Background: Organizational downsizing may be significantly linked to depressive symptoms, yet research on this impact in Asian contexts is limited. This study investigates the association between downsizing during the COVID-19 pandemic and depressive symptoms across diverse employment statuses. Methods: This study used the data from 6th Korean Working Conditions Survey. Depressive symptoms were measured using WHO-5 well-being index with a cut-off of 50. Downsizing was defined as decrease in the number of employees during last three years. Multivariable logistic regression adjusted for socio-demographic and occupational factors was used to estimate the adjusted odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) for depressive symptoms associated with downsizing, including subgroup analyses. Results: Among 26,247 Korean workers (mean age: 43.4, men: 47.5%), the prevalence of depressive symptoms was 29.5% (n = 7,751), and the proportion of downsizing was 15.2% (n = 3,978). The prevalence of depressive symptoms was significantly higher among the downsizing group (36.7%, n = 1,460) than among the no-downsizing group (28.3%, n = 6,291). The result of logistic regression revealed a significant association between downsizing and depressive symptoms (adjusted OR [95% CI]: 1.39 [1.29–1.50]), particularly pronounced among high socioeconomic status workers. Conclusion This study underscores the significant association between depressive symptoms and organizational downsizing, especially high vulnerability of socioeconomically advantaged and stable workers. These findings highlight the necessity for targeted mental health support and further longitudinal research to clarify the relationship between employment changes and mental health within the Korean workforce.

Objective: In South Korea, the placement of orphans in institutions is still common, despite evidence of its adverse influence on children’s psychological, emotional, physical, and cognitive development. In this preliminary study, we evaluate whether system-wide positive behavior support (SWPBS) is effective for decreasing externalizing problems in institutionalized children. Methods: SWPBS was provided for one month to 36 school-aged boys who had lived in an orphanage for an average of 8.72 years (SD=2.52), along with their 10 caregivers. Direct observation of the frequency of target behaviors in the participating children, caregivers’ ratings of the severity of children’s problematic behaviors, self-reported caregiving stress (i.e., Parenting Stress Scale), and intervention fidelity were dependent variables. Results: After receiving SWPBS, the frequency of problematic behaviors in the participating children showed a mean decrease of 73.6%. The caregivers also reported seeing a decrease in the severity of their children’s problematic behaviors after SWPBS compared to before. Conclusion SWPBS may be a promising intervention to decrease externalizing behaviors in school-aged children who have been living in institutions for a long time and have shown mental health issues.

Objective: In South Korea, the placement of orphans in institutions is still common, despite evidence of its adverse influence on children’s psychological, emotional, physical, and cognitive development. In this preliminary study, we evaluate whether system-wide positive behavior support (SWPBS) is effective for decreasing externalizing problems in institutionalized children. Methods: SWPBS was provided for one month to 36 school-aged boys who had lived in an orphanage for an average of 8.72 years (SD=2.52), along with their 10 caregivers. Direct observation of the frequency of target behaviors in the participating children, caregivers’ ratings of the severity of children’s problematic behaviors, self-reported caregiving stress (i.e., Parenting Stress Scale), and intervention fidelity were dependent variables. Results: After receiving SWPBS, the frequency of problematic behaviors in the participating children showed a mean decrease of 73.6%. The caregivers also reported seeing a decrease in the severity of their children’s problematic behaviors after SWPBS compared to before. Conclusion SWPBS may be a promising intervention to decrease externalizing behaviors in school-aged children who have been living in institutions for a long time and have shown mental health issues.

