• Asian Spine Journal
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• v.12 no.6
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• pp.1060-1068
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• 2018

Study Design: Retrospective study. Purpose: Lumbar intervertebral disc degeneration is an important cause of low back pain. Overview of Literature: Spinal fusion is often reported to have a good course for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS). However, many studies have reported that adjacent segment degeneration is accelerated after lumbar spinal fusion. Radiography is a simple method used to evaluate the orientation of the vertebral column. magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is the method most often used to specifically evaluate intervertebral disc degeneration. The Pfirrmann classification is a well-known method used to evaluate degenerative lumbar disease. After spinal fusion, an increase in stress, excess mobility, increased intra-disc pressure, and posterior displacement of the axis of motion have been observed in the adjacent segments. Methods: we retrospectively secured and analyzed the data of 15 patients (four boys and 11 girls) with AIS who underwent a spinal fusion surgery. We studied the full-length view of the spine (anterior-posterior and lateral) from the X-ray and MRI obtained from all patients before surgery. Postoperatively, another full-length spine X-ray and lumbosacral MRI were obtained from all participants. Then, pelvic tilt, sacral slope, curve correction, and fused and free segments before and after surgery were calculated based on X-ray studies. MRI images were used to estimate the degree to which intervertebral discs were degenerated using Pfirrmann grading system. Pfirrmann grade before and after surgery were compared with Wilcoxon signed rank test. While analyzing the contribution of potential risk factors for the post-spinal fusion Pfirrmann grade of disc degeneration, we used generalized linear models with robust standard error estimates to account for intraclass correlation that may have been present between discs of the same patient. Results: The mean age of the participant was 14 years, and the mean curvature before and after surgery were 67.8 and 23.8, respectively (p<0.05). During the median follow-up of 5 years, the mean degree of the disc degeneration significantly increased in all patients after surgery (p<0.05) with a Pfirrmann grade of 1 and 2.8 in the L2-L3 before and after surgery, respectively. The corresponding figures at L3-L4, L4-L5, and L5-S1 levels were 1.28 and 2.43, 1.07 and 2.35, and 1 and 2.33, respectively. The lower was the number of free discs below the fusion level, the higher was the Pfirrmann grade of degeneration (p<0.001). Conversely, the higher was the number of the discs fused together, the higher was the Pfirrmann grade. Conclusions: we observed that the disc degeneration aggravated after spinal fusion for scoliosis. While the degree of degeneration as measured by Pfirrmann grade was directly correlated by the number of fused segments, it was negatively correlated with the number of discs that remained free below the lowermost level of the fusion.

• Journal of Sasang Constitutional Medicine
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• v.31 no.2
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• pp.12-21
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• 2019

Objectives This study was aimed to evaluate the one-year test-retest reliability of the Korea Sasang constitutional diagnostic questionnaire (KS-15) in university students. Methods In March 2017, and March 2018, a survey was sent by email to 583 Korean medicine students in two universities. Of these, 149 (25.6%) participated and completed the first survey (test) and second survey (retest). Participants responded to the KS-15 questionnaire and the general characteristics including their age, sex, height, and weight. Cohen's kappa Spearman's rank correlation coefficient and agreement rate (%) were used for the test-retest reliability for each question item and the diagnosis of the Sasang constitution. The independent T-test was used to determine the difference in BMI between Sasang constitutional accordance and discordance groups obtained from the test-retest results of KS-15. Results The agreement of Sasang constitutional diagnosis was 75.8% (Kappa = 0.618), indicating that KS-15 had a certain level (substantial) of test-retest reliability. However, the kappa of each item was 0.161 ~ 0.620, which showed a large difference between the items. The agreements of each Sasang constitution were 85.1% for Taeeumin, 73.6% for Soeumin, and 58.6% for Soyangin. There was no significant difference in the BMI change between Sasang constitutional accordance and discordance groups in the test-retest. Conclusions These results indicate KS-15 has a reliable one-year test-retest reliability. However, further studies will be required to improve reliability, validity and application across different age ranges for the practical utilization of KS-15.

• The Korean Journal of Psychodrama
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.1-12
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• 2018

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of psychodrama on self - esteem, well - being, anxiety and depression among domestic violence victims who entered the shelter. This study is a similar experimental study of a single group pre-and post-design. Data were collected from 7 participants, pre - post - questionnaire surveys conducted ten times psychodrama, during the period from January 4 to February 26, 2015. Data were analyzed using frequency, percentage, Pearson correlation coefficient and Wilcoxon 's sign rank test using SPSS 22.0 program. As a result, the participants' self-esteem was negatively correlated with anxiety(r=-.866, p =.012), depression(r=-.824, p =.023). There was no statistically significant difference in self-esteem, well-being, and anxiety, depression between before and after the psychodrama, but there was an increase in post-score of self-esteem and well-being, and the post-score of anxiety and depression decreased. In order to improve the self-esteem and well-being and to reduce anxiety and depression in women victimized by domestic violence, long-term support programs are needed for the application of leisure and psychological support programs and continuous participation in psychodrama.

