• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
• /
• v.15 no.14
• /
• pp.5927-5936
• /
• 2014

Introduction: Breast cancer is the most common cancer among Jordanians. Breast cancer patients suffer from several negative consequences after treatment and these include pain, fatigue, sexual problems, appearance and body image concerns, with psychological dysfunction. This could affect the patient quality of life and psychological well-being. To the best of our knowledge, there is no published quantitative data on the quality of life and psychological well-being of breast cancer patients in Jordan. The objective of this study was to obtain such data and assess predictors with calculated scores. Methods: In this cross-sectional study conducted among breast cancer patients in Jordan diagnosed in 2009 and 2010, assessment was performed using the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire (EORTC QLQ-C30), the Breast Module (QLQ-BR23) and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). Clinical, demographic and psychosocial indicators that could predict patient quality of life scores were collected. Results: The number of patients interviewed was 236 (mean age=$50.7{\pm}10.7$ years). The mean Global Health score for the QLQ-C30 was $63.7{\pm}20.2$ SD. Among functional scales, "social functioning" scored the highest ($mean=78.1{\pm}28.6$ SD), whereas "emotional functioning" scored the lowest ($mean=59.0{\pm}SD\;33.5$). For the QLQ-BR23, the worst scores within the functional scales were for "body image" ($mean=52.1{\pm}36.8$ SD) and "future perspective" ($mean=52.9{\pm}38.5$ SD). The worst symptom was "upset by hair loss" ($mean=69.8{\pm}43.0$). The mean HADS scores was $18.{\pm}9.0$ SD. Out of study participants, 53% scored abnormal on the anxiety scale and 45% on the depression scale. Severe depression and severe anxiety were detected among 8% and 14% of study participants, respectively. Statistically significant predictors for individual scores were similar to those reported in published studies, such as the presence of recurrence since baseline, family history of cancer, low educational status, current social problems, extent of the disease, presence of financial difficulties, and employment status. Conclusions and Recommendations: Breast cancer survivors in Jordan have overall good quality of life scores when compared with patients from Western countries. However, their psychological wellbeing is more impaired. There is an urgent need for psychosocial support programs and psychological screening and consultation for breast cancer patients at hospitals of the Ministry of Health in Jordan.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
• /
• v.17 no.2
• /
• pp.346-351
• /
• 2003

The current studies investigated the therapeutic effects of Ephedra sinica Stapf (ES) herb-acupuncture on the inflammatory responses of rat arthritic joint, which was induced by the intradermal injection of heat-killed Mycobacterium tuberculosis emulsified in squalene to the base of the tail. The measurements of body weight and articular index were exploited as the assessment methods addressing arthritic symptoms, and the expression profiles of cytokines such as TNF-α, IL-1β and IL-6 in the rat joint were analyzed using RT-PCR. The articular indexes of arthritic rats were significantly restored after the treatment with ES herb-acupuncture. Although the clinical symptoms of arthritic rats were apparently alleviated by the ES treatments, their body weights were not recovered. It maybe due to the weight-loss and energy enhancement effects of ES extracts. The expression of TNF-α, IL-1β and IL-6 genes, which were highly stimulated in the knee joints of arthritic rats, were restored to the levels of normal rats after the ES treatment. The therapeutic effect of ES herb-acupuncture was not observed in ES-treated, non-acupoint arthritic group as a sham control. The ES herb-acupuncture into an acupoint ST36 was found to be effective in alleviating the arthritic symptoms in adjuvant-induced arthritis rats as regards the body weight, joint appearance and the expression profiles of inflammatory cytokines.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology
• /
• v.8 no.5
• /
• pp.225-230
• /
• 2014

Assessments of medical image was improved in accordance with development of medical imaging systems. One of them is edge method to determining MTF(Modulation Transfer Function) based on the Fujita method. Fujita was reduced sampling interval used slightly angulated slit to the direction of pixel array and composited finely sampled LSF to determine presampling MTF. In this study, we investigate the effect of sampling interval on the MTF under a digital imaging system by changing wire angle. The wire method was equivalent to the slit method except signal appearance. A Simens's MAMMOMAT Inspiration with $0.085{\times}0.085mm^2$ pixel size made by amorphous selenium was used and 96% accuracy on MTF in twice sampling interval compared with Fujita was obtained. However, three times of sampling interval showed 93% accuracy on 50% of MTF and 85% accuracy on 10% of MTF.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
• /
• v.39 no.6
• /
• pp.619-624
• /
• 2007

