• Journal of the Korean Geographical Society
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• v.41 no.4 s.115
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• pp.435-456
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• 2006

This study examines the long-term spatial patterns and recent trends of seasonal onsets and durations defined by daily temperatures in South Korea for the period 1973-2004. Spatially, spring and winter onset dates show approximately 44 day and 63 day maximum difference respectively between south and north (Seongsanpo to Daegwallryeong) attributable to the impacts of latitudes and altitudes. In contrast, summer onset, which is more affected by proximity to oceans and altitudes than by latitudes, begins earlier in interior low elevated areas than in the coastal areas but earliest at higher latitudes than Jeiu Island. Five climatic types regarding the seasonal cycles in South Korea are spatially clustered according to the combination of longer seasonal durations. As a reflection of recent climate changes on seasonal cycles in South Korea, winter duration was shortened by 10 days during the post-1988 period due to a late winter onset of 4 days and an early spring onset of 6 days. The winter reduction began in the southern regions of the Korean Peninsula in the mid-1980s and spread northward during the 1990s period, ultimately appearing everywhere. In urbanized cities, where much of the surface is covered with asphalt or concrete, the winter reduction was intensified and summer duration was locally incremented. The reduced winter duration in recent decades shows significant teleconnections with variations of geopotential height (925hPa) in the eastern Arctic region ($0-90^{\circ}E$, $65-85^{\circ}N$) during the cold season. The reduction in winter duration in South Korea agrees with results in overall global warming trends as a climate change signal.

• Land and Housing Review
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• v.8 no.3
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• pp.189-200
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• 2017

The work breakdown structure and the precedence relations by work activity are very important because they are the basic data for estimating the construction duration in the construction work. However, there is no standard to accurately estimate the construction duration since the size of the school facilities construction is smaller than the general construction work. Therefore, some schools are unable to open in March or September and the delay of the construction duration can cause damage to the students. To solve this problem, this study developed a work breakdown structure of school facilities construction work and analyzed the precedence relations by work activities. The work breakdown structure of the school facilities construction is composed of three steps. The operations corresponding to level 1 and level 2 are as follows. (1) 2 preparatory work categories; preparation period and temporary construction. (2) 17 architectural work categories; temporary construction, foundation & pile work, reinforced concrete work, steel roof work, brick work, plaster work, tile work, stone work, waterproof construction, wood work, interior construction, floor work, metal work, roof work, windows construction, glazing work and paint construction. (3) 7 mechanic and fire work categories; outside trunk line work, plumbing work, air-conditioning equipment work, machine room work, city gas plumbing work, sanitation facilities and inspection & test working. (4) 4 civil work categories; wastewater work, drainage work, pavement work and other work. (5) 1 landscaping work categories; planting work. The work breakdown structure was derived from interviews with experts based on the milestones and detailed statements of existing school facilities. The analysis of precedence relations by school facilities work activity utilized PDM(Precedence Diagramming Method)which does not need a dummy and the relations were applied using FS(Finish to Start), FF(Finish to Finish), SS(Start to Start), SF(Start to Finish). The analysis of this study shows that if one work activity is delayed, the entire construction duration may be delayed because the majority of the works are FS relations. Therefore, it is necessary to use the Lag at the appropriate time to estimate the standard construction duration of the school facility construction. Lag is a term used only in the PDM method and it is used to define the relationship between the predecessor and the successor in creating the network milestone. And it means the delay time applied to the two work activities. The results of this study can reasonably estimate the standard construction duration of school facilities and it will contribute to the quality of the school facilities construction.

• Proceedings of the Ginseng society Conference
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• 2006.05a
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• pp.40-51
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• 2006

To investigate the association between Korean red ginseng (KRG) intake in HIV-1 infected patients and occurrence of grossly deleted nef genes ($g{\Delta}nef$), we characterized nef genes in 10 long-term slow progressors (LTSP) infected with HIV-1 subtype B and 34 control patients. LTSP was defined whose the annual decrease in CD4 T cells was less than $20/{\mu}l$ over 10 years in the absence of antiretroviral therapy. They were treated with KRG for a prolonged period. Nef genes were amplified from peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) using nested PCR and products were sequenced directly. Patient CD4 T cell counts decreased from $444{\pm}207/{\mu}l$ to $294{\pm}177/{\mu}l$ over $136{\pm}23$ months of KRG intake. This corresponds to an annual decrease in the level of CD4 T cells of $13.3/{\mu}l$. A total of 479 nef genes were amplified from 137 PBMC samples. Nine out of the 10 patients, 47 (34.3%) out of the 137 samples, and 92 out of the 479 genes revealed $g{\Delta}nef$. The deletion extended outside the nef gene in 25 $g{\Delta}nef$ obtained from 6 patients. The proportion of samples with $g{\Delta}nef$ (34.3%) was significantly higher than 4.8% in control patients (P<0.001). In addition, it significantly increased as the duration of KRG intake prolongs (P<0.01). These data suggest the possibility that occurrence of $g{\Delta}nef$ might be associated with long-term intake of KRG.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.22 no.11
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• pp.1509-1517
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• 2013

