Population attributable fraction of indicators for musculoskeletal diseases: a cross-sectional study of fishers in Korea.

Background: The musculoskeletal disease (MSD) burden is an important health problem among Korean fishers. We aimed to investigate the indicators of the prevalence of MSD and contributions of significant indicators to MSD in Korean fishers.

Methods: This cross-section study included 927 fishers (male, 371; female, 556) aged 40 to 79 years who were enrolled from 3 fishery safety and health centers.

Radiographic hand osteoarthritis in women farmers: characteristics and risk factors.

Background: Repetitive hand use increases the risk of hand osteoarthritis (OA). This study aimed to investigate characteristics of and risk factors for hand OA in Korean women farmers.

Methods: This cross-sectional study included women farmers resident in Jeollanam-do, Korea.

Characteristics of lumbar disc degeneration and risk factors for collapsed lumbar disc in Korean farmers and fishers.

Background: Few studies have investigated the risk factors for lumbar intervertebral disc degeneration among hard physical workers involved in heavy lifting. In this study, we aimed to identify the characteristics of lumbar intervertebral disc degeneration and evaluate the relationship between collapsed lumbar disc and potential risk factors in farmers and fishers.

Methods: This study included 203 farmers (103 men and 100 women) and 166 fishers (95 men and 71 women) aged 40-69 years who had undergone lumbar magnetic resonance imaging and were enrolled in the Korea Farmer's Knee Cohort and the Jeonnam Fishers' Cohort.

Work-related factors of knee osteoarthritis in Korean farmers: a cross-sectional study.

Background: Several studies have reported a high prevalence of osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee among agricultural workers. We investigated work-related factors that increase the risk of knee OA among Korean farmers.

Methods: Data were extracted from the Jeonnam Center for Farmer's Safety and Health survey, conducted between 2013 and 2015.

Work-Related Risk Factors of Knee Meniscal Tears in Korean Farmers: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Background: Meniscal tears are among the major risk factors for knee osteoarthritis progression. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between meniscal tears and work-related factors in the farming occupation.

Methods: The participants included 486 farmers (238 men and 248 women), aged 40-69 years, who were among the 550 farmers registered in the Korea Farmer's Knee Cohort (KFKC).

Factors related to femoral bowing among Korean female farmers: a cross-sectional study.

Background: Female farmers have a high prevalence of knee osteoarthritis (KOA) in South Korea. Femoral bowing has been reported to be related to KOA by increasing load on the mechanical axis. This study aimed to investigate factors related to femoral bowing in Korean female farmers.

Effects of work-related factors on self-reported smoking among female workers in call centers: a cross-sectional study.

Objectives: This study conducted to investigate work-related factors in relation to smoking among women working in call centers in Gwangju, South Korea.

Methods: From 56 call centers (7320 employees), we selected 10 and conducted a survey using a structured questionnaire by randomly selecting 10% of workers from each center. A total of 387 subjects participated in this survey We analyzed for 375 respondents, after excluding men and those with missing responses.

Evaluation of the prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms, presumptive diagnosis, medical care use, and sick leave among female school meal service workers.

Background: Most of the school meal service workers in Korea are middle-aged individuals. They have high workload, which increases their incidence of musculoskeletal disorders. This study aimed to evaluate the prevalence and risk factors of subjective musculoskeletal symptoms, presumptive diagnosis, medical care use, and sick leave among female school meal workers.

Environmental Tobacco Smoke Exposure at Home and High-Sensitivity C-Reactive Protein Levels in Three-to-Five-Year-Old Children.

Exposure to harmful environmental factors is particularly detrimental to younger children. We investigated the relationship between environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) exposure in pre-schoolers at home and the level of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), a predictive factor for cardiovascular disease. This study was conducted in 2014 and was based on the data of preschool children from the Korean Environmental Health Survey in Children and Adolescents (2012 to 2014), a nationally representative sample.

Comparison of facet joint degeneration in firefighters and hospital office workers.

Background: There are few published studies on the relationship between occupational lumbar load and facet joint degeneration (FJD). This cross-sectional study was conducted to evaluate the effect of physical lumbar load on FJD by comparing magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings of firefighters (FFs) and hospital office workers (HOWs).

Methods: We randomly sampled 341 male FFs and 80 male HOWs by age stratification.

Cases of acute mercury poisoning by mercury vapor exposure during the demolition of a fluorescent lamp factory.

Background: In 2015, workers dismantling a fluorescent lamp factory in Korea were affected by mercury poisoning from exposure to mercury vapor.

Case Presentation: Eighteen out of the 21 workers who participated in the demolition project presented with symptoms of poisoning and, of these, 10 had persistent symptoms even at 18 months after the initial exposure to mercury vapor. Early symptoms of 18 workers included a general skin rash, pruritus, myalgia, sleep disturbance, and cough and sputum production.

Systemic sclerosis due to crystalline silica exposure among jewelry workers in Korea: two case reports.

Background: Occupational exposure to crystalline silica is a potential risk factor for various systemic autoimmune diseases including systemic sclerosis. The etiology of systemic sclerosis is not conclusively known, but there are epidemiological studies that show the relationship between exposure to crystalline silica and risk of systemic sclerosis. Here we report, for the first time, two cases of crystalline silica-related systemic sclerosis in patients who worked in crystal processing in the jewelry-manufacturing field.

Air pollution and urinary n-acetyl-B-glucosaminidase levels in residents living near a cement plant.

