• Journal of the Korea Convergence Society
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• v.11 no.6
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• pp.311-318
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• 2020

This was a basic study to ascertain the changes in sleep patterns and the factors disrupting sleep in hospitalized children. The participants were children aged 6 years or younger who had been hospitalized in an advanced general hospital in a particular region. A total of 81 participants were included, and for data analysis using SPSS/WIN 21.0. The results showed that children's sleep duration decreased significantly after hospitalization compared to before (p<.001), and there were significant differences in sleep onset latency (p<.001) and frequency of sleep deprivation (p<.001). Factors perceived by the children's mothers to disrupt sleep included the child's health state, noise in the ward, nurses' treatments, and lighting in the ward. This study verified that children's sleep quality and duration decreases during hospitalization, demonstrating the need to prepare measures to improve sleep in hospitalized children based on an understanding of changes in sleep patterns and disrupting factors.

• Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology & Nutrition
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.51-58
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• 2018

Purpose: To clarify the clinical features of appendicitis in preschool children and to explore clinical appendicitis scoring systems in this age group. Methods: We retrospectively collected data on 142 children, aged 10 years or younger, with confirmed diagnosis of appendicitis based on surgical and pathologic findings. Enrolled subjects were divided into two groups: Group 1 (preschool children aged ${\leq}5$ years, n=41) and Group 2 (school children aged >5 to ${\leq}10$ years, n=101). Data analyzed included clinical presentation, laboratory findings, the pediatric appendicitis score (PAS), and the modified Alvarado score (MAS). Results: The most common presenting symptom was abdominal pain in both groups (92.7% vs. 97.0%). Other presenting symptoms were as follows: fever (65.9%), vomiting (68.3%), right lower quadrant (RLQ) localization (24.4%), anorexia (14.6%), and diarrhea (7.3%) in Group 1, and RLQ localization (74.3%), vomiting (71.3%), anorexia (52.5%), fever (47.5%), and diarrhea (11.9%) in Group 2. Perforation and abscess occurred more frequently in Group 1 than in Group 2 (43.9% vs. 12.9%, p<0.001; 34.1% vs. 5.0%, p<0.001; respectively). PAS and MAS were lower in Group 1 than in Group 2 ($4.09{\pm}1.97$ vs. $6.91{\pm}1.61$, p=0.048; $4.65{\pm}1.79$ vs. $6.51{\pm}1.39$, p=0.012; respectively). Conclusion: In preschool children, appendicitis often presents with atypical features, more rapid progression, and higher incidence of complications. This age group is more likely to have lower PAS and MAS than those of school children.

• Korean Journal of Human Ecology
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.695-704
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• 2012

The purpose of this study is to understand the elderly's attitudes toward dating and remarriage, as well as how they are influenced by their relationships with their children, and to categorize the attitudes toward dating and remarriage, and examine each type's characteristics. The results are as follows: 1. Widowed elderly were positive towards dating and remarriage, and were more positive towards dating than towards remarriage. 2. The influence of the relationships with the elderly's children was bigger on remarriage than on dating. 3. Among the typology of attitudes, 'pro-dating/anti-remarriage' group had the most participants, and 'anti-dating/anti-remarriage' group had the least participants. 4. It is worth noting that 'anti-dating/pro-remarriage' group had distinctly different characteristics compared to 'pro-dating/anti-remarriage' group, as was with "pro-dating/pro-remarriage" group and 'anti-dating/anti-remarriage' group. To elaborate, those who belonged to 'anti-dating/pro-remarriage' group were younger, mostly male, relatively highly educated, had weaker emotional ties with children, and got the least help. In contrast, the members of 'pro-dating/anti-remarriage' group were older, overwhelmingly female, and vast majority of them were lowly educated. Also, they had stronger emotional ties with the children, and got the most help. 'Anti-dating/anti-remarriage' group and 'pro-dating/pro-remarriage' group showed a contrast in the intensity of emotional ties with their children. The former was the strongest in emotional ties, and got a considerable amount of help, while the latter was weaker in emotional ties and got less help.

