| Jin-Gyu Jung | 11 Articles |
Background
This study examined the relationship between alcohol consumption and total testosterone deficiency based on facial flushing among Korean men. Methods A total of 314 men were included in this study and divided into non-drinkers (n=78) and drinkers (n=236). Drinkers were also divided into flushers (n=96) and non-flushers (n=140). Flushers and non-flushers were separated into two groups based on the amount of alcohol consumed: moderate drinkers (≤8 standard drinks per week) and heavy drinkers (>8 standard drinks per week). Total testosterone <3.5 ng/mL was defined as testosterone deficiency. Results The risk of testosterone deficiency was significantly higher in heavy drinkers who flushed than in nondrinkers (odds ratio, 4.37; 95% confidence interval, 1.20–15.88; P=0.025). However, no significant difference was observed in the risk of testosterone deficiency in non-flushers, regardless of the amount of alcohol consumed. Conclusion This study suggests that the risk of testosterone deficiency increases in heavy drinkers (>8 drinks per week) who flush compared to that in non-drinkers. Citations Citations to this article as recorded by
Background
The simplified Palliative Prognostic Index (sPPI) substitutes a single item from the Communication Capacity Scale (CCS) for the delirium item of the original PPI. This study aimed to examine the validity of the sPPI for patients with advanced cancer in a home-based hospice care setting. Methods This study included 75 patients with advanced cancer who received home-based hospice care. We used medical records maintained by professional hospice nurses who had visited the patients in their homes. Based on their sPPI score, patients were divided into three groups—A (<4), B (≥4 and <6), and C (≥6)—to compare survival. Further, we investigated the sPPI’s accuracy using the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) and sensitivity and specificity for 3- and 6-week survival. We used three sPPIs including different substitutions for the delirium item (two methods using the CCS and one using the Korean Nursing Delirium Screening Scale). Results The median survival was 60–61 days for group A, 27–30 days for group B, and 12–16 days for group C. The difference in survival was significant (P<0.05). The AUC was 0.814–0.867 for 3-week survival and 0.736–0.779 for 6-week survival. For 3- and 6-week survival, prognostic prediction showed sensitivities of 76.2%–90.9% and 76.3%–86.8%, and specificities of 64.2%–88.7% and 51.4%–70.3%, respectively. Conclusion The sPPI, which is measured by professional hospice nurses, has acceptable validity to predict survival for patients with advanced cancer in a home hospice setting in South Korea. Citations Citations to this article as recorded by
Background
This study aims to examine the association between alcohol consumption and the risk of pre- or type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) by alcohol-induced flushing response in Korean male adults, particularly based on their body mass index (BMI). Methods This study selected 1,030 (158 non-drinkers, 364 flushers, and 508 non-flushers) male adults who had medical checkups. A logistic regression analysis was used to compare the association between alcohol consumption and the risk of pre- or T2DM. Results In both the normal-weight group (BMI <23 kg/m2) and the overweight group (BMI ≥23 kg/m2 and <25 kg/ m2), the flushers had a higher risk of pre- or T2DM (odds ratio, 95% confidence interval) when consuming more than 8 drinks of alcohol per week than the non-drinkers (normal-weight group: 3.43, 1.06–11.07; overweight group: 4.94, 1.56–15.67). But in the non-flushers among the normal-weight group and the overweight group, there was no significant difference compared to non-drinkers regarding the risk of pre- or T2DM. Obese flushers had a significantly higher risk of pre- or T2DM when consuming more than 4 drinks of alcohol per week than the non-drinkers (>4 and ≤8 drinks: 2.64, 1.10–6.36; >8 drinks: 2.42, 1.11–5.27). However, obese non-flushers had only a significant higher risk of pre- or T2DM when consuming more than 8 drinks of alcohol per week than the non-drinkers (2.72, 1.39–5.30) Conclusion These results suggest that obese flushers have an increased risk of developing pre- or T2DM even with less alcohol consumption. Citations Citations to this article as recorded by
