• Korean Journal of Human Ecology
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.837-848
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• 2007

The literature suggested that a small reduction in overall blood pressure can have a large effect on overall prevalence of hypertension, and therefore, the affect of taste preferences of the population on salt intake should be considered for long-term blood pressure intervention programs. The purpose of this study is to investigate the influence of salt taste preference and salt taste sensitivity on salt intake behavior as risk factors for high blood pressure. We collected information on blood pressure, diet and lifestyle behaviors, salt taste preference and salt taste sensitivity from 540 respondents from Suseo-dong, Seoul. Salt taste sensitivity was assessed by administering a 1% NaCl solution to the subject's tongue and measuring the perceived intensity on 10 level scale. Salt intake behavior was classified into 3 categories: frequency of high-sodium foods, practice of salt-reducing behavior and frequency of vegetable and fruit intake. Salt taste preference showed a significant relation to the subjects' blood pressure, i.e. subjects with a higher salt preference had higher blood pressure. Salt taste sensitivity did not show a significant relation to blood pressure. However, there was a positive correlation between salt taste preference and salt taste sensitivity. Among the 3 indicators used to measure salt intake behavior, the practice of salt-reducing behavior remained significantly correlated to blood pressure. Moreover, salt-reducing behavior and salt taste preference showed a significant correlation, i.e. people who do not like salty foods tend to practice more salt-reducing behavior, leading to reduced levels in blood pressure. In a population, a small reduction in overall blood pressure can have large effects in overall prevalence of hypertension, in contrast to clinical studies where achievement of an individual's normal blood pressure is emphasized. Therefore, taste preference of the population should be considered for long-term blood pressure intervention programs.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.48 no.1
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• pp.39-44
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• 2010

Economic feasibility of power generation system using waste woody biomass in a circulating fluidized bed combustor has been investigated. Effects of important variables such as capital investment, cost of waste wood, certified emission reduction(CER), system marginal price(SMP) on the benefit of business have been analyzed. Internal rate of return(IRR) was predicted as 16.67%, which implicates the business is promising based on the assumptions such as SMP of 99 Won/kWh, capital cost of 10.65 billion won, and complimentary providing of waste wood. Major factors affecting the benefit of business were as follows; system marginal price, operational rate, capital investment, expenditure of waste wood, certified emission reduction. In addition, it must be necessary to consider CHP power plant providing steam as one of the means to diversify sales network, for the management of the business risk.

• Culinary science and hospitality research
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• v.12 no.4 s.31
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• pp.259-268
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• 2006

It has been recognized that high level of serum cholesterol is a risk factor associated with atherosclerosis and coronary heart disease. Ingestion of probiotic lactic acid bacteria(LAB) in Kimchi would possibly be a method to decrease serum cholesterol in humans, as it was reported. In vitro culture experiment evaluated the effects of LAB(Leu. citreum, Lac. plantarum, Leu. mesenteroides, Weissella kimchii, W. confusa) extracted from Kimchi on cholesterol reduction in the MRS broth containing soluble cholesterol. Experimental strain of Leu. citreum and Leu. mesenteroides dominated in the first phase of Kimchi fermentation reduced the level of cholesterol 55.64% and 56.37%, respectively. Also, cholesterol lowering-effect was observed in over 55% of Lac. plantarum, W. kimchii and W. confusa strains, which were dominated in the end phase of fermentation. Our results suggest that selected probiotic LAB from Kimchi have an excellent cholesterol reducing effect in in vitro culture.

• Progress in Medical Physics
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.101-107
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• 2022

Purpose: Radiotherapy after bladder filling protocol (BFP) is known to enhance treatment quality and reduce side effects in prostate cancer, a common male solid cancer globally. However, due to the need to hold back urine during treatment, patients frequently complain of discomfort, and treatment is frequently suspended when patients urinate during treatment and urine penetrates the treatment device, causing malfunction. Therefore, the effect of minimizing treatment time when partial-arc volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT) was used instead of full-arc was assessed in this study. Methods: A total of 70 plans were created in 10 patients using 7 different arc sizes, and the treatment time for each plan was calculated. Results: Reduced arc size by half resulted in a 54.4% decrease in mean treatment duration, with a proportional tendency observed. Furthermore, the effect of VMAT arc size reduction on target dose homogeneity was significantly limited, and the effect on surrounding organs at risk (OAR) was negligible. It should be noted, however, that when the arc size decreases by >40%, the dose increases in the area without OAR around the target. Conclusions: The results of this study demonstrated that partial-arc VMAT for enhancing treatment convenience and efficacy of prostate cancer patients undergoing BFP can achieve a considerable reduction in treatment time while preserving treatment quality, and it is expected to be useful for partial-arc VMAT plan design and implementation in practice.

