• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine Technology
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.41-47
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• 2024

Purpose: ¹⁸F-FET, a radiopharmaceutical based on a Tyrosine amino acid derivative using the Sodium-Potassium Pump-independent Transporter (System L) for non-invasive evaluation of primary, recurrent, and metastatic brain tumors, exhibits distinct characteristics. Unlike the widely absorbed ¹⁸F-FDG in both tumor and normal brain tissues, ¹⁸F-FET demonstrates specific uptake only in tumor tissue while almost negligible uptake in normal brain tissue. This study aims to compare and evaluate the usefulness of ¹⁸F-FDG and ¹⁸F-FET Brain PET/CT quantitative analysis in brain tumor diagnosis. Materials and Methods: In 46 patients diagnosed with brain gliomas (High Grade: 34, Low Grade: 12), Brain PET/CT scans were performed at 40 minutes after ¹⁸F-FDG injection and at 20 minutes (early) and 80 minutes (delay) after ¹⁸F-FET injection. SUV_max and SUV_peak of tumor areas corresponding to MRI images were measured in each scan, and the SUV_max-to-SUV_peak ratio, an indicator of tumor prognosis, was calculated. Differences in SUV_max, SUV_peak, and SUV_max-to-SUV_peak ratio between ¹⁸F-FDG and ¹⁸F-FET early/delay scans were statistically verified using SPSS (ver.28) package program. Results: SUV_max values were 3.72±1.36 for ¹⁸F-FDG, 4.59±1.55 for ¹⁸F-FET early, and 4.12±1.36 for ¹⁸F-FET delay scans. The highest SUV_max was observed in ¹⁸F-FET early scans, particularly in HG tumors (4.85±1.44), showing a slightly more significant difference (P<0.0001). SUV_peak values were 3.33±1.13 for ¹⁸F-FDG, 3.04±1.11 for ¹⁸F-FET early, and 2.80±0.96 for ¹⁸F-FET delay scans. The highest SUV_peak was in ¹⁸F-FDG scans, while the lowest was in ¹⁸F-FET delay scans, with a more significant difference in HG tumors (P<0.001). SUV_max-to-SUV_peak ratio values were 1.11±0.09 for ¹⁸F-FDG, 1.54±0.22 for ¹⁸F-FET early, and 1.48±0.17 for ¹⁸F-FET delay scans. This ratio was higher in ¹⁸F-FET scans for both HG and LG tumors (P<0.0001), but there was no statistically significant difference between ¹⁸F-FET early and delay scans. Conclusion: This study confirms the usefulness of early and delay scans in ¹⁸F-FET Brain PET/CT examinations, particularly demonstrating the changes in objective quantitative metrics such as SUV_max, SUV_peak, and introducing the SUV_max-to-SUV_peak ratio as a new evaluation metric based on the degree of tumor malignancy. This is expected to further contributions to the quantitative analysis of Brain PET/CT images.

• Korean Journal of Mineralogy and Petrology
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.99-114
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• 2020

