Journal of Korean Medical Science最新文献

Background: This retrospective observational matched cohort study assessed the differences in critical infections caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) during the omicron-predominant period of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. We evaluated the vaccine effectiveness of bivalent mRNA vaccine compared to unvaccinated individuals.

Methods: We collected COVID-19 case data from the Korean COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness cohort. We calculated the probability of critical COVID-19 cases by comparing the vaccinated and unvaccinated groups.

Results: The risk of being critically infected due to SAR-CoV-2 infection was 5.96 times higher (95% confidence interval, 5.63-6.38) among older individuals who were unvaccinated compared to those who received the bivalent COVID-19 vaccine.

Conclusion: Our findings indicate that the bivalent vaccine reduces the disease burden of the SARS-CoV-2 omicron variant, particularly among the older population. Further studies are warranted to determine the effectiveness of booster doses of vaccines for SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Correspondence in the form of letters to the editor serves multiple scholarly purposes, including critiquing previously published articles, engaging in discourse with other correspondents, commenting on the journal's structure or style, and contributing insights for future publications. The composition of such letters warrants meticulous attention, as they play a crucial role in fostering communication between the journal and its readership. Adherence to specific principles is essential in crafting an effective letter to the editor. These communications should be concise, lucid, and adhere to a professional tone. The content should be constructive in nature and substantiated by rigorous scientific evidence and appropriate citations. The structure of a letter to the editor typically encompasses several key components: a title, an opening section, the main body of the correspondence, a closing statement, and a list of references. This article aims to establish Letter to the Editor Standards as a comprehensive guide for authors, reviewers, and editorial boards, thereby enhancing the quality and impact of this crucial form of academic discourse.

Background: As society ages, the incidence of Alzheimer's disease and other dementias has surged, highlighting the importance of early dementia diagnosis. The Seoul Cognitive Status Test (SCST), a digital neuropsychological test, is designed for the early detection of cognitive impairment and has been standardized to establish reliability and validity. This study aims to verify whether the SCST effectively discriminates between groups based on three cognitive statuses (subjective cognitive decline [SCD], mild cognitive impairment [MCI], Dementia) in a large sample. We also seek to determine whether the SCST discriminates between individuals with three different cognitive statuses as defined by the Cognitive Dementia Rating (CDR).

Methods: We enrolled 254 participants from a dementia clinic who underwent a comprehensive neuropsychological battery (Seoul Neuropsychological Screening Battery-II) during the dementia evaluation by experienced neurologists (55 with SCD, 126 with MCI, 73 with dementia). In addition, the degree of cognitive decline in participants was classified by CDR level (186 with CDR 0.5, 52 with CDR 1, 15 with CDR 2). One-way analysis of variance was used to compare SCST scores according to each of the three cognitive status groups and CDR levels.

Results: The SCST total score, cognitive domain scores (attention, language, visuospatial function, memory, executive function), and most of the subtest scores decreased significantly in the order of SCD, MCI and dementia. Likewise, the differences in SCST scores between CDR levels were significant, particularly in distinguishing between CDR 0.5 and CDR 1.

Conclusion: This study reaffirmed that the SCST can significantly discriminate between groups of individuals with SCD, MCI, and dementia based on a large sample. Furthermore, differences in SCT scores were found across the levels of CDR, confirming the clinical utility of the SCST. These findings suggest that the SCST is an efficient and useful neuropsychological test for the sensitive detection of early cognitive impairment.

Background: We aimed to identify the prognostic factors for late intrahepatic recurrence (IHR), defined as recurrence more than two years after curative treatment of newly diagnosed hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

Methods: This retrospective cohort study included patients with newly diagnosed, previously untreated, very early, or early HCC treated with initial curative treatment and followed up without recurrence for more than two years, excluding early IHR defined as recurrence within two years in single center. Late IHR-free survival (IHRFS) was defined as the time interval from initial curative treatment to the first IHR or death without IHR, whichever occurred first.

Results: Among all the enrolled 2,304 patients, 1,427 (61.9%) underwent curative intent hepatectomy and the remaining 877 (38.1%) underwent local ablative therapy (LAT). During the follow-up after curative treatment (median, 82.6 months; range, 24.1 to 195.7), late IHR was detected in 816 (35.4%) patients. In the multivariable analysis, age, male sex, cirrhotic liver at diagnosis, type of initial treatment, and modified albumin-bilirubin (mALBI) grade were significant prognostic baseline factors. Furthermore, mALBI grade at three (2a vs. 1, P = 0.02, hazard ratio [HR], 1.33; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.04-1.70; 2b/3 vs. 1, P = 0.03; HR, 1.42; 95% CI, 1.03-1.94) and six months (2b/3 vs. 1; P = 0.006; HR, 1.61; 95% CI, 1.13-2.30) after initial curative treatment was also a significant prognostic factor for late IHR.

