and misuse of antibiotics in Korea, as observed in cohorts with large sample sizes. Antibiotic use among children should receive particular attention because of the frequency of community-associated infections among this population and the elevated risk of transmission. Recent studies from Korea have demonstrated that the use of broad-spectrum antibiotics, either for inpatient or outpatient treatment, has increased among many age groups, especially children. In this review, we aim to describe the patterns of antibiotic prescription and evaluate recent trends in antibiotic use among children. Coordinated efforts toward communication and education in order to address misunderstandings regarding antibiotic use, involving interprofessional antimicrobial stewardship programs, are required in the near future.
Anti-Bacterial Agents ; Bacteria ; Child ; Cohort Studies ; Education ; Humans ; Inpatients ; Korea ; Mortality ; Outpatients ; Prescriptions ; Public Health ; Sample Size

Public interventions have shown to optimize the use of antibiotics in children with acute otitis media (AOM). In this study, we describe the AOM-related antibiotic use among children in South Korea using national cohort data. We retrieved the Health Insurance Review & Assessment Service data to construct a national cohort of children aged 0–6 years who had been diagnosed with AOM between 2012 and 2018. Of 25,212,264 children included, the antibiotic prescription has increased for amoxicillin/amoxicillin-clavulanate from 56.1% in 2012 to 61.8% in 2018. Prescription has decreased for cephalosporin (35.1% in 2012 to 31.8% in 2018) and macrolide (8.7% in 2012 to 6.4% in 2018). National cohort data have shown an increased trend in AOM-related aminopenicillin prescription and downward trend cephalosporin and macrolide use in South Korea. A multi-faceted approach is required to control the antimicrobial resistance at a population level.

OBJECTIVES: Recent evidence has shown no harm associated with the use of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs) or angiotensin-receptor blockers (ARBs) in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). We sought to further clarify the possible association between ACEI/ARB use and the risk of poor clinical outcomes of COVID-19. METHODS: From the completely enumerated COVID-19 cohort in Korea, we identified 1,290 patients with hypertension, of whom 682 had and 603 did not have records of ACEI/ARB use during the 30-day period before their COVID-19 diagnosis. Our primary endpoint comprised clinical outcomes, including all-cause mortality, use of mechanical ventilation, intensive care unit admission, and sepsis. We used inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW) to mitigate selection bias, and a Poisson regression model to estimate the relative risks (RRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for comparing outcomes between ACEI/ARB users and non-users. RESULTS: Compared to non-use, ACEI/ARB use was associated with lower clinical outcomes (IPTW-adjusted RR, 0.60; 95% CI, 0.42 to 0.85; p=0.005). For individual outcomes, ACEI/ARB use was not associated with all-cause mortality (IPTW-adjusted RR, 0.62; 95% CI, 0.35 to 1.09; p=0.097) or respiratory events (IPTW-adjusted RR, 0.99; 95% CI, 0.84 to 1.17; p=0.904). Subgroup analysis showed a trend toward a protective role of ACEIs and ARBs against overall outcomes in men (IPTW-adjusted RR, 0.84; 95% CI, 0.69 to 1.03; pinteraction=0.008) and patients with pre-existing respiratory disease (IPTW-adjusted RR, 0.74; 95% CI, 0.60 to 0.92; pinteraction=0.002). CONCLUSIONS We present clinical evidence to support continuing ACE/ARB use in COVID-19 patients with hypertension based on the completely enumerated Korean cohort.

OBJECTIVES: Recent evidence has shown no harm associated with the use of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs) or angiotensin-receptor blockers (ARBs) in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). We sought to further clarify the possible association between ACEI/ARB use and the risk of poor clinical outcomes of COVID-19. METHODS: From the completely enumerated COVID-19 cohort in Korea, we identified 1,290 patients with hypertension, of whom 682 had and 603 did not have records of ACEI/ARB use during the 30-day period before their COVID-19 diagnosis. Our primary endpoint comprised clinical outcomes, including all-cause mortality, use of mechanical ventilation, intensive care unit admission, and sepsis. We used inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW) to mitigate selection bias, and a Poisson regression model to estimate the relative risks (RRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for comparing outcomes between ACEI/ARB users and non-users. RESULTS: Compared to non-use, ACEI/ARB use was associated with lower clinical outcomes (IPTW-adjusted RR, 0.60; 95% CI, 0.42 to 0.85; p=0.005). For individual outcomes, ACEI/ARB use was not associated with all-cause mortality (IPTW-adjusted RR, 0.62; 95% CI, 0.35 to 1.09; p=0.097) or respiratory events (IPTW-adjusted RR, 0.99; 95% CI, 0.84 to 1.17; p=0.904). Subgroup analysis showed a trend toward a protective role of ACEIs and ARBs against overall outcomes in men (IPTW-adjusted RR, 0.84; 95% CI, 0.69 to 1.03; pinteraction=0.008) and patients with pre-existing respiratory disease (IPTW-adjusted RR, 0.74; 95% CI, 0.60 to 0.92; pinteraction=0.002). CONCLUSIONS We present clinical evidence to support continuing ACE/ARB use in COVID-19 patients with hypertension based on the completely enumerated Korean cohort.

We experienced a case of clipping of an intracranial aneurysm of a 63 year old male with a subarachnoid hemorrhage under general anesthesia. Preoperative electrocardiography showed complete Left Bundle Block (LBBB) without subjective symptoms. Among the intraventricular blocks, bundle branch block is the most common type and in particular, complete LBBB may progress to the more serious condition of complete heart block. Consideration of anesthetic management in such patients requires a knowledge of normal cardiac physiology, neurophysiology, the circulatory effects of various anesthetic agents and the pathophysiology of these diseases, to prevent any hypertension in response to intubation and surgery. We report upon the anesthetic management of a patient for clipping of an intracranial aneurysm with complete LBBB, which was performed successfully without complication.
Anesthesia, General ; Anesthetics ; Bundle-Branch Block* ; Electrocardiography ; Heart Block ; Humans ; Hypertension ; Intracranial Aneurysm* ; Intubation ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Neurophysiology ; Physiology ; Subarachnoid Hemorrhage

PURPOSE: The gender difference of neurally mediated syncope is not well defined in a large patient population. The aim of this study was to evaluate the gender difference of clinical manifestations in patients with neurally mediated syncope who underwent head-up tilt test. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The medical records of 1,051 consecutive patients with two or more episodes of syncope, who were diagnosed as having neurally mediated syncope by head-up tilt test, were retrospectively reviewed. RESULTS: Of 1,051 patients, 497 (47.3%) patients were male and 554 (52.7%) patients were female. Female patients were experiencing syncopal episodes for longer periods of their lives (8.2 +/- 9.5 years vs. 6.8 +/- 9.2 years, p = 0.002) and more episodes of syncope prior to head-up tilt test (HUT) (7.2 +/- 9.4 vs. 5.0 +/- 6.4, p = 0.001) than male patients. Micturition syncope (20.0% vs. 5.2%, p < 0.001) was observed more frequently in male patients than in female patients. To the contrary, however, defecation syncope (16.3% vs. 9.3%, p < 0.001) was observed more frequently in female patients than in male patients. CONCLUSION: Female patients were experiencing syncopal episodes for longer periods of their lives and more episodes of syncope than male patients. Gender difference was also noted with regard to frequency of situational syncope.