• Title/Summary/Keyword: Post-Examination

Search Result 702, Processing Time 0.031 seconds

Posterior Cruciate Ligament Augmentation Using an Autogenous Hamstring Tendon Graft and the Posterior-Posterior Triangulation Technique (만성 단독 후방십자인대 파열에서 자가 슬괵건과 후-후 삼각술기를 이용한 만성 후방십자인대 보강술)

  • Kim, Yeung Jin;Chae, Soo Uk;Choi, Byong San;Kim, Jong Yun;Lee, Hwang Yong;Han, Chang Wan;Han, Su Hyoun
    • Journal of the Korean Arthroscopy Society
    • /
    • v.17 no.1
    • /
    • pp.24-30
    • /
    • 2013
  • Purpose: To evaluate the outcome of arthroscopic posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) augmentation using an autogenous hamstring tendon graft and the posterior-posterior triangulation technique with preservation of ligament remnant or elongated ligament. Materials and Methods: From January 2002 to December 2009, we performed PCL augmentation using an autogenous hamstring tendon graft and the posterior-posterior triangulation technique in 32 patients. The mean age was 35.2 years. Twenty two cases were male and 10 cases were female. Average follow-up period was 5 years and 5 months (range: 2-7.9). Subjective and objective parameters were utilized in analyses, such as the mean range of motion, post. drawer test, Lysholm knee score, Tegner activity score, International Knee Documentation Cominittee (IKDC) grade, and second look arthroscopic examination. Results: At last follow up posterior displacement by the Telos stress test decreased from $10.8{\pm}5.1\;mm$ to $2.8{\pm}3.7\;mm$ (p<0.05). The final Lysholm knee score improved from $60.4{\pm}5.8$ to $84.6{\pm}4.8$. Tegner activity score improved from 3.2 to 4.8. The final IKDC grade was A in 18, B in 11, C in 3. Postoperative Lysholm knee score, IKDC grades, Tegner activity scale, and posterior displacement demonstrated statistically significant improvement compared to the preoperative state (p<0.05). Conclusion: Arthroscopic PCL reconstruction using an autogenous hamstring tendon with preservation of ligament remnant showed a good clinical results and posterior stability.

  • PDF

Retrospective Evaluation of Discrepancies between Radiological and Pathological Size of Hepatocellular Carcinoma Masses

  • Tian, Fei;Wu, Jian-Xiong;Rong, Wei-Qi;Wang, Li-Ming;Wu, Fan;Yu, Wei-Bo;An, Song-Lin;Liu, Fa-Qiang;Feng, Li;Liu, Yun-He
    • Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
    • /
    • v.15 no.21
    • /
    • pp.9487-9494
    • /
    • 2014
  • Background: The size of a hepatic neoplasm is critical for staging, prognosis and selection of appropriate treatment. Our study aimed to compare the radiological size of solid hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) masses on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with the pathological size in a Chinese population, and to elucidate discrepancies. Materials and Methods: A total of 178 consecutive patients diagnosed with HCC who underwent curative hepatic resection after enhanced MRI between July 2010 and October 2013 were retrospectively identified and analyzed. Pathological data of the whole removed tumors wereassessed and differences between radiological and pathological tumor size were identified. All patients were restaged using a modified Tumor-Node-Metastasis (TNM) staging system postoperatively according to the maximum diameter alteration. The lesions were classified as hypo-staged, iso-staged or hyper-staged for qualitative assessment. In the quantitative analysis, the relative pre and postoperative tumor size contrast ratio ($%{\Delta}size$) was also computed according to size intervals. In addition, the relationship between radiological and pathological tumor diameter variation and histologic grade was analyzed. Results: Pathological examination showed 85 (47.8%) patients were overestimated, 82 (46.1%) patients underestimated, while accurate measurement by MRI was found in 11 (6.2%) patients. Among the total subjects, 14 (7.9%) patients were hypo-staged and 15 (8.4%) were hyper-staged post-operatively. Accuracy of MRI for calculation and characterized staging was related to the lesion size, ranging from 83.1% to 87.4% (<2cm to ${\geq}5cm$, p=0.328) and from 62.5% to 89.1% (cT1 to cT4, p=0.006), respectively. Overall, MRI misjudged pathological size by 6.0 mm (p=0.588 ), and the greatest difference was observed in tumors <2cm (3.6 mm, $%{\Delta}size=16.9%$, p=0.028). No statistically significant difference was observed for moderately differentiated HCC (5.5mm, p=0.781). However, for well differentiated and poorly differentiated cases, radiographic tumor maximum diameter was significantly larger than the pathological maximum diameter by 3.15 mm and underestimated by 4.51 mm, respectively (p=0.034 and 0.020). Conclusions: A preoperative HCC tumor size measurement using MRI can provide relatively acceptable accuracy but may give rise to discrepancy in tumors in a certain size range or histologic grade. In pathological well differentiated subjects, the pathological tumor size was significantly overestimated, but underestimated in poorly differentiated HCC. The difference between radiological and pathological tumor size was greatest for tumors <2 cm. For some HCC patients, the size difference may have implications for the decision of resection, transplantation, ablation, or arterially directed therapy, and should be considered in staging or selecting the appropriate treatment tactics.

