Association between Daily Sunlight Exposure and Fractures in Older Korean Adults with Osteoporosis: A Nationwide Population-Based Cross-Sectional Study

Purpose@#We aimed to investigate the association between daily sunlight exposure duration and fractures in older Korean adults with osteoporosis. @*Materials and Methods@#We utilized data from the 2008–2011 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Osteoporosis was diagnosed based on a T-score of ≤-2.5 using dual energy X-ray absorptiometry. The duration of daily sunlight exposure and fracture were assessed via intensive health interviews by trained staff using standardized health questionnaires. Fracture was defined as one or more fractures of the femur, wrist, and spine. @*Results@#A total of 638 patients with osteoporosis aged ≥65 years were included. The odds ratio (OR) of total fractures was 0.55 times lower in the group with ≥5 h of daily sunlight exposure than in the group with <5 h of exposure after adjusting for age, sex, family history of osteoporosis or fracture, body mass index, bone mineral density of the femoral neck, serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D, current smoking, alcohol intake, daily calcium intake, and physical activity [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.31–0.97, p=0.040].In patients with vitamin D insufficiency, the OR of total fracture was 0.52 times lower in the group with ≥5 h of daily sunlight exposure than in the group with less exposure after adjusting the above variables (95% CI 0.28–0.97, p=0.041). @*Conclusion@#Sunlight exposure for ≥5 h a day was significantly associated with a decreased OR of fracture in older Korean adults with osteoporosis. This association was also significant in patients with vitamin D insufficiency.

Association between Daily Sunlight Exposure and Fractures in Older Korean Adults with Osteoporosis: A Nationwide Population-Based Cross-Sectional Study

Purpose@#We aimed to investigate the association between daily sunlight exposure duration and fractures in older Korean adults with osteoporosis. @*Materials and Methods@#We utilized data from the 2008–2011 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Osteoporosis was diagnosed based on a T-score of ≤-2.5 using dual energy X-ray absorptiometry. The duration of daily sunlight exposure and fracture were assessed via intensive health interviews by trained staff using standardized health questionnaires. Fracture was defined as one or more fractures of the femur, wrist, and spine. @*Results@#A total of 638 patients with osteoporosis aged ≥65 years were included. The odds ratio (OR) of total fractures was 0.55 times lower in the group with ≥5 h of daily sunlight exposure than in the group with <5 h of exposure after adjusting for age, sex, family history of osteoporosis or fracture, body mass index, bone mineral density of the femoral neck, serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D, current smoking, alcohol intake, daily calcium intake, and physical activity [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.31–0.97, p=0.040].In patients with vitamin D insufficiency, the OR of total fracture was 0.52 times lower in the group with ≥5 h of daily sunlight exposure than in the group with less exposure after adjusting the above variables (95% CI 0.28–0.97, p=0.041). @*Conclusion@#Sunlight exposure for ≥5 h a day was significantly associated with a decreased OR of fracture in older Korean adults with osteoporosis. This association was also significant in patients with vitamin D insufficiency.

Association of Hand Grip Strength and Cardiometabolic Markers in Korean Adult Population: The Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2015-2016 / 가정의학회지

Background@#Muscle strength has been suggested as a cardiovascular marker. The aim of this study was to examine the associations between hand grip strength and biomarkers of cardiovascular disease in the Korean population. @*Methods@#A total of 9,083 participants aged 20–80 years from Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2015–2016 were investigated. @*Results@#Among men, both relative and dominant hand grip strength showed a positive association with diastolic blood pressure in those aged 65–80 years (95% confidence interval, P-value of dominant and relative hand grip strength: β=0.06, 0.01; P<0.05). Among women, relative and dominant hand grip strength showed a positive relationship to diastolic blood pressure in those aged 20–64 years (β=0.06, 0.01; P<0.001). Body mass index was positively associated with dominant hand grip strength in younger women (β=0.18, P<0.05), whereas it was positively associated with relative hand grip strength in all sex and age groups. High-sensitivity C-reactive protein showed a negative association with relative and dominant hand grip strength in all women, although the same association was observed only in younger men. Diabetes was inversely related to hand grip strength in younger women and men. @*Conclusion@#Increased hand grip strength may be associated with lower C-reactive protein in women and with less risk of diabetes in the Korean adult population. Further prospective studies are needed for the determination of causality between cardiometabolic markers and hand grip strength.

