Since patients with morbid obesity undergoing bariatric surgery are vulnerable to micronutrient deficiencies, close monitoring and supplementation are necessary. The importance of screening prior to surgery has increased in recent studies; preoperative screening is recommended for thiamine, vitamin B12, vitamin D and calcium, vitamin A, E, K, folic acid, and iron. Though preoperative weight loss (PWL) of more than 10% excess body weight may be beneficial for postoperative weight loss and shorter operative time, insurance-mandated PWL before bariatric surgery is not evidence-based, unsafe, and therefore strongly discouraged. Very-low-calorie diet (VLCD) in liquid form is recommended as a safe and effective way to lose weight preoperatively. Also, screening and correction of eating disorder and psychiatric problems prior to surgery contribute to better outcome.
Bariatric Surgery ; Body Weight ; Calcium ; Caloric Restriction ; Diet ; Eating ; Folic Acid ; Humans ; Iron ; Malnutrition ; Mass Screening ; Micronutrients ; Obesity, Morbid* ; Operative Time ; Preoperative Care ; Thiamine ; Vitamin A ; Vitamin B 12 ; Vitamin D ; Weight Loss

OBJECTIVES: The objectives of this study were to investigate 1) the difference of the immune function between schizophrenic patients and healthy normal control:2) the correlation between the severity of symptoms and immune functions in schizophrenia:and 3) the differences between the positive and negative symptom group of schizophrenia and conrols, respectively. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: The subjects were thirty patients who met the DSM-IV criteria for schizophrenia and had undergone 2 weeks of drug free period before this study. Thirty-two healthy young adults were recruited for control. The following immunological functions were observed in the patients on admission and the normal control at the same day: WBC count, lymphocyte subpopulations(T cell, B cell, CD4+ cell, CD8+ cell, CD4+/CD8+ cell ratio), natural killer(NK) cell count and percentage, serum immunoglobulin levels(Ig G, Ig A, Ig M), total hemolytic complement activity(CH50). The schizophrenic patients were classified into positive and negative symptom group by Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale(PANSS) on the sampling day. The severity of symptoms was assessed by using the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale(BPRS) in each day of immunological examinations. RESULTS: No significant difference was observed by measuring several immunological fuctions from schizophrenic patients and normal controls. A significant positive correlation was established between symptom severity and Ig A, the number and percentage of total lymphocyte. In contrast a negative correlation between symptom severity and number of CD8+ cell was found. In the positive symptom group, the percentage of T cell and number of CD8+ cell were significantly reduced and Ig M level increased as compared to normal controls. In the negative symptom group, number and percentage of NK cell were decreased as compared to controls. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that alterations in immune system in schizophrenia do not appear to be a specific biological correlate of this disorder, but, rather, may be associated to severity of symptoms and homogenous symptom subgroup. Also more specific marker of immune function for the homogenous patients group will be required to assess some identified changes of immune system in schizophrenia.
Cell Count ; Complement Hemolytic Activity Assay ; Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders ; Humans ; Immune System ; Immunoglobulins ; Killer Cells, Natural ; Lymphocytes ; Schizophrenia* ; Young Adult

This study was conducted to examine the effect of dietary iron levels on lipid metabolism, antioxidative and antithrombogenic capacities in 16-month-old rats. Thirty-two Sprague-Dawley male 16-month-old rats weighing 618 +/- 6 g were raised for 10 days with medium-iron diet (35 ppm in diet) and blocked into 4 groups according to their body weights. One of groups was sacrificed to obtain initial data and the rest 3 groups were raised for 3 months with experimental diets containing different levels of iron (5 ppm, 35 ppm, and 350 ppm). Total lipid, triglyceride and total cholesterol concentrations in plasma and liver, HDL-cholesterol concentration in plasma, fecal total lipid triglyceride and total cholesterol excretions, thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) level in plasma LDL + VLDL (low density lipoprotein + very low density lipoprotein) fractions, blood-clotting time and eicosanoids levels in plasma were measured. The results are as follows: Plasma total lipid, triglyceride and total cholesterol concentrations, TBARS level in plasma LDL + VLDL fractions were increased and blood-clotting time tended to be shortened during 3 months of experimental period. Low (5 ppm) iron diet improved lipid metabolism via increasing HDL-cholesterol and fecal cholesterol excretion. High (350 ppm) iron diet decreased plasma total lipid, triglyceride and total cholesterol concentrations as compared to medium (35 ppm) iron diet and lowered body weight and epididymal fat pad weight. On the other hand, TBARS level in plasma LDL + VLDL fractions and blood-clotting time were increased with high iron diet. It is plausible that low iron diet improves lipid metabolism, antioxidative and antithrombogenic capacities in 16-month-old rats.
Adipose Tissue ; Animals ; Body Weight ; Cholesterol ; Diet ; Eicosanoids ; Hand ; Humans ; Infant* ; Iron ; Iron, Dietary* ; Lipid Metabolism* ; Lipoproteins ; Liver ; Male ; Plasma ; Rats* ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Thiobarbituric Acid Reactive Substances ; Triglycerides

