• Journal of radiological science and technology
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• v.38 no.4
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• pp.443-449
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• 2015

An ultrasound probe has a big impact on Doppler images even though it has very high risk of frequent function-breakdowns occurring in medical ultrasound scanners. This study experimentally analyses the impacts of an ultrasonic probe's defected elements on power & color Doppler images. The results show that, the bigger the size of defected probe elements is, and the closer a group of action elements is to the center, the more the brightness of images and the velocity of Doppler diminish. When elements' defects increase in color & power Doppler images, false images are formed to be mistaken for blood-vessel plaque in neighboring regions. Accordingly, whenever element defects are suspected, we need check-up process in B-mode. From this respective, it is advisable to have primary interest in a probe and carry out continuous probe QA for ultrasonography.

• The Transactions of The Korean Institute of Electrical Engineers
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• v.62 no.6
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• pp.833-839
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• 2013

Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is performed by thoracic compression and artificial ventilation for the patient under emergent situation to maintain at least the minimum level of respiration and blood circulation for life survival. Good quality CPR requires monitoring respiration, however, traditional respiratory air flow transducers cannot be used because the transducer elements are facing the whole area perpendicular to the flow axis. The present study developed a new air flow transducer conveniently applicable to CPR. Specially designed "sensing rod" samples the air velocity at 3 different locations of the flow cross-section, then transforms into average dynamic pressure by the Bernoulli's law. The symmetric structure of the sensing holes of the sensing rod enables bi-directional measurement simply by taking the difference in pressure by a commercial differential pressure transducer. Both inspiratory and expiratory flows were obtained with symmetric measurement characteristics. Quadratic curve fitting provided excellent calibration formula with a correlation coefficient>0.999 (P<0.0001) and the mean relative error<1%. The present results can be usefully applied to accurately monitor the air flow rate during CPR.

• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.369-377
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• 1998

This paper describes the results of investigations comparing the relative in vitro responses of different signal processing algorithms for laser Doppler flowmetry(LDF) using self-mixing effect of laser diode(LD). A versatile laser Doppler system is described which enabled complex signal processing to be implemented relatively simply using digital analysis. The flexibility of the system allowed a variety of processing algorithms to be studied by simply characterising the algorithm of interest under software control using a personal computer. Two in-vitro physical models are also presented which was used to maintain reproducible fluid flows Flows of particles were studied in two physical models using a 780nm laser diode source. The results show that frequency weighted algorithms(first and second moments, rate to zero moment) are responsive to particle velocity more than concentration, whereas non-weighted algorithm (zero moment responds to concentration and velocity.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.44 no.6
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• pp.260-266
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• 2011

Objectives: We evaluated the association between common carotid artery intima-media thickness (CCA-IMT), brachialankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV), carotid plaque, and peripheral arterial disease (PAD) as indicators of macroangiopathy and diabetic retinopathy as an indicator of microangiopathy in type 2 diabetic patients. Methods: We analyzed 605 type 2 diabetic patients registered at a public health center in Korea. Following overnight fasting, venous blood and urine samples were collected and analyzed. The CCA-IMT, levels of carotid plaque, baPWV, and ankle-brachial index (ABI) of the subjects were assessed. We used non-mydriatic fundus photography to diagnose diabetic retinopathy. Multiple logistic regression analyses were used to evaluate the association between macroangiopathy and diabetic retinopathy. CCA-IMT and baPWV were divided into tertiles: CCA-IMT, 0.39 to 0.65 mm, 0.66 to 0.78 mm, and 0.79 to 1.30 mm; baPWV, 9.9 to 15.8 m/s, 15.9 to 18.9 m/s, and 19.0 to 38.0 m/s. Results: The association between baPWV and diabetic retinopathy remained significant after adjustment, with an increasing odds ratio (OR) in the second tertile (OR, 2.41; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.27 to 4.55) and the third tertile (OR, 4.63; 95% CI, 2.33 to 9.21). No significant differences were observed in carotid plaque, PAD, and each tertile of CCA-IMT. Conclusions: BaPWV was associated with diabetic retinopathy, while CCA-IMT, carotid plaque, and PAD were not. This study suggests that the association between macroangiopathy and microangiopathy may be attributable to functional processes rather than structural processes within the vascular system.

