• Journal of agricultural medicine and community health
• /
• v.45 no.4
• /
• pp.183-193
• /
• 2020

Objectives: As an ecological study, this study was performed to identify the community-level variation of health related quality-of-life (HRQOL), and to explore the factors that explain the variation, using 2017 Korean Community Health Survey (KCHS) data. Methods: Community health indicators of KCHS, which are correlated with the EQ-5D index of Si-gun-gu districts, were selected as independent variables. Multiple linear regression model was used to derive factors that explain regional variations in the EQ-5D index. Results: The EQ-5D index variation in 229 districts nationwide was 1.1 times for extremal quotient (EQ) and 1.0 for coefficient of variance (CV). The Si-gun-gu districts with the EQ-5D index in the lower 25% were more distributed in the province (27.7%) than in the metropolitan area (20.3%). As a result of multiple linear regression analysis, the depressed mood experience rate, perceived stress rate, suicide ideation rate, and physician diagnosed arthritis rate were derived as major factors of the variation. Conclusions: In order to reduce the gap in HRQOL between the districts, the priority of local health policies should be placed on the above factors including psychosocial factors.

• Journal of the Korean Applied Science and Technology
• /
• v.37 no.2
• /
• pp.268-278
• /
• 2020

This study aimed to identify the moderating effect of public health service utilization rate between public health resources and community mental health. The subjects included 144 local communities, from the data of 6th Community Health Plan and the 2015 Community Health Survey. Public health resources were measured by public health budget, public mental health budget and public mental health personnel; and mental health was measured by rate of perceived stress, rate of depressive mood and suicide rate. The hierarchical regression analysis was used to identify the moderating effects. The results were as followed. First, the effect of public mental health budget on rate of depressive mood was moderated by public health service utilization rate. Second, the effect of public mental health personnel on rate of depressive mood was moderated by public health service utilization rate. Third, the effect of public mental health personnel on suicide rate was also moderated by public health service utilization rate. Fourth, the effect of public health resources on mental health differed between the groups with high and low public health service utilization rate. In improving community mental health, the measures to improve the public health service utilization rate should be considered to ensure that reinforcing public health resources leads to the improvement of community mental health.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural and Forest Meteorology
• /
• v.19 no.3
• /
• pp.93-101
• /
• 2017

The distribution of inter-annual variation in temperature would help evaluate the likelihood of a climatic risk and assess suitable zones of crops under climate change. In this study, we evaluated two methods to estimate the standard deviation of temperature in the areas where weather information is limited. We calculated the monthly standard deviation of temperature by collecting temperature at 0600 and 1500 local standard time from 10 automated weather stations (AWS). These weather stations were installed in the range of 8 to 1,073m above sea level within a mountainous catchment for 2011-2015. The observed values were compared with estimates, which were calculated using a geospatial correction scheme to derive the site-specific temperature. Those estimates explained 88 and 86% of the temperature variations at 0600 and 1500 LST, respectively. However, it often underestimated the temperatures. In the spring and fall, it tended to had different variance (e.g., increasing or decreasing pattern) from lower to higher elevation with the observed values. A regression analysis was also conducted to quantify the relationship between the standard deviation in temperature and the topography. The regression equation explained a relatively large variation of the monthly standard deviation when lapse-rate corrected temperature, basic topographical variables (e.g., slope, and aspect) and topographical variables related to temperature (e.g., thermal belt, cold air drainage, and brightness index) were used. The coefficient of determination for the regression analysis ranged between 0.46 and 0.98. It was expected that the regression model could account for 70% of the spatial variation of the standard deviation when the monthly standard deviation was predicted by using the minimum-maximum effective range of topographical variables for the area.

• Korean Journal of Health Education and Promotion
• /
• v.32 no.3
• /
• pp.23-31
• /
• 2015

Objectives: The contribution of health behavior is high in the mortality variation. Mortality variation can be decreased through the policies and programs for improving health behavior. We investigated that health behaviors effected with standardized mortality in community. Methods: We examined the distribution of health determinant factors and correlation analyzed between factors and performed multiple linear regression. Data were collected from 2012 Community Health Survey in 253 communities, annual regional statistics, and statistics from Statistics Korea. Results: This study defined that the variation of standardized mortality and there are exist inequality level of health determinant factors in 253 communities. This study showed that the higher standardized mortality explained through health behavior factors of the current smoking rate, walking exercise rate and diagnosis of hypertension or diabetes rate after adjusted other factors(adjusted $R^2=0.709$, p<0.001). Conclusions: Smoking, walking exercise and diagnosis chronic disease affecting on the regional variation of standardized mortality. These factors can be improved by the local residents themselves.

