ABSTRACT
The objective of the study was to explore the status of usage of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) among Korean elite athletes. A survey was emailed to all Korean national sports federations recognized by the International Olympic Committee and the Olympic Council of Asia. A total of 705 Korean elite athletes participated in this study. The athletes had to be any of the following to participate in this survey: elite intercollegiate athletes, professional athletes, and national team athletes. 83.3% of the participants stated that they have previously experienced Korean medicine (KM). Compared to the general population in Korea, athletes had more experience (general population = 73.8%). The participants without experience mentioned that they either did not need any KM treatments (39.8%) or lacked information (39.8%) regarding KM treatments. The primary reason for the utilization of KM was the effectiveness of treatments. Therefore, 70.8% of the participants have mentioned recommending KM to others. Generally, athletes are worrisome that the consumption of herbal medicine may not be doping-free; however, it is vital to note that 62% of the participants expressed that prescribed herbal medicine is safe. Overall, this research demonstrates a high prevalence of KM usage by intercollegiate, professional, and national team athletes in Korea. Hence, this study's results may serve as the foundation in future research directions for promoting KM among Korean elite athletes.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: This study was performed to compare the clinical features between febrile convulsions and benign convulsions associated with viral gastroenteritis. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 706 children admitted to the Sunlin Hospital for either febrile convulsions or benign convulsions with viral gastroenteritis, between January 1, 2006, and December 31, 2009. We classified them into group A for febrile convulsions (N = 631), group B for non-rotavirus gastroenteritis (N = 43) and group C for rotavirus gastroenteritis (N = 32). Then we analyzed and compared the characteristics between the three groups. RESULTS: The mean ages (± SD) of group A, B and C were 28.3 ± 17.9, 21.2 ± 22.0, and 22.0 ± 18.7 months, respectively. Group A admissions were prevalent in the spring, and group C admissions were prevalent in the winter. There was a family history of febrile convulsions in 55.6% of group A patients, 46.5% of group B patients, and 34.4% of group C patients. Cluster convulsions during hospitalization were observed more in group B and group C than in group A (23.3%, and 18.8% vs. 6.3%, p < 0.01). In afebrile convulsions with diarrhea, recurrence occurred in 33.3% of patients, while recurrence occurred in only 10.3% in febrile cases (p = 0.015). CONCLUSIONS: All studied groups showed favorable prognoses. However, the groups differed in the following characteristics: distribution of the month of admission, age, the family history of febrile convulsions, fever occurrence, and recurrence. In afebrile convulsions with gastroenteritis, cluster convulsions were more likely to occur within 24 h from admission.
