• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.54 no.7
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• pp.2418-2426
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• 2022

The grouping analysis is a method guided by the Korea Radioactive Waste Agency for efficient analysis of radioactive waste for disposal. In this study, experiments to verify the adequacy of grouping analysis were conducted with radioactive soil, concrete, and dry active waste in similar environments. First, analysis results of the major radionuclide concentrations in individual waste samples were reviewed to evaluate whether wastes from similar environments correspond to a single waste stream. As a result, the soil and concrete waste were identified as a single waste stream because the distribution range of radionuclide concentrations was "within a factor of 10", the range that meet the criterion of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission for a single waste stream. On the other hand, the dry active waste was judged to correspond to distinct waste streams. Second, after analyzing the composite samples prepared by grouping the individual samples, the population means of the values of "composite sample analysis results/individual sample analysis results" were estimated at a 95% confidence level. The results showed that all evaluation values for soil and concrete waste were within the set reference values (0.1-10) when five-package and ten-package grouping analyses were conducted, verifying the adequacy of the grouping analysis.

• Journal of the Korean Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
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• v.32 no.4
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• pp.144-153
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• 2021

Objectives: Anxiety disorders are the most common psychiatric disorders in adolescents and seem to occur the earliest among all forms of psychopathology. The aim of this study was to investigate the association of anxiety severity with health risk behaviors and mental health in adolescents. Methods: Data from the 2020 Korean Youth Risk Behavior Web-Based Survey were analyzed. A total of 54948 adolescents responded to the 7-item Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale (GAD-7) for the assessment of their anxiety severity as well as to the mental health and health risk behavior survey. Logistic regression analysis, t tests, and variance analysis of a complex sample general linear model were used to examine the association of anxiety severity with health behaviors and mental health. Results: After statistical adjustment for sociodemographic characteristics, the subjects in the severe anxiety group were significantly more likely to be current smokers (odds ratio [OR]: 2.08, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.72-2.50), current drinkers (OR: 1.91, 95% CI: 1.67-2.19), experience habitual substance use (OR: 10.89, 95% CI: 8.22-14.42), have sexual intercourse (OR: 2.10, 95% CI: 1.76-2.51), and have unprotected intercourse (OR: 2.21, 95% CI: 1.67-2.92) than those in the normal group. Anxiety severity negatively correlated with sleep satisfaction and happiness, but positively correlated with stress perception, loneliness, depressive symptoms, and suicidality. Conclusion: Adolescent anxiety is associated with health risk behaviors and poor mental health. Thus, early screening and intervention for anxiety in adolescents could contribute to the management and coping of youth health risk behaviors in the community.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.55 no.2
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• pp.309-320
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• 2022

Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the association between steamed food intake and risk of metabolic syndrome (MetS) in Korean females. Methods: Using Ansan/Ansung data of Korean Genome and Epidemiology Study, general characteristics, nutritional intake and biochemical and anthropometric markers of a total of 4,056 females aged 40 to 69 years were analyzed. MetS was defined following National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III with some minor modifications. Logistic regression models were established to present the association between steamed food intake and the risk of MetS. Levels of food and nutrient intake by the frequency of steamed food intake and MetS phenotype were analyzed using general linear models. Results: A total of 38.4% of females had MetS. Among them, 24.9% of females with MetS had steamed food more than 1-3 times per week, which reduced the risk for MetS by about 25% (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.650-0.865). However, such association was not evident when various lifestyle factors were considered in statistical models. In rural residents, the benefit of having more steamed food was observed (adjusted odds ratio: 0.747; 95% CI, 0.583-0.958). The frequency of steamed food intake was associated with various food and nutritional intakes. However, trends in those did not differ by MetS phenotype. Conclusion: Having steamed food more than 1-3 times per week may reduce the risk of MetS compared to those who had less steamed food in Korean females. This protective effect of steamed food intake may differ by lifestyle and environmental factors. Although a clear difference in food and nutritional intake was not observed in this study, steaming could be an effective cooking method for a healthy diet for disease prevention and management.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.41 no.3
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• pp.153-157
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• 2022

BACKGROUND: The residue dissipation pattern of pesticides for agricultural products during the pre-harvest period after the final application is important to prevent the maximum residue limit (MRL) violations in domestic and export markets. The MRL violations of carbendazim are observed more often in chamnamul by pesticide residue management surveys by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. The residue level at the pre-harvest interval (PHI) and the residue dissipation constant from the critical good agricultural practice (cGAP) trials could be estimated to meet the MRL and pose a health risk to consumers. METHODS AND RESULTS: Chamnamuls were harvested at 0, 1, 3, 5, 7, 10, and 14 days after application of carbendazim in accordance with critical GAP. The residue analysis in chamnanul was performed by HPLC-DAD with the C₁₈ column. The limit of quantitation of carbendazim was 0.04 mg/kg, and the recoveries were 74.4 - 95.8% at the two spiked levels (LOQ and 10LOQ) of carbendazim. The dissipation rates in chamnamul were calculated from the residues at the sampling days by statistical method at a 95% confidence level. The biological half-lives of residual carbendazim in the field trials 1 and 2 were 4.9 and 4.4 days, respectively. CONCLUSION(S): In this dissipation study, the residue concentrations at the recommended PHI were higher than the established MRL in Korea. Therefore, the MRL is proposed based on the residue data sets from the trials conducted at the same cGAP and the dietary exposure assessment.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.85 no.4
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• pp.349-357
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• 2022

