• Radiation Oncology Journal
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• v.36 no.4
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• pp.295-303
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• 2018

Purpose: We evaluated prognostic value of the 8th edition of the American Joint Committee on Cancer/International Union for Cancer Control (AJCC/UICC) staging system for nasopharyngeal cancer and investigated whether tumor volume/metabolic information refined prognostication of anatomy based staging system. Materials and Methods: One hundred thirty-three patients with nasopharyngeal cancer who were staged with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and treated with intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) between 2004 and 2013 were reviewed. Multivariate analyses were performed to evaluate prognostic value of the 8th edition of the AJCC/UICC staging system and other factors including gross tumor volume and maximum standardized uptake value of primary tumor (GTV-T and SUV-T). Results: Median follow-up period was 63 months. In multivariate analysis for overall survival (OS), stage group (stage I-II vs. III-IVA) was the only significant prognostic factor. However, 5-year OS rates were not significantly different between stage I and II (100% vs. 96.2%), and between stage III and IVA (80.1% vs. 71.7%). Although SUV-T and GTV-T were not significant prognostic factors in multivariate analysis, those improved prognostication of stage group. The 5-year OS rates were significantly different between stage I-II, III-IV (SUV-T ≤ 16), and III-IV (SUV-T > 16) (97.2% vs. 78% vs. 53.8%), and between stage I, II-IV (GTV-T ≤ 33 mL), and II-IV (GTV-T > 33 mL) (100% vs. 87.3% vs. 66.7%). Conclusion: Current anatomy based staging system has limitations on prognostication for nasopharyngeal cancer despite the most accurate assessment of tumor extent by MRI. Tumor volume/metabolic information seem to improve prognostication of current anatomy based staging system, and further studies are needed to confirm its clinical significance.

• Journal of Veterinary Clinics
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.26-28
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• 2007

An 11-year-old castrated male, Shih-tzu dog was admitted for progressive weight-bearing lameness and mass on the right hindlimb. Radiography and ultrasonography revealed a large well-marginated multinodular mass with mixed echogenicity. On T1 and T2-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), the mass has a heterogenous signal intensity similar to or higher than muscle. The masses were extended to the pelvic cavi쇼 through obturator foramen and displaced the rectum dorsally. It was diagnosed as synovial sarcoma which was composed with mesenchymal and epithelial elements on histopathological findings of the multifocal biopsied specimen. MRI was helpful to determine the definitive margin for surgical resection of the mass. The mass was recurred at the 6th month after surgery. On the 10th month, the patient was euthanasiuzed by owner's request.

• IMMUNE NETWORK
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.25-34
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• 2002

Background: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic inflammatory disease characterized by synovial hyperplasia and joint destruction. The synovial fibroblasts express cell adhesion molecules and have a role in adhesive interation with inflammatory cells in synovial tissue. It has been suggested that hypoxic conditioins are thought to exist in arthritic joints, and several studies indicate that reactive oxygen species (ROS) produced in hypoxic condition can initiate events that lead to pro-adhesive changes via increased expression of adhesion molecules. So, this study wsa designed to examine whether antioxidant can inhibit hypoxia-induced expression of ICAM-1 in cultured human synovial fibroblasts. Methods: Synovial fibroblasts were isolated from synovial tissue in patients with RA and cultured at hypoxic condition. Antioxidant, PDTC (pyrrolidine dithiocarbamate) were pre-treated for an hour before the hypoxic culture and synovial fibroblasts were harvested at 0, 6, 12, 24, 48 hours time points. Cell surface ICAM-1 expression in synovial fibroblasts was examined by the flow cytometric analysis. To analyse the expression of ICAM-1 mRNA, reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was performed. The levels of cytokines in culture supernatants were measured by ELISA, and activation of NF-${\kappa}B$ was analysed by electrophoretic mobility shift assay. The adhesive reaction between synovial fibroblasts and lymphocytes was assayed by measurement of fluorescent intensity of BCECF-AM in lymphocytes. Results: Hypoxic stimuli up-regulated the ICAM-1 expression as well as the adhesive interaction of human synvial fibroblasts to lymphocytes in a time-dependent manner, and PDTC inhibited hpyoxia-induced ICAM-1 expression and cell-cell interaction. PDTC also inhibited the hypoxia-induced activation of intracellular transcription factor, NF-${\kappa}B$. PDTC decreased the amount of hypoxia-induced production of IL-$1{\beta}$ and TNF-${\alpha}$. Conclusion: These studies demonstrate that PDTC inhibit the hypoxia-induced expression of the adhesion molecule, ICAM-1 and activation of NF-${\kappa}B$ in cultured human synovial fibroblasts.

