• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.74-83
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• 2021

Purpose: No consensus exists on whether to preserve or ligate an aberrant left hepatic artery (ALHA), which is the most commonly encountered hepatic arterial variation during gastric surgery. Therefore, we aimed to evaluate the clinical effects of ALHA ligation by analyzing the perioperative outcomes. Materials and Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the data of 5,310 patients who underwent subtotal/total gastrectomy for gastric cancer. Patients in whom the ALHA was ligated (n=486) were categorized into 2 groups according to peak aspartate aminotransferase (AST) or alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels: moderate-to-severe (MS) elevation (≥5 times the upper limit of normal [ULN]; MS group, n=42) and no-to-mild (NM) elevation (<5 times the ULN; NM group, n=444). The groups were matched 1:3 using propensity score-matching analysis to minimize confounding factors that can affect the perioperative outcomes. Results: The mean operation time (P=0.646) and blood loss amount (P=0.937) were similar between the 2 groups. The length of hospital stay was longer in the MS group (13.0 vs. 7.8 days, P=0.022). No postoperative mortality occurred. The incidence of grade ≥ IIIa postoperative complications (19.0% vs. 5.1%, P=0.001), especially pulmonary complications (11.9% vs. 2.5%, P=0.003), was significantly higher in the MS group. This group also showed a higher Comprehensive Complication Index (29.0 vs. 13.9, P<0.001). Conclusions: Among patients with a ligated ALHA, those with peak AST/ALT ≥5 times the ULN showed worse perioperative outcomes in terms of hospital stay and severity of complications. More precise perioperative decision-making tools are needed to better determine whether to preserve or ligate an ALHA.

• Journal of Veterinary Science
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.8.1-8.11
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• 2020

This study reports the clinical use of two sevoflurane-based anesthetic techniques in dogs undergoing craniectomy. Twenty-one animals undergoing elective rostrotentorial or transfrontal craniectomy for brain tumor excision, anesthetized with sevoflurane, were enrolled in this retrospective, observational study. Anesthetic records were allocated to two groups: Sevo-Op (sevoflurane and short acting opioid infusion): 8 dogs and Sevo-Dex (sevoflurane and dexmedetomidine infusion): 13 dogs. Average mean arterial pressure (MAP), heart rate, end-tidal carbon dioxide, end-tidal sevoflurane and intraoperative infusion rates during surgery were calculated. Presence of intra-operative and post-operative bradycardia, tachycardia, hypotension, hypertension, hypothermia, hyperthermia was recorded. Time to endotracheal extubation, intraoperative occurrence of atrioventricular block, postoperative presence of agitation, seizures, use of labetalol and dexmedetomidine infusion were also recorded. Data from the two groups were compared with Fisher's exact test and unpaired t tests with Welch's correction. Odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were calculated for categorical variables. Intra-operatively, MAP was lower in Sevo-Op [85 (± 6.54) vs. 97.69 (± 7.8) mmHg, p = 0.0009]. Time to extubation was longer in Sevo-Dex [37.69 (10-70) vs. 19.63 (10-25), p = 0.0033]. No differences were found for the other intra-operative and post-operative variables investigated. Post-operative hypertension and agitation were the most common complications (11 and 12 out of 21 animals, respectively). These results suggest that the infusion of dexmedetomidine provides similar intra-operative conditions and post-operative course to a short acting opioid infusion during sevoflurane anesthesia in dogs undergoing elective rostrotentorial or transfrontal intracranial surgery.

• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.42 no.5
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• pp.903-914
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• 2022

Probiotics are currently considered as one of tools to modulate immune responses under specific clinical conditions. The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether oral administration of three different probiotics (Lactiplantibacillus plantarum CJLP243, CJW55-10, and CJLP475) could evoke a cell-mediated immunity in immunodeficient mice. Before conducting in vivo experiments, we examined the in vitro potency of these probiotics for macrophage activation. After co-culture with these probiotics, bone marrow derived macrophages (BMDMs) produced significant amounts of proinflammatory cytokines including interleukin-6 (IL-6), IL-12, and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α). Levels of inducible nitric oxide synthase (inos) and co-stimulatory molecules (CD80 and CD86) were also upregulated in BMDMs after treatment with some of these probiotics. To establish an immunocompromised animal model, we intraperitoneally injected mice with cyclophosphamide on day 0 and again on day 2. Starting day 3, we orally administered probiotics every day for the last 15 d. After sacrificing experimental mice on day 18, splenocytes were isolated and co-cultured with these probiotics for 3 d to measure levels of several cytokines and immune cell proliferation. Results clearly indicated that the consumption of all three probiotic strains promoted secretion of interferon-γ (IFN-γ), IL-1β, IL-6, IL-12, and TNF-α. NK cell cytotoxicity and proliferation of immune cells were also increased. Taken together, our data strongly suggest that consumption of some probiotics might induce cell-mediated immune responses in immunocompromised mice.

• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.408-417
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• 2022

Purpose: Treatment options are limited after the failure of first-and second-line treatments in patients with HER2⁺ metastatic gastric cancer (mGC). The present study aimed to explore the efficacy, safety, and prognostic factors of apatinib efficacy as a third-line therapy for patients with human epithelial growth factor receptor 2-positive (HER2⁺) mGC. Materials and Methods: A total of 59 HER2⁺ mGC patients who received apatinib as third-line therapy were retrospectively enrolled in this two-center, single-arm, cohort study; the clinical response, survival data, and adverse events were retrieved. Results: The median progression-free survival (PFS) was 5.2 months (95% confidence interval [CI], 3.9-6.5), and the median overall survival (OS) was 8.2 months (95% CI, 6.6-9.8) Furthermore, forward stepwise multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that a higher Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status score and multiple metastases were independently correlated with decreased PFS and OS (both P<0.05). The main adverse events were leukopenia (45.8%), hypertension (44.1%), thrombocytopenia (39.0%), hand-foot syndrome (37.3%), and elevated transaminase (33.9%). Grade 3 adverse events mainly included hypertension (5.1%) and neutropenia (5.1%); grade 4 adverse events did not occur. Conclusions: Apatinib is efficient and well tolerated in patients with HER2⁺ mGC as a third-line treatment, suggesting that it may be a candidate of choice for these patients.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Physical Medicine
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.1-8
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• 2023

PURPOSE: This study analyzed how proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF) combined with auricular acupuncture affected the activation of the leg muscles of stroke patients and measured the effects of this combination to provide clinical data. METHODS: The subjects were divided randomly into experimental group I, which received PNF combined with auricular acupuncture, and experimental group II, which received PNF alone. Each group had ten members. A 30-minute intervention was performed four days a week for six weeks. Before the six weeks of intervention, pre-tests were conducted to measure muscle activation in the legs. After six weeks, post-tests were also conducted to measure muscle activation in the legs. RESULTS: Experimental group I showed a statistically significant difference in muscle rectus femoris, muscle biceps femoris, muscle tibialis anterior, and muscle soleus. Experimental group II also showed a statistically significant difference in the muscle rectus femoris, muscle biceps femoris, muscle tibialis anterior, and muscle soleus (p < .05). In a between-group comparison of the changes, a statistically significant difference was observed between the two groups in terms of muscle rectus femoris, muscle biceps femoris, muscle tibialis anterior, and muscle soleus (p < .05). CONCLUSION: Intervention in experimental group I increased the activation of the leg muscles more effectively because auricular acupuncture was applied to various spots on the ear corresponding to the spleen, liver, kidney, pelvis, knee, ankle, and toe. Auricular acupuncture is expected to be used more widely in the future because it is a safe way of stimulating muscle activation.

• Restorative Dentistry and Endodontics
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• v.48 no.1
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• pp.4.1-4.10
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• 2023

Objectives: This study aimed to compare the torsional and cyclic fatigue resistance of ProGlider (PG), WaveOne Gold Glider (WGG), and TruNatomy Glider (TNG). Materials and Methods: A total of 15 instruments of each glide path system (n = 15) were used for each test. A custom-made device simulating an angle of 90° and a radius of 5 millimeters was used to assess cyclic fatigue resistance, with calculation of number of cycles to failure. Torsional fatigue resistance was assessed by maximum torque and angle of rotation. Fractured instruments were examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Data were analyzed with Shapiro-Wilk and Kruskal-Wallis tests, and the significance level was set at 5%. Results: The WGG group showed greater cyclic fatigue resistance than the PG and TNG groups (p < 0.05). In the torsional fatigue test, the TNG group showed a higher angle of rotation, followed by the PG and WGG groups (p < 0.05). The TNG group was superior to the PG group in torsional resistance (p < 0.05). SEM analysis revealed ductile morphology, typical of the 2 fracture modes: cyclic fatigue and torsional fatigue. Conclusions: Reciprocating WGG instruments showed greater cyclic fatigue resistance, while TNG instruments were better in torsional fatigue resistance. The significance of these findings lies in the identification of the instruments' clinical applicability to guide the choice of the most appropriate instrument and enable the clinician to provide a more predictable glide path preparation.

• KSII Transactions on Internet and Information Systems (TIIS)
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• v.17 no.8
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• pp.2016-2029
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• 2023

Accurate prediction of critical illness is significant for ensuring the lives and health of patients. The selection of indicators affects the real-time capability and accuracy of the prediction for critical illness. However, the diversity and complexity of these indicators make it difficult to find potential connections between them and critical illnesses. For the first time, this study proposes an indicator analysis model to extract key indicators from the preoperative and intraoperative clinical indicators and laboratory results of critical illnesses. In this study, preoperative and intraoperative data of heart failure and respiratory failure are used to verify the model. The proposed model processes the datum and extracts key indicators through four parts. To test the effectiveness of the proposed model, the key indicators are used to predict the two critical illnesses. The classifiers used in the prediction are light gradient boosting machine (LightGBM) and eXtreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost). The predictive performance using key indicators is better than that using all indicators. In the prediction of heart failure, LightGBM and XGBoost have sensitivities of 0.889 and 0.892, and specificities of 0.939 and 0.937, respectively. For respiratory failure, LightGBM and XGBoost have sensitivities of 0.709 and 0.689, and specificity of 0.936 and 0.940, respectively. The proposed model can effectively analyze the correlation between indicators and postoperative critical illness. The analytical results make it possible to find the key indicators for postoperative critical illnesses. This model is meaningful to assist doctors in extracting key indicators in time and improving the reliability and efficiency of prediction.

