Recent advances in robotics technology and artificial intelligence (AI) have sparked increased interest in humanoid robots that resemble humans and social robots capable of interacting socially. Alongside this trend, a new field of robot research called human-robot interaction (HRI) is gaining prominence. The aim of this review paper is to introduce the fundamental concepts of HRI and social robots, examine their current applications in the medical field, and discuss the current and future prospects of HRI and social robots in spinal care. HRI is an interdisciplinary field where robotics, AI, social sciences, design, and various disciplines collaborate organically to develop robots that successfully interact with humans as the ultimate goal. While social robots are not yet widely deployed in clinical environments, ongoing HRI research encompasses various areas such as nursing and caregiving support, social and emotional assistance, rehabilitation and cognitive enhancement for the elderly, medical information provision and education, as well as patient monitoring and data collection. Although still in its early stages, research related to spinal care includes studies on robotic support for rehabilitation exercises, assistance in gait training, and questionnaire-based assessments for spinal pain. Future applications of social robots in spinal care will require diverse HRI research efforts and active involvement from spinal specialists.

Background: The 2023 Obesity Fact Sheet aims to present an updated overview of obesity prevalence across all age groups, including children and adolescents. Methods: This study included individuals aged ≥20 years (n=16,941,423 in 2021) who underwent health checkups provided by the Korean National Health Insurance Service between 2012 and 2021. The prevalence of obesity and abdominal obesity was standardized by age and sex using data from the 2010 population and housing census. For children and adolescents (6 to 18 years) (n= 884 in 2021), we used the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2012 to 2021), and obesity was defined by the corresponding sex- and agespecific body mass index percentile of 95th or greater based on the 2017 Korean National Growth Chart for Children and Adolescents. Results: The overall prevalence of obesity in 2021 is 38.4% (49.2% in men and 27.8% in women), which is a 1.27-fold increase from 30.2% in 2012. The prevalence of obesity has increased across all age groups, particularly among those aged 20, 30, and 80 years. The prevalence of class III obesity substantially increased from 0.35% (men) and 0.42% (women) in 2012 to 1.21% and 0.97% in 2021, with 3.46- and 2.31-fold increases, respectively.This increase was particularly pronounced in young adults. The prevalence of obesity in children and adolescents has surged from 9.7% in 2012 to 19.3% in 2021, with a greater increase among boys. Conclusion Our study provides information on the current status of obesity prevalence based on the 2023 Obesity Fact Sheet, emphasizing the urgency of implementing timely strategies to reverse this increasing trend.

Recent advances in robotics technology and artificial intelligence (AI) have sparked increased interest in humanoid robots that resemble humans and social robots capable of interacting socially. Alongside this trend, a new field of robot research called human-robot interaction (HRI) is gaining prominence. The aim of this review paper is to introduce the fundamental concepts of HRI and social robots, examine their current applications in the medical field, and discuss the current and future prospects of HRI and social robots in spinal care. HRI is an interdisciplinary field where robotics, AI, social sciences, design, and various disciplines collaborate organically to develop robots that successfully interact with humans as the ultimate goal. While social robots are not yet widely deployed in clinical environments, ongoing HRI research encompasses various areas such as nursing and caregiving support, social and emotional assistance, rehabilitation and cognitive enhancement for the elderly, medical information provision and education, as well as patient monitoring and data collection. Although still in its early stages, research related to spinal care includes studies on robotic support for rehabilitation exercises, assistance in gait training, and questionnaire-based assessments for spinal pain. Future applications of social robots in spinal care will require diverse HRI research efforts and active involvement from spinal specialists.

Recent advances in robotics technology and artificial intelligence (AI) have sparked increased interest in humanoid robots that resemble humans and social robots capable of interacting socially. Alongside this trend, a new field of robot research called human-robot interaction (HRI) is gaining prominence. The aim of this review paper is to introduce the fundamental concepts of HRI and social robots, examine their current applications in the medical field, and discuss the current and future prospects of HRI and social robots in spinal care. HRI is an interdisciplinary field where robotics, AI, social sciences, design, and various disciplines collaborate organically to develop robots that successfully interact with humans as the ultimate goal. While social robots are not yet widely deployed in clinical environments, ongoing HRI research encompasses various areas such as nursing and caregiving support, social and emotional assistance, rehabilitation and cognitive enhancement for the elderly, medical information provision and education, as well as patient monitoring and data collection. Although still in its early stages, research related to spinal care includes studies on robotic support for rehabilitation exercises, assistance in gait training, and questionnaire-based assessments for spinal pain. Future applications of social robots in spinal care will require diverse HRI research efforts and active involvement from spinal specialists.

