• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.40 no.1
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• pp.126-135
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• 2019

Background: Because of fear of reoperation and low efficiency, some patients with failed back surgery syndrome (FBSS) opt for Korean medicine treatment. Gold standard treatment is not present for FBSS, therefore both surgical and non-surgical treatment are possible. Studies of Korean conservative medicine for FBSS had a short duration of treatment and mainly pre- and post-treatment comparisons. And case of female patients who have worsened after childbirth is rare. The purpose of this study was to report long-term follow-up and rare cases of FBSS. Case summary: A 33-year-old female patient diagnosed with lumbar disc herniation complained with low back pain and radicular pain in the left leg after surgery in 2011. Acupuncture and decoction (Cheongpa-jeon, GCSB-5) were administered to her twice a day for about 6 years and 6 months. The patient's complaints improved with each hospitalization, and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) showed a slight decrease in the size of the recurrent disc (L4/5) and a newly developed disc (L5/S1) that had deteriorated after delivery. Conclusion: Korean medicine could be used to manage the pain of lumbar spine FBSS patients for 6-7 years and to alleviate lumbago after delivery.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology
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• v.82 no.6
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• pp.1413-1440
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• 2021

On MRI, abnormal signals of the intervertebral disc, destruction of the upper and lower vertebral body endplate around the disc, and bone marrow edema around the endplate are considered typical findings of infectious spondylitis. These findings can also appear in various non-infectious spinal diseases, such as degenerative changes, acute Schmorl's node, spondyloarthropathy, synovitis, acne, pustulosis, hyperostosis, and osteitis (SAPHO), chronic recurrent multifocal osteomyelitis, and calcium pyrophosphate dihydrate crystal deposition disease. The imaging findings of infectious spondylitis that can be differentiated from these non-infectious spinal diseases on MRI are high signal intensity and abscess of the disc space, an abscess in the paraspinal soft tissue, and the loss of the linear low signal intensity on T1-weighted images of the bony endplate. However, these differentiation points do not always apply since there are many similarities in the imaging findings of infectious and non-infectious diseases. Therefore, for an accurate diagnosis, it is important to know the imaging characteristics related to the pathophysiology of not only infectious spondylitis but also non-infectious spinal diseases, which requires differentiation from infection.

• Journal of the Korean Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.141-146
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• 2002

Purpose: Various treatment methods have been utilized for recurrent dislocation of the TMJ (temporomandibular joint). The purpose of this study is to define the effect of the eminectomy with discoplasty that had been performed in patients with TMJ luxation. Materials and Methods: Twenty patients (22 joints), whose diagnosis were TMJ dislocation were selected in 772 patients (871 joints) who had been underwent TMJ surgery between 1988 and 2000. The selected patients were divided into two groups. Group I (12 joints) was the habitual-luxation group which involves the recurrent TMJ dislocation patients. Group II (10 joints) was the open lock-history group which involves the patients who had more than two episodes of TMJ luxation and TMJ disorders. The history of TMJ luxation, maximum mouth opening and other TMJ signs and symptoms before and after surgery were reviewed. Results: In group I, one patient who had been underwent both TMJ operation had a intermittent locking, but it disappeared after post-operative 32 months. In group II, intermittent pain was present in one patient who had bruxism, but it was disappeared by splint therapy. No more TMJ dislocations and other pains were checked in other patients of group I and II. Conclusion: Eminectomy with discoplasty may be used to successfully treat the TMJ habitual luxation accompanied with abnormal condition of the disc-condyle complex.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.51 no.4
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• pp.208-214
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• 2012

Objective : Discal cyst is rare and causes indistinguishable symptoms from lumbar disc herniation. The clinical manifestations and pathological features of discal cyst have not yet been completely known. Discal cyst has been treated with surgery or with direct intervention such as computed tomography (CT) guided aspiration and steroid injection. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the safety and efficacy of the percutaneous endoscopic surgery for lumbar discal cyst over at least 6 months follow-up. Methods: All 8 cases of discal cyst with radiculopathy were treated by percutaneous endoscopic surgery by transforaminal approach. The involved levels include L5-S1 in 1 patient, L3-4 in 2, and L4-5 in 5. The preoperative magnetic resonance imaging and 3-dimensional CT with discogram images in all cases showed a connection between the cyst and the involved intervertebral disc. Over a 6-months period, self-reported measures were assessed using an outcome questionaire that incorporated total back-related medical resource utilization and improvement of leg pain [visual analogue scale (VAS) and Macnab's criteria]. Results : All 8 patients underwent endoscopic excision of the cyst with additional partial discectomy. Seven patients obtained immediate relief of symptoms after removal of the cyst by endoscopic approach. There were no recurrent lesions during follow-up period. The mean preoperative VAS for leg pain was $8.25{\pm}0.5$. At the last examination followed longer than 6 month, the mean VAS for leg pain was $2.25{\pm}2.21$. According to MacNab' criteria, 4 patients (50%) had excellent results, 3 patients (37.5%) had good results; thus, satisfactory results were achieved in 7 patients (87.5%). However, one case had unsatisfactory result with persistent leg pain and another paresthesia. Conclusion : The radicular symptoms were remarkably improved in most patients immediately after percutaneous endoscopic cystectomy by transforaminal approach.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.59 no.4
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• pp.374-378
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• 2016

