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PURPOSE: This pilot study aimed to provide descriptive statistics regarding injuries among baseball players in the Korean baseball organization (KBO) league.METHODS: Exposure and injury data were collected from 49 professional baseball players in a single team who participated in official games during the 2021 KBO league season. Injury data included injured body parts, injury mechanisms, injury diagnoses, activities, playing positions, and time-loss (TL). Injury rates (IRs) were calculated using the athletic-exposure (AE) and time-exposure (TE) methods.RESULTS: In total, 158 injuries were reported during the study period. The overall IR was 58.0 per 1,000 AE and 5.3 per 1,000 exposure times (TE). Approximately 68.4% of all injuries were non-TL (NTL) injuries, and which was approximately 2.2 times higher than TL injuries. Among TL injuries, 70.0% accounted for 1 day to less than 1 week, followed by more than 3 weeks (16.0%) and lasting more than 1 week to less than 3 weeks (14.0%) respectively. Trunk and spine were the most frequently injured body parts (21.5%), followed by arms and elbows (12.7%), thighs (11.4%), and feet (8.2%) in order. The majority of the TL injury mechanisms were noncontact (40.4%) and overuse (26.0%) with strain during pitching and base running. The majority of the NTL injury mechanisms were ball contact (73.2%) with contusions during batting and catching.CONCLUSIONS: Professional KBO baseball players experienced a high rate of TL injuries during official games. The majority of TL injury mechanisms were noncontact and overuse, and two-fifths of TL injuries were reported by pitchers and base runners.

Simply adding ITIC derivatives, which can form a cascade energy alignment between the host donor and acceptor LUMO levels, as a small amount (5 wt%) of A2 acceptor molecules in TOSCs improved the PCE by up to 10% more than that of the BOSC system.

This study aimed to examine the effects of vinpocetine on atopic dermatitis (AD) by administering it via oral, intraperitoneal, and topical routes to HR-1 hairless mice. AD was induced in the mice for five weeks with ovalbumin, and vinpocetine was administered twice daily through each route of administration for two weeks after the induction of AD. Vinpocetine (20, 10, and 2 mg/kg) was administered by oral, intraperitoneal, and topical routes, respectively. The administration of vinpocetine suppressed the increase in serum immunoglobulin (Ig) E and IgG1 levels and the production of interleukin (IL)-4 and IL-13-cytokines linked to T helper 2 cells in skin tissue. In addition, the invasion of inflammatory cells, including eosinophils, into the skin tissue was reduced, and changes in skin structure were also suppressed. These results show the potential for the use of vinpocetine in patients with AD and even for targeted treatment against PDE. In most of the experiments, symptom relief in the groups receiving oral and topical vinpocetine was slightly superior to that in the group receiving vinpocetine intraperitoneally. In particular, topical application of vinpocetine was found to be the most effective route when considering the dose of vinpocetine used in each route.

Purpose On the basis of evidence, we aimed to reevaluate the necessity of the empirical proton pump inhibitor (PPI) trial for children with suspected gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). Methods We analyzed the frequency of GERD in 85 school-age children with gastroesophageal reflux (GER) symptoms, who received 24-hour esophageal pH monitoring and/or upper endoscopy. According to the reflux index (RI), the children were classified into normal (RI

We report a rare case of Meckel's diverticulum in a boy who initially presented with chronic iron deficiency anemia (IDA) without any history of gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding at 8 years-old. Isolated small bowel Crohn's disease was suspected based on findings of small bowel ulcers on capsule endoscopy. At four years from initial presentation, he developed massive GI bleeding. Abdominal computed tomographic angiography and small bowel series revealed findings suggestive of Meckel's diverticulum. Meckel's diverticulum should be suspected in children with unexplained chronic IDA even in the absence of prominent GI bleeding and negative findings on repetitive Meckel's scans. Moreover, Meckel's diverticulum should be included in the differential diagnosis of isolated small bowel Crohn's disease when the disease is limited to a short segment of the distal small bowel, as ulcers and inflammation may result as a consequence of acid secreted from adjacent heterotopic gastric mucosa constituting the Meckel's diverticulum.

