PHWR Public Health Weekly Report

Vol.13 No.19, May 07, 2020 Article TypeCOVID-19 Special ReportEpidemiology and SurveillanceOriginal ArticlesPublic Health Issues

• COVID-19 Special Report 2020-05-07

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  Weekly report on the COVID-19 situation in the Republic of Korea (As of May 2, 2020)

  Kim Miyoung, Kweon Sanghui, Kim Yeonju, Kim Younghwa, Yeom Hansol, Choi So Young, Hwang Insob, Yoo Hyosoon, Park Young Joon, Gwack Jin, Park Ok

  Public Health Weekly Report 2020; 13(19): 1288-1301

  

  

  Abstract

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  This is a weekly report on the COVID-19 situation in the Republic of Korea based on the confirmed cases reported through the Integrated System to Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention according to the INFECTIOUS DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION ACT and based on the epidemiological investigation by central and local health authorities.
  As of May 2, 2020, there were 10,798 confirmed cases of COVID-19, and including 251 deaths. Confirmed cases were reported in all 17 provinces/cities in Korea, with the highest number of cases from Daegu, Gyeongbuk, Seoul, and Gyeonggi. The results indicated that, by gender, women accounted for a slightly higher proportion (59.5%, n=6,426) of total confirmed cases than men. And, by age the median age was 44 years old (range: 0 to 104 years old).
  The main infectious paths confirmed by epidemiological investigations showed several major clusters related to COVID-19. Of the total cases, the proportion of imported cases was 10.2% (n=1,096); 48.3% (n=5,212) were Shincheonji (and related); 32.8% (n=3,546) are small clusters and contacts of confirmed cases (other than Shincheonji); and 8.7% (n=944) are currently under investigation as per infection route surveys.

• Public Health Issues 2020-05-07

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  세계 천식의 날 (World Asthma Day)

  김우경

  Public Health Weekly Report 2020; 13(19): 1302-1302

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• Epidemiology and Surveillance 2020-05-07

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  Test Operation of Digital Mosquito Monitoring System for Vector Surveillance

  Lee Hak Seon, Lee Wook-Gyo, Lee Hee Il, Cho Shin-Hyeong

  Public Health Weekly Report 2020; 13(19): 1303-1312

  

  

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  In 2019, a real-time digital mosquito monitoring system (DMS) was installed nationwide in Korea. The purpose of this project was to evaluate twelve regional vector surveillance centers that were installed to evaluate the occurrence of mosquitoes and the effectiveness of the equipment in urban environments from July to September 2019. A total of five genera, fourteen species, 86,912 individual mosquitoes (8,329 individuals per equipment) were collected in city centers. The accuracy of mosquito counting was calculated at 0.82. In urban environments, Culex pipiens complex was the most dominant species and composed 69.5% of all captured specimens, followed by Cx. tritaeniorhynchus (8.6%), Aedes vexans (7.4%) and others. Based on these results, in 2020, DMS will be divided into urban and rural environments, and real-time assessment of the density of each disease-borne mosquito by environment will be applied to the future introduction of the mosquito prediction system.

• Epidemiology and Surveillance 2020-05-07

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  Integrated vector management for malaria control in cattle shed

  Jeon Jin-Hwan, Kim Hyunwoo, Lee Hee il and Cho Shin-Hyeong

  Public Health Weekly Report 2020; 13(19): 1313-1322

  

  

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  In Korea, the number of malaria cases has been on the decline since 2000. Also, approximately 500 malaria cases were annually recorded in Korea. Studies have found that malaria vector control is effective at reducing malaria transmission at the community level and at eradicating malaria. Therefore, to eradicate malaria, alternative tools need to be developed to complement existing malaria vector control methods. In this study, to effectively control mosquito-borne malaria, UV-LED lights were installed in cattle sheds (a major source of malaria vectors), and larva control was conducted around cattle sheds. To measure the effectiveness of vector control, the density change of mosquitoes in cattle sheds and neighboring homes was checked from June to September 2019. The total number of mosquitoes collected (325,326) was comprised of 6 genera and 11 species. The collected number of Anopheles spp. was 142,797 (44%). As a result of the vector control analysis, the number of malaria vectors decreased by 19.1±8.9% in cattle sheds, and 74.4±9.7% in houses after intensive control measures were taken. This study provided an effective method of malaria vector control for malaria eradication. Based on these results, in 2020, plans are being made to expand the “cattle shed-centered control strategy” in high-risk malaria areas.

• Original Articles 2020-05-07

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  Cost of Viral Hepatitis B in the Republic of Korea, 2002-2015

  Baik Dahye, Kim Byung-Woo, O Jin-Kyoungh, Ki Moran, Kim Kyung-Ah

  Public Health Weekly Report 2020; 13(19): 1323-1335

  

  

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  In Korea, the positive rate of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) gradually decreased due to the national hepatitis B vaccination program introduced in the 1990s, but has remained at 3% in recent decades. Despite the high prevalence of HBsAg there have been no cost burden studies conducted to analyze the recent trends of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection following the revision of clinical practice guidelines regarding chronic hepatitis B management (2011 and 2014). Therefore, the objective of this study was to estimate the cost burden of viral hepatitis B and determine the trends in the changes in its costs between 2002 and 2015. This study was conducted using the health insurance claims data of patients diagnosed with hepatitis B as a columnar disease from the Korean National Health Insurance Service (NHIS) from 2002 to 2015. The cost of hepatitis B was analyzed not only in direct costs but also, from a socio-economic perspective, in indirect costs incurred by society. This study found that the number of patients with viral hepatitis B increased from 213,758 in 2002 to 342,672 in 2015. The total costs increased from 141,000 million KRW in 2002 to 509,700 million KRW in 2015. This is mainly due to the increase in pharmaceutical costs. Outpatient prescription drug costs amounted to 244,800 million KRW in 2015, an increase of approximately 15 times from 16.5 million won in 2002. The healthcare costs for viral hepatitis B compared to the total medical costs of Korea accounted for 0.13% of the national health expenditure in 2002 and increased to 0.31% in 2015. In conclusion, the hepatitis B surface antigen positivity rate in Korea remains unchanged. However, the number of patients is increasing along with the socio-economic and healthcare burden. It is critical that steps be taken to reduce the costs of HBV infection by establishing effective management policies.