• Physical Therapy Rehabilitation Science
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• v.11 no.4
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• pp.502-508
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• 2022

Objective: Contralateral seventh cervical nerve transfer (contralateral C7 transfer) is a newly attempted method to restore upper extremity motor function in the patients with spastic arm paralysis. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of contralateral C7 transfer on upper extremity motor function in the patients with spastic hemiplegia after stroke. Design: A retrospective cohort study. Methods: Thirty-four patients with spastic hemiplegia after stroke was investigated. All patients registered between January 2020 and February 2021. The subjects were assessed on upper extremity motor function, cognition, and spasticity before and after contralateral C7 transfer. The upper extremity motor function was measured using the Fugl-Meyer upper extremity scale and box & block test. The cognition and spasticity were assessed by Korean version mini mental state examination (K-MMSE) and modified Ashworth scale from baseline to 8 weeks after the surgery. Results: The Fugl-Meyer upper extremity scale and modified Ashworth scale were significantly improved after contralateral C7 transfer (p<0.05). However, box & block test and K-MMSE were no significant changes after the surgery (p>0.05). Conclusions: This study suggested that the contralateral C7 transfer was a feasible and practical approach to improve upper extremity motor function in the patients with spastic hemiplegia after stroke, but further study is required to identify the long-term effects after the contralateral C7 transfer.

• Journal of Mycology and Infection
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.1-8
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• 2019

Background: Scalp seborrheic dermatitis is a common disease characterized by flaking and itching of the scalp. Conventional treatment options, such as the use of topical corticosteroids and antifungal agents, may cause adverse effects and reduce user satisfaction rates; thus, it is important to explore other treatment options for scalp seborrheic dermatitis. Objective: We aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of a new-formula shampoo containing natural ingredients, including the extract of Rosa centifolia petals, epigallocatechin gallate, zinc pyrithione, and climbazole. Methods: A total of 50 patients with scalp seborrheic dermatitis were enrolled and divided into two groups: the new-formula shampoo-treated group and the 1.5% ciclopirox olamine shampoo-treated group. Clinical severity scores, sebum secretion, and inflammatory cytokines were assessed. In addition, patient satisfaction and adverse events were assessed using a questionnaire. Results: The new-formula shampoo was comparable with ciclopirox in reducing the clinical severity scores and sebum secretion. Patients' improvement scores and user satisfaction rates were higher in the new-formula shampoo group than in the 1.5% ciclopirox olamine shampoo-treated group. The inflammatory cytokine levels considerably changed in both groups during the course of the study. Conclusion: Thus, the new-formula shampoo can be considered a treatment option for patients with scalp seborrheic dermatitis.

• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.44 no.3
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• pp.585-593
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• 2023

Objective: The purpose of this study is to report the effect of integrative medicine on recurrent follicular lymphoma, thus providing a clinical basis for integrative medicine. Methods: The medical report of a patient with follicular lymphoma who had undergone several chemotherapies but continuously relapsed before treated with integrative medicine was analyzed. Radiologic outcome was assessed by several imaging tests based on Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors. Clinical outcome and safety were assessed by laboratory tests. Results: After five years of integrative treatment, there was a complete response in imaging tests such as computed tomography (CT), positron-emission tomography/CT, and endoscopy. There were no toxicity in the laboratory test and no serious side effect of integrative medicine. Conclusion: This study suggested that integrative medicine has few side effects but significant effects on treating recurrent follicular lymphoma. However, the results should be taken cautiously as further clinical studies are needed.

• Physical Therapy Rehabilitation Science
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• v.12 no.3
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• pp.293-299
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• 2023

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the potential benefits of microcurrent stimulation as a non-invasive therapeutic approach for managing pain and improving the quality of life in women suffering from primary dysmenorrhea. Design: A case study. Methods: This study was conducted, involving a cohort of 6 women diagnosed with primary dysmenorrhea, aged between 20 to 30 years. Participants were received microcurrent stimulation using low-intensity microcurrents for 30 minutes every day for 4 weeks. The intensity of microcurrent stimulation was 25 μA and the frequency was 8 Hz. The intervention was administered between the menstruations, with pain intensity and quality of life being assessed at baseline, and then at the end of menstrual cycle. Pain intensity was evaluated using a visual analog scale (VAS) and menstrual symptom questionnaire (MSQ), while the quality of life was assessed through the stress response inventory (SRI), state trait anxiety inventory (STAI), center for epidemiologic studies depression (CES-D), and menstrual distress questionnaire (MEDI-Q). Results: After the intervention, participants demonstrated a statistically significant reduction in pain intensity, as evidenced by improved VAS scores (p<0.05). However, the changes in MSQ scores did not reach statistical significance. Regarding quality of life measures, no statistically significant differences were found in the SRI, STAI, CES-D, and MEDI-Q scores after the intervention (p>0.05). Conclusions: This study suggest that microcurrent stimulation holds promise as a potential treatment option for alleviating pain associated with primary dysmenorrhea.