Predictive Factors of Health promotion behaviors of Industrial Shift Workers (산업장 교대근무 근로자의 건강증진행위 예측요인)

  • Kim, Young-Mi
    • Korean Journal of Occupational Health Nursing
    • /
    • v.11 no.1
    • /
    • pp.13-30
    • /
    • 2002
  • Industrial shift workers feels suffer mental stresses which are caused by unfamiliar day sleep, noisy environment, sleeping disorder by bright light, unusual contacts with family, difficulty in meeting with friends or having formal social meetings and other social limitations such as the use of transportation. Such stresses influence health of the workers negatively. Thus the health promotion policy for shift workers should be made considering the workers' ways of living and shift work specially. This study attempted to provide basic information for development of the health promotion program for industrial shift workers by examining predictive factors influencing health promotion behaviors of those workers. In designing the study, three power generation plants located in Pusan and south Kyungsang province were randomly selected and therefrom 280 workers at central control, boiler and turbine rooms and environmental chemistry parts whose processes require shift works were sampled as subjects of the study. Data were collected two times from September 17 to October 8, 1999 using questionnaires with helps of safety and health managers of the plants. The questionnaires were distributed through mails or direct visits. Means for the study included the measurement tool of health promotion behavior provided by Park(1995), the tool of self-efficacy measurement by Suh(1995), the tool of internal locus of control measurement by Oh(1987), the measurement tool of perceived health state by Park(1995) and the tool of social support measurement by Paek(1995). The collected data were analyzed using SPSS program. Controlling factors of the subjects were evaluated in terms of frequency and percentage ratio Perceived factors and health promotion behaviors of the subjects were done so in terms of mean and standard deviation, and average mark and standard deviation, respectively. Relations between controlling and perceived factors were analyzed using t-test and ANOVA and those between perceived factors and the performance of health promotion behaviors, using Pearson's Correlation Coefficient. The performance of health promotion behaviors was tested using t-test, ANOVA and post multi-comparison (Scheffe test). Predictive factors of health promotion behavior were examined through the Stepwise Multiple Regression Analysis. Results of the study are summarized as follows. 1. The performance of health promotion behaviors by the subjects was evaluated as having the value of mean, $161.27{\pm}26.73$ points(min.:60, max.:240) and average mark, $2.68{\pm}0.44$ points(min.:1, max.:4). When the performance was analyzed according to related aspects, it showed the highest level in harmonious relation with average mark, $3.15{\pm}.56$ points, followed by hygienic life($3.03{\pm}.55$), self-realization ($2.84{\pm}.55$), emotional support($2.73{\pm}.61$), regular meals($2.71{\pm}.76$), self-control($2.62{\pm}.63$), health diet($2.62{\pm}.56$), rest and sleep($2.60{\pm}.59$), exercise and activity($2.53{\pm}.57$), diet control($2.52{\pm}.56$) and special health management($2.06{\pm}.65$). 2. In relations between perceived factors of the subjects(self-efficacy, internal locus of control, perceived health state) and the performance of health promotion behaviors, the performance was found having significantly pure relations with self-efficacy (r=.524, P=.000), internal locus of control (r=.225, P=.000) and perceived health state(r=.244, P=.000). The higher each evaluated point of the three factors was, the higher the performance was in level. 3. When relations between the controlling factors(demography-based social, health-related, job-related and human relations characteristics) and the performance of health promotion behaviors were analyzed, the performance showed significant differences according to marital status (t=2.09, P= .03), religion(F=3.93, P= .00) and participation in religious activities (F=8.10, P= .00) out of demography-based characteristics, medical examination results (F=7.20, P= .00) and methods of the collection of health knowledge and information(F=3.41, P= .01) and methods of desired health education(F=3.41, P= .01) out of health-related characteristics, detrimental factors perception(F=4.49, P= .01) and job satisfaction(F=8.41, P= .00) out of job-related characteristics and social support(F=14.69, P= .00) out of human relations characteristics. 4. The factor which is a variable predicting best the performance of health promotion behaviors by the subjects was the self-efficacy accounting for 27.4% of the prediction, followed by participation in religious activities, social support, job satisfaction, received health state and internal locus of control in order all of which totally account for 41.0%. In conclusion, the predictive factor which most influence the performance of health promotion behaviors by shift workers was self-efficacy. To promote the sense, therefore, it is necessary to develop the nursing intervention program considering predictive factors as variables identified in this study. Further industrial nurses should play their roles actively to help shift workers increase their capability of self-management of health.

