• Physical Therapy Rehabilitation Science
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.1-9
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• 2020

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the immediate effects of intervention using neuromuscular control, self-stretching (SS), and neck stabilization exercises (NSEs) on neck pain, range of motion (ROM), and proprioception of position sense in adults with neck discomfort. Design: Three-group pretest-posttest design. Methods: Forty-four adults who complained of neck pain participated in the experiment. They were randomly assigned to the following groups: neuromuscular control exercise (NMCE) group (n=15), SS group (n=14) and NSE group (n=15). The NMCE group did rolling with only upper limb pattern on both sides. The SS group performed neck stretching on each side, 3 sets of 30 seconds for each muscle. The NSE group had the pressure biofeedback applied with increases in pressure by 2 mmHg at a time from 20-30 mmHg while in the hook-lying position. All groups performed exercises for 10 minutes. Neck pain, ROM, and proprioception were measured to determine differences between the intervention methods. Results: Intra-group comparisons showed significant improvement after exercise in pain, ROM, and proprioception in the NMC group (p<0.05). In the comparison between groups, the NMC group had a significant decrease in pain compared to the other two groups (p<0.05). There was no difference in ROM between the groups but the NMC group showed significant improvement in left rotation compared to the stabilization exercise group (p<0.05). For proprioception, the NMC group had significantly lower error than the other two groups (p<0.05). Conclusions: NMCEs through upper extremity pattern rolling exercise is effective in improving neck pain, ROM, and proprioception.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
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• v.40 no.4
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• pp.425-432
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• 2013

Background Recently, the number of thyroid surgery cases has been increasing; consequently, the number of patients who visit plastic surgery departments with a chief complaint of swallowing deformity has also increased. We performed a scar correction technique on post-thyroidectomy swallowing deformity via platysma flap with Z-plasty and obtained satisfactory aesthetic and functional outcomes. Methods The authors performed operations upon 18 patients who presented a definitive retraction on the swallowing mechanism as an objective sign of swallowing deformity, or throat or neck discomfort on swallowing mechanism such as sensation of throat traction as a subjective sign after thyoridectomy from January 2009 till June 2012. The scar tissue that adhered to the subcutaneous tissue layer was completely excised. A platysma flap as mobile interference was applied to remove the continuity of the scar adhesion, and additionally, Z-plasty for prevention of midline platysma banding was performed. Results The follow-up results of the 18 patients indicated that the definitive retraction on the swallowing mechanism was completely removed. Throat or neck discomfort on the swallowing mechanism such as sensation of throat traction also was alleviated in all 18 patients. When preoperative and postoperative Vancouver scar scales were compared to each other, the scale had decreased significantly after surgery (P<0.05). Conclusions Our simple surgical method involved the formation of a platysma flap with Z-plasty as mobile interference for the correction of post-thyroidectomy swallowing deformity. This method resulted in aesthetically and functionally satisfying outcomes.

• Korean Journal of Head & Neck Oncology
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• v.40 no.1
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• pp.19-22
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• 2024

Angioleiomyoma is benign smooth muscle tumor originating from the vascular wall. While they can occur in various anatomical locations, they are rarely reported in the vallecula region of the oropharynx. We present a case of a 58-year-old female patient with a five-year history of progressive dysphagia and throat discomfort. Laryngoscopy revealed a large, soft, mobile mass located on the right side of the vallecula. Radiological imaging further characterized the lesion as a well-circumscribed, heterogeneous mass. Surgical intervention in the form of Transoral Videolaryngoscopic Surgery (TOVS) was performed, leading to the successful removal of the mass. Histopathological analysis confirmed the diagnosis of angioleiomyoma.

• Journal of Rhinology
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.86-90
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• 2018

