Purpose: Transcatheter Arterial Chemoembolization (TACE) is administered repeatedly throughout all stages of liver cancer, often leading to side effects like nausea, vomiting, and retching. This study aimed to evaluate the clinical impact of P6 acupressure using Sea-Band® wristbands on these symptoms following TACE. Methods: From October 2017 to March 2018, 90 liver cancer patients were recruited from a tertiary hospital and divided into three groups: control, placebo, and P6 acupressure. The control group received standard nursing care, while the placebo group underwent SI3 acupressure on the lateral hand, and the P6 acupressure group used Sea-Band® wristbands for four days. Symptoms were measured at seven time points using Rhodes’ INVR tool. Results: Data analysis with SPSS revealed that the P6 acupressure group had significantly lower total INVR scores, as well as reduced vomiting (F=5.53, p<.001) and retching (F=3.35, p<.032) compared to the placebo and control groups. Nausea scores, however, did not show a significant difference across the groups (F=1.78, p<.090). Conclusion This study highlights that P6 acupressure is a safe, non-invasive, and cost-effective intervention that effectively reduces vomiting and retching in liver cancer patients post-TACE. It recommends incorporating this intervention into clinical practice, alongside comprehensive nursing education on symptom management.

Purpose: Transcatheter Arterial Chemoembolization (TACE) is administered repeatedly throughout all stages of liver cancer, often leading to side effects like nausea, vomiting, and retching. This study aimed to evaluate the clinical impact of P6 acupressure using Sea-Band® wristbands on these symptoms following TACE. Methods: From October 2017 to March 2018, 90 liver cancer patients were recruited from a tertiary hospital and divided into three groups: control, placebo, and P6 acupressure. The control group received standard nursing care, while the placebo group underwent SI3 acupressure on the lateral hand, and the P6 acupressure group used Sea-Band® wristbands for four days. Symptoms were measured at seven time points using Rhodes’ INVR tool. Results: Data analysis with SPSS revealed that the P6 acupressure group had significantly lower total INVR scores, as well as reduced vomiting (F=5.53, p<.001) and retching (F=3.35, p<.032) compared to the placebo and control groups. Nausea scores, however, did not show a significant difference across the groups (F=1.78, p<.090). Conclusion This study highlights that P6 acupressure is a safe, non-invasive, and cost-effective intervention that effectively reduces vomiting and retching in liver cancer patients post-TACE. It recommends incorporating this intervention into clinical practice, alongside comprehensive nursing education on symptom management.

Purpose: Transcatheter Arterial Chemoembolization (TACE) is administered repeatedly throughout all stages of liver cancer, often leading to side effects like nausea, vomiting, and retching. This study aimed to evaluate the clinical impact of P6 acupressure using Sea-Band® wristbands on these symptoms following TACE. Methods: From October 2017 to March 2018, 90 liver cancer patients were recruited from a tertiary hospital and divided into three groups: control, placebo, and P6 acupressure. The control group received standard nursing care, while the placebo group underwent SI3 acupressure on the lateral hand, and the P6 acupressure group used Sea-Band® wristbands for four days. Symptoms were measured at seven time points using Rhodes’ INVR tool. Results: Data analysis with SPSS revealed that the P6 acupressure group had significantly lower total INVR scores, as well as reduced vomiting (F=5.53, p<.001) and retching (F=3.35, p<.032) compared to the placebo and control groups. Nausea scores, however, did not show a significant difference across the groups (F=1.78, p<.090). Conclusion This study highlights that P6 acupressure is a safe, non-invasive, and cost-effective intervention that effectively reduces vomiting and retching in liver cancer patients post-TACE. It recommends incorporating this intervention into clinical practice, alongside comprehensive nursing education on symptom management.

