We would like to correct the affiliation for the first author.

No abstract available.
Esophagus*

PURPOSE: To determine the locations and incidences of sesamoids and accessory bones of the forefoot in normal Korean adults. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The plain radiographs of the forefoot of 400 volunteers, 200 males and 200 females, were taken. The three orthopedic surgeons participated in the radiographic evaluation independently. Persons who had history of foot problem or injury were excluded. RESULTS: Sesamoids of first metatarsophalangeal joint were nearly always present; medial 99% and lateral 100%. The bipartite sesamoid was more common in medial (9.8%) and in female (17.0%) than in lateral (0.3%) and in male (2.5%). Sesamoids of the interphalangeal joint of the first toe were seen in 35.8%. Sesamoids of metatarsophalangeal joints in other four toes were rarely observed. Their incidences were 5% in second toe, 0.8% in third, 0% in fourth, and 2.8% (lateral) and 7.5% (medial) in fifth. Sesamoids of interphalangeal joint in four lesser toes were not observed except two cases (0.5%) in the fifth toe. Accessory bone was very rarely observed. Os vesalianum was observed in five feet (1.3%), Os intermetatarseum in 14 feet (3.5%), and Os cuneo-metatarsal I tibiale in none. CONCLUSION: We determined the location and incidences of sesamoids and accessory bones of the forefoot, and we expected this to help to diagnose the forefoot problem.
Adult* ; Female ; Foot ; Humans ; Incidence ; Joints ; Male ; Metatarsophalangeal Joint ; Orthopedics ; Toes ; Volunteers

PURPOSE: To determine the locations and incidences of sesamoids and accessory bones of the forefoot in normal Korean adults. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The plain radiographs of the forefoot of 400 volunteers, 200 males and 200 females, were taken. The three orthopedic surgeons participated in the radiographic evaluation independently. Persons who had history of foot problem or injury were excluded. RESULTS: Sesamoids of first metatarsophalangeal joint were nearly always present; medial 99% and lateral 100%. The bipartite sesamoid was more common in medial (9.8%) and in female (17.0%) than in lateral (0.3%) and in male (2.5%). Sesamoids of the interphalangeal joint of the first toe were seen in 35.8%. Sesamoids of metatarsophalangeal joints in other four toes were rarely observed. Their incidences were 5% in second toe, 0.8% in third, 0% in fourth, and 2.8% (lateral) and 7.5% (medial) in fifth. Sesamoids of interphalangeal joint in four lesser toes were not observed except two cases (0.5%) in the fifth toe. Accessory bone was very rarely observed. Os vesalianum was observed in five feet (1.3%), Os intermetatarseum in 14 feet (3.5%), and Os cuneo-metatarsal I tibiale in none. CONCLUSION: We determined the location and incidences of sesamoids and accessory bones of the forefoot, and we expected this to help to diagnose the forefoot problem.
Adult* ; Female ; Foot ; Humans ; Incidence ; Joints ; Male ; Metatarsophalangeal Joint ; Orthopedics ; Toes ; Volunteers

