• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
• /
• v.43 no.3
• /
• pp.413-422
• /
• 2022

Objectives: To investigate the weight loss effect of Gambi-tang in obese and overweight adults. Methods: From September 1, 2016 to December 31, 2021, a retrospective chart analysis was conducted on adult men and women who were prescribed Gambi-tang to address obesity and overweight in the National Medical Center (NMC). Partial analysis by age, obesity (Body Mass Index, BMI), duration of dose, and cumulative dose was also conducted. Results: The weight and BMI of the study subjects showed a significant decrease of more than 5% on average before and after treatment. In an analysis of age, significant differences by age could not be confirmed. In the analysis by obesity level, the effect of reducing weight, body fat, and abdominal fat rates in the obese and highly obese groups was greater than in the normal and overweight groups. There was no significant difference by group in the analysis by dosage period. In the analysis by cumulative dose, the greater the cumulative dose up to 1,800 g, the greater the decrease in weight and body fat. The side effect that patients appealed to the most was misjudgment, but not to a serious extent. Conclusions: Gambi-tang has been shown to be effective in weight and body fat loss for both obese and overweight adult men and women.

• Journal of Gastric Cancer
• /
• v.19 no.1
• /
• pp.111-120
• /
• 2019

Background: Billroth I anastomosis is one of the most common reconstruction methods after distal gastrectomy for gastric cancer. Intracorporeal Billroth I (ICBI) anastomosis and extracorporeal Billroth I (ECBI) anastomosis are widely used in laparoscopic surgery. Here we compared ICBI and ECBI outcomes at a major gastric cancer center. Methods: We retrospectively analyzed data from 2,284 gastric cancer patients who underwent laparoscopic distal gastrectomy between 2009 and 2017. We divided the subjects into ECBI (n=1,681) and ICBI (n=603) groups, compared the patients' clinical characteristics and surgical and short-term outcomes, and performed risk factor analyses of postoperative complication development. Results: The ICBI group experienced shorter operation times, less blood loss, and shorter hospital stays than the ECBI group. There were no clinically significant intergroup differences in diet initiation. Changes in white blood cell counts and C-reactive protein levels were similar between groups. Grade II-IV surgical complication rates were 2.7% and 4.0% in the ECBI and ICBI groups, respectively, with no significant intergroup differences. Male sex and a body mass index (BMI) ${\geq}30$ were independent risk factors for surgical complication development. In the ECBI group, patients with a BMI ${\geq}30$ experienced a significantly higher surgical complication rate than those with a lower BMI, while no such difference was observed in the ICBI group. Conclusion: The surgical safety of ICBI was similar to that of ECBI. Although the chosen anastomotic technique was not a risk factor for surgical complications, ECBI was more vulnerable to surgical complications than ICBI in patients with a high BMI (${\geq}30$).

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
• /
• v.16 no.8
• /
• pp.3223-3227
• /
• 2015

Objective: We evaluated the association of body mass index (BMI) with perioperative outcomes in patients who underwent laparoscopic or open radical nephroureterectomy. Materials and Methods: This retrospective single-center study included 113 patients who had been diagnosed with upper urinary tract cancer from January 1998 to June 2013 and were treated with laparoscopic nephroureterectomy (Lap group, n=60) or open nephroureterectomy (Open group, n=53). Laparoscopic nephroureterectomy was performed via a retroperitoneal approach following an open partial cystectomy. The two surgical groups were stratified into a normal-BMI group (<25) and a high-BMI group ($BMI{\geq}25$). The high-BMI group included 27 patients: 13 in the Lap group and 14 in the Open group. Results: Estimated blood loss (EBL) in the Lap group was much lower than that in the Open group irrespective of BMI (p<0.01). Operative time was significantly prolonged in normal-BMI patients in the Lap group compared to those in the Open group (p=0.03), but there was no difference in operative time between the Open and Lap groups among the high-BMI patients. Multivariate logistic regression analysis of the data for all the cohorts revealed that the open procedure was a significant risk factor for high EBL (p<0.0001, hazard ratio 8.02). Normal BMI was an independent predictor for low EBL (p=0.01, hazard ratio 0.25). There was no significant risk factor for operative time in multivariate analysis. There were no differences in blood transfusion rates or adverse event rates between the two surgical groups. Conclusions: Laparoscopic radical nephroureterectomy via a retroperitoneal approach can be safely performed with significantly reduced EBL even in obese patients with upper urinary tract cancer.