  • PDF

Effect of GB 34-GB 39 Electro-acupuncture on Regional Cerebral Blood Flow in Stroke Patients and Normal Volunteers Evaluated by $^{99m}Tc-ECD$ SPECT (양릉천-현종 전침치료가 뇌경색환자 및 정상인의 뇌혈류에 미치는 영향 - SPECT와 SPM을 이용한 연구 -)

  • Han, Jin-An;Jeong, Dong-Won;Bae, Hyung-Sup;Park, Sung-Uk;Jung, Woo-Sang;Park, Jung-Mee;Ko, Chang-Nam;Cho, Ki-Ho;Kim, Young-Suk;Kim, Deok-Yoon;Moon, Sang-Kwan
    • The Journal of Korean Medicine
    • /
    • v.27 no.3 s.67
    • /
    • pp.187-200
    • /
    • 2006
  • Objectives: Acupuncture has been applied in Asia for thousands of years, especially to rehabilitation after stroke. It has been reported that acupuncture increased cerebral blood supply and stimulated the functional activity of brain nerve cells shown by using brain imaging techniques. This study was to evaluate the effect of GB 34-GB 39 electro-acupuncture (EA) on regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) in stroke patients and normal volunteers using single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT). Methods: The study procedure was divided into two parts: patients and volunteers studies. For the patients study, ten ischemic stroke patients (3 males, 7 females, mean age $68.5{\pm}8.9$ years old) were selected. Baseline brain SPECT was done with triple head gamma camera (MultiSPECT3, Siemens, USA) after intravenous administration of 1,110 MBq of $^{99m}Tc-ECD$. Fifteen-minute EA at GB 34 and GB 39 were applied on the affected limb. The same dose of $^{99m}Tc-ECD$ was injected during the EA, and the second set of SPECT images wasobtained. Using the computer software (ICON 7.1, Siemens, USA), 3 SPECT slices (upper, middle, lower) surrounding the brain lesion were selected and each slice was divided into 10-16 brain regions. Asymmetry indexes (AI) were analyzed in each brain region. We regarded over 10% changes of AI between before and after EA as significance. For the volunteers study, 10 healthy human volunteers (5 males, 5 females, mean age $28.1{\pm}6$ years old) were selected. In the resting state, $^{99m}Tc-ECD$ brain SPECT scans were performed. On the 7th day after the resting examination, 15 minute EA was applied at GB 34 and GB 39 on the right side of the subjects. Immediately after EA, the second SPECT images were obtained inthe same manner as the resting state. Significant increases and decreases of rCBF after EA were estimated by comparing their SPECT images with those of the resting state using paired t statistics at every voxel, which were analyzed by statistical parametric mapping with a threshold of p = 0.01, uncorrected (extent threshold: k=100 voxels). Results: In stroke patients, six of the eight (75%) had significantly increased perfusion in post-acupuncture scans compared to their baseline state. In normal volunteers, GB 34-GB GB EA increased rCBF in both hemispheres including right ventral posterior cingulate (Brodmann area (BA) 23), left superior temporal, anterior transverse temporal (BA 22, 41), left parastriate, peristriate (BA 18, 19), right occipitotemporal, angular (BA 37, 39), left rostral postcentral, caudal postcentral and preparietal (BA 2, 3, 5). However GB 34-GB 39 EA decreased rCBF in the right hemisphere including triangular and middle frontal lobes. Conclusions: The results demonstrated that OB 34-GB 39 EA increased cerebral perfusion in ischemic stroke patients and increased rCBF grossly in temporal lobes of normal volunteers. It is also suggested that there may be a correlation between the GB meridian and the territory of the middle cerebral artery.