Background: Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has spread globally, leading to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Because a significant proportion of the COVID-19 confirmed cases were concentrated in the capital metropolitan area of South Korea, and a large proportion of the population in the area had been adequately vaccinated against COVID-19, we conducted a seroprevalence surveillance study focusing on the residents of the capital metropolitan area in South Korea. Methods: We used a quota-sampling method to obtain blood samples from 1,000 individuals per round, equally stratified across seven age categories and sexes and regions, from five medical institutions located within the capital metropolitan area of South Korea. During five consecutive months (rounds) between January 2022 and May 2022, a total of 5,000 samples were analyzed for anti-spike (S) and anti-nucleocapsid (N) antibodies. Results: High anti-S seropositivity was observed in all age groups, which corresponded to the vaccine coverage during the study period. Both the cumulative incidence based on polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and the estimated seroprevalence based on anti-N seropositivity increased in the fourth and fifth rounds, which corresponded to April 2022 and May 2022. Seroprevalence coincided with the cumulative incidence during the first three rounds, but exceeded from the fourth survey onwards when infection with omicron variants was increased rapidly in Korea. Conclusion Seroprevalence confirmed the number of infection cases outside of PCR testing-based surveillance. Seroepidemiological surveillance can help us understand vaccine responses and detect hidden infections, thereby providing appropriate public health guidance for achieving population-level immunity.

Purpose: Our study aimed to delve beyond a surface-level understanding and explore the various dimensions of the global health curriculum from the perspective of both learners and educators using the Context, Input, Process, and Product (CIPP) model. Methods: From 2020 to 2021, interviews were conducted with a total of 10 individuals, including five students who had taken at least one elective course and at least one elective research course, three teaching assistants (TA), and two faculty members who had taken more than four global health courses in multiple phases in the global health curriculum. Semi-structured interview questions based on the CIPP model were used and qualitative data were analyzed through content analysis. Results: The study identified 12 sub-themes. Students held idealized views of global health careers and sought to bridge the gap through global health classes. They desired early exposure to global health courses, emphasizing both pre-medical and clinical phases. Challenges in adjusting course difficulty and recruiting faculty were identified, along with a preference for interactive teaching methods and offline discussions. The curriculum promoted reflection on medicine’s essence, expanded career perspectives, and emphasized competencies like altruism, communication skills, and crisis management in the evolving global health landscape. Conclusion This study showed that a comprehensive approach is possible from the perspective of learners and educators by identifying strengths, weaknesses, and the value of the curriculum’s goals, plans, implementations, and results through the CIPP model. For optimal curriculum design, a sequential approach from basic to advanced courses is essential, promoting hands-on global health experiences for students.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to assess the feasibility and efficacy of an ultrasound needle guidance system (NGS) based on standard needle magnetization in a phantom study of thyroid nodule (TN)-targeting punctures. Methods: Six trainees and a staff radiologist performed TN-targeting punctures with or without the NGS in phantom models (group 1, experience <50 cases; group 2, experience ≥50 cases and <100 cases; group 3, experience ≥100 cases of TN-targeting punctures). The feasibility, technical success rate, number of punctures, and procedure time were recorded. Results: The feasibility of NGS was 98.6% (138/140). In group 1, the technical success rate increased from 60.0%±8.2% to 80.0%±8.2% when the NGS was used (P=0.046), with a reduction in the number of punctures from 2.2 to 1.2 (P=0.005). In group 2, the rate changed from 95.0%±5.8% to 100.0%±0.0% with the NGS (P=0.157), with a minimal decrease in the number of punctures from 1.1 to 1.0 (P=0.157). The procedure time significantly decreased in both groups (P=0.041 and P=0.010, respectively) when the NGS was used. In group 3, there were no significant differences in the technical success rate and the number of punctures according to whether the NGS was used (P=0.317 and P=0.317, respectively). Conclusion NGS using standard needle magnetization is technically feasible and has potential to improve the efficacy of TN-targeting punctures for less-experienced operators, especially beginners, according to the findings of this phantom study.

