• Journal of Korean Academy of Fundamentals of Nursing
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.497-505
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• 2009

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to identify the level of quality of life and gender differences in predictors of quality of life among patients with coronary artery disease. Methods: Participants for this descriptive survey were 67 men and 65 women who signed informed consents. They were patients who had undergone coronary artery bypass graft surgery or percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty, or were on medication therapy after a heart attack. The Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36), Personal Resource Questionnaire-part (II), and the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale were used to measure quality of life, social support, and depression respectively. Gender and age were controlled because they were reported as influencing factors in previous studies. Results: There were significant differences in depression and quality of life between men and women however, social support was not significantly different by gender. In multiple regression analysis, depression was a significant predictor and explained 51.9% of quality of life for men. In women, depression and social support were significant predictors and explained 50.9% of quality of life. Conclusion: Factors influencing quality of life for men and women were different, and therefore, nurses need to consider their patients' gender and use specific strategies to improve quality of life for patients with coronary artery disease.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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• v.38 no.5
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• pp.649-655
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• 2008

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to identify the factors influencing quality of life after analyzing the relationship between depression, health promotion and quality of life in patients with gastrointestinal neoplasms. Methods: The subjects of this study were 63 people who underwent treatments from 2 general hospitals in Seoul and Daejeon and had no recurrence in stages I & II of gastrointestinal neoplasms. Data was collected from March 1 to April 30, 2006. A questionnaire consisting of Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression (CES-D), Health Promoting Lifestyle Profile II (HPLP II) and Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Colorectal (FACT-C) was given. The collected data was analyzed with the SPSS program which was used for descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation coefficients and hierarchical multiple regression. Results: The major findings of this study were as follows: 1) There was a significant relationship between depression (r=-.639, p=.000), health promotion (r=.407, p=.001) and quality of life. 2) Significant factors were depression (F=-4.091, p=.000) and health promotion (F=2.375, p=.021) that explained 46% of quality of life (F=10.022, p=.000). Conclusion: Cancer patients experienced extreme depression which led to a negative effect on quality of life. Health promotion was an important variable to the quality of life and it gave the patients motivation for having a will and belief for better health.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.59 no.2
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• pp.149-153
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• 2016

Objective : The aim of the present study is to estimate the incidence trend of head injury and the mortality based on traffic accident statistics and to investigate the impacts of rapid industrialization and economic growth on epidemiology of head injury in Korea over the period 1970-2012 including both pre-industrialized and post-industrialized stages. Methods : We collected data of head injury estimated from traffic accident statistics and seven hospital based reports to see incidence trends between 1970 and 2012. We also investigated the population structure and Gross National Income (GNI) per capita of Korea over the same period. The age specific data were investigated from 1992 to 2012. Results : The incidence of head injury gradually rose in the 1970s and the 1980s but stabilized until the 1990s with transient rise and then started to decline slowly in the 2000s. The mortality grew until 1991 but gradually declined ever since. However, the old age groups showed rather slight increase in both rates. The degree of decrease in the mortality has been more rapid than the incidence on head injury. Conclusion : In Korea during the low income stage, rapid industrialization cause considerable increase in the mortality and the incidence of head injury. During the high income stage, the incidence of head injury gradually declined and the mortality dropped more rapidly than the incidence due to preventive measures and satisfactory medical care. Nevertheless, the old age groups revealed rather slight increase in both rates owing to the large population structure and the declining birth rate.

