Background: This study aimed to examine trends in the prevalence, incidence, metabolic characteristics, and management of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) among young adults in South Korea. Methods: Young adults with T2DM were defined as individuals aged 19 to 39 years who met the diagnostic criteria for T2DM. Data from the Korean National Health Insurance Service-Customized Database (2010–2020, n=225,497–372,726) were analyzed to evaluate trends in T2DM prevalence, incidence, metabolic profiles, comorbidities, and antidiabetic drug prescription. Additional analyses were performed using the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Results: The prevalence of T2DM in young adults significantly increased from 1.02% in 2010 to 2.02% in 2020 (P<0.001), corresponding to 372,726 patients in 2020. Over the same period, the incidence rate remained stable within the range of 0.36% to 0.45%. Prediabetes prevalence steadily increased from 15.53% to 20.92%, affecting 3.87 million individuals in 2020. The proportion of young adults with T2DM who were obese also increased, with 67.8% having a body mass index (BMI) ≥25 kg/m² and 31.6% having a BMI ≥30 kg/m² in 2020. The prevalence of hypertension, dyslipidemia, and fatty liver disease also increased, reaching 34.2%, 79.8%, and 78.9%, respectively, in 2020. Although the overall pharmacological treatment rate remained low, the prescription of antidiabetic medications with weight-reducing properties increased over the study period. Conclusion The prevalence of T2DM among young adults in South Korea nearly doubled over the past decade. The strong association with obesity and metabolic comorbidities emphasizes the urgent need for targeted prevention and management strategies tailored to this population.

Background: This study aimed to examine trends in the prevalence, incidence, metabolic characteristics, and management of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) among young adults in South Korea. Methods: Young adults with T2DM were defined as individuals aged 19 to 39 years who met the diagnostic criteria for T2DM. Data from the Korean National Health Insurance Service-Customized Database (2010–2020, n=225,497–372,726) were analyzed to evaluate trends in T2DM prevalence, incidence, metabolic profiles, comorbidities, and antidiabetic drug prescription. Additional analyses were performed using the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Results: The prevalence of T2DM in young adults significantly increased from 1.02% in 2010 to 2.02% in 2020 (P<0.001), corresponding to 372,726 patients in 2020. Over the same period, the incidence rate remained stable within the range of 0.36% to 0.45%. Prediabetes prevalence steadily increased from 15.53% to 20.92%, affecting 3.87 million individuals in 2020. The proportion of young adults with T2DM who were obese also increased, with 67.8% having a body mass index (BMI) ≥25 kg/m² and 31.6% having a BMI ≥30 kg/m² in 2020. The prevalence of hypertension, dyslipidemia, and fatty liver disease also increased, reaching 34.2%, 79.8%, and 78.9%, respectively, in 2020. Although the overall pharmacological treatment rate remained low, the prescription of antidiabetic medications with weight-reducing properties increased over the study period. Conclusion The prevalence of T2DM among young adults in South Korea nearly doubled over the past decade. The strong association with obesity and metabolic comorbidities emphasizes the urgent need for targeted prevention and management strategies tailored to this population.

Background: This study aimed to examine trends in the prevalence, incidence, metabolic characteristics, and management of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) among young adults in South Korea. Methods: Young adults with T2DM were defined as individuals aged 19 to 39 years who met the diagnostic criteria for T2DM. Data from the Korean National Health Insurance Service-Customized Database (2010–2020, n=225,497–372,726) were analyzed to evaluate trends in T2DM prevalence, incidence, metabolic profiles, comorbidities, and antidiabetic drug prescription. Additional analyses were performed using the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Results: The prevalence of T2DM in young adults significantly increased from 1.02% in 2010 to 2.02% in 2020 (P<0.001), corresponding to 372,726 patients in 2020. Over the same period, the incidence rate remained stable within the range of 0.36% to 0.45%. Prediabetes prevalence steadily increased from 15.53% to 20.92%, affecting 3.87 million individuals in 2020. The proportion of young adults with T2DM who were obese also increased, with 67.8% having a body mass index (BMI) ≥25 kg/m² and 31.6% having a BMI ≥30 kg/m² in 2020. The prevalence of hypertension, dyslipidemia, and fatty liver disease also increased, reaching 34.2%, 79.8%, and 78.9%, respectively, in 2020. Although the overall pharmacological treatment rate remained low, the prescription of antidiabetic medications with weight-reducing properties increased over the study period. Conclusion The prevalence of T2DM among young adults in South Korea nearly doubled over the past decade. The strong association with obesity and metabolic comorbidities emphasizes the urgent need for targeted prevention and management strategies tailored to this population.

