Sungryul Shim

• M.P.H., PhD.
• Professor at Konyang University

Background Severe blood loss during spine surgery increases the need for blood transfusion. Transfusion carries the risks of infection, complications, and postoperative morbidity; therefore, minimizing these risks is crucial for all surgical patients. Methods A comprehensive literature search was conducted in PubMed, Cochrane, and EMBASE to find s...

IntroductionSleeve gastrectomy (SG) is the most commonly performed bariatric surgery worldwide. Despite its effectiveness, over 20% of patients require revisional surgery due to weight regain, insufficient weight loss, or complications such as gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). Various revisional bariatric procedures are available. This study...

Ear surgeries such as mastoidectomy require a clear surgical field with minimal bleeding for optimal visualization and outcomes. However, bleeding during these microscopic and endoscopic procedures can obscure the surgeon’s view and potentially impact surgical precision and efficiency. The study aimed to identify the effect of intravenous tranexami...

Background Although the association between Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection and the risk of colorectal adenomas (CRAs) is suggested, specific analysis of the histological subtype of CRA is limited. The aim of the study was to conduct a meta-analysis on the risk of histological classifications of CRA as benign colorectal polyp (BCP), CRA,...

Objective: Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is among the most effective treatments for mood disorders and other psychotic disorders. This study meta-analyzed the effects of ECT on all-cause mortality and suicide deaths using longitudinal studies. Methods: PubMed/MEDLINE, PsycINFO, Cochrane Library, Embase, and Google Scholar were searched from incep...

Importance Endoscopic sinus surgery (ESS) is a minimally invasive surgical method that is widely used in the treatment of various sinonasal conditions, including chronic sinusitis, nasal polyps, and fungal sinusitis. However, intraoperative bleeding remains a significant challenge. Objective To evaluate the effects of pterygopalatal injections wit...

Importance The association of digital screen time with myopia has been documented, but the dose-response association and safe exposure threshold remain unclear. Objective To evaluate the dose-response association of time spent on digital screens with myopia risk. Data Sources PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library databases, CINAHL, and ClinicalTrials....

Background/Aims Although incidence and prevalence of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) have been gradually increasing throughout Asia, incidence of venous thromboembolism (VTE) in Asia is relatively lower than that in Western and is not well known. This study aimed to evaluate incidence of VTE in Asian IBD patients using a systematic review and meta...

Background This network meta‐analysis (NMA) aims to provide evidence‐based guidance for selecting the second‐line chemotherapy for biliary tract cancer (BTC). Methods A comprehensive literature search was conducted on PubMed, Cochrane, and EMBASE through July 2024. Inclusion criteria involved: (1) patients underwent second‐line chemotherapy follow...

Purpose: Suicide is a substantial public health concern, and there are a variety of contributing factors. Prostate cancer is known to be a disease at high risk of suicide regardless of country and age. Nonetheless, comprehensive information about associated risk levels and underlying determinants remains limited. To systematically evaluate the sui...

Introduction The sales patterns of original drugs after patent expiration in Korea show a relatively high market share and continuous sales growth differently from those in the U.S. and European countries. This study aims to investigates a five-year sales pattern of original drugs after patent expiration in Korea using empirical data. Methods Usin...

Background PCR and culture tests are used together to confirm the diagnosis of active tuberculosis (TB). Due to the long culture period, if the PCR test is negative, it takes a significant amount of time for the culture result to be available. Interferon-γ release assays (IGRAs), which are widely used to diagnose TB or latent tuberculosis infection...

Background & aims Gait disturbances are commonly observed in patients with neurodegenerative disorders, including Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and higher-level gait disorders, which are associated with cholinergic deficits. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to investigate the effects of rivastigmine on improvement in g...

Purpose: To assess whether an artificial intelligence (AI)-based reassurance-call can inform patients about potential complications and provides reassurance following a prostate biopsy. Materials and methods: From October 2022 to December 2023, 42 patients aged 40 to 70 years undergoing their first prostate biopsy were recruited. The 'Reassuranc...

Setting the population, intervention, comparison, and outcome (PICO) elements during a search strategy development stage for a systematic review (SR) defines a research question specifically. In contrast to traditional methods that rely on researcher discretion, we propose a text network analysis (TNA) method using the R language to set the correct...