• Environmental and Resource Economics Review
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.139-160
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• 2018

Using survey data of selected 1,349 individuals nationwide in Korea, we measure the influencing factors for the acceptance of nuclear power and estimates the probability of acceptance under several scenarios with different percentages of monetary compensation. Results of panel probit demonstrate that nuclear risk aversion tendency was found to be higher in case of female, younger age, past experience of extreme event such as an earthquake. However, the residents' residency nearby the nuclear power plant was not related to the risk-aversion tendency. In addition, we found that the nuclear acceptance is improved when the monetary compensation rate is increased. Although the policy demand intended to reduce GHG emissions in South Korea, the expansion of nuclear power is not be easy due to the occurrence of recent strong earthquakes because the risk attitude of an individual is influenced by subjective assessments formed through direct and indirect experiences of natural disasters such as an earthquake. Our results suggest that the opposition to construction of nuclear power plant is expected to be further intensified especially when combined with the experiences of threatening earthquakes. As a result, the debate and policy conflicts of nuclear power plants will consistently continue and large social costs are apparent for the acceptance of nuclear power plant.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.64 no.2
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• pp.297-308
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• 2021

Objective : Shunt infection is a common complication while treating hydrocephalus. The antibiotic-impregnated shunt catheter (AISC) was designed to reduce shunt infection rate. A meta-analysis was conducted to study the effectiveness of AISCs in reduction of shunt infection in terms of age, follow-up time and high-risk patient population. Methods : This study reviewed literature from three databases including PubMed, EMBASE, and Cochrane Library (from 2000 to March 2019). Clinical studies from controlled trials for shunt operation were included in this analysis. A subgroup analysis was performed based on the patient's age, follow-up time and high-risk population. The fixed effect in RevMan 5.3 software (Cochrane Collaboration) was used for this meta-analysis. Results : This study included 19 controlled clinical trials including 10105 operations. The analysis demonstrated that AISC could reduce the infection rate in shunt surgery compared to standard shunt catheter (non-AISC) from 8.13% to 4.09% (odds ratio [OR], 0.48; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.40-0.58; p=0.01; I2=46%). Subgroup analysis of different age groups showed that AISC had significant antimicrobial effects in all three groups (adult, infant, and adolescent). Follow-up time analysis showed that AISC was effective in preventing early shunt infections (within 6 months after implant). AISC is more effective in high-risk population (OR, 0.24;95% CI, 0.14-0.40; p=0.60; I2=0%) than in general patient population. Conclusion : The results of meta-analysis indicated that AISC is an effective method for reducing shunt infection. We recommend that AISC should be considered for use in infants and high-risk groups. For adult patients, the choice for AISC could be determined based on the treatment cost.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.20 no.11
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• pp.1770-1776
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• 2007

Beef carcasses were examined to explore the effects of spinal cord removal and washing on central nervous system tissue (CNST) decontamination of the surface during the slaughtering process. A total of 15 carcasses were split by sawing centrally down the vertebral column and left sides of split carcasses were used for analysis. Samples were collected by swabbing the surface from 4 defined parts on the interior and 4 on the exterior of carcasses from the abattoir and analyzed using an ELISA-based test. The results showed that automatic and manual spray washing decreased CNST contamination, especially on the interior ventral parts of carcass surfaces (p<0.01), but did not decrease CNST on the interior dorsal parts. Increasing washing time to 60 s did not affect the reduction of CNST contamination. Samples following spinal cord removal prior to splitting showed lower calculated levels of "risk material" than the stated limit of detection (0.1%) of the ELISA kit on interior and exterior carcass parts (p<0.01). Therefore, spinal cord removal prior to splitting could be a very effective way to minimize CNST contamination of beef carcasses.

• 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.

• Korean Journal of Adult Nursing
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.400-408
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• 2013

Purpose: This study was conducted to examine the effects of bed side exercising on back pain and bleeding during absolute bed rest in patients who had received transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE). Methods: A nonequivalent control group pretest-posttest design was used. A total 46 patients were sampled from a gastrointestinal unit of a urban general hospital in Seoul. The control group received 8 hours of bed rest and conservative care. The experimental group received 8 hours of bed rest and bed side exercising every one hour from the time having absolute bed rest for 3 hours after TACE. Results: The experimental group with bed side exercising experienced significantly less back pain compared to the control group. There was no significant difference in the incidence of bleeding complications between two groups. Conclusion: The results indicate that a bed side exercising is associated with a reduction of back pain and with no increased risk of bleeding complications in patients after TACE.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Agricultural Engineers
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• v.50 no.2
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• pp.11-16
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• 2008

The effects of water and pesticide management practices on ponded water pesticide concentrations in a paddy plot were analysed using the RICEWQ model. The molinate which is a herbicide widely used in rice culture, and frequently detected in paddy environment was selected. In a previous study, the RICEWQ model was successfully calibrated with field data obtained from a paddy plot in Daegu. The calibrated model was run using water and pesticide management scenarios with a set of measured meteorological data for 1997-2006 in Daegu. For all three ponded water depths with the label rate application, the amount of molinate dissipated in ponded water and volatilized accounted for more than 70%, and the runoff losses were less than 9%. The molinate losses through drainage in the very shallow ponded depth showed 40% less than that in deep ponded depth. Comparing with the deep and shallow ponded depth, the very shallow depth was the best with regards to the reduction of molinate runoff losses. Simulations with different pesticide application rates, label rate and double label rate, showed molinate concentrations in the ponded water increased linearly with the application rate increase.