BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Road safety in the Philippines has been increasingly significant with the increasing level of industrialization and urbanization over the last decade. The main objective of the study was to determine the road safety performance for Metro Manila by computing for an index based on data and variables of road traffic over the past years.

METHODOLOGY: The variables for index calculation included speed, alcohol, infrastructure, vehicle defect, and other unsafe driver behavior were drawn from the Metro Manila Development (MMDA) database complemented with literature review from several sources. Equal Weighting method was utilized, as this is the simplest, yet, least biased measurement suitable for the data at hand.

RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: The Road Safety Performance Index for Metro Manila remains more or less constant over a five-year period, increasing and decreasing from 0.45 to 0.59 which means that Metropolitan Manila has fared poorly in all indicators. Metro Manila has a poor road safety performance as evidenced by the road safety index. There is a need to improve on all components of road safety identified in this study for the safety of road users. 

PURPOSE: To study the relationship between the prevalence of myopia and both urbanization and increased education level. METHODS: We performed noncycloplegic autorefraction in 12, 207 nineteen-year-old Korean conscripts. In order to analyze the relationship between prevalence of myopia and urbanization, we divided the subjects into two groups: urban and rural. To analyze the relationship between the prevalence of myopia and the level of education, we categorized the subjects into three groups: college education (>or=13 years), high school education (10-12 years), and primary education (urbanization.
Education* ; Humans ; Male* ; Myopia* ; Prevalence* ; Urbanization* ; Young Adult*

PURPOSE: Hepatolithiasis is a recurrent disease and common in Far East Asia. In Korea, almost all intrahepatic duct (IHD) stones were pigment stones 30~40 years ago. The nationwide cooperative study showed a higher cholesterol content of IHD stones compared to the previous data. Some reports have shown a close relationship between urbanization and the cholesterol content of stones. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the cholesterol content of IHD stones in the West Gyeongnam region and evaluate the associated clinical and demographic variables. METHODS: The IHD stones were removed surgically from twenty patients who had hepatolithiasis between July 2005 and April 2007. The stones were grouped by their gross findings. The cholesterol contents were measured quantitatively by infrared spectrophotometry and compared with the clinical variables. RESULTS: Among twenty patients, 19 had pigment stones and only one had gross evidence of a cholesterol stone. The cholesterol content of the stones were 30%~50% in 13 patients, 50~70% in 6 patients and over 70% in one patient. In urban patients, the cholesterol contents of the IHD stones were higher (567.029 mg/g) than in rural patients (421.822 mg/g)(p<0.05). All stones in rural patients were pigment stones; the stones of urban patients consisted of 5 pigment, 6 mixed and 1 cholesterol stone (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: The mean cholesterol content of the IHD stones was 508.946 mg/g; the content of the stone was significantly related to the residence of the patients. These results suggest that the cholesterol content of IHD stones are likely to increase in West Gyeongnam as urbanization increases.
Asia ; Cholesterol* ; Far East ; Humans ; Korea ; Spectrophotometry, Infrared ; Urbanization

In order to determine the trend in the number of employees covered by workers' compensation (WC) and trends in the burdens and benefits of WC, and to discuss the possible factors that might influence those trends. A relevant national statistical data from 1995 to 2012 are collected and analyzed. In the results, we found that the proportion of employees covered by WC to total employees in urban areas increased from 13.7% in 1995 to 51.2% in 2012 and also exhibited a significant degree of polarization. In 2012, 27.3% of the peasant workers were covered by WC, which accounted for 37.8% of the total employees covered by WC. Factors found to impact the number of employees covered by WC and trends in the burdens and benefits of WC from 1995 to date in China included urbanization, represented by the migration of farm labor to urban areas, changes in industry mix, regional disparity, GDP movements, and changes to legislation on WC and occupational health and safety. It still has a long way to go to reduce work-related injuries and occupational diseases (ODs) to levels comparable with other industrialized countries.
China ; Humans ; Urbanization ; Workers' Compensation ; economics ; statistics & numerical data

