Background/Aims: Multiple myeloma (MM) predominantly affects elderly individuals, but studies on older patients with MM are limited. The clinical characteristics and survival outcomes of patients with MM aged 80 years or over were retrospectively analyzed. Methods: This retrospective multicenter study was conducted to investigate the clinical characteristics, treatment patterns, and survival outcomes of patients aged 80 years or over who were newly diagnosed with MM at five academic hospitals in Daegu, Korea, between 2010 and 2019. Results: A total of 127 patients with a median age of 83 years (range, 80–93 yr) were enrolled: 52 (40.9%) with Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group Performance Status (ECOG PS) > 2, 84 (66.1%) with International Staging System (ISS) stage III disease, and 93 (73.2%) with a Charlson comorbidity index (CCI) > 4. Chemotherapy was administered to 86 patients (67.7%). The median overall survival was 9.3 months. Overall survival was significantly associated with ECOG PS > 2 (HR 2.26, 95% CI 1.43–3.59), ISS stage III (HR 1.99, 95% CI 1.18–3.34), and chemotherapy (HR 0.34, 95% CI 0.21–0.55). There was no statistically significant difference in event-free survival according to the type of anti-myeloma chemotherapy administered. The early mortality (EM) rate was 28.3%. Conclusions Even in patients with MM aged 80 years or over, chemotherapy can result in better survival outcomes than supportive care. Patients aged ≥ 80 years should not be excluded from chemotherapy based on age alone. However, reducing EM in elderly patients with newly diagnosed MM remains challenging.

Background/Aims: Multiple myeloma (MM) predominantly affects elderly individuals, but studies on older patients with MM are limited. The clinical characteristics and survival outcomes of patients with MM aged 80 years or over were retrospectively analyzed. Methods: This retrospective multicenter study was conducted to investigate the clinical characteristics, treatment patterns, and survival outcomes of patients aged 80 years or over who were newly diagnosed with MM at five academic hospitals in Daegu, Korea, between 2010 and 2019. Results: A total of 127 patients with a median age of 83 years (range, 80–93 yr) were enrolled: 52 (40.9%) with Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group Performance Status (ECOG PS) > 2, 84 (66.1%) with International Staging System (ISS) stage III disease, and 93 (73.2%) with a Charlson comorbidity index (CCI) > 4. Chemotherapy was administered to 86 patients (67.7%). The median overall survival was 9.3 months. Overall survival was significantly associated with ECOG PS > 2 (HR 2.26, 95% CI 1.43–3.59), ISS stage III (HR 1.99, 95% CI 1.18–3.34), and chemotherapy (HR 0.34, 95% CI 0.21–0.55). There was no statistically significant difference in event-free survival according to the type of anti-myeloma chemotherapy administered. The early mortality (EM) rate was 28.3%. Conclusions Even in patients with MM aged 80 years or over, chemotherapy can result in better survival outcomes than supportive care. Patients aged ≥ 80 years should not be excluded from chemotherapy based on age alone. However, reducing EM in elderly patients with newly diagnosed MM remains challenging.

Objective: Primary frozen shoulder causes significant pain and progressively restricts shoulder movements. Diagnosis is made clinically based on patient history and physical examination. Management is mainly non-invasive owing to its self-limiting clinical course. However, clinical practice guidelines for frozen shoulder have not yet been developed in Korea. The developed guidelines aim to provide evidence-based recommendations for the diagnosis and treatment of frozen shoulder. Methods: A guideline development committee reviewed the literature from four databases (PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, and KMbase). Using the Population, Intervention, Comparator, and Outcome (PICO) framework, the committee formulated two backgrounds and 16 key questions to address common clinical concerns. Recommendations were made using the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation framework. Results: Diabetes, thyroid disease, and dyslipidemia significantly increase the risk of developing a frozen shoulder. Although frozen shoulder is often self-limiting, some patients may experience long-term functional disabilities. Ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging should be used as adjunctive tools alongside clinical diagnosis, and rather than as independent diagnostic methods. Noninvasive approaches, such as medications, physical modalities, exercises, electrical stimulation, and manual therapy, may reduce pain and improve shoulder function. Other noninvasive interventions have limited evidence, and their application should be based on clinical judgment. Intra-articular steroid injections are recommended for treatment, and physiotherapy or hydrodilation with steroid injections can also be beneficial. Conclusion These guidelines provide evidence-based recommendations for diagnosing and treating primary frozen shoulder.

Background/Aims: Multiple myeloma (MM) predominantly affects elderly individuals, but studies on older patients with MM are limited. The clinical characteristics and survival outcomes of patients with MM aged 80 years or over were retrospectively analyzed. Methods: This retrospective multicenter study was conducted to investigate the clinical characteristics, treatment patterns, and survival outcomes of patients aged 80 years or over who were newly diagnosed with MM at five academic hospitals in Daegu, Korea, between 2010 and 2019. Results: A total of 127 patients with a median age of 83 years (range, 80–93 yr) were enrolled: 52 (40.9%) with Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group Performance Status (ECOG PS) > 2, 84 (66.1%) with International Staging System (ISS) stage III disease, and 93 (73.2%) with a Charlson comorbidity index (CCI) > 4. Chemotherapy was administered to 86 patients (67.7%). The median overall survival was 9.3 months. Overall survival was significantly associated with ECOG PS > 2 (HR 2.26, 95% CI 1.43–3.59), ISS stage III (HR 1.99, 95% CI 1.18–3.34), and chemotherapy (HR 0.34, 95% CI 0.21–0.55). There was no statistically significant difference in event-free survival according to the type of anti-myeloma chemotherapy administered. The early mortality (EM) rate was 28.3%. Conclusions Even in patients with MM aged 80 years or over, chemotherapy can result in better survival outcomes than supportive care. Patients aged ≥ 80 years should not be excluded from chemotherapy based on age alone. However, reducing EM in elderly patients with newly diagnosed MM remains challenging.