Background
This study aimed to examine the relationship between alcohol consumption and intraocular pressure (IOP) according to facial flushing in Korean men with obesity. Methods The study included 479 Korean men with a body mass index of ≥25 kg/m2 (75 non-drinkers, 174 with drinking-related facial flushing, and 230 without facial flushing) who underwent health check-ups between October 1, 2016 and March 31, 2017. Multivariate logistic regression was used to assess the relationship between alcohol consumption and high IOP (≥21 mm Hg). Results Flushers consuming ≤16 drinks per week had a significantly higher risk of high IOP than non-drinkers, depending on alcohol consumption (≤8 standard drinks: odds ratio [OR], 4.49; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.05– 19.25; >8 but ≤16 standard drinks: OR, 8.14; 95% CI, 1.37–48.45). However, when the consumption was >16 drinks per week, the high IOP risk did not significantly increase (OR, 0.71; 95% CI, 0.05–10.69). In addition, there was no significant relationship between alcohol consumption and high IOP among non-flushers consuming ≤8 drinks per week (OR, 2.07; 95% CI, 0.52–8.19). However, a significantly increased risk of high IOP was observed among nonflushers consuming >8 drinks per week, depending on alcohol consumption (>8 but ≤16 standard drinks: OR, 4.84; 95% CI, 1.14–20.61; >16 standard drinks: OR, 4.08; 95% CI, 1.02–16.26). Conclusion This study suggests that obese men with alcohol flush reactions may have an increased risk of high IOP with the consumption of smaller amounts of alcohol than non-flushers. Citations Citations to this article as recorded by
This study investigated advantages and potential risks associated with drinking alcohol in Koreans based on the alcohol flush reaction. Our investigation reviewed published studies and examined moderate-drinking levels for Koreans based on modified National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism guidelines. Fourteen articles out of a total 198 publications were searched using PubMed, EMBASE, KoreaMed, and RISS (Research Information Sharing Service) databases and selected for review. Individuals without alcohol flush reaction (non-flushers) exhibited lower risks associated with insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome, and hyperhomocysteinemia and their 10-year cardiovascular disease risk when alcohol consumption was ≤8 drinks/wk. Conversely, risks associated with insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome, high blood pressure, prediabetes or type-2 diabetes, and high intraocular pressure and increases in carbohydrate-deficient transferrin, gamma glutamyl transferase, and blood glucose levels were present when >8 drinks were consumed. For individuals with flushing reaction (flushers), advantages were reported in relation to risks of hyperhomocysteinemia when alcohol consumption was ≤4 drinks/wk, whereas consumption of >4 drinks/wk increased the risk of insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome, high blood pressure, pre-diabetes or type-2 diabetes, high-risk colorectal adenoma, and high intraocular pressure and increased carbohydrate-deficient transferrin, gamma glutamyl transferase, and blood glucose levels. The moderate drinking level for Koreans is ≤8 drinks/wk for men aged ≤65 years and ≤4 drinks/wk for men aged over 65. For women, these limits should be half of those for men. Furthermore, individuals with flushing reaction should maintain an alcohol consumption level half of that for non-flushers.
