• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.54 no.2
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• pp.219-229
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• 2003

Background : The management of thoracic empyema and complicated parapneumonic effusion requires adequate antibiotics use and prompt drainage of infected pleural space. Tube thoracostomy for loculated empyema has low success rate and is also an invasive procedure with potential morbidity. Complications include hemothorax, perforation of intra-abdominal or intra-thoracic organs, diaphragmatic laceration, empyema, pulmonary edema, and Horner's syndrome. Given the potential morbidity of traditional chest tube insertion, use of the image-guided pigtail catheter drainage(PCD) of empyema has been employed. We retrospectively analyzed the medical records of patients with empyema or complicated parapneumonic effusion to determine the efficacy of percutaneous pigtail catheter drainage. Materials and Methods : 45 patients with complicated parapneumonic effusions or empyema were treated at Gil medical center from January 1998 to June, 1999. All were initially given PCD procedure and the following data were collected: clinical symptoms at the time of diagnosis, alcohol and smoking history, the characteristics of pleural effusion, radiologic findings (at the time of catheter insertion, removal and 1 month after catheter removal), the amount of effusion drained for initial 24 hours, the time from catheter insertion to removal and the use of surgical approach. Results : Male gender was more frequent (42 men vs. 3 women), the mean age of the study population was 52(range: 21~74) years. Empyema was found in 23 patients, complicated parapneumonic effusion in 22 patients. Four patients(three, parapneumonic effusion and one, with empyema) with PCD only treated, were cast off. Among the available patients, 36(80%) patients were treated with PCD only or PCD with urokinase. Among the 23 patients with empyema, surgical approach was required in five patients(27.1%, one required decortication, four open thoracostomy), one patient, treated with surgical procedure, died of sepsis. There was no significant difference of the duration of catheter insertion, the duration of hospital admission after catheter insertion and the mean amount of effusion drained for initial 24 hours between the patients with only PCD treated and the patients treated with PCD and urokinase. The duration of catheter insertion($9.4{\pm}5.25days$ vs. $19.2{\pm}9.42days$, p<0.05) and the duration of hospital admission after catheter insertion($15.9{\pm}10.45days$ vs. $38.6{\pm}11.46days$, p<0.01) of the patients with only PCD treated were more longer than those of the patients treated with surgical procedure after PCD. They were same between the patients treated with urokinase after PCD and the patients treated with surgical procedure after PCD($11.1{\pm}7.35days$ vs. $19.2{\pm}9.42days$, p<0.05, $17.5{\pm}9.17days$ vs. $38.6{\pm}11.46days$, p<0.01). In 16 patients(44.4%) with only PCD treated or PCD and urokinase treated, the amount of effusion at the time of catheter removal was decreased more than 75% and in 17 patients(47.2%) effusion decreased 50~75%. .In one patient effusion decreased 25~50%, in two patients effusion decreased less than 25%. One month after catheter removal, in 35 patients(97.2%, four patients were cast off), the amount of pleural effusion was successfully decreased more than 50%. There were no complications related to pigtail catheter insertion. Conclusion : In this study, PCD seemed to be an early efficacious procedure in treating the patients with complicated parapneumonic effusion or empyema without any serious procedure related complication.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.41 no.4
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• pp.372-378
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• 1994

Background: Pressure support ventilation(PSV) is a new form of mechanical ventilatory support that assists spontaneous inspiraory effort of an intubated patient with a clinician-selected amount of positive airway pressure. Low level pressure support during inspiration can overcome the resistive component of inspiratory work imposed by an endotracheal tube. However the clinical efficacy of PSV as a weaning method has not been established yet. Object: The aim of study was to evaluate the efficacy of PSV when it is added to intermittent mandatory ventilation(IMV) in facilitating weaning precess compaired to IMV mode alone. Method: When the subject patients became clinically stable with their arterial blood gas analysis in acceptable range, they underwent weaning process either by IMV alone or by IMV plus PSV. The level of pressure support was held constant throught the weaning period. For the patients who required mechanical ventilation for less than 72 hr, 2h weaning trial was performed with IMV rate starting from 6/min. For the patients who required mechanical ventilation more than 72 hr, 7 hr weaning trial was performed with IMV rate starting from 8/min. For the patients who failed three consecutive trials of weaning, retrial of weaning was attempted over 3 days with IMV rate starting from 8/min. Clinical characteristics, APACHE II score and nutritional status were compared. For all patients, heart rate, mean blood pressure and respiratory rate were mornitored for 48 hrs after weaning trial started. Results: The total number of weaning trial was 37 in 23 patients(18 by IMV, 19 by IMV+PSV). Total ventilation time, APACHE II score and nutritional status were not statistically different between the two groups. The weaning success rate were not statistically different(38.3% by IMV, 42.1% by IMV+PSV) and the changes of mean blood pressure, heart rate, respiratory rate during first 48 hours were not different between the two groups. Conclusion: Low level PSV when added to IMV for weaning trial does not seem to improve the success rate of weaning from mechanical ventilation. PSV at 10cm $H_2O$ did not induce significant physiologic changes during weaning process.

