• Journal of Electrical Engineering and Technology
• /
• v.13 no.2
• /
• pp.936-942
• /
• 2018

The diagnostic multi-leaf collimator preventing unnecessary dose from entering into patients during the diagnostic examination was made in this study. The movement of the entire 50 leaves was embodied with the group of 25 ones thereof configured in a pair facing each other on the left and right of the median line. Dimensions of the length, width, and height of each shielding leaf were $5{\times}0.5{\times}0.5cm^3$ resulting in the maximum boost field of $10{\times}10cm^2$. The material of multi-leaf collimator had the excellence on the machinability with the use of the SKD-11 alloy tool steel having the high wear resistance against frequent movement, and it was devised to control both-side's shielding leaves by moving 2 motors unlike existing remedial multi-leaf collimator that use as many motors as the number of 50 shielding leaves. Thereafter, the transmission dose of leaves, cross-leaf leakage dose, and inter-leaf leakage dose were measured by the developed multi-leaf collimator attached to X-ray equipment. An ionization chamber was used to detect doses there from, and the comparative analysis was carried out by means of the radiographic film that was easy to detect the dose leakage in between each leaf. Results obtained from the test conducted in comparative analysis yielded approximately 98%, 96%, and 94% of shielding efficiency realized at each level of energy of 80kV, 100kV, and 120kV it was confirmed there was no dose leakage resulted from the varied level of irradiation energy. Thus the multi-leaf collimator to be developed based on this study is thought that it could fully reduce the unnecessary dose to patients in the diagnostic test and the shielding efficiency thereof is expected to be increasing if it is made in a miniaturized form with a way of increasing the thickness of each leaf later for an extended application to general diagnostic purposes.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
• /
• v.75 no.3
• /
• pp.104-110
• /
• 2013

Background: Osteopontin (OPN) and carbonic anhydrase IX (CAIX), which are expressed on the surface of tumor cells, are associated with hypoxia during tumor development and progression. However, the roles of these proteins in the plasma of patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) are poorly understood. Herein, we hypothesized that plasma OPN and CAIX levels could be used as diagnostic and prognostic tumor markers in patients with NSCLC. Methods: Fifty-three patients with NSCLC and 50 healthy control subjects were enrolled. We selected controls without malignancy and matched them with NSCLC patient cases according to age and gender. Blood samples were collected at the time of diagnosis; the plasma levels of OPN and CAIX were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. Results: The plasma levels of OPN in the patients with NSCLC were significantly elevated as compared to those in the controls (p=0.016). However, there was no difference in the plasma level of CAIX between the NSCLC patients and controls. NSCLC patients with a distant metastasis had a remarkable increase in plasma OPN compared with patients without metastasis (p=0.026), but no such correlation was found for CAIX. There was no difference in overall survival rates according to the plasma level of OPN between the two groups (by Kaplan-Meier survival analysis). Conclusion: Plasma OPN levels were elevated in patients with NSCLC as compared with the controls, with greater elevation of OPN levels in the advanced stages of disease. Therefore, plasma OPN may have utility as a diagnostic, but not prognostic, biomarker of advanced NSCLC.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
• /
• v.17 no.11
• /
• pp.4899-4906
• /
• 2016

Aim: To assess the diagnostic utility of serum and salivary interleukin 6 (IL-6) levels in the differential diagnosis of potentially malignant lesions and conditions (PMLs/PMCs) and oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) in a high oral cancer prevalence region. Methods: After appropriate ethical clearance and informed consent, salivary and blood samples were collected from 100 participants in each group (OSCC, PMLs, and healthy controls). Serum and salivary IL-6 levels were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and data were subjected to appropriate statistical analysis. Results: Significant differences in IL-6 concentration were noted between OSCC and PML/C patients in both serum and saliva, with salivary levels being 2 to 3 fold higher than serum values in all the groups. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis demonstrated 96% specificity and 99% sensitivity for salivary IL-6 in differentiating PML from OSCC. Conclusions: The results of the present study suggest that the pro-inflammatory cytokine, IL-6, is elevated in the saliva of patients with OSSC compared to PMD and controls, and thus may prove to have diagnostic and/or prognostic significance.