• Journal of Veterinary Science
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.22.1-22.12
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• 2023

Background: Citric acid (CA) and sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl) have been used to disinfect animals to protect them against avian influenza and foot-and-mouth disease. Objectives: We performed a good laboratory practice (GLP)-compliant animal toxicity study to assess the acute toxic effects of CA and NaOCl aerosol exposure in Sprague-Dawley rats. Methods: Groups of five rats per sex were exposed for 4 h to four concentrations of the two chemicals, i.e., 0.00, 0.22, 0.67, and 2.00 mg/L, using a nose-only exposure. After a single exposure to the chemicals, clinical signs, body weight, and mortality was observed during the observation period. On day 15, an autopsy, and then gross findings, and histopathological analysis were performed. Results: After exposure to CA and NaOCl, body weight loss was observed but recovered. Two males died in the CA 2.00 mg/L group and, two males and one female died in the 2.00 mg/L NaOCl group. In the gross findings and histopathological analysis, discoloration of the lungs was observed in the CA exposed group and inflammatory lesions with discoloration of the lungs were observed in the NaOCl exposed group. These results suggest that the lethal concentration 50 (LC50) of CA is 1.73390 mg/L for males and > 1.70 mg/L for females. For NaOCl, the LC50 was 2.22222 mg/L for males and 2.39456 mg/L for females. Conclusions: The Globally Harmonized System is category 4 for both CA and NaOCl. In this study, the LC50 results were obtained through a GLP-based acute inhalation toxicity assessment. These results provide useful data to reset safety standards for CA and NaOCl use.

• Restorative Dentistry and Endodontics
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• v.46 no.3
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• pp.41.1-41.23
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• 2021

Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of various local anesthesia (LA) in vital asymptomatic teeth. Materials and Methods: Randomized controlled trials comparing pulpal anesthesia of various LA on vital asymptomatic teeth were included in this review. Searches were conducted in the Cochrane CENTRAL, MEDLINE (via PubMed), EMBASE, ClinicalTrials.gov, Google Scholar and 3 field-specific journals from inception to May 3, 2019. Study selection, data extraction, and risk of bias assessment using Cochrane Risk of Bias Tool were done by 2 independent reviewers in duplicate. Network meta-analysis (NMA) was performed within the frequentist setting using STATA 15.0. The LA was ranked, and the surface under the cumulative ranking (SUCRA) line was plotted. The confidence of the NMA estimates was assessed using the CINeMA web application. Results: The literature search yielded 1,678 potentially eligible reports, but only 42 were included in this review. For maxillary buccal infiltration, articaine 4% with epinephrine 1:100,000 was more efficacious than lidocaine 2% with epinephrine 1:100,000 (odds ratio, 2.11; 95% confidence interval, 1.14-3.89). For mandibular buccal infiltration, articaine 4% with epinephrine 1:100,000 was more efficacious than various lidocaine solutions. The SUCRA ranking was highest for articaine 4% with epinephrine when used as maxillary and mandibular buccal infiltrations, and lidocaine 2% with epinephrine 1:80,000 when used as inferior alveolar nerve block. Inconsistency and imprecision were detected in some of the NMA estimates. Conclusions: Articaine 4% with epinephrine is superior when maxillary or mandibular infiltration is required in vital asymptomatic teeth.

• Restorative Dentistry and Endodontics
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• v.46 no.2
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• pp.16.1-16.11
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• 2021

Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the shaping ability of the TruShape and Reciproc Blue systems and the apical extrusion of debris after root canal instrumentation. The ProTaper Universal system was used as a reference for comparison. Materials and Methods: Thirty-three mandibular premolars with a single canal were scanned using micro-computed tomography and were matched into 3 groups (n = 11) according to the instrumentation system: TruShape, Reciproc Blue and ProTaper Universal. The teeth were accessed and mounted in an apparatus with agarose gel, which simulated apical resistance provided by the periapical tissue and enabled the collection of apically extruded debris. During root canal preparation, 2.5% sodium hypochlorite was used as an irrigant. The samples were scanned again after instrumentation. The percentage of unprepared area, removed dentin, and volume of apically extruded debris were analyzed. The data were analyzed using 1-way analysis of variance and the Tukey test for multiple comparisons at a 5% significance level. Results: No significant differences in the percentage of unprepared area were observed among the systems (p > 0.05). ProTaper Universal presented a higher percentage of dentin removal than the TruShape and Reciproc Blue systems (p < 0.05). The systems produced similar volumes of apically extruded debris (p > 0.05). Conclusions: All systems caused apically extruded debris, without any significant differences among them. TruShape, Reciproc Blue, and ProTaper Universal presented similar percentages of unprepared area after root canal instrumentation; however, ProTaper Universal was associated with higher dentin removal than the other systems.