Purpose: This study aimed to identify factors associated with the occurrence of chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) and to study its impact on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in patients with breast cancer. Methods: In total, 137 women with breast cancer who had undergone more than one cycle of chemotherapy were recruited for this descriptive study from the outpatient department of a university hospital in Incheon, Korea. Data were collected using a self-reported questionnaire, which included the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) QLQ-CIPN20 and EORTC QLQ-C30. Results: The mean CIPN score between patients was 13.57 on the sensory scale, 15.87 on the motor scale, and 25.06 on the autonomic scale. Of the studied socio-demographic, disease and treatment, and health behavior-related factors, only the chemotherapy regimen was significantly associated with CIPN (t = 2.50, p= .013). Taxane-based chemotherapy was significantly related to higher CIPN scores. Regression analyses revealed that CIPN was a factor that was significantly influential on HRQoL, adjusting for socio-demographic and clinical factors. Conclusion This study suggests that oncology nurses need to be aware of the increased risk of CIPN in patients with breast cancer undergoing taxane-based chemotherapy. In addition, interventions for alleviating CIPN may be required to improve HRQoL among these patients.

OBJECTIVES: Suicide is the most frequent cause of death among Korean adolescents, and adolescents who have experienced trauma have an increased risk of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, depression, and suicide attempts. However, resilience and self-esteem are protective factors. We examined the effects of resilience and self-esteem on the relationship among traumatic experiences, PTSD symptoms, depression, and suicidal ideation. METHODS: Middle-school students (n=403) completed questionnaires assessing traumatic experiences, PTSD symptoms, depression, suicidal ideation, resilience, and self-esteem. Path analysis was performed to investigate the mediating effects of PTSD symptoms, resilience, self-esteem, and depression on the relationship between trauma exposure and suicidal ideation. RESULTS: Traumatic experience was positively correlated with PTSD symptoms, depression, and suicidal ideation. PTSD symptoms and depression were positively correlated with suicidal ideation. The relationship between traumatic experiences and suicidal ideation was mediated by PTSD symptoms, which had both direct and indirect effects on suicidal ideation; the indirect effect was mediated by resilience, self-esteem, and depression. CONCLUSION: Korean adolescents who had experienced trauma were more likely to develop PTSD symptoms, increasing their risk of depression and suicidal ideation. However, self-esteem and resilience may help protect against depression and suicidal ideation. Our findings could inform suicide prevention initiatives.
Adolescent ; Cause of Death ; Depression ; Humans ; Negotiating ; Protective Factors ; Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic ; Suicidal Ideation ; Suicide

BACKGROUND/AIMS: The association between depression and chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection or pegylated interferon α and ribavirin therapy (PR therapy) has not been extensively studied in Korea. We aimed to clarify the prevalence of depression and its incidence during PR therapy in chronic hepatitis C (CHC) patients. METHODS: In this prospective, multicenter study, 114 CHC patients were screened for depression using two self-reported scales, the Beck Depression Inventory-I (BDI-I) and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression scale (HADS). The incidence of depression during PR therapy was evaluated in 62 patients who underwent PR therapy during the study period. RESULTS: The prevalence of baseline depression was 17.5% according to the BDI-I score ≥10 criterion and 4.4% according to the HADS-D score ≥8 criterion in the 114 CHC patients, and it was significantly associated with an unmarried state. During PR therapy, depression developed in 34.6% according to the BDI-I scale and 29.5% according to the HADS-D, which negatively affected sustained virologic response (SVR). CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of depression in Korean CHC patients appears to be low compared to that in Western patients; however, its incidence during PR therapy (approximately 30%) was similar to that of other populations, which led to a lower SVR rate. Active screening and multidisciplinary management of depression during PR therapy is warranted.
Anxiety ; Depression* ; Hepacivirus ; Hepatitis C, Chronic* ; Hepatitis, Chronic* ; Humans ; Incidence* ; Interferons ; Korea ; Mass Screening ; Prevalence* ; Prospective Studies ; Republic of Korea* ; Ribavirin ; Single Person ; Weights and Measures

