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Adequate balance assessment is essential for designing rehabilitation programs and preventing falls. This study aimed to report the cross-cultural adaptation of the Korean version of the Kansas University Standing Balance Scale (KUSBS), investigate its concurrent and predictive validities, and examine aging-related differences. The adaptation was performed using a standard protocol. In this retrospective study, 1179 patients were included and classified into adult, young-old, old-old, and oldest-old groups. Furthermore, we compared the concurrent, discriminant, and predictive validities of the KUSBS and Berg Balance Scale (BBS). Nonparametric analysis was also conducted. The Spearman rho test revealed strong correlation coefficients between the KUSBS and BBS (r s  > 0.7; P  < 0.001). At admission, the relationship was strong in the adult, young-old, and old-old groups (r s  = 0.931, 0.913, and 0.914, respectively; P  < 0.001) but not the oldest-old group (r s  = 0.790; P  < 0.001). At discharge, the correlation coefficients were above 0.9 in all groups. Additionally, the relationship between the changes in both scales was moderate-to-strong (r s  > 0.68; P  < 0.001). The predictive validity for independent walking of the KUSBS was strong (r s  = 0.791; P  < 0.001) and significantly lower than that of the BBS (r s  = 0.833; P  < 0.001; Z = -3.001; P  = 0.003). Furthermore, the cutoff value of the KUSBS at admission to predict independent ambulatory walkers at discharge was 3.5 in ordinal ranking in all age groups. The KUSBS is a reliable and effective tool for measuring balance in patients in inpatient rehabilitation., (Copyright © 2024 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Objectives: To investigate the epidemiological characteristics and clinical outcomes of culture-proven bacterial and fungal keratitis at a single tertiary referral centre on Jeju Island, South Korea., Design: A retrospective study design., Setting: Data from a solitary referral centre on Jeju Island spanning January 2011 to December 2022., Participants: Among the 245 patients clinically diagnosed with infectious microbial keratitis, 110 individuals had culture-positive results., Primary and Secondary Outcome Measures: The primary outcome was the identification of causative microbial profiles and epidemiological characteristics, while the secondary outcome was the correlation of these factors with treatment outcomes., Results: Of 245 patients, 110 (44.9%) had culture-positive infectious keratitis, showing 69 bacterial, 32 fungal, 4 superimposed bacterial and 5 cases with coinfection by bacteria and fungus. The most common pathogen was Pseudomonas species in 14.4% of the bacterial keratitis cases, followed by Staphylococcus epidermidis (9%), Staphylococcus aureus (8%) and Moraxella species (7%). The total treatment success rate for bacterial keratitis was 67.5%. The frequency of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus on Jeju Island did increase during the study period. Fusarium species had the highest incidence at 22.2%, followed by Candida (16.7%) and Colletotrichum species (11.1%). 56.7% of fungal keratitis patients were successfully treated. An initial large corneal lesion (>3 mm) showed a statistically significant association with treatment failure., Conclusion: The incidence of Moraxella and Colletotrichum species in our study was higher than that reported in other districts with different climates and environments. The results reported here reflect the unique environmental features of Jeju Island, characterised by high humidity and temperatures., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2024. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)

The control and elimination of pseudorabies (PR) is one of the most important goals in the pig industry. After the first PR outbreak in Korea in 1986, all pigs infected with PR virus (PRV) were removed, and a vaccination program for pigs was implemented. No PR has occurred in Korea since 2010, and vaccination was discontinued after 2013. Information on the seroprevalence of PRV in pigs, including wild boars ( Sus scrofa ), is important for evaluating the PR status in a country. In this study, 2.65% (28/1057) of the wild boars tested had antibodies against PRV in 2018, indicating that PRV has been circulating continuously in the wild boar population in Korea. Effective means should be implemented to prevent the transmission of PRV between wild and domestic pigs, because the wild boar is a potential reservoir host for PRV.

