Can Pre-Transplant Psychometric Testing Predict Tacrolimus Intrapatient Variability After Living Kidney Transplantation?

Objective: Tacrolimus intrapatient variability (Tac IPV) has been considered a marker for post-graft risk. We investigated pre-transplant psychometric testing to predict Tac IPV after living kidney transplantation.

Methods: Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 (MMPI-2) examined during pre-transplant evaluation by 102 recipients were analyzed.

Development of a Guideline for Antipsychotic-induced Hyperprolactinemia in Korea Using the ADAPTE Process.

Objective: To develop an evidence-based guideline for the diagnosis and treatment of antipsychotic-induced hyperprolactinemia by adapting existing high-quality clinical guidelines with a view to improve the clinical symptoms and long-term quality of life of patients by providing appropriate management.

Methods: This guideline was developed according to the ADAPTE methodology. The adaptation process included determining key health questions, systematically searching and screening guidelines, evaluating the quality and contents of these guidelines, deriving recommendations for key questions, and performing a peer review.

Empyema in a Patient with Schizophrenia Using Clozapine: A Case Report.

Schizophrenia is associated with a high risk of thoracic infections and pneumonia. The use of atypical antipsychotics clozapine may also increase the risk of pulmonary infection. However, psychotic patients are less likely to report physical symptoms, and these dangerous conditions may go undetected.

Effect of multimodal intervention care on cachexia in patients with advanced cancer compared to conventional management (MIRACLE): an open-label, parallel, randomized, phase 2 trial.

Background: Cancer cachexia (CC) is a multifactorial process characterized by progressive weight loss, muscle mass, and fat tissue wasting, which adversely affects the quality of life and survival of patients with advanced stages of cancer. CC has a complex and multifactorial pathophysiology, and there is no established standard treatment. Therefore, it is often irreversible and a single treatment modality is unlikely to suppress its progression.

Association between Unc-51-like autophagy activating kinase 2 gene polymorphisms and schizophrenia in the Korean population.

Accumulating evidence indicates that the autophagy process is involved in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia. Autophagy plays a fundamental role in neuronal survival and function, and autophagy-related genes have been suggested to be associated with the pathogenesis of schizophrenia. The Unc-51-like autophagy activating kinase 2 (ULK2) gene has been implicated in autophagy regulation; therefore, we hypothesized that ULK2 polymorphisms may be associated with schizophrenia susceptibility.

Identification of Brain Damage after Seizures Using an MR-Based Electrical Conductivity Imaging Method.

Previous imaging studies have shown the morphological malformation and the alterations of ionic mobility, water contents, electrical properties, or metabolites in seizure brains. Magnetic resonance electrical properties tomography (MREPT) is a recently developed technique for the measurement of electrical tissue properties with a high frequency that provides cellular information regardless of the cell membrane. In this study, we examined the possibility of MREPT as an applicable technique to detect seizure-induced functional changes in the brain of rats.

Association between the promoter haplotype of RTN4 gene and schizophrenia in a Korean population.

Previous studies have suggested the involvement of Nogo-A/RTN4 in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia. We investigated an association between the promoter haplotypes of RTN4 comprised of rs1348528-rs1822618-rs2241958 and schizophrenia. A significant association between the rare TGA haplotype and schizophrenia was shown (p < 0.

Early-Life Stress Modulates Gut Microbiota and Peripheral and Central Inflammation in a Sex-Dependent Manner.

Recent studies have reported that changes in gut microbiota composition could induce neuropsychiatric problems. In this study, we investigated alterations in gut microbiota induced by early-life stress (ELS) in rats subjected to maternal separation (MS; 6 h a day, postnatal days (PNDs) 1-21), along with changes in inflammatory cytokines and tryptophan-kynurenine (TRP-KYN) metabolism, and assessed the differences between sexes. High-throughput sequencing of the bacterial 16S rRNA gene showed that the relative abundance of the genus was increased and that of the Lachnospiraceae family was decreased in the feces of MS rats of both sexes (PND 56).

Economic burden of eating disorders in South Korea.

Background: Few studies have investigated the epidemiology of eating disorders using national representative data. In this study, we investigated the treatment prevalence and economic burden of eating disorders in South Korea.

Methods: The aim of this study was to estimate the treatment prevalence and the medical expenditure of diagnosed eating disorders (ICD F50.