Objective : A modified surgical technique of posterior cervical foramintomy called posterior cervical inclinatory foraminotomy (PCIF) was introduced in previous preliminary article. PCIF allows better preservation of facet joint and capsule than conventional techniques. The authors conducted a study to investigate long-term outcomes of PCIF. Methods : We retrospectively reviewed demographic, radiologic, and clinical data from the patients who underwent PCIFs at our institution. Criteria included a minimum of 48 month follow-up and PCIFs for patients with radiculopathy from foraminal stenosis (C2-T1; single or multilevel) with persistent or recurrent root symptoms despite conservative treatment for more than 3 months. Patients who had undergone previous cervical operation were excluded. The visual analogue scale (VAS) score was used for clinical follow-up, and radiologic follow-up was performed to compare the changes of cervical sagittal alignment, focal angle and disc-space height of treated segment. Results : The PCIFs were performed between April 2007 and March 2011 on 46 patients (32 males and 14 females) with a total of 73 levels affected. The average duration of follow-up was 74.4 months. Improvements in radiculopathic pain were seen in 39 patients (84.7%), and VAS score decreased from $6.82{\pm}1.9$ to $2.19{\pm}1.9$. Posterior neck pain also improved in 25 patients (71.4%) among 35 patients, and VAS score decreased from $4.97{\pm}2.0$ to $2.71{\pm}1.9$. The mean disc-space heights of treated segment were $5.41{\pm}1.03mm$ preoperatively and decreased to $5.17{\pm}1.12mm$ postoperatively. No statistically significant changes in cervical sagittal alignment, focal angle were seen during the follow-up period (Cox proportional hazards analysis and Student t-test, p>0.05). Conclusion : The PCIF is highly effective in treating patients with cervical spondylotic radiculopathy, leading to long-lasting relief in pain. Long-term radiologic follow-up showed no significant spinal angular imbalance.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.247-265
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• 2024

Measuring the fracture toughness of concrete in laboratory settings is challenging due to various factors, such as complex sample preparation procedures, the requirement for precise instruments, potential sample failure, and the brittleness of the samples. Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop innovative and more effective tools to overcome these limitations. Supervised learning methods offer promising solutions. This study introduces seven machine learning algorithms for predicting concrete's effective fracture toughness (K-eff). The models were trained using 560 datasets obtained from the central straight notched Brazilian disc (CSNBD) test. The concrete samples used in the experiments contained micro silica and powdered stone, which are commonly used additives in the construction industry. The study considered six input parameters that affect concrete's K-eff, including concrete type, sample diameter, sample thickness, crack length, force, and angle of initial crack. All the algorithms demonstrated high accuracy on both the training and testing datasets, with R² values ranging from 0.9456 to 0.9999 and root mean squared error (RMSE) values ranging from 0.000004 to 0.009287. After evaluating their performance, the gated recurrent unit (GRU) algorithm showed the highest predictive accuracy. The ranking of the applied models, from highest to lowest performance in predicting the K-eff of concrete, was as follows: GRU, LSTM, RNN, SFL, ELM, LSSVM, and GEP. In conclusion, it is recommended to use supervised learning models, specifically GRU, for precise estimation of concrete's K-eff. This approach allows engineers to save significant time and costs associated with the CSNBD test. This research contributes to the field by introducing a reliable tool for accurately predicting the K-eff of concrete, enabling efficient decision-making in various engineering applications.

• Maxillofacial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.16-20
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• 2014

Mandibular condylar hyperplasia is an uncommon condition of excessive unilateral growth of the condyle causing facial asymmetry and occlusal alterations. The etiology of condylar hyperplasia is unclear, but several factors are suspected, including previous trauma, hormonal disturbances, and abnormal functional loadings. Acute or chronic recurrent dislocation of temporomandibular joint (TMJ) is common, but long-standing dislocation is rare. We present two cases of the exophytic condylar hyperplasia that lasted for over 20 years with TMJ dislocation. In both cases, we performed a condyloplasty to restore normal occlusion and facial symmetry, with satisfactory results.

