• Journal of Korean Medicine Rehabilitation
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• 제27권4호
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• pp.97-109
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• 2017

Objectives The aim of this study is to analyze the patients who have low back pain through registry. Methods We registered patients with low back pain who visited department of korean rehabilitation medicine in university hospitals on study. We collected data from 116 subjects consisted of 51 inpatients and 65 outpatients and ruled out 8 who didn't have pattern identification data at the point of inpatient or outpatient visit so we analyzed 108 in total. We used Pearson's product moment correlation to find correlationship among variables, and analyzed statistical data using Phyton scipy library stats package. Results We set general features, region of the pain, physical examination, ROM, questionnaire results, pattern identification as variables and draw a conclusion by analyzing these variables. Conclusions Registry aimed at low back pain patients was established in department of korean rehabilitation medicine of university hospitals and exploratory analysis based on data were made. Through the registry, we expect that more advanced studies will be performed; for example, executing research which verifies effectiveness and stability of korean medical treatment or developing tools to fill the gap between pattern identification and disease identification.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• 제32권4호
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• pp.147-156
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• 2015

Objectives : This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of Korean medicine for a thoracolumbar compression fracture. Methods : We searched six Korean databases (DBPIA, Korean Studies Information Service System, Oriental Medicine Advanced Searching Integrated System, National Digital Science Library, Research Information Sharing Service, KoreaMed) (up to June 2015) and the Journal of Korean Acupuncture and Moxibustion Society. Unpublished studies were also searched. Clinical research, other than case reports involving less than 10 patients, were eligible. The effectiveness and safety of Korean Medicine was analyzed. The 'Risk of Bias' was assessed using the 'Risk of Bias' assessment tool for non-randomized studies as well as the Cochrane Collaboration's 'Risk of Bias' tool. Results : We found 12 before-after studies (374 patients). There was no randomized trial. All studies combined at least three different types of Korean medicine treatments. The period of treatment varied between less a week and 154 days. All the included studies reported improvements in pain, functional disability related to lower back pain, global assessment, and benefits in the compression ratio of a fractured vertebrae and skin temperature measured by digital infrared thermal imaging in comparison with the baseline. However, all studies had a high risk of bias and three studies reported mild adverse events. Conclusions : There is no randomized trial for the role of Korean medicine for patients with a thoracolumbar compression fracture. The effectiveness and safety of Korean medicine for this population remains unclear. Findings in this review are seriously biased due to observational design and a high risk of bias included in the studies. Future high-quality randomized trials are warranted.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology
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• 제14권5호
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• pp.585-595
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• 2020

Magnetic resonance imaging(MRI) has become an important technique for examining changes in human brain structure with neurological disorders. Brain development is a very complex process, and is affected by neurogenesiss and genetic programs. As age increases, structures of the brain change, which can contribute to the formation of brain diseases. Among the various factors, Gender is one of the greatest influential factors that affect the development of a healthy brain. The images were analyzed through various programs found in FSL such as SIENAX, FIRST, and Vertex analysis. Our results show that significant gender-related differences in subcortical areas were observed at the particular age group. The magnitude of these differences between gender and volume varied depending on the area investigated. In this study, we used more advanced 3T MRI for the structural analysis of subcortical structures between each gender. In addition, Vertex Analysis was used to visualize the volumetric differences in subcortical structures between each gender. This study is limited to groups in their 70s, therefore, further studies are needed for wider age groups.

• Journal of Korean Clinical Health Science
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• 제2권1호
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• pp.35-45
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• 2014

