• Journal of the Korean Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.41-45
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• 2020

Objective: The objective of this study was to assess serum, hair, and urinary magnesium (Mg) levels in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and both ASD and ADHD to reveal potential interactive effects. Methods: A total of 148 boys aged 4-9 years old were enrolled in this study, including 44 children with ADHD, 40 pediatric patients with ASD, 32 patients with both ADHD and ASD, as well as 32 healthy neurotypical children. Hair, serum, and urinary Mg levels were assessed using inductively-coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Laboratory quality control was performed using certified reference materials of human hair, plasma, and urine. Results: No significant group difference in serum Mg levels was observed. Mg content in hair was found to be reduced in children with ADHD and ADHD+ASD compared to that in healthy controls by 11% and 15%, respectively. Urinary Mg levels in children with ADHD+ASD exceeded the control, ADHD, and ASD values by 51, 76, and 65%, respectively. Factorial analysis revealed significant contribution of ADHD to hair and urinary Mg levels. Multiple regression analysis demonstrated that hair and urinary Mg levels were considered as significant predictors of neurodevelopmental disorder complexity. Conclusion: We propose that impaired Mg status may provide a link between ADHD and ASD.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
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• v.44 no.3
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• pp.223-227
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• 2017

Background Carpal tunnel release is one of the most common surgical procedures performed by hand surgeons. The authors created a surgical simulation of open carpal tunnel release utilizing a mobile and rehearsal platform app. This study was performed in order to validate the simulator as an effective training platform for carpal tunnel release. Methods The simulator was evaluated using a number of metrics: construct validity (the ability to identify variability in skill levels), face validity (the perceived ability of the simulator to teach the intended material), content validity (that the simulator was an accurate representation of the intended operation), and acceptability validity (willingness of the desired user group to adopt this method of training). Novices and experts were recruited. Each group was tested, and all participants were assigned an objective score, which served as construct validation. A Likert-scale questionnaire was administered to gauge face, content, and acceptability validity. Results Twenty novices and 10 experts were recruited for this study. The objective performance scores from the expert group were significantly higher than those of the novice group, with surgeons scoring a median of 74% and medical students scoring a median of 45%. The questionnaire responses indicated face, content, and acceptability validation. Conclusions This mobile-based surgical simulation platform provides step-by-step instruction for a variety of surgical procedures. The findings of this study help to demonstrate its utility as a learning tool, as we confirmed construct, face, content, and acceptability validity for carpal tunnel release. This easy-to-use educational tool may help bring surgical education to a new- and highly mobile-level.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.7 no.4
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• pp.293-298
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• 2016

Background: The aim of this study was to increase knowledge regarding the dangers associated with tobacco use, and decrease secondhand smoke exposure and tobacco use behaviors with an antitobacco messaging campaign among rural, medically underserved, blue-collar workers. Methods: A quasiexperimental study was conducted with employees at two worksites. One worksite received the intervention, which consisted of nine different antitobacco messages. Baseline and follow-up surveys were conducted at each worksite to assess change in knowledge and behavior; the data were compared across the two worksites. Results: Two hundred twenty-two and 243 participants completed baseline and follow-up surveys at the intervention and comparison sites, respectively. A statistically significant difference was seen over time between the worksites on knowledge of the dangers of tobacco (p < 0.0001); the mean knowledge score increased at the intervention site, but remained unchanged at the comparison site. In general, non-smokers at both worksites appeared to try to decrease exposure to secondhand smoke over the follow-up period. Repeated measures analysis indicated that there were no differences in motivation to quit (p = 0.81), interest in quitting (p = 0.40), thinking about quitting (p = 0.53), or several tobacco-use behaviors over time among smokers at the intervention and comparison worksites. There were slight increases over time in the proportion of smokers who do not allow smoking in their homes/vehicles at the intervention worksite, although not statistically significant. Conclusion: Participants at the intervention worksite increased their knowledge regarding the dangers of tobacco use and secondhand smoke exposure. Among current tobacco users, the intervention appeared to increase family rules regarding secondhand smoke exposure in their homes and vehicles.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.37 no.1
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• pp.21-33
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• 2004