• Journal of Korean Society of Water and Wastewater
• /
• v.35 no.3
• /
• pp.237-246
• /
• 2021

The ILI, developed by the IWA (International Water Association), has been used in many countries as an indicator of water leakage. In Korea, the revenue water has been used as a performance indicator for waterworks although there is an opinion to replace it with the ILI. Hence, it has been necessary to investigate whether the ILI can replace the revenue water in Korea. The four main operating indicators (i.e., water service population, profit-loss ratio, fiscal self-reliance, and aged pipe rate) of 162 Korean waterworks were compared with the ILI with the linear regression method. Local water authorities with more than 1 million water service population, with more than 60% profit-loss ratio, more than 40% and less than 60% fiscal self-reliance, and more than 20% aged pipe rate showed meaningful correlation between the four parameters and the ILI. In the remaining cases, their correlations were little or weak. This means that using the ILI may not be an efficient method to represent the performance of the water supply system in Korea because of the lack of UARL (Unavoidable Annual Real Losses) data accuracy. To use the ILI in Korea, it will be required to carry out an additional research to accumulate reliable CARL (Current Annual Real Losses) and UARL data in the future.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
• /
• v.55 no.2
• /
• pp.153-163
• /
• 2022

Objectives: This study divided the factors that affect participation in health screenings into individual, household, and regional levels and conducted a multi-level analysis to identify the factors related to participation in health screenings. Methods: Participants from the 2017 Community Health Survey were classified into 2 groups (under 40 and 40 or older). A multi-level logistic regression analysis was conducted to identify the factors that affected participation in health screenings. Results: The screening rate of the participants was 69.7%, and it was higher among participants aged 40 and older (80.3%) than it was among participants younger than 40 (49.8%). At the individual level, the factors that influenced participation in health screenings included age, economic activity, smoking status, physician-diagnosed hypertension, and a moderate or high physical activity level. At the household level, the odds ratio of participation in health screenings was high for participants who lived in single-person households, lived with a spouse, earned a high monthly household income, and were not beneficiaries of national basic livelihood security. At the regional level, the odds ratio at the 95% confidence interval level of participation in health screenings was high for participants who had trust in the local community and lived in an area with a proportionally high social welfare budget. Conclusions: This study analyzed nationalwide data and confirmed that individual, household, and regional characteristics affected participation in health screenings. Therefore, policies that prioritize the improvement of regional level factors and especially household level factors are likely to be the most effective for improving the screening rate.

• The Journal of the Korean bone and joint tumor society
• /
• v.16 no.1
• /
• pp.14-20
• /
• 2010

Purpose: To investigate prognostic factors influencing on local recurrence, distant metastasis and event-free survival of liposarcomas. Materials and Methods: Fifty-two patients managed for liposarcomas since 1993 were analyzed respectively in the view of prognostic influence of patient age, tumor size, location, histologic type, histologic grade, resection type, surgical margin, chemotherapy and radiation therapy on local recurrence, distant metastasis and event-free survival. The mean follow up period was 39 months. The univariate and multivariate regression analysis were performed for statistical evaluation. Results: The local recurrences occurred in 11 patients (21.2%) and distant metastasis in 4 patients (8%), Event-free survival rate at 4 year follow up was 67%. In univariate analysis, histologic grade, surgical margin, chemotherapy and radiation therapy were significant prognostic factors on local recurrence (p<0.05). However, histologic grade lost its significance in muitivariate analysis. Trunk location revealed higher rate of distant metastasis than extremity location. In univariate analysis on event-free survival. histologic grade and chemotherapy were significant factors (p<0.05). No factor remained significant in multivariate analysis. Conclusion: Considering selection bias, positive surgical margin was negative prognostic factor on local recurrence. Liposarcomas arisen in trunk revealed higher rate of distant metastasis. There was no independent prognostic factor on event-free survival of patients with liposarcomas.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
• /
• v.14 no.6
• /
• pp.3769-3772
• /
• 2013

