PURPOSE: This study was conducted to compare the incidence rate of influenza-like illnesses between an influenza-vaccinated group and a non-vaccinated group of adults. METHODS: From July 1, 2015 to July 30, 2015, self-reporting questionnaires were given to 300 adults living in the Seoul and Gyeonggi-do, Korea. 265 survey questionnaires that had an earnest response were used for data analysis. The collected data were analyzed using the statistical software SPSS Win 18.0 version. RESULTS: 52.1% of the participants were vaccinated. The incidence rate of influenza-like illnesses was 11.3%. Within the influenza-vaccinated group, 12.3% experienced an influenza-like illness. On the other hand, in the non-vaccinated group, 10.2% experienced an influenza-like illness. There was no statistically significant difference in the incidence of influenza-like illness depending on vaccination status. CONCLUSION: During the influenza season from Fall 2014 to Spring 2015, there was no significant difference on the prevalence of influenza-like illness between the study participants whether they were vaccinated or not. Thus, future studies should confirm and closely examine this fact, whether it was a matter of pandemic strain selection or whether there were differences in the effects of adult influenza vaccination as reported in previous studies.
Adult ; Gyeonggi-do ; Hand ; Humans ; Incidence* ; Influenza, Human ; Korea ; Pandemics ; Prevalence ; Seasons ; Seoul ; Statistics as Topic ; Vaccination

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study is to identify how level of information affected intention, using the Theory of Planned Behavior. SUBJECTS/METHODS: The study was conducted survey in diverse community centers and shopping malls in Seoul, which yielded N = 209 datasets. To compare processed foods consumption behavior, we divided samples into two groups based on level of information about food additives (whether respondents felt that information on food additives was sufficient or not). We analyzed differences in attitudes toward food additives and toward purchasing processed foods, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, and behavioral intentions to processed foods between sufficient information group and lack information group. RESULTS: The results confirmed that more than 78% of respondents thought information on food additives was insufficient. However, the group who felt information was sufficient had more positive attitudes about consuming processed foods and behavioral intentions than the group who thought information was inadequate. This study found people who consider that they have sufficient information on food additives tend to have more positive attitudes toward processed foods and intention to consume processed foods. CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests increasing needs for nutrition education on the appropriate use of processed foods. Designing useful nutrition education requires a good understanding of factors which influence on processed foods consumption.
Surveys and Questionnaires ; Dataset ; Education ; Food Additives ; Intention ; Seoul

As the importance of elderly's dietary life have increased, low-income elderly's meal should be taken care by social policies. Nevertheless, there is a lack of systematic management in home-delivery meal service. This study aims to investigate the elderly's experience on home-delivered meal service, especially identifying the symbolic meaning of home-delivered meal service on elderly's dietary life. Using an in-depth interview, qualitative data was collected from five elderly participants who received home-delivered meals. Data was analyzed based on Colaizzi's 6 steps method, deriving 148 significant statements, 18 formulated meanings, and 5 themes: , , , , and . Elderly participants regarded the home delivered meal as not only a decent meal but also felt appreciated. The home-delivered meals were found to be their only meal all day; thus, they considered these meals as a means of survival. Home-delivered meals are considered as a lack of consideration for the elderly's physical condition, including their tastes, portion size, and cooking method. Also, these elderly seemed to lose their appetite due to aging and it caused the enjoyment of eating. The elderly have kept silence never expressing any opinions regarding the home delivered meals because they were offered for free. The results suggested that the home-delivered meal service should be developed with the multilateral evaluation methods to reflect the elderly's needs to improve the quality of the home-delivered meal service.
Aged* ; Aging ; Appetite ; Cooking ; Eating ; Humans ; Meals* ; Methods ; Portion Size ; Public Policy

PURPOSE: This study investigated the pattern of hematologic profile and eosinophilia for a month after birth in very low birth weight (VLBW) infants. METHODS: The medical records of 141 VLBW infants (birth weight, <1,500 g) admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) of Konyang University Hospital. We collected complete blood cell counts (CBC) weekly for 4 weeks and studied hematologic profile and related factors of eosinophilia (> or =700/mm3). RESULTS: Overall, 50.4% of all infants had at least one instance of eosinophilia for a month after birth. There were 50.7% with moderate eosinophilia (1,000-2,999/mm3). White blood cell (WBC) counts and absolute neutrophil count (ANC) climaxed on 7th day of life, whereas eosinophilia mainly occurred on 21st day of life. The demographic data and perinatal characteristics of infants with and without eosinophilia were compared. Prevalence of eosinophilia was associated with gestational age and total parenteral nutrition on 21st day of life; total parenteral nutrition and transfusion on 28th day of life. Eosinophilia was closely associated with transfusion on logistic regression analysis (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: Eosinophilia in VLBW infants occurs mainly on 21st day of life. Eosinophil counts showed a separate trend different from WBC counts and ANC. Transfusion was significantly associated with eosinophilia.
Blood Cell Count ; Eosinophilia ; Eosinophils ; Gestational Age ; Humans ; Infant ; Infant, Newborn ; Infant, Very Low Birth Weight ; Intensive Care, Neonatal ; Leukocytes ; Logistic Models ; Medical Records ; Neutrophils ; Parenteral Nutrition, Total ; Parturition ; Prevalence

