• The Journal of Korean Obstetrics and Gynecology
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.65-78
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• 2021

Objectives: This study was aimed to investigate the weight change of the high-risk group and the general maternal group and weight-relating factors in the early postpartum period. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of those who received postpartum care from January 1, 2020, to December 31, 2020, in the postpartum care center affiliated with one Korean Medicine hospital. A total of 257 postpartum women's medical charts were included and divided into the high-risk group and the general maternal group. We investigated the weight changes and Body mass index (BMI) of the postpartum women and compared the difference between the two groups after taking the postpartum care. Finally, we used a Pearson correlation analysis to identify the weight-relating factors in the early postpartum period. Results: All the postpartum women showed the following results; 33.81±4.03 years old as the mean age; 22.23±3.28 as pre-pregnancy BMI; 58.21±9.18 kg of pre-pregnancy weight increased into 70.75±9.70 kg in the last month of pregnancy. Of the total 257 patients, 149 (58.0%) of high-risk pregnancy experience and 108 (42.0%) of general pregnancy were included. The edema index right after childbirth was significantly higher in the high-risk group than in the general maternal group (p<0.001), but there was no significant difference in BMI. After treatment with Korean medicine treatments, body weight, BMI, and edema index decreased significantly in both groups (p<0.01). As a result of correlation analysis, weight gain during pregnancy had a significant negative correlation with pre-pregnancy weight and pre-pregnancy BMI and a significant positive correlation with weight and BMI of the last month of pregnancy. In particular, pre-pregnancy BMI and body weight showed a significant negative correlation only in the high-risk group. Postpartum weight loss was significantly positively correlated with pre-pregnancy weight, pre-pregnancy BMI, weight & BMI of the pregnancy last month, weight gain during pregnancy, and decrease in edema (p<0.01) Conclusions: The weight during pregnancy of the high-risk group increased in inverse proportion to the pre-pregnancy BMI. The level of edema right after childbirth was significantly higher than that of the general maternal group, but showed a significant decrease after 2 weeks of Korean medicine treatments. Although it implicates the need for active Korean medicine treatments in the early postpartum period, further studies with controlled groups are needed.

• The Korea Journal of Herbology
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• v.36 no.3
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• pp.15-24
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• 2021

Objectives : The Glycyrrhiza new varieties, WONGAM and SINWONGAM, were developed through interspecific cross between Glycyrrhiza glabra and Glycyrrhiza uralensis by the National Institute of Horticultural and Herbal Science, Rural Development Administration in Korea. This in vitro study was undertaken to compare the antioxidant and cytotoxic effects between Glycyrrhiza new varieties (WONGAM and SINWONGAM) and official compendia (Glycyrrhiza glabra and Glycyrrhiza uralensis). Methods : Antioxidant activity was determined by DPPH (1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhy drazyl), ABTS (2,2-azino-bis (3-rthylbenz-thiazoline-6-sulfonic acid)) diammonium salt, Nitrite radical scavenging assay, and Reducing Power assay. Cytotoxicity was determined by MTT assay and cell morphology was observed by an inverted microscope. Results : The DPPH, ABTS, Nitrite radical scavenging activities and reducing power of Glycyrrhiza glabra, Glycyrrhiza uralensis, WONGAM, and SINWONGAM were evaluated at different concentrations (0, 10, 50, 100, 500, 1000 ㎍/㎖). Glycyrrhiza glabra, Glycyrrhiza uralensis, WONGAM, and SINWONGAM showed similar dose-dependent increase in antioxidant activities. The cytotoxic effects with increasing doses of Glycyrrhiza new varieties and official compendia did not differ in HCT116, HT29, A549, MDA-MB231, PC3, ACHN, and HeLa cells. However, significant difference in cytotoxicity were observed in AGS, MCF7 and Hep3B cells by Glycyrrhiza glabra, Glycyrrhiza uralensis, WONGAM, and SINWONGAM. Conclusions : These results showed that Glycyrrhiza new varieties and official compendia acts as a potent antioxidant. Also, the finding that equivalent cytotoxic potency was observed in a cell dependent manner. Our study suggests that Glycyrrhiza new varieties may offer a wide-variety of health benefits.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.673-680
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• 2019

This study was conducted to investigate the effects of plasma homocysteine concentration on the brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity between the normal homocysteine group and the asymptomatic high homocysteine group. 435 subjects who visited the general health examination center from April 1 to October 31, 2016, as well as to compare the direct correlation of the brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity, which indirectly reflects the homocysteine test and arterial stiffness, as a predictor of future cardiovascular outcome. As a result of the study, age, waist circumference, BUN, and plasma creatinine were significantly higher, and HDL was significantly lower in the high homocysteine group (> $15{\mu}mol/L$) than in the normal homocysteine group (< $15{\mu}mol/L$) (p=0.05). In addition, homocysteinemia was associated with smoking and drinking (p<0.001) and was significantly higher in males (p<0.001). The right and left brachial-to-ankle pulse wave velocities were significantly higher in the high homocysteine group (right p<0.001, left p=0.003) before calibrating the relevant variables. There was no significant difference between right and left brachial-to-ankle pulse wave velocities after calibrating the relevant variables. Therefore, further studies on the independent association of lowering homocysteine concentration and prevention of cardiovascular disease and the relationship between homocysteine and renal function are needed.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
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• v.51 no.1
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• pp.50-56
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• 2019