Purpose: This study analyzes occupational therapy interventions to improve activities of daily living (ADL) in dementia patients and the instruments used to verify their effects through a systematic review and attempts to use the results as preliminary data in selecting further interventions and instruments. Method: The databases searched included NDSL, DBpia, RISS, KISS and National Assembly Library with search words including 'Alzheimer's disease', 'Alzheimer', 'daily living' and 'ADL.' The subjects of analysis were a total of 7 studies, and a frequency analysis was used for the usage count of the interventions used in each study. In order to provide evidence, PICO Method was used for sorting. Result: As a result of this study, there were 7 occupational therapy interventions applied to improve ADL in dementia patients, which were used 7 times total. As for the instruments used to validate the effects of the interventions for the ADL, it turned out that '3 studies used AMPS (42.9%),' which was the most, followed by 'Allen Cognitive Level Screen' (ACLS) and Functional Independence Measure' (FIM), respectively used in 2 studies (28.6%); and 'Modified Barthel Index' (MBI) and 'Philadelphia Geriatric Center IADL' (PGC IADL), respectively used in 1 study. Regarding the qualitative level of evidence, it turned out that 4 studies were Level III (57.1%), followed by 2 studies at Level IV (28.6%) and 1 study at Level I (14.3%). Conclusion: This study suggested the kinds and frequencies of usage of the interventions and instruments of occupational therapy for the improvement of ADL in dementia patients, and the studies of evidence were presented by the PICO Method. It is judged that the results of this study can be used as preliminary data in selecting interventions and instruments to improve the ADL in dementia patients. In the future, studies should be carried out on the ADL in other areas related to dementia.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제14권5호
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• pp.3337-3343
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• 2013

This systematic review was conducted to assess the efficacy and safety of bisphosphonates for prevention and treatment of osteopenia or osteoporosis in men with non-metastatic prostate cancer receiving androgendeprivation therapy. We searched for randomised controlled trials (RCTs) of bisphosphonates compared with placebo from Pubmed, Embase, the Cochrane Library, and ISI - Science Citation Index. Meta-analyses of prespecified outcomes (bone mineral density, fractures, and adverse events) were performed using Review Manager. Ten RCTs with a total patient population of 1,017 were identified. There was generally more improvement in bone mineral density of the lumbar spine for patients who received bisphosphonate treatment than placebo or other medical treatment at 12 months (WMD 6.02,95%CI 5.39 to 6.65). Similar effects were also observed for total hip, trochanter or femoral neck bone mineral density. However, there was no significant reduction in fractures. Fever and gastrointestinal symptoms were the most common adverse events (10.4% vs. 1.2%; 0.10% vs. 0.03%). Currently, our meta-analysis suggested that oral and intravenous bisphosphonates caused a rapid increase in spine and hip or femoral BMD in non-metastatic prostate cancer patients receiving androgen-deprivation therapy. Fever and gastrointestinal symptoms were common with the use of bisphosphonates. These short-term trials (maximum of 12 months) did not show fracture reduction. In future, more efficient performance of higher quality, more rigorous, large sample, long-term randomised controlled trials (>12 months) are needed where outcomes are detailed.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine Ophthalmology and Otolaryngology and Dermatology
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• 제33권4호
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• pp.74-99
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• 2020

Objectives : The purpose of this study is to assess the effectiveness and safety of Socheongryong-tang(SCRT) for allergic rhinitis(AR). Methods : We searched randomized controlled trials(RCTs) that used SCRT for AR in 8 databases(PubMed, Cochrane Library, CNKI, CiNii Articles, OASIS, NDSL, KISS, KMbase) from their inception until August 2019. The primary outcome was effective rate and scores evaluating the improvement of AR symptoms. The secondary outcome was quality of life scale, adverse events, recurrence rate, and laboratory indicators. Two researchers assessed the risk of bias in the included trials through the Cochrane Risk of Bias tool independently. The study synthesized outcomes using RevMan 5.3. Results : Eighteen RCTs involving 1686 participants were included in this review. The risk of bias was unclear for the majority of the included studies. Meta-analysis of 12 RCTs showed that there was no statistically significant difference between the SCRT group and usual care group in the effective rate(RR 1.18, 95% CI(0.98, 1.41), p=0.09, I²=46%). Meta-analysis of 5 RCTs showed that the combination treatment group of SCRT and usual care was significantly higher than the usual care group in the effective rate(RR 1.24, 95% CI(1.12, 1.38), p<0.0001, I²=0%). The SCRT group was more effective in improving nasal symptoms and quality of life than the placebo group according to one RCT. Mild adverse events such as dry mouth were identified in 5 RCTs, but no serious adverse events were reported. Conclusion : This review showed that in terms of the effective rate for AR, there was no statistically significant difference between SCRT and usual care and the combination treatment of SCRT and usual care was more effective than usual care. There were no serious adverse events. However, it is difficult to make a definite conclusion because of few included studies and heterogeneity between studies, and the quality of included studies was mostly insufficient. Further well-designed randomized controlled trials are needed.

