OBJECTIVES: According to current knowledge, apolipoprotein B/A1 (apoB/A1) ratio is like to be risk factor in coronary artery disease. There is evidence form case-control studies that apoB/A1 ratio may be a superior to LDL and HDL cholesterol in discriminating coronary artery disease case subject from control subject. However, relationship between apoB/A1 ratio and cerebral ischemic stroke is undefined. The main object of this study is to determine whether the risk of cerebral ischemic stroke is related to levels of apoB/A1. METHODS: The study group included 643 patients (Men, 372; Women, 271) who diagnosed cerebral ischemic stroke between January 2008 to December 2010. The control groups were composed of 378 patients (Men, 139; Women, 239) who diagnosed other neurological disease. The correlation between lipid profiles and odds ratio of 10 preliminary risk factors (total cholesterol, triglyceride, LDL, HDL, apoA1, apoB, apoB/A1 ratio, non HDL, total cholesterol/HDL ratio, LDL/HDL ratio) for stroke were analyzed. RESULTS: ApoB/A1 ratio was significantly increased in case patients compared with control subjects. Multivariate logistic regression analysis identified decrease of apoB/A1 ratio (odds ratio [OR], 1.583; 95% confidence intercal [CI], 1.105~2.269) as significantly associated with stroke. Individual apoA1 (OR, 1.303; 95% CI, 0.967~1.755) and apoB (OR, 1.397; 95% CI, 0.773~2.523) were also not significantly associated with cerebral ischemic stroke. CONCLUSION: Increase of apoB/A1 ratio is associated with an increase risk of cerebral ischemic stroke. Use of apoB/A1 ratio is efficient as conventional lipids, for the identification of subjects at increased risk of stroke. So apoB/A1 ratio to standard lipid profile testing could improve the evaluation of risk factors of cerebral ischemic stroke.
Apolipoproteins ; Apolipoproteins B ; Case-Control Studies ; Cholesterol ; Cholesterol, HDL ; Coronary Artery Disease ; Female ; Humans ; Logistic Models ; Odds Ratio ; Risk Factors ; Stroke

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to develop auditory-verbal and visual-spatial memory tasks using smart devices for children aged 8 to 10 years and examine their validity. METHODS: One-hundred and fourteen school-aged children were recruited through internet advertising. We developed memory tasks assessing auditory-verbal memory, visual-spatial memory, and working memory, and then examined their construct validity by examining the developmental trend of the children's mean scores with age. In order to examine the concurrent validity of the tasks, we conducted correlation analyses between the children's scores on the newly developed auditory-verbal, visual-spatial memory and working memory tasks and their scores on well-known standardized tests of memory and working memory, including the auditory-verbal memory subtests of the Korean Luria-Nebraska Neuropsychological Battery for Children, Korean Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Test, digit span and arithmetic subtest of Korean Educational Development Institute Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children Revised, and Corsi block test. RESULTS: The memory and working memory scores measured by the newly developed tasks tended to increase with age. Further, there were significant correlations between the scores of the four cognitive tasks and the corresponding scores of the standardized assessment tools. CONCLUSION: This study revealed promising evidence for the validity of the memory tasks using smart devices, suggesting their utility for school-aged children in research and clinical settings.
Child* ; Humans ; Intelligence ; Internet ; Luria-Nebraska Neuropsychological Battery ; Memory* ; Memory, Short-Term

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to develop computerized attention tasks using smart devices for preschool aged children for assessment of auditory attention, visual attention, and attention shifting abilities. We then evaluated their construct and concurrent validity of them. METHODS: Sixty-seven 5- to 7-year-old children attending kindergarten were recruited. Newly developed computerized attention tasks and existing standardized attention tests such as Advanced Test of Attention (ATA) and Children's Color Trails Test-2 (CCTT-2) were successively administered. To examine the concurrent validity of these tasks, correlation coefficients between the participants' scores on the newly developed tasks and the scores on well-known measures were calculated for assessment of each component construct. We also examined the construct validity of the tasks using the developmental trend of the auditory attention, visual attention, and attention shifting abilities with age. RESULTS: Significant correlations were observed between the scores of computerized attention tasks using smart devices and corresponding scores of ATA-auditory task, visual task, and CCTT-2. And there were significant linear increasing trends of correct scores with age from 5 to 7 years. CONCLUSION: This study provides promising evidence for the utility of computerized attention tasks using smart devices for preschool-aged children.
Child* ; Humans

