Purpose: This study aimed to identify core domains for pre-registered nurses by comparing licensing competencies with program outcomes (POs) in undergraduate nursing education. This was accomplished in preparation for the transition of the Korean Nurse Licensing Examination (KNLE) from a tradition seven-subject format to a newly integrated, competency-based single-subject format that reflects current trends in nursing assessment. Methods: A literature review and survey were conducted. From 828 studies retrieved via PubMed, CINAHL, and Google Scholar using keywords such as “newly graduated registered nurses” and “competency OR competence,” 18 were selected according to pre-established inclusion and exclusion criteria. Documents from national and international nursing organizations were included to extract relevant licensing competencies. We also reviewed POs from all undergraduate nursing schools in South Korea to align educational outcomes with the identified core domains. Results: The core domains identified were clinical performance and decision-making, professional attitudes and ethics, communication and interpersonal skills, leadership and teamwork, quality improvement and safety, health promotion and prevention, and information technology and digital health. These domains showed strong alignment with POs under the fourth-cycle accreditation standards. Conclusion It concludes the seven core domains will be appropriate for evaluating pre-registered nurses in the integrated KNLE. Based on the seven identified core domains, expert consensus should be sought in the next phase to support the development of integrated, competency-based test items grounded in these domains.

Purpose: This study aimed to identify core domains for pre-registered nurses by comparing licensing competencies with program outcomes (POs) in undergraduate nursing education. This was accomplished in preparation for the transition of the Korean Nurse Licensing Examination (KNLE) from a tradition seven-subject format to a newly integrated, competency-based single-subject format that reflects current trends in nursing assessment. Methods: A literature review and survey were conducted. From 828 studies retrieved via PubMed, CINAHL, and Google Scholar using keywords such as “newly graduated registered nurses” and “competency OR competence,” 18 were selected according to pre-established inclusion and exclusion criteria. Documents from national and international nursing organizations were included to extract relevant licensing competencies. We also reviewed POs from all undergraduate nursing schools in South Korea to align educational outcomes with the identified core domains. Results: The core domains identified were clinical performance and decision-making, professional attitudes and ethics, communication and interpersonal skills, leadership and teamwork, quality improvement and safety, health promotion and prevention, and information technology and digital health. These domains showed strong alignment with POs under the fourth-cycle accreditation standards. Conclusion It concludes the seven core domains will be appropriate for evaluating pre-registered nurses in the integrated KNLE. Based on the seven identified core domains, expert consensus should be sought in the next phase to support the development of integrated, competency-based test items grounded in these domains.

Purpose: This study aimed to identify core domains for pre-registered nurses by comparing licensing competencies with program outcomes (POs) in undergraduate nursing education. This was accomplished in preparation for the transition of the Korean Nurse Licensing Examination (KNLE) from a tradition seven-subject format to a newly integrated, competency-based single-subject format that reflects current trends in nursing assessment. Methods: A literature review and survey were conducted. From 828 studies retrieved via PubMed, CINAHL, and Google Scholar using keywords such as “newly graduated registered nurses” and “competency OR competence,” 18 were selected according to pre-established inclusion and exclusion criteria. Documents from national and international nursing organizations were included to extract relevant licensing competencies. We also reviewed POs from all undergraduate nursing schools in South Korea to align educational outcomes with the identified core domains. Results: The core domains identified were clinical performance and decision-making, professional attitudes and ethics, communication and interpersonal skills, leadership and teamwork, quality improvement and safety, health promotion and prevention, and information technology and digital health. These domains showed strong alignment with POs under the fourth-cycle accreditation standards. Conclusion It concludes the seven core domains will be appropriate for evaluating pre-registered nurses in the integrated KNLE. Based on the seven identified core domains, expert consensus should be sought in the next phase to support the development of integrated, competency-based test items grounded in these domains.

