PHWR Public Health Weekly Report

Vol.18 No.21, May 29, 2025 Article TypeOriginal ArticlePolicy NoteQuickStats

• Original Article 2025-05-29

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  Evaluation of the Predictive Performance of Pragmatic Models of Respiratory Syncytial Virus Transmission during Winter in the Republic of Korea

  Kyung-Duk Min , Hyun-Kyung Kim , Boyeong Ryu , Min-Gyu Yoo , Jaehoon Kim

  Public Health Weekly Report 2025; 18(21): 771-783 https://doi.org/10.56786/PHWR.2025.18.21.1

  

  

  Abstract

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  Objectives: This study was performed to develop and evaluate statistical and mathematical models for predicting the magnitude of the seasonal respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) epidemic during winter in the Republic of Korea.
  Methods: Models, including the linear regression model, sigmoid function model, and Susceptible-Exposed-Infectious-Recovered (SEIR) model, were fitted to RSV epidemic data spanning 2015–2024 to explore whether key parameters from each model, including temperature, humidity, and number of cases, could predict epidemic trends in the early stages of each seasonal epidemic.
  Results: The linear regression model performed well in predicting epidemic scale based on early stage information. The sigmoid function was suitable for forecasting epidemic peak timing. The SEIR model estimated the effective contact rate, but showed limited ability to predict this parameter using early stage data.
  Conclusions: This study demonstrates that simple statistical models can effectively predict RSV epidemic scales, providing valuable insights for winter healthcare preparation.

• Policy Note 2025-05-29

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  Laboratory Biosafety Guideline (2025) Revision

  Ji Yeong Lee , Kyung-Hwan Oh , Jeonghwa Shin , Tae Jong Son

  Public Health Weekly Report 2025; 18(21): 784-794 https://doi.org/10.56786/PHWR.2025.18.21.2

  

  

  Abstract

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  Objectives: The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency sought to revise the Laboratory Biosafety Guideline, creating a fourth (2025) edition of the Laboratory Biosafety Guideline, to provide updated safe laboratory environment for researchers at domestic medical and bioscience research institutions.
  Methods: Domestic and international biosafety-related laws, regulations, and criteria were investigated and analyzed.
  Results: The fourth edition of the Laboratory Biosafety Guideline (2025) was found to provide guidance on international laboratory-biosafety criteria, such as risk-assessment procedures, accident-prevention policies, and response measures, that corresponded to the World Health Organization Laboratory Biosafety Manual, 4th edition and the Biosafety in Microbiological and Biomedical Laboratories, 6th edition of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
  Conclusions: The revised Laboratory Biosafety Guideline (2025) are expected to provide a safe experimental environment for researchers, with guidelines for preventing both laboratory infections and infectious-material leaks in research facilities handling pathogens and exposure to pathogens in the community. The guidelines will serve as an excellent reference for researchers managing laboratory biosafety.

• QuickStats 2025-05-29

  0 134 96

  Trends in the Prevalence Gap of Current Smoking Tobacco Products between Cities or Provinces, during 2019–2024

  Yoon-sil Ko

  Public Health Weekly Report 2025; 18(21): 795-796 https://doi.org/10.56786/PHWR.2025.18.21.3

  

  

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