• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.5 no.2
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• pp.275-278
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• 1992

One hundred sixty three (163) animals were used in $2{\times}2$ and $3{\times}2$ factorial experiment in randomized complete block design (RCBD) to determine the effect of clitoral stimulation during timed inseminations on the fertility of Philippine swamp buffaloes (carabaos). There were 3 separate trials conducted with two treatment groups per trial : control and with 30 second clitoral stimulation after each insemination. Parity, tone of uterus and site of semen deposition were also used as criteria in subdividing the main groups. The pregnancy rates of animals that received clitoral stimulation were significantly (p<0.05 or p<0.01) higher than those of control for both caraheifers (52.98 vs 31.41%) and caracows (52.68 vs 27.07%) ; under all uterine conditions : tone 1 (53.33 vs 31.75%), tone 2 (35.83 vs 22.82%) and tone 3 (75.65 vs 42.44%) ; and in both site of semen placement, cervix (43.99 vs 22.85%) and uterus (60.92% vs 37.81%). Fertility was also significantly (p<0.05) higher when semen was deposited in the uterus (49.37%) than in the cervix (33.42%). Interaction effect was insignificant. Clitoral stimulation should be utilized as a routine procedure following artificial insemination in carabaos.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.1115-1119
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• 2013

Background: Febrile neutropenia (FN) is a serious complication following chemotherapy and is associated with significant mortality and financial expenditure. The aim of this study was to evaluate risk factors for longer length of stay (LOS) and mortality and cost of treatment among hospitalized adults with cancer who developed febrile neutropenia in Thailand. Materials and Methods: Information on illness of inpatients and casualties came from hospitals nationwide and from hospital withdrawals from the 3 health insurance schemes in fiscal 2010. The data covered 96% of the population and were analyzed by age groups, hospital level, and insurance year schemes in patients with febrile neutropenia. Results: A total of 5,809 patients were identified in the study. The mortality rate was 14%. The median LOS was 8.67 days and 69% of patients stayed for longer than 5 days. On bivariate analysis, age, cancer type, and infectious complications (bacteremia/sepsis, hypotension, fungal infections, and pneumonia) were significantly associated with longer LOS and death. On multivariate analysis, acute leukemia and infectious complications were linked with longer LOS and death significantly. The median cost of hospitalized FN was THB 33,686 (USD 1,122) with the highest cost observed in acute leukemia patients. Conclusions: FN in adult patients results in significant mortality in hospitalized Thai patients. Factors associated with increased mortality include older age (>70), acute leukemia, comorbidity, and infectious complications.

• Journal of Korean Society on Water Environment
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• v.20 no.5
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• pp.415-421
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• 2004

Litter wastes on highway runoff are gradually being considered one of the major pollutants of concern in protecting the integrity of receiving waters for beneficial use. The California State Water Resources Control Board has identified in their 303(d) list at least 36 water bodies where trash or litter is considered a pollutant of concern. The first TMDL adopted by the Region 4 (Los Angeles area) of the California State Water Quality Control Board was for trash in the Los Angeles River. The first flush characteristic study was developed to obtain first flush water quality and litter data from representative stormwater runoff from standard highway drainage outfalls in the Los Angeles area. Total captured gross pollutants in stormwater runoff were monitored at six Southern California highway sites over two years. The gross pollutants were 90% vegetation and 10% litter. Approximately 50% of the litter was composed of biodegradable materials. The event mean concentrations show an increasing trend with antecedent dry days and a decreasing trend with total runoff volume or total rainfall. Event mean concentrations were ranged 0.0021 to 0.259g/L for wet gross pollutants and 0.0001 to 0.027g/L for wet litters. The first flush phenomenon was evaluated and the impacts of various parameters such as rainfall intensity, drainage area, peak flow rate, and antecedent dry period on litter volume and loading rates were evaluated. First flush phenomenon was generally observed for litter concentrations, but was not apparent with litter mass loading rates. Litter volume and loading rates appear to be directly related to peak storm intensity, antecedent dry days and total flow volume.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.44-60
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• 2011

