• Advances in Computational Design
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• v.7 no.4
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• pp.345-369
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• 2022

Infectious disease emergency hospitals are usually temporarily built during the pneumonia epidemic with higher requirements regarding diagnosis and treatment efficiency, hygiene and safety, and infection control.This study aims to identify how the Building Information Modeling (BIM) + Industrialized Building System (IBS) approach could rapidly deliver an infectious disease hospital and develop site epidemic spreading algorithms. Coronavirus-19 pneumonia construction site spreading algorithm model mind map and block diagram of the construction site epidemic spreading algorithm model were developed. BIM+IBS approach could maximize the repetition of reinforced components and reduce the number of particular components. Huoshenshan Hospital adopted IBS and BIM in the construction, which reduced the workload of on-site operations and avoided later rectification. BIM+IBS integrated information on building materials, building planning, building participants, and construction machinery, and realized construction visualization control and parametric design. The delivery of Huoshenshan Hospital was during the most critical period of the Coronavirus-19 pneumonia epidemic. The development of a construction site epidemic spreading algorithm provided theoretical and numerical support for prevention. The agent-based analysis on hospital evacuation observed "arched" congestion formed at the evacuation exit, indicating behavioral blindness caused by fear in emergencies.

• Journal of Information Science Theory and Practice
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• v.11 no.4
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• pp.1-13
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• 2023

Being one of the first and hardest hit countries by the coronavirus, Iran still continues to preserve its place among nations with the highest rates of infection and COVID-19 related deaths. While on the surface, such worrying status evinces the failure of the authorities in handling the crisis, at deeper levels, it points to the fundamentalist nature of the government and political system of the country. In this view, the current devastating condition in Iran is a clear indication of the all-out influence of the Islamic regime's ideologies on officials' decision-making and their political agendas throughout the pandemic. Accordingly, the staterun mainstream media, as the most preeminent institution of power, have been incessantly engaged in disseminating a series of ideology-laden information around the issues concerning the coronavirus, and in line with the developing political discourses during pandemic. Far from being based on factual accounts or scientific facts, these disseminated messages inevitably grew into a source of disinformation, ultimately resulting in overall public confusion and skepticism. Through examining the data gathered from some of the most prominent online news agencies run by the government, this study identifies five major discursive trends through which the mainstream media propagated ambiguous and manipulative information about COVID-19. These findings are then explained in the light of media system dependency theory, leading to the argument that within autocratic nation-states, public reliance on media during a national/global crisis brings about new opportunities for state exploitation, and further distressing consequences for the people.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.40 no.4
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• pp.395-402
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• 2023

Bell's palsy is an acute facial paralysis caused by peripheral facial nerve dysfunction. The aim of this study is to assess the efficacy of Korean medicine in the treatment of three patients who were hospitalized and diagnosed with Bell's palsy within 2 weeks of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection. The patients were administered with Korean medicine treatments, steroids, and antiviral drugs. Moreover, the Korean medicine treatments include acupuncture, pharmacopuncture, moxibustion, physical therapy, and herbal medicine. Symptom improvement was evaluated daily using the Yanagihara facial nerve grading system, a facial function evaluation tool. Furthermore, it was suggested that the patients affected by Bell's palsy after COVID-19 infection may have a slower improvement in their treatment progress compared with those without COVID-19 infection in the acute stage.

• IMMUNE NETWORK
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.10.1-10.13
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• 2021

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2) is a global infectious disease with rapid spread. Some patients have severe symptoms and clinical signs caused by an excessive inflammatory response, which increases the risk of mortality. In this study, we reanalyzed scRNA-seq data of cells from bronchoalveolar lavage fluids of patients with COVID-19 with mild and severe symptoms, focusing on Ab-producing cells. In patients with severe disease, B cells seemed to be more activated and expressed more immunoglobulin genes compared with cells from patients with mild disease, and macrophages expressed higher levels of the TNF superfamily member B-cell activating factor but not of APRIL (a proliferation-inducing ligand). In addition, macrophages from patients with severe disease had increased pro-inflammatory features and pathways associated with Fc receptor-mediated signaling, compared with patients with mild disease. CCR2-positive plasma cells accumulated in patients with severe disease, probably because of increased CCL2 expression on macrophages from patients with severe disease. Together, these results support the hypothesis that different characteristics of B cells might be associated with the severity of COVID-19 infection.

• Korean Journal of Radiology
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• v.24 no.5
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• pp.478-479
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• 2023

• Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology
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• v.84 no.4
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• pp.891-899
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• 2023

Purpose To survey perceptions of certified physicians on the protocol of chest CT in patients with coronavirus (COVID-19) using a negative pressure isolation stretcher (NPIS). Materials and Methods This study collected questionnaire responses from a total of 27 certified physicians who had previously performed chest CT with NPIS in COVID-19 isolation hospitals. Results The nine surveyed hospitals performed an average of 116 chest CT examinations with NPIS each year. Of these, an average of 24 cases (21%) were contrast chest CT. Of the 9 pulmonologists we surveyed, 5 (56%) agreed that patients who showed abnormalities in serum D-dimer required contrast chest CT. All 9 surveyed radiologists agreed that the image quality of the chest CT with NPIS was sufficient for CT image interpretation regarding pneumonia or pulmonary embolism. Furthermore, in our 9 surveyed infectionologists, 5 (56%) agreed that a risk of secondary infection in the CT room after temporary opening of NPIS could be prevented through a process of disinfection. Conclusion Experienced physicians considered that the effects of NIPS on chest CT image quality was minimal in patients with COVID-19, and the risk of CT room contamination was easily controlled.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.64 no.7
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• pp.364-369
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• 2021