• Journal of Korean Medicine for Obesity Research
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.178-192
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• 2020

Objectives: The present study aimed to compare the impacts of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and behavioral treatment (BT) on weight loss and psychological outcomes among patients with three different subtypes of obesity: simple obesity, obesity with binge eating disorder, and obesity with depression. Methods: Embase, PubMed, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Research Information Sharing Service, and Korean Studies Information Service System were systematically searched for randomized controlled trials conducted on or before May 2020, that used CBT to treat obesity. Methodological quality was assessed using Cochrane's risk of bias tool 2 and publication bias was evaluated through the funnel plot using the trim and fill method, Egger's test, and Begg and Mazumdar rank correlation test. A meta-analysis was conducted using a random-effects model and the standardized mean difference with 95% confidence interval (CI) was used to determine effect size. Results: Twenty-one randomized controlled trials with a total of 22 intervention arms and 2,590 patients were included. Our study results revealed that the effects of CBT, compared with BT, on weight loss distinctly differed across all patient subgroups. In the simple obesity group, CBT was more effective than BT (Hedges' g=0.138, CI=0.012~0.264); however, in the obesity with binge eating disorder group, BT was more effective than CBT (Hedges' g=-0.228, CI=-0.418~-0.038); in the obesity with depression group, the effect of CBT was not statistically different from that of BT (Hedges' g=0.276, CI=-0.307~0.859). Further studies with larger sample sizes are required to confirm the outcomes observed in this study. Conclusions: Our results indicated that the effects of CBT on obesity treatment vary based on patient subtype. Therefore, our findings suggest that CBT or BT should be selectively recommended as a treatment strategy for different obesity subtypes.

• Journal of the korean academy of Pediatric Dentistry
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• v.49 no.1
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• pp.65-75
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• 2022

The aim of this study was to evaluate QLF (quantitative light-induced fluorescence) technology for the caries detection in primary teeth and validate the relationships between the cavity volume of carious lesions and QLF analysis results. Total 125 tooth surfaces include 53 occlusal surfaces, and 72 proximal surfaces were investigated with the portable QLF device for detection of dental caries in primary molars. Micro-CT radiograph was also performed to classify carious lesions and calculate the cavity volume. QLF showed good accuracy and reliability (sensitivity 0.75 - 0.94, specificity 0.82 - 0.95, and AUROC 0.88 - 0.98) for the caries detection in primary teeth except 𝚫R average results of proximal caries which showed relatively low values. Statistically significant relationships were found between 𝚫F average, QS-Index and the cavity volume according to Spearman rank-order correlation coefficients (r = 0.805 - 0.832, p < 0.001). QLF detection method would be a harmless and reliable way for children to diagnose dental caries without the concern about radiation exposure.

• Journal of the Korean Society for information Management
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• v.39 no.2
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• pp.233-254
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• 2022

Link reduction algorithms such as pathfinder network are the widely used methods to overcome problems with the visualization of weighted networks for knowledge domain analysis. This study proposed NetRSQ, an indicator to measure the goodness of fit of a link reduction algorithm for the network visualization. NetRSQ is developed to calculate the fitness of a network based on the rank correlation between the path length and the degree of association between entities. The validity of NetRSQ was investigated with data from previous research which qualitatively evaluated several network generation algorithms. As the primary test result, the higher degree of NetRSQ appeared in the network with better intellectual structures in the quality evaluation of networks built by various methods. The performance of 4 link reduction algorithms was tested in 40 datasets from various domains and compared with NetRSQ. The test shows that there is no specific link reduction algorithm that performs better over others in all cases. Therefore, the NetRSQ can be a useful tool as a basis of reliability to select the most fitting algorithm for the network visualization of intellectual structures.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Physical Medicine
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.67-76
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• 2023

PURPOSE: The study compared the satisfaction of the exercise program in a face-to-face and non-face-to-face manner with the same exercise program. METHODS: This study was conducted through convenience sampling for 57 seniors over 65 years of age. After conducting 30 minutes of the same exercise program face-to-face on the first visit and non-face-to-face on the second visit, a satisfaction survey was conducted. The survey data were processed statistically using SPSS 26.0 (SPSS Inc, IBM, USA). An independent t-test was used to compare the type of exercise program. The Spearman's Rank Correlation was conducted to correlate the satisfaction between cognitive function and education level. RESULTS: The overall satisfaction with the face-to-face program was higher than the non-face-to-face exercise programs. All three satisfaction items in face-to-face exercise programs were higher than in non-face-to-face exercise programs (p < .05). The main source of dissatisfaction in the case of face-to-face exercise programs was having a good relationship with people for face-to-face and a 'lack of communication' in the case of non-face-to-face. CONCLUSION: The elderly showed higher satisfaction in face-to-face exercise than in non-face-to-face exercise. This study is significant in that accurate satisfaction comparison was possible by conducting the same exercise program on the same subject for a relatively short time, and through this, the development of an exercise program was suggested.

