• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.33 no.3
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• pp.128-134
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• 2012

Currently, high-intensity laser therapy (HILT) is increasingly used in various muscle disorders like muscle tension. Our proposed study includes the development of the real-time monitoring system using a myotonometer for HILT. The developed system consists of a piezoelectric sensor and laser distance sensor for muscle stiffness monitoring during the treatments. The results demonstrated that the level of muscle tension was rapidly decreased after 3 minutes of the high-intensity laser treatment when compared to the control group. The combined HILT and realtime muscle tension monitoring system may help to evaluate the therapeutic procedure and efficient treatments for various muscle pains.

• PNF and Movement
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• v.5 no.2
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• pp.1-10
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• 2007

Purpose : The purpose of this study was conducted to find treatment of forward head posture and shoulder instability with proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation concept. Methods : This is literature study with books, seminar note and international course. Results : Forward head posture and shoulder instability has related each other. Forward head posture will make muscle instability, weakness and stiffness on neck and shoulder girdle. It will make pain also. Important muscle are suboccipital muscles, omohyoid muscle, sternoclaidomastoid muscle, scaleni, pectoralis minor, levator scapular and digastric. Conclusion : Treatment of the forward head posture and shoulder instability is provided. It is that treatment of stiff muscle with eccentric muscle work, muscle elongation, muscle strengthening at the structure level and at the functional level for daily activities.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Physical Medicine
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.83-92
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• 2023

PURPOSE: This study examined the effect of using a smartphone according to the direction of wearing a bag on muscle characteristics and balance ability in adults in their 20s with chronic ankle instability. METHODS: Twelve people with chronic ankle instability were examined for three weeks. The types of carrying a bag were classified into three conditions: to the right, to the left, and on both sides. The muscle characteristics and balance ability were measured and analyzed. The one-way ANOVA was used to obtain a difference between conditions. RESULTS: A significant difference in the muscle tone of medial gastrocnemius was observed between the dominant group and the non-dominant group. The muscle tone and stiffness of the peroneus longus decreased significantly after walking with a smartphone and carrying a bag. The maximum slope of the forward and reverse directions increased and decreased significantly, respectively, after walking with a smartphone and carrying a bag on both sides. CONCLUSION: In this study, muscle fatigue causes a decrease in muscle tone and stiffness with chronic ankle instability when carrying a heavy back while walking, and there were asymmetric changes in the balance ability. Therefore, adults with chronic ankle instability should carefully avoid carrying a heavy bag for extended times, irrespective of the style or type of the bag.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Physical Medicine
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.27-33
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• 2018

PURPOSE: This study was conducted to identify the relationships among stress response inventory, hospital anxiety and depression, muscle tone and stiffness, and hand strength in chronic stroke patients. METHODS: A total of 14 chronic stroke patients voluntarily agreed to this experiment and were included in this study. All measurements were performed in one day and in a room without noise. The tests conducted in this study were as follows: muscle tone and stiffness of the upper trapezius hand grip measurement. Subjects were also asked to complete surveys describing the following: stress response inventory and hospital anxiety and depression scale. RESULTS: There were significant correlations among stress response inventory and hospital anxiety and depression, stress response inventory and hand strength, and hospital anxiety and depression and hand strength (P<.05). There were high positive correlations between stress response inventory and hospital anxiety and depression (r=.979), while there were moderate negative correlations between stress response inventory and hand strength (r=-.415) and between hospital anxiety and depression and hand strength (r=-.420). CONCLUSION: The results of the present study indicate that there is a relationship among stress response inventory, hospital anxiety and depression, and hand strength in patients with chronic stroke.

• Journal of Oral Medicine and Pain
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• v.32 no.3
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• pp.319-328
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• 2007

The purpose of this study was to quantitatively assess treatment effect of physical therapy on experimentally-induced masseter muscle fatigue by two parameters of muscle stiffness and elasticity. Three physical therapeutic modalities inducing electroacupunture stimulation therapy(EAST), Microwave diathermy and low-level laser therapy(LLLT) were compared. 10 healthy volunteers with normal occlusion (mean age of $26.3{\pm}1.16$ years, M:F=1:1) were participated in this study. All subjects were asked to chew gum on the right side until they felt pain(more and VAS 5 (0 to 10)) and their masseter muscles were examined with a tactile sensor in order to evaluate changes of stiffness and elasticity according to gum chewing and three physical therapeutic modalities. Subjective discomfort or pain was self-estimated by VAS as well. Unilateral gum chewing increased stiffness and decreased elasticity only on the chewing side but VAS increased on the both sides(p<0.05). EAST or Microwave diathermy greatly decreased stiffness and VAS and increased elasticity(p<0.05) but LLLT did not exhibit significant difference. From the results of this study, it is concluded that both EAST and Microwave diathermy have favorable effect on stiffness and elasticity of muscles and pain relief while effect of LLLT is not reliable. In addition, experimental unilateral gum chewing compromises stiffness and elasticity of masseter muscles only the chewing side while subjective discomfort or pain can be felt on the both sides.

