• Title/Summary/Keyword: COVID-19 testing

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A Study on Ensuring the Safety of Potable UV Space Germicidal Equipment (이동형 UV 공간 살균 기기의 안전성 확보 방안에 관한 연구)

  • Han-Seok Cheong;Chung-Hyeok Kim;Jin-Sa Kim
    • Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
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    • v.37 no.1
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    • pp.94-100
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    • 2024
  • Recently, as interest in personal hygiene has increased due to the community spread of COVID-19 and variant viruses, fixed and potable UV germicidal equipment to sterilize indoor spaces and hand-held UV germicidal equipment to sterilize household items such as masks and mobile phones are continuously being developed and sold. However, the development and sales of the product are difficult because appropriate testing methods have not yet been established. In this situation, if an uncertified product is distributed in the market, it can cause serious harm to consumers. In this study, we investigate the photobiological risks and safety devices against UV exposure of UV germicidal equipment distributed domestically, and propose appropriate test methods for portable UV germicidal equipment based on the research results.

A Study on a Method for Detecting Leak Holes in Respirators Using IoT Sensors

  • Woochang Shin
    • International journal of advanced smart convergence
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    • v.12 no.4
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    • pp.378-385
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    • 2023
  • The importance of wearing respiratory protective equipment has been highlighted even more during the COVID-19 pandemic. Even if the suitability of respiratory protection has been confirmed through testing in a laboratory environment, there remains the potential for leakage points in the respirators due to improper application by the wearer, damage to the equipment, or sudden movements in real working conditions. In this paper, we propose a method to detect the occurrence of leak holes by measuring the pressure changes inside the mask according to the wearer's breathing activity by attaching an IoT sensor to a full-face respirator. We designed 9 experimental scenarios by adjusting the degree of leak holes of the respirator and the breathing cycle time, and acquired respiratory data for the wearer of the respirator accordingly. Additionally, we analyzed the respiratory data to identify the duration and pressure change range for each breath, utilizing this data to train a neural network model for detecting leak holes in the respirator. The experimental results applying the developed neural network model showed a sensitivity of 100%, specificity of 94.29%, and accuracy of 97.53%. We conclude that the effective detection of leak holes can be achieved by incorporating affordable, small-sized IoT sensors into respiratory protective equipment.

Slipchip Device Development in Molecular Diagnostics

  • Qingtian Yin;Huiwen Bai;Ruijie Li;Youngung Seok
    • Korean Journal of Materials Research
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    • v.34 no.2
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    • pp.63-71
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    • 2024
  • Slipchip offers advantages such as high-throughout, low cost, and simple operation, and therefore, it is one of the technologies with the greatest potential for high-throughput, single-cell, and single-molecule analyses. Slipchip devices have achieved remarkable advances over the past decades, with its simplified molecular diagnostics gaining particular attention, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic and in various infectious diseases scenarios. Medical testing based on nucleic acid amplification in the Slipchip has become a promising alternative simple and rapid diagnostic tool in field situations. Herein, we present a comprehensive review of Slipchip device advances in molecular diagnostics, highlighting its use in digital recombinase polymerase amplification (RPA), loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP), and polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Slipchip technology allows users to conduct reliable droplet transfers with high-throughput potential for single-cell and molecule analyses. This review explores the device's versatility in miniaturized and rapid molecular diagnostics. A complete Slipchip device can be operated without special equipment or skilled handling, and provides high-throughput results in minimum settings. This review focuses on recent developments and Slipchip device challenges that need to be addressed for further advancements in microfluidics technology.