Pinus thunbergii Parl. (PTP) has traditionally been used for edible and medicinal purposes to treat several disorders, including diabetes and neuralgia. Therefore, this study sought to evaluate the inhibitory effects of PTP leaf ethanol extracts on acute inflammation. Moreover, the reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenging activity, superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity, lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced nitric oxide (NO) generation, and H2O2-induced lipid peroxidation capacity of PTP were assessed in vitro in RAW 264.7 macrophages. Our results suggest that PTP prevents cell damage caused by oxidative free radicals and downregulates the expression of LPS-induced inflammation-associated factors including inducible nitric oxidase synthetase (iNOS), cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2). PTP inhibited NO production by 53.5% ( P < 0.05 ) and iNOS expression by 71.5% ( P < 0.01 ) at 100 µg/mL. PTP at 100 µg/mL also inhibited ROS generation by 58.2% ( P < 0.01 ) and SOD activity by 29.3%, as well as COX-2 expression by 83.3% ( P < 0.01 ) and PGE2 expression by 98.6% ( P < 0.01 ). The anti-inflammatory effects of PTP were confirmed in vivo using an arachidonic acid (AA)-induced ear edema mouse model. Ear thickness and myeloperoxidase (MPO) activity were evaluated as indicators of inflammation. PTP inhibited edema formation by 64.5% ( P < 0.05 ) at 1.0 mg/ear. A total of 16 metabolites were identified in PTP extracts and categorized into subgroups, including two phenolic acids (mainly quinic acid), seven flavonoids, five lignans, one sesquiterpenoid, and one long-chain fatty acid. Therefore, our results suggest that PTP possesses anti-inflammatory properties.

Background Hereditary hemolytic anemia (HHA) is a rare disease characterized by premature red blood cell (RBC) destruction due to intrinsic RBC defects. The RBC Disorder Working Party of the Korean Society of Hematology established and updated the standard operating procedure for making an accurate diagnosis of HHA since 2007. The aim of this study was to investigate a nationwide epidemiology of Korean HHA. Methods We collected the data of a newly diagnosed pediatric HHA cohort (2007–2016) and compared this cohort's characteristics with those of a previously surveyed pediatric HHA cohort (1997–2006) in Korea. Each participant's information was retrospectively collected by a questionnaire survey. Results A total of 369 children with HHA from 38 hospitals distributed in 16 of 17 districts of Korea were investigated. RBC membranopathies, hemoglobinopathies, RBC enzymopathies, and unknown etiologies accounted for 263 (71.3%), 59 (16.0%), 23 (6.2%), and 24 (6.5%) of the cases, respectively. Compared to the cohort from the previous decade, the proportions of hemoglobinopathies and RBC enzymopathies significantly increased (P < 0.001 and P = 0.008, respectively). Twenty-three of the 59 hemoglobinopathy patients had immigrant mothers, mostly from South-East Asia. Conclusion In Korea, thalassemia traits have increased over the past 10 years, reflecting both increased awareness of this disease and increased international marriages. The enhanced recognition of RBC enzymopathies is due to advances in diagnostic technique; however, 6.5% of HHA patients still do not have a clear diagnosis. It is necessary to improve accessibility of diagnosing HHA., Graphical Abstract

Objective Asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease that can lead to severe problems with the respiratory system. This study aimed to evaluate the suppression of allergic airway inflammation of an asthma murine model by 3-isobutyl-1-methylxanthine (IBMX), which is a non-specific cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterase (PDE) inhibitor. Methods Allergic lung inflammation was evoked by ovalbumin (OVA) alone or co-exposure with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) in a murine asthma model. Results Compared with the OVA alone-treated control, co-exposure with LPS significantly enhanced allergic inflammatory responses in airway hyperresponsiveness and pathologic changes of the asthmatic mouse lung. Specifically, LPS enhanced allergic asthma through the increase of monocyte chemoattractant protein (MCP)-1 release. However, IBMX significantly suppressed specific airway resistance and tidal volume, the infiltration of eosinophils and mast cells into the lung, the levels of serum immunoglobulin (Ig)E and IgG1, and the release of Th2 cytokines (interleukin (IL)-4, IL-13, and MCP-1). IBMX attenuated the aggravation of inflammation by inhibiting MCP-1, and inhibited the infiltration of eosinophils and the production of Th2 cell-associated inflammatory mediators. Conclusion These results demonstrate the therapeutic potential of targeting the regulation of PDE activity in an aggravated chronic allergic asthmatic response after bacterial infection.

