• Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
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• v.42 no.1
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• pp.38-45
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• 2010

The aim of this study was to assess the Clinical Usefulness of Helicobacter pylori Stool Antigen (HpSA) immunochromatographic assay for the diagnosis of H. pylori infection. In this study, we had compared HpSA-immunochromatographic assay with CLO test and UBT test. From a total of 140 patients (M:F=88:52) with upper endoscopy, biopsy specimens were obtained for CLO test. Stool specimens was collected from all patients and tested using a HpSA-immunochromatic assay. H. pylori infection status was defined as infected if the results of both CLO test and UBT test were positive. CLO test and UBT test findings showed that 92 patients were H. pylori positive and 48 patients were H. pylori negative. According to this definition, the sensitivity, specificity, and positive or negative predictive value (PPV, NPV) of HpSA-immunochromatographic assay were 97.8%, 100%, 100%, and 96%, respectively. Cross reactivity test of HpSA-immunochromatographic assay were performed with 10 enteric bacteria strains in fecal habitat, and there were no false positive reaction. We evaluated the usefulness of HpSA assay for eradication therapy with 10 of 92 H. pylori positive patients, positive results of them at pre-eradication therapy were converted to negative at post-eradication. The HpSA-immunochromatographic assay is a highly sensitive and specific non-invasive diagnostic method for detection of H. pylori infection, a useful diagnostic method for H. pylori in post eradication stage.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.5
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• pp.1929-1934
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• 2015

Purpose: To determine the diagnostic yield of primary circulating tumor cells in women with suspicion of breast cancer, detected as a result of an abnormal mammography. Materials and Methods: Consecutive women presenting for breast biopsy as a result of a mammogram BiRADs of 3 or more, had an 8ml blood sample taken for primary circulating tumor cell (CTC) detection. Mononuclear cells were obtained using differential gel centrifugation and CTCs identified using standard immunocytochemistry using anti-mammoglobin. A test was determined to be positive if 1 CTC was detected. Results: A total of 144 women with a mean age of $54.7{\pm}15.6$ years participated, 78/144 (53.0%) had breast cancer on biopsy, 65/140 (46.3%) benign pathologies and 1(0.7%) non-Hogkins lymphoma. Increasing BiRADs scores were associated with increased cancer detection (p=0.004, RR 1.00, 4.24, 8.50). CTC mammoglobin positive had a sensitivity of 81.1% and specificity of 90.9%, with positive and negative predictive values of 90.9% and 81.1% respectively. Mammoglobin positive CTCs detected 87% of invasive cancers, while poorly differentiated cancers were negative for mammoglobin. Only 50% of in situ cancers and none of the intraductal cancers had CTCs detected. Menopausal status did not affect the diagnostic yield of the CTC test, which was higher in women with BiRADS 4 mammograms. There was a significant trend (p<0.0001 Chi squared for trends) in CTC detection frequency from intraductal, in situ and invasive (OR 1.00, 8.00, 472.00). Conclusions: The use of primary CTC detection in women suspected of breast cancer has potential uses, especially with invasive cancer, but it failed to detect intra-ductal cancer and 50% of in situ cancer. There was no difference in the diagnostic yield between pre and post menopausal women. To confirm its use in reducing biopsies in women with BIRADs 4a mammagrams and in the detection of interval invasive breast cancer, larger studies are needed.

• Journal of Korean Ophthalmic Optics Society
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.15-20
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• 2008

Purpose: To study on the confidence of dry eye diagnosis methods which need to prescribe contact lens. Methods: Non-invasive tear film break-up time (NIBUT) and tear film break-up time (TBUT) were measured in forty healthy subjects in their 20s, and then the subjects were classified into normal eye and dry eye. The results of McMonnies questionnaire, tear prism height measurement, Hardtack test, blink rate measurement and Schirmer test were compared with the results of NIBUT and TBUT. Results: The results of NIBUT and TBUT were as follows; 20 subjects had normal eyes, 10 subjects had dry eyes in both NIBUT and TBUT, and 10 subjects showed different results. In McMonnies questionnaire, the score of normal eye group averaged 8.2 and that of dry eye group averaged 18.5, which showed statistically significant difference. Furthermore, 100% of normal eye group classified by the results of NIBUT and TBUT corresponded with the result of McMonnies questionnaire and 90% of dry eye group showed the correspondence. Tear prism height of normal eye group averaged 0.32 mm and that of dry eye group averaged 0.23 mm, which were significantly different. Hardtack test, blink rate measurement and Schirmer test without local anesthesia showed no statistically significant difference between normal eye group and dry eye group. Conclusions: On dry eye diagnosis methods, the results of McMonnies questionnaire and tear prism height measurement had close correlation with the results of NIBUT and TBUT.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.8
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• pp.3505-3508
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• 2015