Background: The 2023 Obesity Fact Sheet aims to present an updated overview of obesity prevalence across all age groups, including children and adolescents. Methods: This study included individuals aged ≥20 years (n=16,941,423 in 2021) who underwent health checkups provided by the Korean National Health Insurance Service between 2012 and 2021. The prevalence of obesity and abdominal obesity was standardized by age and sex using data from the 2010 population and housing census. For children and adolescents (6 to 18 years) (n= 884 in 2021), we used the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2012 to 2021), and obesity was defined by the corresponding sex- and agespecific body mass index percentile of 95th or greater based on the 2017 Korean National Growth Chart for Children and Adolescents. Results: The overall prevalence of obesity in 2021 is 38.4% (49.2% in men and 27.8% in women), which is a 1.27-fold increase from 30.2% in 2012. The prevalence of obesity has increased across all age groups, particularly among those aged 20, 30, and 80 years. The prevalence of class III obesity substantially increased from 0.35% (men) and 0.42% (women) in 2012 to 1.21% and 0.97% in 2021, with 3.46- and 2.31-fold increases, respectively.This increase was particularly pronounced in young adults. The prevalence of obesity in children and adolescents has surged from 9.7% in 2012 to 19.3% in 2021, with a greater increase among boys. Conclusion Our study provides information on the current status of obesity prevalence based on the 2023 Obesity Fact Sheet, emphasizing the urgency of implementing timely strategies to reverse this increasing trend.

Recent advances in robotics technology and artificial intelligence (AI) have sparked increased interest in humanoid robots that resemble humans and social robots capable of interacting socially. Alongside this trend, a new field of robot research called human-robot interaction (HRI) is gaining prominence. The aim of this review paper is to introduce the fundamental concepts of HRI and social robots, examine their current applications in the medical field, and discuss the current and future prospects of HRI and social robots in spinal care. HRI is an interdisciplinary field where robotics, AI, social sciences, design, and various disciplines collaborate organically to develop robots that successfully interact with humans as the ultimate goal. While social robots are not yet widely deployed in clinical environments, ongoing HRI research encompasses various areas such as nursing and caregiving support, social and emotional assistance, rehabilitation and cognitive enhancement for the elderly, medical information provision and education, as well as patient monitoring and data collection. Although still in its early stages, research related to spinal care includes studies on robotic support for rehabilitation exercises, assistance in gait training, and questionnaire-based assessments for spinal pain. Future applications of social robots in spinal care will require diverse HRI research efforts and active involvement from spinal specialists.

Background: The 2023 Obesity Fact Sheet aims to present an updated overview of obesity prevalence across all age groups, including children and adolescents. Methods: This study included individuals aged ≥20 years (n=16,941,423 in 2021) who underwent health checkups provided by the Korean National Health Insurance Service between 2012 and 2021. The prevalence of obesity and abdominal obesity was standardized by age and sex using data from the 2010 population and housing census. For children and adolescents (6 to 18 years) (n= 884 in 2021), we used the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2012 to 2021), and obesity was defined by the corresponding sex- and agespecific body mass index percentile of 95th or greater based on the 2017 Korean National Growth Chart for Children and Adolescents. Results: The overall prevalence of obesity in 2021 is 38.4% (49.2% in men and 27.8% in women), which is a 1.27-fold increase from 30.2% in 2012. The prevalence of obesity has increased across all age groups, particularly among those aged 20, 30, and 80 years. The prevalence of class III obesity substantially increased from 0.35% (men) and 0.42% (women) in 2012 to 1.21% and 0.97% in 2021, with 3.46- and 2.31-fold increases, respectively.This increase was particularly pronounced in young adults. The prevalence of obesity in children and adolescents has surged from 9.7% in 2012 to 19.3% in 2021, with a greater increase among boys. Conclusion Our study provides information on the current status of obesity prevalence based on the 2023 Obesity Fact Sheet, emphasizing the urgency of implementing timely strategies to reverse this increasing trend.

Recent advances in robotics technology and artificial intelligence (AI) have sparked increased interest in humanoid robots that resemble humans and social robots capable of interacting socially. Alongside this trend, a new field of robot research called human-robot interaction (HRI) is gaining prominence. The aim of this review paper is to introduce the fundamental concepts of HRI and social robots, examine their current applications in the medical field, and discuss the current and future prospects of HRI and social robots in spinal care. HRI is an interdisciplinary field where robotics, AI, social sciences, design, and various disciplines collaborate organically to develop robots that successfully interact with humans as the ultimate goal. While social robots are not yet widely deployed in clinical environments, ongoing HRI research encompasses various areas such as nursing and caregiving support, social and emotional assistance, rehabilitation and cognitive enhancement for the elderly, medical information provision and education, as well as patient monitoring and data collection. Although still in its early stages, research related to spinal care includes studies on robotic support for rehabilitation exercises, assistance in gait training, and questionnaire-based assessments for spinal pain. Future applications of social robots in spinal care will require diverse HRI research efforts and active involvement from spinal specialists.

Understanding the long-term kinetics of antibodies in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is essential in interpreting serosurvey data. We investigated the antibody response one year after infection in 52 mildly symptomatic patients with severe acute respiratory syndromecoronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, using three commercial immunoassays and a surrogate virus neutralization test (sVNT) kit. Anti-N pan-immunoglobulin (Ig), anti-S IgG, and anti-S1 IgG were detected in 43 (82.7%), 44 (84.6%), and 30 (57.7%), respectively. In 49 (94.2%), the antibody could be detected by either anti-N pan-Ig or anti-S IgG assay. In the sVNT, 30 (57.7%) had positive neutralizing activity. Despite waning immunity, SARS-CoV-2 antibodies can be detected up to one year after infection, even in mild COVID-19 patients.