• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.43 no.6
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• pp.532-544
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• 2017

Objectives: Because the amount of medical waste (i.e., health-care waste) generated in Korea is rapidly increasing and social concern against its safety is widespread, a number of issues related with medical wastes are being discussed. The purpose of this study is to compare diverse medical waste management systems worldwide and propose future directions of a medical waste management system in Korea. Methods: Literature review was conducted mainly on the WHO, and developed countries such as the European Union (Germany, Belgium and UK), Japan and the United States. For these countries, the data with respect to their systems for medical waste management ranging from the definition of medical waste to the whole processes of collection, transportation and disposal were summarized and compared. Results: The terminology and classification of medical wastes were not consistent for WHO recommendation, EU, Japan, US and Korea. Comparison of the collection, storage, transportation and disposal of medical waste showed that Korea had rather stronger regulations for medical waste management compared to developed countries including Belgium (Flanders region), Germany, Japan and the US. Considering that developed countries adopt rather flexible disposal system especially for general medical wastes which pose lower possibility of infection, Korean government could consider diversifying disposal methods other than incineration. It may also be very important to try to reduce the amount of medical wastes and enough capacity for off-site incineration are secured. Conclusion: Our study of international comparisons suggests that it is necessary to continue to identify advantages and disadvantages of the current medical waste management systems and establish more effective one in Korea.

• Journal of Korean Dental Hygiene Science
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.27-37
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• 2020

This study investigated the relationship between knowledge of COVID-19, the risk of exposure to subjective infectious diseases, and the degree of infection control practices for dental personnel. For dental personnel currently working in dentistry, a survey consisting of 10 questions about COVID-19 knowledge and 63 questions about infection control practices was conducted. This study analyzed 126 survey data collected by distributing questionnaires form May 30 to June 20, 2020. Data was analyzed using t-test, ANOVA, and Pearson correlation. The average level of knowledge of COVID-19 was 5.44 out of 10, the average risk of exposure to infectious diseases was 3.86 out of 5, and the average level of infection control practices was 4.05 out of 5. The risk of exposure to infectious diseases was positively correlated with dental waste (r=.184). It was found that there was a significant positive correlation between infection control practices and sub-factors of infection control practices (p<0.001). To prevent the spread of COVID-19 and infectious diseases and to reduce the risk of exposure to infectious diseases for dental personnel, the practice of infection control should be improved. It is necessary to cultivate infection control experts and have mandatory infection control education and social regulations.

• Journal of Korean society of Dental Hygiene
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.282-293
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• 2009

The purpose of this study was to examine the degree of infection control implemented at dental offices and factors affecting it in an attempt to help promote the health of dental health care workers. The subjects in this study were 180 medical personnels who worked at dental offices in the region of South Jeolla Province. A self-administered survey was conducted from April 1 to May 30, 2008, and the collected data were analyzed. The findings of the study were as follows: 1. As for the implementation of infection control at the dental offices, what the health care workers investigated did the most was post-treatment hand washing(95.0), a constant separation of infectious wastes(94.4), wearing rubber gloves all the time during medical instrument cleansing(92.8) and pre-treatment hand washing(91.7). 2. In regard to the implementation of infection control at the dental offices, what the dental personnels did the least was drying their hands with air(5.0), wearing goggles in times of treatment(23.3), receiving regular education on infection control(26.7) and putting sterilizers to a performance test on a regular basis(43.9). 3. The dental health care workers were significantly different according to age in the management of contagious diseases(p=0.005). Their career made a significant difference to the management of contagious diseases(p=0.000) and instrument cleansing/sterilization(p=0.043). The service area made a significant difference to wearing and managing personal protective clothes (p=0.040) and waste management(p=0.040). 4. Concerning the relationship between the acquisition of dental hygienist certificate and the practice of infection control, whether the dental health care workers were certified or not made no significant difference to that. 5. As to the correlation among the factors affecting the prevention and management of contagious diseases, there was a positive correlation among hand washing(r=0.379), wearing and managing personal protective clothes(r=0.349), instrument cleansing/sterilization(r=0.323) and waste management(r=0.388). All the factors made a statistically significant difference to the prevention and management of contagious diseases(p<0.01).

• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.334-339
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• 2022

African swine fever virus (ASFV) is a highly contagious and lethal pathogen that poses a threat to the global pork industry. The World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH) has placed strict surveillance measures for ASFV. The possibility of long-term survival of ASFV in raw meat or undercooked pork has been reported. Accordingly, the problem of secondary infection in food waste from households or waste disposal facilities has emerged, raising the need for ASFV monitoring of food waste. However, most of the previously reported ASFV gene detection methods are focused on clinical monitoring of pigs. There are very few cases in which their application in waste has been verified. Since ASFV diagnosis requires rapid monitoring and immediate action, loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) may be suitable, but this requires conformity assessment for LAMP to be used as a diagnostic technique. In this study, six LAMP methods were evaluated, and two methods (kit and manual) were recommended for use in diagnosing ASFV in food waste.

• Journal of Korean society of Dental Hygiene
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.313-319
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• 2016

Objectives: The objective of the study was to infection control by analyzing the influence of working environment on infection control activities in the dental hygienists. Methods: The cross-sectional study was based on a survey on a total of 377 dental hygienists working in dental settings. Multiple linear regression analysis was performed to examine the relationship of general characteristics and infection control activities. All statistical analyses were performed using the SPSS for Windows version 20.0, and p<0.05 was considered to be significant. Results: Predictive powers(=Adjusted $R^2$ of the investigated factors such as operation room, sterilization disinfection laundry, dental unit waterline, staff individual, infection control system, personal protective equipment, medical waste, hand hygiene, oral surgical procedures, clinical contact surfaces were adjusted $R^2=0.394$, 0.306, 0.277, 0.244, 0.241, 0.177, 0.165,, 0.154, 0.134, 0.124 respectively. Conclusions: In order to enhance infection control activities, the program development and implementation for the aseptic procedure is very important. The program should include periodic reinforcement of infection control education and regular monitoring of infection control activities.

• Journal of dental hygiene science
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.105-113
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• 2002

This study was aimed to investigate the practice on the infection control and dental waste disposal in dental clinic. The data used in this study had been collected in 100 dental clinics located in Seoul city from August to October, 2001. It was shown that examination instruments, oral surgery instruments, and periodontal instruments were almost sterilization in dental clinic. It was high in the recognition of individual protection but it was low in the degree of practice. Therefore, the practice in infection control is very important to dental team for safety of patients and operators.

• Journal of Korean society of Dental Hygiene
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• v.10 no.5
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• pp.935-945
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• 2010

Objectives : The purpose of this study was to examine the knowledge of dental hygienists on infection control in dental office and their attitude toward that in a bid to provide some information on ways of enhancing the level of infection control in dental office. Methods : The subjects in this study were 220 dental hygienists who worked in dental hospitals and clinics in Busan and South Gyeongsang Province. A survey was conducted from May 17 to June 17, 2010, and the answer sheets from 183 respondents were analyzed with a SPSS WIN 12.0 program. Statistical data on frequency, percentage and mean were obtained, and t-test, Pearson correlation coefficient and one-way ANOVA were utilized. Results : They got a mean of $4.59{\pm}.68$ in six categories of infection control knowledge. They had the best knowledge on dental waste disposal, followed by hand washing, post-sterilization management, instrument disinfection and sterilization, surface management of dental equipment and wearing personal protective equipment. They got a mean of $3.99{\pm}.54$ in attitude, and they scored lowest in practice of surface management of dental equipment. Overall, they scored higher in every aspect of knowledge than in attitude(t=11.410, p=.0.000). There was the greatest gap between their knowledge and practice in surface management of dental equipment (t=13.885, p=0.000), and there was the smallest gap between their knowledge and practice in hand washing(t=5.460, p=0.000). And a positive correlation was found between knowledge and attitude, as better knowledge of infection control led to better attitude toward that(p<.001). Finally, concerning infection control knowledge and attitude by general characteristics, the presence or absence of infection control guidelines made differences to infection control knowledge, and infection control attitude was statistically significantly different according to infection control education experiences(t=6.501, p=.012) and the presence or absence of infection control guidelines(t=22.836, p=.000). Conclusions : In order to bolster infection control in dental office, the related system should be improved to legally require dental personnels to implement infection control. Every dental office must be furnished with infection control guidelines, and sustained education should be provided for dental hygienists to carry out infection control.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.48 no.6
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• pp.330-341
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• 2015