Background: To identify adverse renal effects due to air pollution derived from a cement plant in Korea. Urinary n-acetyl-B-glucosaminidase (U-NAG) levels in residents living near a cement plant were compared to those in a group who lived farther away from the plant.

Methods: From June to August 2013 and from August to November 2014, laboratory tests for U-NAG and heavy metal were conducted on 547 study participants.

Lumbar intervertebral disc degeneration and related factors in Korean firefighters.

Objectives: The job of firefighting can cause lumbar burden and low back pain. This study aimed to identify the association between age and lumbar intervertebral disc degeneration and whether the association differs between field and administrative (non-field) firefighters.

Methods: Subjects were selected using a stratified random sampling method.

Effect of thigh muscle fatigue on the biomechanical factors of the lower limbs when walking in a squatted position.

[Purpose] The purpose of this study was to compare and analyze the effects of thigh muscle fatigue caused by walking in a squatted position on biomechanical factors, to evaluate the risk of a job performed sitting in a squatted position for a long period of time. [Subjects and Methods] Eighteen right foot dominant women without any injuries in their joints and body in the last 6 months were selected. They walked in a squatted position, and then muscle fatigue was induced by using an isokinetic muscular function measuring device (CSMI, USA).

Representative levels of blood lead, mercury, and urinary cadmium in youth: Korean Environmental Health Survey in Children and Adolescents (KorEHS-C), 2012-2014.

Background: This study examined levels of blood lead and mercury, and urinary cadmium, and associated sociodemographic factors in 3-18 year-old Korean children and adolescents.

Materials And Methods: We used the nationally representative Korean Environmental Health Survey in Children and Adolescents data for 2012-2014 and identified 2388 children and adolescents aged 3-18 years. The median and 95th percentile exposure biomarker levels with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated.

Emphysema prevalence related air pollution caused by a cement plant.

Background: To identify adverse pulmonary health effects due to air pollution derived from a cement plant in Korea. The emphysema prevalence in residents around a cement plant was compared to that in the group who live far away from the plant by chest films (PA and lateral view) and high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) lung images.

Methods: From June to August in 2013 and from August to November in 2014, chest films and HRCT scan were conducted on residents over the age of 40 who lived around a cement plant.

Association of current phthalate exposure with neurobehavioral development in a national sample.

Background: Previous studies have indicated that phthalate exposure may influence the development of children, but the current data are limited, and controversy remains regarding the sex-specific and age-specific effects of phthalate exposure.

Methods: We investigated the sex- and age-specific associations of current phthalate exposure with neurobehavioral development scores in a nationally representative sample of 6-18-year-olds participating in the Korean Environmental Health Survey in Children and Adolescents (KorEHS-C). Neurobehavioral development was assessed using the Korean Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL, N=1723) and the Korean Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Rating Scale (ARS, N=867).

Ventilation impairment of residents around a cement plant.

Objectives: To identify adverse health effects due to air pollution derived from a cement plant in Korea. The ventilation impairment in residents around a cement plant was compared to another group through a pulmonary function test (PFT).

Methods: From June to August of 2013, both a pre and post-bronchodilator PFT was conducted on a "more exposed group (MEG)" which consisted of 318 people who lived within a 1 km radius of a cement plant and a "less exposed group (LEG)" which consisted of 129 people who lived more than 5 km away from the same plant.

Giant cell tumor of upper thoracic spine.

Giant cell tumor (GCT) of the spine is a rare benign tumor, but can be aggressive and can exhibit a high local recurrence rate. Furthermore, GCT of the upper thoracic spine may pose diagnostic and management difficulties. Here, we report a rare case of GCT of the upper thoracic spine with soft tissue extension to the spinal canal.

Clinical analysis of microscopic removal of discal cyst.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the clinical presentation and surgical outcome in patients with symptomatic discal cyst.

Methods: The authors reviewed consequent 9 patients in whom microscopic excision of the discal cyst with or without additional discectomy for discal cyst from 2005 to 2012. Diagnostic imagings including simple radiographs, computed tomography with discogram and magnetic resonance images were performed in each case.

The associations between ADHD and asthma in Korean children.

Background: The aim of this study was to investigate the associations between attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), the most common neuropsychiatric disorder in school children, and childhood allergic disease by evaluating their respective prevalence.

Methods: Subjects were comprised of first and second grade students in twenty two elementary schools in a city in the Republic of Korea. The mode of measurement for ADHD was based on DSM-IV from clinical interviews conducted by child psychiatrists.

Cardiovascular disease risk of bus drivers in a city of Korea.

Objective: To prevent the occurrence of CV events such as MI and stroke among professional drivers in Korea, bus drivers were compared to other occupations through the Framingham risk scoring system (FRS) or metabolic syndrome (MS) of cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk assessment methods.

Methods: In October 2012, a health examination survey was conducted for 443 male bus drivers in a big city. Their CVD risk factors were compared to those of a 'total employed' (A group) and 'crafts and machine operators' (B group) extracted from Fifth Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES, 2010) data by using FRS and MS.

Mobile phone use, blood lead levels, and attention deficit hyperactivity symptoms in children: a longitudinal study.

Background: Concerns have developed for the possible negative health effects of radiofrequency electromagnetic field (RF-EMF) exposure to children's brains. The purpose of this longitudinal study was to investigate the association between mobile phone use and symptoms of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) considering the modifying effect of lead exposure.

Methods: A total of 2,422 children at 27 elementary schools in 10 Korean cities were examined and followed up 2 years later.