Is Colorectal Cancer A Western Disease? Role of Knowledge and Influence of Misconception on Colorectal Cancer Screening among Chinese and Korean Americans: A Mixed Methods Study

Lu, Xiaoxiao,Holt, Cheryl L,Chen, Julia C,Le, Daisy,Chen, Jingjing,Kim, Gil-yong,Li, Jun,Lee, Sunmin Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2016 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.17 No.11

Background: Chinese and Korean Americans have lower colorectal cancer (CRC) screening rates than other racial/ ethnic groups, which may be explained by a low level of CRC knowledge and a high level of misconceptions. This study explores the role of knowledge in CRC screening among these groups. Methods: Chinese (N=59) and Korean (N=61) Americans older than 50 were recruited from the Washington D.C. Metropolitan area. They completed a detailed survey and participated in focus groups to discuss their knowledge on CRC and CRC screening. Seventeen physicians, community leaders, and patient navigators participated in key informant interviews. Using a mixed methods approach, data were analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively. Results: Participants lacked knowledge about CRC and CRC screening. More than half did not know that screening begins at age 50 and there are several types of tests available. More than 30% thought CRC screening was not necessary if there were no symptoms or there was nothing they could do to prevent CRC. Focus group findings suggested understanding about CRC was limited by an inadequate source of linguistically and culturally relevant health information. For example, many participants considered CRC a western condition mainly caused by unhealthy diet. This led to under-estimations about their susceptibility to CRC. Knowledge was positively associated with self-reported screening. Participants who had higher knowledge scores were more likely to report ever having had a colonoscopy and confidence in ability to have CRC screening. Conclusions: Mixed-methods analysis provides multi-faceted perspectives on CRC knowledge and its influence on screening. Study findings can help inform interventions to increase CRC screening among Chinese and Korean Americans.

Ultrahigh Energy Storage Capacitance and High Breakdown Strength in Biaxially Oriented Poly(vinylidene fluoride) Using a High-Electric-Induced Technique

Hongwei Lu,Jianxin Du,Cuiping Yu,Xingping Wang,Yanlin Gao,Weizhong Xu,Aiping Liu,Xiaoxiao Lu,Yingxin Chen 한국고분자학회 2020 Macromolecular Research Vol.28 No.6

The development of high dielectric materials with high energy densities is a crucial research domain in the modern microelectronics and power systems. The objective of this work was to develop the highly ordered crystal orientations and large ferroelectric crystalline β/γ-phases in the biaxially oriented poly(vinylidene fluoride) (BOPVDF). Importantly, a high discharged energy density and high dielectric constant was achieved by using a high-electric-induced technique. A suitable poling electric field was applied to the BOPVDF films in order to enhance the breakdown strength. Remarkably, the BOPVDF film poled at the electric field of 113 MV m-1 achieved an unprecedented discharged energy density of 25.4 J cm-3 at an ultra-high electric field of 550 MV m-1, which is by far the highest value ever achieved in flexible polymer-based capacitor films. Comparatively, the unpoled BOPVDF and commercial biaxially oriented polypropylene (BOPP) exhibited only a discharged energy density of 7.9 J cm-3 and 1.2 J cm-3, respectively. This systematic study provides a new design paradigm to exploit PVDF-based dielectric polymers for capacitor applications.

Experimental research on the collapse dynamics of the cavitation bubble near two spherical particles

Xiaoxiao Zheng,Xiaoyu Wang,Xuan Lu,Jin Yuan,Yuning Zhang,Yuning Zhang 대한기계학회 2023 JOURNAL OF MECHANICAL SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY Vol.37 No.5

In this paper, the collapse dynamics of the cavitation bubble located in the middle position of two spherical particles of the same size are studied with the help of a high-speed photography experimental system. According to a large number of experimental results, the effects of several important parameters (the bubble size and the distance between the bubble and any particle) on the bubble collapse characteristics are revealed. For the process of the bubble collapse, four representative situations (gyro-shaped, drum-shaped, olive-shaped and spherical-shaped collapse) are defined, and three critical parameters of different situations are given based on the dimensionless distance between the bubble and any particle, which are 0.27, 1.17 and 1.56, respectively. Finally, through quantitative research, it is found that the dimensionless distance and the bubble size have a significant impact on the deformation degree of the bubble and the contractive rates at the characteristic bubble wall positions.

