Multimorbidity and suicide rates are rising simultaneously among Korean adults. To address this issue, we assessed the association between multimorbidity and suicidal behavior among adults aged ≥19 years in Korea. We analyzed the data from the 2017 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Multimorbidity was defined as experiencing two or more chronic diseases. We compared the presence of suicidal thoughts and plans according to multimorbidity using chi-square test, and examined the associations between multimorbidity and suicidal thoughts and plans using multiple binary logistic regression analyses. Multimorbidity was found in 30.8% of total participants. As the number of chronic diseases increased, the percentage of thoughts and plans tended to increase (p < 0.001 and p = 0.002). Among participants with multimorbidities, 8.5% had suicidal thoughts, whereas only 3.4% without multimorbidity had such thoughts (p < 0.001). Participants with multimorbidity had significantly higher odds of suicidal thoughts (OR = 2.14; 95% CI = 1.54–2.97) and suicidal plans (OR = 2.01; 95% CI = 1.08–3.73) compared to those without multimorbidity after adjusting confounding variables. Conclusion: People with multimorbidity had a higher prevalence of suicidal thoughts and plans. Early detection of and intervention for suicidal thoughts and plans are critical for suicide prevention among people with multimorbidity.

Background: The relationship between solitary life and multimorbidity among older people in Korea is not clear.We aimed to examine the association between solitary life and the prevalence of multimorbidity among Korean older people.Methods: We analyzed the data from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey Ⅶ(2016-2018) using multivariable logistic regression analysis. The study included 4,244 individuals aged ≥60 years.Results: Multimorbidity was reported in 31.0% of the participants. The rate of multimorbidity was significantly higher in older people living alone compared to those living with their families. After adjusting for confounding variables such as age, sex, smoking status, alcohol consumption, body mass index (BMI), educational level, and personal income, older people living alone were significantly associated with higher risks of having multimorbidity compared to those living with their families (odds ratio, 1.24; 95% confidence interval, 1.04-1.48).Conclusions: Since there is a risk of multimorbidity in older people living alone, it is necessary to examine whether multimorbidity exists in older people living alone.

Yoo Bin Seo, Eon Sook Lee*, Jun Hyung Lee. JKSRNT 2021;12:43-52. https://doi.org/10.25055/JKSRNT.2021.12.2.43

Background: Depression is well known to be associated with nicotine dependence. Recent studies reported higher depressive score is associated with use of e-cigarettes, however, little study showed the association between depression and both cigarette dual use. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the association between depressive mood and conventional and electronic cigarette dual use among male adults.Methods: Data of 7,459 male adults from sixth and seventh Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2014, 2016, and 2018) were analyzed. Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), current smoking status, and electronic cigarette use status were evaluated among them. The association between depressive mood and electronic cigarette use were assessed after adjusting age, education, income, alcohol, and perceived stress level using multivariate logistic regression analysis. The risk of depressive mood for dual users were also assessed. STATA 11.0 (Stata Corp., College Station, TX, USA) were used.Results: The both group of e-cigarette current user or ex-user reported higher depressive scores (PHQ-9) than never-user group (never-user group 1.94±0.05, ex-user group 2.57±0.13, current user group 2.69±0.22, P<0.001). In the multivariate logistic analysis, 1 point increase of depressive mood score was associated with risk of e-cigarette current use (odds ratio [OR], 1.062; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.021-1.105) among total male adult group or conventional & electronic tobacco dual use (OR, 1.054; 95% CI, 1.012-1.098) among current smokers.Conclusions: Depressive scores were positively associated with e-cigarette use or both conventional or e-cigarette use. It is necessary to evaluate and treat smoker’s depressive mood for tobacco control.