The prevalence of allergic diseases has increased dramatically in recent decades, and are now considered major chronic diseases at the global level. The increasing burden of allergic diseases has led to numerous worldwide and local researchers to investigate the time trends in its prevalence and identify its driving factors. Environmental changes such as urbanization and industrialization have been suggested to explain the increasing prevalence, but recent reports from Western countries suggest that this prevalence has reached a plateau or even possibly, started to decrease. However, such environmental changes are still occurring in many Asia-Pacific countries, including Korea, and it is speculated that the peak in allergy epidemics has yet to come. The present systematic literature review aimed to explore the time trends in the prevalence of allergic diseases in Korea and to identify the unmet needs for facilitating further studies.
Chronic Disease ; Epidemiology ; Hypersensitivity ; Incidence ; Korea ; Prevalence ; Urbanization

Asia-Pacific is one of the most densely populated regions of the world and is experiencing rapid economic changes and urbanization. Environmental pollution is a significant problem associated with the rapid modernization of many cities in South Asia. It is not surprising that the prevalences of asthma and allergies are increasing rapidly, although the underlying reasons remain largely unknown. Many studies from this region have documented the changing prevalence of allergic diseases in various parts of the world. However, the methodologies used were neither standardized nor validated, making the results difficult to evaluate. The International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC) has provided a global epidemiology map of asthma and allergic diseases, as well as the trend of changes in the prevalence of these diseases. Allergic sensitization is extremely common in many Asian communities. However, the prevalence of allergic diseases remains relatively rare. The rapid urbanization in the region, which increases environmental pollution and can affect the rural environment, will likely increase the prevalence of asthma and allergies in Asia.
Asia ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Asthma ; Environmental Pollution ; Humans ; Hypersensitivity ; Prevalence ; Social Change ; Urbanization

Dengue fever is a kind of viral disease which infects people through mosquito bite. It is present in 100 countries and about 5 million to 10 million people are inflicted with this disease every year. Since the 1980s, it has seen a dramatic increase across the globe. One of the reasons for the spread of the disease is that rapid industrialization and urbanization have destroyed the natural habitat of mosquitos. Additionally, dengue fever occurs mostly in underdeveloped countries. These countries have not implemented systematic epidemiological investigation and are yet to come up with effective methods in terms of prevention of mosquito bites. Moreover, more and more people have traveled the areas at risk of this disease. Global the incidence of dengue fever has increased and has also seen a rise in cases among the travelers. One can easily find a case in a clinical setting. On top of that, due to global warming and north warding of dengue occurring latitude in the northern hemisphere, Aedes albopictus which is the vector of dengue fever, has been found in JeJu island. This makes it a major concern that the mosquitos have inhabited the country. Prevention of dengue fever is important since antiviral agents and vaccinations are not still commonly used.
Aedes ; Antiviral Agents ; Culicidae ; Dengue* ; Ecosystem ; Global Warming ; Incidence ; Methods ; Severe Dengue ; Urbanization ; Vaccination ; Virus Diseases

PURPOSE: Inter-hospital transport poses a number of challenging issues, including prolonging the time interval from symptoms to optimal reperfusion therapy after ischemic stroke. It is unclear whether urbanization is associated with outcomes of inter-hospital transfer including length of stay at the referring hospital (D1LOS). METHODS: A prospective stroke registry from 23 Emergency Departments (ED) from 2007 to 2012 over the nation was collected. Ischemic stroke patients who arrived at the first ED within 24 hours of onset (S2D1) were enrolled. Patients were excluded if time intervals or address were incorrect or missing. Main exposure was urbanization level; urban > or =10,000 and rural <10,000 population. Primary outcome was D1LOS. The secondary outcomes were symptoms to door of the first ED (S2D1) and transfer time to the final ED (T2D2). We compared the D1LOS, S2D1, and T2D2 with median and inter-quartile range (IQR) by urbanization level. RESULTS: Of 5,909 patients transferred from other hospitals, 2,289 patients were analyzed; 1,441 (63%) patients in urban areas, 848 (37%) patients in rural areas were included. The D1LOS and S2D1 in urban was longer than those in rural; 100 minutes (IQR 50~208) for urban VS 82.5 minutes (IQR 48~170.5) for rural (p=0.01) and 66 minutes (IQR 30~240) for urban VS 90 minutes (IQR 30~330) for rural (p=0.001). T2D2 in urban was shorter than that in rural; 54 minutes (IQR 36~78), 40 minutes (IQR 25~65) (p< or =0.00), respectively. CONCLUSION: Urban EDs showed longer D1LOS before transferring patients to the hospital for definite care. Strategy for reducing delay due to inter-hospital transport should differ according to urbanization.
Emergency Medical Services ; Emergency Service, Hospital ; Humans ; Length of Stay ; Patient Transfer ; Reperfusion ; Stroke* ; Urbanization*

