• International Journal of Highway Engineering
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.109-114
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• 2016

PURPOSES : The demand for extending national highways is increasing, but traffic monitoring is hindered because of resource limitations. Hence, this study classified highway segments into 5 types to improve the efficiency of short-term traffic count planning. METHODS : The traffic volume trends of 880 highway segments were classified through R-squared and linear regression analyses; the steadiness of traffic volume trends was evaluated through coefficient of variance (COV), and the normality of the data were determined through the Shapiro-Wilk W-test. RESULTS : Of the 880 segments, 574 segments had relatively low COV and were classified as type 1 segments, and 123 and 64 segments with increasing and decreasing traffic volume trends were classified as type 2 and type 3 segments, respectively; 80 segments that failed the normality test were classified as type 4, and the remaining 39 were classified as type 5 segments. CONCLUSIONS : A theoretical basis for biennial count planning was established. Biennial count is recommended for types 1~4 because their mean absolute percentage errors (MAPEs) are approximately 10%. For type 5 (MAPE =19.26%), the conventional annual count can be continued. The results of this analysis can reduce the traffic monitoring budget.

• International Journal of Highway Engineering
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.135-141
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• 2015

PURPOSES: This study has been conducted to determine a homogeneous segment and integration to improve the efficiency of short-term traffic count. We have also attempted to reduce the traffic monitoring budget. METHODS: Based on the statistical approach, a homogeneous segment in the same road section is determined. Statistical analysis using t-test, mean difference, and correlation coefficient are carried out for 10-year-long (2004-2013) short-term count traffic data and the MAPE of fresh data (2014) are evaluated. The correlation coefficient represents a trend in traffic count, while the mean difference and t-score represent an average traffic count. RESULTS : The statistical analysis suggests that the number of target segments varies with the criteria. The correlation coefficient of more than 30% of the adjacent segment is higher than 0.8. A mean difference of 36.2% and t-score of 19.5% for adjacent segments are below 20% and 2.8, respectively. According to the effectiveness analysis, the integration criteria of the mean difference have a higher effect as compared to the t-score criteria. Thus, the mean difference represents a traffic volume similarity. CONCLUSIONS : The integration of 47 road segments from 882 adjacent road segments indicate 8.87% of MAPE, which is within an acceptable range. It can reduce the traffic monitoring budget and increase the count to improve an accuracy of traffic volume estimation.

• Journal of Veterinary Science
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.43.1-43.8
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• 2023

Background: Meloxicam is used widely for exotic animal analgesia, but its toxicity in common raptor species in Thailand is unclear. Objectives: This study evaluated the single-dose effect of intramuscular meloxicam in common raptor species in Thailand for short-term and long-term periods. Methods: Twenty-two raptors were administered a single 1 mg/kg dose of meloxicam individually via intramuscular injection. The following were evaluated: clinical appearance, body weight, body condition score, body temperature, fecal appearance, complete blood cell count, and biochemistry panel before (day 0) and after the injection (1, 7, and 30 days). The collected samples were categorized into three groups: Brahminy kite (Haliastur indus) (n = 10), adult Barn owl (Tyto javanica) (n = 4), and juvenile Barn owl (n = 8). Results: None of the raptors in the study groups showed any abnormalities. The hematological profiles were significantly different in the short-term period (day 1 and day 7). The creatinine, aspartate aminotransferase, and creatinine kinase increased in several groups. On the other hand, the packed cell volume decreased in the Brahminy kite and juvenile Barn owl groups. According to the findings, an intramuscular injection of 1 mg/kg meloxicam affected the blood biochemistry panel of the muscle, but the affected raptors recovered within one week. Conclusions: An intramuscular injection of meloxicam at a single 1 mg/kg dose in Brahminy kites and Barn owls was not associated with the morbidity, hepatotoxicity, gastrointestinal toxicity, and nephrotoxicity in the short- and long-term periods.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.34 no.5
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• pp.361-368
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• 2008