PURPOSE: The present study was conducted to develop a mild vascular cognitive impairment (MVCI) assessment tool for patients with stroke and to examine its validity, reliability, and clinical adequacy. METHODS: Items of this tool were developed based on previously verified cognitive assessment tools. Face, content, and criterion (concurrent) validities, optimal cut-off score for differentiation of MVCI and normal cognitive function, clinical adequacy, internal consistency, and inter-rater reliability of the assessment tool were determined in 60 stroke patients at a university hospital located in Incheon, South Korea. RESULTS: The devised MVCI assessment tool contains 20 items which were designed to assess seven cognitive domains: orientation, memory, language, attention, reasoning/abstraction, visuospatial perception, and executive function/problem solving. Content, face, and construct validities were well supported. Clinical adequacy testing revealed that the overall probability of correctly discriminating MVCI using the MVCI assessment tool for stroke was 90.0%, which was statistically significant. Furthermore, a score of 23 was found to be the optimal cut-off score for MVCI. Internal consistency and inter-rater reliability were also well supported. CONCLUSIONS: The findings of this study indicate that the developed MVCI assessment tool for stroke could serve as a clinically useful tool for detecting MVCI and for properly assessing degree of cognitive impairment in stroke patients.
Aged ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; *Mild Cognitive Impairment/complications/diagnosis ; Neuropsychological Tests/*standards ; Psychometrics/*methods ; Reproducibility of Results ; Republic of Korea ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Stroke/*complications

Primary esophageal lymphoma is very rare, and most reported cases are histologically mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue lymphoma. Therefore, the principle treatment strategy for primary esophageal lymphoma focuses on local treatments, such as endoscopic mucosal resection or radiation therapy, but systemic chemotherapy plays the central role in the treatment of diffuse large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL). Generally, standard treatment for DLBCL is six or three cycles of R-CHOP chemotherapy followed by involved field radiation therapy according to stage. However, the optimal treatment strategy for primary esophageal DLBCL, and the role of additional radiation is not settled, due to a paucity of cases. Moreover, the clinical characteristics related to the etiology and natural course are also unknown. Here, we present two cases of primary esophageal DLBCL with a literature review.
Drug Therapy ; Esophagus ; Lymphoma ; Lymphoma, B-Cell* ; Lymphoma, B-Cell, Marginal Zone ; Lymphoma, Large B-Cell, Diffuse

PURPOSE: This study was conducted to develop and test a hypothetical stage model of workplace self-protective behaviors with respect to blood transmitted infections and musculoskeletal injuries for Korean nurses. METHODS: A nonexperimental, cross-sectional study designwas adopted. The study participants were 320 nurses at two Korean university hospitals. Perceived sensitivity, severity, barriers, benefits, self-efficacy, social support, and safety climate were assessed. RESULTS: Overall, fit indicators showed a good fit for the hypothetical model of self-protective behaviors against blood transmitted infections and musculoskeletal injuries. The significant factors of self-protective behaviors against blood transmitted infections were perceived barriers and social support. The significant factors of self-protective behaviors against musculoskeletal injuries were perceived benefits, barriers, and self-efficacy. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that the significant psychosocial constructs of stages of self-protective behavior are dependent on health problem type. Accordingly, we advise that characteristics of behavior and types of disease and health problem should be given priority when developing intervention programs for particular self-protective health behaviors.
Adult ; *Blood-Borne Pathogens ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; *Health Behavior ; Humans ; Infection Control/*methods ; *Models, Theoretical ; Musculoskeletal System/*injuries ; Nurses/*psychology ; Questionnaires ; Republic of Korea ; Workplace ; Young Adult