Purpose: This study aimed to identify core domains for pre-registered nurses by comparing licensing competencies with program outcomes (POs) in undergraduate nursing education. This was accomplished in preparation for the transition of the Korean Nurse Licensing Examination (KNLE) from a tradition seven-subject format to a newly integrated, competency-based single-subject format that reflects current trends in nursing assessment. Methods: A literature review and survey were conducted. From 828 studies retrieved via PubMed, CINAHL, and Google Scholar using keywords such as “newly graduated registered nurses” and “competency OR competence,” 18 were selected according to pre-established inclusion and exclusion criteria. Documents from national and international nursing organizations were included to extract relevant licensing competencies. We also reviewed POs from all undergraduate nursing schools in South Korea to align educational outcomes with the identified core domains. Results: The core domains identified were clinical performance and decision-making, professional attitudes and ethics, communication and interpersonal skills, leadership and teamwork, quality improvement and safety, health promotion and prevention, and information technology and digital health. These domains showed strong alignment with POs under the fourth-cycle accreditation standards. Conclusion It concludes the seven core domains will be appropriate for evaluating pre-registered nurses in the integrated KNLE. Based on the seven identified core domains, expert consensus should be sought in the next phase to support the development of integrated, competency-based test items grounded in these domains.

Background: Calcineurin inhibitor (CNI) toxicity is a significant cause of graft dysfunction in kidney transplant recipients, yet distinguishing it from acute rejection (AR) and acute tubular necrosis (ATN) remains challenging. This study investigated the use of urinary mRNA biomarkers as a noninvasive tool for identifying CNI toxicity. Methods: We retrospectively enrolled 110 kidney transplant recipients and classified them into four groups based on pathological findings: stable graft function (n=35), CNI toxicity (n=25), AR (n=30), and ATN (n=20). Candidate biomarkers were selected using the GEO database. Urinary mRNA was extracted from cell pellets, reverse-transcribed, and quantified by real-time polymerase chain reaction. Results: Estimated glomerular filtration rates were comparable among the CNI toxicity, AR, and ATN groups. Four transcripts (LTF, NNMT, WFDC2, and HIF1A) were identified as candidate biomarkers. Urinary mRNA levels of LTF, NNMT, and HIF1A were significantly lower in the CNI toxicity group than the AR group. NNMT and HIF1A levels were also significantly lower than those observed in the ATN group. In contrast, WFDC2 levels did not differ significantly across groups. A three-gene signature (LTF, NNMT, and HIF1A) effectively differentiated CNI toxicity from AR and ATN (area under the curve [AUC], 0.867;95% confidence interval [CI], 0.787–0.947) and significantly enhanced the diagnostic performance of the clinical variable-based model (AUC increased from 0.776; 95% CI, 0.660–0.892, to 0.934; 95% CI, 0.881–0.986). Conclusions Urinary mRNA levels of LTF, NNMT, and HIF1A may serve as useful biomarkers for identifying CNI toxicity in kidney transplant recipients with graft dysfunction.

Background: Acute bronchiolitis is a common cause of hospitalization during infancy that carries significant morbidity and mortality rates.Purpose: This study compared the efficacy of different treatment modalities for infants with bronchiolitis in terms of hospital stay and clinical severity scores. Methods: The PubMed database was searched for relevant studies. Eligibility criteria included double-blind randomized controlled trial design, assessment of the effect of treatment on bronchiolitis in infants under 2 years of age, and publication in English from inception through July 31, 2020. The primary efficacy outcome was the length of hospital stay, while the secondary outcome was the clinical severity score. The standardized treatment effect and standard error of the effect size were calculated. Results: We identified 45 randomized controlled trials of 24 pairwise comparisons. These 45 trials included 5,061 participants and investigated 13 types of interventions (12 active, 1 placebo). Inhalation therapy with epinephrine (standard mean difference [SMD], -0.41; 95% confidence interval [CI], -0.8 to -0.03) and hypertonic saline (SMD, -0.29; 95% CI, -0.55 to -0.03) reduced the length of hospital stay compared with normal saline. Hypertonic saline was the most effective at improving the clinical severity score (SMD, -0.52; 95% CI, -0.95 to -0.10). Conclusion Inhalation therapy with epinephrine and hypertonic saline reduced the length of hospital stay and the clinical severity of bronchiolitis among infants under 2 years of age.

