• Korean Journal of Applied Biomechanics
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.73-81
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• 2006

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of strength training on knee joint torque during walking in an adolescent with trisomy-21 Down syndrome. One adolescent with Down syndrome and one normal child participated in this study. Strength training consisted of eight exercises: squat, hamstring curl, hip adduction, hip abduction, knee extension, toe raise, sit-ups, and hyperextension of the waist. The participant with Down syndrome was participated in strength training for 12 weeks, three times a week, three sets, 10-15 RM; resistance was adjusted according to the principle of progressive overload. To measure the effect of strength training, isokinetic strength variables and knee joint torques were measured before training and after 12 weeks of training. The participant with Down syndrome had some abnormalities in controlling knee motion during walking due to muscle hypotonia, ligament laxity, and weakness of muscles. Post-training isokinetic strength increased compared to pre-training measurements. Knee range of motion were increased after strength training. Strength training did not affect ad/adduction and in/exteranl moments but did have an effect on flexor/extensor moment and timing.

• Korean Journal of Applied Biomechanics
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.175-182
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• 2010

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the biomechanical effect of sports taping on the lower limb during drop landing. Twelve male university students who have no musculoskeletal disorder were recruited as the subjects. Principal strain, median frequency, vertical GRF, loading rate, angular velocity and resultant joint moment were determined for each trial. For each dependent variable, paired t-test was performed to test if significant difference existed between taped and untaped conditions(p<.05). The results showed that principal strain of the thigh and the shank in taping group were significantly less than those found in control group. These indicated that sports taping may prevent excessive mechanical strain caused by impact force during the deceleration phase. Flexion(-)-extension(+) and varus(-)-valgus(+) resultant joint moment of the knee joint in taping group were greater than corresponding value for control group. It seems that extensor muscle of the knee joint were not only supported by sports taping during knee flexion but also sports taping is effective for minimizing the possibility of injury.

• Korean Journal of Applied Biomechanics
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.255-261
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• 2019

Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate differences of shock attenuation strategies between double-leg and single-leg landing on sagittal plane using statistical parametric mapping. Method: Nine healthy female professional soccer players (age: 24.0±2.5 yrs, height: 164.9±3.3 cm, weight: 55.7±6.6 kg, career: 11.2±1.4 yrs) were participated in this study. The subjects performed 10 times of double-leg and single-leg landing from the box of 30 cm height onto force plates respectively. The ground reaction force, angle, moment, angular velocity, and power of the ankle, knee, and hip joint on sagittal plane was calculated from initial contact to maximum knee flexion during landing phase. Statistical parametric mapping was used to compare the biomechanical variables of double-leg and single-leg landing of the dominant leg throughout the landing phase. Each mean difference of variables was analyzed using a paired t-test and alpha level was set to 0.05. Results: For the biomechanical variables, significantly increased vertical ground reaction force, plantarflexion moment of the ankle joint, negative ankle joint power and extension moment of the hip joint were found in single-leg landing compared to double-leg landing (p<.05). In addition, the flexion angle and angular velocity of the knee and hip joint in double-leg landing were observed significantly greater than single-leg landing, respectively (p<.05). Conclusion: These findings suggested that negative joint power and plantarflexion moment of the ankle joint can contribute to shock absorption during single-leg landing and may be the factors for preventing the musculoskeletal injuries of the lower extremity by an external force.

• Korean Journal of Applied Biomechanics
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.131-139
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• 2013

Naejirgi is one of the fastest, most forceful and most often being used kicks in Taekkyon games, The purpose of this study was to investigate kinetic factors on two types of Naejirgi kick, one of which uses knee bending of supporting leg and the other uses little it. 12 taekkyoners (11 males and one female) who are the students of Y University participated in this study. They have been practicing on Taekkyon for five years or more. Positions of CoM, the elapsed time of each phase, vertical ground reaction forces, joint moments and impulses of supporting leg were analyzed for this study. The results were as follows; in Naejirgi with knee bending of supporting leg than without knee bending of supporting leg, the vertical motion range of whole body CoM was larger during phase 2 and 3, the elapsed time of phase 4 were longer, players stayed longer in the nearest location to opponent, during phase 4 the vertical ground reaction forces of supporting foot were larger, and joint extension moments and angular impulses of supporting leg (especially knee) were larger. In conclusion supporting knee bending is not a useful strategy for Naejirgi, because players stay longer in the nearest position to opponent and consumed more muscle force and energy for producing the vertical momentum which is unnecessary for pushing down the opponent.

