• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.36 no.3
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• pp.391-399
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• 2015

Objectives This case series reports the efficacy of Baenong Ickki San, a Bojungikki-tang -modified formula, in treating chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome. Methods Patients diagnosed with chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome (n=11) were treated with Baenong Ickki San. Changes in their condition were measured using the National Institutes of Health Chronic Prostatitis Symptoms Index (NIH-CPSI). Results NIH-CPSI scores showed a significant improvement in the disease. The mean NIH-CPSI total score significantly decreased from 37.6±5.8 at baseline to 7.5±3.9 at end point (p<0.001), i.e., a 30.2±7.3 mean decrease was noted. Conclusions Baenong Ickki San may be a potential new medicine for chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Integrative Medicine
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.43-52
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• 2021

Purpose : Chronic neck pain negatively impacts the quality of life and causes various problems in daily life due to pain, insomnia, and sleep disturbances in patients with this condition. Therapeutic interventions to solve these problems in rehabilitation and physical therapy are being introduced; however, the evidence of the efficacy of myofascial release (MFR) is still insufficient. This study aimed to investigate the effects of applying MFR on pain, insomnia, and sleep disturbances in patients with chronic neck pain. Methods : Ten patients with chronic neck pain were randomly selected and grouped into the experimental group (n₁ = 10) and control group (n₂ = 10) by cross-over design. Pain was measured before and after MFR intervention. Moreover, insomnia was measured only after MFR intervention. Polysomnography was performed after MFR intervention. Wilcoxon signed rank test and Mann-Whitney U test were used for the visual analog scale (VAS). Independent sample t-test was separately performed to measure insomnia and sleep. Results : After MFR intervention, the VAS score of the experimental group (p = 0.005) significantly decreased than that of the control group (p = 0.002). The insomnia score of the experimental group significantly decreased than that of the control group (p = 0.001). The total sleep time (p = 0.001), sleep efficiency (p = 0.001), and sleep latency (p = 0.001) of the experimental group significantly increased than those of the control group in the polysomnographic measurement. Conclusion : The application of MFR of the neck and upper trunk may have a positive effect on pain, insomnia, and sleep disturbances in patients with chronic neck pain. It was also suggested that an objective and quantitative polysomnography can be used more often in the field of rehabilitation and physical therapy.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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• v.48 no.3
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• pp.266-278
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• 2018

Purpose: The aim of this study was to develop a substantive theory on self-management conducted by the adolescents with chronic kidney disease from their lived experience. Methods: Data was collected through in-depth interviews from May to December in 2015 with thirteen adolescents with chronic kidney disease. The data collected were analyzed on the basis of Strauss and Corbin's grounded theory. Results: The core of the category found in this study was "overcoming the unstable sense of self- control and integrating disease experience into their life". The causal conditions triggering the central phenomenon were "restriction in daily life" and "manifestation and aggravation of symptom". The central phenomenon in the experience of self-management within the adolescents with chronic kidney disease was "unstable sense of self control". The intervening condition for unstable self control were "micro system support" and "motivational resources". This study found that the adolescents with chronic kidney disease followed a series of strategies when they faced the central phenomenon, including; passive coping, reappraisal of illness, active coping, compliance with treatment, controlling physical activity, and adjusting school life. With these strategic approaches, the adolescents with chronic kidney disease could maintain their active lifestyles and achieve their health behaviors. The process of self-management by these adolescents passed through four phases; limited experience caused by diseases, effort for normalization, reorganizing their daily lives, and integration with daily lives and self-management. Conclusion: This Study explored the process and experience of self-management of adolescents with chronic kidney disease. These findings can be used for basis for developing substantive theory and nursing intervention strategy for adolescents with chronic kidney diseases.

