• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.61 no.5
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• pp.618-624
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• 2018

Objective : We evaluated the clinical manifestation and surgical results following operative treatment of cubital tunnel syndrome (CuTS) caused by anconeus epitrochlearis (AE) muscle. Methods : Among 142 patients who underwent surgery for CuTS from November 2007 to October 2015, 12 were assigned to the AE group based on discovery of AE muscle; 130 patients were assigned to the other group. We analyzed retrospectively; age, sex, dominant hand, symptom duration, and weakness in hand. Severity of the disease was evaluated using the Dellon classification and postoperative symptom were evaluated using disability of arm shoulder and hand (DASH) and visual analogue scale (VAS) scores. Surgery consisted of subfascial anterior transposition following excision of AE muscle. Results : AE muscle was present in 8.5% of all patients, and was more common in patients who were younger and with involvement of their dominant hand; the duration of symptom was shorter in patients with AE muscle. All patients showed postoperative improvement in symptoms according to DASH and VAS scores. Conclusion : The possibility of CuTS caused by AE muscle should be considered when younger patients have rapidly aggravated and activity-related cubital tunnel symptoms with a palpable mass in the cubital tunnel area. Excision of AE muscle and anterior ulnar nerve transposition may be considered effective surgical treatment.

• Korean Journal of Occupational Health Nursing
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.164-170
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• 2003

The purpose of this study is to Identify the amount of ability of daily living, depression and quality of life and to examin the relationship among ability of daily living, depression and quality of life of the Indestrial Accident Disabled. Three hundred and forty five industrial accident disabled were randomly selected among who have stayed in Seoul, Incheon, and Gyeonggi area and who were confirmed as the disabled classified according to its severity from the first to fourteenth grade between January, 1998 to December, 2000. Data were collected for one month between August 1, 2001 to August 31, 2001. Each study team was consisted of two members of researcher among 20 members and interviewed the disabled individually by visiting their home. Collected data were analyzed from the frequency, percentages, Correlation, etc. The mean score of ability of daily living was 136.3 out of possible 147. The mean score of depression was 31.5 out of possible 64. The mean score of quality of life was 20.1 out of possible 32. The relationship between ability of daily living and depression was significantly correlated and between depression and quality of life was significantly correlated and between ability of daily living and quality of life was significantly correlated. The industrial accident disabled had been in bad health or faced by difficulties in daily activities even after the completion of therapy for the disability. Especially, they are depressed and perceive lowly their quality of life. So, the rehabilitation program for the disabled should be psychosocial oriented program and a comprehensive service.

• 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.

• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.39 no.6
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• pp.1321-1328
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• 2018

Objective: This study was performed to report on the effects of traditional Korean Medicine as a treatment for a patient with Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, with lower limb pain as the chief complaint. Methods: We treated this patient with traditional Korean medicine and measured symptom severity using the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), and the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) as well as measuring the length of the patient's self-exercising time. Results: After about 7 weeks of treatment, most pathological symptoms had decreased. There was a gradual decline in the VAS and a gradual increase in the length of the self-exercising time. Although there was an increase in the ODI scale during the first 2 weeks, it eventually showed a decline in the rest of the period. Conclusions: Traditional Korean medicine can be a solution for the patients with Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease suffering from peripheral neurological symptoms.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.43 no.4
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• pp.352-361
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• 2010

Objectives: This study estimated the annual socioeconomic costs of food-borne disease in 2008 from a societal perspective and using a cost-of-illness method. Methods: Our model employed a comprehensive set of diagnostic disease codes to define food-borne diseases with using the Korea National Health Insurance (KNHI) reimbursement data. This study classified the food borne illness as three types of symptoms according to the severity of the illness: mild, moderate, severe. In addition to the traditional method of assessing the cost-of-illness, the study included measures to account for the lost quality of life. We estimated the cost of the lost quality of life using quality-adjusted life years and a visual analog scale. The direct cost included medical and medication costs, and the non-medical costs included transportation costs, caregiver's cost and administration costs. The lost productivity costs included lost workdays due to illness and lost earnings due to premature death. Results: The study found the estimated annual socioeconomic costs of food-borne disease in 2008 were 954.9 billion won (735.3 billion won-996.9 billion won). The medical cost was 73.4 -76.8% of the cost, the lost productivity cost was 22.6% and the cost of the lost quality of life was 26.0%. Conclusions: Most of the cost-of-illness studies are known to have underestimated the actual socioeconomic costs of the subjects, and these studies excluded many important social costs, such as the value of pain, suffering and functional disability. The study addressed the uncertainty related to estimating the socioeconomic costs of food-borne disease as well as the updated cost estimates. Our estimates could contribute to develop and evaluate policies for food-borne disease.

• Journal of Oral Medicine and Pain
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.23-29
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• 1997

A 49 years old male patient was referred from the Department of Medicine, KNUH for the management of painful oral lesions. The patient had disability of food and drug intake due to multiple intraoral ulcers. Extraoral findings showed upper and lower lip swelling, crust formation on the lips. The lesions were diagnosed as Stevens-Johnson syndrome based on clinical and hematologic findings. The patient was treated with saline irrigation and pulsed Nd:YAG laser irradiation. After 5 daily treatment, the lesions decreased in size and severity, and the patient became more comfortable for food intake and speeching. It was suggested from the results of this clinical trial that a pulsed Nd:YAG laser therapy would be helpful for the symptoms associated with Stevens-Johnson syndrome.

• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.42 no.5
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• pp.738-745
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• 2021

Objective: This study investigated the efficacy of using Nokyonggunbi-tang and other Korean medical treatments for a patient with consumptive disease and chronic fatigue. Methods: A 59-year-old female patient with fatigue, headache, dizziness, and neck pain due to consumptive disease and chronic fatigue was treated with herbal medicine (Nokyonggunbi-tang), together with acupuncture, pharmacopuncture, cupping, and chuna manual therapy, for 22 days. The treatment effects on the pain were evaluated using the scores for the Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS), European Quality of Life Five Dimensions (EQ-5d) Scale, Neck Disability Index (NDI), and Numerical Rating Scale (NRS). Results: Following treatment, the patient showed a decrease in the FSS, NDI, and NRS scores and an improvement in the EQ-5d score. Conclusions: Nokyonggunbi-tang and Korean medical treatment significantly improved fatigue symptoms in a patient with no substrate disease.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.61 no.5
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• pp.600-607
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• 2018

Objective : It has been reported in recent studies that 50-80% of patients with cervical disc hernia have concomitant sleep disorders. The aim of this study was to evaluate the quality of sleep before and after surgical treatment in patients with cervical disc hernia and to assess the effects on treatment. Methods : The study included 32 patients performed discectomy and fusion with an intervertebral cage through the right anterior cervical approach. Oswestry Disability Index (ODI), Visual Analog Scale (VAS) and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) were applied to all patients preoperatively and at one month postoperatively. Results : The postoperative PSQI total points and all the PSQI subscale points, the ODI and VAS scores were significantly reduced compared to the preoperative values. A positive correlation was determined between the preoperative ODI points and the PSQI total points and sleep duration, sleep latency and daytime functional loss subscale points. A positive correlation was also found between preoperative ODI points and VAS points. A positive correlation was determined between the preoperative VAS points and and the PSQI total points and sleep duration, and sleep latency subscale points. A negative correlation was determined between the postoperative ODI and the daytime functional loss subscale points. Conclusion : The results of the study showed that in patients with cervical disc hernia, sleep quality and daytime functionality were negatively affected by severity of pain that limited daily activities. Bringing the pain under control with surgical treatment was observed to increase sleep quality. It can be concluded that when planning treatment for these patients, it should be taken into consideration that there could be a sleep disorder in addition to the complaints and symptoms such as pain, hypoestesia and loss of strength.

• Anxiety and mood
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.37-43
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• 2014

Objective : Social Phobia is associated with extensive disability and reduced quality of life. The concept of 'social self' is a representation of the self-reflected in the eyes of others, and is recruited during self-face recognition, which is closely related to self-esteem. The aim of this study was to identify the relationship of face recognition for self and others using measures of social anxiety and self-esteem in patients with social phobia. Methods : Twenty-seven patients with social phobia and twenty-three normal controls were evaluated with scales of self-esteem, depression, anxiety and other psychiatric symptoms. All participants completed the self-face recognition task. Nine self-faces, nine other faces and eighty-one morphed faces were presented randomly for each trial. The participants were instructed to make a decision as to whether the stimuli were self-face or not. The responses and reaction times were recorded during the task. Results : There were no group differences of the morphing composition at the recognition start point as self-face. In patients with social phobia, the mean reaction time at the start point of recognizing as a self-face was 1,037.6 ms, which was significantly longer than that of normal controls (911.3 ms, p<0.05). Patients with social phobia showed a significant negative correlation between the mean reaction time and the severity of depression when the stimuli were recognized as a self-face (r=-0.421, p<0.05). Conclusion : A difficulty in attention rather than avoidance may be an important factor of face recognition in patients with social phobia. When considering self-face recognition in such patients, many factors, such as anxiety, depression, working memory and theory of mind, need to be considered.

• Journal of Trauma and Injury
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• v.37 no.3
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• pp.192-200
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• 2024

Purpose: Traumatic peripheral nerve injury (PNI), which occurs in up to 3% of trauma patients, is a devastating condition that often leads to permanent disability. However, knowledge of traumatic PNI is limited. We describe epidemiology and clinical characteristics of traumatic PNI in Korea and identify the predictors of traumatic complete PNI. Methods: A list of enlisted soldier patients who were discharged from military service due to PNI over a 10-year period (2012-2021) was obtained, and their medical records were reviewed. Patients were classified according to the causative events (traumatic vs. nontraumatic) and injury severity (complete vs. incomplete). Of traumatic PNIs, we compared the clinical variables between the incomplete and complete PNI groups and identified predictors of complete PNI. Results: Of the 119 young male patients who were discharged from military service due to PNI, 85 (71.4%) were injured by a traumatic event; among them, 22 (25.9%) were assessed as having a complete injury. The most common PNI mechanism (n=49, 57.6%), was adjacent fractures or dislocations. Several injury-related characteristics were significantly associated with complete PNI: laceration or gunshot wound, PNI involving the median nerve, PNI involving multiple individual nerves (multiple PNI), and concomitant muscular or vascular injuries. After adjusting for other possible predictors, multiple PNI was identified as a significant predictor of a complete PNI (odds ratio, 3.583; P=0.017). Conclusions: In this study, we analyzed the characteristics of enlisted Korean soldiers discharged due to traumatic PNI and found that the most common injury mechanism was adjacent fracture or dislocation (57.6%). Patients with multiple PNI had a significantly increased risk of complete injury. The results of this study contribute to a better understanding of traumatic PNI, which directly leads to a decline in functioning in patients with trauma.