• Journal of Distribution Science
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• v.12 no.8
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• pp.5-15
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• 2014

Purpose - The method of TV home shopping is a kind of retail method that provides the viewer with information about products and, further, sells the products to consumers through the media of television. The domestic home-shopping industry has been expanding since 1995, and there are six companies in this arena as of 2012. In this study, we evaluate the management efficiency of TV home-shopping companies and provide suggestions for improving efficiency, using the DEA (data envelopment analysis) model. Hence, we expect to contribute to the progress of the companies' efficiency and the development of the TV home-shopping industry, where deepening competition is inevitable because it is experiencing the maturing market stage in its life cycle. Research design, data, and methodology - Efficiency is the ratio of the quantity of input to the quantity of output of a product or service. It is necessary to estimate aggregate inputs and aggregate outputs, which are calculated by applying a weighting to a number of input and output factors, to measure the efficiency. The DEA model is divided into the CCR model and the BCC model. The CCR model is a basic model that assumed constant returns to scale (CRS), and the BCC model extends the CCR model to accommodate technologies exhibiting variable returns to scale (VRS), and concerns only the technical efficiency without considering the efficiency of returns to scale. In this study, we consider six companies each year from 2008 to 2012 as a DMU (Decision Making Unit) and analyze the differences in efficiency for each company in each year. Furthermore, we evaluate the operating characteristics of TV home-shopping companies, using three models, in accordance with the overall performance, profitability, and marketability of the business. Results - The result of the analysis, using DEA models, shows that Hyundai Home Shopping (2009, 2010, 2011), GS Home Shopping (2011), NS Home Shopping (2011) and CJ O Shopping (2012) possess MPSS (most productive scale size), with a score 1.0 in CCR, BCC, and scale efficiency. Particularly, Hyundai Home Shopping is shown to be the most efficient in terms of overall business performance, marketability, and profitability. The overall efficiency of the home shopping industry has displayed an increasing trend since 2008, even though it decreased marginally in 2012; further, we can observe that home shopping companies operate with increasing efficiency with the passage of time. Conclusions - Home shopping companies have focused on market expansion rather than profits, as they displayed better efficiency in marketability than increase in profitability during the period 2008-2012. In addition, the main reason for the increased efficiency in the home shopping industry is the market expansion through the revenue increase of each home shopping company. This study can be used as a reference when home shopping companies attempt to devise future strategies, as it suggests efficiency benchmarks and development levels for each home shopping company.

• Diabetes and Metabolism Journal
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• v.42 no.6
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• pp.496-512
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• 2018

Background: This study aimed to investigate the association between the presence and severity of cardiovascular autonomic neuropathy (CAN) and development of long-term glucose fluctuation in subjects with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Methods: In this retrospective cohort study, subjects with type 2 diabetes mellitus who received cardiovascular autonomic reflex tests (CARTs) at baseline and at least 4-year of follow-up with ${\geq}6$ measures of glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) were included. The severity of CAN was categorized as normal, early, or severe CAN according to the CARTs score. HbA1c variability was measured as the standard deviation (SD), coefficient of variation, and adjusted SD of serial HbA1c measurements. Results: A total of 681 subjects were analyzed (294 normal, 318 early, and 69 severe CAN). The HbA1c variability index values showed a positive relationship with the severity of CAN. Multivariable logistic regression analysis showed that CAN was significantly associated with the risk of developing higher HbA1c variability (SD) after adjusting for age, sex, body mass index, diabetes duration, mean HbA1c, heart rate, glomerular filtration rate, diabetic retinopathy, coronary artery disease, insulin use, and anti-hypertensive medication (early CAN: odds ratio [OR], 1.65; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.12 to 2.43) (severe CAN: OR, 2.86; 95% CI, 1.47 to 5.56). This association was more prominent in subjects who had a longer duration of diabetes (>10 years) and lower mean HbA1c (<7%). Conclusion: CAN is an independent risk factor for future higher HbA1c variability in subjects with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Tailored therapy for stabilizing glucose fluctuation should be emphasized in subjects with CAN.

• Journal of agriculture & life science
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• v.45 no.1
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• pp.67-77
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• 2011

This study was conducted to investigate the effects of bio-ion water on growth performance, blood characteristics and meat quality in pigs. Ninety nine crossbreed pigs $(Landrace{\times}Yorkshire{\times}Duroc)$ were randomly allotted to three treatments; CON (basal diet), T1 (basal diet with bio ion water from growing period), T2 (basal diet with bio ion water from finishing period). There were no significant differences in growth performance and carcass characteristics of pigs among treatments. The red blood cell and white blood cell were significantly higher (P<0.05) in diet added with bio ion water than the control. Proximate analysis (%), meat color, pH, drip loss (%), cooking loss (%) and shear force $(kg/cm^{2})$ were not significantly different (P>0.05) among treatments. The treatment 1 had lower saturated fatty acid (SFA) to unsaturated fatty acid ratio, but higher UFA concentration than those of control. The aroma of cooked meat in T1 was higher than other treatments. Thereby, overall acceptability sensory score of cooked meat in T1 tended to be higher than other treatments.

• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.268-278
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• 2021

Purpose: While several prognostic models for the stratification of death risk have been developed for patients with advanced gastric cancer receiving first-line chemotherapy, they have seldom been tested in the Chinese population. This study investigated the performance of these models and identified the optimal tools for Chinese patients. Materials and Methods: Patients diagnosed with metastatic or recurrent gastric adenocarcinoma who received first-line chemotherapy were eligible for inclusion in the validation cohort. Their clinical data and survival outcomes were retrieved and documented. Time-dependent receiver operating characteristic (ROC) and calibration curves were used to evaluate the predictive ability of the models. Kaplan-Meier curves were plotted for patients in different risk groups divided by 7 published stratification tools. Log-rank tests with pairwise comparisons were used to compare survival differences. Results: The analysis included a total of 346 patients with metastatic or recurrent disease. The median overall survival time was 11.9 months. The patients were different into different risk groups according to the prognostic stratification models, which showed variability in distinguishing mortality risk in these patients. The model proposed by Kim et al. showed relative higher predicting abilities compared to the other models, with the highest χ² (25.8) value in log-rank tests across subgroups, and areas under the curve values at 6, 12, and 24 months of 0.65 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.59-0.72), 0.60 (0.54-0.65), and 0.63 (0.56-0.69), respectively. Conclusions: Among existing prognostic tools, the models constructed by Kim et al., which incorporated performance status score, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio, alkaline phosphatase, albumin, and tumor differentiation, were more effective in stratifying Chinese patients with gastric cancer receiving first-line chemotherapy.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.54 no.3
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• pp.247-261
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• 2021

Purpose: This study was conducted to identify the association between insulin resistance and the major dietary patterns of Korean adults. Methods: This study used data from the 2015 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. The subjects were 2,276 adults aged 19 to 64 years old. Based on the food frequency questionnaire data, 112 food items were reclassified into 30 food groups. The principal component analysis method was applied to identify major dietary patterns. We used homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and quantitative insulin sensitivity check index (QUICKI) value as indicators of insulin resistance. The association between major dietary patterns and insulin resistance was investigated using logistic regression analysis. Results: Three major dietary patterns were identified and assigned descriptive names based on the food items with high loadings: 'healthy Korean meal pattern', 'western meal pattern', and 'white rice, alcohol, meat pattern'. As the 'white rice, alcohol, meat pattern' score increased, significant increasing trends for fasting glucose concentration and HOMA-IR and a significant decreasing trend for QUICKI were observed after adjusting for age and sex. The odds ratio of insulin resistance according to the 'healthy Korean meal pattern' and the 'western meal pattern' were not statistically significant. the 'white rice, alcohol, meat pattern' showed a significant positive association with the risk of insulin resistance after adjusting for covariates. Conclusion: These results suggest that the 'white rice, alcohol, meat pattern' is positively associated with the risk of insulin resistance. The white rice, alcohol, meat pattern was related to the high consumption of alcohol together with rice or meat. This pattern was also associated with the high intake of sodium and low intakes of vitamin C, calcium, potassium, and dietary fiber. To confirm the association, further longitudinal studies are required.

• Archives of Hand and Microsurgery
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.223-229
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• 2018

Purpose: A number of procedures were introduced to stabilize the 1st metacarpal bone after resection of the trapezium in the thumb carpometacarpal joint (CMCJ) arthroplasty. However, some surgical procedures may inevitably damage normal structures, such as harvesting tendons or drilling of a bone for tendon passage. Suture suspension arthroplasty is relatively less invasive and easier to perform than the previously described surgical methods. The purpose of this study was to report the therapeutic efficiency of the suture suspension arthroplasty. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed 12 patients who underwent suture suspension arthroplasty for the treatment of thumb CMCJ arthritis. Pain visual analogue scale (VAS), satisfaction about surgical outcomes, and the disabilities of the arm, shoulder and hand (DASH) scores were measured to evaluate the functional outcomes and the Trapezial Space Ratios were measured. Satisfaction was measured in the range of "very dissatisfied" (0) to "very satisfied" (10). Results: The mean follow-up period was 23 months. Pain VAS score improved significantly from 7.0 to 2.9 (p<0.05). And mean satisfaction scale was 6.9. However, there was no significant difference in DASH scores between before and after surgery (p=0.06). The mean trapezial space ratio was calculated to be 0.45 before surgery, 0.33 immediately after surgery, 0.23 at the last follow-up. Conclusion: Suture suspension arthroplasty is a satisfactory surgical procedure. And compared with other procedures, there is no significant difference in the reduction of the trapezial space. It may be useful in advanced thumb CMCJ arthritis.

