• Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology
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• v.82 no.2
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• pp.371-381
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• 2021

Purpose To evaluate the usefulness and effectiveness of bronchial occluders in the treatment of postoperative bronchopleural fistula (BPF). Materials and Methods The subjects of the study were six out of seven postoperative BPF patients who underwent surgery due to tuberculosis or lung cancer between 2009 and 2019. Each patient had a bronchial occluder inserted to treat BPF that occurred after surgery. Of the six patients, five had lung cancers and one had tuberculosis. Five were male and one was female; their ages ranged from 59 to 74 years, with an average of 69 years. The diagnosis of BPF was based on findings from bronchoscopy and CT, and treatment was initiated approximately 1 to 2 weeks after diagnosis. The technical and clinical success of the bronchial occluders in the treatment of BPF was evaluated. The study assessed the postoperative clinical effects of the occluders, survival duration, and additional treatments. Results All six patients were successfully treated. Clinical success was achieved in five patients, while partial clinical success was achieved in one; there was no clinical failure. No complications during the migration of the device or device perforations were observed. Two patients were diagnosed with BPF by CT, while four were diagnosed by bronchoscopy. Lobectomy, bilobectomy, and pneumonectomy were performed on two patients each. The periods between surgery and diagnosis ranged from 1 to 34 months; the average was 10 months. Four patients (59-103 days; an average of 80.5 days) died and two (313 days, 3331 days) survived. The causes of death were aggravation of the underlying disease (n = 2), pulmonary edema and pleural effusion (n = 1), and pneumonia (n = 1). Additional catheter drainage was performed in one patient, and a chest tube was maintained in two patients. Conclusion Bronchial occluders are useful and effective in the treatment of BPF after pulmonary resection.

• Radiation Oncology Journal
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.49-58
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• 1987

Hypertermia for the treatment of cancer has been introduced for a long time and the biological effect for the use of hyperthermia to treat malignant tumors has been well established and encouraging clinical results have been obserbed. Unfortunately, however, the engineering or technical aspects of hyperthermia for the deep seated tumors has not been satisfactory. We developed the radiofrequency capactive hyperthermia device (Greenytherm-GY8) in cooperation with Yonsei Cancer Center and Green Cross Medical Corporation. It was composed with $8{\sim}10MHz$ RF generator, capacitive electrode, matching system, cooling system, temperature measuring system and control PC computer. The thermal profile was investigated in agar phantom, animals and in human tumors, heated with capactivie RF device. Deep and homogeneous heating could be achieved in a large phantom of 25cm diameter and 19cm thick when heated with a pair of 23cm diameter electrodes, coupled to both bases of the phantom, when the size of the two electrodes was not the same, the region near the smaller electrode was preferentially heated. It was, therefore, possible to control the depth of heating by choosing proper size of electrodes. Therapeutic temperature $(42^{\circ}C{\sim}43^{\circ}C)$ could be obtained in the living animal experiments. Indications are that deep heating of humn tumors might be achieved with the capacitive method, provided that subcutaenous fat layer is cooled by temperature controlled bolus and large size of electrodes.

• KSBB Journal
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• v.27 no.5
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• pp.308-312
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• 2012

Argon-plasma jet (Ar-PJ) is generated by ionizing Ar gas, and the resulting Ar-PJ consists of a mixture of neutral particles, positive ions, negative electrons, and various reactive species. Although Ar-PJ has been used in various biomedical applications, little is known about the biological effects on cells located near the plasma-exposed region. Here, we investigated the effects of the Ar-PJ on actin cytoskeleton of mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) in response to indirect as well as direct exposure to Ar-PJ. This Ar-PJ was generated at 500 mL/min of flow rate and 100 V electric power by our device mainly consisting of electrodes, dielectrics, and a high-voltage power supply. Because actin cytoskeleton is the key cellular machinery involved in cellular movement and is implicated in regulation of cancer metastasis and thus resulting in a highly desirable cancer therapeutic target, we examined the actin filament architectures in Ar-PJ-treated MEFs by staining with an actin-specific phalloidin labeled with fluorescent dye. Interestingly, the Ar-PJ treatment causes destabilization of actin filament architectures in the regions indirectly exposed to Ar-PJ, but no differences in MEFs treated with Ar gas alone and in untreated cell control, indicating that this phenomenon is a specific cellular response against Ar-PJ in the live cells, which are indirectly exposed to Ar-PJ. Collectively, our study raises the possibility that Ar-PJ may have potential as anti-cancer drug effect through direct destabilization of the actin cytoskeleton.

• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.35 no.5
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• pp.160-168
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• 2014

Continuous body temperature monitoring is useful and essential in diverse medical procedures such as infection onset detection, therapeutic hypothermia, circadian rhythm monitoring, sleep disorder assessment, and gynecological research. However, the existing thermometers are too invasive or intrusive to be applied to long-term body temperature monitoring. In our previous study, we invented the bi-medium deep body thermometer which can noninvasively and continuously monitor deep tissue temperature. And the ratio of thermal resistances expressed as K-value should be obtained to estimate body temperature with the thermometer and it can be different under various measurement environments. Although the device was proven to be useful through preliminary simulation test and small group of human study, the experimental environment was restrictive in our previous approach. In this study, a finite element simulation was executed to obtain the K-value and evaluate the accuracy of bi-medium thermometer under various measurement environments. In addition, K-value estimation equation was developed by analyzing the influence of 5 measurement environmental factors (medium length, medium height, tissue depth, blood perfusion rate, and ambient temperature) on K-value. The results revealed that the estimation accuracy of bi-medium deep body thermometer based on computer simulation was very high (RMSE < $0.003^{\circ}C$) in various measurement environments. Also, bi-medium deep body thermometer based on K-value estimation equation showed relatively accurate results (RMSE < $0.3^{\circ}C$) except for one case. Although the K-value estimation technology should be improved for more accurate body temperature estimation, the results of finite element simulation showed that bi-medium deep body thermometer could accurately measure various tissue temperatures under diverse environments.

• Journal of Convergence Society for SMB
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• v.4 no.1
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• pp.55-62
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• 2014

Wireless capsule endoscopy (WCE) was one of the most influential bio-medical electronic technologies to be developed at the beginning of the century. In comparison to traditional endoscopic diagnosis, this application is characterized as non-invasive and low-risk, thereby providing surgeons with a new alternative for inspecting the entire gastrointestinal (GI) track in a much more user friendly way. Apart from regular hardware upgrades, the frontier of WCE research basically lies in the miniaturization of the capsule and in active locomotion. In order to overcome the intrinsic drawback of current commercialized WCE products, which is that locomotion is generally a function of natural peristalsis, active locomotion is proposed as a series of strategies used to effectively navigate the device into different organs and conduct therapeutic functions within targeted human tissues. Reviews of several novel designs with respect to this aspect of research will be discussed in this article.

• The Journal of Korean Physical Therapy
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• v.24 no.6
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• pp.414-418
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• 2012

Purpose: Muscle fatigue affects proprioception, and it causes problems in spinal stability. The purpose of this study was to examine the effect on the accuracy of reproducing the lumbar angles before lumbar exercise and after fatiguing isokinetic lumbar exercise. Methods: Thirty healthy adults participated in this study. Before induction of fatigue by exercise, the proprioception was measured by Biodex. Lumbar positions were passively maintained on stimulation position ($25^{\circ}$ flexion and $25^{\circ}$ extension), and back to the starting position. Subjects actively repositioned the remembered stimulation position, and error degrees between the stimulation position and reposition were measured. Using an isokinetic device at $120^{\circ}$/sec of velocity of angle lumbar flexion/extension exercise resulted in muscle fatigue. The post-fatigue proprioceptive position sense was used in the same way as in pre-fatigue measurement. Results: Means of position sense of pre-fatigue were $2.19{\pm}1.97$ on flexion angle, and $5.04{\pm}2.84$ on extension angle. After exercise induced fatigue, means of position sense were $2.37{\pm}1.83$ on flexion angle, and $4.93{\pm}2.57$ on extension angle. Results of this study showed significant differences of lumbar proprioceptive position sense between pre- and post-fatigue. Conclusion: Lumbar proprioception sense in active repositioning in flexion and extension was affected in the presence of muscle fatigue. Therefore, it should be noted that therapeutic exercise for patients with abnormal proprioceptive sense or elderly people must be performed with care because muscle fatigue can cause secondary damage.

