• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.51-60
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• 2018

Objectives: Currently, there is only limited knowledge regarding the hazard of low-level exposure to CMR materials in workplaces. To overcome this limitation, a reference concentration for workers($RfC_w$) from among the risk assessment tools proposed by the US EPA is widely used to set a provisional workplace exposure level(PWEL) for CMR materials for which there are no established Korea Occupational Exposure Limits(KOELs) or subjective chemicals for work environment measurements as regulated by Korea Ministry of Employment and Labor(KMOEL). A simple European calculator of derived no effect level(SECO-DNEL) as proposed by REACH can also be used in place of $RfC_w$ to set the PWEL for chemicals. This study was performed to test the acceptability of using SECO-DNEL as an alternative to $RfC_w$ when setting a PWEL for low-level exposures. Methods: The $RfC_w$ and DNEL for the five CMR materials of dinitrogen oxide, catechol, 2-phenoxy ethanol, carbitol, and carbon black were calculated using the dose-response assessments of the US EPA for $RfC_w$ and REACH guidance for SECO-DNEL, respectively. They were compared using paired t-tests to determine the statistical differences between them. Results: For the five chemicals, the $RfC_w$ were 2.53 ppm, 0.10 ppm, 1.73 ppm, 1.66 ppm, and $0.05mg/m^3$, respectively, while the SECO-DNEL were 2.01 ppm, 0.11 ppm, 1.83 ppm, 1.77 ppm, $0.14mg/m^3$, respectively. There was no statistically significant difference between $RfC_w$ and SECO-DNEL. Conclusions: This study suggests that the SECO-DNEL could be applied in place of $RfC_w$ to set a PWEL for low-level exposure to chemicals, especially CMR materials. To further ensure the reliability of SECO-DNEL as an alternative tool, more chemicals should be applied for calculation and comparison with $RfC_w$.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• v.44 no.3
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• pp.103-109
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• 2019

Background: Four-dimensional computed tomographic (4DCT) images are increasingly used in clinic with the growing need to account for the respiratory motion of the patient during radiation treatment. One of the reason s that makes the dose evaluation using 4DCT inaccurate is a change of the patient respiration during the treatment session, i.e., intrafractional uncertainty. Especially, when the amplitude of the patient respiration is greater than the respiration range during the 4DCT acquisition, such an organ motion from the larger respiration is difficult to be represented with the 4DCT. In this paper, the method to generate images expecting the organ motion from a respiration with extended amplitude was proposed and examined. Materials and Methods: We propose a method to generate extra-phase images from a given set of the 4DCT images using deformable image registration (DIR) and linear extrapolation. Deformation vector fields (DVF) are calculated from the given set of images, then extrapolated according to respiratory surrogate. The extra-phase images are generated by applying the extrapolated DVFs to the existing 4DCT images. The proposed method was tested with the 4DCT of a physical 4D phantom. Results and Discussion: The tumor position in the generated extra-phase image was in a good agreement with that in the gold-standard image which is separately acquired, using the same 4DCT machine, with a larger range of respiration. It was also found that we can generate the best quality extra-phase image by using the maximum inhalation phase (T0) and maximum exhalation phase (T50) images for extrapolation. Conclusion: In the present study, a method to construct extra-phase images that represent expanded respiratory motion of the patient has been proposed and tested. The movement of organs from a larger respiration amplitude can be predicted by the proposed method. We believe the method may be utilized for realistic simulation of radiation therapy.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology
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• v.16 no.6
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• pp.741-749
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• 2022

Radiography-Testing that verify the quality of welding structures without destruction are overwhelmingly used in industries, but many safety precautions are required as radiation is used. The workers for Radiography-Testing perform the inspection by moving the Iridium-192 radiation source embedded in the transport container of the gamma-ray irradiator within or outside the facility. The general facility is completely blocked about radiation from the outside with thick concrete, but if it is difficult for worker to handle object of inspection, facilities ceiling can be opened. A general facility may be constructed using a theoretical dose evaluation method because all exterior facilities are blocked, but if the ceiling is open, it is not appropriate to evaluate radiation safety with a simple theoretical calculation method due to the skyshine effect. Therefore, in this study, the radiation safety of the facility was evaluated in the actual field through an ion chamber survey-meter and an accumulated dose-meter called as OSLD, and the actual evaluation environment was modeled and evaluated using the Monte Carlo simulation code as FLUKA. According to the direction of the irradiation, the radiation dose at the facility boundary was difficult to meet the standards set by the regulatory authority, and radiation safety could be secured through additional methods. In addition, it was confirmed that the simulation results using the Iridium-192 source were valid evaluation with the actual measured results.

