Short-Term and Long-Term Risk of Diabetes Mellitus among Patients with Spinal Cord Injury: A Nationwide Retrospective Cohort Study.

Objectives: Estimating the risk of diabetes mellitus (DM) is important for the proper management of patients with spinal cord injury (SCI). We investigated the short-term and long-term risks of DM among patients with SCI, according to the presence or severity of post-SCI disability and the level of injury.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study using the Korean National Health Insurance Service (2010-2018) database.

Dawn era for revisited cancer therapy by innate immune system and immune checkpoint inhibitors.

Immunotherapy is a promising therapeutic strategy for cancer. However, it shows limited efficacy against certain tumor types. The activation of innate immunity can suppress tumors by mitigating inflammatory and malignant behaviors through immune surveillance.

Changes in smoking, alcohol consumption, and the risk of Parkinson's disease.

Objective: There have been no studies on the association between changes in smoking and alcohol consumption or combined changes in smoking and alcohol consumption frequencies and PD risk. To assess the influence of changes in smoking and alcohol consumption on the risk of Parkinson's disease (PD).

Methods: National Health Insurance Service (NHIS) database between January 2009 to December 2011 was analyzed.

The risk of dementia in multiple sclerosis and neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder.

Introduction: Cognitive impairment is a common feature of multiple sclerosis (MS) and neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD). However, there is a lack of population-based study of dementia risk in these disorders. In the present study, the risk of dementia in MS and NMOSD patients in Republic of Korea was estimated.

Risk of fracture in neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder and multiple sclerosis: a nationwide cohort study in South Korea.

Purpose: Interest in fractures in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) and neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD) has considerably increased in the last decade. However, few studies have compared the incidence of fractures between patients with MS and NMOSD using a nationwide database. This study aimed to evaluate the differences in the risk of fracture between patients with NMOSD and MS compared to that in healthy controls using cohort data from a Korean nationwide database.

Application of Metabolic Reprogramming to Cancer Imaging and Diagnosis.

Cellular metabolism governs the signaling that supports physiological mechanisms and homeostasis in an individual, including neuronal transmission, wound healing, and circadian clock manipulation. Various factors have been linked to abnormal metabolic reprogramming, including gene mutations, epigenetic modifications, altered protein epitopes, and their involvement in the development of disease, including cancer. The presence of multiple distinct hallmarks and the resulting cellular reprogramming process have gradually revealed that these metabolism-related molecules may be able to be used to track or prevent the progression of cancer.

Revisited Metabolic Control and Reprogramming Cancers by Means of the Warburg Effect in Tumor Cells.

Aerobic glycolysis is an emerging hallmark of many human cancers, as cancer cells are defined as a "metabolically abnormal system". Carbohydrates are metabolically reprogrammed by its metabolizing and catabolizing enzymes in such abnormal cancer cells. Normal cells acquire their energy from oxidative phosphorylation, while cancer cells acquire their energy from oxidative glycolysis, known as the "Warburg effect".

Physiological Properties, Functions, and Trends in the Matrix Metalloproteinase Inhibitors in Inflammation-Mediated Human Diseases.

Background: Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), also known as metalloproteinases, are enzymes that degrade proteins and require the presence of active metal atoms. There are more than 20 types of MMPs, and they promote cell migration through the proteolytic degradation of the extracellular basement. MMPs are upregulated in cancers and inflamed regions.

Frequent drinking is more predictive of ischemic stroke than binge drinking, but not of myocardial infarction.

Background And Aims: Alcohol consumption has complex effects on myocardial infarction (MI) and ischemic stroke. We investigated the difference in associations according to drinking patterns (drinking frequency vs. amount per occasion) and sex.

Impact of Frailty on the Relationship between Blood Pressure and Cardiovascular Diseases and Mortality in Young-Old Adults.

The optimal blood pressure (BP) target in older people according to frailty status remains uncertain. This article investigates how frailty affects the association between BP and cardiovascular diseases or mortality, specifically in young-old adults. A retrospective cohort was created for 708,964 older adults with a uniform age of 66 years.

Smoking, Alcohol Consumption, and the Risk of Thyroid Cancer: A Population-Based Korean Cohort Study of 10 Million People.

It is unclear if cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption are associated with thyroid cancer risk. Our aim was to explore for any associations between cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption with thyroid cancer, after adjusting for potential confounders. Using data from the Korean National Health Insurance database, we retrospectively identified individuals aged ≥20 years who participated in the 2009 health screening program and were followed until 2017.

