• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.26 no.5
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• pp.319-330
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• 2005

Over the past few decades, much effort has been made to improve the mechanical and biological performance of HA, in order to extend its range of applications. As a major inorganic component of human hard tissues, hydroxyapatite bioceramic is regarded as being one of the most biocompatible materials. Numerous in vitro and in vivo studies have confirmed its excellent bioactivity, osteoconductivity and bone forming ability. However, because of its poor mechanical properties, its use in hard tissue applications has been restricted to those areas in which it can be used in the form of small sized powders/granules or in the non-load bearing sites. A number of researchers have focused on improving the mechanical and biological performance of HA, as well as on the formulation of hybrid and composite systems in order to extend its range of applications. In this article, we reviewed our recent works on HA-based biomaterials; i) the strengthening of HA with ceramic oxides, ii) HA-based bioactive coatings on metallic implants, iii) HA-based porous scaffolds and iv) HA-polymer hybrids/composites.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.131-139
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• 2022

The purpose of this study was to insert a pedicle screw into a pig thoracic vertebrae, a general CT scan(Non MAR), and a thoracic axial image obtained with the Metallic Artifact Reduction for Orthopedic Implants (O-MAR) to reduce artifacts. The image obtained by reconstructing the algorithm (Standard, Soft, Bone, Detail) was used using the image J program. Signal to noise ratio(SNR) and contrast to noise ratio(CNR) were compared and analyzed by obtaining measured values based on the given equation. And this study was to investigate tube voltage and algorithm suitable for CT scan for thoracic pedicle screw insertion. As a result, when non-MAR was used, the soft algorithm showed the highest SNR and CNR at 80, 100, 120, and 140 kVp, On the other hand, when MAR was used, the standard algorithm showed the highest at 80 kVp, and the standard and soft algorithms showed similar values at 100 kVp. At 120 kVp, the Soft and Standard algorithms showed similar values, and at 140 kVp, the Soft algorithm showed the highest SNR and CNR. Therefore, when comparing Non-MAR and MAR, even if MAR was used, SNR and CNR did not increase in all algorithms according to the change in tube voltage. In conclusion, it is judged that it is advantageous to use the Soft algorithm at 80, 100, 120, and 140 kVp in Non MAR, the Standard algorithm at 80 and 100 kVp in MAR, and the Soft algorithm at 120 and 140 kVp. This study is expected to serve as an opportunity to further improve the quality of images by using selective tube voltage and algorithms as basic data to help evaluate images of pedicle screw CT scans in the future.

• Investigative Magnetic Resonance Imaging
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• v.20 no.4
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• pp.215-223
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• 2016

Purpose: The management of metal-induced field inhomogeneities is one of the major concerns of distortion-free magnetic resonance images near metallic implants. The recently proposed method called "Slice Encoding for Metal Artifact Correction (SEMAC)" is an effective spin echo pulse sequence of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) near metallic implants. However, as SEMAC uses the noisy resolved data elements, SEMAC images can have a major problem for improving the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) without compromising the correction of metal artifacts. To address that issue, this paper presents a novel reconstruction technique for providing an improvement of the SNR in SEMAC images without sacrificing the correction of metal artifacts. Materials and Methods: Low-rank approximation in each coil image is first performed to suppress the noise in the slice direction, because the signal is highly correlated between SEMAC-encoded slices. Secondly, SEMAC images are reconstructed by the best linear unbiased estimator (BLUE), also known as Gauss-Markov or weighted least squares. Noise levels and correlation in the receiver channels are considered for the sake of SNR optimization. To this end, since distorted excitation profiles are sparse, $l_1$ minimization performs well in recovering the sparse distorted excitation profiles and the sparse modeling of our approach offers excellent correction of metal-induced distortions. Results: Three images reconstructed using SEMAC, SEMAC with the conventional two-step noise reduction, and the proposed image denoising for metal MRI exploiting sparsity and low rank approximation algorithm were compared. The proposed algorithm outperformed two methods and produced 119% SNR better than SEMAC and 89% SNR better than SEMAC with the conventional two-step noise reduction. Conclusion: We successfully demonstrated that the proposed, novel algorithm for SEMAC, if compared with conventional de-noising methods, substantially improves SNR and reduces artifacts.

