• Journal of radiological science and technology
• /
• v.39 no.2
• /
• pp.237-246
• /
• 2016

This study is therefore aimed at measuring the surface dose rate and the spatial dose rate in and outside the radionuclide facility in order to ensure safety of the patients, radiation workers and family care-givers in their use of such equipment and to provide a basic framework for further research on radiation protection. The study was conducted at 4 restrooms in and outside the radionuclide facility of a general hospital in Incheon between May 1 and July 31, 2014. During the study period, the spatial contamination dose rate and the surface contamination dose rate before and after radiation use were measured at the 4 places-thyroid therapy room, PET center, gamma camera room, and outpatient department. According to the restroom use survey by hospitals, restrooms in the radionuclide facility were used not only by patients but also by family care-givers and some of radiation workers. The highest cumulative spatial radiation dose rate was 8.86 mSv/hr at camera room restroom, followed by 7.31 mSv/hr at radioactive iodine therapy room restroom, 2.29 mSv/hr at PET center restroom, and 0.26 mSv/hr at outpatient department restroom, respectively. The surface radiation dose rate measured before and after radiation use was the highest at toilets, which are in direct contact with patient's excretion, followed by the center and the entrance of restrooms. Unsealed radioactive sources used in nuclear medicine are relatively safe due to short half lives and low energy. A patient who received those radioactive sources, however, may become a mobile radioactive source and contaminate areas the patient contacts-camera room, sedation room, and restroom-through secretion and excretion. Therefore, patients administered radionuclides should be advised to drink sufficient amounts of water to efficiently minimize radiation exposure to others by reducing the biological half-life, and members of the public-family care-givers, pregnant women, and children-be as far away from the patients until the dose remains below the permitted dose limit.

• Korean Security Journal
• /
• no.9
• /
• pp.99-131
• /
• 2005

Terrorism which became today's common phenomena over the world is one of the most serious threats the world confront. Although International society make and operate outstanding anti-terrorism system, terror would never end without solving fundamental problems. The main body of terrorism converts from nation to organization and from organization to cell, which makes it difficult for us to recognize the main body. Since the target of today's new terrorism is many and unspecified persons, terrorists will never hesitate to use mass destruction weapons such as nuclear, biological, chemical weapons, and also use cyber-technique or cyber-terrorism. So, effective counter-terrorism measures should be performed as follows. First, it must be better for international society should make long-time plan of solving fundamental problems of terrorism other than to operate directly on terror organization and its means. Second, preventive method should be made. The most effective method of eradicating terrorism is prevention. For this, it is necessary to remove environmental elements of terrorism and terrorist bases, and to stop inflow of money and mass destruction weapons to terrorists. Third, integrated anti-terror organization should be organized and operated for continuous counter-terrorism operations. Also international alliance for anti-terrorism should be maintained to share informations and measures. Fourth, concerned department in the government should prepare counter-terrorism plans in their own parts as follows and make efforts to integrate the plans. - Ministry of Government Administration and Home Affairs : conventional terror - Ministry of Health and Welfare : bio-terror - Ministry of Science and Technology : nuclear-terror Especially, they should convert their policy and operation from post-terror actions to pre-terror actions, designate terror as national disaster and organize integrated emergency response organization including civil, government, and military elements. In conclusion, pre-terror activities and remedy of fundamental causes is the best way to prevent terror. Also, strengthening of intelligence activities, international cooperations, and preventive and comprehensive counter-measures must not ignored.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
• /
• v.32 no.6
• /
• pp.536-542
• /
• 1999