• Journal of Veterinary Science
• /
• v.22 no.5
• /
• pp.75.1-75.10
• /
• 2021

Background: Programmed cell death protein-1 (PD-1) and programmed cell death ligand-1 (PD-L1) have important roles in tumor evasion of the immune system. Objectives: This study aimed to assess the diagnostic utility of circulating PD-1 and PD-L1 levels in healthy dogs and dogs with tumors. Methods: Circulating PD-1 and PD-L1 levels in the serum of 71 dogs with tumors were compared with those of 52 healthy dogs by performing enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Results: The ELISA results revealed higher circulating PD-1 and PD-L1 levels in dogs with tumors (2.9 [2.2-3.7] ng/mL; median [IQR] and 2.4 [1.4-4.4] ng/mL, respectively) than in healthy dogs (2.4 [1.9-3.0] ng/mL; p = 0.012 and 1.4 [0.9-2.1] ng/mL; p < 0.001, respectively). Especially, there was a significant difference in circulating PD-1 levels between healthy dogs and dogs with malignant epithelial tumors (2.4 [1.9-3.0] ng/mL and 3.1 [2.6-4.4] ng/mL, respectively; p < 0.01). In addition, there was a significant difference in circulating PD-L1 levels between healthy dogs and dogs with lymphomas (1.4 [0.9-2.1] ng/mL and 2.7 [1.6-5.8] ng/mL, respectively; p < 0.001). Conclusion: This study indicates that circulating PD-1 and PD-L1 have potential as tumor diagnostic biomarkers in dogs with tumors.

• Anxiety and mood
• /
• v.19 no.2
• /
• pp.69-76
• /
• 2023

Objective : This study aimed to find out whether the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2-Restructured Form (MMPI-2-RF) scales are useful in distinguishing social anxiety disorder, panic disorder, and major depressive disorder. Methods : The study sample included 118 patients: 33 with social anxiety disorder, 53 with major depressive disorder, and 32 with panic disorder. Participants were classified according to the diagnosis indicated on their medical records. MMPI-2-RF scores were derived from MMPI-2 protocols. Results : The results of multivariate analysis of variance showed that the elevated scales were consistent with the diagnostic and clinical characteristics of each diafnostic group. Logistic regression analyses identified several scales that were useful in differentiating the diagnostic groups. The higher Cognitive Complaints (COG) scale significantly differentiated major depressive disorder from the other groups. The higher Self-Doubt (SFD) scale and Somatic Complaints (RC1) scale were useful in differentiating social anxiety disorder and panic disorder respectively. The lower Cynicism (RC3) scale was also useful in differentiating social anxiety disorder. Other scales that were useful in distinguishing between pairs of groups were also identified. Conclusion : The results of this study suggest that the MMPI-2-RF scales can be useful for discriminating anxiety disorders.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
• /
• v.82 no.3
• /
• pp.234-241
• /
• 2019

Background: The utility of computed tomography (CT) in the differential diagnosis of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) exacerbation remains uncertain. However, due to the low cost associated with CT scan along with the impact of Koreas' health insurance system, there has been a rise in the number of CT scans in the patients with initial diagnosis of COPD exacerbations. Therefore, the utility of CT in the differential diagnosis was investigated to determine whether performing CT scans affect the clinical outcomes of the patients with an initial diagnosis of COPD exacerbation. Methods: This study involved 202 COPD patients hospitalized with an initial diagnosis of COPD exacerbation. We evaluated the change in diagnosis or treatment after performing a CT scan, and compared the clinical outcomes of patient groups with vs. without performing CT (non-CT group vs. CT group). Results: After performing CT, the diagnosis was changed for two (3.0%) while additional diagnoses were made for 27 of the 64 patients (42.1%). However, the treatment changed for only one (1.5%), and six patients (9.3%) received supplementary medication. There were no difference in the median length of hospital stay (8 [6-13] days vs. 8 [6-12] days, p=0.786) and intensive care unit care (14 [10.1%] vs. 11 [16.7%], p=0.236) between the CT and non-CT groups, respectively. These findings remained consistent even after the propensity score matching. Conclusion: Utility of CT in patients with acute COPD exacerbation might not be helpful; therefore, we do not recommend chest CT scan as a routine initial diagnostic tool.

