• Journal of The Korea Institute of Healthcare Architecture
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.51-60
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• 2021

Purpose: Tuberculosis(TB) care unit in public health center should be carefully considered to be re-designed as an infection safety environment for both patient and healthcare workers. So, for the enhancement, this study analyses the facility requirements for co-using the screening clinic as a TB and other respiratory disease care unit. Methods: Not only screening clinic facility guidelines from "A Study for Standard Triage Design and Construction Document" but also the guidelines of TB care and related medical facility are reviewed; KDCA, CDC, ECDC and WHO as a TB care, and FGI and NHS for facility. The facility requirements are summarized space, approach, and mechanical requirement in order. By comparing the summary and screening clinic facility guidelines, supplementations are proposed for TB care unit setting. Results: The result of this study shows that both the space program and mechanical requirement of the screening clinic and that of TB care unit are almost identical and could be share, which include direct airflow or negative air pressure in an exam room. To increase functional and economical efficiency, however, it is necessary to consider a multi-functional negative pressured room, So care process may be re-designed based on a room type; face-to-face room or glass wall inbetween. Implications: The facility guidelines for TB care unit of a public health center should be developed to build a safe environment for infection control by reflecting its medical plan and budget.

• The Korean Journal of Medicine
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• v.99 no.2
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• pp.104-110
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• 2024

Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) is a bacterium that colonizes the human stomach, leading to various gastrointestinal diseases including gastritis, peptic ulcers, and gastric cancer. There is no gold standard test that relies entirely on one method in H. pylori diagnosis. We must be aware of the pros and cons of various testing methods to perform an appropriate test according to the situation. Accurate diagnosis and eradication therapy are essential for disease management. Diagnostic methods include invasive techniques like tissue biopsy and rapid urease test, as well as non-invasive tests such as urea breath test, serology test, and stool antigen test. Each method has its advantages and limitations, requiring careful consideration in clinical practice. Understanding these diagnostic tools is crucial for effective H. pylori management and prevention of associated complications.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
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• v.47 no.4
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• pp.279-285
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• 2015

This study studied samples taken off surfaces at three sites (Unit chairs, light handles, cuspidors) of 19 dental hospitals and 28 clinics located in Gyeonggi-do and Incheon, South Korea. The bacterial contamination levels of surfaces were $44.82{\times}10^3CFU/mL$ in cuspidors, higher than in unit chairs ($5.47{\times}10^3CFU/mL$) and light handles ($16.28{\times}10^3CFU/mL$). The values were statistically higher at dental hospitals than at dental clinics, the greater number of patients being associated with the higher bacterial cell count in the cuspidors. The results of identifying the strains isolated purely from surfaces at dental clinic showed Gram positive 47.3% and Gram negative 52.7%. Among Gram positive, the most numberous bacteria were Micrococcus luteus (10.9%), Bacillus pumilus (3.6%), and Staphylococcus aureus (3.6%). Among Gram negative, the most numberous bacteria were Acinetobacter ursingii (5.5%), Brevundimonas diminuta (4.5%), Chryseobacterium (Flavo.) indologenes (CDC IIb) (4.5%), and Methylobacterium sp. (4.5%). This study measures the level of bacterial contamination and identifies the strains isolated in dental clinics. It recognizes the importance of infection control, and the results of the study may be considered as the basis for establishing specific plans for prevention of infection.

• Pediatric Infection and Vaccine
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• v.4 no.1
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• pp.97-105
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• 1997

Purpose : Aseptic meningitis mainly caused by enterovirus is common in pediatric population especially during summer & fall. Most of pediatric patients restore their health without any complications with proper management. Between May to August of 1996, Masan and surrounding areas of the Kyoungsangnamdo were epidemic areas for the aseptic meningitis. The purpose of this study was to determine causative virus and describe correlation between disease and clinical symptoms in aseptic meningitis patients and those with fever and characteristic rashes without apparent meningitis symptoms. Methods : Between May to August, 1996, 57 patients with high fever and characteristic feature of rashes were reviewed. From 22 cerebrospinal fluid & 57 stool obtained specimens, viral culture and detection of enterovirus RNA were conducted. Collected specimens were kept in $-30^{\circ}C$ environment until sending of specimens to labortory. The virus identified through indirect immunofluorescence. RT-PCR method was used to identify enterovirus RNA in cerebralspinal fluid. Results : 1) One hundred fifty five pediatric patients with viral infection required hospitalization. Disease occurred higher rate in male than female with ratio of 1.94:1. Examined patients' age ranged from 15days old to 15years old. But most of patients(74.8%) were under age of 5years old. The time of occurrence was between May to August of 1996. 2) All patients had high fever and physical symptoms in those patients include headache, vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhea, and rashes. The rashes observed mainly in patients under age of 4 years and were predominantly commom patients under age of 18 months olds)<0.001). 3) Between sampled patients and non-sampled patients, clinical course was similar. Echovirus type 9 was cultivated in 41 out of 57 cases of collected stool specimens. RT-PCR that used on CSF showed positive results in 10 out of 22 cases. Three cases of positive cultivated of positive results in RT-PCR were echovirus type 9. Conclusions : Echovirus type 9 was thought to be the causative agent of aseptic meningitis that was prevalent throughout mid areas of Kyoungsangnamdo from May to August, 1996. Additionally causative agent that responsible for high fever with rashes without meningitis symptoms also thought to be the same echovirus type 9.

