• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.122-132
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• 2008

The purpose of this study is to present the basic materials of a developmental counterplan by assessing prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms and characteristics of work-related ergonomic risk factors. The prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms of 64 vineyard workers was investigated by using a self-reported questionnaire. And the vineyard workers' tasks were also collected and analyzed during 9-month period by observing and videotaping methods to identify the ergonomic risk factors. The prevalence rate of musculoskeletal symptoms of female(84.4%) was much higher than that of male(62.5%) and a total prevalence rate was 73.4%. There was no different prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms between age over 60 years and under 60 years. The prevalence rates of musculoskeletal complaints for each body part were 48.4%, 42.2%, and 35.9% for the wrist, legs/knee, and shoulder, respectively. In postural risk analysis, 7 works(REBA score) represented the high risk tasks such as delivering harvest boxed(12), picking cluster(11) and so on. The main works(exposure score) were orderly ranked as picking cluster(1590), pruning branch(388), and cluster thinning(327). The risk factors of vineyard work were identified as follows: shoulder flexion(${\geq}45^{\circ}$), wrist Flex./Ext.(${\geq}15^{\circ}$), hand force(power/pinch-grip), and prolonged standing(${\geq}4hr$). The engineering solutions including an improvement of hand tools, working process, and working environment should be applied to the high risky tasks in order to resolve the ergonomic problems. The administrative solutions such as improving a distribution of resting time, an exercise cure, an early recognition of symptoms and rehabilitation might be another solution for reducing musculoskeletal symptoms in vineyard workers.

• Journal of radiological science and technology
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• v.32 no.4
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• pp.393-399
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• 2009

In this study, we measured the dose distribution of scattered ray in X-ray radiography room using an ion chamber and examined the dependency of scattered ray content on the scattered ray source and exposure condition. To study the factors of scattered ray occurrence in the acryl phantom, we measured the change in the scatted ray content according to the X-ray tube voltage (40~140 kV) and the field size ($10{\times}10\;cm^2$, $20{\times}20\;cm^2$, $35{\times}35\;cm^2$). For the $35{\times}35\;cm^2$ field size, the side-scattering rate ranged from 3.1% to 14.5%. The scattered ray contributions of the phantom, collimator, X-ray tube and wall were also measured. The scattered ray contribution of the phantom was higher than 95.4% for the entire tube voltage, and those of the collimator, X-ray tube and wall were 2.6%, 1.3% and 0.7%, respectively.

• Archives of Craniofacial Surgery
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.11-16
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• 2024

Background: The pathogenesis of orofacial cleft (OFC) is multifactorial, involving both genetic and non-genetic factors, the latter of which play a key role in the development of these anomalies. This paper addresses the incidence of OFC in Indonesia, with a focus on identifying and examining the distribution of contributory factors, including parental medical history, pregnancy history, and environmental influences. Methods: The study was conducted through the collection of primary data. An interdisciplinary research team from Indonesia administered a standardized questionnaire to parents who had children with OFC and who had provided informed consent. The case group comprised 133 children born with cleft lip and/or palate, and the control was 133 noncleft children born full-term. The risk factors associated with OFC anomalies were analyzed using the chi-square test and logistic regression. All statistical analyses were performed using SPSS version 25. A p-value of 0.05 or less was considered to indicate statistical significance. Results: The study comprised 138 children, of whom 82 were boys (59.4%) and 56 were girls (40.6%). Among them, 45 patients (32.6%) presented with both cleft lip and cleft palate, 25 individuals (18.1%) had a cleft palate only, and 28 patients (20.3%) had a cleft lip only. OFC was found to be significantly associated with a maternal family history of congenital birth defects (p<0.05), complications during the first trimester (p<0.05), consumption of local fish (p<0.05), caffeine intake (p<0.05), prolonged medication use (p<0.05), immunization history (p<0.05), passive smoking (p<0.05), and X-ray exposure during pregnancy (p<0.05). Conclusion: The findings indicate close relationships between the incidence of OFC and maternal medical history, prenatal factors, and environmental influences.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.37 no.6
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• pp.406-417
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• 2011

