• Journal of Mechanical Science and Technology
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• 제17권8호
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• pp.1140-1147
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• 2003

We have examined the effect on neck-muscle activation of altering whole body posture. A Rhesus monkey (Macaca mulatta) was trained to produce sinusoidal (0.25 Hz) head tracking movements in the sagittal plane when seated with trunk and head vertical or while standing in the quadrupedal position. Video-fluoroscopic images of cervical vertebral motion, and electromyographic (EMG) responses were recorded simultaneously. Results demonstrated that vertebral motion varied with body posture, occurring synchronously between all joints in the upright position and primarily at skull-$C_1$ when in the quadrupedal position. Muscle EMG activation was significantly greater (P<0.001) in the quadrupedal position than when upright for all muscles except semispinalis cervicis. Peak activation of all the muscles occurred prior to peak head extension in the quadrupedal position, suggesting synchronous activity between muscles. Data suggest that, when upright, muscles were activated in functional groupings defined by their anatomical arrangement. In the quadrupedal position, gravity acting on the horizontally oriented head produced greater activation and a collective response of the muscles.

• 농촌의학ㆍ지역보건
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• 제31권2호
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• pp.119-144
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• 2006

The Korea rural health study, a large prospective cohort study, the objectives of this study are exploration for potential causes of agricultural injuries and diseases among farmers. Current medical research suggests that they may have higher rates of some traumatic injuries, pesticide poisoning, infectious diseases, musculoskeletal diseases, asthma and other respiratory diseases. This study is designed to identify occupational, lifestyle, and environmental factors of workplace that may affect the rate of diseases in farming population. Round 1, initial cohort recruitment, will begin in 2006 and conclude in 2009. Round 2, follow-up will begin in 2010 and conclude in 2014. Approximately 54,000 persons will be selected to study population. Nested case-control studies and case-crossover studies will be conducted for getting to the bottom of agriculture-related diseases. Recruitment and follow-up are conducted in collaboration with multi-centers. As data on the exposures and health outcomes of this study population are collected and analyzed in 2014. This study will be evaluated by public health experts for effort, achievement, adequacy of performance, efficacy, process of study and so on. The author expects that this cohort study may reduce agricultural injuries and diseases and will provide information that agricultural workers can use in making decisions about their health. Also, this study will be significant basis for strengthening the competitiveness of agriculture in Korea.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• 제1권2호
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• pp.158-166
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• 2010

Objectives: This study aimed to find gender distinctions in terms of the sociology of the population; to determine work-related factors; to analyze gender differences in daily living, work, sports, and art performances; and to identify gender-related factors that limited performance of daily living and work activities. Methods: A questionnaire was designed that included disabilities of the arm, shoulder, and hand (DASH), accident history, disease history, work duration at current workplace, marital status, job satisfaction, job autonomy, and physical demands of the job. Out of 1,853 workers surveyed, 1,173 questionnaires (63.3%; 987 males, 186 females) included responses to DASH disability and DASH optional work and were judged acceptable for analysis. Results: Upper extremity functional limitation during work and daily living was higher for females than males. The limitations for males increased according to their household work time, accident history, work duration, job satisfaction, physical demand, and job autonomy. Meanwhile, female workers' upper extremity discomfort was influenced by their disease history, job satisfaction, and physical demands. In addition, the size of the company affected male workers' upper extremity function, while marriage and hobbies influenced that of female workers. Conclusion: This study addressed sociodemographic factors and work-related factors that affect each gender's upper extremity function during daily living and working activities. Each factor had a different influence. Further studies are needed to identify the effect that role changes, not being influenced by risks at work, have on musculoskeletal disorders.

• 한국안전학회지
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• 제29권4호
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• pp.153-159
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• 2014

Low back pain is one of major issues in musculoskeletal diseases mainly caused by MMH (Manual Material Handling) tasks. In Korea, the standards of NIOSH(National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health) Lift Equations in U. S. A. have been most widely used. However, there is no standard in case the height of one feet is higher than that of another one. Moreover, since the standards are developed in U. S. A., there are many limitations for the applicability of Korean workers. In this study, MVC(Maximum Voluntary Contraction) for four postures are measured and an empirical model based on SVR(Support Vector Regression) is constructed. Constructing SVR model, PSO(Particle Swarm Optimization) is employed to investigate the optimal parameters of SVR. The results show that the performance of this empirical model is approximately accurate, even if the deviation of experimental values is large due to the individual differences. This empirical model may contribute to establish the standards of MMH tasks in Korea.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• 제46권sup1호
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• pp.50-54
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• 2013