The objective of this study is to review of environmental assessment of heavy metals derived from various metalliferous mines in Korea. As a results of national wide research for heavy metal contaminations in the vicinity of metalleferous mines, the main contaminants are mine waste materials including tailings. From the materials, toxic elements including As, Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn can be dispersed into downstream through wind and water. Thus, soils around the mines contain elevated levels of those elements, which are over the guide values for environmental regulation of soils in Korea. Arsenic is one of the most important elements contaminated by mining activities, to a less extent, Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn. In spite of remediation works for some metal mines by the government, there are still lots of abandoned mines which are necessary for reclamation of mining sites. This study also includes that metal concentrations in soils and tailings can be varied upon various decomposition methods including 0.1N HC1 and aqua regia and sequential extraction scheme, with differences in each element, too. This may be due to geochemical characteristics of the elements, such as solubility, mobility and chemical forms in the geochemical environment. Finally, it is suggested that a certain organization should be runned by Korean government for management of abandoned mines.

• Journal of Dental Anesthesia and Pain Medicine
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.83-87
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• 2020

Foreign body (FB) ingestion is commonly seen in the ear nose and throat (ENT) field, with different presentations and sequelae. FBs can arrest in the upper aerodigestive tract or continue further down into either the airway tract to the bronchus or the digestive tract to the intestines. The pathway of an FB depends on the size and shape of the FB and how sharp its edges are. Since the 20th century, the use of disposable stainless-steel needles in the oral cavity has proven to be an effective and safe method for performing various intraoral procedures like dental infiltration or a root canal wash. Complications from their use are rare. Generally, dental needle breakages are caused by patients biting the needle, incorrect injection techniques, or inadequate preventative measures. The sudden movement of a patient during a procedure is one of the most common causes of breakage. Occasionally, needles are swallowed during dental procedures such as a root canal. Here, we report a case of a patient that swallowed a broken needle during a dental procedure. A few days later, the patient presented with neck pain, swelling, and a FB sensation. When the patient presented, she claimed that her symptoms had onset after consuming a meal containing duck meat. Initially, the patient was diagnosed as having ingested a duck bone. However, intraoperatively, the FB was discovered to be an injection needle that had migrated from the throat to the neck.

• Journal of Broadcast Engineering
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.319-329
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• 2016

Internet Video Coding (IVC) is a royalty-free codec currently being developed in MPEG. Coding efficiency of IVC codec has been steadily enhanced and it was reported that the performance of Committee Draft (CD) version is comparable to H.264/AVC High Profile (HP) in terms of objective and subjective qualities. In this paper, we present some coding tools that have been proposed for enhancing the coding efficiency of IVC during the developing process in MPEG along with brief overview of IVC codec architecture and coding algorithms. The coding tools include both of normative tools and informative tools such as non-reference P frame coding, DC mode intra prediction, Lagrange multiplier selection, and extension of chroma intra prediction modes. Improvement obtained by each tool is presented in terms of algorithm and coding gain based on the experiments. As a result of the experiment, the coding tools give the average bit saving of 8.8%, 0.4%, 0.4%, and 0.0%, respectively, in the low-delay coding mode.

• Toxicological Research
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.291-296
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• 2018

Chemical carcinogenesis is a multistep process. Genotoxic carcinogens, which are DNA-reactive, induce DNA adduct formation and genetic alterations in target cells, thereby generating mutated cells (initiation). Subsequently, preneoplastic lesions appear through clonal proliferation of the mutated cells and transform into tumors (promotion and progression). Many factors may influence these processes in a dose-dependent manner. Therefore, quantitative analysis plays an important role in studies on the carcinogenic threshold of genotoxic carcinogens. Herein, we present data on the relationship between key carcinogenic events and their deriving point of departure (PoD). Their PoDs were also compared to those of the carcinogenesis pathway. In an experiment, the liver of rats exposed to 2-amino-3,8-dimethylimidazo-(4,5-f)quinoxaline (MeIQx) was examined to determine the formation of MeIQx-DNA adducts, generation of mutations at LacI transgene, and induction of preneoplastic glutathione S-transferase placental form (GST-P)-positive foci and tumors (benign and malignant). The PoDs of the above key events in the carcinogenicity of MeIQx were increased as the carcinogenesis advanced; however, these PoDs were lower than those of tumor induction. Thus, the order of key events during tumor induction in the liver was as follows: formation of DNA adducts ${\ll}$ Mutations ${\ll}$ GST-positive foci (preneoplasia) ${\ll}$ Tumor (adenoma and carcinoma). We also obtained similar data on the genotoxic and carcinogenic PoDs of other hepatocarcinogens, such as 2-amino-3,8-dimethylimidazo(4,5-f)quinoline. These results contribute to elucidating the existence of a genotoxic and carcinogenic threshold.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.49 no.2
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• pp.134-138
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• 2016

