• Journal of Korean Public Health Nursing
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.314-323
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• 2001

The purpose of this study was to investigate the levels of hope and the influencing factors on the hope in the hemodialysis patients. The subjects of this study consisted 101 patients who had received hemodialysis In two hospitals affiliated with Catholic University from June to August, 2000. The instruments used for the study were the Hope scale by Miller(1998) and Quality of life scale, Self esteem scale and Social support scale. Cronbach's $\alpha$ of measurement tools used in the study were 0.93 for the hope, 0.96 for quality of life, 0.78 for self-esteem and 0.92 for the social support. The data were analyzed by mean, t-test, ANOVA. Scheffe test, Pearson correlation coefficients and Stepwise multiple regression using the SAS program. The results were as follows; 1. Out of a score of 164 the mean score of the hope was $107.3\pm16.7$. The mean quality of life score was 102.5 out of 160. The scores concerning social support turned out to have a mean of 67.8 out of 100. The levels concerning self-esteem and self respect had a mean of 25.1 out of 40. 2. There was a positive relation between the quality of life and social support. Furthermore, the hope level was proportional to factors such as quality of life and social support. 3. Social support accounted for $32\%$ of influential variable on the hope. If transportation way to the hospital and quality of life were added. the total predictors explained $45\%$. The results suggested that the hope levels of hemodialysis patients were influenced by their social support and quality of life. Therefore nurses are encouraged to elevate the levels of patients' hope by using the social support and quality of life in caring the patients receiving hemodyalysis.

• Journal of Korean Foot and Ankle Society
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.52-57
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• 2004

Purpose: We evaluated the effect of nerve decompression for restoration of plantar sweating and sensation in diabetic neuropathic feet, and we selected diabetic neuropathic patients with the possibility of overlying entrapmental neuropathy. Materials and Methods: From June 2002 to May 2003, we have investigated and follow-up examed 10 patients with diabetic neuropathic feet, with decreased sensation in their lower limb, who underwent peripheral nerve decompression. The surgical procedure was multiple neurolysis of the common peroneal nerve, posterior tibial nerve and its three branches of one limb. We compared the operated limb with the opposite, unoperated limb. We performed history taking, physical examination, sweat secretion test, touch sensory test using Semmes-Weinstein monofilaments and electrodiagnostic study, pre-operatively and post-operatively. Results: On 6 months after the operation, the post-operative tests showed that there were noticeable improvements to sensation, statistically (P<0.05), but there was no change in the sweat secretion test. According to the Cseuz criteria, 7 patients out of the 10 patients who received the multiple neurolysis showed excellent or good results. Conclusion: We observed that the peripheral nerve neurolysis could be benefit for improving sensation and alleviating pain of the diabetic neuropathic feet with nerve entrapmental symptoms, but there was no change in the sweat secretion on short-term follow-up. To identify whether the effect will be continued or not, additional follow-up will be required.

• Korean Journal of Biological Psychiatry
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.98-106
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• 2005

Objectives:Donepezil is a widely used drug for the treatment of patients with Alzheimer's disease(AD). The aim of the present study was to clarify the efficacy and the characteristics of responders to donepezil. Methods:Patients with probable AD(n=80;75.7 years) and small vessel dementia(SVD)(n=18;77.8 years) who received donepezil were retrospectively analyzed using Alzheimer's registry, and three questions were asked:1) Does donepezil therapy improves cognitive symptoms in patients with dementia? 2) If donepezil improves cognitive symptoms, which items of the K-MMSE are improved? 3) What are the characteristics of responder to donepezil medication? Results:1) After donepezil medication, cognitive function measured by the K-MMSE was significantly improved in both types of dementia(AD and SVD), However, statistical differences were not found between these groups. 2) In a clinical trial of donepezil, the patients performed better than before mediation on K-MMSE items assessing orientation, recall, construction, concentration, calculation. 3) In AD, the K-MMSE score before medication was closely related with response of donepezil. Conclusion:This study suggests that donepezil improves various cognitive functions in both types of dementia, and the responsive group had significantly lower K-MMSE scores than the non-responsive group before medication.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.111-117
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• 2011

