• Clinical and Experimental Reproductive Medicine
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• v.43 no.1
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• pp.15-25
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• 2016

Objective: In the present study, we aimed to evaluate the effects of high doses of dexamethasone (DEX) in early pregnancy on pregnancy outcomes. Methods: Pregnant BALB/c mice were treated with high-dose DEX in the experimental group or saline in the control group on gestational days (GDs) 0.5 to 4.5. Pregnant mice were sacrificed on GDs 7.5, 13.5, or 18.5 and their peripheral blood, placentas, fetuses, and uterine tissue were collected. Decidual and placenta cell supernatants were examined to evaluate the effect of DEX on the proliferation of mononuclear cells, the quantity of uterine macrophages and uterine natural killer (uNK) cells, and levels of progesterone and $17{\beta}-estradiol$, as determined by an 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazole-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay, immunohistochemistry, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, respectively. We also were measured fetal and placental growth parameters on GD 18.5. Results: We found that high doses of DEX were associated with an increased abortion rate, enhancement of the immunosuppressive effect of the decidua, alterations in placental growth parameters, decreased progesterone and $17{\beta}-estradiol$ levels, and a reduced frequency of macrophages and uNK cells. Conclusion: Our data suggest that the high-dose administration of DEX during early pregnancy negatively affected pregnancy outcomes.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.56 no.1
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• pp.28-33
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• 2014

Objective : Postoperative delirium is a common complication in the elderly after surgery but few papers have reported after spinal surgery. We analyzed various risk factors for postoperative delirium after spine surgery. Methods : Between May 2012 and September 2013, 70 patients over 60 years of age were examined. The patients were divided into two groups : Group A with delirium and Group B without delirium. Cognitive function was examined with the Mini-Mental State Examination-Korea (MMSE-K), Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR) and Global Deterioration Scale (GDS). Information was also obtained on the patients' education level, underlying diseases, duration of hospital stay and laboratory findings. Intraoperative assessment included Bispectral index (BIS), type of surgery or anesthesia, blood pressure, fluid balance, estimated blood loss and duration of surgery. Results : Postoperative delirium developed in 17 patients. The preoperative scores for the MMSE, CDR, and GDS in Group A were $19.1{\pm}5.4$, $0.9{\pm}0.6$, and $3.3{\pm}1.1$. These were significantly lower than those of Group B ($25.6{\pm}3.4$, $0.5{\pm}0.2$, and $2.1{\pm}0.7$) (p<0.05). BIS was lower in Group A ($30.2{\pm}6.8$ compared to $35.4{\pm}5.6$ in group B) (p<0.05). The number of BIS <40 were $5.1{\pm}3.1$ times in Group A, $2.5{\pm}2.2$ times in Group B (p<0.01). In addition, longer operation time and longer hospital stay were risk factors. Conclusion : Precise analysis of risk factors for postoperative delirium seems to be more important in spinal surgery because the surgery is not usually expected to have an effect on brain function. Although no risk factors specific to spinal surgery were identified, the BIS may represent a valuable new intraoperative predictor of the risk of delirium.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Physical Medicine
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.23-30
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• 2020

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of dual-task training with cognitive tasks on cognitive functions and β-amyloid levels in the elderly with mild dementia. METHODS: The subjects were 36 elderly inpatients diagnosed with mild dementia at S Hospital located in Gyeongsangbuk-do, South Korea. The patients were randomly divided into a dual-task training group (DTG; n = 18) or a single-task training group (STG; n = 18). DTG performed dual-task training with cognitive tasks while STG performed only exercise tasks. These groups performed their respective exercises during a 30-minute session occurring three times a week over an 8-week period. MMSE-K and GDS were used to measure the subjects' cognitive function. To assess the subjects' dementia-related factors, their β-amyloid levels were measured by blood analysis. RESULTS: The results of the experiment were as follows: DTG showed statistically significant differences between their MMSE-K scores and β-amyloid levels before and after training (p < .05), whereas they exhibited no statistically significant differences in their GDS scores. MMSE-K scores and β-amyloid levels were significantly different between DTG and STG after training. CONCLUSION: The present study's overall results indicate that dual-task training with cognitive tasks is more effective than single-task training in improving cognitive functions and β-amyloid levels in the elderly with mild dementia. In other words, regular dual-task training can be considered as effective in improving cognitive function and dementia-related factors in the elderly with mild dementia and thus may be suggested as an effective exercise method for the treatment and early prevention of dementia.

