• Clinical Endoscopy
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• v.56 no.3
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• pp.263-267
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• 2023

Climate change is a global emergency. Consequently, current global targets to combat the climate crisis include reaching net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 and keeping global temperature increases below 1.5 ℃. In 2014, the healthcare carbon footprint was 5.5% of the total national footprint. Gastrointestinal endoscopy (GIE) has a large carbon footprint compared to other procedures performed in healthcare facilities. GIE was identified as the third largest generator of medical waste in healthcare facilities for the following reasons: (1) GIE is associated with high case volumes, (2) GIE patients and relatives travel frequently, (3) GIE involves the use of many nonrenewable wastes, (4) single-use devices are used during GIE, and (5) GIE is frequently reprocessed. Immediate actions to reduce the environmental impact of GIE include: (1) adhering to guidelines, (2) implementing audit strategies to determine the appropriateness of GIE, (3) avoiding unnecessary procedures, (4) using medication rationally, (4) digitalization, (5) telemedicine, (6) critical pathways, (7) outpatient procedures, (8) adequate waste management, and (9) minimizing single-use devices. In addition, sustainable infrastructure for endoscopy units, using renewable energy, and 3R (reduce, reuse, and recycle) programs are necessary to reduce the impact of GIE on the climate crisis. Consequently, healthcare providers need to work together to achieve a more sustainable future. Therefore, strategies must be implemented to achieve net-zero carbon emissions in the healthcare field, especially from GIE, by 2050.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Medical Physics Conference
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• 2002.09a
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• pp.90-93
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• 2002

In particle radiotherapy, a shape of the beam to conform the irradiation field is statically defined by the compensator, collimator and potal devices at the outside of the patient body. However the target such as lung or liver cancer moves along with respiration. This increases the irradiated volume of normal tissue. Prior discussions about organ motions along with respiration have been mainly focused on inferior-superior movement that was usually perpendicular to beam axis. On the other hand, the change of the target depth along the beam axis is very important especially in particle radiotherapy, because the range end of beam (Bragg peak) is so sharp as to be matched to distal edge of the target. In treatment planning, the range of the particle beam inside the body is calculated using a calibration curve relating CT number and water equivalent path length (WEL) to correct the inhomogeneities of tissues. The variation in CT number along the beam path would cause the uncertainties of range calculation at treatment planning for particle radiotherapy. To estimate the uncertainties of the range calculation associated with patient breathing, we proposed the method using sequential CT images with respiration waveform, and analyzed organ motions and WELs at patients that had lung or liver cancer. The variation of the depth along the beam path was presented in WEL rather than geometrical length. In analyzed cases, WELs around the diaphragm were remarkably changed depending on the respiration, and the magnitude of these WEL variations was almost comparable to inferior-superior movement of diaphragm. The variation of WEL around the lung was influenced by heartbeat.

• Progress in Medical Physics
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.124-134
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• 2020

Here we review the evolutionary history of radiation therapy technology through the festschrift of articles in celebration of the 30th anniversary of Korean Society of Medical Physics (KSMP). Radiation therapy technology used in clinical practice has evolved over a long period of time. Various areas of science, such as medical physics, mechanical engineering, and computer engineering, have contributed to the continual development of new devices and techniques. The scope of this review was restricted to two areas; i.e., output energy production and functional development, because it is not possible to include all development processes of this technology due to space limitations. The former includes the technological transition process from the initial technique applied to the first model to the latest technique currently used in a variety of machines. The latter has had a direct effect on treatment outcomes and safety, which changed the paradigm of radiation therapy, leading to new guidelines on dose prescriptions, innovation of dose verification tools, new measurement methods and calculation systems for radiation doses, changes in the criteria for errors, and medical law changes in all countries. Various complex developments are covered in this review. To the best of our knowledge, there have been few reviews on this topic and we consider it very meaningful to provide a review in the festschrift in celebration of the 30th anniversary of the KSMP.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.171-177
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• 2024

In this study, two general X-ray device, CT, and MRI inspection devices were selected from general hospitals in the Daejeon area and an experiment was conducted to predict the level of infection by measuring the surface contamination of the inspection devices at different times and to use it as basic data for infection prevention. As a result, the surface contamination level by time zone for general X-ray devices and MRI examination devices was in the order of 13H > 8H > 16H, and for CT examination devices, it was 13H > 16H > 8H, which appeared to be influenced by the number of tests. In addition, the surface contamination results for each part of the test device showed that the highest ATP contamination value was found on the stand bucky handle for the general X-ray device, the headrest for the CT examination device, and the operation switch for the MRI examination device, which was closely related to the number of contacts. As a result of comparing before and after disinfection, all devices showed a significant decrease after disinfection. Based on the results of the experiment, it is believed that it can be used as basic data to identify the level of contamination in radiology laboratories and prevent infectious diseases.

• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.38 no.5
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• pp.227-231
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• 2017

Early diagnosis of pancreatic cancer had been considered one of the important barrier for successful therapy since the five year survival rate after treatment of pancreatic cancer was critically low. Nonetheless, patients often miss the golden time of treatment because they rarely visit the hospital until their symptoms are severe. To overcome these problems, a lot of information about the patient's symptoms should be applied as biomarkers for early diagnosis. For this reason, a biomarker for early detection of pancreatic cancer (CA19-9) has been developed as a diagnostic kit. However, since the diagnosis is not accurate enough, pancreatic symptoms (abdominal pain, jaundice, anorexia, diabetes, etc.) and biomarkers (CA19-9) should be considered together. We develop an intelligent diagnostic system that considers CA19-9 and the incidence of pancreatic cancer for pancreatic symptoms that was determined by studying a large number of patient information. It shows a higher accuracy than one using CA19-9 alone. It may increase the survival rate of pancreatic cancer because it can diagnose pancreatic cancer early.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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• v.39 no.2
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• pp.288-297
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• 2009

Purpose: This study was done to evaluate the mean venous velocity (MVV) response with knee and thigh length compression stockings (CS) versus intermittent pneumatic compression (IPC) devices in immobile patients with brain injuries. Methods: We carried out a randomized controlled study. We analyzed both legs of a randomly chosen sample of 43 patients assigned to one of 4 groups (86 legs). The patients were sequentially hospitalized in the intensive care unit (ICU) in "S hospital" from November 2005 to December 2006. The base line and augmented venous velocity was measured at the level of the common femoral vein. We applied leg compression 42 times over 7 days (for 2 hours at a time at 2 hour intervals). Results: There was a statistical difference among the 4 groups. The difference for the "IPC" group was more significant than the "CS" group. Conclusion: These results indicate that the application of IPC can be considered as an effective method to prevent deep vein thrombosis for immobile patients with brain injury.

• The Transactions of The Korean Institute of Electrical Engineers
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• v.67 no.7
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• pp.892-897
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• 2018

Due to population aging, an increase in the number of patients with chronic illnesses, and an increase in the number of single-person households, monitoring of health status in everyday life without the need for a hospital has become very important. For this reason, researches on various health care devices have been attempted, among which wearable devices are attracting much attention. In this paper, we propose a new ring-type wearable device for next generation healthcare. On the inner side of the ring, a metal electrodes for GSR measurement and an optical sensor for measurement of pulse wave signals of two wavelengths of red and near-infrared light were mounted. In addition, it was equipped with an acceleration sensor, and information about the degree of motion could be obtained. In this paper, it is shown that a health monitoring device can be implemented in the form of a ring, and the measured signals can be used to calculate heart rate, oxygen saturation, sleep time and sleep efficiency. Through the advanced algorithm, it is expected that we can extract various health information, especially sleep related health information by using the ring device, and it is also expected that it can contribute to the implementation of wearable healthcare effectively.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.65 no.2
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• pp.73-80
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• 2022

A mercury sphygmomanometer (MS) has been the gold standard for pediatric blood pressure (BP) measurements, and diagnosing hypertension is critical. However, because of environmental issues, other alternatives are needed. Noninvasive BP measurement devices are largely divided into auscultatory and oscillometric types. The aneroid sphygmomanometer, the currently used auscultatory method, is inferior to MS in terms of limitations such as validation and regular calibration and difficult to apply to infants, in whom Korotkoff sounds are not audible. The oscillometric method uses an automatic device that eliminates errors caused by human observers and has the advantage of being easy to use; however, owing to its measurement accuracy issues, the development of an international validation protocol for children is important. The hybrid method, which combines the auscultatory and electronic methods, solves some of these problems by eliminating the observer bias of terminal digit preference while maintaining measurement accuracy; however, the auscultatory method remains limited. As the age-related characteristics of the pediatric group are heterogeneous, it is necessary to reconsider the appropriate BP measurement method suitable for this indication. In addition, the mobile application-based BP measurement market is growing rapidly with the development of smartphone applications. Although more research is still needed on their accuracy, many experts expect that mobile application-based BP measurement will effectively reduce medical costs due to increased ease of access and early BP management.

• Journal of Korean Biological Nursing Science
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• v.16 no.3
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• pp.251-257
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• 2014

Purpose: Little is known about appropriate interval periods between the heparin flushing of implanted ports after completion of chemotherapy. The purpose of this study was to describe the current status of interval of heparin flushing for maintenance of an implanted port in solid tumor patients. Methods: We performed a retrospective review of all patients who had undergone implanted port removal in 2012 at the Seoul St. Mary's Hospital. The subjects were 90 patients who, after completion of chemotherapy, retained their ports for extended periods of time. Results: The mean number of flushes of heparin was 4. Compliance with visits for implanted port maintenance varied with the individual, and the mean accession times were in the range between 13 days and 243 days. The overall mean time between flushes was 66 days. One patient showed resistance during flushing. Conclusion: Our results demonstrate that extending the flushing interval to a maximum of 8 weeks remains medically safe. Less frequent heparin flushing of an implanted port decreases medical expenditure and the workload of medical professionals; it also improves the patient's satisfaction.

• Physical Therapy Korea
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.32-37
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• 2006

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of clinical characteristics of chronic stroke patients on physiological cost index (PCI) during walking. Fourteen stroke patients participated in this study. To investigate the clinical characteristics, Fugl-Meyer score (FMS), gait velocity (GV), muscle strength of the knee extensor, modified Ashworth scale (MAS) of ankle plantar flexor, devices, and gait patterns during walking were measured and analyzed. The results were as follows: Firstly, use of devices and high MAS of the ankle plantar flexor significantly increased PCI. Secondly, PCI was significantly correlated with the FMS and MAS of the ankle plantar flexor. In conclusion, inhibition of spasticity of the ankle plantar flexor is considered to reduce PCI during walking for chronic stroke patients.