• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제15권2호
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• pp.957-961
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• 2014

Purpose: With regard to the protective effect of vitamin D against colorectal cancer (CRC), we evaluated genetic variants that might influence vitamin D metabolism: vitamin D receptor (VDR), vitamin D binding protein (GC), vitamin D 25-hydroxylase (CYP2R1), and vitamin D 25-hydroxy 1-alpha hydroxylase (CYP27B1). Materials and Methods: A total of 657 subjects, including 303 cases with CRC and 354 controls were enrolled in this case-control study. All 657 were genotyped for the four gene variants using PCR-RFLP methods. Results: In this study, no significant difference was observed for VDR (rs2238136), GC (rs4588), CYP2R1 (rs12794714), and CYP27B1 (rs3782130) gene variants in either genotype or allele frequencies between the cases with CRC and the controls and this lack of difference remained even after adjustment for age, BMI, sex, smoking status, NSAID use, and family history of CRC. Furthermore, no evidence for effect modification of the variants and CRC by BMI, sex, or tumor site was observed. Conclusions: Our findings do not support a role for VDR, GC, and CYP27B1 genes in CRC risk in our Iranian population. Another interesting finding, which to our knowledge has not been reported previously, was the lack of association with the CYP2R1 gene polymorphism. Nonetheless, our findings require confirmation and possible roles of vitamin D metabolism-related genes in carcinogenesis need to be further investigated.

• Journal of Menopausal Medicine
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• 제24권3호
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• pp.183-187
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• 2018

Objectives: The present mini review aimed to summarize the existing knowledge regarding the beneficial and adverse effects of raloxifene in menopausal women. Methods: This study is a review of relevant publications about the effects of raloxifene on sleep disorder, depression, venous thromboembolism, the plasma concentration of lipoprotein, breast cancer, and cognitive function among menopausal women. Results: Raloxifene showed no significant effect on depression and sleep disorder. Verbal memory improved with administration of 60 mg/day of raloxifene while a mild cognitive impairment risk reduction by 33% was observed with administration of 120 mg/day of raloxifene. Raloxifene was associated with a 50% decrease in the need for prolapse surgery. The result of a meta-analysis showed a significant decline in the plasma concentration of lipoprotein in the raloxifene group compared to placebo (standardized mean difference, -0.43; 10 trials). A network meta-analysis showed that raloxifene significantly decreased the risk of breast cancer (relative risk, 0.572; 95% confidence interval, 0.327-0.881; P = 0.01). In terms of adverse effects of raloxifene, the odds ratio (OR) was observed to be 1.54 (P = 0.006), indicating 54% increase in the risk of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) while the OR for pulmonary embolism (PE) was 1.05, suggesting a 91% increase in the risk of PE alone (P = 0.03). Conclusions: Raloxifene had no significant effect on depression and sleep disorder but decreased the concentration of lipoprotein. Raloxifene administration was associated with an increased risk of DVT and PE and a decreased risk of breast cancer and pelvic organ prolapse in postmenopausal women.

• Genomics & Informatics
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• 제12권1호
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• pp.21-34
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• 2014

A visual analysis approach and the developed supporting technology provide a comprehensive solution for analyzing large and complex integrated genomic and biomedical data. This paper presents a methodology that is implemented as an interactive visual analysis technology for extracting knowledge from complex genetic and clinical data and then visualizing it in a meaningful and interpretable way. By synergizing the domain knowledge into development and analysis processes, we have developed a comprehensive tool that supports a seamless patient-to-patient analysis, from an overview of the patient population in the similarity space to the detailed views of genes. The system consists of multiple components enabling the complete analysis process, including data mining, interactive visualization, analytical views, and gene comparison. We demonstrate our approach with medical scientists on a case study of childhood cancer patients on how they use the tool to confirm existing hypotheses and to discover new scientific insights.