Objectives: Emergency medical personnel (EMPs) are pre-hospital emergency responders who are at risk of exposure to infections and may also serve as a source for the transmission of infections. However, few studies of infection control have specifically addressed EMPs in the Republic of Korea (hereafter Korea). The goal of this study was to assess the current status of infection prevention and control programs (IPCPs) for EMPs in Korea. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted to quantitatively assess the resources and activities of IPCPs. A total of 907 EMPs in five metropolitan cities completed a structured questionnaire from September 2014 to January 2015. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, multi-response analysis, and the chi-square test. Results: The mean age of the participants was $34.8{\pm}15.1years$. IPCPs were found to have weaknesses with regard to the following resources: the assignment of infection control personnel (ICP) (79.5%), hand hygiene resources such as waterless antiseptics (79.3%), the use of paper towels (38.9%), personal protective equipment such as face shields (46.9%), and safety containers for sharps and a separated space for the disposal of infectious waste (10.1%). Likewise, the following activities were found to be inadequately incorporated into the workflow of EMPs: education about infection control (77.5%), post-exposure management (35.9%), and the decontamination of items and spaces after use (88.4%). ICP were found to have a significant effect on the resources and activities of IPCPs (p<0.001). The resources and activities of IPCPs were found to be significantly different among the five cities (p<0.001). Conclusions: IPCPs for EMPs showed some limitations in their resources and activities. IPCPs should be actively supported, and specific IPCP activities for EMPs should be developed.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.370-378
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• 2022

The purpose of this study was to investigate the factors affecting infection control practice by dental hygienist students in Jeju during clinical training amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Online survey was conducted on 112 students and the results were statistically analyzed with frequency analysis, Student's T-test, one-way ANOVA, and regression analysis using SPSS 20.0. In the 'awareness and practice of infection control by year in college' section, 2nd year students scored significantly higher in 'cleaning and surface disinfection,' 'medical waste disposal,' and 'COVID-19 preventive measure' compared to 3rd year students. In the 'type of training institution' section, hospital setting scored significantly higher in 'cleaning and surface disinfection,' 'instrument disinfection and sterilization,' 'personal and patient protection,' and 'COVID-19 preventive measure' compared to dental clinic setting. In the 'location of institution' section, Seoul metropolitan region scored higher in 'medical waste disposal' compared to Jeju region. According to regression analysis, year in college (2nd year), type of training institution (hospital setting), location of training institution (Seoul metropolitan region), and difficulty using protective gear (no difficulty) were associated with better COVID-19 preventive measure This first study in Jeju provides an insight on the awareness and practice of infection control measures by dental hygienist students in Jeju during clinical training. Further investigation for improvement of clinical training manual is warranted.

• 한국생물공학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2002.04a
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• pp.281-284
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• 2002

Specific pathogen free (SPF) eggs have been used to produce live vaccines. however, their application causes many problems such as cost, space and waste disposal. The substitution of mammalian cells for SPF eggs offers a desirable system of vaccine production. In this study, mammalian cells were tested for the infection of Newcastle disease virus (NDV). As a result, DF-I and MDBK cells showed high virus productivity compared to the other mammalian cells. For the highest productivity of NDV, the optimal multiplicity of infection (M.O.I.) in DF-I or MDBK cells was determined to be 0.2 or 0.5 M.O.I., respectively.