• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.54 no.1
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• pp.6-10
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• 2011

Many patients assume that allergic reactions against foods are responsible for triggering or worsening their allergic symptoms. Therefore, it is important to identify patients who would benefit from an elimination diet, while avoiding unnecessary dietary restrictions. The diagnosis of food allergy depends on the thorough review of the patients's medical history, results of supplemented trials of dietary elimination, and in vivo and in vitro tests for measuring specific IgE levels. However, in some cases the reliability of such procedures is suboptimal. Oral food challenges are procedures employed for making an accurate diagnosis of immediate and occasionally delayed adverse reactions to foods. The timing and type of the challenge, preparation of patients, foods to be tested, and dosing schedule should be determined on the basis of the patient's history, age, and experience. Although double-blind, placebo-controlled food challenges(DBPCFC) are used to establish definitively if a food is the cause of adverse reactions, they are time-consuming, expensive and troublesome for physician and patients. In practice, An open challenge controlled by trained personnel is sufficient especially in infants and young children. The interpretation of the results and follow-up after a challenge are also important. Since theses challenges are relatively safe and informative, controlled oral food challenges could become the measure of choice in children.

• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.292-301
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• 2010

To restore visual sensation of blind patients, we have proposed a fully implantable retinal prosthesis comprising an three dimensionally (3D) stacked retinal chip for transforming optical signal to electrical signal, a flexible cable with stimulus electrode array for stimulating retina cells, and coupling coils for power transmission. The 3D stacked retinal chip is consisted of several LSI chips such as photodetector, signal processing circuit, and stimulus current generator. They are vertically stacked and electrically connected using 3D integration technology. Our retinal prosthesis has a small size and lightweight with high resolution, therefore it could increase the patients` quality of life (QOL). For realizing the fully implantable retinal prosthesis, we developed a retinal prosthesis module comprising a retinal prosthesis chip and a flexible cable with stimulus electrode array for generating optimal stimulus current. In this study, we used a 2D retinal chip as a prototype retinal prosthesis chip. We fabricated the polymide-based flexible cable of $20{\mu}m$ thickness where 16 channels Pt stimulus electrode array was formed in the cable. Pt electrode has an impedance of $9.9k{\Omega}$ at 400Hz frequency. The retinal prosthesis chip was mounted on the flexible cable by an epoxy and electrically connected by Au wire. The retinal prosthesis chip was cappted by a silicone to pretect from corrosive environments in an eyeball. Then, the fabricated retinal prosthesis module was implanted into an eyeball of a rabbit. We successfully recorded electrically evoked potential (EEP) elicited from the rabbit brain by the current stimulation supplied from the implanted retinal prosthesis module. EEP amplitude was increased linearly with illumination intensity and irradiation time of incident light. The retinal prosthesis chip was well functioned after implanting into the eyeball of the rabbit.

• Korean Journal of Remote Sensing
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.41-53
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• 2020

The production of near- and off-shore fisheries in South Korea is decreasing due to rapid changes in the fishing environment, particularly including higher sea temperature in recent years. To improve the competitiveness of the fisheries, it is necessary to provide fish catch information that changes spatiotemporally according to the sea state. In this study, artificial intelligence models that predict the CPUE (catch per unit effort) of mackerel, anchovies, and squid (Todarodes pacificus), which are three major fish species in the near- and off-shore areas of South Korea, on a 15-km grid and daily basis were developed. The models were trained and validated using the sea surface temperature, rainfall, relative humidity, pressure,sea surface wind velocity, significant wave height, and salinity as input data, and the fish catch statistics of Suhyup (National Federation of Fisheries Cooperatives) as observed data. The 10-fold blind test results showed that the developed artificial intelligence models exhibited accuracy with a corresponding correlation coefficient of 0.86. It is expected that the fish catch models can be actually operated with high accuracy under various sea conditions if high-quality large-volume data are available.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.165-170
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• 2010

