Hyperspectral push-broom imager using a volume Bragg grating as an angular filter.

A hyperspectral push-broom imager has been designed, constructed, and tested. The narrow angular selectivity of a weakly index modulated volume Bragg grating is utilized to replace the objective lens, slit, and collimating lens of a conventional slit-based hyperspectral push-broom imager. The imager comprises a dispersion grating, an angular filter grating, a focusing lens, and an image sensor. The imager has a field of view (FOV) of 17 degrees in the spatial direction, a spectral range from 400 nm to 900 nm, and a spectral resolution of 2.1 nm. The acquired hyperspectral data cubes are presented, and the influence of wavelength-dependent incident angle errors is analyzed.

A 5-Year Analysis of Aviation Medical Examinations in South Korea.

INTRODUCTION: Little has been studied to promote aviation health in South Korea. The aim of this study was to analyze the results of aviation medical examinations conducted in South Korea over the past 5 yr and, in doing so, provide evidence for establishing a health promotion, disease prevention plan.METHODS: Subjects of the study consisted of applicants who underwent aviation medical examinations from January 1, 2016, to December 31, 2020.RESULTS: Over the past 5 yr, the total number of aviation medical examinations in South Korea has shown an annual increase of more than 10%. In the presence of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the number of aviation medical examinations, both renewal and initial, for all types of licenses, except renewal aviation medical examinations for the ATCL, decreased. Disqualification rates were generally higher in initial examinations than in renewal examinations. The examination results for license renewal showed the ATPL disqualification rate to be the highest at 3.5 per 1000 pilots per year in their 50s, with cardiology cases being the most common reason for disqualification, followed by ophthalmology cases and psychiatry cases. Diagnostic categories for those disqualified after initial aviation medical examinations were similar, though ophthalmological causes were most common, followed by cases of psychiatry and neurology.CONCLUSION: Main causes of disqualification in airmen and air traffic controllers were identified as the presence of cardiovascular, ophthalmic, and psychiatric diseases. The results of this study provide evidence for improving health promotion activity plans to manage risk factors of such diseases for aviation workers.Kim JS, Han BS, Kwon YH, Lim J. A 5-yr analysis of aviation medical examinations in South Korea. Aerosp Med Hum Perform. 2022; 93(6):499-506.

Metal organic framework UiO-66 and activated carbon composite sorbent for the concurrent adsorption of cationic and anionic metals.

A composite sorbent for the simultaneous removal of both Hg2+ and SeO32- from aqueous media was produced from the solvothermal synthesis of a zirconium metal organic framework, UiO-66, in the presence of activated carbon. The composite sorbent has a large surface area of 1051 m2 g-1 with crystalized porous structures and has strong thermal stability up to 600 °C. The contaminant uptake of the sorbent follows a Langmuir adsorption isotherm with maximum sorption capacity of 205 mg g-1 and 168 mg g-1 for Hg2+ and SeO32-, respectively. Scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive spectroscopy results show that the Se regions overlap exclusively with Zr-rich regions suggesting that SeO32- adsorption depends entirely on the exposed UiO-66 surface. In addition, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy spectra of Se 3d and Hg 4f showed the association of SeO32- and Hg2+ on the UiO-66 and carbon surfaces, respectively. The sorbent could facilitate the development of a single process for the simultaneous removal of cationic Hg and anionic Se as well as other similar ionic metals with opposite charges from aqueous media.

A Comparative Study of the Epidemiological Aspects of Legionnaires' Disease: Outbreaks in Korea and Japan, 2010 - 2014.

BACKGROUND: In the present study, we compared the epidemiological aspects of Legionnaire' disease (LD) outbreaks in Korea and Japan by analyzing the current state from 2010 to 2014. METHODS: The following factors were analyzed: nationwide cumulative incidence rate (CIR) per 100,000 populations and case-fatality rate in percentage, epidemiological aspects (i.e., case related to gender), male to female morbidity ratio (MFMR), age, seasonality and habitat distribution of LD cases. RESULTS: In total, there were 134 cases of LD with the CIR of 0.05 per 100,000 populations in Korea from 2010 to 2014. During the same period in Japan, there were 4,840 cases of LD with a CIR of 0.76 per 100,000 populations. The CIR in Japan was significantly higher than that in Korea. However, the case-fatality rates were at similar levels (3.0% vs. 5.9%). Moreover, LD affects both sexes differently, accounting for 2.05 and 4.41 of MFMR in Korea and Japan, respectively. In both countries, the incidence mainly occurred among people aged 40 years or older, and peaked in summer (37.3% vs. 33.7% of total cases). Significant differences were observed in the incidence of LD cases between the capital city and county areas in both two countries. These differences in LD risk factors reflect the different influences of reservoir/host with natural or artificial aquatic environments. CONCLUSION: This study provides a quantitative analysis of the epidemiological aspects and risk factors of LD outbreaks in Korea and Japan. We hope this study would be helpful for providing insight on effective future strategies to reduce LD outbreaks.