Background: Ras genes are thought to play an important role in human cancer since they have been found to be activated frequently in several types of tumors including breast cancer, where the overall incidence of K-RAS oncogene activation is 0-10%. Evaluation of K-RAS gene not only for mutational frequency but also for mutation types in this downstream signaling gene pathway is necessary to determine the mechanisms of action. The present study was conducted to test the hypothesis that K-RAS activation is involved in breast cancer risk of south Indian population. Materials and Methods: A total of 70 paired pathologically confirmed tumor and non-tumor tissues from the same breast cancer patients were analysed for most common K-RAS mutations of codon 12,13 and 61 by polymerase chain reaction followed by restriction digestion and direct nucleotide sequencing method. Results: We found that a high rate of homozygous and heterozygous mutations of codon 12, but not codon 13 and 61, may influence the invasive ductal carcinoma of breast risk in this study. Conclusions: Our study indicated that only codon 12 may be involved in initiating breast carcinogenesis in India.

• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.201-207
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• 2017

Measuring the pulse wave velocity (PWV) is a non-invasive method for evaluating the stiffness of the vessel wall. While previous studies investigated the association of uric acid level with arterial stiffness, most did not consider smoking status and obesity as covariates. The objective of this study was to investigate the relationship between uric acid levels and arterial stiffness, considering smoking status and obesity. We studied 3390 subjects (1940 males and 1450 females). Abnormal PWV was also defined as the highest quartile of values in the subjects. Data were analyzed using Pearson correlation, t-test, and multiple regression analysis. Approximately 41.9% of men and 3.7% of women were current smokers. Prevalence of hypertension was 11.4% in men and 7.0% in women. In women, hyperuricemia was associated with abnormal PWV (OR 1.58; 95% CI 1.03~2.43). Hyperuricemia was also associated with abnormal PWV (OR 2.37; 95% CI 1.01~5.59) in non- or light male smokers with normal blood pressure. This study suggests that uric acid is associated with arterial stiffness in women and non-smoking men.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.36 no.5
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• pp.535-549
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• 2022

Damage to forests, such as broken or falling trees, has increased due to the increased intensity and frequency of abnormal climate events, such as strong winds and heavy rains. However, it is difficult to respond to them in advance based on prediction since structural defects such as cavities and bumps inside trees are difficult to identify with a visual inspection. Non-invasive sonic tomography (SoT) is a method of estimating internal defects while minimizing physical damage to trees. Although SoT is effective in diagnosing internal defects, its accuracy varies depending on the species. Therefore, it is necessary to analyze the reliability of its measurement results before applying it in the field. In this study, we measured internal defects in wood by cross-applying destructive resistance micro drilling on old Pinus densifloraSiebold & Zucc. and Ginkgo bilobaL., which are representative tree species in Korea, to verify the reliability of SoT and compared the evaluation results. The t-test for the mean values of the defect measurement between the two groups showed no statistically significant difference in pine trees and some difference in ginkgo trees. Linear regression analysis results showed a positive correlation with an increase in defects in SoT images when the defects in the drill resistance graph increased in both species.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.7
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• pp.2675-2677
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• 2015

Background: Depending on various pathological factors, non muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) shows varying degrees of recurrence. The aim of this study was to determine the incidence of recurrence of NMIBS in our centre, study the influence of intrinsic tumour characteristics like grade, stage, size and number, and compare our results with data in the published literature. Materials and Methods: A hospital based retrospective study was conducted on patients who underwent treatment for NMIBC from 2011 to 2014. The factors studied were number, size, grade, stage and site for correlation with recurrence. Statistical analysis was performed using Medcalc version 12, using Pearson's Chi square test to ascertain associations between variables. Results: A total of 73 patients with NMIBC were studied of which 48 (65.8%) had low grade and 25 (34.2%) had high grade tumours. Some 38 patients (52.1%) had Ta tumours, 34 (46.6%) had T1 and one had CIS. Mean follow up was 34.3 months. Recurrence rates were found to be 33.3% in low grade and 52.0% in high grade tumours. The overall recurrence rate in our centre was 39.7%. Significant correlations were seen between stage and recurrence, with a rate of 15% for Ta and 63.3% for T1 tumours. Fourteen out of 21 bladder cancers (66.6%) with multiple tumours demonstrated recurrence (p=0.006). Grade, size and site had no influence. Conclusions: In our study, recurrence of NMIBC was found to be directly proportional to stage and number of primary tumours, but not grade, size and site. The incidence of recurrence of NMIBC both stage wise and grade wise in our centre was also low compared to the data in the published literature.

