• Physical Therapy Korea
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.11-18
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• 2022

Background: Muscle activities of gluteus maximus (GM) and hamstring (HAM) have important roles in the stability and mobility of the hip joint during various functional activities including bridge and prone hip extension exercises. Objects: The purpose of this study is to investigate muscle activities of GM, multifidus (MF) and HAM during three different bridge exercises in healthy individuals. Methods: Twenty healthy subjects were participated. Electromyography device was used to measure muscle activities of GM, MF and HAM. Each subject was asked to perform three different bridge exercises with hip abduction (0°, 15°, 30°) in random order. One-way repeated measures analysis of the variance and a Bonferroni post hoc test were used. Statistical significance was set at α = 0.01. Results: The muscle activity of GM was significantly different among three conditions (hip abduction 0°, 15°, 30°) (adjusted p-value [Padj] < 0.01). The muscle activity of GM was significantly greater during bridge exercise with hip abduction 30° compared to 0° and 15° (Padj < 0.01). There was no significant difference in the muscle activity of MF and HAM muscle (Padj > 0.01). The ratio of muscle activity (ratio = GM/HAM) during bridge exercise with hip abduction 30° was significant greater compared to the hip abduction angles 0° and 15° (Padj < 0.01). Conclusion: Bridge exercise with hip abduction 30° can be recommended to selectively facilitate the muscle activity of GM and improve the ratio of muscle activity between GM and HAM.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.269-278
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• 2022

Background: PTSD (Post-traumatic stress disorder, PTSD) had a great impact on health care workers during the COVID-19 (Corona Virus Disease 2019, COVID-19). Better knowledge of the prevalence of PTSD and its risk factors is a major public health problem. This study was conducted to assess the prevalence and important risk factors of PTSD among medical staff during the COVID-19. Methods: The databases were searched for studies published during the COVID-19, and a PRISMA (preferred reporting items for systematic review and meta-analysis) compliant systematic review (PROSPERO-CRD 42021278970) was carried out to identify articles from multiple databases reporting the prevalence of PTSD outcomes among medical staff. Proportion random effect analysis, I² statistic, quality assessment, subgroup analysis, and sensitivity analysis were carried out. Results: A total of 28 cross-sectional studies and the PTSD results of doctors and nurses were summarized from 14 and 27 studies: the prevalences were 31% (95% CI [confidence interval, CI]: 21%-40%) and 38% (95% CI: 30%-45%) in doctors and nurses, respectively. The results also showed seven risks (p < 0.05): long working hours, isolation wards, COVID-19 symptoms, nurses, women, fear of infection, and pre-existing mental illness. Two factors were of borderline significance: higher professional titles and married. Conclusion: Health care workers have a higher prevalence of PTSD during COVID-19. Health departments should provide targeted preventive measures for medical staff away from PTSD.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
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• v.49 no.5
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• pp.617-632
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• 2022

Tracheoesophageal puncture (TEP) and voice prosthesis insertion following laryngectomy may fail to form an adequate seal. When spontaneous closure of the fistula tract does not occur after conservative measures, surgical closure is required. The purpose of this study was to summarize the available evidence on surgical methods for TEP site closure. A comprehensive search across PubMed, Web of Science, SCOPUS, and Cochrane was performed to identify studies describing surgical techniques, outcomes, and complications for TEP closure. We evaluated the rate of unsuccessful TEP closure after surgical management. A meta-analysis with a random-effect method was performed. Thirty-four studies reporting on 144 patients satisfied inclusion criteria. The overall incidence of an unsuccessful TEP surgical closure was 6% (95% confidence interval [CI] 1-13%). Subgroup analysis showed an unsuccessful TEP closure rate for silicone button of 8% (95% CI < 1-43%), 7% (95% CI < 1-34%) for dermal graft interposition, < 1% (95% CI < 1-37%) for radial forearm free flap, < 1% (95% CI < 1-52%) for ligation of the fistula, 17% (95% CI < 1-64%) for interposition of a deltopectoral flap, 9% (95% CI < 1-28%) for primary closure, and 2% (95% CI < 1-20%) for interposition of a sternocleidomastoid muscle flap. Critical assessment of the reconstructive modality should take into consideration previous history of surgery or radiotherapy. Nonirradiated fields and small defects may benefit from fistula excision and tracheal and esophageal multilayer closure. In cases of previous radiotherapy, local flaps or free tissue transfer yield high successful TEP closure rates. Depending on the defect size, sternocleidomastoid muscle flap or fasciocutaneous free flaps are optimal alternatives.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.11-18
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• 2023

