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Background Newly graduated nurses’ pre-employment health lifestyles play particularly important roles in their smooth adaptation to and retention in clinical nursing; however, the longitudinal relationship between pre-employment health lifestyles and work outcomes, such as turnover, remains underexamined. To identify the health lifestyle profiles of specific populations of interest, recent studies have employed multifaceted approaches using health behaviors and/or statuses. Objectives To identify the pre-employment health lifestyle profiles of newly graduated nurses, and to examine the longitudinal relationships between health lifestyle profiles and actual turnover. Design Descriptive and prospective longitudinal study design. Settings One tertiary hospital in Seoul, South Korea. Participants A total of 464 newly graduated nurses who started work between September 2014 and December 2015. Methods The outcome was actual turnover—whether participants had resigned from the organization and the days they worked up to December 31, 2017. We measured eight health lifestyle variables on the first day of orientation before ward placement (i.e., at baseline): quantity and quality of sleep, eating three meals a day, having a regular diet, alcohol consumption, moderate exercise, depression, and self-rated health. We employed latent class analysis to identify the health lifestyle profiles of new nurses, and used Cox proportional hazards regression to examine the longitudinal relationships between health lifestyle profiles and actual turnover. Results We classified newly graduated nurses’ pre-employment health lifestyle profiles into two groups: unhealthy lifestyle (15.6%) and discordant (84.4%). Compared with the new nurses in the discordant group, those in the unhealthy lifestyle group had significantly higher probabilities of resigning (HR = 2.38, 95% CIs of HR = 1.62–3.50); this relationship remained significant after adjusting for perceived job stress at six weeks of work (HR = 2.26, 95% CIs of HR = 1.50–3.39). Conclusions This study identified significant differences in the patterns of newly graduated nurses’ pre-employment health lifestyles; our analysis showed that classification in the unhealthy lifestyle group was a turnover risk factor. Given that new nurses’ health lifestyles affect work outcomes, hospitals should implement organizational and educational initiatives to encourage healthy lifestyles. In considering pre-employment health lifestyle profiles, hospitals should also monitor novice nurses’ adaptation and wellness. Nursing education should include strategies to enhance nursing students’ own health. Further extensive longitudinal studies should seek to identify the health lifestyle profiles of heterogeneous nurse populations.

Peptide nucleic acids (PNAs), artificially synthesized DNA analogues, hybridize strongly with DNA and are useful for fluorescence melting curve analyses (FMCA) based on the thermal denaturation of the probe-target duplex. In this study, we developed a PNA-based one-step real-time RT-PCR assay for the differential and qualitative detection of the porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus genotypes PRRSV1 and PRRSV2. The specificity of the assay was analyzed in silico using previously reported primers and probes and was subsequently verified using Korean PRRSV panels and clinical samples. Seven clinical samples showing low curves with high Ct values were confirmed as negative by FMCA. The sensitivities of one-step real-time PCR for PRRSV1 and PRRSV2 were 15 and 11 copies, respectively, and the results were in 100% agreement with those of conventional RT-PCR combined with nested PCR using clinical samples. Therefore, the assay is highly specific for the detection of current PRRSV1 and PRRSV2 without non-specific amplification by FMCA.

The anisotropic gold nanotriangles (AuNTs) were synthesized by a fast seedless growth process. The high-yield monodispersed AuNT colloids were obtained through a purification process based on depletion-induced interactions. AuNTs were modulated with a localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) peak of 638 nm wavelength coherent with the Raman excitation light. However, from finite element computation results, the AuNT clusters showed better performance for the 785 nm laser source due to a red shift in their LSPR properties, hence it was selected for the surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) immunoassay. A self-assembly strategy using a thiol group and ON-OFF strategy in the heat map was performed to ensure the stability of SERS immunoassay platform. The sandwich SERS immunoassay biosensor platform for adiponectin detection demonstrated a wide assay range (10

