• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.21 no.6
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• pp.411-422
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• 2013

G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCR) are the largest superfamily of receptors responsible for signaling between cells and tissues, and because they play important physiological roles in homeostasis, they are major drug targets. New technologies have been developed for the identification of new ligands, new GPCR functions, and for drug discovery purposes. In particular, intercellular lipid mediators, such as, lysophosphatidic acid and sphingosine 1-phosphate have attracted much attention for drug discovery and this has resulted in the development of fingolimod (FTY-720) and AM095. The discovery of new intercellular lipid mediators and their GPCRs are discussed from the perspective of drug development. Lipid GPCRs for lysophospholipids, including lysophosphatidylserine, lysophosphatidylinositol, lysophosphatidylcholine, free fatty acids, fatty acid derivatives, and other lipid mediators are reviewed.

• The Journal of Churna Manual Medicine for Spine and Nerves
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.9-18
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• 2020

Objectives This study verified the clinical effectiveness of Qigong exercise therapy for individuals with hypertension. Methods Ten electronic databases were used for information retrieval. Only randomized controlled trials (RCTs) using Qigong exercise therapy as a treatment for hypertension were included in this study. Cochrane risk of bias tool was used to assess the methodological quality of each RCT. Results After a thorough review, six RCTs were deemed eligible. These studies were divided into two groups: Qigong vs. no intervention and Qigong plus anti-hypertensive drug vs. anti-hypertensive drug alone. Among the six RCTs, four studies were Qigong vs. no intervention, and two studies were Qigong plus anti-hypertensive drug vs. anti-hypertensive drug alone. The meta-analysis demonstrated that adding Qigong exercise to anti-hypertensive drug treatment lowers diastolic blood pressure more than the anti-hypertensive drug alone. Conclusions Although Qigong exercise is not widely used in the Korean medical field, the results of this study demonstrated the necessity of exercise while controlling hypertension. However, the number of included studies was small, with their high risk of bias. In conclusion, although it is difficult to determine whether Qigong exercise lowers blood pressure in hypertensive patients, exercise including Qigong must be parallel with the intake of anti-hypertensive drugs.

• Research in Community and Public Health Nursing
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.136-145
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• 2007

Purpose: This study was attempted to illuminate danger signals through an extensive analysis of factors influencing adolescents' illicit drug use. On this basis, it built predictive factors of adolescents' illicit drug use. Method: A questionnaire was distributed to 1,238 subjects living in Seoul, and of them 1,082 answers were analyzed using the SAS 8.2 program. Also logistic regression analysis was conducted based on the stepwise selection method for constructing the predictive factors. Results: The findings of this study are as follows. Individual-related factors were psycho-somatic symptoms, self-esteem, fortune delinquent experience, and sexual-violence delinquent experience. Home-related factors were insincerity, threatening and the assessment of the parent (rearer)-adolescent communication type. Society-related factors were affection of friends and friends' attitude toward delinquency. Conclusion: These findings of this study suggest that a broad intervention program should be provided to nurture wholesome youth culture related to illicit drug use. It is also recommended that a variety of individual, home and society-related programs should be developed for drug users.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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• v.37 no.5
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• pp.645-654
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• 2007

Purpose: This research was conducted to compare the effects of drug therapy, physical therapy, and exercise on pain, disability, and depression in patients with chronic low back pain. Methods: The research design of this study was a nonequivalent control group pretest-posttest design. The subjects of this study were 28 patients for the drug therapy & physical therapy, 24 patients for the drug therapy & exercise, and 22 patients for the physical therapy & exercise. Data was collected by MVAS, Oswestry disability questionnaires, and questionnaires of depression. It was analyzed by paired t-test for effectiveness, ANOVA, and Scheffe for comparison of the effects of the 3 experimental treatments, using SPSS/WIN 12.0. Results: There were no effects of drug therapy & physical therapy on pain, disability, and depression. However, there were effects of drug therapy & exercise and the physical therapy & exercise on pain, disability, and depression. The effects of physical therapy & exercise on pain, disability, and depression were the greatest, but there was no statistically significant differences between the drug therapy & exercise and the physical therapy & exercise. Conclusions: Exercise is regarded as a more effective and easily accessible nursing intervention to apply alone than drug therapy or physical therapy simultaneously in reducing pain, disability and depression.