Confirming the Continued Representativeness of an Online/Telephone Panel Using Equivalence Testing

  • Cho, Sung Kyum;LoCascio, Sarah Prusoff;Kim, Sungjoong
    • Asian Journal for Public Opinion Research
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    • v.9 no.2
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    • pp.188-211
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    • 2021
  • Decreasing response rates to traditional survey methods, like face-to-face and telephone interviews, have led survey practitioners around the world to seek new ways of conducting surveys in recent years." The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated this problem because it made conducting face-to-face interviews even more difficult than before. For example, it made conducting face-to-face surveys infeasible in 2020 in South Korea, and so the Korean Academic Multimode Open Survey (KAMOS) was unable to conduct a planned face-to-face survey to recruit new panel members. The entire 8,514-member panel, established via two-stage probability-based sampling from 2016 to 2019, was invited to take three online/telephone surveys in 2020. Of these panel members, 1,352 responded to at least one survey in 2020. To test to what extent the panel remained representative of the adult South Korean population, we compared the two groups of panel members: those who responded to at least one survey in 2020 and those who did not. After weighting both groups on the basis of age, sex, and geographical area, we analyzed their responses to some of the questions that were asked during multiple rounds of the face-to-face panel-recruiting interviews. Using Cohen's d for survey items that could be analyzed numerically and Cramér's V for categorical items, we were able to conclude that the respondents to the 2020 surveys were equivalent to the non-respondents in terms of both demographics and in the answers they originally gave to substantive questions on a variety of topics related to social science or public opinion research, including questions about quality of life, societal issue, and politics (Cohen's d items <0.2, 95% CI; Cramér's V items <0.1, 95% CI). This analysis may provide a model for others who wish to test the continued representativeness of their panel or who would like to use a different survey mode or change some other aspect of their methodology and test whether it is equivalent to their former methodology. Our success in building a panel that retained its representativeness may be useful to those in other countries where face-to-face surveys had previously been the norm but are becoming increasingly difficult to conduct.

Development of an Automatic PCR System Combined with Magnetic Bead-based Viral RNA Concentration and Extraction

  • MinJi Choi;Won Chang Cho;Seung Wook Chung;Daehong Kim;Il-Hoon Cho
    • Biomedical Science Letters
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    • v.29 no.4
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    • pp.363-370
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    • 2023
  • Human respiratory viral infections such as COVID-19 are highly contagious, so continuous management of airborne viruses is essential. In particular, indoor air monitoring is necessary because the risk of infection increases in poorly ventilated indoors. However, the current method of detecting airborne viruses requires a lot of time from sample collection to confirmation of results. In this study, we proposed a system that can monitor airborne viruses in real time to solve the deficiency of the present method. Air samples were collected in liquid form through a bio sampler, in which case the virus is present in low concentrations. To detect viruses from low-concentration samples, viral RNA was concentrated and extracted using silica-magnetic beads. RNA binds to silica under certain conditions, and by repeating this binding reaction, bulk samples collected from the air can be concentrated. After concentration and extraction, viral RNA is specifically detected through real-time qPCR (quantitative polymerase chain reaction). In addition, based on liquid handling technology, we have developed an automatic machine that automatically performs the entire testing process and can be easily used even by non-experts. To evaluate the system, we performed air sample collection and automated testing using bacteriophage MS2 as a model virus. As a result, the air-collected samples concentrated by 45 times then initial volume, and the detection sensitivity of PCR also confirmed a corresponding improvement.

Criminal Law Issues in Epidemiological Investigations Under the INFECTIOUS DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION ACT (감염병의 예방 및 관리에 관한 법률상 역학조사와 관련된 형사법적 쟁점)

