• Journal of Pharmacopuncture
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.106-113
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• 2022

Objectives: Herbal medicine is a worldwide health topic. Vitex agnus-castus L. (VAC) is a popular plant used for gynecologic problems due to its hormonal effects. The aim of this study is to reveal VAC extract effect on fetus when this herb is used started from antenatal period or during pregnancy. Methods: Performed from starting day of January 2019 till February 2019, 48 rats were assigned in randomly divided eight-member six groups: control (C1), treated group with 365 mg/kg VAC from initiation of insemination (T1) and 30 days prior to pregnancy (T2), control that underwent caesarean section on 15^th day of gestational age (C2) and treated group with 365 mg/kg VAC from initiation of insemination (T3) and 30 days prior to pregnancy (T4) that underwent caesarean section. Weight, sex and number of fetuses, abortion and still birth rate and estradiol level were evaluated using t-test by SPSS software. Results: We showed increased weight among T1 group considering totally and sex-dependent which is significant (all p-value < 0.05). We also detected significantly decreased weight in T2 in total (p-value < 0.0001) and when considering female fetuses (0.043) but not males (0.17). Although the results showed slightly non-significant increased weight among fetuses of T3 (totally or based on the fetus sex) compared to the control group (C2), T4 group had statistically decreased weight compared to control group. Pregnancy rate and pregnancy outcome were affected by VAC usage. The time of VAC initiation also affected live birth and abortion rates. Conclusion: VAC extract may affect pregnancy rate, live birth rate, abortion and stillbirth rates. Its effect on the weight and the sex showed dual pattern depends on the time of initiation and pregnancy trimester of evaluation. Prescribing this medicinal plant for patients being prone to pregnancy should be with caution. Further study is recommended.

• Journal of Sericultural and Entomological Science
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.24-30
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• 1985

The effect of some organic solvents on interrupting diapause of Bombyx mori eggs was examined to provide a clue to the mechanism of diapause initiation. Methyl alcohol and benzene proved to be efficient in developing the prospective diapause eggs upto the stage of hatching or body pigmentation of the embryos. On the other hand, most of the eggs soaked in chloroform and mixture solution of chloroform-methyl alcohol (2:1) died in the early embryonic developmental stage with yellow or red brown colours, and the egg weights decreased upto ca. 40% of the original weight 8 days after the treatments. Methyl alcohol treatment for 2, 5 and 10 min to the 5hr-old-eggs led to empergence of the larvae, with high incidence (70∼80%) in the race of Kumchu X Chonghwa and with low indidence (1∼4%) in Daezo. The effect of same treatment to 20hr old eggs decreased to ca. 10% in the emergence of larvae in Kumchn X Chonghwa and increased to 20∼30% in Daezo, while the effect disappeared shortly after the diapause initiation (48hr-old-eggs). Considering the high dependency upon the egg age of the sensitivity to solvents, it was supposed that initiation and termination of diapause may be controlled by different mechanism. It was also suspected that the solvents exert their effect on the permeability of the eggshell.

• Physical Therapy Korea
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• v.3 no.3
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• pp.44-58
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• 1996

The purpose of this study was to compare and evaluate various hand functions in the most common position (chair sitting, standing, floor sitting) used by cerebral palsied children with spastic diplegia. The results, analysed statistically, could be useful in suggesting treatment strategy for the improvement of hand function in such patient. For this study, 27 children mild or moderate spastic diplegia were chosen. They were patients of the Rehabilitation Hospital, Yonsei University Medical Center. Both dominant and nondominant hands were tested by the Box and Block Test. Bilateral hand function was tested by bead striding and card sorting activities. Collected data was analysed using univariate correlation analysis and MANOVA. Results were as follows: 1) In chair sitting there was a significant positive correlation between dominant hand scores in the Bloc and Box Test and chronological age, gestation period, and time of treatment initiation. In bilateral hand function, card sorting scores correlated positively with time of treatment initiation. 2) In standing, there was a significantly positive correlation between dominant hand scores in the Block and Box Test and time of treatment initiation. 3) In floor sitting, there was a significantly positive correlation between the dominance hand scores in the Block and Box Test and the tine of treatment initiation. Bead stringing, a bilateral hand activity, correlated positively with gestation period and birth weight but negatively with the postnatal incubation period. 4) That score of children who walked showed no significant difference in any of the three postures. 5) Highest test scores in children who could nat walk were in the Box and Block Test for nondominant hand in bead stringing for bilateral hand function. There scores occurred with the children in thee chair sitting posture. The results showed that, in order to improve hand function in children with spastic diplegia, it is necessary to maintain a well supported upright trunk posture with variations allowed for relevance to the chosen position of thee improvements hand activity being performed.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.13 no.6
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• pp.2663-2667
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• 2012