Along with the enactment of a law separating the prescribing and dispensing of drugs in Korea in 2000, attempts at reducing medical expenses by generic substitution have been allowed since August 2001 so long as generic products are bioequivalent to the original products. In the pharmaceutical industry, the required development and investment to make generic products are much less in terms of time and money. Thus, the number of bioequivalence studies in Korea has increased. This has resulted in the need for bioequivalence recommendations (guidelines), taking into account the circumstances of the Korean pharmaceutical industry. In this paper, we provide procedures for making bioequivalence determinations for individual products acting on the circulatory system (30 drugs, 2011), the components of which are widely accepted for the development of generic products in Korea. These recommendations correspond with international guidelines, such as those of the US FDA and EMEA. For the 30 drugs that act on the circulatory system, we examined each in terms of subject selection (healthy volunteers vs. patients), dosage strength, dosage route, analytes to measure, and evaluation parameters, and prepared bioequivalence recommendations for individual products through an analysis of many published papers, US FDA and EMEA guidelines, and clinical trial websites. Based on the bioequivalence recommendations for individual products, we had several meetings in which KFDA officers (members of the New Drug Research team and the Office of Generic Drugs), three pharmacy professors with expertise in drug analysis and pharmacokinetics, and three professors of medicine with extensive experience in clinical trials participated to confirm and discuss the contents. Finally, the bioequivalence recommendations for individual products were provided on the KFDA website. The individual bioequivalence recommendations have been used by KFDA officers in drug evaluations and bioequivalency testing to improve consistency, clarity, and professionalism in the drug evaluation process. These recommendations will be useful for domestic pharmaceutical companies by shortening the time and cost associated with bioequivalence studies, especially in terms of standardized trial designs, dosage forms, and analytical methods.
Dosage Forms ; Drug Evaluation ; Drug Industry ; Drug Substitution ; Drugs, Generic ; Investments ; Jurisprudence ; Korea ; Pharmacy ; Therapeutic Equivalency

BACKGROUND: The treatment goal for patients with chronic hepatitis B infection is to prevent progression of the disease to cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. Current therapies include standard and pegylated interferon-alfa and nucleoside/nucleotide analogues: lamivudine, adefovir, entecavir, telbivudine, clevudine, and tenofovir. This study aims to analyze changes in the prescribing patterns of chronic hepatitis B (CHB) medications in South Korea between 2013 and 2014. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted using National Patients Sample data compiled by the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service from 2013 and 2014. Patients with CHB were identified with Korean Standard Classification of Diseases code-6 (B18.0 and B18.1) and those who were maintaining active prescriptions with CHB medications covering the index date (December 1(st), each year) were included. The utilization of antiviral therapy was investigated during 2013 and 2014. RESULTS: A total of 4,204 and 4,552 patients in 2013 and 2014 respectively, were included in the analysis. The proportion of male patients was two of third and the patients 41-60 years old accounted for 60% of all analyzed patients. The most utilized drug was entecavir (55.1% in 2013 and 44.8% in 2014) and the second most utilized drug was tenofovir in both years (18.8% in 2013 and 29.0% in 2014). The percentage of combination therapy was 13.6% and 13.1% in 2013 and 2014, respectively. The proportion of tenofovir prescriptions was increased in 2014 compared with 2013. CONCLUSION: With the development of new drugs and the changes in clinical practice guidelines, the prescription pattern of the antiviral agents for patients with CHB has changed. The rate of utilization of tenofovir has increased.
Antiviral Agents ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular ; Classification ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Drug Utilization* ; Fibrosis ; Hepatitis B, Chronic* ; Hepatitis, Chronic* ; Humans ; Insurance, Health ; Korea ; Lamivudine ; Male ; Prescriptions ; Tenofovir

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the antibacterial effect of tea tree oil in denture cleaners. A self-curing denture resin was used to make the experimental specimen (12 mm×2 mm). A saline solution was used as the control. To observe surface changes after cleaning, the microhardness and color of the experimental specimen's surface were analyzed. For the antibacterial activity test, Candida albicans was used. The microhardness and color of the surface remained unchanged after cleaning. The result of the antibacterial activity test revealed that the tea tree oil-containing solutions had a more enhanced antibacterial effect than did the saline solution. Therefore, these results suggest that the tea tree oil-containing solution is a promising denture cleaners.
Candida albicans ; Dentures* ; Sodium Chloride ; Tea Tree Oil ; Tea* ; Trees*