Background: Acute bronchiolitis is a common cause of hospitalization during infancy that carries significant morbidity and mortality rates.Purpose: This study compared the efficacy of different treatment modalities for infants with bronchiolitis in terms of hospital stay and clinical severity scores. Methods: The PubMed database was searched for relevant studies. Eligibility criteria included double-blind randomized controlled trial design, assessment of the effect of treatment on bronchiolitis in infants under 2 years of age, and publication in English from inception through July 31, 2020. The primary efficacy outcome was the length of hospital stay, while the secondary outcome was the clinical severity score. The standardized treatment effect and standard error of the effect size were calculated. Results: We identified 45 randomized controlled trials of 24 pairwise comparisons. These 45 trials included 5,061 participants and investigated 13 types of interventions (12 active, 1 placebo). Inhalation therapy with epinephrine (standard mean difference [SMD], -0.41; 95% confidence interval [CI], -0.8 to -0.03) and hypertonic saline (SMD, -0.29; 95% CI, -0.55 to -0.03) reduced the length of hospital stay compared with normal saline. Hypertonic saline was the most effective at improving the clinical severity score (SMD, -0.52; 95% CI, -0.95 to -0.10). Conclusion Inhalation therapy with epinephrine and hypertonic saline reduced the length of hospital stay and the clinical severity of bronchiolitis among infants under 2 years of age.

Background: Acute bronchiolitis is a common cause of hospitalization during infancy that carries significant morbidity and mortality rates.Purpose: This study compared the efficacy of different treatment modalities for infants with bronchiolitis in terms of hospital stay and clinical severity scores. Methods: The PubMed database was searched for relevant studies. Eligibility criteria included double-blind randomized controlled trial design, assessment of the effect of treatment on bronchiolitis in infants under 2 years of age, and publication in English from inception through July 31, 2020. The primary efficacy outcome was the length of hospital stay, while the secondary outcome was the clinical severity score. The standardized treatment effect and standard error of the effect size were calculated. Results: We identified 45 randomized controlled trials of 24 pairwise comparisons. These 45 trials included 5,061 participants and investigated 13 types of interventions (12 active, 1 placebo). Inhalation therapy with epinephrine (standard mean difference [SMD], -0.41; 95% confidence interval [CI], -0.8 to -0.03) and hypertonic saline (SMD, -0.29; 95% CI, -0.55 to -0.03) reduced the length of hospital stay compared with normal saline. Hypertonic saline was the most effective at improving the clinical severity score (SMD, -0.52; 95% CI, -0.95 to -0.10). Conclusion Inhalation therapy with epinephrine and hypertonic saline reduced the length of hospital stay and the clinical severity of bronchiolitis among infants under 2 years of age.

Background: Acute bronchiolitis is a common cause of hospitalization during infancy that carries significant morbidity and mortality rates.Purpose: This study compared the efficacy of different treatment modalities for infants with bronchiolitis in terms of hospital stay and clinical severity scores. Methods: The PubMed database was searched for relevant studies. Eligibility criteria included double-blind randomized controlled trial design, assessment of the effect of treatment on bronchiolitis in infants under 2 years of age, and publication in English from inception through July 31, 2020. The primary efficacy outcome was the length of hospital stay, while the secondary outcome was the clinical severity score. The standardized treatment effect and standard error of the effect size were calculated. Results: We identified 45 randomized controlled trials of 24 pairwise comparisons. These 45 trials included 5,061 participants and investigated 13 types of interventions (12 active, 1 placebo). Inhalation therapy with epinephrine (standard mean difference [SMD], -0.41; 95% confidence interval [CI], -0.8 to -0.03) and hypertonic saline (SMD, -0.29; 95% CI, -0.55 to -0.03) reduced the length of hospital stay compared with normal saline. Hypertonic saline was the most effective at improving the clinical severity score (SMD, -0.52; 95% CI, -0.95 to -0.10). Conclusion Inhalation therapy with epinephrine and hypertonic saline reduced the length of hospital stay and the clinical severity of bronchiolitis among infants under 2 years of age.

The hygiene hypothesis, first proposed in 1989, suggested that reduced exposure to infections in early life leads to allergic diseases by the defects in the establishment of immune tolerance. Although many studies provided evidence that some exposure conditions, including family size, antibiotics, probiotics, and viral or bacterial infections, are strongly related to the prevalence of allergic diseases, thereby supporting the hygiene hypothesis, some evidence does not provide acceptable results for the hygiene hypothesis. Further, most studies have focused on patients with asthma or atopic dermatitis, not allergic rhinitis. In this review, we summarize the recent studies for and against the ‘hygiene hypothesis’ and identify causal association with the prevalence of allergic rhinitis.