The Korean Dementia Association (KDA) has been organizing biennial international academic conferences since 2019, with the International Conference of the KDA (IC-KDA) 2023 held in Busan under the theme ‘Beyond Boundaries: Advancing Global Dementia Solutions.’ The conference comprised 6 scientific sessions, 3 plenary lectures, and 4luncheon symposiums, drawing 804 participants from 35 countries. Notably, a Korea– Taiwan Joint Symposium addressed insights into Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Plenary lectures by renowned scholars explored topics such as microbiome-related AD pathogenesis, social cognition in neurodegenerative diseases, and genetic frontotemporal dementia (FTD). On the first day, specific presentations covered subjects like the gut–brain axis and neuroinflammation in dementia, blood-based biomarkers in AD, and updates in AD therapeutics. The second day’s presentations addressed recent issues in clinical neuropsychology, FTD cohort studies, and the pathogenesis of non-AD dementia. The Academic Committee of the KDA compiles lecture summaries to provide comprehensive understanding of the advanced dementia knowledge presented at IC-KDA 2023.

Objectives: This study analyzed the current state of community mental health programs in Korea to develop evidence-based criteria for these programs. Methods: Seventy community mental health facilities nationwide were surveyed about the scope of their operated mental health programs. Details, including program structure, staff expertise, standardization, and quality management, of the 511 programs submitted by the facilities as their representative programs were also analyzed to evaluate their efforts for evidence-based practice. Results: The average number of programs operated by community mental health welfare centers was 15.9. The most common programs were those related to serious mental illness (SMI), followed by child/adolescent mental health programs, early psychosis programs, and non-SMI adult mental health programs. In the case of community addiction management centers, there were 7.2 different addiction-related programs per center. Among the psychiatric rehabilitation facilities for SMI, the average number of programs for SMI was 13.1, with some programs for early psychosis. Of the 511 programs submitted as representative programs in their facilities, only 12.3% were judged to be good evidence-based programs. Conclusion More efforts by mental health professionals and governments are needed to implement evidence-based programs in Korea.

This retrospective case series assessed the effectiveness of commercially available oral fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) for treating chronic enteropathies in eight animals, five dogs, and three cats, between 2020 and 2023 at the Seoul National University Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital. Chronic enteropathies, often resistant to conventional therapies, present a significant challenge in veterinary medicine. To assess oral capsule FMT’s effectiveness (Doggybiome ® one capsule daily for dogs and Kittybiome ^® one capsule daily for cats) as a universal adjunctive therapy for chronic enteropathies across species not responding to traditional treatments. This retrospective case series applied a uniform evaluation of gastrointestinal symptoms and treatment efficacy, utilizing established scoring systems (Canine Inflammatory Bowel Disease Activity Index [CIBDAI] and Canine Chronic Enteropathy Clinical Activity Index [CCECAI] for dogs, Feline Chronic Enteropathy Activity Index [FCEAI] for cats) before and one month after FMT. This approach ensured consistency in hypothesis testing across the study population. Results revealed significant improvements in clinical indices post-FMT, with notable reductions in the CIBDAI, CCECAI, and FCEAI scores (p < 0.05). Additionally, symptoms such as anorexia, lethargy, diarrhea, vomiting, and weight loss showed marked improvement, with normalization of appetite and activity levels observed in most cases. No adverse effects were reported, indicating the safety and tolerability of this treatment. This study highlights the potential of oral capsule FMT as a viable therapeutic option for dogs and cats with chronic enteropathies unresponsive to conventional treatments, providing a new avenue for clinical management. Further research is warranted to expand these findings and explore the microbiome changes associated with FMT in veterinary patients.

