• Korean Journal of Radiology
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• v.21 no.9
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• pp.1077-1086
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• 2020

Objective: To evaluate the effect of perfluorobutane microbubbles (Sonazoid^®, GE Healthcare) on steam popping during radiofrequency (RF) ablation for treating hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), and to assess whether popping affects treatment outcomes. Materials and Methods: The institutional review board approved this retrospective study, which included 90 consecutive patients with single HCC, who received percutaneous RF ablation as the first-line treatment. The patients were divided into two groups, based on the presence or absence of the popping phenomenon, which was defined as an audible sound with a simultaneous sudden explosion within the ablation zone as detected via ultrasonography during the procedure. The factors contributing to the popping phenomenon were identified using multivariable logistic regression analysis. Local tumor progression (LTP) and disease-free survival (DFS) were assessed using the Kaplan-Meier method with the log-rank test for performing comparisons between the two groups. Results: The overall incidence of the popping phenomenon was 25.8% (24/93). Sonazoid^® was used in 1 patient (4.2%) in the popping group (n = 24), while it was used in 15 patients (21.7%) in the non-popping group (n = 69). Multivariable analysis revealed that the use of Sonazoid^® was the only significant factor for absence of the popping phenomenon (odds ratio = 0.10, p = 0.048). There were no significant differences in cumulative LTP and DFS between the two groups (p = 0.479 and p = 0.424, respectively). Conclusion: The use of Sonazoid^® has a suppressive effect on the popping phenomenon during RF ablation in patients with HCC. However, the presence of the popping phenomenon may not affect clinical outcomes.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.30 no.8
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• pp.673-684
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• 2021

Raw leachates from three landfills and treated leachates from two landfills on Jeju Isalnd were analyzed for ten perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) detected in aquaruc environments. The leachates were collected six times in 2014 and 2015. Among the ten PFCs, three were not detected, namely perfluoroundecanoic acid (PFUnDA), perfluorododecanoic acid (PFDoDA), and perfluorodecane sulfonate (PFDS). The total concentrations of PFCs ranged as 724-3313 ng/L (mean 1999 ng/L) in raw leachates and from less than the limit of quantification (LOQ) to 394 ng/L (mean 133.2 ng/L) in treated leachates. The domonant compounds measured were perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) (mean contribution 37.7%) and perfluorobutane sulfonate (PFBS) (mean contribution 38.2%) in raw leachates, and PFOA (mean contribution 40.7%), perfluorohexanoic acid (PFHxA) (mean contribution 27.3%) and PFBS (mean contribution 26.5%) in treated leachates. No significant correlations were observed between total/several individual PFCs and leachate pH and COD_Cr, which may be due to complex chemical nature of landfill leachates and characteristics of waste and landfills.

• Journal of the Korean GEO-environmental Society
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• v.18 no.11
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• pp.5-12
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• 2017

Perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) as environmental pollutants are an important environmental issue. However, little is known on the PFCs monitoring of sea waters around estuaries on the East and West Coasts of Korea. This study shows the monitoring results of PFCs in sea waters in these Coasts. Among 10 PFCs selected in this study, concentrations of perfluorooctanesulfonate (PFOS), perfluorooctanoate (PFOA), perfluorobutane sulfonate (PFBS), and perfluorohexane sulfonate (PFHxS) in the East Coast were 9.6-50.7 ng/L (total mean${\pm}$standard deviation: $26.14{\pm}12.66ng/L$), 13.79-44.58 ng/L ($27.95{\pm}11.41ng/L$), limit of quantification (LOQ)-2.6 ng/L ($0.96{\pm}1.15ng/L$), and 2.95-11.05 ng/L ($4.25{\pm}2.57ng/L$), respectively. In the West Coast, concentrations of PFOS, PFOA, PFBS, and PFHxS were 27.66-51.71 ng/L ($36.27{\pm}7.79ng/L$), 8.97-22.53 ng/L ($14.47{\pm}4.25ng/L$), LOQ-2.27 ng/L ($1.63{\pm}0.93ng/L$), and 3.0-7.66 ng/L ($4.27{\pm}1.49ng/L$), respectly. Other PFCs were below LOQ. The result of this study provides the distribution pattern of PFCs for assessing environmental pollution in two coastal areas of Korea.

• Korean Journal of Radiology
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.338-348
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• 2023

Objective: Patients with a history of ischemic stroke are at risk for a second ischemic stroke. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between carotid plaque enhancement on perfluorobutane microbubble contrast-enhanced ultrasonography (CEUS) and future recurrent stroke, and to determine whether plaque enhancement can contribute to risk assessment for recurrent stroke compared with the Essen Stroke Risk Score (ESRS). Materials and Methods: This prospective study screened 151 patients with recent ischemic stroke and carotid atherosclerotic plaques at our hospital between August 2020 and December 2020. A total of 149 eligible patients underwent carotid CEUS, and 130 patients who were followed up for 15-27 months or until stroke recurrence were analyzed. Plaque enhancement on CEUS was investigated as a possible risk factor for stroke recurrence and as a possible adjunct to ESRS. Results: During follow-up, 25 patients (19.2%) experienced recurrent stroke. Patients with plaque enhancement on CEUS had an increased risk of stroke recurrence events (22/73, 30.1%) compared to those without plaque enhancement (3/57, 5.3%), with an adjusted hazard ratio (HR) of 38.264 (95% confidence interval [CI]:14.975-97.767; P < 0.001) according to a multivariable Cox proportional hazards model analysis, indicating that the presence of carotid plaque enhancement was a significant independent predictor of recurrent stroke. When plaque enhancement was added to the ESRS, the HR for stroke recurrence in the high-risk group compared to that in the low-risk group (2.188; 95% CI, 0.025-3.388) was greater than that of the ESRS alone (1.706; 95% CI, 0.810-9.014). A net of 32.0% of the recurrence group was reclassified upward appropriately by the addition of plaque enhancement to the ESRS. Conclusion: Carotid plaque enhancement was a significant and independent predictor of stroke recurrence in patients with ischemic stroke. Furthermore, the addition of plaque enhancement improved the risk stratification capability of the ESRS.

• Korean Journal of Radiology
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• v.24 no.6
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• pp.482-497
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• 2023

Sonazoid, a second-generation ultrasound contrast agent, was introduced for the diagnosis of hepatic nodules. To clarify the issues with Sonazoid contrast-enhanced ultrasonography for the diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the Korean Society of Radiology and Korean Society of Abdominal Radiology collaborated on the guidelines. The guidelines are de novo, evidence-based, and selected using an electronic voting system for consensus. These include imaging protocols, diagnostic criteria for HCC, diagnostic value for lesions that are inconclusive on other imaging results, differentiation from non-HCC malignancies, surveillance of HCC, and treatment response after locoregional and systemic treatment for HCC.