• Journal of Oral Medicine and Pain
• /
• v.26 no.4
• /
• pp.309-318
• /
• 2001

The purposes of the study were (1) to evaluate the olfactory identification ability in those who have bad breath, (2) to determine the olfactory detection threshold for methyl mercaptan in normal subjects and those who have bad breath, and (3) to evaluate the effect of oral hygiene care on the olfactory detection threshold for methyl mercaptan. Sixteen male subjects with bad breath (male odor group), 9 male subjects without bad breath (male non-odor group), and 10 female subjects without bad breath (female non-odor group) were included for the study. Olfactory identification ability was assessed by administrating the Cross-Cultural Smell Identification Test (CC-SIT), and the olfactory detection threshold for methyl mercaptan was measured by two-alternative forced-choice single-staircase detection threshold procedure in a double-blinded condition. The geometric mean of the last four staircase reversal points of a total of seven reversals is used as the threshold. For the male odor group, after 1 month of intensive oral hygiene care for reducing oral volatile sulfur compounds (VSC) concentration, the olfactory detection threshold for methyl mercaptan was measured again and compared to the initial value. The ANOVA was used to test the group difference of olfactory threshold and olfactory identification ability and the paired t-test was used to test the difference of olfactory threshold between before and after reduction of oral VSC in male odor group. The results were as follows : 1. There was no significant difference in olfactory identification ability among those who have bad breath and normal male or female subjects. 2. The olfactory detection threshold for methyl mercaptan was about 8.4 ppb in normal male and female. 3. There was a tendency that male subjects with bad breath showed a higher olfactory detection threshold for methyl mercaptan when compared to those of no bad breath. 4. The olfactory detection threshold for methyl mercaptan returned to a normal level after 1 month of intensive oral hygiene care for reducing oral VSC.

• Korean Journal of Oriental Medicine
• /
• v.13 no.1 s.19
• /
• pp.93-100
• /
• 2007

TObjectives: Develop a sham moxibustion and determine whether subjects can distinguish a sham moxibustion from a real moxibustion. Design: Single-blinded, randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial Methods: Sham and real moxibustion resemble each other in appearance, burning procedure, but the base of the sham moxibustion isolates the moxa-producing heat and smoke. This device was tested in a clinical trial in which subjects received moxibustion at Zhongwan(CV12), Mingmen(GV4), Quchi(LI11), Zusanli(ST36), Taichong(LR3)), Hegu(LI4). Volunteers(n=32) were given pre-treatment questionnaire to assess their experience in getting moxibustion therapy and performing it. They randomized into treatment(n=16) or sham controlled group(n=16), received moxibustion according their groups. After treatments, the effectiveness of blinding was assessed. Results: There were no significant differences between two groups in sex, age, moxibustion experience. In the treatment group and the sham group, the number of subjects who believed they received real moxibustion or sham is not different significantly.(P=.668) The consistency of a moxibustion type which subjects received actually and the their guess about that, isn't different significantly in two groups.(P=.465) Conclusion: The sham moxibustion was successfully validated in this study, The results demonstrate that this sham moxibustion blinds subjects and can be used as effective placebo-control in moxibustion clinical trials.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
• /
• v.47 no.4
• /
• pp.526-539
• /
• 2017

Purpose: This study was undertaken to develop and test a mastery learning program of nursing skills for undergraduate nursing students. Methods: In this methodological study, first, the preliminary draft of a mastery learning program to provide training for nursing skills was developed based on Bloom's framework for mastery learning. Second, to test the developed program, a single-blinded, nonequivalent control group nonsynchronized study was conducted on 50 senior nursing students in a University selected by convenient sampling. Thirteen students were assigned to a control group; 13, 12, and 13 of them were assigned to intravenous therapy, transfusion, and patient transfer groups, respectively. The achievement levels and performance scores of the selected nursing skills were measured before and after the completion of the program in all the groups. Lastly, the final program was confirmed based on the results of the program testing. Results: Intravenous therapy, transfusion, and patient transfer were selected as essential nursing skills for the program based on the priorities rated by clinical instructors and staff nurses. The achievement levels of selected nursing skills were determined by Angoff scores. After participating in the program, the proportion of passers and performance scores of the nursing skills in the experimental groups were significantly higher than those in the control group. The final program was confirmed which included a diagnostic test, enrichment activities for the passers and three repetitions of corrective activities and formative assessments for non-passers. Conclusion: The results suggest that a mastery learning program for undergraduate students can lead to better improvement and performance of essential nursing skills.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Physical Medicine
• /
• v.15 no.4
• /
• pp.47-54
• /
• 2020

