• Maxillofacial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.180-185
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• 2012

Purpose: An accurate preoperative analysis of the patient is essential in orthognathic surgery in order to acquire superior results. In profile, the location of the chin's position may change according to the neck's inclination. This may ultimately affect the amount of surgical movement. During acquisition of cephalometric radiographs, or in supine position, there is a discrepancy in the neck's inclination. This means that there are also various discrepancies between the actual profile and the various preoperative profile images. In the clinical situation, the decision in performing genioplasty usually lies in the analysis of the patient's profile on the operating table at the final stages of orthognathic surgery. This study aims to analyze the different preoperative profile images and to compare their discrepancies. Methods: Fifty eight patients undergoing orthognathic surgery were chosen. These patients were divided into three groups according to angle's classification of malocclusion, as class I, II or III. The right profile of these patients in centric occlusion was taken in natural head position (NHP). This was set as the 'actual profile image.' Another right profile image was taken on the operating table after insertion of the nasotracheal intubation and with muscle relaxants in effect. This was also taken in centric occlusion. The angle (denoted 'A') between the soft tissue glabella-pognion and the true vertical plane was found in the above-mentioned profile images and in the cephalometric radiographs. The differences of these values were analyzed. Results: There were differences in Angle 'A' in all of the preoperative images. These values were however, not statistically significant. Conclusion: In order to gain an esthetic profile during orthognathic surgery, the NHP is shown to be the most reliable position. Images reproducing such head positions should be used in the treatment planning process.

• The Journal of Korean Society for Radiation Therapy
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.64-70
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• 1997

The goal of radiation treatment planning is to deliver the dose to the patient within $5\%$ of that prescribed. We have often encountered the situation that the area which have not only several irregular contours but also tissue heterogeneities should be treated. With conventional devices such as wedges, missing tissue compensator. there are some limitations to achieve the uniform dose distribution in treatment volume. The use of CT simulator, 3-D planning system, computer-controlled milling machine enables it to deliver the dose uniformally. This report includes the whole procedure which have patient data acquisition 3D planning, computer-controlled milling, performance verification of 3D compensator, and TLD evaluation. We applied it for the treatment of head and heck cancer only. In Spite of the irregular contour and different electron density of tessue, we have achieved the uniformity of the dose distribution within ${\pm}3\%$ relatively. Although there are some problems which are not only verification of performance but uncertainties of using the new treatment device, we believe that the improvement of dosimetry will eliminate the uncertainties of that application. so the other lesions besides head and neck can will be ale to use the 3D compensator to achieve the dose uniformity

• The Journal of the Acoustical Society of Korea
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• v.31 no.6
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• pp.399-409
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• 2012

In this paper we propose a method for measuring the shear modulus of an ultrasound soft tissue phantom using an acoustic radiation force. The proposed method quantitatively determines the shear modulus based on the rise time of a displacement induced by an acoustic radiation force at the focal point of a focused ultrasound beam. The shear wave speed and shear modulus obtained from the proposed method and a shear wave propagation method were compared to verify the validity of the proposed method. In the shear wave propagation method, the shear modulus is first computed by measuring the propagating speed of a shear wave induced in a phantom by a limited-diffraction transmit field, and then was compared to that obtained with the proposed method in an ultrasound data acquisition system calibrated based on the first computed shear modulus. The relative errors between the two methods were found to be 4% for shear wave speed and less than 9% for shear modulus, confirming the usefulness of the proposed method.

• Imaging Science in Dentistry
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• v.48 no.2
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• pp.111-119
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• 2018

