• Pediatric Infection and Vaccine
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.37-45
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• 2022

Purpose: During the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, we conducted a Delphi survey that included the experts from the field of COVID-19 immunization in children aged 5-11 years. The aim was to organize collective expert opinions on COVID-19 vaccination in young children in the Republic of Korea, and so thus assist the vaccination policy. Methods: The panels included pediatric infectious disease specialists, preventive medicine experts, infectious disease physicians, and COVID-19 vaccine experts consulting the Ministry of Health and Welfare. The Delphi survey was conducted online using a questionnaire from February 14 to February 27, 2022. Results: The Delphi panels agreed that children were vulnerable to COVID-19, and the severity of illness was modest. Furthermore the panels reported that children with chronic illness were more susceptible to a worsening clinical course. There were generally positive opinions on the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccination in children aged 5-11 years, and experts gathered a slightly positive opinion that the adverse events of pediatric COVID-19 were not numerous. The benefits of COVID-19 vaccination were evaluated at a level similar to the potential risks in children. Currently, the only approved mRNA platform vaccine in children seemed to be sustainable; however, the recombinant protein platform COVID-19 vaccines were evaluated as better options. Conclusions: Due to the surge of the Omicron variant and an increase in pediatric cases, the COVID-19 vaccination in young children may have to be considered. Panels had neutral opinions regarding the COVID-19 vaccination in children aged 5-11 years. Thus monitoring of the epidemiology and the data about the safety of COVID-19 vaccination should be continued.

• Korean Journal of Remote Sensing
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• v.38 no.6_2
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• pp.1643-1652
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• 2022

Deposited Marine Debris(DMD) can negatively affect marine ecosystems, fishery resources, and maritime safety and is mainly detected by sonar sensors, lifting frames, and divers. Considering the limitation of cost and time, recent efforts are being made by integrating underwater images and artificial intelligence (AI). We conducted a comparative study of You Only Look Once Version 5 (YOLOv5) and You Only Look Once Version 7 (YOLOv7) models to detect DMD from underwater images for more accurate and efficient management of DMD. For the detection of the DMD objects such as glass, metal, fish traps, tires, wood, and plastic, the two models showed a performance of over 0.85 in terms of Mean Average Precision (mAP@0.5). A more objective evaluation and an improvement of the models are expected with the construction of an extensive image database.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.37 no.8
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• pp.1049-1057
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• 2008

The purpose of this study was to microbiologically evaluate common foods and preparation processes in three large (over 100 pyeong) western-style restaurants in Daegu. Microbiological testing was conducted for pathogens including E. coli, Salmonella spp., Listeria monocytogenes, Staphylococcus aureus, E. coli O157:H7, Vibrio parahaemolyticus, and Bacillus cereus, as well as total plate count and coliforms. Food samples selected for testing represent common menu items and preparation processes. These samples included: 1) hamburger steak (cooking process), 2) mashed potatoes (reheating process), and 3) salad (non-heating process). The results showed that E. coli and S. aureus were detected in the raw ground beef used to prepare hamburger steak, but they were not detected after cooking at $82{\sim}86^{\circ}C$, 10 min. Microbiological quality of the mashed potatoes was better after reheating than during storage in a refrigerator after cooking. Total plate count and coliforms increased, and E. coli was detected in the salad ingredients stored in the refrigerator before serving. In order to serve foods of good microbiological safety and quality in western-style restaurants, standard cooking and reheating temperatures must be maintained during the cooking and reheating processes, and sanitation standard operating procedures must be followed for washing and storage of non-heated and refrigerated menu items.

• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.121-131
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• 2009

This study attempted to investigate the perception and usage status for meat products of dietitians in the food service business in Seoul and Gangwon province. 32.8% of dietitians decided the menu reflecting the taste of students. Most of the dietitians (89.2%) checked the manufacture date of the processed meat products when they were supplied. To address the question as to whether they could distinguish the difference among ham, pressed ham, and sausage, most of them answered; 'can distinguish a little' (47.5%) or 'can't distinguish' (36.7%). The most frequently provided processed meat products were ham (33.9%), followed by sausage (21.7%). However, it is assumed that the dietitians might have mistaken the pressed ham for the classic ham. The most common frequency of the serving processed meat product in the food services was once a month (41.6%). Most desired aspect of quality improvement for the processed meat products was answered as 'hygiene/safety' (31.5%), and followed by 'higher quality' (26%). In conclusion, the improvement of the product quality and the strengthening of public information would be prerequisites for expanding the use of processed meat products in the food services and business-to-business (B2B) market in the future.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.477-487
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• 2019