Cerebellar Structural Abnormality in Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study

Lu Qifang,Chen Jin,Wang Yanming,Huang Li,Jiang Zhoufan,Nguchu Benedictor Alexander,Chen Shishuo,Qiu Bensheng,Wang Xiaoxiao 대한신경정신의학회 2023 PSYCHIATRY INVESTIGATION Vol.20 No.4

Objective This study uses structural magnetic resonance imaging to explore changes in the cerebellar lobules in patients with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and further analyze the correlation between cerebellar structural changes and clinical symptoms of ASD.Methods A total of 75 patients with ASD and 97 typically developing (TD) subjects from Autism Brain Imaging Data Exchange dataset were recruited. We adopted an advanced automatic cerebellar lobule segmentation technique called CEREbellum Segmentation to segment each cerebellar hemisphere into 12 lobules. Normalized cortical thickness of each lobule was recorded, and group differences in the cortical measures were evaluated. Correlation analysis was also performed between the normalized cortical thickness and the score of Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised.Results Results from analysis of variance showed that the normalized cortical thickness of the ASD group differed significantly from that of the TD group; specifically, the ASD group had lower normalized cortical thickness than the TD group. Post-hoc analysis revealed that the differences were more predominant in the left lobule VI, left lobule Crus I and left lobule X, and in the right lobule VI and right lobule Crus I. Lowered normalized cortical thickness in the left lobule Crus I in the ASD patients correlated positively with the abnormality of development evident at or before 36 months subscore.Conclusion These results suggest abnormal development of cerebellar lobule structures in ASD patients, and such abnormality might significantly influence the pathogenesis of ASD. These findings provide new insights into the neural mechanisms of ASD, which may be clinically relevant to ASD diagnosis.

Clinical and Immunological Factors Associated with Postpartum Hepatic Flares in Immune-Tolerant Pregnant Women with Hepatitis B Virus Infection Treated with Telbivudine

( Junfeng Lu ),( Xiaoxiao Wang ),( Yunxia Zhu ),( Lina Ma ),( Sujun Zheng ),( Zhongjie Hu ),( Xinyue Chen ) 대한간학회 2021 Gut and Liver Vol.15 No.6

Background/Aims: To investigate postpartum hepatic flares and associated factors in highly viremic pregnant patients in the immune tolerance phase who adopted telbivudine (LdT) treatment in the last trimester to reduce vertical transmission of hepatitis B virus. Methods: Hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg)-positive, highly viremic pregnant women were recruited for this prospective study. Treatment with LdT was started from 28 weeks of gestation. Virological and biochemical markers were examined before LdT treatment, antepartum and postpartum. Serial blood samples at the same time were collected to detect cytokines and cortisol (COR). Results: Fifty-six of 153 patients (36.6%) had postpartum hepatic flares, defined as a 2-fold increase in alanine aminotransferase 6 weeks after delivery. Age and the antepartum alanine aminotransferase and postpartum HBeAg levels were independent influencing factors of postpartum hepatic flares. Cytokines showed no regularity during or after pregnancy. Compared with the patients with no postpartum flares, the patients with flares had lower baseline interferon γ and COR levels (p=0.022 and p=0.028) and higher postpartum interferon γ levels (p=0.026). Conclusions: A high proportion of highly viremic and immune-tolerant pregnant patients treated with LdT in the last trimester had postpartum hepatic flares, which implied that these patients entered the immune clearance phase after delivery. Thus, this may create an appropriate opportunity for re-antiviral therapy. (Gut Liver 2021;15:887-894)

An experimental study of a spring-loaded needle-free injector: Influence of the ejection volume and injector orifice diameter

Dongping Zeng,Ni Wu,Lu Xie,Xiaoxiao Xia,Yong Kang 대한기계학회 2019 JOURNAL OF MECHANICAL SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY Vol.33 No.11

Needle-free injection is an alternative strategy to conventional needle injection in the field of drug delivery. This approach offers a number of advantages, especially in reducing complaints of needle phobia and avoiding the occurrence of accidental needle stick injuries. The ejection volume and orifice diameter are inherently important in determining the injection depth and percent delivery. In this study, we investigate the dispersion pattern of liquid penetration into gels and porcine tissues using a needle-free injector with ejection volumes of 0.05 to 0.35 mL and orifice diameters of 0.17 to 0.50 mm. In addition, the influence of the two parameters is analyzed quantitatively on the dispersion pattern through impact experiments and injection experiments. Furthermore, an equation of the jet power calculated by the ejection volume and orifice diameter is proposed to describe the delivery fraction of the injection experiments. Controls of the ejection volume and orifice diameter are demonstrated to help achieve a more effective injection process and a better injection experience.