Background: This study aimed to examine trends in the prevalence, incidence, metabolic characteristics, and management of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) among young adults in South Korea. Methods: Young adults with T2DM were defined as individuals aged 19 to 39 years who met the diagnostic criteria for T2DM. Data from the Korean National Health Insurance Service-Customized Database (2010–2020, n=225,497–372,726) were analyzed to evaluate trends in T2DM prevalence, incidence, metabolic profiles, comorbidities, and antidiabetic drug prescription. Additional analyses were performed using the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Results: The prevalence of T2DM in young adults significantly increased from 1.02% in 2010 to 2.02% in 2020 (P<0.001), corresponding to 372,726 patients in 2020. Over the same period, the incidence rate remained stable within the range of 0.36% to 0.45%. Prediabetes prevalence steadily increased from 15.53% to 20.92%, affecting 3.87 million individuals in 2020. The proportion of young adults with T2DM who were obese also increased, with 67.8% having a body mass index (BMI) ≥25 kg/m² and 31.6% having a BMI ≥30 kg/m² in 2020. The prevalence of hypertension, dyslipidemia, and fatty liver disease also increased, reaching 34.2%, 79.8%, and 78.9%, respectively, in 2020. Although the overall pharmacological treatment rate remained low, the prescription of antidiabetic medications with weight-reducing properties increased over the study period. Conclusion The prevalence of T2DM among young adults in South Korea nearly doubled over the past decade. The strong association with obesity and metabolic comorbidities emphasizes the urgent need for targeted prevention and management strategies tailored to this population.

Venous leg ulcers (VLUs) represent the most advanced manifestation of chronic venous disease and arise from sustained ambulatory venous hypertension due to superficial reflux, deep venous obstruction, or both. Accurate etiologic assessment is essential, with duplex ultrasound serving as the primary tool to identify axial reflux, perforator incompetence, and signs of proximal outflow obstruction in accordance with contemporary ESVS and SVS/AVF guidelines. Compression therapy remains the foundation of treatment, with inelastic or adjustable compression systems providing the most effective pressure reduction and edema control. Optimal wound care—including moisturebalancing dressings, debridement, and judicious use of antimicrobials—supports timely epithelialization. Adjunctive pharmacologic agents such as micronized purified flavonoid fraction, pentoxifylline, and sulodexide may further enhance healing. Early correction of superficial reflux accelerates healing and reduces recurrence, as demonstrated in the Early Venous Reflux Ablation trial. Iliac venous obstruction should be considered in nonhealing or recurrent ulcers, with IVUS-guided stenting appropriate when significant stenosis is confirmed. Integrating guideline-directed venous intervention, optimized compression, and structured wound care is central to improving long-term outcomes in VLU management.

Neonatal chylothorax is a potentially fatal respiratory condition caused by a congenital or traumatic etiology. Conventional therapies, such as fasting, total parenteral nutrition, and intravenous octreotide, are generally successful in such cases; however, more invasive therapeutic measures, such as pleurodesis, should be considered in refractory cases. This case report presents two preterm infants with refractory chylothorax who were non-responsive to conventional treatment but were successfully managed using hypertonic glucose pleurodesis. The first case was that of a female infant born at 24+5 weeks of gestation (585 g) and diagnosed with postsurgical chylothorax at 68 days of life. Even after the initiation of fasting and intravenous octreotide administration, pleural drainage did not reduce. Therefore, the patient underwent three intermittent procedures of 50% glucose pleurodesis, which resulted in the resolution of the chylothorax and subsequent chest tube removal after 37 days. The second case was a female infant born at 34+6 weeks (3,040 g), who was diagnosed with congenital chylothorax immediately after birth. Fasting and intravenous octreotide failed to show any clinical effects; therefore, the patient underwent pleurodesis for 3 consecutive days. After the procedure, the amount of pleural drainage substantially decreased, and the chest tube was removed after 14 days. In both cases, a temporal relation between pleurodesis and chylothorax resolution was observed, suggesting that hypertonic glucose pleurodesis may be an effective and safe alternative for treating refractory chylothorax in preterm infants with minimal side effects. Further studies are needed to establish the optimal protocol for this procedure and to compare its efficacy with that of other pleurodesis agents.

