• Journal of Korean Medicine for Obesity Research
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.125-135
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• 2022

Objectives: A restrospective chart review were conducted to investigate the overall weight loss effect of the integrated Korean medicine treatment on obese patients (body mass index [BMI] ≥25 kg/m²) in Korean medicine clinic and analyze the difference in the effect according to lifestyle behaviors. Methods: The medical records of 43 obese patients were retrospectively analyzed including body weight, BMI, waist circumference, hip circumference, and body composition who received integrated Korean medicine treatment for 4 weeks at 24 Korean medicine clinics in Daejeon metropolitan city. All outcome measures were evaluated again 8 weeks after the end of treatment at week 12 for follow-up. EuroQol-5D (EQ-5D), the Korean version of the obesity-related quality of life scale (KOQOL) and patient's satisfaction were also evaluated. The analysis was divided according to the treatment period and observation period, and subgroup analysis was performed according to drinking and exercise habits. Results: Body weight, body fat, waist circumference, hip circumference, body fat were significantly reduced at week 4 and week 12. Theses weight reduction effects were significantly greater within treatment period (0 to 4 week) than observation period (4 to 12 week). Especially in the non-exercise group, the changes in body fat mass and body fat percent showed a significant difference between the treatment period and the observation period. KOQOL were also significantly improved at 12 week, but not in EQ-5D. No severe adverse events were observed. Conclusions: The integrated Korean medicine treatment could be effective to treat obesity including weight loss. It is necessary to prevent additional weight regain through regular exercise even after Korean medicine treatment.

• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.44 no.5
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• pp.904-910
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• 2023

Objectives: The aim of this case report is to present the effects of Korean medicine treatment in a patient with left facial paraesthesia, temporomandibular joint (TMJ) pain, and post-traumatic neck pain induced by cerebral infarction. Methods: A 26-year-old male patient was treated with Cheongpa-Jeon H, acupuncture, pharmacopuncture (Shinbaro2), and Chuna Therapy for 24 days of hospitalization. Left facial paraesthesia, TMJ pain, and post-traumatic neck pain were assessed with a Numeric Rating Scale (NRS) and EuroQoL-5 Dimension (EQ-5D). Post-traumatic neck pain was assessed using the Neck Disability Index (NDI). Results: After 24 days of treatment, the patient's left facial paraesthesia and left arm tingling sensation were relieved from NRS 6 to NRS 2. Left TMJ pain was reduced from NRS 5 to NRS 2. The EQ-5D score increased from 0.138 to 0.73. The NDI score decreased from 71.11 to 37.78. Conclusion: These results show that left facial paraesthesia, TMJ pain, and post-traumatic neck pain can be relieved with Korean medicine treatment. However, further well-designed studies are required to confirm these findings.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.103-116
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• 2016

Objectives : This study was performed to assess the effectiveness of conservative Korean traditional medical treatment on lumbar intervertebral disc herniation in 12 adolescents. Methods : Data were collected from adolescent patients diagnosed with lumbar intervertebral herniation by MRI, hospitalized at Jaseng Korean Medicine Hospital from January 1, 2014 to December 31, 2015. A total of 12 patients were included in the study. Patients were treated by acupuncture, pharmacopuncture, electroacupuncture, herbal medicine, chuna manual therapy, physical therapy during hospitalization period. To measure treatment outcomes, a verbal numerical rating scale (VNRS), Oswestry disability index (ODI), range of motion (ROM), Straight leg raising test (SLR), and EQ-5D were used. Results : The average age of the participants was $16.05{\pm}1.62$. The average of duration of symptom was $19.25{\pm}26.83(weeks)$ and the average length of hospitalization was $23.8{\pm}16.4(days)$. 2 patients (17 %) suffered from only lumbar pain, while 10 patients (83 %) suffered from lumbar and leg pain. No participant suffered from only leg pain. 8 patients (67 %) were diagnosed with disc herniation in one segment, and 4 patients (33 %) were diagnosed with disc herniation in multiple segments. A total of 17 disc segments (28 %) were herniated. The most herniated lumbar level was L4-5. 3 segments were diagnosed with bulging (17 %), 6 with protrusion (35 %), and 8 with extrusion (47 %). Extrusion was the most frequent herniated type. After treatment, the average VNRS of lumbar pain significantly decreased from $5.58{\pm}1.62$ to $2.91{\pm}1.56$ (p<0.001) and the average VNRS of leg pain significantly decreased from $5.16{\pm}2.51$ to $3.08{\pm}1.8$ (p<0.001). ODI significantly decreased from $48.87{\pm}18.72$ to $28.57{\pm}15.05$ (p<0.05), and EQ-5D significantly increased $0.58{\pm}0.31$ to $0.80{\pm}0.12$ (p<0.05). Range of flexion significantly improved from $61.25{\pm}32.62$ to $68.33{\pm}26.22$ (p<0.05). Conclusion : Conservative Korean Traditional Medical Treatment may be effective in the treatment of lumbar intervertebral disc herniation in adolescence. However, more case reports and clinical research are needed.

