• Journal of Pharmacopuncture
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• v.16 no.3
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• pp.46-51
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• 2013

Objectives: The aim of this study is to evaluate the effect of acupotomy in patients with degenerative lumbar spine stenosis. Methods: A total of 437 patients who had been diagnosed as having lumbar spine stenosis and who had been admitted to Daejeon Oriental hospital from June 1, 2008, to September 31, 2012, were included in this study. The patients underwent acupotomy once, twice or three times on the lumbar spine, according to their symptoms. Then, the patients were asked to complete the verbal numeric rating scale (VNRS) and the oswestry disability index (ODI) before and after acupotomy and underwent a global assessment. The resulting data were analyzed. Results: The gender ratio of the participants was 1:1.54, and the mean age was $65{\pm}10.0$ yr. The number of patients over the age of 65 yr was less than that of the patients under the age of 65 yr in the ratio of 1:1.3. The average disease period was $30.17{\pm}56.63$ months. The verbal numeric rating scale (VNRS) significantly decreased from 10 to an average of $7.10{\pm}2.50$ after one acupotomy, $6.30{\pm}2.60$ after two acupotomies, and $5.50{\pm}2.50$ after three acupotomies. The ODI was significantly decrease from $20.60{\pm}8.70$ to $17.80{\pm}8.60$ after once acupotomy, $17.10{\pm}8.50$ after two acupotomies, and $16.70{\pm}8.60$ after three acupotomies. High scores were also observed on the global assessment. Conclusion: These results provide evidence that acupotomy is effective to relieve pain and to improve quality of life in patients with degenerative lumbar spinal stenosis.

• Korean Journal of Adult Nursing
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.111-122
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• 2011

Purpose: The aim on this study was to establish the validity, reliability and efficiency of a Pain Self-Report Scale for elderly with dementia and compare these results with an observational pain rating scale. Methods: Study subjects were 136 elderly with dementia who were residents in a nursing home, geriatric hospital, or day care center. The subject's pain was measured by five self-report scales and observational scale. DS-DAT (discomfort scale-dementia of the Alzheimer's type) was used for pain behavior observational measure. Cognitive state was assessed using the MMSE (Mini-Mental State Examination). Results: Observational rating correlated moderately with self-report (r=.225~.585, p<.05) and tended to underestimate pain intensity. Test-retest reliability was high for all five self-report scales, and the correlation between these scales was very strong (r=.735~.856, p<.05). Comprehension rate of VDS (verbal descriptor scale) was 88.3%, and NRS (numeric rating scale) 69.9%, FPS (face pain scale) 66.9%, HVAS (horizontal visual analog scale) and VVAS (vertical visual analog scale) 65.4%. Conclusion: Nurses should not apply observational scales routinely in demented patients as many of these are capable of reporting their own pain. Self-report, the highest standard of pain measurement can be reliably performed in a large proportion of demented elderly.

• The Journal of Korean Obstetrics and Gynecology
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.93-105
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• 2012

Objectives: This study explored the relationships between Bone Mineral Density (BMD), Body Mass Index(BMI), Age, pain duration outcomes of treatment for Low Back Pain(LBP) in 3 groups(normal,osteopenia,osteoporosis) of female patients. Methods: We evaluated 32 cases of normal, 30 cases of osteopenia and 38 cases of osteoporosis based on BMD, BMI, Age, pain duration among the female inpatients with LBP caused by lumbar disc herniation, admitted at Jaseng Hospital of Oriental Medicine from January 2010 to December 2011. And we measured VNRS(Verbal Numeric Rating Scale) to evaluate the conservative treatment effects. Results: In improvement of female LBP caused by lumbar disc herniation, BMD(T-score), BMI had not proved correlation(P-value>0.05). Female patients' age was negatively correlated with T-score. In pain improvement, BMD normal group showed more reduction of NRS(numeric rating scale) than osteoporosis group, but that had not proved correlation(p-value=0.893). Conclusions: Statically, among the female inpatients with LBP caused by lumbar disc herniation, had no significant differences between the normal group, osteopenia group and osteoporosis group's improvement rate, depending on treating period.

