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The present study aims to detect the variation of precipitation extreme events in the northern part of the Korean Peninsula during 1961–2020, as well as to investigate its possible causes, based on daily precipitation data from 37 representative stations. Nonparametric tests such as Mann‐Kendall and Kendall‐tau were used to detect statistical characteristics of changes in precipitation indices and climate variables. Findings are as follows: (a) the annual total precipitation manifested a clear shifting point in 1968, with a decreasing rate of about −37.7 mm/decade, conversely, daily precipitation intensity had a clear upward trend, and extreme precipitation events above 100 mm/day became more frequent. (b) There occurred significant upward trends of 8.9 mm/decade for intense rainfall (>95th percentile) and 6.3 mm/decade for extreme intense rainfall (>99th percentile). (c) The continuous wet (dry) days showed a decreasing (increasing) trend of about −0.2 days/decade (1.0 days/decade). The decrease rate of 5‐day max precipitation is five times as large as 1‐day max precipitation. (d) For June‐September, the strengthened West Pacific Subtropical High intensity and the variation of its ridge‐axis position, the southerly shift of the upper subtropical Jetstream and the weakening of lower moisture supplement may have suppressed the northerly move of the summer rain band and delayed the development of rainy season over the study area. (e) In view of the urbanization effect, the possible causes of the precipitation externalization were investigated, and it was found that the upward trends in daily precipitation intensity and 95th percentile intense precipitation in big cities are generally higher than rural regions. Plain Language Summary: The investigation of variation in precipitation extreme events and its possible causes was conducted for the northern Korean Peninsula during 1961–2020. Annual total precipitation had experienced a significant decreasing trend, but extreme precipitation intensity had a clear upward trend, and extreme rainfall events became more frequent, with upward trends of 8.9 mm/decade for rainfall (>95th percentile) and 6.3 mm/decade for rainfall (>99th percentile) and a decreasing (increasing) trend of about −0.2 days/decade (1.0 days/decade) in continuous wet (dry) days. These changes were directly driven by changes in the atmospheric circulation factors for June–September, such as West Pacific Subtropical High, upper subtropical Jetstream, and lower moisture supplement. In some urbanized regions, an asymmetrical shift in the temporal variation of precipitation is seeable. In particular, the decadal trends in daily precipitation intensity and 95th percentile precipitation in the big city are generally higher (about 50% and 15%) than those in rural regions. Key Points: Annual precipitation manifested a decreased trend, but extreme precipitation events became more frequentDecreasing rainy season rainfall is related to variation in West Pacific Subtropical High, low layer moisture flux, and upper subtropical JetstreamAn asymmetrical shift in precipitation pattern over the cities due to the urbanization effect is more detectable than those related to the atmospheric circulation [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This report presents the recent prevalence and comorbidities related to diabetes in Korea by analyzing the nationally representative data. Methods: Using data from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey for 2013 to 2014, the percentages and the total number of subjects over the age of 30 years with diabetes and prediabetes were estimated and applied to the National Population Census in 2014. Diagnosis of diabetes was based on fasting plasma glucose (=126 mg/dL), current taking of antidiabetic medication, history of previous diabetes, or glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) =6.5%. Impaired fasting glucose (IFG) was defined by fasting plasma glucose in the range of 100 to 125 mg/dL among those without diabetes. Results: About 4.8 million (13.7%) Korean adults (=30 years old) had diabetes, and about 8.3 million (24.8%) Korean adults had IFG. However, 29.3% of the subjects with diabetes are not aware of their condition. Of the subjects with diabetes, 48.6% and 54.7% were obese and hypertensive, respectively, and 31.6% had hypercholesterolemia. Although most subjects with diabetes (89.1%) were under medical treatment, and mostly being treated with oral hypoglycemic agents (80.2%), 10.8% have remained untreated. With respect to overall glycemic control, 43.5% reached the target of HbA1c <7%, whereas 23.3% reached the target when the standard was set to HbA1c <6.5%, according to the Korean Diabetes Association guideline. Conclusion: Diabetes is a major public health threat in Korea, but a significant proportion of adults were not controlling their illness. We need comprehensive approaches to overcome the upcoming diabetes-related disease burden in Korea. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT Kim, H.-C.; Song, Y.-S.; Kim, Y.H.; Son, S.; Cho, J.-G.; Chang, W.K.; Lee, C.-H.; Nam, J., and Ryu, J., 2018. Implications of esuarine and coastal management in the growth of Porphyra sp. in the Geum River Estuary, South Korea: A modeling study. In: Shim, J.-S.; Chun, I., and Lim, H.S. (eds.), Proceedings from the International Coastal Symposium (ICS) 2018 (Busan, Republic of Korea). Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue No. 85, pp. 396–400. Coconut Creek (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208. Laver (Porphyra sp.) is one of macroalgae species that has been cultivated for the purpose of food consumption in the coastal areas of Korean Peninsula. In specific, Porphyra tenera Kjellman and Porphyra yezonensis Ueda are two major commercial species for aquaculture in the west coast of Korea. In this study authors employed an ecosystem modeling approach (Hadley et al., 2014) to simulate the nutrient physiology and growth of the laver in aquaculture facilities located in the vicinities of Geum River Estuary. Some of model coefficients and parameterizations were modified from the original version based on laboratory experiments, if necessary. In addition, authors calibrated and validated the Delft3D (https://oss.deltares.nl/web/delft3d) with long-term time series data from the area. The Delft3D is an open source modeling suite that can simulate hydrodynamics (temperature, salinity, flow fields), sediment transport and water quality variables (inorganic nutrients). As one of the end-point goals of the present study is to develop decision supporting tools that can be used by coastal managers, the macroalgae growth model was coupled with the Delft3D in order to predict effects of episodic climatic events and/or upstream water management decisions on the estuarine ecosystem. Temperature, salinity and nitrogen loadings estimated from the Delft3D were used as input to the ecosystem model, and subsequent responses from Porphyra sp. were numerically simulated. Given thirteen scenario-based simulations, it is found that model simulated dissolved inorganic nitrogen concentrations do not change significantly for the same climatic condition. However, the maximum potential annual production of macroalgae is found to be more dependent on ammonium ion concentration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective To evaluate the association between baseline characteristics, three physical performance tests and fall history in a sample of the elderly from Korean population. Methods A total of 307 participants (mean age, 76.70±4.85 years) were categorized into one of two groups, i.e., fallers and non-fallers. Fifty-two participants who had reported falling unexpectedly at least once in the previous 12 months were assigned to the fallers group. Physical performance tests included Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB), Berg Balance Scale (BBS), Timed Up and Go test. The differences between the two study groups were compared and we analyzed the correlations between fall histories and physical performance tests. Results SPPB demonstrated a significant association with fall history. Although the BBS total scores did not show statistical significance, two dynamic balance test items of BBS (B12 and B13) showed a significant association among fallers. Conclusion This study suggests that SPPB and two dynamic balance test items of the BBS can be used in screening for risk of falls in an ambulatory elderly population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are two variations in the attention subitem of the Mini-Mental State Exam (MMSE): 'serial 7's subtraction and "sam-chun-ri-gang-san" backward. At a scale of one to five, they can be used interchangeably, which inevitably brings a considerable difference in results. Thus, we compared the scores of the 'serial 7's subtraction' and the "sam-chun-ri-gang-san" backward and analyzed the influence of sociodemographic factors on the differences. Methods: We administered the Korean MMSE including the two types of attention item: serial 7's and "sam-chun-rigang- san" backward to 239 community-dwelling elderly people aged 65 or older in Kyung Hee University Medical Center and four Seoul senior centers and analyzed the difference from June 2012 to July 2012. Results: The score for "sam-chun-ri-gang-san" backward (2.5±2.1) was lower than that of the serial 7's (3.4±1.7) by a mean point of 0.9±1.9. The score of "sam-chun-ri-gang-san" backward was zero in 31.4% of the subjects. However, only 9.6% scored zero on the serial 7's. The ratio of the same scores between two tasks was 36.0%. Education was the primary source of variance on difference score, followed by the number of family. There was no significant effect of age or gender when the score of difference was analyzed by multiple regression. Conclusion: In this study, subjects tended to outperform the serial 7's in general. Upon administering "sam-chun-rigang- san" backward instead of serial 7's due to the preference of the patient, we should take into account that the score of "sam-chun-ri-gang-san" backward was 0.9 point (mean value) lower than serial 7's to ensure appropriate interpretation of MMSE score. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sarcopenia has been defined as the considerable loss of skeletal muscle mass and strength that results in frailty in the elderly. Because muscle tissue plays diverse important roles in human, sarcopenia presents many negative health-related consequences including impaired energy homeostasis, falls and cardiovascular disease, and subsequently higher mortality. It is becoming evident that sarcopenia has a negative impact on the healthy life of the elderly. The European Working Group on Sarcopenia, the International Working Group on Sarcopenia and the Asian Working Group on Sarcopenia have released position statement regarding sarcopenia, and more recently the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health Sarcopenia Project has provided a new guideline for assessment of sarcopenia. At this time, there have been several data delineating the status of sarcopenia in Korea. This review focuses on largescale cohorts that assessed sarcopenia and highlights the controversies surrounding the clinical definition and prevalence of sarcopenia in Korea. