Subcutaneous Infliximab Concentration Thresholds for Mucosal and Transmural Healing in Patients With Crohn's Disease.

Background: Predose trough concentrations (C) of intravenous infliximab (IV-IFX) during maintenance therapy are associated with therapeutic outcomes in patients with Crohn's disease (CD). A subcutaneous formulation of infliximab (SC-IFX) has shown high C values due to its favourable pharmacokinetics.

Aims: To evaluate the association of C of SC-IFX with therapeutic outcomes and the threshold of SC-IFX C for achieving mucosal healing (MH) and transmural healing (TH) in patients with CD.

Development and Assessment of a Novel Ulcerative Colitis-Specific Quality of Life Questionnaire: A Prospective, Multi-Institutional Study.

Purpose: Interest in the quality of life (QoL) of patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) has recently increased. Although measurement tools have been devised for IBD in general, there is no specific tool for measuring the QoL of patients with ulcerative colitis (UC). Therefore, we developed a QoL questionnaire specifically for patients with UC.

Effectiveness of switching to subcutaneous infliximab in inflammatory bowel disease patients with inadequate biochemical response during intravenous administration.

Infliximab (IFX) has transformed the management of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD). While intravenous (IV) IFX has been effective, a subcutaneous (SC) formulation offers advantages in convenience and cost. However, there is lack of evidence regarding the transition from IV to SC-IFX, especially for patients with inadequate responses.

Histologic improvement predicts endoscopic remission in patients with ulcerative colitis.

Limited research has been performed to determine if histologic improvement serves as a prognosticator for endoscopic remission, a key therapeutic target for ulcerative colitis (UC). The primary aim of the study was to evaluate if histological activity could predict endoscopic remission in UC patients with Mayo endoscopic subscores (MES) of 0 or 1. In addition, we compared the clinical outcomes between histologic improvement group and active group.

Cardiac-gated spectroscopic photoacoustic imaging for ablation-induced necrotic lesion visualization.

Radiofrequency (RF) ablation is a minimally invasive therapy for atrial fibrillation. Conventional RF procedures lack intraoperative monitoring of ablation-induced necrosis, complicating assessment of completeness. While spectroscopic photoacoustic (sPA) imaging shows promise in distinguishing ablated tissue, multi-spectral imaging is challenging in vivo due to low imaging quality caused by motion.

Clinicopathologic and Endosonographic Characteristics of Colon Subepithelial Tumors Discovered Incidentally.

Background/aims: Colonoscopy is commonly used for colorectal cancer screening; therefore, the detection of colon subepithelial tumors (SETs) has also increased. Several research studies have been undertaken to diagnose and treat stomach and rectal SETs. The purpose of this study was to determine a diagnostic point for colon SETs by comparing histological findings with the endoscopic characteristics of colon SETs discovered by chance.

Rebamipide Prevents the Hemoglobin Drop Related to Mucosal-Damaging Agents at a Level Comparable to Proton Pump Inhibitors.

Background/aims: : The effect of proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) on the lower gastrointestinal (GI) tract is uncertain, with potential to worsen damage. This study aimed to find the best method for protecting the entire GI tract from mucosal damage.

Methods: : A retrospective cohort study at Samsung Medical Center (2002-2019) included 195,817 patients prescribed GI mucosa-damaging agents.

Risk factors and management of iatrogenic colorectal perforation in diagnostic colonoscopy: a single-center cohort study.

Background And Aims: Diagnostic colonoscopy plays a central role in colorectal cancer screening programs. We analyzed the risk factors for perforation during diagnostic colonoscopy and discussed the treatment outcomes.

Methods: We performed a retrospective analysis of risk factors and treatment outcomes of perforation during 74,426 diagnostic colonoscopies between 2013 and 2018 in a tertiary hospital.

Determination of Gait Events and Temporal Gait Parameters for Persons with a Knee-Ankle-Foot Orthosis.

Gait event detection is essential for controlling an orthosis and assessing the patient's gait. In this study, patients wearing an electromechanical (EM) knee-ankle-foot orthosis (KAFO) with a single IMU embedded in the thigh were subjected to gait event detection. The algorithm detected four essential gait events (initial contact (IC), toe off (TO), opposite initial contact (OIC), and opposite toe off (OTO)) and determined important temporal gait parameters such as stance/swing time, symmetry, and single/double limb support.

Measurements of Electrodermal Activity, Tissue Oxygen Saturation, and Visual Analog Scale for Different Cuff Pressures.

The quantification of comfort in binding parts, essential human-machine interfaces (HMI) for the functioning of rehabilitation robots, is necessary to reduce physical strain on the user despite great achievements in their structure and control. This study aims to investigate the physiological impacts of binding parts by measuring electrodermal activity (EDA) and tissue oxygen saturation (StO). In Experiment 1, EDA was measured from 13 healthy subjects under three different pressure conditions (10, 20, and 30 kPa) for 1 min using a pneumatic cuff on the right thigh.

