PHWR Public Health Weekly Report

Vol.14 No.39, September 23, 2021 Article TypeEpidemiology and SurveillanceNoncommunicable Disease Statistics

• Epidemiology and Surveillance 2021-09-23

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  Changes in infectious diseases, health behaviors, and medical uses during COVID-19 pandemic in the Republic of Korea, 2020

  Cho, Kyung Sook

  Public Health Weekly Report 2021; 14(39): 2750-2764

  

  

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  The coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) pandemic impacted daily life, health behavior, medical use, and infectious diseases. This report found that infectious diseases decreased between 9.6% and 42.5% excluding emerging infectious disease syndrome (i.e., COVID-19) in 2020 compared to the previous year. Among category 2 infectious diseases, major respiratory infectious diseases decreased 51.3%. Acute respiratory infections of category 4 decreased 76%; there was no influenza epidemic in the 2020-2021 season. Also, medical use among patients with respiratory infectious diseases significantly decreased in 2020. This may be a result of personal hygiene rules being complied with; hand washing increased 97.6%, mask usage increased 99.6%, and social distancing (e.g., decreased outings·meetings·events) increased 97%. Tobacco use decreased, and the harmful use of alcohol decreased dramatically whereas physical inactivity and consumption of instant food and food delivery services increased sharply. The number of personal hospital visits decreased 11.9% and the number of new patients with hypertension, diabetes and cancer decreased sharply in 2020 compared to the previous year. This study concluded by suggesting that policy makers focus their efforts on management of non-communicable diseases that they work to enhance health behaviors, and that they prepare for a post COVID-19.

• Epidemiology and Surveillance 2021-09-23

  0 305 109

  Number of Cabapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae infections in Republic of Korea (2018-2020)

  Lee Eunsol, Lee Seungjae, Yoon Soojeong, Lee Yeonkyeng

  Public Health Weekly Report 2021; 14(39): 2765-2772

  

  

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  Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) infection is a national notifiable infectious disease caused by Enterobacteriaceae that is resistant to carbapenem antimicrobials. Domestic CRE infection was designated as a national notifiable infectious disease in December 2010 and is monitored within a sentinel surveillance system. On June 3, 2017, it became a mandatory surveillance system and was designated as a class 2 infectious disease that is monitored by all medical institutions. This report analyzed the status of domestic outbreaks by year, isolate, medical institution, age, and carbapenemase. This report targeted 45,436 reported cases of total surveillance reported through the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency's (KDCA) surveillance system from 2018 to 2020. There were 11,954 CRE infection cases (723 medical institutions) in 2018, 15,369 cases (831 medical institutions) in 2019, and 18,113 cases (938 medical institutions) in 2020. Out of the isolates, klebsiella pneumoniae isolates were the most common and, out of the genotypes, KPC were the most common. When classifying medical institutions by type, among all reports, the reporting rate at nursing hospitals increased annually to 4.3% (517 cases) in 2018, 7.0% (1,077 cases) in 2019, and 8.2% (1,485 cases) in 2020. By age, individuals aged 70 and over accounted for the largest proportion. The proportion of carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae (CPE) in CRE increased to 49.9% (5,962 cases) in 2018, 57.8% (88,887 cases) in 2019, and 61.9% (11,218 cases) in 2020.
  The increasing trend of CRE infection was estimated to be due to various factors, such as an increase in reporting institutions after the transition to a mandatory surveillance system, an increase in the actual occurrence of CRE infection, and an increase in screening tests for high-risk groups at medical institutions. This report recommended that a long-term plan of prevention and management of healthcare associated CRE infection (2018-2022) be promoted to reduce the incidence of CRE infection. In addition, active management is required to prevent the spread of CRE infection in medical institutions.

• Epidemiology and Surveillance 2021-09-23

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  Laboratory-Based Diagnostic Test Results for Human Granulocytic Anaplasmosis in 2020

  Lee Sunjin, Kim Hwanhee, Kim jun young, Yoo jaeil, Gill Byoungchul

  Public Health Weekly Report 2021; 14(39): 2773-2780

  

  

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  Human Granulocytic Anaplasmosis (HGA) is a zoonotic tick-borne disease. The HGA agent, which is mainly transmitted by ticks, is Anaplasma phagocytophilum. The aim of this study was to analyze the prevalence of HGA in Korea. This study showed the results of laboratory diagnosis of HGA in 912 suspected patients carried out in 2020 using immunofluorescent antibody assay (IFA) and polymerase chain reaction (PCR). In the serological test using IFA, 67 (10.8%) of the 623 cases were positive for IgG or IgM against A. phagocytophilum (male: 25/67, 37.3% vs. female: 42/67, 62.7%). In the PCR test, 19 (6.6%) of the 289 cases showed a positive result. In serology, there were 31 cases which showed a 4-fold increase between the initial phase and the convalescence phase. According to the laboratory diagnostic criteria, the positive rate of HGA was 3.4% (31/912 cases), indicating a increasing pattern, compared with 1.7% (5/302) in 2016 and 5.0% (30/598) in 2017, 6.6% (80/1,214) in 2018, 2.7% (43/1,568) in 2019. The results provide evidence of a prevalence of HGA in South Korea. In addition, this study provided a basis for the laboratory diagnosis of febrile patients who have fever with a recent history of tick bites or outdoor activity.

• Noncommunicable Disease Statistics 2021-09-23

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  Trends in awareness, treatment, and control of hypercholesterolemia among Korean adults aged 30 years and over, 2007-2019

  Public Health Weekly Report 2021; 14(39): 2781-2782

  

  

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