So far, most studies associated with soil carbon sequestration have been focused on long term aspect. However, information regarding soil carbon sequestration in short term aspect is limited. This study was conducted to determine changes of soil organic carbon content and stability of carbon in response to compost application rate and tillage management during rice growing season(150 days) in short term aspect. Under pot experiment condition, compost was mixed with an arable soil at rates corresponding to 0, 6, 12, and 24 Mg/ha. To determine effect of tillage on soil carbon sequestration, till and no-till treatments were set up in soils amended with application rate of 12 Mg/ha. Compost application and tillage management did not significantly affect soil organic carbon(SOC) content in soil at harvest time. Bulk density of soil was not changed significantly with compost application and tillage management. These might result from short duration of experiment. While hot water extractable organic carbon(HWEOC) content decreased with compost application, humic substances(HS) increased. Below ground biomass of rice increased with application of compost and till operation. From the above results, continuos application of compost and reduce tillage might improve increase in soil organic carbon content and stability of carbon in long term aspect.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.51 no.5
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• pp.322-327
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• 2018

Background: This study evaluated the early and long-term outcomes of surgical aortic valve replacement (AVR) in elderly patients in the era of transcatheter aortic valve implantation. Methods: Between 2001 and 2018, 94 patients aged ${\geq}75years$ underwent isolated AVR with stented bioprosthetic valves for aortic valve stenosis (AS). The main etiologies of AS were degenerative (n=63) and bicuspid (n=21). The median follow-up duration was 40.7 months (range, 0.6-174 months). Results: Operative mortality occurred in 2 patients (2.1%) and paravalvular leak occurred in 1 patient. No patients required permanent pacemaker insertion after surgery. Late death occurred in 11 patients. The overall survival rates at 5 and 10 years were 87.2% and 65.1%, respectively. The rates of freedom from valve-related events at 5 and 10 years were 94.5% and 88.6%, respectively. The Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) score (p=0.013) and chronic kidney disease (p=0.030) were significant factors affecting long-term survival. The minimal p-value approach demonstrated that an STS score of 3.5% was the most suitable cut-off value for predicting long-term survival. Conclusion: Surgical AVR for elderly AS patients may be feasible in terms of early mortality and postoperative complications, particularly paravalvular leak and permanent pacemaker insertion. The STS score and chronic kidney disease were associated with long-term outcomes after AVR in the elderly.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.40 no.3
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• pp.143-147
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• 2006

Objective : Brachial plexus injury can produce a intractable chronic neuropathic pain. This study was undertaken to assess the long term outcome of microsurgical dorsal root entry zonotomy[MDT]. Methods : Between October 1997 and December 2002, 21 patients received MDT because of a intractable pain resulting from brachial plexus injury. Of these, 19 patients were followed for more than 2 years. Fourteen of 19 patients were male and patient ages ranged from 22 to 69 years. Mean pain duration was 36.8 months and all patients had severe pain of $9{\sim}10$ visual analogue scale. To achieve complete destruction of abnormal dorsal horns, thermocoagulation of the posterolateral sulcus were performed and careful gluing was done to prevent postoperative adhesion and pain recurrence. Results : Of the 19 patients, 15 patients had excellent [>75% reduction in pain] and good [$51{\sim}75%$ pain relief] results in a average postoperative period of 4.1 years. One patient had a poor [less than 25% pain relief] result. Three patients were considered to have a fair result [$26{\sim}50%$ pain relief]. Postoperative complications were 2 transient ipsilateral ataxia and 1 CSF fistula that resolved without surgical revision. Conclusion : These results indicate that MDT provides excellent long-term pain relief in medically intractable chronic neuropathic pain following brachial plexus injury without significant complications.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.71-84
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• 2014

