• Journal of the Korean Institute of Intelligent Systems
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.238-243
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• 2013

This paper analyzes a virtual work of the knee and hip joints of bipedal walking robots. For the purpose, we consider a model of bipedal leg mechanism with a compliant foot and a typical walking pattern. We also check the torque characteristics at the joint space propagated from the space of the foot contacting a flat and stiff surface, and present the works accumulated at the joint space. As a result, it is shown that this analysis is useful for evaluating the fatigue of the leg mechanism by the physical walking contact between the foot and the surface, and it is applicable for improving the compliant characteristics at the foot space by employing a proper footgear.

• Physical Therapy Korea
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.215-226
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• 2021

Background: Robot-assisted gait training (RAGT) is an effective method for walking rehabilitation. Additionally, the body weight support (BWS) system reduces muscle fatigue while walking. However, no previous studies have investigated the effects of RAGT with BWS on isokinetic strength of quadriceps and hamstring muscles. Objects: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of torque, work, and power on the quadriceps and hamstring muscles during RAGT, using the BWS of three conditions in healthy subjects. The three different BWS conditions were BWS 50%, BWS 20%, and full weight bearing (FWB). Methods: Eleven healthy subjects (7 males and 4 females) participated in this study. The Walkbot_S was used to cause fatigue of the quadriceps and hamstring muscles and the Biodex Systems 4 Pro was used to measure the isokinetic torque, work, and power of them. After RAGT trials of each of the three conditions, the subjects performed isokinetic concentric knee flexion and extension, five at an angular velocity of 60°/s and fifteen at an angular velocity of 180°/s. One-way repeated analysis of variance was used to determine significant differences in all the variables. The least significant difference test was used for post-hoc analysis. Results: On both sides, there were significant differences in peak torque (PT) of knee extension and flexion between the three BWS conditions at an angular velocity of 60°/s and 180°/s conditions. A post-hoc comparison revealed that the PT in the BWS 50% was significantly greater than in the BWS 20% and the FWB and the PT in the BWS 20% was significantly greater than in the FWB. Conclusion: The results of this study suggest that the lower BWS during RAGT seems to lower the isokinetic torque, work, and power of the quadriceps and hamstring muscles because of the muscle fatigue increase.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.139-146
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• 2010

Recent studies suggest that prolonged standing at work is associated with varicose veins (VV). The objective of this study was to analyze the differences of VV risk in terms of work types in casino dealers and hotel service workers. Symptoms of VV were evaluated using a self-reported questionnaire from 2,092 participants, and muscle fatigue in the lower legs were evaluated using surface electromyography. The shift rate of median frequency in Gastrocnemius was -30.0% among the casino dealers working in prolonged static standing posture, and - 14.3% among the casino dealers sitting during working time. After adjusting age, gender, smoking, and family history of VV, the risk ratio of VV was 3.67(95% CI 2.03-6.59) in group I (prolonged standing and occasional walking at work), 6.29(95% CI 3.48-11.35) in group II (prolonged standing, occasional walking and heavy lifting at work), and 8.07(95% CI 4.51-14.43) in groupIII(prolonged static standing at work). In conclusion, prolonged standing at work may be a work related risk factor of VV.

• Korean Journal of Rural Living Science
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.99-108
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• 1996

This study has intended to suggest fundamental data to develope and choose appropriate shoes for upland farming in order to prevent health deterioration of women workers and improve work effectiveness and reduce fatigue by wearing appropriate shoes. During 1995. 4. 28 - 5. 10, Fifty women workers in hot pepper farming were observed and major shoe types, which were rubber shoes, walking shoes, slippers, and rubber boots, were selected for the study. During 1995. 10. 9 - 31, two subjects were tested by wearing those shoes in the laboratory where the temperature was 24$\pm$1$^{\circ}C$ and relative humidity 50$\pm$5%RH. And the temperature & humidity on sole and in the shoes, the rectal temperature, skin temperature, blood pressure, pulse, lactate concentration of blood, Flickers' value and subjective sensation were measured. The results were as follows : 1. 84% of women workers mentioned that they need shoes improvement and the order of most frequent shoe types to be worn was rubber shoes, walking shoes, slippers, rubber boots. 2. The rate of women who were unsatisfied with shoes for upland farming is 38 percentages. The reason of unsatisfaction was that feet were in a sweat and alien substances were let into shoes. 3. The temperature & humidity on sole were the lowest in rubber boots during experiment(p＜0.01). 4. The relative humidity in the shoes was the highest in rubber boots by 90% and the lowest in walking shoes by 72% during rest And the humidity in slippers and walking shoes were significantly low in experiment(p＜0.001). 5. Rubber boots showed the highest rise in rectal temperature by 0.2$^{\circ}C$ showing increase of core temperature (p＜0.05). 6. The mean skin temperature during experiment was highest in rubber boots by 33.8$^{\circ}C$(p＜0.001).