• Journal of Sasang Constitutional Medicine
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• 제29권4호
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• pp.317-325
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• 2017

Objectives This study is aimed to develop a Clinical Practice Guideline (CPG) on acupuncture treatment for the stroke patients with Post-stroke Urinary Incontinence(PSUI). Methods Experts committee, consisting of stroke or methodology specialists, searched Medline, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, and 19 Korean medicine journals. The search terms were selected to screen the randomized controlled trials (RCTs) or systematic reviews for the effectiveness of acupuncture on PSUI, compared with placebo or conventional group. Levels of evidence and grades of recommendations were appraised based on Recommendations for Development of Clinical Practice Guideline in Korean Medicine. Results & Conclusions 8 RCT were included to build the CPG. There was a strong evidence to support the effectiveness of acupuncture treatment for PSUI. The moderate evidence was presented that over 3 times a week of the acupuncture should be performed over 4 weeks on the acupoints, such as BL23, CV3, SP6, CV4, CV6, ST28, BL28, BL32, GV20, BL22, GV4 or ST36, for 15-30 minutes. 1-150 Hz frequency is suggested if electro-acupuncture treatments is performed with. It was also suggested that the procedure should begin at the acute stage just after the vital signs of the patients are stabilized. There was a moderate evidence to support safety of acupuncture treatment for PSUI. We recommend acu-points of constitutional acupuncture for Sasangin on the healthy side.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• 제65권4호
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• pp.539-548
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• 2022

Objective : Although full-endoscopic lumbar interbody fusion (Endo-LIF) has been tried as the latest alternative technique to minimally invasive transforaminal lumbar interobody fusion (MIS-TLIF) since mid-2010, the evidence is still lacking. We compared the clinical outcome and safety of Endo-LIF to MIS-TLIF for lumbar degenerative disease. Methods : We systematically searched electronic databases, including PubMed, EMBASE, and Cochrane Library to find literature comparing Endo-LIF to MIS-TLIF. The results retrieved were last updated on December 11, 2020. The perioperative outcome included the operation time, blood loss, complication, and hospital stay. The clinical outcomes included Visual analog scale (VAS) of low back pain and leg pain and Oswestry disability index (ODI), and the radiological outcome included pseudoarthosis rate with 12-month minimum follow-up. Results : Four retrospective observational studies and one prospective observational study comprising 423 patients (183 Endo-LIF and 241 MIS-TLIF) were included, and the pooled data analysis revealed low heterogeneity between studies in our review. Baseline characteristics including age and sex were not different between the two groups. Operation time was significantly longer in Endo-LIF (mean difference [MD], 23.220 minutes; 95% confidence interval [CI], 10.669-35.771; p=0.001). However, Endo-LIF resulted in less perioperative blood loss (MD, -144.710 mL; 95% CI, 247.941-41.478; p=0.023). Although VAS back pain at final (MD, -0.120; p=0.586), leg pain within 2 weeks (MD, 0.005; p=0.293), VAS leg pain at final (MD, 0.099; p=0.099), ODI at final (MD, 0.141; p=0.093) were not different, VAS back pain within 2 weeks was more favorable in the Endo-LIF (MD, -1.538; 95% CI, -2.044 to -1.032; p<0.001). On the other hand, no statistically significant group difference in complication rate (relative risk [RR], 0.709; p=0.774), hospital stay (MD, -2.399; p=0.151), and pseudoarthrosis rate (RR, 1.284; p=0.736) were found. Conclusion : Relative to MIS-TLIF, immediate outcomes were favorable in Endo-LIF in terms of blood loss and immediate VAS back pain, although complication rate, mid-term clinical outcomes, and fusion rate were not different. However, the challenges for Endo-LIF include longer operation time which means a difficult learning curve and limited surgical indication which means patient selection bias. Larger-scale, well-designed study with long-term follow-up and randomized controlled trials are needed to confirm and update the results of this systematic review.

