• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.36 no.5
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• pp.515-527
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• 2003

Objectives： A meta-analysis of the literatures was conducted to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of medical nutrition therapy by dietitians. Methods : The 30 studies were identified from a computerized search of published research on MEDLINE, Science-Direct and the PQD database until May, 2002 and a review of reference lists. The main search terms were“dietitian”,“dietary intervention”,“nutrition intervention”, “cost”,“cost-effectiveness”and“cost-benefit analysis”. The subgroup analysis was performed by publication year, study design, intervention provider, type of patient (in/out-patient) and type of cost (total cost/direct cost). Two reviewers independently selected trials for inclusion, assessed the quality and extracted the data. Results : The 30 studies were identified using the electric database search and bibliographies. The 17 trials were eligible for inclusion criteria, then the systematic review and a meta-analysis were conducted on effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of medical nutrition therapy. The quality of the studies was evaluated using the quality assessment tool for observational studies. The quality score was 0.515 $\pm$ 0.121 (range : 0.279-0.711, median : 0.466). The meta-analysis of 17 studies based on the random effect model showed that medical nutrition therapy was highly effective in treating the diseases (effect size 0.3092 : 95% confidence interval 0.2282-0.3303). The vote-counting method, one of meta-analysis methods, was applied to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of medical nutrition therapy conducted by dietitians. Two criteria (method 1, method 2) for voting were used. The calculated p-values for method 1 (more conservative method) and method 2 (less conservative method) were 0.1250 and 0.0106, respectively. Medical nutrition therapy by dietitians was significantly cost-effective in the method 2. Conclusion. This meta-analysis showed that the effectiveness of medical nutrition therapy was statistically significant in treating disease (effect size 0.3092), and that the cost-effectiveness of medical nutrition therapy was statistically significant in the method 2 (less conservative method) of vote counting. (Korean J Nutrition 36(5): 515~527, 2003)

• Quality Improvement in Health Care
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.44-52
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• 2013

Objectives: Several studies on hospital malnutrition have reported that malnutrition among patients is highly prevalent and that more than 40% of hospitalized patients have nutritional risk factors. The purpose of this study was to assess the implementation of physicians' prescribed nutrition therapy before and after a protocol on nutrition therapy for malnourished inpatients was instituted. Methods: Data regarding the rates of physician implementation of nutritional therapy and the duration of therapy were collected and analyzed using SPSS version 20. Results: The percentages of physicians who prescribed nutrition therapy before and after the protocol was initiated were 47.5% and 74.6%, respectively, which statistically significant with 95% confidence. The rates of therapy lasting less than 24 hours before and after the protocol was in place were 100% and 86.4%, respectively, which was not statistically significant. This result suggests that the improvement activity was not effective. Conclusion : The percentage of physicians who prescribed nutritional therapy based on improved nutritional program was significantly increased. Nutrition therapy for malnourished inpatients can be advanced through this new model.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition Conference
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• 2004.11a
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• pp.71-72
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• 2004

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.350-361
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• 2013

aksun(藥饍), or 'Traditional oriental medicine nutrition therapy', is expected to be an effective nutritional intervention for the patients suffering from chronic diseases. However, there are no systemized protocol that utilize Yaksun as an effective nutrition therapy for Asian patients even though they are accustomed to traditional oriental diet. We investigated the possibility of using Yaksun for developing an effective Medical Nutrition Therapy for Asian patients and proposed factors that have to be considered. Articles published between 1995-2012 about MNT (Medical Nutrition Therapy) and Yaksun were reviewed. Male and female patients of two Korean Medicine Hospitals (n=93) and one Korean Medicine Clinic (n=20) answered a questionnaire asking about their thoughts on the effectiveness of nutritional intervention for their disease management and about their expectations toward Medical Nutrition Therapy on Korean Medicine. 92.9% of the patients have perceived that nutritional intervention is important in disease management. 79.6% of the patients have positively responded that they are willing to use the Medical Nutrition Therapy on Korean Medicine as a clinical nutrition therapy if developed. Female patients, aged in their forties and fifties, educated equivalent to high school graduates and more, and who visited Korean medicine clinic were most interested in the Medical Nutritional Therapy on Korean Medicine. The factors considered in developing the protocol are 1. effectiveness 2. safety 3. expense, in order of importance. Nutritional intervention protocol using Yacksun is necessary for the patients. Medical Nutrition Therapy on Korean Medicine is in need of development. Accumulated case-control studies, cost effectiveness studies, and studies about programming and systemizing the protocol are needed.

