No abstract available.
Rubella* ; Vaccination*

Synovial cysts are uncommon lesions that may occur within the spinal canal. Most commonly synovial cysts arise from degenerative apophyseal joints, in particular at the L4-5 level, and are associated with spondylolisthesis. We present one case of lumbar synovial cyst located both intraspinally and extraspinally and originated from the defect of the pars interarticularis. The content of the synovial cyst was infected. The patient progressively developed low back pain and fever. The lesion was diag nosed by computed tomography and a magnetic resonance imaging. The synovial cyst was presented a huge lobulacted intraspinal and extraspinal mass and connected with the L4-5 facet joint on the right side. The dural sac was displaced by the intraspinal mass. Relieve of symptoms was achieved with decompressive laminectomy and removal of the mass. The content of the synovial cyst was infected with Staphylococcus aureus confirmed by the synovial fluid culture. The reasons for our report are to describe the previously unreported appearance of this lesion that was huge lobulated intraspinal and extraspinal mass with infected fluid content originated from the defect of the pars interarticularis.
Fever ; Humans ; Joints ; Laminectomy ; Low Back Pain ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Nose ; Spinal Canal ; Spine* ; Spondylolisthesis ; Staphylococcus aureus ; Synovial Cyst* ; Synovial Fluid ; Zygapophyseal Joint

A preliminary study was conducted to evaluate the immediate postoperative recovery and socioeconomic efficacy with the surgical release of Carpal tunnel syndrome by double incision technique. Sixty cases of carpal tunnel syndrome were operated by one surgeon between 1993 and 1995 and 44 cases in 39 patients were available for this study. Surgery was done under axillary block and patients were evaiuated preoperatively, 3 weeks and 6 weeks each postoperatively. The evaluation was focused on the immediate recovery in terms of subjective symptoms of pain and paresthesia, local tenderness, strength of grip power and pinch power and postoperative disability. 1l was noted that surgical release of carpal tunnel syndrome utilizing double incision technique was as effective as seen in the endoscopic release in terms of quicker recovery of pain, local tenderness and strength. It was also noted that this double incision technique was as safe and economically beneficial as observed in the conventional open procedure.
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome ; Hand Strength ; Humans ; Paresthesia

The liberation period in Korea was when creative imagination and various debates existed about plans for political, economic, and social systems. Among them was the debate over the national health security underlying the social safety net. Although the US influenced the Korean health security after liberation, major political groups on the Korean peninsula also expressed various opinions. However, previous studies have shown little interest in national health security, which operates the public health and medical care systems. To overcome these limitations, this study focuses on the ideas on national health security presented by major political groups, analyzing the reply proposal of “Jŏnpyŏng” and the health care proposal of the US military government, which has not been reviewed before.
The opinions of major political groups including the right-wing Im-hyŏp and left-wing Min-chŏn diverged on national health security issue regarding insurance coverage, measures to secure financial resources, items of insurance benefits, and measures to stabilize the supply and demand of medical personnel. The claims of the US military government can be understood by “Labor Problems and Policies in Korea (Korean Subcommittee),” “Korean Labor Report (Stewart Meacham),” and “Proposed Political Platform Provisional Korean Democratic Government (Sub-commission #2).”
The major political groups and the US military government agreed on the need for social protection against death, old age, disability, disease, injury, and unemployment. All of them claimed national health security, in which the roles of the private sector and the government were mixed, should be gradually introduced. The major political groups, in particular, proposed to (1) set workers as beneficiaries of insurance, (2) share financial resources jointly among the state, employers, and workers, and (3) promote the expansion of the number of doctors and medical institutions and prefer cooperative operations of the hospitals established in small administrative units.
This paper argues that the ideas on national health security during the liberation period did not completely deviate from the global trend immediately after World War II when countries tried to expand the number of people covered by national health security and strengthen its coverage. Although these ideas were not fully reflected in the Constitution of 1948, it is significant in that the Constitution codified for the first time the state’s responsibility for those who have no ability for living due to their health conditions.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to analyze the smoking behaviors and to identify the impacts of depression, temperament, and characteristic on smoking experience in the female adolescents. METHODS: This study surveyed 691 highschool girls in the Gangwon area using self-administered questionnaires. Data were analyzed by SPSS 12.0. using Pearson correlation coefficient and multiple regression. RESULTS: The smoking rate of the highschool girls was lower than that of the national average. Depression was observed to be seriously in the highschool girls. There were a positive correlations among smoking experience, the school records and novelty seeking and a negative correlation between smoking and cooperativeness. The significant predictors of smoking experience were the type of school, the satisfaction with school, the school records, novelty seeking, reward dependence and cooperativeness. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that femalel adolescents who have the factors identified in this study are considered to have the potential for smoking. These results provide the basis for developing smoking prevention and cessation programs.
Adolescent* ; Depression* ; Female ; Gangwon-do ; Humans ; Reward ; Smoke* ; Smoking* ; Temperament* ; Surveys and Questionnaires

