PURPOSE: This study aimed to identify factors affecting the use of the hearing protection devices (HPDs) among workers exposed to noise using the Pender Health Promotion Model. METHODS: The 222 subjects came from thermal power plants with similar noise levels, which are between 80 dB and 90 dB in South Korea. Data were collected with self-administered questionnaires designed to measure concepts from the Health Promotion Model. RESULTS: Mean percent times of using the HPDs at their most recent job site were 50.9%, and 20.3% had never the HPDs. The predictors of HPD use were social modeling (OR = 1.380), perceived benefits (OR = 1.150), and working at noisy worksites (OR = 4.925) when the outcome was based on the "non-use" versus "used at least once". However, the predictors of HPD use were social modeling (OR = 1.795) and perceived benefits (OR = 1.139) based on the "less than half-of-the-time-use" versus "more than half-of-the-time-use". CONCLUSION: Social modeling and perceived benefits of using the HPDs are important for workers to keep minimal or certain level of using the HPDs.
Ear Protective Devices ; Health Promotion ; Hearing ; Noise ; Porphyrins ; Power Plants ; Republic of Korea ; Workplace ; Surveys and Questionnaires

Mitochondrial deficits or altered expressions of microRNAs are associated with the pathogenesis of various diseases, and microRNA-operated control of mitochondrial activity has been reported. Using a retrovirus-mediated short-hairpin RNA (shRNA) system, we observed that miR-24-mediated H2AX knockdown (H2AX-KD) impaired both mitochondria and the insulin signaling pathway. The overexpression of miR-24 decreased mitochondrial H2AX and disrupted mitochondrial function, as indicated by the ATP content, membrane potential and oxygen consumption. Similar mitochondrial damage was observed in shH2AX-mediated specific H2AX-KD cells. The H2AX-KD reduced the expression levels of mitochondrial transcription factor A (TFAM) and mitochondrial DNA-dependent transcripts. H2AX-KD mitochondria were swollen, and their cristae were destroyed. H2AX-KD also blocked the import of precursor proteins into mitochondria and the insulin-stimulated phosphorylation of IRS-1 (Y632) and Akt (S473 and T308). The rescue of H2AX, but not the nuclear form of ΔC24-H2AX, restored all features of miR-24- or shH2AX-mediated impairment of mitochondria. Hepatic miR-24 levels were significantly increased in db/db and ob/ob mice. A strong feedback loop may be present among miR-24, H2AX, mitochondria and the insulin signaling pathway. Our findings suggest that H2AX-targeting miR-24 may be a novel negative regulator of mitochondrial function and is implicated in the pathogenesis of insulin resistance.
Adenosine Triphosphate ; Animals ; Insulin Resistance ; Insulin* ; Membrane Potentials ; Mice ; MicroRNAs ; Mitochondria* ; Oxygen Consumption ; Phosphorylation ; RNA ; Transcription Factors

Objectives: ：This study evaluated the medical communication skills of trainee doctors and analyzed the relationship between medical communication skills, self-efficacy on clinical performance (SECP) and empathy. Methods: ：A total of 106 trainee doctors from a university hospital participated. The questionnaire comprised self-evaluated medical communication skills, modified SECP and the Korean version of the Jefferson Scale of Empathy-Health Professionals version. The mean difference in medical communication skills scores according to gender, age, division (intern, internal medicine group or surgery group) and position (intern, first-/second- and third-/fourth-year residents) were analyzed. Pearson correlation coefficients were determined between medical communication skills, modified SECP and empathy. The effects of each variable on medical communication skills were verified using the structural equation model. Results: ：There were no statistically significant mean differences in self-evaluated medical communication skills according to gender, age, division or position. Medical communication skills had a significant positive correlation with modified SECP (r=0.782, p<0.001) and empathy (r=0.210, p=0.038). Empathy had a direct effect on modified SECP (β=0.30, p<0.01) and modified SECP had a direct effect on medical communication skills (β=0.80, p<0.001). Empathy indirectly influenced medical communication skills, mediating modified SECP (β=0.26, p<0.05). Conclusions ：Medical communication skills are an important core curriculum of residency programs, as they have a direct correlation with SECP, which is needed for successful treatment. Moreover, the medical communication needs a new understanding that is out of empathy.