• Korean Journal of Occupational Health Nursing
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.49-55
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• 2000

When standing, walking, or running for extended periods of time, fatigue occurs in the legs. Although there are many ways, to release tense or fatigued leg muscles, in the case that there is insufficient time to relax, an easy way to release leg fatigue is using an inclined step (about 3 minutes). This method was more effective than performing stretching exercises as studied. An experiment was conducted on a golf course in the Kangwon province in Korea. Subjects were chosen randomly and consisted of 5 females and 4 males golf caddies. Their main tasks consisted of pulling golf carts to the bottom of a hill for 8 to 10 hours and sometimes lifting and lowering golf clubs during the duration of one day. EMG was measured after work and after using the previously mentioned inclined Steps for the lower legs using ME3000P. This study investigated the types of inclined Steps which would be most effective and appropriate for golf caddies, whether sex difference had any influence existed between male and female workers. The results showed that a step with a $20^{\circ}$ angle was most effective for males and a step with a $25^{\circ}$ angle was most effective for females. Females showed faster recovery from fatigue than males. However, there were no statistical significance between males and females.

• Journal of the Korea Convergence Society
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.375-386
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• 2022

Work involving standing or walking for a long time can cause swelling, pain, and fatigue in the lower extremities due to the effect of gravity on the circulation of the body. This study aimed to confirm the effects of aromatherapy essential oils, as a complementary and alternative therapy, on lower extremity edema, pain, and fatigue when applied as a foot bath or spray. The study was conducted after daytime work over two consecutive days on nurses who volunteered at the E University Hospital in D Metropolitan city between 15 August 2018 and 11 October 2018. This randomized controlled study. The foot bath group received a foot bath in 9 L of water containing 0.5 ml of essential oil blended with grapefruit and peppermint in a 1:1 ratio. The spray group received the same solution in 3% dilution in the form of a spray. Edema was assessed by measuring calf and ankle circumference, while pain and fatigue were evaluated using a numerical rating scale. Data were analyzed by ANOVA and repeated-measures ANOVA. The calf circumference in the foot bath and spray groups significantly reduced compared to that in the control group (F = 14.053, p <.001) after the interventions. Lower extremity pain (F = 42.497, p < .001) and fatigue (F = 20.641, p < .001) also significantly reduced in the foot bath and spray groups compared to those in the control group after the interventions. Foot bath is recommended to relieve swelling and pain in the lower extremities, and aroma spray is highly recommended considering the ease of application.

• Korean Journal of Rural Living Science
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• v.5 no.2
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• pp.107-115
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• 1994

This study was conducted to provide a counterplan for preventing so celled “plastic house syndrome” revealed among farmers spending much time in the plastic houses. For this, working environment inside a plastic house was observed. Then, experiments were carried out mostly in a climatic chamber with three kinds of working posture on uneven($D_1-F_1$) or even($D_2-F_2$) ground surface. Tested work loads with three kinds of working posture were : moving in a sitting posture with attaching breast to legs and waving arms ($A_1$), moving in a bending posture with waving arms ($B_1$), and moving a 6kg weighting luggage in a standing posture ($C_1$) Physiological responses in the workers to three different work loads were observed in a climatic chamber, with or without using some instruments, to evaluate work efficiencies. The results obtained are summerized as follows. 1. $C_1$ was the hardest work and $B_1$ was harder than $A_1$ on the even ground. 2. Worker's physiological fatigue and physical loads remarkably decreased when using the instruments such as a chair and a cart with some rollers on the even ground. 3. Working with pushing a cart($F_1$) was the hardest work, and standing($D_1$) was harder than walking($E_1$) on the uneven ground. 4. Worker's physiological fatigues and physical loads remarkably decreased on the even ground. 5. Similar results were obtained when the same experiment was carried out in a plastic house.