The characteristics of the Brazilian tensile strengths(σ_t) parallel to the rock cleavages in Jurassic granite from Geochang were analysed. The evaluation for the six directions of rock cleavages was performed using the parameter values on microcrack length and the above strength. The strength values of the five test specimens belonging to each direction were classified into five groups. The strength values of these five groups increase in order of group A < B < C < D < E. The close dependence between the above microcrack and strength was derived. The analysis results of this study are summarized as follows. First, the chart showing the variation and characteristics of strength among the three rock cleavages were made. In the above chart, the strength values of six directions belonging to each group were arranged in order of rift(R1 and R2), grain(G1 and G2) and hardway(H1 and H2). The strength distribution lines of the five groups concentrate in the direction of R1. And the widths among the above five lines indicating strength difference(Δσ_t) are the most narrowest in R1 direction. From the related chart, the variation characteristics among the two directions forming each rock cleavage were derived. G2(2)-test specimen shows higher value and lower value of the difference in strength compared to the case of G1(1)-test specimen. These kinds of phenomena are the same as the case between the test specimen H2(2) and H1(1). The strength characteristics of the above test specimens (2) suggest lower microcrack density value and higher degree of uniformity in the distribution of microcracks arrayed parallel to the loading direction compared to those of test specimens (1). The six strength values belonging to each group were arranged in increasing order in the above chart. The strength values of the test specimens belonging to both group D and E appear in order of R1 < R2 < G1 < H1 < G2 < H2. Therefore, the strength values of group D and E can be indicator values for evaluating the six directions of rock cleavages. Second, the correlation chart between slope angle(θ) and strength difference(Δσ_t) were made. The values of the above two parameters were obtained from the five strength distribution lines connecting between the two directions. From the chart related to rift plane(G1-H1, R'), grain plane(R1-H2, G') and hardway plane(R2-G2, H'), the slope values of linear functions increase in order of R'(0.391) < G'(0.470) < H'(0.485). Among three planes, the charts related to hardway plane show the highest distribution density among the five groups. From the related chart for rift(R1-R2, R), grain(G1-G2, G) and hardway(H1-H2, H), the slope values of linear functions increase in order of rift(0.407) < hardway(0.453) < grain(0.460). Among three rock cleavages, the charts related to rift show the highest frequency of groups belonging to the lower region. Taken together, the width of distribution of the slope angle among the three planes and three rock cleavages increase in order of H' < G < R' < R < G' < H. Third, the correlation analysis among the parameters related to microcrack length and the tensile strengths was performed. These parameters may include frequency(N), total length(Lt), mean length(Lm), median length(Lmed) and density(ρ). The correlation charts among individual parameters on the above microcrack(X) and corresponding five levels of tensile strengths for the five groups(Y) were made. From the five kinds of correlation charts, the values of correlation coefficients(R²) increase along with the five levels of strengths. The mean values of the five correlation coefficients from each chart increase in order of 0.22(N) < 0.34(Lt) < 0.38(ρ) < 0.57(Lmed) < 0.58(Lm). Fourth, the correlation chart among the corresponding maximum strength for group E(X) and the above five parameters(Y) were made. From the related chart, the values of correlation coefficient increase in order of 0.61(N) < 0.81(Lt) < 0.87(ρ) < 0.93(Lm) < 0.96(Lmed). The two parameters that have the highest correlations are median length with maximum strength. Through the above correlation analysis between microcrack and strength, the credibility for the results from this study can be enhanced.

• Journal of Intelligence and Information Systems
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.1-18
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• 2016

Owing to the extensive use of Web media and the development of the IT industry, a large amount of data has been generated, shared, and stored. Nowadays, various types of unstructured data such as image, sound, video, and text are distributed through Web media. Therefore, many attempts have been made in recent years to discover new value through an analysis of these unstructured data. Among these types of unstructured data, text is recognized as the most representative method for users to express and share their opinions on the Web. In this sense, demand for obtaining new insights through text analysis is steadily increasing. Accordingly, text mining is increasingly being used for different purposes in various fields. In particular, issue tracking is being widely studied not only in the academic world but also in industries because it can be used to extract various issues from text such as news, (SocialNetworkServices) to analyze the trends of these issues. Conventionally, issue tracking is used to identify major issues sustained over a long period of time through topic modeling and to analyze the detailed distribution of documents involved in each issue. However, because conventional issue tracking assumes that the content composing each issue does not change throughout the entire tracking period, it cannot represent the dynamic mutation process of detailed issues that can be created, merged, divided, and deleted between these periods. Moreover, because only keywords that appear consistently throughout the entire period can be derived as issue keywords, concrete issue keywords such as "nuclear test" and "separated families" may be concealed by more general issue keywords such as "North Korea" in an analysis over a long period of time. This implies that many meaningful but short-lived issues cannot be discovered by conventional issue tracking. Note that detailed keywords are preferable to general keywords because the former can be clues for providing actionable strategies. To overcome these limitations, we performed an independent analysis on the documents of each detailed period. We generated an issue flow diagram based on the similarity of each issue between two consecutive periods. The issue transition pattern among categories was analyzed by using the category information of each document. In this study, we then applied the proposed methodology to a real case of 53,739 news articles. We derived an issue flow diagram from the articles. We then proposed the following useful application scenarios for the issue flow diagram presented in the experiment section. First, we can identify an issue that actively appears during a certain period and promptly disappears in the next period. Second, the preceding and following issues of a particular issue can be easily discovered from the issue flow diagram. This implies that our methodology can be used to discover the association between inter-period issues. Finally, an interesting pattern of one-way and two-way transitions was discovered by analyzing the transition patterns of issues through category analysis. Thus, we discovered that a pair of mutually similar categories induces two-way transitions. In contrast, one-way transitions can be recognized as an indicator that issues in a certain category tend to be influenced by other issues in another category. For practical application of the proposed methodology, high-quality word and stop word dictionaries need to be constructed. In addition, not only the number of documents but also additional meta-information such as the read counts, written time, and comments of documents should be analyzed. A rigorous performance evaluation or validation of the proposed methodology should be performed in future works.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.65-70
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• 2005

