Epidemiologic Study on Kawasaki Disease in Korea, 2007-2014: Based on Health Insurance Review & Assessment Service Claims

The aim of this study is to assess the actual epidemiologic features of Kawasaki disease (KD) in Korea using the data from Health Insurance Review & Assessment Service (HIRA) claims from 2007 to 2014. We investigated HIRA claims of patients who had KD (International Classification of Diseases-10, M30.3) as a major diagnosis and were given intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) from 2007 to 2014. A total of 39,082 patients were reported during the period. The male-to-female ratio was 1.42 and the median age was 28 months. The incidence rates were 168.3 per 100,000 population aged 0 to 4 years in 2007, 159.1 in 2008, 167.3 in 2009, 190.4 in 2010, 188.2 in 2011, 190.2 in 2012, 210.4 in 2013 and 217.2 in 2014. These rates were much higher than those in the previous studies in Korea. KD occurred more often in early summer (May, June and July) and winter (December and January). The annual incidence rate of KD had been increasing every year, reaching 217.2 per 100,000 population aged 0 to 4 years in 2014. It is the second highest incidence rate of KD in the world after Japan.     

Micropatterns of Non‐Circular Droplets of Nanostructured PS‐b‐PEO Copolymer by Solvent‐Assisted Wetting on a Chemically Periodic Surface

A method to fabricate micropatterns of non‐circular droplets of a self‐assembled block copolymer by solvent‐assisted wetting on chemically periodic surface is presented. The block copolymer is dewetted on a topographic pre‐pattern to form an array of microdroplets with a sphere‐capped shape and circular contact line. The droplets are then transferred onto a chemically periodic Au line pattern microcontact‐printed with two types of self‐assembled monolayers (SAMs). Solvent vapor application provides sufficient mobility to the block copolymer molecules to induce spreading of the transferred droplets, resulting in two types of non‐circular microdroplet growth. The growth behavior depends on the size of initial droplets relative to periodic line width and on the initial registries of as‐transferred droplets.     

Frequency of Consumption of Whole Fruit,Not Fruit Juice,Is Associated with Reduced Prevalence of Obesity in Korean Adults

BackgroundFruit consumption is known to be beneficial to health. However, the health benefits of fruit juice are controversial due to its high sugar content.ObjectivesTo examine the associations of frequency of consumption of whole fruit and fruit juice with obesity and metabolic syndrome.DesignThis cross-sectional study used data from the 2012-2015 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.ParticipantsA total of 10,460 adults (4,082 men and 6,378 women) aged 19 to 64 years were included in the study.Main outcome measuresFrequency of consumption of whole fruit and fruit juice was evaluated using a food frequency questionnaire, and dietary sugar intake was calculated using a 24-hour recall. Obesity and abdominal obesity were determined using body mass index and waist circumference, respectively. Metabolic syndrome was defined on the basis of the National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III.Statistical analyses performedMultiple logistic regression analysis was performed to examine the associations between frequency of whole fruit or fruit juice consumption and obesity and metabolic syndrome abnormalities.ResultsThe percentage of participants who consumed whole fruit daily was 32.6%, whereas 52.3% consumed fruit juice rarely. The average intake of total sugars was 14.9% of total energy, which was within the recommend range (<20% of total energy) for Koreans. Consuming whole fruit ≥1 time/day was associated with reduced prevalence of obesity, abdominal obesity, and elevated blood pressure compared with consuming whole fruit ≤1 time/wk. However, frequency of fruit juice consumption showed no association with obesity, abdominal obesity, and metabolic syndrome.ConclusionsFrequency of whole fruit consumption was associated with reduced prevalence of obesity and metabolic syndrome abnormalities among Korean adults with average total sugar intake within the recommended range.