• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.52 no.6
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• pp.552-558
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• 2019

Purpose: Although vitamin D deficiency is common among Korean adolescent girls and young women, few studies have explored the potential health effects of vitamin D deficiency in this vulnerable population. This study examined the association between vitamin D deficiency and anemia in Korean adolescent girls and young women. Methods: The data from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2008 ~ 2014 were used. A total of 3,643 girls and adult women aged 12 to 29 who provided all the information (including serum 25-hydroxy vitamin D, hemoglobin, and/or serum ferritin) needed for the analysis were included in the analysis. Demographic, lifestyle, and health data were obtained through survey questionnaires. Anemia and iron deficiency anemia were defined according to the World Health Organization cut-offs. Multivariable logistic regression, and restricted cubic spline regression were used in the analysis. Results: In fully adjusted logistic regression models, the vitamin D deficiency was significantly associated with higher prevalences of anemia (odds ratio (OR): 1.61, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.04 ~ 2.49) and iron deficiency anemia (OR: 1.43, 95% CI: 1.01 ~ 2.03). In a cubic spline regression model, we observed a dose-response relationship between serum 25(OH)D concentration and anemia, and this linear relationship was also clearly observed between serum 25(OH)D concentration and iron deficiency anemia. Conclusion: Vitamin D deficiency may be associated with a higher prevalence of iron deficiency anemia and anemia in adolescent girls and young women. Alternatively, vitamin D deficiency may be a concurrent event for patients with anemia, which we cannot distinguish in this cross-sectional study. Further studies are needed to verify the causality in this population of low vitamin D levels.

• Korean Journal of Radiology
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.652-662
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• 2021

Objective: To investigate the association between CT imaging features and survival outcomes in patients with primary invasive mucinous adenocarcinoma (IMA). Materials and Methods: Preoperative CT image findings were consecutively evaluated in 317 patients with resected IMA from January 2011 to December 2015. The association between CT features and long-term survival were assessed by univariate analysis. The independent prognostic factors were identified by the multivariate Cox regression analyses. The survival comparison of IMA patients was investigated using the Kaplan-Meier method and propensity scores. Furthermore, the prognostic impact of CT features was assessed based on different imaging subtypes, and the results were adjusted using the Bonferroni method. Results: The median follow-up time was 52.8 months; the 5-year disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival rates of resected IMAs were 68.5% and 77.6%, respectively. The univariate analyses of all IMA patients demonstrated that 15 CT imaging features, in addition to the clinicopathologic characteristics, significantly correlated with the recurrence or death of IMA patients. The multivariable analysis revealed that five of them, including imaging subtype (p = 0.002), spiculation (p < 0.001), tumor density (p = 0.008), air bronchogram (p < 0.001), emphysema (p < 0.001), and location (p = 0.029) were independent prognostic factors. The subgroup analysis demonstrated that pneumonic-type IMA had a significantly worse prognosis than solitary-type IMA. Moreover, for solitary-type IMAs, the most independent CT imaging biomarkers were air bronchogram and emphysema with an adjusted p value less than 0.05; for pneumonic-type IMA, the tumors with mixed consolidation and ground-glass opacity were associated with a longer DFS (adjusted p = 0.012). Conclusion: CT imaging features characteristic of IMA may provide prognostic information and individual risk assessment in addition to the recognized clinical predictors.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.57 no.1
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• pp.44-52
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• 2024

