Epidemiology and Health

Brief communication

Mortality and causes of death in the Korean Genome and Epidemiology Study (KoGES), 2001–2023: Hae Dong Woo, Sohyun Lee, Ji Hyun Kim, Jae-Pil Jeon, Joong-Yeon Lim; Epidemiol Health. 2026;e2026045. Published online August 24, 2026; DOI: https://doi.org/10.4178/epih.e2026045 [Accepted]

253 View
14 Download

Abstract PDF: Abstract
The Korean Genome and Epidemiology Study (KoGES) is a large prospective cohort study established to investigate determinants of chronic disease. To evaluate overall and cause-specific mortality, KoGES records were linked to the official Causes of Death Statistics compiled by Statistics Korea. Of 211,562 participants the KoGES population-based cohorts, 211,428 were successfully linked to official mortality data through December 31, 2023, using resident registration numbers. Over a mean follow-up of 14.9 years, the linked cohort had an overall mortality rate of 5.8 deaths per 1,000 person-years; the rate was higher among men than among women (9.6 vs. 3.9 deaths per 1,000 person-years). Malignant neoplasms, heart disease, and cerebrovascular disease were the leading causes of death. As the cohort aged, deaths from causes such as pneumonia increased substantially, a pattern consistent with national mortality statistics. This linked dataset provides a basis for longitudinal analyses of chronic disease progression, survival outcomes, and cause-specific mortality using repeated epidemiologic measurements collected over more than 2 decades of follow-up.; Summary

Original Article

Age-related trajectories of blood lipids and lipoproteins by sex, region, and waist circumference changes in Korea: a longitudinal cohort study: Mi Kyoung Son, Nam-Kyoo Lim, Joong-Yeon Lim, Hyun-Young Park; Epidemiol Health. 2025;47:e2025066. Published online December 9, 2025; DOI: https://doi.org/10.4178/epih.e2025066

4,445 View
94 Download

Abstract Summary PDF Supplementary Material: Abstract
OBJECTIVES
This study aimed to evaluate the longitudinal trajectories of lipid and lipoprotein levels with aging according to sex and changes in waist circumference (ΔWC) from midlife to late life.
METHODS
We included 4,345 male and 4,804 female participants aged 40-69 years at baseline from the Korean Genome and Epidemiology Study (2001-2018). The annual ΔWC was estimated using linear regression. Marginal models were fitted using mixed-effects regression.
RESULTS
The trajectories of total cholesterol (TC), non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (non-HDL-C), and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels displayed an increasing trend until the 60s age range in females (approximately 10-15 mg/dL) and the late 40s in males (approximately 3-5 mg/dL), with a subsequent decline. In females, HDL-C levels increased until the early 50s, declined thereafter, and rose again from the 70s onward, with a more pronounced rise in urban than in rural areas, while remaining relatively stable in males. Triglyceride (TG) levels decreased with advancing age in males, whereas in females they increased up to the age of 70 years, followed by a decrease. Females exhibited greater increases in TC, non-HDL-C, HDL-C, LDL-C, and TG across all ages compared with males. Both males and females with a decrease in waist circumference (WC) during follow-up showed improvements in lipid and lipoprotein profiles relative to those with stable or increased WC.
CONCLUSIONS
Trends in lipid and lipoprotein levels vary according to age and sex, and a decrease in WC significantly improves lipid and lipoprotein profiles.; Summary

Korean summary
• 40세 이상 한국 성인을 대상으로 한 전향적 코호트에서 지질 및 지단백 궤적은 연령, 성별, 지역에 따라 상이한 양상을 보였으며, 총콜레스테롤, 저밀도 지단백 콜레스테롤, 비고밀도 지단백 콜레스테롤 수준은 농촌 지역에 비해 도시 지역에서 전반적으로 불리한 양상으로 나타났다. • 여성은 남성에 비해 5개 지질 및 지단백 지표 전반에서 더 큰 증가 폭을 보였으며, 여성의 고밀도 지단백 콜레스테롤은 폐경 이행기를 전후로 감소한 이후 다시 증가하였다. • 허리둘레의 지속적인 감소는 지질 및 지단백 프로파일의 개선과 관련되었으며, 이러한 결과는 복부비만 관리에 있어 연령과 성별을 고려한 맞춤형 접근의 중요성을 시사한다.