Ambient air pollution is a serious public health issue worldwide. A growing number of studies has highlighted the negative effects of air pollution on metabolic syndrome (MetS) and its components, including abdominal obesity, disorders of lipid metabolism, elevated blood pressure, and impaired fasting blood glucose. This review provides a brief overview of epidemiological and genetic interaction studies of the links between chronic exposure to ambient air pollution and MetS and its components, as well as plausible mechanisms underlying these relationships. The cumulative evidence suggests that long-term exposure to air pollution, especially particulate matter, increases the risk of MetS and its components. These associations can be partly modified by baseline characteristics, lifestyle, and health conditions. Gene-by-air-pollution interaction studies, limited to candidate genes in the past, have recently been conducted at an expanded genome-wide level. However, more such studies are needed to comprehensively understand the genetics involved in the association between air pollution and MetS. Mechanistic evidence suggests potential biological pathways, including inflammation, oxidative stress, and endothelial dysfunction.

Ambient air pollution is a serious public health issue worldwide. A growing number of studies has highlighted the negative effects of air pollution on metabolic syndrome (MetS) and its components, including abdominal obesity, disorders of lipid metabolism, elevated blood pressure, and impaired fasting blood glucose. This review provides a brief overview of epidemiological and genetic interaction studies of the links between chronic exposure to ambient air pollution and MetS and its components, as well as plausible mechanisms underlying these relationships. The cumulative evidence suggests that long-term exposure to air pollution, especially particulate matter, increases the risk of MetS and its components. These associations can be partly modified by baseline characteristics, lifestyle, and health conditions. Gene-by-air-pollution interaction studies, limited to candidate genes in the past, have recently been conducted at an expanded genome-wide level. However, more such studies are needed to comprehensively understand the genetics involved in the association between air pollution and MetS. Mechanistic evidence suggests potential biological pathways, including inflammation, oxidative stress, and endothelial dysfunction.

Ambient air pollution is a serious public health issue worldwide. A growing number of studies has highlighted the negative effects of air pollution on metabolic syndrome (MetS) and its components, including abdominal obesity, disorders of lipid metabolism, elevated blood pressure, and impaired fasting blood glucose. This review provides a brief overview of epidemiological and genetic interaction studies of the links between chronic exposure to ambient air pollution and MetS and its components, as well as plausible mechanisms underlying these relationships. The cumulative evidence suggests that long-term exposure to air pollution, especially particulate matter, increases the risk of MetS and its components. These associations can be partly modified by baseline characteristics, lifestyle, and health conditions. Gene-by-air-pollution interaction studies, limited to candidate genes in the past, have recently been conducted at an expanded genome-wide level. However, more such studies are needed to comprehensively understand the genetics involved in the association between air pollution and MetS. Mechanistic evidence suggests potential biological pathways, including inflammation, oxidative stress, and endothelial dysfunction.

