Journal of Korean medical science
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J. Korean Med. Sci. · Oct 2015
Common Pesticides Used in Suicide Attempts Following the 2012 Paraquat Ban in Korea.
To determine the change in pesticides used during suicide attempts after the 2012 paraquat (PQ) ban, we evaluated the annual number of suicide attempts by pesticide ingestion between 2011 and 2014. We extracted demographic, clinical outcome, and pesticide class data from the medical records of 1,331 patients that attempted suicide by pesticide ingestion. Pesticides were sorted into 5 groups: herbicides, insecticides, fungicides, other pesticides, and combined pesticides. ⋯ In conclusion, there is a significant trend in increased annual number of suicides and proportion of suicides using glyphosates and glufosinates versus total herbicides. However, the number of suicide attempts using glyphosate and glufosinate is lower than that using PQ. The ratio of persons completing suicide to those attempting suicide after pesticide ingestion has decreased every year after the PQ ban.
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J. Korean Med. Sci. · Oct 2015
Current Status of Therapeutic Strategies for Patent Ductus Arteriosus in Very-Low-Birth-Weight Infants in Korea.
This study aimed to investigate current therapeutic strategies for patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) in very-low-birth-weight (VLBW) infants in Korea. A total of 2,254 VLBW infants among 2,386 from Korean Neonatal Network cohort born from January 2013 to June 2014 were included. No PDA was seen for 1,206 infants (53.5%) and the infants diagnosed or treated for PDA were 1,048 infants (46.5%). ⋯ Seventy-six infants (3.4%) received primary ligation and 8.9% (201 infants) received secondary ligation. Diverse treatment strategies are currently used for preterm PDA in Korea. Further analyses of neonatal outcomes according to the treatment strategies are necessary to obtain a standardized treatment guideline for preterm PDA.
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J. Korean Med. Sci. · Oct 2015
Observational StudyRelationship between Serum Uric Acid Concentration and Acute Kidney Injury after Coronary Artery Bypass Surgery.
An elevated serum concentration of uric acid may be associated with an increased risk of acute kidney injury (AKI). The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of preoperative uric acid concentration on the risk of AKI after coronary artery bypass surgery (CABG). Perioperative data were evaluated from patients who underwent CABG. ⋯ Adding uric acid levels improved the C statistic and had significant impact on risk reclassification and integrated discrimination for AKI. Preoperative uric acid is related to postoperative AKI and improves the predictive ability of AKI. This finding suggests that preoperative measurement of uric acid may help stratify risks for AKI in in patients undergoing CABG.
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J. Korean Med. Sci. · Oct 2015
Recent Changes in the Incidence of Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia among Very-Low-Birth-Weight Infants in Korea.
We investigated the incidence of bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) in very-low-birth-weight (VLBW) infants in Korea using the Korean Neonatal Network (KNN) data. In total, 2,386 VLBW infants born from January 2013 to June 2014 were prospectively registered. BPD was defined as supplemental oxygen or positive pressure support at 36 weeks postmenstrual age (PMA). ⋯ For comparison, we selected infants (23-31 weeks of gestation) (n=1,990) to adjust for the same conditions with the previous survey in 2007-2008 (n=3,841). Among the limited data on VLBW infants (23-31 weeks of gestation), the incidence of BPD increased by 85% (from 17.8% to 33.0%) and the mortality rate in the NICU decreased by 31.4% (from 18.8% to 12.9%) compared to those in the study conducted in 2007-2008. The current trend of increase in the incidence of BPD among infants can be attributed to the increase in the survival rate of VLBW infants.
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J. Korean Med. Sci. · Oct 2015
Risk Factors of Discharged Against Medical Advice among Adolescents Self-inflicted Injury and Attempted Suicide in the Korean Emergency Department.
Suicide is a leading cause of death among Korean adolescents. Many suicide attempting adolescents often are discharged against medical advice in the emergency department. The aim of the present study was to determine the risk factors for discharge against medical advice (DAMA) after self-inflicted injury or attempted suicide in the emergency department. ⋯ The rate of DAMA from the ED was 22.8%. Independent risk factors for DAMA included female gender (odds ratio [OR], 1.49), older age adolescents (OR, 1.96), residence in a metropolitan/large city area (OR, 1.49), and discharge at night (OR, 1.38). These risk factors should be considered in establishing management and counseling plans for patients discharged against medical advice by community services and EDs.