• Journal of muscle and joint health
• /
• v.5 no.1
• /
• pp.39-56
• /
• 1998

This study was an quasi-experimental study, done to identify factors Influencing the reduction of symptoms in patients with fibromyalgia. The primary purpose of the study was to develop a Self-Help Program suitable for patients with fibromyalgia in Korea. The secondary purpose was to identify the effects of a Self-Help Program which included stretching exercise. This study was carried out between Feb. 24 and July 8, 1997 and patients in the study Included out patient diagnosed with fibromyalgia based on the criteria developed by the American College of Rheumatology(1990) and H, University which is a tertiary patient care clinic for Rheumatism. The experimental group included 38 patients who were residents of Seoul or Kyungi province, and a control group of 38 patients who were residents of other areas. The control patients were matched to the experimental group patients and they were selected considering the number of tender points on the Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire score and a score of self-efficacy. The experimental group participated in a Self-Help Program based on the American Arthritis Foundation(1995) guidelines. The program participants participated in a small group which consisted of 12-15 members attending the program once a week, for 6 weeks with each program lasted two to two and a half hours. The stretching exercise was carried out in each patient's home every day following the video tape exercise provided by the researcher, and the researcher provided encouragement and concern to the patients by calling them once a week. The number times the exercise was performed was divided by the number of participants to calculate the percentage of performance and determine the amount of exercise. Self-efficacy was measured by the Self-Efficacy Scale developed by Lorig et al. (1989) for arthritis patients. The degree of pain was converted to scores based on the Visual Analog Scale, the number of tender points was converted to scores based on the criteria of the ACR(1990) and of Yunus. Depression was measured by CES-D and physical disability, sleep disturbance, fatigue, and anxiety of patients with fibromyalgia were measured by the Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire. The level of the exercise performance was converted to scores using the number of times the exercise was performed following the video tape prepared by Association of Rheumatology Health Professionals. Data were analyzed by SPSS windows and the results ire described below. 1. The experimental group which participated in the Self-Help Program showed higher efficacy scores than the control group when both groups were analyzed for depression and the number of tender points as common variables(F=9.146, p=.003). 2. The experimental group which participated in the Self-Help Program showed lower scores than the control group, for pain, the number of tender points, depression, physical disability, fatigue, sleep disturbance and anxiety. These symptoms of fibromyalgia can all be seen to have subsided(F=9.483, p=.003 : F=32.680, p=.001 ; F=11.104, p=.001, F=5.344 : p=.024, F=7.630 : P=.007, F=15.6512, p=.003 : F= 7.5412, p=.008). 3. In the experimental group, the self-efficacy score for the first three weeks showed a positive correlation with the exercise-performance score for four to six weeks (r=.387, p=.043). 4. In the experimental group, the relationship between the level of exercise-performance and the reduction of symptoms showed a significant correlation only to physical disability(r= -.500, p=.001). 5. In the experimental group, the relationship between the self-efficacy score and pain, the number of tender points, depression, physical disability, fatigue, sleep disturbance and anxiety score showed inverse correlations and thus, a reduction of symptoms occured when the self-efficacy score increased(r=-.325, p=.004 ; r= -.253, p=.027, r=-.452, p=.001 : r=-.434, p=.001 ; r=-.316, p=.005 ; r=-.460, p=.001 ; r=-.397, p=.014). Therefore, self-efficacy improved following the Self-Help Program including the stretching exercise. It was also found that physical symptoms (pain, number of tender points, level physical disability) and psychological symptoms (depression, fatigue, sleep disturbance, anxiety) were reduced. Moreover, It was found that the higher the self-efficacy, the the higher the degree of achievement of goals set for the stretching exercises. In addition, the level of exercise-performance influenced the level of physical disability, one of the symptoms of fibromyalgia. Accordingly, the conclusions from this study are that exercise-performance and the reduction of symptoms is achieved through promotion of self-efficacy. Therefore, it is proposed that are the Self-Help Program including stretching exercises is an appropriate nursing intervention for the reduction of symptoms of fibromyalgia.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Environmental Restoration Technology
• /
• v.24 no.2
• /
• pp.19-37
• /
• 2021