This study examined the relationship between the serum GGT (gamma-glutamyl transferase) and uric acid level in obese male adults. A total of 14,283 adult males aged 20 years or more, who visited the health examination center of Gyeonggi Regional General Hospital from January 2017 to August 2018 and underwent a physical examination, were enrolled in this study. The obesity criteria were defined by the Asia-Pacific regional standards. Abdominal obesity was defined as a male waist circumference of more than 90 cm. An increase in the serum uric acid and serum CGT levels of the male subjects was defined as 7.0 mg/dL or more and 56 IU/L or more, respectively. The results showed that the serum GGT and uric acid levels were higher in the overweight and obese groups than in the normal weight group. In the obese group, the serum GGT and uric acid were significantly higher in the patients with abdominal obesity. On the other hand, there was no difference compared to the low body weight group. The overweight and obesity groups showed a higher risk of elevated serum GGT and hyperuricemia than the normal weight group, but a low body weight did not affect the serum GGT elevation and hyperuricemia. Overall, the serum GGT and uric acid levels are useful for evaluating overweight and obesity in adult males.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
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• v.51 no.1
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• pp.42-49
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• 2019

This study compared the utility of the serum uric acid/creatinine ratio with that of uric acid as a risk predictor of metabolic syndrome. From November 2016 to October 2018, 14,190 adult men under the age of 20 years, who underwent a comprehensive health checkup at a general hospital in their metropolitan area, were included. Metabolic syndrome was assessed according to the American Heart Association/National Heart Lung and Blood Institute (AHA/NHLBI) criteria. Abdominal obesity was based on the WHO criteria in the Western Pacific region. The serum uric acid/creatinine ratio was found to be higher in the fourth quartile than in the first quartile, with a high incidence of metabolic syndrome and metabolic syndrome components. On the other hand, ROC analysis revealed the serum uric acid/creatinine ratio to be a similar indicator of the metabolic syndrome risk to serum uric acid (AUC, 0.554 vs 0.566). The serum uric acid/creatinine ratio showed lower sensitivity and higher specificity than uric acid. In conclusion, the utility of the serum uric acid/creatinine ratio as an independent indicator to predict the risk of metabolic syndrome is limited, and should be used only as an auxiliary marker.

• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.39 no.6
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• pp.229-236
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• 2018

Liver cancer is one of the highest incidents in the world, and the mortality rate is the second most common disease after lung cancer. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the diagnostic ability of deep learning in the classification of malignant and benign tumors in CT images of patients with liver tumors. We also tried to identify the best data processing methods and deep learning models for classifying malignant and benign tumors in the liver. In this study, CT data were collected from 92 patients (benign liver tumors: 44, malignant liver tumors: 48) at the Gil Medical Center. The CT data of each patient were used for cross-sectional images of 3,024 liver tumors. In AlexNet and VggNet, the average of the overall accuracy at each image size was calculated: the average of the overall accuracy of the $200{\times}200$ image size is 69.58% (AlexNet), 69.4% (VggNet), $150{\times}150$ image size is 71.54%, 67%, $100{\times}100$ image size is 68.79%, 66.2%. In conclusion, the overall accuracy of each does not exceed 80%, so it does not have a high level of accuracy. In addition, the average accuracy in benign was 90.3% and the accuracy in malignant was 46.2%, which is a significant difference between benign and malignant. Also, the time it takes for AlexNet to learn is about 1.6 times faster than VggNet but statistically no different (p > 0.05). Since both models are less than 90% of the overall accuracy, more research and development are needed, such as learning the liver tumor data using a new model, or the process of pre-processing the data images in other methods. In the future, it will be useful to use specialists for image reading using deep learning.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.82 no.3
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• pp.234-241
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• 2019

Background: The utility of computed tomography (CT) in the differential diagnosis of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) exacerbation remains uncertain. However, due to the low cost associated with CT scan along with the impact of Koreas' health insurance system, there has been a rise in the number of CT scans in the patients with initial diagnosis of COPD exacerbations. Therefore, the utility of CT in the differential diagnosis was investigated to determine whether performing CT scans affect the clinical outcomes of the patients with an initial diagnosis of COPD exacerbation. Methods: This study involved 202 COPD patients hospitalized with an initial diagnosis of COPD exacerbation. We evaluated the change in diagnosis or treatment after performing a CT scan, and compared the clinical outcomes of patient groups with vs. without performing CT (non-CT group vs. CT group). Results: After performing CT, the diagnosis was changed for two (3.0%) while additional diagnoses were made for 27 of the 64 patients (42.1%). However, the treatment changed for only one (1.5%), and six patients (9.3%) received supplementary medication. There were no difference in the median length of hospital stay (8 [6-13] days vs. 8 [6-12] days, p=0.786) and intensive care unit care (14 [10.1%] vs. 11 [16.7%], p=0.236) between the CT and non-CT groups, respectively. These findings remained consistent even after the propensity score matching. Conclusion: Utility of CT in patients with acute COPD exacerbation might not be helpful; therefore, we do not recommend chest CT scan as a routine initial diagnostic tool.

