BackgroundThe Quality of Recovery-40 (QoR-40) is a widely-used, self-rated, and self-completed questionnaire for postoperative patients. The questionnaire is intended to elicit information from each patient regarding the quality of recovery during the postoperative period. It is noteworthy, however, that an official Korean version of the QoR-40 (QoR-40K) has not been established. The purpose of this study was to develop the QoR-40K by translation and cultural adaptation process and to evaluate the validity and reliability of the QoR-40K.MethodsAfter pre-authorization from the original author of the QoR-40, the translation procedure was established and carried out based upon Beaton’s recommendation to create a QoR-40K model comparable to the original English QoR-40. Two hundred surgical patients were enrolled, and each completed the questionnaire during the preoperative period, on the third day, and 1 month after surgery. The QoR-40K was compared with the visual analogue scale (VAS) and another health-related questionnaire, the Short-form Health Survery-36 (SF-36). The method of validation for QoR-40K included test-retest reliability, internal consistency, and level of responsiveness.ResultsSpearman’s correlation coefficient for test-retest reliability was 0.895 (P < 0.001), and Cronbach’s alpha of the global QoR-40K on the third day after surgery was 0.956. A positive correlation was obtained between the QoR-40K and the mental component summary of SF-36 (ρ = 0.474, P < 0.001), and a negative correlation was observed between QoR-40K and VAS (ρ = −0.341, P < 0.001). The standardized responsive mean of the total QoR-40K was 0.71.ConclusionsThe QoR-40K was found to be as acceptable and reliable as the original English QoR-40 for Korean patients after surgery, despite the apparent differences in the respective patients’ cultural backgrounds.

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The purpose of this study is to investigate the springback characteristics of tailor-welded strips in U-draw bending. Two different welded strips were adopted to compare the effects of weld-line locations on the springback. One was welded along the centerline of the strip-width and the other was welded along the centerline of the strip-length. To investigate the effect of different thickness combinations on the springback, the tailorwelded strips were joined by a laser welding process. Three sheet thickness combinations were assessed, SCP1 0.8 t * SCP1 1.2 t, SCP1 0.8 t * SCP1 1.6 t and SCP1 0.8 t * TRIP 1.0 t. Three punch profile radii of 3, 6, and 9 mm and three die profile radii of 5, 10, and 15 mm were prepared and three blank holding forces (BHF) of 125 kgf, 250 kgf, and 500 kgf were applied to investigate the effects of punch profile radius (Rp), die profile radius (Rd), and BHF on the springback of tailor-welded strips. With consideration for the thickness of the sheet and the material properties, the extent of the springback on the sidewall of unloaded sheet shapes increases as the thickness and the yield strength of the sheet increase in the U-draw bending process. For longitudinally welded strips, the amount of springback of the TRIP steel sheet in TWB could be reduced through a springback combination of the thinner side and weld-line. For the thinner side (0.8 t) of the centrally welded strips, the deformed shapes after the springback were almost the same regardless of the thickness combination, and the extent of the springback decreased compared with that of non-welded SCP1 0.8 t. Some experimental results are compared with analytical results obtained by using the finite element method.

BackgroundThe current study evaluated the hemodynamic effects of different types of pneumatic compressions of the lower extremities during anesthesia induction. In addition, the hemodynamic effects were compared between patients older than 65 age years and those aged 65 years or younger.MethodsOne hundred and eighty patients (90: > 65 years and 90: ≤ 65 years) were enrolled. Each age group of patients was randomly assigned to one of three groups; Group 1 (no compression), Group 2 (sequential pneumatic compression), and Group 3 (sustained pneumatic compression without decompression). Invasive blood pressure, cardiac index (CI), and stroke volume variation (SVV) were measured.ResultsIn patients aged ≤ 65 years, mean arterial pressure (MAP) and CI were significantly higher and SVV was lower in Group 3 compared to Group 1 before tracheal intubation, but there were no differences between Groups 1 and 2. However, there were no differences in MAP, CI, and SVV among the three groups in patients aged > 65 years. The number of patients who showed a MAP < 60 mmHg was less in Group 3 than Group 1 in patients aged ≤ 65 years, but not in patients aged > 65 years.ConclusionsSustained pneumatic compression of the lower extremities has more hemodynamic stabilizing effects compared to sequential compression during anesthesia induction in patients aged 65 years or younger. However, no difference between methods of compression was observed in patients older than 65 years.

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Some deep drawing characteristics at elevated temperatures were investigated for the SCPl steel sheets by using a Cr-coated die. For this investigation, six different temperatures between room temperature and 250'C, and six different drawing ratios ranging from 2.4 to 2.9 were considered. As a result, the limiting drawing ratio, the maximum drawing force and the maximum drawing depth were found to be affected sensitively by temperature, and more stable through-thickness strain distribution was observed at elevated temperatures. Some experimental results compared favorably with theoretical results obtained by using the finite element method.