• Quality Improvement in Health Care
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.190-203
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• 2003

Background: Dental hygienists are at risk of acquiring infections through exposure to infectious agents. This study explores the frequency of exposure to infectious agents and infection control practices among dental hygienists. Methods: We undertook a cross-sectional survey to examine the exposure to infectious agents and infection control practices among dental hygienists through questionnaire. Data were obtained from 124 dental hygienists attending educational conferences. A multiple logistic regression analysis was conducted to determine the factors that effect infection control practices in relation to age, completion of infection control education, recognition of their own serum hepatitis Ag/Ab status, the number of one day patients, location of clinics, type of clinics, and career years. Result: Of the 124 dental hygienists, 91.7% were exposed to at least one accident such as needle stick injuries during their practices periods. The health screening coverage rate in dental hygienists was 16.5%. The number of one day patients and career years were important in relation to infection control practices among dental hygienists. The adjusted odds ratio estimates for career years were 5.049 times greater(95% Cl 1.238-20.597) for groups with over 4 career years than under 2 career years. That for the number of one day patients were 0.261(95% Cl 0.071-0.955) lower for through 20 up to 30 patients, 0.531(95% Cl 0.102-2.78) lower for through 30 up to 40 patients and 0.498(95% Cl 0.123-2.017) lower for more than 40 patients than under 20 patients. Conclusion: From these results, prevalence of infection control practices among dental hygienists is related to the number of one day patients and career years. Prevention of cross infection and reduction of future transmission should be a priority to dental hygienists for promotion of infection control and further efforts to educate newcomers on infection prevention should be made.

• The Korean Society of Law and Medicine
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.207-254
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• 2018

The major court rulings delivered in 2017 include the ruling that separated the legal character of denture production agreement signed together with medical care agreement and found a subcontracting dimension in the former, and the ruling that overcame the limitations of the theory of entire appearance of a fetus as discussed in civil law by using the legal principle of insurance which suggests that unborn child insurance takes effect after the contract is signed and the first installment of the premium is paid in. As more court rulings find the medical specialists responsible for accidents and injuries from drugs, some argue that medication counseling by the druggist who makes and dispenses drugs should be upgraded. And with respect to a court ruling that denied the hospital's responsibility for an infection-involving accident even if there were no records on specific measures taken in infection management, some criticized the court for being too conservative in recognizing responsibilities. And with respect to infectious disease management, some criticized the court for its interpretation and application of the facts in the direction of denying the negligence. In addition, some claimed that it is necessary to establish institutional system for hospital infection control and its aid for victims, and to improve the system including the reversal of the burden of proof given the special nature of hospital infections. A number of rulings on the duty to disclose included the one which stated that the specific matter did not require a doctor's explanation as it was explained or the specific medical service would have been performed even if no explanation had been given. There was a greatly controversial ruling over the scope of indemnification, which accepted the occurrence of multiple scars and deformation as disorders while regarding breast as a thoracic organ. And a Supreme Court ruling over interpreting Medical Service Act was criticized as overstepping the boundary allowed in the law.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
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• v.52 no.3
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• pp.221-228
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• 2020

Ochrobactrum anthropi is a non-fermentative oxidative gram-negative bacillus that produces oxidase. Distinguishing a mixed culture with non-fermenting bacteria having a similar appearance and oxidase-positive is difficult, and there is a limit to accurate identification with a biochemical identification system. This paper proposes that the Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometry Platform (MALDI-TOF) method is useful for classifying bacteria that are difficult to identify using biochemical testing methods. As a result of analyzing five cases of O. anthropi examined using MicroScan, it took 6.5 days to the final report, which was 3.5 days more than the 3.0 days of E. coli. The pus sample in patient 5 was a mixed infection with Achromobacter xylosoxidans, and it took 11.3 days because of multiple subculture and retests. Four patients were over 60 years old with an underlying disease, and the possibility of opportunistic and nosocomial infections could not be excluded. Among them, samples collected after 92 days of hospitalization were resistant to imipenem and meropenem. Therefore, an examination using the MALDI-TOF method will be useful for the rapid and adequate treatment of patients with difficult identification, such as O. anthropi.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.50 no.3
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• pp.300-309
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• 2001

Background : Sepsis is a clinical syndrome characterized by a systemic inflammatory and hemodynamic response to severe bacterial infections that involve various mediators. Endothelin (ET)-1, a potent vasoconstrictor is associated with mu1tiple organ failure, and interleukin (IL)-8, a proinflammtory cytokine, plays a major role in neurophil activation. Both have been reported to be useful parameters in the clinical assessment of sepsis. The levels of ET-1 and IL-8 in the blood were measured in patients with sepsis, and the correlation of both parameters and their relationship with the clinical data was assessed. Methods : 19 sepsis patients and 17 controls were studied. Blood samples of the sepsis patients were drawn in day 1, 3, 7, and 14. The APACHE III scores were calculated in concurrent days. The ET-1 and IL-8 levels were measured using immunoassay methods. Results : The ET-1 levels of patients with sepsis were significantly higher than in the controls. In patients with sepsis, non-survivors had higher ET-1 levels than survivors on day 1 and 7, and patients with shock also had higher ET-1 levels than normotensive patients on admission. The ET-1 levels were significantly correlated with the creatinine levels on day 1, 7, and 14. The IL-8 levels showed a significant correlation with the ET-1 levels on day 14. Conclusion : ET-1 was found to be closely related with the clinical outcome, shock, and renal failure, and showed a correlation with IL-8. These mediators can be considered not only to play pathophysiologic roles but also as useful parameters in the clinical assessment of sepsis.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.41 no.1
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• pp.88-95
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• 2013