Separable Tendon-Driven Robotic Manipulator with a Long, Flexible, Passive Proximal Section.

This work tackles practical issues which arise when using a tendon-driven robotic manipulator (TDRM) with a long, flexible, passive proximal section in medical applications. Tendon-driven devices are preferred in medicine for their improved outcomes via minimally invasive procedures, but TDRMs come with unique challenges such as sterilization and reuse, simultaneous control of tendons, hysteresis in the tendon-sheath mechanism, and unmodeled effects of the proximal section shape. A separable TDRM which overcomes difficulties in actuation and sterilization is introduced, in which the body containing the electronics is reusable and the remainder is disposable.

Experience of primary intestinal lymphangiectasia in adults: Twelve case series from a tertiary referral hospital.

Background: While primary intestinal lymphangiectasia (PIL) is considered a rare condition, there have been several reported cases in adults. Nevertheless, the absence of clear guidance from diagnosis to treatment and prognosis poses challenges for both physicians and patients.

Aim: To enhance understanding by investigating clinical presentation, diagnosis, treatment, complications, and prognoses in adult PIL cases.

Trends in colorectal cancer incidence according to an increase in the number of colonoscopy cases in Korea.

Background: The incidence of colorectal cancer (CRC) and preinvasive CRC (., early colon cancer and advanced adenoma) is gradually increasing in several countries.

Aim: To evaluate the trend in incidence of CRC and preinvasive CRC according to the increase in the number of colonoscopies performed in Korea.

Psychosocial and Environmental Correlates of Physical Activity in Korean Adults.

Using hypothesized structural equation modeling, we investigated contributions to physical activity (PA) from psychological, social, and environmental variables. Participants were 768 adults aged 30 years or older (men = 353, women = 415; = 42.51, = 10.

4-1BB immunotherapy: advances and hurdles.

Since its initial description 35 years ago as an inducible molecule expressed in cytotoxic and helper T cells, 4-1BB has emerged as a crucial receptor in T-cell-mediated immune functions. Numerous studies have demonstrated the involvement of 4-1BB in infection and tumor immunity. However, the clinical development of 4-1BB agonist antibodies has been impeded by the occurrence of strong adverse events, notably hepatotoxicity, even though these antibodies have exhibited tremendous promise in in vivo tumor models.

Effects of 4-week downhill treadmill walking on the vertebral angle and postural muscle activity in participants with thoracic kyphosis and forward head posture: A comparative longitudinal study.

Background: Maintaining correct posture and optimal spine function has become an important issue due to the increased use of computers and smartphones.

Objective: To investigate the effect of a 4-week downhill treadmill exercise (DTWE) program on participants with thoracic kyphosis and forward head posture (FHP).

Methods: Twenty-eight male participants were randomly assigned to the DTWE (n= 14) or standard treadmill walking exercise (STWE) (n= 14) group.

Weight loss from diagnosis of Crohn's disease to one year post-diagnosis results in earlier surgery.

Malnutrition might play a key role in the prognosis of patients with Crohn's disease (CD). The aim of this study was to explore the impact of weight loss from diagnosis of CD to one-year post-diagnosis on disease prognosis in terms of surgery. Patients who were diagnosed with CD at Samsung Medical Center between 1995 to 2020 were included in this study.

Violent Event Severity Tool for Reporting Violent Incidents.

Objectives: To explore the usefulness of the Violent Event Severity Tool (VEST).

Background: The Joint Commission and many governing bodies require establishing workplace violence prevention programs in hospitals. Inconsistent processes have hampered the efficacy evaluation of such programs for collecting and reporting violence.

TinyFallNet: A Lightweight Pre-Impact Fall Detection Model.

Falls represent a significant health concern for the elderly. While studies on deep learning-based preimpact fall detection have been conducted to mitigate fall-related injuries, additional efforts are needed for embedding in microcomputer units (MCUs). In this study, ConvLSTM, the state-of-the-art model, was benchmarked, and we attempted to lightweight it by leveraging features from image-classification models VGGNet and ResNet while maintaining performance for wearable airbags.

Can balloon-assisted enteroscopy predict disease outcomes in patients with small-bowel Crohn's disease?

There are limited studies on the endoscopic assessment of disease activity using balloon-assisted enteroscopy (BAE) and its predictive role for long-term outcomes of patients with small bowel Crohn's disease (CD). We sought to investigate the value of BAE as a predictor of long-term outcomes in patients with small-bowel CD. A total of 111 patients with small-bowel CD whose endoscopic disease activity was assessed using BAE based on the small-bowel simple endoscopic score for Crohn's disease (small-bowel SES-CD) at Samsung Medical Center were retrospectively selected from January 2014 to August 2020.