• The Korean Journal of Quaternary Research
• /
• v.17 no.2
• /
• pp.163-163
• /
• 2003

The study area, Kwangneung Experiment Forest (KEF) is located on the west-central portion of Korean peninsula and belongs to a cool-temperate broadleaved forest zone. At the old-growth deciduous forest near Soribong-peak (533.1m) in KEF, we have established a permanent plot and a flux tower, and the site was registered as a KLTER site and also a KoFlux site. In this study, we aimed to present basic ecological characteristics and synthetic data of carbon budgets and flows, and some monitoring data which are essential for providing important parameters and validation data for the forest dynamics models or biogeochemical dynamics models to predict or interpolate spatially the changes in forest ecosystem structure and function. We made a stemmap of trees in 1 ha plot and analyzed forest stand structure and physical and chemical soil characteristics, and estimated carbon budgets by forest components (tree biomass, soils, litter and so on). Dominant tree species were Quercus serrata and Carpinus laxiflora, and accompanied by Q. aliena, Carpinus cordata, and so on. As a result of a field survey of the plot, density of the trees larger than 2cm in DBH was 1,473 trees per ha, total biomass 261.2 tons/ha, and basal area 28.0 m2/ha. Parent rock type is granite gneiss. Soil type is brown forest soil (alfisols in USDA system), and the depth is from 38 to 66cm. Soil texture is loam or sandy loam, and its pH was from 4.2 to 5.0 in the surface layer, and from 4.8 to 5.2 in the subsurface layer. Seasonal changes in LAI were measured by hemispherical photography at the l.2m height, and the maximum was 3.65. And the spatial distributions of volumetric soil moisture contents and LAIs of the plot were measured. Litterfall was collected in circular littertraps (collecting area： 0.25m2) and mass loss rates and nutrient release patterns in decomposing litter were estimated using the litterbag technique employing 30cm30cm nylon bags with l.5mm mesh size. Total annual litterfall was 5,627 kg/ha/year and leaf litter accounted for 61% of the litterfall. The leaf litter quantity was highest in Quercus serrata, followed by Carpinus laxiflora and C. cordata, etc. Mass loss from decomposing leaf litter was more rapid in C. laxiflora and C. cordata than in Q. serrata litter. About 77% of C. laxiflora and 84% of C. cordata litter disappeared, while about 48% in Q. serrata litter lost over two years. The carbon pool in living tree biomass including below ground biomass was 136 tons C/ha, and 5.6 tons C/ha is stored in the litter layer, and about 92.0 tons C/ha in the soil to the 30cm in depth. Totally more than about 233.6 tons C/ha was stored in DK site. And then we have drawn a schematic diagram of carbon budgets and flows in each compartment of the KEF site.

• Fire Science and Engineering
• /
• v.29 no.6
• /
• pp.1-5
• /
• 2015

In this study, the combustion characteristics of Hinoki Cypress Louver were measured after performing pressure impregnation with aqueous solution of boric acid, borax, and ammonium phosphate. The characteristics measured include ignition time, critical heat flux, and mass loss rate by incident hear flux (25, 30 and $50kW/m^2$). The samples used for the test were $100{\times}100{\times}10mm$, and the 5 min variation for each incident heat flux was measured 3 times. The results show that the ignition time for incident heat flux of $25kW/m^2$ showed a delay effect of 17.4 to 21.3% except for Type C-H. There was no significant difference at 35 and $50kW/m^2$ in the average mass loss rate in Types A-H and D-H, which had lower rates than Type N-H, which was predicted to be higher than that of Type N-H ($10.7kW/m^2$) by 38.22 to 60.46%. It is thus expected that at the time of initial primary fire, there would be a delay effect against fire spread.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
• /
• v.27 no.4
• /
• pp.353-362
• /
• 2009

