Partron (South Korea)

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a prevalent disorder that is commonly managed with continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy. Although CPAP is clinically effective, issues related to device hygiene and contamination remain understudied. This study aims to present a practical protocol for CPAP disassembly and cleaning and to report the outcomes of its implementation over a 2-year period. We conducted a retrospective chart review of 359 OSA patients prescribed CPAP therapy between 2018 and 2025. Of these, 136 patients participated in a complimentary, comprehensive CPAP cleaning service. Contamination was assessed using a subjective visual analog scale (VAS) following photographic documentation of each device component. The relationship between contamination scores and device usage duration was analyzed. Patients who received the cleaning service did not differ significantly from the overall cohort in terms of age, sex, apnea-hypopnea index, or average daily usage time, except that they had a significantly shorter total duration of usage. Contamination was found on all device components, including internal parts that are not routinely inspected. Positive correlations between contamination levels and usage duration were statistically significant for every component. The cleaning process required approximately 2 days per device and was feasible for routine clinical implementation. CPAP devices accumulate visible contamination over time, emphasizing the need for standardized cleaning protocols. Our experience indicates that physician-led education, patient cooperation, and dedicated involvement of paramedical staff are essential in reducing contamination risks. Interdisciplinary collaboration is recommended to develop evidence-based guidelines for CPAP hygiene management.

High-panelized steel sheet shear walls with cold formed edge stiffened burring holes are applied to flat offices, stores, and warehouses in seismically active and typhoon or hurricane prone regions. A 3.53~4.53 m long × 0.455 m wide sheet containing the vertically aligned burring holes (dia.: 200mm) with a pitch of 320mm is hot-dip zinc–alumi–magnesium alloy-coated steel (nominal yield stress: 295N/mm2, thickness: 1.2mm). The burring holes are created by cold pressing a sheet with small-radius holes and contain ribs (curvature radius: 10mm) and cylinders. The edges of the sheets are connected to studs and tracks using drilling screw (dia.: 4.8mm). The end studs are built-up members (□−75×75×2.2: two members + C−150×75×15×3.0) and connected to anchor bolts via tension load connectors. The cross-rails are [−110×50×2.2 and connected to studs to be designed to strengthen the bearing capacities. A configuration with burrs on the inside and smooth on the outside enables the construction of omitting the machining of holes for equipments and thinner walls with simplified attachments of finishings.

We investigated the thickness and composition dependence of perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA) in L10 Fe1−xPtx (x = 0.4, 0.5, and 0.55) films. The FePt films with different thicknesses of 35 and 70 Å were grown at the substrate temperature Ts = 300 °C by molecular beam epitaxy coevaporation technique. A (001)-oriented epitaxial L10 FePt film was grown on the thin (001)-oriented fcc Pt layer, while a poorly crystallized FePt film was formed on the (111)-textured Pt layer. Our results showed that, at a fixed thickness of 70 Å, the PMA of FePt alloy films is enhanced as Pt content increases from 40% to 55%.