Purpose: To report a nationwide survey on neuroblastoma conducted by the Korean Association of Pediatric Surgeons (KAPS) in 2020. Methods: The clinical data of pediatric patients diagnosed with and treated for neuroblastoma from 2005 to 2019 in 19 hospitals of KAPS members were collected. Survival and prognostic factor analyses were performed using the log rank test and Cox proportional hazard analysis. A p-value <0.05 was considered significant. Results: A total of 669 patients with neuroblastoma were registered for the study. The results were presented and discussed at the 36th annual meeting of the KAPS, which was held in Seoul on August 21, 2020. Conclusion This study provides information on patient demographics, prognostic outcomes, and comprehensive treatment outcomes for neuroblastoma. The study is expected to be an important reference for improving pediatric surgeons’ understanding and treatment of neuroblastoma.

Background: This study aimed to validate the Geriatric Trauma Outcome Score (GTOS) for predicting mortality associated with trauma in older Korean adults and compare the GTOS with the Trauma and Injury Severity Score (TRISS). Methods: This study included patients aged ≥65 years who visited the Chungbuk National University Hospital Regional Trauma Center between January 2016 and December 2022. We used receiver operating characteristic curves and calibration plots to assess the discrimination and calibration of the scoring systems. Results: Among 3,053 patients, the median age was 77 years, and the mortality rate was 5.2%. The overall GTOS-predicted mortality and 1–TRISS were 5.4% (interquartile range [IQR], 3.7–9.5) and 4.7% (IQR, 4.7–4.7), respectively. The areas under the curves (AUCs) of 1–TRISS and GTOS for the total population were 0.763 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.719–0.806) and 0.794 (95% CI, 0.755–0.833), respectively. In the Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) ≤12 group, the in-hospital mortality rate was 27.5% (79 deaths). The GTOS-predicted mortality and 1–TRISS in this group were 18.6% (IQR, 7.5–34.7) and 26.9% (IQR, 11.9–73.1), respectively. The AUCs of 1–TRISS and GTOS for the total population were 0.800 (95% CI, 0.776–0.854) and 0.744 (95% CI, 0.685–0.804), respectively. Conclusion The GTOS and TRISS demonstrated comparable accuracy in predicting mortality, while the GTOS offered the advantage of simpler calculations. However, the GTOS tended to underestimate mortality in patients with GCS ≤12; thus, its application requires care in such cases.

Background: This study aimed to validate the Geriatric Trauma Outcome Score (GTOS) for predicting mortality associated with trauma in older Korean adults and compare the GTOS with the Trauma and Injury Severity Score (TRISS). Methods: This study included patients aged ≥65 years who visited the Chungbuk National University Hospital Regional Trauma Center between January 2016 and December 2022. We used receiver operating characteristic curves and calibration plots to assess the discrimination and calibration of the scoring systems. Results: Among 3,053 patients, the median age was 77 years, and the mortality rate was 5.2%. The overall GTOS-predicted mortality and 1–TRISS were 5.4% (interquartile range [IQR], 3.7–9.5) and 4.7% (IQR, 4.7–4.7), respectively. The areas under the curves (AUCs) of 1–TRISS and GTOS for the total population were 0.763 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.719–0.806) and 0.794 (95% CI, 0.755–0.833), respectively. In the Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) ≤12 group, the in-hospital mortality rate was 27.5% (79 deaths). The GTOS-predicted mortality and 1–TRISS in this group were 18.6% (IQR, 7.5–34.7) and 26.9% (IQR, 11.9–73.1), respectively. The AUCs of 1–TRISS and GTOS for the total population were 0.800 (95% CI, 0.776–0.854) and 0.744 (95% CI, 0.685–0.804), respectively. Conclusion The GTOS and TRISS demonstrated comparable accuracy in predicting mortality, while the GTOS offered the advantage of simpler calculations. However, the GTOS tended to underestimate mortality in patients with GCS ≤12; thus, its application requires care in such cases.

