• The Journal of Korean Physical Therapy
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.131-146
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• 2002

In the last years, it has become possible to regain some locomotor activity in patients with incomplete spinal cord injury (SCI) through intense training on a treadmill. The ideas behind this approach owe much to insights derived from animal studies. Many studies showed that cats with complete spinal cord transection(spinalized animals) can recover locomotor function. These observations were at the basis of the concept of the central pattern generator located at spinal level. The neural system responsible for the locomotor restoration in both cats and humans is thought to be located at spinal level and is referred to as the central pattern generator(CPG). The evidence for such a spinal CPG in human is emphasis on some recent developments which support the view that there is a human spinal CPG for locomotion. An important element in afferent inputs for both spinal injured cats and humans is the provision of adequate sensory input related locomotor, which can possibly activate and/or regulate the spinal locomotor circuitry This review article deals with the afferent control of the central pattern generator. Furthermore, the application of adequate afferent inputs related locomotor for stroke patients will be able to facilitate locomotion ability, which is automatic, cyclic, rhythmic. These insights can possibly contribute to a better therapeutic approach for the rehabilitation of gait in patients with stroke.

• Journal of Korean Physical Therapy Science
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.93-99
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• 2011

Purpose : In order to investigate the effects of balance training on patients with degenerative arthritis. Methods : 30 participants aged 60 or older participated in balance training for an 8-week period. The effects of the balance training were measured by the visual analog scale(VAS) and static and dynamic balancing. The following are the results of the study. Results : There were no statistically significant differences in measurements of pain when control group participants were at rest and while walking as measured by VAS, but there were statistically significant reductions for the experiment group. Within the control group, there were no statistically significant differences between pretest and posttest results for opened and closed-eye static balance index and visual dynamic balance index. However, within the experiment group, there were statistically significant differences between pretest and posttest results for opened and closed-eye static and dynamic balance indices. Conclusion : The results above provide evidence that balance training effects pain and balance of patients with osteoarthritis and aids in functional movement.

• Journal of Oriental Neuropsychiatry
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• v.22 no.3
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• pp.1-11
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• 2011

Objectives : As the number of patient with dementia increases, interest in mild cognitive impairment (MCI), which is a pre-dementia stage, has been expanding. In this study, we investigated the effects from selected clinical research articles to evaluate the effectiveness of non-pharmacological interventions. Methods : We searched MCI related articles on MEDLINE and the Web of Science using keywords related to MCI. We selected 26 articles, and 13 evaluated efficiency using the Jadad score. Results : Physical exercise and cognitive remediation techniques were effective for improving MCI. Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation, taichi, and music belonged to "perhaps" effectiveness group. Many of the 13 articles that evaluated MCI using the Jadad score evaluated them as "good" or "poor", and only three articles evaluated MCI as "excellent". Conclusions : The present evidence suggests that cognitive remediation techniques to improve memory and physical exercise were effective for people with MCI. However, further studies are needed to identify the physical exercise effects.

• Journal of Yeungnam Medical Science
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.119-130
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• 2005

Stroke is a leading cause of chronic physical disability. The recent randomized controlled trials have that motor function of chronic stroke survivors could be improved through physical or pharmacologic intervention in the stroke rehabilitation setting. In addition, several functional neuroimaging techniques have recently developed, it is available to study the functional topography of sensorimotor area of the brain. However, the mechanisms involved in motor recovery after stroke, are still poorly understood. Four motor recovery mechanisms have been suggested, such as reorganization into areas adjacent to the injured primary motor cortex (M1), unmasking of the motor pathway from the unaffected motor cortex to the affected hand, attribution of secondary motor areas, and recovery of the damaged contralateral corticospinal tract. Understanding the motor recovery mechanisms would provide neurorehabilitation specialists with more information to allow for precise prognosis and therapeutic strategies based on the scientific evidence; this may help promote recovery of motor function. This review introduces several methodologies for neuroimaging techniques and discusses theoretical issues that impact interpretation of functional imaging studies of motor recovery after stroke. Perspectives, for future research are presented.

• Journal of International Academy of Physical Therapy Research
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.1596-1601
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• 2018

Smoking can be a significant cause of lung diseases and reduced respiratory functions. Among soldiers, smoking may have a negative impact on their health (physical strength) and well being. Information on differences in the respiratory functions of smokers and nonsmokers in the military services and the effects of the smoking duration and amount (i.e., the number of cigarettes smoked per day) would be useful. This study investigated smoking durations and smoking amounts among young male soldiers (N = 61). The forced vital capacity (FVC), forced expiratory volume in 1 sec (FEV1), and forced expiratory volume in 1 sec/forced vital capacities (FEV1/FEC) were measured FVC, FEV1, or FEV1/FEC of smokers and nonsmokers were not significantly different, and FVC and FEV1 were inversely proportional to smoking duration. Besides, the number of cigarettes smoked per day was not correlated with respiratory functions. These findings may be attributed to the effect of the strenuous physical activity (e.g., military drills) undertaken by soldiers on their respiratory functions. Despite the lack of evidence for a difference in the respiratory functions of smokers and nonsmokers, this study recommends ongoing respiratory function management through smoking cessation programs and respiratory physiotherapy to manage the respiratory functions of Korean smoking soldiers.

