• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.48 no.4
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• pp.335-343
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• 2015

Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate the food behavior and nutritional status of elementary school students in the Jeju area using Nutrition Quotient (NQ). Methods: The subjects were 440 students (235 boys and 205 girls) in the fifth and sixth grade at four elementary schools located in Jeju. Demographic, lifestyle, and environmental information was collected using a self-reported questionnaire. The food behavior checklist for children's Nutrition Quotient (NQ), consisting of 19 items, and nutrition education related information were also obtained. Results: The mean score of the children's NQ was poor, reaching 60.3 points. The percentage distribution of NQ grade was 19.8% (lowest), 18.6% (low), 45.0% (medium), 10.7% (high), and 5.9% (highest) and the factor scores for balance, diversity, abstinence, regularity, and practice were 56.6, 68.4, 71.3, 57.4, and 54.8 points, respectively. Compared with the NQ cut-off points for defining malnutrition (balance; 57, diversity; 87, abstinence; 66, regularity; 69, and practice; 67 point), average score of abstinence factor was only above the cut-off point and scores of the other factors were below the cut-off point. Subjects with higher NQ scores tended to have higher levels of exercise activity (p < 0.001), frequency of family meals (p < 0.01), and father's educational levels (p < 0.01) compared to those with lower NQ score. NQ score showed positive association with nutrition education experience and practice (p < 0.001). Conclusion: NQ score of elementary school students residing in Jeju was lower than the national average. More opportunities should be provided for participation in nutrition education, which incorporates a range of program strategies, as well as communication and education activities.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.56 no.4
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• pp.479-495
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• 2018

This study was carried out to research the multimedia fate modeling, concentration distribution and impact assessment of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) emitted from automobiles, which are known as carcinogenic and mutation chemicals. The amount of emissions of PAHs was determined based on the census data of automobiles at a target S-city and emission factors of PAHs, where multimedia fugacity modeling was conducted by the restriction of PAHs transfer between air-soil at the impervious area. PAHs' Concentrations and their distributions at several environmental media were predicted by multimedia fugacity model (level III). The residual amounts and the distributions of PAHs through mass transfer of PAHs between environment media were used to assess the health risk of PAHs at unsteady state (level IV), where the sensitivity analyses of the model parameter of each variable were conducted based on Monte Carlo simulation. The experimental result at S-city showed that Fluoranthene among PAHs substances are the highest residual concentrations (60%, 53%, 32% and 34%) at all mediums (atmospheric, water, soil, sediment), respectively, where most of the PAHs were highly accumulated in the sediment media (more than 80%). A result of PAHs concentration changes in S-city over the past 34 years identified that PAHs emissions from all environmental media increased from 1983 to 2005 and decreased until 2016, where the emission of heavy-duty vehicle including truck revealed the largest contribution to the automotive emissions of PAHs at all environment media. The PAHs concentrations in soil and water for the last 34 years showed the less value than the legal standards of PAHs, but the PAHs in air exceeded the air quality standards from 1996 to 2016. The result of this study is expected to contribute the effective management and monitoring of toxic chemicals of PAHs at various environment media of Metropolitan city.

• Journal of Dairy Science and Biotechnology
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• v.33 no.3
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• pp.179-196
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• 2015

Because of our aging population, there is increasing concern about the impact of dementia and age-related cognitive decline. Intense research efforts on effective dietary interventions for the prevention or amelioration of dementia and age-related cognitive decline have indicated that dairy products affect physiological health and potentially healthy brain function during aging. Milk is a rich source of proteins and peptides with nutritional and immunotropic activities. The preparation of biologically active proteins and peptides generally requires enzymatic degradation, chemical modification, or the addition of specific co-factors. Milk-derived preparations are widely available in the food industry in the form of hygiene products and infant formulas. However, milk-derived products could also be applied as preventive or therapeutic measures for a wide-range of pathological conditions not only in neonates and infants but also in adults, including the elderly. Because they have no adverse side effects, milk-derived proteins and peptides could be used as a supplementary treatment for dementia and age-related cognitive decline.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.11 no.1
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• pp.123-127
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• 1978