• Annals of Clinical Neurophysiology
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.20-24
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• 2012

Background: Migraine patients can be sensitive to external or internal stimuli, such as light, noise, or hormonal changes. Using transcranial Doppler ultrasonography (TCD) with breath-holding method, we evaluated the changes of cerebrovascular reactivity (CVR) to hypercapnia in women with migraine without aura between fasting and postprandial period. Methods: Twelve women with migraine without aura and the same number of age and sex-matched healthy controls with no significant history of headache participated in this study. Using TCD examinations, we studied mean flow velocity in middle cerebral artery with better temporal window. Each subject was examined consecutively before and after a standard meal, together with serum glucose level and blood pressure. CVR was evaluated with breath-holding index (BHI). Results: Postprandial-BHI (mean+SD) was significantly higher than fasting-BHI (mean+SD) in patients group but not in controls (in patient group; postprandial-BHI=1.38, fasting-BHI=1.08, in control group; postprandial-BHI=1.25, fasting-BHI=1.18, P=0.021 and 0.239, respectively). After meal, serum glucose level was significantly enhanced but blood pressure was not in both groups. Serum glucose level of patients showed a tendency of mild positive correlation with BHIs (${\gamma}$=0.448, P=0.032). Conclusions: Although exact mechanisms are unclear, cerebrovascular reactivity of some women with migraine without aura may be influenced by prandial state.

• Transactions on Electrical and Electronic Materials
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• v.17 no.6
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• pp.375-379
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• 2016

Increasing fat tissue of obese people, increases the rate of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, metabolic syndromes and dyslipidemia. An increase in the focal tissue of pancreas is a known risk factor of these diseases. Although there exists sufficient research on the diagnosis and treatment of pancreatic cancer, studies have been done on fatty pancreas. In this study, based on ultrasound imaging and using a texture characteristic of GLCM, fatty pancreas was divided into three categories: mild, moderate and severe. We compared and analyzed the three groups was by Pancreatic ultrasonography and body characteristics, serological tests, pressure and the degree of arteriosclerosis, against normal control group. The following parameters of control and test groups were measured: WC (waist circumference),BMI (body mass index), TC (total cholesterol), TG (triglyceride), HDL-C (High-density lipoprotein cholesterol) and LDL-C (Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol), SBP (systolic blood pressure), BST (Blood Sugar Test) and aortic PWV (pulse wave velocity). We observed the values correspondingly increasing fat deposition. However, ABI (Ankle Brachial pressure index) stenosis and HDL-C levels decreased with increasing fat deposit (p <0.05); a drop in these parameters are known to be harmful to the human body. The difference in texture characteristics between normal control group and pancreatic fatty group (mild, moderate, and severe) was statistically confirmed. Ultrasound imaging of pancreatic steatosis categorized the disease as mild, moderate and severe based on the characteristic texture. In conclusion, we observed on increase in metabolic syndrome, dyslipidemia, and arteriosclerosis, proportional to the degree of pancreatic fat deposition. The escalation of these diseases was confirmed and was directly related with predictors of cardiovascular diseases.

• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.219-223
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• 2008

The present study was designed to clarify whether scuba diving at 5 meters of seawater influences cerebral hemodynamics, hematological and biochemical variables. Twenty healthy young men well trained scuba diving participated in this study. The blood flow velocity in the right and left middle cerebral arteries (L-MCAV and R-MCAV), blood pressure (BP), heart rate (HR), CBC and differential count, prothrombin time (PT), activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT), biochemical variables, D-dimer and interleukin-8 (IL-8) levels were determined before, immediately after scuba diving for 30 min, and after 30 min of rest (Pre-scuba, Scuba and R-30m, respectively). L-MCAV and R-MCAV tended to increase, but the only significant increase was in L-MCAV in Scuba. SBP and HR significantly declined in R-30m compared with those of Pre-scuba and the Scuba. IL-8 levels were elevated in Scuba and R-30m compared with that of Pre-scuba. In Scuba and R-30m, hematological variables except PT and biochemical parameters excluding glucose and lactic acid did not significantly changed in comparison with those of Pre-scuba. PT level at Scuba and glucose level at R-30m significantly declined in Scuba, while lactate level at R-30m increased compared with each in Pre-scuba. However, PT level at Scuba was within a normal range. These results suggest that scuba diving at 5 m of seawater for 30 min has no adverse effects, is safe and useful for improving health. However, further study must be performed to clarify the mechanism of elevated IL-8 level following scuba diving.