This study explores a new energy partitioning approach to determine the fracture toughness of 3-D printed pristine/recycled high density polyethylene (HDPE) blends employing the essential work of fracture (EWF) concept. The traditional EWF approach conducts a uniaxial tensile test with double-edge notched tensile (DENT) specimens and measures the total energy defined by the area under a load-displacement curve until failure. The approach assumes that the entire total energy contributes to the fracture process only. This assumption is generally true for extruded polymers that fracture occurs in a material body. In contrast to the traditional extrusion manufacturing process, the current 3-D printing technique employs fused deposition modeling (FDM) that produces layer-by-layer structured specimens. This type of specimen tends to include separation energy even after the complete failure of specimens when the fracture test is conducted. The separation is not relevant to the fracture process, and the raw experimental data are likely to possess random variation or noise during fracture testing. Therefore, the current EWF approach may not be suitable for the fracture characterization of 3-D printed specimens. This paper proposed a new energy partitioning approach to exclude the irrelevant energy of the specimens caused by their intrinsic structural issues. The approach determined the energy partitioning location based on experimental data and observations. Results prove that the new approach provided more consistent results with a higher coefficient of correlation.

• Proceedings of the Korea Water Resources Association Conference
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• 2023.05a
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• pp.179-179
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• 2023

This study suggests a new approach of water level forecasting for extended lead times using original data preprocessing with variational mode decomposition (VMD). Here, two machine learning algorithms including light gradient boosting machine (LGBM) and random forest (RF) were considered to incorporate extended lead times (i.e., 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 40, and 50 days) forecasting of water levels. At first, the original data at two water level stations (i.e., SW173 and SW269 in Bangladesh) and their decomposed data from VMD were prepared on antecedent lag times to analyze in the datasets of different lead times. Mean absolute error (MAE), root mean squared error (RMSE), and mean squared error (MSE) were used to evaluate the performance of the machine learning models in water level forecasting. As results, it represents that the errors were minimized when the decomposed datasets were considered to predict water levels, rather than the use of original data standalone. It was also noted that LGBM produced lower MAE, RMSE, and MSE values than RF, indicating better performance. For instance, at the SW173 station, LGBM outperformed RF in both decomposed and original data with MAE values of 0.511 and 1.566, compared to RF's MAE values of 0.719 and 1.644, respectively, in a 30-day lead time. The models' performance decreased with increasing lead time, as per the study findings. In summary, preprocessing original data and utilizing machine learning models with decomposed techniques have shown promising results for water level forecasting in higher lead times. It is expected that the approach of this study can assist water management authorities in taking precautionary measures based on forecasted water levels, which is crucial for sustainable water resource utilization.

• The Journal of Korean Physical Therapy
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• v.35 no.1
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• pp.13-18
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• 2023

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of posterior oblique sling activation on the muscle activities of the gluteus maximus (GM), multifidus (MF), and biceps femoris (BF) during three different prone hip extension exercises in healthy male individuals. Methods: Twenty healthy subjects participated in this study. An electromyography device was used to measure the muscle activities of the GM, MF, and BF. Each subject was asked to perform three different prone hip extensions as follows: [1) Prone hip extension with knee flexion + hip abduction 30°; PHE1, 2) Prone hip extension with knee flexion + hip abduction 30° and shoulder abduction 125°; PHE2, 3) Prone hip extension with knee flexion + hip abduction 30° and shoulder abduction 125° with 1kg loading; PHE3, in random order. A one-way repeated measures analysis of the variance and a Bonferroni post hoc test were used to analyze the results. The statistical significance was set at α=0.01. Results: The muscle activity of the GM was significantly different between the three positions (P_adj<0.01). The muscle activity of the GM was significantly greater during PHE3 compared with PHE1 and PHE2 (P_adj<0.01). The BF muscle activity was significantly lower during PHE3 compared with PHE1 and PHE2 (P_adj< 0.01). There was no significant difference in the muscle activity of the MF (P_adj<0.01). The ratio of the muscle activity (ratio=GM/BF) during PHE3 was significantly greater compared to PHE1 and PHE2 (P_adj< 0.01). Conclusion: The GM activity and GM/BF ratio during the PHE3 exercise were significantly greater compared to that during PHE1 and PHE2. Therefore, the PHE3 exercise could be recommended as a selectively effective GM activation exercise while decreasing the muscle activity of the BF.

• The Journal of Korea Institute of Information, Electronics, and Communication Technology
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.97-103
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• 2023

Since most of the information is transmitted through the network, eavesdropping and interception by a third party may occur. Appropriate measures are required for effective, secure and confidential communication in the network. Steganography is a technology that prevents third parties from detecting that confidential information is hidden in other media. Due to structural vulnerabilities, information protected by encryption and steganography techniques can be easily exposed to illegitimate groups. In order to improve the limitations of LSB where the simplicity and predictability of the hiding method exist, I propose a technique to improve the security of the message to be hidden based on PRNG and recursive function. To enhance security and confusion, XOR operation was performed on the result of selecting a random bit from the upper bits of the selected channel and the information transformed by the RS-box. PSNR and SSIM were used to confirm the performance of the proposed method. Compared to the reference values, the SSIM and PSNR of the proposed method were 0.9999 and 51.366, respectively, confirming that they were appropriate for hiding information.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Dental Administration
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• v.11 no.1
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• pp.8-18
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• 2023