Objectives: Exposure to bioaerosols in the indoor environment could be associated with a variety adverse health effects, including allergic disease such atopy. The objectives of this study were to assess children's exposure to bioaerosol in home indoor environments and to evaluate the association between atopy and bioaerosol, environmental, and social factors in Ulsan, Korea. Methods: Samples of viable airborne bacteria and fungi were collected by impaction onto agar plates using a Quick Take TM 30 and were counted as colony forming units per cubic meter of air (CFU/$m^3$). Bioaerosols were identified using standard microbial techniques by differential stains and/or microscopy. The environmental factors and possible causes of atopy based on ISAAC (International Study of Allergy and Asthma in Childhood) were collected by questionnaire. Results: The bioaerosol concentrations in indoor environments showed log-normal distribution (p < 0.01). Geometric mean (GM) and geometric standard deviation (GSD) of airborne bacteria and fungi in homes were 189.0 (2.5), 346.1(2.0) CFU/$m^3$, respectively. Indoor fungal levels were significantly higher than those of bacteria (p < 0.001). The concentration of airborne bacteria exceeded the limit recommended by the Korean Ministry of Environment, 800 CFU/$m^3$, in three out of 92 samples (3.3%) from 52 homes. The means of indoor to outdoor ratio (I/O) for airborne bacteria and fungi were 8.15 and 1.13, respectively. The source of airborne bacteria was not outdoors but indoors. GM of airborne bacteria and fungi were 217.6, 291.8 CFU/$m^3$ in the case's home and 162.0, 415.2 CFU/$m^3$ in the control's home respectively. The difference in fungal distributions between case and control were significant (p = 0.004) and the odds ratio was 0.996 (p = 0.027). Atopy was significantly associated with type of house (odds ratio = 1.723, p = 0.047) and income (odds ratio = 1.891, p = 0.041). Some of the potential allergic fungal genera isolated in homes were Cladosporium spp., Botrytis spp., Aspergillus spp., Penicillium spp., and Alternatia spp. Conclusions: These results suggest that there this should be either 'was little' meaning 'basically no significant association was found' or 'was a small negative' mean that an association was found but it was minor. It's a very improtant distinction. Association between airborne fungal concentrations and atopy and certain socioeconomic factors may affect the prevalence of childhood atopy.

• Korea journal of population studies
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.205-217
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• 2005

Purpose: To evaluate the factors affecting hospital utilization for respiratory diseases by ecological study design and GIS tool. To raise the social concern for respiratory disease by the result. Methods: Hospital admission data supported by national health insurance cooperation were transformed to spread sheet data format and combined with air monitoring dataset. Air pollution data were collected from the annual report of air monitoring published by Korea Ministry of Environment. Socioeconomic statistics including population density, age distribution, forest ratio etc.. were filed using Korea National Statistical Office database. Multiple linear regression analysis was performed to evaluate the factors affecting hospital utilization for respiratory diseases. Analytical unit was 52 cities. Results: The factors affecting hospital utilization for respiratory diseases were the proportion of population 60 years and over, seaside city, $O_3$ level, smoking rate. Conclusions: However, outdoor pollutants monitoring data and smoking rate have weakness in reflecting individual exposure. Further research is required to propose more illustrative means to evaluate causal relationship between air pollution and respiratory health effect factors.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.42 no.3
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• pp.373-376
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• 2010

The objective of this study was to present the proper probability distribution model based on the data obtained from surveys on domestic refrigerator food storage temperatures in home. Domestic refrigerator temperatures were determined as risk factors in foodborne disease outbreaks for microbial risk assessment (MRA). The temperature was measured by directly visiting 139 homes using a data logger from May to September of 2009. The overall mean temperature for all the refrigerators in the survey was $3.53{\pm}2.96^{\circ}C$, with 23.6% of the refrigerators measuring above $5^{\circ}C$. Probability distributions were also created using @RISK program based on the measured temperature data. Statistical ranking was determined by the goodness of fit (GOF, i.e., the Kolmogorov-Smirnov (KS) or Anderson-Darling (AD) test) to determine the proper probability distribution model. This result showed that the LogLogistic (-10.407, 13.616, 8.6107) distribution was found to be the most appropriate for the MRA model. The results of this study might be directly used as input variables in exposure evaluation for conducting MRA.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.37 no.6
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• pp.440-449
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• 2011

Objectives: This study was designed to determine the levels of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in breast milk and to evaluate the relations with factors affecting these levels. Methods: The congener levels of PBDE in 22 samples of breast milk were analyzed using a high resolution gas chromatograph with a high resolution mass detector. In accordance with our standard operating procedures, the recoveries of internal standards had to range between 68% and 118%. Since the distribution of PBDE concentrations is close to log-normal, the data were logarithmically transformed before analysis. Test subjects were healthy primipara and multipara mothers with a mean age of 32 (SD = 2.7) in 2006. Results: Seven PBDE congeners (BDE-28, 47, 99, 100, 153, 154, and 183) were detected and identified in all of the pooled breast milk samples, indicating widespread contamination from PBDEs in the environment in Korea. Residue levels of total PBDEs (sum PBDEs from tri- to hepta-BDE) ranged from 0.84-13.1 ng/g lipid with median and geometric mean levels of 2.6 ng/g lipid and 2.74 ng/g lipid, respectively. PBDE congeners 47, 99 and 153 markedly predominated and accounted for about 75% of the amount of the PBDE congeners analyzed. BDE-47 was the dominant congener in most samples, whereas BDE-153 was predominant in a few (n = 7/22). BDE-47 was highly correlated with total PBDEs (r = 0.987, p < 0.01). In analyses of the differences of the means of log transformed breast milk PBDE levels for groups of potential covariates, only breast milk BDE-47 and BDE-99 levels were significantly associated with fish (p < 0.05) and meat consumption (p < 0.01). However, we did not find significant correlations between PBDE levels and maternal age, body mass index (BMI), parity, job presence and smoking status. Conclusions: Our findings are mainly limited due to the small sampling size and low doses of PBDEs exposure. Background and human exposure data of PBDEs is lacking, and longitudinal investigations into the environment and biota are encouraged to determine the health impact on future populations in Korea.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.39 no.4
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• pp.312-321
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• 2013

