• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.73 no.1
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• pp.38-47
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• 2012

Background: The prevalence rate of pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) is steadily decreasing in South Korea. However, PTB is a disease with relatively high mortality and morbidity rates throughout Korea. Although there are many studies and statistics about the risk factors of PTB mortality in many countries, there are only a limited number of domestic papers on this topic. The aim of this study is to determine predictive factors for mortality among in-hospital patients associated with PTB. Methods: From December 2006 to January 2011, we reviewed medical records of 2,122 adult patients diagnosed with tuberculosis at a single tertiary hospital in a suburban area. In this study period, 960 patients were diagnosed with PTB by positive Acid fast bacilli smear and/or mycobacterial culture of the respiratory specimen. We compared the groups of patients deceased and patients discharged alive with PTB. The number of dead patients was 82 (47 males, 35 females). Results: Mortality was significantly associated with increased values of white blood cells (WBC), blood urine nitrogen (BUN), creatinine, C-reactive protein (CRP), numbers of involved lung field, and length of hospitalization. Also, it was associated with the decreased values of hemoglobin, lymphocyte, sodium, albumin, and cholesterol. Furthermore, admission through the emergency department, initial intensive care unit admission, and drug resistant PTB affected mortality in PTB patients. Independent predictors associated with PTB mortality are BUN, initial intensive care unit care, and admission during treatment of tuberculosis. Conclusion: In our study, mortality of pulmonary tuberculosis was related with parameters associated with nutritional status, disease severity at the time of admission, and drug resistance.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.14 no.9
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• pp.4394-4401
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• 2013

The purpose of this study was to investigate the association of blood pressures and serum lipids, obesity indices in adults who examined health checkup. Study subjects were 2,734 adults of 20 years and over (1,344 males, 1,390 females), who underwent health package check-up at an university hospital during one year of 2012. We observed the age, sex, SBP, DBP, TC, TG, HDL-C, LDL-C, AI, BMI, body fat rate and waist circumference of study subjects after confirmed IRB of the hospital. As a results, TC, TG, AI was significantly higher in the group of hypertension than that of normotensive in both sex, but in only female, HDL-C and LDL-C was higher in the each group of normotensive and hypertension. BMI, body fat rate and waist circumference was significantly higher in the group of hypertension than that of normotensive in both sex. SBP and DBP was positive correlated with TC, TG, AI, BMI, body fat rate and waist circumference, but HDL-C and LDL-C was each correlated with positive and negative in female only. Age-adjusted odds ratio for hypertension by blood serum lipids and obesity indices was significantly increased in the group of abnormal than normal of TC, TG, BMI, but HDL-C and waist circumference was each increased in the abnormal group of female, and in the abnormal group of male. Above results suggested that the blood pressure related with serum lipid levels and obesity indices.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.34 no.6
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• pp.472-476
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• 2001

Background: Minimally invasive surgery of pectus excavatum by Dr. Nuss is a new technique that allows the repair of this deformity without any cartilage resection or sternal osteotomy We describe the early experiences with Nuss procedure. Material and Method: From December 1999 to January 2001, twenty patients with pectus excavatum underwent repair by Nuss procedure There were 14 males and 6 females whose mean age was 10.1$\pm$7.7 years, ranging from 1 to 33 years. Most patients(N=19) were below 20 years, except 33 years old female patient(N=1). Result: The severity of depression was assessed by computed topography(CT). CT index was mean 4.9$\pm$5.7(ranged from 3.3 to 8). The average operating time was 85.8$\pm$23.7 minutes. The used metal bars were ranged in length from 8 inches to 16 inches(average 11.8$\pm$14.4 inches). Early postoperative complications were pneumothorax in three patients, paralytic ileus in one, and postoperative chest pain requiring analgesics in all patients. Epidural analgesia was used in one adult patient for control of postoperative pain. In our experiences, there were no serious complications posteoperatively. Conclusion: There were good early results with the Nuss procedure that we performed for repairing of pectus excavatum. However, we believe the procedure needs to be observed for the long term results for it to be broadly accepted.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.44 no.1
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• pp.9-17
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• 2011

