• The Korean Journal of Emergency Medical Services
• /
• v.23 no.1
• /
• pp.165-178
• /
• 2019

Purpose: This study examined medical college students' perception of euthanasia and analyzed whether there were significant differences in their perceptions based on their grade, religion, and economic situation. Methods: A questionnaire comprising items relating to students' knowledge about euthanasia, their economic situation relationships with patients, and the extent to which euthanasia would be allowed depending on the patient's condition. Results: Results by age and school year revealed there were no statistically significant differences concerning permissible levels of euthanasia. However, differences were found in the permissible levels of euthanasia according to changes in the patients' condition. Conclusion: It can be interpreted that students' personal values and religion had a great effect on the perception of euthanasia than the process of acquiring medical knowledge. The religion or values they have in your life affect your perception of euthanasia more than the process of acquiring and learning medical knowledge. The suffering of patients is the most important priority and it supports euthanasia on the grounds of relieving psychological distress for patients' families and the right of every patient to die gracefully. Nevertheless, considering the possibility of patient survival and euthanasia being used for murder, it is necessary to legislate the use of euthanasia and have the appropriate qualifications for its administration on patients.

• Journal of the Korean Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons
• /
• v.48 no.1
• /
• pp.33-40
• /
• 2022

Objectives: Prolotherapy is a method that has gained popularity in recent years and has been reported to have positive short-term and long-term clinical results in maxillofacial surgery, especially temporomandibular joint (TMJ) hypermobility. This study aimed to evaluate the changes in the trabecular structure of mandibular condyles in patients who underwent prolotherapy due to TMJ hypermobility using the fractal analysis method. Materials and Methods: Forty-five patients who received dextrose prolotherapy at a concentration of 20% and fifteen control patients were included in the study. All patients had panoramic radiographs just before (T0) and six months after treatment (T1). The patients who received treatment were divided into three groups according to the number of prolotherapy injections. The regions of interest were selected from bone areas close to the articular surfaces of the condyles. The fractal dimension (FD) values were calculated. Results: The main effect of time on the FD value was significant [F (1, 56)=86.176, P<0.001]. This effect was qualified by a significant time×group interaction effect [F (3, 56)=9.023, P<0.001]. The decreases in FD values in all treatment groups between T0 and T1 times were significant (P=0.004). However, changes in FD values were not significant in the control group (P=0.728). Conclusion: Dextrose prolotherapy without the effect of the number of injections caused a decrease in FD values in the mandibular condyles over time.

• Journal of Yeungnam Medical Science
• /
• v.41 no.2
• /
• pp.134-138
• /
• 2024

Lung retransplantation (LRT) involves a second or subsequent lung transplant (LT) in a patient whose first transplanted graft has failed. LRT is the only treatment option for irreversible lung allograft failure caused by acute graft failure, chronic lung allograft dysfunction, or postoperative complications of bronchial anastomosis. Prehabilitation (rehabilitation before LT), while patients are on the waiting list, is recognized as an essential component of the therapeutic regimen and should be offered throughout the waiting period from the moment of listing until transplantation. LRT is particularly fraught with challenges, and prehabilitation to reduce frailty is one of the few opportunities to address modifiable risk factors (such as functional and motor impairments) in a patient population in which there is clearly room to improve outcomes. Although rehabilitative outcomes and quality of life in patients receiving or awaiting LT have gained increased interest, there is a paucity of data on rehabilitation in patients undergoing LRT. Frailty is one of the few modifiable risk factors of retransplantation that is potentially preventable. As such, it is imperative that professionals involved in the field of retransplantation conduct research specifically exploring rehabilitative techniques and outcomes of value for patients receiving LRT, because this area remains unexplored.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
• /
• v.17 no.3
• /
• pp.402-408
• /
• 1984

During the period of August 1983 to February 1984 study has been done on the value of serum lactate at regular intervals before, during and after operation on 30 patients who went through open heart surgery with extracorporeal circulation for congenital or acquired heart diseases at the Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, School of Medicine, Hanyang University- The results were as follows: 1.The mean value of serum lactate before the operation was observed to be 28.5 \ulcorner.41 mg/dl. 2.At 10 minutes after the beginning of extracorporeal circulation the mean value of serum lactate showed a rapid increase to 73.24\ulcorner3.61 mg/dl, an increase of 44.74 mg/dl [156.9%] from the pre-operation value. 3.At 40 minutes after the beginning of extracorporeal circulation the mean value of serum lactate was observed to be 78.98\ulcorner1.67 mg/dl which was the highest level. It was an increase of 50.48 mg/dl [177.12%] from the preoperation value. 4.At 70 minutes after the beginning of extracorporeal circulation the mean value of serum lactate was observed to be 64.39\ulcorner9.29 mg/dl, an increase of 35.89 mg/dl [125.9%] from the preoperation value, and at over 100 minutes it was observed to be 68.00\ulcorner5.79 mg/dl, an increase of 39.5 mg/dl [138.5%] from the preoperation value. 5.The mean value of serum lactate immediately after the operation was 61.36\ulcorner6.94 mg/dl, an increase of 32.86 mg/dl [115.2%] from the preoperation value. 7.On the 7th post-operative day the value of serum lactate returned the preoperation value.

• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine Technology
• /
• v.27 no.2
• /
• pp.95-98
• /
• 2023

Purpose: The precision error of a bone density meter reflects the equipment and reproducibility of results by an examiner. Precision error values can be expressed as coefficient of variation (CV), CV%, and root mean square-SD (RMS-SD). The International Society for Clinical Densitometry (ISCD) currently recommends using RMS-SD as the precision error value. When a 95% confidence interval is applied, the least significant change (LSC) value is calculated by multiplying the precision error value by 2.77. Exceeding the LSC value reflects a significant difference in measured bone density. Therefore, the LSC value of a bone density equipment is an essential factor for accurately determining a patient's bone density. Accordingly, we aimed to calculate the LSC value of a bone density meter (Lunar iDXA, GE) and compare it with the value recommended by the ISCD. We also assessed whether the value measured by the iDXA equipment was below the LSC value recommended by ISCD. Material and Methods: The bone densities of the lumbar spine and thighs of 30 participants were measured twice, and the LSC values were calculated using the precision calculation tool provided by the ISCD (http://www.iscd.org). To check the reproducibility of the measurement, patients were asked to completely dismount from the equipment after the first measurement; the patient was then repositioned before proceeding with the second measurement. Results: The LSC values derived using the CV% values recommended by the ISCD were 5.3% for the lumbar spine and 5.0% for the thigh. The LSC values measured using our bone density equipment were 2.47% for the lumbar spine and 1.61% for the thigh. The LSC value using RMS-SD was 0.031 g/cm² for the lumbar spine and 0.017 g/cm² for the thigh. Conclusion: that the findings confirm that the CV% value measured using our bone density meter and the LSC value using RMS-SD were maintained very stably. This can be helpful for obtaining accurate measurements during bone density follow-up examinations.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
• /
• v.60 no.5
• /
• pp.510-515
• /
• 2006

Background : Although 17% of Korean adults over the age of 45 years have chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), there is only limited data on the cause of death in COPD patients in Korea. Therefore, this retrospective study was performed to examine the cause of death in COPD patients at a referral hospital in Korea. Methods : The medical records of 28 deceased patients diagnosed as COPD in Asan Medical Center from January to December 2003 were reviewed patients had died in Asan Medical Center and 16 patients had died outside the hospital. The Korean National Statistical Office confirmed 88 deceased patients out of 1,078 patients diagnosed as COPD in Asan Medical Center in 2003. After excluding those with tuberculous destroyed lung, bronchiectasis, and lung cancer, 28 COPD patients were evaluated. Results : The causes of death were pulmonary disease including pneumonia in 16 patients (57%), cardiac disease in 5 patients (18%), sudden death in 3 patients (11%), and other causes in 4 patients (14%). The cause of death was pulmonary disease in 83% (10 out of 12 patients) and 38% (6 out of 16 patients) of patients who died in Asan Medical Center and outside the center, respectively (P=0.05). The cause of death was pulmonary disease in 43% of patients with $FEV_1$ more than 50 % of the predicted value and in 55% of patients with $FEV_1$ less than 50 % of the predicted value (P=0.89). Conclusion : Pulmonary disease is the leading cause of death in COPD patients in Korea.

• The Korean Journal of Health Service Management
• /
• v.14 no.1
• /
• pp.31-42
• /
• 2020

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to explore how service quality in specialized hospitals influences customer loyalty under the mediating effects of customer trust and customer value. Methods: A statistical review was done based on the survey results of patients who had used a specialized hospital in Gyeonggi Province, South Korea. A total of 209 questionnaires were collected. After data collection, an empirical analysis was performed using SPSS 21.0 and AMOS 21.0 software. Results: Interaction quality (β = 0.254, p < 0.05) and result quality (β = 0.179, p < 0.05) significantly influenced customer trust, while physical environmental quality (β = 0.121, p > 0.05) did not. Customer trust (β = 0.571, p < 0.01) influenced customer value (β = 0.136, p < 0.05) and customer value influenced customer loyalty. In addition, customer confidence (β = 0.668, p < 0.05) was shown to have directly impacted customer loyalty without the mediating effect of customer value (0.078). Conclusions: The findings showed that interaction quality and resulting quality had important implications for customer loyalty. We therefore suggest compliance with appointment times, training to improve work-related skills for employees, improving customer satisfaction, and enhancing communication skills.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing Administration
• /
• v.13 no.2
• /
• pp.145-155
• /
• 2007