Purpose: This study was conducted to evaluate the accuracy of linear measurements of 3-dimensional (3D) images generated by cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) and facial scanning systems, and to assess the effect of scanning parameters, such as CBCT exposure settings, on image quality. Materials and Methods: CBCT and facial scanning images of an anthropomorphic phantom showing 13 soft-tissue anatomical landmarks were used in the study. The distances between the anatomical landmarks on the phantom were measured to obtain a reference for evaluating the accuracy of the 3D facial soft-tissue images. The distances between the 3D image landmarks were measured using a 3D distance measurement tool. The effect of scanning parameters on CBCT image quality was evaluated by visually comparing images acquired under different exposure conditions, but at a constant threshold. Results: Comparison of the repeated direct phantom and image-based measurements revealed good reproducibility. There were no significant differences between the direct phantom and image-based measurements of the CBCT surface volume-rendered images. Five of the 15 measurements of the 3D facial scans were found to be significantly different from their corresponding direct phantom measurements(P<.05). The quality of the CBCT surface volume-rendered images acquired at a constant threshold varied across different exposure conditions. Conclusion: These results proved that existing 3D imaging techniques were satisfactorily accurate for clinical applications, and that optimizing the variables that affected image quality, such as the exposure parameters, was critical for image acquisition.

• Journal of Convergence for Information Technology
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• v.11 no.10
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• pp.131-137
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• 2021

The aim of the study was to observe the influence and related mechanism of histamine and its analogues used for hypersensitivity tests and used as an indicator of impurities in drugs on the tissue-specific intestinal contraction. Intestinal contraction includes the activation of thick or thin filament regulation. However, there are few reports addressing the question whether this regulation is involved in histamine-induced regulation. We hypothesized that histamine plays a role in tissue-dependent regulation of intestinal contractility. Denuded ileal/colonic longitudinal and circular muscles of male rats were used and isometric contractions were recorded using a data acquisition system. Interestingly, histamine alone didn't increase the contraction of the circular muscle but increased the contraction of the longitudinal muscle. Histamine together with atropine (M3 receptor antagonist) didn't inhibit the contraction of the longitudinal and circular muscle. Therefore, histamine alone and together with atropine increases the ileal longitudinal muscle contraction suggesting that additional mechanisms (decreased receptor density, postreceptor signaling or distribution of agonists) might be involved in the regulation of ileal muscle contractility. In conclusion, histamine and/or atropine has some effect on the regulation of the longitudinal contractility regardless of M3 receptor and the simpler test would be preferred as the drug impurity test compared to more complicated tests.

• Journal of Convergence for Information Technology
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.119-125
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• 2022

In the study, we endeavored to investigate the effect of phenylephrine, isoprenaline and prazosin on the tissue-specific vascular contractility and to determine the mechanism involved. There were few reports addressing the question whether thin or thick filament modulation is included in phenylephrine, isoprenaline and prazosin-induced regulation. We hypothesized that isoprenaline and prazosin play a role in tissue-dependent regulation of vascular contractility. Denuded arterial muscles of Sprague-Dawley male rats were suspended in organ baths and isometric tensions were transduced and recorded using isometric transducers and an automatic data acquisition system. Interestingly, sustained continuous contraction of thoracic and abdominal aorta. Furthermore, isoprenaline and prazosin together with phenylephrine inhibited transiently and persistently vasoconstriction of thoracic and abdominal aorta suggesting that additional mechanisms (e.g. decreased receptor density, chemical interaction, postreceptor signaling or distribution of agonists) might be included in the modulation of vascular contractility.

• Imaging Science in Dentistry
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• v.52 no.1
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• pp.43-51
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• 2022

Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate the reliability of the Vectra M3 (3D Imaging System; Canfield Scientific, Parsippany, NJ, USA) in detecting chin asymmetry, and to assess whether the automatic markerless tracking function is reliable compared to manually plotting landmarks. Materials and Methods: Twenty subjects (18 females and 2 males) with a mean age of 42.5±10.5 years were included. Three-dimensional image acquisition was carried out on all subjects with simulated chin deviation in 4 stages (1-4 mm). The images were analyzed by 2 independent observers through manually plotting landmarks and by Vectra software auto-tracking mode. Repeated-measures analysis of variance and the Tukey post-hoc test were performed to evaluate the differences in mean measurements between the 2 operators and the software for measuring chin deviation in 4 stages. The intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) was calculated to estimate the intra- and inter-examiner reliability. Results: No significant difference was found between the accuracy of manually plotting landmarks between observers 1 and 2 and the auto-tracking mode (P=0.783 and P=0.999, respectively). The mean difference in detecting the degree of deviation according to the stage was <0.5 mm for all landmarks. Conclusion: The auto-tracking mode could be considered as reliable as manually plotted landmarks in detecting small chin deviations with the Vectra^® M3. The effect on the soft tissue when constructing a known dental movement yielded a small overestimation of the soft tissue movement compared to the dental movement (mean value<0.5 mm), which can be considered clinically non-significant.

• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.32-38
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• 2012

Recently, several ultrasound imaging techniques for tissue characterization have been developed. Among them, ultrasound elastography is regarded as the most promising modality and has been rapidly developed. One of ultrasound elastography techniques is shear modulus imaging. Normal and cancerous tissues show big difference of shear moduli and they have good image contrast. However shear wave elastography requires more complicated hardware and more computations for image reconstruction algorithm. Therefore new efficient techniques are being developed. In this paper, we have developed a very flexible ultrasound system for elastography experiments. The developed system has capabilities to acquire ultrasound RF data of all channels and generate arbitrary ultrasound pulse sequences. It has a huge amount of memories for RF data acquisition and a simple and flexible pulse generator. We have verified the performance of the system showing conventional B-mode images and preliminary results of elastography. The developed system will be used to verify our own reconstruction algorithm and to develop more efficient elastography techniques.

• Journal of the Institute of Convergence Signal Processing
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.1-5
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• 2013

The two major problems related to the blood flow in replaced prosthetic heart valve are thrombus formation and hemolysis. Reliability of prosthetic valve is very important because its failure means the death of patient. There are many factors affecting the valvular failures and their representatives are mechanical failure and thrombosis, so early noninvasive detection is essentially required. The purpose of this study is to detect the various thromboses formation by using acoustic signal acquisition and its spectral analysis on the frequency domain. We made the thrombosis models using Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) and they are thrombosis model on the disc, around the sewing ring and fibrous tissue growth across the orifice of valve. Using microphone and amplifier, we measured the acoustic signal from the prosthetic valve, which is attached to the pulsatile mock circulation system. A/D converter sampled the acoustic signal and the spectral analysis is the main algorithm for obtaining spectrum. Then the spectrum of normal and 5 different kinds of abnormal valve were obtained. Each spectrum waveform shows a primary and secondary peak. The secondary peak changes according to the thrombus model. To quantitatively distinguish the frequency peak of the normal valve from that of the thrombosed valves, analysis using a neural network was employed. Acoustic measurement has been used as a noninvasive diagnostic tool and is thought to be a good method for detecting possible mechanical failure or thrombus.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
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• v.55 no.6
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• pp.521-530
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• 2013

Direct cell-cell communication via the transfer of small molecules between neighboring cells in tissue is accomplished by gap junctions composed of various connexins (Cxs). Proper postnatal development of the epididymis is important for acquisition of male reproduction. The epididymal epithelium is composed of several cell types, and some of these cells are connected by gap junctions. The present study was conducted to determine the presence of Cx transcripts in the corpus and cauda epididymis. In addition, transcriptional changes of Cxs expressed during different postnatal stages were examined by real-time PCR analysis. In both epididymal regions, the same nine Cx transcripts of thirteen Cxs tested were detected. In the corpus epididymis, the highest levels of Cxs31.1 and 37 transcripts were observed at 45 days of age, and amounts of Cxs26, 30.3, and 32 transcripts increased with age and subsequently decreased in the elderly. Expression of Cx31 was greatly increased in the adult and elder stages, while Cxs40, 43, and 45 were abundant in the early postnatal stages. In the cauda epididymis, expression of Cxs26, 30.3, 31.1, 37, and 40 reached the highest levels at 5 months of age. The levels of Cxs31 and 32 mRNAs fluctuated throughout the postnatal period. The amounts of Cxs43 and 45 transcripts were more abundant during the late neonatal and prepubertal ages than later ages. These findings suggest that regional specification of the epididymis is partly regulated by differential expression of Cx genes during the postnatal developmental period.