Summer can be a vulnerable time for one’s ear health, as many problems can be triggered from swimming and loud outdoor concert music. According to South Korea’s Health Ministry, Koreans seek medical help for ruptured eardrums the most in July and August. From 2010 to 2014, an average of 3,803 people per year saw doctors for the condition during the two summer months, as compared to 2,780 people from January to February.The condition, which may lead to hearing loss, is especially common in male t

Technology June 4, 2015

President Park Geun-hye announced Wednesday the creation of a special task force consisting of civil medical experts to act as a control tower, while expanding the pan-governmental countermeasures headquarters to cope with the outbreak of Middle East respiratory syndrome.The disease has killed two people since the first case was confirmed on May 20 and led to the isolation of 1,364 people -- a whopping increase from 791 on Tuesday. Among them, 1,261 are staying at home, while 103 are placed at g

Technology June 3, 2015

President Park Geun-hye announced Wednesday the creation of a special task force consisting of civil medical experts to act as a control tower, while expanding the pan-governmental countermeasures headquarters to cope with the outbreak of Middle East respiratory syndrome.The disease has killed two people since the first case was confirmed on May 20 and led to the isolation of 1,364 people -- a whopping increase from 791 on Tuesday. Among them, 1,261 are staying at home, while 103 are placed at g

Technology June 3, 2015

Seoul on Wednesday confirmed two deaths from Middle East respiratory syndrome, while five more have been added to the list of infected patients in the country. As of Wednesday morning, the number of confirmed cases in Korea marked 30, surpassing Jordan as the country with the third most MERS cases in the world. Following the news, an elementary school near the hospital where one of the deceased patients had stayed announced that it is closing temporarily from Tuesday to Friday. According to the

Technology June 2, 2015

A 58-year-old woman who interacted with Korea’s first confirmed MERS patient died of respiratory failure on Monday evening, the Health Ministry said.The government is in the process of finding out if she had been infected with MERS. According to local news reports, she was hospitalized on May 25 after experiencing shortness of breath. She died six days after.Earlier on the day, Seoul said it was monitoring 682 people, a massive expansion from its watch list of 64 people announced last month, for

Social Affairs June 1, 2015

Seoul authorities on Sunday scrambled to block the spread of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome by establishing a new task force consisting of government authorities as well as civil medical experts and facilities.As of Monday morning, 18 cases had been confirmed in Korea, surpassing Qatar as the country with the fourth-most MERS cases in the world. The hospital where more than 10 people are believed to have been infected by the first confirmed patient prior to his official diagnosis was temporari

Social Affairs May 31, 2015

South Korea confirmed its sixth and seventh MERS cases Thursday, surpassing Iran as the country with the fifth-highest number of MERS cases in the world. The two newly confirmed cases are in a health care worker and a patient. Both had been at the same medical facility where the first confirmed patient was being treated prior to his diagnosis from May 15 to 17. The newly diagnosed patient was not even on the authorities’ monitoring list, as the 71-year-old did not share a hospital room with the

Technology May 28, 2015

Food poisoning refers to infective or toxic conditions due to ingestion of foods contaminated with microorganisms, chemicals and natural toxins. More specifically, it refers to the ingestion of foods contaminated with live bacteria, or their toxins, causing diarrhea, abdominal pain and acute gastro-enteric symptoms.Approximately 80 percent of food poisoning is caused by bacteria and viruses, but other reasons include natural toxins from puffer fish, poisonous mushrooms and fungi. This is caused

Technology May 28, 2015

As Seoul on Monday confirmed its fourth MERS case ― the daughter of the third confirmed patient, who asked to be quarantined but was rejected by the authorities ― the Health Ministry is under fire for the poor handling of the potential patients.Fear of the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome in Korea further spread on Tuesday as two medical staff members who had been in contact with the patients showed symptoms of fever. The two were transported to a hospital to test for infection, the Korea Center

Social Affairs May 26, 2015

MOKPO, South Jeolla Province ― Located in the southwestern part of the Korean peninsula, South Jeolla Province is home to 1,965 islands ― 62 percent of all islands in the country. Of them, only 276 are inhabited. One among them is Jangbyeongdo Island, which is about two hours away from its closest port of Mokpo. There are currently 91 people residents, 26 of them aged 65 or older. Most of them make a living by digging for octopus in the mudflats and seaweed farming.Jangbyeongdo, only about 1.63

Social Affairs May 25, 2015

South Koreans who never attended middle school have a 5.2 times higher mortality rate than those who received higher education, a study showed Monday.According to the study by the Korea Institute for the Health and Social Affairs, those who are poor and less educated are more likely to live shorter lives, are more vulnerable to car accidents and cancer, and have limited access to high-quality health care services.Among households that belong to the poorest 25 percent of the population, 59.2 perc

Social Affairs May 18, 2015