• Food Engineering Progress
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.250-256
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• 2011

This study was performed to analyze the quality characteristics of Sulgidduk added with different ratio 0, 10 and 15% (w/w) of apple pomace dietary fiber powder (DFP). Increasing DFP from 0% to 15% was decreased in color L* value from 87.9 to 65.9, while a* and b* values were increased from -1.9 to 5.9 and from 5.0 to 20.5, respectively. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM; ${\times}500$) showed that air cell size in the Sulgidduk surface increased as the DEP increased. On the other hand, control without DFP had a compact structure without air cell. Enthalpy by DSC showed that control without DFP, 10 and 20% DEP Sulgidduk after 3 days of storage were 4.83, 3.80 and 3.18 J/g at $4^{\circ}C$ and those of $25^{\circ}C$ were 1.14, 0.60 and 0.60 J/g, respectively. DEP had more effective on retarded retrogradation of Sulgidduk at $4^{\circ}C$ than that at $25^{\circ}C$. Hardness of 15% DEP Sulgidduk was around 42% compared to that of control without DFP after 3 days of storage at $4^{\circ}C$. In hedonic test, 15% DEP Sulgidduk showed the highest overall quality score among samples after making and storage 3 days at $4^{\circ}C$.

• Food Engineering Progress
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.275-281
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• 2009

Sesame oils are partially mixed with other vegetable oils due to high price in a Korean market. To find out authentic sesame oil, a mass spectrometer-based electronic nose (MS-based E-nose) was used. Sesame oil (Se) was blended with soybean oil (So) or corn oil (Co) at the ratio (Se:So, Se:Co) of 97:3, 94:6, 91:9, 88:12 and 85:15, respectively. Intensities of each fragment from sesame oil by MS-based E-nose were completely different from those of soybean oil or corn oil. The obtained results were used for discriminant function analysis (DFA). Volatile organic components (VOC) of soybean oil or corn oil were similar to those of fresh air and DFA plot indicated a significant separation of pure sesame oil and pure other oil. The group of the mixed oil was seperated with that of sesame oil in DFA plot and the added amount of soybean oil to sesame oil was correlated with discriminant function first score (DF1). MS based E-nose system could be used as an efficient method to investigate the purity of sesame oil.

• Journal of the Korea Convergence Society
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.339-351
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• 2019

This study was conducted to identify the factors associated with the ruptured intracranial aneurysm (RIA) among demographic, admission to hospital, clinical, aneurysym itself and lifestyle characteristics. Medical records of RIA patients and un-RIA patients which had been admitted to undergo treatment including surgery (From January to December 2016) were included into data analysis. Multiple logistic regression showed that two and more than warning signs (14.14 (CI: 1.25-159.40)) indicated the greatest odds ratio with RIA, was followed by headache more than 3 scores (13.95 (CI: 3.68-52.83)), the admission via emergency room (13.62 (CI: 4.85-38.26)), single marital status (9.72 (CI: 2.22-42.49)), 1 mmHg increased systolic blood pressure (1.04 (CI: 1.01-1.08)), 1 score increased GCS (0.58 (CI: 0.37-0.90)), arrythmia finding in electrocardiogram (3.70 (CI: 1.22-11.22)) and increased age (0.95 (CI: 0.91-0.99)). The risk groups having factors associated with RIA were identified. Preventive activities including routine assessment should be done before developing the rupture and urgent care should be needed after developing the rupture for risk groups.

• Herbal Formula Science
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.199-211
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• 2019

Objectives : Present study investigated the hepatoprotective effects of various combinations of lemon balm and dandelion (LD) leaf extract on carbon tetrachloride ($CCl_4$)-induced acute liver injury. Methods : Mice were orally treated with 200 mg/kg of LD extracts [1:1, 1:2, 1:4, 1:6, 1:8, 2:1, 4:1, 6:1, or 8:1 (weight : weight)] for 7 days, and then intraperitoneally injected with $CCl_4$ (0.5 mL/kg). Silymarin (100 mg/kg) was used as reference drug. Body weight gain, relative liver weight, serum biochemistry, histopathologic analyses, and hepatic antioxidant system were examined to elucidate the fittest combination ratio of LD extract. Results : All varying combinations of LD extract significantly increased body weight gain and decreased relative liver weight by $CCl_4$. In addition, LD extract reduced serum aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase. Histopathological analyses indicated that LD extract significantly decreased histological activity index score, degenerated hepatocytes, and infiltrated inflammatory cells induced by $CCl_4$. Moreover, LD extract reduced lipid peroxidation, and attenuated the reduction of hepatic glutathione, superoxide dismutase, and catalase by $CCl_4$. Although there were no statistical differences in body weight gain between silymarin- and LD extract-treated groups, administration of 1:1, 2:1, and 4:1 combination of LD extract exhibited more favorable hepatoprotective effects than silymarin. Especially, 2:1 combination of LD extract showed the most potent hepatoprotective effects. Conclusion : Of various combinations of LD extract tested, present results suggest that 2:1 combination of LD extract would be a promising herbal formulation to protect liver from oxidative stress.