• Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging
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• v.43 no.3
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• pp.207-214
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• 2009

Positron emission tomogrpahy (PET) represents the most advanced scintigraphic imaging technology. With the increase in availability of PET, the clinical use of PET has grown in medical fields. This can be employed for cardiovascular research as well as for clinical applications in patients with various cardiovascular disease. PET allows non-invasive functional assessment of myocardial perfusion, substrate metabolism and cardiac innervation and receptors as well as gene expression in vivo. PET is regarded as the gold standard for the detection of myocardial viability, and it is the only method available for the quantitative assessment of myocardial blood flow. This review focuses on the clinical applications of myocardial perfusion PET in coronary artery disease.

• YAKHAK HOEJI
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• v.43 no.3
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• pp.397-403
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• 1999

The present study examined the effect of a methanol extract of Evodiae Fructus on the cardiovascular function in N-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (NAME)-induced hypertensive Wistar rats after treatment over 6 weeks. In rats treated with NAME, blood pressure, weight of heart, aorta media thickness and media/lumen ratio significantly (p<0.05) increased, whereas coronary flow and heart rate of isolated heart significantly (p<0.05) decreased compared with control group at 6 weeks. In rats treated with NAME and Evodiae Fructus, blood pressure, aorta media/lumen ratio significantly(p<0.05) decreased compared with NAME treated group at 6 weeks. These results suggest that Evodiae Fructus is applicable to the treatment of hypertension and vascular hypertrophy.

• YAKHAK HOEJI
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• v.31 no.5
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• pp.308-314
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• 1987

In cardiovascular disease the flow adaptation of erythrocytes can be affected by reduced shear stresses and metabolic influences on red cell fluidity as a consequence of tissue hypoxia. In addition there are indications that risk factors of cardiovascular diseases are able to decrease the intrinsic red cell deformability. Erythrocyte deformability was studied by the filtration technique of Reid et al. to investigate the relationship between blood pressure chances and erythrocyte deformability. In this experiment normotensive rats, spontaneously and DOCA-salt treated hypertensive rats were used. Erythrocyte deformability was significantly reduced by blood pressure elevation in hypertensive rats but was not fully recovered by normalization of blood pressure after antihypertensive drug treatment. Therefore other factors than blood pressure may be involved in erythrocyte deformability reduction during blood pressure elevation.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.148-153
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• 1993

To compare two methods of mammary pedicle graft preparations with free internal mammary artery flow, we studied 31 patients who had the left internal mammary artery harvested for coronary artery bypass grafting. The free flow was measured at the transected opening of 2 to 3 cm distal to the point of bifurcation on mean arterial pressure of 50 to 55 mmHg during cardiopulmonary bypass. Group I comprised 14 patients, whose grafts were sprayed and wrapped in sponges soaked in diluted papaverine solution (60 mg in 40 ml Hartmann's solution). An average 80 minutes after the preparations, free flow of the internal mammary artery ranged from 20 to 80 ml/min (mean 37.7 ml/min). Group II comprised 17 patients, who had internal mammary artery takedown under the exact conditions used in group I. The grafts were sprayed and wrapped in sponges soaked in the diluted papaverine solution as in group I. After an average of 28 minutes, free flow ranged from 8 to 28 ml/min (mean 17.6 ml/min). Intraluminal papaverine of the same dilution was then injected without any hydrostatic dilatation and flows increased upto 37 to 150 ml/min (mean 74.7 ml/min). This study shows that intraluminal papaverine preparation method markedly increases free mammary artery flow which is inadequate with external papaverine preparation.

• Korea-Australia Rheology Journal
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.47-62
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• 2005

The present study deals with a mathematical model describing the dynamic response of heat and mass transfer in blood flow through bifurcated arteries under stenotic condition. The geometry of the bifurcated arterial segment possessing constrictions in both the parent and the daughter arterial lumen frequently appearing in the diseased arteries causing malfunction of the cardiovascular system, is formulated mathematically with the introduction of the suitable curvatures at the lateral junction and the flow divider. The blood flowing through the artery is treated to be Newtonian. The nonlinear unsteady flow phenomena is governed by the Navier-Stokes equations while those of heat and mass transfer are controlled by the heat conduction and the convection-diffusion equations respectively. All these equations together with the appropriate boundary conditions describing the present biomechanical problem following the radial coordinate transformation are solved numerically by adopting finite difference technique. The respective profiles of the flow field, the temperature and the concentration and their distributions as well are obtained. The influences of the stenosis, the arterial wall motion and the unsteady behaviour of the system in terms of the heat and mass transfer on the blood stream in the entire arterial segment are high­lighted through several plots presented at the end of the paper in order to illustrate the applicability of the present model under study.

• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.36 no.6
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• pp.264-270
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• 2015

A mock circulatory loop system has been developed to construct a simulator for trainees in cardiopulmonary bypass systems or to simulate a test environment for cardiac-assist devices. This paper proposes a computerized mock circulatory loop system whose node is modularized by using a servo control flow regulator to simulate dynamic change of the hemodynamic status. To observe the effect of time-varying resistance, one with hemodynamic properties, the proposed system replicates the planned cross-sectional areas of the outlet of a ventricular assist device in terms of voltage input of a servo valve. The experiment is performed (1) for steady-input commands of selected area sizes and (2) for dynamic commands such as monotonous increase and decrease, and oscillatory functions of the voltage input, and a computer program based on LabVIEW (National Instruments, Austin, USA) processes every measured data and control command to the servo valve. The results show that the pressure and flow at the target points with respect to time-varying resistance match intuitive estimation: the pressure at the outlet and the pressure drop between both sides of the valve increased and the flow at the outlet decreased for increased resistance.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Visualization
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.52-63
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• 2022

Direct numerical simulation of blood flow in a stenosed, patient-specific carotid artery was conducted to explore the transient behavior of blood flow with special emphasis on the wall-shear stress distribution over the transition region. We assumed the blood as an incompressible Newtonian fluid, and the vessel was treated as a solid wall. The pulsatile boundary condition was applied at the inlet of the carotid. The Reynolds number is 884 based on the inlet diameter, and the maximum flow rate and the corresponding Womersley number is approximately 5.9. We found the transitional behavior during the acceleration and deceleration phases. In order to quantitatively examine the wall-shear stress distribution over the transition region, the probability density function of the wall-shear stress was computed. It showed that the negative wall-shear stress events frequently occur near peak systole. In addition, the oscillatory shear stress index was used to further analyze the relationship with the negative wall-shear stress appearing in the systolic phase.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.45 no.2
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• pp.199-207
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• 2002

Purpose : Since the successful application of total atrio-pulmonary connection(TAPC) to patients with various types of physiologic single ventricles in 1971, post-operative survival rates have reached more than 90%. However some patients have been shown to present with late complications such as right atrial thrombosis, atrial fibrillation and protein losing enteropathy eventually leading to re-operation to control the long-term complications. The aim of this study is to review the results of total cavo-pulmonary connection(TCPC) in cases with late complications after TAPC. Methods : Between Jan. 1995 and Dec. 2000, 6 patients(5 males and 1 female) underwent cardiac catheterization $11{\pm}3$ months after conversion of previous TAPC to TCPC. We compared the hemodynamic and morphologic parameters before and after TCPC and also assessed the clinical outcomes. The indications for TAPC were tricuspid atresia in 4 cases and complex double-outlet right ventricle with single ventricle physiology in 2 cases. Results : There was no peri-operative mortality and all patients were clinically and hemodynamically improved at a mean follow-up of 11 months(range : 4 to 13). However, protein losing enteropathy recurred in 2 patients; this was were successfully treated with subcutaneous administration of heparin. Right atrial pressure before TCPC was $18.0{\pm}3.6mmHg$, but baffle pressure, corresponding to right atrial pressure decreased to $14.8{\pm}3.6mmHg$ after TCPC. The size of the pulmonary arteries did not regress after TCPC. Conclusion : The conversion of TAPC to TCPC improves clinical and hemodynamic status by decreasing the right atrial pressure and by providing a laminar cavo-pulmonary flow which enhances the effective pulmonary circulation in the so-called Fontan circulation.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.41 no.5
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• pp.591-597
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• 2008