Although the prognosis of patients with differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC) is generally encouraging, a diagnostic dilemma is posed when an increasing level of serum thyroglobulin (Tg) is noted, without detection of a recurrent tumor using conventional imaging tools such as the iodine-131 whole-body scanning (the [131I] scan) or neck ultrasonography (US). The objective of the present study was to evaluate the diagnostic value of [124I]-PET/CT and [18F]-FDG-PET/CT in terms of accurate detection of both iodine- and non-iodine-avid recurrence, compared with that of conventional imaging such as the [131I] scan or neck ultrasonography (US). Between July 2009 and June 2010, we prospectively studied 19 DTC patients with elevated thyroglobulin levels but who do not show pathological lesions when conventional imaging modalities are used. All involved patients had undergone total thyroidectomy and radioiodine (RI) treatment, and who had been followed-up for a mean of 13 months (range, 6-21 months) after the last RI session. Combined [18F]-FDG-PET/CT and [124I]-PET/CT data were evaluated for detecting recurrent DTC lesions in study patients and compared with those of other radiological and/or cytological investigations. Nine of 19 patients (47.4%) showed pathological [18F]-FDG (5/19, 26.3%) or [124I]-PET (4/19, 21.1%) uptake, and were classed as true-positives. Among such patients, disease management was modified in six (66.7%) and disease was restaged in seven (77.8%). In particular, the use of the described imaging combination optimized planning of surgical resection to deal with locoregional recurrence in 21.1% (4/19) of patients, who were shown to be disease-free during follow-up after surgery. Our results indicate that combination of [18F]-FDG-PET/CT and [124I]-PET/CT affords a valuable diagnostic method that can be used to make therapeutic decisions in patients with DTC who are tumor-free on conventional imaging studies but who have high Tg levels.
Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Carcinoma/metabolism/*radionuclide imaging/surgery ; Female ; Fluorodeoxyglucose F18/chemistry/diagnostic use ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Iodine Radioisotopes/chemistry/diagnostic use ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Neck/ultrasonography ; Positron-Emission Tomography and Computed Tomography ; Prospective Studies ; Radiopharmaceuticals/chemistry/*diagnostic use ; Recurrence ; Thyroglobulin/blood ; Thyroid Neoplasms/metabolism/*radionuclide imaging/surgery ; Thyroidectomy ; Whole Body Imaging

PURPOSE: Kawasaki disease(KD) manifests a systemic vasculitis of unknown etiology in young children. Vascular endothelial growth factor(VEGF), vascular cell adhesion molecule-1(VCAM-1) and interleukin-1 beta(IL-1beta) may play important roles in the pathogenesis of KD. Intravenous immunoglobulin(IVIG) and methylprednisolone(MP) are therapeutically effective for KD, however, the precise mechanisms of the two drugs are still unknown. We investigated the therapeutic efficacy of IVIG and/or MP for KD in vitro. METHODS: Human umbilical vein endothelial cells(HUVEC) obtained from umbilical cords of healthy newborns were cultured. After HUVEC were treated with IL-1beta, the effect of IVIG and/or MP on the in vitro activation of HUVEC were assessed by cell proliferation and reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction-detected expression of mRNA coding for VEGF, VCAM-1, and IL-1beta. RESULTS: IVIG and MP down-regulated the expression of VEGF mRNA induced by IL-1beta(P<0.05, respectively) significantly. The combination of both showed a synergistic effect on the expressions with a dose dependent manner of MP compared to the IVIG or MP alone respectively(P<0.05). IVIG and MP down-regulated the expression of VCAM-1 mRNA induced by IL-1beta(P<0.05, respectively). The combination of both showed a synergistic effect on the expressions with a dose dependent manner of MP(P<0.05). IVIG and MP down-regulated the expression of IL-1beta mRNA induced by IL-1beta(P<0.001, P<0.05, respectively). The combination of both showed a synergistic effect on the expressions with a dose dependent manner of MP(P<0.001). CONCLUSION: These results suggested that IVIG and MP are therapeutically effective for KD in vitro as well as in vivo.
Cell Adhesion ; Cell Proliferation ; Child ; Clinical Coding ; Human Umbilical Vein Endothelial Cells ; Humans* ; Immunoglobulins, Intravenous ; Infant, Newborn ; Interleukin-1 ; Interleukin-1beta ; Methylprednisolone* ; Mucocutaneous Lymph Node Syndrome ; RNA, Messenger* ; Systemic Vasculitis ; Umbilical Cord ; Umbilical Veins* ; Vascular Cell Adhesion Molecule-1* ; Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A*