Background: As the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak continues to evolve, it is crucially important for pediatricians to be aware of the differences in demographic and clinical features between COVID-19 and influenza A and B infections. Purpose: This study analyzed and compared the clinical features and laboratory findings of COVID-19 and influenza A and B infections in children. Methods: This retrospective study evaluated the medical data of 206 pediatric COVID-19 and 411 pediatric seasonal influenza A or B patients. Results: COVID-19 patients were older than seasonal influenza patients (median [interquartile range], 7.75 [2-14] years vs. 4 [2-6] years). The frequency of fever and cough in COVID-19 patients was lower than that of seasonal influenza patients (80.6% vs. 94.4%, P<0.001 and 22.8 % vs. 71.5%, P<0.001, respectively). Ageusia (4.9%) and anosmia (3.4%) were present in only COVID-19 patients. Leukopenia, lymphopenia, and thrombocytopenia were encountered more frequently in influenza patients than in COVID-19 patients (22.1% vs. 8.5%, P=0.029; 17.6% vs. 5.6%, P=0.013; and 13.2% vs. 5.6%, P=0.048, respectively). Both groups showed significantly elevated monocyte levels in the complete blood count (70.4% vs. 69.9%, P=0.511). Major chest x-ray findings in COVID-19 patients included mild diffuse ground-glass opacity and right lower lobe infiltrates. There were no statistically significant intergroup differences in hospitalization or mortality rates; however, the intensive care unit admission rate was higher among COVID-19 patients (2.4% vs. 0.5%, P=0.045). Conclusion: In this study, pediatric COVID-19 patients showed a wide range of clinical presentations ranging from asymptomatic/mild to severe illness. We found no intergroup differences in hospitalization rates, oxygen requirements, or hospital length of stay; however, the intensive care unit admission rate was higher among COVID-19 patients.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Integrative Medicine
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.109-121
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• 2021

Purpose : The first case of coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) disease outbreak in Korea occurred in January 2020, and the cumulative number of confirmed cases by the Central Defense Response Headquarters of the Quality Management Administration as of November 30 was 34,201. Looking at the incidence trend of domestic confirmed cases by age, the incidence rate of COVID-19 in the age group of 20-29 years, which corresponds to college students, was 27.4 %, the highest compared by age group. Considering the current status of the infection rate, universities will become the centers of new COVID-19 cases if face-to-face lectures are recommenced without preparatory measures and analysis of infection prevention (e.g., infection awareness and education for university students). Thus, this study intended to investigate the level of knowledge, educational needs, and preventive behavior performance of college students about COVID-19 and provide basic data for the development of an education program for the prevention of COVID-19 for college students. Methods : This study is a descriptive correlational study aimed to investigate the correlation between knowledge about COVID-19, educational needs, and degree of preventive behavior performance in 407 college students attending one University in Gyeonggi-do. Results : The subjects' knowledge score about COVID-19 was 12.46±1.39 points, average educational needs score was 29.16±3.14 points, and prevention behavior performance survey result was 35.50±3.61 points. Moreover, positive correlation was observed between the knowledge about COVID-19 and educational needs (r=.203, p<.001) and knowledge and preventive behavior performance (r=.140, p=.005). Further, educational needs and preventive behavior performance demonstrated a statistically significant positive relationship (r=.311, p<.001). Conclusion : Therefore, organizing an educational program to acquire accurate knowledge is necessary to make it a habit for college students to practice preventive behavior against COVID-19.

• IMMUNE NETWORK
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• v.21 no.6
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• pp.39.1-39.18
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• 2021

The high virulent severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) virus that emerged in China at the end of 2019 has generated novel coronavirus disease, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), causing a pandemic worldwide. Every country has made great efforts to struggle against SARS-CoV-2 infection, including massive vaccination, immunological patients' surveillance, and the utilization of convalescence plasma for COVID-19 therapy. These efforts are associated with the attempts to increase the titers of SARS-CoV-2 neutralizing Abs (nAbs) generated either after infection or vaccination that represent the body's immune status. As there is no standard therapy for COVID-19 yet, virus eradication will mainly depend on these nAbs contents in the body. Therefore, serological nAbs neutralization assays become a requirement for researchers and clinicians to measure nAbs titers. Different platforms have been developed to evaluate nAbs titers utilizing various epitopes sources, including neutralization assays based on the live virus, pseudovirus, and neutralization assays utilizing recombinant SARS-CoV-2 S glycoprotein receptor binding site, receptor-binding domain. As a standard neutralization assay, the plaque reduction neutralization test (PRNT) requires isolation and propagation of live pathogenic SARS-CoV-2 virus conducted in a BSL-3 containment. Hence, other surrogate neutralization assays relevant to the PRNT play important alternatives that offer better safety besides facilitating high throughput analyses. This review discusses the current neutralization assay platforms used to evaluate nAbs, their techniques, advantages, and limitations.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.53 no.3
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• pp.175-177
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• 2020

Public health doctors of Korea contributed significantly to massive coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) testing. They were immediately dispatched to epicenters of the COVID-19 pandemic, and have run tests at screening centers, airport quarantines and hospitals. However, their expertise from in-field experience has been often neglected. It is time to reorganize public health doctor system to better prepare for future epidemics. Transforming and strengthening their roles as public health experts through systematic training is crucial.