• Korean Journal of Applied Biomechanics
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.207-213
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• 2011

The purpose of this study was to investigate changes in elastic properties of tendon structure of human ankle dorsiflexor following eccentric exercise. Six male subjects(age: $27.3{\pm}2.0$ years, height: $180.3{\pm}1.4$ cm, weight: $82.6{\pm}5.3$ kg) and three female subjects(age: $26.7{\pm}2.9$ years, height: $170.0{\pm}4.2$ cm, weight: $66.6{\pm}1.4$ kg) performed a single bout eccentric exercise consisting of 120 repetitions of maximum eccentric contractions. Prior to and following the eccentric exercise, isometric ankle dorsiflexion strength along with longitudinal ultrasound image of the tibialis anterior(TA) were collected. Muscle strength decreased about 30% after eccentric exercise. From the muscle strength vs. aponeurosis elongation curve, we obtained an index of stiffness. Stiffness of deep aponeurosis of the TA was assessed and found to be decreased from $87.4{\pm}33.56$ N/mm to $73.1{\pm}23.52$ N/mm. The results of this study suggest that decrease in stiffness of the TA aponeurosis following eccentric exercise might have significant implications to functions of the muscle-tendon complex and the involved joint motion and provide better understanding of eccentric exercise in the fields of training and rehabilitation.

• Journal of Yeungnam Medical Science
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.125-130
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• 1999

Congenital myotonia is a hereditary disorder of the skeletal muscle. The most characteristic features of the disease are myotonia and variable muscular hypertrophy. Molecular biologic investigations have revealed that mutations in the gene of the human skeletal muscle chloride ion channel protein are a cause of the disease. The Becker's type congenial myotonia is clinically similar to the autosomal dominantly inherited congenital myotonia (Thomsen's disease). Both disorders are characterized electrophysiologically by increased excitability of muscle fibers. reflected in clinical myotonia. In general, Becker's type congenital myotonia is more severe than Thomsen's disease in muscular hypertrophy and weakness. The authors recently experienced a 25-year-old female patient who has no family-related disease history and who has conspicuous muscular hypertrophy and the stiffness with muscles which occurred from the age of 3 or 4. Clinically she showed the authors a percussion myotonia. On electrophysiological study, exercise and repetitive stimulation of the abductor digiti quinti muscle disclosed a decline in the compound muscle action potential. Biopsy of biceps muscle revealed enlargement of muscle fibers with marked nuclear internalization. After the oral taking the Mexiletine, the patient showed a favorable turn a little with her stiffness of muscles. So we authors are reporting one case of Becker's type congenital myotonia with review of literatures.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Integrative Medicine
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• v.7 no.3
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• pp.159-169
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• 2019

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to provide an effective method of exercise therapy for patients with cervicogenic headache. Methods: The subjects were divided into the following three groups according to the intervention received: cervix-stabilizing exercise (n=12, group 1), transcranial direct current stimulation (n=12, group 2), and cervix-stabilizing exercise combined with transcranial direct current stimulation (n=12, group 3). The intragroup and intergroup differences in muscle characteristics and neck disability index were compared and analyzed. Results: The comparison and analysis of the changes in muscle tone and post hoc analysis revealed statistically significant intragroup decreases in the upper trapezius and suboccipitals in groups I and III, and statistically significant intergroup differences in the upper trapezius, with greater changes in group III than in group II, and in the suboccipitals, with greater changes in groupIII than in groups Iand II. The comparison and analysis of the change in muscle stiffness and post hoc analysis revealed a statistically significanti ntra group decrease in the upper trapezius in group Iand suboccipitals in group III, and a statistically significant intergroup difference in both muscles, with greater change in group III than in group II. The comparison and analysis of change in neck disability index and post hoc analysis revealed a statistically significant intragroup decrease in all the three groups and a statistically significant intergroup difference, with greater change in group III than in groups I and II. Conclusion: The neck-stabilizing exercise and transcranial direct current stimulation were shown to be effective in decreasing the tone of the cervical muscles by stabilizing the cervical bone and improving muscle durability, and in improving the movement and limitation of joint range of motion by decreasing muscle tone and stiffness.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers A
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• v.37 no.12
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• pp.1521-1527
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• 2013

This study proposes a wearable master device that can measure the joint stiffness and the angular displacement of a human operator to enhance the adapting capability of a slave system. A lightweight inertial sensor and the exoskeleton mechanism of the master device can make an operator feel comfortable, and artificial pneumatic muscles having a working principle similar to that of human muscles improve the performance of the slave device on emulating what a human operator does. Experimental results revealed that the proposed master/slave system based on the muscle stiffness sensor yielded uniform tracking performance compared with a conventional position-feedback controller when the payload applied to the slave system changed.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Integrative Medicine
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.129-136
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• 2022

Purpose : The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of applying intensity on the muscle activity and muscle hardness of the upper trapezius muscle in adult males when TENS (transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation) was applied. In addition, this study intends to prepare the scientific basic data of TENS for the purpose of relaxation based on the experimental results. Methods : Eighty-seven healthy adult males participated in the experiment, and they were randomly divided into an experimental group and a control group. All subjects in this study were healthy subjects without musculoskeletal or nervous system damage. All subjects were subjects who voluntarily consented to the purpose and method of the experiment. All subjects were provided with a load by typing for 20 minutes, and muscle activity and muscle hardness of the upper trapezius muscle were measured immediately. Afterwards, TENS was given to each groups for 15 minutes, and the experimental group received stimulation at the motor threshold level, and the control group received a placebo stimulation. After stimulation, muscle activity and muscle hardness of the upper trapezius muscle were measured in the same method. The measured data were compared between groups through an independent t-test and dependent t-test. The statistical significance level was set at .05. Results : The application of TENS statistically significantly decreased the muscle activity and muscle hardness of the trapezius muscle in the experimental group, and the results showed a significant difference from the control group. Conclusion : Application of TENS significantly decreased the muscle activity and muscle stiffness of the upper trapezius muscle. The application of TENS of applying intensity that induces muscle contraction may induce relaxation by reducing the muscle activity and muscle hardness of the trapezius muscle.