Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a chronic, disabling, and functional bowel disorder that significantly affects social functioning and reduces quality of life and increases social costs. The Korean Society of Neurogastroenterology and Motility published clinical practice guidelines on the management of IBS based on a systematic review of the literature in 2017, and planned to revise these guidelines in light of new evidence on the pathophysiology, diagnosis, and management of IBS. The current revised version of the guidelines is consistent with the previous version and targets adults diagnosed with or suspected of having IBS. These guidelines were developed using a combination of de novo and adaptation methods, with analyses of existing guidelines and discussions within the committee, leading to the identification of key clinical questions. Finally, the guidelines consisted of 22 recommendations, including 3 concerning the definition and risk factors of IBS, 4 regarding diagnostic modalities and strategies, 2 regarding general management, and 13 regarding medical treatment. For each statement, the advantages, disadvantages, and precautions were thoroughly detailed. The modified Delphi method was used to achieve expert consensus to adopt the core recommendations of the guidelines. These guidelines serve as a reference for clinicians (including primary care physicians, general healthcare providers, medical students, residents, and other healthcare professionals) and patients, helping them to make informed decisions regarding IBS management.

The use of miniscrew-assisted rapid palatal expansion (MARPE) has yielded successful outcomes in late adolescence and early adulthood, particularly in correcting transverse maxillary discrepancies and enhancing airway expansion. This report presents three cases of children at different dentition stages treated with MARPE. In one patient with severe crowding, MARPE enabled dental alignment without the need for premolar extractions. Additionally, MARPE combined with facemask therapy improved the patient’s facial profile, resulting in high patient and guardian satisfaction. These cases highlight MARPE’s potential as an effective treatment for maxillary discrepancies and severe arch length discrepancies in children.

Incidentally detected gallbladder polyps (GBPs) and gallbladder wall thickening (GBWT) are frequently encountered in clinical practice. However, characterizing GBPs and GBWT in asymptomatic patients can be challenging and may result in overtreatment, including unnecessary follow-ups or surgeries. The Korean Society of Abdominal Radiology (KSAR) Clinical Practice Guideline Committee has developed expert recommendations that focus on standardized imaging interpretation and follow-up strategies for both GBPs and GBWT, with support from the Korean Society of Radiology and KSAR. These guidelines, which address 24 key questions, aim to standardize the approach for the interpretation of imaging findings, reporting, imaging-based workups, and surveillance of incidentally detected GBPs and GBWT. This recommendation promotes evidence-based practice, facilitates communication between radiologists and referring physicians, and reduces unnecessary interventions.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Isoflavones are estrogen-like compounds found in plants and their health effects remain equivocal. We investigated dietary isoflavone intake and its associated factors in Korean breast cancer survivors, with a comparison to cancer-free women. SUBJECTS/METHODS: The usual dietary intake of breast cancer survivors (n = 981, mean age 52 yrs) in 9 hospitals between 2012 and 2019 was assessed using 3-day food records or food frequency questionnaires (FFQs). They were age-matched to 2,943 cancer-free women who completed FFQs as part of a nationwide study conducted between 2012 and 2016. We used the flavonoid database of common Korean foods and the Phenol-Explorer database to estimate isoflavone intake. The contribution of each food or food group to the total isoflavone intake was calculated. The adjusted least-squares means of dietary isoflavone intake according to lifestyle and clinical factors were calculated using generalized linear models. RESULTS: Breast cancer survivors had a higher mean dietary isoflavone intake (23.59 mg/day) than cancer-free women (17.81 mg/day). Major food sources, including tofu, soybeans, and doenjang, contributed to over 70% of the isoflavone intake in both groups. When we estimated dietary isoflavone intake according to lifestyle characteristics, isoflavone intake increased with higher scores of adherence to the American Cancer Society dietary guidelines but decreased with increasing body mass index in both groups. Among cancer-free women, dietary isoflavone intake was higher among those who had never smoked and among dietary supplement users. Among breast cancer survivors, dietary isoflavone intakes did not vary with clinical characteristics, including time since surgery and estrogen receptor status. CONCLUSION Breast cancer survivors were more likely to consume isoflavones than agematched cancer-free women. Dietary isoflavone intake was associated with healthy lifestyle characteristics in women both with and without breast cancer. Further research is needed to understand the role of the higher isoflavone intake among breast cancer survivors compared to cancer-free women on their prognosis.