This study assessed effects of magnetic acu-point therapy as an add-on to conventional antihypertensive managements such as medication or lifestyle modification for hypertensive or pre-hypertensive subjects. This study was conducted with the purpose to evaluate the decreasing effect of the blood pressure on the hypertensive patients who were given to magnetic acu-point therapy. A single-blind, placebo-controlled trial by cross matching was conducted at Daejeon University Oriental Hospital. The washout periods of cross matching are 10 days. 22 hypertensive (systolic BP>140 mmHg or diastolic BP>90 mmHg) volunteers were recruited and treatments were donemagnetic acu-points on Oegwan(TE 5), Jogimeup(GB 41), Naegwan(PC 6), Gongson(SP 4), Hugye(SI 3), Sinmaek(BL 62). The treated group was statistically significant decrease of the blood pressure, while control group show no statistically significant difference of BP. From the results, magnetic acu-point therapy seems to offer a benefit to the treatment of hypertensive patients.

• Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology & Nutrition
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.388-396
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• 2020

Purpose: Impaired intestinal mucosal integrity may affect the gastrointestinal function, especially in relation to nutrition, absorption, and barrier function. The purpose of this study was to measure the prevalence of impaired intestinal mucosal integrity in presumed healthy children aged 1-3 years and assess the effects of zinc, glutamine, fiber, and prebiotic supplementation in them. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in 200 children aged 1-3 years in Pasar Minggu, South Jakarta, Indonesia. A randomized double-blind parallel group method clinical trial was then performed to assess the effects of zinc, glutamine, fiber, and prebiotic supplementation. Results: Elevated calprotectin was found in 91/200 subjects (45.5%) at the onset of the study. After 10 months, 144 subjects completed the study: 72 subjects received the trial formula, whereas the other 72 received the standard formula. A transitory decrease in fecal calprotectin (FC) was observed after 6 months in the subgroup with normal FC levels, who were fed the test formula (p=0.012). Conclusion: The prevalence of impaired intestinal mucosal integrity in this group of Indonesian children aged 1-3 years was high. Supplementation with zinc, glutamine, fiber, and prebiotics during 6 months reduced FC only in those who had low levels at baseline but not in those with impaired integrity.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.19-23
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• 2005

Tissue adhesives have gained popularity for quicker and painless closure of lacerations. The use of tissue glue is currently popular for the closure of superficial lacerations, especially in children. Histoacryl $Blue^{(R)}$(2-N-butylcyanoacrylate) is a topical wound closure that precludes the need for foreign bodies to close wounds. The purpose of this study was to compare the applications of Histoacryl $Blue^{(R)}$(HAB) and conventional suture, regarding cosmetic outcome. To compare the short term and long term results of various repair methods, we designed the prospective, randomized, blind study. Patients with laceration undergoing repair were randomly allocated to conventional suture, subcutaneous suture plus HAB, and HAB only groups. The exclusion criterions were large wound that require large tension for repair or avulsion wound. An independent, blinded observer assessed cosmetic result at 7-10 days after repair and 3-9 months postoperatively. Physician's satisfaction with wound appearance was recorded on 100 mm Visual Analogue Scale(VAS)(0=worst, 100=best). The difference in VAS score between conventional suture method and subcutaneous suture plus HAB methods were not significant. Tissue glue being easy to use with no complications and still resulting in equivalent cosmetic outcomes has several benefits. Especially in the case of children, the wound closure with Histoacryl $Blue^{(R)}$ could be a good alternative for repair of laceration in emergency room.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.39 no.10 s.267
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• pp.779-781
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• 2006

Left main coronary artery atresia is a very rare congenital coronary anomaly with blind end of left main trunk. The clinical symptoms as syncope, failure to thrive, and myocardial infarction are presented and surgical treatments are required in most cases. We report a case of a 14-months-old girl with left main coronary artery atresia and excel-lent surgical result of 1 year follow-up after coronary artery bypass with left internal thoracic artery.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.53 no.1
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• pp.28-33
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• 2020