• Journal of Korean Tunnelling and Underground Space Association
• /
• v.25 no.6
• /
• pp.479-493
• /
• 2023

The need for safety management has arisen due to the increasing number of years of operated underground structures, such as tunnels and utility tunnels, and accidents caused by those aging infrastructures. However, in the case of privately managed underground utility ducts, there is a lack of detailed guidelines for facility safety and maintenance, resulting in inadequate safety management. Furthermore, the absence of basic design information and the limited space for safety assessments make applying currently used non-destructive testing methods challenging. Therefore, this study suggests non-destructive inspection methods using ultrasonic and impact-echo techniques to assess the quality of underground structures. Thickness, presence of rebars, depth of rebars, and the presence and depth of internal defects are assessed to provide fundamental data for the safety assessment of box-type general underground structures. To validate the proposed methodology, different conditions of concrete specimens are designed and cured to simulate actual field conditions. Applying ultrasonic and impact signals and collecting data through multi-channel accelerometers determine the thickness of the simulated specimens, the depth of embedded rebar, and the extent of defects. The predicted results are well agreed upon compared with actual measurements. The proposed methodology is expected to contribute to developing safety diagnostic methods applicable to general underground structures in practical field conditions.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
• /
• v.13 no.6
• /
• pp.2887-2889
• /
• 2012

Malignant tumors have a capacity to degrade the extracellular matrix by controlled proteolysis. One system involved in these processes is the urokinase-type plasminogen activator (uPA) system. uPAR levels are elevated in tumors from several types of cancer. Our study was planned to investigate serum and urine levels of uPAR in breast cancer patients (n=180) and healthy controls (n=60) by ELISA. Serum (p<0.001) and urine (p<0.001) uPAR values in the patients were both significantly elevated. High serum and urine levels of uPAR can be used as diagnostic tools in lymph node positive patients.

• Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging
• /
• v.43 no.3
• /
• pp.215-221
• /
• 2009

Nuclear myocardial perfusion imaging is very effective in the evaluation of patients with suspicious acute coronary syndrome (ACS), for adequate diagnosis and treatment. There have been many clinical evidences to support the efficacy and cost-effectiveness. In addition, many authoritative guidelines support the utility of myocardial perfusion imaging in ACS with an appropriate diagnostic protocol. However, with the development of other cardiac imaging modalities, the choice of modality for the diagnosis of suspicious ACS now depends on the availability of each modality in each institute. Newly developed imaging technologies, especially including molecular imaging, are expected to have great potential not only for diagnosis but also for primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention of ACS.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers B
• /
• v.29 no.11 s.242
• /
• pp.1220-1228
• /
• 2005

Fault detection and diagnostic (FDD) systems have the potential to reduce equipment downtime, service costs, and utility costs. In this study, model based algorithm and fuzzy algorithm were used to detect and diagnose various fault at System multi-air conditioner. various fault include the Refrigerant Low charging, Fouling of Indoor Heat Exchanger, Fouling of Outdoor Heat Exchanger A experimental verification was conducted in the 6HP System multi-air conditioner on an 8-floor building. Test results showed diagnosis result about 78 $\~$ 90$\%$ for given faults. This Study lays the foundation fur future work on develope the real-time fault detection and diagnosis system for the System multi-air conditioner.