Background Resorbable devices have recently been adopted in the field of orthognathic surgery with controversies about their postoperative skeletal stability. Hence, we determined the long-term skeletal stability of unsintered hydroxyapatite/poly-l-lactic acid (HA/PLLA) mesh for osteofixation of mandibular sagittal split ramus osteotomy (SSRO), and compared it with that of titanium miniplate. Methods Patients were divided into resorbable mesh and titanium miniplate fixation groups. A comparative study of the change in the mandibular position was performed with preoperative, 1-day, 6-month, and 2-year postoperative lateral cephalograms. Results At postoperative 6 months—compared with postoperative 1 day, point B (supra-mentale) was significantly displaced anteriorly in the titanium-fixation group. Moreover, at postoperative 2 years—compared with postoperative 6 months, point B was significantly displaced inferiorly in the titanium-fixation. However, the HA/PLLA mesh-fixation group did not show any significant change with respect to point B postoperatively. Conclusions The HA/PLLA mesh-fixation group demonstrated superior long-term skeletal stability with respect to the position of mandible, when compared with the titanium-fixation group.

Asthma is a well-known bronchial disease that causes bronchial inflammation, narrowing of the bronchial tubes, and bronchial mucus secretion, leading to bronchial blockade. In this study, we investigated the association between phosphodiesterase (PDE), specifically PDE1, and asthma using 3-isobutyl-1-methylxanthine (IBMX; a non-specific PDE inhibitor) and vinpocetine (Vinp; a PDE1 inhibitor). Balb/c mice were randomized to five treatment groups: control, ovalbumin (OVA), OVA + IBMX, OVA + Vinp, and OVA + dexamethasone (Dex). All mice were sensitized and challenged with OVA, except for the control group. IBMX, Vinp, or Dex was intraperitoneally administered 1 h before the challenge. Vinp treatment significantly inhibited the increase in airway hyper-responsiveness (PPPPP

Purpose To analyze the associations among the degrees of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) by ultrasonography and metabolic syndrome, degrees of obesity in children, and degrees of parental obesity. Methods A total of 198 children with obesity who visited a pediatric obesity clinic were prospectively enrolled in this study. The severity of NAFLD based on ultrasonography was classified into no, mild, moderate, or severe NAFLD group. The degree of obesity based on the percentage over standard weight for height per sex was classified into mild, moderate, or severe. Results Of 132 patients evaluated for the degree of NAFLD and metabolic syndrome, the p-value of correlation between the two factors was 0.009. Therefore, metabolic syndrome might significantly affect the degree of NAFLD. Of 158 patients evaluated for the degree of NAFLD and the degree of obesity, the p-value of correlation between the two factors was 0.122. Of 154 patients evaluated for the degree of obesity and father's obesity, the p-value was 0.076. Of 159 patients evaluated for the degree of obesity and mother's obesity, the p-value was 0.000, indicating that mother's obesity could significantly affect the degree of obesity in children. Of 142 patients evaluated for the degree of obesity and metabolic syndrome, the p-value was 0.288. Conclusion Metabolic syndrome might significantly affect the degree of nonalcoholic fatty liver in children. In addition, mother's obesity might be a significant factor that affects the degree of obesity in children.