To assess the anthropogenic influence on the summer 2013 heat wave in Korea, this study employed a fraction of attributable risk (FAR) approach to three Atmospheric General Circulation Models (AGCMs) with a large ensemble simulation, participating in the C20C+ Detection and Attribution Project. Monthly and daily temperatures were compared between two experiments. The real world (ALL) experiments were simulated under the observed variations in sea surface temperature, sea ice, greenhouse gas, and aerosol concentrations, while the counterfactual world (NAT) experiments were performed under adjusted boundary conditions by removing anthropogenic warming and with preindustrial levels of greenhouse gases and aerosols. Results from the three AGCMs consistently show that anthropogenic influences had an important role in the extreme heat event over Korea, increasing the chance of the occurrence of extreme warming in summer mean temperature as observed in 2013 by at least 20 times, which supports results from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5) coupled GCMs (CGCMs). A comparison of individual CMIP5 CGCMs suggests that inter-model difference in FAR values is highly correlated with the amplitude of surface warming centered over Korea, which is also supported by the three AGCMs. Further analysis of individual forcing experiments suggests that the inter-model difference in the regional surface warming is closely linked to the model's response to the aerosol forcing, with stronger influence than that of greenhouse gas forcing. Anthropogenic influences also result in a 5–6 times greater likelihood of extreme daily heat events as observed in 2013, which supports a robust mean-extreme relation in the attribution of extreme heat waves. Generally good agreement between AGCM and CGCM results increases the robustness of the conclusion of anthropogenic influences on the summer 2013 Korean heat wave.

This retrospective analysis compared anthracyclines (as part of an induction regimen) in 128 newly diagnosed FLT3-ITD-mutated AML patients. Induction regimens comprised high-dose daunorubicin (HD-DN; 90 mg/m2/d × 3d; n = 44), standard-dose daunorubicin (SD-DN; 45 mg/m2/d × 3d; n = 51), or idarubicin (IDA; 12 mg/m2/d × 3d; n = 33) in combination with cytarabine (100–200 mg/m2/d × 7d). Fifty-three patients showing persistent leukemia on interim bone marrow examination received a second course of induction chemotherapy comprising 2 days of daunorubicin (45 mg/m2/d) or IDA (8 or 12 mg/m2/d) in addition to 5 days of cytarabine. Complete remission (CR) rates were 77.3%, 56.9%, and 69.7% for HD-DN, SD-DN, and IDA, respectively (P = 0.101; HD-DN vs. SD-DN, P = 0.036; HD-DN vs. IDA, P = 0.453; IDA vs. SD-DN, P = 0.237). The HD-DN showed higher overall survival (OS) and event-free survival (EFS) than SD-DN and IDA: the differences between HD-DN and SD-DN (P = 0.009 for OS and P = 0.010 for EFS) were statistically significant. Results of in vitro studies using FLT3-ITD-mutated cell lines supported these findings. In conclusion, HD-DN improved the CR rate, OS, and EFS of FLT3-ITD-mutated AML patients. HD-DN also tended to yield better outcomes than IDA, though the difference was not significant. The superiority of HD-DN over IDA should be confirmed in future studies.

Utilizing organic electronics compatible with conventional semiconductor fabrication processes is extremely difficult because of their low chemical resistivity and poor environmental durability. To preserve the intrinsic functionality of organic materials, only a few fabrication processes can be used. Moreover, it is essential to achieve process expandability and silicon-process compatibility to develop high-resolution electronics suitable for mass production. Therefore, we developed wet-process-compatible organic photodetectors by replacing the conventional shadow-mask process with photolithography. This suppresses particle deposition during the serial fabrication processes, providing high operational stability. The fabricated green organic photodiodes exhibit a low dark current (1.0 × 10−11 A/cm2) with high photon–electron conversion efficiency (EQE = 65%). The charge collection and charge separation efficiencies are stable (ηcc = 84.6% and ηcs = 97.7%, respectively). Moreover, the organic semiconductors are compatible with conventional wet- and dry-etching processes owing to thin-film encapsulation layers. Finally, the novel organic image sensor can withstand 500 h under 85 °C/85% relative humidity and 1000 thermal cycles (−55–125 °C). Because of its robustness and strong barrier properties, the novel process architecture reported herein can be extended to any organic electronic devices, including widely commercialized organic light-emitting diodes and organic photovoltaic devices.