• Journal of the Korean Orthopaedic Association
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• v.55 no.1
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• pp.78-84
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• 2020

Purpose: This paper compares the clinical outcomes of patients who were treated with a cervical nerve block by ultrasound and C-arm and reports the complication. Materials and Methods: A total of 97 patients were treated with an ultrasound-guided nerve root block from May 1, 2015 to February 8, 2018. On the other hand, 94 patients were treated with a C-arm guided nerve root block. The consequences of the cervical pain and the radiating pain before and after the procedures were reviewed using the verbal numeric rating scale (VNRS). In addition, the complications related to the procedures from the daily notes from the chart were inspected. Results: Sixty-six cases out of 97 cases of ultrasound-guided nerve root block were enrolled in the study. The average age of the patients was 57 years, including 41 males and 25 females. Seventy seven out of 94 cases by a C-arm guided root block were included in the study. The average age of the patients was 55 years, including 40 males and 37 females. Before the nerve root block, the mean numeric rating pain scale (NRS) of the cervical pain in ultrasound-guided block decreased from 5.4 points to 2.7 points at three weeks and 1.4 points at six weeks (p=0.0023, p<0.001), and 3.1 points in the C-arm (p<0.001, p<0.001) at three weeks and 1.5 points at six weeks (p<0.001, p<0.001). In the case of radiating pain, the mean NRS in the ultrasound-guided nerve root block group improved from 6.3 points after the procedure to 2.8 points at three weeks and 1.5 points at six weeks (p<0.001, p<0.001). In the C-arm guided nerve root block group, the NRS improved from 7.4 points after the procedure to 3.3 points at three weeks and 1.9 points at six weeks. In the case of complications, Horner's syndrome and propriospinal myoclonus were observed in one case of C-arm guided block group. Conclusion: The clinical results of the patients who underwent ultrasound-guided cervical nerve root block were not significantly different from those who underwent a C-arm guided cervical nerve root block.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.37 no.3
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• pp.188-200
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• 2024

This review explores the essential methodologies for effective postoperative pain management, focusing on the need for thorough pain assessment tools, as underscored in various existing guidelines. Herein, the strengths and weaknesses of commonly used pain scales for postoperative pain-the Visual Analog Scale, Numeric Rating Scale, Verbal Rating Scale, and Faces Pain Scale-are evaluated, highlighting the importance of selecting appropriate assessment tools based on factors influencing their effectiveness in surgical contexts. By emphasizing the need to comprehend the minimal clinically important difference (MCID) for these scales in evaluating new analgesic interventions and monitoring pain trajectories over time, this review advocates recognizing the limitations of common pain scales to improve pain assessment strategies, ultimately enhancing postoperative pain management. Finally, five recommendations for pain assessment in research on postoperative pain are provided: first, selecting an appropriate pain scale tailored to the patient group, considering the strengths and weaknesses of each scale; second, simultaneously assessing the intensity of postoperative pain at rest and during movement; third, conducting evaluations at specific time points and monitoring trends over time; fourth, extending the focus beyond the intensity of postoperative pain to include its impact on postoperative functional recovery; and lastly, interpreting the findings while considering the MCID, ensuring that it is clinically significant for the chosen pain scale. These recommendations broaden our understanding of postoperative pain and provide insights that contribute to more effective pain management strategies, thereby enhancing patient care outcomes.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.181-190
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• 2016

Objectives : This study reports the clinical effects of Korean medical treatment on a patient with suspected diabetic muscle infarction (DMI). Methods : A patient diagnosed with spinal stenosis was suspected of DMI. The patient was treated with acupuncture, bee-venom pharmacopuncture and gastrocnemius stretching. Symptoms were evaluated by verbal numeric rating scale (vNRS), Oswestry disability index (ODI) and Manchester foot pain and disability index (MFPDI). Results : After approximately 5 weeks of Korean medical treatment, including 8 bee-venom treatments, vNRS, ODI, and MFPDI all decreased. Conclusion : The results suggest that Korean medical treatment is effective for treating pain caused by DMI.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.548-553
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• 2007