• Korea Journal of Hospital Management
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• 제17권4호
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• pp.167-187
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• 2012

Organizational growth is achieved through the process of finding opportunities in the environment and establishing a business model with internal and external resources. Bestian Hospital, which primarily focuses on saving the lives of patients with severe burns, has enlarged its business domain through deep understanding of burn patients' problems, including pain and complications during treatments, long-term treatments, skin reconstruction, and so on. Now Bestian is accelerating research for development of antipyretics and cosmetics for burn patients. The success of Bestian has been due to utilization of human and material resources that are essential to performance in the medical field. Also, Bestian properly used a management service organization(MSO) model and constructed an information technology(IT) system for supporting its businesses. However, previous successes do not guarantee continued success. Bestian is entering a new domain with different challenges than it has experienced so far, and how it deals with these challenges will decide its future.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제16권12호
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• pp.4859-4862
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• 2015

Background: Fatigue, stress and pain are common symptoms among cancer patients, affecting the quality of life. The purpose of the present study was to determine the effect of distant Reiki on pain, anxiety and fatigue in oncology patients. Materials and Methods: Participants in the control group received usual medical and nursing care during their stay. The intervention group received usual care plus five distant Reiki sessions, one each night for 30 min. A face to face interview was performed and patient personal and illness related characteristics were evaluated using the Patient Characteristics form. Pain, stress and fatigue were evaluated according to a numeric rating scale. Results: The experimental group was predominantly composed of women (71.4%), married individuals (40%), and primary school graduates (40%). The control group was predominantly male (72.7%), married (60%), and primary school graduates (60%). The control group demonstrated greater levels of pain (p=0.002), stress (p=0.001) and fatigue (p=0.001). The Reiki group pain score (p <0.0001), stress score (p <0.001) and fatigue score were also significantly lower. Conclusions: The results of this study indicate that Reiki may d ecreasepain, anxiety and fatigue in oncology patients.

• BMB Reports
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• 제54권6호
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• pp.295-304
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• 2021

Olfactory neuropathology is a cause of olfactory loss in Alzheimer's disease (AD). Olfactory dysfunction is also associated with memory and cognitive dysfunction and is an incidental finding of AD dementia. Here we review neuropathological research on the olfactory system in AD, considering both structural and functional evidence. Experimental and clinical findings identify olfactory dysfunction as an early indicator of AD. In keeping with this, amyloid-β production and neuroinflammation are related to underlying causes of impaired olfaction. Notably, physiological features of the spatial map in the olfactory system suggest the evidence of ongoing neurodegeneration. Our aim in this review is to examine olfactory pathology findings essential to identifying mechanisms of olfactory dysfunction in the development of AD in hopes of supporting investigations leading towards revealing potential diagnostic methods and causes of early pathogenesis in the olfactory system.

• Korean Journal of Chemical Engineering
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• 제35권11호
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• pp.2313-2320
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• 2018

Tetramethylene-1,4-bis(N,N-dodecylammonium bromide), cationic gemini surfactant, (12-4-12) was first synthesized with an one-step and shortened procedure and its interfacial and antimicrobial properties were compared with a conventional single-chain cationic surfactant, cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB). The interfacial and thermodynamic properties of both surfactants reveal that critical micelle concentration (CMC) of this novel synthetic cationic dimeric surfactant is lower than that of cationic monomeric surfactant at almost 15 times of its magnitude, which is due to the increase in hydrophobicity of the surfactant molecules by having dual hydrocarbon chains. In comparison with CTAB, the produced compound 12-4-12 yields much better interfacial and thermodynamic properties. The antimicrobial activities of the synthesized gemini surfactant were tested against eight strains of bacteria, as well as two strains of fungi. The results showed that both 12-4-12 compound and CTAB exhibited higher inhibitory effects on the growth of Gram-positive bacteria and fungi than that of Gram-negative bacteria. The minimum inhibitory concentrations in molar of 12-4-12 against all tested Gram-negative bacteria were lower than those of CTAB, which is hypothetically due to the lower HLB together with smaller CMC values of our gemini surfactant.