• Journal of Animal Reproduction and Biotechnology
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• v.38 no.3
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• pp.121-130
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• 2023

Background: Coating a culture plate with molecules that aid in cell adhesion is a technique widely used to produce animal cell cultures. Extracellular matrix (ECM) is known for its efficiency in promoting adhesion, survival, and proliferation of adherent cells. Gelatin, a cost-effective type of ECM, is widely used in animal cell cultures including feeder-free embryonic stem (ES) cells. However, the optimal concentration of gelatin is a point of debate among researchers, with no studies having established the optimal gelatin concentration. Methods: In this study, we coated plastic plates with gelatin in a concentration-dependent manner and assessed Young's modulus using atomic force microscopy (AFM) to investigate the microstructure of the surface of each plastic plate. The adhesion, proliferation, and differentiation of the ESCs were compared and analyzed revealing differences in surface microstructure dependent on coating concentration. Results: According to AFM analysis, there was a clear difference in the microstructure of the surface according to the presence or absence of the gelatin coating, and it was confirmed that there was no difference at a concentration of 0.5% or more. ES cell also confirmed the difference in cell adhesion, proliferation, and differentiation according to the presence or absence of gelatin coating, and also it showed no difference over the concentration of 0.5%. Conclusions: The optimum gelatin-coating for the maintenance and differentiation of ES cells is 0.5%, and the gelatin concentration-mediated microenvironment and ES cell signaling are closely correlated.

• Journal of Korean Biological Nursing Science
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.229-242
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• 2023

Purpose: The electronic frailty index (eFI), which is derived from electronic health records, has been recommended as screening tool for frailty due to its accessibility and ease of use. The objective of this systematic review was to identify the prevalence of frailty assessed by the eFI and its influence on health outcomes in older adults with chronic diseases. Methods: We searched PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, CINAHL, SCOPUS, Cochrane, Google search, and nursing journals in Korean from January 2016 to December 2022. Results: Twelve studies were analyzed. The eFI score, based on routine clinical data, was associated with adverse health outcomes. The most frequent outcome studied was mortality, and the eFI was associated with increased mortality in nine studies. Other outcomes studied included hospitalization, length of stay, readmission, and institutionalization in relation to hospital care usage, and cardiovascular events, stroke, GI bleeding, falls, and instrumental activities of daily life as health conditions. Conclusion: Early identification of frailty in older adults with chronic diseases can decrease the burden of disease and adverse health outcomes. The eFI has a good discriminative capacity to identify frail older adults with chronic diseases.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.57 no.4
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• pp.319-326
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• 2024

Objectives: Despite the importance of choosing and using a valid assessment tool for fear of cancer recurrence (FCR) for early detection and interventions, the validity of the FCR inventory has yet to be thoroughly investigated in Korea. This study explored the psychometric properties of the Fear of Cancer Recurrence Inventory-Severity (FCRI-S) subscale and assessed its applicability to cancer survivors in Korea. Methods: The survey involved 93 Korean individuals who had survived cancer. The reliability of the FCRI-S subscale was assessed using Cronbach's α and composite reliability (CR). Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), along with tests for discriminant and convergent validity, was conducted to evaluate the construct validity of the FCRI-S subscale. Results: The FCRI-S subscale showed excellent internal consistency (Cronbach's α=0.88; CR=0.89). CFA showed a good factor structure for the FCRI-S subscale, and the correlations of the FCRI-S subscale with FCR-related measures (r=0.69 to 0.80) and other psychosocial measures (r=-0.23 to 0.37) confirmed both the convergent and discriminant validity of the FCRI-S subscale. Conclusions: This study confirmed the robust psychometric characteristics of the FCRI-S subscale among cancer survivors in Korea. The use of the FCRI-S subscale would be helpful for health professionals to rapidly screen FCR levels in clinical settings.