Those specifications of the CLIA analytical tolerance limits are consistent with the performance goals in Six Sigma Quality Management. Six sigma analysis determines performance quality from bias and precision statistics. It also shows if the method meets the criteria for the six sigma performance. Performance standards calculates allowable total error from several different criteria. Six sigma means six standard deviations from the target value or mean value and about 3.4 failures per million opportunities for failure. Sigma Quality Level is an indicator of process centering and process variation total error allowable. Tolerance specification is replaced by a Total Error specification, which is a common form of a quality specification for a laboratory test. The CLIA criteria for acceptable performance in proficiency testing events are given in the form of an allowable total error, TEa. Thus there is a published list of TEa specifications for regulated analytes. In terms of TEa, Six Sigma Quality Management sets a precision goal of TEa/6 and an accuracy goal of 1.5 (TEa/6). This concept is based on the proficiency testing specification of target value +/-3s, TEa from reference intervals, biological variation, and peer group median mean surveys. We have found rules to calculate as a fraction of a reference interval and peer group median mean surveys. We studied to develop total error allowable from peer group survey results and CLIA 88 rules in US on 19 items TP, ALB, T.B, ALP, AST, ALT, CL, LD, K, Na, CRE, BUN, T.C, GLU, GGT, CA, phosphorus, UA, TG tests in chematology were follows. Sigma level versus TEa from peer group median mean CV of each item by group mean were assessed by process performance, fitting within six sigma tolerance limits were TP ($6.1{\delta}$/9.3%), ALB ($6.9{\delta}$/11.3%), T.B ($3.4{\delta}$/25.6%), ALP ($6.8{\delta}$/31.5%), AST ($4.5{\delta}$/16.8%), ALT ($1.6{\delta}$/19.3%), CL ($4.6{\delta}$/8.4%), LD ($11.5{\delta}$/20.07%), K ($2.5{\delta}$/0.39mmol/L), Na ($3.6{\delta}$/6.87mmol/L), CRE ($9.9{\delta}$/21.8%), BUN ($4.3{\delta}$/13.3%), UA ($5.9{\delta}$/11.5%), T.C ($2.2{\delta}$/10.7%), GLU ($4.8{\delta}$/10.2%), GGT ($7.5{\delta}$/27.3%), CA ($5.5{\delta}$/0.87mmol/L), IP ($8.5{\delta}$/13.17%), TG ($9.6{\delta}$/17.7%). Peer group survey median CV in Korean External Assessment greater than CLIA criteria were CL (8.45%/5%), BUN (13.3%/9%), CRE (21.8%/15%), T.B (25.6%/20%), and Na (6.87mmol/L/4mmol/L). Peer group survey median CV less than it were as TP (9.3%/10%), AST (16.8%/20%), ALT (19.3%/20%), K (0.39mmol/L/0.5mmol/L), UA (11.5%/17%), Ca (0.87mg/dL1mg/L), TG (17.7%/25%). TEa in 17 items were same one in 14 items with 82.35%. We found out the truth on increasing sigma level due to increased total error allowable, and were sure that the goal of setting total error allowable would affect the evaluation of sigma metrics in the process, if sustaining the same process.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.19-38
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• 2016

