Related factors of peptic ulcer in H. pylori positive patients confirmed by endoscopic biopsy of stomach

BACKGROUND: This study was conducted to investigate the reason why H. pylori infected people develop different patterns of gastric diseases and in some infected patients have peptic ulcers, but the others have not. METHODS: We analyzed 177 cases of H. pylori positive patients who were confirmed by histologic evaluation of gastric endoscopic biopsy specimens from January 1998 to July 1998 in Health Promotion Center of one medical college hospital. Among these 177 cases, 63 cases(35.6%) were peptic ulcer patients and 114 cases(64.4%) were non ulcer patients. We analyzed the difference of sociodemographic findings, alcohol and smoking habit, past history, family history, drug history, emotional factors, body mass index and serum biochemical profiles between ulcer and non ulcer patients. RESULTS: 1. There were no differences of age, sex and occupation between peptic ulcer and non ulcer patients. 2. Heavy smoking (p<0.001), heavy drink (p=0.011), past history of upper gastrointestinal disease (p<0.001), fatigue (p<0.001) and depressive mood (p=0.001) were significantly more frequent in H. pylori positive peptic ulcer patients than non ulcer patients. 3. We found several related factors that might affect peptic ulcer development in H. pylori infected patients through logistic regression analysis of variables. These factors were heavy smoking (odds ratio 5.91, 95% CI 2.54-13.78), past history (odds ratio=4.24, 95% CI 1.72-10.42), depressed mood (odds ratio 2.76, 95% CI 1.15-6.63), and fatigue (odds ratio 2.42, 95% CI 1.03-5.69). CONCLUSION: We conclude that past history, heavy smoking, depressed mood, and fatigue are related factors of peptic ulcer disease in H. pylori positive patients.

The analysis of the present status of the medical internet sites in Korea

BACKGROUND: After the World-Wide-Web(www) appeared, history has abruptly fallen in the new era of the Internet. In Korea, after the first medical internet site appeared, there was a major development in the WWW. But the quality and quantity of the web-page remains in infancy. Therefore, through the analysis of the Korean medical internet sites on present status, directions for development of Korean medical internet sites can be made. METHODS: From April 1st, 1999 to June 30th, 1999 in the Korean web sites, we visited 1044 sites. They included "Medmark Korea" representing medical search engine, "Eulji medical library" in the Eulji Medical College Hospital, and the medical sites of the "Yahoo Korea", "naver.com", and "simmani.com". Through this internet search, the information about locations, first publication year, classification by characteristics of homepage, speciality, web service form was obtained. Among these sites, acquireing from insufficient source further, questions were sent to the webmasters of 143 websites by e-mail. The questions included 7 items on the characteristic of webmasters, 8 items on the general characteristics of internet sites, 8 items on the contents, and their own comments. RESULTS: The occupation of webmasters was as follows: were physicians 94.4%, were male. According to age distribution, those in their thirties was 48.2%, and forties, 33.3%. Amone the 521 websites confirmed, there were 44 sites in 199 151 in 1996, 237 in 1997, and 79 in 1999. According to the distribution of location, metropolitan areas including Seoul, Inchon, Kyonggi occupied 68.9% among total. The main portion of the intentional visitors was ordinary people comprising 39.2%, members 9.8%, and physicians 7.7%. Concerning the purposes of publication, 38.7% of websites intended for health education to citizens, 31.0% for publicity of hospital or organizations, and 15.5% for exchange of information between members. For the most significant contents, 26.6% focused on the common-sense health issues, 35.7% on exchange of special medical information, 8.4% on education data for medical students, and 13.3% on publicity of hospitals. For the update interval, 22.0% renewed their sites within 1 week, 22.7% in 1 month, 23.4% in 3 months, and 20.6% in 6 months. For the effectiveness of homepage, the rate of `good' and `very good' response was 52.8%. CONCLUSION: Our investigation, showed that medical internet sites are lead by those in their thirties and forties. Web sites was concentrated to metropolitan areas where informational infrastructure was well developed. It is emphasized that efforts to informationalization by are needed by, governmental medical database systems should be established, and that the guidelines which enables validity of medical information should be set forth.

Prevalence of Intestinal Metaplasia, Dysplasia and Helicobacter pylori Infection by Aging

BACKGROUND : The recent studies shows that Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) related chronic gastritis leads to dysplasia, intestinal metaplasia and gastric cancer. The aim of this study was to determine the association between precancerous lesion of stomach (dysplasia, intestinal metaplasia) and H.pylori infection in the elderly. METHODS : 469 patients were enrolled this study, Patients with intestinal metaplasia or dysplasia (case, n=148) were compared with controls (without intestinal metaplasia and dysplasia, n=321) about H. pylori positive rates H. pylori positivity was confirmed by histologic determination of endoscopic biopsy specimens. Results : 1) Among study populations H. pylori positive rates were 51.8% (55.8% in male, 40.7% in female). It was significantly higher in male (p=0.001). 2) There were no significant differences in sex distribution between cases and controls, but in old age, the cases were more frequent than in young age (p<0.001). 3) Age distribution of H. pylori positive rates were not significant between cases and controls. 47.5% in intestinal metaplasia, 43.4% in dysplasia, 21.3% in dysplasia+intestinal metaplasia were H. pylori positive. H. pylori positive rates were more higher in controls than cases, followed by in decreasing order by the intestinal metaplasia group, the dysplasia group, and those having both (p=0.003). 4) Age and sex adjusted H. pylori positive rates were more higher in controls (42.7%) than in cases (25.0%)(p<0.009). CONCLUSION : The prevalence of intestinal metaplasia and dysplasia was age dependent. But we couldn't explain the carcinogenic effect of H. pylori, because H. pylori positive rates were lower in cases than in controls