• Journal of the Korean Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.1-16
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• 2004

The use of artificial nerve conduit containing viable Schwann cells is one of the most promising strategies to repair the peripheral nerve injury. To fabricate an effective nerve conduit whose microstructure and internal environment are more favorable in the nerve regeneration than existing ones, a new three-dimensional Schwann cell culture technique using $Matrigel^{(R)}$. and dorsal root ganglion (DRG) was developed. Nerve conduit of three-dimensionally arranged Schwann cells was fabricated using direct seeding of freshly harvested DRG into a $Matrigel^{(R)}$ filled silicone tube (I.D. 1.98 mm, 14 mm length) and in vitro rafting culture for 2 weeks. The nerve regeneration efficacy of three-dimensionally cultured Schwann cell conduit (3D conduit group, n=6) was assessed using SD rat sciatic nerve defect of 10 mm, and compared with that of silicone conduit filled with $Matrigel^{(R)}$ and Schwann cells prepared from the conventional plain culture method (2D conduit group, n=6). After 12 weeks, sciatic function was evaluated with sciatic function index (SFI) and gait analysis, and histomorphology of nerve conduit and the innervated tissues of sciatic nerve were examined using image analyzer and electromicroscopic methods. The SFI and ankle stance angle (ASA) in the functional evaluation were $-60.1{\pm}13.9$, $37.9^{\circ}{\pm}5.4^{\circ}$ in 3D conduit group (n=5) and $-87.0{\pm}12.9$, $32.2^{\circ}{\pm}4.8^{\circ}$ in 2D conduit group (n=4), respectively. And the myelinated axon was $44.91%{\pm}0.13%$ in 3D conduit group and $13.05%{\pm}1.95%$ in 2D conduit group to the sham group. In the TEM study, 3D conduit group showed more abundant myelinated nerve fibers with well organized and thickened extracellular collagen than 2D conduit group, and gastrocnemius muscle and biceps femoris tendon in 3D conduit group were less atrophied and showed decreased fibrosis with less fatty infiltration than 2D conduit group. In conclusion, new three-dimensional Schwann cell culture technique was established, and nerve conduit fabricated using this technique showed much improved nerve regeneration capacity than the silicone tube filled with $Matrigel^{(R)}$ and Schwann cells prepared from the conventional plain culture method.

• Journal of the Korean Vacuum Society
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.153-159
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• 2007

In-cryostat helium lines are under installation to transfer a cryogenic helium into cold components in KSTAR device. In KSTAR, three kinds of helium should be supplied into the cold components, which are supercritical helium Into superconduction(SC) magnet system, liquid helium into current lead system, and gas helium into thermal shields. Cryogenic helium lines consist of transfer lines outside the cryostat, in-cryostat helium lines, and electrical breaks. In-cryostat helium lines should be guaranteed of leak tightness for tong time operation at high internal helium pressure of 20 bar. We wrapped the helium line with multi-layer insulator(MLI) to reduce radiation heat and insulated the surface of the high potential part with prepreg tape. The electrical break was fabricated by brazing ceramic tube with stainless steel tube. To ensure the operation reliability at operation temperature, all the electrical break have been examined by the thermal cycle test at liquid nitrogen and by the hydraulic test at 30 bar. And additional surface insulation was prepared with prepreg tape to give structural safety. At present most of the in-cryostat helium lines have been installed and the final inspection test is progressing.