PURPOSE: This study was conducted to examine the changing patterns of knowledge related to disease, medication adherence, and self-management and to determine if outcomes were more favorable in the experimental group than in the comparison group through 6 months after providing a web-based self-management intervention. METHODS: A non-equivalent control group quasi-experimental design was used and 65 patients with gout, 34 in experimental group and 31 in comparison group, were selected from the rheumatic clinics of two university hospitals. Data were collected four times, at baseline, at 1 month, 3 months, and 6 months after the intervention. RESULTS: According to the study results, the changing patterns of knowledge and self-management were more positive in the experimental group than in the control group, whereas difference in the changing pattern of medication adherence between two groups was not significant. CONCLUSION: The results indicate that the web-based self-management program has significant effect on improving knowledge and self-management for middle aged male patients with gout. However, in order to enhance medication adherence, the web-based intervention might not be sufficient and other strategies need to be added.
Adult ; Gout/*prevention & control ; Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice ; Hospitals, University ; Humans ; *Internet ; Male ; *Medication Adherence ; Middle Aged ; *Program Evaluation ; *Self Care ; User-Computer Interface

In 2008, the Korean Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) initiated Korean Community Health Survey (KCHS), the first nationwide survey to provide data that could be used to plan, implement, monitor and evaluate community health promotion and disease prevention program. This community-based cross-sectional survey has been conducted by 253 community health centers, 36 community universities and 1,500 interviewers. The KCHS standardized questionnaire is developed jointly by KCDC staff, a working group of health indicators standardization subcommittee and 16 metropolitan cities and provinces with 253 regional sites. The KCHS was administered by trained interviewers and the quality control of KCHS was improved by introduction of computer-assisted personal interview in 2010. The questionnaire was reviewed annually so that revised and/or new questions could be added based on public health policy. The additional questions included the fixed and rotating cores, emerging issues and optional modules. The standardized questionnaire of KCHS covered a wide variety of health topics, which could be used to assess the prevalence of personal health behaviors related to causes of disease. The KCHS data allows that the differences of health issues among provinces can be directly compared. Furthermore, the provinces can use these data for their own cost-effective health interventions to improve health promotion and disease prevention.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (U.S.) ; Community Health Centers ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Health Behavior ; Health Promotion ; Health Surveys ; Humans ; Organothiophosphorus Compounds ; Prevalence ; Public Health ; Quality Control ; Surveys and Questionnaires

PURPOSE: This study was conducted to examine the relationships between the recurrence of pneumothorax with demographic and health-related risk factors. METHODS: Demographic factors (age and gender) and health-related risk factors (Body Mass Index, smoking, exercise, stress, fatigue, and morbidity from colds) were measured from 60 patients admitted to two acute care institutions due to pneumothorax. RESULTS: The study results showed significant differences in factors such as height and minutes of performing exercise per week, between the first occurrence and recurrence groups. However, other risk factors did not show significant differences between the two groups. CONCLUSION: Prevention of recurrences is important for the treatment and management of pneumothorax. More studies are required to accumulate empirical evidence for health-related risk factors and pneumothorax recurrence, as the relationship between all factors and recurrence were not obtained by the study results.
Demography ; Fatigue ; Humans ; Pneumothorax ; Recurrence ; Risk Factors ; Smoke ; Smoking

OBJECTIVE: This study was conducted by using a meta-analysis to calculate the mean effect sizes of the risk factors for fracture of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and to perform tests for the significance of the calculated mean effect sizes. METHODS: Eleven studies that directly examined the relationships between fracture and risk factors were selected from 179 related studies identified from PubMed, MEDLINE, COCHRAN and CINHAL with the key words being 'rheumatoid arthritis', 'fracture' and 'risk factors'. RESULTS: The mean effect size of age on fracture was significant. The mean effect sizes of steroid use and the duration of RA on fracture were also significant. However, all of these effect sizes (age, the use of steroid and the duration of disease) were small (bar D=0.15, 0.16 and 0.12, respectively). The mean effect size of the BMD at the lumbar spine was significant and the effect of the BMD at the L-spine was of medium size (bar D=0.47). The mean effect sizes of the other risk factors such as disability, disease activity, the BMD at the femur neck, BMI and a smoking habit were not significant. CONCLUSION: From the study results, it was noted that the efforts to prevent fracture of RA patients should focus on patients with an older age, the patients who used steroid, the patients with a longer duration of RA and the patients who present with low BMD at the lumbar spine.
Arthritis, Rheumatoid ; Femur Neck ; Humans ; Risk Factors ; Smoke ; Smoking ; Spine