• Pediatric Infection and Vaccine
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.94-100
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• 2001

Purpose : Enterovirus is a common cause of aseptic meningitis and nonspecific febrile illness in young children. During the summer and fall months, enterovirus-infected young children are frequently admitted and evaluated to rule out bacterial sepsis and/or meningitis. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relationship between nonpolio enterovirus infection and febrile illness in infants under 3 months of age during the summer, fall months by using a stool culture to identify the presence of enterovirus. Methods : Patients included febrile infants under 3 months of age admitted to Masan Fatima Hospital for sepsis evaluation from May 1999 to September 1999. Cultures were performed from stool and Cerebrospinal fluid samples and then were tested for enterovirus infection. Viral isolation and serotype identification were performed by cell culture and immunofluorescent testing. Enteroviruses not typed by immunofluorescent testing were confirmed by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. Results : A total of 44 febrile infants were enrolled; of those, 20(45%) were positive for enterovirus. Two enterovirus culture-positive infants had concomitant urinary tract infection and one had Kawasaki disease. All infants infected with an enterovirus recovered without complications. Serotype of 20 enteroviruses were isolated from stool, 3 of echovirus type 9, 1 of echovirus type 11, 1 Coxsachievirus type B4, 15 of untyped enteroviruses. One untyped enterovirus was isolated in the CSF. Conclusion : Nonpolio enterovirus infections are associated with nonspecific febrile illnesses in infants under 3 months of age.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
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• v.36 no.2
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• pp.222-232
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• 2004

The sample collection room(SCR) will have much more influence than all the other departments for the improvement of hospital image, if anyone coming to the SCR in the hospital goes back with the perfect complacency and because most clients who have much stresses and fatigues pay a final visit to the SCR via receipt-diagnosis- acceptance process. SCR has improved its image for the purpose of gratifying clients, in order for clients to visit the hospital again, the quality improvement(QI) team in the Diagnosis Inspection Medical Department has come to a conclusion as follows. The degree of client gratification before improvement marks 65.9 point, but the degree after improvement was 74.2 point. Therefore, satisfaction has increased by 8.3 points. The degree of client gratification in groups before improvement marks (1) service parts-89.2 points (2) facilities and environments-49.1 point (3) toilet facilities-46.3 point. But its gratification after improvement marks (1) 92.5 point (2) 60.1 point (3) 61.0 point. Therefore the degree of satisfaction has increased by (1) 3.3 point, (2) 11.0 point, (3) 14.7 point. The progress of facility improvement plans and the exclusion of improvement on the facility contents in the hospital have made facilities and environments of SCR and toilet facilities to be poorly improved. Although service parts have a good mark, and the facilities and environments are not scoring well, the whole degree clients' gratification of SCR couldn't be helped by the low grade. Therefore the bottom line for the clients' gratification of SCR in the future is to ameliorate the facilities and environments. SCR will take the clients' gratification survey every year and if any items get low marks, that is, below 90 point throughout the survey, SCR will immediately starts the improvement work for the clients' gratification with operating the programs of controlling quality continually, and SCR should induce the operation of services, participating in the kind campaign drive for clients. So SCR will adopt the incentive system for the best staff members who perform these kinds of services.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.17 no.5
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• pp.490-497
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• 2016

This study compared and analyzed the pollution levels of radiation shielding aprons and ways to sterilize them using 30 lead aprons. After collecting samples from the center of the lead apron, where contact is most frequent, experiments were conducted employing Coagula and Latex methods. Using the culture medium where bacteria grew, measurements of the pathogen count and identification were performed. The greatest number of pathogens were $7.16{\pm}10$, which were detected on the lead apron from general X-ray room #2, but there was no significant difference according to the facilities (p > 0.05). Compared to how many pathogens remained between using the disinfectant ethanol and tissue, the pathogens decreased by $0.01{\pm}0.4$ (p < 0.05) after using disinfectant ethanol and by $0.87{\pm}1.7$(p < 0.05) after using disinfectant tissue. The Pearson correlation test revealed a significant correlation (-0.296, p < 0.05) between them. According to this research, there were pathogens on the lead aprons and the number of pathogens was determined by statistical analysis. It is expected that the rate of radiology technologists, patients, and medical equipment infected by pathogens will be reduced by the proper use of sterilization with a disinfectant ethanol.