Background/Aims: Studies on the clinical outcomes after detecting low-grade dysplasia (LGD) in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) are insufficient. This study evaluated the clinical features, frequency, and risk factors for advanced neoplasia in patients with IBD after an LGD diagnosis. Methods: The medical records of 166 patients with IBD from six university hospitals in Korea from 2010 to 2019 were reviewed retrospectively. LGD was diagnosed in all patients during surveillance. The frequency and risk factors for advanced neoplasia were evaluated, and the clinical features of patients with and without advanced neoplasia were compared. Results: Advanced neoplasia developed in 12 patients (six with large LGD, three with tubulovillous adenoma, and three with high-grade dysplasia), and all cases developed from UC. Patients with advanced neoplasia had significantly higher Mayo scores, and colitis-associated dysplasia was more common than sporadic lesions (83.3% vs. 29.9%; p<0.001). Multivariate analysis showed that colitis-associated LGD significantly increased the risk of developing advanced neoplasia (odds ratio [OR], 10.516; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.064–53.577). Among patients with colitis-associated lesions, a significant risk factor for advanced neoplasia was a prior history of LGD (OR, 9.429; 95% CI, 1.330–66.863). Conclusions Advanced neoplasia developed in 7.2% of patients with IBD and LGD. Most advanced neoplasms developed from colitis-associated lesions, and the risk was higher in patients with a history of LGD before index colonoscopy.

Background: The development of frailty at hospital discharge affects the clinical outcomes in severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) survivors who had no frailty before hospitalization. We aimed to describe the prevalence of new frailty using the clinical frailty scale (CFS) and evaluate its associated factors in patients with severe COVID-19 without pre-existing frailty before hospitalization. Methods: We performed a secondary analysis of clinical data from a nationwide retrospective cohort collected from 22 hospitals between January 1, 2020 and August 31, 2021. The patients were at least 19 years old and survived until discharge after admission to the intensive care unit (ICU) because of severe COVID-19. Development of new frailty was defined as a CFS score ≥5 at hospital discharge. Results: Among 669 severe COVID-19 survivors without pre-existing frailty admitted to the ICU, the mean age was 65.2±12.8 years, 62.5% were male, and 50.2% received mechanical ventilation (MV). The mean CFS score at admission was 2.4±0.9, and new frailty developed in 27.8% (186/483). In multivariate analysis, older age, cardiovascular disease, CFS score of 3–4 before hospitalization, increased C-reactive protein level, longer duration of corticosteroid treatment, and use of MV and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation were identified as factors associated with new-onset frailty. Conclusion Our study suggests that new frailty is not uncommon and is associated with diverse factors in survivors of severe COVID-19 without pre-existing frailty.

