Background and Objectives: The aim of this study was to demonstrate the efficacy and safety of treatment with drug-coated balloon (DCB) in a large real-world population. Methods: Patients treated with DCBs were included in a multicenter observational registry that enrolled patients from 18 hospitals in Korea between January 2009 and December 2017. The primary outcome was target lesion failure (TLF) defined as a composite of cardiovascular death, target vessel myocardial infarction, and clinically indicated target lesion revascularization at 12 months. Results: The study included 2,509 patients with 2,666 DCB-treated coronary artery lesions (1,688 [63.3%] with in-stent restenosis [ISR] lesions vs. 978 [36.7%] with de novo lesions).The mean age with standard deviation was 65.7±11.3 years; 65.7% of the patients were men.At 12 months, the primary outcome, TLF, occurred in 179 (6.7%), 151 (8.9%), 28 (2.9%) patients among the total, ISR, and de novo lesion populations, respectively. A history of hypertension, diabetes, acute coronary syndrome, previous coronary artery bypass graft, reduced left ventricular ejection fraction, B2C lesion and ISR lesion were independent predictors of 12 months TLF in the overall study population. Conclusions This large multicenter DCB registry study revealed the favorable clinical outcome of DCB treatment in real-world practice in patient with ISR lesion as well as small de novo coronary lesion.

Background/Aims: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of ledipasvir/sofosbuvir (LDV/SOF) therapy in hepatitis C virus (HCV)-infected Korean patients in a real clinical setting. Methods: A total of 273 patients who received LDV/SOF therapy between May 2016 and February 2021 were consecutively enrolled and analyzed. A per-protocol analysis was performed to evaluate the virologic response. Results: Seventy-five percent were infected with genotype 1, and 25% were infected with genotype 2. A hundred eightyone (66.3%) patients had chronic hepatitis, 74 (27.1%) had compensated cirrhosis, eight (2.9%) had decompensated cirrhosis, and 10 (3.7%) had undergone liver transplantation. Undetectable HCV RNA at week 4 was achieved in 90.2% (231/256) of patients, 99.2% (250/252) achieved the end of treatment response, and 98.1% (202/206) achieved sustained virologic response at 12 weeks post-treatment (SVR12). According to liver function, the SVR12 rates were 99.3% (135/136) in chronic hepatitis, 96.4% (53/55) in compensated cirrhosis, and 100% (6/6) in decompensated cirrhosis. The SVR12 rates according to the genotype were 98.2% (167/170) for genotype 1 and 97.2% (35/36) for genotype 2. An 8-week LDV/SOF treatment in treatment-naïve chronic hepatitis patients with HCV RNA < 6,000,000 IU/mL at baseline resulted in 100% (23/23) SVR12 rates. Overall, LDV/SOF was tolerated well, with a 0.7% (2/273) discontinuation rate due to adverse events that were unrelated to LDV/SOF. Conclusions LDV/SOF is effective and safe for treating HCV-infected Korean patients with high SVR12 rates.

Background/Aims: To evaluate the effectiveness and safety of direct acting antivirals (DAAs) available in chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection in Korea. Methods: In a retrospective, multicenter cohort study, 362 patients were enrolled from 2015 to 2019. The effectiveness and safety of DAAs including glecaprevir/pibrentasvir, sofosubvir/ribavirin, ledipasvir/sofosbuvir, and daclatasvir/asunaprevir were analyzed for patients according to CKD stage. We evaluated sustained virologic response at week 12 after treatment (SVR12) as primary endpoint. The effectiveness and safety were also evaluated according to CKD stage. Results: Among 362 patients, 307 patients completed DAAs treatment and follow-up period after end of treatment. The subjects comprised 87 patients (62 with CKD stage 3 and 25 with CKD stage (4–5), of whom 22 were undergoing hemodialysis). HCV patients with CKD stage 1 and 2 (estimated glomerular filtration rate [eGFR] ≥ 60 mL/min/1.73 m2) showed SVR12 of 97.2% and 95.4% respectively. SVR12 of CKD stage 3 and 4–5 (eGFR < 60 mL/min/1.73 m2) patients was 91.9% and 91.6% respectively. Patients undergoing hemodialysis achieved SVR12 (90.9%). Treatment failure of DAAs in stage 1, 2, 3, and 4–5 was 2.8%, 2.7%, 1.6%, and 4%. DAAs showed good safety profile and did not affect deterioration of renal function. Conclusions DAAs shows comparable SVR12 and safety in CKD patients (stage 3, 4, and 5) with HCV compared with patients with stage 1 and 2. The effectiveness and safety of DAAs may be related to the treatment duration. Therefore, it is important to select adequate regimens of DAAs and to increase treatment adherence.