  • PDF

Ex vivo Morphometric Analysis of Coronary Stent using Micro-Computed Tomography (미세단층촬영기법을 이용한 관상동맥 스텐트의 동물 모델 분석)

  • Bae, In-Ho;Koh, Jeong-Tae;Lim, Kyung-Seob;Park, Dae-Sung;Kim, Jong-Min;Jeong, Myung-Ho
    • Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology
    • /
    • v.6 no.2
    • /
    • pp.93-98
    • /
    • 2012
  • Micro-computed tomography (microCT) is an important tool for preclinical vascular imaging, with micron-level resolution. This non-destructive means of imaging allows for rapid collection of 2D and 3D reconstructions to visualize specimens prior to destructive analysis such as pathological analysis. Objectives. The aim of this study was to suggest a method for ex vivo, postmortem examination of stented arterial segments with microCT. And ex vivo evaluation of stents such as bare metal or drug eluting stents on in-stent restenosis (ISR) in rabbit model was performed. The bare metal stent (BMS) and drug eluting stent (DES, paclitaxel) were implanted in the left or right iliac arteries alternatively in eight New Zealand white rabbits. After 4 weeks of post-implantation, the part of iliac arteries surrounding the stent were removed carefully and processed for microCT. Prior to microCT analysis, a contrast medium was loaded to lumen of stents. All samples were subjected to an X-ray source operating at 50 kV and 200 ${\mu}A$ by using a 3D isotropic resolution. The region of interest was traced and measured by CTAN analytical software. Objects being exposed to radiation had different Hounsfield unit each other with values of approximately 1.2 at stent area, 0.12 ~ 0.17 at a contrast medium and 0 ~ 0.06 at outer area of stent. Based on above, further analyses were performed. As a result, the difference of lengths and volumes between expanded stents, which may relate to injury score in pathological analysis, was not different significantly. Moreover, ISR area of BMS was 1.6 times higher than that of DES, indicating that paclitaxel has inhibitory effect on cell proliferation and prevent infiltration of restenosis into lumen of stent. And ISR area of BMS was higher ($1.52{\pm}0.48mm^2$) than that of DES ($0.94{\pm}0.42mm^2$), indicating that paclitaxel has inhibitory effect on cell proliferation and prevent infiltration of restenosis into lumen of stent. Though it was not statistically significant, it showed that the extent of neointema of mid-region of stents was relatively higher than that of anterior and posterior region in parts of BMS as showing cross-sectional 2-D image. suggest that microCT can be utilized as an accessorial tool for pathological analysis.