Conclusion: After curative treatment for newly diagnosed early HCC, the mALBI grade at three and six months after initial curative treatment, as well as at baseline, was one of the most crucial prognostic factors for late IHR.

Background: The efficacy and safety of direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) versus warfarin in patients with antiphospholipid syndrome-associated venous thromboembolism (APS-VTE) remain uncertain. We aimed to evaluate efficacy and safety of DOACs in patients with APS-VTE.

Methods: Using the Korean Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service database, we retrospectively identified all APS-VTE cases. We examined the VTE recurrence, arterial thrombosis, death and bleeding in patients who received DOACs compared with warfarin for therapeutic anticoagulation.

Results: Of all the VTE cases (n = 84,916) detected between 2014 and 2018, patients with APS-VTE (n = 410) accounted for 0.48%. Most patients with APS-VTE (73%) were aged < 60 years. The recurrent VTE occurred in 8 of 209 patients (3.8%) who received DOACs and in 7 of 201 (3.5%) who received warfarin (relative risk [RR], 1.099; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.41-2.98; P = 1.000). The arterial thrombosis (ATE) occurred in 8 of 209 patients (3.8%) who received DOAC and in 20 of 201 (10%) who received warfarin (RR, 0.385; 95% CI, 0.17-0.85; P = 0.024). The composite outcomes of VTE recurrence, ATE, or mortality were significantly lower in patients (9.1%) on DOAC than in those (16.3%) on warfarin (RR, 0.537; 95% CI, 0.32-0.91; P = 0.028). The bleeding outcome occurred in 7 of 209 (3.4%) patients in the DOACs group and 7 of 201 (3.5%) patients in the warfarin group (RR, 0.96; 95% CI, 0.34-2.69; P = 0.840).

Conclusion: In patients with APS-VTE, DOACs group showed comparable rates of recurrent VTE, bleeding, and deaths, but a significantly lower incidence of ATE and composite outcomes compared with the warfarin group in Korea.

Background: Achieving a definitive genetic diagnosis of unexplained multiple congenital anomalies (MCAs) in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) infants is challenging because of the limited diagnostic capabilities of conventional genetic tests. Although the implementation of whole genome sequencing (WGS) has commenced for diagnosing MCAs, due to constraints in resources and faculty, many NICUs continue to utilize chromosomal microarray (CMA) and/or karyotyping as the initial diagnostic approach. We aimed to evaluate the diagnostic efficacy of WGS in infants with MCAs who have received negative results from karyotyping and/or CMA.

Methods: In this prospective study, we enrolled 80 infants with MCAs who were admitted to a NICU at a single center and had received negative results from CMA and/or karyotyping. The phenotypic characteristics were classified according to the International Classification of Diseases and the Human Phenotype Ontology. We assessed the diagnostic yield of trio-WGS in infants with normal chromosomal result and explored the process of diagnosing by analyzing both phenotype and genotype. Also, we compared the phenotype and clinical outcomes between the groups diagnosed with WGS and the undiagnosed group.

Results: The diagnostic yield of WGS was 26% (21/80), of which 76% were novel variants. There was a higher diagnostic yield in cases of craniofacial abnormalities, including those of the eye and ear, and a lower diagnostic yield in cases of gastrointestinal and genitourinary abnormalities. In addition, higher rates of rehabilitation therapy and gastrostomy were observed in WGS-diagnosed infants than in undiagnosed infants.

Conclusion: This prospective cohort study assessed the usefulness of trio-WGS following chromosomal analysis for diagnosing MCAs in the NICU and revealed improvements in the diagnostic yield and clinical utility of WGS.

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. The 5,064 non-demented participants, whose number of chewing cycles per bite was assessed by clinical interview, were followed for 8 years with biennial assessments of cognitive performance and clinical diagnoses of all-cause dementia and Alzheimer's disease (AD). Structural brain magnetic resonance imaging was collected from a subset of cohort participants and their spouses for imaging analyses.

Results: Males who chewed ≥ 30 cycles/bite had faster decline in global cognition and memory function and were at higher risk for incident all-cause dementia (hazard ratio [HR], 2.91; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.18-7.18) and AD (HR, 3.22; 95% CI, 1.14-9.11) compared to males with less than 10 cycles/bite. Additionally, increased chewing cycles in males were associated with reduced brain volume, particularly in regions involved in compensatory cognitive control of mastication. There was no significant association between chewing cycles and the risk of dementia or brain volume in females.

Conclusion: Older men who frequently chew their meals could be considered a notable population at risk for dementia who should be carefully assessed for their cognitive trajectories.