• Annals of Occupational and Environmental Medicine
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• v.35
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• pp.53.1-53.15
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• 2023

Background: Plastics are high-molecular-weight materials composed of long carbon chains. They are prevalent in daily life, present in various items such as food containers and microwavable packaging. Phthalates, an additive used to enhance their flexibility, are endocrine-disrupting chemicals. We utilized the data from the Korean National Environmental Health Survey (KoNEHS) cycle 3, representing the general South Korean population, to investigate the relationship between the use of plastics in refrigerator food storage and phthalate exposure. Methods: We assessed 3,333 adult participants (aged ≥ 19 years) including 1,526 men and 1,807 women, using data from KoNEHS cycle 3. Using the 75th percentile concentration, urine phthalate metabolites were categorized into high and low-concentration groups. χ² test was conducted to analyze variations in the distribution of each variable, considering sociodemographic factors, health-related factors, food intake, the use of plastics, and the concentration of urine phthalate metabolites as the variables. To calculate odds ratios (ORs) for the high-concentration group of urine phthalate metabolites based on the use of plastics in refrigerator food storage, logistic regression analysis was conducted. Results: In men, the use of plastics in refrigerator food storage had significantly higher adjusted ORs compared to those using the others. The adjusted ORs were calculated as follows: mono-(2-ethyl-5-hydroxyhexyl) phthalate (MEHHP) had an OR of 1.35 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.05-1.72), mono-(2-ethyl-5-oxohexyl) phthalate (MEOHP) had an OR of 1.48 (95% CI: 1.16-1.88), mono-(2-ethyl-5-carboxypentyl) phthalate (MECPP) had an OR of 1.32 (95% CI: 1.04-1.66), ∑di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (∑DEHP) had an OR of 1.37 (95% CI: 1.08-1.74) and mono-n-butyl phthalate (MnBP) had an OR of 1.44 (95% CI: 1.13-1.84). Conclusion: The concentrations of urine phthalate metabolites (MEHHP, MEOHP, MECPP, ∑DEHP, and MnBP) were significantly higher in men who used plastics in refrigerator food storage compared to those using the others.

• Journal of Korean Home Economics Education Association
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.63-79
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• 2021

This study examined yearly trend of sugar-sweetened beverage(SSB) intake and compared nutritional status by SSB intake level in middle school students aged 12~14 years(n=2,543) using the data from 2007~2015 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. SSB included carbonated drinks, sports drinks, and caffeinated drinks contained added sugar. Subjects were classified into three groups by SSB intake level obtained from 24-hour recall method: SSB 1(SSB intake 0 g/d), SSB 2(0 g/d < SSB intake < 50th percentile) and SSB 3(SSB intake ≥ 50th percentile). Result of daily intake of SSB was 76.1±6.2 g/d for boys and 59.5±4.7 g/d for girls and it was increased significantly for boys(p-trend 0.0004) and girls(p-trend 0.0038) by year. The most intakes were carbonated drinks followed by fruit juices and sports drinks for boys and girls. Percentage of daily intake compared to the dietary reference was increased for energy and iron while was decreased for calcium and vitamin C toward SSB 3 group. Ratio of excess intake of energy/fat was increased significantly for boys(p=0.0091) and girls(p<0.0001) toward SSB 3 group. Ratio of calcium deficiency was 86.8~94.9% for boys and girls and it was very high. Therefore, it should be emphasized to reduce SSB intake and drink plain water without added sugar, etc. and milk as a source of calcium for improving nutritional status of middle school students through dietary education and social support.