Background and Objectives: Although polyvinyl acetate ($Merocel^{(R)}$) has been widely used as a packing material after septoplasty, removable nasal packing can increase patient discomfort, local pain, and pressure. Furthermore, the removal of nasal packing has been described as the most uncomfortable and distressing feature associated with septoplasty. The purpose of this study was to investigate the efficacy of polyvinyl acetate with carboxymethyl cellulose sheet ($Rhinocel^{(R)}$) nasal packing on patient subjective symptoms, degree of bleeding, hemostasis, and wound healing following septoplasty. Subjects and Method: Forty patients with nasal septum deviation requiring septoplasty were included. Following surgery, one nasal cavity was packed with $Rhinocel^{(R)}$ and the other one with $Merocel^{(R)}$. Patient subjective symptoms while the packing was in situ, hemostatic properties, pain on removal, degree of bleeding on removal, duration of hemostasis after removal, postoperative wound healing, and the cost of the pack were evaluated. Results: Although the two types of packing materials were equally effective in controlling postoperative bleeding after septoplasty, $Rhinocel^{(R)}$ was significantly more comfortable while in situ and less painful on removal than $Merocel^{(R)}$, which was associated with significantly more bleeding on removal and so more time was needed to control hemorrhage. There was no significant difference in postoperative wound healing or pack cost. Conclusion: The use of $Rhinocel^{(R)}$ after septoplasty has less discomfort, greater patient satisfaction, and less bleeding on removal with no adverse reactions compared to $Merocel^{(R)}$ packing. Therefore, $Rhinocel^{(R)}$ may be a useful packing material after septoplasty.

• Korean Journal of Head & Neck Oncology
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.269-274
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• 1997

Parotid canalicular adenoma is a benign neoplasm that is predominantly composed of branching and interconnecting cords of single or double rows of columnar epithelium in a very loose stroma. There has been considerable confusion in the literature concerning the terminology of canalicular adenoma. However, thesedays it has been newly-recognized as a discrete entity of the monomorphic adenoma group. Canalicular adenoma has a remarkable predilection for occurrence in the minor salivary glands such as the upper lip, in contrast with basal cell adenoma that occurs predominantly in major salivary glands such as the parotid gland. We have experienced a case of canalicular adenoma of the parotid gland in a 65-year-old woman. The patient had a palpable mass on the preauricular area for the last 15 years and recently noticed a mild pain and discomfort on the mass. Neck ultrasonography showed a low echogenic mass of 1.0cm in diameter in the right parotid gland and a neck CT scan showed a well-enhanced rectangular-shaped mass. A superficial parotidectomy was performed for the lesion and the final pathologic diagnosis turned out to be 'multifocal canalicular adenoma'.

• Journal of the Ergonomics Society of Korea
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.81-93
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• 2002

This study aims to provide joint angles of comfort for females, based on the psychophysical scaling method. Ten female subjects participated in the experiment for measuring perceived discomfort for varying joint motions. The subjects were instructed to maintain given joint motions for a minute, and to rate their perceived discomfort for the motions during a minute's rest by using the free modulus method of the magnitude estimation. Joint angles of comfort were calculated from the regression equations based on the experimental results, in which levels of joint motions were used as independent variables and perceived discomforts as dependent variables. The results showed that joint angles of comfort for the joint motions investigated were much smaller than full range of motions for corresponding joint motions. The ratios of joint angle of comfort to its range motion for the hip were found to be smallest of all joint motions dealt with in this study, and those for the neck were the largest. In addition, comfortable joint angles for females were much smaller than those for males. It is recommended that when designing or evaluating workplaces ergonomically, different comfortable joint angles should be applied according to workers' or population's gender.

• Journal of the Ergonomics Society of Korea
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.73-82
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• 1997

Daily exposure to constrained body postures and deviations from neutral postures over a long period may result in discomfort as well as pains and aches in the muscles, joints, tendons, and other soft tissues. Furthermore, it was known that poor body postures are a major cause of musculoskeletal disorders in industry. Therefore, in this study, comfort ranges of joint motions were obtained as a criterion for evaluating body postures and designing workplaces ergonomically, which were bases on subjects' perceived discomfort level estimated by magnitude estimation. Nineteen healthy male subjects participated in the laboratory study. They results showed that comfort ranges of joint motions occurred in the wrist, elbow, neck, and ankle were little less than their normal range of joint motions, but those in the back(L5/S1) and hip joint were much less than their normal ones. This fact implies that the back and jip movements are more stressful than the other joints movements. It is expected that comfort ranges of joint motions can be used as a valuable guideline when designing and evaluating workplaces.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.31 no.2
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• pp.99-109
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• 2014

