• The Journal of the Convergence on Culture Technology
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.533-538
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• 2024

The risk assessment under the Occupational Safety and Health Act was implemented in 2013, but since it is not mandatory, companies are operating it as a formality. Although legal obligations have been strengthened, such as the recent comprehensive revision of the Occupational Safety and Health Act and the enforcement of the Act on Punishment for Serious Accidents, the death rate has remained stagnant. Even if a risk assessment plan is properly established in order for employers to prevent industrial accidents through necessary measures, it is necessary to involve relevant workers so that they can understand and implement the contents of the risk assessment. In this regard, this study proposed applying efficient worker participation measures through on-site surveys to activate the participation of vulnerable workers in risk assessments. Key words : risk assessment, accident prevention, vulnerable class, worker participation

• Korean Circulation Journal
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• v.54 no.5
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• pp.270-287
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• 2024

Background and Objectives: Blood pressure (BP) measurement using an auscultatory sphygmomanometer is recommended for diagnosing hypertension in children. As mercury sphygmomanometers (MSs) are banned owing to environmental concerns, it is crucial to determine the accuracy of mercury-free sphygmomanometers to replace them. We analyzed the accuracy of these devices to guide the National Survey selection. Methods: BP was measured thrice each with MS, auscultatory device (AD), and oscillometric device (OD) in 104 participants aged 10-18 using the National Survey data. The difference in BP was defined as the difference between MS and other devices. The BP differences, correlations, and influencing factors were analyzed. The frequencies of hypertension were also compared. Results: Systolic BP (SBP) and diastolic BP (DBP) differences between MS and AD were 0.88±3.36 mmHg and 0.63±3.95 mmHg, and those between MS and OD were 0.43±5.83 mmHg and 4.57±6.89 mmHg, respectively. The absolute error of <10 mmHg for DBP between MS and OD was 76%. The concordance correlation coefficient between MS and AD was 0.94 for SBP and 0.90 for DBP, and 0.81 and 0.67, respectively for MS and OD. Arm circumference negatively correlated with BP differences except for SBP between the MS and OD. The frequency of hypertension was not different between MS and AD but was underestimated by OD. Conclusions: AD correlated well with MS, while OD did not, especially for DBP. The superiority of AD over OD suggests AD as a possible alternative for MS in the National Survey.

• Journal of dental hygiene science
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.449-460
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• 2013

This study analyzes the processes of change in oral health behaviors induced by oral health education for 23 university students. To this end, we analyzed the changing patterns of the stages of change and motivational components for each oral health behavior. Additionally, we performed an in-depth interview-based investigation of the factors influencing such motivational components. Oral health education was performed twice with a concrete purpose of changing the participants' behaviors in complying with the practice of proper brushing and flossing as the main oral health management, and checking the nutrient facts as a good dietary habit. Upon completion of these two sessions of oral health education, the level of change in oral health behavior was assessed by measuring the stages of change and motivational components for each oral health behavior. In order to gain an in-depth understanding of the reasons for the changes that were demonstrated more markedly during the second education session than during the first session, collective interview surveys were carried out after the second session. The contents of the recorded interviews were categorized into subscales of distinctive concepts on the basis of the items of a health behavior model. The study had the findings as below. First, after the first and second education sessions, some behaviors showed positive changes from lower to higher levels of practice. Second, self-efficacy about oral health behavior was high or perceived barriers were low when its necessity and benefits were clearly perceived. Third, educational features such as the practice and participation-centered education, and examining their own oral conditions influenced the participants' oral health awareness and behavioral changes. There is a need for oral health education capable of leading to practical behavioral changes by establishing concrete strategies of deriving various motivational components at each stage of the processes of change.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.51 no.4
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• pp.287-294
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• 2018

Purpose: This study was conducted to evaluate the association between serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) levels and dental caries experience in Korean adolescents based on the 2010 ~ 2014 Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys. Methods: The study subjects were 2,655 Korean adolescents aged 10 to 18 years. Subjects were classified into four groups according to their serum 25(OH)D levels. We used logistic regression to evaluate the relationship between vitamin D and for dental caries experience after adjusting for age, household income level, recipient of basic livelihood, tooth brushing and visiting dental clinics. Result: Multiple logistic regression analysis showed that serum 25(OH)D insufficiency (20 ng/mL ${\leq}25(OH)D$ < 30 ng/mL) was associated with increased odd ratios (ORs) for dental caries experience in boys (OR = 2.577, 95% CI = 1.013-6.557), compared with serum 25(OH)D sufficiency (25(OH)D ${\geq}30ng/mL$). Conclusion: The serum 25(OH)D levels were found to be related to risk of dental caries experience in Korean adolescent boys.