The major objective of this research is to identify those hospital characteristics that best explain cost variation among hospitals and to formulate linear models that can predict hospital costs. Specific emphasis is placed on hospital output, that is, the identification of diagnosis related patient groups (DRGs) which are medically meaningful and demonstrate similar patterns of hospital resource consumption. A casemix index is developed based on the DRGs identified. Considering the common problems encountered in previous hospital cost research, the following study requirements are estab-lished for fulfilling the objectives of this research: 1. Selection of hospitals that exercise similar medical and fiscal practices. 2. Identification of an appropriate data collection mechanism in which demographic and medical characteristics of individual patients as well as accurate and comparable cost information can be derived. 3. Development of a patient classification system in which all the patients treated in hospitals are able to be split into mutually exclusive categories with consistent and stable patterns of resource consumption. 4. Development of a cost finding mechanism through which patient groups' costs can be made comparable across hospitals. A data set of Medicare patients prepared by the Social Security Administration was selected for the study analysis. The data set contained 27,229 record abstracts of Medicare patients discharged from all but one short-term general hospital in Connecticut during the period from January 1, 1971, to December 31, 1972. Each record abstract contained demographic and diagnostic information, as well as charges for specific medical services received. The 'AUT-OGRP System' was used to generate 198 DRGs in which the entire range of Medicare patients were split into mutually exclusive categories, each of which shows a consistent and stable pattern of resource consumption. The 'Departmental Method' was used to generate cost information for the groups of Medicare patients that would be comparable across hospitals. To fulfill the study objectives, an extensive analysis was conducted in the following areas: 1. Analysis of DRGs: in which the level of resource use of each DRG was determined, the length of stay or death rate of each DRG in relation to resource use was characterized, and underlying patterns of the relationships among DRG costs were explained. 2. Exploration of resource use profiles of hospitals; in which the magnitude of differences in the resource uses or death rates incurred in the treatment of Medicare patients among the study hospitals was explored. 3. Casemix analysis; in which four types of casemix-related indices were generated, and the significance of these indices in the explanation of hospital costs was examined. 4. Formulation of linear models to predict hospital costs of Medicare patients; in which nine independent variables (i. e., casemix index, hospital size, complexity of service, teaching activity, location, casemix-adjusted death. rate index, occupancy rate, and casemix-adjusted length of stay index) were used for determining factors in hospital costs. Results from the study analysis indicated that: 1. The system of 198 DRGs for Medicare patient classification was demonstrated not only as a strong tool for determining the pattern of hospital resource utilization of Medicare patients, but also for categorizing patients by their severity of illness. 2. The wei틴fed mean total case cost (TOTC) of the study hospitals for Medicare patients during the study years was $11,27.02 with a standard deviation of $117.20. The hospital with the highest average TOTC ($1538.15) was 2.08 times more expensive than the hospital with the lowest average TOTC ($743.45). The weighted mean per diem total cost (DTOC) of the study hospitals for Medicare patients during the sutdy years was $107.98 with a standard deviation of $15.18. The hospital with the highest average DTOC ($147.23) was 1.87 times more expensive than the hospital with the lowest average DTOC ($78.49). 3. The linear models for each of the six types of hospital costs were formulated using the casemix index and the eight other hospital variables as the determinants. These models explained variance to the extent of 68.7 percent of total case cost (TOTC), 63.5 percent of room and board cost (RMC), 66.2 percent of total ancillary service cost (TANC), 66.3 percent of per diem total cost (DTOC), 56.9 percent of per diem room and board cost (DRMC), and 65.5 percent of per diem ancillary service cost (DTANC). The casemix index alone explained approximately one half of interhospital cost variation: 59.1 percent for TOTC and 44.3 percent for DTOC. Thsee results demonstrate that the casemix index is the most importand determinant of interhospital cost variation Future research and policy implications in regard to the results of this study is envisioned in the following three areas: 1. Utilization of casemix related indices in the Medicare data systems. 2. Refinement of data for hospital cost evaluation. 3. Development of a system for reimbursement and cost control in hospitals.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.32 no.3
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• pp.421-426
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• 1999

