• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
• /
• v.87 no.2
• /
• pp.176-184
• /
• 2024

Background: Results of studies investigating the association between body mass index (BMI) and mortality in patients with coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) have been conflicting. Methods: This multicenter, retrospective observational study, conducted between January 2020 and August 2021, evaluated the impact of obesity on outcomes in patients with severe COVID-19 in a Korean national cohort. A total of 1,114 patients were enrolled from 22 tertiary referral hospitals or university-affiliated hospitals, of whom 1,099 were included in the analysis, excluding 15 with unavailable height and weight information. The effect(s) of BMI on patients with severe COVID-19 were analyzed. Results: According to the World Health Organization BMI classification, 59 patients were underweight, 541 were normal, 389 were overweight, and 110 were obese. The overall 28-day mortality rate was 15.3%, and there was no significant difference according to BMI. Univariate Cox analysis revealed that BMI was associated with 28-day mortality (hazard ratio, 0.96; p=0.045), but not in the multivariate analysis. Additionally, patients were divided into two groups based on BMI ≥25 kg/m² and underwent propensity score matching analysis, in which the two groups exhibited no significant difference in mortality at 28 days. The median (interquartile range) clinical frailty scale score at discharge was higher in nonobese patients (3 [3 to 5] vs. 4 [3 to 6], p<0.001). The proportion of frail patients at discharge was significantly higher in the nonobese group (28.1% vs. 46.8%, p<0.001). Conclusion: The obesity paradox was not evident in this cohort of patients with severe COVID-19. However, functional outcomes at discharge were better in the obese group.

• KSCE Journal of Civil and Environmental Engineering Research
• /
• v.36 no.1
• /
• pp.181-190
• /
• 2016

Improvements in disaster management has become a global necessity because the magnitude of disasters is intensifying in parallel with the increased disaster damage. The disaster risk in Korea is also increasing due to the emergence of new types of disaster; such as the Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus, the increase of complex disasters, and the heightened probability of a catastrophic event due to climate change. This paper aimed to identify the disaster loss-frequency relationship from 1948 to 2014 in Korea by using four types of variables. In addition, this paper found major disasters that resulted in the reformation of disaster response organizations, and inputted the deaths and economic loss attributed to those disasters into the disaster loss-frequency graph. The research result substantiated that the disaster loss-frequency relationship in Korea follows the Power Law and found the coefficients of each Power Function. Additionally, this paper found that most of the reformations of disaster response organizations happened after major disasters that concentrated societies attention and anger due to the high human and economic impact; such events are labelled as "focusing events." These focusing events, with the characteristics of a low probability and high impact, are located in the long tail of the Power Law Distribution. This paper suggests that the effective public policy for disaster response needs to be developed by paying attention to 'low probability and high impact' focusing events that are located in the long tail of the Power Law Distribution.

• Korean Journal of Psychosomatic Medicine
• /
• v.29 no.2
• /
• pp.136-143
• /
• 2021

Objectives : The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak is a global medical crisis imposing particular burden on public sector employees. The aim of this study was to investigate the psychiatric distress among public sector workers amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods : We conducted a cross-sectional study with 531 public sector workers in Gwangmyung city who completed Korean versions of the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), and Impact of Event Scale-Revised-Korean (IES-R-K). Results : The results revealed more than moderate levels of stress (85.2%), depressive symptoms (22.2%), and posttraumatic stress symptoms (38.8%). PSS total score was significantly correlated with PHQ-9, IES-R-K total scores as well as IES-R-K subscale scores. Total scores on the PSS, PHQ-9, and IES-R-K were all inversely correlated with age. Conclusions : COVID-19-related workers experience considerable stress and depressive symptoms, with self-rated stress correlating significantly with depression scores. Age may serve as a protective factor against occupational stress and burnout. These findings highlight the need for adequate psychiatric screening and intervention for public sector workers.

• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
• /
• v.31 no.5
• /
• pp.310-320
• /
• 2022

This study aimed to identify the change in the public perception of "bats" after the outbreak of the coronavirus (COVID-19) infection. Text mining and network analysis were conducted for blog posts, the largest social network in Korea. We collected 9,241 Naver blog posts from 2019 to 2020 just before the outbreak of COVID-19 in Korea. The data were analyzed with Python and NetMiner 4.3.2, and the public's perception of bats was examined through the relationship of keywords by period. Findings indicated that the frequency of bat keywords in 2020 increased more than 25 times compared to 2019, and the centrality value increased more than three times. The perception of bats changed before and after the outbreak of the pandemic. Prior to COVID-19, bats were highly recognized as a species of wildlife while in the first half of 2020, they were strongly considered as a threat to human society in relation to infectious diseases and health. In the second half of 2020, it was confirmed that the area of interest in bats expanded as the proportion of ecological and cultural types ofresearch increased. This study seeks to contribute to the expansion and direction of future research in bats by understanding the public's interest in the potential impact of the species as disease hosts post the COVID-19 pandemic.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
• /
• v.53 no.3
• /
• pp.158-163
• /
• 2020

Objectives: In the current early phase of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak, Bali needs to prepare to face the escalation of cases, with a particular focus on the readiness of healthcare services. We simulated the future trajectory of the epidemic under current conditions, projected the impact of policy interventions, and analyzed the implications for healthcare capacity. Methods: Our study was based on the first month of publicly accessible data on new confirmed daily cases. A susceptible, exposed, infected, recovered (SEIR) model for COVID-19 was employed to compare the current dynamics of the disease with those predicted under various scenarios. Results: The fitted model for the cumulative number of confirmed cases in Bali indicated an effective reproduction number of 1.4. Interventions have decreased the possible maximum number of cases from 71 125 on day 86 to 22 340 on day 119, and have prolonged the doubling time from about 9 days to 21 days. This corresponds to an approximately 30% reduction in transmissions from cases of mild infections. There will be 2780 available hospital beds, and at the peak (on day 132), the number of severe cases is estimated to be roughly 6105. Of these cases, 1831 will need intensive care unit (ICU) beds, whereas the number of currently available ICU beds is roughly 446. Conclusions: The healthcare system in Bali is in danger of collapse; thus, serious efforts are needed to improve COVID-19 interventions and to prepare the healthcare system in Bali to the greatest extent possible.

• Journal of Korean Library and Information Science Society
• /
• v.51 no.3
• /
• pp.251-279
• /
• 2020

This study noted the recent impact of Coronavirus Disease-19 (Corona 19) on the environment surrounding the library, and investigated the libraries' response activities. In addition, related issues on news media and social media were detected based on text mining techniques to engage environmental changes surrounding the library. Key issues were derived from 1,852 news reports on the library related to the Corona 19 situation and 227,983 tweets related to the library during the Corona 19 epidemic. Through this, implications were derived: prolonged 'Untact' situations, increased e-book lending, improved expectations for online services and librarians, and re-conceptualized library space. In addition, the direction of future services was discussed by selecting representative examples of library services provided in the non-face-to-face (untact) situation and dividing them into books, services, and spaces.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
• /
• v.55 no.12
• /
• pp.470-473
• /
• 2012

Purpose: The purpose of this prospective case-control study was to survey the detection rate of respiratory viruses in children with Kawasaki disease (KD) by using multiplex reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), and to investigate the clinical implications of the prevalence of respiratory viruses during the acute phase of KD. Methods: RT-PCR assays were carried out to screen for the presence of respiratory syncytial virus A and B, adenovirus, rhinovirus, parainfluenza viruses 1 to 4, influenza virus A and B, metapneumovirus, bocavirus, coronavirus OC43/229E and NL63, and enterovirus in nasopharyngeal secretions of 55 KD patients and 78 control subjects. Results: Virus detection rates in KD patients and control subjects were 32.7% and 30.8%, respectively (P=0.811). However, there was no significant association between the presence of any of the 15 viruses and the incidence of KD. Comparisons between the 18 patients with positive RT-PCR results and the other 37 KD patients revealed no significant differences in terms of clinical findings (including the prevalence of incomplete presentation of the disease) and coronary artery diameter. Conclusion: A positive RT-PCR for currently epidemic respiratory viruses should not be used as an evidence against the diagnosis of KD. These viruses were not associated with the incomplete presentation of KD and coronary artery dilatation.