• Korean Journal of Adult Nursing
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.1-10
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• 2015

Purpose: The objective of this study was to examine patient safety culture (PSC) and patient safety initiatives (PSI) according to IT-based medication errors prevention system which is constructed in this study, and to identify the relationships among system construction, perception to the usage, PSC and PSI. Methods: The subjects were 180 nurses who work at 12 different hospitals with over 300 beds. The questionnaire included the characteristics of participants, a system construction status, the perception to the usage using electric pharmacopoeia (EP), a drug dose calculation system (DDCS), a patient safety reporting system (PSRS) and a bar-code system (BS). The data were collected from July 2011 to August 2011. Descriptive statistics, ANOVA, Pearson correlation and MANOVA were used for data analysis. Results: Systems were constructed in participating hospitals; For EP and PSRS, 83.9%, DDCS, 50%, and BS, 18.3%. The perceptions on the usage of the system were marked highest in BS as 4.54 followed by EP as 3.85. There were significant positive correlations between PSI and EP construction (r=.17, p=.028); PSRS (r=.17, p=.028) and DDCS (r=.23, p=.002). Conclusion: The developed system for improving the user experiences and reducing medication errors was found out well accepted. It is hoped that the system is helpful for PSC and PSI improvement in clinical settings.

• YAKHAK HOEJI
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• v.43 no.2
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• pp.160-168
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• 1999

The purpose of this study was to determine pharmacokinetic parameters of vancomycin using peak and trough plasma level (PTL) and Bayesian analysis in 20 Korean normal volunteers, 16 gastric cancer and 12 lymphoma patients and also using the compartment model dependent (nonlinear least squares regression: NLSR) and compartment model independent (Lagrange) analysis in 10 ovarian cancer patients. Nonparametric expected maximum (NPEM) algorithm for calculation of the population pharmacokinetic parameters was used, and these parameters were applied for clinical pharmacokinetic parameters by Bayesian analysis. Vancomycin was administered as dose of 1.0 g every 12 hrs for 3 days by IV infusion over 60 minutes in normal volunteers, gastric cancer and lymphoma patients. Population pharmacokinetic parameters, K and Vd in gastric cancer and lymphoma patients using NPEM algorithm were $0.158{\pm}0.014{\;}hr^{-1},{\;}0.630{\pm}0.043{\;}L/kg{\;}and{\;}0.131{\pm}0.0261{\;}hr^{-1},{\;}0.631{\pm}0.089{\;}L/kg$ respectively. The K and Vd in gastric cancer and lymphoma patients using Bayesian analysis were $0.151{\pm}0.027,{\;}0.126{\pm}0.056{\;}hr^{-1}{\;}and{\;}0.62{\pm}0.105,{\;}0.63{\pm}0.095{\;}L/kg$. The K and Vd in ovarian cancer patient using the NLSR and Lagrange analysis were $0.109{\pm}0.008,{\;}0.126{\pm}0.012{\;}hr^{-1}{\;}and{\;} 0.76{\pm}0.08,{\;}0.69{\pm}0.19{\;}L/kg$, respectively. It is necessary for effective dosage regimen of vancomycin in cancer patients to use these population parameters.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.41-49
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• 1985

Neutron Streaming analysis in 1300 MWe pressurized water reactor cavity was performed. In this calculation, the discrete ordinates transport codes, ANISN and DOT 3.5, and the Monte Carlo code, TRIPOLI-02 were used with the coupling code, DOTTRI. In this study IBM 3033 type computer was used. The calculated neutron fluxes and dose rates were compared with the measured data in a 900MWe pressurized water reactor cavity to show a good agreement, although some deviations in the results for each energy group were noticed. These results will be applied in the radiation shielding design of high capacity nuclear power reactors and, to the means of radiation protection in case of the reactor maintenance and the access of the reactor cavity.

