Journal of Korean medical science
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J. Korean Med. Sci. · Jan 2021
Observational StudyThe Psychological Burden of COVID-19 Stigma: Evaluation of the Mental Health of Isolated Mild Condition COVID-19 Patients.
The objective of this article is to assess the mental health issues of the mild condition coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients admitted to a community treatment center (CTC) in Korea. ⋯ The results suggest that social mitigation of COVID-19 related stigma, as well as care of patients with pre-existing mental health problems are important mental health measures during this crisis period. It is also important that clinical guidelines and public health policies be well balanced over the protection of the public and those quarantined to minimize the negative psychosocial consequences from isolation of the patients.
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J. Korean Med. Sci. · Jan 2021
Multicenter StudyImpact of Cardiovascular Risk Factors and Cardiovascular Diseases on Outcomes in Patients Hospitalized with COVID-19 in Daegu Metropolitan City.
Data regarding the association between preexisting cardiovascular risk factors (CVRFs) and cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) and the outcomes of patients requiring hospitalization for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) are limited. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the impact of preexisting CVRFs or CVDs on the outcomes of patients with COVID-19 hospitalized in a Korean healthcare system. ⋯ Based on the findings of this study, the patients with confirmed COVID-19 with preexisting CVRFs or CVDs had worse clinical outcomes. Caution is required in dealing with these patients at triage.
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J. Korean Med. Sci. · Jan 2021
Spatio-temporal Analysis of District-level Life Expectancy from 2004 to 2017 in Korea.
Health indicators, such as mortality rates or life expectancy, need to be presented at the local level to improve the health of local residents and to reduce health inequality across geographic areas. The aim of this study was to estimate life expectancy at the district level in Korea through a spatio-temporal analysis. ⋯ In this study, we estimated the annual district-level life expectancy from 2004 to 2017 in Korea by gender using a spatio-temporal model. Local governments could use annual district-level life expectancy estimates as a performance indicator of health policies to improve the health of local residents. The approach to district-level analysis with spatio-temporal modeling employed in this study could be used in future analyses to produce district-level health-related indicators in Korea.
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J. Korean Med. Sci. · Jan 2021
Case ReportsThe Importance of Early Recognition, Timely Management, and the Role of Healthcare Providers in Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children.
In April 2020, a pediatric report of an unusual inflammatory illness associated with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) led to similar cases in Europe and North America, which was referred to as multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C). Herein, we describe the case of a 12-year-old boy who had a history of polymerase chain reaction-confirmed COVID-19 and developed MIS-C approximately three weeks after an initial diagnosis of COVID-19. ⋯ Intravenous immunoglobulin was administered twice, 24 hours apart, five days after the onset of MIS-C, and the patient fully recovered without any obvious sequelae. Early recognition by disease awareness and prompt management are the keys to saving the lives of children affected by MIS-C.
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J. Korean Med. Sci. · Jan 2021
Clinical Pathway for Emergency Brain Surgery during COVID-19 Pandemic and Its Impact on Clinical Outcomes.
One of the challenges neurosurgeons are facing in the global public health crisis caused by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is to balance COVID-19 screening with timely surgery. We described a clinical pathway for patients who needed emergency brain surgery and determined whether differences in the surgery preparation process caused by COVID-19 screening affected clinical outcomes. ⋯ We proposed a clinical pathway for the preoperative screening of COVID-19 in patients requiring emergency brain surgery. No significant differences were observed in the clinical outcomes before and after the COVID-19 pandemic. The protocol we described showed acceptable results during this pandemic.