The Relationship between Coffee and Green Tea Consumption and C-Reactive Protein in Korean Men and Women: Using the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2015–2016

BACKGROUND: C-reactive protein (CRP) is known as a strong predictor of cardiovascular risk compared with several other inflammatory markers. Coffee and green tea components, such as chlorogenic acid, caffeic acid, and polyphenol are known to have anti-inflammatory and antioxidative properties. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between coffee and green tea consumption and CRP levels in Korean adults.METHODS: The study included 3,031 people who participated in the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, sixth (2015) and seventh year (2016). In order to analyze the characteristics according to coffee and green tea consumption, continuous variables were presented as mean and standard error, and analysis of variance was performed. Multiple linear regression analysis was used to confirm the correlation between coffee and green tea consumption and CRP levels.RESULTS: There was no significant correlation between coffee consumption and CRP level. In case of green tea consumption, the correlation was not significant in women. The regression coefficients and standard errors were −0.26 (−0.51 to −0.01) with the consumption of one cup or less, −0.40 (−1.06 to 0.25) with the consumption of two cups, and −0.55 (−0.89 to −0.20) with the consumption of three cups or more in men, demonstrating a decrease in CRP levels with an increase in green tea consumption.CONCLUSION: There was no significant relationship between coffee consumption and serum CRP levels in Korean adults. Serum CRP levels decreased significantly as the intake increased among men who consumed green tea compared with the men in the control group.

Natural conception rate following laparoscopic surgery in infertile women with endometriosis / 대한생식의학회지

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the influence of laparoscopic surgery on the natural conception rate in infertile women with endometriosis during the first year after the operation. METHODS: We retrospectively studied 43 infertile women with surgically proven endometriosis. The natural conception rate was investigated for the 12 months after the laparoscopy. RESULTS: The overall pregnancy rate was 41.9% (18/43). 66.7% (12/18) and 94.4% (17/18) of the patients conceived within postoperative 3 months and 6 months, respectively. The spontaneous pregnancy rate was not associated with the severity of endometriosis or laparoscopic findings or the type of surgery. The pregnancy rate for stage IV was relatively low (20.0%) compared to stage I, II, and III (35.7%, 44.4%, and 53.3%, respectively), although it did not reach statistical significance. CONCLUSION: Conservative surgical treatment with laparoscopy and a prompt attempt at natural conception may be effective for infertile patients with endometriosis.

Successful birth with preimplantation genetic diagnosis using single-cell allele-specific PCR and sequencing in a woman with hypochondroplasia due to FGFR3 mutation (c.1620C>A, p.N540K) / 대한생식의학회지

Hypochondroplasia (HCH) is an autosomal dominant inherited skeletal dysplasia, usually caused by a heterozygous mutation in the fibroblast growth factor receptor 3 gene (FGFR3). A 27-year-old HCH woman with a history of two consecutive abortions of HCH-affected fetuses visited our clinic for preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD). We confirmed the mutation in the proband (FGFR3:c.1620C>A, p.N540K), and established a nested allele-specific PCR and sequence analysis for PGD using single lymphocyte cells. We performed this molecular genetic analysis to detect the presence of mutation among 20 blastomeres from 18 different embryos, and selected 9 embryos with the wild-type sequence (FGFR3:c.1620C). A successful pregnancy was achieved through a frozen-thawed cycle and resulted in the full-term birth of a normal neonate. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of a successful pregnancy and birth using single-cell allele-specific PCR and sequencing for PGD in an HCH patient.

In vitro maturation: Clinical applications / 대한생식의학회지

Oocyte in vitro maturation (IVM) is an assisted reproductive technology in which oocytes are retrieved from the antral follicles of unstimulated or minimally stimulated ovaries. IVM of human oocytes has emerged as a promising procedure. This new technology has advantages over controlled ovarian stimulation such as reduction of costs, simplicity, and elimination of ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome. By elimination or reduction of gonadotropin stimulation, IVM offers eligible infertile couples a safe and convenient form of treatment, and IVM outcomes are currently comparable in safety and efficacy to those of conventional in vitro fertilization. IVM has been applied mainly in patients with polycystic ovary syndrome or ultrasound-only polycystic ovaries, but with time, the indications for IVM have expanded to other uncommon situations such as fertility preservation, as well as to normal responders. In this review, the current clinical experiences with IVM will be described.