Background: This study aimed to validate the Geriatric Trauma Outcome Score (GTOS) for predicting mortality associated with trauma in older Korean adults and compare the GTOS with the Trauma and Injury Severity Score (TRISS). Methods: This study included patients aged ≥65 years who visited the Chungbuk National University Hospital Regional Trauma Center between January 2016 and December 2022. We used receiver operating characteristic curves and calibration plots to assess the discrimination and calibration of the scoring systems. Results: Among 3,053 patients, the median age was 77 years, and the mortality rate was 5.2%. The overall GTOS-predicted mortality and 1–TRISS were 5.4% (interquartile range [IQR], 3.7–9.5) and 4.7% (IQR, 4.7–4.7), respectively. The areas under the curves (AUCs) of 1–TRISS and GTOS for the total population were 0.763 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.719–0.806) and 0.794 (95% CI, 0.755–0.833), respectively. In the Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) ≤12 group, the in-hospital mortality rate was 27.5% (79 deaths). The GTOS-predicted mortality and 1–TRISS in this group were 18.6% (IQR, 7.5–34.7) and 26.9% (IQR, 11.9–73.1), respectively. The AUCs of 1–TRISS and GTOS for the total population were 0.800 (95% CI, 0.776–0.854) and 0.744 (95% CI, 0.685–0.804), respectively. Conclusion The GTOS and TRISS demonstrated comparable accuracy in predicting mortality, while the GTOS offered the advantage of simpler calculations. However, the GTOS tended to underestimate mortality in patients with GCS ≤12; thus, its application requires care in such cases.

Background: Biologics have demonstrated high efficacy in achieving ‘almost complete’ skin clearance in patients with moderate to severe psoriasis. Nonetheless, achieving ‘complete’ skin clearance remains a treatment goal for some highly biologics-resistant patients, as residual lesions impact their quality of life. Objective: The risk factors for failure to achieve a Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) 100 response in patients with good response to biologics remain unknown. Methods: This retrospective study evaluated the risk factors by comparing patients who achieved complete skin clearance (PASI100) with those who achieved almost complete skin clearance (PASI90). A database of 131 psoriasis patients treated with biologics, who achieved a PASI90 or PASI100 response, was reviewed from a tertiary referral hospital in South Korea. The patients were classified into PASI90 and PASI100 groups according to their PASI response. Results: The PASI100 group had a lower prevalence of smoking history (adjusted odds ratio [OR], 0.34; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.14–0.85; p=0.021) and psoriasis on the anterior lower legs at baseline (adjusted OR, 0.18; 95% CI, 0.03–0.99; p=0.049) than patients in the PASI90 group. Conclusion This study suggested that smoking history and psoriatic skin lesions on the anterior lower legs are considered as the risk factors for the failure to achieve a PASI100 response in psoriasis patients treated with biologics.

Background: Oxidative stress is generally accepted as one of the principal pathogenesis of vitiligo, and keratinocyte-melanocyte interactions are also thought to play critical roles. It is well-known that antioxidant response and autophagy protect cells against oxidative damage, but the details and the compensatory relationship between the two mechanisms in the keratinocytes of vitiligo lesions remain unclear. Objective: To evaluate the antioxidant response and autophagy status of patients with vitiligo and to explore the interactions between these two mechanisms. Methods: Ten patients with clinicopathologically proven vitiligo and 10 normal controls were enrolled in our Department of Dermatology, Soonchunhyang University Hospital, Bucheon, Korea. Tissue samples of vitiligo lesions in the patient group and normal skin in the control group were immunohistochemically stained for nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2), Beclin-1, microtubule-associated protein light chain 3 (LC3)-II, and p62. The immunopositivity of epidermal keratinocytes was evaluated. Results: Keratinocytes in vitiligo lesions had a significantly lower expression of Nrf2 (p=0.002) than that in the cells of normal controls. The levels of autophagy markers did not differ significantly between the two groups, but decreases in the Beclin-1 and LC3-II levels, and an increase in the p62 level in the patient group may indicate a small decrease in autophagy of patients with vitiligo. Conclusion Decreased antioxidant response and reduced autophagy may trigger melanocyte apoptosis in vitiligo lesions.

Multiple miliary osteoma cutis (MMOC) is a rare variant of osteoma, characterized by multiple eruptive hard nodules on the face. A 70-year-old female presented with multiple solid skin-colored papules on both cheeks, unresponsive to conventional medical treatments. She reported receiving an injection of an unknown cosmetic filler substance into her face by an unlicensed medical practitioner 20 years ago. Facial computed tomography showed multiple small calcifications immediately adjacent to foreign material assumed to be the filler substance in the dermis. Histological examination revealed osteoclasts, osteocytes, and eosinophilic bony tissue in the dermis, suggestive of osteoma cutis. Although the pathogenesis remains unclear, inflammation caused by injected foreign material may induce metaplastic transformation of multipotent mesenchymal cells into osteoblasts, resulting in heterotopic ossification. Dermatologists should be aware that MMOC may occur following injection of foreign material by unlicensed practitioners. Performing a detailed history and clinical evaluation may aid in the diagnosis of such recalcitrant skin lesions.