Ultrahigh dielectric permittivity in oxide ceramics by hydrogenation.

Boosting dielectric permittivity representing electrical polarizability of dielectric materials has been considered a keystone for achieving scientific breakthroughs as well as technological advances in various multifunctional devices. Here, we demonstrate sizable enhancements of low-frequency dielectric responses in oxygen-deficient oxide ceramics through specific treatments under humid environments. Ultrahigh dielectric permittivity (~5.

Pharmacokinetic Alteration of Paclitaxel by Ferulic Acid Derivative.

P-glycoprotein (P-gp) is known to be involved in multidrug resistance (MDR) and modulation of pharmacokinetic (PK) profiles of substrate drugs. Here, we studied the effects of synthesized ferulic acid (FA) derivatives on P-gp function in vitro and examined PK alteration of paclitaxel (PTX), a well-known P-gp substrate drug by the derivative. Compound , the FA derivative chosen as a significant P-gp inhibitor among eight FA candidates by in vitro results, increased PTX AUC as much as twofold versus the control by reducing PTX elimination in rats.

Phylogeography of cliff-dwelling relicts with a highly narrow and disjunct distribution in the western Mediterranean.

Premise Of The Study: The high biodiversity in the Baetic-Rifan hotspot of Mediterranean region is shaped by complex geological and climatic histories and has been a subject of recent intensive studies. However, very little is known about phylogenetic and biogeographic history of three rare and critically endangered cliff-dwelling species of Sonchus in section Pustulati in this region.

Methods: We investigated the genetic variation and phylogenetic relationships of populations based on nuclear (ITS/ETS) and plastid (3'trnL-ndhJ/psaI-accD) DNA sequences, and amplified fragment length polymorphisms (AFLPs).

Brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity is associated with coronary calcium in young and middle-aged asymptomatic adults: The Kangbuk Samsung Health Study.

Objective: To evaluate the association between brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV), a convenient, non-radiating, readily available measurement of arterial stiffness, and coronary artery calcium (CAC), a reliable marker of coronary atherosclerosis, in a large sample of young and middle-aged asymptomatic adults; and to assess the incremental value of baPWV for detecting prevalent CAC beyond traditional risk factors.

Methods: Cross-sectional study of 15,185 asymptomatic Korean adults who voluntarily underwent a comprehensive health screening program including measurement of baPWV and CAC. BaPWV was measured using an oscillometric method with cuffs placed on both arms and ankles.

Prevalence of colorectal adenomatous polyps in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Background: Colorectal adenomatous polyps are precancerous lesions of colorectal cancer. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of colorectal adenomatous polyps in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients and determine whether COPD is associated with colorectal malignant potential.

Methods: Subjects who had undergone post-bronchodilator spirometry and colonoscopy and were 40 years or older were selected from the hospital database.

The correlation between the bronchial hyperresponsiveness to methacholine and asthma like symptoms by GINA questionnaires for the diagnosis of asthma.

Background: In epidemiological studies of asthma, questionnaires to differentiate asthmatics from non-asthmatics have proven to be cost-effective and convenient. The aim of this study was to analyze the association between hyperresponsiveness to methacholine and the validity of five items for the asthma like questionnaire recommended by the Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA).

Methods: A total of 680 subjects who visited the pulmonology department with suspected symptoms of asthma were enrolled.

Markers of poor outcome in patients with acute hypoxemic respiratory failure.

Purpose: This study described the acute hypoxemic respiratory failure (AHRF) population and identified potential modifiable markers of outcome.

Methods: A prospective, multicenter study was performed in 22 intensive care units (ICUs). The clinical outcomes of patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) were compared to the outcomes in patients with non-ARDS AHRF, and a propensity score matched analysis was performed.

Body mass index and mortality in Korean intensive care units: a prospective multicenter cohort study.

Background: The level of body mass index (BMI) that is associated with the lowest mortality in critically ill patients in Asian populations is uncertain. We aimed to examine the association of BMI with hospital mortality in critically ill patients in Korea.

Methods: We conducted a prospective multicenter cohort study of 3,655 critically ill patients in 22 intensive care units (ICUs) in Korea.

Usefulness of N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide in patients admitted to the intensive care unit: a multicenter prospective observational study.

