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To translate the English version of the London Chest Activity of Daily Living scale (LCADL) into a Korean version and to determine the reliability and validity of the Korean version in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
The English version of LCADL was translated into Korean and back-translated into English. Subsequently, the back-translated version was reviewed and compared with the original, and thus the final K-LCADL was obtained. To evaluate the validation of the K-LCADL, patients simultaneously completed a pulmonary function test, a 6-Minute Walk Test (6MWT), and questionnaires, including the modified Medical Research Council (mMRC) dyspnea scale, the Korean version of the St. George's Respiratory Questionnaire (K-SGRQ), the Korean version of the COPD Assessment Test (K-CAT), and the Korean version of the EuroQoL-5 Dimensions (K-EQ-5D). To assess test-retest reliability, the K-LCADL was again administered to the same patients within 2 weeks from initial assessment.
A total of 94 patients participated in the present study. The total K-LCADL score was positively correlated with the K-SGRQ (r=0.802, p<0.001), the mMRC dyspnea scale (r=0.603, p<0.001), and the K-CAT score (r=0.714, p<0.001), and negatively correlated with the K-EQ-5D (r=−0.764, p<0.001), 6MWT (r=−0.635, p<0.001), forced expiratory volume in one second 1 (r=−0.416, p=0.002), and forced vital capacity (r=−0.397, p=0.023). Intraclass correlation coefficient of the K-LCADL was 0.951 (p<0.001).
The K-LCADL is a reliable and valid questionnaire for evaluating limitation of activities of daily living in patients with COPD.
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To compare the respiratory muscle strength between patients with stable and acutely exacerbated (AE) chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) at various stages.
A retrospective medical record review was conducted on patients with COPD from March 2014 to May 2016. Patients were subdivided into COPD stages 1–4 according to the Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease guidelines: mild, moderate, severe, and very severe. A rehabilitation physician reviewed their medical records and initial assessment, including spirometry, maximum inspiratory pressure (MIP), maximum expiratory pressure (MEP), COPD Assessment Test, and modified Medical Research Council scale. We then compared the initial parameters in patients with a stable condition and those at AE status.
The AE group (n=94) had significantly lower MIP (AE, 55.93±20.57; stable, 67.88±24.96; p=0.006) and MIP% (AE, 82.82±27.92; stable, 96.64±30.46; p=0.015) than the stable patient group (n=36). MIP, but not MEP, was proportional to disease severity in patients with AE and stable COPD.
The strength of the inspiratory muscles may better reflect severity of disease when compared to that of expiratory muscles.
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To report successful cases of extubation from invasive mechanical ventilation at our institution using pulmonary rehabilitation consisting of noninvasive ventilation (NIV) in neuromuscular patients with experience of reintubation.
Patients who experienced extubation failure via the conventional weaning strategy but afterwards had extubation success via NIV were studied retrospectively. Continuous end-tidal CO2 (ETCO2) and pulse oxyhemoglobin saturation (SpO2) monitoring were performed. Extubation success was defined as a state not requiring invasive mechanical ventilation via endotracheal tube or tracheotomy during a period of at least 5 days.
A total of 18 patients with ventilatory failure who initially experienced extubation failure were finally placed under part-time NIV after extubation. No patient had any serious or long-term adverse effect from NIV, and all patients left the hospital alive.
NIV may promote successful weaning in neuromuscular patients with experience of reintubation.
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To investigate the effects of the newly developed Spine Balance 3D system on the balance and gait abilities of hemiplegic stroke patients.
Twenty-eight hemiplegic patients with chronic stroke were randomly assigned to an experimental (n=14) or control group (n=14). The experimental and control groups performed balance training by using the newly developed Spine Balance 3D system and the well-known Biodex Balance System 30 minutes per day, three times a week for 7 weeks. The Berg Balance Scale (BBS), 10-m walking test (10mWT), Timed Up and Go Test (TUG), Functional Reach Test (FRT), the Korean version of the Fall Efficacy Scale-International (KFES-I), trunk muscle strength and stability were evaluated before and after 7 weeks of intervention.
The 10mWT improved significantly (p=0.001) in the experimental group (using the Spine Balance 3D system) but not in the control group, and core muscle strength, which we checked using Spine Balance 3D system evaluation program, improved more in the experimental group as well. The results of the BBS, FRT, TUG, KFES-I, and Biodex Balance System evaluation program improved in both groups after 7 weeks of balance training.
We suggest that the newly-developed Spine Balance 3D system can be a more useful therapeutic tool for gait and dynamic balance rehabilitation in hemiplegic patients than a conventional 2D-based balance training system. A large-scale randomized controlled study is needed to prove the effect of this system.
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To investigate changes in the core temperature and body surface temperature in patients with incomplete spinal cord injuries (SCI). In incomplete SCI, the temperature change is difficult to see compared with complete spinal cord injuries. The goal of this study was to better understand thermal regulation in patients with incomplete SCI.
Fifty-six SCI patients were enrolled, and the control group consisted of 20 healthy persons. The spinal cord injuries were classified according to International Standards for Neurological Classification of Spinal Cord Injury. The patients were classified into two groups: upper (neurological injury level T6 or above) and lower (neurological injury level T7 or below) SCIs. Body core temperature was measured using an oral thermometer, and body surface temperature was measured using digital infrared thermographic imaging.
