Factors Associated with Fruit and Vegetable Consumption of Subjects Having a History of Stroke: Using 5th Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2010, 2011) / 대한지역사회영양학회지

OBJECTIVES: Intake of fruits and vegetables has protective effects against stroke attack. This study intended to examine the status of consuming fruits and vegetables and to find out which factors may influence the frequency of consumption of fruits and vegetables in individuals with a history of stroke. METHODS: The data of 208 subjects from 5th (2010, 2011) Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHNES) who reported a stroke diagnosis was used for analysis. To identify major factors influencing the consumption of fruits and vegetables, a classification-tree analysis was carried out. RESULTS: Among those who reported a stroke diagnosis, the frequencies of consumption of fruits and vegetables were influenced by their age, place of residence (urban or rural), economic status, educational level, occupation, number of family members, frequency of eating out, and having meals (breakfast or lunch) with family members. Two factors from fruits and three factors from vegetables were generated by exploratory factor analyses. Urban residents ate fruits and vegetables more frequently in all factors than rural residents. Eating frequencies of 'seasonal fruits (orange, apple, strawberry, melon, pear and watermelon)', 'easily-accessible fruits (persimmon, tangerine, grape, peach, banana)', and 'Western-style vegetables (cabbage, mushroom, carrot, tomato, spinach)' were influenced by the socioeconomic status. Eating frequencies of 'Korean-style vegetables (bean sprout, radish leaves, pumpkin/squash, sea weed)', 'preserved vegetables (Korean cabbage, radish, laver, cucumber)' were influenced by having breakfast with amily members. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study suggested that by eating more fruits and vegetables, more preventive effects against secondary stroke attack are expected in stroke patients who live in the rural areas and who do not eat breakfast with family members. In addition, more outreach and education programs are needed for them.

A Case of Recurrent Transient Monocular Blindness in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus patient with Antiphospholipid Antibody Syndrome

Transient monocular blindness (TMB) may occur in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Several mechanisms have been suspected as the causes of such TMBs. A 32-year-old female patient with SLE presented recurrent monocular altitudinal visual field defects lasting for several minutes and occurring less than six times per day. Her anticardiolipin antibody level was persistently positive. All cerebrovascular imagings were normal. We report a case of recurrent TMBs in SLE with antiphospholipid antibody syndrome, which may have been induced by vasospasm.

Two Cases of Callosal Disconnection Syndrome: Impaired Body Cognition of Nondominant Limbs

Callosal disconnection results in the functional independence of each hemisphere and usually produces characteristic signs including alien hand, left-sided apraxia, left agraphia and left tactile anomia. Our two patients; a 75-year-old right-handed woman with hypertension and a 71-year-old right-handed woman with diabetes mellitus, showed impairments in the identification of body parts with their left hands in addition to characteristic symptoms such as left ideomotor apraxia, agraphia, tactile anomia, and right alien hand signs with groping and grasping. Brain MRIs of these patients upon admission demonstrated infarcts in the medial portion of the left frontal lobes and in the corpus callosum supplied by the left anterior cerebral artery. The impairment of body parts cognition in our patients can be attributed to the failure of the patient's left hand to communicate with the body schema stored in the left hemisphere.