Purpose: This study aimed to analyze the characteristics and trends of domestic research on electronic cigarettes published in Korean academic journals between 2017 and September 2025, with a comparative focus on studies involving adults and adolescents. Methods: The study employed a descriptive literature analysis design. A total of 87 articles were identified through searches of major Korean academic databases (RISS, ScienceON, and DBpia) and selected based on predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria. The studies were classified by research population (adults vs. adolescents) and analyzed according to publication year, study design, data sources, and research themes. Results: A greater number of studies focused on adults than on adolescents, and quantitative research predominated in both groups. Most quantitative studies relied on secondary data; notably, 88.0% of adolescent studies used data from the Korea Youth Risk Behavior Survey (KYRBS). Among adult studies, the most common research themes were health effects and associated factors, whereas adolescent studies most frequently addressed smoking cessation and health effects. Conclusion Although domestic research on electronic cigarettes has steadily increased, it remains concentrated mainly on cross-sectional quantitative designs, with limited use of longitudinal or qualitative approaches. In particular, the excessive reliance on secondary data in adolescent research limits the ability to capture emerging patterns of e-cigarette use and evolving risk perceptions. Therefore, future studies should apply diverse research designs to gain an in-depth understanding of the social and psychological contexts of adolescent e-cigarette use.

Anosmia, characterized by the loss of smell, is associated not only with dysfunction in the peripheral olfactory system but also with changes in several brain regions involved in olfactory processing. Specifically, the orbitofrontal cortex is recognized for its pivotal role in integrating olfactory information, engaging in bidirectional communication with the primary olfactory regions, including the olfactory cortex, amygdala, and entorhinal cortex. However, little is known about alterations in structural connections among these brain regions in patients with anosmia. In this study, highresolution T1-weighted images were obtained from participants. Utilizing the volumes of key brain regions implicated in olfactory function, we employed a structural covariance approach to investigate brain reorganization patterns in patients with anosmia (n=22) compared to healthy individuals (n=30). Our structural covariance analysis demonstrated diminished connectivity between the amygdala and entorhinal cortex, components of the primary olfactory network, in patients with anosmia compared to healthy individuals (z=-2.22, FDR-corrected p=0.039). Conversely, connectivity between the orbitofrontal cortex—a major region in the extended olfactory network—and amygdala was found to be enhanced in the anosmia group compared to healthy individuals (z=2.32, FDR-corrected p=0.039). However, the structural connections between the orbitofrontal cortex and entorhinal cortex did not differ significantly between the groups (z=0.04, FDR-corrected p=0.968). These findings suggest a potential structural reorganization, particularly of higher-order cortical regions, possibly as a compensatory effort to interpret the limited olfactory information available in individuals with olfactory loss.

Complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) is a chronic neuropathic pain disorder. Pain catastrophizing, characterized by magnification, rumination, and helplessness, increases perceived pain intensity and mental distress in CRPS patients. As functional connectivity patterns in CRPS remain largely unknown, we aimed to investigate functional connectivity alterations in CRPS patients and their association with pain catastrophizing using a whole-brain analysis approach. Twenty-one patients with CRPS and 49 healthy controls were included in the study for clinical assessment and resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging. Between-group differences in whole-brain functional connectivity were examined through a Network-based Statistics analysis. Associations between altered functional connectivity and the extent of pain catastrophizing were also assessed in CRPS patients. Relative to healthy controls, CRPS patients showed higher levels of functional connectivity in the bilateral somatosensory subnetworks (components 1~2), but lower functional connectivity within the prefronto-posterior cingulate (component 3), prefrontal (component 4), prefronto-parietal (component 5), and thalamo-anterior cingulate (component 6) subnetworks (p<0.05, family-wise error corrected). Higher levels of functional connectivity in components 1~2 (β=0.45, p=0.04) and lower levels of functional connectivity in components 3~6 (β=-0.49, p=0.047) were significantly correlated with higher levels of pain catastrophizing in CRPS patients. Higher functional connectivity in the somatosensory subnetworks implicating exaggerated pain perception and lower functional connectivity in the prefronto-parieto-cingulo-thalamic subnetworks indicating impaired cognitive-affective pain processing may underlie pain catastrophizing in CRPS.