  • Jang, Junhyuk
    • The Korean Society of Law and Medicine
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    • v.23 no.3
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    • pp.3-44
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    • 2022
  • As a result of a close review focusing on the case of obstruction of epidemiological investigation by a religious group A in Daegu, which was a problem when the pandemic of Covid-19 infection began in Korea around February 2, 2020, when an epidemiological investigator requested a specific group to submit a list, While there have been cases where an act of not responding or submitting an edited omission list was sentenced to the effect that the act did not fall under an epidemiological investigation, in the case of non-submission of the visitor list for the B Center, even though a 'list of visitors' was requested. Regarding the fact of refusal without a justifiable reason, 'providing a list of persons entering the building is a key factual act that forms a link between epidemiological investigations accompanying an epidemiological investigation, and refusing to do so is also an act of refusal and obstruction of an epidemiological investigation. There are cases where it is possible to demand criminal punishment. Regardless of whether the request for submission of the membership list falls under the epidemiological investigation, there are cases in which the someones' actions correspond to the refusal or obstruction of the epidemiological investigation. A lower court ruling that if an epidemiological investigation is rejected or obstructed as a result of interfering with factual acts accompanying an epidemiological investigation, comprehensively considering whether or not the list has been diverted for purposes other than epidemiological investigation, the logic is persuasive. Epidemiological investigations such as surveys and human specimen collection and testing are conducted for each infectious disease patient or contact confirmed as a result of the epidemiological investigation, but epidemiological investigations conducted on individual individuals cannot exist independently of each other, and the This is because the process of identification and tracking is essential to an epidemiological investigation, and if someone intentionally interferes with or rejects the process of confirming this link, it will result in direct, realistic, and widespread interference with the epidemiological investigation. In this article, ① there are differences between an epidemiological investigation and a request for information provision under the Infectious Disease Control and Prevention Act, but there are areas that fall under the epidemiological investigation even in the case of a request for information, ② Considering the medical characteristics of COVID-19 and the continuity of the epidemiological investigation, the epidemiological investigator the fact that the act of requesting a list may fall under the epidemiological investigation, ③ that the offense of obstructing the epidemiological investigation in certain cases may constitute 'obstruction of Performance of Official Duties by Fraudulent Means', and ④ rejecting the request for information provision under the Infectious Disease Control and Prevention Act from September 29, 2020 In this case, it is intended to be helpful in the application of the Infectious Disease control and Prevention Act and the practical operation of epidemiological investigations in the future by pointing out the fact that a new punishment regulation of imprisonment or fine is being implemented.

A Study on IKE v2 Analysis Method for RealTime (NIKEv2 AR : IKE v2 실시간 분석 기술 연구)

  • Park, Junghyung;Ryu, Hyungyul;Ryou, Jaecheol
    • Journal of the Korea Institute of Information Security & Cryptology
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    • v.32 no.4
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    • pp.661-671
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    • 2022
  • Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, remote working, e-learning, e-teaching and online collaboration have widely spread and become popular. Accordingly, the usage of IPsec VPN for security reasons has also dramatically increased. With the spread of VPN, VPN vulunerabilities are becoming an important target of attack for attackers, and many studies have been conducted on this. IKE v2 analysis is an essential process not only for developing and building IPsec VPN systems but also for security analysis. Network packet analysis tools such as Wireshark and Tcpdump are used for IKE v2 analysis. Wireshark is one of the most famous and widely-used network protocol analyzers and supports IKE v2 analysis. However Wireshark has many limitations, such as requiring system administrator privileges for IKE v2 analysis. In this paper, we describe Wireshark's limitations in detatil and propose a new analysis method. The proposed analysis method can analyze all encrypted IKE v2 messages in real time from the session key exchange In addition, the proposed analysis method is expected to be used for dynamic testing such as fuzzing as packet manipulation.

Review of Environmental Characteristics and Building Finishes Controlling the Spread of SARS-CoV-2 - Focused on overseas literature related to antiviral experiments (코로나 바이러스 확산억제를 위한 환경 및 건축마감재료 고찰 - 항바이러스 재료 관련 해외 문헌을 중심으로)

