• Health Policy and Management
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.48-58
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• 2024

Background: The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between external medical service use and the characteristics of Chungcheongnam-do patients. We aimed to provide evidence of external medical service use enhance the healthcare delivery system in Chungcheongnam-do. Methods: We used the Health Insurance Cohort DB 2.0 of 2016-2019, and 2,570,439 patients were included in the study. Multivariate logistic regression and multinomial logistic regression were used to identify the association between external medical service use and each patient characteristic. Generalized linear model was used to identify the association between medical costs and external medical service use area. Results: During the study period, 32.2% of inpatients and 12.5% of outpatients had external medical service use in Chungcheongnam-do. In comparison to patients living in Cheonan and Asan, the odds ratio (OR) for external medical services use was higher across all regions. Specifically, hospitalized patients from Gyeryong, Nonsan, and Geumsan (OR, 116.817) and Gongju, Buyeo, and Cheongyang (OR, 72.931) demonstrated extremely high likelihood of external medical service use in the Daejeon area. Furthermore, compared to medical expenses incurred within Chungcheongnam-do, patients with external medical service use in the capitol area (outpatient=17.01%, inpatients=22.11%) and Daejeon area (outpatient=16.63%, inpatients=15.41%) spent more on healthcare services. Conclusion: This study found the evidence of external medical service use among Chungcheongnam-do patients. Further study should be conducted taking into account variables including satisfaction of local medical services, different types of patient diseases, and others. The study's findings may serve as a foundation for policy proposals aimed at ensuring the financial stability of our health insurance system, ensuring the efficient delivery of medical care, and localization of medical care.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare Studies
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• no.39
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• pp.221-252
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• 2008

The current social service delivery system for people with disabilities has four critical problems: absence of needs assessment, absence of case management, shortage of professional workers, and absence of local social welfare agencies. The Ministry of Health, Welfare, and Family of Korea has pushed forward with a project to reform the welfare infra-structure for people with disabilities since 2007. It's main purpose is to reorganize the social service delivery system for people with disabilities. A report from the project makes two suggestions: introduction of new standards for disability and set-up of disability service determination centers. The new standards for disability are suggested to include a work ability test and a welfare needs assessment tool as well as a medical standard. Three models for disability service determination centers are suggested: independent model, local governmental model, and public corporational model. Tentative operations using the three models are on the way in the second half of 2008. In order to reform the social service delivery system for people with disabilities, this study makes a fundamental suggestion: set-up of about 120 local welfare agencies over which the Ministry of Health, Welfare, and Family can have direct control, and which are equipped with professional workers who are able to perform needs assessment and case management. In actuality, welfare centers for disabled people are the best options for local welfare agencies for disabled people.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.554-558
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• 2015

Drug delivery systems (DDSs) incorporating bacterial minicells have been evaluated as a very powerful tool in view of biocompatibility. However, limited studies have been carried out on these systems, mainly using minicells from Salmonella sp. and Escherichia coli. Thus, we generated a new minicell-producing strain from an endotoxin-free Corynebacterium glutamicum by the inactivation of genes related to cell division. The two knockout strains, ${\Delta}parA$ and ${\Delta}ncgl1366$, showed distinct abilities to produce minicells. The resulting minicells were purified via sequential antibiotic treatments and centrifugations, which resulted in reproducible yields.

• Proceedings of the KOSOMBE Conference
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• v.1996 no.11
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• pp.281-285
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• 1996

Pulsatile swelling behaviors and their application to drug delivery system were studied by using interpenetrating polymer networks(IPN) hydrogels constructed with poly(vinyl alcohol) and poly(acrylic acid). The PVA/PAAc IPNs hydrogels were symthesized by UV irradiation tallowed by repetitive freezing and thawing method. These hydrogels showed pH and temperature sensitive swelling behaviors. From the release experiment, the release amount of model drug incorporated into these hydrogels showed pulsatile patterns. Permeability coefficients obtained by various solutes differed in response to changes of permeation conditions.

• Women's Health Nursing
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.255-259
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• 2020

Along with the low birth rate in Korea, the aging of mothers is progressing very rapidly. Recent studies have reported that the obstetric infrastructure is crumbling due to the accelerating closures of obstetric medical institutions resulting from the low birth rate and low reimbursement rates for obstetric procedures. The number of birth centers has also decreased, but women's interest in natural birth has actually increased, such that deliveries at birth centers now account for 11.8% of deliveries in obstetric clinics. In the Netherlands, Japan, and the United Kingdom, initiatives to promote natural birth through care provided by midwives increased the rate of natural births, decreased the number of cesarean sections, and lowered the rate of postpartum complications. In light of these examples, South Korea should also encourage natural delivery by midwives. A national support system for midwife applicants is necessary, and the requirements for institutions that train midwives should be revised. Independent birth centers should have emergency prescription privileges, and women should be given the choice to have a natural delivery by creating birth centers within hospitals.

• Proceedings of the KOSOMBE Conference
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• v.1995 no.11
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• pp.253-256
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• 1995

Polymers have been one of the emerging biomedical materials in the area of biomedical research which are applicable to the human body. For human applications, noninvasive characterization of the biomedical polymers has been one of the important topics, and is valuable information. Among others, the swelling rate is one of the important measurements needed for the hydrophilic polymers. NMR imaging has been a suitable method for the noninvasive study of such a material since it is sensitive to many physical and biochemical changes of the specimens. In addition, NMR techniques possess many useful intrinsic properties such as the relaxation and diffusion effects. The present study has provided a noble and noninvasive method of measuring the process of swelling as well as volumetric changes occurred in polymers and drug delivery processes in a drug delivery system (DDS) together with changes of released drug. This gives information, relating with both water ingress process, volumetric changes of polymer specimens and the visualization of sequential drug delivery process. Also, this study provides more reliable method to ascertain the time dependent swelling process compared to the conventional method. The important aspects is that the proposed method is truly noninvasive and is able to ascertain time dependent processes.