Background: The role of N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-pro-BNP) as a prognostic factor in patients admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) is not yet fully established. We aimed to determine whether NT-pro-BNP is predictive of ICU mortality in a multicenter cohort of critically ill patients.

Methods: A total of 1440 patients admitted to 22 ICUs (medical, 14; surgical, six; multidisciplinary, two) in 15 tertiary or university-affiliated hospitals between July 2010 and January 2011 were assessed.

The adverse effect of emergency department crowding on compliance with the resuscitation bundle in the management of severe sepsis and septic shock.

Introduction: The aim of this study is to evaluate the effects of emergency department (ED) crowding on the implementation of tasks in the early resuscitation bundle during acute care of patients with severe sepsis and septic shock, as recommended by the Surviving Sepsis Campaign guidelines.

Methods: We analyzed the sepsis registry from August 2008 to March 2012 for patients presenting to an ED of a tertiary urban hospital and meeting the criteria for severe sepsis or septic shock. The ED occupancy rate, which was defined as the total number of patients in the ED divided by the total number of ED beds, was used for measuring the degree of ED crowding.

Mortality after in-hospital cardiopulmonary resuscitation: multicenter analysis in Korea.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to evaluate factors associated with the mortality of patients admitted to intensive care units (ICUs) after in-hospital cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and the impact of a hospital rapid response system (RRS) on patient mortality in Korea.

Materials And Methods: A prospective multicenter cohort study was done in 22 ICUs of 15 centers from July 1, 2010, to January 31, 2011. We only enrolled patients admitted to ICUs after in-hospital CPR and divided eligible patients into 2 groups-survivors and nonsurvivors.

Etiologies, diagnostic strategies, and outcomes of diffuse pulmonary infiltrates causing acute respiratory failure in cancer patients: a retrospective observational study.

Introduction: Although previous studies have reported etiologies, diagnostic strategies, and outcomes of acute respiratory failure (ARF) in cancer patients, few studies investigated ARF in cancer patients presenting with diffuse pulmonary infiltrates.

Methods: This was a retrospective observational study of 214 consecutive cancer patients with diffuse pulmonary infiltrates on chest radiography admitted to the oncology medical intensive care unit for acute respiratory failure between July 2009 and June 2011.

Results: After diagnostic investigations including bronchoalveolar lavage in 160 (75%) patients, transbronchial lung biopsy in 75 (35%), and surgical lung biopsy in 6 (3%), the etiologies of diffuse pulmonary infiltrates causing ARF were identified in 187 (87%) patients.

Validation of SAPS3 admission score and its customization for use in Korean intensive care unit patients: a prospective multicentre study.

Background And Objective: To externally validate the simplified acute physiology score 3 (SAPS3) and to customize it for use in Korean intensive care unit (ICU) patients.

Methods: This is a prospective multicentre cohort study involving 22 ICUs from 15 centres throughout Korea. The study population comprised patients who were consecutively admitted to participating ICUs from 1 July 2010 to 31 January 2011.

Antifactor Xa levels in critically ill Korean patients receiving enoxaparin for thromboprophylaxis: a prospective observational study.

The aim of this study was to investigate antifactor Xa (aFXa) levels after once daily dose of 40 mg of enoxaparin and to evaluate factors influencing aFXa levels among Korean intensive care unit (ICU) patients. This prospective observational study was conducted between August and December 2011 in medical ICUs at Samsung Medical Center. AFXa levels between 0.

Coronary artery disease in patients clinically diagnosed with myocardial infarction in the medical intensive care unit.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to compare the clinical characteristics and outcomes of patients with and without coronary artery disease (CAD) confirmed by coronary angiography in critically ill patients clinically diagnosed with myocardial infarction.

Materials And Methods: This retrospective observational study involved 56 patients who were clinically diagnosed with myocardial infarction and subsequently underwent coronary angiography during their intensive care unit stay.

Results: Only 18 patients (32%) were finally confirmed to have CAD by coronary angiography.

External validation of the Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II in Korean intensive care units.

Purpose: This study was designed to validate the usefulness of the Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation (APACHE) II for predicting hospital mortality of critically ill Korean patients.

Materials And Methods: We analyzed data on 826 patients who had been admitted to nine intensive care units and were included in the Fever and Antipyretics in Critical Illness Evaluation study cohort.

