• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.25-31
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• 1986

This study was performed to establish normal hepatoscintiangiographic(HSA) pattern of hepatic blood flow and to investigate dynamic differential HSA findings of primary and metastatic carcinomas and abscess of the liver. HSA was carried out after intravenous bolus injection of 10 mCi of Tc-99m-phytate by obtaining sequential anterior images of 1-second exposure for 16 seconds. Observations included (1) baseline study of normal hepatic blood flow pattern by correlating with contrast angiogram, (2) time sequence phasing of normal HSA, and (3) analysis of altered patterns in primary and metastatic carcinomas and abscesses of the liver. Materials consisted of 20 normal subjects, 28 primary hepatocellular carcinomas, 16 metastatic carcinomas and 7 liver abscesses. Results were: (1) Normal HSA demonstrated 3 distinct phases of arterialization(AP), of arterial hepatogram(AHP), and of portal venous hepatogram(PVHP). The means of each phase were 5.3, 6.3 and 8.3 seconds, respectively. Portal vein could be seen in all but one of 20 normal subjects. (2) Pattern changes in diseases groups were early start of AP in carcinomas and very early start of AP in abscesses. AP became prolonged in all disease group. (3) Distinction between AHP was sharp in metastasis and abscesses but un sharp in primary hepatoma. Cold area or areas became vascularized in primary hepatoma but not in abscess. Cold areas of metastasis were inhomogeneously vascularized in late AP and throughout AHP and became relatively vascular as PVHP began. The cold area of abscess showed rim enhancement during AH and APH. These differences in HSA pattern were very useful in differential diagnosis of the diseases studied.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.217-223
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• 2008

Background: Lumbar transforaminal epidural injections (LTEIs) have been utilized in the treatment of radicular pain, and LTEIs have the advantage of target-specificity. However, there have not been enough studies on the contrast patterns in LTEIs with using fluoroscopy. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the spreading epidural contrast patterns that are seen during real-time fluoroscopic guided LTEIs. Methods: A total of 131 patients who underwent fluoroscopic guided LTEIs were studied. The inclusion criteria were those patients with low back pain and/or lower extremity pain that was caused by a herniated nucleus pulposus, lumbar spinal stenosis, failed back surgery syndrome, and herpes zoster-associated pain. We classified the contrast patterns in regard to the contrast flow spreading to the nerve root and/or the unilateral, bilateral or cylinderic type of epidural spreading on the AP view of the fluoroscopy and the ventral or dorsal epidural filling on the lateral view. In addition to the pattern analysis, we evaluated the range of contrast spreading from the cranial to the caudal epidural filling and the incidence of an intravascular flow pattern. Results: Epidural spreading was seen in 126 cases (96.2%) of the total patients through the nerve root. Ventral spreading occurred in 120 cases (95.2%). On the AP view, a nerve root with unilateral, bilateral and cylinderic epidural filling was noted for 108 (85.7%), 9 (7.1%) and 9 (7.1%) cases, respectively. The contrast spreading to vertebral segments was smaller for the patients with lumbar spinal stenosis and failed back surgery syndrome than for the other groups (P < 0.0083). The incidence of intravascular injection was 11.1% (14/126). Conclusions: LTEIs using fluoroscopic visualization provided excellent assessment of the ventral epidural filling as well as nerve root filling. However, unilateral epidural spreading was prominent for the LTEIs.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.62 no.4
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• pp.299-307
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• 2007

Background: High mobility group box 1 (HMGB1) is a novel, late mediator of inflammation. This study compared the pro-inflammatory effects of LPS and HMGB1. The transcriptional factors that play an important role in mediating the HMGB1-induced stimulation of IL-8 were also evaluated. Methods: RAW264.7 cells were stimulated with either LPS (100 ng/ml) or HMGB1 (500 ng/ml). The $TNF-{\alpha}$, MIP-2 and $IL-1{\beta}$ levels in the supernatant were evaluated by ELISA at 0, 2, 4, 8, 12 and 24h after stimulation. An acute lung injury was induced by an injection of LPS (5 mg/kg) or HMGB1 (2.5 mg/kg) into the peritoneum of the Balb/c mice. The lung cytokines and MPO activity were measured at 4h (for LPS) or 24h (for HMGB1) after the injection. The transcriptional factor binding sites for NF-IL6, $NF-{\kappa}B$ and AP-1 in the IL-8 promoter region were artificially mutated. Each mutant was ligated with pIL-6luc and transfected into the RAW264.7 cells. One hour after stimulation with HMGB1 (500 ng/ml), the cell lysate was analyzed for the luciferase activity. Results: The expression of MIP-2, which peaked at 8h with LPS stimulation, increased sequentially until 24h after HMGB1 stimulation. An intraperitoneal injection of HMGB1, which induced a minimal increased in $IL-1{\beta}$ expression, provoked the accumulation of neutrophils the lung. A mutation of AP-1 as well as $NF-{\kappa}B$ in the IL-8 promoter region resulted in a lower luciferase activity after HMGB1 stimulation. Conclusion: The proinflammatory effects of HMGB1, particularly on IL-8, are mediated by both $NF-{\kappa}B$ and AP-1.

