[Clinicopathologic characteristics of superficial gastric cancer diagnosed at primary health care institutions in 2011].

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Stomach cancer is prevalent in Korea. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the characteristics of superficial gastric cancers detected at SOK Sokpeynhan Internal Medical Network, the nationwide primary health care institutions. METHODS: We prospectively analysed the clinicopathologic and endoscopic characteristics of 218 superficial gastric cancer patients diagnosed using gastric endoscopy at SOK network from January 2011 through December 2011. RESULTS: The mean age was 58.5 years old and male to female ratio was 1.7 : 1. Asymptomatic patients were most common (45.0%). The macroscopic classification revealed that simple types (63.8%) were more common than complex types (36.2%). The most common type was IIc (28.4%) and other types were as follows; IIb (16.1%), IIb+IIc (13.3%), IIa (10.6%), III (9.2%), IIa+IIc (7.3%), IIc+IIa (6.0%), IIc+IIb (5.0%). The most commonly involved sites were the body (53.1%) and greater curvature (32.6%) of the stomach. The size of lesion was less than 1 cm (69.3%) and less than 5 mm (33.5%) in diameter. The most common pathologic type was tubular adenocarcinoma (75.7%). Helicobacter pylori infection rate was 50.2%. Fifty five percent of the cases were diagnosed via endoscopy of National Health Insurance Corporation screenings. CONCLUSIONS: Superficial gastric cancers in 2011 at primary health care SOK network were different from those of previous reports. Type IIc was most common but type IIb was more prevalent and the body and greater curvature of the stomach were the most commonly involved sites. Therefore, careful observation of the proximal gastric mucosa and mucosal color change is needed.

Cost of illness and quality of life of patients with rheumatoid arthritis in South Korea.

OBJECTIVE: To estimate the cost of illness (COI) and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) according to four different levels of functional severity. METHODS: A face-to-face interview survey was administered to patients with RA recruited at the Rheumatology Clinic of Seoul National University Hospital. Direct costs (medical costs [treatment, drug, private physiotherapy, traditional Chinese medicine, other alternative medicine], nonmedical costs [travel, dietary supplements, auxiliary device, home assistance]), indirect costs (productivity loss due to job loss and sick leave), and deterioration in the HRQOL of patients with RA were measured. Factors associated with the COI and the HRQOL were analyzed by using multiple regression and multivariate logistic regression. RESULTS: A total of 196 patients were enrolled for this study. As RA functional severity worsened, the total costs increased accordingly (class I: 4,230,204 Korean won, class II: 7,250,674 Korean won, class III: 8,046,434 Korean won, class IV: 8,206,215 Korean won). Direct costs also increased with the severity of the functional status, with a sharp decrease in class IV. The average HRQOL score was 0.49, showing an evident impact of RA severity (class I: 0.67, class II: 0.50, class III: 0.29, class IV: 0.23). Functional class and comorbidity were significant determinants of the COI and the HRQOL. CONCLUSION: Functional severity was a major factor associated with higher COI and lower HRQOL scores. Therefore, preventing the aggravation of functional severity is crucial for decreasing the COI and improving the HRQOL of patients with RA.

Short term effects of topical cyclosporine and viscoelastic on the ocular surfaces in patients with dry eye.

PURPOSE: To compare the short term effects of topical 0.05% cyclosporine (CsA) and a mixture of 0.08% chondroitin sulfate and 0.06% sodium hyaluronate (CS-HA) on dry eye ocular surfaces. METHODS: 36 patients with moderate to severe dry eye (5 mm/5 min or less with Schirmer's test or tear break up time (BUT) less than 6 seconds), were treated with topical application of CS-HA on one eye and CsA on the other 4 times a day for 6-8 weeks. BUT, Schirmer's test without anesthesia, and conjunctival impression cytology (CIC; goblet cell density, nucleus to cytoplasmic ratio, and epithelial cell morphology) were evaluated and compared between eyes before and after treatment (repeated measurement of ANOVA). RESULTS: After treatment, BUT and tear wettings were significantly prolonged in each group. Topical CsA treated eyes had greater increase in BUT (p=0.026); there was no significant difference in tear wetting (p=0.132). While the 3 parameters of CIC improved in both groups, goblet cell density was significantly higher in eyes treated with CsA (p=0.033). CONCLUSIONS: While both CS-HA and 0.05% CsA eyedrops improve ocular surfaces, topical CsA may have a better effect on enhancing tear film stability and goblet cell density.