• The Journal of Korean Academic Society of Nursing Education
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.62-71
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• 2009

Purpose: The present study was performed to identify the perception, attitude, and knowledge regarding the use of physical restraints among nursing personnel working at long-term care facilities. Method: 289 nurses, nurse aids and private caregivers working at 13 wards from 7 facilities participated in the survey. Perception, attitude and knowledge regarding the use of physical restraints were evaluated using the Perceptions of Restraints Use Questionnaire developed by Evans and Strumpf(1993) and Physical Restraint Questionnaire suggested by Janelli, et al(2006). Results: Wrist restraints were used the most frequently. The perception score regarding the use of physical restraints was 3.35, which is a moderate value. Study respondents considered 'safety measure' and 'safe use of a medical device' as the most important aspects when applying physical restraints to elderly. The respondents reported physical restraints were therapeutic at least to some degree but knowledge level about physical restraints of the respondents was rather low. Conclusion: Perception and attitude toward physical restraints were identified. The lack in knowledge about physical restraints needs to be addressed for more efficient use of them.

• Journal of the Optical Society of Korea
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.289-295
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• 2013

Although low-level laser therapy (LLLT) has been a valuable therapeutic technology in the clinic, its efficacy may be reduced in deep tissue layers due to strong light scattering which limits the photon density. In order to enhance the photon density in deep tissue layers, this study developed an optical tissue clearing (OTC) laser probe (OTCLP) system which can utilize four different OTC methods: 1) tissue temperature control from 40 to $10^{\circ}C$; 2) laser pulse frequency from 5 to 30 Hz; 3) glycerol injection at a local region; and 4) a combination of the aforementioned three methods. The efficacy of the OTC methods was evaluated and compared by investigating laser beam profiles in ex-vivo porcine skin samples. Results demonstrated that total (peak) intensity at full width at half maximum of laser beam profile when compared to control data was increased: 1) 1.21(1.39)-fold at $10^{\circ}C$; 2) 1.22 (1.49)-fold at a laser pulse frequency of 5 Hz; 3) 1.64 (2.41)-fold with 95% glycerol injection; 4) 1.86 (3.4)-fold with the combination method. In conclusion, the OTCLP system successfully improved the laser photon density in deep tissue layers and may be utilized as a useful tool in LLLT by increasing laser photon density.

• Journal of Convergence Korean Medicine
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.5-12
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• 2021

Objectives: The purpose of this study is to fabricate an ultra-fine ginsenoside particle atomizer that can provide a new treatment method by delivering ginsenoside components that have a therapeutic effect on respiratory diseases directly to the lungs. Methods: We fabricated the AAO vibrating mesh by using the micromachining process. The starting substrate of an AAO wafer has a 350nm pore diameter with 50㎛ thickness. A photomask having several 5㎛ opening holes with a 100㎛ pitch was used to separate each nanopore nozzle. The photoresist structure was optimized to pattern the nozzle area during the lift-off process precisely. The commercial vibrating mesh was removed from OMRON's NE-U100 product, and the fabricated AAO vibrating mesh was installed. A diluted sample of 20mL with 30% red ginseng concentrate was prepared to atomize from the device. Results: As a result of liquid chromatography analysis before spraying the ginsenoside solution, ginsenoside components such as 20S-Rg3, 20R-Rg3, and Rg5 were detected. After spraying through the AAO vibrating mesh, ginsenosides of the same component could be detected. Conclusion: A nutrient solution containing ginsenosides was successfully sprayed through the AAO vibrating mesh with 350 nm selective pores. In particular, during the atomizing experiment of ginsenoside drug solution having excellent efficacy in respiratory diseases, it was confirmed that atomizing through the AAO vibrating mesh while maintaining most of the active ingredients was carried out.