Background: The purpose of this study is to improve the quality of the diagnostic procedures in the preoperative evaluation so as to reduce the unnecessary thoracotomy and to ensure resectability in non-small cell lung cancer. Material and Method: Of 616 patients who underwent thoracotomy for primary lung cancer from January 1990 to December 1996, 59 patients(9.6%) turned out to have inoperable lesions after the thoracotomy. We reprospectively reviewed the bronchoscopic findings, methods of tissue diagnosis, CT scans, pulmonary function test and lung perfusion scan, reasons for nonresectability, and adjuvant therapy, and then followed up on the survival rate after exploratory thoracotomy. Result: The cell types were squamous cell carcinoma in 38, adenocarcinoma in 15, large cell carcinoma in 3 and others in 3. Primary loci were RUL in 20, RML in 6, RLL in 8, LUL in 13, LLL in 4 and others in 8. The reasons for non-resectability were various; direct tumor invaison to mediastinal structures(n=41), seeding on pleural cavity(n=8), poor pulmonary function(n=2), invasions to extranodal mediastinal lymph node(n=2), technical non- resectability due to extensive chest wall invasion (n=3), small cell carcinoma (n=1), malignant lymphoma(n=1), and multiple rib metastases(n=1). In the follow-up of 58 patients, 1-year survival rate was 55.2% and 2-year survival rate was 17.2% and the mean survival time was 14 months. When compared according to cell types or postoperative adjuvant therapeutic modalities, no significant difference in the survival rates were found. The squamous cell carcinoma was frequently accompanied by local extension to contiguous structures and was the main cause of non-resectability. In adenocarcinoma, pleural seeding with malignant effusion was frequently encountered, and was the major reason for non-resectability. Conclusion: These data revealed that if appropriate preoperative diagnostic tools had been available, many unnecessary thoracotomies could have been avoided. Both the use of thoracoscopy in selected cases of adenocarcinoma and the more aggressive surgical approach to the locally advanced tumor could reduce the incidence of unnecessary thoracotomies for non-small cell lung cancers.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
• /
• v.46 no.11
• /
• pp.1073-1079
• /
• 2003

Purpose : Recently there has been a decrease in ventilator care rate and duration of very low birth weight infants(VLBWI) in Fatima Hospital. The aims of this study were to survey the frequency and duration of ventilation in VLBWI and to develop a non-invasive neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) policy. Methods : We performed a retrospective study of 284 newborn of infants less than 1,500 gm admitted to NICU and discharged from January 1998 to December 2001. Patients were intubated or applied continuous positive airway pressure(CPAP) via nasal prong immediately after presenting signs of respiratory distress. We analyzed epidemiologic data to study the changes in ventilator care rate, duration and outcome of ventilator care groups. Results : Of 284 newborn infants, 146 required invasive management, such as endotracheal intubation and assisted ventilation. The characteristics, the severity of clinical symptoms and laboratory findings in ventilator care groups at birth showed no significant differences. The annual proportion of infants requiring assisted ventilation decreased according to increasing gestational age. The median duration of ventilation decreased markedly from 6.0 days in 1998 to 2.7 days in 2001. Final complications and outcomes in ventilator care groups showed no significant differences. Conclusion : Our study shows a significant reduction in the invasiveness of the treatment of VLBW infants, which was not associated with an increased mortality or morbidity. A non-invasive strategy for the VLBW infant with minimal to moderate respiratory distress after birth in NICU is better than immediate invasive management. Non-invasive nasal CPAP is a simpler and safer method than invasive assisted ventilation.

• Pediatric Infection and Vaccine
• /
• v.17 no.2
• /
• pp.83-90
• /
• 2010

Purpose : Although the incidence of polymicrobial bloodstream infection (PBSI) has increased, only a few studies have so far focused on children. Therefore, in an effort to prevent more serious situations in pediatric patients, we analyzed the clinical features, organisms, and laboratory results of PBSI. Methods : We performed a retrospective review of the case records of 97 patients with polymicrobial bloodstream infection in the Severance hospital, from 2001 to 2008. Using t-test and chi-square test, we analyzed the underlying medical conditions, clinical characteristics, organisms, and laboratory results of those patients. Results : Annual incidence of polymicrobial bloodstream infection increased from 1.4 % in 2001 to 10.9% in 2008 in pediatric patients. Immunocompromised hemato-oncological malignancy was found in 31 (31.9%) patients, and was the most common underlying medical condition; cardiovascular disease was found in 15 patients (15.4%), neurologic disease in 10 patients (10.3%), and so on. Gram positive organisms were recovered in 143 cases and gram negative organisms were recovered in 101 cases of PBSI. Staphylococcus epidermidis was the most common organism. Factors affecting mortality included underlying medical disease, immune status, nosocomial infection, and central catheter-related infection, for which the rate of mortality showed a greater increase (P<0.05). Conclusion : Due to the close connection between PBSI and fatal conditions or high mortality, it requires more aggressive management. Compared with previous studies, we discovered that immunocompromised hemato-oncological malignancy was the most common underlying medical condition and that frequency of gram-positive bacteria and fungus isolated has increased.

• Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging
• /
• v.40 no.5
• /
• pp.243-248
• /
• 2006

Purpose: Liver demonstrates heterogeneous FDG uptake and sometimes it shows abnormally increased uptake even though there is no malignant tissue. However, there was no previous study to correlate these various pattern of hepatic FDG uptake with benign liver disease. Therefore, we evaluated the significance of hepatic FDG uptake associated with various clinical factors including fatty liver, liver function tests and lipid profiles. Materials and Methods: We reviewed a total of 188 patients (male/female: 120/68, mean age: $50{\pm}9$) who underwent PET/CT for screening of malignancy. Patients with DM, impaired glucose tolerance, previous severe hepatic disease or long-term medication history were excluded. The FDG uptake in liver was analyzed semi-quantitatively using ROI on transaxial images (segment 8) and we compared mean standardized uptake value (SUV) between fatty liver and non-fatty liver group. We also evaluated the correlation between hepatic FDG uptake and various clinical factors including serum liver function test (ALT, AST), ${\gamma}-GT$, total cholesterol and triglyceride concentration. The effect of alcoholic history and body mass index on hepatic FDG uptake was analyzed within the fatty liver patients. Results: The hepatic FDG uptake of fatty liver group was significantly higher than that of non-fatty liver group. Serum total cholesterol and triglyceride concentration showed significant correlation with hepatic FDG uptake. However, there was no significant correlation between other factors (ALT, AST, and ${\gamma}-GT$) and FDG uptake. Also there was no difference of mean SUV between normal and abnormal groups on the basis of alcoholic history and body mass Index within fatty liver patients. Fatty liver and high serum triglyceride concentration were the independent factors affecting hepatic FDG uptake according to multivariate analysis. Conclusion: In conclusion, hepatic FDG uptake was strongly correlated with fatty liver and serum triglyceride concentration.

• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine
• /
• v.34 no.3
• /
• pp.234-242
• /
• 2000

Purpose: Tc-99m MIBI scintimammography has been validated as an useful non-invasive diagnostic tool for the primary breast cancer. But most studies have included small population of patients. We have experienced a large study population and investigated the diagnostic usefulness of Tc-99m MIBI scintimammography in detection of primary breast cancer and axillary lymph node metastasis. Materials and Methods: This study included 305 patients who underwent scintimammogtaphy for palpable breast masses or abnormal radiologic findings. Tc-99m MIBI scintimammography was performed 10 minutes after intravenous injection of 925 MBq of Tc-99m MIBI. If the early image revealed abnormal finding, 3 hour delayed image was also acquired. We calculated early and delayed lesion to non-lesion ratios (L/N). The pathologic diagnosis was obtained from surgical operation or FNAB and compared with the results of Tc-99m MIBI scintimammography. Results: Malignant breast diseases were 155 and benign ones were 150. Tc-99m MIBI scintimammography revealed 132 true positive, 23 false negative, 10 false positive, and 140 true negative cases. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value for the primary breast cancer detection were 85.2%, 93.4%, 92.9%, and 85.9%, respectively. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive and negative predictive values of Tc-99m MIBI scintimammography in detecting metastatic axillary lymph node involvement were 22%, 90.4%, 61.9% and 62.3%, respectively. Early L/N of malignant breast disease was significantly higher than that of benign one ($2.44{\pm}0.97\;vs\;1.94{\pm}0.78$, p=0.01). Delayed L/N had no significant difference between malignant and benign breast diseases ($1.94{\pm}0.52\;vs\;1.91{\pm}0.73$, p=0.43). Conclusion: Our study revealed that Tc-99m MIBI scintimammography was an useful diagnostic tool for the diagnosis of breast cancer. And early L/N ratio might provide complementary role in the detection of breast cancer. But the Tc-99m MIBI scintimammography had limited value in the detection of small breast cancer (less than 1 cm) and axillary lymph node metastasis.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Inherited Metabolic disease
• /
• v.17 no.3
• /
• pp.85-91
• /
• 2017