The Effect of After-school Programs on Science-related Attitude and Learning Achievement of High School Students : In the Unit of 'The Change of Weather' (방과후 학교 프로그램이 고등학교 학생들의 과학에 대한 태도와 학업성취도에 미치는 영향 : '날씨의 변화' 단원을 중심으로)

  • Keum, Kyung-Jin;Yoon, Ill-Hee
    • Journal of Science Education
    • /
    • v.32 no.2
    • /
    • pp.71-86
    • /
    • 2008
  • The purpose of this study was to apply After-school programs related to sub-chapter 'The Change of Weather', and thereby to investigate the effect of After-school program on science-related attitude and learning achievement of students, and interaction between treatment methods and students' learning ability. The subjects of study consisted of 2nd grade students of sixty four students in high school. Sixty four students were divided into two categories by experimental and control groups on the basis of midterm examination before teaching treatment. The experimental groups have received four After-school programs including making models of a weather front, measurement of wind, measurement of temperature and the dew point, making a three-dimensional weather chart which were developed by researcher for six times. The control groups have received the instruction through the conventional teaching methods. Seventy questions within seven frameworks of TOSRA have been used in this study as an evaluation instrument of science-related attitude. Learning achievement has been evaluated using an instrument developed by researcher. The scores of both pre-test and post-test were estimated by ANCOVA. The results of this study can be summarized as follows. (1) After-school programs were more effective in progressing the three categories of science related attitude of high school students i.e. pleasure of science class(p<.05), reception of scientific attitude(p<.01), attitude about a science research(p<.05) than conventional teaching methods. (2) Experimental groups showed statistically significant improvement on learning achievement than control groups(p<.05). (3) The effect of treatment methods on students' learning ability has been improved in experimental groups more positively than control groups(p<.05). High level students in experimental groups showed significant improvement on learning achievement than low level students according to the representing profile plot. But there were no significant interaction between treatment methods and students' learning ability(p>.05) In conclusion, the After-school programs have positive effect on the improvement of science related attitude and learning achievement.

  • PDF

The effects of superovulatory doses of pregnant mare serum gonadotropin on uterine microenvironment of the rat (다배란 용량의 임마혈청성 고나도트로핀(PMSG)이 랫트의 자궁내 미세환경에 미치는 영향)

  • Yun, Young-won
    • Korean Journal of Veterinary Research
    • /
    • v.34 no.4
    • /
    • pp.745-757
    • /
    • 1994
  • Superovulatory treatment with exogenous gonadotropins adversely affects the uterus through the disruption of the delicate balance of ovarian steroids (estrogens, progestins, androgens). To examine the uterine effects of this treatment, 189 rats were given 4IU, 20IU or 40IU pregnant mare',s serum gonadotropin(PMSG) at 28 days of age and sacrificed every 24h until day 10(D10) post injection. Long term uterine effects were examined in 12 rats treated with 4IU or 40IU PMSG and killed on D30. Adult rat uteri were examined to provide a reference for comparisons. Morphological and histological changes of control (4IU) uteri mimicked those of the adult on a comparable time-course form D2 to D5. Administration of superovulatory doses(20IU, 40IU) of PMSG produced stromal hypertrophy by D2 and focal papillary hyperplasia of the luminal epithelia by D3. Levels of $17{\beta}$-estradiol following 20IU and 40IU PMSG treatment were significantly(p<0.05, p<0.005) elevated above those of controls after D1. Androgen levels of both groups(20IU, 40IU) significantly p<0.05, p<005 increased from baseline on D1 and were maximum between D2 and D3. In the 20IU PMSG group, the hyperplasia gradually regressed after D3 and was absent by D10. The hyperplasia in the 40IU PMSG group, however, had become extensive by D6. It is suspected that preceding elevated levels of estrogen may be responsible for this progressive change. On D 4, the levels of $17{\beta}$-estradiol reached a maximum, which was significantly(p<0.001) greater than both the controls and 20IU PMSG-treated rats. Between D6 and D10, the hyperplasia in 40IU PMSG-treated rats partially regressed. Examination of uteri from D30 revealed no evidence of the hyperplasia. It is suggested that previous exposure to high levels of estrogen and androgens, secondary to superovulation, is possible cause for the observed hyperplasia.