Purpose: To identify nursing students' ethical value associated with the course of theories and practice which they are taking in their school, this study was conducted. Method: A research design of this study was a survey design with a convenience sample of 1030 nursing students attending two diploma degree nursing programs in Korea. Questions about their ethical value were asked the students from May, 1st 2005 to June, 30th, 2005, and collected data were analyzed on SPSS Win 11.0. Result: Mean score of ethical value of nursing students' was $88.03{\pm}9.46$. In addition, on such subcategory area as human-life, relationship with nursing client, relationship with collaborator, there were statistical differences according to their grade. Ethical value of nursing students satisfied with nursing showed meaningfully higher than that of nursing students unsatisfied with nursing. Conclusions: The finding of this study, consequently, showed that nursing students' ethical value can be changed through nursing education. Especially, clinical practice conducted on actual clinical setting, which give nursing students opportunities for direct contact with patients, is likely to influence the development of ethical values more than theory or practice in a school practice room.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
• /
• v.35 no.2
• /
• pp.229-236
• /
• 2002

Cataracts are the leading cause of blindness worldwide and are characterized by increased opacity of the lens that significantly diminishes visual acuity. It has been suggested that increased risk of lens opacities are associated with age, exposure to sunlight, diabetes, smoking, and poor nutrition. Antioxidant nutrients have born demonstrated to protect the lens membrane and protein against damage due to oxidative stress. The purpose of this study was to investigate the antioxidant system in the blood of cataract patients. The status of the blood antioxidant system was evaluated based on the levels of antioxidant vitamins and minerals as well as glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) and malondialdehyde (M7A) activity in 34 patients with cataracts (17 male and 17 female) and 45 control subjects (20 male and 25 female). After adjusting for age, the results showed significantly lower levels of antioxidant vitamins such as lycopene (M : p < 0.05, F: p < 0.01), zeaxanthin (F: p < 0.01), ${\gamma}$-tocopherol (F: p < 0.01) and ascorbic arid (M: p < 0.05) in the cataract patients than in the control subjects. In contrast, the concentration of cryptoxanthin (F : p < 0.07) showed a significantly higher value in the cataract patients. The serum level of the antioxidant mineral Zn (M : p < 0.01) was found to be significantly lower in the cataract patients while the ratio of cu/zn appeared significantly higher (M : p < 0.05). Significantly higher (M : p < 0.01, F: p < 0.05) concentrations of MDA in serum was found in the cataract patients as compared to the control subjects. GSH-Px activity was significantly lower (F: p < 0.05) in 71e cataract patients. In conclusion, the antioxidant system may play an important roll in cataract creation. Further studies are needed to clarify the mechanisms underlying these findings and to establish preventive measures with an emphasis on antioxidant nutrition for cataract patients.

• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
• /
• v.39 no.4
• /
• pp.471-479
• /
• 2018

Objectives: This study was aimed to analyze the correlation of clinical characteristics of cancer patients treated with Korean Medicine and their natural killer cell activity (NKA). Methods: The medical records of 52 cancer patients who conducted NKA test at Cheonan Korean Medicine Hospital of Daejeon University from March 2016 to May 2018 were reviewed. NKA was determined at Seegene Medical institute using NK Vue Gold(R) kit, evaluating activated $IFN-{\gamma}$ by enzyme immunoassay after incubation of whole blood. Careful investigations were conducted by categorizing the patients by their sex, origin, stage, ECOG scale, and conventional treatment type. We used data from the medical records and statistical analysis using SPSS 25.0 V. Results: The average NKA of all patients was $623.1{\pm}722.0pg/mL$. The NKA value was higher for females than for males. No correlation was evident between age and NKA, but patients aged over 70 years had the lowest NKA average result. Stage III and IV patients showed clearly lower NKA values when compared to stage I and II patients. NKA and ECOG scale values showed no evident relationship. Conclusions: This study presented the characteristics of NKA in cancer patients treated with Korean medicine. The NKA result differed by gender and stage. Based on these findings, further study is needed regarding the clinical meaning of NKA.