• Korean Journal of Acupuncture
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• 제40권3호
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• pp.62-78
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• 2023

Objectives : This study aims to assess the impact of acupotomy on migraine through an examination of clinical studies conducted since 2015. Methods : We conducted a comprehensive search for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and non-randomized controlled trials (nRCTs) related to acupotomy treatment for migraine, utilizing five Korean online databases (OASIS, Science ON, DBPIA, KISS, RISS), as well as four foreign online databases (CNKI, PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library). We identified a total of 10 relevant studies for analysis. Participants characteristics, treatment points, combination treatments, treatment cycles or frequencies, evaluation indices, efficacy, and adverse events were analyzed. The risk of bias in the 10 RCTs was assessed using the Revised Cochrane risk-of-bias tool for randomized trials (RoB 2.0). Results : A total of 931 participants were included in 10 studies. In the intervention group, the average duration of migraine morbidity ranged from 15.5±4.5 months to 15.9±4.2 years. Six studies based their diagnoses on the International Classification of Headache Disorders (ICHD), while five studies relied on Chinese diagnostic criteria. All studies specified the treatment area as the region exhibiting tenderness or induration on the head and neck. Treatment cycles ranged from a minimum of 2 days to a maximum of 1 week, with the number of days per treatment course varied from 5 days to 4 weeks. The diameter of acupuncture needles used varied between 0.3 mm and 1 mm. Of the eight studies specifying needle length, the shortest was 20 mm, and the longest was 40 mm. A total of eight evaluation indices were employed, with total efficacy rate (TER) and visual analogue scale (VAS) being the most frequently used. Statistically, all intervention groups showed more significant results compared to the control groups. Adverse events were reported in only two studies within the intervention group. Overall, the risk of bias assessment for the selected RCTs ranged from 'some concerns' to 'high risk of bias.' Conclusions : This study showed that acupotomy treatments for migraine were effective.

• Korean Journal of Radiology
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• 제22권8호
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• pp.1240-1252
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• 2021

Objective: To compare the accuracy for detecting breast cancer in the diagnostic setting between the use of digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT), defined as DBT alone or combined DBT and digital mammography (DM), and the use of DM alone through a systematic review and meta-analysis. Materials and Methods: Ovid-MEDLINE, Ovid-Embase, Cochrane Library and five Korean local databases were searched for articles published until March 25, 2020. We selected studies that reported diagnostic accuracy in women who were recalled after screening or symptomatic. Study quality was assessed using the Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies-2 tool. A bivariate random effects model was used to estimate pooled sensitivity and specificity. We compared the diagnostic accuracy between DBT and DM alone using meta-regression and subgroup analyses by modality of intervention, country, existence of calcifications, breast density, Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System category threshold, study design, protocol for participant sampling, sample size, reason for diagnostic examination, and number of readers who interpreted the studies. Results: Twenty studies (n = 44513) that compared DBT and DM alone were included. The pooled sensitivity and specificity were 0.90 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.86-0.93) and 0.90 (95% CI 0.84-0.94), respectively, for DBT, which were higher than 0.76 (95% CI 0.68-0.83) and 0.83 (95% CI 0.73-0.89), respectively, for DM alone (p < 0.001). The area under the summary receiver operating characteristics curve was 0.95 (95% CI 0.93-0.97) for DBT and 0.86 (95% CI 0.82-0.88) for DM alone. The higher sensitivity and specificity of DBT than DM alone were consistently noted in most subgroup and meta-regression analyses. Conclusion: Use of DBT was more accurate than DM alone for the diagnosis of breast cancer. Women with clinical symptoms or abnormal screening findings could be more effectively evaluated for breast cancer using DBT, which has a superior diagnostic performance compared to DM alone.