BACKGROUND: The characterization of progenitor/keratinocyte stem cells (KSC) remains an unachieved goal. A previous study showed that rapid adhering cells to collagen IV had the characteristics of putative progenitor/KSCs. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to investigate the genetic expression of rapid adhering cells compared to non adhering cells to determine the characteristic of KSCs. METHODS: We isolated rapid adhering cells representative of KSCs from non adhering cells representative of transient amplifying cells. In addition, we differentiated cells from human tonsilar keratinocytes utilizing the adhering capability of the KSCs to collagen IV. Annealing control primer based differentially displayed polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was performed as well as Western blot analysis. RESULTS: The levels of mitochondria-related gene expression were low in the rapid adhering cells compared to the non adhering cells. Mitochondrial complex I, COX IV, peroxiredoxins (I, II and IV) and mitochondrial membrane potential were all low in the rapid adhering cells compared to the non adhering cells. CONCLUSION: Using an adhesion method on human collagen IV-coated plates, our results suggest that reduced mitochondrial function may be an important characteristic of KSCs.
Blotting, Western ; Collagen ; Gene Expression ; Humans ; Keratinocytes ; Membrane Potential, Mitochondrial ; Mitochondria ; Peroxiredoxins ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Stem Cells

OBJECTIVE: Several studies have reported that ethnic differences influence psychiatric diagnoses. Some previous studies reported that African Americans and Hispanics are diagnosed with schizophrenia spectrum disorders more frequently than Caucasians, and that Caucasians are more likely to be diagnosed with affective disorders than other ethnic groups. We sought to identify associations between sociodemographic factors and psychiatric diagnosis. METHODS: We retrospectively examined the medical records of all psychiatric inpatients (ages over 18 years) treated at Kern county mental hospital (n=2,051) between July 2003 and March 2007 for demographic, clinical information, and discharge diagnoses. RESULTS: African American and Hispanic males were more frequently diagnosed with schizophrenia spectrum disorders than Caucasians, whereas Caucasian females were more frequently diagnosed with affective disorders than females in the other ethnic groups, suggesting that patient ethnicity and gender may influence clinical diagnoses. Demographic variables, that is, a lower education, failure of marriage, homelessness, and low quality insurance, were found to be significantly associated with a diagnosis of schizophrenia spectrum disorders after adjusting for clinical variables. And, the presence of a family psychiatric history, failure of marriage, not-homelessness, and quality insurance were found to be associated with a diagnosis of affective disorders. CONCLUSION: Our results show that these demographic factors, including ethnicity, have effects on diagnoses in psychiatric inpatients. Furthermore, these variables may help prediction of psychiatric diagnoses.
African Americans ; Demography ; Ethnic Groups ; Female ; Hispanic Americans ; Homeless Persons ; Hospitals, Psychiatric ; Humans ; Inpatients ; Insurance ; Male ; Marriage ; Medical Records ; Mental Disorders ; Mood Disorders ; Retrospective Studies ; Schizophrenia

Peroxisome proliferator activated receptor (PPAR) gamma coactivator-1alpha (PGC-1alpha) may be implicated in cholesterol metabolism since PGC-1alpha co-activates estrogen receptor alpha (ERalpha) transactivity and estrogen/ERalpha induces the transcription of LDL receptor (LDLR). Here, we show that overexpression of PGC-1alpha in HepG2 cells represses the gene expression of LDLR and does not affect the ERalpha-induced LDLR expression. PGC-1alpha suppressed the LDLR promoter-luciferase (pLR1563-luc) activity regardless of cholesterol or functional sterol-regulatory element-1. Serial deletions of the LDLR promoter revealed that the inhibition by PGC-1alpha required the LDLR promoter regions between -650 bp and -974 bp. Phosphorylation of PGC-1alpha may not affect the suppression of LDLR expression because treatment of SB202190, a p38 MAP kinase inhibitor, did not reverse the LDLR down-regulation by PGC-1alpha. This may be the first report showing the repressive function of PGC-1alpha on gene expression. PGC-1alpha might be a novel modulator of LDLR gene expression in a sterol-independent manner, and implicated in atherogenesis.
Base Sequence ; Cell Line, Tumor ; Cholesterol/metabolism ; Estrogen Receptor alpha/metabolism ; Gene Expression Regulation ; Heat-Shock Proteins/*genetics/*metabolism ; Humans ; Molecular Sequence Data ; Promoter Regions, Genetic ; RNA, Messenger/genetics ; Receptors, LDL/*genetics/*metabolism ; Sterol Regulatory Element Binding Protein 2/metabolism ; Transcription Factors/*genetics/*metabolism ; p38 Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases/antagonists & inhibitors