• Korean Journal of Health Education and Promotion
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.23-32
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• 2016

Objectives: The aim of this study was to examine the effects of home-based cognitive physico-occupational therapy(HBCPOT) on cognitive function, depression, and quality of life in dementia patients, using a cognitive impairment model. Methods: The data was analysed for Mini-Mental State Examination-Korean version (MMSE-KC) for assessing cognitive function, Quality of life-Alzheimer's Disease (QOL-AD) and Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) in 31 dementia patients who received home-based cognitive physico-occupational therapy for one hour once a week for 12 weeks by a trained occupational therapist at the Dementia Prevention and Management Center of Y-city during 20111-2013. Results: Among these 31 patients, 18(58.1%) were female, and 25(80.6%) had Alzheimer's Disease. After HBCPOT, the mean scores of MMSE-KC and QOL-AD were significantly improved, but GDS score was not significantly decreased. Conclusions: It was suggested that HBCPOT was effective in improving cognitive function and quality of life.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.21 no.8
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• pp.52-59
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• 2020

This study examined the effects of sling-complex exercise on depression, function, and quality of life in the elderly. As a study method, 40 elderly people aged 65 years or older among nursing homes in M Hospital located in D city were compared randomly with the Suspended Combined Exercise Program group (n=20) and control group (n=20). This was measured using the GDS for depression before and after the intervention for 60 minutes, two days a week for 12 weeks for the combined exercise program with a sling and the same program without a sling. In addition, the quality of life was measured using self-efficacy. For comparison within the group, a paired t-test was applied, and a two-sample t-test was used for the comparison. After the intervention, the experimental group showed a significantly greater change in all evaluations (GDS, FIM, and self-efficacy) compared to the control group (p<0.05). Moreover, there was no significant change in the general self-efficacy of the control group (p>0.05). Overall, the sling complex exercise program is effective in improving the quality of life of the elderly.

• Journal of Korean Biological Nursing Science
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.44-49
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• 2015

Purpose: This research was aimed at evaluating the differences in depression by skinfold thickness, and the relationship between two variables. Methods: Research design was a non-experimental descriptive survey. Using a caliper, we measured skinfold thickness on the triceps, and then on the suprailiac, and the mid-thigh. Depression was evaluated using the Geriatric Depression Scale-Short Form (GDS-SF). Data were collected for one month from Sept 1st to 30th, 2011. There were 52 subjects, 25 of which were from elderly welfare centers and 27 were hospitalized. Results: Subjects were an average age of $76.4{\pm}4.45$, and the incidence rate of depression (${\geq}6$) was 36.5% and those who had a sum of 3 skinfolds over 62 mm were 22.7%. The GDS-SF was significantly different in only the suprailiac skinfold thickness (F=7.25, p<.05). Conclusion: Findings indicate that depression is different based on suprailiac thickness in older adult women at elderly welfare centers and those who were hospitalized in an medical ward. It suggests that the suprailiac skinfold may be an indicator of abdominal obesity when considering depression in elderly women. Further study is needed to evaluate a cutoff score of skinfold thickness in obesity for older adult women.