Sedum sarmentosum, also blown as stonecrop (dolnamul), is a widely consumed herb, and is used as an ingredient in salads in Korea. Unfortunately, sedum is perishable and vulnerable to tissue damage during preservation. Therefore, this feasibility study was performed in order to increase the availability of sedum and increase its value. Various concentrations of sedum extract (0.5-3%) were added to gelatin jelly, and their physicochemical properties were determined. The ascorbic acid content of the sedum jelly increased in proportion to the sedum extract concentration. Calcium content of the sedum jelly was 4 to 28 times higher than that of the control. Contrary to the control, iron was detected in the sedum jelly (0.023-1.031 mg/100 g dry weight). Furthermore, magnesium and potassium levels were higher in the sedum extract groups. There were significant differences (p < 0.05) in greenness (a value) and yellowness (b value) between the control and the sedum extract groups. However, significant differences between the 2% and 3% sedum extract groups were not detected. As sedum extract concentration increased, the pH level of soft jellies (solid state) decreased. Therefore, hardness and gumminess were decreased significantly. These results are in agreement with the sensory evaluation. According to sensory tests, the values for palatability, appearance, and color in the 2% sedum extract group were higher than those of the 0.5-1% and 3% sedum extract groups.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
• /
• v.29 no.4
• /
• pp.605-614
• /
• 2015

This study was carried out to maintain, manage and restore the trails by assessing the physical conditions, the patterns of deterioration and the impact rating class of the major trails of Juwangsan National Park. The major trails followed 4 routes including Jubong, Gamaebong, Janggunbong~Geumeungwangi and Woloe. The route length of Jubong was 4.6 km; it was 3.6 km for Gamaebong, 5.6 km for Janggunbong~Geumeungwangi and 5.9 km for Woloe. As for the physical conditions, Jubong was the widest and Janggunbong~Geumeungwangi was the narrowest in trail width. In terms of the bared trail width, Jubong was the widest and Janggunbong~Geumeungwangi was the narrowest. As for the depth of erosion, Gamaebong was the deepest and Woloe was the shallowest. Janggunbong~Geumeungwangi was the steepest and Gamaebong was the gentlest in the slope. Further, Gamaebong showed the highest soil hardness, and Woloe had the lowest hardness. In terms of the times of appearance of deterioration patterns, Jubong recorded 71 times, Gamaebong 62 times, Janggunbong~Geumeungwangi 63 times and Woloe 78 times. In case of the impact rating class, the trail erosion was similar to grades I and II grade; the rest were mostly I grade and hence considered to be in a generally good condition. For the ongoing management of trails, a comprehensive study needs to be conducted in the light of various environmental factors. Also, a restoration plan for damaged trails should be established with consideration for the surrounding environment and ecosystem.

• The Journal of Advanced Prosthodontics
• /
• v.5 no.1
• /
• pp.29-35
• /
• 2013

PURPOSE. To longitudinally assess the quality of life in maxillectomy patients rehabilitated with obturator prosthesis. MATERIALS AND METHODS. Thirty-six subjects were enrolled in the span of 16 months, out of which six were dropouts. Subjects (age group 20-60 years) with maxillary defects, irrespective of the cause, planned for definite obturator prosthesis, were recruited. The Hindi version of European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer, Head and Neck version 1 of Quality of Life Questionnaire was used before surgical intervention and one month after definitive obturator. Questionnaire includes 35 questions related to the patient's physical health, well being, psychological status, social relation and environmental conditions. The data were processed with statistical package for social science (SPSS). Probability level of P<.05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS. The quality of life after rehabilitation with obturator prosthesis was 81.48% (${\pm}13.64$) on average. On item-level, maximum mean scores were obtained for items problem with teeth ($1.87{\pm}0.94$), pain in mouth ($1.80{\pm}0.92$), trouble in eating ($1.70{\pm}0.88$), trouble in talking to other people ($1.60{\pm}1.22$), problems in swallowing solid food ($1.57{\pm}1.22$) and bothering appearance ($1.53{\pm}1.04$); while minimum scores were obtained for the items coughing ($1.17{\pm}0.38$), hoarseness of voice ($1.17{\pm}0.53$), painful throat ($1.13{\pm}0.43$), trouble in having social contacts with friends ($1.10{\pm}0.40$) and trouble having physical contacts with family or friends ($1.10{\pm}0.31$). CONCLUSION. Obturator prosthesis is a highly positive and non-invasive approach to improve the quality of life of patients with maxillectomy defects.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
• /
• v.45 no.3
• /
• pp.360-365
• /
• 2016

This study examined the quality characteristics of bagel added with tomato powder (0, 3, 6, and 9%). Density of dough significantly increased with tomato powder content, whereas pH significantly decreased. Baking loss rate significantly decreased with tomato powder content while moisture significantly increased. Lightness of bagel significantly decreased with increasing tomato powder content, whereas redness and yellowness significantly increased with tomato powder content. Hardness was lower in the addition group than in the control group; springiness, cohesiveness, gumminess, and chewiness significantly decreased with increasing tomato powder content. 2,2-Diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical scavenging activities and total phenol contents significantly increased as tomato powder content increased. For quality assessment, the 3% addition group received the highest ratings in terms of appearance, color, taste, and overall quality but not texture, indicating the highest potentials for development.

