title: North Korean refugee health in South Korea (NORNS) study: study design and methods.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Understanding the health status of North Korean refugees (NKRs), and changes in health during the resettlement process, is important from both the humanitarian standpoint and the scientific perspective. The NOrth Korean Refugee health iN South Korea (NORNS) study aims to document the health status and health determinants of North Korean refugees, to observe various health outcomes as they occur while adapting to the westernized lifestyle of South Korea, and to explain the mechanisms of how health of migrants and refugees changes in the context of new environmental risks and opportunities.
  
  
  METHODS
  The NORNS study was composed of an initial survey and a follow-up survey 3.5 years apart. Participants were recruited voluntarily among those aged 30 or more living in Seoul. The survey consists of a health questionnaire and medical examination. The health questionnaire comprises the following six domains: 1) demographic and migration information 2) disease history, 3) mental health, 4) health-related lifestyle, 5) female reproductive health, and 6) sociocultural adaptation. The medical examination comprises anthropometric measurements, blood pressure and atherosclerosis, and various biochemical measurements. Prevalence of several diseases able to be diagnosed from the medical examination, the changes between the two surveys, and the association between the outcome and other measurements, such as length of stay and extent of adaptation in South Korea will be investigated. Furthermore, the outcome will be compared to a South Korean counterpart cohort to evaluate the relative health status of NKRs.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The NORNS study targeting adult NKRs in South Korea is a valuable study because various scales and medical measurements are employed for the first time. The results obtained from this study are expected to be utilized for developing a health policy for NKRs and North Korean people after unification. Additionally, since NKRs are an immigrant group who are the same race and have the same genetic characteristics as South Koreans, this study has the characteristics of a unique type of migrant health study.
authors.affiliation: Department of Preventive Medicine, Korea University College of Medicine, Seoul, South Korea.
authors.forename: Yo Han
authors.initials: YH
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Won Jin
authors.initials: WJ
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Yun Jeong
authors.initials: YJ
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Myong Jin
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Cho
authors.forename: Joo Hyung
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Yun Jeong
authors.initials: YJ
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Hee Young
authors.initials: HY
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Dong Seop
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Choi
authors.forename: Sin Gon
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Courtland
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Robinson
mesh_terms: D000069:Acculturation; D000222:Adaptation, Physiological; D000328:Adult; D056911:Democratic People's Republic of Korea / Q000208:ethnology; D004781:Environmental Exposure; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006304:Health Status; D006305:Health Status Indicators; D006801:Humans; D008019:Life Style; D008297:Male; D008603:Mental Health; D008875:Middle Aged; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care / Q000379:methods; D010808:Physical Examination; D015995:Prevalence; D012036:Refugees / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D060728:Reproductive Health; D056910:Republic of Korea / Q000453:epidemiology; D012107:Research Design; D012307:Risk Factors; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014171:Transients and Migrants / Q000523:psychology