Background/Aims: Some cases of gastric low-grade dysplasia (LGD) and high-grade dysplasia (HGD) on forceps biopsy (FB) are diagnosed as gastric cancer (GC) after endoscopic resection (ER). This study aims to evaluate the clinical outcomes of ER for gastric LGD and HGD on pretreatment FB and to identify the factors that predict pathologic upstaging to GC. Methods: Patients who underwent ER for LGD and HGD on pretreatment FB from March 2005 to February 2018 in 14 hospitals in South Korea were enrolled, and the patients’ medical records were reviewed retrospectively. Results: This study included 2,150 cases of LGD and 1,534 cases of HGD diagnosed by pretreatment FB. In total, 589 of 2,150 LGDs (27.4%) were diagnosed as GC after ER. Helicobacter pylori infection, smoking history, tumor location in the lower third of the stomach, tumor size >10 mm, depressed lesion, and ulceration significantly predicted GC. A total of 1,115 out of 1,534 HGDs (72.7%) were diagnosed with GC after ER. Previous history of GC, H. pylori infection, smoking history, tumor location in the lower third of the stomach, tumor size >10 mm, depressed lesion, and ulceration were significantly associated with GC. As the number of risk factors predicting GC increased in both LGD and HGD on pretreatment FB, the rate of upstaging to GC after ER increased. Conclusions A substantial proportion of LGDs and HGDs on pretreatment FB were diagnosed as GC after ER. Accurate ER procedures such as endoscopic submucosal dissection should be recommended in cases of LGD and HGD with factors predicting pathologic upstaging to GC.

Background: Data on severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) delta variant virulence are insufficient. We retrospectively compared the clinical features of adult coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients without risk factors for severe COVID-19 who entered residential treatment centers (RTCs) before and after the delta variant outbreak. Methods: We collected medical information from two RTCs in South Korea. On the basis of nationwide delta variant surveillance, we divided the patients into two groups: 1) the delta-minor group (diagnosed from December 2020–June 2021, detection rate < 10%) and 2) the delta-dominant group (diagnosed during August 2021, detection rate > 90%). After propensity-score matching, the incidences of pneumonia, hospital transfer and need for supplemental oxygen were compared between the groups. In addition, risk factors for hospital transfer were analysed. Results: A total of 1,915 patients were included. The incidence of pneumonia (14.6% vs.9.2%, P = 0.009), all-cause hospital transfer (10.4% vs. 6.3%, P = 0.020) and COVID-19-related hospital transfer (7.5% vs. 4.8%, P = 0.081) were higher in the delta-dominant group than those in the delta-minor group. In the multivariate analysis, the delta-dominant group was an independent risk factor for all-cause (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 1.91; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.16–3.13; P = 0.011) and COVID-19-related hospital transfer (aOR, 1.86; 95% CI, 1.04–3.32; P = 0.036). Conclusion Hospitalization rates were increased in the adult COVID-19 patients during the delta variant nationwide outbreak. Our results showed that the delta variant may be more virulent than previous lineages.