• Quality Improvement in Health Care
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.10-21
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• 2001

Background : The Clostridium difficile is the most important identifiable cause of nosocomial infectious diarrhea and colitis, which lengthens hospital stay. Recently incidence of C. difficile has been increasing in an university hospital, and an intervention for prevention and control of C. difficile associated diarrhea (CDAD) was in prompt need. Methods : Subjects were the patients in the neurosurgical intensive care unit(NCU) where C. difficile was most frequently isolated. To increase participation of various departments, we used the CQI method, because management of CDAD requires a wholistic approach including control of antibiotics, barrier precaution and environmental cleaning and disinfection. Duration of the CQI activities was 9 months from April to December 1999. Results : The identified problems were misuse and overuse of antibiotics, lack of consciousness of medical personnels and the possibility of transmission from the contaminated environment and tube feeding. Education for proper use of antibiotics and management of C. difficile infection, use of precaution stickers, supplement of handwashing equipments, emphasis on environmental disinfection, and the change of the process of tube feeding were done. The CDAD rate in NCU was significantly decreased after the CQI program (8.6 case per 1,000 patient days from January to April 1999 vs 4.8 from May to December 1999). The distribution of neurosurgical wards including NCU among the total number of isolated C. difficile from the clinical specimens dropped from 49.4% in January to April to 33,7% in May to December. The average hospital stay of the neurosurgical department changed from 19.6 days to 15.2 days. Also, the effect of the CQI activities for C. difficile may have affected the incidence of vancomycin resistant enterococci (VRE). Duration and dosage of certain antibiotics used in the NS department were decreased. The distribution of neurosurgical department in the number of VRE isolated patients declined from 18.4% to 11.1%. Conclusion : Infection control of resistant organisms such as C. difficile is likely to be successful when management of environmental contamination an collaborative efforts of decreasing the patients' risk factors such as antibiotics management and decreasing the length of hospital stay come simultaneously. For this work, related departments need to actively participate in the entire process under a common target through discussions for identifying problems and bringing up solutions. In this respect, making use of a CQI team is an efficient method of infection control for gathering participation and cooperation of related departments.

• Journal of Korean Society on Water Environment
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.116-124
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• 2010

While groundwater is the major source for drinking and irrigation purposes, arsenic (As) contamination of groundwater is a serious issue in Bangladesh. With a view to reduce As contamination in drinking water the guideline value recommended for Bangladesh is 0.05 mg/L. We assessed groundwater As in an As-affected Sadar Upazilla (small administrative unit) in the District (administrative unit) of Chapai Nabwabganj during 2006, where 50% hand tube well water were above the recommended limit (0.05 mg/L) during dry season. Almost 20% tube well waters were above the recommended limit during rainy season, perhaps due to the dilution of water table. The groundwater in Bangladesh contaminates surface soils and plants thereby As entering the food chain. In 2005, we examined the As levels in different rice varieties grown in different Districts of Bangladesh and the As concentrations in rice grain ranged from 0.07~1.12 mg/kg while the concentrations in 3 rice varieties were above the recommended limit (1 mg/kg rice grain) and the maximum concentration was 1.12 mg/kg rice grain in the rice variety BR 11. With few exceptions, the As content of rice grain in Bangladesh is not considered to be concentration of greater health concern as yet. We also observed enhanced root uptake, efficient root-to shoot translocation, and a much elevated tolerance through internal detoxification all contribute to As hyperaccumulation in a plant, ladder brake fern (Pteris vittata L.). But the phytoremediation technique might not be an appropriate tool to reduce the As calamity in the vast areas of Bangladesh. To mitigate the As problem of Bangladesh, better coordination among governmental agencies and many other organizations will be required to combat the disaster.

• Journal of the Korean Wood Science and Technology
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.15-22
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• 2006

ln order to manage efficiently many ancient wooden buildings, which have been preserved as cultural properties in Korea, the internal state of wood members should be evaluated exactly and periodically by a NDE (non-destructive evaluation) method. A research project was planned to develop an X-ray CT (computed tomography) system as a NDE method for wood, which could be easily applied in field. This paper includes the first part of this project. First of all, to establish a measuring procedure of wood density using X-ray radiography, the correlation between X-ray intensity and the film brightness was evaluated. Also, initial X-ray intensity was quantified with various radiate conditions controlled by the tube voltage and tube current. And then, the effects of density, annual ring angle, and thickness on the mass attenuation coefficient of wood were examined. Finally, Beer's law was modified with the above results and adopted to calculate the density of wood. As a result of this study, the measuring procedure of wood density was established using a portable soft X-ray device and this procedure was verified with some small wood specimens. This results will he used valuably for the following researches to develop a portable X-ray CT system.