PURPOSE: We investigated the menstrual features of adolescent school girls to know the characteristics of menarche and dysfunctional uterine bleeding in adolescents. METHODS: In March, 2001, 1,434 primary and middle school girls(10-15 years of age) in Ansan City were investigated for the menacheal age and several aspects of menstruation through questionnaire. RESULTS: Mean age of the total subjects were 13.0+/-1.2 years of age, and 68.4% of them experienced menarche. 32.2% experienced menarche after age 12, but 82.9% experienced it after age 13. Mixed type(regular and irregular) menstrual cycle was the most common(35.3%), and changing type(irregular to regular) was 27.6%. In changing type, the mean duration of cycle stabilization was 6.6+/-4.9 months. The most common menstrual cycle was 'within 26-30 days'(31.4%). Abnormal cycles such as 'equal or less than 20 days' and 'equal or more than 41 days' were 17.2% and 2.0%, respectively. The most common menstrual duration was '5-6 days'(44.7%). 7.6% of the subjects experienced short or long menstrual duration. Among the subjects, only 4.0% visited the hospital with menstrual problems. The visiting reasons were 'irregular menstrual cycles'(38.5%), 'dysmenorrhea'(28.2%), 'menorrhagia'(12.8%), and 'hypermenorrhea'(28.2%). CONCLUSION: Most adolescent girls in our study experienced menarche until 13 years of age and some of them got early menarche at the age of 9. Many of them had irregular or unstable menstrual cycles after menarche at any age, but only few of them visited a health care provider. We suggest the careful attention of pediatricians, parents and teachers to the early detection and proper treatment of menstrual problems in adolescent girls.
Adolescent* ; Female ; Female* ; Gyeonggi-do* ; Health Personnel ; Humans ; Menarche* ; Menstrual Cycle ; Menstruation ; Metrorrhagia* ; Parents ; Surveys and Questionnaires

OBJECTS: We developed the Korean version of Hasegawa Dementia Scale(HDS-K) by translating the revised Hasegawa Dementia Scale(HDS-R) which is known to be a useful brief screening instrument for dementia. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The translation was carried out keeping the basic structure of Revised Hasegawa Dementia Scale(HDS-R). HDS-K, along with MMSE-KC, SBT-K and CDR, were administered to 174 dementia patients and 160 elderly control subjects. Cronbach alpha coefficient, inter-rator reliability, and test-retest reliability of HDS-K were examined. The correlations of MMSE-KC, SBT-K and CDR with HDS-K were also examined to confirm the validity of HDS-K. Cut-off scores for dementia were estimated by Receiver Operator Characteristic(ROC) curve anslyses. By comparing Area Under Curve(AUC), the diagnostic efficiency of HDS-K was compared with those of MMSE-KC and SBT-K. RESULTS: 1) HDS-K was found to have significantly high internal consistency(Cronbach alpha coefficient=0.948, <0.01), inter-rater reliability(Pearson correlation coefficient=0.999, <0.01) and test-retest reliability(Pearson correlation coefficient=0.848, <0.01). 2) All the correlations of HDS-K with MMSE-KC, SBT-K and CDR were significant indicating that HDS-K has good concurrent validity. Its optimal cut-off point for dementia was estimated as 15/16, where the sensitivity and specificity were 0.950 and 0.902, respectively. 3) The ROC curve analysis indicated that the diagnostic efficiency of HDS-K(AUC=0.972) was comparable with MMSE-KC(AUC=0.951) and SBT-K(AUC=0.963). CONCLUSION: We conclude that HDS-K is a reliable, valid, and useful screening instrument for dementia.
Aged ; Dementia* ; Humans ; Mass Screening* ; Reproducibility of Results* ; ROC Curve ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Translating

PURPOSE: In most cases, myelodysplastic syndrome(MDS) transforms into a more aggressive state or acute myelogenous leukemia; it's prognosis is very poor. It is believed that hematopoietic stem cell transplantation(HSCT) is the only curative treatment of MDS, but available data in children are very sparse. In this report, the short term outcome of HSCT in childhood MDS was analyzed. METHODS: Ten children with MDS(CMMoL 5, RAEB 3, RAEBt 2) underwent HSCT(HLA- matched sibling transplantation 4, HLA-matched unrelated transplantation 4, cord blood transplantation 1, HLA-mismatched familial transplantation 1) between November 1995 and January 2001 at St. Mary's Hospital. Median follow-up duration was 11 months. RESULTS: Engraftment was successful in all cases and 8 patients are alive without disease. Three cases of VOD were observed and improved without complication. Four cases of grade II and 1 case of grade III acute GVHD were observed and well controlled with treatment. Three patients relapsed after transplantation. One patient is alive without disease after cytoreduction with allogenic stem cell rescue and 2 patients died of relapse. CONCLUSION: HSCT is a curative strategy of MDS and the survival rate is relatively higher than that of adults. But there is an obvious need for more studies because of the small number of patients and the short duration of the follow-up.
Adult ; Anemia, Refractory, with Excess of Blasts ; Child ; Fetal Blood ; Follow-Up Studies ; Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation* ; Hematopoietic Stem Cells* ; Humans ; Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute ; Myelodysplastic Syndromes* ; Prognosis ; Recurrence ; Siblings ; Stem Cells ; Survival Rate