Background: Pulmonary endarterectomy is widely accepted as a treatment for chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension. Based on our experiences, we sought to find ways to reduce perioperative complications and to improve surgical outcomes in patients undergoing pulmonary endarterectomy. Material and Method: This study was designed as a retrospective analysis of 20 patients with pulmonary hypertension who underwent pulmonary endarterectomy between January 1998 and March 2008. All patients presented with chronic dyspnea. Deep vein thrombosis (DVT) was the major cause of chronic pulmonary thromboembolism (55%). Seventeen patients (85%) underwent inferior vena cava (IVC) filter placement. Thirteen patients underwent surgery under total circulatory arrest, while the others underwent surgery while on low flow cardiopulmonary bypass. Concomitant tricuspid annuloplasty was done in 6 patients (66%) whose tricuspid regurgitation was as severe as grade IV/IV. The mean follow-up duration was $45{\pm}32$ months. Result: Using of University of California, San Diego (UCSD), thromboembolism classification, 4 patients (20%) were type 1, 8 patients (40%) were type II, and 8 patients (40%) were type III. Right ventricular systolic pressure was reduced significantly from $77{\pm}29$ mmHg to $37{\pm}19$ mmHg after pulmonary endarterectomy (p<0.001). The degree of tricuspid regurgitation and the NYHA functional class were all improved postoperatively. Reperfusion edema occurred in 7 cases (35%). The incidence of reperfusion edema was higher in the UCSD type III group than in the other group (25% vs 50%, p=0.25) and the length of postoperative intensive care unit stay was longer in type III group ($5{\pm}2$ days vs $9{\pm}7$ days, p=0.07). The early mortality rate was 10%, and the late mortality rate was 15% (n=3); one death was due to progression of underlying non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, and the other deaths were related to recurrent thromboembolism and persistent pulmonary hypertension, respectively. Conclusion: Pulmonary endarterectomy, as a curative surgical method for treating chronic thromboernbolic pulmonary hypertension, should be performed aggressively in patients diagnosed with chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension, and an effort should be made to reduce the frequency of perioperative complications and to improve surgical outcomes.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.130-137
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• 2010

Objectives: So far it has been reported that acupuncture increases cerebral blood supply and stimulates the functional activity of brain nerve cells. Previous studies have demonstrated that frequently used electro-acupuncture (EA) therapies for stroke increased regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) in normal volunteers. Though ST 36-ST 41 EA is another prevailing therapy for stroke, there had been no report about its effect on rCBF. This study was to evaluate the effect of ST 36-ST 41 EA on rCBF in normal volunteers using single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) and statistical parametric mapping (SPM). Methods: In the resting state, $^{99m}Tc$-ECD brain SPECT scans were performed on 10 normal volunteers (5 males, 5 female, mean age $23.6{\pm}0.5$ years). On the other study day, 7 days after the resting examination, 15 minutesEA were applied at ST 36 and ST 41 on the right side of the subjects. Immediately after ST36-ST41 EA, the second SPECT images were obtained in the same manner as the resting state. Significant increases and decreases of rCBF after EA were estimated by comparing their SPECT images with those of the resting state using paired t statistics at every voxel, which were analyzed by SPM with a threshold of p = 0.01, uncorrected (extent threshold: k=100 voxels). Results: EA applied at the right ST36-ST41 significantly increased rCBF in the right inferior parietal lobule (Brodmann area [BA] 40), right retrosubicular area (BA 48), left inferior parietal lobule (BA 40), left middle temporal gyrus (BA 21), left fusiform gyrus (BA 37), left inferior parietal lobule (BA 39), left inferior temporal gyrus (BA 20), and left somatosensory association cortex (BA 7). However, right ST36-ST41 EA significantly decreased rCBF in the right parahippocampal gyrus (BA 35), right cerebellum, left frontopolar area (BA 10), left orbitofrontal area (BA 11), left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (BA 9), and left dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (BA 32). Conclusions: These results demonstrate that rightST36-ST41 EA increased rCBF prominently in both inferior parietal lobule (BA 40) and right retrosubicular area (BA 48), which suggest that there be correlation between specific EA and corresponding rCBF.