• 한국노년학
• /
• v.28 no.4
• /
• pp.953-968
• /
• 2008

This research was performed to recognize anxiety level of older people, to find out anxiety level after or before regular exercises, and to find out how much anxiety level could be lowered by the sports activities. This research selected a population among the students who enrolled at sport activity classes (e, g., physical exercises, gate ball, volume dance) at L, S, J, Y (a), Y (b), D older people college located in Seoul and Gyoenggi area. 200 of the population were chosen as candidates by convenience sampling, nonprobability sampling. Considering the age of the candidates, total 200 cases were collected by using two methods (survey and interview) simultaneously. The data assessment was made by SPSS 12.0 Version. Error tolerance in statistics is .05. The data was analyzed by using frequency analysis, paired t-test and independent t-test. After analyzing anxiety awareness level after and before regular exercises, anxiety of older people are classified by four factors. First, anxiety for loss is 3.756 (M=3.756) before exercises, while 1.942 (M=1.942) after exercises. Second, fear for aging is 3.443 before exercises and 2.243 after exercises. Third, anxiety for physical appearance is 3.253 before exercises and 2.310 after exercises. Finally, anxiety caused by psychological insecurity is 3.060 before exercises, while 1.666 after exercises. Error of tolerance for all factors falls within .001. Anxiety score after exercises is lower than that of before exercises for every factor as well. As a result, regular physical exercises appeared to reduce anxiety level of older people.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
• /
• v.32 no.8
• /
• pp.1145-1152
• /
• 2019

Objective: Mulberry (Morus alba L.) is a cultivated shrub grown widely in the sub-tropical and tropical areas. It has been shown that mulberry leaf contains high levels of protein while having polyphenols as phytonutrients. Therefore, it is important to conduct an experiment to assess potential toxic level from mulberry on behavior, blood hematological and coagulation parameter using Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats. Methods: Both male and female SD rats were given an intragastric administration of respective treatments of mulberry leaf intakes (control, low and high levels). Parameters of feed intake, hematological and coagulation of blood parameters, as well as liveweight changes were taken during the 7 d of adaptation, 28 d of treatment exposure, and 14 d of recovery periods, respectively. All treatment data were statistically analyzed using analysis of variance of SPSS17.0 for Windows Statistical Software following the Randomized complete block design with sex as a block. Results: Most of the parameters of the physical symptoms of the SD rats, were not significantly different (p>0.05) when compared with that of the control group. Those which remain unchanged in each dose group were, body weight (BW) gain, feed intake, the hematology and coagulation indexes. Although, there were a few individual indicators that were abnormal, but the overall physiological appearance of the rats were normal. Conclusion: Results under this experiment revealed that most hematological and coagulation parameters of the SD rats in both male and female were normal, although the weight gain of female rats in high-dose group was significantly reduced than those of the male rats. Under this study, the use of mulberry leaf up to 2 g/kg BW did not result in abnormal phenomenon in the SD rats. These findings would offer useful information for further in vivo feeding trials in animals to extensively use of mulberry leaf to improve animal production, particularly in P.R. China.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
• /
• v.39 no.3
• /
• pp.266-272
• /
• 2021

The aboveground biomass (AGB) was estimated in mixed dipterocarp forests (MDF), peat swamp forests (PSF), and heath forests (HF) in Brunei Darussalam. A total of 81 (20 m×20 m) plots were established for MDF, PSF, and HF in three regions. The diameter at breast height(DBH) of all live trees (DBH≥10 cm) was measured within the plots. The AGB was calculated using an allometric equation with the measured DBH. The AGB(Mg ha^-1) for MDF, PSF, and HF was 603.3±159.9, 305.9±23.4, and 284.3±19.3, respectively, and was significantly different among the forest types (p<0.05). The greater AGB in MDF than those in PSF and HF was due to the presence of emergent trees in MDF. The results showed that the number of emergent trees varied by forest type. Consequently, the appearance of the emergent trees could be one of the main factors affecting AGB in Southeast Asia's tropical rain forests.