Neonatal lupus erythematosus (NLE) is a rare disease characterized by typical clinical features and the transplacental passage of maternal autoantibodies, particularly anti-SSA/Ro. The major clinical manifestations are cutaneous lupus lesions, congenital heart block, hematological disorders, and hepatobiliary diseases. We report a case of NLE presenting with multiple round and oval target-like erythematous skin lesions and abnormal liver function, born to a clinically asymptomatic mother whose diagnosis was made retrospectively only after her newborn's diagnosis. Both the infant and the mother were positive for the anti-SSA/Ro and anti-SSB/La antibodies.
Antibodies ; Autoantibodies ; Heart Block ; Humans ; Infant ; Liver ; Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic ; Mothers ; Rare Diseases ; Retrospective Studies ; Skin

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study is to know the healthcare-associated infection (HAI)s in small and medium sized hospitals, less than 400 beds. METHODS: We had web based surveillance for HAIs in 27 hospitals from August to October 2010. The surveillance performed in 1-2 ICUs and 1 general ward in each hospitals by CDC definition. And for the multi-drug resistant organisms (MDROs), we reviewed all of blood culture results. RESULTS: We identified 319 HAIs among 269,436 patients days. The HAIs rate was 1.18 (CI 1.05-1.32)/1,000 patient-days. Urinary tract infection was the most common HAI (52.4%) in this study followed by pneumonia (18.9%), blood-stream infections (14.2%), surgical site infection (7.9%), and others (6.6%). There were 76.5% of device associated infections in UTI, 46.7% in BSI, and 18.3% in pneumonia. The rate of HAIs in ICU was higher than that of in general ward (4.6 vs 0.9/1,000 patient-days). However, the indwelling catheter associated urinary tract infection rate was lower in ICU (2.6 vs 4.4/1,000 device days). There were no significant differences in central line-associated blood stream infection rate (1.5 vs 1.8) and ventilator-associated pneumonia rate (3.0 vs 0.0). The common microorganisms found in HAIs were Escherichia coli (19.8%), Staphylococcus aureus (13.1%), and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (12.7%). Moreover, 90.9% of S. aureus were resistant to methicillin, and 38.2% of P. aeruginosa and 44.4% of Acinetobacter baumannii were resistant to imipenem. Total of 66 MDROs were isolated from blood culture and the result shows that the MRSA was 84.6% (56 case), carbapenmen-resistant Acinetobacter spp. was 10.6% (7 case), and vancomycin-resistant enterococci was 4.6% (3 case). CONCLUSION: The characteristics of HAIs in small and medium sized hospitals will be contributed to the decision making of governance policy for infection control and to provide comparable data for these hospitals.
Acinetobacter ; Acinetobacter baumannii ; Catheters, Indwelling ; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (U.S.) ; Decision Making ; Escherichia coli ; Humans ; Imipenem ; Infection Control ; Methicillin ; Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus ; Patients' Rooms ; Pneumonia ; Pneumonia, Ventilator-Associated ; Pseudomonas aeruginosa ; Rivers ; Staphylococcus aureus ; Urinary Tract Infections

PURPOSE: This study was conducted to compare the recovery state of 6 month between s-ICH and s-SAH patients. The patients' recovery state was measured with 2 dimensions: functional and cognitive. METHODS: Non-experimental prospective design was adopted by including 108 hemorrhagic stroke patients(s-ICH: 52 vs s-SAH: 56) admitted to Intensive Care Unit of one university hospital. RESULTS: The study results showed that overall functional recovery state of s-SAH patients was better than that of s-ICH patients, and s-SAH patients also showed better recovery states in all of the sub-dimensions of functional recovery, such as feeding, grooming, and toileting, than those of s-ICH in 6 month. On the contrary, the study results showed that overall cognitive recovery states of 6 month between two groups were not significantly different. However, according to the results comparing the sub-dimensions of cognitive recovery, s-SAH patients' recovery states on attention, communication and memory were significantly better than those of s-ICH patients, while recovery states on problem solving, safety behavior, and social behavior between 2 groups were not significantly different. CONCLUSION: From the study results, it was noted that s-SAH patients showed better recovery states in cognitive dimension as well as in functional dimension compared with s-ICH patients.
Animals ; Cerebral Hemorrhage ; Grooming ; Humans ; Intensive Care Units ; Memory ; Problem Solving ; Prospective Studies ; Social Behavior ; Stroke ; Subarachnoid Hemorrhage