• Quality Improvement in Health Care
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.93-112
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• 2006

This study reviewed published studies on interventions used by hospitals, health insurance programs, or governments to improve use of medicines in foreign countries. Interventions to improve use of medicines are classified into two categories: 1) information strategies-dissemination of educational materials, group education, one-to-one educational outreach, drug utilization review, and feedback; 2) managerial strategies- formularies, prior authorization, and financial incentives. Dissemination of educational materials, which is a common intervention, was unsuccessful in changing physicians' prescribing behaviors. Problem-based small group education was more likely to change behaviors than didactic large group education. One-to-one educational outreach(academic detailing) was among the most effective strategies used to change prescribing behaviors. Prospective drug utilization review (DUR) program was more successful in improving use of medicines than retrospective DUR program. Feedback intervention has been reported to be ineffective to change behaviors. Formularies are frequently used to control medication use by most health insurance programs. Financial incentives provide physicians economic incentives according to appropriateness of prescribing. However, few published studies have assessed the efficacy of formularies or financial incentives. Prior authorization requires physicians to get authorization from health insurers before prescribing a certain group of drugs which is usually of high costs or risk. There is no magic bullet for quality use of medicines. Multifaceted interventions that help to predispose, enable, and reinforce desired behaviors are more likely to be successful.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.679-687
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• 1999

The increased potential for the lifespan of a child with cancer is largely due to advances in drug treatment, radiation treatment, and surgical techniques. In this generation cancer has become associated with chronic illness. Therefore supportive nursing intervention for children with cancer is needed to promote normal growth and development. This study was designed to develop and test the supportive nursing intervention program for promoting body image and self-esteem of children with cancer The supportive nursing intervention program involved emotional, physical, informational, and social support. The subjects were 41 children with cancer(20 in intervention group, 21 in control group) in K city. Measurements were taken concerning body image and self-esteem from both groups during pre and post test The data were analyzed using Cronbach's alpha, x$^2$-test, paired t-test and t-test. The results were as follows : The intervention group had a more positive body image as measured by the Body Cathexis Scale (t＝2.436, p＝.020) and a more self esteem as measured by the Cpopersmith self-inventory (t＝2.768, p＝.009) than the control group at post test. According to this study, the supportive nursing intervention program was effective for promoting the body image and self-esteem of children with cancer. Repeated research is needed to develop a refined supportive nursing intervention program for children with chronic illness.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.917-931
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• 2000

This study was to provide understanding for the juvenile problem of drug brought about by industrialization, and the importance people that we should take a role in helping to resolve the problem. The purpose of this study lies in approaching the effective methods to prevent Korean adolescents from being involved in drug by examining the factors of their experience. The method of this study is designed to grasp the adolescents' drug experience, its meaning, its structure and the nursing intervention ways. By applying a phenomenological approach which is based on a qualitative research method, the researchers hoped to reveal key data in each group. It has been carried on from October 1998 until September 1999 with sample of 5 adolescent inmates in K mental hospital located in Seoul. The data were collected by sereous personal deep interviews and observations. Collected data were analyzed according to the phenomenological method suggested by Giorgi. The results of this study are as follows: First, pleasure seeking: curiosity, joy, and fun; Second, affiliation: formation of clique with the same age; Third, escape from reality: loneliness, emptiness, heroic mind, self- confidence, self-absorption, and comfort; Forth, feeble- mindedness: anxiety, fear, and temptation; Fifth, psychological unadaptation: wandering, forfeiture, and incompetence; Sixth, physical counteraction: headache, vomiting, loss of memory, loss of appetite and loss of sensibility; Seventh, psychological confusion: illusion, auditory hallucination and dream; Eighth, recovery of self-consciousness: repentance, desire and awareness This study results in the following suggestions of the nursing intervention 1. To cultivate a wholesome game culture for the adolescents. 2. To make up the group activities so that the adolescents can establish their sense of identity through a variety of group counseling program. 3. To foster the capability to cope with the change in the process of social accommodation. 4. To enforce the social life skill for the adolescents. 5. To practice the systematic education about drug use. 6. To develop the social education programs. 7. To help the adolescents build up their sense of identity by applying the adolescent cure programs. Above all, it is necessary that school and community as well as home should establish the educational environment paying special concern and consideration to the adolescents.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.55 no.4
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• pp.407-413
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• 2022

