• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.47 no.5
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• pp.478-482
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• 2014

A 39-year-old man presented with cough, chest discomfort, and weight loss. On the basis of the patient history and laboratory findings, he was diagnosed with the hypereosinophilic syndrome. Transthoracic echocardiography revealed a large thrombus in the left ventricle. Medical treatment with anticoagulation and immunosuppression was commenced immediately. Fourteen days after the initial diagnosis, the patient presented with acute pain in his right leg. Computed tomographic angiogram showed embolic occlusion of the infrarenal abdominal aorta and bilateral iliac (including common, external, and internal iliac) arteries. Emergent thromboembolectomy and left ventricular thrombectomy were performed. The postoperative course was uneventful, and the patient has undergone follow-up for 2 months without any evidence of recurrence of thromboembolism.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.15
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• pp.6381-6384
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• 2015

Background: The purpose of this retrospectively study was to examine the effectiveness and tolerability of a radiotherapy technique for the palliation of symptomatic liver metastases. Materials and Methods: Twentyseven patients with liver metastases were enrolled and received targeted whole liver irradiation consisting of mean 1, 8 Gy in five to twelve fractions to a total mean dose 17Gy. Symptoms at baseline were hepatic pain (26 patients), lost of weight (6), lack of appetite (2), and night sweats (1). Seventeen patients (63%) had failed previous treatment with chemotherapy and/or high-dose steroids. Results: Individual symptom response rates were 100% at 4 weeks. Partial or complete global symptomatic responses were noted in 11 patients (40%) after 2 months. After 3 months, 8 patients (28%) reported loss of pain. The treatment was well tolerated with one patient (3%) experiencing grade 3 toxicity (one vomiting and one diarrhoea). Overall the median survival time was 4.9 months (range 1 - 14 months). One year survival was 39%. Conclusions: This is simple and well-tolerated treatment but to achieve good palliation effects we should carefully selected patients whose conventional treatment does not bring good analgesic control.

• Journal of Korean Traditional Oncology
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.93-98
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• 2005

Angiocentric T-cell lymphoma is a rare form of peripheral T-cell lymphoma. The disease typically manifests clinically as an aggressive, progressively destructive disorder often with a fatal outcome. It is the aim of the present paper to derive further studies evaluating the effectiveness of Korean traditional medicine on angiocentric T-cell lymphoma with intra-abdominal metastasis. A patient with high fever, weight loss, night sweat and general weakness(B symptoms) was diagnosed as angiocentric T-cell lymphoma and chemotherapy was done more than 10 times. But the response to chemotherapy was poor, finally the lymphoma involved liver and spleen. The abdominal CT showed the hepatosplenomegaly, diffuse lymphoma of liver and spleen, massive ascites, minimal pleural effusion. Then the patient gave up the chemotherapy and only herb medications (Bohyunsoamtang-A,B) were administered. The ascites, high fever and hepatosplenomegaly gradually reduced to normal. He survived for 7 years after first diagnosis, which is much longer than average survival time in angiocentric T-cell lymphoma with B symptoms. This case may give us a possibility of that Korean traditional herb medications offer potential benefits for patients with angiocentric T-cell lymphoma, and more researches are needed.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
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• v.39 no.1
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• pp.67-70
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• 2012

Massive weight loss results in skin excess, leading to an unsatisfying body contour. Various thigh lift procedures can correct flabby skin in the lower leg. We present a lower body contouring technique with a report on two patients. The procedure is determined by the body contour of the patient. As the skin excess in the thigh area tended to appear mostly on the medial side, a vertical medial thigh lift was considered. Moreover, for patients with a pear/guitar-shaped body contour, we added the spiral thigh lift for skin excess in the buttocks and the lateral thigh area. The extent of tissue to excise was determined by pinching the patient in a standing position. The inferior skin flap was fixed to non-movable tissue, which was helpful for lifting the tissue and preventing the widening of the scar. After the operation, a drain was kept for 3 to 4 days. A compressive garment was used after removing the drain. There were no complications. The patients were discharged 6 to 8 days after the operation. In conclusion, skin excess, especially in the lower body, can be corrected by a thigh lift combining several procedures, varying from person to person.

• Development and Reproduction
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• v.10 no.3
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• pp.203-209
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• 2006

Ethane 1,2-Dimethane sulfonate(EDS), a toxin which specifically kills Leydig cells(LC), has been widely used to prepare the reversible testosterone(T) depletion rat model. Previous studies including our own clearly demonstrated that the dramatic weight loss of the T-dependent accessory sex organs such as epididymis and seminal vesicle in this 'LC knock-out' rats. These weight loss could be derived from massive and abrupt death of the cells via apoptotic process. The present study was performed to test the effect of EDS administration on the expression of some apoptotic genes in the rat epididymis. Adult male Sprague-Dawley rats($300{\sim}350$ g B.W.) were injected with single dose of EDS(75 mg/kg, i.p.) and sacrificed on Weeks 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7. Tissue weights and the numbers of the epididymal sperm were measured. The transcriptional activities of the bcl-2, bax, Fas and Fas ligand(Fas-L) were evaluated by semi-quantitative RT-PCR. As expected, the weights and the sperm counts of epididymis declined progressively after the EDS treatment during Week 1 and 2. These decrements were discontinued with a gradual return towards normal during Weeks $5{\sim}7$, although the maximal recoveries of the epididymal weights(71%) and sperm count(38%) were subnormal on Week 7. The initial level of bcl-2 transcripts persisted to Week 6 then elevated significantly on Week 7. The level of bax transcripts significantly decreased on Week 6, and no remarkable change was found in the rest of the experimental period. The transcripts for the Fas in epididymis elevated during Weeks $1{\sim}2$, returned to normal on Week 3, and the level persisted to the Week 7. Similarly, the level of Fas-L transcripts elevated during Weeks $1{\sim}3$ and returned to normal after Week 4. Our results demonstrated the transient T depletion by EDS administration could induce the changes in expression of the apoptotic genes in rat epididymis. The activation of Fas and Fas-L in the epididymis of EDS-treated rats might be responsible for the initial apototic process and consequently the tissue damage and the sperm loss. Future studies will attempt to determine the precise molecular mechanism(s) of apoptosis in the rat epididymis.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Safety
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.143-155
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• 2016