Background: A peripheral extracorporeal membrane oxygenator (p-ECMO) has been developed to support patients who are dying due to a serious cardiopulmonary condition. This analysis was planned to define the clinical situation in which the patient benefits most from a p-ECMO. Material and Methods: Between June 2007 and Aug 2009, a total of 41 adult patients used the p-ECMO. There were 23 males and 18 females (mean age $54.4{\pm}15.1$ years). All patients had very unstable vital signs with hypoxia and complex cardiac problems. We divided the patients into 4 groups. In the first group, a p-ECMO was used as a bridge to cardiac operation. In the second group, patients did not have the opportunity to undergo any cardiac procedures; nevertheless, they were treated with a p-ECMO. In the third group, patients mostly had difficulty in weaning from CPB (cardiopulmonary bypass) after cardiac operation. The fourth group suffered from many complications, such as pneumonia, bleeding, infections, and LV dysfunction with underlying cardiac problems. All cannulations were performed by the Seldinger technique or cutting down the femoral vessel. A long venous cannula of $DLP^{(R)}$ (Medtronic Inc, Minneapolis, MN) or $RMI^{(R)}$ (Edwards Lifesciences LLC, Irvine, CA) was used together with a 17~21 Fr arterial cannula and a 21 Fr venous cannula. As a bypass pump, a Capiox emergency bypass system ($EBS^{(R)}$; Terumo, Tokyo, Japan) was used. We attempted to maintain a flow rate of $2.4{\sim}3.0\;L/min/m^2$ and an activated clotting time (ACT) of around 180 seconds. Results: Nine patients survived by the use of the p-ECMO. Ten patients were weaned from a p-ECMO but they did not survive, and the remainder had no chance to be weaned from the p-ECMO. The best clinical situation to apply the p-ECMO was to use it as a bridge to cardiac operation and for weaning from CPB after cardiac operation. Conclusion: Various clinical results were derived by p-ECMO according to the clinical situation. For the best results, early adoption of the p-ECMO for anatomical correction appears important.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.9 no.6
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• pp.237-246
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• 2009

This study was carried out to investigate of the associations of Alcoholic & Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease(AFLD & NAFLD) with metabolic syndrome(MS) defined by IDF criteria. We conducted a cross-sectional study of 799 adult males with alcohol consumption underwent laboratory investigation(control 297, alcoholic 206, nonalcoholic 296). The ultrasound scan of the liver was performed to determine the presence and the severity of FLD. We analyzed the association between the severity of AFLD & NAFLD and MS by logistic regression analysis. The distribution of metabolic syndrome was 7.4%, 48.8%, 34.9% in control, AFLD & NAFLD. The association of blood pressure, glucose, triglycerides, obesity were risk factor in AFLD & NAFLD. According to the severity of FLD, AFLD was significantly increased with MS, Obesity, low HDL-cholesterol. MS, High triglycerides was increased significantly in NAFLD(p<0.05). The prevalence of AFLD & NAFLD was increased with increasing the number of features of metabolic syndrome. This study shows that AFLD & NAFLD was closely associated with MS and its components. The patients of AFLD & NAFLD should managed and monitored to prevent metabolic abnormalities.

• Journal of Oral Medicine and Pain
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.179-188
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• 2009

Aim of this study is to examine correlation between size of the coronal pulp cavity and chronological age in adult. Total 716 teeth (218 mandibular canines, 230 first premolars, 268 second premolars) free from pathologies and dental restorations were selected from 276 patients (111 males, 165 females), ranging from 20-69 years. Using periapical X-ray, the height (mm) of the crown (CH=coronal height) and the height (mm) of the coronal pulp cavity (CPCH=coronal pulp cavity height) of the teeth were measured. The tooth-coronal index (TCI) after Ikeda et al (Jpn. J. For. Med. 1985;39:244-250) was computed for each tooth and regressed on real age. With increasing age, the TCI was relatively decreased, indicating the reduction of length of the pulp chamber. Even reduction of the TCI with aging was found in combined group rather than in each sex and type of tooth separately. The most definite reduction was in canine of combined group. The correlation coefficient was strongest when measurement from canines of females (r2=0.247).

