Objective: With trends in population aging an increasing number of older patients are visiting the emergency department (ED). This study aimed to identify the characteristics of ED utilization and risk factors for in-hospital mortality in older patients who visited EDs. Methods: This nationwide observational study used National Emergency Department Information System data collected during a 2-year period from January 2016 to December 2017. The characteristics of older patients aged 70 years or older were compared with those of younger patients aged 20 to 69 years. Risk factors associated with in-hospital mortality were analyzed by multivariable logistic regression. Results: A total of 6,596,423 younger patients and 1,737,799 older patients were included. In the medical and nonmedical older patient groups, significantly higher proportions of patients were transferred from another hospital, utilized emergency medical services, had Korean Triage and Acuity Scale scores of 1 and 2, required hospitalization, and required intensive care unit admission in the older patient group than in the younger patient group. ED and post-hospitalization mortality rates increased with age; in particular, older medical patients aged 90 or older had an in-hospital mortality rate of 9%. Older age, male sex, transfer from another hospital, emergency medical service utilization, a high Korean Triage and Acuity Scale score, systolic blood pressure <100 mmHg, respiratory rate >20/min, heart rate >100/min, body temperature <36°C, and altered mental status were associated with in-hospital mortality. Conclusion Development of appropriate decision-making algorithms and treatment protocols for high risk older patients visiting the ED might facilitate appropriate allocation of medical resources to optimize outcomes.

Objective: With trends in population aging an increasing number of older patients are visiting the emergency department (ED). This study aimed to identify the characteristics of ED utilization and risk factors for in-hospital mortality in older patients who visited EDs. Methods: This nationwide observational study used National Emergency Department Information System data collected during a 2-year period from January 2016 to December 2017. The characteristics of older patients aged 70 years or older were compared with those of younger patients aged 20 to 69 years. Risk factors associated with in-hospital mortality were analyzed by multivariable logistic regression. Results: A total of 6,596,423 younger patients and 1,737,799 older patients were included. In the medical and nonmedical older patient groups, significantly higher proportions of patients were transferred from another hospital, utilized emergency medical services, had Korean Triage and Acuity Scale scores of 1 and 2, required hospitalization, and required intensive care unit admission in the older patient group than in the younger patient group. ED and post-hospitalization mortality rates increased with age; in particular, older medical patients aged 90 or older had an in-hospital mortality rate of 9%. Older age, male sex, transfer from another hospital, emergency medical service utilization, a high Korean Triage and Acuity Scale score, systolic blood pressure <100 mmHg, respiratory rate >20/min, heart rate >100/min, body temperature <36°C, and altered mental status were associated with in-hospital mortality. Conclusion Development of appropriate decision-making algorithms and treatment protocols for high risk older patients visiting the ED might facilitate appropriate allocation of medical resources to optimize outcomes.

Purpose: By utilizing both protein and mRNA expression patterns, we can identify more detailed and diverse immune cells, providing insights into understanding the complex immune landscape in cancer ecosystems. Materials and Methods: This study was performed by obtaining publicly available Cellular Indexing of Transcriptomes and Epitopes by Sequencing (CITE-seq) data of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from the Gene Expression Omnibus database. A total of 94674 total cells were analyzed, of which 32412 were T cells. There were 228 protein features and 16262 mRNA features in the data.The Seurat package was used for quality control and preprocessing, principal component analysis was performed, and Uniform Manifold Approximation and Projection was used to visualize the clusters. Protein and mRNA levels in the CITE-seq were analyzed. Results: We observed that a subset of T cells in the clusters generated at the protein level divided better. By identifying mRNA markers that were highly correlated with the CD4 and CD8 proteins and cross-validating CD26 and CD99 markers using flow cytometry, we found that CD4 + and CD8+ T cells were better discriminated in PBMCs. Weighted Nearest Neighbor clustering results identified a previously unobserved T cell subset. Conclusion In this study, we used CITE-seq data to confirm that protein expression patterns could be used to identify cells more precisely. These findings will improve our understanding of the heterogeneity of immune cells in the future and provide valuable insights into the complexity of the immune response in health and disease.