• Asian Journal of Atmospheric Environment
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.72-84
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• 2013

In the study, pollution levels of indoor polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in public facilities (vapor phase or particulate phase) were evaluated, and a health risk assessment (HRA) was carried out based on exposure scenarios. Public facilities in Korea covered by the law, including underground subway stations, funeral halls, child care facilities, internet cafes (PC-rooms), and exhibition facilities (6 locations for each type of facility, for a total of 48 locations), were investigated for indoor assessment. For the HRA, individual excess cancer risk (ECR) was estimated by applying main toxic equivalency factor (TEF) values suggested in previous studies. Among the eight public facilities, internet cafes showed the highest average $PM_{2.5}$ concentration at $110.0{\mu}g/m^3$ (range: $83.5-138.5{\mu}g/m^3$). When assuming a risk of facility exposure time based upon the results of the surveys for each public facility, the excess cancer risk using the benzo(a)pyrene indicator assessment method was estimated to be $10^{-7}-10^{-6}$ levels for each facility. Based on the risk associated with various TEF values, the excess cancer risk based upon the seven types cancer EPA (1993) and Malcolm & Dobson's (1994) assessment method was estimated to be $10^{-7}-10^{-5}$ for each facility. The excess cancer risk estimated from the TEF EPA (2010) assessment was the highest: $10^{-7}-10^{-4}$ for each facility. This is due to the 10-fold difference between the TEF of dibenzo(a,e)fluoranthene in 2010 and in 1994. The internet cafes where smoking was the clear pollutant showed the highest risk level of $10^{-4}$, which exceeded the World Health Organization's recommended risk of $1{\times}10^{-6}$. All facilities, with the exception of internet cafes, showed a $10^{-6}$ risk level. However, when the TEFs values of the US EPA (2010) were applied, the risk of most facilities in this study exceeded $1{\times}10^{-6}$.

• Journal of Digital Convergence
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• v.14 no.10
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• pp.319-326
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• 2016

Recently multicultural female population is increasing of our country as international marriages increase. With oral care programs, conducting follow-up surveys on multicultural women's oral health condition to figure out the condition and examining improvements and related factors, it tried to contribute to building oral care programs for the future of multicultural families. The study participants were recruited from multi-cultural family center in a metropolis, they were treated their oral conditions at local dental clinics during a year. All participants were 608 people, and among them, one year follow-up sample was 40 women. An interview questionnaire was used to collect information on socioeconomic level and general characteristics related to oral status, through oral examination were conducted to obtain dental caries experience and periodontal conditions. The statistical analysis was done by using the SPSS 20.0 program. Comparing the results between before and after oral health program for an year, DMFS, DS, FS, DT, FT and CPI were significantly decreased during a year. The present study increases interest about multicultural women and family and we look forward to using it as basic data for oral health promotion.

• Korean Journal of Health Education and Promotion
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• v.27 no.5
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• pp.51-61
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• 2010

Objectives: The purpose of this study is to investigate the perception of LTCP trainees' on their professional. To accomplish the purpose, the perceived occupational nature and perceived clients' nature among the participants in the LTCP education are examined with the predicting variables. Methods: The participants of this study were composed of 320 people who have completed the long-term care provider certificate program. The participants were from 5 different long-term care provider licensing institution in the region of Gangdong-Gu, Seoul. Total of 320 self-administered questionnaires were distributed from June 2, 2008 to October 2, 2008 and 297 questionnaires were collected. Among them 283 surveys were analyzed. Results: In this model, active family support and recognition of task characteristics for the LTCP were the significantly predicting with beta of .187 and .507. The effect from active family support was remained significantly as model progressed. The magnitude of F-value and R-square value were significant. Conclusion: The results from this study will be helpful for the scholars who have investigated on the LTCP education program development as well as policy makers who have tried to supply dependable LTCP to the needy elderly and their families. In turn, the results from this study may empower constituents to make informed decisions about, and easily access, existing health and long-term care options.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.52 no.6
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• pp.661-666
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• 2014

