Osong Public Health and Research Perspectives最新文献

{"title":"Household secondary attack rates and risk factors during periods of SARS-CoV-2 Delta and Omicron variant predominance in the Republic of Korea.","authors":"Jin Lee,&nbsp;Mijeong Ko,&nbsp;Seontae Kim,&nbsp;Dosang Lim,&nbsp;Gemma Park,&nbsp;Sang-Eun Lee","doi":"10.24171/j.phrp.2023.0133","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.24171/j.phrp.2023.0133","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>The household secondary attack rate (SAR) of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is an important indicator for community transmission. This study aimed to characterize transmission by comparing household SARs and identifying risk factors during the periods of Delta and Omicron variant predominance in Republic of Korea.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We defined the period of Delta variant predominance (Delta period) as July 25, 2021 to January 15, 2022, and the period of Omicron variant predominance (Omicron period) as February 7 to September 3, 2022. The number of index cases included was 214,229 for the Delta period and 5,521,393 for the Omicron period. To identify the household SARs and risk factors for each period, logistic regression was performed to determine the adjusted odds ratio (aOR).</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The SAR was 35.2% for the Delta period and 43.1% for the Omicron period. The aOR of infection was higher in 2 groups, those aged 0 to 18 years and ≥75 years, compared to those aged 19 to 49 years. Unvaccinated individuals (vs. vaccinated individuals) and individuals experiencing initial infection (vs. individuals experiencing a second or third infection) had an increased risk of infection with SARS-CoV-2.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>This study analyzed the household SARs and risk factors. We hope that the results can help develop age-specific immunization plans and responses to reduce the SAR in preparation for emerging infectious diseases or potential new variants of SARS-CoV-2.</p>","PeriodicalId":38949,"journal":{"name":"Osong Public Health and Research Perspectives","volume":"14 4","pages":"263-271"},"PeriodicalIF":4.3,"publicationDate":"2023-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ftp.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pub/pmc/oa_pdf/38/b6/j-phrp-2023-0133.PMC10493696.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10219473","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Increased viral load in patients infected with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 Omicron variant in the Republic of Korea.","authors":"Jeong-Min Kim,&nbsp;Dongju Kim,&nbsp;Nam-Joo Lee,&nbsp;Sang Hee Woo,&nbsp;Jaehee Lee,&nbsp;Hyeokjin Lee,&nbsp;Ae Kyung Park,&nbsp;Jeong-Ah Kim,&nbsp;Chae Young Lee,&nbsp;Il-Hwan Kim,&nbsp;Cheon Kwon Yoo,&nbsp;Eun-Jin Kim","doi":"10.24171/j.phrp.2023.0024","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.24171/j.phrp.2023.0024","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been declared a global pandemic owing to the rapid spread of the causative agent, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2. Its Delta and Omicron variants are more transmissible and pathogenic than other variants. Some debates have emerged on the mechanism of variants of concern. In the COVID-19 wave that began in December 2021, the Omicron variant, first reported in South Africa, became identifiable in most cases globally. The aim of this study was to provide data to inform effective responses to the transmission of the Omicron variant.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>The Delta variant and the spike protein D614G mutant were compared with the Omicron variant. Viral loads from 5 days after symptom onset were compared using epidemiological data collected at the time of diagnosis.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The Omicron variant exhibited a higher viral load than other variants, resulting in greater transmissibility within 5 days of symptom onset.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Future research should focus on vaccine efficacy against the Omicron variant and compare trends in disease severity associated with its high viral load.</p>","PeriodicalId":38949,"journal":{"name":"Osong Public Health and Research Perspectives","volume":"14 4","pages":"272-278"},"PeriodicalIF":4.3,"publicationDate":"2023-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ftp.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pub/pmc/oa_pdf/de/fc/j-phrp-2023-0024.PMC10493702.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10211081","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Temporal association between the age-specific incidence of Guillain-Barré syndrome and SARS-CoV-2 vaccination in Republic of Korea: a nationwide time-series correlation study.","authors":"Hyunju Lee,&nbsp;Donghyok Kwon,&nbsp;Seoncheol Park,&nbsp;Seung Ri Park,&nbsp;Darda Chung,&nbsp;Jongmok Ha","doi":"10.24171/j.phrp.2023.0050","DOIUrl":"10.24171/j.phrp.2023.0050","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>The incidence of Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) changed significantly during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Emerging reports suggest that viral vector-based vaccines may be associated with an elevated risk of GBS.