Background: Visceral pleural invasion (VPI) is a poor prognostic factor that contributes to the upstaging of early lung cancers. However, the preoperative assessment of VPI presents challenges. This study was conducted to examine intraoperative pleural carcinoembryonic antigen (pCEA) level and maximum standardized uptake value (SUVmax) as predictive markers of VPI in patients with clinical T1N0M0 lung adenocarcinoma. Methods: A retrospective review was conducted of the medical records of 613 patients who underwent intraoperative pCEA sampling and lung resection for non-small cell lung cancer. Of these, 390 individuals with clinical stage I adenocarcinoma and tumors ≤30 mm were included. Based on computed tomography findings, these patients were divided into pleural contact (n=186) and non-pleural contact (n=204) groups. A receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was constructed to analyze the association between pCEA and SUVmax in relation to VPI. Additionally, logistic regression analysis was performed to evaluate risk factors for VPI in each group. Results: ROC curve analysis revealed that pCEA level greater than 2.565 ng/mL (area under the curve [AUC]=0.751) and SUVmax above 4.25 (AUC=0.801) were highly predictive of VPI in patients exhibiting pleural contact. Based on multivariable analysis, pCEA (odds ratio [OR], 3.00; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.14-7.87; p=0.026) and SUVmax (OR, 5.25; 95% CI, 1.90-14.50; p=0.001) were significant risk factors for VPI in the pleural contact group. Conclusion: In patients with clinical stage I lung adenocarcinoma exhibiting pleural contact, pCEA and SUVmax are potential predictive indicators of VPI. These markers may be helpful in planning for lung cancer surgery.

• Korean Journal of Radiology
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• v.24 no.6
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• pp.498-511
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• 2023

Objective: To evaluate the diagnostic performance of chest computed tomography (CT)-based qualitative and radiomics models for predicting residual axillary nodal metastasis after neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) for patients with clinically node-positive breast cancer. Materials and Methods: This retrospective study included 226 women (mean age, 51.4 years) with clinically node-positive breast cancer treated with NAC followed by surgery between January 2015 and July 2021. Patients were randomly divided into the training and test sets (4:1 ratio). The following predictive models were built: a qualitative CT feature model using logistic regression based on qualitative imaging features of axillary nodes from the pooled data obtained using the visual interpretations of three radiologists; three radiomics models using radiomics features from three (intranodal, perinodal, and combined) different regions of interest (ROIs) delineated on pre-NAC CT and post-NAC CT using a gradient-boosting classifier; and fusion models integrating clinicopathologic factors with the qualitative CT feature model (referred to as clinical-qualitative CT feature models) or with the combined ROI radiomics model (referred to as clinical-radiomics models). The area under the curve (AUC) was used to assess and compare the model performance. Results: Clinical N stage, biological subtype, and primary tumor response indicated by imaging were associated with residual nodal metastasis during the multivariable analysis (all P < 0.05). The AUCs of the qualitative CT feature model and radiomics models (intranodal, perinodal, and combined ROI models) according to post-NAC CT were 0.642, 0.812, 0.762, and 0.832, respectively. The AUCs of the clinical-qualitative CT feature model and clinical-radiomics model according to post-NAC CT were 0.740 and 0.866, respectively. Conclusion: CT-based predictive models showed good diagnostic performance for predicting residual nodal metastasis after NAC. Quantitative radiomics analysis may provide a higher level of performance than qualitative CT features models. Larger multicenter studies should be conducted to confirm their performance.

• Korean Journal of Radiology
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.172-179
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• 2022

Objective: We aimed to evaluate the ostium of right coronary artery of anomalous origin from the left coronary sinus (AORL) with an interarterial course throughout the cardiac cycle on CT and analyze the clinical significance of the ostial findings. Materials and Methods: From January 2011 to December 2015, 68 patients (41 male, 57.3 ± 12.1 years) with AORL with an interarterial course and retrospective cardiac CT data were included. AORL was classified as high or low ostial location based on the pulmonary annulus in the diastolic and systolic phases on cardiac CT. In addition, the height, width, height/width ratio, area, and angle of the ostium were measured in both cardiac phases. After cardiac CT, patients were followed until December 31, 2020 for major adverse cardiac events (MACE). Clinical and CT characteristics associated with MACE were explored using Cox regression analysis. Results: During a median follow-up period of 2071 days (interquartile range, 1180.5-2747.3 days), 13 patients experienced MACE (19.1%, 13/68). Seven (10.3%, 7/68) had the ostial location change from high in the diastolic phase to low in the systolic phase. In the univariable analysis, younger age (hazard ratio [HR] = 0.918, p < 0.001), high ostial location (HR = 4.008, p = 0.036), larger height/width ratio (HR = 5.621, p = 0.049), and smaller ostial angle (HR = 0.846, p = 0.048) in the systolic phase were significant predictors of MACE. In multivariable cox regression analysis, younger age (adjusted HR = 0.917, p = 0.002) and high ostial location in the systolic phase (adjusted HR = 4.345, p = 0.026) were independent predictors of MACE. Conclusion: The ostial location of AORL with an interarterial course can change during the cardiac cycle, and high ostial location in the systolic phase was an independent predictor of MACE.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.49 no.4
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• pp.474-485
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• 2000