• The Journal of Korean Academy of Orthopedic Manual Physical Therapy
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.26-36
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• 2010

Purpose: The study compared the muscle activity and ratio of upper trapezius (UT) to lower trapezius (LT) activity between acute and chronic whiplash-associated disorder (WAD) patients. Methods: Twelve healthy (male: 7), 14 acute WAD (male: 7), and 11 chronic WAD (male: 3) volunteers participated in this study. Electromyography using a surface EMG recorded the activity of the upper trapezius and lower trapezius of both shoulders (dominant and non-dominant) during $120^{\circ}$ elevation when standing and shoulder depression when sitting. The testing order was selected randomly. Subjects were asked to maintain each experimental position for 5 seconds at end range. EMG activity was normalized using the maximal voluntary isometric contraction (MVIC) elicited using a manual muscle-testing technique. One-way repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to compare the average root mean square (RMS) value of EMG activity for each condition. Results: The EMG activity of the dominant UT for chronic WAD subjects was significantly higher than for acute WAD subjects during $120^{\circ}$ elevation (p<.05). The EMG activity of the dominant LT for acute WAD subjects was significantly lower than for the control group (p<.05) during $120^{\circ}$ elevation. The EMG activity of the dominant LT for WAD patients was significantly lower than for the control group during shoulder depression (p<.05), and the chronic WAD patients scored significantly the lowest (p<.01). The dominant UT/LT for chronic WAD patients was significantly higher than the ratio for acute WAD subjects during shoulder depression (p<.05); this result was higher than for the control group (p<.01). The non-dominant UT/LT (ratio) for chronic WAD patients was significantly higher than the ratio for acute WAD subjects during shoulder depression (p<.05). Conclusion: The UT for chronic WAD subjects was hyperactive when compared to the acute WAD subjects, and the was hypoactive for both acute and chronic patients, therefore intra-trapezius imbalance was more prevalent during shoulder depression.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.36 no.4
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• pp.458-464
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• 2023

Background: Fibromyalgia (FM) is a complex disorder characterized by widespread chronic pain and tenderness in the muscles, ligaments, and soft tissues. It is a chronic pain condition often accompanied by other symptoms and comorbidities. To effectively manage FM, it is crucial to obtain fundamental epidemiological data pertaining to the target population. Therefore, this study was conducted to elucidate the epidemiological characteristics of FM in the Korean population. Methods: Population-based medical data of 51,276,314 subscribers to the National Health Insurance Service of Korea from 2014 to 2018 were used in this study. Results: The overall incidence of FM ranged from 441 (2014) to 541 (2018) cases per 100,000 person-years, with a higher prevalence observed among female patients compared to male patients. The incidence gradually increased until middle age, followed by a decrease. The highest incidence rates were observed in the fifth decade of life for females and the sixth decade of life for males. When categorizing the affected parts of the body, the shoulder region was observed to be the most frequently affected. A comparison of the drug prescriptions based on medical specialty showed that antidepressants were the most commonly prescribed medications. The management of FM leads to consistent increases in medical expenses, regional disparities, and variations in prescription patterns across different medical specialties. Conclusions: The findings of this study will not only contribute to the understanding of FM characteristics but also provide a vital foundation for efficient management of FM in Korea.

• International journal of advanced smart convergence
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• v.7 no.4
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• pp.1-9
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• 2018

With developments in science and technology and improvement in living standards, human life expectancy is steadily increasing worldwide. For effective healthcare, it is necessary to check health conditions according to individuals' behavior and acquire prior knowledge on possible diseases. In this study, we classified the diseases that are major causes of death in Korea by referring to data provided by the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. We selected indexes that could be used as indicators of major diseases and created the LCBB-SC. In the LCBB-SC, the data are systematically subdivided into related fields to provide integrated data related to each disease and to provide an infrastructure that can be used by researchers. In addition, by developing a web interface allowing for self-symptom assessments, this resource will be beneficial to people who want to check their own health condition using a list of diseases that might be caused by their behaviors.

• Journal of Society of Preventive Korean Medicine
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.109-119
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• 2019