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Data regarding the prescription status of individuals with diabetes are limited. This study was an analysis of participants from the relationship between cardiovascular disease and brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity in patients with type 2 diabetes (REBOUND) Study, which was a prospective multicenter cohort study recruited from eight general hospitals in Busan, Korea. We performed this study to investigate the current status of prescription in Korean type 2 diabetic patients. Methods: Type 2 diabetic patients aged 30 years or more were recruited and data were collected for demographics, medical history, medications, blood pressure, and laboratory tests. Results: Three thousands and fifty-eight type 2 diabetic patients were recruited. Mean age, duration of diabetes, and HbAlc were 59 years, 7.6 years, and 7.2%, respectively. Prevalence of hypertension was 66%. Overall, 7.3% of patients were treated with diet and exercise only, 68.2% with oral hypoglycemic agents (OHAs) only, 5.3% with insulin only, and 19.2% with both insulin and OHA. The percentage of patients using antihypertensive, antidyslipidemic, antiplatelet agents was similar as about 60%. The prevalence of statins and aspirin users was 52% and 32%, respectively. Conclusion: In our study, two thirds of type 2 diabetic patients were treated with OHA only, and one fifth with insulin plus OHA, and 5% with insulin only. More than half of the patients were using each of antihypertensive, antidyslipidemic, or antiplatelet agents. About a half of the patients were treated with statins and one third were treated with aspirin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Ginseng root has been traditionally used for the treatment of many diseases in Korea. However, so far ginseng seed has been mostly unused and discarded. As part of our ongoing research on the ginseng seeds, the inhibitory effect of ginseng seeds on melanin production was verified to assess their potential as a skin depigmenting substance. Materials and Methods: The present study measured the inhibitory effect of ginseng seeds on melanin production through the tyrosinase inhibitory effect and analyzed their effects on melanin production in melan-a-cells. Results: Ethanol extract of ginseng seed was applied to melan-a-cells at a concentration of 100 ppm and melanin production was reduced by 35.1% without cytotoxicity. In addition, the ethanol extract of ginseng seed was shown to reduce tyrosinase activity. Conclusion: Because the results showed excellent melanin inhibitory activity compared with that obtained by arbutin, ethanol extracts of ginseng leaf and ginseng root at the same concentration, it can be concluded that ginseng seeds show great potential as a skin depigmenting substance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE: Self-expanding metallic stents (SEMS) are useful palliative option and a bridge to surgery in malignant colorectal obstruction. The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical outcomes of SEMS to palliate colorectal malignant obstruction. METHODS: Malignant colorectal obstructive patients who underwent SEMS insertion at the National Cancer Center, Korea from January 2004 to June 2008 were enrolled in the study. Patients' clinical characteristics, outcomes and complications for palliative SEMS insertion were retrospectively analyzed. RESULTS: A total of 54 patients were enrolled in the palliative SEMS group and 48 patients with obstructive CRC were included in the SEMS as the bridge to surgery group. Obstruction of the left colon occurred in 52 patients of the palliative SEMS group and all patients in SEMS as bridge to surgery group. For primary SEMS insertion, the technical success (TS) rate was 87.0% and the clinical success (CS) rate 89.4%, while the rates of early and late complications were 24.1% and 23.4%, respectively. There was no procedure-related mortality. Stent migration rate was higher in the cases treated with small diameter and covered type of stents. Median time to reobstruction and migration were 85 and 101 days, respectively. TS and CS rates for SEMS reinsertion were comparable to those for primary SEMS insertion. CONCLUSIONS: Palliative SEMS are effective and favorable procedures for malignant colorectal obstruction but with some complications. Stent migration is associated with covered type and small diameter stents while other factors including length of stent and chemotherapy do not affect stent complications in the present study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The total pollution load management system (TPLMS) was first applied in 2007 to the highly developed Masan Bay watershed, Korea. To evaluate the effect of TPLMS on water quality improvement, we analyzed the water qualities in rivers and bay during 2005–2010, targeting chemical oxygen demand (COD), suspended sediment (SS), total nitrogen (TN), and total phosphorus (TP) loads. Land-based pollutant loading all decreased during this period, with a significant reduction in COD and SS loads (p <0.01). The COD reduction in seawater, following the TPLMS implementation, was also significant (p <0.01). Time-lagged responses in COD and Chl-a supported an estimated seawater residence time of ∼1month. Land-based nutrient loads were also significantly reduced for TN (p <0.01) and TP (p <0.05), however, significant reductions were not observed in the bay, indicating potential alternative nutrient inputs from non-point sources into the bay system. