• International Journal of Advanced Culture Technology
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.13-18
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• 2019

Comorbidity isthe simultaneous presence of two chronic diseases or conditions in a patient. As part of a larger research study, the aims of this study were to explore comorbid conditions in intensive care unit (ICU) patients and to compare the comorbidity across different demographic groups, and to determine what comorbid health problems coexisted in the patients with hospital-acquired pressure injury (HAPI). The average number of comorbid conditions was 6.4 with range from 0-20 in the ICU patients. African American patients had significantly more comorbid health problems than other race/ethnicity groups. Asian and Hispanic female patients showed higher comorbidity than male patients across age. The patients with HAPIs had significantly more comorbid health problems than the patients without HAPIs -- the average numbers were almost two-fold. We found comorbid health problems that existed with HAPI in ICU patients. 'Other diseases of lung' and 'Disorders of fluid, electrolyte, and acid-base balance' were most frequently coexisting health problems in the ICU patients with HAPI. Exploratory plots are helpful to discover patterns or hypotheses relevant to clinical management in critical care. Inclusion of patients' comorbid health problems to ICU HAPI risk assessment may be helpful. Identification of patients at a high risk for the development of HAPI and the early preventative interventions can help reduce length of stay as well as costly complications.

• Journal of Digital Convergence
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• v.19 no.8
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• pp.351-359
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• 2021

This study was conducted to analyze the relationship between the practice of aerobic exercise and the prevalence and risk of arthritis with comorbid chronic diseases. For this study, the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2017-2019 data were used and 17,356 people were selected as subjects. The relationship between the practice of aerobic exercise and the prevalence and risk of arthritis according to demographic characteristics and chronic diseases was analyzed by the chi-square independence test and Breslow-Day test. While the rate of aerobic exercise was low among women, the elderly, the low-income group, the low-education group, and people living in rural areas, the prevalence and risk of arthritis were relatively high. And in the chronic disease-positive group, those who practiced aerobic exercise had a relatively lower prevalence and risk of arthritis than those who did not. In particular, the practice of aerobic exercise was an effective complement in reducing the prevalence and risk of arthritis in people with high blood pressure, diabetes, and dyslipidemia. Therefore, the practice of aerobic exercise such as walking, slow running, and aerobic dance should be recommended in terms of the preventive medicine and health care to people who are in the group with a high prevalence of arthritis in demographic characteristics and people who have comorbid chronic diseases.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.14 no.5
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• pp.190-198
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• 2014

The purpose of study was evaluated associations among risk factors to have influence on HRQOL of community dwelling Elderly People. Total 314 community dwelling elderly persons(age:$75.80{\pm}5.64$[$mean{\pm}SD$]) who had no disease(n=81) and more than two chronic diseases (n=233) were interviewed based on the QOL questionnaires. During two months. The activities of daily living were evaluated using BI and FAI. Neuropsychological status was evaluated using GDS. Health related QOL was evaluated using the SF-36. The results emphasize the importance of preventing and controlling depression, chronic diseases, and low basic activities of daily living in order to reduce their impact on HRQOL among community dwelling elderly people.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.81 no.3
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• pp.187-197
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• 2018

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a frequent comorbid condition associated with increased morbidity and mortality. Pneumonia is the most common infectious disease condition. The purpose of this review is to evaluate the impact of pneumonia in patients with COPD. We will evaluate the epidemiology and factors associated with pneumonia. We are discussing the clinical characteristics of COPD that may favor the development of infections conditions such as pneumonia. Over the last 10 years, there is an increased evidence that COPD patients treated with inhaled corticosteroids are at increased risk to develp pneumonia. We will review the avaialbe information as well as the possible mechanism for this events. We also discuss the impact of influenza and pneumococcal vaccination in the prevention of pneumonia in COPD patients.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.80 no.2
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• pp.113-135
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• 2017

Asthma is traditionally regarded as a chronic airway disease, and recent literature proves its heterogeneity, based on distinctive clusters or phenotypes of asthma. In defining such asthma clusters, the nature of comorbidity among patients with asthma is poorly understood, by assuming no causal relationship between asthma and other comorbid conditions, including both communicable and noncommunicable diseases. However, emerging evidence suggests that the status of asthma significantly affects the increased susceptibility of the patient to both communicable and noncommunicable diseases. Specifically, the impact of asthma on susceptibility to noncommunicable diseases such as chronic systemic inflammatory diseases (e.g., rheumatoid arthritis), may provide an important insight into asthma as a disease with systemic inflammatory features, a conceptual understanding between asthma and asthma-related comorbidity, and the potential implications on the therapeutic and preventive interventions for patients with asthma. This review discusses the currently under-recognized clinical and immunological phenotypes of asthma; specifically, a higher risk of developing a systemic inflammatory disease such as rheumatoid arthritis and their implications, on the conceptual understanding and management of asthma. Our discussion is divided into three parts: literature summary on the relationship between asthma and the risk of rheumatoid arthritis; potential mechanisms underlying the association; and implications on asthma management and research.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.91-106
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• 2024