Background : Surgical site infection(SSI) is one of the important nosocomial infections with pneumonia, urinary tract infection. SSI increases mortality, morbidity, length of stay, and costs for postoperative patients. The purpose of this study was to estimate length of stay(LOS) and health care costs from SSI using the large observational data. The ultimate objective was to show the effect of prevention of SSI. Method : This study used antibiotic prophylaxis evaluation data and claims data of the HIRA(Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service). The study population included 18,361 patients who underwent gastric surgery, endoscopic cholecystectomy, colon surgery, hysterectomy, cesarean section in nationwide hospitals from August to October 2007. SSI group and non-SSI group were matched according to propensity score resulted from logistic regression. The paired t-test was used to compare the difference of the LOS and health care costs between SSI group and non-SSI group. Results : The 598 cases of SSI were detected of total subjects, and the crude SSI rate was 3.3%. For each surgery, SSI rates were 5.5% for gastric surgery, 4.7% for cholecystectomy, 6.6% for colon surgery, 2.6% for hysterectomy, and 1.6% for cesarean section. The 596 cases of SSI and the 596 cases of non-SSI were matched by propensity score. The LOS of SSI group was longer than that of non-SSI group, and the difference was statistically significant. Health care costs of SSI group was more than that of non-SSI group which was significant. Conclusions : SSI increased apparently the LOS and healthcare costs. The economic loss might affect the cost of national healthcare as well as patients and hospitals. This study provided the evidence that the healthcare expenditure could be reduced by preventing SSI.

• Journal of Korean Society of Transportation
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• v.28 no.5
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• pp.7-15
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• 2010

The walkway level of service (LOS) is conceptualized using pedestrian flow rate, speed, and density according to the Korean Highway Capacity Manual (KHCM). However, as it is based on the data of commuters at peak hours, it needs to be reevaluated considering various trip purposes and a pleasant pedestrian environment. Thus, the authors aimed to investigate and analyze the characteristics of each group: pedestrians during the peak hour and those during the non-peak hour. Then they were verified statistically for the walkway evaluation criteria. In this study, the authors investigated pedestrian speed and flow in a complex transit center walkway with diverse trip purposes by peak and non-peak hour. Then the authors statistically verified the differences between the groups. A model was built for estimating pedestrian density by speed and flow; it was used to calculate the walkway capacity (67.3p/m/m) corresponding to LOS E. The authors established new criteria for LOS, applying the LOS from the HCM. These standards can then be used as the design standards for pedestrian walkways.

• The Journal of The Korea Institute of Intelligent Transport Systems
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.132-145
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• 2021

This study analyzes the main road network for road users to manage roads efficiently and derives problematic road sections to be improved. Traditional road management has been operated by manager-oriented view and a diversified road management system based on congestion. Therefore, in this research, the mail road Network was selected from the viewpoint of passenger-oriented, logistics-oriented and tourism-oriented, and the problematic road sections were derived through Level Of Service (LOS) analysis, safety analysis using EPDO accident rate, and network service analysis. This study emphasizes the efficient user-oriented road construction and management system and the need of constructing a mail road network, and it suggests the improvement strategies.

• The Journal of Korean Institute of Communications and Information Sciences
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• v.40 no.7
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• pp.1397-1404
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• 2015

Recently, high data rate transmission is required in maritime communication. In this paper, we consider multiple input multiple output (MIMO) spatial multiplexing (SM). However, the performance of SM is severly degraded due to spatial channel correlation and line-of-sight (LOS) component. In the maritime communication, the MIMO channel correlation and LOS are critical due to the lack of scatteres around the transmitter and/or the receiver. When the feedback of channel information is available, precoding can enhance the error performance by exploiting the channel information. However, it is difficult to derive closed-form solution considering both the correlation and LOS. In this paper, we present open-loop precoding-based spatial multiplexing transmission method by showing that the effect of performance for the correlation and LOS. It is shown that the open-loop precoding can mitigate the performance degradation due to the LOS as well as the correlation. Consequently, we expect that the proposed open-loop precoding can be adopted to the maritime communication system.