Depression, Anxiety, Related Risk Factors and Cognitive Distortion in Korean Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease.

Objective: To evaluate the severity of depression, anxiety, associated risk factors, and cognitive distortion in Korean patients with ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn's disease (CD).

Methods: This study included 369 patients with inflammatory bowel disease. The severity of depression and anxiety was examined using Patient Health Questionnaire-9 and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale.

Association of the Promoter Haplotype of IFN-γ-Inducible Protein 16 Gene with Schizophrenia in a Korean Population.

Objective: Viral infections play an important role in the development of schizophrenia, inducing the faulty immunological responses and aberrant inflammation. IFN-γ-inducible protein 16 (IFI16) is an immunological DNA sensor against viral infections, triggering the inflammatory responses. In this study, we investigated an association between putative promoter single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and haplotypes of IFI16 and schizophrenia.

Differences in Personality, Defense Styles, and Coping Strategies in Individuals with Depressive Disorder According to Age Groups Across the Lifespan.

Objective: This study aimed to examine the differences in personality, defense style, and coping styles among patients with depression according to age groups.

Methods: A total of 211 participants ranging from 19 to 81 years old were recruited for the study. To assess participants' five dimensions of personality, the Neuroticism-Extraversion-Openness Personality Inventory-Revised (NEO-PI-R) was administered.

The Development of Evidence-Based Guideline for Diagnosis and Management of Headache in Korea.

Objective: We aimed to develop the clinical guideline for headache by the systematic review and synthesis of existing evidence-based guidelines. The purpose of developing the guideline was to improve the appropriateness of diagnosis and treatment of headache disorder, and consequently, to improve patients' pain control and quality of life. The guideline broadly covers the differential diagnosis and treatment of tension-type headache, migraine, cluster headache, and medication-overuse headache.

Psychological impact of the 2015 MERS outbreak on hospital workers and quarantined hemodialysis patients.

Objectives: This study aimed to assess the immediate stress and psychological impact experienced by quarantined patients undergoing hemodialysis and university hospital workers who treated patients Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) during its outbreak.

Design: The group of subjects consisted of 1800 hospital practitioners and 73 quarantined patients undergoing hemodialysis. The Impact of Events Scale-Revised (IES-R) was administered to the practitioners twice, once during the hospital shutdown and again one month after the shutdown.

Association of CCL11 promoter polymorphisms with schizophrenia in a Korean population.

Background: Immunological alterations and dysregulation of the inflammatory response have been suggested to play a crucial role in schizophrenia pathophysiology. Growing evidence supports the involvement of chemokines in brain development, thus many chemokines have been studied in relation with schizophrenia. The C-C motif chemokine ligand 11 (CCL11) has been shown to be related with synaptic plasticity and neurogenesis.

BBOX1 is down-regulated in maternal immune-activated mice and implicated in genetic susceptibility to human schizophrenia.

Prenatal exposure to infectious or inflammatory insults can increase the risk of developing neuropsychiatric disorders such as bipolar disorder, autism, and schizophrenia in later life. Gamma-butyrobetaine hydroxylase (BBOX 1) is an enzyme responsible for the biosynthesis of l-carnitine, a key molecule in fatty acid metabolism. This cytosolic dimeric protein belongs to the dioxygenase family.

Factors Related to Noncompliance in Screening and Tracking Mild Cognitive Impairment Patients in a Single Community.

Objective: We assessed the cumulative conversion rates (CCR) from minor cognitive impairment (MCI) to dementia among individuals who failed to participate in annual screening for dementia. Additionally, we analyzed the reasons for failing to receive follow-up screening in order to develop better strategies for improving follow-up screening rates.

Methods: We contacted MCI patients who had not visited the Dongdaemun-gu Center for Dementia for annual screening during the year following their registration.

Association between Mitofusin 2 Gene Polymorphisms and Late-Onset Alzheimer's Disease in the Korean Population.

Objective: Mitochondrial dysfunction is a prominent and early feature of Alzheimer's disease (AD). The morphologic changes observed in the AD brain could be caused by a failure of mitochondrial fusion mechanisms. The aim of this study was to investigate whether genetic polymorphisms of two genes involved in mitochondrial fusion mechanisms, optic atrophy 1 () and mitofusin 2 (), were associated with AD in the Korean population by analyzing genotypes and allele frequencies.