• Neonatal Medicine
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.161-169
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• 2018

Purpose: We assessed the influence of antenatal corticosteroid (ACS) on the inhospital outcomes of intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) infants. Methods: A retrospective study was conducted with singletons born at $23^{+0}$ to $33^{+6}weeks$ of gestation at Seoul National University Hospital from 2007 to 2014. We compared clinical outcomes between infants who received ACS 2 to 7 days before birth (complete ACS), at <2 or >7 days (incomplete ACS), and those who did not receive ACS in IUGR and AGA infants. Multivariate logistic regression using Firth's penalized likelihood was performed. Results: 304 neonates with 91 IUGR neonates were eligible. Among AGA neonates, mortality (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 0.13; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.02 to 0.78), hypotension within 7 postnatal days (aOR, 0.20; 95% CI, 0.06 to 0.64), and severe bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) or death (aOR, 0.24; 95% CI, 0.07 to 0.77) were lower in complete ACS group after adjusting for pregnancy induced hypertension and uncontrolled preterm labor. Mortality (aOR, 0.18; 95% CI, 0.04 to 0.78), hypotension (aOR, 0.26; 95% CI, 0.09 to 0.70), and severe BPD or death (aOR, 0.33; 95% CI, 0.12 to 0.92) were also lower in the incomplete ACS group. Among IUGR infants, after adjusting for birth weight and 5-minute Apgar score, inhaled nitric oxide use within 14 postnatal days was lower in both complete ACS (aOR, 0.07; 95% CI, 0.01 to 0.67) and incomplete ACS (aOR, 0.04; 95% CI, 0.01 to 0.37) groups. Conclusion: ACS was not effective in reducing morbidities in IUGR preterm infants.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.54 no.3
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• pp.262-276
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• 2021

Purpose: Although, the rate of skipping breakfast among adolescents has increased in recent years, there has been an increase in the consumption of home meal replacement (HMR). This study examines the recognition and preference of rice-based Korean style HMR for breakfast among adolescents in located at Jeollabuk-do. Methods: Total of 550 middle- and high-school students of Jeollabuk-do enrolled in this study signing a consent of participation. After conducting a preliminary survey, the questionnaire employed was modified according to the purpose of this study, and the self-recording method was appliedto fill out the questionnaire. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics 25. The 𝛘²-test was performed for categorical variables, whereas continuous variables were analyzed by the independent t-test. Results: Results of this study determined that 272 students (54.6%) belonged tobreakfasteating group and 226 (45.4%) were in the breakfast-skipping group. The reasons specified by both groups for eating HMR were 'convenient to cook', 'delicious', and 'time-saving'. The a result of analyzing perception of the importance of HMR by classifying as whether to eat or not to eat breakfast, revealed that compared to the breakfast-skipping group, the breakfast-eating group considered 'hygiene and cleanliness' as important factors (p < 0.001). Considering the gender, school, and breakfast consumption, the most preferred Korean HMR were 'triangular gimbap', 'gimbap', and 'rice balls'. Conclusion: Results of this study indicate, when considering adolescents, there is a necessary for continuous researches to develop convenient breakfast substitutes that are easily consumed. Moreover, we believe that it is essential to impart proper cooking education and recipe distribution of the menu.

• Journal of the Korea Convergence Society
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.353-362
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• 2022

This study was a randomized controlled trial to examine the effects of breast massage applied to women of childbearing age with cyclic mastagia on breast pain, breast hardness, nipple extensibility, breast size, and breast blood circulation. The study participants were 54 women with cyclic mastalgia who were recruited from Medical Center C, Women's Hospital M, department stores located in City D, and Internet cafes. The experimental treatment was to apply breast massage for a total of 30 minutes, 15 minutes each to the left and right breasts during the period of cyclic mastalgia. After experimental treatment, breast pain (F=49.16, p<.001), breast hardness (Rt t=8.93, p<.001; Lt t=-10.34, p<.001), nipple extensibility (Rt t=3.58, p<.001 ; Lt t=4.66, p<.001), breast size (Rt F=60.59, p<.001; Lt F=51.05, p<.001) and breast blood circulation (Rt t=-1.30, p=.201; Lt t=-2.82, p=.007) were significantly different between the two groups. In conclusion, breast massage performed in this study was effective in relieving breast pain, relieving breast hardness, and improving breast blood circulation in participants with cyclic mastalgia.