Objectives: To examine the prevalence of coronary artery disease (CAD) according to lifestyle characteristics, nutrient intake level, and comorbidities among Koreans aged  40 years. Methods: Data were derived from 11,025 participants aged ≥ 40 years in the 7th Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Participants were assigned to a CAD group (n = 470) or a non-CAD group (n = 10,555). Socio-demographic characteristics (age, sex, residence, income, marital status, education level, and employment status), lifestyle characteristics (smoking, drinking, walking, strength training, sleep duration, stress level, and subjective health perception), energy and nutrient intakes, and comorbidities, including obesity, hypertension, dyslipidemia, diabetes mellitus, stroke, cancer, depression, renal failure, cataract, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, osteoarthritis, and osteoporosis were analyzed. Results: The prevalence of CAD was higher in older participants and in male. Participants with CAD had higher rates of smoking, engaged in less strength training, experienced higher stress, and had poorer perceived health. They had lower intakes of energy, fiber, folate and iron. The prevalence of obesity, hypertension, dyslipidemia, diabetes mellitus, stroke, depression, renal failure, cataract, asthma, allergic rhinitis, osteoarthritis, or osteoporosis was significantly higher in the CAD group. The likelihood of having CAD was significantly higher among participants with renal failure (odds ratio [OR], 4.25; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.24–8.08), depression (OR, 2.14; 95% CI, 1.55–2.95), asthma (OR, 2.07; 95% CI 1.48–2.91), and dyslipidemia (OR, 2.03; 95% CI, 1.69–2.44). Conclusion In Koreans aged  40 years, CAD was associated with unhealthy lifestyle habits, low nutrient intake, and increased comorbidities such as renal failure, depression, asthma, and dyslipidemia. These findings suggest the need for lifestyle management and intensive chronic disease management to reduce the risk of CAD.

Purpose: Diagnostic biomarkers of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) have been used for early detection to reduce its dismal survival rate. However, clinically feasible biomarkers are still rare. Therefore, in this study, we developed an automated multi-marker enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kit using 3 biomarkers (leucine-rich alpha-2-glycoprotein [LRG1], transthyretin [TTR], and CA 19-9) that were previously discovered and proposed a diagnostic model for PDAC based on this kit for clinical usage. Methods: Individual LRG1, TTR, and CA 19-9 panels were combined into a single automated ELISA panel and tested on 728 plasma samples, including PDAC (n = 381) and normal samples (n = 347). The consistency between individual panels of 3 biomarkers and the automated multi-panel ELISA kit were accessed by correlation. The diagnostic model was developed using logistic regression according to the automated ELISA kit to predict the risk of pancreatic cancer (high-, intermediate-, and low-risk groups). Results: The Pearson correlation coefficient of predicted values between the triple-marker automated ELISA panel and the former individual ELISA was 0.865. The proposed model provided reliable prediction results with a positive predictive value of 92.05%, negative predictive value of 90.69%, specificity of 90.69%, and sensitivity of 92.05%, which all simultaneously exceed 90% cutoff value. Conclusion This diagnostic model based on the triple ELISA kit showed better diagnostic performance than previous markers for PDAC. In the future, it needs external validation to be used in the clinic.

BACKGROUND: The surgical strategies for carotid endarterectomy (CEA) vary in terms of the anesthesia method, neurological monitoring, shunt usage, and closure technique, and no gold-standard procedure has been established yet. We aimed to analyze the feasibility and benefits of CEA under regional anesthesia (RA) and CEA under general anesthesia (GA).METHODS: Between June 2012 and December 2017, 65 patients who had undergone CEA were enrolled, and their medical records were prospectively collected and retrospectively reviewed. A total of 35 patients underwent CEA under RA with cervical plexus block, whereas 30 patients underwent CEA under GA. In the RA group, a carotid shunt was selectively used for patients who exhibited negative results on the awake test. In contrast, such a shunt was used for all patients in the GA group.RESULTS: There were no cases of postoperative stroke, cardiovascular events, or mortality. Nerve injuries were noted in 4 patients (3 in the RA group and 1 in the GA group), but they fully recovered prior to discharge. Operative time and clamp time were shorter in the RA group than in the GA group (119.29±27.71 min vs. 161.43±20.79 min, p<0.001; 30.57±6.80 min vs. 51.77±13.38 min, p<0.001, respectively). The hospital stay was shorter in the RA group than in the GA group (14.6±5.05 days vs. 18.97±8.92 days, p=0.022). None of the patients experienced a stroke or restenosis during the 27.23±20.3-month follow-up period.CONCLUSION: RA with a reliable awake test reduces shunt use and decreases the clamp and operative times of CEA, eventually resulting in a reduced length of hospital stay.
Anesthesia ; Anesthesia, Conduction ; Anesthesia, General ; Carotid Arteries ; Cervical Plexus Block ; Endarterectomy ; Endarterectomy, Carotid ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Length of Stay ; Medical Records ; Methods ; Mortality ; Myocardial Infarction ; Operative Time ; Prospective Studies ; Retrospective Studies ; Stroke