• Korean Journal of Applied Biomechanics
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.189-195
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• 2017

Objective: The aim of this study was to examine the effect of foot landing type (forefoot vs. rearfoot landing) on kinematics, kinetics, and energy absorption of hip, knee, and ankle joints. Method: Twenty-five healthy men performed single-leg landings with two different foot landing types: forefoot and rearfoot landing. A motion-capture system equipped with eight infrared cameras and a synchronized force plate embedded in the floor was used. Three-dimensional kinematic and kinetic parameters were compared using paired two-tailed Student's t-tests at a significance level of .05. Results: On initial contact, a greater knee flexion angle was shown during rearfoot landing (p < .001), but the lower knee flexion angle was found at peak vertical ground reaction force (GRF) (p < .001). On initial contact, ankles showed plantarflexion, inversion, and external rotation during forefoot landing, while dorsiflexion, eversion, and internal rotation were shown during rearfoot landing (p < .001, all). At peak vertical GRF, the knee extension moment and ankle plantarflexion moment were lower in rearfoot landing than in forefoot landing (p = .003 and p < .001, respectively). From initial contact to peak vertical GRF, the negative work of the hip, knee, and ankle joint was significantly reduced during rearfoot landing (p < .001, all). The contribution to the total work of the ankle joint was the greatest during forefoot landing, whereas the contribution to the total work of the hip joint was the greatest during rearfoot landing. Conclusion: These results suggest that the energy absorption strategy was changed during rearfoot landing compared with forefoot landing according to lower-extremity joint kinematics and kinetics.

• The Journal of Korean Physical Therapy
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• v.25 no.5
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• pp.239-245
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• 2013

Purpose: Osteoarthritis occurs in many different joints of the body, causing pain, stiffness, and decreased function. The knee is the most frequently affected joint of the lower limb. The aim of this study was to investigate the differences of biomechanics between independent gait and anterior walker dependent gait of patients with osteoarthritis of the knee. Methods: Lower limb joint kinematics and kinetics were evaluated in 15 patients with knee osteoarthritis when walking independently and when walking with an anterior walker. Participants were evaluated in a gait laboratory, with self-selected gait speed and natural arm swing. Results: When walking with a dependent anterior walker, participants walked significantly faster (p<0.01), using a longer stride length (p<0.01), compared to independent gait. When walking with a dependent anterior walker, participants exhibited significantly greater knee flexion/extension motion (p<0.01) and lower knee flexion moment (p<0.05) compared to independent gait. When walking with a dependent anterior walker, participants showed significantly greater peak ankle motion (p<0.01), ankle dorsiflexion/plantarflexion moments (p<0.01), and ankle power generation (p<0.05) compared to independent gait. Conclusion: These biomechanical properties of gait, observed when participants walked with a dependent anterior walker, may be a compensatory response to impaired knee function to allow sufficient power generation for propulsion. Therefore, rehabilitative strategies for patients with osteoarthritis of the knee are needed in order to improve not only knee function but also hip and ankle function.

• Korean Journal of Applied Biomechanics
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.191-198
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• 2015

Objective : The purpose of this study was to conduct biomechanical analysis of varying backpack loads on the lower limb movements during downhill walking over $-20^{\circ}$ ramp. Method : Thirteen male university students (age: $23.5{\pm}2.1yrs$, height: $175.7{\pm}4.6cm$, weight: $651.9{\pm}55.5N$) who have no musculoskeletal disorder were recruited as the subjects. Each subject walked over $20^{\circ}$ ramp with four different backpack weights (0%, 10%, 20% and 30% of body weight) in random order at a speed of $1.0{\pm}0.1m/s$. Five digital camcorders and two force plates were used to obtain 3-d data and kinetics of the lower extremity. For each trial being analyzed, five critical instants were identified from the video recordings. Ground reaction force, loading rate, decay rate, and resultant joint moment of the ankle and the knee were determined by the inverse dynamics analysis. For each dependent variable, one-way ANOVA with repeated measures was used to determine whether there were significant differences among four different backpack weight conditions (p<.05). When a significant difference was found, post hoc analyses were performed using the contrast procedure. Results : The results of this study showed that the medio-lateral GRFs at RHC in 20% and 30% body weight were significantly greater than the corresponding value in 0% of body weight. A consistent increase in the vertical GRFs as backpack loads increased was observed. The valgus joint movement of the knee at RTO in 30% body weight was significantly greater than the corresponding values in 0% and 10% body weight. The increased valgus moment of 30% body weight observed in this phase was associated with decelerating and stabilizing effects on the knee joint. The results also showed that the extension and valgus joint moments of the knee were systematically affected by the backpack load during downhill walking. Conclusion : Since downhill walking while carrying heavy external loads in a backpack may lead to excessive knee joint moment, damage can occur to the joint structures such as joint capsule and ligaments. Therefore, excessive repetitions of downhill walking should be avoided if the lower extremity is subjected to abnormally high levels of load over an extended period of time.