• Anxiety and mood
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.97-102
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• 2016

Objective : This study aimed to quantify the degrees of insomnia, depression and anxiety felt by employees, and to understand which components of insomnia affect depression and anxiety. Methods : One thousand employees who had medical checkups from January to December 2014 in the Workplace Mental Health Institute of Kangbuk Samsung Medical Center were selected randomly. Sleep quality, depression, and anxiety were rated using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression scale (CES-D), and the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), respectively. Good and poor sleepers were divided into two groups according to their total PSQI score : ${\leq}5$ for good sleepers or >5 for poor sleepers. Results : Of 998 employees, 742 (74.35%) had PSQI total scores below 5, and 256 (25.65%) had scores over 5. Multivariate linear regression analysis using the 7 components of PSQI versus BAI, and CES-D scores revealed that subjective sleep quality, daytime dysfunction, sleep disturbance, sleep latency and sleep duration components were significantly associated with both BAI and CES-D. Conclusion : Among the components of insomnia, subjective sleep quality and daytime dysfunction were most strongly associated with depression and anxiety.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Fundamentals of Nursing
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.79-86
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• 2015

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine levels of self-care behavior according to levels of depression among patients with heart failure (HF). Methods: Participants in this descriptive research were 169 outpatients with HF who being seen in three university hospitals and one general hospital located in B, Y, and D cities. Data were collected using the Korean version of the Center for Epidemiologic Depression Scale and European Heart Failure Self-care Behavior Scale. Data collection period was from April 25, 2012 to September 26, 2013. Data were analyzed using Chi-square tests and ANOVAs with SPSS WIN 21.0. Results: A higher proportion of patients who were female, without a spouse, with lower household income, not employed, and having lower functional status with serious symptoms of HF tended to be clinically depressed. HF patients with depression tended not to report symptom changes to their health care providers. Conclusion: The findings of this study indicate the need to screen for depression in patients with HF and to develop strategies to improve self-care behaviors in these patients in order to promote reporting of symptom changes to health care providers.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.17 no.5
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• pp.2439-2443
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• 2016

Purpose: To determine the risk factors, clinical symptoms and patterns of spread in laryngeal cancer. Materials and Methods: A cross sectional study was carried out in the Regional Cancer Centre, Imphal, Manipur, India. One hundred and sixteen patients with laryngeal cancer were retrospectively reviewed for epidemiological data and descriptive statistics were reported for various variables. Results: Median age at presentation was 65 years and 32.8% were undernourished at presentation. The male to female ratio was 5.4:1. Heavy smoking and tobacco chewing was associated in 91.4% and 33.6% of patients respectively. Tracheostomy was required in 21.5% leading to diagnosis of laryngeal cancer. Almost all were squamous cell carcinoma with neuroendocrine and verrucous carcinoma accounting for less than 2%. Supraglottic, glottic and trans-glottic tumors were 56.9%, 36.3% and 6.9% respectively. Nodal metastases were seen in 81.8% of supraglottic cancers and 31.6% of glottic cancers with supraglottic involvement. Level II neck nodes were the commonest site followed by level III. Distant metastases (only liver) were apparent in 1.7% at presentation. Including these liver metastases, unresectable cases were limited to 6% of the patients. Conclusions: Tobacco use is implicated in almost all of the cases and the sex ratio has also decreased due to increased female smokers. The supraglottis remains the commonest site and incidence of nodal metastases is higher than in other countries. There is also a higher requirement for tracheostomy at presentation in this region.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.49 no.4
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• pp.197-204
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• 2016

Objectives: In the context of the global decrease in mortality due to gastric cancer, previous studies have reported that the effect of chronic Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection on the incidence of gastric cancer varies among regions. This systematic review was conducted to investigate H. pylori as a risk factor for gastric cancer in Korea, where the incidence of gastric cancer is among the highest in the world. Methods: A search strategy was established to identify articles published in Korean as well as in English. Ultimately, we included observational studies conducted among Korean patients that designed with an age-matched and sex-matched control group that reported the odds ratio associated with H. pylori. Gastric cancer cases were subdivided into overall (OGC), cardia (CGC), non-cardia (NGC), early (EGC), advanced, intestinal (IGC), and diffuse forms of gastric cancer. Summary odds ratios (SORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated in the meta-analysis using a random-effect model. Results: Eleven case-control studies were ultimately selected. H. pylori was associated with an SOR of 1.81 (95% CI, 1.29 to 2.54) for OGC. Additionally, statistically significant risks were observed for CGC, NGC, EGC, and IGC. Conclusions: Chronic H. pylori infection was found to raise the risk of gastric cancer among Koreans, with the highest risk observed for CGC and EGC (SOR=2.88 for both). Follow-up clinical epidemiologic studies are needed to assess the effects of current treatments aimed at eradicating H. pylori infections.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.43 no.1
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• pp.9-17
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• 2010

