PURPOSE: Childhood asthma has a considerable social impact and economic burden, especially in severe asthma. This study aimed to identify the proportion of childhood asthma severity and to evaluate associated factors for greater asthma severity. METHODS: This study was performed on 667 children aged 5–15 years with asthma from the nationwide 19 hospitals in the Korean childhood Asthma Study (KAS). Asthma was classified as mild intermittent, mild persistent, and moderate/severe persistent groups according to the National Asthma Education and Prevention Program recommendations. Multinomial logistic regression models were used to identify the associated factors for greater asthma severity. RESULTS: Mild persistent asthma was most prevalent (39.0%), followed by mild intermittent (37.6%), moderate persistent (22.8%), and severe persistent asthma (0.6%). Onset later than 6 years of age (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 1.69 for mild persistent asthma; aOR, 1.92 for moderate/severe persistent asthma) tended to increase asthma severity. Exposure to environmental tobacco smoke (aOR, 1.53 for mild persistent asthma; aOR, 1.85 for moderate/severe persistent asthma), and current dog ownership with sensitization to dog dander (aOR, 5.86 for mild persistent asthma; aOR, 6.90 for moderate/severe persistent asthma) showed increasing trends with greater asthma severity. Lower maternal education levels (aOR, 2.32) and no usage of an air purifier in exposure to high levels of outdoor air pollution (aOR, 1.76) were associated with moderate/severe persistent asthma. CONCLUSIONS: Modification of identified environmental factors associated with greater asthma severity might help better control childhood asthma, thereby reducing the disease burden due to childhood asthma.
Air Filters ; Air Pollution ; Animals ; Asthma ; Child ; Dander ; Dogs ; Education ; Environmental Exposure ; Humans ; Logistic Models ; Odds Ratio ; Ownership ; Risk Factors ; Smoke ; Social Change ; Tobacco

PURPOSE: Various immune cells, including eosinophils and neutrophils, are known to contribute to the development of chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps (CRSwNP). However, the current understanding of the role of neutrophils in the development of CRSwNP still remains unclear. Therefore, we investigated risk factors for refractoriness of CRSwNP in an Asian population. METHODS: Protein levels of 17 neutrophil-related mediators in nasal polyps (NPs) were determined by multiplex immunoassay, and exploratory factor analysis using principal component analysis was performed. Immunofluorescence analysis was conducted to detect human neutrophil elastase (HNE) or myeloperoxidase (MPO)-positive cells. Tissue eosinophilic nasal polyp (ENP) and tissue neutrophilia (Neu(high)) were defined as greater than 70 eosinophils and 20 HNE-positive cells, otherwise was classified into non-eosinophilic nasal polyp (NENP) and absence of tissue neutrophilia (Neu(low)). RESULTS: In terms of disease control status, NENP-Neu(low) patients showed the higher rate of disease control than NENP-Neu(high) and ENP-Neu(high) patients. Linear by linear association demonstrated the trend in refractoriness from NENP-Neu(low) to NENP-Neu(high) or ENP-Neu(low) to ENP-Neu(high). When multiple logistic regression was performed, tissue neutrophilia (hazard ratio, 4.38; 95% confidence interval, 1.76-10.85) was found as the strongest risk factor for CRSwNP refractoriness. Additionally, exploratory factor analysis revealed that interleukin (IL)-18, interferon-γ, IL-1Ra, tumor necrosis factor-α, oncostatin M, and MPO were associated with good disease control status, whereas IL-36α and IL-1α were associated with refractory disease control status. In subgroup analysis, HNE-positive cells and IL-36α were significantly upregulated in the refractory group (P = 0.0132 and P = 0.0395, respectively), whereas MPO and IL-18 showed higher expression in the controlled group (P = 0.0002 and P = 0.0009, respectively). Moreover, immunofluorescence analysis revealed that IL-36R⁺HNE⁺-double positive cells were significantly increased in the refractory group compared to the control group. We also found that the ratio of HNE-positive cells to α1 anti-trypsin was increased in the refractory group. CONCLUSIONS: Tissue neutrophilia had an influence on treatment outcomes in the Asian CRSwNP patients. HNE-positive cells and IL-36α may be biomarkers for predicting refractoriness in Asians with CRSwNP. Additionally, imbalances in HNE and α1 anti-trypsin may be associated with pathophysiology of neutrophilic chronic rhinosinusitis.
Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Biomarkers ; Eosinophils ; Fluorescent Antibody Technique ; Humans ; Immunoassay ; Interleukin 1 Receptor Antagonist Protein ; Interleukin-18 ; Interleukins ; Leukocyte Elastase ; Logistic Models ; Nasal Polyps ; Necrosis ; Neutrophils ; Oncostatin M ; Peroxidase ; Principal Component Analysis ; Rhinitis ; Risk Factors ; Sinusitis