• Journal of Yeungnam Medical Science
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• v.40 no.3
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• pp.297-301
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• 2023

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has been ongoing for more than 2 years. Many patients who recover from severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection continue to have aftereffects such as dyspnea and fatigue, which may lead to functional decline. Therefore, the need for managing these symptoms using methods such as pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) has emerged. The purpose of this study was to report the effectiveness of PR in five patients with acute COVID-19. PR was performed in patients with persistent dyspnea and oxygen demand after COVID-19. All five patients were able to maintain an independent functional status before COVID-19. However, after acute COVID-19, they were unable to walk independently and needed assistance for activities of daily living due to dyspnea and fatigue. Therefore, they were referred to rehabilitation units, and PR was performed. The modified Medical Research Council dyspnea scale, maximal expiratory pressure (MEP), 6-minute walking test, forced vital capacity, and grip strength were assessed before and after PR, and the results were compared. After PR, the parameters improved, except for the MEP in one patient (patient 3) and the grip strength in another patient (patient 4). After PR, two out of five patients returned to work and the other three returned home. Therefore, we conclude that PR is necessary for patients with acute COVID-19 with activity limitations.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine
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• v.15 no.2 s.28
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• pp.28-39
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• 1994

Clinical studies were made on 79 cases with thalamic hemorrhage diagnosed by computed tomographic scan and only localized on the thalamic area, were admitted to the Kyung San University Taegu Oriental Medical Hospital from August 1990 to March 1994. The age and sex distribution, sites of hematoma, recurrence rate, incidence of hypertension, inducing factor, prodromal syndroms, symptoms and neurologic signs on admission, relationship between the hospital course and many factors affecting the prognosis such as age, side of hematoma, level of consciousness, volume of the hematoma. ventricular hemorrhage were analysed. The results were summarized as follows; 1. The most prevalent age group was above 60 years of age with 50-59 years, 70-79 years, 40-49 years and 80-89 years of age in the order of frequency. Male to female ratio was 1:1.55. 2. The ratio of left hematoma to the right was 1.32:1. The recurrence rate of cerebrovascular accident was 17.7% 3. The incidence of hypertension was 69.6% and inducing factors of thalamic hemorrhage in the order of frequency were physical work(29.1%), drinking or eating(13.9%), walking(12.7%) and rest(12.7%), The prodromal syndroms were numbness of extremities(5.1%), headache(2.5%), fatigue(2.5%), dizziness(1.3%), insomnia(1.3%), but prodromal syndrom was not found in 89.9% of thalamic hemorrhage. 4. The symptoms and neurologic signs on admission in the order of frequency were motor disturbance(98.7%), dysarthria(82.3%), positive Babinski sign(78.5%), headache(69.6%), dizziness(62.0%). hemisensory deficit(48.1%). nausea or vomiting(39.2%), absent or sluggish light reflex(35.4%), changes of consciousness (35.4%), dysphagia (20.3%), voiding difficulty.(13.9%), facial palsy(6.3%), aphasia(3.8%), seizure(38%), 6th N. palsy(3.8%) and small pupil(1.3%). 5. The rate of improvement was found almost equally in the 4th, 5th and 6th decades, but it was shown with dramatic decrease in the over 7th decades. The hospital course had no relationship with the side of hematoma but the level of consciousness had influence upon the prognosis. 6, The small hematoma had better outcome than large in the volume of hematoma under 15cc, but volume of the hematoma had no influence upon the prognosis because the rate of improvement was 75.0% in the volume of hematoma over 15cc. The hospital course had no relationship with ventricular hemorrhage.