• Korean Journal of Biological Psychiatry
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.77-90
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• 1995

The Purposes of this study were to examine plasma homovanillic acid(pHVA) levels and 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid(pHIAA) levels in schizophrenics during haloperidol treatment, and to assess the association of pHVA and pHIM levels with their psychopathology and treatment responses. Fourteen patients entered the study and pHVA, pHIAA levels were measured at baseline, first week, second week and fourth week during treatment. Also, plasma haloperidol levels were measured at first week, second week and fourth week. Psychopathology was evaluated with Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale(BPRS) at baseline, 1st week, 2nd week and 4th week. 1) There were significant differences on the duration of illness and total BPRS scores at baseline between higher pHVA group(baseline pHVA level >7.72ng/mL) and lower pHVA group(baseline pHVA level <7.72ng/mL). 2) There was no significant difference on the duration of illness between higher pHIM group(baseline pHIAA level >3.18ng/mL). and lower pHIAA group(baseline pHIAA level <3.18ng/mL). 3) The Means of pHVA levels at 1 st week and 2nd week after treatment decreased significantly in the higher pHVA group and did not change in the lower pHVA group. 4) In the higher pHIAA group, the mean of pHIAA levels at 4th week after treatment decreased significantly, but did not change in the lower pHIAA group. 5) Between the higher pHIVA group and lower pHVA group, the response rates(percentile improvement) after treatment were not different from each other, but there was significant difference on the response rate between the lower pHIAA group and higher pHIM group at 2nd week. 6) There was significant correlation between total BPRS scores and pHVA levels in the higher pHVA group during treatment. The results suggest that repeated measurement of pHVA levels and pHIAA levels following antipsychotic treatment have prognostic significance for response. Also, shcizophrenics whose have relatively nigh levels of pHVA, or relatively low levels of pHIAA before treatment will show a favorable early responses to antipsychotics.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.56 no.3
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• pp.155-161
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• 2023

Background: Surgical closure of an atrial septal defect (ASD) is infrequently indicated during infancy. We evaluated the clinical characteristics and outcomes of patients who underwent surgical ASD closure during infancy. Methods: A single-center retrospective review was performed for 39 patients (19 males) who underwent surgical ASD closure during infancy between 1993 and 2020. The median body weight percentile at the time of operation was 9.3. Results: During a median follow-up of 60.9 months, 4 late deaths occurred due to chronic respiratory failure. A preoperative history of bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) was the only risk factor for late mortality identified in Cox regression (hazard ratio, 3.54; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.75-163.04; p=0.015). The 5-year survival rate was significantly lower in patients with preoperative history of BPD (97.0% vs. 50.0%, p<0.001) and preoperative ventilatory support (97.1% vs. 40.4%, p<0.001). There were significant postoperative increases in left ventricular end-diastolic (p=0.017), end-systolic (p=0.014), and stroke volume (p=0.013) indices. A generalized estimated equation model showed significantly better postoperative improvement in body weight percentiles in patients with lower weight percentiles at the time of operation (<10th percentile, p=0.01) and larger indexed ASD diameter (≥45 mm/m², p=0.025). Conclusion: Patients with ASD necessitating surgical closure during infancy are extremely small preoperatively and remain small even after surgical closure. However, postoperative somatic growth was more prominent in smaller patients with larger defects, which may be attributable to an increase in postoperative cardiac output due to changes in ventricular septal configuration. The benefits of ASD closure in patients with BPD are undetermined.

• Korean Journal of Occupational Health Nursing
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.5-21
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• 1999