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the correlation of multifidus muscle atrophy on MRI findings with clinical findings in low back pain patients. METHOD: Medical records of 80 patients presenting with low back pain were retrospectively reviewed. Their MR images were visually analysed to know lumbar multifidus muscle atrophy, disc herniation, disc degeneration, spinal stenosis and nerve root compression. RESULTS: Multifidus muscle atrophy increased from the upper lumbar level to the most caudal intervertebral level. It was bilateral in the majority of the cases. Multifidus muscle atrophy was well correlated with patient's age, referred leg pain, and disc degeneration. However, duration of low back pain, disc herniation, spinal stenosis, nerve root compression, sex, weight, height and BMI had no correlation with multifidus muscle atrophy. CONCLUSION: Examination of multifidus muscle atrophy should be considered when assessing MR images of lumbar spine. It may help for further evaluation and planning the treatment modalities of low back pain.
Atrophy* ; Humans ; Intervertebral Disc Degeneration ; Leg ; Low Back Pain* ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Medical Records ; Muscular Atrophy ; Paraspinal Muscles* ; Radiculopathy ; Retrospective Studies ; Spinal Stenosis ; Spine

Recently, it is reported that intervention of oral nutritional supplement improves the nutritional status of cancer patients, and the effectiveness is affected by the sensory preference of cancer patients on the oral nutritional supplement. However, the variety of oral nutritional supplement is extremely limited and the number of patient's benefits from using the products are restricted mostly due to sensory dislikes. The objective of this study was to provide sensory preference score of trial manufactured products with different accessory ingredients to maximize the use of oral nutritional supplements. Cancer patients (n = 30) and age, sex-matched healthy volunteers (n = 30) participated in the sensory assessments (taste, flavor, viscosity, color and overall preference) of three types of oral supplements (cereal base, cereal base+herb and cereal base+fruit) and a control supplement product with scorched cereal flavor, a top seller in current Korean market. Results indicate that the cancer patients' overall preference was significantly higher for the control supplement, and fruit added supplement was preferred over plain cereal and herb added products, although the difference was insignificant. However, there was no significant preference difference for the supplements among the control group for all sensory factors. These results suggest that cancer patients are more sensitive to sensory preferences compared to the control group, and the patients prefer the flavor of cooked cereal which is a staple food in Korea.
Edible Grain* ; Fruit ; Healthy Volunteers ; Humans ; Korea ; Nutritional Status ; Viscosity

Transforming growth factor (TGF)-beta1 is a key cytokine producing extracellular matrix. We evaluated the effect of TGF-beta1 gene polymorphism at codon 10 on the development of cirrhosis in patients with chronic hepatitis B. One hundred seventy eight patients with chronic hepatitis (CH, n=57) or liver cirrhosis (LC, n=121), who had HBsAg and were over 50 yr old, were enrolled. The genotypes were determined by single strand conformation polymorphism. There were no significant differences in age and sex ratio between CH and LC groups. HBeAg positivity and detection rate of HBV DNA were higher in LC than in CH groups (P=0.055 and P=0.003, respectively). There were three types of TGF-beta1 gene polymorphism at codon 10: proline homozygous (P/P), proline/leucine heterozygous (P/L), and leucine homozygous (L/L) genotype. In CH group, the proportions of P/P, P/L, and L/L genotype were 32%, 51%, and 17%, respectively. In LC group, the proportions of those genotypes were 20%, 47%, and 33%, respectively. The L/L genotype was presented more frequently in LC than in CH groups (P=0.017). Multivariate logistic regression analysis confirms that detectable HBV DNA (odds ratio [OR]: 3.037, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.504-6.133, P=0.002) and L/L genotype (OR: 3.408, 95% CI: 1.279-9.085, P=0.014) are risk factors for cirrhosis.
Aged ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group/genetics ; *Carrier State ; *Codon ; Female ; Genetic Predisposition to Disease ; Genotype ; Hepatitis B virus/genetics ; *Hepatitis B, Chronic/genetics/virology ; Humans ; *Liver Cirrhosis/genetics/virology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Odds Ratio ; *Polymorphism, Genetic ; Risk Factors ; Transforming Growth Factor beta1/*genetics