Background: The most consistently identified mortality determinants for the new coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) infection are aging, male sex, cardiovascular/respiratory diseases, and cancer. They were determined from heterogeneous cohorts that included patients with different disease severity and previous conditions. The main goal of this study was to determine if activities of daily living (ADL) dependence measured by Barthel's index could be a predictor for COVID-19 mortality. Methods: A prospective cohort study was performed with a consecutive sample of 340 COVID-19 patients representing patients from all over the northern region of Portugal from October 2020 to March 2021. Mortality risk factors were determined after controlling for demographics, ADL dependence, admission time, comorbidities, clinical manifestations, and delay-time for diagnosis. Central tendency measures were used to analyze continuous variables and absolute numbers (proportions) for categorical variables. For univariable analysis, we used t test, chi-square test, or Fisher exact test as appropriate (α=0.05). Multivariable analysis was performed using logistic regression. IBM SPSS version 27 statistical software was used for data analysis. Results: The cohort included 340 patients (55.3% females) with a mean age of 80.6±11.0 years. The mortality rate was 19.7%. Univariate analysis revealed that aging, ADL dependence, pneumonia, and dementia were associated with mortality and that dyslipidemia and obesity were associated with survival. In multivariable analysis, dyslipidemia (odds ratio [OR], 0.35; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.17-0.71) was independently associated with survival. Age ≥86 years (pooled OR, 2.239; 95% CI, 1.100-4.559), pneumonia (pooled OR, 3.00; 95% CI, 1.362-6.606), and ADL dependence (pooled OR, 6.296; 95% CI, 1.795-22.088) were significantly related to mortality (receiver operating characteristic area under the curve, 82.1%; p<0.001). Conclusion: ADL dependence, aging, and pneumonia are three main predictors for COVID-19 mortality in an elderly population.

• Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology & Nutrition
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.59-86
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• 2023

Purpose: Information regarding functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGIDs) in infants is currently lacking in Indonesia. This study aimed to describe the prevalence and risk factors of FGIDs in infants aged 6 weeks to 4 months in Indonesia. Methods: This cross-sectional study of 433 infants was conducted between September 2018 and February 2020. Information on FGIDs was collected using the Infant Gastrointestinal Symptom Questionnaire and the Feeding Practice and Gut Comfort Questionnaire. Adapted Rome IV criteria were used to define the FGIDs. Results: The prevalence of regurgitation was 26.3%; 16.8% of the infants presented cryingrelated symptoms and 5.5% exhibited constipation. The statistical analyses revealed that constipation was associated with sex (odds ratio [OR], 2.74; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.07-7.71; p=0.043), employment of the father (OR, 0.3; 95% CI, 0.12-0.77; p=0.01), and education of the mother (OR, 1.92; 95% CI, 1.07-3.51; p=0.031). Length at birth (OR, 0.74; 95% CI, 0.55-0.99; p=0.042) was associated with constipation. Length at visit (OR, 0.83; 95% CI, 0.76-0.91; p<0.001) was associated with regurgitation, and the weight at visit (OR, 0.58; 95% CI, 0.35-0.96; p=0.038) was associated with crying and/or colic. A history of parental FGIDs was associated with crying-related symptoms (OR, 2.12; 95% CI, 1.23-3.68; p=0.007). Conclusion: Regurgitation, crying, and constipation are common FGIDs in infants. Some parental and infant characteristics may be predictors for FGIDs. Further investigations are needed to evaluate the clinical relevance of our findings. Understanding the determinants of FGIDs will benefit healthcare professionals and parents to improve infant's quality of life and better manage these condition.

• The Journal of Pediatrics of Korean Medicine
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• v.37 no.1
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• pp.1-14
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• 2023

Objectives This study aimed to evaluate the effect of Samryungbaekchul-san on childhood anorexia. Methods We searched 11 English, Korean, Chinese, and Japanese databases for studies published up to May 30, 2022. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) assessing the effect of Samryungbaekchul-san on childhood anorexia were included. In the meta-analysis, relative risk (RR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were indicated as dichotomous variables, and mean difference (MD) or standardized mean difference (SMD) and 95% CIs were indicated as continuous variables. Results We included 12 RCTs with 1345 participants. The Samryungbaekchul-san treatment group had a significantly higher total effective rate (TER) than that of the western medicine control group (RR 1.42, 95% CI 1.23-1.64, I² = 0%). The combined Samryungbaekchul-san and western medicine treatment group had significantly higher TER (RR 1.31, 95% CI 1.23 to 1.40, I² = 0%) and levels of neuropeptide Y (SMD 0.93, 95% CI 0.47-1.39, I² = 70%) and ghrelin (SMD 1.45, 95% CI 1.14-1.76, I² = 0%) than those of the western medicine alone group. Additionally, leptin levels were significantly lower in the combined treatment group (SMD -1.19, 95% CI -1.88 to -0.51, I² = 86%) compared with the western medicine alone group, although statistical heterogeneity was substantial. Conclusions Samryungbaekchul-san may be effective for childhood anorexia. However, owing to limitations such as high clinical heterogeneity between the studies, unclear risks of biases, and insufficient reports of adverse events and follow-ups, well-designed RCTs with a low risk of bias are needed in the future.