Objectives: Parkinson's disease is one of the most common neurodegenerative diseases in the elderly population. In order to estimate the prevalence of Parkinson's disease in the community, the application of a good screening tool is essential. We evaluated the validity and reliability of a Parkinson's disease screening questionnaire and propose an alternative measure to improve its validity for use in community surveys. Methods: We designed the study in a three-phase approach consisting of a screening questionnaire, neurologic examination, and confirmatory examination. A repeated survey was administered to patients with disease detected in the community and on 150 subjects. We examined internal consistency using Cronbach's alpha test, test-retest reliability using the kappa statistic, and validity using sensitivity, specificity, and ROC curves. Unadjusted odds ratios were utilized for the estimation of weights for each questionnaire item. Results: The Cronbach's alpha of the questionnaire was 0.708. The kappa statistic for test-retest reliability was good to generally fair in most of the items. When newly proposed weighting scores were used, the optimum cut-off value was 7/8. When cut-off value was 5/6 for surveying prevalence in a community, the sensitivity was 0.98, and the specificity was 0.61, with simultaneous improvement in reliability. Conclusions: We recommend 5/6 as the ideal cut-off value for the survey of PD prevalence in community. This questionnaire designed for the Korean community could help future epidemiologic studies of PD.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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• v.42 no.3
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• pp.434-442
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• 2012

Purpose: The purpose of this predictive study was to identify factors affecting health related quality of life (HRQoL) in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Methods: The participants in this study were 131 patients with RA who were recruited from the outpatient clinic of a university hospital in Seoul. Disease activity in rheumatoid arthritis was evaluated by calculating the Disease Activity Score 28. Disability in activities of daily living (ADL) was assessed with the Korean Health Assessment Questionnaire, and depression with The Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale. HRQoL was evaluated using The Short Form 36 Health Survey. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, correlation, and hierarchical multiple regression. Results: Pain, disability in ADL, disease activity, and depression correlated negatively with physical and mental dimensions of HRQoL. But hierachical multiple regression analysis revealed that disability in ADL and depression were the only variables negatively influencing physical and mental QoL after adjustment for influences of sociodemographic variables. Conclusion: Results of this study suggest that disability in ADL and depression, rather than disease activity and pain have profound effects on HRQoL in patients with RA. Further studies are needed to assess the predictive ability of disease activity and pain on HRQoL in this population.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.42 no.2
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• pp.71-84
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• 2016

Objectives: Exposure assessment using questionnaires is effective in large-scale epidemiological studies. However, a limited number of studies have evaluated the questionnaires used in epidemiologic studies in terms of occupational and environmental exposure. The purpose of this study was to summarize and evaluate questionnaire items included in major epidemiological studies conducted in Korea with regard to occupational and environmental exposure. Methods: A total of 12 studies (four cohort studies, six large-scale cross-sectional surveys, and two panel studies) were selected for this study. Various questionnaire items related with occupational and environmental items were collected and summarized into tables. Results: Although job type and address were included in almost all of the studies, the information on occupational or environmental exposure to specific risk factors was collected in a limited number of studies. Moreover, questionnaire items were not standardized, warranting a continuous effort to develop questionnaires and evaluate their validity. Conclusion: Our results suggest that validated questionnaire items focusing on occupational and environmental exposure need to be developed in order to enhance the availability of the information collected from questions in epidemiological studies.