Immunoreactive dynamics of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) within the tumor microenvironment in breast cancer are not well understood. This study aimed to investigate the spatiotemporal cellular dynamics of TILs in breast cancer models. Breast cancer cells were implanted into the dorsal skinfold chamber of BALB/c nude mice, and T lymphocytes were adoptively transferred. Longitudinal intravital imaging was performed, and the spatiotemporal dynamics of TILs were assessed. In the 4T1 model, TILs progressively exhibited increased motility, and their motility inside the tumor was significantly higher than that outside the tumor. In the MDA-MB-231 model, the motility of TILs progressively decreased after an initial increase. TIL motility in the MDA-MB-231 and MCF-7 models differed significantly, suggesting an association between programmed death-ligand 1 expression levels and TIL motility, which warrants further investigation. Furthermore, intravital imaging of TILs can be a useful method for addressing dynamic interactions between TILs and breast cancer cells.

It is well known that sex hormones are potential modulators of brain functions and women experience dynamic hormonal changes during the menstrual cycle. Previous animal studies have reported that the variations in sex hormones over the menstrual cycle may affect cognitive function, emotion, and behavior by altering structures and functional connectivity of the brain. Considering the prevalence of certain neuropsychiatric disorders such as mood and anxiety disorders is relatively high in women, as compared with men, fluctuations of sex hormones over the menstrual cycle may influence the human brain and potentially underlie sex differences in clinical features of several neuropsychiatric disorders. There is, however, little evidence regarding the exact mechanisms underlying the effects of sex hormones on the human brain. In this review, we focused on studies to examine structural and functional changes over the menstrual cycles in women and aimed to provide an up-to-date overview of neuroimaging studies regarding the effects of sex hormonal fluctuations on the brain and behaviors.

It is well known that sex hormones are potential modulators of brain functions and women experience dynamic hormonal changes during the menstrual cycle. Previous animal studies have reported that the variations in sex hormones over the menstrual cycle may affect cognitive function, emotion, and behavior by altering structures and functional connectivity of the brain. Considering the prevalence of certain neuropsychiatric disorders such as mood and anxiety disorders is relatively high in women, as compared with men, fluctuations of sex hormones over the menstrual cycle may influence the human brain and potentially underlie sex differences in clinical features of several neuropsychiatric disorders. There is, however, little evidence regarding the exact mechanisms underlying the effects of sex hormones on the human brain. In this review, we focused on studies to examine structural and functional changes over the menstrual cycles in women and aimed to provide an up-to-date overview of neuroimaging studies regarding the effects of sex hormonal fluctuations on the brain and behaviors.

Despite the great socioeconomic burden of stroke, there have been few reports of stroke statistics in Korea. In this scenario, the Epidemiologic Research Council of the Korean Stroke Society launched the “Stroke Statistics in Korea” project, aimed at writing a contemporary, comprehensive, and representative report on stroke epidemiology in Korea. This report contains general statistics of stroke, prevalence of behavioral and vascular risk factors, stroke characteristics, pre-hospital system of care, hospital management, quality of stroke care, and outcomes. In this report, we analyzed the most up-to-date and nationally representative databases, rather than performing a systematic review of existing evidence. In summary, one in 40 adults are patients with stroke and 232 subjects per 100,000 experience a stroke event every year. Among the 100 patients with stroke in 2014, 76 had ischemic stroke, 15 had intracerebral hemorrhage, and nine had subarachnoid hemorrhage. Stroke mortality is gradually declining, but it remains as high as 30 deaths per 100,000 individuals, with regional disparities. As for stroke risk factors, the prevalence of smoking is decreasing in men but not in women, and the prevalence of alcohol drinking is increasing in women but not in men. Population-attributable risk factors vary with age. Smoking plays a role in young-aged individuals, hypertension and diabetes in middle-aged individuals, and atrial fibrillation in the elderly. About four out of 10 hospitalized patients with stroke are visiting an emergency room within 3 hours of symptom onset, and only half use an ambulance. Regarding acute management, the proportion of patients with ischemic stroke receiving intravenous thrombolysis and endovascular treatment was 10.7% and 3.6%, respectively. Decompressive surgery was performed in 1.4% of patients with ischemic stroke and in 28.1% of those with intracerebral hemorrhage. The cumulative incidence of bleeding and fracture at 1 year after stroke was 8.9% and 4.7%, respectively. The direct costs of stroke were about ₩1.68 trillion (KRW), of which ₩1.11 trillion were for ischemic stroke and ₩540 billion for hemorrhagic stroke. The great burden of stroke in Korea can be reduced through more concentrated efforts to control major attributable risk factors for age and sex, reorganize emergency medical service systems to give patients with stroke more opportunities for reperfusion therapy, disseminate stroke unit care, and reduce regional disparities. We hope that this report can contribute to achieving these tasks.
Adult ; Aged ; Alcohol Drinking ; Ambulances ; Atrial Fibrillation ; Cerebral Hemorrhage ; Emergency Medical Services ; Emergency Service, Hospital ; Epidemiology ; Female ; Hemorrhage ; Hope ; Humans ; Hypertension ; Incidence ; Korea ; Male ; Mortality ; Prevalence ; Reperfusion ; Risk Factors ; Smoke ; Smoking ; Stroke ; Subarachnoid Hemorrhage ; Writing

