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Background: Despite advances in neonatal intensive care and surgical procedures, perinatal mortality rates for premature infants with congenital heart disease (CHD) remain relatively high.Purpose: We aimed to describe the outcomes of premature infants with critical CHD and identify the risk factors including the new modified version of the Risk Adjustment for Congenital Heart Surgery (M-RACHS) category associated with in-hospital mortality in a Korean tertiary center.Methods: This was a retrospective cohort study of premature infants with critical CHD admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit from January 2005 to December 2016.Results: A total of 78 premature infants were enrolled. The median gestational age (GA) at birth was 34.9 weeks (range, 26.7–36.9 weeks), and the median birth weight was 1.91 kg (range, 0.53–4.38 kg). Surgical or percutaneous intervention was performed in 68 patients with a median GA at birth of 34.7 weeks (range, 26.7–36.8 weeks) and a median birth weight of 1.92 kg (range, 0.53–4.38 kg). The in-hospital survival rate was 76.9% among all enrolled preterm infants and 86.8% among patients who received an intervention. Very low birth weight (VLBW), persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn (PPHN), bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD), and M-RACHS category 5 or higher (more complex CHD) were independently associated with in-hospital mortality. For the 68 premature infants undergoing cardiac interventions, independent risk factors for mortality were VLBW, BPD, and CHD complexity. Late preterm infant and age at intervention were not associated with patient survival.Conclusion: For premature infants with critical CHD, VLBW, PPHN, BPD, and M-RACHS category ≥5 were risk factors for mortality. A careful approach to surgical intervention and prenatal care should be taken according to CHD type and neonatal condition.

This article reports five invasive Group B streptococcal (GBS) infections that occurred in a neonatal intensive care unit for about 3 months. This outbreak might have been associated with a prolonged GBS colonized infant and adjacent environmental contaminations. Infection control interventions prevented the additional spread of GBS infections. Keywords: Neonatal intensive care unit, Outbreak, Streptococcus agalactiae

Although impaired neurodevelopment is strongly associated with severe brain injury, most preterm infants survive without severe brain injury. In this study, the association of impaired neurodevelopment and neonatal morbidities of preterm infants was assessed after excluding those with severe brain injury. This was a retrospective study of very low birthweight infants in a single tertiary center. After excluding infants with severe brain injury, the study population was categorized as infants without intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) and with low-grade IVH. Neurodevelopmental outcomes at a corrected age (CA) of 18–24 months were evaluated using the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development 3rd Edition (Bayley-III). Cerebral palsy (CP), hearing impairment and blindness were also assessed and compared. Of 240 infants, 25 (11.6%) infants had combined neurodevelopmental impairment (NDI). In the multivariate analysis for combined NDI, small for gestational age (SGA) (adjusted OR 6.820, 95% confidence intervals (CI) 1.770–26.307), moderate to severe bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) (aOR 3.21, 95% CI 1.032–9.999) and severe retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) (aOR 5.669, 95% CI 1.132–28.396) were associated with combined NDI. Among neonatal morbidities, moderate to severe BPD and severe ROP were associated with adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes in preterm infants without severe brain injury.

Background and Purpose: The Ankle-Brachial Index (ABI) is the ratio of blood pressure in the lower legs to that in the arms. The intima-media thickness (IMT) of extracranial carotid arteries determined by B-mode ultrasound is a measurable index of the presence of atherosclerosis. A low ABI and a high carotid IMT are independently related to increased risk of cardiovascular events. This study examined the association between carotid IMT and ABI in patients with ischemic stroke. Materials and Methods: Retrospectively, 116 hospitalized patients with ischemic stroke were recruited. Using a pulse wave velocity ABI device along with carotid duplex sonography, we measured carotid IMT and ABI and investigated the correlation between average values. Results: There was a significant difference in carotid IMT between the normal and abnormal ABI groups (P=0.0262). The group with an abnormal ABI was more than five times as likely to have increased carotid IMT as the group with a normal ABI (age, sex-adjusted OR 5.67 (95% CI 1.85~17.38)). The ABI and carotid IMT showed a weak inverse linear correlation in patients with ischemic stroke (correlation coefficient ?0.378 after adjusting for age and sex). Conclusion: Our study suggests that an abnormal ABI is associated with a high carotid IMT in patients with ischemic stroke.