Background and Objectives: The purpose of this study was to figure out the clinical effectiveness of the bluetooth wireless streaming when used with a hearing aid during cell phone conversation for hearing-impaired listeners.Subjects and Method Twenty-four adults with hearing loss participated (mild: 3, moderate: 13, moderately severe: 8) in the study. The following three objective tests and one subjective questionnaire were administered to all participants; 1) consonant and Monosyllabic test in an noisy environment, 2) speech recognition test in quiet and noisy conditions, 3) listening effort test, and 4) questionnaire about sound quality and preference. Each objective test was conducted in three different cell phone conversation environments as follows; 1) unaided condition, 2) aided condition, with the bluetooth function off, and 3) aided condition, with the bluetooth function on. Results: In the aided condition with the bluetooth function off, performance on consonant and monosyllabic tests was the lowest (p＜0.05). However, when the bluetooth function was turned on, the result showed statistically significant superior performance (p＜0.05). For the words and sentences test in noisy conditions, using wireless streaming feature with the hearing aids were beneficial compared to not using the feature (p＜0.05). However, no significant difference was found between the bluetooth off and on conditions in quiet conditions. Listening effort was significantly lower in noisy background for aided bluetooth on condition (p＜0.05). There was no significant difference in sound quality according to each condition, but the preference of Bluetooth feature was overwhelmingly high. Conclusion Bluetooth wireless streaming is beneficial during phone conversation in noisy environments for users of hearing aids.

BACKGROUND: The Multicenter Orthopaedic Outcomes Network (MOON) group recently reported that medial meniscus (MM) repairs are associated with more frequent re-operations when compared to lateral meniscus (LM) repairs. The purpose of this study was to compare the meniscal healing and the incidence of subsequent re-operation of medial and lateral meniscal tears that occurred concurrently with anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed patients who underwent second-look arthroscopy after primary ACL reconstruction (ACLR) between June 2005 to December 2016. The healing of meniscal tears following repair or left in situ, and re-tear following partial meniscectomy, were evaluated via second-look arthroscopy and compared between medial and lateral meniscus. Moreover, the incidence of subsequent meniscal re-operation after the index ACLR were investigated and compared between medial and lateral meniscus. Subsequent meniscal re-operation was performed in cases of the following three symptomatic meniscus tears: re-tears at the meniscectomy site; new tears; and failed healing of repaired or left in situ meniscus. RESULTS: There were 148 meniscal tears in 121 patients at index ACLR. There were 62 MM tears, 38 LM tears, and 24 bilateral meniscus tears. At second-look arthroscopy, the “successful healing” rate for tears following repair was higher in LM tears (91.2%) compared to MM tears (80.0%), although it was not statistically significant (p > 0.05). No significant differences were observed in the healing of left in situ tears or re-tear of meniscectomy site between medial and lateral meniscus. Patients with MM tears combined with ACL injuries had a higher incidence of subsequent meniscal re-operation compared to patients with LM tears (25.6% vs 16.1%, p = 0.025). CONCLUSIONS There was a trend for the successful healing rate to be higher in LM repairs than MM repairs. Subsequent meniscal re-operations after ACLR were more frequent in patients with medial meniscal tears concurrently with ACL injuries in comparison to patients with lateral meniscal tears.LEVEL OF STUDY: Level IV, retrospective case series.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: This study was performed to evaluate the relationship between family history of gastrointestinal (GI) cancers and incidence of any GI cancer in the Korean population. METHODS: Between January 2015 and July 2016, 711 GI cancer patients and 849 controls in 16 hospitals in Korea were enrolled. Personal medical histories, life styles, and family history of GI cancers were collected via questionnaire. RESULTS: There was a significant difference in the incidence of family history of GI cancer between GI cancer patients and controls (p=0.002). Patients with family history of GI cancer tended to be diagnosed as GI cancer at younger age than those without family history (p=0.016). The family members of GI cancer patients who were diagnosed before 50 years of age were more frequently diagnosed as GI cancer before the age of 50 years (p=0.017). After adjusting for major confounding factors, age (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] 1.065, 95% confidence interval [CI]; 1.053–1.076), male gender (AOR 2.270, 95% CI; 1.618–3.184), smoking (AOR 1.570, 95% CI; 1.130–2.182), and sibling's history of GI cancer (AOR 1.973, 95% CI; 1.246–3.126) remained independently associated with GI cancers. CONCLUSIONS: GI cancer patients tended to have a first relative with a history of concordant GI cancer. Personal factors (old age and male) and lifestyle (smoking) contribute to the development of GI cancer, independently. Individuals with high risk for GI cancers may be advised to undergo screening at an earlier age.
Age Factors ; Gastrointestinal Neoplasms* ; Humans ; Incidence ; Korea ; Life Style ; Male ; Mass Screening ; Medical History Taking ; Odds Ratio ; Risk Factors ; Smoke ; Smoking