• Journal of the Institute of Electronics Engineers of Korea SP
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• v.44 no.6
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• pp.1-8
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• 2007

In this paper, research on joint optimization of the image spatial registration and the exposure compensation is conducted. The exposure compensation is performed in a frame work of the intensity compensation based on the polynomial approximation of the relationship between images. This compensation is jointly combined with the registration problem employing the Gauss-Newton nonlinear optimization method. In this paper, to perform for a simple and stable optimization, the block-coordinate method is combined with the Gauss-Newton optimization and extensively compared with the traditional approaches. Furthermore, regression analysis is considered in the compensation part for a better stable performance. By combining the block-coordinate method with the Gauss-Newton optimization, we can obtain a compatible performance reducing the computational complexity and stabilizing the performance. In the numerical result for a particular image, we obtain a satisfactory result for 10 repeats of the iteration, which implies a 50% reduction of the computational complexity. The error is also further reduced by 1.5dB compared to the ordinary method.

• Physical Therapy Korea
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.1-8
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• 2014

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a neuromodulatory technique that delivers low-intensity direct current to cortical areas, thereby facilitating or inhibiting spontaneous neuronal activity. This study was designed to investigate changes in various sensory functions after tDCS. We conducted a single-center, single-blinded, randomized trial to determine the effect of a single session of tDCS with the current perception threshold (CPT) in 50 healthy volunteers. Nerve conduction studies were performed in relation to the median sensory and motor nerves on the dominant hand to discriminate peripheral nerve lesions. The subjects received anodal tDCS with 1 mA for 15 minutes under two different conditions, with 25 subjects in each groups: the conditions were as follows tDCS on the primary motor cortex (M1) and sham tDCS on M1. We recorded the parameters of the CPT a with Neurometer$^{(R)}$ at frequencies of 2000, 250, and 5 Hz in the dominant index finger to assess the tactile sense, fast pain and slow pain, respectively. In the test to measure CPT values of the M1 in the tDCS group, the values of the distal part of the distal interphalangeal joint of the second finger statistically increased in all of 2000 Hz (p=.000), 250 Hz (p=.002), and 5 Hz (p=.008). However, the values of the sham tDCS group decreased in all of 2000 Hz (p=.285), 250 Hz (p=.552), and 5 Hz (p=.062), and were not statistically significant. These results show that M1 anodal tDCS can modulate sensory perception and pain thresholds in healthy adult volunteers. The study suggests that tDCS may be a useful strategy for treating central neurogenic pain in rehabilitation medicine.

• Geophysics and Geophysical Exploration
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• v.2 no.3
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• pp.149-153
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• 1999

The study was performed as a part of 3-D exploration project of the South Con Son basin, where Korea National Oil Co. (KNOC) and SHELL Company are performing joint operation. In the structurally complex area, seismic facies or lap-out patterns, which are usually the tools for the conventional seismic stratigraphy developed by Exxon Group (Vail et at., 1977), are not easily identifiable. Therefore, stratigraphic informations are mainly extracted from seismic attribute maps of each sequence or systems tracts, and isopach maps in correlation with the stratigraphic information from the wells. The attribute maps of the sequence or systems tract boundaries and isopach map describe the variations of paleodepositional environments. The shape of the attribute maps of the boundaries is a reasonable description of the shape of the paleodepositional surface. With other maps such as isopach and structural maps, the variations of the parasequences in the systems tracts can be projected using the surface attribute maps. The reflection intensity attribute at each sequence or system tract boundary can be related to lithology, facies or porosity distributions. The azimuth attribute of source rock sequence can be used to identify the hydrocarbon migration patterns into the prospects. The overall risks of reservoir rocks, cap rocks, structure and hydrocarbon migrations were computed using the results of the study.

• Korean Journal of Acupuncture
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.81-90
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• 2007

Objectives : This study was performed to evaluate the effect of occulsal plane balancing therapy on pain control without another therapy. Methods : This clinical study was carried out in 6 cases of patients which had neck and shoulder pain. In this study we treated the patients by balancing therapy of occulsal plane using paper. We measured Visual Analogue Scale(V.A.S.) for pain intensity, Range of Motion(R.O.M.) and difference of thermographic temperature between pain site and the opposite before and 15 minutes after treatment and analyzed the change of variables. Also, we analyzed the correlation among hypomovable site of neck rotaion(HS), pain site(PS) and thick site of paper(TS). Results : 1. The average of skin temperature was decreased from $0.45{\pm}0.11$ to $0.24{\pm}0.13$ significantly(p<0.05). 2. The average of V.A.S was decreased from $10.00{\pm}0.00$ to $3.83{\pm}0.99$ significantly(p<0.05). 3. In the correlation analysis among HS, PS and TS, there is negative correlation between HS and TS, but there was no statistical significance. Conclusions : In the study, the balancing therapy of occulsal plane warrants further investigation in the change of skin temperature and R.O.M. of the joint, pain control.