• The Journal of Korean Physical Therapy
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• v.33 no.5
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• pp.258-263
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• 2021

Purpose: Myofascial syndrome is a chronic muscle pain caused by repetitive motions with stress-related muscle tension. This study aimed to investigate the validity and reliability of the evidence for diagnosing myofascial pain syndrome in trapezius muscle using a pressure algometer and surface electromyography. Methods: The experiments were performed using a total of 10 subjects, and the target locations were determined by means of a pressure algometer in the right upper trapezius muscle. The part with the lowest pain value as the trigger point and the part with the highest pain value as the non-pain trigger point were selected for measuring the locations. The median frequency and average frequency were measured in those locations with electromyography. To check the muscle fatigue, the upper trapezius muscle was moved up and down for 2 seconds at 5-second intervals in 30 seconds. The measured values were evaluated using the independent paired t-test and MannWhitney U-test. Results: The median frequency at the non-trigger point (13.7) was significantly higher than that at the trigger point (7.3). Furthermore, the mean frequency (14.7) at the non-trigger point was significantly higher than that at the trigger point (6.3). Conclusion: The results showed the correlations between the trigger points of the muscle pain and frequency analysis of surface electromyography. Thus, this study may be possible to use as a diagnostic tool for myofascial pain syndrome.

• Journal of Electrodiagnosis and Neuromuscular Diseases
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.91-97
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• 2018

Objective: The aim of this study was to compare the electrodiagnostic outcomes of carpal tunnel release in patients with and without diabetes with carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS), and to evaluate the effect of diabetes mellitus (DM) on electrodiagnostic outcomes. Method: We conducted a retrospective analysis of 67 patients with electro-diagnostic evidence of CTS. Patients were classified into two groups according to the presence of DM. Both groups were evaluated using nerve conduction studies preoperatively and 3 weeks and 3 months postoperatively. Results: There were no statistical differences in any of the electrodiagnostic parameters between groups 3 weeks postoperatively. However, there were statistical differences in the amplitude and the latency of compound muscle action potential, and sensory nerve conduction velocity 3 months postoperatively. Conclusion: Patients with DM did not show a significantly different outcome 3 weeks after surgery but showed a worse electrodiagnostic outcome 3 months after surgery than those without DM.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.15 no.sup1
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• pp.41-52
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• 2021

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Curfew due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic could influence health behaviors in people, especially in children, who can easily acquire unhealthy eating habits. This study aimed to investigate the effect of COVID-19 on weight, health behaviors including eating habits, physical activity, and sedentary behavior in children aged 6-15 years in Saudi Arabia. SUBJECTS/METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional online survey that included 280 children aged 6-15 years in Saudi Arabia during the COVID-19 curfew. The survey included questions on sociodemographic characteristics, anthropometric measures, and health behaviors including eating habits, physical activity, and sedentary behavior. RESULTS: We observed a significant difference in the body mass index before and after the COVID-19 pandemic (P < 0.001). Children significantly tended to skip breakfast, along with a decreased intake of dairy products and fast food (P < 0.001). Moreover, children were less physically active and significantly tended to be involved in leisure screen-based activities, including watching TV and use of computer/games (P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: This study provides evidence for the negative influences of the COVID-19 curfew on health behaviors, including eating habits, physical activity, and sedentary behavior in children in Saudi Arabia.

• The Journal of Korean Physical Therapy
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• v.32 no.6
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• pp.329-334
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• 2020

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to provide basic evidence on the need to approach osteoarthritis patients through a psychological factors-considering rehabilitation program by understanding how activity restrictions in osteoarthritis affect health-related quality of life and depression. Methods: This study assessed 3,761 osteoarthritis patients from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. The subjects were divided into two categories: with and without activity restriction. Results: The prevalence of osteoarthritis in women was higher than that of men (men: 19.7%; women: 80.3%), and high BMI increased the prevalence of osteoarthritis. The EQ-5D index of subjects with activity restriction was 0.84±0.18 (points), while in those without activity restriction was 0.93±0.12, and the diagnosis of depression was 15.8%, 8.2%. There was a statistically significant difference in the odds ratio for each item in the EQ-5D. Moreover, the odds ratio for depression with activity restriction was 2.098 compared with no activity restriction. Conclusion: Activity restriction of osteoarthritis patients significantly decreases the health-related quality of life and increase the probability of depression. Therefore, early diagnosis of depression symptoms to prevent deterioration of symptoms in patients with osteoarthritis and to increase compliance with rehabilitation treatment, and to provide arbitration, including treatment that can alleviate depression.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.65 no.3
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• pp.370-379
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• 2022

Abusive head trauma (AHT) is the most severe form of physical abuse in children. Such injury involves traumatic damage to the head and/or spine of infants and young children. The term AHT was introduced to include a wider range of injury mechanisms, such as intentional direct blow, throw, and even penetrating trauma by perpetuator(s). Currently, it is recommended to replace the former term, shaken baby syndrome, which implicates shaking as the only mechanism, with AHT to include diverse clinical and radiological manifestations. The consequences of AHT cause devastating medical, social and financial burdens on families, communities, and victims. The potential harm of AHT to the developing brain and spinal cord of the victims is tremendous. Many studies have reported that the adverse effects of AHT are various and serious, such as blindness, mental retardation, physical limitation of daily activities and even psychological problems. Therefore, appropriate vigilance for the early recognition and diagnosis of AHT is highly recommended to stop and prevent further injuries. The aim of this review is to summarize the relevant evidence concerning the early recognition and diagnosis of AHT. To recognize this severe type of child abuse early, all health care providers maintain a high index of suspicion and vigilance. Such suspicion can be initiated with careful and thorough history taking and physical examinations. Previously developed clinical prediction rules can be helpful for decision-making regarding starting an investigation when considering meaningful findings. Even the combination of biochemical markers may be useful to predict AHT. For a more confirmative evaluation, neuroradiological imaging is required to find AHT-specific findings. Moreover, timely consultation with ophthalmologists is needed to find a very specific finding, retinal hemorrhage.