Objective to assess whether exposure to air pollutants is associated with postneonatal infant death, using a timeseries methodology, between 1999 and 2003 in Seoul, Korea.. Methods We investigated the short-term effects of air pollution for 548,725 live births during the study period. The daily count of postneonatal infant deaths from all causes and from SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome) by birth order was analyzed by a Generalized Additive Poisson model, with controlling for the effects of seasonal trends, air temperature, relative humidity, barometric pressure, and day of the week as covariates. Results During the study period, we observed 699 deaths from all causes and 47 deaths from SIDS. We did not find any significant associations between daily mortality and ambient levels of air pollutants except for CO and $NO_2$. The estimated relative risk of postneonatal infant death from all causes was 1.17 (95% CI=1.04-1.32) and 1.16 (95% CI=1.03-1.29) by IQR (interquartile range) for CO and $NO_2$ respectively. Also, we observed no clear trend of the mortality effects of air pollution by birth orders. Conclusion In conclusion, our findings suggest that air pollution, in general, influenced adversely postneonatal infant death from all-cause and SIDS although it was not statistically significant. This study may support that the rationale.

• Journal of Korean Society of Transportation
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• v.32 no.4
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• pp.380-388
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• 2014

Annual average daily traffic(AADT) serves as important basic data in the transportation sector. AADT is used as design traffic which is the basic traffic volume in transportation planning. Despite of its importance, at most locations, AADT is estimated using short term traffic counts. An accurate AADT is calculated through permanent traffic counts at limited locations. This study dealt with estimating AADT using various models considering both the spatial correlation and time series data. Kriging models which are commonly used spatial statistics methods were applied and compared with each model. Additionally the External Universal kriging model, which includes explanatory variables, was used to assure accuracy of AADT estimation. For evaluation of various kriging methods, AADT estimation error, proposed using national highway permanent traffic count data, was analyzed and their performances were compared. The result shows the accuracy enhancement of the AADT estimation.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.60 no.1
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• pp.24-29
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• 2017

Purpose: Previously, Kawasaki disease (KD) treatment with low-dose aspirin was administered for 6-8 weeks after the acute phase. However, inflammatory marker levels normalize before 6-8 weeks. In this study, we aimed to investigate the clinical outcome of short-term low-dose aspirin treatment based on inflammatory and thrombotic marker levels. Methods: We performed a retrospective review of the medical records of patients with KD who were hospitalized at Chungnam National University Hospital between September 2012 and May 2014. When fever subsided, low-dose aspirin treatment was started. Inflammatory (white blood cell count, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, and C-reactive protein) and thrombotic markers (D-dimer) were monitored at follow-ups conducted in 1- to 2-week intervals. The low-dose aspirin administration was terminated when both markers were normalized and no cardiovascular complications were observed. Results: Eighty-four patients with KD (complete KD, n=49; incomplete KD, n=35) were enrolled. The inflammatory and thrombotic marker levels were normalized within 3-4 weeks on average. At the beginning the low-dose aspirin treatment, 9 patients had coronary artery lesions but 75 did not. When the low-dose aspirin administration was terminated at the time the inflammatory marker levels were normalized, no new CALs developed during the follow-up at 6-8 weeks. Conclusion: Most of the inflammatory marker levels were normalized within 3-4 weeks after the acute phase of KD. New cardiovascular complications did not develop during the course of the short-term aspirin treatment based on the inflammatory marker levels, clinical findings, and echocardiography.

• Journal of the Korea Convergence Society
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• v.10 no.5
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• pp.95-102
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• 2019

This study was to investigate the effect of eye movement and intentional finger movement on cognitive ability. Normal adult subjects were randomly divided into two groups: saccadic eye movement(SEM) and intentional finger movement(IFM). After 2 weeks of intervention, Digit span was used for short-term memory test and N-back was used for working memory test. As a result, the short-term memory of the IFM group increased significantly over time, and the follow-up test showed difference between group. The IFM group's the execution time, the error count and the accuracy rate of n-back item showed significant effects over time. The SEM group's the execution time and the accuracy of n-back item showed significant effects over time. In conclusion, the IFM method, which is a multiple stimulus that can activate the cerebral cortex more extensively than the single stimulus SEM, may be more useful as an intervention method of cognitive function improvement.