Objectives: An outbreak of dermatosis occurred at a city gas manufacturing factory in Pohang in Aug, 1998. The authors conducted a study to find the cause and prevent the dermatosis, Methods: We conducted a questionnaire survey of 73 workers in the factory twice, once or Aug. 14th and then Sept. 11th, 1998. Also, a dermatologist examined their skin lesions. We suspected ants as the cause, so we collected them for identification. Results: Twelve cases of dermatosis were identified with an attack rate of 16.4%. The attack rates were not different by age, educational level or tenures. The attack rates were 66.6% among production workers, 2.0% among clerical workers, 16.7% among tank trailer drivers and 0% among guards. The attack rate among production workers was significantly higher than that of the others (<0.01). There were no histories of the same dermatosis for the past one year. Histories of other skin diseases and allergies were very rare in both cases with skin diseases and control. Multiple, pruritic, rice-grained to bean sized erythemafous macules or papules with a central biting point could be found after initial severe itching occurred, Three cases showed signs of dermatosis with an allergic nature. The onset of dermatosis was between July 30 and Aug 12 and the durations varied from 5 days to over a month. The most frequent sites of stir lesions were the chest and abdomen (60.6%), and they were also observed on the neck (33.3%), arms (33.3%), shoulders (16.7%) and back (16.7%). Over 10 ants with their wings were collected in the work place and identified as Pachycondyla chinensis, subfamily Ponerinae. Conclusions : We thought that the outbreak of dermatosis was brought about by the ants flying into the work place through the open windows. Further studies on the factors contributing to the prosperity of the ants in this area are needed.

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.101-108
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• 2005

Because the stone cultural properties located outdoors, they have been altered and deteriorated in external appearance due to environmental factors such as acid rain, extreme change in temperature, and salts. Damage to stone cultural properties is accelerated particularly due to recent industrial development and environmental pollution. An experimental study was conducted to evaluate the effect of environmental contaminants on the weathering of granite. And as part of the developing of conservation method, $TiO_2$ catalyst was prepared and tested. When fresh granite was dipped into the salt and acid solutions, dissolution rate of eight minerals (Si, Mg, Ca, Na, K, Fe, Mn, Al) are abruptly increased at initial stage of reaction and then increased steadily until 100 cycles. After salt and acid solution experiments, the mineral compositions of the granite surface were lower then that of the fresh granite and density of the weathered granite was steadily decreased from $2.60\;g/cm^3$ to $2.56\;g/cm^3$, but Poissions ratio and absorption ratio were slightly increased. It was expected at stone cultural assets could be weathered by salts and acid rain. In the case of $TiO_2$ was coated to the granite, the dissolution rate of minerals and absorption ratio of $TiO_2$ coated granite were decreased. Therefore, the $TiO_2$ coating method tested in this study considered to be a viable method to assist in the conservation of stone cultural properties from environmental contaminants.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.16 no.2 s.75
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• pp.199-205
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• 2006

