• Journal of Korean Clinical Nursing Research
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.290-302
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• 2014

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to identify sexual activities of males with spinal cord injury (SCI) and influential factors of sexual adjustment. Methods: A correlational survey was conducted among a total of 135 males with SCI. Results: After SCI, patients maintained low levels of sexual adjustment, and a main obstacle of sexual rehabilitation was decreased erectile function (65.2%). Sexual desires recovered in 84.4%, with 62.4% patients reporting more than once intercourse experiences. The erectile function of participants with normal, decreased or no erectile function were 13.0%, 62.6% and 24.4%, respectively. 8.1% of the participants reported no problem with ejaculation. Patients with incomplete SCI had better preserved erectile function than those with complete SCI (t=-4.627, p<.001). Patients with upper motor neuron injury had better preserved erectile function than those with lower motor neuron injury (t=2.446, p =.016). Sexual adjustment was relevant to age, job, degree of injury, post-injury period, sexual desire, intercourse experience, erection therapy, erectile function, and sexual health. Sexual adjustment was a factor of sexual health with a power of 24.2%. Conclusion: The main obstacle of sexual rehabilitation for males with SCI decreased erectile function. Erection and ejaculation are dependent on the severity and level of SCI. The major influence on sexual adjustment is sexual health.

• The Korean Journal of Rehabilitation Nursing
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.80-97
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• 2000

The purpose of this study is to identify and describe a process of sexual adjustment of individuals with spinal cord injury: and to describe and explore positive and negative influences on the adjustment process. This qualitative study was conducted with 10 Korean individuals with spinal cord injury who had been physically disabled for more than one year. Data were collected and analysed at a same time using grounded theory method. Major categories of this study showed a process how the individuals with spinal cord injury adjust to their individual life as sexual beings. The process included and individual responses to the behavioral efforts including and . Initially physical aspects of sexuality seemed to be affected by spinal cord injuries. The changed physical aspects then influenced other aspects of their sexual life. Life satisfaction of each individual as a sexual being revealed as very subjective. It could be defined according to how the individual approved their sexual life no matter what and how much behavioral effort the person had done. In this study 3 types of sexual adjustment aspects were explored: 'Active adjustment' 'Passive adjustment' 'Maladjustment'. There were negative and positive factors influencing the adjustment process of individuals with spinal cord injury. Those factors might come from themselves, from families, or from social situations. Findings of this study suggested that sexual life of individuals with spinal cord injury should not be understood as a physical or behavioral matter. It was a combination of physical, psychological and social aspects of life. Therefore, appropriate rehabilitation programs for the sexual adjustment of individuals with spinal cord injury need to concern heterogeneous life values of them and obtain individualized services for each individual at a different stage of the sexual adjustment process.

• The Journal of Korean society of community based occupational therapy
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.21-31
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• 2013

Objective : This study was aimed to survey the present situation and satisfaction in assistive technology of the physically disabled person. Method : 110 patients, being diagnosed with spinal cord injury and stroke, were chosen and structured interview was carried out using by a questionnaire. Result : The followings are the results of this study. First, spinal cord injury(76.2%) and stroke(72.5%) patients used the most wheelchair and mobility devices in assistive technology device. Second, they were satisfied in effectiveness of assistive technology device. Third, spinal cord injury(39.4%) patients used the most repair service in assistive technology service. Fourth, stroke(28.2%) patients used the most application and training service. Fifth, they were satisfied in professionality while were dissatisfied in service delivery program. Conclusion : The results of this study would contribute to better assistive technology for the physically disabled person.

• Journal of rehabilitation welfare engineering & assistive technology
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• v.10 no.4
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• pp.267-272
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• 2016

In the era of ultra high speed information communication technology represented by Smart phone and Tablet PC, the disable and the aged people came to be in a position of so-called 'relatively weak people' in the field of information communication due to inconvenience of use and difference in information acquisition and processing ability. Thus, a survey was conducted on Smart phone accessibility items based on previous studies of the disabled with crippled disorder, brain lesions, myelopathy and muscular disabilities having more inconvenience relatively in their use of smart phone due to upper limb dysfunctions. Especially, people with upper limb dysfunctions with relatively weak grip had big inconvenience in the conditions of uses requiring actions such as grabbing and rotating the devices, and due to the characteristics of touch screen input method of Smart phone, they had big inconvenience due to a lack of a guidance for keyboard in input. As a result of questionnaires by the type of disability, it turned out that severe myelopathy causes the most inconvenience in using smart phone.