• Biomaterials and Biomechanics in Bioengineering
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• v.1 no.3
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• pp.151-162
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• 2014

Genetically-modified mesenchymal stem cells (GM-MSCs) have emerged as promising therapeutic tools for orthopedic degenerative diseases. GM-MSCs have been widely reported that they are able to increase bone and cartilage tissue regeneration not only by secreting transgene products such as growth factors in a long-term manner, also by inducing MSCs into tissue-specific cells. For example, MSCs modified with BMP-2 gene increased secretion of BMP-2 protein resulting in enhancement of bone regeneration, while MSCs with TGF-b gene did cartilage regeneration. In this review, we introduce several growth factors for gene delivery to MSCs and strategies for bone and cartilage tissue regeneration using GM-MSCs. Furthermore, we describe strategies for strengthening GM-MSCs to more intensively induce tissue regeneration by co-delivery system of multiple genes.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.696-705
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• 1994

This study was done to provide a basis for home health care management for women following Cesarean delivery. Furthermore it was initiated as an possible application of home health care in the future. In this study, client selection criteria was developed by the researcher and assessment tools for home health care, recording system and problem oriented recording system were revised from Jun's(1993) methods. The selection criteria tool for home health care for women who had a Cesarean delivery was structured and consisted of five areas : physical status, functional status, psychological-emetional status, educational needs status and environmental status. The structured assessment tool consisted of general items, obstetric history, past medical history, methods of feeding, medications taken before ad-mission, laboratory results, discharge instructions, discharge medications, family tree, economic status, environmental status, a map, health assessment of women and their newborns. The visit note consisted of the date : nursing problems : nursing process including initial assessment : nursing goals : visit plan : health status of the postpartum women and their newborn : nursing diagnoses : nursing implementation evaluation : summary : next visit plan and revision. The problem oriented recording system consisted of the date, problem numbers, nursing diagnoses, problem appearance date, problem resolution date. The results of the research are as follows : The seven cases having had a Cesarean delivery were discharged on an average on the 5th day after the Cesarean birth. The total number of home visits was 13. According to Cordon's functional health patterns the total possible nursing diagnoses was 34 diagnoses for the methers and their newborns. Among the 34 diagnoses, there were 13 diagnoses in the health perception /management pattern, 7 in the psychosocial health perception / management pattern, 8 in the psychosocial self-perception, 2 in the nutrition / metabolism pattern of physical function, 2 in the knowledge deficit of newborn management, anxiety related to newborn management, knowledge deficit related to disease process of new-born, anxiety related to disease process of newborn anxiety related to prognosis of baby's condition, knowledge deficit related to newborn jaundice each appeared once. The changes in the number of nursing diagnoses was related to not the number of visits but to the number of nursing diagnoses decreasing. The con-tent of the home health care was categorized ac-cording to assessment, direct care, counseling, education, family care. The recommendation based on the results of this research are Home health care nurses for Cesarean postpartum women and their neonates requires comprehensive knowledge of pregnancy, delivery, and the postpartum period and of the neonate so that they can provide appropriate care and holistic views. Most of cases terminated after the second visit, this outcome may be related to the subjects being discharged on the 5th day after delivery. Therefore, study done with earlier discharge after delivery may have different outcome. It is very hard to assess psychological aspects that need follow-up and to develop communication channels.

• Radiation Oncology Journal
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• v.32 no.3
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• pp.103-115
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• 2014

To summarize current knowledge regarding mechanisms of radiation-induced normal tissue injury and medical countermeasures available to reduce its severity. Advances in radiation delivery using megavoltage and intensity-modulated radiation therapy have permitted delivery of higher doses of radiation to well-defined tumor target tissues. Injury to critical normal tissues and organs, however, poses substantial risks in the curative treatment of cancers, especially when radiation is administered in combination with chemotherapy. The principal pathogenesis is initiated by depletion of tissue stem cells and progenitor cells and damage to vascular endothelial microvessels. Emerging concepts of radiation-induced normal tissue toxicity suggest that the recovery and repopulation of stromal stem cells remain chronically impaired by long-lived free radicals, reactive oxygen species, and pro-inflammatory cytokines/chemokines resulting in progressive damage after radiation exposure. Better understanding the mechanisms mediating interactions among excessive generation of reactive oxygen species, production of pro-inflammatory cytokines and activated macrophages, and role of bone marrow-derived progenitor and stem cells may provide novel insight on the pathogenesis of radiation-induced injury of tissues. Further understanding the molecular signaling pathways of cytokines and chemokines would reveal novel targets for protecting or mitigating radiation injury of tissues and organs.

• The Journal of the Acoustical Society of Korea
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• v.41 no.5
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• pp.564-569
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• 2022

Blood-Brain Barrier (BBB) is the brain protecting system blocking the inflow of harmful substances into brain parenchyma from brain blood vessel. However, the BBB has a negative effect on the treatment of various brain diseases such as Alzheimer's dementia or brain tumors because it also prevents drug delivery into brain parenchyma. To overcome this problem, a brain drug delivery technique using Focused Ultrasound (FUS) which allows BBB to be temporarily opened by inducing the acoustic cavitation effect of microbubbles has been developed. Thus far, various studies using the FUS technique has been conducted to improve drug delivery efficiency, and therefore, this paper discusses recently developed drug delivery technologies using the FUS-induced BBB opening.