This study was conducted to examine the pathogenesis of gill degeneration in the Korean rockfish Sebastes schlegelii, infested with the monogenean ectoparasite, Microcotyle sebastis. We collected 30 Korean rockfish from a fish farm in Tongyeong-si, Gyeongsangnam-do, and examined them with light microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and histopathology, in March 2018. The monogenean trematode, M. sebastis, was detected in 27 Korean rockfish (90%), with the intensity of infection being 31.7 per fish. The characteristic surface ultrastructures such as tegument with transverse striations, genital atrium, genital pore, and opisthaptor with numerous clamps were observed. The worms were firmly attached to the gill lamellae using clamps from the opisthaptor, causing gill damage and degeneration. The distal part of the lamellae was ruptured by the sclerites of the clamps. The histopathological examination revealed epithelial hypertrophy, hyperplasia, and occasionally fusion of the lamellae. These ultrastructural and histopathological findings provide some understanding of the pathogenesis of gill degeneration in the Korean rockfish infested with M. sebastis.

This study was conducted to examine the pathogenesis of gill degeneration in the Korean rockfish Sebastes schlegelii, infested with the monogenean ectoparasite, Microcotyle sebastis. We collected 30 Korean rockfish from a fish farm in Tongyeong-si, Gyeongsangnam-do, and examined them with light microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and histopathology, in March 2018. The monogenean trematode, M. sebastis, was detected in 27 Korean rockfish (90%), with the intensity of infection being 31.7 per fish. The characteristic surface ultrastructures such as tegument with transverse striations, genital atrium, genital pore, and opisthaptor with numerous clamps were observed. The worms were firmly attached to the gill lamellae using clamps from the opisthaptor, causing gill damage and degeneration. The distal part of the lamellae was ruptured by the sclerites of the clamps. The histopathological examination revealed epithelial hypertrophy, hyperplasia, and occasionally fusion of the lamellae. These ultrastructural and histopathological findings provide some understanding of the pathogenesis of gill degeneration in the Korean rockfish infested with M. sebastis.

This study was conducted to examine the pathogenesis of gill degeneration in the Korean rockfish Sebastes schlegelii, infested with the monogenean ectoparasite, Microcotyle sebastis. We collected 30 Korean rockfish from a fish farm in Tongyeong-si, Gyeongsangnam-do, and examined them with light microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and histopathology, in March 2018. The monogenean trematode, M. sebastis, was detected in 27 Korean rockfish (90%), with the intensity of infection being 31.7 per fish. The characteristic surface ultrastructures such as tegument with transverse striations, genital atrium, genital pore, and opisthaptor with numerous clamps were observed. The worms were firmly attached to the gill lamellae using clamps from the opisthaptor, causing gill damage and degeneration. The distal part of the lamellae was ruptured by the sclerites of the clamps. The histopathological examination revealed epithelial hypertrophy, hyperplasia, and occasionally fusion of the lamellae. These ultrastructural and histopathological findings provide some understanding of the pathogenesis of gill degeneration in the Korean rockfish infested with M. sebastis.

This study was conducted to examine the pathogenesis of gill degeneration in the Korean rockfish Sebastes schlegelii, infested with the monogenean ectoparasite, Microcotyle sebastis. We collected 30 Korean rockfish from a fish farm in Tongyeong-si, Gyeongsangnam-do, and examined them with light microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and histopathology, in March 2018. The monogenean trematode, M. sebastis, was detected in 27 Korean rockfish (90%), with the intensity of infection being 31.7 per fish. The characteristic surface ultrastructures such as tegument with transverse striations, genital atrium, genital pore, and opisthaptor with numerous clamps were observed. The worms were firmly attached to the gill lamellae using clamps from the opisthaptor, causing gill damage and degeneration. The distal part of the lamellae was ruptured by the sclerites of the clamps. The histopathological examination revealed epithelial hypertrophy, hyperplasia, and occasionally fusion of the lamellae. These ultrastructural and histopathological findings provide some understanding of the pathogenesis of gill degeneration in the Korean rockfish infested with M. sebastis.