Background: and Purpose: The Spinal and Bulbar Muscular Atrophy Functional Rating Scale (SBMAFRS) is a reliable and valid instrument for evaluating the functional status of patients with spinal and bulbar muscular atrophy (SBMA). This study aimed to validate a Korean version of the SBMAFRS in an SBMA population. Methods: We applied the SBMAFRS to 64 SBMA patients at their regular follow-up clinical visits. The patients underwent clinical evaluations that included the 6-minute walking test (6MWT), forced vital capacity (FVC), manual muscle test, and the Penetration-Aspiration Scale (PAS). To estimate the stability of the SBMAFRS, the scale was reapplied to a subset of 31 randomly selected patients within 4 weeks of the initial test. The convergent validity was evaluated, and correlations were examined between SBMAFRS items and the muscular force, the total and subscores on the Revised Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Functional Rating Scale (ALSFRS-R), FVC, PAS score, age at onset, disease duration, and 6MWT results. Results: The internal consistency of the scale was confirmed by a high Cronbach’s alpha (total raw alpha=0.867, total standardized alpha=0.863). The test-retest reliability as assessed by Spearman’s rho was also high. The total score and subscores of the SBMAFRS were strongly correlated with the respective items and subscores of the ALSFRS-R, respiratory function, and the 6MWT. Conclusions We have performed a validation study of the Korean version of a disease-specific functional rating scale for SBMA patients. The SBMAFRS is a useful tool for clinical practice and as a potential outcome measure for Korean SBMA patients.

The spinal cord is a complex and densely packed structure of nerve tissue, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is an excellent imaging modality for evaluating its pathologies. Among the distinct functional zones of the spinal cord, the dorsal (or posterior) column is a crucial white matter region responsible for transmitting sensory information and is located in the posterior aspect of the spinal cord. Myelopathies of the dorsal column typically appear as high signal intensity in this region on T2-weighted images. They may arise from several pathological processes, including degenerative, metabolic, inflammatory, infectious, and traumatic conditions. Identifying the specific etiology through characteristic MRI features, along with the patient’s clinical presentation, is crucial for developing an effective treatment plan and understanding the prognosis of sensory abnormalities. This study reviews myelopathies that specifically affect the dorsal column and outlines the MRI findings that aid in the differential diagnosis of these dorsal column lesions.

In South Korea, deaths caused by poisoning are mostly suicides due to drug overdoses, or agrochemical poisonings. Even though the latter is becoming less frequent, they are still occurring in large numbers across the country. In some cases, deaths result from toxicity of organic solvents contained in the agrochemical products. In this study, we identified organic solvents in post-mortem blood of acute agrochemical poisoning cases using solid phase microextraction-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry with black fiber. Out of 42 cases, organic solvents were detected in 29, with toluene and butanol detected simultaneously in 13 cases. In these 13 cases, the original pesticides were of various types, including organophosphorus compounds, carbamate, nicotine, and oxadiazine. Xylene and ethyl benzene were simultaneously detected six times. In these six cases, the original pesticides were mainly pyrethroid-based pesticides, such as cypermethrin and deltamethrin. Methoxypropanol was detected in five cases in which the water-soluble pesticide glufosinate was detected. These organic solvents may cause acute poisoning and even death in some agrochemical poisoning cases.

Background: Organizational downsizing may be significantly linked to depressive symptoms, yet research on this impact in Asian contexts is limited. This study investigates the association between downsizing during the COVID-19 pandemic and depressive symptoms across diverse employment statuses. Methods: This study used the data from 6th Korean Working Conditions Survey. Depressive symptoms were measured using WHO-5 well-being index with a cut-off of 50. Downsizing was defined as decrease in the number of employees during last three years. Multivariable logistic regression adjusted for socio-demographic and occupational factors was used to estimate the adjusted odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) for depressive symptoms associated with downsizing, including subgroup analyses. Results: Among 26,247 Korean workers (mean age: 43.4, men: 47.5%), the prevalence of depressive symptoms was 29.5% (n = 7,751), and the proportion of downsizing was 15.2% (n = 3,978). The prevalence of depressive symptoms was significantly higher among the downsizing group (36.7%, n = 1,460) than among the no-downsizing group (28.3%, n = 6,291). The result of logistic regression revealed a significant association between downsizing and depressive symptoms (adjusted OR [95% CI]: 1.39 [1.29–1.50]), particularly pronounced among high socioeconomic status workers. Conclusion This study underscores the significant association between depressive symptoms and organizational downsizing, especially high vulnerability of socioeconomically advantaged and stable workers. These findings highlight the necessity for targeted mental health support and further longitudinal research to clarify the relationship between employment changes and mental health within the Korean workforce.