• Journal of Digestive Cancer Research
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.15-20
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• 2014

Cancer, especially GI cancer itself and any associated treatments have profound effect on the patient's nutritional status. It is therefore very important to understand various nutritional issues in GI cancer patients for the cure and for increasing the compliance during the course of the treatment. Screening and identification of nutritional risk for the GI cancer patients is very essential and is plays a critical part of the treatment to help improve patient outcomes. Maintaining optimal nutritional status is an important goal in the management of individuals diagnosed, treated with cancer. Maintenance of adequate nutritional intake is important whether patients are undergoing active therapy, recovering from cancer therapy, or are in remission and striving to avoid cancer recurrence. The goals of nutrition therapy are to prevent or reverse nutrient deficiencies, preserve lean body mass, help patients better tolerate treatments and minimize nutrition-related side effects and complications, etc. Recent interest in clinical settings is also in maximizing quality of life of the patients which can also be modulated by appropriate nutrition.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Culture
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• v.28 no.6
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• pp.562-575
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• 2013

Century-old nutrition and health concepts can be revived and applied in the modern age in the forms of newly developed menus, recipes, and lifestyle education. Current medical nutrition therapy concepts were first described in the Chosun Dynasty (1392-1897) in Korea based on the philosophy that food and medicine originate from the same source, which is known as 'food as medicine'. Recognizing the importance of culture, tradition, local diet, and lifestyle on health and medical nutrition therapy, we tried to rediscover traditional Korean approaches towards food consumption and nutrition through systematic review of the literature and developed contemporary menus accordingly. The medical nutrition therapy prescriptions described in 'Shikryochanyo' (1460) by the Chosun Dynasty's royal physician Soonyi Jeao cover 45 different diseases. In this project, we developed contemporary menus for those disease models that are most prevalent in modern society. Menus developed with foods that are readily available today were evaluated for their nutritional content and adequacy using a computer-aided nutritional analysis program (CAN pro 3.0, developed by the Korean Nutrition Society for comparison with RDA for Koreans). Therefore, century-old nutrition and health concepts can be revived and applied in modern society as newly developed menus recipes and lifestyle education.

• Journal of the Korean Dietetic Association
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• v.11 no.1
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• pp.125-132
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• 2005

Hypercholesterolemia has been regarded as a major risk factor of coronary heart disease(CHD). CHD is increasing in recent years among Koreans due to westernization of lifestyle and dietary behaviors. In the United States, implementation of the National Cholesterol Education Program(NCEP) had resulted 40% decline in mortality from CHD. This study was designed to evaluate the effect of medical nutrition therapy on serum lipid levels and discuss the effective nutrition education contents. Thirty outpatients(Male 40%, female 60%) with hypercholesterolemia were educated by medical nutrition therapy(MNT) protocol. At first visit and after three months of MNT, we assessed serum lipid profile, body weight and surveyed general characteristics, lifestyle and food habits through questionnaire. After 12 weeks of MNT, there were significant reductions in serum cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol(LDL-C). Foods habits and lifestyle were changed to the desirable patterns. These results indicate that lipid profile is improved by changes of dietary behaviors and lifestyle. Especially in case of obesity, cholesterol lowering effect of MNT was more powerful. Consequently, MNT is effective on reduction of serum lipids by behavior change in hypercholesterolemic patients.

• Journal of the Korean Dietetic Association
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.32-39
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• 2003

Although medical nutrition therapy (MNT) is considered as a cornerstone of medical treatment for hypercholesterolemia, few studies have evaluated medical and economical outcome of MNT. This study was conducted to identify whether MNT administered by registered dieticians could lead to a beneficial clinical and cost outcome in persons with hypercholesterolemia. A prospective clinical trial was carried out at outpatient clinics, which involved an initial visit with a dietitian followed by another visit at first 4 weeks during the 6 weeks study periods. Thirty-nine subjects took part in a 6 weeks nutrition intervention program. Clinical and economical outcomes were compared before and after MNT. Medical nutrition therapy lowered total serum cholesterol level 6.1% (P<0.05), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) 9.4% (P<0.05) and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) 3.0% (P<0.05). The cost-effective ratio was ￦ 1,520/cholesterol mg/dl and ￦ 1,441/LDL-cholesterol mg/dl, respectively. After dietitian's intervention, lipid drug eligibility was obviated in 16 of 39(41%) subjects. The cost savings from the avoidance of lipid medications was ￦ 151,107 per patient annually. In conclusion, it is suggested that provision of systemic intensive nutritional care for persons with hypercholesterolemia has significant effects on serum cholesterol reduction and clinical cost savings.

• Proceedings of the KSCN Conference
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• 2001.12a
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• pp.975.1-975
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• 2001

• Journal of the Korean Dietetic Association
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.112-122
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• 1996

This study was designed to provide data useful for the efficiency of dietitians' nutrition care by evaluating medical staffs' perception of nutrition in a hospital. The datas were collected through a questionnaire survey conducted upon 874 medical staffs at 50 general hospitals , each one with more than 100 beds, in Seoul and Pusan. A logistic regression analysis was used to determine the influential factors of medical staffs' perception about nutrition among the selected variables. As a result, most medical staffs(96.9%) had positive perceptions about the importance of nutrition as a medical therapy. However, more than half of the respondents(69.1%) said that the dietary department plays the auxilliary role of producing patients' meals according to diet prescriptions. 271% of the medical staffs perceived that the dietary department as contributor to patient's health care through involvement in medical nutrition therapy, while 4% of the medical staffs misunderstood the dietary department as part of the hospital administration. The results of logistic regression analysis showed that factors related to hospital size and dietitian manpower( Total No. of beds, No. of beds per dietitian) have more influence upon medical staffs' perception about nutrition than their personal and occupational characteristics(P (0.001). In case where medical staffs' perceptions were more positive, the efficiency of dietitians performing nutrition care was higher. Results of this study suggests optimal dietetics staffing as a way to increase the efficiency of nutrition care in a hospital.