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>In this nationwide time-series correlation study, we examined the age-specific incidence of GBS from January 2011 to August 2022, as well as data on severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) vaccinations and infections from February 2021 to August 2022. We compared the forecasted estimates of age-specific GBS incidence, using the pre-SARS-CoV-2 period as a benchmark, with the actual incidence observed during the post-vaccination period of the pandemic. Furthermore, we assessed the temporal association between GBS, SARS-CoV-2 vaccinations, and COVID-19 for different age groups.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>In the age group of 60 and older, the rate ratio was significantly elevated during June-August and November 2021. A significant, strong positive association was observed between viral vector-based vaccines and GBS incidence trends in this age group (r=0.52, p=0.022). For the 30 to 59 years age group, the rate ratio was notably high in September 2021. A statistically significant, strong positive association was found between mRNA-based vaccines and GBS incidence in this age group (r=0.61, p=0.006).</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Viral vector-based SARS-CoV-2 vaccines were found to be temporally associated with an increased risk of GBS, particularly in older adults. To minimize age-specific and biological mechanism-specific adverse events, future vaccination campaigns should adopt a more personalized approach, such as recommending homologous mRNA-based SARS-CoV-2 vaccines for older adults to reduce the heightened risk of GBS.</p>","PeriodicalId":38949,"journal":{"name":"Osong Public Health and Research Perspectives","volume":"14 3","pages":"224-231"},"PeriodicalIF":4.3,"publicationDate":"2023-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ftp.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pub/pmc/oa_pdf/be/72/j-phrp-2023-0050.PMC10522829.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9805255","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Neglected issues related to the COVID-19 pandemic.","authors":"Jong-Koo Lee","doi":"10.24171/j.phrp.2023.14.3.01","DOIUrl":"10.24171/j.phrp.2023.14.3.01","url":null,"abstract":"Since June 1, our country has reduced the disaster alert level from “serious” to “caution,” after maintaining it for 3 years and 4 months. We have transitioned to a quarantine system that primarily relies on recommendations and voluntary compliance, except for the requirement to wear masks in medical institutions. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the end of the Public Health Emergency International Concern (PHEIC) on May 5, prior to its 75th General Assembly. The United States also terminated its public Health Emergency declaration as of May 11. Japan has announced that it will manage the crisis level at the level of seasonal influenza. The easing of measures is attributed to the significant reduction in the fatality rate of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), which has reached an endemic level. The WHO's Strategic Advisory Group of Experts released a COVID-19 vaccination roadmap in March. Based on analyses of the effectiveness of vaccine administration, guidelines recommended prioritizing the elderly [1]. In accordance with this, recent discussions among Western Pacific countries took place in Manila, Philippines (June 19−23, 2023) to address their respective responses to these guideline changes and prepare alternatives for a potential resurgence in the coming autumn, along with the public health emergency caused by wild poliomyelitis virus and circulating vaccinederived poliovirus (cVDPV). However, we are overlooking the fact that the PHEIC caused by poliomyelitis remains unresolved. China, which shares borders with Afghanistan and Pakistan, has already experienced an imported polio outbreak. Although we have been preparing effective measures to deal with imported cases of polio, we need to doublecheck our efforts. Countries that have switched to injectable vaccines from oral vaccines, such as the United Kingdom, Canada, Israel, and United States, have reported positive environmental samples of cVDPV2 and acute flaccid paralysis patient sample in cVDPV3. Therefore, careful attention should be given to procedures such as rapid confirmation tests, the diagnosis of acute flaccid paralysis, and environmental surveillance. The discussion at hand primarily concerns the repercussions of vaccination and the compensation for vaccine-related injuries. The proposal for a special law in the National Assembly arises from the fact that the existing compensation program for vaccine injuries, which mainly focuses on children, differs in its logic and compensation approach when it comes to COVID-19, especially for adults. This issue relates to the government's responsibility for adverse events not present during the emergency use authorization, due to the indemnification granted to pharmaceutical companies for vaccine development in crisis management situations. The government actively promoted vaccination to achieve herd immunity. Booster doses were administered to prevent hospitalization, severe complications,","PeriodicalId":38949,"journal":{"name":"Osong Public Health and Research Perspectives","volume":"14 3","pages":"149-150"},"PeriodicalIF":4.3,"publicationDate":"2023-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ftp.