This study attempted to compare the litter decomposition rate of Arundinella hirta and Miscanthus sinensis var. purpurascens which collected from serpentine soil acting potentially toxic concentration of heavy metals and non-serpentine soil by using the microcosm method for 192 days under constant humidity and $23^{\circ}C$. The contents of Ni, Fe, Mg and Cr in the serpentine and nonserpentine soil originated litter showed high differences between them. The litter samples from serpentine site have lower C/N than non-serpentine litter, but the soluble carbohydrate content was shown almost similar between two plant litter. The mass loss rates of leaf litter from serpentine area were slower than those from non-serpentine site. During the experimental period, the remained dry weight of A. hirta and M. sinensis var. purpurascens litter collected from serpentine site were 64.7%, 65.0% of initial dry weight and litter samples from non-serpentine site showed 54.2%, 50.7%, respectively. K and Na were leached rapidly at the initial decomposition periods, but Ca showed immobilization and other metal elements reserved at the decomposing litter for a long time. The decomposing A. hirta litter from non-serpentine soil showed higher values of $CO_2$ evolution, microbial biomass-C, and microbial biomass-N than those in serpentine soil originated litter acting nutrient stresses and exhibited rapid decay rate. The microbial biomass and microbial respiration of decaying litter were positively correlated with litter decomposition rate, and these relationships showed more rapid slope in non-serpentine soil originated litter than that in serpentine soil.

• Asian Journal of Atmospheric Environment
• /
• v.11 no.2
• /
• pp.107-113
• /
• 2017

This study describes (1) the impact of positive sampling artifacts caused by not only a filter-based sampling, but also a denuder-based sampling in the determination of particle-phase organic carbon (POC), (2) the effect of sample flow rate on positive artifacts, and (3) an optimum flow rate that provides a minimized negative sampling artifact for the denuder-based sampling method. To achieve the goals of this study, four different sampling media combinations were employed: (1) Quartz filter-alone (Q-alone), (2) quartz filter behind quartz-fiber filter (QBQ), (3) quartz filter and quartz filter behind Teflon filter (Q-QBT), and (4) quartz filter behind carbon-based denuder (Denuder-Q). The measurement of ambient POC was carried out in an urban area. In addition, to determine gas-phase OC (GOC) removal efficiency of the denuder, a Teflon filter and a quartz filter were deployed upstream and downstream of the denuder, respectively with varying sample flow rates: 5, 10, 20, and 30 LPM. It was found that Q-alone sampling configuration showed a higher POC than QBQ, Q-QBT, and Denuder-Q by 12%, 28%, and 23%, respectively at a sample flow rate of 20 LPM due to no correction for positive artifact caused by adsorption of GOC onto the filter. A lower quantity of GOC was collected from the backup quartz filter on QBQ than that from Q-QBT. This was because GOC was not in equilibrium with that adsorbed on the front quartz filter of QBQ during the sampling period. It is observed that the loss of particle number and mass across the denuder increases with decreasing sample flow rate. The contribution o f positive arti facts to POC decreased with increasing sample flow rate, showing 29%, 25%, and 22% for 10, 20, and 30 LPM, respectively. The 20 LPM turns out to be the optimum sample flow rate for both filter and denuder-based POC sampling.

• Journal of Bio-Environment Control
• /
• v.9 no.4
• /
• pp.212-222
• /
• 2000

This study was performed to investigate the performance of heat recovery device attached to exhaust gas flue connected to combustion chamber of greenhouse heating system. The experimental heat recovery system is mainly consisted of LPG combustion chamber and two heat recovery units; unit-A is attached directly to the exhaust gas flue, and unit-B is connected with unit-A. Heat recovery performance was evaluated by estimating total energy amounts by using enthalpy difference between two measurement points together with mass flow rate of gas and/or air passing through each heat recovery unit depending on 5 different flow rates controlled by voltage meter. The results of this experimental study, such as heat exchange behavior of supply air tubes and exhaust air passages crossing the tubes, pressure drop between inlet and outlet, heat recovery performance of exchange unit, etc., will be used as fundamental data for designing optimum heat recovery device to be used for fuel saving purpose by reducing heat loss amounts mostly wasted outside of greenhouse through flue.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
• /
• v.15 no.2
• /
• pp.493-509
• /
• 1998