Purpose: The aim of this study was to describe the clinical and biochemical features as well as the molecular analysis of a newly diagnosed illustrative case with ML II and to analyze the clinical features of 11 Korean patients with ML II/III. Method: Including a newly diagnosed patient, total 11 patients in 10 families were diagnosed as ML II (n=7) or ML III (n=4) were enrolled in the study. A diagnosis of ML II or III was made by demonstrating increased lysosomal enzyme activities in the plasma and sequence analysis of GNPTAB with characteristic clinical features. Result: A illustrative case of ML II patient was a 17 month-old boy showing characteristic facial appearance, multiple joint contractures with cardiac involvements. The enzyme assay showed increased lysosomal enzyme activities in the plasma. We identified compound heterozygous mutations in GNPTAB sequence analysis, including a frameshift (c.3428dupA [pAsn1143Lysfs*3]) and a nonsense variant c.673C>T (p.Gln225*). In total 11 patients with ML II/III, the patients with ML II showed severe growth retardation (height standard deviation score -3.2 [${\pm}1.5$]), compare to patients with ML III. Furthermore, patients with ML II patients had serious cardiac problem (n=4), hepatomegaly (n=3) and underwent tracheostomy (n=3) with further respiratory support due to respiratory distress. To improve osteoporosis and bone pain, all patients with ML III and four of 7 patients with ML II treated with intravenous pamidronate. Conclusion: Here we showed a newly diagnosed case of ML II and clinical features of 11 Korean patients with ML II or III. These data could be helpful for further diagnosis of mucolipidosis, a rare inherited metabolic disease, in Korea.

• Journal of agricultural medicine and community health
• /
• v.27 no.1
• /
• pp.51-64
• /
• 2002

This study was aimed to provide the basic data for the development of effective educational program by reflecting the opinions of the visiting health service workers. The subjects were 144 visiting health service workers in Gwangju and Jeollanam-do area who responded the mail questionnaire. The data were collected from June to July, 2001 using questionnaire composed of the education need, knowledge by subjective appraisal, and experience of education. The major findings of this study were as follows: 1. The number of respondents who received at least one education within recent three years were 43(29.9%) at the central level, 57(39.6%) at the provincial level and 53(36.8%) at the district level. The satisfaction with education was higher at the central level than at the provincial and district level. 2. Knowledges by subjective appraisal on the 'chronic degenerative diseases management' and 'health promotion' was relatively high. while that of 'rehabilitation' was low. 3. The knowledge by subjective appraisal of visiting health service was related with experience of education and license status. The knowledge was higher in registered nurses than in nurse aids. The curricula related to increased level of knowledge of visting health service workers were 'elderly health care', 'rehabilitation' and 'psychiatric-mental health nursing' educations at the central level 'continuing education for the community health practioners' and 'psychiatric-mental health education' at the provincial level and 'elderly health care', 'rehabilitation' 'psychiatric-mental health' and 'acute diseases control' educations at the district level. 4. The respondents preferred elderly health management as the contents of education, officer group education as the method of education, province(30.4%) as the main body of education, exercise and practice as the form of education, 2-3 times per year as the frequency of education, and 3-5days as the period of education. The findings of this study could suggest that future education program should be planned to increae the knowledge level of visiting health service workers by reflecting their educational need.

• Journal of Hospice and Palliative Care
• /
• v.17 no.4
• /
• pp.241-247
• /
• 2014

Purpose: Serum vitamin C is one of the indicators for antioxidant levels in the body and it is lower in cancer patients compared with the healthy population. However, there have been few studies on the levels of serum vitamin C in terminally ill cancer patients and related factors. Methods: We followed 65 terminal cancer patients who were hospitalized in two palliative care units. We collected data of age, sex, cancer type, functional status, clinical symptoms, history of cancer therapy, and various laboratory findings including serum vitamin C level. Patients were categorized into two groups according to the quartile of serum vitamin C level (Q1-3 vs. Q4), which were compared each other. Stepwise multiple logistic regression analysis was used to identify factors related to serum vitamin C levels. Results: The mean serum vitamin C level was $0.44{\mu}g/mL$, and all patients fell into the category of vitamin C deficiency. Univariate analysis showed that The serum vitamin C level was lower in non-lung cancer patients (P=0.041) and febrile patients (P=0.034). Multivariate analysis adjusted for potential confounders such as lung cancer, fever, dysphagia, dyspnea, C reactive protein, and history of chemotherapy demonstrated that odds for low serum vitamin C level was 3.7 for patients receiving chemotherapy (P=0.046) and 7.22 for febrile patients (P=0.02). Conclusion: Vitamin C deficiency was very severe in terminally ill cancer patients, and it was associated with history of chemotherapy and fever.