• Journal of the Korean Society for Precision Engineering
• /
• v.21 no.5
• /
• pp.188-202
• /
• 2004

This research was designed to investigate biomechanical aspects of the evolution based on the hypothesis of dynamic cooperative interactions between the locomotion pattern and the body shape in the evolution of human bipedal walking The musculoskeletal model used in the computer simulation consisted of 12 rigid segments and 26 muscles. The nervous system was represented by 18 rhythmic pattern generators. The genetic algorithm was employed based on the natural selection theory to represent the evolutionary mechanism. Evolutionary strategy was assumed to minimize the cost function that is weighted sum of the energy consumption, the muscular fatigue and the load on the skeletal system. The simulation results showed that repeated manipulations of the genetic algorithm resulted in the change of body shape and locomotion pattern from those of chimpanzee to those of human. It was suggested that improving locomotive efficiency and the load on the musculoskeletal system are feasible factors driving the evolution of the human body shape and the bipedal locomotion pattern. The hypothetical evolution method employed in this study can be a new powerful tool for investigation of the evolution process.

• Journal of Korean Biological Nursing Science
• /
• v.6 no.1
• /
• pp.17-31
• /
• 2004

The purpose of this study was to analyze the concept of physical activity. The method was based on the steps of concept analysis by Walker and Avant(1988). The result of this study were as follows； Upon the concept analysis, physical activity is defined as a series of bodily movements which is performed voluntarily by individual. The defining attributes of physical activity were a series of bodily movements, energy expenditure, goal-directedness, and self-control of the body. The antecedents of physical activity were neuromusculoskeletal function, cardiopulmonary function and cognitive function. And the consequences of physical activity were improvement of physical function, induction of fatigue, and need(physiopsychosocial) satisfaction. Further studies are needed to develop the concept of physical activity using the Hybrid model. In addition, considering personal characteristics it is important to study the facilitating factors of physical activity.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Precision Engineering
• /
• v.26 no.7
• /
• pp.142-149
• /
• 2009

The aim of this study was to identify both the mechanical and reflex properties associated with spasticity in hemiplegic patients. Ten hemiplegic patients were included in this study. Multiple pendulum tests were executed for each subject, and knee joint angle and EMG of Rectus Femoris muscle were measured. The neuromusculoskeletal system model was developed from generally accepted mechanism and identified through minimization of the error in the model-predicted pendulum trajectories. The identification was successful in terms of small error in simulated kinematics and high sensitivity and precision of simulated torque against EMG activity. The reflex threshold showed significant difference between different clinical scores (p<0.01) and significant negative correlation (r=-0.93) with the EMG duration. It is expected that the suggested method may help in understanding mechanisms underlying spasticity.

• Physical Therapy Rehabilitation Science
• /
• v.12 no.2
• /
• pp.177-184
• /
• 2023

Objective: Manual therapy is a commonly utilized approach in managing chronic pain, but its specific impact on pain catastrophizing remains uncertain. The objective of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to examine the effects of manual therapy on pain catastrophizing in individuals with chronic pain. Design: A systematic review and meta-analysis Methods: A comprehensive search was conducted in electronic databases to identify relevant studies published from 2014 onwards. Studies that evaluated the impact of manual therapy on pain catastrophizing in individuals with chronic pain were incorporated. The risk of bias in the selected studies was evaluated using the Cochrane tool for risk of bias in qualitative analysis. For the quantitative analysis, RevMan 5.4 software was utilized, employing a random-effects model as the analysis model. The effect measure used in the analysis was the standardized mean difference (SMD). Results: In total, 26 studies were collected, and following the screening process, three of them were incorporated into the final analysis. The included studies involved a total of 153 patients with chronic pain. The interventions comprised various manual therapy techniques targeting different areas of the body. Pain catastrophizing and pain intensity were the primary outcomes of interest. The meta-analysis revealed a significant reduction in pain catastrophizing scores following manual therapy intervention compared to control conditions (SMD = -0.91, 95% CI: -1.25 to -0.58). However, heterogeneity between the studies was observed. Conclusions: Despite the limited quantity and heterogeneity of studies, it has been demonstrated that manual therapy intervention is effective in reducing pain catastrophizing in individuals with chronic pain.