Objectives: Season of birth, an exogenous indicator of early life environment, has been related to higher risk of adverse psychiatric outcomes but the findings for Alzheimer's disease (AD) have been inconsistent. We investigated whether the month or season of birth are associated with AD. Methods: A nationwide nested case-control study including all community-dwellers with clinically verified AD diagnosed in 2005 to 2012 (n=70 719) and up to four age- sex- and region of residence-matched controls (n=282 862) residing in Finland. Associations between month and season of birth and AD were studied with conditional logistic regression. Results: Month of birth was not associated with AD (p=0.09). No strong associations were observed with season (p=0.13), although in comparison to winter births (December-February) summer births (June-August) were associated with higher odds of AD (odds ratio, 1.03; 95% confidence interval, 1.00 to 1.05). However, the absolute difference in prevalence in winter births was only 0.5% (prevalence of those born in winter were 31.7% and 32.2% for cases and controls, respectively). Conclusions: Although our findings do not support the hypothesis that season of birth is related to AD/dementia risk, they do not invalidate the developmental origins of health and disease hypothesis in late-life cognition. It is possible that season does not adequately capture the early life circumstances, or that other (postnatal) risk factors such as lifestyle or socioeconomic factors overrule the impact of prenatal and perinatal factors.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
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• v.42 no.2
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• pp.186-193
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• 2015

Background Polyurethane coating of breast implants has been shown to reduce capsular contracture in short-term follow-up studies. This 30-year study is the longest examination of the use of polyurethane-coated implants and their correlation with capsular contracture. Methods This study evaluates the senior surgeon's (F.D.P.) experience with the use of polyurethane-coated implants in aesthetic breast augmentation in 382 patients over 30 years. Follow-up evaluations were conducted for six months after surgery. After the six-month follow-up period, 76 patients returned for reoperation. The gross findings, histology, and associated capsular contracture were noted at the time of explantation. Results No patient during the six-month follow-up period demonstrated capsular contracture. For those who underwent reoperation for capsular contracture, Baker II/III contractures were noted nine to 10 years after surgery and Baker IV contractures were noted 12 to 21 years after surgery. None of the explanted implants had macroscopic evidence of polyurethane, which was only found during the first five years after surgery. The microscopic presence of polyurethane was noted in all capsules up to 30 years after the original operation. Conclusions An inverse correlation was found between the amount of polyurethane coating on the implant and the occurrence of capsular contracture. Increasingly severe capsular contracture was associated with a decreased amount of polyurethane coating on the surface of the implants. No contracture occurred in patients whose implants showed incomplete biodegradation of polyurethane, as indicated by the visible presence of polyurethane coating. We recommend research to find a non-toxic, non-biodegradable synthetic material as an alternative to polyurethane.

• Journal of the Korean Wood Science and Technology
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• v.35 no.2
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• pp.85-95
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• 2007

Manganese dependent peroxidase (MnP) is the most ubiquitous enzyme produced by white-rot fungi, MnP is known to be involved in lignin degradation, biobleaching and oxidation of hazardous organopollutants. Bjerkandera fumosa is a nitrogen-unregulated white-rot fungus, which produces high amounts of MnP in the excess of N-nutrients due to increased biomass yield. The objective of this study was to optimize the MnP production in N-sufficient cultures by varying different physiological factors such as Mn concentration, culture pH, and incubation temperature. The growth of fungus was optimal in pH 4.5 at $30^{\circ}C$, $N_2$-unregulated white-rot fungus produces high amounts of MnP in the excess N-nutrients. The fungus produced the highest level of MnP (up to $1000U/{\ell}$) with $0.25g/{\ell}$ asparagine and $1g/{\ell}$ $NH_4Cl$ as N source at 1.5 mM $MnCl_2$ concentration, pH value of 4.5 at $30^{\circ}C$. Purification of MnP revealed the existence of two isoforms: MnPl and MnP2. The molecular masses of the purified MnPl and MnP2 were in the same range of 42~45 kDa. These isoforms of B. fumosa strictly require Mn to oxidize phenolic substrates. Concerned to kinetic constants of B. fumosa MnPs, B. fumosa has similar Km value and Vmax compared to the other white-rot fungi.