Adult ; Atypical Squamous Cells of the Cervix ; Education ; Female ; Genotype ; Humans ; Immunization Programs ; Korea ; Papanicolaou Test ; Prevalence ; Retrospective Studies ; Single Person ; Squamous Intraepithelial Lesions of the Cervix ; Uterine Cervical Neoplasms ; Vaccination ; Vaccines

24 mm² (sensitivity, 76.5%; specificity 64.8%), and the area under the ROC curve (AUC) was 0.72. For ASR(area), the cut-off value was > 1.58 (sensitivity, 76.5%; specificity, 58.0%) and the AUC was 0.64. Multivariable Cox regression showed that ARO > 24 mm² (hazard ratio = 3.79, p = 0.020) was a potential independent parameter for recurrent 3 + AR. ROC for the linear regression model showed that the AUC for both ARO and ASR(area) was 0.73 (95% confidence interval, 0.64–0.81, p < 0.001).CONCLUSION: ARO and ASR(area) detected on preoperative cardiac CT would be potentially helpful for identifying AR patients who may benefit from the David operation.]]>
Aortic Valve Insufficiency ; Aortic Valve ; Area Under Curve ; Echocardiography ; Humans ; Linear Models ; Retrospective Studies ; ROC Curve ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed

Firefighters ; Humans ; Suicidal Ideation

0.05). The area under the receiver operating characteristics curve (AUC) was 0.922 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.89–0.95]. In external validation, the discrimination was good, with an AUC value of 0.833 (95% CI 0.70–0.92) for this model. Nomogram calibration plots indicated good agreement between the predicted and observed outcomes, exhibiting close approximation between the predicted and observed probability.CONCLUSION: We constructed a scoring model for predicting massive transfusion during cesarean section in women with placenta previa. This model may help in determining the need to prepare an appropriate amount of blood products and the optimal timing of blood transfusion.]]>
Area Under Curve ; Blood Transfusion ; Calibration ; Cesarean Section ; Cohort Studies ; Discrimination (Psychology) ; Early Intervention (Education) ; Erythrocytes ; Female ; Humans ; Logistic Models ; Maternal Age ; Nomograms ; Placenta Previa ; Placenta ; Placentation ; Postpartum Hemorrhage ; Pregnancy ; ROC Curve ; Ultrasonography

Adult ; Amenorrhea ; Congenital Abnormalities ; Drug Therapy ; Dysgerminoma ; Female ; Humans ; Karyotype ; Uterus

PURPOSE: Recently, the prevalence of allergic rhinitis (AR) in Korean children has been increased. The aim of this study was to investigate the clinical characteristics of rhinitis and to compare clinical parameters between AR and nonallergic rhinitis (NAR) in children.METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 1,034 children under 18 years of age who visited Korea University Anam Hospital for rhinitis symptoms from January 2008 to December 2017. Clinical data, including clinical features, comorbidities, blood test results, allergen sensitization profile, and pulmonary function test parameters, were collected.RESULTS: Among the 1,034 children with rhinitis, 737 (71.3%) were AR and 297 (28.7%) were NAR. The prevalence of AR gradually increased with age. The median levels of eosinophil count (4.1%), serum total IgE (204.4 IU/L), eosinophil cationic protein (ECP) concentration (17.9 µg/L), and fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) (22.0 ppb) were significantly higher in children with AR than in those with NAR. The sensitization rate to the inhalant allergens increased with age; however, food allergen sensitization rate tended to decrease. Median levels of eosinophil count, total IgE, ECP, and FeNO were significantly higher in the poly-sensitized group than in the mono-sensitized and nonsensitized groups.CONCLUSION: More than 70% of Korean children who have rhinitis symptoms are AR. Children with AR more likely to have higher levels of FeNO and bronchial asthma. Poly-sensitized children showed increased rates of atopic dermatitis and bronchial asthma.
Allergens ; Asthma ; Child ; Comorbidity ; Dermatitis, Atopic ; Eosinophil Cationic Protein ; Eosinophils ; Hematologic Tests ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin E ; Korea ; Medical Records ; Nitric Oxide ; Prevalence ; Respiratory Function Tests ; Retrospective Studies ; Rhinitis ; Rhinitis, Allergic