Objective To examine the features and efficacy of transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) in preeclampsia. Methods We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 145 pregnant women with preeclampsia, who underwent TTE at Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital between July 2006 and June 2016. We analyzed echocardiographic features in preeclampsia and the relationship between the severity of preeclampsia and TTE findings. Additionally, we examined the predictive echocardiographic factors of persistent hypertension and calculated the adjusted odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) for multiple regression models by considering systolic and diastolic blood pressure and pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI). Results Hemodynamic findings assessed by TTE in women with preeclampsia included systolic and diastolic dysfunction, increased left ventricular mass, and enlarged left atrium. Diastolic dysfunction and left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) were more common in preeclampsia with severe features (39.84% vs. 32.05%, p = 0.010, and 21.79% vs. 8.96%, p = 0.041, respectively). In the patients with systolic dysfunction, the adjusted OR for persistent hypertension was 17.41 (95% CI = 2.83–107.20). The ORs for grade 1 and grade 2 diastolic dysfunction were 12.58 and 32.84, respectively (95% CI, 2.99–52.92 and 3.61–298.58, respectively). When LVH assessed by TTE was considered with diastolic dysfunction, the risk for persistent hypertension increased (OR 19.28; 95% CI − 4.36–85.20). Conclusion TTE not only can reveal the severity of preeclampsia, but also can be a useful tool for the follow-up of persistent hypertension.

A novel approach for the thin film encapsulation (TFE) of organic photo-diode (OPD) for the next generation of organic/inorganic hybrid complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) image sensor is reported. The TFE is composed of two different metal-oxides stacked in bi-layer thin film architecture. The first layer is composed of aluminum oxide (AlOx) deposited by atomic layer deposition (ALD) at a moderate temperature of 100 °C to avoid any damage to the organic active layer. The first layer acts as a water barrier layer and also as a first protective layer for the deposition of a second silicon oxynitride (SiON) layer that could be processed by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) at higher temperatures. The second layer ensures a better mechanical and chemical stability of the whole structure and also serves as a second protective layer from damages induced during the additional processing stages, such as photolithography or microlensing. With the TFE architecture the overall device stability at 85 °C and 85% relative humidity exceeded 1000 h without observable device performance decrease. This was confirmed by fabricating a green-light sensitive OPD characterized by a stable external quantum efficiency of 60–70%.

The power generation of wind turbines varies depending on external environmental conditions. To present universal correlations between conditions that affect wind speed and wind turbine power, this study analyzed the effects of three atmospheric factors—atmospheric stability, turbulence intensity (TI), and wind shear exponent (WSE)—on the power performance and annual energy production (AEP) of wind turbines. Additionally, the horizontal and vertical speed components of the 3D sonic anemometer were investigated. At two measurement heights, unstable regimes showed an ascending air current, whereas stable regimes simultaneously showed both ascending and descending currents. Power curves calculated for each atmospheric factor regime revealed that atmospheric stability (200 kW–11 m/s) exhibited the greatest difference, followed by TI (91 kW–11 m/s) and WSE (32 kW–10.5 m/s). Finally, AEP was calculated at the annual mean wind speed of the study site and exhibited variations of 1.4–4% according to the factor regime. The AEP difference due to the change in atmospheric stability was greatest, and AEP was highest in moderately unstable atmospheric conditions. Clearer understanding of the effects of atmospheric factors on the power characteristics and AEP of wind turbines is expected to deliver practical benefits for wind-resource assessment and power-production prediction.

Background Novice nurses experience radical changes in their sleep-wake cycle and sleep difficulties after exposure to a rotating shift work schedule. The link between workplace hardship and employee turnover may be dependent on factors at the individual level, e.g., individual health. Nurses with sleep disturbance are more vulnerable to stressful stimuli and lack resilience at work compared with those without sleep disturbance. Objectives To classify novice nurses according to sleep disturbance trajectories during the first 2 years of work, to compare turnover rates according to trajectory classification, and to compare levels of sleep disturbance between stayers and leavers within each trajectory class. Design Prospective longitudinal design. Settings A tertiary hospital in Seoul, South Korea. Participants A total of 465 newly graduated nurses who started work between September 2014 and December 2015. Methods Data were collected 6 times within the first 2 years of work (on the first day of orientation before ward placement, at 6 weeks after starting work, and at 6, 12, 18, and 24 months of work). Sleep disturbance was assessed using the General Sleep Disturbance Scale. Turnover information was retrieved from the hospital's administrative data system to determine whether anyone had left the hospital at each data collection point. Unconditional latent growth curve analysis was performed to identify latent classes of trajectories of sleep disturbance among novice nurses during the first 2 years of work. Results The 2-year trajectories of sleep disturbance were classified into two distinct groups: the high symptomatic group (Class 1: 57.4%) and the low symptomatic group (Class 2: 42.6%). In comparison with Class 2, Class 1 consistently showed a higher turnover in each period. In Class 1, leavers who left the hospital at the next measurement point tended to report more severe sleep disturbance at prior measurements. This pattern was also observed for the overall sample. However, in Class 2, an inconsistent pattern between stayers and leavers was observed. Conclusions This study identified two distinct classes of sleep disturbance among novice nurses during the first 2 years of work. Given that many nurses experience sleep problems at pre-employment and during the early career period, a comprehensive approach to address this issue should be implemented in nursing schools and hospitals. The basic nursing curriculum should include self-care management strategies for sleep difficulties to ensure retention at work. At-risk nurses should receive organizational support and early monitoring to prevent the adverse effects of poor sleep.