Purpose: By utilizing both protein and mRNA expression patterns, we can identify more detailed and diverse immune cells, providing insights into understanding the complex immune landscape in cancer ecosystems. Materials and Methods: This study was performed by obtaining publicly available Cellular Indexing of Transcriptomes and Epitopes by Sequencing (CITE-seq) data of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from the Gene Expression Omnibus database. A total of 94674 total cells were analyzed, of which 32412 were T cells. There were 228 protein features and 16262 mRNA features in the data.The Seurat package was used for quality control and preprocessing, principal component analysis was performed, and Uniform Manifold Approximation and Projection was used to visualize the clusters. Protein and mRNA levels in the CITE-seq were analyzed. Results: We observed that a subset of T cells in the clusters generated at the protein level divided better. By identifying mRNA markers that were highly correlated with the CD4 and CD8 proteins and cross-validating CD26 and CD99 markers using flow cytometry, we found that CD4 + and CD8+ T cells were better discriminated in PBMCs. Weighted Nearest Neighbor clustering results identified a previously unobserved T cell subset. Conclusion In this study, we used CITE-seq data to confirm that protein expression patterns could be used to identify cells more precisely. These findings will improve our understanding of the heterogeneity of immune cells in the future and provide valuable insights into the complexity of the immune response in health and disease.

Purpose: By utilizing both protein and mRNA expression patterns, we can identify more detailed and diverse immune cells, providing insights into understanding the complex immune landscape in cancer ecosystems. Materials and Methods: This study was performed by obtaining publicly available Cellular Indexing of Transcriptomes and Epitopes by Sequencing (CITE-seq) data of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from the Gene Expression Omnibus database. A total of 94674 total cells were analyzed, of which 32412 were T cells. There were 228 protein features and 16262 mRNA features in the data.The Seurat package was used for quality control and preprocessing, principal component analysis was performed, and Uniform Manifold Approximation and Projection was used to visualize the clusters. Protein and mRNA levels in the CITE-seq were analyzed. Results: We observed that a subset of T cells in the clusters generated at the protein level divided better. By identifying mRNA markers that were highly correlated with the CD4 and CD8 proteins and cross-validating CD26 and CD99 markers using flow cytometry, we found that CD4 + and CD8+ T cells were better discriminated in PBMCs. Weighted Nearest Neighbor clustering results identified a previously unobserved T cell subset. Conclusion In this study, we used CITE-seq data to confirm that protein expression patterns could be used to identify cells more precisely. These findings will improve our understanding of the heterogeneity of immune cells in the future and provide valuable insights into the complexity of the immune response in health and disease.

Purpose: By utilizing both protein and mRNA expression patterns, we can identify more detailed and diverse immune cells, providing insights into understanding the complex immune landscape in cancer ecosystems. Materials and Methods: This study was performed by obtaining publicly available Cellular Indexing of Transcriptomes and Epitopes by Sequencing (CITE-seq) data of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from the Gene Expression Omnibus database. A total of 94674 total cells were analyzed, of which 32412 were T cells. There were 228 protein features and 16262 mRNA features in the data.The Seurat package was used for quality control and preprocessing, principal component analysis was performed, and Uniform Manifold Approximation and Projection was used to visualize the clusters. Protein and mRNA levels in the CITE-seq were analyzed. Results: We observed that a subset of T cells in the clusters generated at the protein level divided better. By identifying mRNA markers that were highly correlated with the CD4 and CD8 proteins and cross-validating CD26 and CD99 markers using flow cytometry, we found that CD4 + and CD8+ T cells were better discriminated in PBMCs. Weighted Nearest Neighbor clustering results identified a previously unobserved T cell subset. Conclusion In this study, we used CITE-seq data to confirm that protein expression patterns could be used to identify cells more precisely. These findings will improve our understanding of the heterogeneity of immune cells in the future and provide valuable insights into the complexity of the immune response in health and disease.

