The National Evidence-based Healthcare Collaborating Agency (NECA), an institution for health technology assessment in Korea, has used public solicitation of research topics since its establishment in 2009. This creates a necessity for examining whether a given research topic was selected to be considered when prioritizing healthcare technology assessment and distributing healthcare resources. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between the research topics suggested to NECA and the disease burden in Korea. To find the correlation between disease burden and 1,112 suggested topics and 91 performed topics that were classified by Human Research Classification System a linear auxiliary trend line and scatter plot were constructed using disability-adjusted life years (DALYs), and Pearson's correlation coefficients were calculated. The results suggested that cancer was most common, followed by cardiovascular diseases, among suggested research topics and research topics performed by NECA, as well as in terms of the ratio of performed to suggested topics. The correlation between research topic and disease burden index indicated a strong correlation with DALYs and years of life lost (YLLs). However, years lived with disability and research topic had no relationship. Suggested topics showed a greater correlation with YLLs than DALYs, whereas performed topics showed a greater correlation with DALYs than YLLs, showing that despite the fact that the diseases with a high burden from morbidity were appropriately considered with respect to selecting research topics, a statistically significant difference was not found. As the first Korean study to assess the correlation between research topics and disease burden, our results will be used as base data for prioritizing the allocation of healthcare resources in the future.
Adenosine-5'-(N-ethylcarboxamide) ; Biomedical Technology* ; Cardiovascular Diseases ; Classification ; Cost of Illness ; Delivery of Health Care ; Evidence-Based Practice ; Humans ; Korea ; Technology Assessment, Biomedical*

Background: Cold atmospheric plasma is a novel innovative approach for wound care, and it is currently underrepresented in veterinary medicine. Objectives: To investigate the efficacy and safety of using cold atmospheric microwave plasma (CAMP) as an adjunct therapy for wound healing in dogs and cats. Methods: Wound healing outcomes were retrospectively analyzed using clinical records of client-owned dogs and cats who were first managed through standard wound care alone (pre-CAMP period) and subsequently via CAMP therapy (CAMP period). The degree of wound healing was estimated based on wound size and a modified wound scoring system. Results: Of the 27 acute and chronic wounds included in the analysis, 81.48% showed complete healing after the administration of CAMP as an adjunct therapy to standard care.Most wounds achieved complete healing in < 5 weeks. Compared with the pre-CAMP period, the rate of wound healing significantly increased every week in the CAMP period in terms of in wound size (first week, p < 0.001; second week, p = 0.012; third week, p < 0.001) and wound score (first week, p < 0.001; second week, p < 0.001; third week, p = 0.001). No adverse events were noted except for mild discomfort and transient erythema. Conclusions CAMP is a well-tolerated therapeutic option with immense potential to support the treatment of wounds of diverse etiology in small animal practice. Further research is warranted to establish specific criteria for CAMP treatment according to wound characteristics.

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to identify the characteristics of social networking service (SNS) users and to assess the relationship of those factors to user satisfaction with the SNSs of the National Cancer Information Center (NCIC) in South Korea. METHODS: A Web-based survey was completed by 1,670 users of the NCIC SNSs, who provided data on the sources they consulted for information about cancer, determinants of SNS use, sources of NCIC SNS awareness, the time of day they used the SNS, and their satisfaction level. RESULTS: Facebook users mainly became aware of the NCIC SNSs through an acquaintance's recommendation, while Twitter was accessed through other SNSs or blogs. Users in their 30s were less satisfied with the NCIC SNSs than those in their teens and 20s. Browsing for cancer-related information on the Internet, prioritizing information quality, and engaging in active use were related to a high level of satisfaction with the NCIC SNSs. Individuals who were exposed to the NCIC SNSs through other SNSs or printed materials were less satisfied with their experience of the NCIC SNSs than those who received a recommendation from an acquaintance. CONCLUSIONS: These findings may act as a catalyst to guide public health agencies to enhance their use of SNSs.
Adolescent ; Blogs ; Humans ; Information Centers* ; Internet ; Korea* ; Public Health

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to identify the characteristics of social networking service (SNS) users and to assess the relationship of those factors to user satisfaction with the SNSs of the National Cancer Information Center (NCIC) in South Korea.METHODS: A Web-based survey was completed by 1,670 users of the NCIC SNSs, who provided data on the sources they consulted for information about cancer, determinants of SNS use, sources of NCIC SNS awareness, the time of day they used the SNS, and their satisfaction level.RESULTS: Facebook users mainly became aware of the NCIC SNSs through an acquaintance's recommendation, while Twitter was accessed through other SNSs or blogs. Users in their 30s were less satisfied with the NCIC SNSs than those in their teens and 20s. Browsing for cancer-related information on the Internet, prioritizing information quality, and engaging in active use were related to a high level of satisfaction with the NCIC SNSs. Individuals who were exposed to the NCIC SNSs through other SNSs or printed materials were less satisfied with their experience of the NCIC SNSs than those who received a recommendation from an acquaintance.CONCLUSIONS: These findings may act as a catalyst to guide public health agencies to enhance their use of SNSs.
Adolescent ; Blogs ; Humans ; Information Centers ; Internet ; Korea ; Public Health

Background: Proteomics and genomics studies have contributed to understanding the pathogenesis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), but previous studies have limitations. Here, using a machine learning (ML) algorithm, we attempted to identify pathways in cultured bronchial epithelial cells of COPD patients that were significantly affected when the cells were exposed to a cigarette smoke extract (CSE). Methods: Small airway epithelial cells were collected from patients with COPD and those without COPD who underwent bronchoscopy. After expansion through primary cell culture, the cells were treated with or without CSEs, and the proteomics of the cells were analyzed by mass spectrometry. ML-based feature selection was used to determine the most distinctive patterns in the proteomes of COPD and non-COPD cells after exposure to smoke extract.Publicly available single-cell RNA sequencing data from patients with COPD (GSE136831) were used to analyze and validate our findings. Results: Five patients with COPD and five without COPD were enrolled, and 7,953 proteins were detected. Ferroptosis was enriched in both COPD and non-COPD epithelial cells after their exposure to smoke extract. However, the ML-based analysis identified ferroptosis as the most dramatically different response between COPD and non-COPD epithelial cells, adjusted P value = 4.172 × 10−6 , showing that epithelial cells from COPD patients are particularly vulnerable to the effects of smoke. Single-cell RNA sequencing data showed that in cells from COPD patients, ferroptosis is enriched in basal, goblet, and club cells in COPD but not in other cell types. Conclusion Our ML-based feature selection from proteomic data reveals ferroptosis to be the most distinctive feature of cultured COPD epithelial cells compared to non-COPD epithelial cells upon exposure to smoke extract.