Objectives : This study aimed to report observed effectiveness and safety of Taegeuk acupuncture for patients in sub-health status. Methods : We analyzed clinical medical records of 36 outpatients who have visited the Pusan national university Korean medicine hospital between March and June, 2010. Patients received 6 sessions of Taegeuk acupuncture according to their constitutional types. Hepatic dullness sound and symptom reduction were used for the evaluation of clinical effectiveness of Taegeuk acupuncture. One traditional Korean medicine doctor performed all treatment procedures and assessments. Patients were allowed to continue their previous medication during acupuncture treatment. However, no additional traditional Korean medicinal interventions except the acupuncture were conducted during the whole treatment period. Results : After 6 sessions of Taegeuk acupuncture, mean hepatic dullness sound scores (0~100) were reduced from $97.3{\pm}9.0$ to $24.3{\pm}23.7$ with statistical significance (n=36, p<0.001). Mean symptom reduction scores (0~100) were changed from 0 to $53.3{\pm}29.6$ with statistical significance (n=24, p<0.001). 24 patients reported 44 cases of additional improvements of perceived health condition during or after the treatment course. No serious adverse events related to the Taegeuk acupuncture treatment were observed. Conclusions : Taegeuk acupunture may be a feasible, effective and safe treatment intervention for patients with chronic symptoms. Further well-designed studies are needed to confirm those observed improvements and evaluate benefits of Taegeuk acupuncture.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Environmental Restoration Technology
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• v.4 no.2
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• pp.36-44
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• 2001

The main purpose of this study was to classify forest vegetation effectively using Landsat Thematic Mapper data(June, 1994) in mountainous region. The research area was the Mt. Wolak Experimental Forest of Chungbuk National University, near Chungju and Jecheon city, Chungcheongbuk-do. To classify forest vegetation effectively, Normalized Difference Vegetation Index(NDVI) was used to reduce topographic effects. This NDVI was modified and transformed to the value of 0 to 255, and then the modified values were combined with other Landsat Thematic Mapper bands. To classify forest and land cover types, unsupervised classification method was used. The results of this study are summarized as follows. 1. Combinations of band "3, 5, NDVI" in Landsat Thematic Mapper data showed a good separation with high accuracy. The expected classification accuracy was 95.1% in Landsat Thematic Mapper data. 2. The Land Cover types were classified into six groups : coniferous forest, deciduous forest, mixed forest, paddy and grass, non-forest, and other undetectable areas. As these classified results were compared with the reconnaissance survey and aerial black and white infrared photographs, the overall classification accuracy was 76.5% in Landsat Thematic Mapper data. 3. The portion of non-forest in Mt. Wolak area was 1.9%. The percentages of coniferous, deciduous and mixed forests were 30.9%, 35.7% and 26.4%, respectively. 4. As these classified results were compared with other reference data, the percentages of coniferous, deciduous and mixed forests increased, but the portion of non-forest was exceedingly diminished. These differences are thought to be from the different research method and the different season of received Landsat Thematic Mapper data.

• Radiation Oncology Journal
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.197-204
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• 2012

Purpose: To analyze the outcomes of chemoradiotherapy for extrahepatic bile duct (EHBD) cancer patients who underwent R2 resection or bypass surgery and to identify prognostic factors affecting clinical outcomes, especially in terms of molecular biomarkers. Materials and Methods: Medical records of 21 patients with EHBD cancer who underwent R2 resection or bypass surgery followed by chemoradiotherapy from May 2001 to June 2010 were retrospectively reviewed. All surgical specimens were reevaluated by immunohistochemical staining using phosphorylated protein kinase B (pAKT), CD24, matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP9), survivin, and ${\beta}$-catenin antibodies. The relationship between clinical outcomes and immunohistochemical results was investigated. Results: At a median follow-up of 20 months, the actuarial 2-year locoregional progression-free, distant metastasis-free and overall survival were 37%, 56%, and 54%, respectively. On univariate analysis using clinicopathologic factors, there was no significant prognostic factor. In the immunohistochemical staining, cytoplasmic staining, and nuclear staining of pAKT was positive in 10 and 6 patients, respectively. There were positive CD24 in 7 patients, MMP9 in 16 patients, survivin in 8 patients, and ${\beta}$-catenin in 3 patients. On univariate analysis, there was no significant value of immunohistochemical results for clinical outcomes. Conclusion: There was no significant association between clinical outcomes of patients with EHBD cancer who received chemoradiotherapy after R2 resection or bypass surgery and pAKT, CD24, MMP9, survivin, and ${\beta}$-catenin. Future research is needed on a larger data set or with other molecular biomarkers.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.18
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• pp.8155-8161
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• 2016

The prognostic significance of AgNOR proteins in stage II-III rectal cancers treated with chemoradiotherapy was evaluated. Silver staining was applied to the $3{\mu}m$ sections of parafin blocked tissues from 30 rectal cancer patients who received 5-FU based chemoradiotherapy from May 2003 to June 2006. The microscopic displays of the cells were transferred into the computer via a video camera. AgNOR area (nucleolus organizer region area) and nucleus area values were determined as a nucleolus organizer regions area/total nucleus area (NORa/TNa). The mean NORa/TNa value was found to be $9.02{\pm}3.68$. The overall survival and disease free survival in the high NORa/TNa (>9.02) patients were 52.2 months and 39.4 months respectively, as compared to 100.7 months and 98.4 months in the low NORa/TNa (<9.02) cases. (p<0.001 and p<0.001 respectively). In addition, the prognosis in the high NORa/TNa patients was worse than low NORa/TNa patients (p<0.05). In terms of overall survival and disease-free survival, a statistically significant negative correlation was found with the value of NORa/TNa in the correlations tests. Cox regression analyses demostrated that overall survival and disease-free survival were associated with lymph node status (negative or positive) and the NORa/TNa value. We suggest that two-dimensional AgNOR evaluation may be a safe and usable parameter for prognosis and an indicator of cell proliferation instead of AgNOR dots.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.49 no.4
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• pp.287-291
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• 2016