BACKGROUND: Cost-benefit studies for hospital infection control and prevention (HICP) are often applied to improve the investment for infection control; however, an accurate cost measurement for HICP would be necessary before a cost benefit analysis and establishing a proper policy for HICP. The purpose of this study is to analyze the costs of HICP for the hospital in Korea. METHOD: The costs associated with HICP in the year 2004 were surveyed for 8 university-affiliated teaching hospitals in Seoul and Kyounggi province. The collected data included the costs for standard precaution materials including hand hygiene and personal protective equipments, hospital employee health service, maintenance of hospital facility and environmental control, and operating infection control office. RESULT: The average costs for HICP were estimated to be 785,115 won per one bed per year. Among the contributing factors to the total costs were the cost for patient isolation in private rooms (310,458 won), disinfectants (125,533), hand hygiene materials (99,007), maintenance of hospital environmental hygiene (90,773), operation of infection control office (65,811), personal protective equipment (58,099), and employee health care (35,434). CONCLUSION: We estimated the annual cost of HICP at a minimum of 96,723,000 won for a 100-bed hospital. This study contributes to establishing the basic and necessary data for a proper HICP compensation system by providing various HICP costs for the university hospital.
Compensation and Redress ; Cost-Benefit Analysis ; Cross Infection* ; Disinfectants ; Hand Hygiene ; Hospitals, Teaching ; Humans ; Hygiene ; Infection Control ; Investments ; Korea ; Occupational Health ; Occupational Health Services ; Patient Isolation ; Patients' Rooms ; Seoul

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to survey the nasal colonization of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) among the patients admitted in a medical intensive care unit (MICU) and analyze risk factors associated with the colonization. METHODS: The study was carried out on patients admitted into the MICU in a 1,250-bed tertiary care university hospital from January through December 2006. Nasal surveillance cultures were obtained from patients within 24 hours of admission to the unit. Data were analyzed retrospectively by the review of medical records. RESULTS: A total of 312 patients were screened with active nasal cultures; 36 patients (11.6%) were positive for MRSA. Of these, 22 (7.1%) were positive in the nasal cultures only and 14 (4.5%) were positive in the cultures of other specimens (13, sputum; 1, joint fluid) in addition to the nasal swabs. Among the risk factors for MRSA nasal colonization were sex (man), route of admission (from other ICUs or wards), a history of ICU admission during the recent 12 months, and prolonged hospital days in ICU. CONCLUSION: MRSA nasal carrier rate was found higher in this study than in those reported in the literature. Most of the patients colonized with MRSA in the nostril were not colonized with the organism elsewhere in the body. Whether or not active surveillance for MRSA should be performed would depend on the nasal colonization rate of the patients at the time of admission to the ICU.
Colon* ; Humans ; Intensive Care Units* ; Critical Care* ; Joints ; Medical Records ; Methicillin Resistance* ; Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus* ; Retrospective Studies ; Risk Factors ; Sputum ; Tertiary Healthcare

BACKGROUND: Vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) have become one of the important nosocomial pathogens. VRE infections are difficult to treat because few antibiotics are effective currently. Since 1998, VRE have been increasingly isolated in a tertiary care hospital with 1253 beds in Korea. To prevent endemic stage of VRE in the hospital, early intervention with intensive infection control strategies was implemented and the efficacy was evaluated. METHODS: Infection control team monitored VREisolated patients prospectively for 8 months (Mar-Oct, 2000). Infection control strategies including contact precaution of patients were applied for the first three months (the 1st phase :Mar~May). Rectal cultures were done to identify rectal colonization of VRE from all of the VRE-isolated patients and from their roommates. Health care workers' (HCW) hands and environments related with VRE patients were cultured to identify contaminations or colonizations. More intensive infection control strategies including strict isolation of patients were applied for the following 5 months (the 2nd phase : Jun~Oct). Pulsed field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) was done to document genetic relatedness of isolated VRE. RESULTS: Total 26 strains of VRE were isolated from 26 patients during study period. Isolation of VRE had decreased from 1.78 cases per 10,000 patients-days before the study to 1.49 cases during the 1st phase (P=0.4) and to 0.75 cases during the 2nd phase (P=0.02). Rectal colonization rate for VRE isolated patients was 40.9% (9/22); for roommates, 17.1% (12/70). Contamination rate of HCW's hands was 2.3 % (4/ 172) and environmental contamination rate was 8.4% (38/455). Six different PFGE patterns were identified with 43 isolates and 67.6% (29/43) showed the same PFGE patterns. CONCLUSIONS: It was supposed that single clonal epidemic strain had been probably transmitted between the patients, the environments, and the HCW's hands in the hospital. Intensive VRE infection control strategies including strict isolation were very effective to decrease the VRE isolation rate.
Anti-Bacterial Agents ; Colon ; Delivery of Health Care ; Early Intervention (Education) ; Electrophoresis, Gel, Pulsed-Field ; Enterococcus ; Hand ; Humans ; Infection Control ; Korea ; Prospective Studies ; Tertiary Healthcare* ; Vancomycin Resistance ; Vancomycin*