This study examined the association between total tooth loss, and socio-behavioural factors and general health indicators in elderly Koreans using national databases. Cross-sectional data for this study were from the third Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES III), which was conducted among non-institutionalised civilians by the Korean Ministry of Health and Welfare in 2005. KNHANES III used a stratified, multistage probability sampling design on a representative of total South Korean population, according to geographical areas, age and sex groups. Among them, 1091 subjects aged 65 years and above were identified as potential participants in this study. The dependent variable in this study was the self-reported total tooth loss. The independent variables consisted of the following four categories: demographic information, socio-behavioural factors, psychological factors and general health indicators. The data were weighted to adjust for the sampling complexity, and SPSS version 14 for Windows software was used for data analysis. There were significant differences in total tooth loss odds according to the socio-behavioural backgrounds (education and smoking), psychological conditions (perceived oral health) and general health status (diabetes and body mass index as underweight). This suggests that the total tooth loss is associated with the socio-economic status, health-related behaviour and general health. However, more extensive longitudinal data and research will be needed to better explain the relationship between the total tooth loss and these variables.

The Critical Period model was better at explaining association between socioeconomic position and periodontal health, such as the adulthood socioeconomic variables (SEP), had a stronger effect than childhood factors on periodontal disease. The Social Mobility model explained more of the variation in the association between SEP and periodontal health among women than among men.

This study uses observational data from radar and radiosonde to investigate the thermodynamic conditions related to localized torrential rainfall (LTR) in the southwest region of the Korean peninsula. Three criteria were defined for selecting LTR events: 1) hourly rainfall exceeding 30 mm h −1 recorded at any of the automated synoptic observing systems (ASOS) around Gwangju, 2) an area of rainfall at > 1 mm h −1 (as estimated from radar rain rate) of less than 20,000 km 2 , and 3) clearly defined stages of genesis and dissipation in a group of rain cells (> 10 mm h −1 ) with a duration lasting less than 24 hours. As a result, 10 cases were selected from the summer season (June-August) over the last decade (2004)(2005)(2006)(2007)(2008)(2009)(2010)(2011)(2012)(2013). Results showed all cases occurred during the afternoon hours and that the duration and maximum rain area of convective cells (> 30 mm h −1 ) was less than 6 hours and smaller than 700 km 2 , respectively. The majority of cases showed the following thermodynamic characteristics: 1) strong convective available potential energy (CAPE > 1,500 J kg −1 ) related to surface heating, 2) weak (or no) convective inhibition (CIN < 50 J kg −1 ), 3) adequate moisture and total precipitable water (TPW ≈ 55 mm), and 4) values of storm relative helicity (SRH) of less than 10 m 2 s −2 . The area of rainfall (700 km 2 ) and the duration (6 h) in this experiment were relatively small and short, respectively, compared to those in a previous study in the middle-west region of Korea (1,000 km 2 , 9 h), but a higher CAPE (1,500 J kg −1 ) and lower SRH (10 m 2 s −2 ) were involved in this study than in the former (800 J kg −1 , 120 m 2 s −2 ).

The special observation using Radiosonde was performed to investigate precipitation events over the east coast of Korea during the winter season from 5 January to 29 February 2012. This analysis focused on the various indices to describe the characteristics of the atmospheric instability. Equivalent Potential Temperature (EPT) from surface (1000 hPa) to middle level (near 750 hPa) was increased when the precipitation occurred and these levels (1000~750 hPa) had moisture enough to cause the instability of atmosphere. The temporal evolution of Convective Available Potential Energy (CAPE) appeared to be enhanced when the precipitation fell. Similar behavior was also observed for the temporal evolution of Storm Relative Helicity (SRH), indicating that it had a higher value during the precipitation events. To understand a detailed structure of atmospheric condition for the formation of precipitation, the surface remote sensing data and Automatic Weather System (AWS) data were analyzed. We calculated the Total Precipitable Water FLUX (TPWFLUX) using TPW and wind vector. TPWFLUX and precipitation amount showed a statistically significant relationship in the north easterly winds. The result suggested that understanding of the dynamical processes such as wind direction be important to comprehend precipitation phenomenon in the east coast of Korea.

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