Female Reproductive Factors and the Risk of Bronchiectasis: A Nationwide Population-Based Longitudinal Study.

Although the oestrogen level is thought to be involved in the occurrence of bronchiectasis, limited data are available on the relationship between female reproductive factors and the risk of bronchiectasis. We performed a population-based retrospective cohort study of 959,523 premenopausal women and 1,362,401 postmenopausal women without a previous history of bronchiectasis who participated in a health screening exam in 2009 in South Korea. In premenopausal women, compared with a later age at menarche (≥16 years), an earlier menarche (<12 years) was associated with a reduced risk of bronchiectasis with an adjusted hazard ratio (aHR) (95% confidence interval (CI)) of 0.

Status of dyslipidemia management and statin undertreatment in Korean cancer survivors: A Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey study.

Aims: Due to improving cancer treatment results, non-cancer mortality is an important issue for cancer survivors. Cardiovascular diseases are the leading causes of death in Korea and globally. In addition to lowering the risk of cardiovascular disease, the use of statins has led to an overall reduction in cancer mortality in recent observational studies.

Associations of Variability in Metabolic Parameters with Lung Cancer: A Nationwide Population-Based Study.

We investigated whether visit-to-visit variability in metabolic parameters is associated with lung cancer risk. We used nationally representative data from the Korean National Health Insurance System, and 8,011,209 lung-cancer-free subjects who underwent over three health examinations from 2005 to 2010 were followed until 2017. Variability of fasting blood glucose, total cholesterol, systolic blood pressure, and body weight were measured by the variability independent of the mean, assessed by quartiles.

Three-Dimensional Imaging for Multiplex Phenotypic Analysis of Pancreatic Microtumors Grown on a Minipillar Array Chip.

Three-dimensional (3D) culture of tumor spheroids (TSs) within the extracellular matrix (ECM) represents a microtumor model that recapitulates human solid tumors in vivo, and is useful for 3D multiplex phenotypic analysis. However, the low efficiency of 3D culture and limited 3D visualization of microtumor specimens impose technical hurdles for the evaluation of TS-based phenotypic analysis. Here, we report a 3D microtumor culture-to-3D visualization system using a minipillar array chip combined with a tissue optical clearing (TOC) method for high-content phenotypic analysis of microtumors.

Cardiovascular risk and undertreatment of dyslipidemia in lung cancer survivors: A nationwide population-based study.

Background: In lung cancer survivors, cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are the leading cause of noncancer deaths. Nonetheless, there is lack of information on management of dyslipidemia, a major risk factor for future CVD events, in lung cancer survivors. This study aimed to assess dyslipidemia management and prevalence of statin eligibility in lung cancer survivors.

Smoking, alcohol consumption, and the risk of thyroid cancer: a population-based Korean cohort study of 10 million people.

Background: The association between smoking, alcohol consumption, and thyroid cancer has been evaluated in observational studies, yet the results remain controversial. In the present investigation, we analyzed a longitudinal cohort study with representative data to determine the association between smoking, alcohol consumption, and thyroid cancer risk, allowing for risk modification due to age and sex.

Methods: From the Korean National Health Insurance database, .

Patient-family communication mediates the relation between family hardiness and caregiver positivity: Exploring the moderating role of caregiver depression and anxiety.

Despite the theoretical and empirical significance of positive aspects of caregiving in caregiver well-being, relatively little is known regarding family-related predictors of caregiver positivity. This study examines whether patient-family communication (p-f communication) mediates the relation between family hardiness and caregiver positivity and whether the mediating effects of p-f communication are moderated by the levels of caregiver depression and anxiety. This study used secondary data obtained from a large-scale cross-sectional national survey conducted in South Korea.

Real-time in vivo two-photon imaging study reveals decreased cerebro-vascular volume and increased blood-brain barrier permeability in chronically stressed mice.

Chronic stress disrupts brain homeostasis and adversely affects the cerebro-vascular system. Even though the effects of chronic stress on brain system have been extensively studied, there are few in vivo dynamic studies on the effects of chronic stress on the cerebro-vascular system. In this study, the effects of chronic stress on cerebral vasculature and BBB permeability were studied using in vivo two-photon (2p) microscopic imaging with an injection of fluorescence-conjugated dextran.