  • PDF

Clinical Study of Pulmonary Resection for Tuberculosis(V) (폐결핵의 외과적 치료)

  • 김우식;배윤숙;정성철;정승혁;유환국;이정호;김병열
    • Journal of Chest Surgery
    • /
    • v.35 no.11
    • /
    • pp.799-806
    • /
    • 2002
  • In spite of the establishment of chemotherapy and the gradual decrease in prevalence, pulmonary tuberculosis is still mainly treated with an operation. Through analyzing and examining some cases of surgical treatment, we hope to provide some help in treating of pulmonary tuberculosis in the future. Material and Method: By comparing four journals previously published in our department with 144 cases of lung surgery during ten years from January of 1991 to December of 2000 performed by the department of thoracic and cardiovascular surgery of the National Medical Center, we analyzed and reviewed the most recent trends and the results of the surgical treatment. Annual frequency of the operation, distribution of age, examination of sputum, adaptability and types of techniques, complications, and results of the postoperative follow-up were used as methods. Result: It was found that the annual frequency of operations had decreased. The ratio of men to women, 2:1 indicates that there are more incidences in men. Aging of patients could be speculated by the .results that the decrease in the incidence rate in the 20s age range and increase rate in the 50s age range. The range of preoperative lesions belonged mostly to far advanced and moderately advanced tuberculosis. By monitoring the period of use in preoperative antituberculosis drugs, cases for more than 3 years remarkably increased from 16.0 % to 55.6 %. The positive reactive rate for preoperative sputum examinations were drastically decreased from 91 % to 27 %. Total pulmonary destruction and partial destruction were the most common cases in terms of adaptability to the operations and there were significant increases in forming empyema accompanied by parenchymal lesions from 4.0 % to 20.1 %. Pneumonectomy and pulmonary lobectomy were the major type of operations. Especially, there were increases in the incident rate of empyema and recurrence of tuberculosis resulted. Post operative follow-up indicates that the rate of complete recovery was more than 70 % and the rate of gradual increase in treating with persistent antituberculosis drug was from 5.8 % to 18.0 %. Conclusion: In recent cases, there is an increasing number of patients showing tolerance to chemotherapy. Patients with pleural tuberculosis and severe lesions were typically increased. It is important to accurately analyze those complaints accurately that are mostly difficult to be treated medically. Surgical treatment is strongly recommended Before multiple drug resistance occurs.

Effects of Foot Baths on Stress and exhaustion for high school senior students -A comparative study on the aroma oil and fermentation extract- (족욕이 수험생의 스트레스 및 피로에 미치는 효과 -아로마 오일과 발효추출물의 비교연구-)

  • Oh, Hee-Sun;Gang, Gyeong-Ho
    • Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
    • /
    • v.11 no.1
    • /
    • pp.402-408
    • /
    • 2010
  • In the twenty first century, people experience a lot of stresses by psychological, social and environmental impetus. If the stress is excessive, it can become a problem and finally lead to diseases. Foot bath makes the body warm starting with the feet, controls the blood circulations and autonomic nervous systems. This study aims at examining the effects of stress and fatigue of senior students preparing for college entrance examination by foot bath with the aroma essential oil and the fermentation extracts. The experimental period was from March 30 to April 18, 2009. The study objects were 21 senior students of C Girls' High School in Cheonan. They were divided into 3 groups and treated 20 times. The first group was a foot bath group with Artemisia Herbal fermentation extracts. The second group was a foot bath group with the blending aroma essential oil of grapefruit, cypress and cedarwood. The third group was not treated. In the case of difference of physical and psychological stress, there was a reduction of 18.43 and 16.71 for the fermented extract group and 10.71 and 9.43 for the aroma group, while a reduction of 0.43 and 0.29 for the control group, respectively. This shows that foot baths using fermented extracts and aroma had lower physical stress compared to the control group (p<.01). For the difference of fatigue, there was a reduction of 19.14 for the fermented extract group, 11.57 for the aroma group and 0.07 for the control group, showing that foot baths accompanied by fermented extracts and aroma used in this study having lower fatigue compared to the control group (p<.01). The fermented extract group (M=55.71) had the highest level of satisfaction after foot baths, followed by the aroma group (M=49.14) and the control group (M=33.29). Duncan's post hoc test showed that there was a statistically considerable difference between the tests groups and control groups (p<.01). Through the results of this study, it was found that foot baths using bathing supplements were very effective for reducing stress and fatigue.