Kidney length is the most useful parameter for clinical measurement of kidney size, and is useful to distinguish acute kidney injury from chronic kidney disease. In this prospective observational study of 437 normal children aged between 0 and < 13 years, kidney length was measured using sonography. There were good correlations between kidney length and somatic values, including age, weight, height, and body surface area. The rapid growth of height during the first 2 years of life was intimately associated with a similar increase in kidney length, suggesting that height should be considered an important factor correlating with kidney length. Based on our findings, the following regression equation for the reference values of bilateral kidney length for Korean children was obtained: kidney length of the right kidney (cm) = 0.051 × height (cm) + 2.102; kidney length of the left kidney (cm) = 0.051 × height (cm) + 2.280. This equation may aid in the diagnosis of various kidney disorders., Graphical Abstract

종으로써 비알코올성 지방간은 간 조직에 중성지방이 비정상적으로 누적된 상태를 의미하는 단순 지방간(simple steatosis), 염증(inflammation)을 동반하는 지방간염(steatohepatitis), 염증과 더불어 세포 괴사(apoptosis)를 동반하는 간경변(cirrhosis)에 이르기 까지 병리학 적 진행 상태에 따라 세분화하며, 치료하지 않고 방치할 경우 궁극적 으로 간암으로까지 진행되어 조기 사망을 일으킬 수 있는 질환이다. 비알코올성 지방간은 당뇨(diabetes), 고혈압(hypertension), 심혈관 질환(cardiovascular disease) 등 대사질환의 독립적인 위험인자로 밝 혀지고 있어 그로 인한 이차적인 심각성이 부각되고 있는 실정이다. 비알코올성 지방간 질환은 비만(obesity)과 당뇨환자의 증가와 더 불어 그 유병률이 세계적으로 급격한 증가 추세에 있으며, 우리나라 의 경우 비알코올성 지방간의 유병률이 약 20-30% 정도로 추정되고 있으나 이에 따른 체계적인 치료지침은 없는 실정이다. 비알코올성

Physical exercise is considered beneficial in the treatment of depression, but the underlying mechanism is not clearly understood. In the present study, we investigated the mechanism regulating antidepressant effects of exercise by focusing on the role of the amygdala using a well-defined animal model of depression. C57BL/6 mice treated with repeated restraint showed depression-like behaviors, which was counteracted by post-stress treatment with physical exercise. The two neuropeptides hypocretin/orexin (Hcrt/Orx) and melanin-concentrating hormone (MCH) were transcriptionally upregulated in the BLA after repeated stress, and their enhanced expression was downregulated by treatment with exercise, mirroring stress-induced depression-like behaviors and their reversal by exercise. Stereotaxic injection of either Hcrt/Orx peptide or MCH peptide within the BLA commonly increased phospho-CaMKIIα level and produced depression-like behaviors, mimicking the neural states in the BLA of mice subjected to repeated stress. In contrast, siRNA-mediated suppression of Hcrt/Orx or MCH in the BLA blocked stress-induced depression-like behaviors. Furthermore, siRNA-mediated inhibition of CaMKIIα in the BLA also counteracted stress-induced depression-like behaviors. Local injection of Hcrt/Orx peptide or MCH peptide within the BLA in exercise-treated animals blocked antidepressant-like effects of exercise. Together these results suggest that exercise produces antidepressant effects via suppression of Hcrt/Orx and MCH neural systems in the BLA.

Purpose This study investigated the long-term clinical outcomes of patients with p22phox-deficient chronic granulomatous disease (CGD) on Jeju Island and retrospectively evaluated the effects of interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) prophylaxis. Methods The medical records of 15 patients with CGD were retrospectively reviewed. The efficacy of IFN-γ prophylaxis was evaluated by comparing the frequency of severe infections before and after starting continuous prophylaxis with IFN-γ. Results At the time of the analysis, 14 patients were alive, with a median age of 14.3 years. The diagnosis of CGD was made at a median age of 2.4 years, and the median age at onset of severe infection was 0.3 years. Thirteen of the 15 patients had their first severe infection within the first year of life. The overall incidence of severe infection was 1.36 infections per patient-year; pneumonia, suppurative lymphadenitis, and skin and subcutaneous abscesses were the most common infections. Aspergillus species were the most frequently isolated microorganisms, present in 15.8% of isolates. IFN-γ did not significantly change the rate of severe infection. The survival rate for patients after 2 years of age was 93%; there was a prolonged survival plateau beyond the age of 2. Conclusion Compared with cases of X-linked CGD reported in other studies, patients with CGD on Jeju Island did not show obviously different clinical manifestations, but they had a significantly higher survival rate. Further studies with a substantially longer period of observation, and with more patients under intensive surveillance are necessary to elucidate the prophylactic efficiency of IFN-γ.