Objectives: Limited information is available concerning the epidemiology of stroke and acute myocardial infarction (AMI) in the Republic of Korea. This study aimed to develop a national surveillance system to monitor the incidence of stroke and AMI using national claims data. Methods: We developed and validated identification algorithms for stroke and AMI using claims data. This validation involved a 2-stage stratified sampling method with a review of medical records for sampled cases. The weighted positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) were calculated based on the sampling structure and the correspondingsampling rates. Incident cases and the incidence rates of stroke and AMI in the Republic ofKorea were estimated by applying the algorithms and weighted PPV and NPV to the 2018National Health Insurance Service claims data. Results: In total, 2,200 cases (1,086 stroke cases and 1,114 AMI cases) were sampled from the 2018 claims database. The sensitivity and specificity of the algorithms were 94.3% and 88.6% for stroke and 97.9% and 90.1% for AMI, respectively. The estimated number of cases, including recurrent events, was 150,837 for stroke and 40,529 for AMI in 2018. The age- and sex-standardized incidence rate for stroke and AMI was 180.2 and 46.1 cases per 100,000 person-years, respectively, in 2018. Conclusion This study demonstrates the feasibility of developing a national surveillance system based on claims data and identification algorithms for stroke and AMI to monitor their incidence rates.

Objective: This study aimed to determine the impact of gestational age (GA) cut-off on the clinical outcome of congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) and assess whether prematurity influences the predictive value of fetal lung volume measurement. Methods: We investigated the medical records of infants with CDH between January 2014 and August 2021. We classified the patients into term CDH (TCDH) and preterm CDH (PCDH) groups and compared their clinical characteristics, including fetal lung volume measured by the observed-toexpected lung-to-head ratio (O/E LHR). Results: Among 145 infants with CDH, 23 (15.9%) were preterm. Mean O/E LHR was significantly higher in survivors than in non-survivors with no difference between TCDH and PCDH groups.Mortality rate was significantly higher in infants with GA <34 weeks (80%) than in late preterm infants (16.7%). O/E LHR, rather than GA <34 weeks, was a risk factor predicting mortality in multivariate analyses. Predictive power of O/E LHR was high in the TCDH and PCDH groups, respectively. The incidence of chronic lung disease did not differ between PCDH and TCDH. Conclusion O/E LHR significantly predicted mortality in preterm infants, suggesting preterm birth alone should not be the determinant of early CDH treatment strategy.

Purpose: This study aims to explore the factors influencing nursing professionalism among nursing students, focusing on the image of nurses, satisfaction with their major, and career metacognition. Methods: We conducted a descriptive survey with 185 nursing students from D city and K region on June 10–30, 2024. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS ver. 27.0 (IBM Corp.), employing descriptive statistics, t tests, one-way ANOVA, Scheffé tests, Pearson’s correlation coefficients, and regression analysis. Multiple linear regression analysis was used to identify factors affecting nursing professionalism among nursing students. Results: The regression analysis revealed that the image of nurses (β=.69, p<.001) and monitoring aspect of career metacognition (β=.13, p=.025) were significant predictors of nursing professionalism, accounting for 64.5% of the variance. Conclusion The findings indicate that the image of nurses and monitoring component of career metacognition are critical in shaping nursing professionalism among nursing students. Therefore, nursing education programs should aim to improve the image of nurses and promote self-reflective career practices as strategies to foster professionalism among nursing students.

Objective: This study aimed to determine the impact of gestational age (GA) cut-off on the clinical outcome of congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) and assess whether prematurity influences the predictive value of fetal lung volume measurement. Methods: We investigated the medical records of infants with CDH between January 2014 and August 2021. We classified the patients into term CDH (TCDH) and preterm CDH (PCDH) groups and compared their clinical characteristics, including fetal lung volume measured by the observed-toexpected lung-to-head ratio (O/E LHR). Results: Among 145 infants with CDH, 23 (15.9%) were preterm. Mean O/E LHR was significantly higher in survivors than in non-survivors with no difference between TCDH and PCDH groups.Mortality rate was significantly higher in infants with GA <34 weeks (80%) than in late preterm infants (16.7%). O/E LHR, rather than GA <34 weeks, was a risk factor predicting mortality in multivariate analyses. Predictive power of O/E LHR was high in the TCDH and PCDH groups, respectively. The incidence of chronic lung disease did not differ between PCDH and TCDH. Conclusion O/E LHR significantly predicted mortality in preterm infants, suggesting preterm birth alone should not be the determinant of early CDH treatment strategy.