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pub/pmc/oa_pdf/86/04/j-phrp-2023-14-3-01.PMC10522822.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9805248","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Risk factors associated with death due to severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome in hospitalized Korean patients (2018-2022).","authors":"Jia Kim,&nbsp;Hyo-Jeong Hong,&nbsp;Ji-Hye Hwang,&nbsp;Na-Ri Shin,&nbsp;Kyungwon Hwang","doi":"10.24171/j.phrp.2023.0048","DOIUrl":"10.24171/j.phrp.2023.0048","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS) has no vaccine or treatment and an extremely high fatality rate. We aimed to analyze and evaluate the risk factors for death associated with SFTS.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Among reports from 2018 to 2022, we compared and analyzed 1,034 inpatients aged 18 years or older with laboratory-confirmed SFTS who underwent complete epidemiological investigations.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Most of the inpatients with SFTS were aged 50 years or older (average age, 67.6 years). The median time from symptom onset to death was 9 days, and the average case fatality rate was 18.5%. Risk factors for death included age of 70 years or older (odds ratio [OR], 4.82); agriculture-related occupation (OR, 2.01); underlying disease (OR, 7.20); delayed diagnosis (OR, 1.28 per day); decreased level of consciousness (OR, 5.53); fever/chills (OR, 20.52); prolonged activated partial thromboplastin time (OR, 4.19); and elevated levels of aspartate aminotransferase (OR, 2.91), blood urea nitrogen (OR, 2.62), and creatine (OR, 3.21).</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>The risk factors for death in patients with SFTS were old age; agriculture-related occupation; underlying disease; delayed clinical suspicion; fever/chills; decreased level of consciousness; and elevated activated partial thromboplastin time, aspartate aminotransferase, blood urea nitrogen, and creatine levels.</p>","PeriodicalId":38949,"journal":{"name":"Osong Public Health and Research Perspectives","volume":"14 3","pages":"151-163"},"PeriodicalIF":4.3,"publicationDate":"2023-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ftp.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pub/pmc/oa_pdf/36/9f/j-phrp-2023-0048.PMC10522827.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9805247","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Vaccine effectiveness and the epidemiological characteristics of a COVID-19 outbreak in a tertiary hospital in Republic of Korea.","authors":"Seonhee Ahn,&nbsp;Tae Jong Son,&nbsp;Yoonsuk Jang,&nbsp;Jihyun Choi,&nbsp;Young Joon Park,&nbsp;Jiseon Seong,&nbsp;Hyun Hee Kwon,&nbsp;Muk Ju Kim,&nbsp;Donghyok Kwon","doi":"10.24171/j.phrp.2023.0066","DOIUrl":"10.24171/j.phrp.2023.0066","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Healthcare facilities are high-risk sites for infection. This study analyzed the epidemiological characteristics of a coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak in a tertiary hospital after COVID-19 vaccination had been introduced in Republic of Korea. Vaccine effectiveness (VE) and shared anti-infection strategies are also assessed.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>The risk levels for 4,074 contacts were evaluated. The epidemiological characteristics of confirmed cases were evaluated using the chi-square test. The \"1 minus relative risk\" method was used to determine VE in preventing infection, progression to severe disease, and death. In the largest affected area (the 8th floor), a separate relative risk analysis was conducted. A multivariate logistic regression analysis (with 95% confidence interval [CIs]) was used to identify transmission risk factors with a significance level <10% via the backward elimination method.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>In total, 181 cases of COVID-19 were confirmed, with an attack rate of 4.4%. Of those cases, 12.7% progressed to severe disease, and 8.3% died. In the cohort isolation area on the 8th floor, where 79.0% of the confirmed cases occurred, the adjusted odds ratio was 6.55 (95% CI, 2.99-14.33) and 2.19 (95% CI, 1.24-3.88) for caregivers and the unvaccinated group, respectively. VE analysis revealed that 85.8% of the cases that progressed to severe disease and 78.6% of the deaths could be prevented by administering a second vaccine.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Caregiver training for infection prevention and control is necessary to reduce infection risk. Vaccination is an important intervention to reduce the risk of progression to severe disease and death.</p>","PeriodicalId":38949,"journal":{"name":"Osong Public Health and Research Perspectives","volume":"14 3","pages":"188-196"},"PeriodicalIF":4.3,"publicationDate":"2023-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ftp.