Results: Among the patients enrolled, 62% (512/826) were medical and 38% (314/826) were surgical patients.

Outcome and predictors of mortality in patients requiring invasive mechanical ventilation due to acute respiratory failure while undergoing ambulatory chemotherapy for solid cancers.

Purpose: Acute respiratory failure that requires invasive mechanical ventilation is a leading cause of death in critically ill cancer patients. The aim of this study was to evaluate the outcome and prognostic factors of patients requiring invasive mechanical ventilator for acute respiratory failure, within 1 month of ambulatory chemotherapy for solid cancer.

Methods: A retrospective observational study of patients who underwent ambulatory chemotherapy at Samsung Medical Center, between January of 2007 and April of 2009, was employed for this study.

The incidence, causes, and prognostic significance of new-onset thrombocytopenia in intensive care units: a prospective cohort study in a Korean hospital.

This study was designed to investigate the incidence, causes, and outcomes of new-onset thrombocytopenia (NOT) in Korean intensive care units (ICUs). A prospective cohort study was conducted in medical ICUs of Samsung Medical Center between August 2010 and February 2011. All newly admitted patients were included if they stayed in the ICU for more than 48 hr and did not have thrombocytopenia upon admission.

Factors influencing compliance with early resuscitation bundle in the management of severe sepsis and septic shock.

The Surviving Sepsis Campaign guidelines recommend implementing a 6-h resuscitation bundle, which has been associated with reduced mortality of patients presenting with severe sepsis or septic shock. However, this resuscitation bundle has not yet become a widely implemented treatment protocol. It is still unclear what factors are associated with the rate of compliance with the resuscitation bundle.

Early intervention on the outcomes in critically ill cancer patients admitted to intensive care units.

Purpose: To determine whether earlier intervention was associated with decreased mortality in critically ill cancer patients admitted to an intensive care unit (ICU).

Methods: A retrospective observational study was performed of 199 critically ill cancer patients admitted to the ICU from the general ward between January 2010 and December 2010. A logistic regression model was used to adjust for potential confounding factors in the association between time to intervention and in-hospital mortality.

Prognostic factors for endotracheal silicone stenting in the management of inoperable post-intubation tracheal stenosis.

Purpose: Stenting has been developed to deal with airway stenosis and is applicable in patients with post-intubation tracheal stenosis (PITS) in whom surgery would not be indicated. The purpose of this study was to investigate the prognostic factors in inoperable patients in whom a silicone stent was inserted due to PITS.

Materials And Methods: We retrospectively evaluated 55 PITS patients undergoing silicone stenting between January 2001 and December 2009.

Posttuberculosis tracheobronchial stenosis: use of CT to optimize the time of silicone stent removal.

Purpose: To evaluate whether air pockets (tracheobronchial air columns in the space between the outer surface of the stent and the adjacent airway wall) discernible at computed tomography (CT) can help optimize the time of stent removal in patients with posttuberculosis tracheobronchial stenosis (PTTS).

Materials And Methods: The study was approved by the institutional review board, and informed consent was obtained from all patients. Data from 41 patients (five men, 36 women) with a median age of 39 years (range, 21-64 years) who underwent silicone stent placement owing to PTTS, followed by CT and stent removal 6-12 months after clinical stabilization, were investigated retrospectively.

Improvements in compliance with resuscitation bundles and achievement of end points after an educational program on the management of severe sepsis and septic shock.

The objectives of this study were to determine whether an educational program could improve compliance with resuscitation bundles and the outcomes of patients with severe sepsis or septic shock and to evaluate which resuscitation bundle end points were associated with in-hospital mortality. This was a retrospective observational study of 366 patients (163 of historical controls and 203 of treatment patients) with severe sepsis or septic shock who presented to the emergency department between May 2007 and July 2009. Compliance with resuscitation bundles and achievement of the corresponding end points were compared before and after the 3-month educational program.

Early initiation of low-dose corticosteroid therapy in the management of septic shock: a retrospective observational study.

Introduction: The use of low-dose steroid therapy in the management of septic shock has been extensively studied. However, the association between the timing of low-dose steroid therapy and the outcome has not been evaluated. Therefore, we evaluated whether early initiation of low-dose steroid therapy is associated with mortality in patients with septic shock.