• Journal of Families and Better Life
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.97-110
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• 2010

The purpose of this study was to analyze the research trends in children's daily stress from 1990 to 2009. A total of 97 articles were selected from 30 Korean journals in the field of child development, early childhood education, psychology and so on. We analyzed the trends of research focusing specifically on the participants, themes, and methodology by 5 years, and discussed the features of major stress scales. The results were as follows. Firstly, research on children's stress started in the first half of the 1990s and drastically increased in the latter half of that decade. In the following decade, more various journals dealt with articles on children's stress, and more studies were conducted on the intervention of stress. Secondly, many studies investigated the developmental change in stress, rather than focusing on the same age group. The younger preschoolers participated in studies as years go by, indicating that the age of suffering from stress was downward. Thirdly, most research used stress as a dependent variable to examine the factors affecting stress. Fourthly, questionnaires, observation and interview were used as methods to measure children's stress, while qualitative research was rarely conducted. Lastly, scales to measure children's stress should be revised and developed, especially for succeeding research in the area of early childhood.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.59 no.6
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• pp.256-261
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• 2016

Purpose: Latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) in young children may progress to severe active tuberculosis (TB) disease and serve as a reservoir for future transmission of TB disease. There are limited data on interferon-${\gamma}$ release assay (IGRA) performance in young children, which our research aims to address by investigating the usefulness of IGRA for the diagnosis of LTBI. Methods: We performed a tuberculin skin test (TST) and IGRA on children who were younger than 18 years and were admitted to Chung-Ang University Hospital during May 2011-June 2015. Blood samples for IGRA were collected, processed, and interpreted according to manufacturer protocol. Results: Among 149 children, 31 (20.8%) and 10 (6.7%) were diagnosed with LTBI and active pulmonary TB, respectively. In subjects lacking contact history with active TB patients, TST and IGRA results were positive in 41.4% (29 of 70) and 12.9% (9 of 70) subjects, respectively. The agreement (kappa) of TST and IGRA was 0.123. The control group, consisting of non-TB-infected subjects, showed no correlation between age and changes in interferon-${\gamma}$ concentration after nil antigen, TB-specific antigen, or mitogen stimulation in IGRAs (P=0.384, P=0.176, and P=0.077, respectively). In serial IGRAs, interferon-${\gamma}$ response to TB antigen increased in IGRA-positive LTBI subjects, but did not change considerably in initially IGRA-negative LTBI or control subjects. Conclusion: The lack of decrease in interferon-${\gamma}$ response in young children indicates that IGRA could be considered for this age group. Serial IGRA tests might accurately diagnose LTBI in children lacking contact history with active TB patients.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.60 no.8
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• pp.261-265
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• 2017

Purpose: Studies on cytomegalovirus (CMV) infections in immunocompetent children are lacking, and minimal information is available in the medical literature on hepatic manifestations and complications of CMV. The aims of this study were to evaluate the clinical characteristics, laboratory data, and prognosis of children with CMV hepatitis, and to investigate its prevalence at a single medical center in Korea over a 10-year period. Methods: One hundred thirty-two children diagnosed with CMV infection based on specific markers (anti-CMV IgM, CMV polymerase chain reaction in blood and urine, or CMV culture of urine) were included in the study. Clinical and biochemical characteristics, immunological markers, and outcomes of hepatic CMV infection were determined. Results: The median age of patients (n=132) was 8.5 months (range, 14 days-11.3 years). Peak total bilirubin and alanine aminotransferase levels in serum ranged from 0.11-21.97 mg/dL, and 5-1,517 IU/L, respectively. Alanine aminotransferase remained elevated from 2-48 weeks. Jaundice was the most common clinical feature of hepatic CMV infection during infancy. The hematologic findings revealed anemia, leukocytosis, and monocytosis in CMV-infected patients. All participants recovered without administration of ganciclovir. Conclusion: In children with CMV hepatitis, fever was the most common symptom at presentation, and jaundice was the most common clinical feature of hepatic CMV infection in infants younger than 3 months of age. Hepatic CMV infection in immunocompetent children is often a self-limited illness that does not require antiviral therapy, as most patients in this study had favorable outcomes.

• Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology & Nutrition
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.162-167
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• 2016

Purpose: To determine the socio-economic impact of gluten free diet (GFD) on Saudi children and their families Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in which an online questionnaire was sent to all families registered in the Saudi celiac patients support group. We included only children (age 18 years of age and younger) with biopsy-confirmed celiac disease (CD). Results: A total of 113 children were included in the final analysis, the median age was 9.9 years; 62.8% were females. One hundred (88.5%) of the participating families reported that GFD food was not easily available in their areas, 17% of them reported that it was not available at all in their area. One hundred and six (93.8%) reported that the price of GFD food was very expensive and 70 (61.9%) families that the diet was heavily affecting their family budget. Significant social difficulties were reported among the participating families and their children including interference with the child's interaction with other children (49.6%), the families' ability to attend social gatherings (60.2%), the families' ability to eat in restaurants (73.5%), and the families' ability to travel (58.4%). Conclusion: There is significant negative socio-economic impact of GFD on children with CD & their families. Health care providers should be aware of these psycho-social difficulties and be well trained to provide a proper education and psychological support for these patients and their families.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.57 no.3
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• pp.135-139
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• 2014