Twenty-nine patients had upper spinal cord injuries, 27 patients had lower SCIs, and 20 persons served as the normal healthy persons. Comparing the skin temperatures of the three groups, the temperatures at the lower abdomen, anterior thigh and anterior tibia in the patients with upper SCIs were lower than those of the normal healthy persons and the patients with lower SCIs. No significant temperature differences were observed between the normal healthy persons and the patients with lower SCIs.
In our study, we found thermal dysregulation in patients with incomplete SCI. In particular, body surface temperature regulation was worse in upper SCIs than in lower injuries. Moreover, cord injury severity affected body surface temperature regulation in SCI patients.
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Terson syndrome refers to oculocerebral syndrome of retinal and vitreous hemorrhage associated with spontaneous subarachnoid hemorrhage or all forms of intracranial bleeding. Recent observations have indicated that patients with spontaneous subarachnoid hemorrhage have an 18% to 20% concurrent incidence of retinal and vitreous hemorrhages with about 4% incidence of vitreous hemorrhage alone. Clinical ophthalmologic findings may have significant diagnostic and prognostic value for clinicians. Here we report a 45-year-old female patient who suffered from blurred vision after subarachnoid hemorrhage. She was diagnosed as Terson syndrome. After vitrectomy, she recovered with normal visual acuity which facilitated the rehabilitative process. We also performed visual evoked potentials to investigate abnormalities of visual dysfunction. Based on this case, we emphasize the importance of early diagnosis of Terson syndrome.
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To investigate whether motor evoked potential (MEP) amplitude ratio measurements are sufficiently objective to assess functional activities of the extremities. We also delineated the distribution between the presence or absence of MEPs and the Medical Research Council (MRC) scale for muscle strength of the extremities.
We enrolled 183 patients with first-ever unilateral hemiplegia after stroke. The MEP parameters were amplitude ratio (amplitude of affected side/amplitude of unaffected side) recorded at the first dorsal interosseous (FDI) and tibialis anterior (TA) muscles. We performed frequency analyses using the MRC scale for muscle strength and the presence or absence of evoked MEPs. Change on the MRC scale, hand function tests (HFTs), and the Modified Barthel Index (MBI) subscore were compared between the evoked MEP and absent MEP groups using the independent t-test. Receiver operating characteristic curves were used to determine the optimal cutoff scores for the MEP amplitude ratio using the HFT results and MBI subscores. Correlations between the MEP amplitude ratio and the MRC scale, HFTs, and MBI subscore were analyzed.
About 10% of patients with MRC scale grades 0-2 showed evoked MEPs at the FDI muscle, and 4% of patients with MRC scale grades 3-5 did not show MEPs. About 18% of patients with MRC scale grades 0-2 showed evoked MEPs at the TA muscle, and 4% of patients with MRC scale grades 3-5 did not show MEPs. MEP amplitude increased with increasing MRC scale grade. The evoked MEP group had more significant changes on the MRC scale, HFT, and the climbing stair score on the MBI than those in the group without MEPs. Larger MEP amplitude ratios were observed in patients who had more difficulty with the HFTs and ambulation. The MEP amplitude ratio was significantly correlated with the MRC scale, HFT, and MBI subscore.
We conclude that the MEP amplitude ratio may be useful to predict functional status of the extremities in patients who suffered stroke.
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Low vital capacity is a risk factor for scoliosis correction operation in Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) patients, but pulmonary rehabilitation, including noninvasive intermittent positive pressure ventilator application, air stacking exercise, and assisted coughing technique, reduces the pulmonary complications and perioperative mortality risk. In this case, the patient's preoperative forced vital capacity (FVC) was 8.6% of normal predicted value in sitting position and 9.4% in supine position. He started pulmonary rehabilitation before the operation and continued right after the operation. Scoliosis correction operation was successful without any pulmonary complications, and his discomfort in sitting position was improved. If pulmonary rehabilitative support is provided properly, FVC below 10% of normal predicted value is not a contraindication of scoliosis correction operation in DMD patients.
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To reveal the significance of continuous transcutaneous carbon dioxide (CO2) level monitoring through reviewing cases which showed a discrepancy in CO2 levels between arterial blood gas analysis (ABGA) and continuous transcutaneous blood gas monitoring.
Medical record review was conducted retrospectively of patients with neuromuscular diseases who had started home mechanical ventilation between June 2008 and May 2010. The 89 patients underwent ABGA at the 1st hospital day, and changes to their CO2 level were continuously monitored overnight with a transcutaneous blood gas analysis device. The number of patients who initially appeared to show normal PaCO2 through ABGA, yet displayed hypercapnea through overnight continuous monitoring, was counted.
36 patients (40.45%) presented inconsistent CO2 level results between ABGA and continuous overnight monitoring. The mean CO2 level of the 36 patients using ABGA was 37.23±5.11 mmHg. However, the maximum and mean CO2 levels from the continuous monitoring device were 52.25±6.87 mmHg and 46.16±6.08 mmHg, respectively. From the total monitoring period (357.28±150.12 minutes), CO2 retention over 45 mmHg was detected in 198.97 minutes (55.69%).
Although ABGA only reflects ventilatory status at the puncturing moment, ABGA results are commonly used to monitor ventilatory status in most clinical settings. In order to decide the starting point of home mechanical ventilation in neuromuscular patients, continuous overnight monitoring should be considered to assess latent CO2 retention.
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