• The korean journal of orthodontics
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• v.54 no.5
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• pp.274-283
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• 2024

Objective: To determine the correlation between dentoskeletal parameters related to craniofacial morphology and the upper airway (UA) volume. Methods: Cone-beam computed tomography images of 106 randomly selected orthodontic patients were analyzed using NemoFab Ortho software. The dentoskeletal variables assessed were anterior facial height (AFH), posterior facial height (PFH), PFH/AFH ratio, hyoid position, maxillary width (MW), and palatal depth. The UA volume (evaluation in anatomical regions and as a whole) was also assessed using the same software. We also evaluated potential differences in UA variables between age and sex groups. The correlation between the dentoskeletal parameters and UA volume was calculated using the Pearson correlation coefficient (R). Analysis of variance and Student's t test were performed to assess differences between age and sex for UA variables. Statistical analyses were performed using SPSS software (version 26 for Windows). Results: This study found that PFH, AFH, and MW were the dentoskeletal parameters most strongly correlated with UA volume. However, the ANB angle did not show any significant correlation with UA volume. Additionally, differences in UA volumes were observed between age groups. Sex differences were found in both the "8-12" and "≥ 16" age groups for oropharyngeal and pharyngeal volumes. Conclusions: In conclusion, our findings indicate a significant correlation between UA volume and dentoskeletal parameters, particularly those related to facial height and MW.

• Phonetics and Speech Sciences
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.75-81
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• 2018

Diplophonia is generally defined as the perception of more than one fundamental frequency component in a voice. Its perceptual aspect has traditionally been used to evaluate diplophonia because the perceptions can be easily evaluated, but there are limitations in the validity of the reliability of the intra- and inter-raters, examination situation, and variation of voice sample. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to confirm the reliability and accuracy of auditory perceptual evaluation by comparing non-invasive indirect assessment methods (sound waveform and EGG analysis), and to identify their usefulness with diplophonia. A total of 28 diplophonic voices and 39 non-periodic voices were assessed. Three raters assessed the diplophonia by performing an auditory perception evaluation and identifying the quasi-periodic perturbations of the acoustic waveform and EGG. Among the three discrimination methods, intra- and inter-rater reliability, sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, positive likelihood ratio, and negative likelihood ratio were examined, and the McNemar test was performed to compare the discriminant agreement. The accuracy of the auditory perceptual evaluation (86.57%) was not significantly different from that of sound waveform acoustic (88.06%), but it was significantly different from that of EGG (83.33%). The reading time (6.02 s) for the auditory perceptual evaluation was significantly different from that for sound waveform analysis (30.15 s) and EGG analysis (16.41 s). In the discrimination of diplophonia, auditory perceptual evaluation has sufficient reliability and accuracy as compared to sound waveform and EGG. Since immediate feedback is possible, auditory perceptual evaluation is more convenient. Therefore, it can continue to be used as a tool to discriminate diplophonia in clinical practice.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.52 no.3
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• pp.204-209
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• 2012

Objective : The authors performed a retrospective study to assess the accuracy and clinical benefits of a navigation coupled with O-arm$^{(R)}$ system guided method in the thoracic and lumbar spines by comparing with a C-arm fluoroscopy-guided method. Methods : Under the navigation guidance, 106 pedicle screws inserted from T7 to S1 in 24 patients, and using the fluoroscopy guidance, 204 pedicle screws from T5 to S1 in 45 patients. The position of screws within the pedicle was classified into four groups, from grade 0 (no violation cortex) to 3 (more than 4 mm violation). The location of violated pedicle cortex was also assessed. Intra-operative parameters including time required for preparation of screwing procedure, times for screwing and the number of X-ray shot were assessed in each group. Results : Grade 0 was observed in 186 (91.2%) screws of the fluoroscopy-guided group, and 99 (93.4%) of the navigation-guided group. Mean time required for inserting a screw was 3.8 minutes in the fluoroscopy-guided group, and 4.5 minutes in the navigation-guided group. Mean time required for preparation of screw placement was 4 minutes in the fluoroscopy-guided group, and 19 minutes in the navigation-guided group. The fluoroscopy-guided group required mean 8.9 times of X-ray shot for each screw placement. Conclusion : The screw placement under the navigation-guidance coupled with O-arm$^{(R)}$ system appears to be more accurate and safer than that under the fluoroscopy guidance, although the preparation and screwing time for the navigation-guided surgery is longer than that for the fluoroscopy-guided surgery.