PURPOSE: This study compared two different techniques of treadmill gait training, and evaluated the outcomes on gait and respiratory function in patients with hemiplegic stroke. METHODS: This was a single-blinded, randomized, controlled, comparative study, enrolling a total of 21 stroke patients in a rehabilitation hospital. Subjects were randomly assigned to either the treadmill walking training group with gradual speed increase (GSI group, n = 10), or treadmill walking training group with random speed changing (RSC group, n = 11). All participants performed 60 min of comprehensive rehabilitation therapy (5 × / week for 6 weeks). In additional, each group received either GSI or RSC treadmill walking training for 20 min (5 × / week for 6 weeks, total 30 sessions). Gait and respiratory function were measured before and after the 6-week training. RESULTS: Both groups showed significant improvements in the 10-m walking test, 6-minute walking test, timed up and go test, forced vital capacity (FVC), forced expiratory volume in 1 second, and maximal voluntary ventilation after training (p < .05). The GSI group showed a significantly greater increase in the FVC than the RSC group (+14.8 L vs. +12.5 L, p < .05). CONCLUSION: Both training methods can be effective for improving the walking and respiratory functions of stroke patients. However, our results indicate that treadmill walking training with gradual speed increase might be a more effective method for improving the respiratory function (FVC) than treadmill walking training with random speed changing.

• Journal of Dental Anesthesia and Pain Medicine
• /
• v.19 no.5
• /
• pp.277-288
• /
• 2019

Background: This study evaluated the efficacy of virtual reality (VR) distraction and counter-stimulation (CS) on dental anxiety and pain perception to local anesthesia in children. Methods: A prospective, randomized, single-blinded interventional clinical trial with a parallel design was used. Seventy children 7-11 years old who required local anesthesia (LA) for pulp therapy or tooth extraction were recruited and allocated to two groups with equal distribution based on the intervention. Group CS (n = 35) received CS and Group VR (n = 35) received VR distraction with ANTVR glasses. Anxiety levels (using pulse rate) were evaluated before, during, and after administration of local anesthesia, while pain perception was assessed immediately after the injection. Wong-Baker faces pain-rating scale (WBFPS), visual analog scale (VAS), and Venham's clinical anxiety rating scale (VCARS) were used for pain evaluation. Student's t-test was used to test the mean difference between groups, and repeated measures ANOVA was used to test the mean difference of pulse rates. Results: Significant differences in mean pulse rates were observed in both groups, while children in the VR group had a higher reduction (P < 0.05), and the mean VCARS scores were significant in the VR group (P < 0.05). Mean WBFPS scores showed less pain perception to LA needle prick in the CS group while the same change was observed in the VR group with VAS scores. Conclusions: VR distraction is better than CS for reducing anxiety to injection in children undergoing extraction and pulpectomy.

• Journal of dental hygiene science
• /
• v.23 no.1
• /
• pp.13-19
• /
• 2023

Background: Periodontitis is a chronic inflammatory condition associated with dysbiosis of the oral microbiota. The aim of the present clinical study was to explore the adjunctive effect of ozonized water irrigation in the circuits of ultrasonic scalers for the full-mouth decontamination of patients with periodontitis Stage I or II. Methods: The study was a randomized, single-blinded, parallel-group clinical trial. The test group (n=25) was treated with ultrasonic scalers irrigated with ozonized water, whereas the control group (n=25) received normal tap water irrigation within the ultrasonic scalers used during the professional mechanical debridement. Full mouth plaque score, bleeding score, probing pocket depth, and the gingival index were evaluated at baseline, two, and 4 weeks after treatment. The pain perceived and dental anxiety were also assessed after treatment by means of the visual analog scale (VAS). Results: All periodontal parameters resulted in significant improvement for both study groups. The effect of the treatment group on the gingival index was significant, in particular, patients in the test group experienced a greater reduction in this score. No significant differences could be observed with regards to the average probing depth, full mouth plaque index and bleeding score. Patients treated with ozonized water running in the circuits of ultrasonic scalers displayed also lower scores for pain and dental anxiety. Conclusion: The present study showed a significant clinical effect on gingival inflammation attributable to adjunctive ozone irrigation during nonsurgical periodontal therapy. Further studies, including patients with severe periodontitis and greater sample sizes, are recommended to test the clinical effect of ozonized water in the circuits of ultrasonic scalers.

• Journal of Dental Anesthesia and Pain Medicine
• /
• v.21 no.4
• /
• pp.345-355
• /
• 2021

Background: This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of external vibrating devices and counterstimulation on a child's dental anxiety, apprehension, and pain perception during local anesthetic administration. Methods: This was a prospective, randomized, parallel-arm, single-blinded interventional, clinical trial. One hundred children aged 4-11 years, requiring pulp therapy or extraction under local anesthesia (LA), were recruited and allocated equally into two groups (1:1) based on the interventions used: Group BD (n = 50) received vibration using a Buzzy^® device {MMJ Labs, Atlanta, GE, USA} as a behavior guidance technique; Group CS (n = 50) received counterstimulation for the same technique. Anxiety levels [Venham's Clinical Anxiety Rating Scale (VCARS), Venham Picture Test (VPT), Pulse oximeter {Gibson, Fingertip Pulse Oximeter}, Beijing, China)] were assessed before, during, and after LA administration, while pain perception [Wong-Baker Faces Pain Rating Scale (WBFPS), Visual Analogue Scale (VAS)] was evaluated immediately after injection. Statistical analysis was performed using the Student's t-test to assess the mean difference between the two groups and the repeated measures ANOVA for testing the mean difference in the pulse rates. Statistical significance was set at P < 0.05. Results: Significant differences in mean pulse rate values were observed in both groups. In contrast, the children in the BD group had higher diminution (P < 0.05), whereas the mean VCARS and VPT scores were conspicuous (P < 0.05). Based on the mean WBFPS and VAS scores, delayed pain perception after LA injection was more prominent in the BD group than in the CS group. Conclusion: External vibration using a Buzzy^® device is comparatively better than counterstimulation in alleviating needle-associated anxiety in children requiring extraction and pulpectomy.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Physical Medicine
• /
• v.17 no.4
• /
• pp.93-101
• /
• 2022

