Background: Concern regarding physical and mental burden of young carers is increasing. This study aimed to determine the physical, mental, and social difficulties of young adults living with dementia patients. Methods: The analysis was based on the 2019 community health survey of Korea. Adults under 30 years living with dementia patients were compared with those having a dementia family member, but not living with them. Suspected difficulties were analyzed using multivariate logistic regression. Results: Objective short sleep duration (OSSD) was higher in those living with dementia patients (odds ratio [OR], 1.64; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.12–2.40). There was no significant difference in lack of physical activity between the two groups for men, however, for women, lack of physical activity was higher in those living with dementia patients (OR, 2.23; 95% CI, 1.31–3.68). Social activity was slightly lower among those living with dementia patients compared to those not living with dementia patients, with borderline significance (OR, 0.75; 95% CI, 0.55–1.02). Conclusion Results suggest that young carers may have certain difficulties such as OSSD, and lack of physical activity. Further studies are required to specify young carer’s physical, mental, and social profile to provide proper support for them.

Background: Concern regarding physical and mental burden of young carers is increasing. This study aimed to determine the physical, mental, and social difficulties of young adults living with dementia patients. Methods: The analysis was based on the 2019 community health survey of Korea. Adults under 30 years living with dementia patients were compared with those having a dementia family member, but not living with them. Suspected difficulties were analyzed using multivariate logistic regression. Results: Objective short sleep duration (OSSD) was higher in those living with dementia patients (odds ratio [OR], 1.64; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.12–2.40). There was no significant difference in lack of physical activity between the two groups for men, however, for women, lack of physical activity was higher in those living with dementia patients (OR, 2.23; 95% CI, 1.31–3.68). Social activity was slightly lower among those living with dementia patients compared to those not living with dementia patients, with borderline significance (OR, 0.75; 95% CI, 0.55–1.02). Conclusion Results suggest that young carers may have certain difficulties such as OSSD, and lack of physical activity. Further studies are required to specify young carer’s physical, mental, and social profile to provide proper support for them.

Background: Concern regarding physical and mental burden of young carers is increasing. This study aimed to determine the physical, mental, and social difficulties of young adults living with dementia patients. Methods: The analysis was based on the 2019 community health survey of Korea. Adults under 30 years living with dementia patients were compared with those having a dementia family member, but not living with them. Suspected difficulties were analyzed using multivariate logistic regression. Results: Objective short sleep duration (OSSD) was higher in those living with dementia patients (odds ratio [OR], 1.64; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.12–2.40). There was no significant difference in lack of physical activity between the two groups for men, however, for women, lack of physical activity was higher in those living with dementia patients (OR, 2.23; 95% CI, 1.31–3.68). Social activity was slightly lower among those living with dementia patients compared to those not living with dementia patients, with borderline significance (OR, 0.75; 95% CI, 0.55–1.02). Conclusion Results suggest that young carers may have certain difficulties such as OSSD, and lack of physical activity. Further studies are required to specify young carer’s physical, mental, and social profile to provide proper support for them.

Background: Concern regarding physical and mental burden of young carers is increasing. This study aimed to determine the physical, mental, and social difficulties of young adults living with dementia patients. Methods: The analysis was based on the 2019 community health survey of Korea. Adults under 30 years living with dementia patients were compared with those having a dementia family member, but not living with them. Suspected difficulties were analyzed using multivariate logistic regression. Results: Objective short sleep duration (OSSD) was higher in those living with dementia patients (odds ratio [OR], 1.64; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.12–2.40). There was no significant difference in lack of physical activity between the two groups for men, however, for women, lack of physical activity was higher in those living with dementia patients (OR, 2.23; 95% CI, 1.31–3.68). Social activity was slightly lower among those living with dementia patients compared to those not living with dementia patients, with borderline significance (OR, 0.75; 95% CI, 0.55–1.02). Conclusion Results suggest that young carers may have certain difficulties such as OSSD, and lack of physical activity. Further studies are required to specify young carer’s physical, mental, and social profile to provide proper support for them.