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Background
Cigarette smoking increases the risk of atherosclerosis, which often develops as vascular calcification on radiologic examinations. This study evaluated the relationship between smoking-related factors and incidental abdominal aorta calcification (AAC) detected by computed tomography (CT) among middle-aged and elderly men. Methods We assessed the abdominal CT findings of 218 men aged 40 to 81 years who underwent health checkups. The associations between smoking factors and AAC were analyzed using logistic regression analysis to adjust for confounding variables such as age, lifestyle factors, and chronic diseases. Results Adjusting for confounding variables, the risk of AAC was significantly increased in association with smoking for at least 20 years (adjusted odds ratio [AOR], 5.22; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.82–14.93), smoking 10+ pack-years (10–20 pack-years: AOR, 4.54; 95% CI, 1.07–5.68; >20 pack-years: AOR, 5.28; 95% CI, 2.10–13.31), and a history of smoking (former smoker: AOR, 2.10; 95% CI, 1.07–5.68; current smoker: AOR, 5.05; 95% CI, 2.08–12.26). In terms of the daily smoking amount, even a low smoking level increased the risk of AAC. Conclusion These findings suggest that smoking for 20+ years, smoking 10+ pack-years, and even a low level of smoking daily increases the likelihood of developing AAC. Clinicians should recommend that patients quit smoking and stress the importance of smoking duration when promoting health in middle-aged and elderly patients. Citations Citations to this article as recorded by
The purpose of this study was to examine whether facial flushing after drinking influences the relationship between alcohol consumption and prostatic hyperplasia among Korean men. The subjects were 957 Korean men (180 non-drinkers, 389 with drinking-related facial flushing, 388 without facial flushing) in the 40–69 age group, who underwent prostate ultrasound at the health promotion center of Chungnam National University Hospital between 2008 and 2014. Alcohol consumption and alcohol-related facial flushing were assessed through a questionnaire. In terms of the amount consumed, 14 g of alcohol was considered a standard drink. With the non-drinker group as reference, logistic regression was used to analyze the relationship between weekly alcohol intake and prostatic hyperplasia in the flushing and non-flushing groups, with adjustment for confounding factors such as age, body mass index, smoking, and exercise patterns. Individuals aged 50–59 years who experienced drinking-related facial flushing had a significantly lower risk of prostatic hyperplasia than the non-drinker group, depending on alcohol consumption: ≤4 standard drinks (adjusted odds ratio [OR], 0.38; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.16 to 0.86); >4 ≤8 standard drinks (OR, 0.35; 95% CI, 0.13 to 0.95); >8 standard drinks (OR, 0.33; 95% CI, 0.13 to 0.84). However, no significant relationship was observed between the number of drinks consumed and the risk of prostate hyperplasia in the non-flushing group. The risk of prostatic hyperplasia appears to be reduced by alcohol consumption among Korean men aged 50–59 years who exhibit drinking-related facial flushing. Citations Citations to this article as recorded by
There needs to be an amendment to the Korean version of the Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test (AUDIT) with regards to the recent change in percent alcohol by volume (ABV) Korean liquor. This study was performed to suggest a cutoff value, reliability and validity of AUDIT-Korean revised version (AUDIT-KR), which reflect the change of the ABV of Korean alcohol. The subjects were 435 peoples (210 males and 225 females), who visited the Chungnam National University Hospital for a comprehensive medical examination. The respondents completed the AUDIT-KR. At-risk drinking and alcohol use disorders had been evaluated by diagnostic interview. The Cronbach's alpha value, the receiver operating characteristic curve, the appropriate cutoff value, sensitivity and specificity of the AUDIT-KR were evaluated. There were 190 at-risk drinkers (111 males and 79 females), and 66 people with alcohol use disorders (48 males and 18 females). The cutoff value of the AUDIT-KR for at-risk drinking was 3 points (sensitivity 93.69% and specificity 78.79%) for males and 3 points (sensitivity 92.40% and specificity 78.08%) for females. The cutoff value for alcohol use disorders was 10 points (sensitivity 100.00% and specificity 89.51%) for males and 8 points (sensitivity 100.00% and specificity 93.71%) for females. Cronbach's alpha of the AUDIT-KR was 0.885. The above results suggest that the AUDIT-KR shows a high reliability and validity in identifying at-risk drinking and alcohol use disorders. Citations Citations to this article as recorded by