This study was conducted to examine the pathogenesis of gill degeneration in the Korean rockfish Sebastes schlegelii, infested with the monogenean ectoparasite, Microcotyle sebastis. We collected 30 Korean rockfish from a fish farm in Tongyeong-si, Gyeongsangnam-do, and examined them with light microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and histopathology, in March 2018. The monogenean trematode, M. sebastis, was detected in 27 Korean rockfish (90%), with the intensity of infection being 31.7 per fish. The characteristic surface ultrastructures such as tegument with transverse striations, genital atrium, genital pore, and opisthaptor with numerous clamps were observed. The worms were firmly attached to the gill lamellae using clamps from the opisthaptor, causing gill damage and degeneration. The distal part of the lamellae was ruptured by the sclerites of the clamps. The histopathological examination revealed epithelial hypertrophy, hyperplasia, and occasionally fusion of the lamellae. These ultrastructural and histopathological findings provide some understanding of the pathogenesis of gill degeneration in the Korean rockfish infested with M. sebastis.

Purpose: We report on three patients who received 0.625% povidone-iodine (PVI) intravitreal injections to treat endophthalmitis that did not respond to conventional antibiotic treatment or were inoperable.Case summary: Case 1 was a 42-year-old female with suspected left-eye endophthalmitis that developed after anterior chamber irrigation to treat silicone oil emulsification. A 0.625% PVI intravitreal injection reduced inflammation of the anterior chamber and the vitreous. Case 2 was an 84-year-old male who was blind in the left eye due to glaucoma. He was diagnosed with endogenous endophthalmitis on the basis of the anterior chamber hypopyon and vitreous inflammation. After 0.625% PVI intravitreal injection, the endophthalmitis resolved without any recurrence. Case 3 was a 49-year-old female with suspected endogenous left-eye endophthalmitis attributable to a liver abscess. Despite intravitreal antibiotic injections, the inflammation worsened. A 0.625% PVI intravitreal injection improved both the anterior chamber and vitreous inflammation. Conclusions Intravitreal 0.625% PVI injection is a useful option when a patient with endophthalmitis is likely to not recover full vision, when surgery cannot be performed, and when there is no response to empirical antibiotics.

Background: Nirmatrelvir-ritonavir is highly effective in preventing severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in high-risk patients with mild-to-moderate severity. However, real-world performance data are limited, and the drug is not so acceptable to the COVID-19 patients at high risk who need it in Korea. Methods: To evaluate the effectiveness of nirmatrelvir-ritonavir, we conducted a propensity score-matched retrospective cohort study on patients with mild-to-moderate COVID-19 at high risk for a severe disease who were hospitalized at four hospitals in South Korea from February 2022 to April 2022. A total of 236 patients in the treatment group (administered nirmatrelvir-ritonavir) and 236 in the matched control group (supportive care only) were analyzed for the primary outcome, i.e., the time to oxygen support-free survival. The secondary outcome was a composite result of disease progression. The reason for not prescribing nirmatrelvir-ritonavir to the indicated patients was also investigated. Results: The treatment group showed significantly longer oxygen support-free survival than the matched control group (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR], 0.07; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.01–0.31; P < 0.001). Multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that age (aHR, 1.03; 95% CI, 1.00–1.07), National Early Warning Score-2 at admission (aHR, 1.36; 95% CI, 1.08–1.71), nirmatrelvir-ritonavir treatment, female sex (aHR, 0.37; 95% CI, 0.15–0.88), and time from symptom onset to admission (aHR, 0.67; 95% CI, 0.48–0.95) were significantly associated with oxygen therapy. However, none of the factors were related to the composite outcome. In the unmatched control group, 19.9% of 376 patients had documented explanations for nirmatrelvir-ritonavir non-prescription, and 44.0% of these were due to contraindication criteria. In the treatment group, 10.9% of patients discontinued the medication primarily because of adverse events (71.4%), with gastrointestinal symptoms being the most common (50.0%). Conclusion Nirmatrelvir-ritonavir treatment significantly reduced oxygen therapy requirements in high-risk patients with COVID-19 during the omicron variant surge in South Korea. Physicians are encouraged to consider the active use of nirmatrelvir-ritonavir and to be watchful for gastrointestinal symptoms during medication.