Objectives: An attempt was made to understand the nicotine dependence of smokers selected for an ongoing smoking cessation intervention programme in rural Kerala, India. Methods: Data were collected from resident males in the age group of 18 to 60 years from 4 randomly allocated community development blocks of rural Thiruvananthapuram district (2 intervention and 2 control groups). Trained accredited social health activist workers were utilised to collect data from all groups through face to face interview. Nicotine dependence among participants was assessed by means of the six-item Fagerstrom Test for Nicotine Dependence (FTND) translated into the local language. The internal consistency of FTND was computed using Cronbach's alpha coefficient. Criterion validity (concurrent) was assessed by correlations of nicotine dependence scores with age at initiation of smoking and cumulative smoking volume in pack-years. Results: Among the 928 smokers identified, 474 subjects were in the intervention area (mean age = 44.6 years, SD = 9.66 years) and 454 in the control area (mean age = 44.5 years, SD = 10.30 years). The overall FTND score among current daily smokers was 5.04 (SD: 5.05). FTND scores in the control and intervention areas were 4.75 (SD: 2.57) and 4.92 (SD: 2.51) respectively. The FTND scores increased with age and decreased with higher literacy and socioeconomic status. The average FTND score was high among smokers using both bidi and cigarettes (mean 6.10, SD 2.17). Internal consistency analysis yielded a Cronbach's alpha coefficient of 0.70 in a subsample of 150 subjects, a moderate result. The association of the scale was strongest, with the number of pack-years smoked (rho = 0.677, p < 0.001). Conclusion: A moderate level of nicotine dependence was observed among smokers in the current study. Tobacco cessation strategies could be made more cost effective and productive if a baseline assessment of nicotine dependence is completed before any intervention.

• Journal of the Korean Wood Science and Technology
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• v.43 no.4
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• pp.411-420
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• 2015

Despite of the same species there is a difference in the tree shape and its wood property due to quantitatiVe and qualitatiVe differences in wood cells by the intra-annual cambial actiVity. The purpose of this study was to proVide the fundamental database of intra-annual cambial seasonal actiVity for red pine in Sokwang-ri and Anmyondo for the determination of their wood qualities. As the results of intra-annual cambial actiVity, the initiation of cambial actiVity of red pine in the plots with Age Class V in Sokwang-ri was in the middle of April and it was at the beginning of April in all plots in Anmyondo. Only the plots with Age Class IX in Sokwang-ri showed relatiVely late initiation of cambial actiVity as between middle of May and middle of June. Except one plot with Age Class IX in Sokwang-ri all plots in both sites showed the same cessation of cambial actiVity as between middle and end of October. According to intra-annual cambial actiVity, the duration of cambial actiVity in Sokwang-ri is shorter than that of Anmyondo. On the other hand, the number of cell diVision of cambial actiVity in Sokwang-ri was more than those of Anmyondo. We could establish the database for intra-annual cambial actiVity for Sokwang-ri and Anmyondo to estimate their wood quality.

• Korean Journal of Adult Nursing
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.523-532
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• 2006

Purpose: The positive effects of health behaviors in older population are well recognized, but maintenance of health habits was more difficult than initiation. The purposes of the study were to identify predictors of health behavior based on motivation theories, and to analyze predicting power of motivational factors to explain health behaviors in older adults. Methods: The data were collected from older adults either institutionalized or living in the community. Total of 159 subjects with 72 years old in average were recruited for an interview. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis were utilized to analyze the data with age, residential type, and motivational variables. Results: The results of the multiple regression analysis showed that age and residential type explained 3% of variance in health behaviors (F=3.705, p=0.027). When motivational variables were entered, additional 56.9% of variance were explained by the model (F=33.275, p< 0.001). Among motivational variables, perceived benefits was the most important variable (${\beta}=0.346$, t=4.582, p<0.001), followed by self efficacy, emotional salience, and perceived barriers. Conclusion: Considering the importance of each motivational variable, the focus of intervention strategies to assist older adults to maintain health behaviors should be on modifiable and important motivational variables, such as self-efficacy, perceived benefits and barriers, and emotional salience.

• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.56-66
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• 2022

Purpose: Nutritional problems after gastrectomy affect continuation of postoperative chemotherapy. There have been no studies limited to total gastrectomy, which is particularly prone to nutritional problems. In this study, we aimed to investigate the factors that predict the continuation of postoperative chemotherapy. Materials and Methods: We included 101 patients who underwent curative total gastrectomy and postoperative chemotherapy at Hiroshima Memorial Hospital. The effects of 37 factors, including perioperative inflammatory, nutritional, and tumor status, on the persistence of postoperative chemotherapy were analyzed. Results: In univariate analysis of preoperative factors, age, carbohydrate antigen 19-9, platelet-to-neutrophil ratio, Onodera's prognostic nutritional index (PNI), controlling nutritional status score, and nutritional risk screening (NRS-2002) score were significantly associated with the duration of postoperative chemotherapy. In multivariate analysis of preoperative factors, age (≥74 years) was an independent factor for a shorter duration of postoperative chemotherapy (hazard ratio [HR], 5.24; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.19-12.96; P<0.01). In univariate analysis of factors before postoperative chemotherapy, intraoperative blood loss, perioperative weight loss rate, postoperative performance status, PNI, albumin-to-bilirubin index, and NRS-2002 score were significantly associated with the duration of postoperative chemotherapy. In multivariate analysis of factors before postoperative therapy, age (≥74 years) (HR, 5.75; 95% CI, 1.90-19.49; P<0.01) and PNI (<39) (HR, 3.29; 95% CI, 1.26-8.56; P=0.02) were independent factors for a shorter duration of postoperative chemotherapy. Conclusions: Age and PNI are useful predictors of postoperative chemotherapy intolerance after total gastrectomy and may determine the treatment strategy and timing of chemotherapy initiation.

• Phonetics and Speech Sciences
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.99-106
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• 2017

Clinical data about vocal nodules have seldom been reported, even though vocal nodules are commonly diagnosed in outpatient speech and voice clinic. This study aims to investigate clinical characteristics of the patients who are diagnosed with vocal nodules. This study analyzed the data for 10 years from the 319 patients diagnosed with vocal nodules (45 males and 274 females with the mean age of 39.4 ranging from 2 to 83) in terms of gender, age, occupation, voice change initiation pattern, change with time, throat clearing, smoking history, type of voice abuse, acoustic analysis, maximum phonation time, GRBAS, and VHI. Thirteen patients (4.08%) had unilateral vocal nodule and 306 patients (95.9%) had bilateral vocal nodule, the majority of which had a pattern of asymmetry (73.9%). The glottal closure pattern was hourglass in 72.1% of patients, posterior chink in 17.9% of patients, and irregular in 7.9% of patients. The most common occupational category was professional voice users (43.4%). The voice abuse pattern included excessive talking in 96 patients (76.8%), loud voice in 78 (62.4%) patients, and excessive singing in 17 patients (21.6%). The patients showed worse scores in G, B, and S than in R and A for the GRBAS evaluation. The most recommended treatment for vocal nodules was voice therapy. The current clinical data will be helpful for treatment planning for the patients of vocal nodule.

• Philosophy of Education
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• no.46
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• pp.45-70
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• 2012

The purpose of this study is researching on educational difficulty in the history of western education. In other words, the goal and significance of this paper lies in knowing the essential meaning of education based on the norms of difficulty. The major method for this study is hermeneutical-anthropological pedagogy. My fundamental claim is the following: the essential nature of teaching is difficulty at any instructional condition and situations. Such a discrete idea was clearly identified and confirmed in the process of pedagogical anthropology. That is, through the consciousness of educational difficulty and critical review for the history of western education, I can cleary define the concept of educational difficulty. Educational difficulty was various ways for understanding by all audiences. Namely, various formulars were developed for understanding it according to the age, cultures, nations, ideology, etc.. But there are continuous characters on the way for understanding on educational difficulty. The results on research are as followings. In the primitive age, fundamental difficulty of education lies in the initiation ceremony. At the classical ancient time, the purpose of education was 'Politai' with politike arete, in this educational conditions, instruction have a complex dimension politically as well as psychologically. At the medieval age, educational difficulty lies in the 'Askese' for instructional methods. In the modern and conventional age, educational difficulty is more and more complex and confused on goals, methods, evaluations, etc.. Most of all, the major or key concept of educational difficulty in this world is the conflict between the two instructional principles, that is, objectivism and constructivism in education. At now, the schoolworks for instruction over all educational situations and conditions have a difficulty of traditional as well conventional dilemma. In conclusion, educational difficulty have formal, natural, original attribute and it is general and universal phenomenon.

• Journal of the Ergonomics Society of Korea
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.155-160
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• 2006

Motor intentional disorders have been studied by visual examination methods such as cross-response task and Luria loop. To provide more analytical, quantitative information for motor intentional disorders, the present study developed a method which evaluates force control capabilities by the index finger. The assessment method analyzes the finger force control capabilities at four stages(initiation, development, maintenance, and termination) with NK Pinch-GripTM(force resolution= 0.098 N; temporal resolution=50Hz). By applying the assessment method, a patient(age=66) with callosal legion was compared with 6 healthy males(mean age=65.5, SD=2.8), showing significant but different decreases in force control capabilities depending on hand and response location. The assessment method would be of use to better understand various aspects of motor intentional disorders such as the effects of the disorders to the neurological network of the brain and severity assessment of the disorders.