Objective: To analyze the effects of lymphovenous anastomosis (LVA) surgery after 1 year using the elastic index (EI) and volume. Methods: This study was a retrospective study of 41 patients, with lymphedema, who underwent LVA surgery between July 2018 and June 2020. Limb circumference, used to determine the volume of the limb with lymphedema, and EI, which reflects tissue stiffness and measured using ultrasonography were measured for each patient before and 1 year after LVA surgery. To examine the effect of LVA, differences in the preoperative and 1-year postoperative volumes and EIs were analyzed using the Wilcoxon signed-rank test. Results: The mean volume and EI of the dominant site in upper-extremity lymphedema were 2,309.4 cm3 and 1.4, respectively, preoperatively and 2,237.1 cm3 and 0.9, respectively, at 1 year postoperatively. The mean volume and EI difference of the dominant site 1 year after surgery was -16.6 cm3 (p=0.22) and -0.5 (p<0.001). The mean volume and EI of dominant site in lower-extremity lymphedema were 6,137.0 cm3 and 1.2, respectively, preoperatively, and 5,832.6 cm3 and 1.1, respectively, at 1 year postoperatively. The mean volume and EI difference of the dominant site 1 year postoperatively were -320.9 cm3 (p=0.04) and -0.2 (p=0.09), respectively. Conclusion LVA surgery is more effective in reducing pressure than in reducing volume, which may be helpful in preventing the progression of lymphedema.

Purpose: The ferric chloride (FeCl3)-induced thrombosis model is widely used for thrombosis research. However, it lacks standardization with uncertainty in the exact mechanism of thrombosis. This study aimed to characterize thrombus formation in a mouse model. Materials and Methods: We investigated thrombus formation and stability using various FeCl3 concentrations (10%, 20%, 30%, 40%, and 50%, w/v) in carotid arteries of the Institute of Cancer Research (ICR) and C57BL/6N mice using the FeCl3-induced thrombosis model. We also investigated thrombus histopathology using immunohistochemistry and electron microscopy. Results: Higher FeCl3 concentrations induced dose-dependent, faster, larger, and more stable thrombus formation in both strains of mice. However, the ICR mice showed better dose-responses in thrombus formation and stability compared to the C57BL/6N mice. Thrombi were fibrin- and platelet-rich without significant changes across FeCl3 concentrations. However, the content of red blood cells (RBCs) increased with increasing FeCl3 concentrations (p for trend <0.001) and inversely correlated with time to occlusion (r=-0.65, p<0.001). While platelets and fibrin were evenly distributed over the thrombus, RBCs were predominantly located near the FeCl3 treatment area. Transmission electron microscopy showed that RBCs attached to and were surrounded by aggregates of degranulated platelets, suggesting their potential role in platelet activation. Conclusion Faster and larger thrombus formation is induced in a dose-dependent manner by a wide range of FeCl3 concentrations, but the stable thrombus formation requires higher FeCl3 concentrations. Mouse strain affects thrombus formation and stability. RBCs and their interaction with platelets play a key role in the acceleration of FeCl3-induced thrombosis.

Purpose: The ferric chloride (FeCl3)-induced thrombosis model is widely used for thrombosis research. However, it lacks standardization with uncertainty in the exact mechanism of thrombosis. This study aimed to characterize thrombus formation in a mouse model. Materials and Methods: We investigated thrombus formation and stability using various FeCl3 concentrations (10%, 20%, 30%, 40%, and 50%, w/v) in carotid arteries of the Institute of Cancer Research (ICR) and C57BL/6N mice using the FeCl3-induced thrombosis model. We also investigated thrombus histopathology using immunohistochemistry and electron microscopy. Results: Higher FeCl3 concentrations induced dose-dependent, faster, larger, and more stable thrombus formation in both strains of mice. However, the ICR mice showed better dose-responses in thrombus formation and stability compared to the C57BL/6N mice. Thrombi were fibrin- and platelet-rich without significant changes across FeCl3 concentrations. However, the content of red blood cells (RBCs) increased with increasing FeCl3 concentrations (p for trend <0.001) and inversely correlated with time to occlusion (r=-0.65, p<0.001). While platelets and fibrin were evenly distributed over the thrombus, RBCs were predominantly located near the FeCl3 treatment area. Transmission electron microscopy showed that RBCs attached to and were surrounded by aggregates of degranulated platelets, suggesting their potential role in platelet activation. Conclusion Faster and larger thrombus formation is induced in a dose-dependent manner by a wide range of FeCl3 concentrations, but the stable thrombus formation requires higher FeCl3 concentrations. Mouse strain affects thrombus formation and stability. RBCs and their interaction with platelets play a key role in the acceleration of FeCl3-induced thrombosis.