Peroxisome proliferator activated receptor (PPAR)-$\alpha$ of three PPAR subtypes ($-\alpha,\;-\beta/-\gamma,\;-\delta$), which are members of the nuclear hormone receptor superfamily of ligand-activated transcription factors, plays a key role in lipoprotein and glucose homeostasis. A variation in the PPAR-a gene expression has been suggested to influence the development of metabolic syndrome through alterations in lipid concentrations. The aim of our study was to investigate the association between the PPAR-a and metabolic syndrome among South Korean. A total of 542 health screen examinees were enrolled in this study who were examined in Kosin University Gospel Hospital from December, 2004 to July, 2005. The height, weight, waist circumference, and systolic and diastolic blood pressure of the subjects were examined and fasting blood glucose, total cholesterol, HDL cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, triglyceride were measured by-sampling in venous blood. The metabolic syndrome was defined as the presence of three or more of the following : waist circumference men ${\geq}90cm$, women ${\geq}80cm$, blood pressure ${\geq}130/85mmHg$, fasting glucose ${\geq}110mg/dL$, HDL cholesterol men <40 mg/dL, women <50 mg/dL, triglyceride ${\geq}150mg/dL$. The blood pressure, fasting glucose, HDL cholesterol, triglyceride were evaluated by using the criteria of NECP ATP III and waist circumference was assessed by using the criteria of WHO Asia-Western Pacific. And the author compared the frequency of the PPAR-$\alpha$ mutation of L162V ($C{\rightarrow}G$ variant in exon 5) in a sample of 542 subjects with and without the metabolic syndrome by polymerase chain reaction allele-specific oligonucleotide (PCR-ASO) method. One (0.2%) hetero-isotype among high risk of metabolic syndrome was identified. The values of waist circumference, body mass index and low density lipoprotein cholesterol of the mutant were 100 cm, 28.6 $kg/m^2$ and 120 mg/dL, respectively. Although the author failed to see significant association between the presence of the PPAR-$\alpha$ L162V polymorphism and metabolic syndrome, one PPAR-$\alpha$ L162V polymorphism in metabolic syndrome patients was found.

• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.235-243
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• 2007

Hepatocellular carcinoma is significant worldwide public health problem with an estimated annually mortality of 1,000,000 people. Radiofrequency (RF) ablation is an interventional technique that in recent years has come to be used for treatment of the hepatocellualr carcinoma, by destructing tumor tissues in high temperatures. Numerous studies have been attempted to prove excellence of RF ablation and to improve its efficiency by various methods. However, the attempts are sometimes paradox to advantages of a minimum invasive characteristic and an operative simplicity in RF ablation. The aim of the current study is, therefore, to suggest an improved RF ablation technique by identifying an optimum RF pattern, which is one of important factors capable of controlling the extent of high temperature region in lossless of the advantages of RF ablation. Three-dimensional finite element (FE) model was developed and validated comparing with the results reported by literature. Four representative Rf patterns (sine, square, exponential, and simulated RF waves), which were corresponding to currents fed during simulated RF ablation, were investigated. Following parameters for each RF pattern were analyzed to identify which is the most optimum in eliminating effectively tumor tissues. 1) maximum temperature, 2) a degree of alteration of maximum temperature in a constant time range (30-40 second), 3) a domain of temperature over $47^{\circ}C$ isothermal temperature (IT), and 4) a domain inducing over 63% cell damage. Here, heat transfer characteristics within the tissues were determined by Bioheat Governing Equation. Developed FE model showed 90-95% accuracy approximately in prediction of maximum temperature and domain of interests achieved during RF ablation. Maximum temperatures for sine, square, exponential, and simulated RF waves were $69.0^{\circ}C,\;66.9^{\circ}C,\;65.4^{\circ}C,\;and\;51.8^{\circ}C$, respectively. While the maximum temperatures were decreased in the constant time range, average time intervals for sine, square, exponential, and simulated RE waves were $0.49{\pm}0.14,\;1.00{\pm}0.00,\;1.65{\pm}0.02,\;and\;1.66{\pm}0.02$ seconds, respectively. Average magnitudes of the decreased maximum temperatures in the time range were $0.45{\pm}0.15^{\circ}C$ for sine wave, $1.93{\pm}0.02^{\circ}C$ for square wave, $2.94{\pm}0.05^{\circ}C$ for exponential wave, and $1.53{\pm}0.06^{\circ}C$ for simulated RF wave. Volumes of temperature domain over $47^{\circ}C$ IT for sine, square, exponential, and simulated RF waves were 1480mm3, 1440mm3, 1380mm3, and 395mm3, respectively. Volumes inducing over 63% cell damage for sine, square, exponential, and simulated RF waves were 114mm3, 62mm3, 17mm3, and 0mm3, respectively. These results support that applying sine wave during RF ablation may be generally the most optimum in destructing effectively tumor tissues, compared with other RF patterns.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.31 no.5
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• pp.871-876
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• 2002

