- Influence of Smoking on Blood Cadmium Concentration in University Students.
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Joo Youn Shin, Jong Han Lim, Sin Goo Park, Jee Na Lee, Mi Jang, Chung Song Huh, Dae Hee Kang, Yun Chul Hong
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J Prev Med Public Health. 2004;37(3):225-231.
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- OBJECTIVES
This study was performed to examine the influence of smoking on the blood cadmium concentration in university students. METHODS: The study included 300 university students. A questionnaire interview was used to collect data. The urine cotinine and blood cadmium levels were measured as biological exposure indices. The data were analyzed using t-tests ANOVA and ANCOVA. RESULTS: The median value of blood cadmium concentration was equal in both males and females (0.8microgram/liter). This level was relatively low in comparison with the reference value suggested by WHO (2001). ANCOVA showed that smoking related variables, urine cotinine and smoking amount, were significantly associated with the blood cadmium level (P=0.004, 0.015). However, the values with regard to traffic related air pollution were not significantly associated with the blood cadmium level. CONCLUSIONS: Smoking is an important source of nonoccupational cadmium exposure in young people. The Blood cadmium level is at least 10% higher in active smokers than in passive or nonsmokers. The level of urine cotinine can be used as an indicator of non-occupational exposure of respirable cadmium due to smoking, as there is a good correlation bestween smoking amount and the urine cotinine level.
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- Reliability and Validity of the Korean Version of ISAAC Questionnaire.
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Seong Woo Choi, Yeong Su Ju, Dae Sung Kim, Jae Yong Kim, Ho Jang Kwon, Dae Hee Kang, Sang Il Lee, Soo Hun Cho
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Korean J Prev Med. 1998;31(3):361-371.
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- Recent increases of asthma and allergies in childhood made the need for a standardized approach to international and regional comparisons of their prevalence and severity. To address these issues, "International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC)" is currently underway. In Korea, "Nationwide Study of Asthma and Allergies in Korean Children" began in 1995 according to ISAAC protocol. ISAAC written and video questionnaires were used in this survey, but their reliability and validity were not evaluated properly yet. In this study, our aim was to evaluate the reliability and validity of two kinds of questionnaires and their usefulness in international and regional comparisons. The test and retest of two questionnaires were completed by male(n=110) and female(n=111) middle school students with two and three weeks interval each. Kappa(or weighted kappa) were calculated from each questions and validity coefficients were estimated from those statistics. In Korean version of written questionnaire, the questions for allergic rhinitis, atopic dermatitis, allergic conjunctivitis, and food allergy proved to have high kappa values(or weighted kappa values) and validity coefficients and they can be used in further studies without any correction. But some questions about asthma(especially nocturnal cough, wheezing in exercise, and severe asthma) and drug allergy need to be revised for better understanding to study subjects. Video questionnaire has the same degree of reliability and validity when compared to written questionnaire and this is the unexpected result. Accordingly, it also need to be revised to overcome the racial and cultural differences of the study subjects. In conclusion, the Korean version of written and video questionnaires may be considered to be useful methods in international and regional comparisons of asthma and allergic diseases in childhood after correction of some questions.
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- Development of Questionnaire for Evaluating Health Effect Associated with Air Pollution.
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Yeong Su Ju, Dae Sung Kim, Jong Won Kang, Joo Heon Seong, Dae Hee Kang, Soo Hun Cho, Do Myung Paek
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Korean J Prev Med. 1997;30(4):852-869.
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- This study was conducted to develope and evaluate the reliability and the validity of a questionnaire in order to determine the applicability as a screening tool for estimating environmental exposure and health effects related to air pollution. The questionnaire was developed with adopting some items of others such as ISAAC or ATS-DLD. And then we performed test-retest to 89 middle school students and their mothers at interval of three months. Cohen's Kappa values, weighted Kappa values, Spearman's correlation coefficients, and Pearson's correlation coefficients for each item were computed as reliability coefficients. The validity coefficients and validity coefficient bounds were also obtained by simply using these reliability coefficients. As results, Kappa ranged broadly from 0.10 to 0.61 of the items 'diet', 0.52~0.79 of the environmental tobacco smoke, 0.39~0.44 of the functional categories of surrounding environment, and 0.54~0.63 of the using transportation systems; these items were regarded as confounding factors. For items related to health outcomes, Kappa ranged from -0.02 to 0.37 in the respiratory system of past medical history, and from 0.11 to 0.55 in the current health status. But Kappa of the others were over 0.60. In conclusion, if some items can be corrected or modified, the questionnaire developed in this study can be used as a tool for evaluating environmental exposure and health effects associated with air pollution.