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pub/pmc/oa_pdf/a5/32/j-phrp-2023-0066.PMC10522825.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9805251","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The COVID-19 pandemic and healthcare utilization in Iran: evidence from an interrupted time series analysis.","authors":"Monireh Mahmoodpour-Azari,&nbsp;Satar Rezaei,&nbsp;Nasim Badiee,&nbsp;Mohammad Hajizadeh,&nbsp;Ali Mohammadi,&nbsp;Ali Kazemi-Karyani,&nbsp;Shahin Soltani,&nbsp;Mehdi Khezeli","doi":"10.24171/j.phrp.2023.0041","DOIUrl":"10.24171/j.phrp.2023.0041","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>This study aimed to examine the effect of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak on the hospitalization rate, emergency department (ED) visits, and outpatient clinic visits in western Iran.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We collected data on the monthly hospitalization rate, rate of patients referred to the ED, and rate of patients referred to outpatient clinics for a period of 40 months (23 months before and 17 months after the COVID-19 outbreak in Iran) from all 7 public hospitals in the city of Kermanshah. An interrupted time series analysis was conducted to examine the impact of COVID-19 on the outcome variables in this study.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>A statistically significant decrease of 38.11 hospitalizations per 10,000 population (95% confidence interval [CI], 24.93-51.29) was observed in the first month of the COVID-19 outbreak. The corresponding reductions in ED visits and outpatient visits per 10,000 population were 191.65 (95% CI, 166.63-216.66) and 168.57 (95% CI, 126.41-210.73), respectively. After the initial reduction, significant monthly increases in the hospitalization rate (an increase of 1.81 per 10,000 population), ED visits (an increase of 2.16 per 10,000 population), and outpatient clinic visits (an increase of 5.77 per 10,000 population) were observed during the COVID-19 pandemic.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Our study showed that the utilization of outpatient and inpatient services in hospitals and clinics significantly declined after the COVID-19 outbreak, and use of these services did not return to pre-outbreak levels as of June 2021.</p>","PeriodicalId":38949,"journal":{"name":"Osong Public Health and Research Perspectives","volume":"14 3","pages":"180-187"},"PeriodicalIF":4.3,"publicationDate":"2023-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ftp.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pub/pmc/oa_pdf/8e/25/j-phrp-2023-0041.PMC10522821.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9805253","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Estimating the number of severe COVID-19 cases and COVID-19-related deaths averted by a nationwide vaccination campaign in Republic of Korea.","authors":"Ji Hae Hwang,&nbsp;Ju Hee Lee,&nbsp;Eun Jung Jang,&nbsp;Ryu Kyung Kim,&nbsp;Kil Hun Lee,&nbsp;Seon Kyeong Park,&nbsp;Sang Eun Lee,&nbsp;Chungman Chae,&nbsp;Sangwon Lee,&nbsp;Young Joon Park","doi":"10.24171/j.phrp.2023.0096","DOIUrl":"10.24171/j.phrp.2023.0096","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency promotes vaccination by regularly providing information on its benefits for reducing the severity of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). This study aimed to analyze the number of averted severe COVID-19 cases and COVID-19-related deaths by age group and quantify the impact of Republic of Korea's nationwide vaccination campaign.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We analyzed an integrated database from the beginning of the vaccination campaign on February 26, 2021 to October 15, 2022. We estimated the cumulative number of severe cases and COVID-19-related deaths over time by comparing observed and estimated cases among unvaccinated and vaccinated groups using statistical modeling. We compared daily age-adjusted rates of severe cases and deaths in the unvaccinated group to those in the vaccinated group and calculated the susceptible population and proportion of vaccinated people by age.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>There were 23,793 severe cases and 25,441 deaths related to COVID-19. We estimated that 119,579 (95% confidence interval [CI], 118,901-120,257) severe COVID-19 cases and 137,636 (95% CI, 136,909-138,363) COVID-19-related deaths would have occurred if vaccination had not been performed. Therefore, 95,786 (95% CI, 94,659-96,913) severe cases and 112,195 (95% CI, 110,870-113,520) deaths were prevented as a result of the vaccination campaign.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>We found that, if the nationwide COVID-19 vaccination campaign had not been implemented, the number of severe cases and deaths would have been at least 4 times higher. These findings suggest that Republic of Korea's nationwide vaccination campaign reduced the number of severe cases and COVID-19 deaths.</p>","PeriodicalId":38949,"journal":{"name":"Osong Public Health and Research Perspectives","volume":"14 3","pages":"164-172"},"PeriodicalIF":4.3,"publicationDate":"2023-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ftp.