• Journal of Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Waste Technology(JNFCWT)
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• v.18 no.spc
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• pp.37-50
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• 2020

In this paper, an overview of the scoping calculation results is provided with respect to criticality and radiation shielding of two KBS-3V type PWR SNF disposal systems and one NWMO-type CANDU SNF disposal system of the improved KAERI reference disposal system for SNFs (KRS⁺). The results confirmed that the calculated effective multiplication factors (k_eff) of each disposal system comply with the design criteria (< 0.95). Based on a sensitivity study, the bounding conditions for criticality assumed a flooded container, actinide-only fuel composition, and a decay time of tens of thousands of years. The necessity of mixed loading for some PWR SNFs with high enrichment and low discharge burnup was identified from the evaluated preliminary possible loading area. Furthermore, the absorbed dose rate in the bentonite region was confirmed to be considerably lower than the design criterion (< 1 Gy·hr^-1). Entire PWR SNFs with various enrichment and discharge burnup can be deposited in the KRS⁺ system without any shielding issues. The container thickness applied to the current KRS⁺ design was clarified as sufficient considering the minimum thickness of the container to satisfy the shielding criterion. In conclusion, the current KRS⁺ design is suitable in terms of nuclear criticality and radiation shielding.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Safety
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• v.21 no.6 s.78
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• pp.38-45
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• 2006

Polymeric floorings mainly consisted of PVC are easily decomposed by many kinds of hot environmental factors, then generate hazardous asphyxiate gases and/or toxic gases etc. Therefore the mechanism of decomposition and quantitative toxic indices of products are very important for preventing safety and health disasters, especially in case of confined area. So we have investigated decomposition kinetics, numbers of process involved, toxicity indices of product and so on, using DSC, TGA, FT-IR and Pyrolyzer-GC/MS. The thermal decomposition process of polymeric floorings can be mainly divided by dehydrochlorinated reaction and polyene decomposition step, and activation energies of those are approximately $53.93{\sim}62.42kcal/mol$. Especially lethal concentration($LC_{50}$), fractional effective dose (FED) are calculated by measuring the amount of decomposition product. The values on $LC_{50}$ of sample G are ranged $2,003{\sim}2,019(mg/m^{3})$ in case of sample K and H are $1,877,\;1,998(g/m^{3})$ respectively. Even if the results are estimated by calculation method without animal test and/or clinical demonstration, these values could be very useful data for occupational health, hygiene and safety control.

• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.9-16
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• 1980

A 2-site immunoradiometric assay for serum ferritin was evaluated with commercially available kit. The assay required 6 hours. The slope of the standard curve kept up ideal range with the calculation of maxium binding instead of total dose until expire date. The stage II washing was more important than the stage I washing on the modified washing procedure as the bead keeping to remain in the tube. With this modified mothod, three times of tube. washing was sufficient to reduce the significant errors The measured values of serially diluted sample with standard diluting buffer was proportional to the predicted values. In the experiment of serum effect on the assay. a linear relationship from 5 to 50% serum, but beyond 50% there was reduction in measured ferritin concentration. It has a sensitivity of 2.77 ng/ml, within-assay precision (CV) of 8.0%, and between-assay reproducibility(CV) of 7.4% (mean 174.8 ng/ml).

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.13 no.5
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• pp.1713-1718
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• 2012

Advanced imaging approaches (computed tomography, CT; magnetic resonance imaging, MRI; $^{18}F$-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography, FDG PET) have increased roles in cervical cancer staging and management. The recent FIGO (International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics) recommendations encouraged applications to assess the clinical extension of tumors rather than relying on clinical examinations and traditional non-cross sectional investigations. MRI appears to be better than CT for primary tumors and adjacent soft tissue involvement in the pelvis. FDG-PET/CT has increased in usage with a particular benefit for whole body evaluation of tumor metabolic activity. The potential benefits of advanced imaging are assisting selection of treatment based upon actual disease extent, to adequately treat a tumor with minimal normal tissue complications, and to predict the treatment outcomes. Furthermore, sophisticated external radiation treatment and brachytherapy absolutely require advanced imaging for target localization and radiation dose calculation.