• The Journal of the Korean bone and joint tumor society
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• v.4 no.1
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• pp.30-36
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• 1998

Squamous cell carcinoma is a neglected disease entity in orthopedic oncology. The purpose of this study was to analyze overall survival and the role of surgery on survival and to evaluate the significance of possible prognostic factors. From Oct, 1986 to Aug, 1996, 57 patients were enlisted and 42 patients ere eligible. Inclusion criteria included more than one year follow-up and no distant metastasis at the first visit. Staging and survival followed AJC classification and Kaplan-Meier plot. Stage II included 17 cases and stage III, 25 cases. Thirty-eight patients underwent operations, chemotherapy, and/or radiotherapy, and the remaining four had operations only. The chemotherapeutic regimen was adriamycin-cisplatin. The average follow-up period was 45 months. The ten-year actuarial survival rate of whole patients was 65.4%. Location of primary lesion, stage, pathologic grading, and intensity of chemotherapy in the same stage showed a significant difference in survival. Nine out of 42 patients had local recurrence. Seven patients had inadequate wide margins and two had intralesional margins. Average period of recurrence from operation was 13(4-35)months. The operation itself had no impact on survival but a surgical margin of no less than 3cm from the lesion was important for local control. Pathological grade and staging were significant variables for long term survival. Acral lesion had a significantly higher chance of regional and distant metastasis but actual survival showed no difference. In stage II, aggressive chemotherapy could delay or reduce the chance of regional or distant metastasis.

• Journal of Society of Preventive Korean Medicine
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• v.14 no.3
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• pp.37-49
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• 2010

Objective : Qigong has been reported as an effective for post-mastectomy women. It consists of a series of postures combined with slow, smooth, graceful movements, and is considered a low intensity exercise. In this study, a specialist of Qigong developed a Qigong program for post-mastectomy women in a community. The object of this research is to evaluate the effect of Qigong on a subjective symptom scale, on the grade of discomfort and pain in everyday life, BMI, fat(%), muscular strength, shoulder joint movement, in post-mastectomy women. Methods : The study used a non-equivalent control group non-synchronized design. The experimental group received a Qigong 3 times a week for 12 weeks from September 7th to December 28th in 2009. The subjects were 40 patients are divided into 25 persons in experimental groups and 15 persons in contrastive group. The data were analyzed with descriptive statistics, chi-square test, t-test, Mann-Whitney U test. A P-value less than .05 was considered significant by 2-tailed test. All statistical analyses were performed with SPSS win(ver 12.0). Results : The results were as follows : The score in the subjective symptom(p=.040), and score of anxiety (p=.024), fat(%)(p=.007) were significantly decreased after Qigong program. The values for shoulder flexibility (left : p=.010, right : p=.008), and Muscular strength(grip power)(left : p=.021, right : p=.029) significantly increased after Qigong program. And Flexion(left ; p=.029), Extension(left : p=.001, right : p=.038), Adduction(left ; p=.001, right ; p<0.001) were also significantly increased after Qigong Conclusions : The Qigong is an effective health promotion program for post-mastectomy women.

• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.40-45
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• 2008

Therapeutic ultrasound which is developed for rehabilitation therapy have already been used for healing joint contracture, synechia, acute and chronic inflammatory diseases. Medical devices for pain-relief and healing using therapeutic ultrasound are actively being developed. This study measured the change of PTT with the transmitted ultrasound through the human body to find out the increase of compliance of blood vessels. Measurement method of PTT in this study is employed as useful ways to acquire physiological information of patients in the clinical case in order to measure the change of mechanical characteristics of blood vessels. This study confirmed the PTT change of rehabilitation patients through the thermal effects of ultrasound by using PTT and also found that it is possible to increase PTT by adjusting the warm water and ultrasound. The increase of PTT means the decrease of the pulse wave velocity from the cardiovascular system to the peripheral arteries. The physiological effects occurred using the warm water and ultrasound.