• Journal of Veterinary Clinics
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• v.31 no.2
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• pp.112-116
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• 2014

A 2-month-old intact male Pitbull terrier (weighing 1.01 kg) were referred with primary complaints of severe abdominal distension, exercise intolerance, retarded growth, yellow nasal discharge and anorexia. Diagnostic imaging studies found enlarged right atrium partitioned by abnormal membrane, severe pulmonic systolic jets (5.66 m/s of peak velocity) and right-to-left blood shunt at the inter-atrial septum. Based on clinical and diagnostic findings, the case was diagnosed as cor triatriatum dexter complicated with severe pulmonic stenosis and right-to-left shunted patent foramen ovale. Either surgical or interventional therapy has not been attempted, because of unstable patient's condition. Using blood transfusion, oxygen supply and cardiac medications (i.e., sildenafil, spironolactone, enalapril), the dog was recovered.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers B
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.18-28
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• 2001

The present study investigates flow dynamics between two dimensional compliant plates under sinusoidal flow conditions in order to understand influence of wall motion, impedance phase angle (time delay between pressure and flow waveforms), and non-Newtonian fluid on wall shear stress using computational fluid dynamics. The results showed that wall motion induced additional terms in the streamwise velocity profile and the pressure gradient. These additional terms due to wall motion reduced the amplitude of wall shear stress and also changed the mean wall shear stress. The trend of the changes was very different depending on the impedance phase angle. As the impedance phase angle was changed to more negative values, the mean wall shear stress decreased while the amplitude of wall shear stress increased. As the phase angle was reduced from 0°to -90°under $\pm$4% wall motion, the mean wall shear stress decreased by 12% and the amplitude of wall shear stress increased by 9%. Therefore, for hypertensive patients who have large negative phase angles, the ratio of amplitude and mean of the wall shear stress is raised resulting in a more vulnerable state to atherosclerosis according to the low and oscillatory shear stress theory. We also found that non-Newtonian characteristics of the blood protect atherosclerosis by decreasing the oscillatory shear index.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Precision Engineering
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• v.24 no.10
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• pp.123-130
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• 2007

Hypoplastic left heart syndrome is currently the most lethal cardiac malformation of the newborn infant. Survival following a Norwood operation depends on the balance between systemic and pulmonary blood flow, which is highly dependent on the fluid dynamics through the interposition shunt between the two circulations. The purpose of this study is an optimization of the systemic-to-pulmonary artery shunt. In this study, We used computational fluid dynamic(CFD) models to determine the velocity profile in a systemic-to-pulmonary artery shunt and suggested a simplified method of calculating the blood flow in the shunt based on Ultrasound systems. We analyzed the flow characteristic variations and oscillatory shear index(OSI) due to the anastomosis angle and shunt diameter changing. Four different CFD models were constructed with the shunt sizes ranging from 3 to 3.5mm. The angle between the brachiocephalic trunk(BCT) and the shunt were $30^{\circ}$ and $45^{\circ}$, respectively. When the diameter is 3.0 mm, the oscillatory shear index decreased by 1.2% at $30^{\circ}$ as opposed to at $45^{\circ}$. When the diameter is 3.5 mm, it increased by 18% more at $30^{\circ}$ as opposed to at $45^{\circ}$. When the joint angle is $30^{\circ}$ and the diameter is 3.0 mm, the oscillatory shear index decreased by 4.1% in comparison with the 3.5 mm diameter. When the angle is $45^{\circ}$ and the diameter is 3.0 mm, the index increased by 14.6% in comparison with the 3.5 mm diameter.