• Journal of Korean Medicine Rehabilitation
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.81-90
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• 2009

Objectives : To analyze the therapeutic outcomes of back pain modalities in patients with disc herniation according to the change of Magnetic Resonanse Imaging(MRI) whom were treated with herbal medicine, chuna, acupuncture, bee-venom acupuncture. Methods : Clinical outcomes of 35 patients diagnosed with lumbar disc herniation by MRI examination, treated conservatively, were analyzed according to MRI follow-up change. Patients underwent MRI examaintion at baseline and after 24th week of treatment. Patients are divided into three groups ; improved, unchanged, worsened. 35 patients with lumbar disc herniation were treated with chuna therapy, acupuncture, bee-venom acupuncture once a week and took herbal medicine after a meal two times daily. The patients' clinical outcomes were assessed at baseline, 12th week, 24th week by Visual analogue scale(VAS), Oswestry disability index(ODI). Results : 1. MRI follow-up exams on regression of disc herniation resulted on 42.86% of cases by conservative treatment. 2. VAS(low back pain and sciatica) and ODI of disability of daily activities showed significant decrease in "improved" and "unchanged" groups compared to "worsened" group(P<0.05). 3. VAS(low back pain and sciatica) and ODI change after treatment did not show any relationship with MRI follow-up change(P<0.05). Conclusions : This study suggests that "improved" and "unchanged" groups compared to "worsened" group on MRI follow-up in patients with lumbar disc herniation were more effective when treated with herbal medicine, chuna therapy, acupuncture, bee-venom acupuncture. MRI follow-up change does not affect clinical changes in patients with lumbar disc herniation.

• Investigative Magnetic Resonance Imaging
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.178-187
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• 2008

Purpose : To evaluate and compare the diagnostic accuracy of MRI and ultrasound(US) for estimation of invasion depth of gastric carcinoma by correlation with histopathologic findings in vitro and to find out the best MR pulse sequence for detection and accurate delineation of tumor. Materials and Methods : Resected specimen of total or subtotal gastrectomy from 53 patients with gastric carcinoma were done of imaging studies of MRI and US. And US was examined by using high frequency linear transducer for tumor invasion depth by a radiologist. In each case, both imaging findings of MRI and US were evaluated independently for tumor detection and invasion depth by consensus of two radiologists and were compared the diagnostic accuracy between two imaging modalities according to the histopathologic findings. MR imaging with five MR pulse sequences, spin echo T1 and in- and out-of phase gradient echo T1 weighted images, FSE and SSFSE T2 weighted images, were performed. Five MR pulse sequences were evaluated and compared on the point of detection and accurate distinction of tumor from surrounding normal tissue. Results : In EGC, diagnostic accuracy of US(77%) was superior than that of MRI(59%) but no statistically significant difference was noted between two imaging modalities(p=0.096). In AGC, both imaging modalities of MRI and US showed relatively high diagnostic accuracy as 97% and 84% respectively. Diagnostic accuracy of MRI was statistically better than that of US at the significant level(p<0.001). The best MR pulse sequence among five in each specimen was FSE T2WI(75.5%, 40/53) in both EGC and AGC. In AGC, FSE T2WI showed excellent imaging quality by showing very high ratio (93.5%, 29/31) of accurate delineation of tumor. Conclusion : MRI and US show relatively high diagnostic accuracy in the evaluation of tumor invasion depth of resected specimen in AGC. The most excellent pulse sequence of MRI for the evaluation of tumor invasion depth is FSE T2WI on the point of detection and accurate delineation of tumor in both EGC and AGC.

• Korean Journal of Head & Neck Oncology
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.166-171
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• 1999

Background and Objectives: The aim of our study was to describe the appearance of recurrent and residual lesions in the head and neck tumors, and to evaluate the usefullness of CT and MRI. Materials and Methods: CT(n=42) and MRI(n=4) of 44 patients with recurrent head and neck tumors were reviewed retrospectively. Primary tumor sites were larynx/hypopharynx in 15, oral cavity/floor of mouth in 13, base of tongue/tonsil in 5, nasopharynx in 4, palate in 2, and others in 5 patients. Therapeutic modalities included sugery and radiotherapy in 23, radiotherapy in 11, surgery in 5, chemotherapy and radiotherapy in 4, and chemotherapy in 1 patient. Results: The patterns of tumor recurrence were nodal recurrence(n=17), primary tumor bed recurrence combined with nodal recurrence(n=12), primary tumor bed recurrence(n=10) and residual primary tumors(n=5). The most common appearance of residual/recurrent primary tumor on CT was focal or diffuse heterogenous mass with or without surrounding fat or muscle infiltration(25/27). On MRI, the recurrent lesions showed intermediate signal intensity on T1 weighted image and high signal intensity on T2 weighted image with heterogenous enhancement in the most cases(n=3). 38 out of 44 nodal recurrences(86%) which had been pathologically or clinically proved were more than 1 cm in diameter or contained central low density on CT scan. Conclusion: Although CT and MRI findings of recurrent and residual tumors of the head and neck were nonspecific, in the majority the lesions manifested as a mass at primary tumor bed and/or nodal disease including contralateral side of the neck. And CT and MRI are valuable for revealing above lesions.