Recently, a massive loss of life and property is occurring in Korea due to traffic accidents, with the rapid increase in cars. For improvement of traffic safety, the Korea Transportation Safety Authority intensively analyzes accident data in local governments with low traffic safety index, performs a field investigation to extract problems and offers local governments improvements for problems, by conducting the 'Special Survey of Actual Conditions of Traffic Safety' each year, starting 2008. But local governments cannot strongly push forward the improvement projects due to the limited budget and the uncertainty of the improvement plan effects. Therefore, this study suggested a model which applied the Utility concept to the AHP theory, in order to efficiently decide a priority of the improvement plans in accident black spots in consideration of the limited budget of local governments. The number of accidents in each spot for improvement and accident severity, traffic volume, pedestrian volume, the improvement project cost and the accident reduction effect were chosen as evaluation factors for deciding a priority, and data about the improvement plan costs and the accident reduction effects, traffic accidents and traffic volume in the spots to undergo the special research on the real condition of traffic accident in the past were collected from the existing studies. Then, regression analysis was carried out and the Utility Curve of each evaluation factor was computed. Based on the AHP analysis findings, this study devised a priority decision method which calculated the weight and the utility function of each evaluation factor and compared the total utility values. The AHP analysis findings showed that among the evaluation factors, accident severity had the biggest importance and it was followed by the improvement plan cost, the number of accidents, the improvement effect, traffic volume and pedestrian volume. The calculated utility function shows a rise in utility, as the variables of the 5 evaluation factors; the number of accidents, accident severity, the improvement plan effect, traffic volume and pedestrian volume increase and a fall in utility, as the variables of the improvement plan cost increase, since the improvement plan cost is included in the budget spent by a local government.

• Journal of Astronomy and Space Sciences
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.21-33
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• 2019

This paper focuses on the interpretation of radiation fluxes from active galactic nuclei. The advantage of positron annihilation spectroscopy over other methods of spectral diagnostics of active galactic nuclei (therefore AGN) is demonstrated. A relationship between regular and random components in both bolometric and spectral composition of fluxes of quanta and particles generated in AGN is found. We consider their diffuse component separately and also detect radiative feedback after the passage of high-velocity cosmic rays and hard quanta through gas-and-dust aggregates surrounding massive black holes in AGN. The motion of relativistic positrons and electrons in such complex systems produces secondary radiation throughout the whole investigated region of active galactic nuclei in form of cylinder with radius R= 400-1000 pc and height H=200-400 pc, thus causing their visible luminescence across all spectral bands. We obtain radiation and electron energy distribution functions depending on the spatial distribution of the investigated bulk of matter in AGN. Radiation luminescence of the non-central part of AGN is a response to the effects of particles and quanta falling from its center created by atoms, molecules and dust of its diffuse component. The cross-sections for the single-photon annihilation of positrons of different energies with atoms in these active galactic nuclei are determined. For the first time we use the data on the change in chemical composition due to spallation reactions induced by high-energy particles. We establish or define more accurately how the energies of the incident positron, emitted ${\gamma}-quantum$ and recoiling nucleus correlate with the atomic number and weight of the target nucleus. For light elements, we provide detailed tables of all indicated parameters. A new criterion is proposed, based on the use of the ratio of the fluxes of ${\gamma}-quanta$ formed in one- and two-photon annihilation of positrons in a diffuse medium. It is concluded that, as is the case in young supernova remnants, the two-photon annihilation tends to occur in solid-state grains as a result of active loss of kinetic energy of positrons due to ionisation down to thermal energy of free electrons. The single-photon annihilation of positrons manifests itself in the gas component of active galactic nuclei. Such annihilation occurs as interaction between positrons and K-shell electrons; hence, it is suitable for identification of the chemical state of substances comprising the gas component of the investigated media. Specific physical media producing high fluxes of positrons are discussed; it allowed a significant reduction in the number of reaction channels generating positrons. We estimate the brightness distribution in the ${\gamma}-ray$ spectra of the gas-and-dust media through which positron fluxes travel with the energy range similar to that recorded by the Payload for Antimatter Matter Exploration and Light-nuclei Astrophysics (PAMELA) research module. Based on the results of our calculations, we analyse the reasons for such a high power of positrons to penetrate through gas-and-dust aggregates. The energy loss of positrons by ionisation is compared to the production of secondary positrons by high-energy cosmic rays in order to determine the depth of their penetration into gas-and-dust aggregations clustered in active galactic nuclei. The relationship between the energy of ${\gamma}-quanta$ emitted upon the single-photon annihilation and the energy of incident electrons is established. The obtained cross sections for positron interactions with bound electrons of the diffuse component of the non-central, peripheral AGN regions allowed us to obtain new spectroscopic characteristics of the atoms involved in single-photon annihilation.