Out-of-home mobility is necessary for accessing commodities, making use of neighborhood facilities, and participation in meaningful social, cultural, and physical activities. Mobility also promotes healthy aging as it relates to the basic human need of physical movement. Mobility is typically assessed either with standardized performance-based tests or with self-reports of perceived difficulty in carrying out specific mobility tasks. Mobility declines with increasing age, and the most complex and demanding tasks are affected first. Sometimes people cope with declining functional capacity by making changes in their way or frequency of doing these tasks, thus avoiding facing manifest difficulties. From the physiological point of view, walking is an integrated result of the functioning of the musculoskeletal, cardio-respiratory, sensory and neural systems. Studies have shown that interventions aiming to increase muscle strength will also improve mobility. Physical activity counseling, an educational intervention aiming to increase physical activity, may also prevent mobility decline among older people. Sensory deficits, such as poor vision and hearing may increase the risk of mobility decline. Consequently, rehabilitation of sensory functions may prevent falls and decline in mobility. To promote mobility, it is not enough to target only individuals because environmental barriers to mobility may also accelerate mobility decline among older people. Communities need to promote the accessibility of physical environments while also trying to minimize negative or stereotypic attitudes toward the physical activity of older people.

• 한국전문물리치료학회지
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• 제28권4호
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• pp.235-244
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• 2021

Background: The body schema, which is constantly updated using somatosensory information, enables accurate movement. Since pain is reported as a possible source to alter the body schema, the left right judgement test (LRJT) has been widely used in the pain rehabilitation. However, there was a lack of consistency in the effect of the pain on the LRJT results, and for the effect of the LRJT as a part of intervention programs for pain patients. The deeper understand of the LRJT is necessary for better reproducibility, and to expand the therapeutic applications of the LRJT in the pain and musculoskeletal rehabilitation. Objects: This literature review aimed to understand the LRJT and to study the potential of the LRJT for therapeutic applications. Methods: The PubMed database was searched for studies relevant to LRJT. To establish the query set, the term was regarded from various perspectives. Results: The selected studies were classified into three categories: LRJT development, factors influencing LRJT, and therapeutic applications. Conclusion: Left right judgement test is the evaluation tool for the integrity of body schema as well as a tool for implicit motor imagery. Pain, proprioception, and other factors influence the performance of the LRJT.

• Physical Therapy Rehabilitation Science
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• 제13권3호
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• pp.304-314
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• 2024

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the association of explosive strength with muscle mass and muscle function measured using traditional methods such as peak torque (PT) and joint angular velocity (PAV). Design: Cross-sectional study Methods: Twenty-nine healthy adults (14 males and 15 females) participated in this study. Body mass index and appendicular skeletal muscle index (ASMI) were measured using bioelectrical impedance analysis. The explosive strength of the knee extensors was evaluated by measuring the rate of torque development (RTD) and rate of velocity development (RVD). RTD was analyzed by dividing it into early (0-50 ms) and late (100-200 ms) muscle contraction phases. In addition, PT and PAV were measured as traditional methods for assessing muscle function. Results: According to regression analysis, PAV accounts for 24.7% and 66.9% of the variance of RTD 0-50 (p=0.006) and RVD (p<0.001), respectively. On the other hand, ASMI (p=0.035) and isometric PT (p=0.001) explained 49.2% of the RTD 100-200. Conclusions: Early RTD is mainly predicted by PAV, which is thought to be a result of muscle fiber type. Therefore, PAV presents the possibility of an alternative method to evaluate explosive performance. Late RTD seems to be related to ASMI or isometric PT. The findings of this study are expected to contribute to musculoskeletal rehabilitation and evaluation in that they revealed factors contributing to early and late muscle contraction.

• 대한인간공학회지
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• 제31권3호
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• pp.445-453
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• 2012

The aim of this paper was to prove that if the risk level in combined tasks was improved through evaluation of postural load of liquid weight measurement process, the workload level and ratio of exposure time would be changed, and the time of process would be seen concurrently. Background: According to results of epidemiological studies conducted by Korea Occupational Safety & Health Agency, 122 musculoskeletal disorders occurred during 1992 to 2008, in which manufacturing industry covers 96(78.7%) of total. However, this is an insufficient level and only occupies 39% based on the South Korea's manufacturing standard industrial classification(246 industries). Method: Firstly, the number of batches weighed on one day(460min) was investigated based on the work performed and Weight measured weekly. VCR recording was taken based on the level of liquid ingredients prescribed for 1batch using the Camcorder. After dividing a 356 sec video into 1 sec using the screen capture function in Gom player, the job classification was performed by analyzing the change of working postures, which revealed 148 working postures. Time measurement was decided by time of the postures was being maintained. Then, the REBA analysis was performed for the working postures. The ratio of Exposure time was calculated based on the measurement time and REBA Score. In addition, the recommendations were designed and implementation was carried out for the working postures with REBA Score higher than 3. Finally, after the intervention, REBA measurement, time measurement, and ratio of exposure time were calculated for the comparison of works before and after improvement. Results: The number of work elements was decreased by 30.4% from 148 to 103 after improvement. The results of time measurement showed that the time was reduced by 46.3% from 356 sec to 191 sec. And the ratio of exposure time was also improved by 52.1% from 0% to 52.1% after improvement. Conclusion: The reduction of time was found to improve the productivity of management. Furthermore, because the reduction of ratio of exposure time and the improvement of workload level are the improvement of discomfort, it would contribute to the improvement of the worker's psychological working posture. Application: These results would contribute to musculoskeletal disease prevention and management performance. Further studies for other industries would be needed based on this case study.