• Advances in pediatric surgery
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.33-37
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• 2014

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to compare the diagnostic accuracy of the non-invasive diagnostic methods and rectal suction biopsy for the detection of Hirschsprung disease (HD). Methods: We reviewed diagnostic methods and results retrospectively in patients who underwent anorectal manometry, barium enema and rectal suction biopsy for the diagnosis of HD at Asan Medical Center from January 2000 to December 2012. Results: There were 97 patients (59 neonates and 38 infants) in the study period. The overall accuracy of anorectal manometry for the diagnosis of HD was 71.1% and its sensitivity was 51.4% (48.1% in neonate and 62.5% in infant, respectively) and its overall specificity was 82.3% (81.3% in neonate and 83.3% in infant, respectively). The Overall accuracy of barium enema was 66.0% (72.8% in neonate and 55.3% in infant, respectively) and specificity of barium enema was 53.2% (56.3% in neonate and 50.0% in infant, respectively). These results were lower than those of anorectal manometry. The overall sensitivity of barium enema was 88.6% (92.6% in neonate and 75.0% in infant, respectively) and it was higher than the sensitivity of anorectal manometry. Histological studies confirmed HD in 35 patients, in one of whom the suction biopsy showed negative finding. Conclusion: Accuracy of non-invasive methods for diagnosis of HD in our study is lower than those in previous study, so we need to improve the quality of diagnostic tools in our hospital. We conclude that the rectal suction biopsy is the most accurate test for diagnosing HD, so the biopsy to confirm the diagnosis of the HD is very important.

• Physical Therapy Rehabilitation Science
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.86-94
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• 2024

Objective: To evaluate the changes in bladder capacity and storage through non-invasive neuromodulation by application of repetitive Trans magnetic stimulation (rTMS) and genital nerve stimulation (GNS) in traumatic spinal cord survivors. Design: A Single Case Study. Method: The Patient was registered in trail with the clinical trial registry of India (CTRI/2022/05/042431). The Patient was interposed with rTMS on lumbar area, from T11-L4 vertebrae with 1 Hz and the intensity was 20% below that elicited local paraspinal muscular contraction for 13 minutes. GNS was placed over dorsum of the penis with the cathode at the base and anode 2 cm distally at 20 Hz, 200 microseconds, Continuous and biphasic current was delivered and amplitude of stimulation necessary to elicit the genito-anal reflex. For assessment, Neurological examination was done for peri-anal sensation (PAS), voluntary anal contraction (VAC) and bulbocavernous reflex (BCR), deep anal pressure (DAP), and American Spinal Injury Association Impairment Scale (ASIA scale). Outcome assessment was done using Urodynamics, Spinal Cord Independence Measure Scale Version-III (SCIM-III), American Spinal Injury Association Impairment Score (ASIA Score), Beck's Depression Inventory Scale (BDI). The baseline evaluation was taken on Day 0 and on Day 30. Results: The pre-and post-data were collected through ASIA score, SCIM-III, BDI and Urodynamics test which showed significant improvement in bladder capacity and storage outcomes in the urodynamics study across the span of 4 weeks. Conclusion: rTMS along with GNS showed improvement in bladder capacity & storage, on sensory-motor score, in functional independence of individual after SCI.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.13 no.11
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• pp.5835-5838
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• 2012

Objective: Cervix cancer is one of the most common gynecological cancer types that cause cancer deaths among women. This study was planned based on a descriptive method in order to evaluate the results of PAP smear screening during pregnancy for prevention of cancer. Materials and Methods: The research involved 110 pregnant women registered at the Obstetrics and Gynecology Polyclinic of Bagcilar Training and Research Hospital and 86 non-pregnant women of the same ages as a control group. As criteria for acceptance were conditions such as not being in coitus within the last 48 hours, not using vaginal ovule, and not performing vaginal lavage. A survey consisting of 33 questions was conducted and the results were processed using Bethesda. Results: The average ages were $27.1{\pm}4.70$ for the pregnant women and $28.8{\pm}4.24$ for the control group. 60.7% of cases had previously heard of a PAP smear test, 49% were aware of why PAP smear tests were conducted, 26.4% of pregnant participants and 27.3% of non-pregnant participants had previously undergone a smear test. In this study, smear results of all cases were 95.4% sufficient. 18.2% of pregnant cases had an infection, 54.5% had reactive cellular change, and 0.9% had atypical squamous cells of undetermined significance (ASC-US). 16.3% of non-pregnant cases had an infection, 58.1% had reactive cellular change, 3.5% had atypical squamous cells of undetermined significance (ASC-US), and 1.2% had low-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (LGSIL). Conclusion: PAP smear test is a good opportunity to identify pre-invasive lesions in early phases of pregnancy.