• Preventive Nutrition and Food Science
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• v.6 no.3
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• pp.176-179
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• 2001

The present study was designed to investigate the hypoglycemic activity and lipid metabolism of ethanol (EtOH) extract from the aleurone layer of anthocyanin-pigmented (AP) rice in streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic rats. Sprague-Dawley male rats weighing 210~240 g were divided into 4 groups, normal, diabetic control, and two experimental groups, and diabetes in rats was induced by injection of STZ (45 mg/kg, body weight) into tail vein. The EtOH extract of the powdered aleurone layer of AP rice was administered orally in diabetic rats for 14 days. In order to find the hypoglycemic effects in the animal model, the body weight, plasma glucose levels, cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol, triglyceride (TG), free fatty acid (FFA), aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and alanine amino- transferase activities (ALT) were determined. Oral administration of 1.0 81kg on the EtOH extract for 14 days resulted in a significant reduction in blood glucose, ALT, TG and FFA. However, in the case of 2.0 g/kg, the hypo-glycemic effects were not considerable. This results suggest that the EtOH extract might induce hypoglycemic effects in STZ-induced diabetic rats due to some photochemical components in the aleurone layer of AP rice.

• Journal of Veterinary Clinics
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.225-228
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• 2007

The therapy by injection-acupuncture (AP) with bee-venom (apitoxin) and injection-AP with apitoxin combined by administration of Chinese herbal medicine was applied in 2 cases with canine intervertebral disc disease (IVDD). Case 1 was diagnosed as thoraco-lumbar IVDD (T11-T12, T12-T13, L3-L4 and L4-L5) and case 2 was diagnosed as IVDD at T10-T11 and T12-T13, respectively Injection-AP with apitoxin($Apitoxinc{(R)}$, total $200{\mu}g$ of apitoxin, 0.1 ml/acupoint) plus physical exercise (walking with gocart, TID/day) and aquatherapy (swimming treatment, BID/week) were given to each patient. The used acupoints were GV20 (Bai Hui), GB30 (Huan Tiao), ST36 (Zu San Li), GB34 (Yang Ling Quan), ST40 (Feng Long), ST41 (Jie Xi) and BL40 (Wei Zhong), the lesions, and trigger points. In addition, Chinese herbal medicine (Koda Pharmaceutical Co., Taiwan) including Zheng Gu Zi Jin Dan (正骨紫金丹 : 1 g), Shiuh Duann(續斷 : 0.2 g), Du Zhong(杜仲 : 0.2 g), Mo Yao(沒藥 : 0.2 g), Ru Xian(乳香 : 0.2 g) and Pyrite(自然銅 : 0.2 g) were orallly mdeicated BID for 0\9days in case 2. Walking was possible after session 11 for 4 weeks in case 1 and after session 6 for 2 weeks in case 2, respectively.

• Journal of Veterinary Clinics
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• v.25 no.5
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• pp.359-362
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• 2008

This study examined the efficacy of needle-acupuncture (AP) at Nei Guan (PC06) and Xin Shu (BL15) on canine tachycardia. A total of 18 beagle dogs were divided into three groups: a control (6 heads), PC06 (6 heads) and PC06 (6 heads) group. Tachycardia was induced by an intramuscular injection of glycopyrrolate. No treatment was given to the control group. Needle-AP at PC06 and BL15 were applied simultaneously at the same time as the glycopyrrolate injection for 20 minutes in PC06 and BL15 groups, respectively. The changes in R-R intervals and respiration rates were determined. The changes in the R-R intervals in the PC06 and BL15 groups were significantly higher than the control group. The R-R intervals of the BL15 group were significantly higher than in the PC06 group. The changes in the respiration rates in the PC06 group were similar to those of the control group. However, the respiration rates in the BL15 group were significantly lower than the control and PC06 groups. In conclusion, needle-AP at PC06 and BL15 is effective in assisting in the recovery from induced canine tachycardia. However, needle-AP at BL15 is more effective than that at PC06.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.38 no.1
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• pp.29-44
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• 2024