Background: Catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs) account for a large proportion of healthcare-associated infections and have a significant impact on morbidity, length of hospital stay, and mortality. Adherence to the recommended infection prevention practices can effectively reduce the incidence of CAUTIs. This study aimed to assess the characteristics of CAUTIs and the efficacy of prevention programs across hospitals of various sizes. Methods: Intervention programs, including training, surveillance, and monitoring, were implemented. Data on the microorganisms responsible for CAUTIs, urinary catheter utilization ratio, rate of CAUTIs per 1,000 device days, and factors associated with the use of indwelling catheters were collected from 2017 to 2019. The incidence of CAUTIs and associated data were compared between university hospitals and small- and medium-sized hospitals. Results: Thirty-two hospitals participated in the study, including 21 university hospitals and 11 small- and medium-sized hospitals. The microorganisms responsible for CAUTIs and their resistance rates did not differ between the two groups. In the first quarter of 2018, the incidence rate was 2.05 infections/1,000 device-days in university hospitals and 1.44 infections/1,000 device-days in small- and medium-sized hospitals. After implementing interventions, the rate gradually decreased in the first quarter of 2019, with 1.18 infections/1,000 device-days in university hospitals and 0.79 infections/1,000 device-days in small- and medium-sized hospitals. However, by the end of the study, the infection rate increased to 1.74 infections/1,000 device-days in university hospitals and 1.80 infections/1,000 device-days in small- and medium-sized hospitals. Conclusion We implemented interventions to prevent CAUTIs and evaluated their outcomes. The incidence of these infections decreased in the initial phases of the intervention when adequate support and personnel were present. The rate of these infections may be reduced by implementing active interventions such as consistent monitoring and adherence to guidelines for preventing infections.

PURPOSE: As a result of various independently proposed nomenclatures and classifications, there is confusion in the diagnosis and prediction of biological behavior of gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (GEP-NETs). A comprehensive nationwide study is needed in order to understand the biological characteristics of GEP-NETs in Korea. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We collected 4,951 pathology reports from 29 hospitals in Korea between 2000 and 2009. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis was used to determine the prognostic significance of clinicopathological parameters. RESULTS: Although the GEP-NET is a relatively rare tumor in Korea, its incidence has increased during the last decade, with the most significant increase found in the rectum. The 10-year survival rate for well-differentiated endocrine tumor was 92.89%, in contrast to 85.74% in well differentiated neuroendocrine carcinoma and 34.59% in poorly differentiated neuroendocrine carcinoma. Disease related death was most common in the biliary tract (62.2%) and very rare in the rectum (5.2%). In Kaplan-Meier survival analysis, tumor location, histological classification, extent, size, mitosis, Ki-67 labeling index, synaptophysin expression, lymphovascular invasion, perineural invasion, and lymph node metastasis showed prognostic significance (p<0.05), however, chromogranin expression did not (p=0.148). The 2000 and 2010 World Health Organization (WHO) classification proposals were useful for prediction of the prognosis of GEP-NET. CONCLUSION: The incidence of GEP-NET in Korea has shown a remarkable increase during the last decade, however, the distribution of tumors in the digestive system differs from that of western reports. Assessment of pathological parameters, including immunostaining, is crucial in understanding biological behavior of the tumor as well as predicting prognosis of patients with GEP-NET.
Biliary Tract ; Carcinoma, Neuroendocrine ; Digestive System ; Humans ; Incidence ; Intestinal Neoplasms ; Korea ; Lymph Nodes ; Mitosis ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Neuroendocrine Tumors ; Pancreatic Neoplasms ; Population Characteristics ; Prognosis ; Rectum ; Stomach Neoplasms ; Survival Rate ; Synaptophysin ; World Health Organization