• Journal of Korean Medicine Rehabilitation
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.253-263
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• 2011

Objectives : To analyze the therapeutic outcomes of back pain modalities in patients with disc herniation according to the change of magnetic imaging(MRI) at one year after conservative treatment. Methods : Clinical outcomes of 35 patients diagnosed with lumbar disc herniation by MRI examination, treated conservatively, were analyzed according to MRI follow-up change; improved, unchanged, worsened. Patients underwent MRI examination at baseline and after 24 week of treatment. After 1 year, we followed up 30 patients. The patients' clinical outcomes were assessed at baseline, 24 week, 1 year by visual analogue scale(VAS), oswestry disability index (ODI), and analyzed by each of it's correlation. Results : 1. VAS of sciatica and ODI of disability of daily activities showed significant decrease in patients after 1 year follow up(p<0.05). 2. VAS(low back pain and sciatica) and ODI of disability of daily activities showed significant decrease in "improved" group and VAS(sciatica) and ODI showed significant decrease in "unchanged" group. "worsened" group showed no statistic significance(p<0.05). 3. The 1 year follow-up of VAS(low back pain and sciatica) and ODI change showed relationship with MRI follow-up change(p<0.05). Conclusions : This study suggests that "improved" groups compared to "unchanged" and "worsened" group on MRI follow-up in patients with lumbar disc herniation were more effective at 1 year after conservative treatment. MRI follow-up change affect clinical changes in patients with lumbar disc herniation after 1 year.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.60 no.5
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• pp.540-549
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• 2017

Objective : To evaluate the diagnostic value of computed tomography-myelography (CTM) compared to that of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in patients with lumbar radiculopathy. Methods : The study included 91 patients presenting with radicular leg pain caused by herniated nucleus pulposus or lateral recess stenosis in the lumbar spine. The degree of nerve root compression on MRI and CTM was classified into four grades. The results of each imaging modality as assessed by two different observers were compared. Visual analog scale score for pain and electromyography result were the clinical parameters used to evaluate the relationships between clinical features and nerve root compression grades on both MRI and CTM. These relationships were quantified by calculating the receiver-operating characteristic curves, and the degree of relationship was compared between MRI and CTM. Results : McNemar's test revealed that the two diagnostic modalities did not show diagnostic concurrence (p<0.0001). Electromyography results did not correlate with grades on either MRI or CTM. The visual analog pain scale score results were correlated better with changes of the grades on CTM than those on MRI (p=0.0007). Conclusion : The present study demonstrates that CTM could better define the pathology of degenerative lumbar spine diseases with radiculopathy than MRI. CTM can be considered as a useful confirmative diagnostic tool when the exact cause of radicular pain in a patient with lumbar radiculopathy cannot be identified by using MRI. However, the invasiveness and potential complications of CTM are still considered to be pending questions to settle.

• Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging
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• v.42 no.sup1
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• pp.157-161
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• 2008

Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) has a poor prognosis and a strong association with exposure to asbestos. Although there are not generally accepted guidelines for treatment of MPM, recent reports suggest that multi modality therapy combining chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and surgery can improve the survival of patients with MPM. Therefore exact staging is required to decide the best treatment option. However, it is well known that there are many difficulties in determining precise preoperative stage, predicting prognosis, and monitoring response to therapy with conventional imaging modalities such as CT and MRI in MPM. Recently PET with $^{18}F-FDG$ comes into the spotlight as an important staging method. There is increasing evidence that PET is superior to other conventional imaging modalities in diagnosis and staging of MPM. Particularly PET/CT improves the diagnostic and staging accuracy over PET or CT alone in MPM because it provides anatomic imaging data as well as functional information. PET and PET/CT are also useful for monitoring response to therapy and SUV is reported as a prognostic factor in MPM.