Background: Informal care is increasingly recognized as placing a significant burden on the lives of family caregivers. The purpose of this study is to investigate factors related to family caregivers' burden with the community-dwelling disabled elderly under the long-term care insurance system, using the Stress Process Model developed by Pearlin (1990). Methods: Total 1,233 family caregivers with the disabled elderly, using the long-term care services in their home from May to June 2009, completed questionnaires finally. The questionnaire of this study consists of a total of 32 questions, including 11 questions related to background and context, 17 questions related to objective stressors, and 4 questions related to coping resourses. Family caregivers' burden is measured by the Korean Revised Caregiving Appraisal Scale (K-RCAS, Cronbach's alpha=0.86). To investigate factors related to family caregivers' burden, multiple regression analysis was conducted. Results: The average score of caregivers' burden was 22.0 (${\pm}6.12$). In multiple regression analysis, there were statistically significant factors affecting on the family caregivers' burden, that are related to background and context (region, living status, education level, relationship with beneficiary), objective stressors (duration of caregiving), coping resourses (caregiver's health status). Conclusion: This study found that family caregivers experience a considerable burden. The findings suggest that policies must be taken to relieve family caregivers of their duties temporarily, and to support them with counselling and education.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.22 no.5
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• pp.555-562
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• 2013

Jeju Island, the heaviest raining area in Korea, is a volcanic Island located at the southernmost of Korea, but most streams are of the dry due to its hydrological/geological characteristics different from those of inland areas. Therefore, there are limitations in applying the results from the mainland to the studies on stream run-off characteristics analysis and water resource analysis of Jeju Island. In this study, the SWAT(soil & water assessment tool) model is used for the Hwabuk stream watershed located east of the downtown to calculate the long-term stream run-off rate, and WMS(watershed modeling system) and HEC-HMS(hydrologic modeling system) models are used to figure out the stream run-off characteristics due to short-term heavy rainfall. As the result of SWAT modelling for the long-term rainfall-runoff model for Hwabuk stream watershed in 2008, 5.66% of the average precipitation of the entire basin was run off, with 3.47% in 2009, 8.12% in 2010, and root mean square error(RMSE) and determination coefficient($R^2$) was 496.9 and 0.87, respectively, with model efficient(ME) of 0.72. From the results of WMS and HEC-HMS models which are short-term rainfall-runoff models, unless there was a preceding rainfall, the runoff occurred only for rainfall of 40mm or greater, and the run-off duration averaged 10~14 hours.

• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.38 no.5
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• pp.812-819
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• 2017

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to report the long-term efficacy of herbal medicine for treatment of patients with recurrent aphthous stomatitis (RAS). Methods: We reviewed the clinical records of 17 patients with RAS who visited the Oral Diseases Clinic of Kyung Hee University Korean Medicine Hospital from September 1st, 2014 to August 29th, 2017. The patients were treated with herbal medicine for more than 3 consecutive weeks, followed by a telephone survey. We evaluated the clinical characteristics of RAS, and compared the short-term and long-term efficacy of herbal medicine treatment. Results: After treatment with herbal medicine, the clinical characteristics improved in the 17 patients with RAS, especially in terms of the duration and interval of recurrence. Prolonged effects were reported upon the follow-up telephone survey. Conclusion: Herbal medicine treatment may have a long-term effect in patients with RAS.

• Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology & Nutrition
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• v.22 no.5
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• pp.453-459
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• 2019

Purpose: Jaundice accounts for most hospital admissions in the neonatal period. Nowadays, in addition to phototherapy, other auxiliary methods are used to reduce jaundice and the length of hospitalization. This study aimed to investigate the effect of probiotics on the treatment of hyper-bilirubinemia in full-term neonates. Methods: In this randomized clinical trial, 83 full-term neonates, who were admitted to the hospital to receive phototherapy in the first 6 months of 2015, were randomly divided into two groups: synbiotic (SG, n=40) and control (CG, n=43). Both groups received phototherapy but the SG also received 5 drops/day of synbiotics. Serum bilirubin, urine, stool, feeding frequency, and weight were measured daily until hospital discharge. A p-value<0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: The mean total serum bilirubin in the SG was lower than that in the CG ($9.38{\pm}2.37$ and $11.17{\pm}2.60mg/dL$, respectively). The urine and stool frequency in the SG was significantly higher than that in the CG (p<0.05). The duration of hospitalization in the SG was shorter than that in the CG. Conclusion: Use of synbiotics as an adjuvant therapy had a significant treatment effect on jaundice in full-term neonates. Further studies including larger samples with long follow-up periods are essential to confirm the benefits of routine use of synbiotics in neonatal patients with jaundice.