Osteoarthritis(degenerative joint disease), the most common arthropathy affecting the aged people, is characterized by degeneration of articular cartilage with proliferation and remodeling of subchondral bone. Osteoarthritis of the knee, which probably has greater social cost and more associated disability than osteoarthritis of any other joint, prevalence is known to increase with age, and females have higher rates than males; radiographic abnormalities are present in more than 30% of persons more than 65 years old, with approximately 40% of these persons symptomatic. Though the etiology of osteoarthritis is not entirely understood, much information is available regarding risk factors for the development of knee osteoarthritis that permit some reasonable guideline for preventive strategies. Traumatic damage or occupational or recreational overuse of knee joint may result in osteoarthritis, and obesity also is related to osteoarthritis of the knee. A variety of other possible risk factors for the development of knee osteoarthritis have been proposed, including increased bone mass, smoking, diseases such as diabetes or elevated serum uric acid, and some metabolic factors, but the contribustions of these and other factors such as smoking or race and diseases such as diabetes are as yet undetermined. The usual clinical manifestations include pain, stiffnesss, crepitus and loss of function. In oriental medicine, osteoarthritis of the knee is very similar to diseases such as Bijung(痺症), Haksulpung(鶴膝風), Youkjeolpung(歷節風) in symptoms. The diseases such as Bijung(痺症), Haksuipung(鶴膝風), Youkjeolpung(歷節風) is related to the of function liver(肝) and kidney(腎) and risk factors are regarded as Pung(風), Han(寒), sub(濕). The diagnosis of osteoarthritis of the knee has often been based on radiographic appearance and clinical manifestations. The acupuncture therapy of osteoarthritis of the knee has often been based on Stomach meridian(ST), Spleen meridian(SP), Kidney meridian(KI), Liver meridian(LR).

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
• /
• v.17 no.7
• /
• pp.3647-3650
• /
• 2016

Background: Colorectal cancer is one of the major health problems worldwide. However, limited studies have been reported from ASEAN countries. This study was conducted to evaluate clinical characteristics and survival of colorectal cancer cases aged <65 years and ${\geq}65$ years in the central region of Thailand. Materials and Methods: Clinical information, histological features, endoscopic findings and treatment outcome were collected and reviewed from Thammasat University Hospital, Pathumthani, Thailand between November 2011 and October 2015. Results: A total of 121 colorectal cancer patients, comprising 69 men and 52 women with a mean age of 65.8 years, were included. There were 57 aged <65 years and 64 aged ${\geq}65$ years. Common presenting symptoms were abdominal pain (37%), weight loss (34%) and anemia (32%). Mean duration of symptoms prior to diagnosis was 173 days. However, longer diagnosis time was demonstrated in patients aged <65 years than age more than ${\geq}65$ years (119.4 vs 58.4 days, P-value=0.30). Colonic fungating mass was the most common endoscopic finding (64.4%) and the location was significantly more commonly left than right side of the colon, both in younger and elderly groups (87.7% vs 12.3%, P=0.02 and 70.3% vs 29.7%, P=0.02, respectively). Adenocarcinoma with moderated differentiated was the most common histology (67.3%). More than half of the patients presented with advanced stage (28.9% with TNM stage 3 and 38.8% TNM stage 4, respectively). Overall 1-year and 5-year survival rates were 76.9% and 5%. Conclusions: Most colorectal cancer patients in Thailand have adenocarcinomas and present at advanced stage with poor prognosis. Screening of high risk patients and early detection might be essential factors to improve the treatment outcome and overall survival rate of colon cancer patients in Thailand and other ASEAN countries.