PURPOSE: This study aimed to identify the influence of nurses' resilience and anger expression styles on their nursing work performance in emergency departments. METHODS: The study included 107 nurses from 5 hospitals in Seoul and Gyeonggi-do who consented to participate. Data ware collected from March to April 2016. Multiple regression analysis was used to identify factors influencing nurses' performance. RESULTS: Nurses' performance was higher when resilience was high and anger expression was low. The result of the multiple regression indicated that present working years in the emergency room, work satisfaction, anger expression, anger control, and resilience predicted 39.4%(F=7.27, p < .001) of the nursing performance of hospital nurses in emergency departments. The most powerful predictor was resilience (β=.45, p < .001), followed by anger-out (β=−.25, p=.006). CONCLUSION: This study showed that the most influential variables of work performance in emergency nurses ware resilience and anger expression. To enhance the nursing performance of hospital nurses in emergency departments, it is necessary to develop and implement mentorship programs that enhance resilience and educational programs that help them manage their anger.
Anger ; Emergencies ; Emergency Service, Hospital ; Gyeonggi-do ; Humans ; Job Satisfaction ; Mentors ; Nursing ; Seoul ; Work Performance

PURPOSE: This study aimed to identify the influence of nurses' resilience and anger expression styles on their nursing work performance in emergency departments. METHODS: The study included 107 nurses from 5 hospitals in Seoul and Gyeonggi-do who consented to participate. Data ware collected from March to April 2016. Multiple regression analysis was used to identify factors influencing nurses' performance. RESULTS: Nurses' performance was higher when resilience was high and anger expression was low. The result of the multiple regression indicated that present working years in the emergency room, work satisfaction, anger expression, anger control, and resilience predicted 39.4%(F=7.27, p < .001) of the nursing performance of hospital nurses in emergency departments. The most powerful predictor was resilience (β=.45, p < .001), followed by anger-out (β=−.25, p=.006). CONCLUSION This study showed that the most influential variables of work performance in emergency nurses ware resilience and anger expression. To enhance the nursing performance of hospital nurses in emergency departments, it is necessary to develop and implement mentorship programs that enhance resilience and educational programs that help them manage their anger.

The facial nerve is mainly composed of motor fibers and is distributed to the muscles of facial expressions. In ophthalmology clinics, orbicularis oculi muscle innervated by the facial nerve is involved in spontaneous and voluntary blinking, winking, and more forceful eyelid closure. To understand pathophysiogy of facial nerve palsy due to brain stem lesion involving nucleus, 50% Horseradish Peroxidase (HRP) was injected into nerve stump innervating orbicularis oculi muscle of cat and serial sections of midbrain were studied with light and dark field of light microscope to examine morphology and distribution of the facial nuclei. The HRP-labelled motor neurons were located exclusively within the intermediate division of the ipsilateral facial nuclei and no labelled neurons were found in the contralateral facial nuclei, in the nuclei of the trigeminal nerve, or any other brain stem nuclei. The mean diameter of HRP-labelled motor neurons was 45 micrometer. Most of them were multipolar in shape containing many dendrites. These result suggest that the intermediate division of ipsilateral facial nuclei play an important role in innervating orbicularis oculi muscle.
Animals ; Armoracia* ; Blinking ; Brain Stem ; Cats* ; Dendrites ; Eyelids ; Facial Expression ; Facial Nerve ; Horseradish Peroxidase* ; Mesencephalon ; Motor Neurons* ; Muscles ; Neurons ; Ophthalmology ; Paralysis ; Trigeminal Nerve