As the complexity of semiconductors grows rapidly, the volume of test data for them also increases enormously. Multi-Valued Logic(MVL) is one of solutions to meet test economics. MVL-based ATE can transmit several test data bits concurrently in a line, because MVL can have more than two values. Thus, even if the test clock speed is the same as DUT's, the test data can be expanded in proportional to the MVL bit steps. Moreover, the test accessories like a socket is easy to make due to lower test clock than binary TAM's one and the power consumption will be smaller too. However, MVL interface is vulnerable to noise for the small noise margin and needs decoders to convert MVL to binary data. In this paper, we simulate previous quaternary decoders if they are suitable for MVL decoder. After the simulation, an efficient decoder structure for MVL interface is proposed to improve the performance as well as the size.

Summary Objective To investigate the effects of meditation on anxiety, depression, fatigue, and quality of life in women who are receiving radiation therapy for breast cancer. Design Randomized, non-program controlled, parallel intervention clinical trial. Setting The ASAN Cancer Center located in Seoul, Korea. Intervention The subjects of this study included 102 female breast cancer patients who had undergone breast-conserving surgery; these female patients were randomized into equally assigned meditation control groups, with each group consisting of 51 patients. The test group received a total of 12 meditation therapy sessions during their 6-week radiation therapy period, and the control group underwent only a conventional radiation therapy. Outcome The tools used to evaluate the effects of meditation were Hospital Anxiety and Depression scale, Revised Piper Fatigue scale, and European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer-Quality of Life Core-30. The results were analyzed based on the principles of intention-to-treat analysis, and, as a corollary analysis, per-protocol analysis was conducted. Results The breast cancer patients who received meditation therapy compared with the non-intervention group saw improvements in reduction of anxiety ( p =.032), fatigue ( p =.030), and improvement in global quality of life ( p =.028). Conclusions Based on the results of this study, an affirmation can be made that meditation can be used as a non-invasive intervention treatment for improving fatigue, anxiety, quality of life, and emotional faculties of women with breast cancer.

A freshwater bioprobe, combining the Asiatic Clam, Corbicula fluminea (Müller) and the laser microprobe mass spectrometer (LAMMA), can determine anthropogenic chemical contamination of freshwater systems. Laser generated mass spectra from the periostracal layers of clams contaminated with either a salt, potassium bromide, or an aromatic compound, phenol, produce distinctive mass spectral signatures that are different from uncontaminated clams. Uncontaminated clams have characteristic signatures with distinctive spectral peaks less than m/z 41; while exposed clams have many strong peaks well above this m/z. This freshwater bioprobe, using LAMMA to analyze the surface of clams, can be used as a screening tool for monitoring the water-treatment systems, for determining the source of contaminated baseflow and return flow discharge to streams, and for monitoring the water chemistry of a body of water. This system exploits the facility of using the shell instead of soft tissue with the LAMMA and has potential to detect anthropogenically-derived chemical stress.

Polycrystalline perovskite compound sputtering target La 0.67 Sr 0.33 MnO 3 has been prepared by a conventional ceramic method. La–Sr–Mn–O/Si thin films have been produced under various applied RF sputtering power and oxygen partial pressure at 700°C. Deposited thin films were annealed for 1 h at 800°C in O 2 atmosphere. Structures, magnetic properties and compositions of the La–Sr–Mn–O films have been studied with X-ray diffraction, Rutherford back-scattering spectroscopy (RBS), atomic force microscopy, scanning electron microscopy and vibrating sample magnetometer. Crystalline La–Sr–Mn–O thin films was perovskite monoclinic. In the case of RF-power 2.46 W/cm 2 and P O 2 =20%, La 0.85 Sr 0.15 MnO 3 films have lattice parameters a 0 =5.489 A, b 0 =5.517 A, c 0 =7.769 A and β =89.07°. The thickness of La 0.85 Sr 0.15 MnO 3 film was found to be 900±50 A by α-step and RBS measurement. The coercive force and the saturation magnetization of the La 0.85 Sr 0.15 MnO 3 film at room temperature was H C∥ =5 Oe and M S∥ =235 emu/cm 2 with applied field 5 kOe. The temperature dependence of the resistance under zero and 15 kOe applied fields shows that a semiconductor–metal transition, T SC–M , occurs at 240 K. The relative magnetoresistance, MR, is about 9.6%.