Methods: We evaluated patients who underwent EPTLIF with a minimum 24-month follow-up. Clinical parameters of the Visual Analog Scale (VAS) and Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) were measured at the preoperative, 1-week postoperative mark, postoperative 3-month mark, and final follow-up. Preoperative and 1-year postoperative magnetic resonance imaging measurement of preoperative and postoperative Kjaer grade, right and left psoas muscle mass area, and right and left paraspinal muscle mass area was performed. Results: EPTLIF with a minimum 24-month follow-up of 35 levels was included. The complication rate was 6%, and the mean Bridwell’s fusion grade was 1.37 (1–2). There was statistically significant improvement at 1 week, 3 months, and 2 years in VAS (4.11±1.23, 4.94±1.30, and 5.46±1.29) and in ODI (40.34±10.06, 46.69±9.14, and 49.63±8.68), respectively (p <0.05). Successful operation rate with excellent and good MacNab’s criteria at 2 years was 97%. There was an increment of statistically significant bilateral psoas muscle cross-sectional area, right side (70.03±149.1 mm²) and left side (67.59±113.2 mm²) (p <0.05). Conclusions Uniportal EPTLIF achieved good fusion and improved clinical outcomes with favorable paraspinal musculature bulk at the 2-year follow-up.

Methods: Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and clinical evaluation were performed for patients with single-level uniportal endoscopic lumbar decompression with a minimum follow-up of 2 years. Results: A total of 126 patients were recruited with a minimum follow-up of 26 months. The incidence of epidural fluid hematoma was 27%. Postoperative MRI revealed a significant improvement in the postoperative dura sac area at postoperative day 1 and at the upper endplate at 6 months in the hematoma cohort (39.69±15.72 and 26.89±16.58 mm2) as compared with the nonhematoma cohort (48.92±21.36 and 35.1±20.44 mm2), respectively (p <0.05); and at the lower endplate on postoperative 1 day in the hematoma cohort (51.18±24.69 mm2) compared to the nonhematoma cohort (63.91±27.92 mm2) (p <0.05). No significant difference was observed in the dura sac area at postoperative 1 year in both cohorts. The hematoma cohort had statistically significant higher postoperative 1-week Visual Analog Scale (VAS; 3.32±0.68) pain and Oswestry Disability Index (ODI; 32.65±5.56) scores than the nonhematoma cohort (2.99±0.50 and 30.02±4.84, respectively; p <0.05). No significant difference was found at the final follow-up VAS, ODI, and MRI dura sac area. Conclusions Epidural fluid hematoma is a common early postoperative MRI finding in lumbar endoscopic unilateral laminotomy with bilateral decompression. Conservative management is the preferred treatment option for patients who do not have a neurological deficit. Symptoms last only a few days and are self-limiting. A common endpoint is a remodeled fluid hematoma and the subsequent expansion of the dura sac area.

Background: Although, being underweight is commonly associated with osteoporosis and sarcopenia, its association with vertebral fractures (VFs), is less well researched. We investigated the influence of cumulative, chronic periods of low weight and changes in body weight on VF development. Methods: We used a nationwide, population-based database with data on people (> 40 years) who attended three health screenings between January 1, 2007, and December 31, 2009 to assess the incidence of new VFs. Cox proportional hazard analyses were used to establish the hazard ratios (HRs) for new VFs based on the degree of body mass index (BMI), the cumulative numbers of underweight participants, and temporal change in weight. Results: Of the 561,779 individuals in this analysis, 5,354 (1.0%) people were diagnosed three times, 3,672 (0.7%) were diagnosed twice, and 6,929 (1.2%) were diagnosed once. The fully adjusted HR for VFs in underweight individuals was 1.213. Underweight individuals diagnosed only once, twice, or three times had an adjusted HR of 0.904, 1.443, and 1.256, respectively. Although the adjusted HR was higher in adults who were consistently underweight, there was no difference in those who experienced a temporal change in body weight. BMI, age, sex, and household income were significantly associated with VF incidence. Conclusion Low weight is a risk factor for VFs in the general population. Given the significant correlation between cumulative periods of low weight and the risk of VFs, it is necessary to treat underweight patients before a VF to prevent its development and other osteoporotic fractures.