• Korean Journal of Applied Biomechanics
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.161-166
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• 2016

Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine the knee and ankle joint kinematics and kinetics by comparing downhill walking with valley-shape combined slope walking. Method: Eighteen healthy men participated in this study. A three-dimensional motion capture system equipped with eight infrared cameras and a synchronized force plate, which was embedded in the sloped walkway, was used. Obtained kinematic and kinetic parameters were compared using paired two-tailed Student's t-tests at a significance level of 0.05. Results: The knee flexion angle after the mid-stance phase, the mean peak knee flexion angle in the early swing phase, and the ankle mean peak dorsiflexion angle were greater during downhill walking compared with valley-shape combined slope walking (p < 0.001). Both the mean peak vertical ground reaction force (GRF) in the early stance phase and late stance phase during downhill walking were smaller than those values during valley-shape combined slope walking. (p = 0.007 and p < 0.001, respectively). The mean peak anterior GRF, appearing right after toe-off during downhill walking, was also smaller than that of valley-shape combined slope walking (p = 0.002). The mean peak knee extension moment and ankle plantar flexion moment in late stance phase during downhill walking were significantly smaller than those of valley-shape combined slope walking (p = 0.002 and p = 0.015, respectively). Conclusion: These results suggest that gait strategy was modified during valley-shape combined slope walking when compared with continuous downhill walking in order to gain the propulsion for lifting the body up the incline for foot clearance.

• Journal of the Korean Applied Science and Technology
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• v.37 no.4
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• pp.839-847
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• 2020

The purpose of this study was to analyze the effects of ankle flexibility, gender, and Q-angle on the ankle joint injury factors during one leg drop landing. For this study, 16 males(age: 20.19±1.78 years, mass: 69.54±10.12 kg, height: 173.22±4.43 cm) and 16 females(age: 21.05±1.53 years, mass: 61.75±6.97 kg, height: 159.34±4.56 cm) in their 20's majoring in physical education using the right foot as their dominant feet were selected as subjects. First, an independent t-test of joint motion and joint moment according to the experience of ankle injury was conducted to determine the effect of physical characteristics on ankle joint injury during one leg drop landing(α = .05). Second, the variable that showed a significant difference through t-test was set as the dependent variable, and the ankle flexibility, gender difference, and Q-angle were designated as independent variables to use Multiple Linear Regression(α =. 05). As a result of this study, it was found that the group that experienced an ankle joint injury was found to use a landing strategy and technique through adduction of the ankle joint and internal rotation of the knee joint, unlike the group without an injury. It was also confirmed that this movement increases the extension moment of the ankle joint and decreases the extension moment of the hip joint. In particular, it was found that the dorsi flexion flexibility of the ankle affects the ankle and knee landing strategy, and the gender difference affects the ankle extension moment. Therefore, it was confirmed that physical characteristics factors affecting ankle joint injuries during one leg drop landing.

• Journal of the Ergonomics Society of Korea
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.33-42
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• 2006

It is important to analyze the characteristics of normal gait in clinical and biomechanical aspects. Although gait characteristics can be varied by anthropometric, racial and cultural factors, normal gait studies have been performed mostly for Western people. The present study conducted a gait analysis for Korean young adults and compared the gait characteristics with those of Western people for the establishment of Korean normal gait data. A total of thirty-two adults in twenties(20 males and 12 females) were participated in the gait experiment and their spatio-temporal and kinematic/kinetic gait characteristics were analyzed. The comparison of the gait characteristics between Korean and Western people, revealed that the stride length and walking speed of Korean were significantly smaller than those of Western people by 0.1~0.3m and 0.15~0.40m/s respectively. And the knee abduction moment of Korean was larger than that of Western people, while the other moments(such as hip flexion/extension moments, abduction/adduction moments, and knee flexion/extension moments) were smaller than those of Western people. The ranges of joint angles between the gait studies were largely different with each other, but most of motion patterns and excursions were similar.