• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• 제64권8호
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• pp.373-383
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• 2021

Rhinitis is among the most common respiratory diseases in children. Nonallergic rhinitis, which involves nasal symptoms without evidence of systemic allergic inflammation or infection, is a heterogeneous entity with diverse manifestations and intensities. Nonallergic rhinitis accounts for 16%-89% of the chronic rhinitis cases, affecting 1%-50% (median 10%) of the total pediatric population. The clinical course of nonallergic rhinitis is generally rather mild and less likely to be associated with allergic comorbidities than allergic rhinitis. Here, we aimed to estimate the rate of coexisting comorbidities of nonallergic rhinitis. Nonallergic rhinitis is more prevalent during the first 2 years of life; however, its underestimation for children with atopic tendencies is likely due to low positive rates of specific allergic tests during early childhood. Local allergic rhinitis is a recently noted phenotype with rates similar to those in adults (median, 44%; range, 4%-67%), among patients previously diagnosed with nonallergic rhinitis. Idiopathic rhinitis, a subtype of nonallergic rhinitis, has been poorly studied in children, and its rates are known to be lower than those in adults. The prevalence of nonallergic rhinitis with eosinophilia syndrome is even lower. A correlation between nonallergic rhinitis and pollution has been suggested owing to the recent increase in nonallergic rhinitis rates in highly developing regions such as some Asian countries, but many aspects remain unknown. Conventional treatments include antihistamines, intranasal corticosteroids, and recent treatments include combination of intranasal corticosteroids with azelastin or decongestants. Here we review the prevalence, diagnosis, comorbidities, and treatment recommendations for nonallergic rhinitis versus allergic rhinitis in children.

• Asian Spine Journal
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• 제12권6호
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• pp.987-991
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• 2018

Study Design: Cross sectional study. Purpose: To assess the quality of anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) videos available on YouTube and identify factors associated with video quality. Overview of Literature: Patients commonly use the internet as a source of information regarding their surgeries. However, there is currently limited information regarding the quality of online videos about ACDF. Methods: A search was performed on YouTube using the phrase 'anterior cervical discectomy and fusion.' The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), DISCERN, and Health on the Net (HON) systems were used to rate the first 50 videos obtained. Information about each video was collected, including number of views, duration since the video was posted, percentage positivity (defined as number of likes the video received, divided by the total number of likes or dislikes of that video), number of comments, and the author of the video. Relationships between video quality and these factors were investigated. Results: The average number of views for each video was 96,239. The most common videos were those published by surgeons and those containing patient testimonies. Overall, the video quality was poor, with mean scores of 1.78/5 using the DISCERN criteria, 1.63/4 using the JAMA criteria, and 1.96/8 using the HON criteria. Surgeon authors' videos scored higher than patient testimony videos when reviewed using the HON or JAMA systems. However, no other factors were found to be associated with video quality. Conclusions: The quality of ACDF videos on YouTube is low, with the majority of videos produced by unreliable sources. Therefore, these YouTube videos should not be recommended as patient education tools for ACDF.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• 제82권4호
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• pp.285-297
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• 2019

Connective tissue disease (CTD) is a collection of disorders characterized by various signs and symptoms such as circulation of autoantibodies in the entire system causing damage to internal organs. Interstitial lung disease (ILD) which is associated with CTD is referred to as CTD-ILD. Patients diagnosed with ILD should be thoroughly examined for the cooccurrence of CTD, since the treatment procedures and prognosis of CTD-ILD are vary from those of idiopathic interstitial pneumonia. The representative types of CTD which may accompany ILD include rheumatoid arthritis, systemic sclerosis (SSc), Sjogren's syndrome, mixed CTD, idiopathic inflammatory myopathies, and systemic lupus erythematous. Of these, ILD most frequently co-exists with SSc. If an ILD is observed in the chest, high resolution computed tomography and specific diagnostic criteria for any type of CTD are met, then a diagnosis of CTD-ILD is made. It is challenging to conduct a properly designed randomized study on CTD-ILD, due to low incidence. Therefore, CTD-ILD treatment approach is yet to been established in absence of randomized controlled clinical trials, with the exception of SSc-ILD. When a patient is presented with acute CTD-ILD or if symptoms occur due to progression of the disease, steroid and immunosuppressive therapy are generally considered.