• Korean Journal of Metals and Materials
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• v.47 no.1
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• pp.13-20
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• 2009

This work presents functionally graded coatings (FGC) of hydroxyapatite (HA) and metallic powders on Ti-6Al-4V implants using plasma spray coating method. HA has been the most frequently used coating material due to its excellent compatibility with human bones. However, because of the abrupt changes in thermomechanical properties between HA and the metallic implant across an interface, and residual stress induced on cooling from coating temperture to room temperature, debonding at the interface occurs in use sometimes. In this work, FGC of HA and Ti or Ti-alloy powders is made to mitigate the abrupt property changes at the interface and the effect of FGC on residual stress release is investigated by evaluating the mechanical bond strength between the implant and the HA coating layers. Thermal annealing is done after coating in order to crystallize the HA coating layer which tends to have amorphous structure during thermal spray coating. The effects of types and compositional ratio of metallic powders in FGC and annealing conditions on the bond strength are also evaluated by strength tests and the microstructure analysis of coating layers and interfaces. Finally, biocompatibility of the coating layers are tested under ISO 10993-5.

• Clinics in Shoulder and Elbow
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.140-145
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• 2011

Purpose: Installing a radial head prosthesis has developed into a reliable procedure to replace the native radial head for treating unreconstructible radial head fracture when this is associated with an unstable elbow or forearm. A variety of implants have been developed and these are now commercially available. This article reviews the literature related to the indications, the available implants and the surgical techniques of radial head replacement arthroplasty. Materials and Methods: The main indication for a metallic radial head prosthesis is a comminuted fracture that is not amenable to reconstruction, and particularly if it is associated with complex elbow injuries. Excision of the radial head should be avoided in the presence of combined injured ligaments or interosseous membrane injury. Three different implants are available in Korea, including the bipolar, press fit monopolar and loose fit monopolar radial head prostheses. A primary technical goal of radial head arthroplasty is the insertion of an implant that closely replicates the native radial head. The major pitfall when using a metallic radial head prosthesis is the insertion of a longer implant, which results in overstuffing of the radiocapitellar joint. Results and Conclusion: Satisfactory clinical results can be anticipated when a radial head prosthesis is used for the correct indications and when a systemic approach is undertaken to ensure proper sizing. For the future studies, we need data regarding the long term outcomes and comparison of the various types of prostheses.

• The Journal of the Korean dental association
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• v.56 no.2
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• pp.94-102
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• 2018

The present study was conducted to assess the growth changes of human chin in childhood and adolescence at various stages of skeletal maturation using metallic implant installed in mandibular body. Lateral cephalographs including 23 subjects (9 males and 14 females) between 7-18 years old were used, which had been taken at University of California in San Francisco and kept at University of the Pacific. Three lateral cephalographs were chosen for each subject according to CVM (Cervical Vertebral Maturation) method (CVM stage 1 to 2, CVM stage 3 to 4, and CVM stage 5 to 6) which assess the extent of the skeletal maturation using the second, third, and fourth cervical vertebrae. V-ceph was used in order to mark the 8 landmarks (S, N, A, B, Pog, Me, Go, Imp) on lateral cephalographs and obtain 8 angular and linear measurements(ANB, SNPog, SN-GoMe, Imp-B, Imp-Pog, B-Pog//GoMe, $GoMe{\bot}B$, $GoMe{\bot}Pog$). Among 8 measurements, ANB, SNPog, SN-GoMe, B-Pog//GoMe, $GoMe{\bot}B$ showed statistically significant growth changes at various stages of skeletal maturation according to CVM method, while there were no significant differences on Imp-B, Imp-Pog, $GoMe{\bot}Pog$. The results suggest that the increasing prominence of human chin is greatly influenced by the vertical growth of B point area, in addition to the change and growth in chin and mandible proper.