The purpose of this study is to examine the organizational culture of dental hospitals and clinics, as well as to assess members' perceptions and actual conditions related to sexual harassment. The research method involved conducting a cross-sectional survey of 149 dental hygienists using random sampling. The analysis utilized frequency analysis and descriptive statistical analysis. Regarding awareness of organizational culture within the workplace, 39.6% responded, "It is difficult to freely use maternity and childcare leave at our workplace". When asked about sexual harassment, 51.7% of respondents said they had received training on sexual harassment prevention. The highest level of sexual harassment experienced was "sexual analogy or evaluation of appearance", at 45.8%. The most common perpetrators of sexual harassment were agency heads and directors, at 37.5%. The most common behavior of the victim at the time was "changing the subject or avoiding the scene" (41.7%). 50.0% of victims of sexual harassment responded to the harm by "just putting up with it". The most common response to the direct and indirect impact of sexual harassment was "there was no specific impact". The most common response from the agency was "there were no suitable measures". Regarding the most necessary policy to prevent sexual harassment, "strict punishment for perpetrators (37.5%)" was the highest. There is a need for organizational and cultural changes to reduce sexual harassment in the workplace. Additionally, it is crucial for the country and society as a whole to actively participate in and improve the system.

• Journal of Veterinary Science
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.41.1-41.12
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• 2024

Importance: Equines are indispensable in reducing the huge burden on children and women and income generation. On the other hand, minimal attention is given to improving their health and welfare. Objective: This study examined the prevalence and associated risk factors of helminth parasites of equine in the Gamo Gofa Zone. Methods: A cross-sectional study was employed from June 2019 to March 2020. The study districts and Kebeles were selected purposively based on agroecology whereas selection of study households and animals were performed based on simple random sampling techniques. Identification of nematode, trematode parasite ova and larvae of D. arnfieldi were done by floatation, sedimentation, and Baermann techniques respectively. Descriptive statistics and logistic regression was applied to estimate the prevalence and association of risk factors with helminth parasites. Results: The overall helminth parasite prevalence in the study area was 90.4%, 425/470 (95% [CI], 87.16-92.9). The prevalence of Strongyle, Fasciola, O. equi, P. equorum, D. arnfieldi, and mixed parasite infections were 65.1%, 21.7%, 17.4%, 34%, 34%, and 58.1%, respectively. Infections from Fasciola species and D. arnfieldi infection were four ([AOR], 4.4; 95% CI, 2-9.4) and two times (AOR, 2; 95% CI, 1.1-3.6) respectively more likely occur in donkeys than in mules. The occurrence of Strongyle species in midland agroecology was two times (AOR, 2.6; 95% CI, 1.4-4.7) more likely than lowland agroecology. Conclusions and Relevance: The present study identified diverse species of equine helminth parasites that necessitate urgent disease control and prevention measures.

• Journal of Dental Anesthesia and Pain Medicine
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.119-128
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• 2024

Background: In pediatric dentistry, fear and anxiety are common among children. Local anesthetics (LA) are widely used to control pain and reduce discomfort in children during dental treatment. Topical anesthetics play a vital role in reducing pain and the unpleasant sensation of a needle puncture in children. Peppermint oil has been extensively used for various diseases. However, its anesthetic properties remain unknown. Peppermint oil, used in mouthwashes, toothpastes, and other topical preparations has analgesic, anesthetic, and antiseptic properties. This study aimed to compare and evaluate pain perception following the topical application of peppermint oil versus lignocaine spray before an intraoral injection in children, aged 8-13 years. Method: Fifty-two children, aged between 8-13 years, who required local anesthesia for dental treatment were divided into two groups of 26 each by simple random sampling (Group 1: 0.2% peppermint oil and Group 2: lignocaine spray). In both groups, physiological measurements (e.g., heart rate) were recorded using pulse oximetry before, during, and after the procedure. Objective pain measurement (Sound Eye Motor (SEM) scale) during administration and subjective measuremeant (Wong-Baker Faces Pain Rating Scale (WBFPRS)) after LA administration were recorded. This was followed by the required treatment of the child. Physiological parameters were compared between the two groups using an independent t-test for intergroup assessment and a paired t-test and repeated-measures ANOVA for intragroup comparisons. The Mann-Whitney U test was used to analyze the pain scores. Results: Intragroup mean heart rates, before, during, and after treatment were statistically significantly different (P < 0.05). However, the intergroup mean pulse rates did not differ significantly between the two groups. The mean WBFPS score in the lignocaine spray group was 4.133 ± 2.06 was statistically different from that of the peppermint oil group (0.933 ± 1.03; P < 0.001^*). The mean SEM score was significantly lower in the peppermint oil group than that in the lignocaine spray group (P = 0.006). No negative effects were observed in this study. Conclusion: 0.2% peppermint oil was effective in reducing pain perception.