• 동의신경정신과학회지
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• 제32권2호
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• pp.95-109
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• 2021

Objectives: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has become a global pandemic. Mental sequelae occurring in patients with COVID-19 and the general population are important concerns. In Korea, herbal medicine is used nationwide to respond to this pandemic. It can be prescribed by COVID-19 telemedicine center of Korean medicine (KM). Among some herbal medicines, Gamiguibi-tang is the only herbal medicine prescribed for individuals with mental health, especially for those with insomnia. In this mini-review, the objective of this study was to summarize the evidence of some promising herbal medicines available for treating primary insomnia based on existing clinical and preclinical studies. Methods: A research team was formed for KM clinical practice guidelines for insomnia (version 1.0). Team members were provided with a list of references of relevant herbal medicines for insomnia. To gather evidence from clinical studies with appropriate sample sizes, among the list of references, randomized controlled trials for primary insomnia that included 50 subjects or more per arm and used herbal medicine were included in the final analysis. Moreover, pre-clinical studies examining the mechanism of action of each herbal medicine and studies on herb-drug interactions, were searched and summarized. Results: Four herbal medicines (Ondam-tang, Sanjoin-tang, Guibi-tang, and Hyeolbuchugeo-tang) were reviewed based on existing clinical and preclinical studies. Based on findings of existing studies, some suggestions of herbal medicines for insomnia in the COVID-19 era in Korea were suggested. Conclusions: Data of this study could be used to prepare a future revision of the manual of COVID-19 telemedicine center of KM.

• 대한예방한의학회지
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• 제26권1호
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• pp.59-74
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• 2022

Objectives : Evidence supporting the cold-heat symptom and sasang constitution type, which are diagnostic items of traditional Korean medicine, is needed to manage sleep disturbances, which is a typical symptom of mibyeong (subhealth). This study examined the association between each cold-heat symptom and sleep disturbances according to each sasang constitution type. Methods : This research was a cross-sectional study of 5,793 subjects from the Korean Medicine Data Center (KDC) community cohort survey. The association between each cold-heat symptom and sleep disturbances was analyzed by logistic regression analysis adjusted for several demographic variables. Subgroup analysis was then performed for each type of sasang constitution. Results : The soeum and soyang types were 1.53 and 1.26 times more likely to have sleep disturbances than the taeum type. Sleep disturbances were associated with 'coldness of the abdomen', 'watery mouth' in the cold domain items, and 'body feverishness', 'flushed face and eye', 'thirst', and 'scanty dark urine' in the heat domain items. The soeum and soyang types were 1.55 and 1.39 times more likely to sleep less than five hours per night than the taeeum type. In addition, the associations of those showed a different pattern for each sasang constitution type. Conclusions : Sleep disturbances are associated with specific cold-heat symptoms, and the associated cold-heat symptoms differ according to the sasang constitution type. These results may help traditional medicine specialists select customized interventions for patients with sleep disturbances.

• The Journal of Asian Finance, Economics and Business
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• 제9권4호
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• pp.29-38
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• 2022

The enormous sway of COVID-19 on the international financial market has been felt across the globe. The financial markets of Bangladesh have also been similarly affected by the global epidemic and experienced a significant increase in volatility. To scrutinise the connection between COVID-19 and the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) indices' return and instability, this study uses data of the DSE from February 2014 to September 2021. A comparative examination of the return and instability of the stock indices of the DSE has also been done considering the outbreak of the current COVID-19 situation. After using the GJR-GARCH (1,1) model, this review uncovers that the outbreak of COVID-19 has a statistically positive noteworthy association with the DSE stock indices' instability, which increases the market's volatility. Traders' fear and the rising frequency of COVID-19 reported patients could cause this. Besides, according to this study, COVID-19 shows a substantial positive linkage with stock market returns that increases the market's return. An appealing valuation, lower interest rates in the banking channel, economic rebound following the closure to prevent coronavirus transmission, improved remittance inflows, and a return of export revenues could all have contributed to this outcome. In addition, the findings also reveal that all market indices are in a mean-reverting phase.

• 대한암한의학회지
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• 제27권1호
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• pp.25-36
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• 2022

The Randomized Control Trial (RCT) is the most well-established and widely used statistical methodology in clinical research; however, applying thorough RCT to cancer patients presents challenges such as ethical concerns, high costs, short clinical periods, and limitations in collecting various side effects. To address this issue, the propensity score matching method, which takes advantage of the benefits of observational research while compensating for the drawbacks of randomized control trials, is used in a variety of fields. In recent years, 28 studies on the effectiveness of Korean medicine on tumors have been conducted abroad using the Propensity Score Matching Method, but none have been conducted in Korea. The majority of studies have focused on liver cancer, colon cancer, lung cancer, and stomach cancer, with endpoints such as survival time, incidence rate, quality of life, and treatment outcomes revealing statistical differences in how Korean medicine intervention affects treatment outcomes. As a result, well-established studies using the propensity matching score methodology should be useful in evaluating the impact of Korean medicine in oncology treatments.