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the physical fitness status and health promoting life styles of the workers. For the purpose, 108 workers who attended the exercise program in Inchon branch of KISCO were selected as the subjects. From Oct. 20th to Nov. 30th, in 1998, they were firstly assessed their physical fitness. The items include cardio-respiratory endurance, flexibility, muscular strength, muscular endurance, agility, power, balance, body composition, etc. Secondly, the health promoting life styles were asked by questionnaires about daily life and dietary habits. Both of them were evaluated by 5 or 3 levels as A(very good) to E(very poor) or A (good) to C(poor). Those data were analyzed percentile, mean, standard deviation by SAS program. Major findings are as follows ; 1. The health promoting life styles were generally good, but 43.5% of the subjects didn't exercise at all. Most of them(93.5%) thought about their physical fitness status as lower than average level. About half of them(48.1%) didn't drink alcohol, non smokers were 70.4% of them. But they had poor dietary habits(lower than average level : 79.6%), females were a little bit better than males. The aged group had the poor body compositions, 21.4% of females and 10.0% of males were obese. 2. Physical fitness status of the workers were assessed as two areas, one is health related, the other is physical function related area. In the health related area, females were better than males, in view of age, forties aged group had the highest scores of all items except cardio-respiratory endurance. Among 'A' and 'B' level, muscular endurance was showed most frequently, followed by muscular strength, flexibility, cardiorespiratory endurance. In physical function related status, balance was ranked highly in the portion of over 'B', followed by power, agility. In view of sex, males were better than females for all items except balance, and there were various figures in the status by age groups. 3. Comprehensive assessment scores were poor(under 'D' leves were most frequent), females were better than males, and teenage group had the worst scores. In ages of the physical fitness, generally they had 1 year under their real ages, and females were better than males. In view of age, forties aged group was ranked highly and teenagers had lowest scores.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.8 no.6
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• pp.688-694
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• 2014

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Recent research regarding vitamin $B_6$ status including biochemical index is limited. Thus, this study estimated intakes and major food sources of vitamin $B_6$; determined plasma pyridoxal 5'-phosphate (PLP); and assessed vitamin $B_6$ status of Korean adults. MATERIALS/METHODS: Three consecutive 24-h diet recalls and fasting blood samples were collected from healthy 20- to 64-year-old adults (n = 254) living in the Seoul metropolitan area, cities of Kwangju and Gumi, Korea. Vitamin $B_6$ intake and plasma PLP were analyzed by gender and by vitamin $B_6$ supplementation. Pearson's correlation coefficient was used to determine associations of vitamin $B_6$ intake and plasma PLP. RESULTS: The mean dietary and total (dietary plus supplemental) vitamin $B_6$ intake was $1.94{\pm}0.64$ and $2.41{\pm}1.45mg/day$, respectively. Median (50th percentile) dietary intake of men and women was 2.062 and 1.706 mg/day. Foods from plant sources provided 70.61% of dietary vitamin $B_6$ intake. Only 6.3% of subjects consumed total vitamin $B_6$ less than Estimated Average Requirements. Plasma PLP concentration of all subjects was $40.03{\pm}23.71nmol/L$. The concentration of users of vitamin $B_6$ supplements was significantly higher than that of nonusers (P < 0.001). Approximately 16% of Korean adults had PLP levels < 20 nmol/L, indicating a biochemical deficiency of vitamin $B_6$, while 19.7% had marginal vitamin $B_6$ status. Plasma PLP concentration showed positive correlation with total vitamin $B_6$ intake (r = 0.40984, P < 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: In this study, vitamin $B_6$ intake of Korean adults was generally adequate. However, one-third of subjects had vitamin $B_6$ deficiency or marginal status. Therefore, in some adults in Korea, consumption of vitamin $B_6$-rich food sources should be encouraged.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.14-22
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• 1999

This study was conducted to evaluate workplace protection factors(WPF) for two half-facepiece respirators (HR-1, HR-2) in welding workplace and to provide data on the workplace performance of negative-pressure, half-facepiece respirators against airborne particulate contaminants. The outside iron oxide(Fe2O3) concentration of welding fume for the respirator HR-1 ranged from 0.177 to $12.508mg/m^3$ with a geometric mean of $1.118mg/m^3$ and the HR-2 respirator showed a iron oxide range of 0.500 to $3.494mg/m^3$ with a geometric mean of $1.082mg/m^3$. But the inside oxide concentration of welding fume for the respirator HR-1 ranged from 0.002 to $0.364mg/m^3$ with a geometric mean of $0.019mg/m^3$ and the HR-2 respirator showed a iron oxide range of 0.012 to $0.639mg/m^3$ with a geometric mean of $0.041mg/m^3$. The iron oxide inside concentrations were significantly less than $5mg/m^3$(TLV) for both of respirators. The WPF were ranged from 3 to 3744 with a geometric mean of 60 for HR-1 and range from 2 to 129 a geometric mean of 26 for HR-2. And, in this study, the 5th percentile of the workplace protection factors for half-facepiece aspirators (HR-1, HR-2) were 11.2 and 7.1, respectively. The correlation relationship between the Quantative Fit Factors(QNFT) and the WPF for half-mask negative pressure respirators were 0.099 and 0.460.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.43 no.5
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• pp.396-402
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• 2010