Effects of lipopolysaccharide on RBC alteration in mice endotoxemic model Seolju Park, Jeihak Myung, Yeonhee Kim, Sungmook Yoo, Jaekwan Lim, Choonhak Lim Korea University Anam Hospital, Republic of Korea Korea University Ansan Hospital, Republic of Korea Korea University Medicine Graduate School, Republic of Korea Korean Artificial Organ Research Center, Republic of Korea Background/Purpose: Sepsis is a complex pathophysiological process that involves both alterations in the microcirculation (vessels with a diameter b100 m) and changes in the biochemical and physiological characteristics of the blood constituents. Alterations in RBC rheology participate in the alterations of the microcirculation. Early alterations of RBC rheology are reported to be seen commonly in the septic patients. However, time course of RBC alterations is not revealed. Therefore, we evaluated the change of RBC deformability and RBC aggregation in the mice endotoxemic model using lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Methods: Six-week-old male BALB/c mice were used in this study. The LPS-induced sepsis mice received LPS (20 mg/kg) intraperitoneally. Elongation indices (EIs) and aggregation indices (AIs) were tested at shear stresses of 1, 3, 7, 10, and 20 Pa for 0.5, 1, 2, 4, 6, 9, 12, and 24 hours after LPS. Results: There were no difference in AIs on 0.5, 1, 2, 4, 6, 9, 12, and 24 hours after LPS; however, EIs significantly decreased in only 10 and 20 Pa at 24 hours after LPS (P b .05). Conclusions: Our results suggested that change of RBC deformability was revealed on 24 hours after LPS injection, and choice of an appropriate shear stress may detect alterations of RBC deformability in LPS-induced sepsis mice.

Tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha plays a significant role in conditioning related toxicities and the development of acute graft-versus-host disease (aGVHD). TNF-alpha gene polymorphisms are associated with rejection after organ transplantation and aGVHD in matched related donor blood and marrow transplantation (BMT) recipients. Few studies have been published on unrelated donor BMT in the pediatric age group. In this study, we examined the relationship between specific polymorphisms in TNF pathway genes and the occurrence and severity of aGVHD. Recipient single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in TNF-alpha and TNF receptor superfamily members 1A (TNFRSF1A) and 1B (TNFRSF1B) were investigated. In a multi-institutional Pediatric Blood and Marrow Transplant Consortium trial, a total of 180 pediatric patients (mean age, 11.0 years) were prospectively evaluated for clinical outcomes after matched unrelated donor BMT. All patients received myeloablative conditioning and two-drug GVHD prophylaxis with cyclosporine or tacrolimus, with methotrexate in the majority of patients. TNF-alpha genotypes were not correlated with the overall incidence of aGVHD. Significant associations were seen between TNF-alpha variant alleles and the severity of aGVHD (grade II-IV and grade III-IV), especially when analyzed in whites only (n = 165). Grade II-IV aGVHD was correlated with recipient -857T allele (hazard ratio [HR], 0.47; P = .04), -238A allele (HR, 1.76; P = .002), and d3/d3 genotype (HR, 0.64; P = .03). Severe (grade III-IV) aGVHD was associated with TNF-alpha -1031C allele (HR, 2.38; P = .03), -863A allele (HR, 3.18; P = .003), and d4/d4 genotype (HR, 2.82; P = .01). After adjusting for clinical factors, the association of -1031C, -863A, -238A, and d4/d4 genotypes with severity of aGVHD remained statistically significant. No correlation between selected SNPs in TNFRSF1A or TNFRSF1B and the incidence or severity of aGVHD was found. Our findings indicate clinically important relationships between genetic polymorphisms in TNF-alpha and the severity of aGVHD in this cohort. Improved understanding of this relationship may allow for a risk-adjusted approach to GVHD prevention in pediatric BMT.