• 대한한의학원전학회지
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• 제35권4호
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• pp.41-61
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• 2022

Objectives : This paper aims to examine the clinical meaning of treating with sweet medicinals where acupuncture fails, through studying the verse, "In case of both Yin and Yang deficiency, treat with sweet medicinals" in the Huangdineijing. Methods : Related contents in the chapters 「邪氣藏府病形」, 「根結」, 「終始」, 「經脈」, 「九鍼論」 of the Lingshu were analyzed threefold. The circumstances of the application of the "In case of both Yin and Yang deficiency, treat with sweet medicinals" principle to the late Han East Asian medicine as written in the Shanghanzabinglun were examined, and its meaning was explored. Results : The 'Yin Yang' in the verse could be substituted with the Five Zhang and Six Fu, Blood and Qi, Form and Qi, Form and Jing, Form and Zhi, etc. In patients with deficiency in Qi, Blood, Yin and Yang, we can observe external symptoms such as narrow pulse pattern, symptoms in the throat or below the throat, thirst, and coarse voice. To apply sweet medicinals is to supplement the Jing from food, Spleen and Stomach, Middle Qi and Earth Qi which produces and maintains Qi, Blood, Yin and Yang. Therefore, it is essential in treating disease patterns with deficiency in both Qi, Blood, Yin and Yang, and cannot be substituted with other means of treatment such as acupuncture, moxibustion, and other manipulative therapies. Conclusions : Sweet medicinals were applied in disease patterns with throat thirst and narrow pulse patterns which could not be managed with general acupuncture or moxibustion in the time of the Huangdineijing's publication, as it holds the Earth virtue which could harmoniously supplement the body's Qi, Blood, Yin, and Yang. Later its application broadened, treating various conditions accompanying Qi, Blood, Yin, Yang deficiency, which expanded potential of medicine and contributed to the generalization of drug treatment.

• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• 제23권1호
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• pp.146-158
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• 2023

Endoscopic resection (ER) is widely performed for early gastric cancer (EGC) with a negligible risk of lymph node metastasis (LNM) in Eastern Asian countries. In particular, endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) leads to a high en bloc resection rate, enabling accurate pathological evaluation. As undifferentiated EGC (UD-EGC) is known to result in a higher incidence of LNM and infiltrative growth than differentiated EGC (D-EGC), the indications for ER are limited compared with those for D-EGC. Previously, clinical staging as intramucosal UD-EGC ≤2 cm, without ulceration, was presented as 'weakly recommended' or 'expanded indications' for ER in the guidelines of the United States, Europe, Korea, and Japan. Based on promising long-term outcomes from a prospective multicenter study by the Japan Clinical Oncology Group (JCOG) 1009/1010, the status of this indication has expanded and is now considered 'absolute indications' in the latest Japanese guidelines published in 2021. In this study, which comprised 275 patients with UD-EGC (cT1a, ≤2 cm, without ulceration) treated with ESD, the 5-year overall survival (OS) was 99.3% (95% confidence interval, 97.1%-99.8%), which was higher than the threshold 5-year OS (89.9%). Currently, the levels of evidence grades and recommendations for ER of UD-EGC differ among Japan, Korea, and Western countries. Therefore, a further discussion is warranted to generalize the indications for ER of UD-EGC in countries besides Japan.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• 제31권5호
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• pp.484-495
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• 2023

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) can be defined as a progressive chronic pulmonary disease showing scarring in the lung parenchyma, thereby resulting in increase in mortality and decrease in the quality of life. The pathophysiologic mechanism of fibrosis in IPF is still unclear. Repetitive microinjuries to alveolar epithelium with genetical predisposition and an abnormal restorative reaction accompanied by excessive deposition of collagens are involved in the pathogenesis. Although the two FDA-approved drugs, pirfenidone and nintedanib, are under use for retarding the decline in lung function of patients suffered from IPF, they are not able to improve the survival rate or quality of life. Therefore, a novel therapeutic agent acting on the major steps of the pathogenesis of disease and/or, at least, managing the clinical symptoms of IPF should be developed for the effective regulation of this incurable disease. In the present review, we tried to find a potential of managing the clinical symptoms of IPF by natural products derived from medicinal plants used for controlling the pulmonary inflammatory diseases in traditional Asian medicine. A multitude of natural products have been reported to exert an antifibrotic effect in vitro and in vivo through acting on the epithelial-mesenchymal transition pathway, transforming growth factor (TGF)- β-induced intracellular signaling, and the deposition of extracellular matrix. However, clinical antifibrotic efficacy of these natural products on IPF have not been elucidated yet. Thus, those effects should be proven by further examinations including the randomized clinical trials, in order to develop the ideal and optimal candidate for the therapeutics of IPF.