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pub/pmc/oa_pdf/8e/74/j-phrp-2023-0096.PMC10522830.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9796207","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Results of contact tracing for SARS-CoV-2 Omicron sub-lineages (BA.4, BA.5, BA.2.75) and the household secondary attack risk.","authors":"Mi Yu,&nbsp;Sang-Eun Lee,&nbsp;Hye Young Lee,&nbsp;Hye-Jin Kim,&nbsp;Yeong-Jun Song,&nbsp;Jian Jeong,&nbsp;Ae Kyung Park,&nbsp;Il-Hwan Kim,&nbsp;Eun-Jin Kim,&nbsp;Young-Joon Park","doi":"10.24171/j.phrp.2022.0285","DOIUrl":"10.24171/j.phrp.2022.0285","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>This study aimed to assess the contact tracing outcomes of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) Omicron sub-lineages BA.4, BA.5, and BA.2.75 within Republic of Korea, and to generate foundational data for responding to future novel variants.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We conducted investigations and contact tracing for 79 confirmed BA.4 cases, 396 confirmed BA.5 cases, and 152 confirmed BA.2.75 cases. These cases were identified through random sampling of both domestically confirmed and imported cases, with the goal of evaluating the pattern of occurrence and transmissibility.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>We detected 79 instances of Omicron sub-lineage BA.4 across a span of 46 days, 396 instances of Omicron sub-lineage BA.5 in 46 days, and 152 instances of Omicron sub-lineage BA.2.75 over 62 days. One patient with severe illness was confirmed among the BA.5 cases; however, there were no reports of severe illness in the confirmed BA.4 and BA.2.75 cases. The secondary attack risk among household contacts were 19.6% for BA.4, 27.8% for BA.5, and 24.3% for BA.2.75. No statistically significant difference was found between the Omicron sub-lineages.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>BA.2.75 did not demonstrate a higher tendency for transmissibility, disease severity, or secondary attack risk within households when compared to BA.4 and BA.5. We will continue to monitor major SARS-CoV-2 variants, and we plan to enhance the disease control and response systems.</p>","PeriodicalId":38949,"journal":{"name":"Osong Public Health and Research Perspectives","volume":"14 3","pages":"173-179"},"PeriodicalIF":4.3,"publicationDate":"2023-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ftp.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pub/pmc/oa_pdf/94/2b/j-phrp-2022-0285.PMC10522828.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9805250","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Effectiveness of the COVID-19 vaccine in the Honam region of the Republic of Korea.","authors":"In-Sook Shin,&nbsp;Yong-Pyo Lee,&nbsp;Seung-Hoon Lee,&nbsp;Jae-Young Lee,&nbsp;Jong-Ha Park,&nbsp;Yoon-Seok Chung","doi":"10.24171/j.phrp.2022.0308","DOIUrl":"10.24171/j.phrp.2022.0308","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>In 2021, the effectiveness of the COVID-19 vaccine was analyzed among people living in the Honam region (Gwangju, Jeollanam-do, Jeollabuk-do, and Jeju) of the Republic of Korea. And we investigated changes in the dominant virus strain.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>This study used the data provided by the Korean Ministry of the Interior and Safety for individuals ≥12 years old in the Honam region, and the Integrated Disease and Health Management System of the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for COVID-19-vaccinated individuals as of December 31, 2021. Statistical analyzes were performed using IBM SPSS ver. 23.0. The occurrence of confirmed cases by vaccination status, the relative risk, and vaccine effectiveness by vaccine type were calculated.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>In 2021, the COVID-19 vaccination rate in Honam was 88.6%. The overall vaccine effectiveness (after 2 and 3 doses) was 98.7% (p<0.001). and the breakthrough infection rate was 0.16%. From week 21 to week 27 of 2021 (June 27 to July 3), the genome sequencing results were mostly alpha variants. The Delta variant emerged as the dominant variant after 27 weeks and the Omicron variant was found at 50 weeks (December 5-11).</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Vaccine effectiveness changed with the outbreak of new variants of the virus as well as over time as antibody levels decreased. that the prevention effectiveness of vaccination in Honam was >98%, and the effect among persons who received 2 doses was >90% regardless of the vaccine type. Although vaccine effectiveness decreased because of reduced antibody levels over time (as observed in breakthrough infections), receiving a booster dose restored the neutralizing antibody levels.</p>","PeriodicalId":38949,"journal":{"name":"Osong Public Health and Research Perspectives","volume":"14 3","pages":"197-206"},"PeriodicalIF":4.3,"publicationDate":"2023-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ftp.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pub/pmc/oa_pdf/0b/81/j-phrp-2022-0308.PMC10522824.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9805252","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}