Despite the potential importance of the human regulator of calcineurin 1 (RCAN-1) gene in the modulation of cell survival under stress, little is known about its role in death-inducing signal pathways. In this study, we addressed the effects of RCAN1.4 knockdown on cellular susceptibility to apoptosis and the activation of death pathway proteins. Transfection of siRNAs against RCAN1.4 resulted in enhanced Fas- and etoposide-induced apoptosis, which was associated with increased expression and translocation of Bax to mitochondria. Our results suggest that enhanced expression and activation of p53 was responsible for the upregulation of Bax and the increased sensitivity to apoptosis, which could be reversed by p53 knockdown. To explain the observed upregulation of p53, we propose a downregulation of the ubiquitin ligase HDM2, probably translationally. These findings show the importance of appropriate RCAN1.4 expression in the modulation of cell survival and reveal a link between RCAN1.4 and p53.
Aluminum Hydroxide ; Apoptosis ; Calcineurin ; Carbonates ; Cell Survival ; Down-Regulation ; Humans ; Mitochondria ; Proteins ; RNA, Small Interfering ; Signal Transduction ; Transfection ; Ubiquitin ; Up-Regulation

Purpose: Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia (MP) is a major cause of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) in children and is associated with extrapulmonary manifestations (EPM). The incidence and risk factors for EPM in children are unknown. Methods: This was a retrospective study involving 65,243 pediatric patients with CAP between 2010 and 2015 at 23 nationwide hospitals in South Korea. Medical records were reviewed to collect information regarding the clinical characteristics, radiological results, and laboratory findings. Logistic regression with multivariate analysis was performed to evaluate the risk factors associated with EPM in MP. Results: The incidence of EPM was 23.9%, including elevation of liver enzymes (18.1%), mucocutaneous manifestations (4.4%), proteinuria (4.1%), cardiovascular and neurological manifestations (0.4%), hematologic manifestations (0.2%), and arthritis (0.2%). Statistical analysis showed that mucocutaneous manifestations significantly increased with elevated alanine aminotransferase (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 3.623; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.933-6.790) and atopic sensitization (aOR, 2.973; 95% CI, 1.615–5.475) and decreased with respiratory virus coinfection (aOR, 0.273; 95% CI, 0.084–0.887). Elevated liver enzymes were significantly associated with elevated lactate dehydrogenase (aOR, 3.055; 95% CI, 2.257–4.137), presence of pleural effusion (aOR, 2.635; 95% CI, 1.767–3.930), and proteinuria with respiratory virus coinfection (aOR, 2.245; 95% CI, 1.113–4.527). Conclusion Approximately 24% of pediatric patients with MP had various EPM. As the risk factors associated with each EPM were different, it is necessary to evaluate the various clinical aspects and findings of MP to predict and prepare for the occurrence of EPM.

PURPOSE: Croup is known to have epidemics in seasonal and biennial trends, and to be strongly associated with epidemics of parainfluenza virus. However, seasonal and annual epidemics of croup have not been clearly reported in Korea. This study aimed to examine the seasonal/annual patterns and etiologies of childhood croup in Korea during a consecutive 6-year period. METHODS: Pediatric croup data were collected from 23 centers in Korea from 1 January 2010 to 31 December 2015. Electronic medical records, including multiplex reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) results, demographics and clinical information were cross-sectionally reviewed and analyzed. RESULTS: Overall, 2,598 childhood croup patients requiring hospitalization were identified during the study period. Among them, a total of 927 who underwent RT-PCR were included in the analysis. Males (61.5%) predominated, and most (63.0%) of them were younger than 2 years of age (median, 19 months; interquartile range, 11–31 months). Peak hospitalization occurred in 2010 and 2012 in even-numbered years, and parainfluenza virus (PIV, 39.7%) was the most common cause of childhood croup requiring hospitalization, followed by respiratory syncytial virus (14.9%), human rhinovirus (12.5%), Mycoplasma pneumonaie (10.6%), and human coronavirus (7.3%). CONCLUSION: It is concluded that croup hospitalization has a biennial pattern in even-numbered years. PIV may be the most common cause of childhood croup; however, croup epidemics could be attributed to other viruses.
Child ; Coronavirus ; Croup ; Demography ; Electronic Health Records ; Hospitalization ; Humans ; Korea ; Male ; Mycoplasma ; Paramyxoviridae Infections ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Respiratory Syncytial Viruses ; Retrospective Studies ; Reverse Transcription ; Rhinovirus ; Seasons