It is essential that the evaluation of official development assistance (ODA) projects is conducted based on empirical research for the performance and improvement of the project. This study intended to quantitatively figure out the actual status and performance of ODA projects. The performance of the Rumpin Seed Source and Nursery Center project implemented by the KOICA was evaluated in items of relevance, efficiency, effectiveness, impact, sustainability, which are OECD Development Assistance Committee(DAC) evaluation criteria. From August 26, 2019 to August 29, 2019, a survey was conducted on 50 visitors and 54 stakeholders of the Rumpin Seed Source and Nursery Center. Through on-site survey, problems in the donation project and operation in Indonesia were identified and measures for improvement was grasped. As a result of the study, the value scored by OECD DAC evaluation criteria of the Rumpin Seed Source and Nursery Center project based on the Economic Development Cooperation Fund(EDCF) evaluation grade was evaluated as a very successful class in all items. The average score of the recognition question was 4.08 points for visitors and 4.08 points for stakeholders, and the average score for the satisfaction question was 4.37 points for visitors and 4.11 points for stakeholders, which were high overall in both groups. The main factor that affects the project awareness of the visitors was the fact that the Rumpin Seed Source and Nursery Center was created based on Korean technology, and it was confirmed that Indonesia's own items related to similar projects had a great influence on the project satisfaction. In the case of stakeholders, project support in Korea affected their recognition, and it was found that relevance, efficiency, effectiveness items had the greatest impact on the level of project satisfaction of stakeholders derived from the DAC individual evaluation results. Efforts are required to increase the main factors by reflecting the results of each item and to preserve and maintain the project. This study is significant in determining the performance of the ODA project based on empirical data, and it is believed that it can be used as basic data for supplementing and strengthening the project in the future.

• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
• /
• v.29 no.6
• /
• pp.430-440
• /
• 2020

The application contents, process, and its limitations are discussed for the setting of Korean legal guides & criteria for water cycle and ecological condition in development project of land use by thorough comparison and examination of prerequisites and credits of water cycle and soil+vegetation by USA's SITES (Sustainable Sites Initiative). In the case of SITES, due to the implementation procedure operated as a non-governmental independent assessment system by Green Business Certification, Inc, the natural condition of water cycle and soil-vegetation items-the key element of ecosystem services can be quantitatively assessed, well along with its legal and institutional guidelines and regulations. On the other hand, in the case of Korea, as a part of the national certification procedure for green building, the ecological area ratio system still have very limited role as an only amenity resource in the creation of artificial green spaces and insufficiency of management system for rain water. In conclusion, it was understood as an urgent situation in necessary for prompt establishment of site's sustainability certification system at the national level, based on management of water circulation and natural soil & vegetation in developed area with consideration of various land uses and types of development projects.

• Journal of Korea Port Economic Association
• /
• v.38 no.3
• /
• pp.29-51
• /
• 2022

The International Maritime Organization (IMO) designated the Emission Control Area (ECA) in Northern Europe to reduce the NOx and SOx emissions from ships in the coastal areas. This study used Network slack-based measure (SBM) Data Envelopment Model (DEM) and Bootstrop Truncated Regression (BTR) model to analyze the ECA's impact on ferry companies' financial performances based on the financial data from eight ferry carriers in Northern Europe, the Mediterranean and North America from 2004 to 2017. To alleviate the problem of arbitrary variable selection in DEA, the variable selection criteria proposed by Dyson et al. (2001) were applied; the size of the company was considered through the Network SBM DEA model; and the company's profit-generating process was divided into stages to measure financial performance in more detail. In addition, the BTR model was applied to derive results that minimize the bias of the data. The study found that ECA regulations did not always negatively affect the shipping companies' financial performance. Rather, a steady increase in efficiency was observed for Northern European ferry companies which were subject to the strongest regulations. For North American ferry companies, government subsidies were found to have a significant impact on efficiency, and relatively small impact on efficiency due to the ECA and oil prices. For the Mediterranean ferry companies, efficiency values have decreased since the implementation of ECA regulation despite the lowest level of regulation in the region.

• Korean Management Science Review
• /
• v.27 no.3
• /
• pp.161-196
• /
• 2010

This paper empirically investigates the impact of winning a service quality award on the market value in Korea. We estimates the mean "abnormal" change in the stock prices of sample firms when information of winning a service quality award was publicly announced. To access the validity of the research question, this paper employed collected 47 firms data that received the Korean Service Quality Awards so far. Event study methodology was used to analyze the effect of Korean service quality awards. The findings are as follows; The average abnormal returns on the event date are not significant at the 0.05 level which means that the receiving Korean Service Quality Awards has no influence on the firms' market value. On the other hand successive awarded firms have an increasing effect on the market value and it is significant at the 0.05 level. Furthermore, the results show that the factors of firm size such as firm's total assets are critical to vary the firms' abnormal returns. There might be some limitations in this study. The most obvious problem is the limitation of sample size. Although 518 sample cases were found during the period from 2000 to 2008, most of the cases were deleted according to the sample criteria. We are expecting the future research with more data and more precise results. Furthermore, our research consider the only two service award institutions even though there are several different service award authorities in Korea. It is needed to expand the research scope and range to adopt the various service award institutions for the future work.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
• /
• v.74 no.4
• /
• pp.567-576
• /
• 2020