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Summary
- Lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and air pollution.
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Joo Hon Sung, Soo Hun Cho, Dae Hee Kang, Keun Young Yoo
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Korean J Prev Med. 1997;30(3):585-598.
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- BACKGROUND
Although there are growing concerns about the adverse health effect of air pollution, not much evidence on health effect of current air pollution level had been accumulated yet in Korea. This study was designed to evaluate the chronic health effect of air pollution using Korean Medical Insurance Corporation (KMIC) data and air quality data. Medical insurance data in Korea have some drawback in accuracy, but they do have some strength especially in their national coverage, in having unified ID system and individual information which enables various data linkage and chronic health effect study. METHOD: This study utilized the data of Korean Environmental Surveillance System Study (Surveillance Study), which consist of asthma, acute bronchitis, chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD), cardiovascular diseases (congestive heart failure and ischemic heart disease), all cancers, accidents and congenital anomaly, i.e., mainly potential environmental diseases. We reconstructed a nested case-control study with Surveillance Study data and air pollution data in Korea. Among 1,037,210 insured who completed questionnaire and physical examination in 1992, disease free (for chronic respiratory disease and cancer) persons, between the age of 35-64 with smoking status information were selected to reconstruct cohort of 564,991 persons. The cohort was followed-up to 1995 (1992-5) and the subjects who had the diseases in Surveillance Study were selected. Finally, the patients, with address information and available air pollution data, left to be 'final subjects'. Cases were defined to all lung cancer cases (424) and COPD admission cases (89), while control groups are determined to all other patients than two case groups among 'final subjects'. That is, cases are probable chronic environmental diseases, while controls are mainly acute environmental diseases. For exposure, Air quality data in 73 monitoring sites between 1991 - 1993 were analyzed to surrogate air pollution exposure level of located areas (58 areas). Five major air pollutants data, TSP, O3, SO2, CO, NOx was available and the area means were applied to the residents of the local area. 3-year arithmetic mean value, the counts of days violating both long-term and shot-term standards during the period were used as indices of exposure. Multiple logistic regression model was applied. All analyses were performed adjusting for current and past smoking history, age, gender. Results: Plain arithmetic means of pollutants level did not succeed in revealing any relation to the risk of lung cancer or COPD, while the cumulative counts of non-attainment days did. All pollutants indices failed to show significant positive findings with COPD excess. Lung cancer risks were significantly and consistently associated with the increase of O3and CO exceedance counts(to corrected error level - 0.017) and less strongly and consistently with SO2 and TSP. SO2and TSP showed weaker and less consistent relationship. O3and CO were estimated to increase the risks of lung cancer by 2.04 and 1.46 respectively, the maximal probable risks, derived from comparing more polluted area (95%) with cleaner area (5%). CONCLUSIONS: Although not decisive due to potential misclassication of exposure, these results were drawn by relatively conservative interpretation, and could be used as an evidence of chronic health effect especially for lung cancer. O3might be a candidate for promoter of lung cancer, while CO should be considered as surrogated measure of motor vehicle emissions. The control selection in this study could have been less appropriate for COPD, and further evaluation with another setting might be necessary.
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Summary
- Sick Building Syndrome and the Related Factors in Office Workers.
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Jae Joong Bak, Soo Hun Cho, Byung Ju Park, Dae Hee Kang
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Korean J Prev Med. 1997;30(1):157-170.
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- A cross-sectional study was conducted to investigate the prevalence and risk factors for symptoms associated with sick building syndrome in four office buildings located in Seoul. Information on personal factors, job-related factors, and medical history were collected using self-administered questionnaires modified from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health Indoor Air Quality questionnaire in 321 office workers in these buildings. The prevalence of general and irritant symptom groups was higher than the prevalence of dermatologic and respiratory symptom groups. Daily total work time, work time in the office, and work time with video display terminals(VDT) were identified as the risk factors for symptom groups associated with sick building syndrome by multiple linear logistic regression analysis. In conclusion, these results indicated that the symptom prevalence in this study is similar with the results reported from previous studies conducted in other countries and work time and work with VDT are related to sick building syndrome in Korea.
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- A Response Pattern of Mailing Questionnaires.
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Dae Hee Kang, Yoon Ok Ahn
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Korean J Prev Med. 1988;21(2):451-453.
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- No abstract available.
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