Objectives : The purpose of this study was to analysis the relationship between hours of smartphone use and neck pain in university students. Methods : A survey of 2,353 university students was conducted in Gyeonggi province and Incheon city using a self report questionnaire from April 1 to 11 2013. The questionnaire of questions regarding the hours of using smartphone, mainly used function in participant's smartphone and neck discomfort degree. Neck disability index(NDI) was used to evaluate degree of pain. The collected data were analyzed with the t-test and Kendall's tau test using the SPSS 21.0 program and R 3.1.0, respectively. Results : 1. Almost all of the survey participants(99.07 %) were smartphone users. 66.97 % of them answered that they use their smartphone daily more than 2 hours and 48.18 % of them answered that they use their smartphone 10 to 30 minutes everytime they use it. 2. The overall distribution of NDI scores was 'no disability(0~4 score, 62.92 %)', 'mild disability(5~14 score, 32.85 %)', 'moderate disability(15~24 score, 1.19 %)'. As a result of t-test, we found that the average NDI score for female students was significantly higher than the average NDI score for male students(p<0.05). 3. The Kendall's tau test revealed that total time spent daily using smartphones has a strong positive correlation with 'pain intensity', 'lifting', 'reading' 'headache', 'concentration', and 'driving'(p<0.05) in NDI. Also, time duration of one time smartphone usage has a strong positive correlation with 'pain intensity', 'lifting', 'reading', 'headache', 'concentration', 'work', and 'recreation'(p<0.05). 4. The Kendall's tau test revealed that total NDI scores have a significantly strong positive correlation with both of total time spent daily using smartphones(p<0.05) and time duration for one time smartphone usage(p<0.05). This results imply that long-time use of smartphone has a strong relationship with neck pain. Conclusions : The results of the study would be a good starting point for future studies to reduce the risks of chronic neck pain caused by smartphone usage.

• The Journal of Korean Physical Therapy
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.7-15
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• 2017

Purpose: This randomized controlled trial was conducted to compare the effectiveness of global postural reeducation to segmental stretching in subjects with neck and shoulder pain. Methods: Sixteen subjects with neck and shoulder pain were randomized into two intervention groups, a global posture reeducation group (n=8) that performed muscle chain stretching, and a segmental stretching group (n=8) that performed conventional static muscle stretching. The intervention program consisted of two 40 minutes individual sessions per week for four weeks. Subjects were evaluated pre-intervention, two-week after intervention and at a four-week follow-up appointment for pain intensity, disability and health-related quality of life. Two-way repeated analysis of variance was used for between-time and between-group comparisons. The significance level was 0.05. Results: Significant pain relief and decreasing discomfort of the neck and shoulder were observed after intervention in both groups, and there was an interaction between time lapse and groups (pain, F=10.31, neck disability, F=25.45, shoulder disability, F=12.82, p<0.05). Quality of life also improved after intervention in both groups. Moreover, the physical components score improved, and a significant interaction was observed between time and groups (F=4.85, p<0.05). However, no significant improvement in mental component score of quality of life and no significant interaction between time and groups were observed (p>0.05). Conclusion: These findings suggest that a GPR intervention in subjects with neck and shoulder pain induces greater improvement of pain and disability and quality of life than segmental stretching.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Laryngology, Phoniatrics and Logopedics
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.90-95
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• 2014

Background and Objectives : Arytenoid adduction procedure is one of the main surgical options addressed for the correction of glottal incompetence in patients with unilateral vocal cord paralysis. Traditionally, a midline approach is used for identifying and suturing around the muscular process, which often needs over-traction of the thyroid cartilage and results in patient's discomfort as well as surgeon's distress. The authors investigated the advantage of a modified procedure, lateral approach, in which the arytenoid cartilage is exposed through the space between strap muscles and sternocleidomastoid muscle. Materials and Methods : Retrospective chart review was performed for 66 patients who received arytenoid adduction surgery at Samsung Medical Center, between the year 1997 and 2014. Operation time, types of anesthesia, voice outcomes and complications were compared between the midline (n=22) and the lateral (n=44) approach group. Results : Operation time was shorter in the lateral approach group ($125{\pm}24min$) than in the midline group ($144{\pm}24min$). Arytenoid adduction was proceeded under local anesthesia in 66% (n=29/44) and 14% (n=3/22) of patients with lateral and midline approach group, respectively. Voice outcomes and complication rates were comparable between the two groups. Injection laryngoplasty in conjunction with arytenoid adduction resulted in more favorable voice outcomes. Conclusion : A lateral approach for the arytenoid adduction procedure showed comparable voice outcomes and similar complication rates with those of a midline approach. However, lateral approach provided less discomfort to the patients and less distress to a surgeon, and therefore, shorter operation time was needed and local anesthesia could be more frequently applied for this modified procedure.