We intended to describe a case of chaunocephalosis and morphological characteristics of its causative agent, Chaunocephalus ferox, recovered from an oriental white stork, Ciconia boyciana, in the Republic of Korea. An oriental white stork was referred to the Wildlife Center of Chungbuk in Korea in February 2014 for severe depression with cachexia and it died the next day. At necropsy, the stomach was severely expanded and 7 thick-walled nodules were observed in the upper part of the intestine. Although the stomach was filled with full of foreign materials, the intestine was almost empty. The nodules were globular and total 9 flukes were recovered. They were 8,030–8,091 μm in length and 3,318–3,333 μm in maximum width. Because the flukes had bulbous forebody with short narrow subcylindrical hindbody, 27 collar spines, and vitelline follicles not reaching to the posterior end, the specimens were identified as being C. ferox. The cyst formation induced thickening of the intestinal wall with narrowing of the lumen that could have contributed to the gastric impaction to the death of the host. This is the first described case of chaunocephalosis and its causative agent C. ferox found from an oriental white stork in Korea.
Cachexia ; Chungcheongbuk-do ; Depression ; Intestines ; Korea* ; Republic of Korea ; Spine ; Stomach ; Trematoda ; Vitellins

OBJECTIVE: To examine the relation between the presence of penetration or aspiration and the occurrence of the clinical indicators of dysphagia. The presence of penetration or aspiration is closely related to the clinical indicators of dysphagia. It is essential to understand these relationships in order to implement proper diagnosis and treatment of dysphagia. METHODS: Fifty-eight poststroke survivors were divided into two groups: patients with or without penetration or aspiration. Medical records and videofluoroscopic swallowing examinations were reviewed. The occurrence of clinical indicators of dysphagia between two groups was analyzed with Cross Tabulation and the Pearson chi-square test (p<0.05). RESULTS: Poststroke survivors with penetration or aspiration had significantly high occurrences of delayed initiation of the swallow (p=0.04) and reduced hyolaryngeal elevation (p<0.01) than those without penetration or aspiration. CONCLUSION: The results of this study indicate that delayed initiation of the swallow is a strong physiological indicator of penetration or aspiration during the oral stage of swallowing in poststroke survivors. For the pharyngeal stage of swallowing, hyoid and laryngeal elevation is a key event related to occurrence of penetration or aspiration. Clinical indicators should be investigated further to allow appropriate implementation of treatment strategies for stroke survivors.
Deglutition ; Deglutition Disorders* ; Diagnosis ; Humans ; Medical Records ; Oral Stage ; Stroke ; Survivors*

Parasites are recorded from the red squirrel, Sciurus vulgaris, from Cheongju, the Republic of Korea. A total of 5 road-killed squirrels were thoroughly examined for internal and external parasites from November 2011 to May 2014. Total 4 parasite species, including 1 tapeworm and 3 ectoparasite species were recovered. They were morphologically identified as Catenotaenia dendritica (Cestoda: Catenotaeniidae), Hirstionyssus sciurinus, Leptotrombidium pallidum, and Ceratophyllus (Monopsyllus) indages. Among them, C. dendritica and H. sciurinus are recorded for the first time in the Korean parasite fauna. In addition, the possibility that the red squirrel could act as a reservoir host for a zoonotic disease like tsutsugamushi disease with L. pallidum as its vector has been raised.
Cestoda ; Chungcheongbuk-do* ; Globus Pallidus ; Korea* ; Parasites ; Republic of Korea ; Sciuridae* ; Scrub Typhus ; Trombiculidae ; Zoonoses

We describe 2 echinostome species recovered from an Eastern cattle egret, Bubulcus ibis coromandus, from Cheongju-si (city), Chungcheongbuk-do (province), Korea. Total 72 Pegosomum bubulcum specimens were recovered from the bile duct. They were 7,566×2,938 μm in average size and had 27 collar spines with vitelline extension from anterior 1/3 level of the esophagus to mid-level of the posterior testis as characteristic features. Total 9 specimens of Nephrostomum ramosum were recovered in the small intestines of the bird. They were ribbon-shaped, 11,378×2,124 μm in average size, and morphologically variable in some organs, i.e., the number of collar spines (47-50), the shape of ovary and testes, and the extension of vitelline follicles. These morphological variations observed in a single host indicated that these features are not critical for the classification of Nephrostomum species and thus were reconsidered taxonomically as synonym of N. ramosum. This study is the first report documenting and describing both flukes and their associated genera in Korea.
Animals ; Bile Ducts ; Birds ; Cattle* ; Chungcheongbuk-do ; Classification ; Esophagus ; Female ; Intestine, Small ; Korea ; Ovary ; Parasites ; Republic of Korea* ; Spine ; Testis ; Trematoda ; Vitellins