The Comparison of Noise-induced Hearing Loss Evaluation Criteria for Management (소음성난청 관리를 위한 판정기준간의 비교)

  • 남궁원자;원정일
    • Journal of environmental and Sanitary engineering
    • /
    • v.13 no.1
    • /
    • pp.123-134
    • /
    • 1998
  • The study was performed to investigate the differences among various evaluation criteria for noise-induced hearing loss(NIHL). The subjects were 100 workers who had received detailed audiometric examinations after the periodic annual examination for hearing loss. The evaluation criteria included were as follows: The criterion I was NIHL of 50dB or greater at 4,000Hz in either ear which is one of the legal requirements for determining occupational hearing loss in Korea. The criterion II was NIHL of 40dB or greater by 4-divided classification(a+b+c+d/4 at 500Hz(a), 1,000Hz(b), 2,000Hz(c), 4,000Hz(d)) which is also one of the legal requirements for determining occupational hearing loss in Korea. The criterion III was NIHL of 31dB of greater by 6-divided classification(a+2b+2c+d/6) which is the workers' compensation standard. The criterion IV was NIHL of 40dB or greater by 6-divided classification(a+2b+2c+d/6), the criterion used to prohibite workers to be employed in the noisy workplace. The criterion V was NIHL of 40dB or greater by 3-divided classification(a+b+c/3) which is the guideline of the Japanes Labour Department. The results were as follows; 1. The percentage of workers with NIHL by the criterion I was the highest(96%) and covered all workers with NIHL diagnosed by other criteria. Therefore, this criterion was the most sensitive one for early detection of NIHL among various evaluation criteria. 2. The percentage of workers with NIHL by the criterion II was 29% of the subjects, but all of them could be diagnosed as having NIHL by the criterion I and 33.1% of the NIHL by the criterion III could not be covered by the criterion II. Thus, this criterion was not considered suitable as an initial step for determining occupational hearing loss. 3. The percentage of workers with NIHL by the criterion III was 45% of the subjects. This percentage was 46.9% of the NIHL by the criterion I and was estimated to cover 3.6% of all noise exposed workers. 4. The percentage of workers with NIHL by the criterion IV was 28% of the subjects, but 37.8% of the NIHL by the criterion III and 70.8% of the NIHL by the criterion I were not covered by the criterion. Therefore, these workers could have been employed in the noisy workplaces. 5. Employed relocation which was one of the post management methods was an option in the criterion I in Korea and in the criterion V in Japan. The number of NIHL by the criterion I was 6.7times greater than that by the criterion V. Thus, although employee relocation was not used exclusively, many more workers with NIHL could have been relocated. In conclusion, this study revealed that the criteria being used for managing occupational hearing loss showed a lack uniformity among them. In addition, since these criteria are all relied on the total threshold shifts caused by the noise exposure at the time of hearing test with no consideration given to the past noise exposure history nor age, it can be said that they are not an effective tool for occupational hearing loss management. Since legal requirements are usually followed after being diagnosed as having NIHL, it is recommended that a uniform diagnostic criterion should be used to minimize confusion. Pre-employment hearing tests should also be utilized so as to managing occupational hearing loss after employment rather than being used as a legal roadblock of prohibiting workers with mild hearing loss from being employed. Thus, what is needed is an establishment of a rational criterion for occupational hearing loss management rather than for legal requirements.

  • PDF