Key Message
• In a prospective cohort analysis of Korean adults aged 40 years and older, lipid and lipoprotein trajectories varied by age, sex, and region, with total cholesterol, low- density llipoprotein cholesterol, and non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels generally showing less favorable patterns in urban than rural areas. • Females exhibited greater increases across all five lipid and lipoprotein measures than males, while high-density cholesterol levels in females declined around the menopausal transition and increased again in later life. • A sustained decrease in waist circumference was associated with improvements in lipid and lipoprotein profiles, highlighting the importance of age- and sex-specific approaches to abdominal obesity management.

Cohort Profile

Korea Nurses’ Health Study and the health of reproductive-aged women: a cohort profile: Chiyoung Cha, Heeja Jung, Sue Kim, Jung Eun Lee, Kwang-Pil Ko, Eunyoung Cho, Hyun-Young Park, Joong-Yeon Lim, Bo Mi Song, Sihan Song, Soojin Park, Aram Cho; Epidemiol Health. 2024;46:e2024048. Published online April 30, 2024; DOI: https://doi.org/10.4178/epih.e2024048

23,004 View
316 Download
3 Web of Science
3 Crossref

Abstract Summary PDF

Abstract

The Korea Nurses’ Health Study (KNHS) is an ongoing, large-scale, prospective cohort study of women nurses, focusing on the effects of occupational, environmental, and lifestyle factors on the health of women. The first KNHS survey was performed in 2013-2014 (n=20,613). As of December 2023, 11 follow-up surveys have been conducted. Participants who were pregnant were asked to participate in the early pregnancy survey (n=2,179) and postpartum survey after giving birth (n=2,790). The main variables included socio-demographic, work-related, lifestyle, physical, mental, and women’s health factors. Blood, urine, and toenail samples were collected from a participant subgroup of the first survey (n=1,983). The subgroups of the second survey completed a food frequency questionnaire in 2019 (n=300) and 2021 (n=871). In 2020, a subgroup of the first survey answered a coronavirus disease 2019-related survey (n=975). To examine various health-related factors in young adults, new participants were added to the KNHS cohort in the 11th (n=1,000) and 12th (n=1,002) surveys. The KNHS cohort will help identify health and illness determinants in Korean women. Data can be accessed at https://coda.nih.go.kr/frt/index.do.

Summary

Korean summary
한국간호사건강연구(Korea Nurses’ Health Study, KNHS)는 2013년부터 수행되고 있는 대규모 전향적 추적관찰 코호트 연구이다. 본 연구는 질병력, 약물복용력, 임신력, 여성건강, 정신건강(우울, 스트레스, 피로 등), 생활습관(흡연, 음주, 신체활동, 수면 등), 근무특성을 조사하여 여성건강에 장기적으로 미치는 영향을 파악하고 한국 고유의 여성건강 결정요인을 도출하는 것을 목표로 한다.

Key Message
The Korea Nurses' Health Study (KNHS) is a large-scale, prospective cohort study that has been conducted since 2013. It measures various factors affecting reproductive-aged women, including disease history, medication usage, pregnancy, women's health characteristic, mental health (such as depression, stress, and fatigue), lifestyle characteristic (including smoking, drinking, and physical activity, sleep), and work-related characteristics. The study aims to understand the long-term impact on women's health and identify unique determinants of women's health specific to Korea.

Citations

Citations to this article as recorded by

Differences in Health-Related Lifestyle Behaviors and Psychological Health Between Two Cohorts in Their 20s: The Korea Nurses’ Health Study
Aram Cho, Su-Young Kim, Minjoo Kim, Chiyoung Cha
Women's Health Reports.2026;[Epub] CrossRef
Do physical activity, psychological health, and food group intake change in early pregnancy before and during COVID-19? A secondary analysis of cohort data from the Korea Nurses’ Health Study
Chiyoung Cha, Jung Eun Lee, Jin-hui Han
Women's Health Nursing.2025; 31(1): 22. CrossRef
Factors Affecting Nonresponse Among Female Participants in the Korea Nurses’ Health Study: Longitudinal Cohort Survey Study
Young Taek Kim, Chiyoung Cha, Gumhee Baek, Bohye Kim, Bo Mi Song, Joong-Yeon Lim, Hyun-Young Park, Juh Hyun Shin
JMIR Public Health and Surveillance.2025; 11: e68038. CrossRef

First
Prev
Page of 1
Next
Last

Search