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Background: Breast cancer patients fear the relapse of their disease and subsequent death the most. Dying Well Education Program, a death education program, was offered for breast cancer patients to help them to reflect on the meanings of life and death. Purpose: This study evaluated the effects of a death education on fear of death, anxiety and depression, hope, and spiritual well-being among breast cancer patients. Methods: Twenty-three women with breast cancer at a university hospital in South Korea who received Dying Well Education Program, once a week for 10 weeks, were compared with 25 participants in a control group who received the treatment as usual. Results: Participants in the experimental group were satisfied with the program and showed a decreased level of fear of death, and increased levels of hope and spiritual well-being when compared to the control group. The anxiety and depression scores for both experimental and control groups were initially within normal ranges before the program and further decreased over time. Conclusion: This study confirmed that a properly designed death education program could serve as a means of increasing breast cancer patients' hope and spiritual well-being. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study compared parent-child communication (PCC) patterns and parental role satisfaction (PRS) between women with breast cancer and healthy women. Background: A limited number of studies have examined PCC and the impact of PRS between cancer patients and their children. Methods: It was a descriptive survey design comprising the Parent-Adolescent Communication Scale and a PRS measure. Data from 202 participants in total were analysed with two-way analyses of variance and t-tests. Results: Closed communication was higher in both groups than open communication, but higher still in children of women with breast cancer than in children of healthy women. PRS was lower in women with breast cancer than in healthy women. Educational programs should be developed to support parents and children during the post-treatment adjustment period for mothers with breast cancer. Conclusion: Such programs should take a practical approach toward increasing open parent-child communication while considering personal characteristics and cultural backgrounds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to describe and explore the experience process of life of patients with Crohn's disease. Methods: Using a grounded theory methodology, 24 interviews were performed with 7 men and 5 women, 17-47 years of age, suffering from Crohn's disease. Results: 'Tuning of two conflicting lives' was identified as the core category, and 5 subcategories were identified and they were integrated into the core category. The identified outcomes were 'Living a withdrawn life', 'coping flexibly', 'drifting with tangled emotions' and 'maintaining long-term remission'. Conclusion: When caring for these patients, it is important to identify needs, allow patients to express what they want at that moment and support them in maintaining a daily life that can be perceived as normal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine risk factors for pathological gambling of horse race participants. Methods: The participants, 508 horse race gamblers, completed the DSM-IV criteria of pathological gambling, Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT-K) and Symptom Checklist-47-Revision (SCL-47-R). Data were analyzed using t-test, x²-test, Fisher's exact test, and logistic regression analyses. Behaviors related to horse racing, alcohol abuse, and mental health were analyzed between problem or pathological gamblers compared to recreational gamblers. Results: The prevalence rates of recreational, problem, and pathological gambling were 36.6%, 39.4%, and 24.0%, respectively. Frequency of gambling (≥4/day), frequency of racetrack visiting (≥3/month), accompaniment (alone), and mental health (SCL-47-R scores) were all associated with increased risks of problem and pathological gambling. Expenditure on betting (≥200,000 won/day) and alcohol abuse (AUDIT-K 8-20 scores) group members had higher levels of gambling pathology than recreational gamblers. Conclusion: Problem and pathological gambling are highly associated with alcohol abuse and mental health disorders, suggesting that clinicians should carefully evaluate this population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study was conducted to determine the risk factors among patients with depression with Crohn's disease. Methods: Data were collected by questionnaire from 276 patients who were diagnosed with Crohn's disease at a tertiary hospital located in Seoul. Measurements included patients' demographic characteristics, clinical characteristics, depression level, and health-related quality of life. Data were analyzed using t-test, X²-test, Wilcoxon rank sum test, and logistic regression analyses. Results: The incidence rate of depression (BDI-II≥14scores) was 31.9% (n=88). Univariate analysis revealed that being a woman, school graduation status, economic status (low), BMI(<18.5Kg/m²), disease duration (≥3 years), CDAI (≥150 scores), frequency of hospital admission (≥2), extra-intestinal manifestation (arthralgia, stomatitis), administration of 5-aminosalicylic acid, and disease related quality of life (SIBDQ<50 scores) were associated with depression. Multivariate analysis revealed that economic status (low), school graduation status, and quality of life (SIBDQ<50 scores) were more likely to report high level of depression. Conclusion: Future research should consider managing depression as an essential component of comprehensive care for patients with Crohn's disease. In addition, further research is needed to develop strategies to better improve quality of life among patients with Crohn's disease who are depressed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The objectives of this study were to determine the prevalence, incidence, and risk factors for postoperative surgical site infections (SSIs) after craniotomy. Methods: This study was a retrospective case-control study of 103 patients who had craniotomies between March 2007 and December 2008. A retrospective review of prospectively collected databases of consecutive patients who underwent craniotomy was done. SSIs were defined by using the Centers for Disease Control criteria. Twenty-six cases (infection) and 77 controls (no infection) were matched for age, gender and time of surgery. Descriptive analysis, t-test, χ2-test and logistic regression analyses were used for data analysis. Results: The statistical difference between cases and controls was significant for hospital length of stay (>14 days), intensive care unit stay more than 15 days, Glasgrow Coma Scale (GCS) score (≤7 days), extra-ventricular drainage and coexistent infection. Risk factors were identified by logistic regression and included hospital length of stay of more than 14 days (odds ratio [OR]=23.39, 95% confidence interval [CI]=2.53-216.11) and GCS score (≤7 scores) (OR=4.71, 95% CI=1.64-13.50). Conclusion: The results of this study show that patients are at high risk for infection when they have a low level of consciousness or their length hospital stay is long term. Nurses have to take an active and continuous approach to infection control to help with patients having these risk factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]