• Health Policy and Management
• /
• v.31 no.4
• /
• pp.472-478
• /
• 2021

Background: Early identification of patients who are highly likely to develop severe illness among confirmed cases of coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) can be expected to lead to effective treatment. This study therefore aimed to determine whether the presence of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has an impact on the exacerbation of COVID-19 symptoms. Methods: The study used the Korean National Health Insurance claim data for treatment of COVID-19 patients in 2020. NAFLD includes nonalcoholic fatty liver (NAFL) and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). The outcome variables used were hospitalization and the use of medical devices. Hospitalization was defined by a length of stay exceeding one day and the use of medical devices was defined as one or more uses of a ventilator or extracorporeal membrane oxygenation. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed to determine if there was a difference in the hospitalization and use of medical devices of COVID-19 patients depending on the presence of NAFLD. Results: The odds ratio of hospitalization was 1.059, indicating slightly higher odds of hospitalization for patients with NAFL or NASH compared to those without the conditions, but it was not statistically significant (0.969-1.156). On the other hand, the odds ratio of use of medical devices was high at 1.667 and was statistically significant (1.111-2.501). Conclusion: The study results found NAFLD to be a risk factor that can exacerbate symptoms in COVID-19 patients. Accordingly, it is necessary to identify NAFLD patients through preemptive screening and provide them with appropriate treatments.

• The Journal of Korean Society for School & Community Health Education
• /
• v.22 no.2
• /
• pp.1-14
• /
• 2021

Objectives: The study aimed to analyze the effects of household financial difficulties caused by COVID-19 (2019 coronavirus disease) on suicidal tendencies of adolescents. Methods: We selected 54,948 middle and high school students who were surveyed based on the Korean Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Survey 2020. To analyze the data, we used the STATA 16.0 program to conduct propensity score matching (PSM). Results: After controlling for selection effects by using PSM, the household financial difficulties caused by COVID-19 maintained a significant predictive effect on increasing suicidal ideation, suicide attempts, and decreasing tendency in hospital-treated after suicide attempts. However, depressive symptoms and suicide plan did not show a significant correlation with household financial difficulties associated with COVID-19. Conclusions: It was found that the rate of suicidal ideation and suicide attempts among adolescents who experienced a household financial difficulties due to COVID-19. Therefore, It can provide empirical evidence for estimating the impact of COVID-19 on adolescent suicide rates.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
• /
• v.54 no.1
• /
• pp.22-30
• /
• 2021

Objectives: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is a public health emergency posing unprecedented challenges for health authorities. Social media may serve as an effective platform to disseminate health-related information. This study aimed to assess the extent of social media use, its impact on preventive behavior, and negative health effects such as cyberchondria and information overload. Methods: A cross-sectional observational study was conducted between June 10, 2020 and August 9, 2020 among people visiting the outpatient department of the authors' institution, and participants were also recruited during field visits for an awareness drive. Questions were developed on preventive behavior, and the Short Cyberchondria Scale and instruments dealing with information overload and perceived vulnerability were used. Results: The study recruited 767 participants with a mean age of about 45 years. Most of the participants (>90%) engaged in preventive behaviors, which were influenced by the extent of information received through social media platforms (β=3.297; p<0.001) and awareness of infection when a family member tested positive (β=29.082; p<0.001) or a neighbor tested positive (β=27.964; p<0.001). The majority (63.0%) of individuals often searched for COVID-19 related news on social media platforms. The mean±standard deviation scores for cyberchondria and information overload were 9.09±4.05 and 8.69±2.56, respectively. Significant and moderately strong correlations were found between cyberchondria, information overload, and perceived vulnerability to COVID-19. Conclusions: This study provides evidence that the use of social media as an information- seeking platform altered preventive behavior. However, excessive and misleading information resulted in cyberchondria and information overload.