This study was carried out to investigate the flora, vegetation and soil properties of serpentine area in Andong, Korea. The vascular plants identified during the seven-round field surveys were a total of 359 taxa: 88 families, 239 genera, 311 species, 6 subspecies, 33 varieties, 6 forms and 3 hybrids. 249 taxa were newly discovered in this region. The plant composition of serpentine area is the deciduous broad-leaved and conifer-mixed forest which is the common one in the middle part of the Korean peninsula. Four taxa of Korean endemic plants such as Clematis brachyura, Populus ${\times}$ tomentiglandulosa, Paulownia coreana and Aster koraiensis were collected. The vascular plants on the red list according to IUCN evaluation basis were found to be seven taxa: Near Threatened (NT) species of Hypericum attenuatum, Polygala tenuifolia and Senecio argunensis, Least Concern (LC) species of Penthorum chinense, Potentilla discolor and Acorus calamus, and Not Evaluate (NE) species of Scorzonera austriaca ssp. glabra. The floristic regional indicator plants found in this area were 19 taxa comprising two taxa of grade IV, five taxa of grade III, four taxa of grade II, and nine taxa of grade I. The naturalized plants were identified as 34 taxa and the percentage of naturalized index (NI) was 9.5 %, and urbanization index (UI) was 10.6 %. Forest soils contained high content of nickel and cadmium. The soil layer consists of loam and silt loam from the surface to a depth of 20 cm and loam and silt clay from a depth of 20 cm to 40 cm.

• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
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• v.34 no.6
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• pp.534-541
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• 2019

his study assessed microbial contamination of leeks and leek-cultivated soil. Leeks and leek-cultivated soil were collected in A and B regions and accounted for 39 and 33 samples, respectively. All of the samples were analyzed for the presence of sanitary indicator bacteria (total aerobic bacteria, coliforms and Escherichia coli), Salmonella spp., E. coli O157:H7, Listeria monocytogenes, and Bacillus cereus. In A and B region, the total aerobic bacteria was in the range of 5.87-8.78 log CFU/g for leeks and 5.94-8.45 log CFU/g for leek-cultivated soil. The coliform in leeks and leek-cultivated soil was in the range of 1.20-7.36 log CFU/g and 2.45-5.87 log CFU/g, respectively. B. cereus was detected from some of the samples while other pathogens were not detected. This study provides important background information on the microbiological safety of fresh vegetable cultivation environments.

• Journal of the Korean Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons
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• v.36 no.5
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• pp.366-374
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• 2010