The mechanisms of the chronic pain and depression comorbidity have gained significant attention in recent years. The complement system, widely involved in central nervous system diseases and mediating non-specific immune mechanisms in the body, remains incompletely understood in its involvement in the comorbidity mechanisms of chronic pain and depression. This review aims to consolidate the findings from recent studies on the complement system in chronic pain and depression, proposing that it may serve as a promising shared therapeutic target for both conditions. Complement proteins C1q, C3, C5, as well as their cleavage products C3a and C5a, along with the associated receptors C3aR, CR3, and C5aR, are believed to have significant implications in the comorbid mechanism. The primary potential mechanisms encompass the involvement of the complement cascade C1q/C3-CR3 in the activation of microglia and synaptic pruning in the amygdala and hippocampus, the role of complement cascade C3/C3a-C3aR in the interaction between astrocytes and microglia, leading to synaptic pruning, and the C3a-C3aR axis and C5a-C5aR axis to trigger inflammation within the central nervous system. We focus on studies on the role of the complement system in the comorbid mechanisms of chronic pain and depression.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.31 no.2
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• pp.116-124
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• 2018

Background: We aimed to investigate the prevalence of unrecognized depression in patients with chronic pain, but with no history of psychiatric diseases. Methods: Patients with chronic pain who did not have a history of psychiatric disease were selected for this study. The Beck Depression Index (BDI) was used to evaluate depression. Participants' socio-demographic characteristics and pain-related characteristics were also recorded. Results: The study included 94 consecutive patients with chronic pain (28 men and 66 women). Based on the BDI scores, 33/94 (35.1%) patients with chronic pain had comorbid depression. The prevalence of depression was significantly higher in our cohort than it was in the general population (P < 0.001). The standardized incidence ratio, adjusted for age and sex, was 2.77 in men and 2.60 in women. Patients who were unmarried (odds ratio [OR] = 3.714, P = 0.044), and who had subjective sleep disturbance (OR = 8.885, P < 0.001), were more likely to have moderate to severe depression. Patients with high education levels (OR = 0.244, P = 0.016), and who were economically active (OR = 0.284, P = 0.023), were less likely to have moderate to severe depression. Conclusions: Our results indicate that unrecognized depression in patients with chronic pain is common. Therefore, pain physicians should actively seek to identify these problems rather than relying on the patient to volunteer such information.

• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.198-207
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• 2015

ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) and chronic total occlusion (CTO) of coronary artery are well-known atherosclerotic vascular diseases. However, the difference of intima-media thickness and plaque characteristics of carotid arteries between STEMI and CTO patients were not directly compared in previous studies. Medical records of a total of 158 (101 STEMI, 57 CTO) patients, who underwent carotid artery ultrasonography, were selected for the analysis. The baseline characteristics, ultrasonography findings, and clinical outcomes of the two groups were compared. The prevalence of hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and dyslipidemia was significantly higher in CTO patients. Carotid intima-media thickness ($0.97{\pm}0.13$ vs. $0.78{\pm}0.17cm$, P < 0.0001) and number of plaques ($2.2{\pm}1.0$ vs. $1.7{\pm}1.2$, P < 0.0001) were greater in CTO than STEMI patients. Multiple (${\geq}3$) or echogenic plaques were more frequently observed in CTO patients. During the median follow-up duration of 27 months, major adverse cardiovascular events occurred in 31% of CTO and 14% of STEMI patients (P = 0.008). We found that, compared with STEMI, CTO patients have higher burden of carotid artery atherosclerosis associated with more comorbid diseases and poor clinical outcomes.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.19 no.6
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• pp.324-333
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• 2018

The aim of this study was to investigate the latent classes and predictors of chronic diseases such as hypertension, dyslipidemia, arthritis, thyroid disease, depression, atopy, allergy, and diabetes. The subjects of this study were Korean citizens who participated in the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey in 2014. Stratified cluster sampling method was used with a sample size of 7,550. Latent hierarchy analysis was applied to this data. Four classes were identified. Class 1 consisted of participants with hypertension and diabetes. Class 2 consisted of participants with atopy and allergies. Class 3 consisted of participants with dyslipidemia, arthritis, thyroid disease, and depression. Class 4 consisted of participants without any chronic diseases. In comparing Class 1 to Class 4, age, physical activity, self-management, obesity, and presence of high cholesterol were found to be significant. In comparing Class 2 to Class 4, gender, age, and education level were significant. When Class 3 was compared to Class 4, gender, age, pain and discomfort, as well as high cholesterol were found to be significant. Diabetes and hypertension should be treated as comorbid conditions, applying integrated treatments involving effective drug treatment, diet, and physical activity programs. Atopy was found to be strongly correlated with allergies. Thyroid disease was found to coexist with dyslipidemia and arthritis, along with having a strong correlation to depression. Age-appropriate preventive measures can help reduce the risk of chronic diseases.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.32 no.9
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• pp.835-839
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• 1999

Since the first report of coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) in patients with end-stage renal disease in 1974, numerous reports have documented the feasibility of CABG in patients with chronic renal diseases. Patients with chronic renal failure often have comorbid disorders such as hypertension, and diabetes mellitus, each with their own complications and associated impact on both short and long-term survivals. In addition, infection and sepsis have been identified as significant causes of morbidity and mortality in most series of patients with end-stage renal disease undergoing cardiac surgical procedure. As a result of these and other factors such as perioperative volume and electrolyte disturbances, patients with chronic renal failures are at an increased risk of complication and mortality after CABG. We report 3 cases of "Off-pump" CABG in the chronic renal failure patients. patients.