Introduction: Ketoacidosis of metabolic disease showed in beef cattle although body weight was increased by high-grain diets (HGDs). However, few studies have examined for health status related with metabolic disease of ketoacidosis following high-protein diet (HPD)., Objectives: Metabolomic analysis was performed for the monitoring of health status associated with metabolic disease of ketoacidosis in the plasma of Hanwoo heifers following a HPD., Methods: Hanwoo heifers of 24 months with 459 ± 42 kg weight were used under a 2 × 2 crossover design. The plasma was collected from control (n = 5) and HPD group (n = 5) on day 21 following diet adaptation for 20 days. Metabolic profiling analysis of organic acids (OAs), amino acids (AAs) and fatty acids (FAs) by gas chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry combined with star pattern analysis was performed in plasma. Levels of OAs, AAs and FAs were evaluated by Mann-Whitney test, PCA and PLS-DA., Results: In HPD group, ketoacidosis as metabolic disease was monitored by elevated acetoacetic acid and 3-hydroxybutyric acid. In addition, the elevation of ketogenic AAs, reduction of medium chain FAs and OAs with energy metabolism in TCA cycle were monitored in HPD group. Star graphic pattern was characteristic and readily distinguished between control and HPD groups. In PLS-DA, two groups were separated with VIP score of top-ranked 10 FAs as important metabolites for discrimination., Conclusion: Elevation of ketone body including ketogenic AAs and reduced energy metabolism of FAs and OAs may useful for evaluation of health states associated with ketoacidosis from metabolic event by HPD in beef cattle.

Background: Canine distemper virus (CDV) infection results in high morbidity and mortality in dogs. There has been no report about isolation of Korean CDV since 1980 in Korea., Objectives: To investigate the biological properties and the genetic characterization of Korean CDV., Methods: Vero cells expressing dog signaling lymphocyte activation molecule (dSLAM) gene named as Vero/dSLAM were used to isolate CDV using 17 samples. Diagnostic methods such as cytopathic effects, immunofluorescence assay, peroxidase linked assay, electron microscopy, rapid immunodiagnostic assay, and reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction were used to confirm the Korean CDV isolate as a CDV. The genetic analysis was performed through cloning and sequencing of hemagglutinin gene of CDV isolate., Results: A virus propagated in Vero/dSLAM cell was confirmed as CDV (CD1901 strain) based on the above methods. The CD1901 strain showed the highest viral titer (10 5.5 50% tissue culture infectious dose [TCID 50 ]/mL) in the Vero/dSLAM cells at 4 days post inoculation, but did not form a fork on chorioallantoic membrane of 7-day-old egg. Ribavirin, a nucleotide analogue anti-viral agent, inhibits moderately the Korean CDV propagation in the Vero/dSLAM cells. The nucleotide and amino acid sequences of the H gene of CD1901 strain were compared with those of other CDV strains. The CD1901 strain belonged to Asia 1 group and had the highest similarity (99.9%) with the BA134 strain, which was isolated in China in 2008., Conclusions: We constructed successfully Vero/dSLAM and isolated one Korean CDV isolate (CD1901 strain) from a naturally infected dog. The CD1901 strain belonged to Asia 1 genotype., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflicts of interest., (© 2020 The Korean Society of Veterinary Science.)

Acute cholecystitis is a rare complication of scrub typhus. Although a few such cases have been reported in patients with scrub typhus, the clinical course is not well described. Of 12 patients, acute cholecystitis developed in 66.7% (8/12) of patients older than 60 yr. The scrub typhus group with acute cholecystitis had marginal significant longer hospital stay and higher cost than the group without cholecystitis according to propensity score matching. Scrub typhus should be kept in mind as a rare etiology of acute cholecystitis in endemic areas because the typical signs of scrub typhus such as skin rash and eschar can present after the abdominal pain.

Nocardia pseudobrasiliensis is predominantly associated with invasive infections in immunocompromised patients. We report a case of disseminated mycetoma caused by N. pseudobrasiliensis in a 57-yr-old woman with microscopic polyangiitis, who was treated for 3 months with corticosteroids. The same organism was isolated from mycetoma cultures on the patient's scalp, right arm, and right leg. The phenotypic characteristics of the isolate were consistent with both Nocardia brasiliensis and N. pseudobrasiliensis, i.e., catalase and urease positivity, hydrolysis of esculin, gelatin, casein, hypoxanthine, and tyrosine, but no hydrolysis of xanthine. The isolate was identified as N. pseudobrasiliensis based on 16S rRNA and hsp65 gene sequencing. The patient was treated for 5 days with intravenous ampicillin/sulbactam, at which time both the mycetomas and fever had subsided and discharged on amoxicillin/clavulanate. This case highlights a very rare presentation of mainly cutaneous mycetoma caused by N. pseudobrasiliensis. This is the first reported case of N. pseudobrasiliensis infection in Korea.