Introduction: This study evaluated the capability of silk fibroin (SF) and recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein-2 loaded SF (SF-BMP) as a bone defect replacement matrix when grafted in a calvarial bone defect of rats in vivo. Materials and Methods: A total 70 calvarial critical size defects (5.0 mm in diameter) made on 35 adult female Sprague-Dawley rats were used in this study. The defects were transplanted with (1) rhBMP-2 loaded silk fibroin graft (SF-BMP: 0.8+$10\;{\mu}g$), (2) Silk fibroin (SF: $10\;{\mu}g$), and (3) no graft material (Raw). The samples were evaluated with soft x-rays, alkaline phosphatase activity, calcium/phosphate quantification, histological and histomorphometric analysis at postoperative 4 and 8 weeks. Results: The SF-BMP group ($48.86{\pm}14.92%$) had a significantly higher mean percentage bone area than the SF group ($24.96{\pm}11.01%$) at postoperative 4 weeks.(P<0.05) In addition, the SF-BMP group ($40.01{\pm}12.43%$) had a higher % bone area at postoperative 8 weeks than the SF group ($33.26{\pm}5.15%$). The mean ratio of gray scale levels to the host bone showed that the SF-BMP group ($0.67{\pm}0.08$) had a higher mean ratio level than the SF group ($0.61{\pm}0.09$) at postoperative 8 weeks. These differences were not statistically significant.(P=0.168 and P=0.243, respectively) The ratio of the calcium and phosphate contents of the SF-BMP ($0.93{\pm}0.22$) group was lower than that of the SF ($1.90{\pm}1.42$) group at postoperative 4 weeks. However, the SF-BMP group ($0.75{\pm}0.31$) had a higher Ca/$PO_4$ ratio than the SF ($0.68{\pm}0.04$) at postoperative 8 weeks. These differences were not statistically significant.(P=0.126 and P=0.627, respectively) For the bone-specific alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity, which is recognized as a reliable indicator of the osteoblast function, the SF-BMP ($23.71{\pm}8.60\;U/L$) groups had a significantly higher value than the SF group ($12.65{\pm}6.47\;U/L$) at postoperative 4 weeks.(P<0.05) At postoperative 8 weeks, the SF-BMP ($21.65{\pm}10.02\;U/L$) group had a lower bone-specific ALP activity than the SF group ($16.72{\pm}7.35\;U/L$). This difference was not statistically significant.(P=0.263) For the histological evaluation, the SF-BMP group revealed less inflammation, lower foreign body reactions and higher bone healing than the SF group at postoperative 4 and 8 weeks. The SF group revealed more foreign body reactions at postoperative 4 weeks. However, this immunogenic reaction decreased and the remnant of grafted material was observed at postoperative 8 weeks. For histomorphometric analysis, the SF-BMP group had a significantly longer bone length to total length ratio than those of the SF group at postoperative 4 and 8 weeks.(P<0.05) Conclusion: The rhBMP-2 loaded silk fibroin graft revealed fewer immunoreactions and inflammation as well as more new bone formation than the pure silk fibroin graft. Therefore, silk fibroin may be a candidate scaffold for tissue engineered bone regeneration.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.56 no.5
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• pp.505-513
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• 2004

Background : In lung cancer patients, the presence of metastatic neck nodes is a crucial indicator of inoperabilty. So thorough physical examination of neck is always mandatory, but sometimes those are hardly palpable even by the skillful hand. Ultrasonography is a useful diagnostic method in detection of small impalpable lymph nodes and in guidance of fine needle aspiration biopsy. In this study we evaluated the clinical usefulness of ultrasonography(USG) and ultrasound-guided fine needle aspiration cytology(US-FNA) in lung cancer patients without palpable neck nodes. Methods and Materials : From Sep 2002 to Sep 2003, 36 non-small cell lung cancer patients (20 adenocarcinoma, 16 squamous cell cancer) and 10 small cell lung cancer patients without palpable neck nodes on physical examiation were enrolled. patients who had contralateral mediastinal nodal enlargement(>1cm) on chest CT were excluded. After the routine check of USG on the neck, US-FNA was done in cases with enlarged neck nodes (${\geq}5mm$ in the short axis). The presence of enlarged lymph node on USG, and of malignant cells on cytology were evaluated by the histological type and the patients' clinical stage of lung cancer. Results : Among 36 non-small lung cell cancer patients, 14 (38.8%) had enlarged neck nodes on USG, and 5 of 10 small cell lung carcinoma patients. The mean diameter of the neck nodes was 9.8 mm (range, 7-12 mm). US-FNA of 14 non-small cell lung cancer patients revealed tumor cells in eight patients (57.1%). In 5 small cell lung cancer pateints, tumor cells were found in all cases. By the result of US-FNA, the clinical stage of 8 out of 36 (22.2%) non-small cell lung cancer patients had changed, including two cases of shift from the operable IIIa to the inoperable IIIb. In small cell lung cancer patients their clinical stage was not changed after US-FNA, but their pathological diagnosis was easily done in two cases, in whom endobronchial lesions were not found on bronchoscopy. Conclusions : USG and US-FNA of neck node seem to be safe, sensitive and cost-effective diagnostic tools in the evaluation of lung cancer patients without palpable neck nodes.

• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine Technology
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.48-56
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• 2014

Purpose $^{99m}Tc$-DTPA renal scintigraphy serves as a key indicator to measure a kidney donor's Glomerular Filtration Rate (GFR) and determine the possibility of kidney transplant. The Gates method utilized to measure GFR considers 3 variables of renal depth, injection dose, and net kidney counts. In this research, we seek to compare changes in kidney donors' GFR according to renal depth measurement methods of the 3 variables. Materials and Methods We investigated 32 kidney donors who had visited the hospital from October, 2013 to March, 2014 and received abdominal CT and $^{99m}Tc$-DTPA GFR examination. With the cross-section image of the CT and the lateral image from a gamma camera, we measured the renal depth and compared with renal depth calculation equations-Tonnesen, Taylor, and Itoh methods. Renal depth-specific GFR was calculated by using Xeleris Ver. 2.1220 of GE. Then the results were compared with MDRD (Modification of Diet Renal Disease) GFRs based on serum creatinine level. Results The renal depths measured based on the CT and gamma camera images showed high correlation. Tonessen equation gave the lowest GFR value while the value calculated by using the renal depth of CT image was the highest with a 16.62% gap. MDRD GFR showed no statistically significant difference among values calculated through Taylor, Itoh, CT and gamma camera renal depth application (P>0.05), but exhibited a statistically significant change in the value based on Tonnesen equation (P<0.05). Conclusion This research has found that, in GFR evaluation in kidney donors by utilizing $^{99m}Tc$-DTPA, Tonnesen equation-based Gates method underestimated the value than the MDRD GFR. Therefore, if a MDRD GFR value shows a huge difference from the actual examination value, using an image-based renal depth measurement, instead of Tonnesen equation applied to Gates method, is expected to give an accurate GFR value to kidney donors.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.246-256
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• 1983

As epidemiological parameters of human paragonimiasis, the positive rates of intradermal test and the sputum/stool ekaminations have long been employed in population surveys. However, both the specificity of the intradermal test and the sensitivity of sputumjstool examination have been gradually declined as the endemicity was lowered; thus the gap between above two parameters widened. In such context, the development of a new epidemiologic parameter or tool which makes it possible to accurately discriminate the active paragonimiasis cases was necessary. In the present study, the detection rate of Paragonimus-speclac IgG antibody by micro-ELISA was evaluated as an indicator of epidemiologic status of human paragonimiasis in a population. A total of 4, 285 students and inhabitants living in Bukpyeong Myeon and Bukil Myeon, Haenam Gun, Jeonlanam Do was surveyed in October, 1983 by intradermal test first. Out of them, 244 cases (5.7%) were found positively reacted to VBS antigen of F. westermani. Out of 168 positive reactors, 7 cases (4.2%) were egg positive either by two times of sputum examination or by one stool examination. That indicated that only 0. 16% of total surveyed were confirmed as active paragonimiasis by egg detection. When sera collected from 239 positive reactors of Intradermal test were tested by micro-ELISA for their specific IgG antibody, 40 cases(16.7%) were found to be positive. All of 7 egg positive cases were again positive for specific IgG antibody. Among remaining 232 intradermal test positive cases, 33 cases were positive for IgG antibody. In contrast to those, none of 42 positive reactors to intradermal test for Cloncrchis and of 128 intradermal test negative cases showed positive for Paragcnimus-specIfic IgG antibody. The rate of specific IgG antibody as detected by micro-ELISA appeared to be increased with the wheal size of the intradermal test. When the wheal sixte was over 13mm in diameter, about 50% of them were positive for specific IgG antibody. Thirty-one specific antibody positive cases were clinically evaluated by laboratory examinations (repeated sputum examination, peripheral eosinophil count and chest roentgenogram) and by history taking. Out of them 24 cases were associated with one or more positive laboratory findings: thus considered as active paragonimiasis cases. Out of 7 lab. finding-free cases 3 revealed past history of typical paragonimiasis symptoms, suggesting that they were in chronic or in convalescent stages. The remaining 4 cases were considered as either mild or ectopic infection cases; the possibility of cross-reaction with other helminthiases could not be ruled out. From the above results, it was inferred that the detection of Paragonimus-specIfic IgG antibody by micro-ELISA was very much helpful in detecting the active cases as well as in proper evaluation of the endemicity of human paragonimiasis in a population. The convenience of mass haildling of sera in micro-ELISA was considered another superiority as an epidemiologic tool.