Background: When an arteriovenous fistula (AVF) is created using the basilic or deep cephalic vein, it is additionally necessary to transfer the vessels to a position where needling is easy; however, many patients develop wound-related postsurgical complications due to the long surgical wounds resulting from conventional superficialization of a deep AVF or basilic vein transposition. Thus, to address this problem, we performed videoscopic surgery with small surgical incisions. Methods: Data from 16 patients who underwent additional videoscopic radiocephalic superficialization, brachiocephalic superficialization, and brachiobasilic transposition after AVF formation at our institution in 2018 were retrospectively reviewed. Results: Needling was successful in all patients. No wound-related complications occurred. The mean vessel size and blood flow of the AVF just before the first needling were 0.73±0.16 mm and 1,516.25±791.26 mL/min, respectively. The mean vessel depth after surgery was 0.26±0.10 cm. Percutaneous angioplasty was additionally performed in 25% of the patients. Primary patency was observed in 100% of patients during the follow-up period (262.44±73.49 days). Conclusion: Videoscopic surgery for AVF dramatically reduced the incidence of postoperative complications without interrupting patency; moreover, such procedures may increase the use of native vessels for vascular access. In addition, dissection using a videoscope compared to blind dissection using only a skip incision dramatically increased the success rate of displacement by reducing damage to the dissected vessels.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
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• v.40 no.5
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• pp.536-541
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• 2013

Background Pathogens in the nasal cavity during nasal surgery could lead to a systemic infectious condition, such as bacteremia, nosocomial infection, or toxic shock syndrome. However, there is no research about the prevalence of nasal carriage in patients with nasal bone fracture. Methods This was a prospective, double-blind, randomized study about the rate of nasal carriage in 200 patients with nasal bone fracture in Korea. Nasal secretions were taken from both the middle nasal meatus and colonized. All analyses were carried out using SPSS software. Results Pathogens were identified in 178 of the 200 cases. Coagulase-negative staphylococci (CNS) were the most cultured bacteria in 127 (66.84%) of the 190 total patients after excluding 10 cases of contaminated samples, and methicillin-resistant coagulase-negative staphylococci (MRCNS) were found in 48 (25.26%). Staphylococcus aureus was the second most identified pathogen, found in 36 (18.95%), followed by 7 cases (3.68%) of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). The prevalence rate of MRSA in the females was higher than that in the males (RR=4.70; 95% CI, 1.09-20.18), but other demographic factors had no effect on the prevalence rate of MRSA and MRCNS. Conclusions The prevalence rate of these pathogens in patients with nasal bone fracture in Korea was similar to other reports. However, few studies have addressed the prevalence rate of CNS and MRCNS in accordance with risk factors or the change in prevalence according to specific prophylaxis against infectious complications. Additional research is needed on the potential connections between clinical factors and microbiological data.

• The Journal of Korean Physical Therapy
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• v.32 no.4
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• pp.210-216
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• 2020

Purpose: This study examined the effects of curl-up using XCO^® on trunk muscle activation in healthy adults. Methods: This study design was a single-blind randomized controlled trial. Twelve participants were enrolled in this study. The subjects were instructed to perform curl-up exercise in STCU (straight curl-up), LTCU (left twist curl-up), RTCU (right twist curl-up), TWCU (twist curl-up), and PPCU (power push curl-up). Electromyography was used to assess the percent maximal voluntary isometric contraction (%MVIC) of the rectus abdominis (RA), external oblique (EO), internal oblique (IO), and erector spinae (ES) muscles. The data were analyzed using two-way ANOVA with a repeated measure. The statistical significance level was set to α=0.05 Results: The IO showed significant differences in the main effect of the group and the interactions between the group and exercise (p<0.05). In particular, the IO represented the interactions between group and exercise in the RTCU and PPCU (p<0.05). The RA, EO, and ES did not show significant interactions between the group and exercise (p>0.05). The RA, IO, and EO showed significant differences in the main effect of the group (p<0.05). The EO showed a significant difference in the main effect of exercise (p<0.05). Conclusion: These findings suggest that XCO^® can be used to increase the muscle activation of the internal oblique, which is the lumbar stabilizing muscle, when XCO^® is combined in the curl-up exercise with rotation. In the future, research on the intensity, frequency, and duration of XCO^® exercise will be needed according to the individual characteristics and preferences.