• Clinics in Shoulder and Elbow
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.84-91
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• 2007

Purpose: The aim of this study was to report seven cases of metallic radial head prosthesis and present the limit of use in Korea. Materials and Methods: Metallic radial head arthroplasty was performed on 7 patients between April 2006 and December 2006, who had complex elbow injury including comminuted radial head fracture. Indication, operative findings and outcome were assessed. Availability and payment of implant were investigated. Results: All of the patients had more than one associated injury including coronoid fracture, olecranoan fracture, and ligament ruptures. According to Mason classification, there were three type III and four type IV fractures. All radial head fractures were too comminuted to reconstruct. There were two excellent results, four good, and one poor, as graded by Mayo score. There were no patient with instability and implant related complications. Insufficient supply of implant did not enable to do scheduled surgery in 2 cases. Current medical insurance did not cover charge for radial prosthesis, five patients could not help paying for that by themselves. Conclusion: Metallic radial head implants are useful when the radial head cannot be repaired reliably. Preoperative preparing and coverage by medical insurance based on appropriate indication are helpful for decision for a treatment option.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Surface Engineering Conference
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• 2015.11a
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• pp.139-140
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• 2015

Zn/HA coating on the Ti-xNb alloys after nanotube formation for dental lmplant was researched using various experimental methods. Due to g ood biocompatibility and osteoconductivity, hydroxyapatite (HA) coating s on metallic biomedical implants were widely employed in orthopedic and dental applications. To improve biocompatibilities, Zinc (Zn) plays very important roles in the bone formation and immune reg ulations. The nanotube formed Zn-HA films were characterized with X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS).

• The korean journal of orthodontics
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• v.47 no.1
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• pp.3-10
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• 2017

Objective: Microbial aggregation around dental implants can lead to loss/loosening of the implants. This study was aimed at surface treating titanium microimplants with silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) to achieve antibacterial properties. Methods: AgNP-modified titanium microimplants (Ti-nAg) were prepared using two methods. The first method involved coating the microimplants with regular AgNPs (Ti-AgNP) and the second involved coating them with a AgNP-coated biopolymer (Ti-BP-AgNP). The topologies, microstructures, and chemical compositions of the surfaces of the Ti-nAg were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) equipped with energy-dispersive spectrometer (EDS) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Disk diffusion tests using Streptococcus mutans, Streptococcus sanguinis, and Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans were performed to test the antibacterial activity of the Ti-nAg microimplants. Results: SEM revealed that only a meager amount of AgNPs was sparsely deposited on the Ti-AgNP surface with the first method, while a layer of AgNP-coated biopolymer extended along the Ti-BP-AgNP surface in the second method. The diameters of the coated nanoparticles were in the range of 10 to 30 nm. EDS revealed 1.05 atomic % of Ag on the surface of the Ti-AgNP and an astounding 21.2 atomic % on the surface of the Ti-BP-AgNP. XPS confirmed the metallic state of silver on the Ti-BP-AgNP surface. After 24 hours of incubation, clear zones of inhibition were seen around the Ti-BP-AgNP microimplants in all three test bacterial culture plates, whereas no antibacterial effect was observed with the Ti-AgNP microimplants. Conclusions: Titanium microimplants modified with Ti-BP-AgNP exhibit excellent antibacterial properties, making them a promising implantable biomaterial.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.227-232
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• 2019

MRI examination for patients with metal objects has in poor image quality. Metallic implants can result in poor image because magnetic susceptibility causes signal loss and distortion and makes poor imaging, which is called magnetic susceptibility artifact or metal artifact. There are several approaches to reduce metal artifacts. In this study, we study the reduction of metal artifact by VAT and SEMAC techniques. A metal implant used for orthopedic surgery was attached to the phatom and the distortion caused by the artifact was measured under T1WI and T2WI protocols. Several techniques of VAT only and VAT and SEMAC for the reduction of metal artifact were compared. The metal artifact showed a reduction of at least 8% to a maximum of 26% in the VAT-SEMAC. The VAT-SEMAC technique can be applied to patients with orthopedic implants to improve image quality. If scan time and image quality are simultaneously considered in VAT-SEMAC technique, metal artifact will be reduced in clinical practice.