Background: Spontaneous pneumomediastinum (SPM) is an uncommon disorder with only a few reported clinical studies. The goals of this study were to investigate the clinical manifestations and the natural course of S PM, as w ell as examine the current available treatment options for SPM. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed 91 patients diagnosed with SPM between January 2008 and June 2015. Results: The mean age of the patients was $22.7{\pm}13.2years$, and 67 (73.6%) were male. Chest pain (58, 37.2%) was the predominant symptom. The most frequent precipitating factor before developing SPM was a cough (15.4%), but the majority of patients (51, 56.0%) had no precipitating factors. Chest X-ray was diagnostic in 44 patients (48.4%), and chest computed tomography (CT) showed mediastinal air in all cases. Esophagography (10, 11.0%), esophagoduodenoscopy (1, 1.1%), and bronchoscopy (5, 5.5%) were performed selectively due to clinical suspicion, but no abnormal findings that implicated organ injury were documented. Twelve patients (13.2%) were discharged after a visit to the emergency room, and the others were admitted and received conservative treatment. The mean length of hospital stay was $3.0{\pm}1.6days$. There were no complications related to SPM except for recurrence in 2 patients (2.2%). Conclusion: SPM responds well to conservative treatment and follows a benign natural course. Hospitalization and aggressive treatment can be performed in selective cases.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.12
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• pp.4993-4996
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• 2015

Background: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of albumin-bound paclitaxel-based chemotherapy in treatment for patients with advanced esophageal cancer who failed in first-line chemotherapy. Materials and Methods: We collected29 advanced esophageal cancer patients who received albumin-bound paclitaxel-based chemotherapy fromJune 2009 to September 2013, and the efficacy and safety of the compound were evaluated. These patients were treated with $100-150mg/m^2$ nab-paclitaxel on days 1,8. The cycle was repeated every 3 weeks. Clinical efficacy was evaluated every two cycles. Results: Of the 29 patients, two persons interrupted treatment because of adverse reactions, failed to evaluate efficacy effect. The rest of 27 patients who could be evaluated for short-term response, 10 patients (37%) achieved partial response, 2 (7.4%) remained stable disease, and 15 (55.6%) had progressivedisease. The objective response rate was 37%, and the disease control rate was 44.4%.The median time to progression was 6.6 months.The major adverse reactions includedalopecia (62.07%), neutropenia (65.5%), gastrointestinalreaction (10.3%) andsensory neuropathy(6.8%). Conclusions: The albumin-bound paclitaxel-based chemotherapy is efficacy and safety in treatment for patients with advanced esophageal cancer who failed in first-line chemotherapy.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.1665-1669
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• 2015

Background: The optimal surgical strategy for the treatment of synchronous resectable gastric cancer liver metastases remains controversial. The aims of this study were to analyze the outcome and overall survival of patients presenting with gastric cancer and liver metastases treated by simultaneous resection. Materials and Methods: Between January 1990 and June 2009, 35 patients diagnosed with synchronous hepatic metastases from gastric carcinoma received simultaneous resection of both primary gastric cancer and synchronous hepatic metastases. The clinicopathologic features and the surgical results of the 35 patients were retrospectively analyzed. Results: The 5-year overall survival rate after surgery was 14.3%. Five patients survived for more than 5 years after surgery. No mortality has occurred within 30 days after resection, although two patients (5.7%) developed complications during the peri-operative course. Univariate analysis revealed that patients with the presence of lymphovascular invasion of the primary tumor, bilateral liver metastasis and multiple liver metastases suffered poor survival. Lymphovascular invasion by the primary lesion and multiple liver metastases were significant prognostic factors that influenced survival in the multivariate analysis (p=0.02, p=0.001, respectively). Conclusions: The presence of lymphovascular invasion of the primary tumor and multiple liver metastases are significant prognostic determinants of survival. Gastric cancer patients without lymphovascular invasion and with a solitary synchronous liver metastasis may be good candidates for hepatic resection. Simultaneous resection of both primary gastric cancer and synchronous hepatic metastases may effectively prolong survival in strictly selected patients.