Objective: To investigate the relationship between reduced glutathione (GSH), a key molecule of the antioxidant defense system in the blood, and glutathione reductase (GR), which reduces oxidized glutathione (glutathione disulfide [GSSG]) to GSH and maintains the redox balance, with the prevalence of Alzheimer’s dementia and cognitive decline. Methods: In all, 20 participants with Alzheimer’s dementia who completed the third follow-up clinical evaluation over 6 years were selected, and 20 participants with normal cognition were selected after age and sex matching. The GSH and GR concentrations were the independent variables. Clinical diagnosis and neurocognitive test scores were the dependent variables indicating cognitive status. Results: The higher the level of GR, the greater the possibility of having normal cognition than of developing Alzheimer’s dementia. Additionally, the higher the level of GR, the higher the neurocognitive test scores. However, this association was not significant for GSH. After 6 years, the conversion rate from normal cognition to cognitive impairment was significantly higher in the lower 50th percentile of the GR group than in the upper 50th percentile. Conclusion The higher the GR, the lower the prevalence of Alzheimer’s dementia and incidence of cognitive impairment and the higher the cognitive test scores. Therefore, GR is a potential protective biomarker against Alzheimer’s dementia and cognitive decline.

Objectives: . Head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCs) are frequently diagnosed at the locoregional advanced stage (stage IVa), but controversy remains regarding whether stage IVa HSNCs should be treated with upfront surgery or definitive chemoradiation therapy (CRT). The purpose of this study was to compare overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS) in patients with stage IVa HNSC treated primarily by surgery with curative intent with/without (neo)adjuvant treatment (surgery group) versus those treated primarily with CRT (CRT group). Methods: . We reviewed data of 1,033 patients with stage IVa HNSC treated with curative intent at 17 cancer centers between 2010 and 2016. Results: . Among 1,033 patients, 765 (74.1%) received upfront surgery and 268 (25.9%) received CRT. The 5-year OS and DFS rates were 64.4% and 62.0% in the surgery group and 49.5% and 45.4% in the CRT group, respectively. In multivariate analyses, OS and DFS were better in the surgery group than in the CRT group (odds ratio [OR] for death, 0.762; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.592–0.981; OR for recurrence, 0.628; 95% CI, 0.492–0.802). In subgroup analyses, the OS and DFS of patients with oropharyngeal cancer were better in the surgery group (OR for death, 0.548; 95% CI, 0.341–0.879; OR for recurrence, 0.598; 95% CI, 0.377–0.948). In the surgery group, patients with laryngeal cancer showed better OS (OR for death, 0.432; 95% CI, 0.211–0.882), while those with hypopharyngeal cancer DFS was improved (OR for recurrence, 0.506; 95% CI, 0.328–0.780). Conclusion . A survival benefit from surgery may be achieved even in patients with stage IVa HNSC, particularly those with oropharyngeal and laryngeal cancer. Surgery led to a reduction in the recurrence rate in patients with hypopharyngeal cancer.

Objective: Many patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) suffer from residual symptoms without achieving remission. However, pharmacologic options for residual symptoms of MDD have been limited. This study aimed to investigate benefit of aripiprazole augmentation in the treatment of residual symptoms in the patients with partially remitted MDD. Methods: We retrospectively analyzed the 8-week medical records of the patients. The enrolled patients did respond to treatment of antidepressant but were not remitted. The range of 17-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD) total score of the subjects were 8 to 15 points. All patients were currently taking antidepressants when they started aripiprazole. The primary endpoint was the mean change of Clinically Useful Depression Outcome Scale (CUDOS).Secondary endpoint measures were HAMD, Clinical Global Impression-severity (CGI-S) scores, Patient Health Questionnaire-15 (PHQ-15), Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), Perceived Deficit Questionnaire-depression (PDQ-D), Sheehan Disability Scale (SDS) and General Health Questionnaire/Quality of Life-12 (GHQ/QL-12). Results: A total of 134 medical records were analyzed. The changes of CUDOS, HAMD, CGI-S, BAI, PHQ-15, PDQ-D, SDS and GHQ/QL-12 from baseline to the endpoint were −7.93, −3.29, −0.80, −4.02, −2.05, −4.35, −4.77 and −2.82, respectively (all p ＜ 0.001). At the endpoint, the newly remitted subjects rate by HAMD score criteria were approximately 46%. Conclusion Our preliminary findings have presented the effectiveness of aripiprazole augmentation for residual symptoms of partially remitted MDD patients in routine practice. This study assures subsequent well-controlled studies of the possibility of generalizing the above promising outcome in the future.