• 한국노년학
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• v.30 no.3
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• pp.793-802
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• 2010

The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of extreme heat on muscle function and muscle injury marker in elderly women. The subjects of this study were eight post-menopausal elderly women without any metabolic disease. All eight subjects were asked to perform the knee joint isokinetic exercise using isokinetic equipment (cybex) in the laboratory and experimental temperature within laboratory was adjusted to two conditions: extreme heat temperature(33±0.5℃) and normal temperature(20±0.5℃) maintained in 50±3% humidity conditions. Each experimental exercise was monitored and analyzed the change of HSP70, LDH and CK. Muscular functions (peak torque, total work, percentage of peak torque body weight, fatigue index, average power and total work) were significant differences at exercise between temperatural conditions (p<.05). In extreme heat temperature, muscular injury markers (HSP70, LDH and CK) were increased, threfore resulted in significantly higher than normal temperature(p<.05). These results show that extreme heat temperature can decrease muscle function in elderly women.

• Journal of Korean Foot and Ankle Society
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.173-178
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• 2005

Propose: There have been many debates about the ideal surgical technique for acute Achilles tendon rupture. The purpose of this study is to review and analyze the clinical outcome of the acute Achilles tendon ruptures that had been repaired by indirect suture technique with minimal incision that utilized an instrument called Achillon (Newdeal, France). Materials and Methods: This study is based on the 14 cases (14 patients) of acute Achilles tendon total ruptures that have been repaired by minimal incision technique utilizing Achillon instrument from June 2003 to December 2004. Two cases were reruptured before 8 weeks and repaired again using Krackow suture which left 12 feet for postoperative functional evaluation with at least 6 months of follow-up. Ten cases were men and average age at time of injury was 34.4 (26-49) years. The time from injury to surgery was an average of 4.5 (1-9) days and the postoperative evaluations were done by an Arner-Lindholm scale and AOFAS score. The ability to return to original work and sports activities as well as patient satisfaction were also evaluated. Results: The follow-up period was averaged for 13.2 (6-24) months. Seventy-one percent of cases were ruptured during sports activities. The ruptured level was the average of 5.1 cm (3.2-8 cm) above calcaneal attachment and the skin incision was averaged for 2.7 cm (2.5-3.0 cm) long. At final follow-up, standing on tip-toe was possible in all cases while the heel-floor height on ruptured side was shorter by 0.7 cm (0-2 cm). By Arner-Lindholm evaluation scale, 9 cases were excellent, and 3 cases were good. Overall AOFAS score was an average of 96.1 (94-100), and all patients were satisfied with the result. Patients returned to work at an average of 1.3 months after the surgery and pre-injury sports activities were all possible from at 6 months after operation. Conclusion: Since we have treated acute Achilles tendon ruptures with minimal incision technique utilizing the Achillon and gained encouraging functional results with all patients returning to previous work with high patient satisfaction, this technique could be recommended as one of the ideal surgical options for the Achilles tendon ruptures.

• Journal of the Ergonomics Society of Korea
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.525-534
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• 2011

This paper describes the current status of musculoskeletal disorders(MSDs) and its ergonomic risk factors, including the preventive intervention in terms of the working conditions and health promotion among agricultural workers. Korean agricultural workers have been exposed to the poor working condition. They have suffered from a variety of work-related injury and diseases more than the general population or the other occupational group. MSDs are one of the most prevalent problems threatening the agricultural worker's health and quality of life. Low back pain, osteoarthritis of hip and knee joint and carpal tunnel syndrome are well known MSDs that was found easily and frequently among agricultural workers. MSDs are worsened by poor ergonomic working conditions such as heavy weight lifting, repetitive movement and awkward posture which involves squatting with long sitting work on the ground, long working hours and heavy workload which are inherent in the greater part of agricultural works. Even though Korean agricultural workers are very weak population in terms of occupational safety and health, no many studies were conducted in the past and no many social and institutional supports were provided sufficiently. We need more interests and efforts in agricultural fields to improve its working condition and to promote health status of agricultural workers.

• Journal of Korean Institute of Industrial Engineers
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.223-231
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• 2002

Recently, work-related musculoskeletal disorders(WMSDs) have rapidly increased and have been a major issue in the field of industrial safety. Of several physical risk factors for WMSDs, which include postures, vibration, repetitive work, speed or acceleration of movements, etc., awkward postures have been known as one of the major causes of WMSDs. For reducing the potential for injury as a result of postures, cost effective quantification of the magnitude for physical exposure to poor working postures is important and needed. To do this, several postural classification schemes have been developed and used in industrial sites. It is known that perceived discomfort for joint motions and muscle strength for females were much less than those for males. However, the existing postural classification schemes were developed without considering these gender effects. This study aims to develop a new postural classification scheme for female workers, based on the perceived discomfort for joint motions. The result showed that there was significant difference between the schemes for female and male. It was also found that when compared with OWAS, RULA and REBA, postural load was quantified more precisely with the developed scheme. It is recommended that different schemes according to gender of workers involved in work be used in order to accurately evaluate postural load of work postures.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.50 no.1
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• pp.36-39
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• 2011

Objective : To evaluate the efficacy of scalene injection in patients with thoracic outlet syndrome. Methods : We selected 142 patients diagnosed with thoracic outlet syndrome between January 2005 and October 2009. We performed a series of scalene injection with conservative treatment in all cases. Patients rated their pain degrees using a visual analogue scale. We also evaluated the time to return to everyday life and work, and patients' functional capacity. Results : There were no complications or instances of inadvertent somatic or sympathetic ganglionic blockade after scalene injection. Overall, 111 patients (76.5%) experienced improved symptoms after the first set of scalene injection and 128 patients (88.2%) improved after scalene injection followed by conservative treatment. Of the 68 patients who returned to work during the study period, 54 returned within 1 week, and 62 within 2 weeks. Of those who returned to work, 61 reported nearly full functional capacity. We found that scalene injection was more effective in cases of thoracic outlet syndrome related to trauma than in those related to work-related repetitive stress. Conclusion : In patients with thoracic outlet syndrome, scalene injection effectively reduces pain. We recommend scalene injection as an adjunct to conservative treatment.