Introduction: The sales patterns of original drugs after patent expiration in Korea differ from those in other countries. This study investigates how they differ. Methods: Using data from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, original drugs whose patents expired in 2012–2018 were divided into two groups depending on the generic drug approval. The d...

Background A large language model is a type of artificial intelligence (AI) model that opens up great possibilities for health care practice, research, and education, although scholars have emphasized the need to proactively address the issue of unvalidated and inaccurate information regarding its use. One of the best-known large language models is...

Background Despite the publication of several meta-analyses regarding the efficacy of certain therapies in helping individuals with interstitial cystitis (IC) / bladder pain syndrome (BPS), these have not provided a comprehensive review of therapeutic strategies. The study aimed to determine the efficacy of various therapies for IC/BPS and identify...

Objectives This study aimed to develop healthcare data marketplace using blockchain-based B2C model that ensures the transaction of healthcare data among individuals, companies, and marketplaces. Materials and methods We designed an architecture for the healthcare data marketplace using blockchain. A healthcare data marketplace was developed using...

Importance Prostate magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is increasingly integrated within the prostate cancer (PCa) early detection pathway. Objective To systematically evaluate the existing evidence regarding screening pathways incorporating MRI with targeted biopsy and assess their diagnostic value compared with prostate-specific antigen (PSA)–base...

Importance Suicide is a substantial public health concern that involves various recognized contributing factors. Sensory impairments, specifically visual impairment, are deemed potential risk factors. Nonetheless, comprehensive information about associated risk levels and underlying determinants remains limited. Objective To investigate the associ...

Background Diapers are commonly used by older patients with urination disorders. A smart diaper system (SDS) may be able to estimate the weight of urine comparably to conventional measurements made by weighing diapers. Objective The aim of the current research is to determine the degree of accuracy of an SDS technology specifically designed for th...

BACKGROUND Diapers are commonly used by older patients with urination disorders. A smart diaper system (SDS) may be able to estimate the weight of urine comparably to conventional measurements made by weighing diapers. OBJECTIVE The aim of the current research is to determine the degree of accuracy of an SDS technology specifically designed for th...

b> Introduction: Cognitive dysfunction or deficits are common in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD). The current study systematically reviews and meta-analyzes multiple domains of cognitive impairment in patients with MDD. Methods: PubMed/MEDLINE, PsycINFO, Cochrane Library, Embase, Web of Science, and Google Scholar were searched from i...

Background There have been reports of otolaryngological adverse event following immunization (AEFI) such as instances of olfactory and gustatory dysfunction following COVID-19 vaccination. This study aimed to analyze otolaryngological AEFIs following COVID-19 vaccination. Methods This study was conducted with a secondary data analysis that the Vac...

BACKGROUND Ureteral stent, represented by double-J stent, have become indispensable in urologic procedures, but also has several complications such as hematuria and pain. While the advancement of AI technology has led to its increasing application in the health sector, there has been no utilization of AI to provide information on potential complica...

Background Ureteral stents, such as double-J stents, have become indispensable in urologic procedures but are associated with complications like hematuria and pain. While the advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) technology has led to its increasing application in the health sector, AI has not been used to provide information on potential com...

The increased risk of hearing loss with macrolides remains controversial. We aimed to systematically review and meta-analyze data on the clinical risk of hearing loss, tinnitus, and ototoxicity following macrolide use. A systematic search was conducted across PubMed, MEDLINE, Cochrane, and Embase databases from database inception to May 2023. Medic...

Objective To meta-analyze clinical efficacy and safety of ketamine compared with other anesthetic agents in the course of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) in major depressive episode (MDE). Methods PubMed/MEDLINE, Cochrane Library, Embase, GoogleScholar, and US and European trial registries were searched from inception through May 23, 2023, with no...

This study was conducted to estimate the effectiveness of marine-derived resources for treating specific diseases, as well as identify the most effective methods for applying such resources in therapeutic applications. Bibliographic databases (PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane) were searched from their inception until May 2023 using Medical Subject Head...

This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to summarize the effects of oral nutritional supplements (ONSs) on body weight loss (BWL) after gastrectomy. A systematic search was conducted across the PubMed, Cochrane, and Embase databases through May 2023. The study inclusion criteria were as follows: (1) studies on interventions including ONSs af...