The purpose of this experimental study is to investigate the ultimate strength and curling influence on structural behaviors of single shear bolted connection of thin-walled carbon steel fabricated with two bolts. The end distance parallel to the loading direction and plate thickness are considered as main variables. Curling also occurred in these carbon steel connections with a long end distance and thinner plate. It is known that all specimens failed by block shear fracture and the curling occurrence led to the ultimate strength reduction of thin-walled carbon steel bolted connections. The ultimate strength and fracture mechanism of test results were compared with those of current design standards such as AIK(KBC2009), AISC, AIJ, AISI NAS and EC3. The design standards provided a poor prediction for the ultimate strength and fracture mechanism. Therefore, modified equations considering curling influence are proposed in this paper.

In a wireless multi-hop network environment, energy consumption of mobile nodes is an important factor for the performance evaluation of network life-time. In Voice over IP (VoIP) service, the redundant data size of a VoIP packet such as TCP/IP headers is much larger than the voice data size of a VoIP packet. Such an inefficient structure of VoIP packet causes heavy energy waste in mobile nodes. In order to alleviate the effect of VoIP packet transmission on energy consumption, a packet aggregation algorithm that transmits one large VoIP packet by combining multiple small VoIP packets has been studied. However, when excessively many VoIP packets are combined, it may cause deterioration of the QoS of VoIP service, especially for end-to-end delay. In this paper, we analyze the effect of the packet aggregation algorithm on both VoIP service quality and the energy consumption of mobile nodes in a wireless multi-hop environment. We build the cost function that describes the degree of trade-off between the QoS of VoIP services and the energy consumption of a mobile node. By using this cost function, we get the optimum number of VoIP packets to be combined in the packet aggregation scheme under various wireless channel conditions. We expect this study to contribute to providing guidance on balancing the QoS of VoIP service and energy consumption of a mobile node when the packet aggregation algorithm is applied to VoIP service in a wireless multi-hop networks.

)간의 트레이드오프 관계를 비용 함수로 표현하였다 .Key Words : VoIP, Wireless Multi-hop Network, Energy, MOS, QoSABSTRACTThis paper proposes packet aggregation scheme for considering energy consumption of mobile devices on guaranteeing quality of voice. To our purpose, we analyze VoIP service on wireless multi-hop channel in terms of delay , packet loss and energy consumption when packet aggregation scheme is applied to VoIP service. Moreover, we induce a cost function with considering of tradeoff relation between quality of voice and energy consumption.

Little is known about the health benefits that may be obtained by breaking prolonged periods in a seated position, especially during postprandial periods. We hypothesized that reduced sitting time magnifies the positive effects of a lifestyle based reduction of body fat, as well as reducing metabolic risk factors for overweight and obese women. Middle-aged women (n=45, aged 46.8 ± 6.5 yrs) participated in a 12-week lifestyle intervention, consisting of combined exercise and behavior modification. Based on their average time spent engaged in sedentary behaviors (i.e., sitting and lying) during postprandial periods, participants were retrospectively classified as the least sedentary group (LSG) moderately sedentary group (MSG) and highly sedentary group (HSG). Two-way RMANOVA showed significant group-by-time interactions for body composition. Following the intervention, improvements in body weight, body mass index, percentage body fat, and waist circumference were greatest in the LSG, followed by those in the MSG and HSG. Similar group-by-time interactions were associated with several metabolic risk factors. Improvements in HDL-C, fasting blood glucose and insulin levels, HOMA-IR, and the prevalence of metabolic syndrome were observed to be greatest in the LSG, followed by those of the MSG and HSG. Our findings suggest that breaking prolonged sitting time should be encouraged in order to augment the health benefits of exercise training for the treatment of obesity-related metabolic risk factors in middle-aged women.