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder marked by impaired social communication and repetitive, restricted behaviors and activities. The prevalence of ASD has been increasing for the past 2 decades, but evidence-based therapeutic approaches are lacking for patients with ASD. To date, there is no cure for the core symptoms of ASD, and the existing treatments focus on improving the patient's function and adaptation by using behavioral intervention methods. Behavioral interventions have been proven to show the greatest effect when applied before the age of 2 years, for at least 40-60 hours per week. Many clinicians and ASD families are unfamiliar with the treatment methods, and consequently, may seek unproven and potentially hazardous methods. The purpose of this article was to present an extensive and updated review on evidence-based ASD behavioral interventions that are commonly used in clinical settings.
Child ; Autism Spectrum Disorder* ; Humans ; Prevalence

Three echinostome species, i.e., Patagifer bilobus, Petasiger neocomense, and Saakotrema metatestis, are newly recorded in the trematode fauna of the Republic of Korea. They were recovered from 3 species of migratory birds (Platalea minor, Podiceps cristatus, and Egretta garzetta), which were donated by the Wildlife Center of Chungbuk (WCC) and the Conservation Genome Resource Bank for Korean Wildlife (CGRB). Only 1 P. bilobus specimen was recovered from the intestine of a black-faced spoonbill (P. minor), and characterized by the bilobed head crown with a deep dorsal incision and 54 collar spines. Twenty P. neocomense were recovered from the intestine of a great crested grebe (P. cristatus), and they had a well-developed head crown with 19 spines and 2 testes obliquely located at the posterior middle of the body. Total 70 S. metatestis were collected from the bursa of Fabricius of 1 little egret (E. garzetta). It is characterized by stout tegumental spines covered in the entire leaf-shaped body, posterior extension of the uterus, presence of the uroproct and a well-developed head crown with 12 pairs of collar spines on each side. By the present study, these 3 echinostome species are newly added to the trematode fauna in Korea.
Animals ; Bird Diseases/epidemiology/*parasitology ; Birds ; Echinostoma/anatomy & histology/*classification/*isolation & purification ; Echinostomiasis/epidemiology/parasitology/*veterinary ; Female ; Male ; Republic of Korea/epidemiology ; Species Specificity

PURPOSE: Arterial hypotension after return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) from out of hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) occurs frequently. However, few studies have described post-ROSC hypotension and the relationship with outcome in OHCA. This study aimed to find the prevalence of post-ROSC hypotension and to determine whether post-ROSC hypotension predicts outcome in OHCA. METHODS: This was a retrospective cohort study of patients with ROSC (>20 minutes) after OHCA and who were admitted to the emergency department in a tertiary hospital from July, 2005 to June, 2009. Patients' baseline characteristics, presence of arterial hypotension (<90 mmHg), mortality, and neurologic outcome were evaluated. Mortality rates were compared and multivariate logistic regression was used to determine if post-ROSC hypotension independently predicted death. RESULTS: One hundred forty seven patients (93 males) were studied. Post-ROSC hypotension occurred in 108(73%) patients and was associated with significantly higher mortality compared to non-exposure (82% vs. 44% p<0.001). In multivariate logistic regression analysis, post-ROSC hypotension (OR 4.4 [95% CI]) and non-cardiogenic causes (OR 19.7 [95% CI]) were independent predictors of death. CONCLUSION: Post-ROSC hypotension is common and can be an independent predictor of death in OHCA.
Cohort Studies ; Emergencies ; Heart Arrest ; Humans ; Hypotension ; Logistic Models ; Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest ; Prevalence ; Resuscitation ; Retrospective Studies ; Tertiary Care Centers