Purpose: While fluoropyrimidine-based chemotherapy regimens are recommended second-line treatment for patients with advanced biliary tract cancer (BTC), there have been no studies comparing different regimens head-to-head. Materials and Methods: We performed individual patient-level meta-analysis based on data from the intention-to-treat population of the phase 2b NIFTY trial (liposomal irinotecan [nal-IRI] plus fluorouracil and leucovorin [5-FU/LV] vs. 5-FU/LV; NCT03542508) and the phase 2 FIReFOX trial (modified oxaliplatin plus 5-FU/LV [mFOLFOX] vs. modified irinotecan plus 5-FU/LV [mFOLFIRI]; NCT03464968). Pairwise log-rank tests and multivariable analysis using Cox proportional hazards modeling with shared frailty to account for the trial's effect were used to compare overall survival (OS) between regimens. Results: A total of 277 patients were included. The nal-IRI plus 5-FU/LV group (n=88) showed significantly better OS compared to the mFOLFOX group (n=49, pairwise log-rank, p=0.02), and mFOLFIRI group (n=50, p=0.03). Multivariable analysis showed consistent trends in OS with adjusted hazard ratios of 1.39 (mFOLFOX vs. nal-IRI plus 5-FU/LV: 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.93 to 2.07; p=0.11) and 1.36 (mFOLFIRI vs. nal-IRI plus 5-FU/LV: 95% CI, 0.92 to 2.03; p=0.13), respectively. Compared to the 5-FU/LV group, the mFOLFOX group and the mFOLFIRI group did not show differences in terms of OS (pairwise log-rank p=0.83 and p=0.58, respectively). The nal-IRI plus 5-FU/LV group experienced more frequent diarrhea, while the mFOLFOX group experienced peripheral neuropathy. Conclusion Nal-IRI plus 5-FU/LV showed favorable survival outcomes compared to mFOLFOX, mFOLFIRI, or 5-FU/LV. The safety profiles of these regimens should be considered along with efficacy.

Purpose: Recent development in perioperative treatment of resectable non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) have changed the landscape of early lung cancer management. The ADAURA trial has demonstrated the efficacy of adjuvant osimertinib treatment in resectable NSCLC patients; however, studies are required to show which subgroup of patients are at a high risk of relapse and require adjuvant epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) tyrosine kinase inhibitor treatment. This study evaluated risk factors for postoperative relapse among patients who underwent complete resection. Materials and Methods: Data were obtained from the Korean Association for Lung Cancer Registry (KALC-R), a database created using a retrospective sampling survey by the Korean Central Cancer Registry (KCCR) and the Lung Cancer Registration Committee. Results: A total of 3,176 patients who underwent curative resection was evaluated. The mean observation time was approximately 35.4 months. Among stage I to IIIA NSCLC patients, the EGFR-mutant subgroup included 867 patients, and 75.2%, 11.2%, and 11.8% were classified as stage I, stage II, and stage III, respectively. Within the EGFR-mutant subgroup, 44 (5.1%) and 121 (14.0%) patients showed early and late recurrence, respectively. Multivariate analysis on association with postoperative relapse among the EGFR-mutant subgroup showed that age, pathologic N and TNM stages, pleural invasion status, and surgery type were independent significant factors. Conclusion Among the population that underwent complete resection for early NSCLC with EGFR mutation, patients with advanced stage, pleural invasion, or limited resection are more likely to show postoperative relapse.

Purpose: Proximal gastrectomy is an alternative to total gastrectomy (TG) for early gastric cancer (EGC) treatment in the upper stomach. However, its benefits in terms of perioperative and long-term outcomes remain controversial. The aim of this study was to compare the perioperative, body compositional, nutritional, and survival outcomes of patients undergoing proximal gastrectomy with double-tract reconstruction (PG-DTR) and TG for pathological stage I gastric cancer in upper stomach. Materials and Methods: The study included 506 patients who underwent gastrectomy for pathological stage I gastric cancer in the upper stomach between 2015 and 2019. Clinicopathological, perioperative, body compositional, nutritional, and survival outcomes were compared between the PG-DTR and TG groups. Results: The PG-DTR and TG groups included 197 (38.9%) and 309 (61.1%) patients, respectively. The PG-DTR group had a lower rate of early complications (p=0.041), lower diagnosis rate of anemia and vitamin B12 deficiency (all p < 0.001), and lower replacement rate of iron and vitamin B12 compared to TG group (all p < 0.001). The PG-DTR group showed reduced incidence of sarcopenia at 6-months postoperatively, preserved higher amount of visceral fat after surgery (p=0.032 and p=0.040, respectively), and showed a higher hemoglobin level (p=0.007). Oncologic outcomes were comparable between the groups. Conclusion The PG-DTR for EGC located in the upper stomach offered advantages of fewer complications, lower incidence of anemia and vitamin B12 deficiency, less decrease in visceral fat volume, and similar survival compared to TG. Consequently, PG-DTR may be considered a superior alternative treatment option to TG.