Background : Current studies on multimodal strategy for N2 non-small cell lung cancer are being high interest, have drawn much attention. N2 lung cancer, however, is composed of is divided into several sub groups with that have different prognoses. The prognostic factors still remain controversial. Methods : Between January 1990 and June 1999, 180 patients with N2 lung cancer who underwent surgical resection were investigated, excluding 10 of these for surgical mortality. All patients underwent mediastinal lymph node dissection. 20 clinicopathologic factors were investigated by univariable and multivariable analyses to identify significant prognostic factors among resected N2 disease. Results : The overall 5-year survival rate was 20.6%. Multivariable analyses among overall patients revealed 3 significant prognostic factors : Age, Histologic type, Vascular invasion. Based on the result, 49 patients with both age more than 60 and pathologic Non-squamous cell showed a 5-year survival of 5.0%, whereas 37 patients with neither of the factors showed a 5-year survival of 56.6%(p<0.001). And 12 patients with both vascular invasion and pathologic Non-squamous cell showed a 5-year survival of 11.9%, whereas 67 patients with neither of the factors showed a 5-year survival of 33.6%(p=0.01). Conclusion : The prognosis of surgically resected N2 disease varies according to the 3 significant prognosis factors. Tumor size may be an additional influencing factor in the prognosis of N2 disease.

• Korean Journal of Community Nutrition
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• v.25 no.5
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• pp.416-429
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• 2020

Objectives: This study examined the personal, interpersonal and community factors related to food sufficiency and variety among Korean adults using data from the 2017 Community Health Survey. Methods: A total of 228,310 adults aged ≥ 19 years were classified into three groups: food sufficiency with variety, food sufficiency without variety and food insufficiency. Personal factors included sociodemographic characteristics, health behavior and health status. Interpersonal factors included social networking and social activities, and community factors included safety, natural environment, living environment, availability of public transportation and health care services. The association of food sufficiency and variety with interpersonal and community factors was assessed using multivariable logistic regression analyses. Results: Of the total sample, the food-sufficiency-without-variety group and food insufficiency group accounted for 31.5% and 3.2%, respectively. The sociodemographic factors associated with food insufficiency and non-variety were women, ≥ 65 years of age, with low education level, low household income, unemployed, single, and living in areas of small population sizes. There were significant differences in health behavior and health status, interpersonal and community factors among the three groups. Multivariable logistic regression analyses conducted after adjusting for confounding factors showed that lack of social networking and social activities and lower satisfaction derived from community environments were associated with the risk of food insufficiency and non-variety. Conclusions: Our results showed that interpersonal and community factors as well as personal factors were related to food sufficiency and variety. Therefore, public policies to help build social networks and participation in social activities, and improve community environment are needed together with food assistance to overcome the problems of food insufficiency and non-variety.