Background : Germany is the first country in the world to introduce modern systems of public health insurance, and the country which most widely uses complementary alternative medicine(CAM) in Europe. In early 21^st century, a large evaluation studies were conducted to include acupuncture in health insurance payments, which were eventually decided. Objectives : This study is to investigate and analyze the process of public policy determination on insurance coverage for acupuncture in German health insurance system. Methods : We collected the data and information through the literature search and from the websites of German government departments and health insurance organizations. To obtain contextual information, German experts of health insurance and acupuncture clinical study were interviewed. Results : As use of acupuncture had been growing, German public health insurers wanted to evaluate the validity of acupuncture coverage and sponsored three evaluation projects for clinical effectiveness of acupuncture using randomized clinical trials, systematic reviews, and pragmatic trials from 2001 to 2005. For some pain condition, acupuncture was founded not to be effective than sham acupuncture, but more effective than standard care. The federal joint committee of health insurance decided to cover acupuncture for chronic pain of lumbar spine and chronic pain in at least one knee joint due to gonarthrosis. Conclusions : Considering the controversial subject matter in the process of acupuncture's health insurance coverage in Germany, expanding the benefits of Korean medicine in Korea needs to come up with ways to overcome the difficulties of placebo effect, standardization and lack of literature evidence.

• Journal of Korea Multimedia Society
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• v.21 no.12
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• pp.1481-1492
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• 2018

Musculoskeletal disorders show symptoms of pain and dysfunction caused by accumulation of minute damage on nerves and blood vessels which are related to specific body parts. This is more likely to occur in the elderly. In Korea, 40.3% of the agricultural population is over 65 years old. In these cases, the portion of musculoskeletal disorders is more than 80% in acute/chronic diseases related to agricultural work. Therefore, measures for physical health care and safety prevention of elderly farmers are needed. In this study, we intend to propose a method to measure musculoskeletal health condition through the motion recognition device and VR contents. For this, we analyze the agricultural work causing musculoskeletal disorders of farmers, and suggest a motion analysis algorithm that can measure the health condition of the musculoskeletal system. In addition, we are going to propose a training method customized for farmers on the basis of VR contents in order to prevent musculoskeletal disorders.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.143-150
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• 2023

Sarcopenia is a condition in which muscle mass, strength, and performance decrease with age. It is associated with chronic diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and hypertension, and contributes to an increase in mortality. Because managing sarcopenia is critical for maintaining good health and quality of life for the elderly, the condition has sparked concern among many researchers. To counteract sarcopenia, intake of protein is an important factor, while a lack of either protein or vitamin D is a major cause of sarcopenia. In addition, essential amino acids, leucine, β-hydroxy β-methylbutyrate (HMB), creatine, and citrulline are used as supplements for muscle health and are suggested as alternatives for controlling sarcopenia. There are many studies on such proteins and supplements, but it is necessary to actually organize the types, amounts, and methods by which proteins and supplements should be consumed to inhibit sarcopenia. In this study, the efficacy of proteins and supplements for controlling sarcopenia according to human clinical studies is summarized to provide suggestions about how the elderly may consume proteins, amino acids, and other supplements.

• Journal of Family Resource Management and Policy Review
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.89-108
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• 2016

The purpose of this study is to examine the demographic, economic, and psychological factors that influence the quality of life (QoL) of the elderly. The data in the 'Survey on the Elderly in 2011', were collected from The Ministry of Health & Welfare and the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs. The samples included 3,312 out of the total of 15,146 elderly people aged from 65 to 70 years. Multiple regression analysis and path analysis were used to analyze the research model. The findings are as follows. First, the most critical factor that affected the QoL of the elderly was "subjective standard of living" with other factors including "subjective physical condition level", "depression", "total annual income", "the number of chronic disease", "self-esteem", "economic supports from their adult children", "education level", "living with their adult children or not", "sex", and "home ownership", in that order. Second, based on the path analysis results, the QoL of the elderly was influenced by "subjective physical condition level", "subjective standard of living", "depression", "self-esteem", "total annual income", "education level", and "the number of chronic disease", in that order. In particular, "depression" had a negative direct effect and an indirect effect on the QoL of the elderly, whereas "self-esteem" had a positive direct effect and indirect effect on their QoL. Third, "labor force participation status" did not affect the QoL of the elderly. However, it implied the mediating effect of "self-esteem" and "depression" on their QoL. These results show that demographic, economic, and psychological factors heavily influence the QoL of the elderly. Specifically, "depression" and "self-esteem" turn out to be mediating variables that strongly influence the QoL of the elderly. Also, "labor force participation status" does not have a positive direct effect on the QoL of the elderly but has a positive mediating effect of "depression" and "self-esteem" on their QoL.