A study on postpartum symptoms and their related factors in Korea

AbstractObjectiveThis study was aimed to identify the physical and mental state of women after delivery, to investigate the factors that influence those, and to examine the effects of postpartum care performance, which is traditionally believed to be appropriate care in Korea, on women's physical and mental status.Materials and MethodsA total of 148 women who visited our hospital for postpartum check-up on the 2nd week or 6th week after delivery were selected. We researched postpartum care methods using a questionnaire and had the women self-evaluate their postpartum symptoms. Depression was evaluated using the Beck Depression Inventory.ResultsThe average points of the 27 postpartum symptoms was 2.70 points (from 1 = very good to 5 = very bad). Seventy-two women had depression. Factors related to postpartum symptoms and depression were smoking before pregnancy, low marital satisfaction, bad mood during and after pregnancy, lack of support from husbands, and bad quality of sleep during puerperium. Treating the joints of hands carefully when milking breasts, and avoiding squatting down, demonstrated a negative correlation with the average points of postpartum symptoms. Multivariate linear regression analysis showed that mood during puerperium and Beck Depression Inventory points were significant factors related to the average points of postpartum symptoms and that the degree of support from husbands and mood during pregnancy were statistically related with depression.ConclusionMany women complained of postpartum discomfort. Although, while some postpartum care methods which are traditionally believed to be appropriate care in Korea can be helpful to women's recovery, most of them are not. We confirmed that physical symptoms and depression are closely related to each other

Anti-Obesity Effects of Morus alba L. and Aronia melanocarpa in a High-Fat Diet-Induced Obese C57BL/6J Mouse Model

The present study investigated the synergic effect of extracts of Morus alba (MA) and Aronia melanocarpa (Michx.) (AR) against high-fat diet induced obesity. Four-week-old male C57BL/6J mice were randomly divided into five groups that were fed for 14 weeks with a normal diet (ND), high-fat diet (HD), HD with M. alba 400 mg/kg body weight (MA), HD with A. melanocarpa 400 mg/kg body weight (AR), or HD with a mixture (1:1, v/v) of M. alba and A. melanocarpa (400 mg/kg) (MA + AR). Treatment with MA, AR, and MA + AR for 14 weeks reduced high fat diet-induced weight gain and improved serum lipid levels, and histological analysis revealed that MA and AR treatment markedly decreased lipid accumulation in the liver and adipocyte size in epididymal fat. Furthermore, micro-CT images showed MA + AR significantly reduced abdominal fat volume. Expression levels of genes involved in lipid anabolism, such as SREBP-1c, PPAR-gamma, CEBP alpha, FAS, and CD36 were decreased by MA + AR treatment whereas PPAR-alpha, ACOX1, and CPT-1a levels were increased by MA + AR treatment. Protein expression of p-AMPK and p-ACC were increased in the MA + AR group, indicating that MA + AR ameliorated obesity by upregulating AMPK signaling. Together, our findings indicate that MA and AR exert a synergistic effect against diet-induced obesity and are promising agents for managing obesity

Electroacupuncture Delays Hypertension Development through Enhancing NO/NOS Activity in Spontaneously Hypertensive Rats

Using spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR), this study investigated whether electroacupuncture (EA) could reduce early stage hypertension by examining nitric oxide (NO) levels in plasma and nitric oxide synthase (NOS) levels in the mesenteric resistance artery. EA was applied to the acupuncture point Governor Vessel 20 (GV20) or to a non-acupuncture point in the tail twice weekly for 3 weeks under anesthesia. In conscious SHR and normotensive Wistar Kyoto (WKY) rats, blood pressure was determined the day after EA treatment by the tail-cuff method. We measured plasma NO concentration, and evaluated endothelial NO syntheses (eNOS) and neuronal NOS (nNOS) protein expression in the mesenteric artery. Systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) were lower after 3 weeks of GV20 treatment than EA at non-acupuncture point and no treatment control in SHR. nNOS expression by EA was significantly different between both WKY and no treatment SHR control, and EA at GV20 in SHR. eNOS expression was significantly high in EA at GV 20 compared with no treatment control. In conclusion, EA could attenuate the blood pressure elevation of SHR, along with enhancing NO/NOS activity in the mesenteric artery in SHR

Funding structures for Build-to-Suit developments in Brazil: advantages and risks

Empreendimentos build-to-suit são aqueles em que o locador desenvolve um imóvel sob medida para o locatário, que o ocupará pelo prazo previsto em contrato. Dadas as peculiaridades desse tipo de contrato no contexto do real estate, o objetivo deste artigo é analisar as diferentes origens de recursos (fontes de funding) e a forma como eles são empregados (estruturas de funding) para desenvolver os empreendimentos, e discutir as vantagens e riscos dessas estruturas de funding do ponto de vista do empreendedor, que também é o locador. De forma a desenvolver este estudo e formatar as estruturas de funding apresentadas, parte-se de uma revisão das\ud práticas atuais do mercado imobiliário brasileiro (através de notícias veiculadas\ud na mídia e de prospectos de negócios realizados), da literatura brasileira sobre o tema e do conhecimento gerado no Grupo de Real Estate da Escola Politécnica da USP. De maneira a verificar a validade legal das soluções, é realizada uma checagem com\ud base na legislação brasileira e nas normas da Comissão de Valores Mobiliários.\ud Considera-se fontes de funding aquelas tratadas (1) como equity: capital próprio do empreendedor, capital de parceiros (e sócios) no empreendimento na forma de dinheiro ou imóveis (notadamente, o terreno onde será construído o empreendimento), ou investimento de Fundo de Investimento Imobiliário (FII); e (2) como dívida: financiamento bancário, securitização dos recebíveis de aluguéis com CRI ou debêntures. As estruturas de funding apresentadas serão combinações dessas fontes. A análise evidencia que estruturas com financiamento por securitização e emissão de CRI são as mais adequadas de forma geral para os negócios, assim como o investimento completo por FII para negócios de maior porte e nos quais o FII é proprietário direto do empreendimento. \ud Palavras-chave: real estate, build-to-suit, locação, funding, project financeBuild-to-suit real estate assets are tailor made developments for the tenant purposes, who occupies and operates the property for the duration agreed. Given the peculiarities of these contracts and the specificities of the property, this article aims at analyzing the sources of capital and how these funds are mixed and structured for the developments. The article discusses the risks and benefits of each of these funding\ud structures assuming the role of developer. In order to do this study and establish the funding structures shown, the research starts with a review of the current practices in Brazilian real estate market (based on press releases and prospects of deals), of local research papers, and will use the knowledge created at the Real Estate Research Group at Escola Politécnica at Universidade de São Paulo. Since it’s necessary to validate\ud the solutions proposed, Brazilian laws and Comissão de Valores Mobiliários (CVM) norms\ud are reviewed. Funding sources considered will be treated as (1) equity: developers own funds, partnership (via capital or real state – mainly land – investment), or Fundo de Investimento Imobiliário (Brazilian investment structure comparable to REITs); or as (2) debt: banks traditional credit lines, securitization of receivables with CRI emissions\ud , and debt bond emissions. The funding structures presented are mixes of these sources. The analysis shows that the structures best suited for this purpose are those with debt by securitization with CRI emissions, along with the complete investment by a FII but only with large emissions and having the FII as the sole owner of the real estate. \ud Keywords: real estate, build-to-suit, rent, funding, project financ