OBJECTIVES: Clinical studies have shown cognitive dysfunctions and soft neurological signs in schizophrenic patients and these findings have been suggested as evidence of organic bases in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. This study was intended to investigate the characteristics of cognitive deficits and soft neurological signs in schizophrenia and, to determine whether any abnormality in these functions can be regarded as a trait marker of the illness which is independent of antipsychotic treatment and clinical improvement. We also investigated the correlation between cognitive deficits and soft neurological signs reflecting cognitive dysmetria, respectively. METHODS: Twenty schizophrenic patients were assessed for the soft neurological signs and cognitive functions before and after neuroleptic treatment. The patients had been medicated for at least 3 weeks with one of the atypical neuroleptics. Cognitive functions were evaluated by Trail making A, B, Stroop test and Word fluency test. Soft neurological signs were assessed by Cambridge Neurological Inventory(Part 2). Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale(PANSS) and Clinical Global Impression(CGI) were used to assess the clinical severity and Extrapyramidal Symtoms Rating Scale was used to estimate the extrapyramidal symptoms. Cognitive functions and soft neurological signs of twenty normal controls were assessed with the same scale. RESULTS: Before treatment, schizophrenic patients showed significant impairments on cognitive function tests(Trail Making A, B, Stroop Test) and soft neurological sign tests(8 items:Grasp reflex, Go/no-go, Finger thumb opposition, Rhythm tapping, Finger agnosia, Fist-edge-palm, Left-right orientation, Extinction). Although significant clinical improvements were observed after the treatment, there were no significant changes in cognitive functions and soft neurological signs(except for Go/no-go test and Finger agnosia). Among the soft neurological signs of the patients, abnormality in Rhythm tapping was significantly correlated with cognitive deficits. CONCLUSION: Schizophrenic patients showed characteristic cognitive deficits and soft neurological signs which were independent of medication and clinical symptoms. And these two characteristics were partly correlated with each other.
Agnosia ; Antipsychotic Agents ; Cerebellar Ataxia ; Fingers ; Humans ; Reflex ; Schizophrenia ; Stroop Test ; Thumb

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the problem behaviors of adolescents and to discriminate between parenting behaviors of problem behavior groups and those of non-problem behavior group. METHODS: The subjects of this study were 792 high school students in Seoul. We administered 'Parenting Behavior Inventory' and Korean version of Youth Self-Report(K-YSR) to the subjects in order to evaluate the parenting behaviors perceived by adolescents and the problem behaviors of adolescents. We analyzed the relationship between parenting behaviors and problem behaviors. We classified the subjects into problem behavior groups(internalizing group, externalizing group, internalizing-externalizing group) and a non-problem behavior(normal) group. We studied the differences of parenting behaviors among the groups. RESULTS: The results are as follows. 1) There were significant negative correlations between the positive parenting behaviors such as affection, reasoning, and monitoring and the problem behaviors of adolescents. By contrast, there were significant positive correlations between the negative parenting behaviors such as physical abuse, intrusiveness, over-expectation, neglect, and inconsistency and the problem behaviors of adolescents. 2) Adolescents of the internalizing group perceived significantly more parental abuse, intrusiveness, over-expectation, neglect, and inconsistency than those of normal group. Meanwhile, they perceived significantly less affection than normal adolescents. Adolescents of the externalizing group also perceived significantly more parental abuse, intrusiveness, over-expectation, neglect, and inconsistency than those of normal group. Also, they perceived significantly less monitoring than normal adolescents. 3) Adolescents of the internalizing-externalizing group perceived significantly more intrusiveness from both parents than those of either the internalizing or the externalizing groups. Adolescents of the internalizing-externalizing group perceived significantly less affection and more neglect from their mothers than those of the internalizing or the externalizing groups. In addition, adolescents of the internalizing-externalizing group perceived significantly more physical abuse from their fathers than those of the internalizing or the externalizing groups. CONCLUSION: Parenting behaviors such as abuse, intrusiveness, over-expectation, neglect, and inconsistency are associated with both internalizing and externalizing problems. In contrast, our results suggest that parenting behaviors such as affection, monitoring, and reasoning might decrease the various problem behaviors of adolescents.
Adolescent* ; Fathers ; Humans ; Mothers ; Parenting* ; Parents* ; Seoul