• Journal of Society of Occupational Therapy for the Aged and Dementia
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.19-28
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• 2018

Objective : The aim of current investigation was to standardize the grip strength of elders and to examine the correlation between grip strength, anthropometric parameters, depression and quality of life. Method : The researchers used Korea national health and nutrition examination surveys (2016) for analysis and analyzed the data of 919 elders who had completed the screening test among right-handed elderly without activity limitation. The researchers classified the age of the elders as 65~69, 70~74, 75~79, and 80 years old for standardization of grip strength. Anthropometric parameters are height, weight, body mass index, and waist circumference. Depression was measured by PHQ-9(Patient Health Questionnaire-9) and quality of life was assessed by EQ-5D. Result : The ratio of right handedness of the elderly was 87.8%, left handed 4.9%, and both handles 5.7%. In the standardization and correlation analysis, the grip strength decreased with age (p<.01, r=-.308~-.305). The grip strength showed a strong correlation with height (p<.001, r=.747~.741). There was a significant correlation between depression (p<.01, r=-.172~-.163) and quality of life (p<.01, r=.285~.267). Conclusion : The findings of this investigation suggest that height, depression, and quality of life need to be considered when assessing the level of grip strength in the elderly.

• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.40 no.5
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• pp.938-947
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• 2019

Objective: This study was performed to report the changes in symptoms and radiological consequences of a patient diagnosed with spinal neurofibroma and complaining of lower back pain. Methods: The patient was diagnosed with a spinal neurofibroma after MRI examination and was treated with traditional Korean medicine, including traditional Korean medication and acupuncture. We measured the change in symptom severity using a numerical rating scale (NRS) and the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI). We also used the EQ-5D (EuroQoL-5D) scale to assess the patient's quality of life. In addition, we examined the change in the size of the cyst by MRI twice after discharge: at about 3 months after discharge and at about 8 months after discharge. Results: After about 6 weeks of treatment, most pathological symptoms had decreased. The patient showed a decline in NRS and ODI scores and showed an increase in quality of life. The two MRI examinations after the discharge revealed a decrease in the size of the cyst. Conclusions: Traditional Korean medicine can be a solution for patients with spinal neurofibroma causing neurological pain.

• Journal of Korean Medicine Rehabilitation
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.21-32
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• 2018

Objectives This study was designed to investigate the effects of wet cupping on Wisu (BL12) in non-acute low back pain patients. Methods We recruited 30 participants for this study. Fifteen patients were randomly assigned to the Wisu (BL21) treatment group (WT group) and 15 were assigned to the non-acupoint treatment group (NT group). Both groups were treated with the pricking-cupping bloodletting method three times. Values at baseline and follow-up were analyzed by Wilcoxon signed rank test and the differences between the two groups were determined by Wilcoxon rank sum test. p-values less than 0.05 were considered significant. The primary outcome was the visual analogue scale (VAS), and secondary outcomes were the Oswestry disability index (ODI), Rolland-Morris disability questionnaire (RMDQ), Euroqol-5 dimension questionnaire (EQ-5D) and finger-to-ground distance (FTGD). These outcomes were measured on the day of first treatment before the procedure and on follow-up 7 days after the last treatment. Results Significant changes were identified in the VAS for pain and ODI in each group after wet cupping treatment on Wisu (p<0.05). However, no significant changes were found between groups. Meanwhile, RMDQ and EQ-5D were significantly decreased only in the NT group (p<0.05) without any differences between groups. FTGD was decreased in both groups, but not significantly. Conclusions Wet cupping with both Wisu treatment and non-acupoint had significant effects on non-acute low back pain, although there were no differences between the two groups. A large-scale study is needed to identify the effect of wet cupping on Wisu.