• International Journal of Aeronautical and Space Sciences
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.697-708
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• 2017

The complex battlefield environment makes it difficult to intercept maneuvering targets for guided missiles. In this paper, a finite-time convergent (FTC) guidance law based on the second-order sliding mode (SOSM) control theory is proposed to achieve the requirements of stability, accuracy and robustness. More specifically, a second-order sliding mode observer (SMOB) is used to estimate and compensate for the total disturbance of the controlled system, while the target acceleration is extracted from the line-of-sight (LOS) angle measurement. The proposed guidance law can drive the LOS angular rate converge to zero in a finite time, which means that the missile will accurately intercept the target. Numerical simulations with some comparisons are performed to demonstrate the superiority of the proposed guidance law.

• Clinical Endoscopy
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• v.56 no.1
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• pp.92-99
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• 2023

Background/Aims: There are few studies assessed the efficacy and mortality of endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) for the removal of common bile duct (CBD) stones in the elderly aged ≥90 years. We aimed to assess the safety and efficacy of endoscopic removal of CBD stones in nonagenarians. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed ERCP reports for CBD stone removal. The endoscopic and therapeutic outcomes were collected. The length of stay (LOS), the total number of adverse events, and mortality rate were compared between groups. Results: A total of 125 nonagenarians were compared with 1,370 controls (65-89 years old individuals). The mean LOS for nonagenarians was significantly higher than in controls (13.6 days vs. 6.5 days). Completed intended treatment was similar in the nonagenarians and controls (89.8% and 89.5%, respectively). The overall complication rate did not differ between the groups. However, nonagenarians had a higher incidence of post-ERCP pneumonia (3.9%). None of the nonagenarians were readmitted to the hospital within 7 days. Four nonagenarians (3.2%) and 25 (1.8%) controls died within 30 days. Conclusions: Advanced age alone did not affect the decision to perform the procedure. However, prompt diagnosis and treatment of post-ERCP pneumonia in nonagenarians could improve the outcomes and reduce mortality.

• Korean Journal of Radiology
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• v.23 no.9
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• pp.878-888
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• 2022

Objective: To investigate the clinical impact of a quality improvement program including dedicated emergency radiology personnel (QIP-DERP) on the management of emergency surgical patients in the emergency department (ED). Materials and Methods: This retrospective study identified all adult patients (n = 3667) who underwent preoperative body CT, for which written radiology reports were generated, and who subsequently underwent non-elective surgery between 2007 and 2018 in the ED of a single urban academic tertiary medical institution. The study cohort was divided into periods before and after the initiation of QIP-DERP. We matched the control group patients (i.e., before QIP-DERP) to the QIP-DERP group patients using propensity score (PS), with a 1:2 matching ratio for the main analysis and a 1:1 ratio for sub-analyses separately for daytime (8:00 AM to 5:00 PM on weekdays) and after-hours. The primary outcome was timing of emergency surgery (TES), which was defined as the time from ED arrival to surgical intervention. The secondary outcomes included ED length of stay (LOS) and intensive care unit (ICU) admission rate. Results: According to the PS-matched analysis, compared with the control group, QIP-DERP significantly decreased the median TES from 16.7 hours (interquartile range, 9.4-27.5 hours) to 11.6 hours (6.6-21.9 hours) (p < 0.001) and the ICU admission rate from 33.3% (205/616) to 23.9% (295/1232) (p < 0.001). During after-hours, the QIP-DERP significantly reduced median TES from 19.9 hours (12.5-30.1 hours) to 9.6 hours (5.7-19.1 hours) (p < 0.001), median ED LOS from 9.1 hours (5.6-16.5 hours) to 6.7 hours (4.9-11.3 hours) (p < 0.001), and ICU admission rate from 35.5% (108/304) to 22.0% (67/304) (p < 0.001). Conclusion: QIP-DERP implementation improved the quality of emergency surgical management in the ED by reducing TES, ED LOS, and ICU admission rate, particularly during after-hours.