Comparative study on the epidemiological aspects of enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli infections between Korea and Japan, 2006 to 2010.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: To compare the epidemiological aspects of enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EHEC) between Korea and Japan by analyzing the current state of EHEC infection outbreaks and related risk factors. METHODS: We investigated the epidemiological aspects of EHEC infection cases between Korea and Japan from 2006 to 2010. The following factors were analyzed: national prevalence rate (PR), regional prevalence rate, epidemic aspects (i.e., Cases related to gender), male to female morbidity ratio, age, and seasonal distribution. RESULTS: In total, there were 254 cases of EHEC with an average PR of 0.11 per 100,000 populations in Korea from 2006 to 2010. During the same period in Japan, there were 20,883 cases of EHEC with an average PR of 3.26 per 100,000 populations. The PR in Japan was significantly higher than that in Korea (p < 0.01). In both countries, more females than males had EHEC infections, with the highest incidence of infections (> 50%) observed for individuals younger than 9 years. EHEC is an emerging zoonosis and may be caused by consumption of raw or undercooked meat products from ruminants. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides a quantitative analysis of the epidemiological aspects and risk factors of EHEC infections in Korea and Japan and will provide insight on effective future strategies to reduce these infections.

Trends in the epidemiological aspects and mortality of alcoholic liver disease in Korea in the decade between 2000 and 2009.

BACKGROUND: Alcohol consumption and related alcohol liver disease (ALD) have substantially increased in Korea during the last decade. The objective of this study was to evaluate the trends in the epidemiological aspects and mortality rate (MR) of Korea in the decade between 2000 and 2009. METHODS: The raw data analyzed in this study were obtained from the website of "the ALD" managed by Korea Center for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC), Korea Public Health Association (KPHA), and statistics website of Statistics Korea. The data analyses were performed using Excel 2007 statistical software (Microsoft Corp., USA). RESULTS: The amount of alcohol-consumption-per-capita-per-year (ACCY) in Korea was 8.38 L in 2000 and 8.54 L in 2009. The most taken alcoholic beverage was soju, followed by beer. There were a total of 1,403 case-fatalities (CF) with an MR of 2.98 per 100,000 populations of ALD in 2000, while a total of 3,588 CF with an MR of 7.21 in 2009 (P < 0.01). The CF and MR of ALD in males were significantly higher than those in females (P < 0.01). In over 40-year-old age groups, the CF and MR were significantly increased (P < 0.01). Moreover, occupational classification revealed that the mistress/students/jobless (MSJ) were the most risky group. The comparison of overall CF and MR of ALD by six key classifications (International Classification of Diseases (ICD)) showed that alcoholic cirrhosis (229 CF and 16.3%) in 2000 tended to be increased in 2009 (2,803 CF and 78.1%), while alcoholic fibrosis and sclerosis (607 CF and 43.3%) in 2000 significantly decreased in 2009 (120 CF and 3.3%), respectively. CONCLUSION: ALD is one of the most severe diseases in Korea, as indicated by its high CF and MR in this study. As over-consumption of alcoholic beverages is relatively common in Korea, more efforts should be made toward prevention of ALD by raising awareness of the risk factors of ALD by public health education.

[Abscesso-colonic fistula following radiofrequency ablation therapy for hepatocellular carcinoma; a case successfully treated with histoacryl embolization].

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common malignant neoplasms occuring worldwide. Although surgical resection still remains the treatment of choice for HCC, radiofrequency ablation (RFA) has emerged as reliable alternatives to resection. It is less invasive and can be repeated after short intervals for sequential ablation in case of multiple lesions. The most common complication of RFA is liver abscess, and bile duct injury such as bile duct stricture has been reported. This is a case report of a rare complication of abscesso-colonic fistula after RFA for HCC. The case was treated by percutaneous abscess drainage and antibiotics and occlusion of abscesso-colonic fistula with n-butyl-2-cyanoacrylate embolization.