• Child Health Nursing Research
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.111-127
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• 2023

Purpose: This study investigated the effects of healthy lifestyle interventions (HLSIs) on health-related quality of life (HR-QoL) in childhood and adolescent cancer survivors (CACS). Methods: Major databases were searched for English-language original articles published between January 1, 2000 and May 2, 2021. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and non-RCTs were included. Quality was assessed using the revised Cochrane risk-of-bias tool, and a meta-analysis was conducted using RevMan 5.3 software. Results: Nineteen studies were included. Significant effects on HR-QoL were found for interventions using a multi-modal approach (exercise and education) (d=-0.46; 95% confidence interval [CI]=-0.84 to -0.07, p=.02), lasting not less than 6 months (d=-0.72; 95% CI=-1.15 to -0.29, p=.0010), and using a group approach (d=-0.46; 95% CI=-0.85 to -0.06, p=.02). Self-efficacy showed significant effects when HLSIs provided health education only (d=-0.55; 95% CI=-0.92 to -0.18; p=.003), lasted for less than 6 months (d=-0.40; 95% CI=-0.69 to -0.11, p=.006), and were conducted individually (d=-0.55; 95% CI=-0.92 to -0.18, p=.003). The physical outcomes (physical activity, fatigue, exercise capacity-VO₂, exercise capacity-upper body, body mass index) revealed no statistical significance. Conclusion: Areas of HLSIs for CACS requiring further study were identified, and needs and directions of research for holistic health management were suggested.

• Clinics in Shoulder and Elbow
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.32-40
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• 2023

Background: The purpose of this study was to identify predictors of the time from initial presentation to total shoulder arthroplasty (TSA) in patients with primary glenohumeral osteoarthritis (OA) and rotator cuff (RTC) arthropathy who were conservatively managed with corticosteroid injections. Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of patients who underwent TSA from 2010 to 2021. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis was used to estimate median time to TSA for primary OA and RTC arthropathy patients. The Cox proportional hazards model was used to identify significant predictors of time to TSA and to calculate hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Statistical significance was set at P<0.05. Results: The cohort included 160 patients with primary OA and 92 with RTC arthropathy. In the primary OA group, median time to TSA was 15 months. Significant predictors of shorter time to TSA were older age at presentation (HR, 1.02; 95% CI, 1.00-1.04; P=0.03) and presence of moderate or severe acromioclavicular joint arthritis (HR, 1.45; 95% CI, 1.05-2.01; P=0.03). In the RTC arthropathy group, median time to TSA was 14 months, and increased number of corticosteroid injections was associated with longer time to TSA (HR, 0.87; 95% CI, 0.80-0.95; P=0.003). Conclusions: There are distinct prognostic factors for progression to TSA between primary OA patients and RTC arthropathy patients managed with corticosteroid injections. Multiple corticosteroid injections are associated with delayed time to TSA in RTC arthropathy patients.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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• v.53 no.3
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• pp.324-339
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• 2023

Purpose: This study aimed to valuate the reliability and validity of the Korean version of the 5C Psychological Antecedents of Vaccination (K-5C) scale. Methods: The English version of the 5C scale was translated into Korean, following the World Health Organization guidelines. Data were collected from 316 community-dwelling adults. Content validity was evaluated using the content validity index, while construct validity was evaluated through confirmatory factor analysis. Convergent validity was examined by assessing the correlation with vaccination attitude, and concurrent validity was evaluated by examining the association with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination status. Internal consistency and test-retest reliability were also evaluated. Results: Content validity results indicated an item-level content validity index ranging from .83 to 1, and scale-level content validity index, averaging method was .95. Confirmatory factor analysis supported the fit of the measurement model, comprising a five-factor structure with a 15-item questionnaire (RMSEA = .05, SRMR = .05, CFI = .97, TLI = .96). Convergent validity was acceptable with a significant correlation between each sub-scale of the 5C scale and vaccination attitude. In concurrent validity evaluation, confidence, constraints, and collective responsibility of the 5C scale were significant independent predictors of the current COVID-19 vaccination status. Cronbach's alpha for each subscale ranged from .78 to .88, and the intraclass correlation coefficient for each subscale ranged from .67 to .89. Conclusion: The Korean version of the 5C scale is a valid and reliable tool to assess the psychological antecedents of vaccination among Korean adults.