Microbial community profiling using 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing allows for taxonomic characterization of diverse microorganisms. While amplicon sequence variant (ASV) methods are increasingly favored for their fine-grained resolution of sequence variants, they often discard substantial portions of sequencing reads during quality control, particularly in datasets with large number samples. We present a streamlined pipeline that integrates FastP for read trimming, HmmUFOtu for operational taxonomic units (OTU) clustering, Vsearch for chimera checking, and Kraken2 for taxonomic assignment. To assess the pipeline’s performance, we reprocessed two published stool datasets of normal Korean populations: one with 890 and the other with 1,462 independent samples. In the first dataset, HmmUFOtu retained 93.2% of over 104 million read pairs after quality trimming, discarding chimeric or unclassifiable reads, while DADA2, a commonly used ASV method, retained only 44.6% of the reads. Nonetheless, both methods yielded qualitatively similar β-diversity plots. For the second dataset, HmmUFOtu retained 89.2% of read pairs, while DADA2 retained a mere 18.4% of the reads. HmmUFOtu, being a closed-reference clustering method, facilitates merging separately processed datasets, with shared OTUs between the two datasets exhibiting a correlation coefficient of 0.92 in total abundance (log scale). While the first two dimensions of the β-diversity plot exhibited a cohesive mixture of the two datasets, the third dimension revealed the presence of a batch effect. Our comparative evaluation of ASV and OTU methods within this streamlined pipeline provides valuable insights into their performance when processing large-scale microbial 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing data. The strengths of HmmUFOtu and its potential for dataset merging are highlighted.

Background/Aims: In ulcerative colitis (UC) patients, Escherichia coli Nissle 1917 (EcN) is equivalent to mesalazine for preventing disease relapse; however, evidence of the ability of EcN to increase health-related quality of life or induce remission remains scarce. We investigated the efficacy of EcN as an add-on therapy for UC. Methods: In this multicentre, double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled study, a total of 133 UC patients were randomly assigned to receive either EcN or placebo once daily for 8 weeks. Inflammatory bowel disease questionnaire (IBDQ) scores (primary endpoint) and clinical remission and response rates (secondary endpoints) were compared (Clinical trial registration number: NCT04969679). Results: In total, 118 patients (EcN, 58; placebo, 60) completed the study. The number of patients reaching the primary endpoint did not differ between the EcN and placebo groups (30 [51.7%] vs. 31 [51.7%]; per-protocol analysis, p = 1.0; intention-to-treat analysis, p = 0.86). However, significantly fewer patients in the EcN group exhibited a decreased IBDQ score (1 [1.7%] vs. 8 [13.3%]; per-protocol analysis, p = 0.03; intention- to-treat analysis, p = 0.02). Moreover, a significantly higher number of patients in the EcN group displayed clinical response at 4 weeks (23 [39.7%] vs. 13 [21.7%], p = 0.04) and endoscopic remission at 8 weeks (26 [46.4%] vs. 16 [27.1%], p = 0.03). Conclusions Although the number of patients reaching the primary endpoint did not differ between the EcN and placebo groups, EcN was found to be safe and effective in preventing the exacerbation of IBDQ scores and achieving clinical responses and endoscopic remission in patients with mild-to-moderate UC.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to analyze the current situation concerning professionalism among emergency physicians in South Korea by conducting a survey regarding their perceptions and experiences of unprofessional behavior. Methods: In October 2018, the authors evaluated the responses to a questionnaire administered to 548 emergency physicians at 28 university hospitals. The participants described their perceptions and experiences concerning 45 unprofessional behaviors classified into the following five categories: patient care, communication with colleagues, professionalism at work, research, and violent behavior and abusive language. Furthermore, the responses were analyzed by position (resident vs. faculty). Descriptive statistics were generated on the general characteristics of the study participants. To compare differences in responses by position and sex, the chi-square and Fisher exact tests were performed. Results: Of the 548 individuals invited to participate in this study, 253 responded (response rate, 46.2%). In 34 out of 45 questionnaires, more than half of participants reported having experienced unprofessional behavior despite their negative perceptions. Eleven perception questions and 38 experience questions for unprofessional behavior showed differences by position. Conclusion Most emergency physicians were well aware of what constituted unprofessional behavior; nevertheless, many had engaged in or observed such behavior.