Objectives: Firefighters are known to be exposed to a variety of toxic substances, but little information is available on the exposure profile of firefighting activities. The aims of this study were to conduct exposure monitoring of toxic chemicals at fire scenes, to compare the concentrations of respective chemicals among firefighting tasks, and to assess the main factors influencing the concentrations of chemicals. Methods: Researchers performed sampling at firefighting scenes during four weeks in 2013. At the scene, we collected samples based on firefighters' own activities and examined the situation and scale of the accident. Collected samples were classified into three categories, including fire extinguishing and overhaul, and were analyzed in the laboratory according to respective analysis methods. Results: A total of fourteen fire activity events were surveyed: five fire extinguishing, six overhaul, and three fire investigations. Although no substance exceeded the ACGIH TLV, PAHs were detected in every sample. Naphthalene ranged from 0.24 to 279.13 mg/㎥ (median 49.6 mg/㎥) and benzo(a)pyrene was detected in one overhaul case at 10.85 ㎍/㎥. Benzene (0.01-12.2 ppm) was detected in every task and exceeded the ACGIH TLV. No significant difference in concentrations between tasks was shown. Conclusions: These results indicate that all firefighting tasks generated various hazardous combustion products, including possible carcinogens.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.42 no.3
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• pp.464-477
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• 2013

There is a great need to develop a training program proven to change behavior and improve knowledge. The purpose of this study was to evaluate employee hygiene knowledge, hygiene practice, and cleanliness, before and after HACCP system implementation at one small-size restaurant. The efficiency of the system was analyzed using time-temperature control after implementation of u-HACCP$^{(R)}$. The employee hygiene knowledge and practices showed a significant improvement (p<0.05) after HACCP system implementation. In non-heating processes, such as seasoned lettuce, controlling the sanitation of the cooking facility and the chlorination of raw ingredients were identified as the significant CCP. Sanitizing was an important CCP because total bacteria were reduced 2~4 log CFU/g after implementation of HACCP. In bean sprouts, microbial levels decreased from 4.20 logCFU/g to 3.26 logCFU/g. There were significant correlations between hygiene knowledge, practice, and microbiological contamination. First, personnel hygiene had a significant correlation with 'total food hygiene knowledge' scores (p<0.05). Second, total food hygiene practice scores had a significant correlation (p<0.05) with improved microbiological qualities of lettuce salad. Third, concerning the assessment of microbiological quality after 1 month, there were significant (p<0.05) improvements in times of heating, and the washing and division process. On the other hand, after 2 months, microbiological was maintained, although only two categories (division process and kitchen floor) were improved. This study also investigated time-temperature control by using ubiquitous sensor networks (USN) consisting of an ubi reader (CCP thermometer), an ubi manager (tablet PC), and application software (HACCP monitoring system). The result of the temperature control before and after USN showed better thermal management (accuracy, efficiency, consistency of time control). Based on the results, strict time-temperature control could be an effective method to prevent foodborne illness.

• Korean journal of food and cookery science
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• v.21 no.3 s.87
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• pp.290-300
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• 2005

Increased sanitation management of foodservice establishments is required because most of the reported foodborne-disease outbreaks were in the foodservice industry. The purpose of this study was to determine the important control points for good sanitation. In this study, we inspected twenty foodservice establishments in Seoul, Kyunggi, Kyungnam with a self-developed monitoring tool. These foodservice establishments included secondary schools, universities, and industries. Six of them had appointed as the HACCP-certified establishments from the Korea Food and Drug Administration. The inspection was conducted from June to August in 2002. The inspection tool consisted of nine dimensions and sixty-five items. The dimensions were 'personal sanitation', 'supply of raw food', 'food storage', 'handling of raw food and ready-to-eat', 'cleaning and sterilization', 'waste control', 'pest control', and 'control of establishment and equipment' The highest possible score of this inspection tool is 105 points. Statistical data analysis was completed using the SPSS Package(11.0) for descriptive analysis Kruskal-Wallis. The score for the secondary schools (83.6 points) was higher than for the others and number of in compliance item was 50.9 on average. Therefore, we concluded that the secondary schools' sanitation condition was good. The foodservice establishments acquired HACCP certification was 89.7 points, which was significantly higher than that of establishments not applying foodservices in total score. Instituting the HACCP system in a foodservice is very effective for sanitation management. Many out of the compliance observations were found in the dimensions of 'waste control', 'control of establishment and equipment', and 'supply of raw food' 'Clean condition of refrigerator' item was $65\%$ out of the compliance that was the highest percent in this study. 'Notify and observance of heating/reheating temperature' was $45\%$ out of compliance. Items which were over $30\%$ out of compliance were 'sterilization of knifes and chopping boards in cooking', 'education of workers', 'maintain refrigerator temperature blow $5^{\circ}C$', and 'countermeasure of infection workers' In the results, most of the foodservice establishments were poorly managed in temperature control and cross-contamination. The important control points revealed in this study were preventing contamination, cooking temperature compliance, management of raw food and refrigerator. Therefore foodservice establishments should pay attention to education and training about important control points. The systematic sanitation management monitoring tool developed in this study can be effectively applied for conducting self-inspection and improving the sanitary conditions of their own foodservice operations.