Objectives: Self-reported anthropometric values, such as height and weight, are used to calculate body mass index (BMI) and assess the prevalence of obesity among adolescents. The aim of this study was to evaluate the validity of selfreported height, weight, and BMI of the Korea Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Survey questionnaire. Methods: A convenience sample of 137 middle school students and 242 high school students completed a selfadministered questionnaire in 2008. Body height and weight were directly measured after self-reported values were obtained from the questionnaire survey. Sensitivity, specificity, and kappa statistics were computed in order to evaluate the validity of the prevalence of obesity (BMI $\geq$ 95th percentile or $\geq$ $25;kg/$m^2$) based on self-reported data. Results: Self-reported weight and BMI tended to be underestimated. Self-reported height tended to be overestimated among middle school females and high school males. Obese adolescents tended to underestimate their weight and BMI and overestimate their height more than non-obese adolescents. The prevalence estimate of obesity based on selfreported data (10.6%) was lower than that based on directly measured data (15.3%). The estimated sensitivity of obesity based on self-reported data was 69.0% and the specificity was 100.0%. The value of kappa was 0.79 (95% confidence interval, 0.70 - 0.88). Conclusions: This study demonstrated that self-reported height and weight may lead to the underestimation of BMI and consequently the prevalence of obesity. These biases should be taken into account when self-reported data are used for monitoring the prevalence and trends of obesity among adolescents nationwide.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.51 no.5
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• pp.535-541
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• 2018

This study evaluated the sanitary state of seawater and shellfish in Yongnam-Gwangdo area from January 2014 to December 2016. The sampling stations for sanitary survey in Yongnam-Gwangdo area were composed of 41 seawater stations and 5 oyster Crassostrea gigas stations. The samples were collected monthly at each station. Shellfish-borne disease is associated with bacteria and viruses in the presence of fecal coliforms. Bacteriological pollution levels of shellfish increase with seawater quality. Therefore, fecal coliforms are very important criteria for evaluating the safety of fisheries in coastal areas. The geometric mean and the estimated 90th percentile ranges of total and fecal coliforms for seawater were 1.8-11.7, 2.8-233.6, <1.8-6.7 and 1.8-100.2 MPN/100 mL, respectively. The range of E. coli levels for oysters was <20-1,300 MPN/100 g. Based on various standards, the sanitary condition in Yongnam-Gwangdo area was evaluated as follows: clean area (Korean criteria), conditionally approved area (US criteria) and class B (EU criteria).

• Journal of the Korean Geographical Society
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• v.42 no.3 s.120
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• pp.332-343
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• 2007

This study aims to examine the distribution of heat waves and to understand its cause for 33 years$(1973\sim2005)$ from 60 weather stations in Korea. Heat wave is defined as a period of 3 or more days with a daily maximum temperature exceeds the 95th percentile. In the inland of Chungcheong region, the Chungcheong western costal region, the inland of Jeolla region, the inland of Gyeongsang region and the southern region of Jeju island, heat wave days appeared more than 160 days. In the middle region of eastern costal and the northern region of Jeju island, heat wave days were less than 110 days. In regions that were heavily influenced by southwesterly winds during the occurrence of heat waves, such as the inland of Chungcheong region, the Chungcheong western costal region, the inland of Jeolla region and the inland of Gyeongsang region, heat waves continued for the longer term.