• Journal of Korea Multimedia Society
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• 제21권6호
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• pp.723-735
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• 2018

Indicators to quantitatively assess the physical conditions can help optimize the effectiveness of rehabilitation therapy for stroke patients. The body composition variations in the paretic and non-paretic regions of stroke patients with cerebral infarction (7 males, 31 females) were analyzed using multi-frequency bioelectrical impedance. Specifically, resistance (R), lean mass (LM), fat mass (FM), extracellular water (ECW), intracellular water (ICW), R/LM relation, basal metabolic rate (BMR)/LM relation were utilized to evaluate the paretic and non-paretic regions of subjects with cerebral infarction. These values showed significant differences in gender and paretic/non-paretic regions. R and FM were high but LM and ICW were lower in female and paralysis. ECW was lower in females than males, but there was no considerable difference between paralysis and non-paralysis in both males and females. In addition, there was an inverse distribution between R and LM in paretic and non-paretic regions, with males on the upper left and females on the lower right. Furthermore, the relationship between BMR and LM showed excellent linearity (slope: 22.17 kcal/day/kg) irrespective of gender, paralysis, and non-paralysis. An easy, non-invasive and quantitative assessment using bioelectrical impedance would provide an useful tool for evaluating patients with cerebral infarction receiving rehabilitation therapy.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제17권8호
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• pp.3983-3988
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• 2016

Background: Cervical cancer though preventable is still the leading cause of cancer death among women secondary to breast cancer. Persistent infection with HPV has been causally linked to the disease. A school based HPV vaccination program was introduced in late 2010 in Malaysia and nurse support is essential for its success. Objectives: To determine nurses knowledge and attitudes about HPV infection and its vaccines, and factors associated with their knowledge. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among nurses working at primary health clinics in Kelantan from mid-June till the end of July 2014. Its involved 330 nurses selected through multistage random sampling. A validated self-administered questionnaire consisting of 11 items for the knowledge domain and eight items for the attitude domain was used. Results: The response rate of the study was 93.7%. The mean knowledge and mean attitude (SD) scores were 5.37 (1.76) and 29.8 (3.51) respectively. Only 24% knew that HPV is the most common sexually transmitted infection and 67% correctly answered that Gardasil vaccine can protect against four types of HPV. Nearly 60% of participants wrongly answered that HPV vaccines cannot be offered to sexually active women. Likewise, 70.9% participants were not aware that HPV vaccine may be appropriate for females aged 9 through 26 years. Though 90% of participants believed that the vaccine is safe, nearly half of them were unsure about efficacy. From multiple linear regression analysis, among the factors tested only participant's level of education showed a statistically significant association with the HPV knowledge score (p <0.001). Conclusions: This study indicates nurses have favorable attitudes towards HPV vaccination; however they have significant knowledge deficit and major misunderstanding in critical knowledge items. Among the factors tested, nursing qualification is the only factor that is significantly associated with the nurses knowledge score.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• 제16권2호
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• pp.272-283
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• 2022

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Most child and adolescent food literacy measurement tools focus on nutrition and food safety. However, the importance of aspects related to the food system such as food distribution and food waste and their effects on environmental sustainability is growing. We therefore developed and validated a two-dimensional tool for children (8-12 years old) and adolescents (13-18 years old) that can comprehensively measure food literacy. The association of food literacy with diet quality and self-reported health was assessed. SUBJECTS/METHODS: First, we developed a food literacy conceptual framework that contains food system and literacy dimensions through a literature review, focus group interviews, and expert review. After a face validity study, we conducted the main survey (n = 200) to validate the questionnaire. Construct validity and reliability were assessed using exploratory factor analysis (EFA), confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), and Cronbach's alpha. RESULTS: As a result of the Delphi study, content validity was confirmed for the remaining 30 items after two items were excluded (content validity ratio = 0.86). Eleven items were excluded from the EFA results, while the CFA results indicated appropriate fit indices for the proposed model (comparative fit index = 0.904, root mean square error of approximation = 0.068). The final food literacy questionnaire consisted of 19 questions and comprised 5 factors: production, distribution, selection, preparation and cooking, and intake. Food literacy was positively associated with diet quality, as assessed by the Nutrition Quotient score, in both children and adolescents and with self-reported health in adolescents.