Featured Application Systematic review and meta-analysis deserves to be considered the gold standard of evidence-based medicine in the era of big data. Abstract In terms of medical health, we are currently living in the era of data science, which has brought tremendous change. Big data related to healthcare includes medical data, genome data, and...

Objective To evaluate the efficacy of systemic therapies in patients with worse performance status (PS) treated for high‐risk non‐metastatic prostate cancer (PCa), metastatic hormone‐sensitive PCa (mHSPC), and non‐metastatic/metastatic castration‐resistant PCa (nmCRPC/mCRPC), as there is sparse pooled data showing the effect of PS on oncological ou...

Objectives To examine the effects of age, sex, and type of COVID-19 vaccine on urological complications after vaccination with COVID-19. Materials and methods We used the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) data from December 2020 to August 2022 to analyze urological symptoms post-vaccination adverse events (AEs) associated with COVID-1...

Purpose: To investigate the efficacy of medical treatment options for Peyronie's disease (PD) including oral drugs, intralesional treatment and mechanical treatment compared with placebo treatment using network meta-analysis (NMA). Materials and methods: We searched the randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of PD in PubMed, Cochrane library, and E...

Topic: The placebo effect, and its potential determinants, in ocular hypotensive therapy. Clinical relevance: The placebo effect has been studied and documented within a wide clinical context. It remains unclear whether placebo is effective in glaucoma treatment or, if so, which factors are determinative of effect size. Methods: Randomized con...

Introduction Suicide is an important public health problem. Well-established risk factors of suicide include depression, family history of mental disorders, substance problem, chronic physical illness, and others. Sensory impairment, especially visual impairment (VI), has a critical impact on both mental and physical health. However, the associatio...

Background: Timely and proper intraocular pressure (IOP) management is vital to prevention of visual impairment in children with primary congenital glaucoma (PCG). Although various surgical interventions have been proposed, no well-founded evidence exists on their comparative efficacies. We aimed to compare the efficacies of surgical interventions...

Purpose: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is one of the leading causes of death, accounting for one-third of all deaths worldwide. Patients with CVD are three times more likely to complain of sexual dysfunction than healthy people. Causes of sexual dysfunction in patients with CVD include physical/mental changes and drug side effects. The prevalence o...

Dyslipidemia is a common chronic disease that increases the risk of cardiovascular disease. Diet plays an important role in the development of dyslipidemia. As people pay increased attention to healthy eating habits, brown seaweed consumption is increasing, particularly in East Asian countries. The association between dyslipidemia and brown seaweed...

Abstract The phenolic content of olive oil has a role in cardiovascular protection. Some clinical trial studies demonstrated that phenolic compounds of olive oil have antioxidant activity which can protect macronutrients from oxidative damages. The aim of this study was to summarize the results of clinical trials which assessed the effects of high‐...

Background: Little is known about the adverse events (AEs) associated with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Methods: This study used vaccine AE reporting system data to investigate severe AEs among vaccinated patients with T2DM. A natural language processing algorithm was applied t...

Objectives: Post-prostatectomy urinary incontinence (PPUI) is a major complication that reduces the quality of life in patients undergoing prostatectomy for benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH) and prostate cancer (PCa). However, there are currently limited guidelines on which surgical techniques are preferred after conservative treatment for PPUI. I...

Purpose: Healthy aging is an important concern in an aging society. Although the causal relationship between hypogonadism and erectile dysfunction in elderly men remains unclear, many physicians have achieved positive results after implementing exogenous testosterone supplementation therapy in patients with normal or slightly low blood testosteron...

Objective: The World Health Organization (WHO) declared a pandemic on March 11, 2020 after more than 118,000 cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) had been reported in 114 countries. Our study analyzed the cumulative incidence rate based on WHO data starting with the first confirmed patient until the peak of transmission. In addition, the nu...

The effects of urbanization on the health of city dwellers have spurred research on the health-promoting benefits of forest exposure, and potential health-promoting benefits of human-nature relationships. In this meta-analysis, meta-regression, and systematic review, we aimed to analyze how forest-based interventions improved overall well-being thr...

Despite widespread public interest in problematic gaming interventions, questions regarding the empirical status of treatment efficacy persist. We conducted pairwise and network meta-analyses based on 17 psychological intervention studies on excessive gaming (n = 745 participants). The pairwise meta-analysis showed that psychological interventions...