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The associations between alcohol consumption and cigarette smoking habits and the risk for colorectal adenomatous polyps according to the detailed clinical information about polyps were assessed in a large colonoscopy-based study. The study enrolled participants who visited the National Cancer Center of the Republic of Korea for cancer screening between April 2007 and April 2009. In 1,242 newly diagnosed colorectal adenoma patients and 3,019 polyp-free controls, past smokers (odds ratio (OR) = 1.31, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.04, 1.65) and current smokers (OR = 1.70, 95% CI: 1.37, 2.11) had increased risks for adenomas compared with nonsmokers. Cigarette smoking conferred an even higher risk for advanced adenomas and 3 or more adenomas than for low-risk adenomas or a single adenoma. Dose-response relations were observed among the daily number of cigarettes smoked, the duration of smoking, the pack-years of smoking, and the risk for adenomas. A longer duration of alcohol consumption was associated with a higher risk for advanced adenomas (for >28 years of consumption: OR = 2.0, 95% CI: 1.10, 3.64) and 3 or more adenomas (OR = 2.19, 95% CI: 1.27, 3.76). In conclusion, cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption play roles in colorectal carcinogenesis, and the association differs by the clinical features of the adenomas. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Objective:To determine if histologic chorioamnionitis (HC) in the presence of respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) augments adverse pulmonary outcomes in extremely low birth weight (ELBW) infants.Study Design:We retrospectively identified 184 ELBW infants who were born at and admitted to the neonatal intensive care units between June 2005 and June 2009.Results:The mean gestational age of the cases was 27±2 weeks, and the mean birth weight was 791±147 g. A total of 88% (161/184) of patients developed bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD). HC was observed in 71 of 238 infants (39%). When infants were divided on the basis of the presence or absence of HC and RDS, the incidence of moderate or severe BPD and duration of oxygen requirement were greater in the HC+RDS+ group than in the HC−RDS+ or HC+RDS− groups. The combination of prenatal (HC) and postnatal (RDS) injuries increased significantly the risk for BPD. In the multivariate analysis, the significant predictors of developing BPD were low gestational age (odds ratio (OR), 0.6; confidence interval (CI), 0.4 to 0.7) and exposure to both HC and RDS (OR, 4.7; CI, 1.1 to 20.2).Conclusion:The HC and RDS work synergistically to induce lung injury in ELBW infants. Chorioamnionitis may interact with RDS to further increase the risk of BPD, despite either HC or RDS could not show independent significant association with BPD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines traditional (Confucian) ancestral rites in Korea and their transformation into a distinctive ancestral practice within the Protestant Church called chudoyebe, a death anniversary rite. It argues that chudoyebe, a Christian alternative to traditional Confucian ancestral rites, typifies a harmonious result of the interactions between the Confucian tradition and the Christian faith. The article reveals the ways in which, in their memorial ritual, Korean Christians have struggled to balance 'religious piety to God' and 'filial duty to ancestors', which represent core Christian and Confucian values, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: We investigated the genital group B streptococcus (GBS) carrier rate in Korean pregnant women and the serotype distribution in face of the recent increase of late-onset GBS disease in Korea. Methods: GBS screening was performed on 4045 healthy pregnant women at 35–37 weeks' gestation. In case of positive GBS culture, serotyping was performed by using GBS typing antisera. Results: When both vaginal and anorectal culture were performed, the GBS carrier rate was 10.0% (n=121/1205), which is the highest rate ever reported in Korea. Type III was more common (36%), and type Ia (13%) and Ib (7%) were less prevalent. Conclusions: Increased maternal genital GBS carrier rate and difference in serotype distribution pattern of GBS may be related to the recent increase of late-onset GBS disease in Korea. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.) seeds are used as a folk medicine to enhance bone formation or to prevent osteoporosis in Korea. Therefore, the methanolic extract of safflower seeds (MESS) containing high mineral content, such as calcium (Ca), potassium (K) and phosphorous (P), was evaluated for the role on osteoblast (Ob) markers of Sprague-Dawley rats. In serum of 3 to 11 weeks (wks) old rats, both osteocalcin (OC) content and bone-specific alkaline phosphatase (B-ALP) activity increased to their maximum levels in 4-7 wks. Hence, 3 wks old rats were selected for 8 wks oral treatment of MESS, resulted in the significant increase of Ob markers in serum such as OC content (4-8 wks), B-ALP activity (1-2 wks) and insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) level (1 wk), and the growth parameter such as the length of femur (2-8 wks) and tibia (4 wks). On the basis of Pearson's correlation coefficient, there were a moderate correlation between OC and B-ALP at 8 wks, a low correlation between OC and IGF-I at 1, 4 and 8 wks, a moderate correlation between OC and femur length at 1, 2 and 8 wks, and a moderate correlations between OC and tibia length at 1 and 8 wks of MESS-treated groups. The result reveals that the changes of OC correlated at low to moderate level with the changes of B-ALP activity, IGF-I content and femur and tibia length in the MESS-treatment period. On the other hand, there were a strong correlation between IGF-I and femur length at 2 wks and moderate correlation between IGF-I and tibia length at 1, 2 and 8 wks of MESS-treated groups. Therefore, the effect of MESS on bone formation likely appears to be mediated by IGF-I at the early stage of treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Ectopic thyroid is a rare entity and can occur at any location in the midline position. A role for the ectopic thyroid in the pathogenesis of hypothyroidism