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Carnitine and vitamin complex (Godex(R)) is widely used in patients with chronic liver disease who show elevated liver enzyme in South Korea. The purpose of this study is to identify the efficacy and safety of carnitine from entecavir combination therapy in Alanine aminotransferase (ALT) elevated Chronic Hepatitis B (CHB) patients. METHODS: 130 treatment-naive patients with CHB were enrolled from 13 sites. The patients were randomly selected to the entecavir and the complex of entecavir and carnitine. The primary endpoint of the study is ALT normalization level after 12 months. RESULTS: Among the 130 patients, 119 patients completed the study treatment. The ALT normalization at 3 months was 58.9% for the monotherapy and 95.2% for the combination therapy (P<0.0001). ALT normalization rate at 12 months was 85.7% for the monotherapy and 100% for the combination group (P=0.0019). The rate of less than HBV DNA 300 copies/mL at 12 months was not statistically significant (P=0.5318) 75.9% for the monotherapy, 70.7% for the combination and it was. Quantification of HBsAg level was not different from the monotherapy to combination at 12 months. Changes of ELISPOT value to evaluate the INF-gamma secretion by HBsAg showed the increasing trend of combination therapy compare to mono-treatment. CONCLUSIONS: ALT normalization rate was higher in carnitine complex combination group than entecavir group in CHB. Combination group was faster than entecavir mono-treatment group on ALT normalization rate. HBV DNA normalization rate and the serum HBV-DNA level were not changed by carnitine complex treatment.
Adult ; Alanine Transaminase/blood ; Antiviral Agents/*therapeutic use ; Carnitine/*therapeutic use ; DNA, Viral/analysis ; Drug Therapy, Combination ; Enzyme-Linked Immunospot Assay ; Female ; Guanine/*analogs & derivatives/therapeutic use ; Hepatitis B Surface Antigens/blood ; Hepatitis B e Antigens/blood ; Hepatitis B virus/genetics ; Hepatitis B, Chronic/*drug therapy ; Humans ; Interferon-gamma/metabolism ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Mitochondria/physiology ; Treatment Outcome ; Vitamin B Complex/*therapeutic use

BACKGROUND: This research is to determine the chief complaints and related features of elderly patients who are presented to emergency department with medical problems. METHODS: Medical records of patients, 65 years or above, who visited Uijeongbu Hospital Emergency Center between January 1, 2012 and June 30, 2012 were reviewed retrospectively. Age, gender, mode of transportation to the hospital, chief complaints, and diagnosis were among the subjects analyzed. RESULTS: Elderly patients with medical problems, 3,468 visited the emergency department, constituting 12.66% from 27,396 patients in total during the research period. Patients aged 70 to 74 were 28.45%, composing the most among the age groups. Ambulance was the mode of transportation used by 43.06% of the patients and 42.96% of them stayed overnight, while 11.13% stayed in the intensive care units. The most frequent chief complaints were abdominal pain (16.81%), dyspnea (13.96%), and fever (11.16%). The most common diagnosis for patients with abdominal pain was gastritis (20.75%), chronic heart failure (26.03%) for dyspnea, and pneumonia (28.96%) for fever. The main diagnoses of in-patients according to the order of frequency were cerebral vascular accident (16.38%), pneumonia (12.48%), and chronic heart failure (6.04%). CONCLUSION: The number of elderly patients who stayed overnight and stayed in the intensive care units have increased comparing to younger patients. The top 10 most frequent chief complaints accounted for 78.92% by medical elderly patients. The results of this research could be used for the development of geriatric emergency medicine training programs and critical pathway for interns and residents.
Abdominal Pain ; Aged ; Ambulances ; Critical Pathways ; Dyspnea ; Emergencies ; Emergency Medicine ; Fever ; Gastritis ; Heart Failure ; Humans ; Intensive Care Units ; Medical Records ; Pneumonia ; Retrospective Studies ; Transportation