OBJECTIVES: The purposes of this study were to identify the factors that affect the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of the elderly with chronic diseases and to subsequently develop from such factors a prediction model to help identify HRQoL risk groups that require intervention. METHODS: We analyzed a set of secondary data regarding 716 individuals extracted from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey from 2008 to 2010. The statistical package of SPSS and MATLAB were used for data analysis and development of the prediction model. The algorithms used in the study were the following: stepwise logistic regression (SLR) analysis and machine learning (ML) techniques, such as decision tree, random forest, and support vector machine methods. RESULTS: Five factors with statistical significance were identified for HRQoL in the elderly with chronic diseases: 'monthly income', 'diagnosis of chronic disease', 'depression', 'discomfort', and 'perceived health status.' The SLR analysis showed the best performance with accuracy = 0.93 and F-score = 0.49. The results of this study provide essential materials that will help formulate personalized health management strategies and develop interventions programs towards the improvement of the HRQoL for elderly people with chronic diseases. CONCLUSIONS: Our study is, to our best knowledge, the first attempt to identify the influencing factors and to apply prediction models for the HRQoL of the elderly with chronic diseases by using ML techniques as an alternative and complement to the traditional statistical approaches.
Aged* ; Chronic Disease* ; Complement System Proteins ; Decision Trees ; Humans ; Korea ; Logistic Models ; Machine Learning* ; Nutrition Surveys ; Quality of Life* ; Statistics as Topic ; Support Vector Machine

An organoid is a self-organized three-dimensional structure derived from stem cells that mimics the structure, cell composition, and functional characteristics of specific organs and tissues and is used for evaluating the safety and effectiveness of drugs and the toxicity of industrial chemicals. Organoid technology is a new methodology that could replace testing on animals testing and accelerate development of precision and regenerative medicine. However, large variations in production can occur between laboratories with low reproducibility of the production process and no internationally agreed standards for quality evaluation factors at endpoints. To overcome these barriers that hinder the regulatory acceptance and commercialization of organoids, Korea established the Organoid Standards Initiative in September 2023 with various stakeholders, including industry, academia, regulatory agencies, and standard development experts, through public and private partnerships. This developed general guidelines for organoid manufacturing and quality evaluation and for quality evaluation guidelines for organoid-specific manufacturing for the liver, intestines, and heart through extensive evidence analysis and consensus among experts. This report is based on the common standard guideline v1.0, which is a general organoid manufacturing and quality evaluation to promote the practical use of organoids. This guideline does not focus on specific organoids or specific contexts of use but provides guidance to organoid makers and users on materials, procedures, and essential quality assessment methods at end points that are essential for organoid production applicable at the current technology level.

This report presents guidelines for the systematic management of packaging, storage, transportation, and traceability of source cells used for organoid research. Given the important role of source cells in organoid studies, it is important to ensure the preservation of their quality and integrity throughout transportation and distribution processes. The proposed guidelines, therefore, call for a cohesive strategy through these stages to minimize the risks of contamination, deterioration, and loss–threats that significantly compromise the safety, efficacy, and efficiency of source cells. Central to these guidelines is the quality control measures that include roles and responsibilities across the entire supply chain, with recommendations specific to packaging materials, transportation facilities, and storage management. Furthermore, the need for an integrated management system is emphasized, spanning from source cell collection to the final application. This system is crucial for maintaining the traceability and accountability of source cells, facilitating the sharing, distribution, and utilization on a global scale, and supporting to advance organoid research and development.