In order to investigate the status of intestinal helminthic infections in Cambodia, epidemiological surveys were carried out on a national scale, including 19 provinces. A total of 32,201 fecal samples were collected from schoolchildren and adults between 2006 and 2011 and examined once by the Kato-Katz thick smear technique. The overall egg positive rate of intestinal helminths was 26.2%. The prevalence of hookworms was the highest (9.6%), followed by that of Opisthorchis viverrini/minute intestinal flukes (Ov/MIF) (5.7%), Ascaris lumbricoides (4.6%), and Trichuris trichiura (4.1%). Other types of parasites detected were Enterobius vermicularis (1.1%), Taenia spp. (0.4%), and Hymenolepis spp. (0.2%). The northwestern regions such as the Siem Reap, Oddar Meanchey, and Banteay Meanchey Provinces showed higher prevalences (17.4-22.3%) of hookworms than the other localities. The southwestern areas, including Koh Kong and Preah Sihanouk Provinces showed higher prevalences of A. lumbricoides (17.5-19.2%) and T. trichiura (6.1-21.0%). Meanwhile, the central and southern areas, in particular, Takeo and Kampong Cham Provinces, showed high prevalences of Ov/MIF (23.8-24.0%). The results indicate that a considerably high prevalence of intestinal helminths has been revealed in Cambodia, and thus sustained national parasite control projects are necessary to reduce morbidity due to parasitic infections in Cambodia.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.50 no.3
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• pp.195-200
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• 2017

Objectives: Q fever is a zoonotic disease that occurs worldwide; however, little is known about its prevalence in South Korea. We attempted to determine the prevalence of Q fever seroreactivity among Korean slaughterhouse workers and the risk factors for seroreactivity according to the type of work. Methods: The study was conducted among 1503 workers at a total of 73 slaughterhouses and 62 residual-product disposal plants. During the study period, sites were visited and surveys were administered to employees involved in slaughterhouse work, and serological tests were performed on blood samples by indirect immunofluorescence assays. Serological samples were grouped by job classification into those of slaughter workers, residual-product handlers, inspectors and inspection assistants, and grading testers and testing assistants. Employee risk factors were analyzed according to the type of work. Results: Out of 1481 study subjects who provided a blood sample, 151 (10.2%) showed reactive antibodies. When these results were analyzed in accordance with the type of work, the result of slaughter workers (11.3%) was similar to the result of residual-product handlers (11.4%), and the result of inspectors and assistants (5.3%) was similar to the result of grading testers and assistants (5.4%). Among those who answered in the affirmative to the survey question, "Has there been frequent contact between cattle blood and your mouth while working?" the proportions were 13.4 and 4.6%, respectively, and this was identified as a risk factor that significantly varied between job categories among slaughterhouse workers. Conclusions: This study found a Q fever seroreactivity rate of 10.2% for slaughterhouse workers, who are known to be a high-risk population. Contact with cattle blood around the mouth while working was the differential risk factor between job categories among slaughterhouse workers.

• Journal of dental hygiene science
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• v.16 no.5
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• pp.339-348
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• 2016

We investigated the gender-specific association between average volume of alcohol consumption, binge drinking, and periodontitis using representative nationwide data. In total, we included 3,549 men and 4,810 women, aged 19 years and older, who participated in the sixth Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey performed in 2013~2014. According to the average volume of alcohol consumption, study participants were grouped as follows: mild drinkers (0.1~2.0 drinks/day in men and 0.1~1.0 drink/day in women), moderate drinkers (2.1~4.0 drinks/day in men and 1.1~2.0 drinks/day in women), and heavy drinkers (>4.0 drinks/day in men and >2.0 drinks/day in women). Additionally, binge drinking was categorized as never (no binge drinking), rarely (<1 time/month), occasionally (1 time/month), frequently (1 time/week), and always (almost every day/week). Periodontitis was defined as a community periodontal index equal to code 3 or greater. In men, after controlling for covariates, the association between average volume of alcohol consumption and periodontitis showed a J-shaped curve; the risk of periodontitis was significantly higher in moderate drinkers (odds ratio [OR], 1.25; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.01~1.56) and heavy drinkers (OR, 1.39; 95% CI, 1.04~1.87) than in mild drinkers. In contrast, no significant association between average volume of alcohol consumption and periodontitis was observed in women. In a fully adjusted analysis, which used 'never binge drinking' as a reference, a significant dose-response relationship between binge drinking and periodontitis was observed only in men: rarely (OR, 1.64; 95% CI, 1.16~2.34), occasionally (OR, 1.51; 95% CI, 1.05~2.16), frequently (OR, 1.58; 95% CI, 1.07~2.33), and always (OR, 2.56; 95% CI, 1.56~4.22) (p for trend=0.005). In conclusion, unhealthy drinking patterns such as moderate or heavy alcohol consumption and binge drinking were significantly associated with periodontitis in men but not in women.