• Journal of Korean Medicine Rehabilitation
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.109-115
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• 2019

Cervical dystonia (CD) is a disorder characterized by sustained or intermittent, involuntary muscle contractions which cause twisting, repetitive movements and abnormal postures. In this case report, a CD patients was treated with transfer energy capacitive and resistive (TECAR) therapy and conventional Korean medicine, which consists of acupuncture, Chuna manual medicine, pharmacopuncture and herbal medicine. For outcome measures, this study evaluated Cobb's angle, EuroQol five dimension scale (EQ-5D), numerical rating scale (NRS), neck disabillity index (NDI) and cervical range of motion. As a result, improvements were found in Cobb's angle ($18.65^{\circ}$ to $15.90^{\circ}$), EQ-5D score (0.808 to 0.862), NRS (5 to 3), NDI (16 to 8) and angle of cervical lateral bending ($15^{\circ}$ to $25^{\circ}$). In conclusion, this study shows that combined therapy of conventional Korean medicine treatment and TECAR therapy can be effective for CD patients.

• The Journal of Korean Society for School & Community Health Education
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.15-27
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• 2019

Objective: Patients with COPD have a lower overall quality of life than normal people. If patients with COPD do not regularly perform physical activities, their exercise capacity is reduced. It could lead to muscle loss, and negatively affect their general physical, social, and psycho-social status. The purpose of this study was to examine association with physical activity, sedentary life time and health-related quality of life in patients with COPD. Method: Of the total of 22,948 participants surveyed in Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES 2013-2015), 8,626 participants were used for this study. Of these, under 40 years, over 80 years, missing values and abnormal values were excluded. Study variables included physical activity level, sedentary time and health-related quality of life variables. The physical activity level assessment tool was measured using International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ). Sedentary time referred to the amount of sitting time without moving the body. EQ-5D (Euro Quality of Life-5 Dimensions) was used as an index of health-related quality of life. Control variables were age, gender, income level, education level, marital status, comorbidity, smoking, BMI, cough, sputum, COPD severity. For this study, descriptive analysis, T-test, ANOVA and multivariate regression analysis were performed. Results: Of the 1,092 patients with COPD, 76.1% (n=831) were male and 23.9% (n=261) were female, while 39.0% (n=2,939) were male and 61.0% (n=4,595) were female in the comparison group without COPD. The COPD group with high level of physical activity showed a high level of EQ-5D scores ($0.9349{\pm}0.11$, p <0.001). Among patients with COPD, after adjusting for control variables, physical activity and sedentary time (physical activity level, Β=0.047, p <.001), (sedentary time, Β=-0.017, p <.05) were associated with health-related quality of life. Conclusion: Patients with COPD have a higher quality of life as their physical activity increases and the quality of life decreases as the time spent sitting increases. This study suggests that public health experts should consider improving COPD patient physical activity.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.21 no.12
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• pp.826-835
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• 2020

The purpose of this study was to examine the mediating effect of stress on the relationship between oral health behaviors and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in the elderly. We analyzed 8148 subjects aged 65 or older who participated in the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2010-2015). All individuals were asked about their socioeconomic history, general health, and oral health behaviors (the frequency of tooth brushing, regular dental check-ups, and use of interdental cleaners). In the results, HRQOL was low in the elderly from a low socioeconomic class, or with diabetes mellitus, hypertension, or poor oral health behaviors. A partial mediating effect from stress was confirmed on the relationship between oral health behaviors and HRQOL. In conclusion, HRQOL was associated with oral health behaviors, with a mediating effect from stress. Therefore, it is necessary that a convergence health promotion program should be planned with an oral health education program and a stress management program for the elderly.

• Korean Journal of Occupational Health Nursing
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.33-43
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• 2009

Purpose: This study was aimed to identify the health related quality of life(HRQoL) by job characteristics and its predictors in Korean adult women. Methods: This study used data from cross-sectional surveys conducted for the 2005 National Health and Nutrition Survey, which was performed by using a face-to-face interview method. The data were analyzed by ANOVA, t-test and multiple regression using the SPSS program. Demographic characteristics, subject health state, EQ-5D were included in the study instruments. Results: The mean HRQoL index in the subjects was $0.792{\pm}0.102$. There were significant statistical differences on HRQoL among job characteristics. The health related quality of life of non-physical workers was the highest. The significant predictors of the HRQoL of all subjects were the subjective health status, the present health status compared to the previous year, education, age, marital status and income. The factors accounted for 22.1% of variance in the health related quality of life and the predictors of the HRQoL among job characteristics were different. Conclusion: These results may contribute to development of nursing strategy to improve female health related quality of life. The health related quality of life program for adult women by job characteristics is advised based on results of the study.