The Effects of Knowledge and Attitude about Noise on Hearing Conservation Behavior and Hearing Loss / 대한산업의학회지

This study was conducted to investigate knowledge and attitude factor related to hearing conservation and to evaluate the effect of knowledge and attitude about noise on hearing conservation behavior and hearing loss among workers exposed to noise. We investigated the questionnaires of knowledge and attitude about noise and hearing conservation behavior and hearing loss among 355 study subjects from March, 1998 to June, 1998. The results were as follows; We extracted following 5 factors from 26 questionnaire items of knowledge and attitude about noise; knowledge of noise and concern to the control noise (factor 1), general perceived susceptibility (factor 2), relative perceived susceptibility compared with colleagues(factor 3), concern to the hearing protective devices(factor 4), concern to the hearing and noise assessment (factor 5). Knowledge and attitude factors affecting the hearing conservation behavior were general perceived susceptibility in the case of wearing hearing protective devices and knowledge of noise and concern to the control noise in the case of suggestion for hearing conservation. But, in the case of intentional avoiding noise exposure, concern to the hearing protective devices was a significant factor with concern to the hearing and noise assessment. Knowledge and attitude factors affecting hearing loss in 1 kHz were relative perceived susceptibility compared with colleagues and concern to the hearing protective devices, and in 4 KHz were relative perceived susceptibility compared with colleagues and general perceived susceptibility.

Usefulness of PC communications for medical information

BACKGROUND: A good deal of medical information is in circulation with the great advances in communication technology. This study sought to collect and classify a wide variety of data in circulation, to determine the effects of this medical information via PC on people, to see whether people feel that it is useful, and how it can be applied clinically. METHODS: Contents of medical information in circulation were classified and analyzed from domestic PC network including Chollian, Hitel, and Unitel. The survey was conducted with 700 subjects who were given medical counsel through above communicatian networks between August 1 and September 30, 1997. They were given questionnaires for usefulness of medical information via e-mail and among these, cross-sectional study was made with 336 respondents who were feasible for statistical analysis. RESULTS: Users of medical information currently in circulation can be roughly classified into general and professional ones. Information for general user can be grouped by its contents into one for medical common sense, medical consultation, First Aid, self-diagnasis, medical insurance, drug therapy, medical test interpretation, guide information for hospital and clinic visitors. The survey showed the following responsesn: PC communication was useful(70.8%), its education efficacy was higher than other measures(62.3%), it helped for the prevention of diseases(59.8%), it was useful in the reduction of medical fee (71.4%), I'll get the web information even if charged(63.1%), it helped for the correction of mistaken medical common sense(58.8%), it helped for the understanding of medical service in a hospital(63.5%). CONCLUSIONS: Practically, PC communication can provide general users medical information in a convenient and useful way. In addition, this information can be helpful in the reduction of medical fee and prevention of diseases, and more effective in patient education than other measures.

Proposal of Program for Easier Access of Family Medicine Information through PC Communication

BACKGROUND: It is expected that the demand for the information about the primary medical service in the forthcoming supersede age of communication will be on the increase. For that reason, family doctors who are in charge of the primary medical service have to play an important part in constructing a data-base for furnishing the medical information. This article presents a model which includes the roles of family doctors, constructing medical-related information site of family medicine in the communications net with PC to gat,her fundamental data in operating the system of medical information and elucidating the formation of medical-related information site and the effect of operating that system. METHODS: Since Aug. 20 in 1996, the site of family medicine, the program of medical information, has been set up in Unitel. The medical information of the site of family medicine is to be classified into two parts : for doctors and for the public. The former is composed of medicine documents, several kinds of medical data, a linkage with medicine site in Internet, movements of an academic society and information exchanges for friendship. The latter is mainly made up of some practical medical sense and medical counsel. RESULTS: From the opening the medical information site to Jul. 30 in 1997, 250 persons a day have connected with medical information site and this fact implied 15 hours connection a day in terms of the daily mean. The cases of health counsel averaged 6 cases connection a day and the annual statistics of those cases were about, 1980 cases. The major content of health counsel was related to common symptoms that could be settled in primary medical problem. According to the survey for connectors, most of connectors answered that the medical information through communications net was much more effective t.han that from other media in the educational aspects and very helpful in the prevention of diseases and in the medical expenditure. Above all, the medical information through communications net was very effective in correcting the mistaken practical medical sense. CONCLUSIONS: It is necessary for family doctors to give thought to the connection of both information communication and medicine and to have correct understanding of medical domain in the cyberspace. On the foundation of these necessities, all the family doctors have to make the best of their way to construct a database with rnedical data and to transfer these data into the computer sites.

The relationship between nicotine dependency and depession in smokers

No abstract available.