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.20 no.10
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• pp.1-6
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• 2019

As mobile technologies such as Internet of Things (IoT)-based smart homes and financial technologies (FinTech) are developed, authentication by smart devices is used everywhere. As a result, presence-based biometric authentication using smart devices has become a new mainstream in knowledge-based authentication methods like the existing passwords. The electrocardiogram (ECG) is less prone to forgery, and high-level personal identification is its unique feature from among various biometric authentication methods, such as the pulse, fingerprints, the face, and the iris. Biometric authentication using an ECG is receiving a great deal of attention due to its uses in healthcare and FinTech. In this study, we implemented an ECG authentication system that allows users to easily measure and authenticate their ECG waveforms using a miniaturized wearable device, rather than a large and expensive measurement device. The implemented ECG authentication system identifies ECG features through P-Q-R-S-T feature point identification, and was user-certified under the proposed authentication protocols. Finally, assessment of measurements in a majority of adult males showed a relatively low false acceptance rate of 1.73%, and a low false rejection rate of 4.14%, in a stable normal state. In a high-activity state, the false acceptance rate was 13.72%, and the false rejection rate was 21.68%. In a high-heart rate state, the false acceptance rate was 10.48%, and the false rejection rate was 11.21%.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology
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• v.15 no.7
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• pp.1041-1047
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• 2021

In this study, the effective dose for frequently general radiography among the diagnostic reference level (DRL) for examinations provided by the government in Korea was evaluated using the Monte Carlo N-Particle eXtended (MCNPX) simulation tool. We were selected to evaluate for a total of 5 examination sites which included head anterior-posterior, chest (posterior-anterior, lateral), abdomen anterior-posterior and pelvis anterior-posterior. Physical conditions such as tube voltage and tube current used in MCNPX simulation were used in domestic conditions of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). To evaluate domestic medical radiation exposure, we used the HDRK-Man computerized human phantom manufactured based on the international standard ICRP 103 that was applied to the MCNPX simulation. The phantom could represent the standard body shape of Koreans. As a results, the effective dose corresponding to the DRL based on adult males of head anterior-posterior position was 0.086 mSv, chest posterior-anterior position was 0.05 mSv, chest lateral was 0.354 mSv, abdomen anterior-posterior position was 0.548 mSv, and pelvis anterior-posterior position was 0.451 mSv.

• Science of Emotion and Sensibility
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.89-100
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• 2019

Sleep apnea, a medical condition associated with a variety of complications, is generally monitored by standard sleep polysomnography, which is expensive and uncomfortable. To overcome these limitations, this study proposes an unconstrained wearable monitoring system with stretch-fiber sensors that integrate with the wearer's clothing. The system allows patients to undergo examinations in a familiar environment while minimizing the occurrence of skin allergies caused by adhesive tools. As smart clothing for adult males with sleep apnea, long-sleeved T-shirts embedding fibrous sensors were developed, enabling real-time monitoring of the patients' breathing rate, oxygen saturation, and airflow as sleep apnea diagnostic indicators. The gauge factor was measured as 20.3 in sample 4. The maximum breathing intake, measured during three large breaths, was 2048 ml. the oxygen saturation was measured before and during breath-holding. The oxygen saturation change was 69.45%, showing a minimum measurable oxygen saturation of 70%. After washing the garment, the gauge factor reduced only to 18.0, confirming the durability of the proposed system. The wearable sleep apnea monitoring smart clothes are readily available in the home and can measure three indicators of sleep apnea: respiration rate, breathing flow and oxygen saturation.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.35 no.3
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• pp.285-293
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• 2021

This study was conducted to elucidate spawning period characteristics and early life development of eight barbel loach, Lefua costata (Balitoridae) at the Jusucheon stream, Okgye-myeon, Gangneung-si, Gangwon-do, Korea between January and December in 2018. The spawning period was estimated to be from May to August, considering the change in the gonad-somatic index, the appearance of young fry, and frequency distribution in egg diameter. It was a multi-spawning type. The gender ratio was 1:0.79 with 1,117 females and 879 males collected. The egg size was 0.24-0.93 mm, with mature and immature eggs found during the spawning period. The size of mature eggs was 0.71±0.02 mm, and the average number of fecundity was 1,786±818 (n=31). Observation of the egg development showed that the fertilized eggs were the sticky, gray, segregated, and demersal type with 0.76±0.03 mm in diameter. The hatching of the embryos began at about 34 hours (hatching rate 50%) after fertilization underwater temperature of 25℃. The average length of the newly hatched pre-larvae was 2.7±0.11 mm. The average length of pre-larvae at 4 days after hatching was 4.5±0.16 mm, and the yolk sac was completely absorbed and entered the post-larvae stage. At 20 days after hatching, the average length of post-larvae was 11.5±0.67 mm, and their fin rays were formed before they transitioned to the juvenile stage. At 100 days after hatching, the average length reached 49.8±2.60 mm, and the appearance and the lateral sideband patterns were similar to those of the adult fish.