Candida biofilms are self-organized microbial communities growing on the surfaces of host tissues and medical devices. These biofilms have been displaying increasing resistance against conventional antifungal agents. The roots of Scutellaria baicalensis have been widely used for medicinal purpose throughout East Asia. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effect of S. baicalensis aqueous extract upon the preformed biofilms of 10 clinical C. albicans isolates, and assess the mechanism of the antibiofilm activity. Its effect on preformed biofilm was judged using an XTT reduction assay and the metabolic activity of all tested strains were reduced ($57.7{\pm}17.3$%) at MIC values. The S. baicalenis extract inhibited (1, 3)-${\beta}$-D-glucan synthase activity. The effect of S. baicalensis on the morphology of C. albicans was related to the changes in growth caused by inhibiting glucan synthesis; most cells were round and swollen, and cell walls were densely stained or ruptured. The anticandidal activity was fungicidal, and the extract also arrested C. albicans cells at $G_0/G_1$. The data suggest that S. baicalensis has multiple fatal effects on target fungi, which ultimately result in cell wall disruption and killing by inhibiting (1, 3)-${\beta}$-D-glucan synthesis. Therefore, S. baicalensis holds great promise for use in treating and eliminating biofilm-associated Candida infections.

• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• v.44 no.3
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• pp.220-228
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• 2017

Many crops including cereals, tuber crops, feeds, and turf grasses are often damaged by various environmental stresses such as drought, salt, cold, and high temperature, causing the reduction of their productivity. Plants are sessile and cannot escape from environmental stresses. Thus, plants evolve in the direction of overcoming the environmental stresses. Some plant genes such as ARF, ABI3, NAC, HSF, and WRKY are known to respond to environmental stresses as they transcriptionally regulate the stress response pathways. For example, the OsWRKY76 gene contributes to the enhanced resistance to low temperatures and pathogenic infections. The AtWRKY28 also plays a role in environmental stresses. Zoysiagrass (Zoysia japonica Steud.) is popularly grown for gardens and golf courses. However, the function of the WRKY gene, another environmental stress-related gene, is not known in zoysiagrass. In this study, the ZjWRKY3 and ZjWRKY7 genes with one shared WRKY domain have been isolated in zoysiagrass. The expression of these genes increased in response to low temperature, drought, and salt stresses. Furthermore, the infection of the brown patch-causing Rhozoctonia solani induced the expression of ZjWRKY3 and ZjWRKY7. The corresponding proteins bind to the W-box of the Zjchi promoter, possibly regulating their transcriptions. The researchers suggest that the ZjWRKY3 and ZjWRKY7 genes transcriptionally regulate abiotic and biotic stress related downstream genes.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.45 no.2
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• pp.110-115
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• 2012

Background: Pneumonectomy remains the ultimate curative treatment modality for destroyed lung caused by tuberculosis despite multiple risks involved in the procedure. We retrospectively evaluated patients who underwent pneumonectomy for treatment of sequelae of pulmonary tuberculosis to determine the risk factors of early and long-term outcomes. Materials and Methods: Between January 1980 and December 2008, pneumonectomy or pleuropneumonectomy was performed in 73 consecutive patients with destroyed lung caused by tuberculosis. There were 48 patients with empyema (12 with bronchopleural fistula [BPF]), 11 with aspergilloma and 7 with multidrug resistant tuberculosis. Results: There were 5 operative mortalities (6.8%). One patient had intraoperative uncontrolled arrhythmia, one had a postoperative cardiac arrest, and three had postoperative respiratory failure. A total of 29 patients (39.7%) suffered from postoperative complications. Twelve patients (16.7%) were found to have postpneumonectomy empyema (PPE), 4 patients had wound infections (5.6%), and 7 patients required re-exploration due to postoperative bleeding (9.7%). The prevalence of PPE increased in patients with preoperative empyema (p=0.019). There were five patients with postoperative BPF, four of which occurred in right-side operation. The only risk factor for BPF was the right-side operation (p=0.023). The 5- and 10-year survival rates were 88.9% and 76.2%, respectively. The risk factors for late deaths were old age (${\geq}50$ years, p=0.02) and low predicted postoperative forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) (< 1.2 L, p=0.02). Conclusion: Although PPE increases in patients with preoperative empyema and postoperative BPF increases in right-side operation, the mortality rates and long-term survival rates were found to be satisfactory. However, the follow-up care for patients with low predicted postoperative FEV1 should continue for prevention and early detection of pulmonary complication related to impaired pulmonary function.