• Korean Journal of Culture and Social Issue
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.103-128
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• 2006

The present study investigated individuals' perception of important social issues in Korea. Based on previous research(Hahn, 1994; Hahn & Kang, 2000), a checklist containing 370 social issues was created. This checklist was administered to 1600 Koreans(812 college students, 788 adults) residing in 5 regional areas in Korea during the period of December 2004 and February 2005. Data were analyzed by the respondents' age, sex, and residing areas, and findings were compared to those of the two previous studies conducted in 1994 and 1999. Major findings of the study are as follows. First, across the three surveys, over 50% of the respondents consistently indicated the following four items as important social issues in the Korean society: political corruption, environmental pollution, the education system that is driven too much for college entrance, employment difficulty for local college graduates. Second, more than 50% of the respondents in the current survey indicated the following 12 items as important social issues that must be resolved: high unemployment rate, political corruption, environmental pollution, education system, overall difficulty of getting jobs, the nation's distrust in politics, hardships of life among the working classes, political incompetence, people with defective personal credit standings, employment difficulty for local college graduates, political instability, corruption of public servants. Third, analyses on the top 30 social issues across the three surveys revealed a positive and significant rank-order correlation for a five-year period(i.e., 1994-1999, 1999-2004), but not for a ten-year period(i.e., 1994-2004). Implications of the study and directions for future research are discussed.

• Korean Journal of Radiology
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• v.22 no.7
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• pp.1152-1162
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• 2021

Objective: This study aimed to determine whether there are regional differences in the blood-brain barrier (BBB) permeability of cognitively normal elderly participants and to identify factors influencing BBB permeability with a clinically feasible, 10-minute dynamic contrast-enhanced (DCE) MRI protocol. Materials and Methods: This IRB-approved prospective study recruited 35 cognitively normal adults (26 women; mean age, 64.5 ± 5.6 years) who underwent DCE T1-weighted imaging. Permeability maps (K_trans) were coregistered with masks to calculate the mean regional values. The paired t test and Friedman test were used to compare Ktrans between different regions. The relationships between K_trans and the factors of age, sex, education, cognition score, vascular risk burden, vascular factors on imaging, and medial temporal lobar atrophy were assessed using Pearson correlation and the Spearman rank test. Results: The mean permeability rates of the right and left hippocampi, as assessed with automatic segmentation, were 0.529 ± 0.472 and 0.585 ± 0.515 (K_trans, x 10^-3 min^-1), respectively. Concerning the deep gray matter, the K_trans of the thalamus was significantly greater than those of the putamen and hippocampus (p = 0.007, p = 0.041). Regarding the white matter, the K_trans value of the occipital white matter was significantly greater than those of the frontal, cingulate, and temporal white matter (p < 0.0001, p = 0.0007, p = 0.0002). The variations in K_trans across brain regions were not related to age, cognitive score, vascular risk burden, vascular risk factors on imaging, or medial temporal lobar atrophy in the study group. Conclusion: Our study demonstrated regional differences in BBB permeability (K_trans) in cognitively normal elderly adults using a clinically acceptable 10-minutes DCE imaging protocol. The regional differences suggest that the integrity of the BBB varies across the brains of cognitively normal elderly adults. We recommend considering regional differences in K_trans values when evaluating BBB permeability in patients with neurodegenerative diseases.

• Korean Journal of Radiology
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.118-130
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• 2021

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the blood-brain barrier (BBB) disruption in mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) patients with post-concussion syndrome (PCS) using dynamic contrast-enhanced (DCE) magnetic resonance (MR) imaging and automatic whole brain segmentation. Materials and Methods: Forty-two consecutive mTBI patients with PCS who had undergone post-traumatic MR imaging, including DCE MR imaging, between October 2016 and April 2018, and 29 controls with DCE MR imaging were included in this retrospective study. After performing three-dimensional T1-based brain segmentation with FreeSurfer software (Laboratory for Computational Neuroimaging), the mean K^trans and v_p from DCE MR imaging (derived using the Patlak model and extended Tofts and Kermode model) were analyzed in the bilateral cerebral/cerebellar cortex, bilateral cerebral/cerebellar white matter (WM), and brainstem. K^trans values of the mTBI patients and controls were calculated using both models to identify the model that better reflected the increased permeability owing to mTBI (tendency toward higher K^trans values in mTBI patients than in controls). The Mann-Whitney U test and Spearman rank correlation test were performed to compare the mean K^trans and v_p between the two groups and correlate K^trans and v_p with neuropsychological tests for mTBI patients. Results: Increased permeability owing to mTBI was observed in the Patlak model but not in the extended Tofts and Kermode model. In the Patlak model, the mean K^trans in the bilateral cerebral cortex was significantly higher in mTBI patients than in controls (p = 0.042). The mean v_p values in the bilateral cerebellar WM and brainstem were significantly lower in mTBI patients than in controls (p = 0.009 and p = 0.011, respectively). The mean K^trans of the bilateral cerebral cortex was significantly higher in patients with atypical performance in the auditory continuous performance test (commission errors) than in average or good performers (p = 0.041). Conclusion: BBB disruption, as reflected by the increased K^trans and decreased v_p values from the Patlak model, was observed throughout the bilateral cerebral cortex, bilateral cerebellar WM, and brainstem in mTBI patients with PCS.