• 대한인간공학회지
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• 제35권6호
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• pp.595-609
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• 2016

Objective: The purpose of this study was to develop and validate the guidelines for Medic Work Table (MWT) based on the anthropometric data of medical technologists. Background: Users' anthropometric data such as sitting height, sitting elbow height, knee height, and so on are significant factors for designing comfortable and useful furniture. Thus, many guidelines for different types of desks and chairs based on the users' anthropometric data have been suggested to many researchers. However, few researches have been conducted to provide design guidelines for MWT for blood collecting task. Medical technologists often use their upper extremities to perform blood collecting task with high repetitions. These repeated motions could be a critical factor in the prevalence rate of Work-related Musculoskeletal Disorders (WMSDs). Therefore, a study on ergonomic design of MWT would be essential in preventing the WMSDs and improving the quality of the working environment of medical technologists. Method: This study suggested design guidelines for ergonomic MWT by focusing on the heights of the upper side and underside, depths of the inside and outside, and width of MWT through anthropometric studies and literature reviews. Afterwards, a new MWT was made using the suggested design guidelines for this study. Five healthy medical technologists participated to evaluate the original MWT and new MWT. All participants took part in the range of motion (ROM) test, electromyography (EMG) muscle activity test, and usability test to validate the suggested guidelines in this study. EMG signals of related muscles (Flexor Carpi Ulnaris, Extensor Carpi Ulnaris, Deltoid Anterior, and Biceps Branchii) were recorded through the surface electromyography system from both the original MWT and the new MWT. The ROM test of the shoulder and elbow flexion was also assessed using motion sensors. Results: The newly designed MWT showed decreased ROMs of the shoulder and elbow up to 22% and 18% compared to the original MWT. The muscle activities in the new MWT also showed a decrease of 13% in Anterior Deltoid, 6% in Biceps Brachii, 5% in Flexor Carpi Ulnaris, and 8% in Extensor Carpi Ulnaris muscle groups, compared to the original MWT. In the usability test, the satisfaction score of the new MWT was also 56.1% higher than that of the original MWT. Conclusion: This study suggested guidelines for designing MWT and validating the guidelines through qualitative and quantitative analyses. The results of motion analysis, muscle activity, and usability tests demonstrated that the newly designed MWT may lead to less physical stress, less awkward posture, and better physical user interface. Application: The recommended guidelines of the MWT would be helpful information for designing an ergonomic MWT that reduces physical loads and improves the performance of many medical technologists.

• 대한골관절종양학회지
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• 제1권1호
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• pp.45-51
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• 1995

The incidence of metastatic bony lesion has been increased recently, with the advanced therapeutic modalities of malignant tumors. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of surgical treatment in impending or established pathologic fractures due to metastasis in extremity. From 1981 to 1992, thirty two patients who had established or impending pathologic fractures in extremity had been treated surgically. The locations of metastasis, were lower extremity in 24 cases(femsral head and neck;5, intertrochanteric;7, subtrochanteric;8, femoral shaft;4) and upper extremity in 8 cases(proximal humerus;2, humoral shaft;6). The method of surgery was excision of tumor mass and rigid internal fixation to allow immediate mobilization, except 2 cases of amputation. The results were analysed by two criteria. The first was the grade of performance status that was made by modification of Functional Classification of New York Heart Association. The second was the degree of pain relief. The performance status was improved at least one grade in all patients and the mean improvement was 1.7 grades. The satisfactory pain relief was achieved in 81% of patients. Postoperatively, most of the patients had only slight to moderate limitation of physical activities and they became comfortable at rest and ordinary activities. The solitary metastatic lesions showed better pain relief(92%) than multiple metastasis(75%). The curative surgery was done in 3 cases, and they showed more than 24 months of disease-free survival.