This research investigates the effectiveness of data augmentation techniques in the automated analysis of B-scan images from ground-penetrating radar (GPR) using deep learning. In spite of the growing interest in automating GPR data analysis and advancements in deep learning for image classification and object detection, many deep learning-based GPR data analysis studies have been limited by the availability of large, diverse GPR datasets. Data augmentation techniques are widely used in deep learning to improve model performance. In this study, we applied four data augmentation techniques (geometric transformation, color-space transformation, noise injection, and applying kernel filter) to the GPR datasets obtained from a testbed. A deep learning model for GPR data analysis was developed using three models (Faster R-CNN ResNet, SSD ResNet, and EfficientDet) based on transfer learning. It was found that data augmentation significantly enhances model performance across all cases, with the mAP and AR for the Faster R-CNN ResNet model increasing by approximately 4%, achieving a maximum mAP (Intersection over Union = 0.5:1.0) of 87.5% and maximum AR of 90.5%. These results highlight the importance of data augmentation in improving the robustness and accuracy of deep learning models for GPR B-scan analysis. The enhanced detection capabilities achieved through these techniques contribute to more reliable subsurface investigations in geotechnical engineering.

• Journal of Veterinary Clinics
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.190-193
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• 2006

Two weeks of therapy with intra-articular hyaluronic acid and oral caprofen failed to improve the clinical signs of hip osteoarthritis radiologically confirmed in a dog. Then, over the period of 30 days (7 sessions at 5-day intervals), bee- venom acupuncture (BV-AP, injection of bee venom at acupoints, also called apitoxin-aquapuncture) plus Trigger Point (TP) therapy was used. Five acupoints on the affected right limb were injected each time: GB30(as local point), plus ST35, GB33, BL40 and LIV08 (as distant points). The injection mixture (0.2 ml/point; total 1 ml/session) was saline + apitoxin + 2% lidocaine, so that the injected solution contained $100{\mu}g$ apitoxin diluted in 0.2% lidocaine-saline solution/ml. The total dose of apitoxin used was, therefore, $100{\mu}g/session$, divided over the 5 acupoints. One TP in the middle of the right quadriceps muscle was injected with 2% lidocaine (0.2 ml/point) each time. BV-AP improved the clinical signs rapidly; lameness and ataxia were disappear after 7 sessions (30 days); the right hind limb muscular atrophy was much improved and the hip radiograph was almost normal two weeks after 7 sessions (44 days). The present patient was a case with canine hip osteoarthritis which showed favorable therapeutic response by BV-AP plus TP therapy.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.31 no.2
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• pp.125-131
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• 2018

Background: The thoracic transforaminal epidural block (TTFEB) is usually performed to treat herpes zoster or postherpetic neuralgia (PHN). Especially, multiple segmental involvements and approximate contrast medium spread range, according to volume, help to choose the proper drug volume in the transforaminal epidural block. This study investigated the contrast medium spread patterns of 1-ml to 3-ml TTFEBs. Methods: A total of 26 patients with herpes zoster or PHN were enrolled in this study. All participants received 1 ml, 2 ml, or 3 ml of contrast medium. Results were divided into Groups A, B and C based on the volume (1, 2, or 3 ml), with n = 26 for each group. After the injection of contrast medium, the spread levels were estimated in both the lateral and anteroposterior (AP) images using fluoroscopy. Results: The cephalad spread of contrast medium in the lateral image as expressed by the median (interquartile range) was 2.00 levels (1.00-2.00) for Group A, 2.50 (2.00-3.00) for Group B, and 3.00 (2.00-4.00) for Group C. The caudal spread level of contrast medium was 1.00 (1.00-2.00) for Group A, 2.00 (2.00-3.00) for Group B, and 2.00 (2.00-3.00) for Group C. There was ventral and dorsal spread of the 3-ml contrast medium injection in 88% (23/26) of cases in the lateral image. Conclusions: Injection of 3 ml of contrast medium through the foramina spread 6 levels in a cephalocaudal direction. Spread patterns revealed a cephalad preference. TTFEB resulted in dorsal and ventral spread in a high percentage of cases. This procedure may be useful for transferring drugs to the dorsal and ventral roots.

• Resources Recycling
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.16-22
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• 1998

Recently, the new technology for the recycling of waste plastics as an alternative he1 of blast furnace ha been developed. In this shldy, the test of plastics injection into a tuyere af the foundry blast furnace were carried out. The injection rate of plastics far this tcst facility war expressed as follows, ${W}_{s}=0.265\frac{{delta}PA}{U}_{g}$, where. Ws, AP, A and Ug are plastic conveying ratc (kgisec), pressure drop between feed hopper and blaqt pressure (alm), cross sectional area of conveying pipe (mi) and superficial velocity of transport air (mhzc) respcctiuely. From the results of semi-continuous test operation during 96 hours, the replacement raho mned out to be 1.38 according to the injection rate of 6. 4 kg-plasticsit-p. With increasing the rate of plaslics injcchon, the content of hydrogen in top gas became increased and the brick temperahlre at bzlly was also increased due to Lhe changes ot the combustion zone shape.