This study was conducted to verify the relation between relation between vegetarian diet and the serum lipid levels, blood sugar and blood pressure from October 1996 to February 1997. The vegetarians subjects were 245 Buddhist nuns (age:23～79 yrs) and control subjects consisted of 235 healthy female adults (age: 23～70 yrs) selected from the teachers, the nurses and the housekeepers living in Chinju Gyeongsang Nam-do. The contents included anthropometric measurement, questionnaires about eating behavior score and preference for taste and biochemical characteristics of the blood. The results were summarized as follows. The average duration of vegetarian diet of the vegetarians was 13.1 years. Vegetarians prefer to a pepper, a sweet and a acidic in the right order but that non-vegetarians prefer to a sweet, a acidic and pepper in the right order. Both groups of less than a decade and more than two decade of vegetarian diet prefer to a pepper, sweet, a acidic, a bitter, a salty and a lily, and a 10～20 yr group with vegetarian diet was fond of a pepper, a bitter, a acidic, a sweet, and a oily, in the right order. This seems to be ascribable to a difference in the health knowledge and interest. Vegetarians and non-vegetarians who said that they were fond of salty were 38.8% and 52.8%, medium was 33.9% and 33.6%, and not salty was 27.3% and 13.6%. Eating behavior score of vegetarians and non-vegetarians were 25.1 and 23.1 respectively. Eating behavior scores of vegetarians were significantly higher than those of non-vegetarians (p<0.05). Eating behavior scores of the group with more than a decade of vegetarian diet were significantly higher than those of the group with less than a decade of vegetarian diet. Levels of serum total-cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, and AI of the salty group were significantly higher (p<0.05) than those of not salty group. Levels of serum triglyceride, HDL-cholesterol, blood sugar had no significant relation with preference of salty. Blood pressure was not related with preference of salty, but that of those who prefer a salty tended to be high. This study also reveals that the preference of a salty was significant influence on serum total-cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, and AI, but the vegetarians did not prefer salty and have a good eating behavior. Consequently, vegetarian diet can be considerably effective in reducing the level of the risk factors of cardiovascular disease.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• v.39 no.1
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• pp.38-45
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• 2014

This paper describes the results of assessment of radiological dose resulting from operation of the Daedeok nuclear facilities including the HANARO research reactor, which has been performed to assure whether or not to comply with the regulation standards of the radioactive effluents releases. Based on the meteorological data and the radiation source term, the maximum individual doses were evaluated from 2010 to 2012. The atmospheric dispersion and the deposition factors of gaseous effluents were calculated using the XOQDOQ computer code. ENDOS-G and ENDOS-L code systems were also used for maximum individual dose calculation from gaseous and liquid effluents, respectively. The results were compared with the regulation standards for the radioactive effluents presented by the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission (NSSC). The effective doses and the thyroid doses of the maximum individual were calculated at the maximum exposed point in the Daedeok site, and contributions of exposure pathways to the radiological doses resulting from gaseous and liquid radioactive effluents were evaluated at each facility of the Daedeok site. As a result, the maximum exposed age was analysed to be the child group, and the operation of HANARO research reactor had a major effect more than 90% on the individual doses. The main exposure pathways for gaseous radioactive effluent were from ingestion and inhalation. The effective doses and the thyroid doses were considerably influenced by tritium and iodine, respectively. The gaseous radioactive effluents contributed more than 90% on the total doses, whereas the contributions of the liquid radioactive effluents were relatively low. Consequently, the maximum individual dose due to radioactive effluents from the nuclear facilities within the Daedeok site were less than 3% of the regulation standard over 3 years; therefore, it can be concluded that radioactive effluents from the nuclear facilities were well managed, with the radiation-induced health detriment for residents around the site being negligible.