and nongoitrous cretinism has been emphasized. Objective: To assess the clinical characteristics of an ectopic thyroid by analyzing 49 cases reported in Korea. Design: This study was a retrospective review of 19 cases who were diagnosed by thyroid scan at our institutions together with 30 cases reported in the Korean medical literature, found using KoreaMed. Main outcomes: Most cases of ectopic thyroid were diagnosed in patients aged between 1 and 29 years; it was more common in females (43 patients). A lingual thyroid was found in 23 patients, a sublingual thyroid in 17 patients, combined type in 7 patients, a prelaryngeal thyroid in 1 patient, and an intratracheal thyroid in 1 patient. Only four cases had the thyroid gland in the normal position. The chief complaints at presentation were palpable mass in 20 patients, growth retardation in 10 patients, and a lump sensation in the throat in 6 patients. Twenty-six of 42 patients (61.9) had hypothyroidism, and 16 patients (38.1) had euthyroidism. As for the treatment modalities, 18 of 26 patients with hypothyroidism and 4 of 16 patients with normal thyroid function received thyroid hormone medication; 3 of 26 patients with hypothyroidism and 8 of 16 patients with euthyroidism underwent resection of the ectopic thyroid. Conclusion: Our study suggests that radionuclide thyroid scanning and function testing may be useful not only for the diagnosis of an ectopic thyroid but also before deciding on the therapeutic modality; patients should be followed up to detect changes in thyroid function and malignant transformation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Fourteen infectious bronchitis viruses (IBVs) were isolated in Korea between 2001 and 2003 from chickens suspected to be infected with IBVs. The nucleocapsid (N) protein genes of the various IBVs were amplified by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and were cloned and sequenced, and the nucleotide and deduced amino acid sequences were compared with published sequences for non-Korean IBV strains. The Korean IBV isolates shared amino acid sequence similarity of between 89.2% (K203-02 and K1255-03) and 98.3% (K434-01 and K281-01) with each other and exhibited amino acid sequence similarity between 57.0% (K774-01 and V18/91) and 96.6% (K507-01 and JP8147) with non-Korean IBV strains. Phylogenetic analysis of the deduced N protein amino acid sequences resulted in the segregation of Korean IBV isolates into three different clusters, with cluster assignments differing for some of the isolates from those obtained with analysis of the S1 glycoprotein. Korean IBV isolates K069-01, K281-01, K434-01, K504-01, K774-01, K748-01, K044-02, K058-02, K161-02, K203-02, and K234-02 formed an independent cluster comprised only of Korean IBV isolates. Another Korean IBV isolate, K210-02, belonged to a cluster that included IBV strains isolated in USA, the Netherlands and China. Recent Korean IBV isolates K514-03 and K1255-03 grouped into a third distinct cluster related to a Chinese IBV strain. As deduced from phylogenetic analysis, some IBV isolates appear to have arisen from the recombination of IBV strains with different origins. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The national mandatory elderly long-term care insurance (LTCI) was established in Korea in July 2008. One year after introduction of the LTCI, 5.2% of the elderly population aged 65 years and older were beneficiaries. The applicant''s caregiver(s) submit an application form along with a statement of a doctor''s medical opinion to the National Health Insurance Corporation, after which one or two National Health Insurance Corporation staff members (either a nurse or social worker) visit the applicant''s house to evaluate their physical and mental status. The majority of beneficiaries are reported to have one or more chronic conditions. The problem is that national LTCI and national medical insurance are separate now in Korea. However, it is almost impossible to separate long-term care and health care. Even though long-term care facilities contract physicians or hospitals to have physicians visit care facilities regularly, the reward for these physicians is not satisfactory and sometimes they work without pay. Furthermore, contracted physicians cannot properly manage the elderly in long-term care facilities because they are not legally allowed to provide any medical services to long-term care facilities except for prescribing medicine. The efficient linkage of long-term care and health care is a big task in Korea that is under discussion by full-time physicians working for long-term care facilities. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Although several ecological indices have been developed worldwide to assess the ecological quality (EcoQ) status of coastal environments, their applicability remains in question. The present study evaluated the performance of 14 univariate and multivariate indices selected to provide a good description of benthic EcoQ status. We specifically investigated on i) spatial and regional variability, ii) (dis)similarity between ecological indices, and iii) the association of selected indices against heavy metal pollution. Benthic community data were collected from six coastal regions of Korea (n = 365) that have varying land-use activity in adjacent inland areas (municipal, industrial, and rural). Abiotic sedimentary parameters were also considered as possible pressures associated with benthic community responses, including grain size, organic carbon content, and heavy metal pollution. The macrozoobenthic biodiversity and EcoQ results generally well reflected the geographical settings and the pollution gradient of heavy metals between regions. Among the six selected indices ( H ′, AMBI, BPI, BQI, EQR, and M-AMBI), BPI