Considerable controversy surrounds the choice of the best abutment type for implant prosthetics. The two most common structures are hex and non-hex abutments. The non-hex abutment typically furnishes a larger contact area between itself and the implant than that provided by a hex structure. However, when a hex abutment is loaded, the position of its contact area may be deeper than that of a non-hex abutment. Hence, the purpose of this study is to determine the different biomechanical behaviors of an internal bone-level implant based on the abutment type-hex or non-hex-and clinical crown length under static and cyclic loadings using finite element analysis (FEA). The hex structure was found to increase the implant and abutment stability more than the nonhex structure among several criteria. The use of the hex structure resulted in a smaller volume of bone tissues being at risk of hypertrophy and fatigue failure. It also reduced micromovement (separation) between the implant components, which is significantly related to the pumping effect and possible inflammation. Both static and fatigue analyses, used to examine short- and long-term stability, demonstrated the advantages of the hex abutment over the non-hex type for the stability of the implant components. Moreover, although its impact was not as significant as that of the abutment type, a large crown-implant ratio (CIR) increased bone strain and stress in the implant components, particularly under oblique loading.

• International Journal of Highway Engineering
• /
• v.17 no.2
• /
• pp.143-150
• /
• 2015

PURPOSES : The authors set out to estimate the related carbon emissions, energy use, and costs of the national freeways and highways in Korea. To achieve this goal, a macro-level methodology for estimating those amounts by road type, road structure type, and road life cycle was developed. METHODS : The carbon emissions, energy use, and costs associated with roads vary according to the road type, road structure type, and road life cycle. Therefore, in this study, the road type, road structure type, and road life cycle were classified into two or three categories based on criteria determined by the authors. The unit amounts of carbon emissions and energy use per unit road length by classification were estimated using data gathered from actual road samples. The unit amounts of cost per unit road length by classification were acquired from the standard cost values provided in the 2013 road business manual. The total carbon emissions, energy use, and cost of the national freeways and highways were calculated by multiplying the road length by the corresponding unit amounts. RESULTS: The total carbon emissions, energy use, and costs associated with the national freeways and highways in Korea were estimated by applying the estimated unit amounts and the developed method. CONCLUSIONS: The developed method can be employed in the road planning and design stage when decision makers need to consider the impact of road construction from an environmental and economic point of view.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
• /
• v.52 no.6
• /
• pp.639-644
• /
• 2014

Congenital malaria is assumed to be a risk factor for infant morbidity and mortality in endemic areas like Maumere, Indonesia. Infected infants are susceptible to its impact such as premature labor, low birth weight, anemia, and other unspecified symptoms. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of congenital malaria and the influence of mother-infant paired parasite densities on the clinical outcome of the newborns at TC Hillers Hospital, Maumere. An analytical cross sectional study was carried out in newborns which showed criteria associated with congenital malaria. A thick and thin blood smear confirmed by nested PCR was performed in both mothers and infants. The association of congenital malaria with the newborn's health status was then assessed. From 112 mother-infant pairs included in this study, 92 were evaluated further. Thirty-nine infants (42.4%) were found to be infected and half of them were asymptomatic. Infected newborns had a 4.7 times higher risk in developing anemia compared to uninfected newborns (95% CI, 1.3-17.1). The hemoglobin level, erythrocyte amount, and hematocrit level were affected by the infants' parasite densities (P<0.05). Focusing on newborns at risk of congenital malaria, the prevalence is almost 3 times higher than in an unselected collective. Low birth weight, anemia, and pre-term birth were the most common features. Anemia seems to be significantly influenced by infant parasite densities but not by maternal parasitemia.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Library and Information Science
• /
• v.45 no.4
• /
• pp.157-178
• /
• 2011

In the field of science and technology, influential international journals can easily be found in SCIE. A total number of journals published by societies or institutes in Korea are only 82 of the 8,300 SCIE titles. In this study, in light of the SCI criteria the detailed analysis, of these journals was performed for Korean SCIE journals. The results show that in general domestic journals were not actively cited, had a low level of internationality, and user services through the website was insufficient. Korean SCIE journals should continue to complement these points and elevate its reputation. Candidate journals should concentrate on recruiting more excellent papers, promoting communication with foreign researchers, enhancing domestic and international public relations, and the like. To actively support the domestic publication of excellent journals, long-term and short-term measures should be established and consistently practiced at the national level.

• Journal of Korean Society of Coastal and Ocean Engineers
• /
• v.25 no.6
• /
• pp.412-421
• /
• 2013

Nowadays, small and medium-sized earthquakes occur frequently in the west coast of Korea. The earthquake induced damages on the harbor structure such as quay wall possibly make a severe impact on national economy. Therefore, not only a seismic design for the structures but warning system for seismic damage right after the occurrence of earthquake should be developed. In this study, seismic fragility analysis was performed to be given to earthquake damage prediction system for quay wall structures in Busan and Incheon harbor. Four types of structures such as pier-type, caisson type, counterfort type, block-type were analyzed and fragility curves of functional performance level and collapse prevention level based on displacement criteria were found. Regression analyses by using the results of the two ports were done for possible use in other port structures.