Objectives: This study was conducted to analyze the trends of researches regarding children with precocious puberty and their families in South Korea and to find a new way to research in this area. Methods: The 50 selected studies from http://www.riss4u.net for last 28 years were used. These were analyzed by publication type, field and design of study, subject of study, key concept, and subjects and results used in the comparative study. Results: The 34 of 50 studies were articles and 90% of studies were conducted in medical science. There were 27 (54%) quantitative studies and 20 (40%) qualitative researches and descriptive studies were the most frequently used study design. Key concepts related to precocious puberty were classified in 5 sub-theme; disease, diagnosis, treatment, related factor, and psychological factor. GnRH concentrations of the precocious puberty are higher than normal group. Precocious puberty is related to the endocrine disrupting chemicals(Bisphenol A[BPA] & di-2-ethyhexyl phthalate [DEPH]) and diet. Conclusions: There is a steadily growing presence and increasing visibility of precocious puberty literature in recent years. Further research is necessary to use an interdisciplinary approach to deal with physical and psychosocial needs of children with precocious puberty and their families.

Purpose: This research analyzed the different factors that influenced smoking cessation motivation. Methods: Subjects were both current and past male adult smokers. Data collection was conducted in four small businesses in Seoul and one public enterprise in Gyeonggi-Province from December 10, 2011 to January 30, 2012. Reasons for Quitting (RFQ) scale which was developed by Curry et al. was used for data collection. There were 350 participants and 324 (93%) questionnaires were used for the statistical analysis. Results: Participant’s level of motivation varied by present smoking, quit attempt, smoking cessation counseling, level of nicotine dependence, stages of smoking cessation, and types of smoking. Participant’s drinking pattern, smoking cessation counseling, social seeking type (G) and stages of smoking cessation had a 13% explanatory power for being motivated to stop smoking. Conclusion: For participants who drink alcohol regularly, who do not participate in smoking cessation counseling and those who are in the pre-contemplation stage for smoking cessation are candidates for future smoking cessation intervention programs or smoking cessation motivation programs.

최근 미성숙 영구치의 치근단 유두에서 존재하는 미분화 줄기세포가 새로 발견되었고 이 줄기세포들은 치근 상아질의 형성에 관여하는 법랑모세포의 근원으로 보여진다. 미성숙 영구치를 다룰때 이 줄기세포들의 보존은 치근의 지속적인 형성을 완성시키게 한다. 따라서 치근단 염증을 동반한 미성숙 영구치에서 치근단의 최소한의 침습으로 임상 및 방사선적 치유 양상을 관찰할 수 있었기에 보고하고자 한다. 본 증례는 조선대학교 치과대학병원 소아치과에 내원한 만 10세 남아(하악 우측 소구치), 만 8세 여아(상악 좌측 소구치)에서 임상 및 방사선 검사결과 치수괴사와 치근단 농양으로 진단된 영구치에서 치근단부위의 기구조작을 제한하고 MTA(Mineral Trioxide Aggregate)를 치수강내에 적용하였다. 정기적으로 관찰한 결과 치근단 농양의 치유와 치근 발육 및 성장의 양상이 관찰되었다. 치수괴사와 치근단 농양을 가진 영구치에서 치근단부위의 치수 및 치유두를 보호함으로써 관찰기간동안 양호한 예후를 보였으며, 이는 어린환자의 미성숙영구치에서 보존적 치수치료의 시도에 대한 보다 많은 임상적 검증 및 장기간의 고찰이 필요할 것이다. 【Recently, undifferentiated stem cells which exist in dental papillae of immature permanent teeth were newly discovered and these stem cells appear to be the origin of ameloblasts associated with the formation of root dentin. When treating immature permanent teeth, the preservation of these stem cells induce the continuous formation of the root. Therefore, it is reported that minimal invasion to periapical region in immature permanent teeth with periapical inflammation resulted in good-healing pattern in clinical and radiographic examination. In this case, a 10 year-old boy(mandibular right premolar) and a 8 year-old girl(maxillary left premolar) who visited the department of pediatric dentistry at Chosun University Dental Hospital were diagnosed with pulp necrosis and periapical abscess in clinical and radiographic examination. Endodontic instrumentation to the periapical region was limited and MTA(Mineral Trioxide Aggregate) was applied into the pulp canal. The periodic checks showed healing of periapical abscess and the development and growth pattern of roots. In permanent teeth with pulp necrosis and periapical abscess, preservation of pulp and dental papillae in the periapical region showed good prognosis during the periodic examinations. Therefore, a lot of clinical examination and long-term evaluation of conservative pulp treatment in immature permanent teeth are expected to be necessary.】