• The Journal of Dong Guk Oriental Medicine
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• v.3
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• pp.207-222
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• 1994

In order to find out the effect of Anti-Histamine of the Sungmagalkuntang and Sungmagalkuntang-plus-samultang I've investigated the effect of the time to death, the peripheral vascular Pemeability, the amount of secretion of Gastric Juice, the total Acidity of Gastric Juice, the contraction of Intestine Tube by Histamine and the effect of the Skin-Reaction by the decrease of DNCB. These results are following ; 1. The effect of Mice's time to death by Histamine was that the injection group of sungmagalkungtang and the injection group of sungmagalkungtang-plus-samultang both have had the effect of the extention of the time to death, which indicated a statistical significance in comparison with comparative group. 2. The effect of the increased vascular permeability by Histamine was that the injection group of sungmagalkuntang and the injection group of sungmagalkuntang-plus-samultang both have had the effect of the restraint of the increased vascular permeability, which indicated a statistical significance in comparison with comparative group. 3. The effect of the the amount of the secretion of Gastric Juice by Histamine stimulus was that the injection group of sungmagalkuntang-plus-samultang only has had the effect of restraint of the increased of the secretion of Gastric Juice, which indicated a statistical significance in comparison with comparative group. 4. The effect of the change of total Acidity of Gastric Juice by Histamine's stimulus was that the injection group of sungmagalkuntang-plus-samultang only has had the effect of the restraint of the increase of total Acidity of Gastric Juice, which indicated a statistical significance in comparison with comparative group. 5. The effect of the contraction of Intestine Tube by Histamine was that sungmagalkuntang and sungmagalkuntang-plus-samultang both have had the effect of the contraction and the restraint. According to the increase of the density, the effect of the restraint was more clear. But the difference of the effects between two substances had little. 6. The effect of the reaction of skin by the decrease of DNCB was that the injection group of sungmagalkuntang and the injection group of sungmagalkuntang-plus-samultang have had the decreased effect of the Skin-Reaction in comparison with comparative group. sungmagalkuntang-plus-samultang aws more effective. In these results shown above, both sungmagalkuntang and sungmagalkuntang-plus-samultang was shown as more effective one.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.13 no.8
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• pp.3792-3799
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• 2012

The dedusting characteristics of pulse air jet type dedusting system which is widely applied in the industries were identified by utilizing the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and the dedusting performance in modified shape of dedusting unit was compared in this study. The review on the dedusting air volume, air stream distribution and inflow velocity distribution on each shape of dedusting part showed that the case of installing the nozzle on the blow tube (Case-3) and the case of installing the double intaking tube to the venturi (Case-4 and Case-5) were more excellent than the structure (Case-1) which is widely applied in the field in its amplification effect on the air volume and extension of stream width. The specification of venturi was decided to apply the selected Case-5 for the option of the commercial back filter. It is considered that the dedusting air volume will be maintained in maximum in the case of 50 mm and 90 mm for the diameter of internal and external intaking pipe respectively.

• Analytical Science and Technology
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.149-154
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• 2006

A gas chromatography-mass spectrometric method was developed for the determination of formaldehyde in urine and saliva. In a 20 mL glass tube, 0.2 mL of urine or saliva was taken. Further, 1.8 mL of 0.1 M HCl, 0.1 mL of 2,000 mg/L 2,4-dinitrophenyl hydrazine and $20{\mu}l$ of 500 mg/L acetone-$d_6$ as internal standard were added in the tube and sealed tightly with cap. The solution was shaken for 20 min at room temperature and extracted using 4 mL of toluene. The extract was concentrated and redissolved with $100{\mu}l$ of acetonitrile, and then measured by gas chromatography-mass spectrometer (selected ion monitoring). The detection limit was 2.0 ng/mL and 0.5 ng/mL in saliva and urine, respectively. The calibration curves showed good linearity with r = 0.997 and 0.998 for saliva and urine, respectively. The method was used to analyze formaldehyde in rat urine after oral exposure. The developed method may be use ful to the monitoring for formaldehyde exposure in human.