We experienced a case of primary hepatic actinomycosis which was initially diagnosed by means of fine needle aspiration. The patient was a 31-year-old emaciated man with a 2-month history of 10 kg weight loss, right upper quadrant pain and flank pain. The liver was palpable and tender on physical examination. Computerized tomography scan of the liver showed two ill-defined hypodense masses in gallbladder fossa and inferior pole of right lobe. Hepatocellular carcinoma was clinically suspected. A CT-guided fine needle aspiration was performed. Microscopically, smears showed numerous radiating clusters of filamentous bacteria with many neutrophils and monocytes in necrotic background. The symptoms were improved by incision and drainage and massive administration of penicillin.
Actinomycosis ; Adult ; Bacteria ; Biopsy, Fine-Needle ; Breast ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular ; Diverticulum* ; Drainage ; Fibroadenoma ; Flank Pain ; Gallbladder ; Humans ; Infarction ; Liver ; Monocytes ; Neutrophils ; Penicillins ; Physical Examination ; Vesico-Ureteral Reflux* ; Weight Loss

No abstract available.
Pancytopenia* ; Pneumonia*

OBJECTIVES: The low benefit coverage rate of South Korea's health security system has been continually pointed out. A low benefit coverage rate inevitably causes catastrophic health expenditure, which can be the cause of the transition to poverty and the persistence of poverty. This study was conducted to ascertain the effect of catastrophic health expenditure on the transition to poverty and the persistence of poverty in South Korea. METHODS: To determine the degree of social mobility, this study was conducted among the 6311 households that participated in the South Korea Welfare Panel Study in both 2006 and 2008. The effect of catastrophic health expenditure on the transition to poverty and the persistence of poverty in South Korea was assessed via multiple logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: The poverty rate in South Korea was 21.6% in 2006 and 20.0% in 2008. 25.1 - 7.3% of the households are facing catastrophic health expenditure. Catastrophic health expenditure was found to affect the transition to poverty even after adjusting for the characteristics of the household and the head of the household, at the threshold of 28% or above. CONCLUSIONS: 25.1% of the households in this study were found to be currently facing catastrophic health expenditure, and it was determined that catastrophic health expenditure is a cause of transition to poverty. This result shows that South Korea's health security system is not an effective social safety net. As such, to prevent catastrophic health expenditure and transition to poverty, the benefit coverage of South Korea's health security system needs to the strengthened.
Aged ; Family Characteristics ; Female ; *Health Expenditures ; Housing ; Humans ; Logistic Models ; Male ; Middle Aged ; *Poverty ; Republic of Korea ; *Social Mobility ; *Social Security

Establishing social security networks for the reunification of the Koreas is important to minimize social disturbances. Above all, it is highly critical to establish a medical safety net. The non-political and humanitarian aspects of medical services may be used as a valuable tool to initiate peaceful exchanges between the two Koreas amid geopolitical tensions. It is necessary to determine principles and set up strategies in order to build medical safety net in the course of reunification. A staged approach is required. In the first phase, we need to establish a system to ensure expedited basic medical services while South Korea's medical insurance, public medical care, and emergency medical service systems are replicated in the second phase. The North Korean system then needs to be developed into a more robust medical safety net in the third phase. In order to engage in this approach successfully, it is necessary to close gaps and promote trades between the two Koreas, conduct consistent research and monitoring, and secure a professional personnel pool. Along with such efforts, it will also be necessary to coordinate other political, social, economic, and cultural policies and processes of establishing other social security nets. The successfully established medical safety net will play an important role in maximizing the benefits of reunification.
Democratic People's Republic of Korea ; Dietary Sucrose ; Emergency Medical Services ; Insurance ; Korea ; Social Security