• Korean Journal of Occupational Health Nursing
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.44-55
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• 2005

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to describe the current status of work-related back pain among nurses in the U.S. Method: Literature review and website searching were conducted. Key words as 'nurse and back pain (or back injury)' were used in searching the Medline, NIOSHTIC-2and reference list of selected studies. Total studies were selected of which subjects were nurses working in the U.S., and published since 1970. Results: Though there was variation in the measurement among studies, the prevalence rate of back pain among nurses in the U.S. could be estimated about 50%. Risk factors were confirmed as the frequency of patient lifting, ward, nursing shortage, overtime, work shift, stress on physical demand, but age and work experiences showed the inconsistent relation. It has been well known that educational approach is not enough to prevent back pain. Intervention studies to apply the ergonomic approach using mechanical devices reported the effects, but the devices were less diverse than European countries or Canada. The study for lifting team was rare. Federal government developed only the guideline for nursing home that had no legal obligation. As a professional nursing organization, ANA has been trying to educate and advocate for "No lift policy" since 2003. Meanwhile, two trade unions of nurses made efforts to establish the law strengthening the responsibility of health care facilities. Conclusion: The research and policy development will be needed to prepare to rapid increase of back pain among Korean nurses.

• Journal of Trauma and Injury
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.45-47
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• 2011

Esophageal perforation due to blunt trauma is rare. A 67-year-old male presented to Konyang University Hospital with painful neck swelling. His neck was injured by blunt trauma at work. Esophageal perforation was detected by neck CT and esophagography. We performed primary repair of cervical esophagus through the Lt. neck approach. The postoperative course was uneventful and the patient was discharged at postoperative day 15.

• Journal of Korean Biological Nursing Science
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.187-195
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• 2018

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to identify associations among the sleep disturbance, fatigue, job stress, and blood and body fluid (BBF) exposure of shift-work nurses. Methods: A total of 299 shift-work nurses from two tertiary hospitals were enrolled in this study. We used the Insomnia Severity Index (ISI), and the Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS), and the Korean Occupational Stress Scale-Short Form (KOSS-SF) to evaluate sleep disturbance, fatigue, and job stress, respectively. The data were analyzed using t-test or chi-squared test and Logistic regression analysis using the SPSS 23.0 program. Results: We found that 43.8% of participants reported BBF exposure over the past year. Splash or exposure to broken skin of BBF were most frequent (56.9%), and followed by needlestick injuries (30.4%) and sharp injuries (12.8%). Age, hospital, working period, level of stress, sleep disturbance ($ISI{\geq}15$), fatigue (FSS $score{\geq}4$), job demand and organizational climate subset in KOSS-SF were significantly associated with BBF exposure in shift-work nurses. In multivariate analysis after adjusting age and hospital, the risk factors of BBF exposure in shift-work nurses were the level of stress and fatigue (FSS $score{\geq}4$). Conclusion: Fatigue and job stress were related to BBF exposure in shift-work nurses. Our results suggest that management of sleep disturbance, fatigue, and high job stress in shift-work nurses is needed to reduce risk of BBF exposure.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.105-112
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• 2017

This study recognizes it as a social problem that can be prevented by basic research on safety security design for the elderly, and aims to clearly analyze risk factors for injury. For this study, raw data from the 6th Korean National Health and Nutrition Survey were employed and analyzed. Their social characteristics were classified with standards including gender, education, EuroQoL(human locomotion, normal activity and pain uncomfortableness), the quality of life(PHQ-(1)(2)(4)), recognition on stress, activity restriction status and associated causes(bone fracture and joint injury). Their epidemiological traits were chronic diseases, 'diabetes and hip-joint pain', and health-behavioral traits were 'smoking, breakfast frequency and high-level physical activity status.' In conclusion, it can be found that damage risk of elderly rose in case of female, lower education, inconvenience or limitation, pain or discomfort in locomotion and daily activities, higher recognition of stress, lower interest in work, feeling of depression, despair, and weariness, restriction in activity caused by bone fracture and joint injury, having diabetes and hip-joint pain, smoking, low frequency in having breakfast and high-level physical activities. Based on this study, we envision that an effective solution for injury risk factors caused by the organic relation can be reached in the near future.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Safety
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.145-150
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• 1998

The production activity by human is accompanied by various accidents which resulted in human and property loss. If information on these industrial accidents could be collected and analyzed for the purpose of preventing industrial accidents, we would be able to get rid of industrial accidents. The accidents which involved absence from work at least 4 days in small manufacturing factories were considered in this study. 84 accidents which occurred in 1995 were investigated. These accidents were analyzed in terms of employment sector, work period, cause of accident and form of accident. The accidents of small manufacturing factories are numerous and are often serious and worthy of greater attention than they have received. Successful strategies for accident prevention depend on effective analysis.