OBJECTIVES: This study aims to examine the regional differences for unmet dental need, while comparing 16 metropolitan cities in South Korea. Further, this study aims to examine the impacts of social determinants, which relates to the regional difference. METHODS: This is a cross-sectional study that analyzes the data, of the 4th round Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES), in depth, as well as an ecologic analysis investigating each area as an aggregate unit. The data obtained from 24,871 subjects was stratified of 16 cities. The dependent variables were the unmet dental needs. There were 12 variables in social determinant, which have been approached by the social status, the social position, the economic status, the urbanization and access to resources. The sex-age adjusted standardization ratio was calculated and a descriptive statistical analysis was performed to compare the cities. The coefficient of variations was calculated. Social determinants affecting regional differences were analyzed through a multiple regression model. PASW statistics 18.0 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA) was used. RESULTS: The unmet dental need between the 16 cities showed a 1.7 times the regional difference. On the other hand the unmet dental need, due to financial reason, showed a 3.3 times the regional difference. The correlation analysis showed that the unmet dental need was higher in single-person households, in welfarites and in severely deprived areas. The final regression analysis showed that the local deprivation index (beta=-17.19), the ratio of single-person household (beta=3.91), and the number of dentists per 10,000 population (beta=-2.30), were found to be statistically significant affecting the regional differences of unmet dental need (P<0.1). CONCLUSIONS: The unmet dental need in South Korea showed the regional difference, which was affected by the urbanization, the social position and resources of the areas among social determinants.
Chicago ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Dentists ; Family Characteristics ; Hand ; Humans ; Korea ; Nutrition Surveys ; Republic of Korea ; Urbanization

The purpose of this study is to find differences in dietary patterns through menu analysis by economic status. The data was obtained from the 1998 and 2001 National Health and Nutrition Survey of Korea. The main variables were economic status, sex, and area by urbanization. The economic status was classified into low, middle, high, and top classes using a poverty line based on the 1998 and 2001 minimum standard cost of living. The areas were divided into metropolis, small city, and rural areas. The dishes of 3 meals were classified into 29 categories by cooking method. The most frequent pattern was "rice + soup + kimchi". The frequency of this Korean basic dietary pattern was the lowest in the top income class and metropolis areas, while the highest in the low income class and rural areas. The frequency of Korean recommended dietary pattern, that is, "rice + soup or stew + kimchi + side dish" was the highest in the top income class. The metropolis group preferred side dishes using meat and a cooking method that saved time, but the rural group preferred side dishes using vegetables and cooking methods that take a longer time. In comparison of dietary pattern between male and female by economic status, the higher economic status, the male's dietary patterns showed more side dishes than those of female. But the main side dish was kimchi in male low class. onsequently, the major dietary pattern in Korea is rice-style, though the western pattern is increasing in the top income class, especially in metropolis areas. Therefore, to make a better dietary pattern, we should develop and spread low-priced recipes of various side dishes and teach financial skills such as ability to make a food budget for lower income classes. Also, we should emphasize the importance of the balance between meat and vegetables and traditional diet and western diet for the top income class, especially in the metropolis areas.
Budgets ; Cooking ; Diet ; Female ; Humans ; Korea ; Male ; Meals ; Meat ; Nutrition Surveys ; Poverty ; Urbanization ; Vegetables