Korean consumers’ use and concerns about food delivery service

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES@#Despite the rapid growth of the online food delivery service market since the outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019, little research has focused on how consumers are using food delivery service and what they are concerned about when using food delivery service. Moreover, previous studies have not paid adequate attention to how these concerns are related to consumers’ intention to use food delivery service. Therefore, our study examines behaviors and concerns regarding food delivery service and identifies the key factors in consumers’ intention to use food delivery service. @*SUBJECTS/METHODS@#Using data collected from 549 Korean consumers, we conducted descriptive analysis, exploratory factor analysis, and multiple regressions. @*RESULTS@#We found that using food delivery service is not only for main meals at home or the office but also to meet a variety of dietary needs and occasions. The findings indicated that Korean consumers are most concerned about the sustainability of food delivery service, followed by health, hygiene, hedonic, and usability aspects of the service. Hygiene concerns and a hedonic aspect of the service were negatively associated with consumers’ intention to use food delivery service among users, while health concerns decreased the intention of non-users. @*CONCLUSION@#The findings have implications for practitioners and policy makers in food delivery service. To further propel market growth, they should help reduce health concerns of non-users, as well as hygiene and hedonic concerns of existing users.

Korean clinical practice guidelines for the diagnosis of hereditary hemolytic anemia

Although the prevalence of hereditary hemolytic anemia (HHA) is relatively low in Korea, it has been gradually increasing in recent decades due to increment in the proportions of hemoglobinopathies from immigrants of South East Asia, raising awareness of the disease among clinicians, and advances in diagnostic technology. As such, the red blood cell (RBC) Disorder Working Party (WP), previously called HHA WP, of the Korean Society of Hematology (KSH) developed the Korean Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for the diagnosis of HHA in 2007. These SOPs have been continuously revised and updated following advances in diagnostic technology [e.g., flow cytometric osmotic fragility test (FOFT) and eosin-5-maleimide (EMA) binding test], current methods for membrane protein or enzyme analysis [e.g., liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS), ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS), high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)], and molecular genetic tests using next-generation sequencing (NGS). However, the diagnosis and treatment of HHA remain challenging as they require considerable experience and understanding of the disease. Therefore, in this new Korean Clinical Practice Guidelines for the Diagnosis of HHA, on behalf of the RBC Disorder WP of KSH, updated guidelines to approach patients suspected of HHA are summarized. NGS is proposed to perform prior to membrane protein or enzyme analysis by LC-MS/MS, UPLC-MS/MS or HPLC techniques due to the availability of gene testing in more laboratories in Korea. We hope that this guideline will be helpful for clinicians in making diagnostic decisions for patients with HHA in Korea.

COVID-19 and changes in Korean consumers' dietary attitudes and behaviors

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES@#The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak has dramatically changed nearly every aspect of our lives. Although Dietary lifestyle includes attitudes and behaviors to meet their most basic needs, but few studies have examined the pattern of changes in dietary lifestyle driven by COVID-19. This study explores changes in dietary attitudes and behaviors among Korean consumers after COVID-19. @*SUBJECTS/METHODS@#An online survey was conducted with 549 Korean adults aged 20 and older to identify general demographics and changes in dietary attitudes and behaviors. Data were collected from Oct 12 to Oct 18, 2020. Frequency, percentage, and mean values were calculated and a K-means cluster analysis was performed to categorize consumers based on the 5S of dietary attitudes (i.e., savor-oriented, safety-oriented, sustainability-oriented, saving-oriented, and socializing-oriented). @*RESULTS@#Findings indicate consumers considered safety, health, and freshness to be most important when choosing groceries and prepared meal such as home meal replacement and delivery food. Among the types of services, a large proportion of consumers increased their delivery and take-out services. Regarding retail channels, the increase in the use of online retailers was remarkable compared to offline retailers. Finally, consumers were classified into four segments based on changes in dietary attitudes: “most influenced,” “seeking safety and sustainability,” “abstaining from savor and socializing,” and “least influenced.” Each type of consumer exhibited statistically significant differences by sex, age, household composition, presence of disease, and perceived risk of COVID-19. @*CONCLUSIONS@#This exploratory study provides initial insights for future research by identifying various aspects of dietary attitudes and behaviors among Korean consumers after COVID-19.

Evaluation of the Urinary Glucose Tetrasaccharide Assay Using Ultra-Performance Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry for Diagnosis of Pompe Disease

We evaluated the urinary glucose tetrasaccharide (Glc4) assay using ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS). The calibration curve was linear over a range of 5-500 micromol/L. Performance parameters such as intra- and inter-day imprecision CVs were 6.52-14.6% and 11.5-13.2%, respectively. The mean concentrations of urinary Glc4 in 27 normal controls and 3 pseudodeficiency patients were 1.5 and 12.1 mmol/mol creatinine, respectively. Urinary Glc4 concentration in a patient with Pompe disease was 171.3 mmol/mol creatinine, which decreased to 130.9 mmol/mol following enzyme replacement therapy. Based on our results, we suggest that the urinary Glc4 assay using UPLC-MS/MS can be a reliable diagnostic tool for identification of patients with Pompe disease.