The purpose of the present study was to test the usefulness of dish items selected in developing a dish-based FFQ (DFFQ) to be used for epidemiological studies in Korea. The dietary data of 6817 subjects from the 2001 Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey were used for the analysis. The 24 h recall method was employed for the dietary survey. Initially, ninety-five dish items were selected in developing the DFFQ based on consumption frequency, contribution of selected nutrients and coverage of between-person variations. The usefulness of the selected ninety-five dish items was tested based on their degree of contribution in supplying nutrients in the cumulative percentage contribution (cPC), as well as on their degree of explanation for between-person variation in the cumulative regression coefficient (cMRC). According to the results, the ninety-five selected dish items accounted for an average of 92·3 % of seventeen nutrients consumed by the study subjects based on cPC estimation. The top twenty items among the ninety-five dish items covered 70 to 91 % of the between-person variation for the seventeen nutrients based on cMRC estimation. Thus, the results suggest that the ninety-five items would be useful in developing a FFQ for use in epidemiological studies of Koreans, within less than 10 % underestimation.

The allelic variation at Rht-B1, Rht-D1 and Rht8 loci of Korean wheat cultivars was determined to evaluate the relationship between agronomic traits and different Rht alleles. Korean wheat cultivars had high frequency of Rht-B1a (70.4%) and Rht-D1a (51.9%) alleles. Thirteen cultivars carried both Rht-B1a and Rht-D1b alleles but no cultivar carried both Rht-B1b and Rht-D1b alleles. Only two cultivars, Namhae and Ol, showed 206bp fragment and whereas remaining genotypes showed 196bp at Rht8 loci. Cultivars carrying Rht-D1a and Rht8196bp alleles exhibited higher thousand kernel weight and test weight (40.2g and 809.9g, respectively) as compared to their counterpart alleles (36.6g and 788.1g, respectively). Cultivars carrying Rht-B1a and Rht-D1a alleles showed lower number of kernels per spike than those with other alleles at Rht-B1 and Rht-D1 loci. Cultivars, Namhae and Ol, carrying Rht8206bp allele showed lower test weight regardless the allelic compositions at Rht-B1 and Rht-D1 loci. Significant differences were recorded in culm and spike length regardless of allelic variation of these semi-dwarf genes.

The allelic variations at the Vrn-1 and Ppd-1 loci of Korean wheat cultivars were determined to evaluate their effects on agronomic traits and response to vernalization treatment. Korean wheat cultivars displayed high frequency of Vrn-D1a and Ppd-B1b alleles, but all of the tested cultivars carried vrn-A1, vrn-B1, Ppd-A1b and Ppd-D1a alleles at the corresponding loci. Regardless of vernalization treatments, Korean wheat cultivars carrying the vrn-D1 allele showed longer days to flag leaf unfolding than those with the Vrn-D1a allele. Unvernalized cultivars carrying the vrn-D1 allele also exhibited larger final leaf number than those with the Vrn-D1a allele. However, there were no significant differences in the response of the Korean wheat cultivars to vernalization treatment based on allelic variation at the Ppd-1 loci. With respect to agronomic traits, the Vrn-D1a allele was related to increased grain yield and decreased thousand kernel weight compared to the vrn-D1 allele. Cultivars carrying both Vrn-D1a and Ppd-B1b alleles produced higher grain yield (5.5 tons/ha) than those with the vrn-D1 and Ppd-B1b alleles (5.0 tons/ha).