• Journal of Oriental Neuropsychiatry
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.47-58
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• 2019

Objectives: To conduct and report the results of a public health promotion program in Korean medicine (KM), namely the KM Visiting Care Service for Solitary Elderly, from November 2018 to April 2019. Methods: Six elderly people living in a rural area received the KM visiting care service, twice a week, for four months. This service consisted of acupuncture, auriculotherapy, and supportive counseling to manage their musculoskeletal pain, cognitive impairment, and/or depression. The changes of symptoms were assessed using Numeric Rating Scale (NRS), Korean version of Mini-Mental State Examination for Dementia Screening (MMSE-DS), Korean version of Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA-K), and Geriatric Depression Scale-Short form Korean (GDS-SF-K). Results: Through the 4-months KM visiting care service, the overall subjects' NRS-rated pain decreased slightly. Most showed improvement in MMSE-DS and/or MoCA-K, except one subject who was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. Depression assessed by GDS-SF-K showed improvement in a few subjects who were unable to walk independently. Satisfaction assessed through survey was generally high in all subjects. Conclusions: This KM Visiting Care Service for Solitary Elderly may help improve the pain and cognitive function of frail solitary elderly in rural areas. However, the protocol need to be improved to optimize the effect.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.23 no.6
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• pp.334-338
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• 2013

In this study, $BaTiO_3$ thin films were grown by RF-magnetron sputtering, and the effects of the thin film thickness on the structural characteristics of $BaTiO_3$ thin films were systematically investigated. Instead of the oxide substrates generally used for the growth of $BaTiO_3$ thin films, p-Si substrates which are widely used in the current semiconductor processing, were used in this study in order to pursue high efficiency in device integration processing. For the crystallization of the grown thin films, annealing was carried out in air, and the annealing temperature was varied from $700^{\circ}C$. The changed thickness was within 200 nm~1200 nm. The XRD results showed that the best crystal quality was obtained for ample thicknesses 700 nm~1200 nm. The SEM analysis revealed that Si/$BaTiO_3$ are good quality interface characteristics within 300 nm when observed thickness. And surface roughness observed of $BaTiO_3$ thin films from AFM measurement are good quality surface characteristics within 300 nm. Depth-profiling analysis through GDS (glow discharge spectrometer) showed that the stoichiometric composition could be maintained. The results obtained in this study clearly revealed $BaTiO_3$ thin films grown on a p-Si substrate such as thin film thickness. The optimum thickness was 300 nm, the thin film was found to have the characteristics of thin film with good electrical properties.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine
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• v.43 no.3
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• pp.181-194
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• 2022

Objectives: The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of music therapy combined with hand manipulation on depression and cognition in elderly women with mild depression. Methods: In order to investigate the effects of a music therapy program through hand, 20 elderly women with a GDS-K score of 14-18 were selected among women aged 65 to 84 living in Busan. The 10 subjects in the experimental group were given the music therapy program 3 times a week for 4 weeks, 12 sessions, and the 10 subjects in the control group were not given it. GDS-K and K-MoCA were performed before and after the experiment, and data analysis was performed through Wilcoxon's test using the SPSS 24.0 statistical package program. Results: The music therapy program through hand manipulation is effective in reducing depression in elderly women with mild depression, and there was a significant decrease. The sub-domains of depression, such as tension and depressive emotions, life dissatisfaction, lethargy, cognitive difficulties, low energy, and loss of motivation, were significantly reduced. In addition, it has an effect on cognition, and it significantly increased in attention, delayed recall ability, which are sub-domains of cognition. There is a significant difference in depression between the experimental group and the control group, and there is a significant difference in cognition between the two groups. Conclusions: The music therapy program with hand manipulation has a positive effect on depression and cognition in elderly women with mild depression.

• Journal of the Korean Applied Science and Technology
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• v.40 no.3
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• pp.402-411
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• 2023

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of a cognitive enhancement program combined Silbot on cognitive function, depression, and dementia prevention behavior in the elderly complaining of subjective memory decline. The subjects were 170 elderly people living in Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, and the study was performed at a welfare center. A total of 20 sessions program using Silbot and physical activity was developed and applied, and were evaluated using the Korean version of Montreal Cognitive Assessment (K-MoCA), Geriatric depression Scale(GDS) , and Dementia Prevention Behavior before and after intervention. As a result of the study, the cognitive enhancement program combined Silbot showed statistically significant changes in cognitive function (t=-4.49, p<.001) and depression (t=2.58, p=.023) in the elderly. Therefore, it is expected that the cognitive enhancement program using Silbot will be a useful program that can enhance the cognitive function of the elderly and reduce depression.