• Clinical and Experimental Reproductive Medicine
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• v.50 no.4
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• pp.292-298
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• 2023

Objective: Ovarian torsion is a gynecological disorder that causes ischemia-reperfusion injuries in the ovary. Our study investigated berberine's short- and long-term effects on ovarian ischemia-reperfusion injuries. Methods: This study included 28 Wistar albino female rats weighing 180 to 220 g, which were divided into four groups: sham (S), torsion/detorsion (T/D), torsion/ detorsion+single dose berberine (T/D+Bb), and torsion/detorsion+15 days berberine (T/D+15Bb). The torsion and detorsion model was applied in all non-sham groups. In the T/D+Bb group, a single dose of berberine was administered, while in the T/D+15Bb group, berberine was administered over a period of 15 days. After the rats were euthanized, their ovaries were excised. The left ovaries were used for histopathologic evaluation, which included ovarian injury scoring and follicle count, while the right ovaries were used for biochemical analyses (tissue transforming growth factor-β [TGF-β] and alpha-smooth muscle actin [α-SMA] levels). Results: The histopathologic evaluation scores for the ovaries were significantly lower in the T/D+B group (p<0.05) and the T/D+15B group (p<0.005) than in the T/D group. The follicle counts in the T/D group were lower than those in both the sham and treated groups (p<0.005). The TGF-β levels were significantly lower in the T/D+15B group (p<0.005), whereas the α-SMA levels did not show a significant difference. Conclusion: Both short- and long-term berberine use could potentially have therapeutic effects on ovarian torsion. Long-term berberine use exhibited anti-inflammatory effects by reducing TGF-β levels, thereby preventing ischemia-reperfusion injuries. Therefore, we suggest that long-term berberine use could be beneficial for ovarian torsion.

• Advances in Traditional Medicine
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• v.7 no.4
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• pp.426-435
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• 2007

The present study was designed to determine the antitumor and antioxidant properties of methanol extract from the root of Galega purpurea (Papilionaceae) (MEGP) against Ehrlich Ascites Carcinoma (EAC) bearing Swiss albino mice. Acute and short-term toxicity studies were performed initially in order to ascertain the safety of MEGP. The effect of MEGP on the growth of transplantable murine tumor, life span of EAC bearing hosts and simultaneous alterations in the hematological profile and liver biochemical parameters (lipid peroxidation, antioxidant enzymes) were estimated. The MEGP showed decrease in tumor volume, packed cell volume and viable cell count and increases the nonviable cell count and mean survival time thereby increasing life span of EAC tumor bearing mice. Hematological profile reverted to more or less normal levels in extract treated mice. Treatment with MEGP decreased the levels of lipid peroxidation and increased the levels of glutathione, superoxide dismutase and catalase. The results suggested that the methanol extract of Galega purpurea root exhibited antitumor effect by modulating lipid peroxidation and augmenting antioxidant defense system in EAC bearing mice.

• Clinical and Experimental Reproductive Medicine
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• v.48 no.1
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• pp.27-33
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• 2021

Objective: The chief outcome of testicular torsion in clinical and experimental contexts is testicular ischemia. Curcumin, a compound with anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties, has fascinated researchers and clinicians for its promise in the treatment of fertility diseases. Methods: Thirty-five fully grown male mice were randomly classified into five groups: control, sham, testicular torsion, treatment group 1 (testicular torsion+short-term curcumin), and treatment group 2 (testicular torsion+long-term curcumin). Thirty-five days later, spermatozoa from the right cauda epididymis were analyzed with regard to count and motility. Toluidine blue (TB), aniline blue (AB), and chromomycin A3 (CMA3) staining assays were used to evaluate the sperm chromatin integrity. In addition, the terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated deoxyuridine triphosphate nick-end labeling (TUNEL) test was used to assess apoptosis. Results: Treatment group 1 exhibited a remarkably elevated sperm count compared to the testicular torsion group. Additionally, notably lower sperm motility was found in the testicular torsion group compared to the control, treatment 1, and treatment 2 groups. Staining (CMA3, AB, and TB) and the TUNEL test indicated significantly greater testicular torsion in the torsion group compared to the control group (p<0.05). The data also revealed notably lower results of all sperm chromatin assays and lower apoptosis in both treatment groups relative to the testicular torsion group (p<0.05). Significantly elevated (p<0.05) AB and TB results were noted in treatment group 1 compared to treatment group 2. Conclusion: Curcumin can compensate for the harmful effects of testicular ischemia and improve sperm chromatin quality in mice.