Clin Exp Otorhinolaryngol.  2010 Dec;3(4):183-193. 10.3342/ceo.2010.3.4.183.

Prevalence of Otolaryngologic Diseases in South Korea: Data from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2008

• Cho YS
• Choi SH
• Park KH
• Park HJ
• Kim JW
• Moon IJ
• Rhee CS
• Kim KS
• Sun DI
• Lee SH
• Koo JW
• Koh YW
• Lee KH
• Lee SW
• Oh KW
• Pyo EY
• Lee A
• Kim YT
• Lee CH

• KMID: 2049049
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.3342/ceo.2010.3.4.183

Abstract

OBJECTIVES
The aims of this study were to evaluate the prevalence of otolaryngologic diseases in Korea.
METHODS
We obtained data from the 2008 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (KNHANES), which were cross-sectional surveys of the civilian, non-institutionalized population of South Korea (n=4,930). A field survey team that included an otolaryngologist, nurses, and interviewers moved with a mobile examination unit and performed otolaryngologic interviews and physical examinations.
RESULTS
The prevalence of subjective hearing loss, tinnitus, preauricular fistua, tympanic membrane perforation, and cholesteatoma were 11.97%, 20.27%, 2.08%, 1.60%, and 1.18%, respectively. Dizziness and vestibular dysfunction were common among Korean adults, since 23.33% of the participants reported symptoms of dizziness or imbalance, and the prevalence of vestibular dysfunction was 3.86%. The prevalence of nasal diseases was relatively high, as the prevalence of allergic rhinitis, chronic rhinosinusitis, and a deviated nasal septum were 28.01%, 7.12%, and 42.94%, respectively. Subjective dysphonia was found in 6.60% of the participants, and the prevalence of subjective dysphonia increased with age.
CONCLUSION
This is the first nation-wide epidemiologic study to assess the prevalence of otolaryngologic diseases by both the Korean Otolaryngologic Society and the Ministry of Health and Welfare. Considering the high prevalence of otolaryngologic diseases in Korea, the results call for additional studies to better prevent and manage otolaryngologic diseases.

Keyword

Prevalence; Epidemiology; Ear diseases; Nose diseases; Laryngeal diseases

MeSH Terms

Adult
Cholesteatoma
Cross-Sectional Studies
Dizziness
Dysphonia
Ear Diseases
Epidemiologic Studies
Hearing Loss
Humans
Korea
Laryngeal Diseases
Nasal Septum
Nose Diseases
Nutrition Surveys
Otorhinolaryngologic Diseases
Prevalence
Republic of Korea
Rhinitis
Rhinitis, Allergic, Perennial
Tinnitus
Tympanic Membrane Perforation

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