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Purpose The aim of this study is to analyze inguinal hernia in Korea based on the nationwide data. Methods Retrospective analysis of nationwide data obtained from the Health Insurance Review & Assessment Service database for surgical repair of inguinal hernia from January, 2007 to December, 2015 was performed. Results A total of 314,238 cases of inguinal hernia surgery were performed during 9 years. The mean number of inguinal hernia surgery per year was 34,604 (range, 30,065–36,928). The proportion of male patient was 87%. Patients between the age of 1 to 5 years (17.3%) and of 60 to 69 years (17.4%) constituted the 2 dominant groups for inguinal hernia repair. A slight increase in repair for recurrent inguinal hernia, 1.9% to 3.2%, was observed from 2007 to 2015. The rate of concurrent bowel resection decreased from 1.9% to 0.6%. The total cost of inguinal hernia surgery was increased up to 1.68 times from 2007 to 2015 ($856 to $1,439), although the number of hospital days was decreased from 4.7 to 3.7 days. The rate of laparoscopic surgery was increased to 29.5% in 2015. Conclusion A mean number of 34,604 cases of inguinal hernia surgery have been carried out annually in Korea. The age distribution for inguinal hernia repair demonstrates bimodal peak at early childhood and old age. The proportion of laparoscopic surgery of inguinal hernia has been increasing for the past 9 years. The length of hospital stay and the rate of combined bowel resection have decreased.

Background In the field of rectal cancer surgery, there remains ongoing debate on the merits of high ligation (HL) and low ligation (LL) of the inferior mesenteric artery (IMA) in terms of perfusion and anastomosis leakage. Recently, infrared fluorescence of indocyanine green (ICG) imaging has been used to evaluate perfusion status during colorectal surgery. Objective The purpose of this study is to compare the changes in perfusion status between HL and LL through quantitative evaluation of ICG. Methods Patients with rectosigmoid or rectal cancer were randomized into a high or LL group. ICG was injected before and after IMA ligation, and region of interest (ROI) values were measured by an image analysis program (HSL video©). Results From February to July 2020, 22 patients were enrolled, and 11 patients were assigned to each group. Basic demographics were similar between the two groups, except for albumin level and cardiac ejection fraction. There were no significant differences in F_max between the two groups, but T_max was significantly higher and Slope_max was significantly lower in the HL group than in the LL group. Anastomosis leakage was significantly associated with neoadjuvant chemoradiation and F_max. Conclusion After IMA ligation, T_max increased and Slope_max decreased significantly in the HL group. However, the intensity of perfusion status (F_max) did not change according to the level of IMA ligation.

TBL is an effective teaching and learning method and has positive impacts on student academic achievement. A study on student academic achievement and perception of TBL is expected to provide medical educators with suggestions on planning teaching strategies for effective TBL administration.

ObjectivesZZThis study was conducted for evaluation of the reliability and validity of the Korean version of the Burden Assessment Scale (K-BAS).MethodsZZA sample of 256 first-order relatives of schizophrenics completed the K-BAS and the data were analyzed for internal consistency and factor structure. In addition, a subset of participants (n=112) refilled the K-BAS after two weeks for test-retest reliability. To test for validity, the Family Burden Scale (FBS), Korean version of Drug Attitude Inventory-10 (KDAI-10), and Korean version of the Scale to Assess Unawareness of Mental Disorder (SUMD-K) were administered.ResultsZZThe Cronbach's alpha coefficient of the K-BAS was high (0.91), which provided evidence for good internal consistency. The test-retest reliability of K-BAS was 0.86 (correlation coefficient, p<0.001). Convergent validity was examined through correlations between the K-BAS and the FBS (r=0.80, p<0.001). Divergent validity was examined through correlations between the K-BAS and KDAI-10 (r=-0.21, p=0.001), and between the K-BAS and SUMD-K (r=-0.02, p=0.796). Results of the factor analysis revealed a three-factor solution: activity limitation, social strain, and feelings of worry and guilt.ConclusionZZThese results suggest that the K-BAS had good psychometric properties and may be a useful instrument for evaluation of burden of families with schizophrenics.

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