PURPOSE: This study sought to investigate the effects of treadmill gait training combined with a thoracic mobility exercise on gait and balance in patients with stroke. METHODS: In this single-blinded, randomized, controlled, comparative study, a total of 20 patients at a rehabilitation hospital who had suffered a hemiplegic stroke were randomly assigned to the experimental group (treadmill gait training combined with a thoracic mobility exercise, n = 11) or control group (treadmill gait training without the thoracic mobility exercise, n = 9). All the participants underwent comprehensive rehabilitation therapy (5 × /week for 4 weeks). Additionally, the experimental group underwent 20 min of treadmill gait training combined with 10 min of a thoracic mobility exercise (3 × / week for 4 weeks) and the control group underwent the former but not the latter. Gait and balance were measured before and after the 4-week training. RESULTS: Significant improvements were observed in the 10-m walking test (10 MWT), timed up-and-go (TUG) test, center of pressure (COP) velocity, and COP length in the experimental group (p < .05). This group also showed a larger decrease in the 10 MWT and COP velocity than the control group (10 MWT, -3.02 sec vs. -1.68 sec, p < .05; COP velocity, -.07 mm/sec vs. .08 mm/sec, p < .05). CONCLUSION: Treadmill gait training, combined with the thoracic mobility exercise, could be effective in improving the gait and balance of stroke patients. It could also be more effective in improving walking speed and static balance than the treadmill gait training alone.

• Journal of Pharmacopuncture
• /
• v.13 no.2
• /
• pp.93-100
• /
• 2010

Background: Auricular acupressure is one of the traditional health care treatments in oriental medicine. Approximately, 30~40% of the cancer patients have said to be suffering from insomnia and half of them having chronic and severe insomnia at the same time. Insomnia caused cancer patients feel more pain, fatigue, depression and anxiety and it sometimes let the power to have the best of cancer pull down. Objective: To investigate how effective the auricular acupressure treatment to cancer patients suffering from insomnia. Methods: We recruited participants from East-West Cancer Center of Daejeon University. Finally, of the people whose age range from 20 to 75, 12 patients who got less than 40 points from the score of Oh's sleeping score (OSS) were recruited. Single-blind, randomized pilot study was performed. The treatment group received auricular acupressure treatment (AAT) on active points and the control group had received sham acupressure treatment (SAT) for five times. Sleep parameters were checked by using OSS and numeric rating scale (NRS). We checked the scale everytime, both before and after treatment. We analyzed the data statistically by using independent T-test, paired T-test and analysis of variance (ANOVA) test. (p<0.05) Results: Twelve cancer patients participated in this pilot study and there was no significant difference between control and treatment group. Only 7 of them had completed the whole treatment process, 4 patients of AAT group and 3 participants of SAT. The OSS of AAT group had increased from $34.0{\pm}4.3$ to $39.5{\pm}3.1$ and that of SAT group had increased from $38.3{\pm}3.5$ to $40.0{\pm}0.0$. There was no significant difference between them. The NRS of AAT group had increased from $6.3{\pm}2.9$, $04.8{\pm}2.1$ and that of SAT group had increased from $7.0{\pm}1.0$ to $5.0{\pm}2.6$. No significant difference was observed between them. Conclusion: Although both groups did not show significant differences, most of the experimental participants showed increasing OSS and NRS after treatments. Significant participants' number will be needed in the next study.

• Imaging Science in Dentistry
• /
• v.43 no.3
• /
• pp.185-190
• /
• 2013

Purpose: The aim of the present study was to evaluate the measurement accuracy of endodontic file length on periapical digital radiography after application of noise reduction digital enhancement. Materials and Methods: Thirty-five human single-rooted permanent teeth with canals measuring 20-24 mm in length were selected. ISO #08 endodontic files were placed in the root canals of the teeth. The file lengths were measured with a digital caliper as the standard value. Standard periapical digital images were obtained using the Digora digital radiographic system and a dental X-ray unit. In order to produce the enhanced images, the noise reduction option was applied. Two blinded radiologists measured the file lengths on the original and enhanced images. The measurements were compared by repeated measures ANOVA and the Bonferroni test (${\alpha}=0.05$). Results: Both the original and enhanced digital images provided significantly longer measurements compared with the standard value (P<0.05). There were no significant differences between the measurement accuracy of the original and enhanced images (P>0.05). Conclusion: Noise reduction digital enhancement did not influence the measurement accuracy of the length of the thin endodontic files on the digital periapical radiographs despite the fact that noise reduction could result in the elimination of fine details of the images.