• Imaging Science in Dentistry
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.199-202
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• 2004

The odontogenic myxoma is an benign, slow growing neoplasm which is of ectomesenchymal origin. This neoplasm occurs almost exclusively in the jaw bones and comprises 0.2% to 17.7% of odontogenic tumors. The odontogenic myxoma may show a wide spectrum of radiographic appearances, unilocular, multilocular radiolucency and a distinct or diffuse border, making the differential diagnosis difficult. We present a case of the odontogenic myxoma in the maxilla with conventional and recent image modalities. Occlusal film revealed a medially extended multilocular lesion with intralesional fine and straight trabeculations from the scalloped margin and buccal expansion and thinning of cortical bone. Computed tomogram revealed lesion showed equivalent density to the muscles in the left maxillary sinus with partial cortical discontinuity of medial wall and the tennis-racket pattern with internal straight trabeculations. MRI revealed intermediate signal intensity on Tl weighted image and high signal intensity on T2 weighted image. In Gd enhanced MR image, the peripheral portions of the lesion were enhanced.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.50 no.2
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• pp.71-77
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• 2017

Background: Cardiac computed tomography (CT) has emerged as an alternative to magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for ventricular volumetry. However, the clinical use of cardiac CT requires external validation. Methods: Both cardiac CT and MRI were performed prior to pulmonary valve implantation (PVI) in 11 patients (median age, 19 years) who had undergone total correction of tetralogy of Fallot during infancy. The simplified contouring method (MRI) and semiautomatic 3-dimensional region-growing method (CT) were used to measure ventricular volumes. Results: All volumetric indices measured by CT and MRI generally correlated well with each other, except for the left ventricular end-systolic volume index (LV-ESVI), which showed the following correlations with the other indices: the right ventricular end-diastolic volume index (RV-EDVI) (r=0.88, p<0.001), the right ventricular end-systolic volume index (RV-ESVI) (r=0.84, p=0.001), the left ventricular end-diastolic volume index (LV-EDVI) (r=0.90, p=0.001), and the LV-ESVI (r=0.55, p=0.079). While the EDVIs measured by CT were significantly larger than those measured by MRI (median RV-EDVI: $197mL/m^2$ vs. $175mL/m^2$, p=0.008; median LV-EDVI: $94mL/m^2$ vs. $92mL/m^2$, p=0.026), no significant differences were found for the RV-ESVI or LV-ESVI. Conclusion: The EDVIs measured by cardiac CT were greater than those measured by MRI, whereas the ESVIs measured by CT and MRI were comparable. The volumetric characteristics of these 2 diagnostic modalities should be taken into account when indications for late PVI after tetralogy of Fallot repair are assessed.

• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.223-230
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• 2005

This paper presents a new approach to investigate spatial correlation between independent components of brain alpha activity in functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and electroencephalography (EEG). To avoid potential problems of simultaneous fMRI and EEG acquisitions in imaging pure alpha activity, data from each modality were acquired separately under a 'three conditions' setup where one of the conditions involved closing eyes and relaxing, thus making it conducive to generation of alpha activity. The other two conditions -- eyes open in a lighted room or engaged in a mental arithmetic task, were designed to attenuate alpha activity. Using a Mixture Density Independent Component Analysis (MD-ICA) that incorporates flexible non-linearity functions into the conventional ICA framework, we could identify the spatiotemporal components of fMRI activations and EEG activities associated with the alpha rhythm. Then, the sources of the individual EEG alpha activity component were localized by a Maximum Entropy (ME) method that is specially designed to find the most probable dipole distribution minimizing the localization error in sense of LMSE. The resulting active dipoles were spatially transformed to 3D MRls of the subject and compared to fMRI alpha activity maps. A good spatial correlation was found in the spatial distribution of alpha sources derived independently from fMRI and EEG, suggesting the proposed method can localize the cortical areas responsible for generating alpha activity successfully in either fMRI or EEG. Finally a functional connectivity analysis was applied to show that alpha activity sources of both modalities were also functionally connected to each other, implying that they are involved in performing a common function: 'the generation of alpha rhythms'.

• Journal of the Korean Physical Society
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• v.80
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• pp.640-646
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• 2022

Hybrid PET/MRI is a useful imaging system that can improve diagnostic accuracy by providing both functional and anatomical information. However, the combination of PET and MRI can lead to mutual interference, which can degrade the performances of both imaging systems. One of the methods that is capable of preserving the performance of both modalities is to apply RF shielding to PET detectors and electronics. The purpose of this study was to propose a new RF shielding method using Au-plated conductive fabric (PCF) tape that could not only minimize RF interference and eddy current, but that could also be applied to complex PET gantry and detector module structures more easily than thin Cu foils, which have been widely used as a shielding material for hybrid PET/MRI systems. To evaluate the performance of the proposed new RF shielding method, the effects of the two RF shield materials (Cu and Au) on the B1 + field generated by the RF head coil were estimated using a computer simulation method. The effects of the Au PCF tape and Cu foil on the homogeneity and SNR of the MR image were also experimentally evaluated using a commercial 3-T MRI. The uniformity of the B1 + field map was slightly decreased by the use of Cu and Au RF shields. The deterioration in the MR image quality caused by the Au PCF tape was less than that caused by Cu foil. The simulation and experimental results indicate that Au PCF tape can serve as an alternative shielding material that reduces RF interference and eddy current for hybrid PET/MRI systems.