Korea University Ansan Hospital resident wins International Travel Award

Ju-hun Choi, a resident in the Department of Family Medicine at Korea University Ansan Hospital, received the ‘International Travel Award’ at the APASL STC 2026 Kumamoto held in Japan. Out of more than 350 abstracts, Choi was one of only four recipients selected for presenting outstanding research.

The study, titled ‘Association Between Circadian Rhythm-Disrupting Factors and Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatotic Liver Disease Among Korean Adults’, analyzed data from 11,256 adults. The research identified four key circadian rhythm disruptors: short sleep duration, irregular breakfast habits, lack of physical activity, and non-daytime work shifts.

Findings indicated that the prevalence of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease was 26.0% in the group with no lifestyle disruptions, rising to 35.4% in the group with three or more disruptors. Even after adjusting for age, gender, obesity, and diabetes, a higher number of disruptive factors correlated with increased disease prevalence. The research suggests that managing lifestyle factors like sleep and meal regularity is essential alongside traditional metabolic risk factors.