• The Journal of the Korean Society for Microbiology
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.73-95
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• 1986

A total of 5,462 isolates suspicious of Salmonella, Shigella and E. coli which were isolated during 1983 to 1985 by 12 City Hygine Laboratories and General Hospital Laboratories were received and identified at the National Salmonella Center, Seoul, Korea. The result of identification of these strains were summarized as follows: 1. It was confirmed that the total organisms broke down into 2,014 strains of Salmonella 1,294 of which were S. typhi, 887 strains of Shigella and 2,561 strains of E. coli. 2. For seasonal distribution of enteric pathogens, July was the month with the highest out breaks of salmonellosis, May was the month of Shigellosis, and April was of the highest month it in the case of E. coli. 3. Salmonella typhi with the highest incidence of isolation was shown to belong to various phage types, especially with the strains detected in Seoul. M1 type was widely distributed all over the country, but the majority was E1 type in 1983. 4. For age distribution of patients, the 20-29 age group had the highest incidence of salmonellosis whileas the 1 to 9 age group had the highest incidence of Shigellosis. 5. For sexuly distribution of Salmonella and Shigella infections seemed to be relatively higher in the female than in the male. However, E. coli. had no relationship to both sex. 6. The antibiotic sensitivity patterns of S. typhi cultures showed a tendancy to be resistant to colistin, gentamycin, neomycin, tetracycline and streptomycin. 7. The isolates of S. paratyphi-A, S. typhimurium and S. enteritidis seemed to have a tendency of multiple drug resistance. 8. 93.9 percent of 1,568 E. coli strains showed negative reactions to the antisera of enteropathogenic E. coli and 15.6 percent of them produced a heat-labile enterotoxin, but positive reaction to the antisera was 6.1 percent and 11.6 percent of them producled the enterotoxin.

• Research in Plant Disease
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.75-81
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• 2007

The incidence of virus disease on peppers was investigated at the 52 areas in the whole country in 2002, 2004 to 2006. Among the six viruses, Cucumber mosaic virus (CMV), Pepper mottle virus (PepMoV), Pepper mild mottle virus (PMMoV), Broad bean wilt virus 2 (BBWV2), Tobacco mild green mosaic virus (TMGMV) and Tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV), infecting peppers in Korea, the incidence of CMV, PepMoV, PMMoV and BBWV2 was 29.4%, 13.6%, 14.3%, 25.6%, orderly. TMGMV and TSWV had the same low infection rate of 1.0%. The infection rate of CMV was higher as 53.3% and 34.2% in 2002 and 2004, but it was decreased to 18.2% and 11.9% in 2005 and 2006, respectively. The infection rate of BBWV2 was lower as 1.3% in 2002 and 1.8% in 2004, but it was increased abruptly to 41.3% in 2005 and 58.2% in 2006. For the types of mixed infections of pepper viruses, the incidence of CMV+PepMoV was 62.6% in 2002 and 50.0% in 2004, and that of CMV+BBWV2 was increased suddenly from 33.3% in 2005 to 83.2% in 2006. The triplex infection of CMV+BBWV2+PepMoV was 6.4% in average. CMV caused severe mosaic and BBWV2 induced ring spots, and the two mixed virions caused chlorosis on the leaves of red peppers. TSWV induced the typical symptoms of multiple ring spots on the leaves and fruits of red peppers.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.40 no.1
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• pp.101-105
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• 2008

Enterobacter sakazakii is implicated in severe forms of neonatal infections such as meningitis and sepsis. This organism has been isolated from a wide range of foods, including cheese, vegetables, grains, herbs, and spices, but its primary environment is still unknown. Generally, dried infant milk formula has been epidemiologically identified as the source of E. sakazakii. Sunsik (a powdered mixture of roasted grains and other foodstuffs) is widely consumed in Korea as a side dish or energy supplement. Sunsik is consumed without heat treatment; thus, lacking an additional opportunity to inactivate foodborne pathogens. Therefore, its microbiological safety should be guaranteed. In this study, the prevalence of E. sakazakii was monitored in 23 different sunsik component flours, using FDA recommended methods; but E. sakazakii medium (Neogen) and Chromogenic E. sakazakii medium (Oxoid) were used as the selective media. In total, presumptive E. sakazakii strains were isolated from 8 different sunsik powders. Subsequently, an API 20E test was conducted, and 15 strains from 5 different sunsik flours (sea tangle, brown rice, non-glutinous rice, cheonggukjang, dried anchovy) were confirmed as E. sakazakii. Fifteen strains were again confirmed by PCR amplification, using three different primer sets (tDNA sequence, ITS sequence, 16S rRNA sequence), and compared to ATCC strains (12868, 29004, 29544, 51329). They were once again confirmed by their enzyme production profiles using an API ZYM kit. Finally, RAPD (random amplified polymorphic DNA)-genotyping was carried out as a monitoring tool to determine the contamination route of E. sakazakii during processing.