Purpose: Adult Korean patients on chronic dialysis have a 9-year survival rate of 50%, with cardiovascular problems being the most significant cause of death. The 2011 annual report of the North American Pediatric Renal Trials and Collaborative Studies group reported 3-year survival rates of 93.4% and relatively poorer survival in younger patients. Methods: In this study, we have reviewed data from Korean Pediatric Chronic Kidney Disease Registry from 2002 to 2010 to assess survival rates and causes of death in Korean children on chronic dialysis. Results: The overall estimated patient survival rates were 98.4%, 94.4%, and 92.1% at 1, 3, and 5 years, respectively. No significant difference was observed in survival rates between patients on peritoneal dialysis and those on hemodialysis. Patients for whom dialysis was initiated before 2 years of age (n=40) had significantly lower survival rates than those for whom dialysis was initiated at 6-11 years of age (n=140). In all, 26 patients had died; the mortality rate was 19.9 per 1,000 patient years. The most common causes of death were infections and comorbidities such as malignancy and central nervous system (CNS) or liver diseases. Conclusion: The outcomes observed in this study were better than those observed in adults and comparable to those observed in pediatric studies in other countries. To improve the outcomes of children on chronic dialysis, it is necessary to prevent dialysis-related complications such as infection, congestive heart failure, or CNS hemorrhage and best control treatable comorbidities.

• Journal of Family Resource Management and Policy Review
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.69-87
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• 2020

The purpose of this study was to identify the factors related to the willingness to have a child, parental age at first child's birth, and the planned number of children. The data came from the Korean General Social Survey from the Survey Research Center at Sung Kyun Kwan University. The sample data set included 488 men and women between the ages of 18 and 49. The major findings are as follows. First, gender, age, satisfaction with family relations, the value of marriage, the value of family succession, and willingness to increase spending on education significantly affected the willingness to have a child among unmarried and married participants without children. Second, among people willing to have a child, the factors that influenced parental age at first child's birth were gender, education, satisfaction with household economic condition, the value of marriage, and the willingness to increase spending on education. Third, across the sample, the planned number of children was decided by satisfaction of family relations, the value of childbirth, the value of marriage, and home ownership. Overall, the value of marriage was the factor most strongly associated with the three dependent variables. The more a person agree with living with their partner before marriage, the more willing they were to give birth, the younger they were when they became a parent, and the more children they planned to have. The higher satisfaction of family relations, the higher willingness to have a child, and the more children a participant planned to have. In addition, the more a participant was willing to increase spending on education, the higher their willingness was to have a child and the older they were when they became a parent.

• Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology & Nutrition
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.44-53
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• 2016

Purpose: Parenteral nutrition (PN) not only provides nutritional support but also plays a crucial role in the treatment of children with intestinal failure. The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical significance and clinical outcomes of long-term PN. Methods: Retrospective cohort study was conducted using the medical records of patients treated at Seoul National University Children's Hospital. This study included 19 patients who received PN for over six months. Most patients received home PN. Results: The indications for PN included short bowel syndrome, chronic intestinal pseudo-obstruction, and intractable diarrhea of infancy. The median age of PN initiation was 1.3 years, and the median treatment duration was 2.9 years. Two patients were weaned from PN; 14 continued to receive PN with enteral feedings; and 3 patients died. The overall survival rates at 2 and 5 years were 93.3% and 84.0%, respectively. The incidence of catheter-related bloodstream infections was 2.7/1,000 catheter-days and was associated with younger age at PN initiation and lower initial height Z-score. Six patients developed catheter-related central vein thrombosis, with an incidence of 0.25/1,000 catheter-days. Eleven patients experienced PN-associated liver disease (PNALD), and one patient underwent multi-visceral transplant. The patients with PNALD exhibited lower final heights and body weight Z-scores. All patients experienced micronutrient deficiencies transiently while receiving PN. Conclusion: PN is an important and safe treatment for pediatric intestinal failure. PNALD was linked to final anthropometric poor outcomes. Micronutrient deficiencies were common. Anthropometric measurements and micronutrient levels must be monitored for successful PN completion.