Purpose: This study was done to investigate the experience of physical and emotional safety in nursing students during fundamentals of nursing practicum. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted from March to September 2019. A total of 553 nursing students, who had completed fundamental nursing laboratories, participated in this study. Data were collected using self-report questionnaires which included questions about general characteristics, physical and emotional safety during fundamental nursing laboratories along with an informed consent given prior to the practicum. Results: Of the students, 26 experienced physical safety accidents, and 18 reported emotional safety accidents. Students' mean stress score for physical safety was 1.95, and the mean score for emotional safety was 1.92. Of the students, more than 59.1% agreed to volunteer as practice models in certain nursing procedures’ training. Of the students, 55.8% were satisfied with using their bodies to train fundamental nursing skills. 61.8% of students reported that informed consent was obtained during the nursing laboratory, and 88.6% of students thought that informed consent needs to be obtained. Conclusion To prevent safety accidents during the fundamentals of nursing practicum and systematically manage accidents, standardized safety guidelines for nursing practicum should be developed. Establishing various training strategies using advanced models or simulators to increase education efficiency and satisfaction is necessary.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to investigate the safety of nursing students during fundamentals of nursing practicum in Korea. METHODS: This study used a descriptive design. A total of 106 nursing instructors teaching fundamentals of nursing longer than one year participated in this study. Data were collected using self-report questionnaires from July 24 to August 28, 2018. The questionnaires consisted of general characteristics, characteristics of fundamentals of nursing course, physical and emotional safety issues during fundamentals of nursing practicum, and obtaining an informed consent prior to practicum. RESULTS: The average number of physical safety accidents during practicum of fundamentals of nursing in the past 5 years was 1.12±2.44. The most common safety accident was punctured wound. The mean score of the participants' stress on physical safety accidents was 3.53±1.12 out of 5. The average number of emotional safety accidents of fundamentals of nursing practicum in the past 5 years was 1.05±2.72. The mean score of stress on emotional safety accident was 3.00±1.09 out of 5. We found that 47.2% of the participants obtained an oral consent or a written consent for safety of fundamentals of nursing practicum. CONCLUSION: The results of this study indicate that it is necessary to establish safety strategies for fundamentals of nursing practicum for nursing students.
Human Body ; Humans ; Informed Consent ; Korea ; Nursing ; Students, Nursing ; Wounds and Injuries

Gender differences in aggression viewed from an evolutionary and sociocultural perspective have traditionally explained why men engage in more direct and physical aggression, and women engage in more indirect and relational aggression. However, psychological and behavioral studies offer inconsistent support for this theory due to personal or social factors, and little is known about the gender-based neurobiological mechanisms of aggression. This study investigates gender differences in aggression through an analysis of electroencephalography (EEG) and electrocardiography (ECG) based neurobiological responses to commonly encountered stimuli, as well as psychological approaches in healthy Korean youth. Our results from self-reports indicate that overall aggression indices, including physical and reactive/overt aggression, were stronger in men. This agrees with the results of previous studies. Furthermore, our study reveals prominent gender-related patterns in γ signals from the right ventrolateral frontal cortex and changes in heart rate through stimulation by aggressive videos. In particular, gender differences in EEG and ECG responses were observed in response to different scenes, as simple aversion and situation-dependent aggression, respectively. In addition, we discovered decisive gender-distinct EEG signals during stimulation of the situation-dependent aggression regions within the right ventromedial prefrontal and ventrolateral frontal regions. Our findings provide evidence of a psychological propensity for aggression and neurobiological mechanisms of oscillation underlying gender differences in aggression. Further studies of oscillatory responses to aggression and provocation will expand the objective understanding of the different emotional worlds between men and women.
Adolescent ; Aggression ; Electrocardiography* ; Electroencephalography* ; Female ; Frontal Lobe ; Heart Rate ; Humans ; Male

Vasomotor symptoms (VMS), such as hot flashes and night sweating, are classic menopausal symptoms experienced by a majority of perimenopausal and postmenopausal women. VMS have received a great deal of attention due to their relationship with cardiometabolic risk. Further, accumulating evidence indicates that VMS are associated with an increased risk of several chronic diseases, including metabolic syndrome, type 2 diabetes mellitus, nonalcoholic fatty liver diseases, and osteoporosis in perimenopausal and postmenopausal women. These findings suggest VMS as biomarkers of impaired cardiometabolic conditions rather than just temporary symptoms in menopausal women, warranting further studies to confirm the casual relationship of VMS with these diseases and the exact underlying mechanism in this context.