Importance Whether ketamine is as effective as electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) among patients with major depressive episode remains unknown. Objective To systematically review and meta-analyze data about clinical efficacy and safety for ketamine and ECT in patients with major depressive episode. Data Sources PubMed, MEDLINE, Cochrane Library, and...

Objectives: The objective of this study is to introduce methods to use all of the information without omission when individual studies provide multiple effect sizes according to multiple cut-off values (thresholds) during diagnostic test accuracy (DTA) for data integration. For diagnostic test meta-analysis, a general performance method for synthe...

Background Prognostic nutritional index (PNI) is a simple parameter which reflects patient’s nutritional and inflammatory status and reported as a prognostic factor for renal cell carcinoma (RCC). Studies were included from database inception until February 2, 2022. The aim of this study is to evaluate prognostic value of PNI by meta-analysis of th...

Aims Direct and indirect evidence were combined in this systematic-review and network meta-analysis (NMA) to assess and compare the effect of nutritional supplements on glycemic control, and rank the supplements accordingly. Methods PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science were searched up to April 2021. We included randomized controlled trials that inv...

Context Recent randomized controlled trials (RCTs) examined the role of adding androgen receptor signaling inhibitors (ARSIs), including abiraterone acetate (ABI), apalutamide, darolutamide (DAR), and enzalutamide (ENZ), to docetaxel (DOC) and androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) in patients with metastatic hormone-sensitive prostate cancer (mHSPC)....

Topic Comparative effectiveness of interventions to improve glaucoma medication adherence. Clinical Relevance High adherence to ocular hypotensive therapy is essential for prevention of visual impairment in glaucoma patients. Various types of intervention for adherence enhancement have been proposed, although there is still no firm evidence of the...

Objective: The purpose of the current study was to evaluate the diagnostic accuracies of 18F-FDG PET or PET/CT for diagnosis of Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) through a systematic review and meta-analysis. Methods: The PubMed, Cochrane database, and EMBASE database, from January 1990 to January 31, 2022, were searched for studies evaluating diagnos...

Purpose: The aims of this study are to compare the performance of various preoperative imaging modalities for assessing the malignant potential of pancreatic cystic lesions (PCLs) through a network meta-analysis (NMA) and to clarify the role of 18 F-FDG PET in the management of patients with PCL. Methods: PubMed, EMBASE, and Cochrane Library wer...

The utility of clinical information from esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) reports has been limited because of its unstructured narrative format. We developed a natural language processing (NLP) pipeline that automatically extracts information about gastric diseases from unstructured EGD reports and demonstrated its applicability in clinical researc...

(1) Background: The comparative performance of various diagnostic methods for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection remains unclear. This study aimed to investigate the comparison of the 3 index test performances of rapid antigen diagnostic tests (RDTs), chest computed tomography (CT), and lung point-of-care-ultraso...

Objectives Postprostatectomy urinary incontinence (PPUI) is a serious complication despite surgical advances. Treatment options for PPUI include conservative care like Pelvic floor muscle exercise (PFME), which is a physiotherapy performed by the patients themselves; Pelvic floor muscle therapy (PFMT), a physiotherapy performed under the guidance o...

A COVID-19 vaccine BNT162b2 (Pfizer-BioNTech) has recently been authorized for adolescents in the US. However, the impact of adverse events on adolescents after vaccination has not been fully investigated. To assess the safety of the COVID-19 vaccine in adolescents, the incidence of adverse events (AEs) in adolescents and adults was compared after...

Air pollution and meteorological factors can exacerbate susceptibility to respiratory viral infections. To establish appropriate prevention and intervention strategies, it is important to determine whether these factors affect the transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Therefore, this study examined the effect...

Objectives To determine the effect of pelvic floor muscle exercise (PFME) for post-prostatectomy urinary incontinence (PPUI), which has a major impact on the quality of life of patients undergone radical prostatectomy (RP). Methods A systematic search was conducted in the PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library databases from the inception of each da...

Context Several recent randomised trials have evaluated the role of combination systemic treatment using androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) plus chemotherapy or an androgen receptor signaling inhibitor (ARSI) in patients with high-risk and/or unfavourable nonmetastatic prostate cancer (nmPC). Objective To assess the outcomes associated with adding...

