OBJECTIVES: This study explored 11 years of malaria data from mandatory reporting in Gyeonggi Province, Korea, to provide information for prevention strategies by linkage to nationwide health claims data. METHODS: Reported malaria cases in Gyeonggi Province from 2011 to 2021 were linked to medical usage data from the National Health Insurance Database. Data about hospitalization, antibiotic prescription and duration, malarial species, and sociodemographic information of the cases were included. RESULTS: Between 2011 and 2021, a total of 3,011 malaria cases were reported, consisting of 2,828 domestic (93.9%) and 183 imported (6.1%) cases. Over 80% of the cases involved males, with the majority of patients being in their 20s. Both domestic and imported cases peaked between June and August over the years. Imported cases had a higher hospitalization rate (66.9%) compared to domestically-acquired cases (54.9%). There was a significant variation in treatment rates, with 80.7% of imported cases and 74.6% of domestic cases receiving treatment. For domestic cases, chloroquine combined with primaquine was the most commonly prescribed treatment (77.0%), while atovaquone-proguanil was frequently used for imported cases (25.9%). Plasmodium vivax was the predominant species in domestic cases (94.9%), whereas P. malariae was more common in imported cases (62.3%). The overall number of reported malaria cases declined following a sharp decrease in imported cases in 2020 and 2021. CONCLUSIONS Despite a decreasing trend in malaria cases reported in Gyeonggi Province, imported cases exhibited higher hospitalization rates and different antibiotic prescription and treatment patterns, reflecting the presence of a different malarial species.

OBJECTIVES: The Korea HIV/AIDS Cohort Study has been conducted prospectively for 18 years. However, it faces limitations in representing the entire population of patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in Korea. To address these limitations and validate the study design, we analyzed characteristics across several HIV datasets. METHODS: We compared epidemiological and clinical characteristics from 3 datasets: the Korea HIV/AIDS Cohort Study (dataset 1, n=1,562), retrospective cohort data (dataset 2, n=2,665), and the national HIV reporting system of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) (dataset 3, n=17,403). RESULTS: The demographic characteristics of age, sex, and age at HIV diagnosis did not differ significantly across datasets. However, dataset 3 contained a higher proportion of patients diagnosed after 2008 (69.5%) than the other datasets. Regarding transmission routes, same-sex contact accounted for a greater proportion of dataset 1 (59.8%) compared to datasets 2 (20.9%) and 3 (32.6%). The proportion of patients with CD4 T-cell counts below 200/mm3 at HIV diagnosis was higher in datasets 1 (39.4%) and 2 (33.3%) compared to dataset 3 (16.3%). Initial HIV viral load measurements were not obtained for dataset 3. CONCLUSIONS The Korea HIV/AIDS Cohort Study demonstrated representativeness regarding the demographic characteristics of Korean patients. Of the sources, dataset 1 contained the most data on transmission routes. While the KDCA data encompassed all HIV patients, it lacked detailed clinical information. To improve the representativeness of the Korea HIV/AIDS Cohort Study, we propose expanding and revising the cohort design and enrolling more patients who have been recently diagnosed.

Objectives: The objective of this study was to develop the Guidelines for Recommendation Reporting (G-RECO) for use in the Public Health Weekly Report (PHWR) in Korea, aiming to improve the standardization, scientific accuracy, and practical applicability of recommendation reports in clinical practice guidelines. Methods: The methodology of this study aligned with the EQUATOR Network standards. A multidisciplinary research committee was formed, comprising experts in various relevant fields. The development process included a comprehensive literature review, analysis of existing guidelines, and formulation of a structured G-RECO framework with 21 key items. This was supplemented with Explanation & Elaboration documents for each item. The draft underwent rigorous revisions and evaluations by both internal and external experts. Results: By November 2023, significant progress had been made in developing a detailed G-RECO checklist and accompanying E&E documents. These tools are designed to guide authors in clear and consistent reporting of recommendation reports. The team is poised to finalize and publish the checklist and E&E documents by December 2024. Conclusion The G-RECO guidelines represent a significant advancement in the formalization and standardization of recommendation reports for the PHWR. They are expected to improve the quality of research and publications in clinical practice guidelines, contributing to the evolution of the field and enriching public health discourse. The guidelines, with their comprehensive nature and user-friendly design, will become an invaluable resource for researchers, editors, and peer reviewers in public health and epidemiology.