• Proceedings of the IEEK Conference
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• 2006.06a
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• pp.823-824
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• 2006

The Freelz is an EMG (ElectroMyoGraphy)-based controller for the tetraplegic utilizing a power wheelchair by teeth-clenching. The EMG signals activated by teeth-clenching are acquired around user's temples. The controller contains hardwares and softwares for acquiring EMGs, classifying patterns, and controlling a power wheelchair. Also, a comparison test is executed with a conventional controlling method for the tetraplegic.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.20 no.7
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• pp.242-248
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• 2019

This study was conducted to examine the effects of a smart home (electronic control unit, ECU) on the performance and satisfaction of activities of daily living of wheelchair users. A total of 15 wheelchair users (10 patients with spinal cord injury and 5 patients with stroke) were investigated. Smart homes were equipped with ECU technology, which consisted of automation of furniture and products. The products and facilities were integrated and controlled by a smart device or voice. Performance and satisfaction of activities of daily living were measured by the Canadian Occupational Performance Measure (COPM) before and after residence in a smart home. All participants showed a higher COPM (performance score ${\geq}3$, satisfaction score ${\geq}4$) during residence in a smart home compared to residence in the current home. In addition, the COPM scores differed significantly before and after residence in a smart home. These results provide evidence of the applicability of smart homes based on high technology. However, additional studies of more smart home participants should be conducted to improve the quality of the results.

• Journal of Internet Computing and Services
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• v.14 no.6
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• pp.33-39
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• 2013

When the eldery with limited mobility and disabled use a wheelchairs to move, it can cause decreased exercise ability like decline muscular strength in upper limb and lower extremities. The disabled people suffers with spinal cord injuries or post stroke hemiplegia are easily exposed to secondary problems due to limited mobility. In this paper, We designed intelligent wheelchair robot system for upper limb and lower extremities exercise/rehabilitation considering the characteristics of these severely disabled person. The system consists of an electric wheelchair, biometrics module for Identification characteristics of users, upper limb and lower extremities rehabilitation. In this paper, describes the design and configurations and of developed robot. Also, In order to verify the system function, conduct performance evaluation targeting non-disabled about risk context analysis with biomedical signal change and upper limb and lower extremities rehabilitation over wheelchair robot move. Consequently, it indicate sufficient tracking performance for rehabilitation as at about 86.7% average accuracy for risk context analysis and upper limb angle of 2.5 and lower extremities angle of 2.3 degrees maximum error range of joint angle.

• Science of Emotion and Sensibility
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.93-100
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• 2006

This paper aims at the development and clinical evaluation of the wireless gyro-mouse system. The wireless gyro-mouse system is a computer interface with gyro-sensor and wireless communication, for the patients with upper-extremity disabled from the traffic accident or stroke to use the computer software i.e. internet browser. In the development, we focused on, firstly, to make the system wireless for the patients to manipulate the mouse easily even on the bed or wheelchair, secondly, to insert the gyro-sensor into a headband for easy don-and-doff and aesthetic appearance, thirdly, to devise a click switch in case of $C5{\sim}C6$ patients and a head nodding detection in case of C4 patients for sending click message to computer operating system. We performed evaluation experiment for patients with upper-extremities disabled from spinal cord injury. The results show that the displacement error of the cursor position against the target position during linear (vertical/horizontal) movement manipulation decreased with trial number. The click rate per minute also increased with trial number. This indicates the developed wireless gyro-mouse system would be more useful to the patients with repetitive use.

• Physical Therapy Korea
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.71-84
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• 2003

The purpose of this study was to provide information on driving characteristics in persons with spinal cord injury through basic statistic analysis of the survey results. The survey was administered to 44 drivers with spinal cord injury. The subjects' general, neurologic and driving characteristics were analyzed, as well as the degree of difficulty in using their vehicles between tetraplegia and paraplegia. The results were as follows: thirty-five (79.6%) of forty-four respondents was men. The average age was 35.0 years old and the age at the time of injury was 29.0 years old. Their neurologic characteristics were tetraplegics 12 (27.3%) and paraplegics 32 (72.2%). Among complete lesions, the highest level those who could drive independently was C7. All the vehicles were equipped with special devices, including "power steering", "automatic transmission" and "hand controls". The vehicles for cervical cord injury were equipped with "grip bars" as well as for the degree of difficulty in using their vehicles, all the subjects felt that "moving the wheelchair in and out of their vehicles" was too difficult for them to do. We suggest that the driver training should be an essential part of the rehabilitation program for patients with spinal cord injuries to maximize their mobility in the community. This training seems to be essential in order to modify the standards of the Handicapped Drivers Ability Test and to aid the driver rehabilitation program in the health insurance payment system. Also, the driver rehabilitation training program should include instruction in that moving wheelchairs in and out of vehicles.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.59 no.4
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• pp.273-296
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• 2007

In this Study, to reconstruct the disability identity scale(Lee and Shin, 2006)), Rasch rating scale model was applied to the four sub-dimensions of the Disability Identity Scale in a sample of spinal cord injuries(N=397). The Disability Identity Scale was verified by explorative factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis. However, factor analytic procedures can't evaluate item-fit indices, item difficulty, and appropriate scale category. A number of limitations posed by confirmatory factor analytic procedures can be averted with the use of Rasch rating scale model which is in the item response theory(IRT). So in this study, Rasch model was applied to the Disability Identity Scale. Results revealed that (A) 20 items were selected from Rasch model, (B) the difficulty level of the Disability Identity Scale was the average level, (C) 4-point rating scale was appropriate for the Disability Identity Scale. Finally, we could suggest that the sub-dimensions concepts of the disability identity became clearer and items were to the good fitting.