• Journal of Veterinary Clinics
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.65-68
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• 2006

Two cases of canine intervertebral disc disease (IVDD) were treated twice a week with injection-acupuncture (injection-AP) using 0.1 ml/acupoint. In case 1, a paralysed dog with cervical intervertebral disc disease (C3-C4), was submitted to injection-AP with dexamethasone (1 mg/ml) at session 1-2 and thiamine (25 mg/ml) at session 3-5. Injected acupoints included GV-16, GB-20, BL-10, LU-7, LI-4 and SI-6. The acupoints GV-6, GV-20 and SP-6 were added at session 2-5. Trigger point (TP) therapy with 0.2 ml of 2% lidocaine was used in session 3-5 at TP in the infraspinatus and triceps muscles. Treatment was stopped when paralysis disappeared after 5 injection-AP treatments; there were no recurrent symptoms in the follow-up period of 5 months. In case 2, an ataxic dog with lumbar IVDD (L1-L2), was submitted to injection-AP with dexamethasone at session 1 and 2 and thiamine at session 3-4. Injected acupoints included GV-6 as the main point, ST-36, GB-30, ST-40, GB-34, ST-41 and BL-40. TP therapy with 0.2 ml of 2% lidocaine was used at TP in the ileocostorum lumborum and quadriceps muscles. Treatment was stopped when ataxia disappeared after 4 treatments; there were no recurrent symptoms In the fallow-up period of 5 months. Injection-AP using dexamethasone and thiamine, combined with TP therapy using lidocaine, effectively alleviate the symptoms of canine cervical and lumbar IVDD.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.59 no.6
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• pp.610-614
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• 2016

Objective : The purpose of this study was to present the outcome of the microsurgical foraminotomy via Wiltse paraspinal approach for foraminal or extraforaminal (FEF) stenosis at L5-S1 level. We investigated risk factors associated with poor outcome of microsurgical foraminotomy at L5-S1 level. Methods : We analyzed 21 patients who underwent the microsurgical foraminotomy for FEF stenosis at L5-S1 level. To investigate risk factors associated with poor outcome, patients were classified into two groups (success and failure in foraminotomy). Clinical outcomes were assessed by the visual analogue scale (VAS) scores of back and leg pain and Oswestry disability index (ODI). Radiographic parameters including existence of spondylolisthesis, existence and degree of coronal wedging, disc height, foramen height, segmental lordotic angle (SLA) on neutral and dynamic view, segmental range of motion, and global lumbar lordotic angle were investigated. Results : Postoperative VAS score and ODI improved after foraminotomy. However, there were 7 patients (33%) who had persistent or recurrent leg pain. SLA on neutral and extension radiographic films were significantly associated with the failure in foraminotomy (p<0.05). Receiver-operating characteristics curve analysis revealed the optimal cut-off values of SLA on neutral and extension radiographic films for predicting failure in foraminotomy were $17.3^{\circ}$ and $24^{\circ}s$, respectively. Conclusion : Microsurgical foraminotomy for FEF stenosis at L5-S1 level can provide good clinical outcomes in selected patients. Poor outcomes were associated with large SLA on preoperative neutral (>$17.3^{\circ}$) and extension radiographic films (>$24^{\circ}$).

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.29 no.6
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• pp.772-777
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• 2000

Objectives : After lumbar microdiscectomy there are relatively higher incidence of readmission because of various postoperative discomfort. Analyzing these readmitted patients in our private hospital where the patients can be readmitted more easily, we expect to find out which factors are associated with improvement of the surgical outcome. Patients and Methoes : After discharge all significant patient's clinical data were registered to our computerized data bank system and periodic follow-up were performed. The authors analysed 651(97.7%) cases followed up over 2 years(average 3 years) out of 666 patients who underwent a initial lumbar microdiscectomy from May, 1994 to April, 1997. Among them, 63 patients(9.7%) were readmitted. Results : Among the patients readmitted, 29 patients(4.5%) were reoperated because of recurred disc herniation, 17 patients were myofascial pain syndrome, 4 patients were discitis, 3 patients were adhesion and one patient was epidural abscess. Treatment results of these readmitted patients showed that success rate of all readmitted patients was 68.3%, reoperation was 58.6% and myofascial pain syndrome was 82.4%. Conclusion : Treatment results of the patients readmitted because of a continuous lumbago or leg pain after microdiscectomy were acceptable through the careful analysis of the causes of the recurrent symptom. Therefore, the incidence of the chronic failed back syndrome can be reduced by efforting a more active management through readmission.