• Annals of Clinical Microbiology
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.86-91
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• 2018

Background: The PANA RealTyper HPV kit (PANAGENE, Korea; PANA RealTyper) was developed to genotype human papillomavirus (HPV) and was based on multiplex real-time PCR amplification and melting curve analysis. In this study, we compared PANA RealTyper to the AdvanSure HPV GenoBlot assay (LG Life Sciences, Korea; AdvanSure assay) and attempted to evaluate the performance of PANA RealTyper. Methods: A total of 60 cervical specimens were collected from women undergoing routine cervical cancer screening. The AdvanSure assay and PANA RealTyper kit identified the same 20 high-risk genotypes. However, the AdvanSure assay identified 15 low-risk genotypes, while the PANA RealTyper kit identified only 2 but detected 18 low-risk genotypes. Results: Among the total 60 specimens, 54 high-risk genotypes (40 specimens) and 20 low-risk genotypes (18 specimens) were detected. The agreement rates of the assays ranged from 94.4 to 100% for high-risk genotypes. Among 9 genotypes that were positive in the PANA RealTyper kit but negative in the AdvanSure assay, 7 were confirmed as true positive (HPV genotypes 16 (n=1), 39 (n=1), 52 (n=1), 58 (n=2), 68 (n=2)). Among 4 genotypes that were negative in the PANA RealTyper kit but positive in the AdvanSure assay, 3 were confirmed as HPV genotype 59. Among the 19 low-risk genotypes positive in the AdvanSure assay, there were 2 cases of HPV 6 and 1 case of HPV 11. In comparison, only 1 positive case of HPV 6 was determined by the PANA RealTyper kit. Conclusion: The PANA RealTyper kit was comparable with the AdvanSure assay. The PANA RealTyper kit would be useful and suitable for HPV genotyping in the clinical laboratory.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
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• v.52 no.3
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• pp.284-295
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• 2020

In December 2019, the first coronavirus disease- 2019 (COVID-19) patient was reported in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China. Since then, the number of patients who suffered severe acute respiratory syndrome caused by the novel Coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2 or 2019-nCoV) has increased dramatically in Korea. This new variant virus induces pulmonary diseases, including cough, sore throat, rhinorrhea, dyspnea, and pneumonia. Because SARS-CoV-2 is an RNA virus, real-time reverse-transcriptase PCR has been used widely to diagnose COVID-19. As the Korea Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (KCDC) and Ministry of Food & Drug Safety (MFDS) approved emergency use authorization, clinical specimens collected from COVID-19 patients and even healthy people have been clinically diagnosed by laboratory medicine. Based on a literature search, this paper reviews the epidemiology, symptoms, molecular diagnostics approved by KCDC, a current diagnosis of COVID-19 in the laboratories, the difference between molecular and serological diagnosis, and guidelines for clinical specimens. In addition, the Korean guidelines of biosafety for clinical laboratory scientists are evaluated to prevent healthcare-associated infection. The author's experience and lessons as clinical laboratory scientists will provide valuable insights to protect the domestic and international health community in this COVID-19 pandemic around the world.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.50 no.1
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• pp.20-27
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• 2007

Purpose : Child sexual abuse is a significant and serious problem that affects public health and society. Pediatricians are responsible for preventing and detecting sexual abuse of children. The aim of this study was to examine clinical findings of child sexual abuse. Methods : The authors retrospectively studied 292 patients between the ages of 0 and 18 who were referred for evaluation of sexual abuse to the Emergency Department of the National Police Hospital from Oct 1, 2001 to May 5, 2005. Results : Sixty three (21.6 percent) of sexual abuse victims were younger than 6 years of age; 89 (30.5 percent) were 6-12 years of age; and 104 (47.9 percent) were 12-18 years of age. Attack time was the most common between noon and 6 pm. Victims were attacked in their home or nearby (51.4 percent). One hundred fifty six (53.6 percent) offenders were accquaitances, thirty nine (13.4 percent) of whom were family members. The disclosure of attack by parents with abnormal physical symptoms was more common in younger children than in adolescence. Eighty nine (30.5 percent) victims had no specific physical findings, 51 percent had injury to the hymen, 37.3% had injury to external genitalia, and 4 percent had anal injury. One case of gonorrhea and thirteen cases of chlamydia were found. Sperm was found in 19 cases and acid phosphatase was positive in 28 cases. The absence of physical findings and laboratory findings was more common in younger children than in those in adolescence. The time interval from attacks to hospital visits had a significant negative correlation with age. Conclusion : For younger victims, the time interval from attack to hospital visitis was more prolonged. Victims may have no physical evidence of sexual abuse. Therefore, a careful history should be obtained and a through physical examination should be performed. Pediatricians must play a leading role in evaluation and treatment of sexually abused children, considering children,s growth and development. Coordination with other professionals is necessary to provide consultation, medical treatment, and legal assistance for the sexually abused children and families.