BACKGROUND: The surgical strategies for carotid endarterectomy (CEA) vary in terms of the anesthesia method, neurological monitoring, shunt usage, and closure technique, and no gold-standard procedure has been established yet. We aimed to analyze the feasibility and benefits of CEA under regional anesthesia (RA) and CEA under general anesthesia (GA). METHODS: Between June 2012 and December 2017, 65 patients who had undergone CEA were enrolled, and their medical records were prospectively collected and retrospectively reviewed. A total of 35 patients underwent CEA under RA with cervical plexus block, whereas 30 patients underwent CEA under GA. In the RA group, a carotid shunt was selectively used for patients who exhibited negative results on the awake test. In contrast, such a shunt was used for all patients in the GA group. RESULTS: There were no cases of postoperative stroke, cardiovascular events, or mortality. Nerve injuries were noted in 4 patients (3 in the RA group and 1 in the GA group), but they fully recovered prior to discharge. Operative time and clamp time were shorter in the RA group than in the GA group (119.29±27.71 min vs. 161.43±20.79 min, p<0.001; 30.57±6.80 min vs. 51.77±13.38 min, p<0.001, respectively). The hospital stay was shorter in the RA group than in the GA group (14.6±5.05 days vs. 18.97±8.92 days, p=0.022). None of the patients experienced a stroke or restenosis during the 27.23±20.3-month follow-up period. CONCLUSION RA with a reliable awake test reduces shunt use and decreases the clamp and operative times of CEA, eventually resulting in a reduced length of hospital stay.

PURPOSE: Dry eye syndrome is commonly thought of as an inflammatory disease, and we have previously presented data showing the effectiveness of topical TNF-α blocker agents for the treatment of this condition. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of the TNF-α blocking agent HL036337 compared to cyclosporine A for the treatment of dry eye induced inflammation in order to establish whether HL036337 represents a more effective method for suppressing inflammation. The efficacy of HL036337 and cyclosporine A was determined using an experimental murine dry eye model. METHODS: The TNF-α blocker HL036337 is a modified form of TNF receptor I. Using dry eye induced C57BL/6 mice (n = 45), corneal erosion was measured at day 4 and 7 after topical treatment with cyclosporine A or HL036337. To determine the effective treatment dose, 0.25, 0.5, 1, 2.5, and 5 mg/mL of HL036337 were topically administered twice per day to dry eye induced murine corneas for 1 week. RESULTS: The optimal concentration of the TNF-α blocker HL036337 for treatment of dry eye induced corneal erosion was determined to be 1 mg/mL. Dry eye induced corneal erosion was improved after 1 week with topically applied cyclosporine A and HL036337 at 1 mg/mL. CONCLUSIONS: HL036337 administered topically at 1 mg/mL effectively improved corneal erosion induced by dry eye. This finding may also suggest that inhibition of TNF-α can improve dry eye syndrome.
Animals ; Cornea/diagnostic imaging ; Disease Models, Animal ; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug ; Dry Eye Syndromes/diagnosis/*drug therapy ; Female ; Mice ; Mice, Inbred C57BL ; Microscopy, Acoustic ; Ophthalmic Solutions/administration & dosage ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha/*antagonists & inhibitors

PURPOSE: Neisseria meningitidis is a leading cause of bacterial meningitis in young adults. University students, especially those living in dormitories, have been known to be at increased risk of meningococcal disease. We performed a longitudinal study to determine the carriage rates of N. meningitidis and the changes thereof. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We recruited Inha University freshmen who were, at that time, admitted to a student dormitory. A pharyngeal swab was taken from all participant who were also asked to complete a questionnaire. This was repeated four weeks later. RESULTS: A total of 136 students were enrolled at the first culture. After four weeks, 128 students were enrolled, including 106 re-participants. The overall carriage rates changed from 11.8% to 14.1%. In analysis of the 106 re-participants, "visiting to pubs" was associated with carriage of N. meningitis for both the first (p=0.047) and second cultures (p=0.026). Serogroup C was found to be the most frequent serogroup (5 isolates), while 3 isolates were found from serogroup B. The most prevalent PorA types were P1.22,14-6 (4 isolates) and P1.19,15 (3 isolates). The DNA sequences of PorA VR2 were changed in 2 students during prolonged carriage. CONCLUSION: The meningococcal carriage rate among first year university students who resided in a dormitory did not significantly increase over 4-week interval between cultures, which is markedly different from those reported in Western studies. Close social contact appeared to be related with carriage. Our data also revealed diversity in PorA types, suggesting the possibility of rapid mutation of the PorA gene during the 4-week interval.
Female ; Genotype ; Humans ; Korea ; Male ; Meningococcal Infections/microbiology ; Neisseria meningitidis/classification/*genetics/pathogenicity ; Serotyping ; Students/statistics & numerical data ; Universities/statistics & numerical data ; Young Adult