Background: To investigate the impact of the lymph node ratio (LNR) on the prognosis of patients with locally advanced rectal cancer undergoing pre-operative chemoradiation. Methods: Clinicopathologic and follow up data of 128 patients with stage III rectal cancer who underwent curative resection from 1996 to 2007 were reviewed. The patients were divided into two groups according to the lymph node ratio: LNR ${\leq}$ 0.2 (n=28), and >0.2 (n=100). Kaplan-Meier and the Cox proportional hazard regression models were used to evaluate the prognostic effects according to LNR. Results: Median numbers of lymph nodes examined and lymph nodes involved by tumour were 10.3 (range 2-28) and 5.8 (range 1-25), respectively, and the median LNR was 0.5 (range, 0-1.6). The 5-year survival rate significantly differed by LNR (${\leq}$ 0.2, 69%; >0.2, 19%; Log-rank p value < 0.001). LNR was also a significant prognostic factor of survival adjusted for age, sex, post-operative chemotherapy, total number of examined lymph nodes, metastasis and local recurrence (${\leq}$ 0.2, HR=1; >0.2, HR=4.8, 95%CI=2.1-11.1) and a significant predictor of local recurrence and distant metastasis during follow-up independently of total number of examined lymph node. Conclusions: Total number of examined lymph nodes and LNR were significant prognostic factors for survival in patients with stage III rectal cancer undergoing pre-operative chemoradiotherapy.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
• /
• v.13 no.4
• /
• pp.1171-1176
• /
• 2012

Objective: The current study aimedto screen for possible factors which affect prognosis of chondrosarcoma. Methods: Thirty seven cases were selected and analyzed statistically. The patients received surgical treatment at our hospital between December 2005 and March 2008. All of them had complete follow-up data. The survival rates were calculated by univariate analysis using the Kaplan-Meier method and tested by Log-rank. ${\chi}^2$ or Fisher exact tests were carried out for the numeration data. The significant indexes after univariate analysis were then analyzed by multivariate analysis using COX regression model. Based on the literature, factors of gender, age, disease course, tumor location, Enneking grades, surgical approaches, distant metastasis and local recurrence were examined. Results: Univariate analysis showed that there were significant differences in Enneking grades, surgical approaches and distant metastasis related to the patients' 3-year survival rate after surgery (P<0.001). No significant difference was not found in gender, age, disease course, tumor location or local recurrence (P>0.05). Multivariate analysis showed that Enneking grade (P=0.007) and surgical approaches (P=0.010) were independent factors affecting the prognosis of chondrosarcoma, but distant metastasis was not (P=0.942). Conclusion: Enneking grades, surgical approaches and distant metastasis are risk factors for prognosis of chondrosarcoma, among which the former two are independent factors.

• Health Policy and Management
• /
• v.26 no.1
• /
• pp.12-23
• /
• 2016

Background: Many studies have explained regional disparities in health by socioeconomic status and healthcare resources, focusing on differences between urban and rural area. However some cities in Korea have the highest cardiovascular mortality, even though they have sufficient healthcare resources. So this study aims to confirm three hypotheses. (1) There are also regional health disparities between cities not only between urban and rural area. (2) It has different regional risk factors affecting cardiovascular mortality whether it is urban or rural area. (3) Besides socioeconomic and healthcare resources factors, there are remnant factors that affect regional cardiovascular mortality such as health behavior and physical environment. Methods: The subject of this study is 227 local authorities (si, gun, and gu). They were categorized into city (gu and si consisting of urban area) and non-city (gun consisting of rural area), and the city group was subdivided into 3 parts to reflect relative different city status: city 1 (Seoul, Gyeonggi cities), city 2 (Gwangyeoksi cities), and city 3 (other cities). We compared their mortalities among four groups by using analysis of variance analysis. And we explored what had contributed to it in whole authorities, city and non-city group by using multiple regression analysis. Results: Cardiovascular mortality is highest in city 2 group, lowest in city 1 group and middle in non-city group. Socioeconomic status and current smoking significantly increase mortality regardless of group. Other than those things, in city, there are some factors associated with cardiovascular mortality: walking practice(-), weight control attempt(-), deficiency of sports facilities(+), and high rate of factory lot(+). In non-city, there are other factors different from those of city: obesity prevalence(+), self-perceiving obesity(-), number of public health institutions(-), and road ratio(-). Conclusion: To reduce cardiovascular mortality and it's regional disparities, we need to consider differentiated approach, respecting regional character and different risk factors. Also, it is crucial to strengthen local government's capacity for practicing community health policy.