  • Park, Yonghyun;Lee, Hyunjin;Kwon, Soonjung
    • Journal of The Korea Institute of Healthcare Architecture
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    • v.29 no.4
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    • pp.37-44
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    • 2023
  • Purpose: Currently, research on environmental conditions and finishing materials for medical facilities with proven antiviral performance is poor in Korea. Through this study, we have explored environmental characteristics and finishing materials that can be used to control cross-infection when constructing medical facilities. Methods: Experiments in overseas papers related to antiviral effects of environmental conditions, spatial compartments, and interior finishes have been analyzed. Results: The higher the temperature, the higher the humidity, and the higher the illuminance of sunlight, the lower the viability of the corona-virus. The proliferation of viruses was suppressed on the surface of the copper alloy. Materials such as brushed steel are the ones that maintain the strongest viability. Among the characteristics of the surface, survival and propagation power differ depending on whether it is porous or hydrophilic. In the case of infection ward actually operated in Italy, the presence of airborne viruses in contaminated and non-contaminated spaces differed significantly. Corona-virus has been identified in reachable parts such as door handles and medical shelves in quasi-contaminated spaces, which are spaces between contaminated and non-contaminated spaces, but the corona-virus has not been identified in cases of out-of-touch walls. Implications: It is necessary to evaluate the performance by testing the construction finishing materials of infection control facilities according to domestic conditions.

The effect of beauty salon service quality on behavioral intention through perceived value : Gender, Regularity control effect

  • HWANG, Jin-Young;LIM, Sel-A;HONG, Pil-Tae
    • The Korean Journal of Franchise Management
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    • v.11 no.4
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    • pp.17-29
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    • 2020
  • Purpose: As the untact culture has spread due to the recent COVID-19, the service industry as well as the beauty salon is shrinking. In order to overcome such a crisis in beauty salons, the lower dimension of beauty salon service quality is divided into servicescape, technical service, and employee service, and actions are taken with the 'perceived value of the customer' as a parameter. In this study, S-O-R(Stimulus-Organism-Response) theory was applied for customer-centered analysis, and gender and regularity were selected as moderator variables to add practical implications. Research design, data, and methodology: All constructs were measured using items developed and used in the previous study. A total of 261 questionnaires were collected online using NaverForm. The data were analyzed using factor analysis, correlation analysis, and measurement model analysis with SPSS 22.0 and AMOS 22.0. After testing the research model and hypothesis for the entire group, a multi-group analysis was conducted by dividing into male and female groups, regular customers, and non-regular customers. Results: First, this study showed that the service environment of beauty salon customers had a negative (-) effect on perceived utilitarian value, and the technical service and perceived hedonic value had a positive (+) effect on the customer's behavioral intention. Technical service and employee service had a positive (+) effect on perceived hedonic value, but perceived hedonic value did not affect customer's behavioral intention. Second, there is no statistically significant difference in each path between male and female groups. Third, there was a statistically significant difference between regular customers and non-regular customers, only the path that the servicescape influences the perceived hedonic value. Conclusion: According to the results of this study, technical service and utilitarian value should be considered in order to induce behavioral intention of customers, and technical service quality should be considered first. Also, operating a beauty salon requires a differentiated approach to the salon servicescape according to the ratio of non-regular and regular customers. The beauty salon servicescape generally showed negative practical value for non-regular customers, but positive for the Hedinic value for servicescape such as comfortable service and clean interior for regular customers.

The Effect of Overtime Work on Organizational Trust: Testing Mediating Effect of Personal Accomplishment (중국의료기관에 종사하는 구성원들의 초과근무가 조직신뢰에 미치는 영향: 개인성취의 매개효과 검증)

  • Cai, Han;Jin, Xiu
    • Journal of Digital Convergence
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    • v.20 no.5
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    • pp.119-128
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    • 2022
  • In the context of the COVID-19 era, due to the serious epidemic and heavy workload, medical staff often work overtime. The frequency of overtime work is directly related to organizational trust, so the impact of overtime work is of high importance to medical staff. This study focuses on the role of overtime work and validates the level of organizational trust among healthcare workers. The mediating effect of personal achievement as a mediator between overtime work and organizational trust was also explored. According to the results, both voluntary overtime and inoluntary overtime of medical staff have a positive impact on organizational trust. The results also suggest that personal accomplishment has a mediating effect between overtime work and organizational trust. This study focuses on exploring the impact of medical staff overtime work on organizational trust and proposes options for improving organizational trust among medical staff.