Background/Aims: Multiple myeloma (MM) predominantly affects elderly individuals, but studies on older patients with MM are limited. The clinical characteristics and survival outcomes of patients with MM aged 80 years or over were retrospectively analyzed. Methods: This retrospective multicenter study was conducted to investigate the clinical characteristics, treatment patterns, and survival outcomes of patients aged 80 years or over who were newly diagnosed with MM at five academic hospitals in Daegu, Korea, between 2010 and 2019. Results: A total of 127 patients with a median age of 83 years (range, 80–93 yr) were enrolled: 52 (40.9%) with Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group Performance Status (ECOG PS) > 2, 84 (66.1%) with International Staging System (ISS) stage III disease, and 93 (73.2%) with a Charlson comorbidity index (CCI) > 4. Chemotherapy was administered to 86 patients (67.7%). The median overall survival was 9.3 months. Overall survival was significantly associated with ECOG PS > 2 (HR 2.26, 95% CI 1.43–3.59), ISS stage III (HR 1.99, 95% CI 1.18–3.34), and chemotherapy (HR 0.34, 95% CI 0.21–0.55). There was no statistically significant difference in event-free survival according to the type of anti-myeloma chemotherapy administered. The early mortality (EM) rate was 28.3%. Conclusions Even in patients with MM aged 80 years or over, chemotherapy can result in better survival outcomes than supportive care. Patients aged ≥ 80 years should not be excluded from chemotherapy based on age alone. However, reducing EM in elderly patients with newly diagnosed MM remains challenging.

Background/Aims: Multiple myeloma (MM) predominantly affects elderly individuals, but studies on older patients with MM are limited. The clinical characteristics and survival outcomes of patients with MM aged 80 years or over were retrospectively analyzed. Methods: This retrospective multicenter study was conducted to investigate the clinical characteristics, treatment patterns, and survival outcomes of patients aged 80 years or over who were newly diagnosed with MM at five academic hospitals in Daegu, Korea, between 2010 and 2019. Results: A total of 127 patients with a median age of 83 years (range, 80–93 yr) were enrolled: 52 (40.9%) with Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group Performance Status (ECOG PS) > 2, 84 (66.1%) with International Staging System (ISS) stage III disease, and 93 (73.2%) with a Charlson comorbidity index (CCI) > 4. Chemotherapy was administered to 86 patients (67.7%). The median overall survival was 9.3 months. Overall survival was significantly associated with ECOG PS > 2 (HR 2.26, 95% CI 1.43–3.59), ISS stage III (HR 1.99, 95% CI 1.18–3.34), and chemotherapy (HR 0.34, 95% CI 0.21–0.55). There was no statistically significant difference in event-free survival according to the type of anti-myeloma chemotherapy administered. The early mortality (EM) rate was 28.3%. Conclusions Even in patients with MM aged 80 years or over, chemotherapy can result in better survival outcomes than supportive care. Patients aged ≥ 80 years should not be excluded from chemotherapy based on age alone. However, reducing EM in elderly patients with newly diagnosed MM remains challenging.

Background: The coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has contributed to the change in the epidemiology of many infectious diseases. This study aimed to establish the pre-pandemic epidemiology of pediatric invasive bacterial infection (IBI). Methods: A retrospective multicenter-based surveillance for pediatric IBIs has been maintained from 1996 to 2020 in Korea. IBIs caused by eight bacteria (Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae, Neisseria meningitidis, Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus agalactiae, Streptococcus pyogenes, Listeria monocytogenes, and Salmonella species) in immunocompetent children > 3 months of age were collected at 29 centers. The annual trend in the proportion of IBIs by each pathogen was analyzed. Results: A total of 2,195 episodes were identified during the 25-year period between 1996 and 2020. S. pneumoniae (42.4%), S. aureus (22.1%), and Salmonella species (21.0%) were common in children 3 to 59 months of age. In children ≥ 5 years of age, S. aureus (58.1%), followed by Salmonella species (14.8%) and S. pneumoniae (12.2%) were common. Excluding the year 2020, there was a trend toward a decrease in the relative proportions of S. pneumoniae (rs = −0.430, P = 0.036), H. influenzae (rs = −0.922, P < 0.001), while trend toward an increase in the relative proportion of S. aureus (rs = 0.850, P < 0.001), S. agalactiae (rs = 0.615, P = 0.001), and S. pyogenes (rs = 0.554, P = 0.005). Conclusion In the proportion of IBIs over a 24-year period between 1996 and 2019, we observed a decreasing trend for S. pneumoniae and H. influenzae and an increasing trend for S. aureus, S. agalactiae, and S. pyogenes in children > 3 months of age. These findings can be used as the baseline data to navigate the trend in the epidemiology of pediatric IBI in the post COVID-19 era.