This study examined the relationship between alcohol consumption and hyperhomocysteinemia based on facial flushing caused by drinking. Among male patients aged ≥ 18 years who visited Health Promotion Center of Chungnam National University Hospital in Daejeon from January 2008 to December 2010, 948 males (182 nondrinkers, 348 subjects with drinking-related facial flushing, and 418 subjects without drinking-related facial flushing) were selected. After adjusting for confounding factors such as age, body mass index, hypertension, diabetes, smoking, triglycerides, high density lipoprotein cholesterol, and gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase, a multiple logistic regression analysis was performed to assess the risk of hyperhomocysteinemia in the nonfacial flushing and facial flushing groups compared with the nondrinkers. After adjusting for confounding factors, risk of hyperhomocysteinemia was significantly lower in the group with a weekly alcohol consumption of < 8 standard drinks (1 drink = 14 g alcohol) in the nonfacial flushing group (<4 drinks: odds ratio [OR], 0.27; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.10 to 0.74; 4≤, <8 drinks: OR, 0.21; 95% CI, 0.06 to 0.73). Risk of hyperhomocysteinemia was significantly lower in the group with a weekly alcohol consumption < 4 drinks in the facial flushing group (OR, 0.30; 95% CI, 0.13 to 0.68). Our results suggest that the risk of hyperhomocysteinemia is likely lowered by alcohol consumption based on drinking quantity, as lowering the risk of hyperhomocysteinemia differs depending on vulnerability associated with facial flushing. Citations Citations to this article as recorded by
Abdominal aortic calcification (AAC) is a marker of subclinical atherosclerotic disease and an independent predictor of subsequent vascular morbidity and mortality. This study was conducted to investigate the association of AAC with lifestyle and risk factors of cardiovascular disease. The results of the abdominal computed tomography of 380 patients who visited Chungnam National University Hospital for a health checkup from January 1, 2008 to December 31, 2009 were reviewed. A six-point scale was used in grading the overall severity of the calcification in three areas of the abdominal aorta, including the area superior to the renal artery, the upper-half area inferior to the renal artery, and the lower-half area inferior to the renal artery, in addition to the common iliac artery. The association of the AAC severity with the age, lifestyle factors, and risk factors of cardiovascular disease was analyzed via multiple linear regression analysis. In the male subjects, the age, presence of dyslipidemia and smoking were positively related to AAC, but exercising was negatively related to AAC (total R2 = 0.563). In the female subjects, the age and presence of diabetes mellitus, hypertension, and dyslipidemia were positively related to AAC, but exercising was negatively related to AAC (total R2 = 0.547). AAC was related to both the male and female subjects' age, presence of dyslipidemia, and exercising, to smoking in the male subjects and to the presence of diabetes mellitus and hypertension in the female subjects. Citations Citations to this article as recorded by
The aim of the present study is to evaluate the risk of metabolic syndrome (MS) according to alcohol consumption for those subjects showing facial flushing, as well as the absence of facial flushing. One thousand two hundred and one males were recruited in the health promotion center of a university hospital. Evaluation of alcohol consumption and facial flushing was assessed via questionnaires and interviews. The criteria for MS were defined according to the National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III criteria with a modified waist circumference cutoff value (men ≥ 90 cm) for Korean subjects. Subjects were divided into three groups according to the amount of alcohol they consume: nondrinkers, moderate drinkers (≤14 standard drinks per week), and heavy drinkers (>14 standard drinks per week). They were also separated into two groups according to facial flushing: non-flushers (no occurrence) and flushers (steady occurrence). Factors related to MS were assessed by logistic regression analysis. In non-flushing moderate drinkers, the risk of MS did not significantly increase compared to non-drinkers. However in flushing moderate drinkers, there was significant increase (odds ratio [OR], 1.81; confidence interval [CI], 1.08 to 3.06) compared to non-drinkers. In non-flushing and flushing heavy drinkers, significant increase (OR, 2.23; CI, 1.23 to 4.04; OR, 2.90; CI, 1.25 to 6.73, respectively) was evident compared to non-drinkers. Non-flushing moderate drinkers did not show an increased risk of metabolic syndrome compared to the non-drinkers, but flushing moderate drinkers showed an increased risk of metabolic syndrome compared to non-drinkers. Citations Citations to this article as recorded by
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