• Korea Journal of Hospital Management
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.28-38
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• 2018

Purpose: To evaluate the medical expenditures for prostate cancer patients, including out-of-pocket costs, and compared the costs between androgen deprivation therapy and radical prostatectomy treatment. Methodology: This study combined clinical data from 357 prostate cancer patients from the Smart Prostate Cancer Database and the medical expenditure data from the claims and cost databases. We used the independent two-sample t-tests to compare androgen deprivation therapy and radical prostatectomy. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was conducted to identify determining factors for androgen deprivation therapy and radical prostatectomy treatments. Findings: The medical costs of androgen deprivation therapy treatment were much lower than radical prostatectomy treatment at the one year and remained lower until the fourth-year. However, after four years, the accumulated medical expenditures of androgen deprivation therapy become significantly higher than radical prostatectomy treatment. Patients with a higher cancer stage and older age had higher chances of being treated using androgen deprivation therapy treatment than radical prostatectomy treatment. Practical Implications: Our results show that early detection of cancer reduces the treatment cost for both patients and insurance payers. It also demonstrates that cost comparisons should be conducted over long periods of time in order to most accurately assess the costs.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.851-856
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• 2012

Objective: NBS1 plays a key role in the repair of DNA double-strand break (DSB). We conducted this study to investigate the effect of two critical polymorphisms (rs1805794 and rs13312840) in NBS1 on treatment response and prognosis of advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients with platinum-based chemotherapy. Methods: Using TaqMan methods, we genotyped the two polymorphisms in 147 NSCLC patients. Odds ratios (ORs) and their 95% confidential intervals (CIs) were calculated as a measure of difference in the response rate of platinum-based chemotherapy using logistic regression analysis. The Kaplan-Meier and log-rank tests were used to assess the differences in progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS). Cox proportional hazards model was applied to assess the hazard ratios (HRs) for PFS and OS. Results: Neither of the two polymorphisms was significantly associated with treatment response of platinum-based chemotherapy. However, patients carrying the rs1805794 CC variant genotype had a significantly improved PFS compared to those with GG genotype (16.0 vs. 8.0 months, P = 0.040). Multivariable cox regression analysis further showed that rs1805974 was a significantly favorable prognostic factor for PFS [CC/CG vs. GG: Adjusted HR = 0.62, 95% CI: 0.39-0.99; CC vs. CG/GG: Adjusted HR = 0.56, 95% CI: 0.32-0.97). Similarly, rs13312840 with a small sample size also showed a significant association with PFS (CC vs. CT/TT: Adjusted HR = 25.62, 95% CI: 1.53-428.39). Conclusions: Our findings suggest that NBS1 polymorphisms may be genetic biomarkers for NSCLC prognosis especially PFS with platinum-based chemotherapy in the Chinese population.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.59 no.5
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• pp.492-497
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• 2016

Objective : Decompressive craniectomy is an effective therapy to relieve high intracranial pressure after acute brain damage. However, the optimal timing for cranioplasty after decompression is still controversial. Many authors reported that early cranioplasty may contribute to improve the cerebral blood flow and brain metabolism. However, despite all the advantages, there always remains a concern that early cranioplasty may increase the chance of infection. The purpose of this retrospective study is to investigate whether the early cranioplasty increase the infection rate. We also evaluated the risk factors of infection following cranioplasty. Methods : We retrospectively examined the results of 131 patients who underwent cranioplasty in our institution between January 2008 and June 2015. We divided them into early (${\leq}90days$) and late (>90 days after craniectomy) groups. We examined the risk factors of infection after cranioplasty. We analyzed the infection rate between two groups. Results : There were more male patients (62%) than female (38%). The mean age was 49 years. Infection occurred in 17 patients (13%) after cranioplasty. The infection rate of early cranioplasty was lower than that of late cranioplasty (7% vs. 20%; p=0.02). Early cranioplasty, non-metal allograft materials, re-operation before cranioplasty and younger age were the significant factors in the infection rate after cranioplasty (p<0.05). Especially allograft was a significant risk factor of infection (odds ratio, 12.4; 95% confidence interval, 3.24-47.33; p<0.01). Younger age was also a significant risk factor of infection after cranioplasty by multivariable analysis (odds ratio, 0.96; 95% confidence interval, 0.96-0.99; p=0.02). Conclusion : Early cranioplasty did not increase the infection rate in this study. The use of non-metal allograft materials influenced a more important role in infection in cranioplasty. Actually, timing itself was not a significant risk factor in multivariate analysis. So the early cranioplasty may bring better outcomes in cognitive functions or wound without raising the infection rate.