Objectives: This study provides insights on the impact of a targeted intervention (TI) programme on behaviour change among injecting drug users (IDUs) in India. Methods: This paper examined the data from the Integrated Biological and Behavioural Surveillance 2014-2015 for IDUs in India. Logistic regression was performed to understand the factors (TI programme services) that affected injecting risk behaviours by adjusting for covariates. Propensity score matching was conducted to understand the impact of the TI programme on using new needles/syringes and sharing needles/syringes in the most recent injecting episode by accounting for the covariates that predicted receiving the intervention. Results: Participants who received new needles and syringes from peer educators or outreach workers were 1.3 times (adjusted odds ratio, 1.29; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.09 to 1.53) more likely to use new needles/syringes during most recent injecting episode than participants who did not receive needles/syringes. The matched-samples estimate (i.e., average treatment effect on treated) of using new needles in the most recent injecting episode showed a 2.8% (95% CI, 0.0 to 5.6) increase in the use of new needles and a 6.5% (95% CI, -9.7 to -3.3) decrease in needle sharing in the most recent injecting episode in participants who received new needles/syringes. There was a 2.2% (95% CI, -3.8 to -0.6) decrease in needle sharing in the most recent injecting episode among participants who were referred to other services (integrated counselling and testing centre, detox centres, etc.). Conclusions: The TI programme proved to be effective for behaviour change among IDUs, as substantiated by the use of new needles/syringes and sharing of needles/syringes.

• Korean Journal of Health Education and Promotion
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.57-67
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• 1994

The aim of this study was to research and compare the demographic characteristics of drug abusers with non-drug abusers among junior high school students in Japan through a closed format questionnaire. The same questionnaire and face-to-face interviews were used in order to find the circumstances of drug abuser among Kyogoin(a sort of child welfare institution) students in Japan. The goal of the study was to provide basic materials for preventive education of drug abuse through the two investigations mentioned above. Between July 1993 and November 1993, the information for this study was collected from 964 students from 4 junior high schools, and also 142 students from 3 Kyogoin in Japan. A total of 1106 questionnaires were completed resulting in a following response rate of 90.4%. Information was based on the scales : family relation scale, school life scale, recognition on danger of drug abuse scale, family environment scale (Moos, 1986), self esteem inventory (Coopersmith, 1967), etc. The conclusions can be summarized as follows : 1. Drug abusers are more likely to lake communication in their families and have poorer human relations than non-drug abusers. Also their school life scores tended to be lawer non-drug abusers. 2. It was between their 6th year of elementary school and their first of Junior high school when the drug was first used. The drug of choice which they made their first attempt at using was a volatile solvent which was inhaled. It is likely that this drug is "gateway-drug" for adolescents in Japan because they then also tried other drugs (e.g. cocaine, marijuana, etc.) step by step. 3. It is therefore clearly important that greatly increasing education on the harmful effects of drug abuse before the summer vacation of the first term of the sixth year of elementary school. At the same time, intervention in the family will have an effective prevention strategy in Japan, as well., as well.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Pharmacy
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.6-12
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• 2016

Objective: This study aimed to explore the readability and comprehensibility of the drug information on a patient leaflet for the senior by employing performance-based user-testing. Methods: We included 36 elderly (65 years old or older) as the senior group (intervention group) and 36 adults (40~59 years old) as the adult group (control). We developed a questionnaire to test if participants could access to drug information. After completing a questionnaire, the participant was interviewed about their understanding over the patient leaflet. We performed t-test, ${\chi}^2$-test or Fisher's exact test to examine differences between two groups in primary outcomes. Results: The senior were less likely able to find information (78%) than the adult (91%); they were much less likely able to understand information (42%) than the adult (69%). While we found differences between the ability of finding and understanding drug information in both groups, the senior group had greater difficulties in understanding all kinds of drug information. They had significant difficulties to remember information after reading the patient leaflet and frequently failed to find proper information even though they were allowed to access freely to the leaflet during interviewing. Conclusion: To secure safe and effective use of drugs for the senior, it is necessary to develop drug leaflets for the senior.