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) is one of the most common causes of dizziness with a high recurrence rate. This study aimed to analyze the recurrence rate and the risk factors for recurrence using the Korean National Health Insurance Service National Sample Cohort (NHIS-NSC 2002–2013) data. SUBJECTS AND METHOD: Patients aged 20 years or older who were diagnosed with BPPV in the period of 2002–2012 and had at least 1 year of monitoring period were included in this study. The diagnosis of BPPV was made when the code for BPPV (KCD-6 code H811) was used or when canalith reposition therapy (EDI code MX035) was entered even in cases with different diagnoses. The risk factors of BPPV recurrence were analyzed. RESULTS: Of the total of 21355 patients diagnosed with BPPV, 5876 patients (28%) demonstrated recurrence. Multiple recurrences were common. When using the univariate regression analysis, age, sex, vestibular disease, headache, osteoporosis, and ischemic heart disease were found significant. When the patients were classified into 4 groups according to age and sex, vestibular diseases were found as a common risk factor for recurrence in all groups, while headache, osteoporosis, hypertension, and ischemic heart disease were significant in females. CONCLUSION: The recurrence rate of BPPV in the Korean adult population was approximately 28% and recurrences were more common in patients aged over 65 and in females. Patients with vestibular diseases were at a higher risk of recurrence regardless of age or sex, while headache, osteoporosis, hypertension and ischemic heart disease increased the risk of recurrence in females.
Adult ; Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo* ; Cohort Studies ; Diagnosis ; Dizziness ; Female ; Headache ; Humans ; Hypertension ; Methods ; Myocardial Ischemia ; National Health Programs ; Osteoporosis ; Recurrence* ; Risk Factors* ; Vestibular Diseases

PURPOSE: Prior abdomino-pelvic (AP) surgery makes colonoscopy difficult and can affect bowel preparation quality. However, bowel preparation quality has been found to vary according to prior AP surgery type. We examined the relationship of prior AP surgery type with bowel preparation quality in a large-scale retrospective cohort. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In the health screening cohort of the National Cancer Center, 12881 participants who underwent screening or surveillance colonoscopy between June 2007 and December 2014 were included. Personal data were collected by reviewing patient medical records. Bowel preparation quality was assessed using the Aronchick scale and was categorized as satisfactory for excellent to good bowel preparation or unsatisfactory for fair to inadequate bowel preparation. RESULTS: A total of 1557 (12.1%) participants had a history of AP surgery. The surgery types were colorectal surgery (n=44), gastric/small intestinal surgery (n=125), appendectomy/peritoneum/laparotomy (n=476), cesarean section (n=278), uterus/ovarian surgery (n=317), kidney/bladder/prostate surgery (n=19), or liver/pancreatobiliary surgery (n=96). The proportion of satisfactory bowel preparations was 70.7%. In multivariate analysis, unsatisfactory bowel preparation was related to gastric/small intestinal surgery (odds ratio=1.764, 95% confidence interval=1.230–2.532, p=0.002). However, the other surgery types did not affect bowel preparation quality. Current smoking, diabetes, and high body mass index were risk factors of unacceptable bowel preparation. CONCLUSION: Only gastric/small intestinal surgery was a potential risk factor for poor bowel preparation. Further research on patients with a history of gastric/small intestinal surgery to determine appropriate methods for adequate bowel preparation is mandatory.
Body Mass Index ; Cesarean Section ; Cohort Studies* ; Colonoscopy* ; Colorectal Surgery ; Female ; Humans ; Mass Screening ; Medical Records ; Multivariate Analysis ; Postoperative Period ; Pregnancy ; Retrospective Studies* ; Risk Factors ; Smoke ; Smoking