Lesson from COVID-19 outbreak; importance of standard precautions to febrile neutropenia prevention in patients with breast cancer who received adjuvant chemotherapy: a retrospective observational study.

Purpose: Intensive cytotoxic chemotherapy increases the risk of infection in patients with cancer by inducing bone marrow suppression and mucosal injury. Febrile neutropenia (FN) is the most important clinical adverse event in patients with cancer receiving cytotoxic chemotherapy. To prevent FN, standard precautions including hand and respiratory hygiene are generally recommended, but the exact effect of non-pharmacologic intervention has not been clearly proven in the clinical setting.

Case Report: Streptococcus suis Human Infections among Pork Consumers in Jeju, South Korea: Zoonotic Threats.

Streptococcus suis, a bacterium commonly found in pigs, causes infections in humans through direct contact with infected animals or consumption of contaminated pork products. Recently, a localized outbreak of S. suis infection in humans resulted in three confirmed cases.

Population pharmacokinetic model of ABL001/CTX-009 (anti-VEGF/DLL4) in adult cancer patients with solid tumor.

ABL001/CTX-009 is a bispecific antibody targeting delta-like ligand-4 and vascular endothelial growth factor A. In this study, we developed a population pharmacokinetic (PK) model of ABL001/CTX-009 in patients with solid tumors. A total of 712 plasma concentrations from 30 patients with relapsed or refractory solid tumors were collected from a phase 1 study (NCT03292783).

Butin Protects Keratinocytes From Particulate Matter 2.5 and Ultraviolet B-Mediated Damages.

Background: Butin is a naturally occurring compound with a wide range of medicinal properties, including anti-inflammatory, anti-arthritic, and antioxidant properties. Particulate matter 2.5 (PM) and ultraviolet B (UVB) radiation contribute to skin cell damage via the induction of oxidative stress.

Masticatory Function, Sex, and Risk of Dementia Among Older Adults: A Population-Based Cohort Study.

Background: A decline in masticatory function may indicate brain dysfunction related to dementia, but the relationship between masticatory function and dementia risk remains unclear. This study aimed to investigate whether masticatory function is associated with the risk of cognitive decline and dementia.

Methods: Data were obtained from the nationwide prospective cohort study of randomly sampled community-dwelling Koreans aged ≥ 60 years.

Bone Mineral Density and Clinical Outcome after Ankle Fracture.

Background: No gold standard exists for bone mineral density (BMD) measurement of the ankle. This study aimed to determine the correlation between bone density using Hounsfield units (HU) based on computed tomography (CT) and BMD using dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) as well as to evaluate the correlation between HU and clinical outcome of ankle fracture.

Methods: Fifty-one patients aged ≥65 years who underwent surgical treatment for trimalleolus or bimalleolus ankle fractures were included.

Geographic Access to High-Volume Mechanical Thrombectomy Centers in Florida, 2019.

Background And Objectives: Mechanical thrombectomy (MT) improves outcomes for acute ischemic stroke (AIS) due to large vessel occlusion, but is time sensitive and requires specialized infrastructure. Professional organizations and certification bodies have promulgated minimum procedural volume standards for centers and for individual proceduralists but it is unclear whether enforcing these requirements would decrease geographic access to MT. Therefore, we sought to evaluate the potential impact of applying a minimum procedural volume threshold on geographic access to MT.

Mortality in elderly Parkinson's disease patients with long-term care needs: A nationwide population-based study in Korea.

Background: The effects of long-term care insurance (LTCI) in reducing medical costs and utilization among older adults have been reported. This study aims to investigate the mortality in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) requiring LTCI and its relationships with economic status.

Methods: This study was conducted using the database of the Korean National Health Insurance Service (NHIS)-Senior Cohort between 2008 and 2019.

Implications of Global Lung Function Initiative Spirometry Reference Equations in Northeast Asian Patients With COPD.

Background: Accurate spirometry interpretation is critical in the diagnosis and management of COPD. With increasing efforts for a unified approach by the Global Lung Function Initiative (GLI), this study evaluated the application of race-specific 2012 GLI and race-neutral 2022 GLI reference equations compared with Choi's reference equations, which is derived and widely used in South Korea, for spirometry interpretation in Northeast Asian patients with COPD.

Research Question: What are the effects of applying race-specific 2012 GLI, race-neutral 2022 GLI, and Choi's reference equations on the diagnosis, severity grade, and clinical outcome associations of COPD?

Study Design And Methods: Serial spirometry data from the Korea COPD Subgroup Study (KOCOSS) consisting of 3,477 patients were used for reanalysis using 2012 GLI, 2022 GLI, and Choi's reference equations.

Additional benefit of endoscopic ultrasound with bronchoscope-guided fine needle aspiration to endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration in the evaluation of lung cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration (EBUS-TBNA) and endoscopic ultrasound with bronchoscope-guided fine needle aspiration (EUS-B-FNA) are minimally invasive procedures for the diagnosis and staging of lung cancer. This study aimed to investigate the additional diagnostic value of EUS-B-FNA following EBUS-TBNA.

Methods: We performed a systematic literature review of PubMed, Embase, and the Cochrane Central Register databases and extracted the studies reporting the implementation of the combined EBUS-TBNA/EUS-B-FNA.

Factors Associated With Pain Perception and Management Among Paediatric Nurses and Nursing Students Using Virtual Children: A Comparative Study.

Aim: To identify and compare factors associated with pain perception and management among paediatric nurses and nursing students using virtual human technology.

Design: This study employed a comparative, cross-sectional design.

Methods: Fifty-one paediatric nurses from a tertiary hospital and 50 senior nursing students from a nursing college, both located in South Korea, participated in the study.

Suspected paroxysmal dyskinesia in four small-breed dogs: Clinical presentation, diagnosis, management and prognosis.

This case report details the clinical presentation, diagnosis, management and prognosis of paroxysmal dyskinesia (PD) in four small-breed dogs, each weighing under 6 kg: A 7-year-old spayed female Pomeranian, an 8-year-old female mixed breed, a 1-year-old female Pomeranian and a 9-year-old castrated male Poodle. These dogs were referred to our hospital due to movement disorders. Diagnosis was facilitated by video recordings of the episodes, assessing motor activity, consciousness, episode duration, any pre- or post-episodic behaviour as well as the presence of autonomic signs.