In general, cancer pain is neither fully recognized nor adequately treated. The inadequate pain control is due to failure of accurate assessment of cancer pain. This study was aimed to understand various characters of cancer pain and investigate available assessment scales which have been designed for, or frequently used with people with cancer pain. A total of 23 articles were selected from two different databases. The selected articles were analyzed according to three aspects of initial assessment, patient self-report and assessment of the outcomes of pain management. The characters of cancer pain is complex and includes physical, psychosocial, and spiritual dimension. Also, subjective pain can be classified into at least four specific factors, such as pain intensity, pain affect, pain relief, and pain quality. Based on various classification, the pain assessment scales can be divided into unidimensional or multidimensional. Among the more commonly used clinical tools are numeric rating scales, verbal rating scales, visual analog scales, and picture scales. Above all, in order to assess cancer pain objectively, the clinician must select appropriate assessment instruments which reflect pain definition and clinical purpose.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine
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• v.41 no.3
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• pp.151-161
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• 2020

Objectives: The purpose of this study is to report the improvement of multiple rib fracture after korean medical treatment; adhesive treatment and herb-medicine treatment. Methods: A patient with multiple rib fracture was treated with Daewhangchija-paste(大黃梔子膏) adhesive and herb-medicine treatment. Verbal numeric rating scale, medical examination by interview and rib series x-ray were used to assess progress of treatment. And we took pictures of left flank after attaching Daewhangchija-paste to observe the changes of the skin colors. Results: Rib series x-ray taken after 2 months of treatment revealed hard callus which added stability against external force on rib cage. After taking off Daewhangchija-paste, left plank skin turned into blue, green and yellow. And the pain level(VNRS) of left plank decreased from 10 to 0.5 for 4 months. Conclusions: Pain reduction on trauma site and improvement of general health condition were observed during combination treatment of Daewhangchija-paste adhesive and herb-medicine.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.45-53
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• 2013

Objectives : The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relationship between cross-sectional areas of the paraspinal and psoas muscles with low back pain. Methods : We assessed the cross-sectional area of the psoas and paraspinal muscles at the superior part of L4 level and vertebral body of L4 of 132 patients who were hospitalized with a chief complaint of low back pain at Jaseng Hospital of Korean Medicine from January 2013 to April 2013. After calculating the mean psoas area, we divided the patients into 2 groups by whether the psoas cross section was larger or smaller than the mean, and compared the admission period, verbal numeric rating scale(NRS) of low back pain(LBP), and improvement of verbal NRS of LBP. We also subcategorized the patients into acute and chronic groups according to the duration period, and compared the cross-sectional area of the psoas and paraspinal muscles. Results : Although analyses of the verbal NRS of LBP, and improvement of verbal NRS of LBP between groups with larger and smaller psoas cross section areas showed no significant difference, the admission period was significantly shorter in the group with larger psoas cross section areas. There was no significant difference in analyses of cross section areas in the acute and chronic groups. Of the possible prognostic variables, improvement of verbal NRS of LBP showed no correlation, while the admission period displayed a significant correlation. The cross-sectional area of the psoas and paraspinal muscles divided by the area of the vertebral body of L4 had a significant negative correlation with age. Conclusions : The cross-sectional area of the psoas and paraspinal muscles were correlated with the admission period in LBP patients, and the cross-sectional area of the surrounding muscles divided by the area of the L4 vertebral body was negatively correlated with age.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.39-47
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• 2016

Objectives : This study was conducted to examine the clinical effects of thread embedding acupuncture on lumbar herniated intervertebral disc patients. Methods : This is a retrospective study based on clinical charts. Despite the treatments of acupuncture, pharmacopuncture, herbal medicine, and physical therapy during admission period, 10 lumbar herniated intervertebral disc patients who had shown few improvements in their symptoms were selected as subjects. Thread embedding acupuncture was conducted to reduce patient pain. Patient progress was categorized into three periods based on when the embedding procedure performed. Verbal numeric rating scale (VNRS), Oswestry disability index (ODI), and a 5 step evaluation scale for satisfaction were used to analyze the outcome. Results : Regarding comparison of VNRS improvement rate, both 3 and 6 days after embedding progress showed significant difference compared to before embedding progress. ODI improvement rate showed significant difference only 6 days after embedding progress. Patients' satisfaction with treatment had increased by several degrees. Conclusion : Thread embedding acupuncture for lumbar herniated intervertebral disc patients may be effective in reducing pain and improving their quality of life.