Objective: In May 2011, an interview with three United States Forces Korea veterans revealed that chemicals believed to be 'Agent Orange' were buried at Camp Carroll (situated in Waegwan, Chilgok-gun, Gyeongsangbuk-do, Korea) in 1978. Many hazardous chemicals, such as perchloroethylene (PCE), trichloroethylene (TCE), and organochlorines were subsequently found in a joint US-ROK environmental investigation, although dioxins or burial evidence related to 'Agent Orange' have been not uncovered. This study was carried out to investigate the relevance of hazardous chemical exposure and health effects of the residents around Camp Carroll. Methods: The authors conducted a health questionnaire survey among residents around Camp Carroll regarding Waegwan groundwater ingestion, length of residence in Waegwan, and physician-diagnosed disease history (such as cancer, hypertension, diabetes and etc.). Logistic regression was performed to identify the associations between hazardous chemical exposure and physician-diagnosed diseases. Results: Among the 5,320 residents, excluding those living outside the Waegwan area, 3,430 subjects age 30 and over were analyzed. Among females, upon correction of age, smoking history and Camp Carroll working history, a higher distribution in the Waegwan groundwater ingestion group was demonstrated for patients with physician-diagnosed cancer and hypertension. The odds ratios have a tendency to increase with increased length of Waegwan groundwater ingestion. Conclusions: This study may be limited by not adopting a cohort study for the evaluation of factors that may confound environmental exposure. Yet it is meaningful that the correlation between Waegwan groundwater ingestion and chronic diseases were found through regression analysis in female; and further, this outcome may be used as a sampling basis for a secondary epidemiologic study.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.395-399
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• 2016

Background: Whether ambient exposure to environmental pollutants leads to hematopoietic malignancies such as multiple myeloma (MM) remains to be ascertained. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the immunotyping distribution of serum monoclonal paraprotein and the environmental influence on MM and monoclonal gammopathy of uncertain significance (MGUS) in the Taiwanese population. Materials and Methods: Serum protein electrophoresis with immunosubtraction by the capillary zone electrophoresis method was performed as primary screening for MM and MGUS. Clinical, pathological, and residence data of patients were also obtained. Results: From August, 2013 to June, 2015, a total of 327 patients underwent serum protein electrophoresis with immunosubtraction. Among these, 281 demonstrated no remarkable findings or non-malignant oligoclonal gammopathy, 23 were detected to have MGUS, 18 were identified as MM, and a further 5 were found as other malignancies. The most frequent immunotyping distribution of serum monoclonal paraprotein was IgG kappa (54.3%, n=25), followed by IgA lambda (15.2%, n=7) and IgG lambda (10.9%, n=5) in subjects with gammopathy. Additionally, it was shown that the elderly (OR: 4.61, 95% CI: 1.88-11.30, P<0.01) and males (OR: 2.04, 95% CI: 1.04-4.02, P=0.04) had significantly higher risk of developing MM and MGUS. There was no obvious impact of environmental factors on the health risk of MM and MGUS evolution (OR: 0.77, 95% CI: 0.40-1.50, P=0.49). Conclusions: The most frequent immunotyping distribution of serum monoclonal paraprotein included IgG kappa, IgA lambda and IgG lambda in MM and MGUS in the Taiwanese population. The elderly and male subjects are at significantly higher risk of MM and MGUS development, but there was no obvious impact of environmental factors on risk.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.236-248
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• 2020

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the concentrations of particulate matter generated during coffee roasting and to study various factors affecting the concentrations. Methods: Differences in concentration levels were investigated based on various factors to understand the emission rates of particulate matter over time and to compare the mass and number concentrations according to their size. Sampling was performed in closed laboratories without the operation of air conditioning or ventilation. Optical Particle Sizer(OPS) was used as a measuring device. An OPS measures using a light-scattering method. Sampling was performed for sixty minutes at one-minute intervals. The background concentration was measured for about 30 minutes before starting of coffee roasting. The concentrations of particulate matter generated during coffee roasting were monitored until roasted coffee beans were removed from the roaster and cooled down. Several factors affecting the concentrations of particulate matter were investigated, which includes the origins of green beans, the roasting level, and the input amount of green beans. Results: The results of this study may be summarized as follows: 1) There was no difference in particulate matter concentration levels by the origin of the green beans, but a statistically significant difference in concentration levels by roasting level and the input amount of green beans; The higher the roasting level, the higher was the particulate matter concentration. The more green beans we put in the roaster, the higher were the concentrations; 2) The PM10 mass concentrations increased over time. The average concentration after roasting was higher than the average concentration during roasting; 3) In the distribution of mass and number concentration by particle diameter, the majority of particles was below 2.5 ㎛. Conclusions: Persons who work in roastery cafes can be exposed to high concentrations of particulate matter. Therefore, personal exposure and risk assessment should be conducted for roastery cafe workers.