Two mRNA COVID-19 vaccines (mRNA-1273, Moderna; and BNT162b2, Pfizer-BioNTech) and one viral vector vaccine (JNJ-78436735, Janssen/Johnson and Johnson) are authorized in the US to hinder COVID-19 infections. We analyzed severe and common adverse events in response to COVID-19 vaccines using real-world, Vaccine Adverse Effect Reporting System (VAERS...

Background and AimThere is no clear data to compare the effectiveness and safety of bilateral stent-in-stent (SIS) or stent-by-stent (SBS) deployment for advanced malignant hilar obstruction (MHO). This meta-analysis was done to investigate clinical outcomes of these deployment methods.Methods We did a literature search to identify studies that rep...

Introduction To evaluate the prognostic value of albumin-to-alkaline phosphatase ratio (AAPR) on recurrence and survival in patients with non-metastatic renal cell carcinoma (RCC) treated with radical or partial nephrectomy. Patients and Methods Between June 1994 and December 2018, 491 patients with RCC who underwent radical or partial nephrectomy...

Objective To determine whether the existing literature provides evidence that curved path walking time can be a reliable marker of cognitive impairment among older adults using a network meta-analysis (NMA). Data Sources PubMed, Web of Science, ScienceDirect, Scopus, and Korean Studies Information Service System (KSISS) electronic databases were s...

Purpose: Investigation of myopic open-angle glaucoma (OAG) prevalence in Northeast Asia by systematic review and meta-analysis. Methods: Systematic PubMed, EMBASE and Cochrane database searches for Northeast Asian population-based studies published up to 30 November 2020 and reporting on myopia and OAG diagnosis. By random-effect models, pooled...

Context During the past decade, several urinary biomarker tests (UBTs) for bladder cancer have been developed and made commercially available. However, none of these is recommended by international guidelines so far. Objective To assess the diagnostic estimates of novel commercially available UBTs for diagnosis and surveillance of non–muscle-invas...

Objective: The human papillomavirus (HPV) test is an effective screening tool to prevent cervical cancer. Urinary sampling for HPV detection improves the accessibility and participation of screening services and reduces the cost and burden on physicians. The clinical accuracy of urinary HPV test has yet to be determined via meta-analysis. This stu...

Purpose: To verify the dose-response relation between degree of myopia and open-angle glaucoma (OAG) risk DESIGN: Dose-response meta-analysis METHODS: We searched the PubMed, EMBASE, and Cochrane databases for population-based studies published until 30 November 2020 and reporting on both myopia and OAG. Random-effect models generated pooled odds...

Topic Comparative efficacy and safety of different concentrations of atropine for myopia control in children. Clinical relevance Atropine is known to be an effective intervention to delay childhood myopia progression. Nonetheless, there is as yet no well-supported evidence ranking the clinical outcomes of various concentrations of atropine. Metho...

Importance Whether radioactive iodine (RAI) therapy for hyperthyroidism can increase cancer risk remains a controversial issue in medicine and public health. Objectives To examine site-specific cancer incidence and mortality and to evaluate the radiation dose-response association after RAI treatment for hyperthyroidism. Data Sources The Medline a...

PurposeLate onset hypogonadism (LOH) is an age-dependent reduction of testosterone associated with alterations of metabolic profile, including glucose control, insulin sensitivity, and lipid profile. The purpose of this study was to investigate the efficacy of testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) for treating metabolic disturbances through a meta...

Background: Timely and accurate diagnosis of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection is crucial to reduce the risk of viral transmission. We investigated the diagnostic accuracy of rapid antigen detection tests (RADTs) in the diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Methods: A systematic literature search was performed u...

Background To date, several studies have reported inconsistent findings regarding the mortality risk faced by living kidney donors and controls. Our study assessed the methodological quality of previous studies and performed an updated meta-analysis of the mortality risk. Methods Comprehensive literature searches were conducted involving the PubMe...

Introduction Poor medication adherence is an important issue in healthcare. Various types of interventions for improved adherence to ocular hypotensive therapy have been proposed, though evidence on the effectiveness of any isolated intervention remains limited. The current protocol is an ongoing network meta-analysis (NMA) design that enables comp...

Importance Accurate preoperative localization of primary hyperparathyroidism (pHPT) is an important and challenging issue for a successful parathyroidectomy. Although new imaging modalities have been introduced during the past decade, direct comparative studies on advanced imaging techniques are limited. Objective To compare the performance of dif...