appeared to be the most tolerant index, with > 90% of locations being classified as “High” to “Good” while EQR showed the clear classification across the EcoQ status range. Significant disagreement between BQI vs. AMBI, BPI vs. M-AMBI, and AMBI vs. M-AMBI were found. Overall, single or limited indices seemed to over- or underestimate the given benthic conditions, warranting the use of site-specific indices at specific areas and/or locations. In conclusion, our study demonstrates the utility of applying different ecological or multivariate indices to infer the general ecological status of specific sites to gauge the extent of sedimentary pollution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: There are 20 nuclear reactors operating in Korea and four more are under construction. The spent nuclear fuel and radioactive wastes will be accumulated and an effective management must be introduced. In Korea, pyro-processing and Direct Use of spent PWR fuel In CANDU (DUPIC) are drawing attentions of many researchers and policy makers. However, cost comparison studies of each or both options against the direct disposal have not been adequately conducted. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to compare the fuel cycle strategy in cost terms. Based on mass balance of the Heavy Metal, cost of each process in the fuel cycle was considered. It was found that the pyro-processing-only cannot win against the direct disposal, but it can be compensated by adding DUPIC. Pyro-processing with DUPIC was cheaper by 925M$ than the direct disposal. Further time-considered analysis will supplement this work with reasonable basis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives The SARC-F is a simple sarcopenia screening tool comprising 5 assessment items: strength, assistance walking, rising from a chair, climbing stairs, and falls. The present study aimed to examine the validation of the Korean version of SARC-F for elderly individuals residing in communities. Setting and Participants From the first year baseline data of Korean Frailty and Aging Cohort Study, a total of 1222 elderly individuals (70 years and older) who met the study's selection criteria were included in the analysis. Measurements The SARC-F was translated into the Korean language in a culturally responsive way. The total score was calculated by adding the scores on the 5 items. The participants were divided into 2 groups according to the total score (SARC-F <4 vs SARC-F ≥4), and its correlations with various factors including walking speed, hand grip, ability to perform everyday activities, and health-related quality of life, were examined by sex. In addition, the tool's validity was analyzed by comparing it with the European, international, and Asian sarcopenia working group diagnostic criteria for sarcopenia. Results The prevalence of sarcopenia according to the SARC-F was 4.2% in among men and 15.3% in women. The sensitivity of the SARC-F was low compared with the European, international, and Asian criteria of sarcopenia [male (M): 11%–60%, female (F): 28%–34%]. However, SARC-F showed a high specificity (M: 96.6%–98%, F: 85%–87.7%) and a high negative predictive value (M: 89.2%–99.3%, F: 88.5%–98.4%). The participants in the SARC-F ≥4 group had poorer grip strength, slower walking speed, poorer physical performance, poorer cognitive function, and a lower quality of life (a high EuroQol-5 dimension score) than the participants in the SARC-F <4 group. Conclusions The Korean language version of SARC-F showed a high specificity and high negative predictive value. As such, the tool is useful for briefly ruling out sarcopenia in a clinical setting. In addition, diagnosis of sarcopenia using the SARC-F was found to be associated with physical performance, cognitive function, and the quality of life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This report proposes a method for assessing resilience-building components in coastal social–ecological systems. Using the proposed model, the preferences of experts in Masan Bay (South Korea) and Puget Sound (USA) are compared. A total of 30 management objectives were determined and used to build a hierarchic tree designed using the principles of the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). Surveys were performed with 35 Puget Sound experts using face-to-face interviews and with 28 Masan Bay experts by mail. The results demonstrate that the legal objective, which enables legislation, was the highest preferred component in both regions. The knowledge translation variable was also given a high preference score in both regions. An analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed that the Puget Sound experts significantly favored attention to education, habitat restoration and species protection objectives in comparison to the Masan Bay experts. The Masan Bay experts placed greater emphasis on legislation and the type of institutional design than did the Puget Sound experts. Using cluster analysis, four distinct groups of respondents were independently identified in Puget Sound and three groups were identified in Masan Bay. One unique subgroup in the Puget Sound experts group, which was characterized by its high preferences for habitat restoration and species protection, was not observed in Masan Bay. Demographic variables (length of career and role in coastal issue) failed to account for the differences in groupings and preferences in either region, except for the variable ‘favoring information source’ in the Puget Sound group. This finding implies that the demographic information was not related to differences in group opinions in both regions. The analysis framework presented here was effective in identifying expert preferences regarding the overall structure and emphasis in coastal management programs. Thus, this framework can be applied towards coastal policy development. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Purpose: The National Health Insurance Service (NHIS)-Senior was set up to provide high-quality longitudinal data that can be used to explore various aspects of changes in the socio-economical and health status of older adults, to predict risk factors and to investigate their health outcomes., Participants: The NHIS-Senior cohort, a Korean nationwide retrospective administrative data cohort, is composed of older adults aged 60 years and over in 2002. It consists of 558 147 people selected by 10% simple random sampling method from a total of 5.5 million subjects aged 60+ in the National Health Information Database. The cohort was followed up through 2015 for all subjects, except for those who were deceased., Findings to Date: The healthcare utilisation and admission rates were the highest for acute upper respiratory infections and influenza (75.2%). The age-standardised (defined with reference to the world standard population) mortality rate for 10 years (through 2012) was 4333 per 100 000 person-years. Malignant neoplasms were the most common cause of death in both sexes (1032.1 per 100 000 person-years for men, 376.7 per 100 000 person-years for women). A total of 34 483 individuals applied for long-term care service in 2008, of whom 17.9% were assessed as grade 1, meaning that they were completely dependent on the help of another person to live daily life., Future Plans: The data are provided for the purposes of policy and academic research under the Act on Promotion of the Provision and Use of Public Data in Korea. The NHIS-Senior cohort data are only available for Korean researchers at the moment, but it is possible for researchers outside the country to gain access to the data by conducting a joint study with a Korean researcher. The cohort will be maintained and continuously updated by the NHIS., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2019. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)

This paper deals with strategic enterprise resource planning (ERP) in a health-care system using a multicriteria decision-making (MCDM) model. The model is developed and analyzed on the basis of the data obtained from a leading patient-oriented provider of health-care services in Korea. Goal criteria and priorities are identified and established via the analytic hierarchy process (AHP). Goal programming (GP) is utilized to derive satisfying solutions for designing, evaluating, and implementing an ERP. The model results are evaluated and sensitivity analyses are conducted in an effort to enhance the model applicability. The case study provides management with valuable insights for planning and controlling health-care activities and services.

Context: The dietary iodine intake of lactating women has been reported to be high in Korea., Objectives: The aim of this study was to assess iodine balance and to determine its relationship with thyroid function in preterm infants., Design: Thyroid functions of preterm infants born at 34 wk gestation or less were evaluated in the first (n = 31) and third (n = 19) weeks. Mothers' breast milk (BM) and random urine samples of infants were taken on the same days for thyroid function tests., Results: Iodine concentrations in BM were very high (198-8484 microg/liter), and one third of the infants had an iodine intake of more than 100 microg/kg per day at the third week after birth (excessive iodine intake group). At that time, the levels of TSH were positively correlated with urinary iodine (r = 0.622; P = 0.004). The frequencies of subclinical hypothyroidism were high in the excessive iodine intake group at the third and sixth weeks. The estimated daily iodine intake at the third week (51.2 +/- 45.5 vs. 149.0 +/- 103.8 microg/kg per day; P = 0.033), urinary iodine at the third week (913.2 +/- 1179.7 vs. 1651.3 +/- 1135.2 microg/liter; P = 0.051), and estimated daily iodine intake at the sixth week (32.8 +/- 35.5 vs. 92.1 +/- 51.2 microg/kg per day; P = 0.032) were significantly higher in infants with subclinical hypothyroidism than in controls., Conclusions: Excessive iodine intake from BM contributed to subclinical hypothyroidism in these preterm Korean infants.

Fourteen infectious bronchitis viruses (IBVs) were isolated in Korea between 2001 and 2003 from chickens suspected to be infected with IBVs. The nucleocapsid (N) protein genes of the various IBVs were amplified by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and were cloned and sequenced, and the nucleotide and deduced amino acid sequences were compared with published sequences for non-Korean IBV strains. The Korean IBV isolates shared amino acid sequence similarity of between 89.2% (K203-02 and K1255-03) and 98.3% (K434-01 and K281-01) with each other and exhibited amino acid sequence similarity between 57.0% (K774-01 and V18/91) and 96.6% (K507-01 and JP8147) with non-Korean IBV strains. Phylogenetic analysis of the deduced N protein amino acid sequences resulted in the segregation of Korean IBV isolates into three different clusters, with cluster assignments differing for some of the isolates from those obtained with analysis of the S1 glycoprotein. Korean IBV isolates K069-01, K281-01, K434-01, K504-01, K774-01, K748-01, K044-02, K058-02, K161-02, K203-02, and K234-02 formed an independent cluster comprised only of Korean IBV isolates. Another Korean IBV isolate, K210-02, belonged to a cluster that included IBV strains isolated in USA, the Netherlands and China. Recent Korean IBV isolates K514-03 and K1255-03 grouped into a third distinct cluster related to a Chinese IBV strain. As deduced from phylogenetic analysis, some IBV isolates appear to have arisen from the recombination of IBV strains with different origins.

Familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP) is a clinically well-defined hereditary disease caused by germline mutations in the adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) gene. FAP is characterized by polyposis in the large bowel and variable extracolonic manifestations. With an increase of reported APC germline mutations, many reports have investigated genotype-phenotype correlations in FAP patients. Here, we analyzed the APC gene for germline mutations in 83 unrelated Korean FAP patients and investigated genotype-phenotype correlations. We identified germline APC mutations in 59 (71%) of the cases, including 34 frameshift mutations, 19 nonsense mutations, and six splice site mutations. Among 59 patients with the identified germline mutation of the APC gene, 37 had been reported previously and were included in the genotype-phenotype analysis. In the other 22 patients, we identified seven novel mutations: c.1438C>T, c.2232&#95;2233dupCT, c.3426delT, c.3739&#95;3769del31, c.3931&#95;3935delATTGG, c.4332dupA, and c.4722&#95;4725delACTA. Desmoid tumors were identified in six of the examined FAP patients, five of whom had APC germline mutations; these mutations involved codons 849, 864, 1309, 1444 and 1464, respectively (c.2547&#95;2548delTA, c.2592&#95;2593insCT, c.3927&#95;3931delAAAGA, c.4332dupA and c.4391-4394delAGAG). Four of the included FAP patients had papillary thyroid cancers; all were female and had germline APC mutations (c.1863&#95;1865delTTAincCT, c.2805C>A, c.3183&#95;3187delACAAA and c.3927&#95;3931delAAAGA).

There have been many epidemiological and clinical researches on chronic fatigue (CF) and chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) since the 1990s, but such studies have been quite limited in Korea. The aim of this study was to investigate the point prevalence of CF and CFS in patients who visited community-based eight primary care clinics in Korea. The study subjects were 1,648 patients aged 18 yr and over who visited one of eight primary care clinics in Korea between the 7th and 17th of May 2001. The physicians determined the status of the subjects through fatigue-related questionnaires, medical history, physical examination, and laboratory tests. The subjects were categorized into no fatigue, prolonged fatigue, CF and then CF were further classified to medically explained CF (Physical CF and Psychological CF) and medically unexplained CF (CFS and idiopathic chronic fatigue). The point prevalence of CF and CFS were 8.4% (95% CI 7.1-9.7%) and 0.6% (95% CI 0.2-1.0%). Medically explained CF was 80.5% of CF, of which 57.1% had psychological causes. The clinical characteristics of CFS were distinguished from explained CF. CF was common but CFS was rare in community-based primary care settings in Korea.

An unprecedented outbreak of H5N1 highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) has been reported for poultry in eight different Asian countries, including South Korea, since December 2003. A phylogenetic analysis of the eight viral genes showed that the H5N1 poultry isolates from South Korea were of avian origin and contained the hemagglutinin and neuraminidase genes of the A/goose/Guangdong/1/96 (Gs/Gd) lineage. The current H5N1 strains in Asia, including the Korean isolates, share a gene constellation similar to that of the Penfold Park, Hong Kong, isolates from late 2002 and contain some molecular markers that seem to have been fixed in the Gs/Gd lineage virus since 2001. However, despite genetic similarities among recent H5N1 isolates, the topology of the phylogenetic tree clearly differentiates the Korean isolates from the Vietnamese and Thai isolates which have been reported to infect humans. A representative Korean isolate was inoculated into mice, with no mortality and no virus being isolated from the brain, although high titers of virus were observed in the lungs. The same isolate, however, caused systemic infections in chickens and quail and killed all of the birds within 2 and 4 days of intranasal inoculation, respectively. This isolate also replicated in multiple organs and tissues of ducks and caused some mortality. However, lower virus titers were observed in all corresponding tissues of ducks than in chicken and quail tissues, and the histological lesions were restricted to the respiratory tract. This study characterizes the molecular and biological properties of the H5N1 HPAI viruses from South Korea and emphasizes the need for comparative analyses of the H5N1 isolates from different countries to help elucidate the risk of a human pandemic from the strains of H5N1 HPAI currently circulating in Asia.

Multiple births in Korea have been increased recently as a consequence of increased infertility due to advancing maternal age at first birth, and increased use of assisted reproductive technology. Multiples suffer higher mortality and morbidity than singletons. However, it is not clear whether preterm multiple very low birth weight infants (VLBWI) suffer higher mortality and morbidity than comparable singletons. We evaluated 266 singleton and 113 multiple VLBWI to determine whether mortality and morbidity in multiple VLBWI were higher than those in comparable singletons. The rate of in vitro fertilization and cesarean section were significantly higher in multiples than singletons. The total and the adjusted mortality with gestational age and birth weight were not significantly different between the two groups. Maternal age and the incidence of respiratory distress syndrome, patent ductus arteriosus, bronchopulmonary dysplasia, intracranial hemorrhage (grade> or =3), cystic periventricular leukomalacia, and retinopathy of prematurity (stage> or =3) were not significantly different between the two groups, and the incidence of abnormal brainstem auditory evoked potential was higher among the singletons. These results suggest that multiple VLBWI do not suffer higher mortality or morbidity than comparable singletons.