PURPOSE: Upper limb disorders are one of the most common and important types of occupational injuries. Besides, identifying the factors influencing return to work following these injuries is essential to reduce the dimensions of the problem. In this study, we investigated the return to work and associated factors following occupational injuries leading to upper limb impairment. METHODS: In this retrospective cohort study, the rate of return to work and associated factors were assessed in 256 workers with work-related upper limb injury referred to a teaching hospital from March 2011 to December 2018. The inclusion criterion was a history of occupational injury resulting in upper limb impairment, and exclusion criteria included the presence of simultaneous impairment in other organs, congenital or non-occupational limb defects as well as patients with incomplete information in their medical records. Individuals' records, including age at the time of injury, gender, date of injury, marital status, education, level of amputation and injury, whole person impairment (WPI) and physiotherapy (prescribed by the physician) were reviewed. The WPI was calculated to assess the extent of the injury. All analyzes were performed by SPSS version 25.0. RESULT: The rate of return to work was 54.3%, in which 51.8% for the same job and 48.2% for a new job. The main factors associated with non-return to work were more days off work (p = 0.001), higher injury severity (p = 0.001), and dominant hand injury (p = 0.034). CONCLUSION The number of days off work, the WPI, and dominant hand injury are the most important determinant in returning to work. In addition, increased job satisfaction and support from co-workers and employers are work-related factors that can lead to an increased return to work.
Humans ; Occupational Injuries/etiology* ; Retrospective Studies ; Upper Extremity/injuries* ; Hand Injuries

Objective: To investigate the method and effect of free anterolateral thigh myocutaneous flap combined with pedicled latissimus dorsi myocutaneous flap transfer for functional reconstruction after resection of huge shoulder tumor. Methods: The clinical data of 6 patients who were treated with pedicled latissimus dorsi myocutaneous flap combined with free anterolateral thigh myocutaneous flap to repair large-area complex defects after shoulder tumor resection at Department of Oncology Plastic Surgery, Hunan Province Cancer Hospital from December 2015 to December 2020 were retrospectively analyzed. There were 2 males and 4 females, with an average age of 41.7 years (range:29 to 56 years). There were 2 cases of synovial sarcoma,2 cases of phylloid cell sarcoma,1 case of liposarcoma and 1 case of fibrosarcoma. Before this operation, tumor resection had been performed for 1 to 5 times on each case,and the course of disease was 6 to 24 months. Pedicled latissimus dorsi myocutaneous flap combined with free anterolateral thigh myocutaneous flap were used to repair soft tissue defects and reconstruct deltoid function. Postoperative flap status, complications, appearance and function of upper limbs and tumor recurrence were recorded. Results: Six patients were followed up for an average of 21.6 months (range: 12 to 36 months). There were no serious complications after operation,and all flaps survived. No tumor recurrence was found. The appearance of shoulder contour reconstructed by flaps was satisfactory. The reinnervation effect of lateral femoral muscle was confirmed recovered smoothly by neuroelectromyography 3 months after operation. Shoulder function was mildly limited in 3 patients,moderately limited in 2 patients and severely limited in 1 patient. All patients reported significant improvement in shoulder discomfort.The overall functional results of all patients were satisfactory. Conclusion: Combined myocutaneous flaps transplantation can perfectly repair the wound left after the resection of huge shoulder tumor,minimize the recurrence of tumor,reconstruct the function of shoulder joint and greatly improve the quality of life of patients.
Male ; Female ; Humans ; Adult ; Myocutaneous Flap ; Thigh ; Superficial Back Muscles ; Shoulder ; Quality of Life ; Retrospective Studies ; Skin Transplantation ; Plastic Surgery Procedures/methods* ; Mammaplasty ; Upper Extremity ; Sarcoma ; Treatment Outcome ; Soft Tissue Injuries

OBJECTIVE: To confirm the effects of combined upper limb robotic therapy (RT) as compared to conventional occupational therapy (OT) in tetraplegic spinal cord injury (SCI) patients and to suggest the optimized treatment guidelines of combined upper limb RT. METHODS: After subject recruitment and screening for eligibility, the baseline evaluation for outcome measures were performed. We evaluated the Graded and Redefined Assessment of Strength, Sensibility, and Prehension (GRASSP), the American Spinal Injury Association upper extremity motor score, grip and pinch strength, and the Spinal Cord Independence Measurement III (SCIM-III). In this study, the pre-tested participants were divided randomly into the RT and OT group. The utilized interventions included combined upper limb RT using ArmeoPower and Amadeo (RT group), or conventional OT (OT group) in addition to daily inpatient rehabilitation program. The participants underwent 40 minutes×3 sessions×5 weeks of interventions. RESULTS: A total of 30 tetraplegic SCI patients completed entire study program. After 5 weeks of intervention, both groups demonstrated increases in GRASSP-strength and SCIM-III. The manual muscle test scores of elbow flexion, elbow extension, 2-5th metacarpophalangeal extension, and SCIM-III subscores of bathing-upper, dressing-upper, and grooming as well as the GRASSP-qualitative prehension score were noted to have been significantly increased in the RT group as evaluated. The OT group showed improvements in the GRASSP-quantitative prehension score and some items in grip and pinch strength. There was no significant difference between the two groups in almost all measurements except for the SCIM-III bathing-upper subscore. CONCLUSION: Combined upper limb RT demonstrated beneficial effects on the upper limb motor function in patients with tetraplegic SCI, which were comparable with conventional OT.
Animals ; Elbow ; Grooming ; Hand Strength ; Humans ; Inpatients ; Mass Screening ; Occupational Therapy ; Outcome Assessment (Health Care) ; Pinch Strength ; Rehabilitation ; Robotics ; Spinal Cord Injuries ; Spinal Cord ; Spinal Injuries ; Upper Extremity

Congenital cystic lymphatic malformations on the extremities are very rare. The patient described in this case study presented with a cutaneous and pedicled macrocystic lymphatic malformation that was eliminated by electrocauterization. A 4-day-old female infant with a congenital cutaneous mass on the dorsal area of her left first metacarpophalangeal joint presented to an outpatient clinic. An electrocautery device was used to cut the pedicle gently with minimal bleeding to avoid mass rupture and to minimize morbidity. A simple wet dressing was applied for 1 week, and the wound subsequently healed completely. Cutaneous macrocystic lymphatic malformations are very rare, especially on the extremities, and no consensus exists on their treatment, which has not been previously described. This report presents this rare case, along with a review of the literature.
Ambulatory Care Facilities ; Bandages ; Consensus ; Electrocoagulation ; Extremities ; Female ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Infant ; Lymphatic Abnormalities ; Lymphocele ; Metacarpophalangeal Joint ; Rupture ; Skin Neoplasms ; Upper Extremity ; Wounds and Injuries

PURPOSE: This study examined whether there is a difference in motor learning through short-term repetitive movement practice in stroke survivors with a unilateral brain injury compared to normal elderly participants. METHODS: Twenty-six subjects who were divided into a stroke group (n=13) or sex-aged matched normal elder group (n=13) participated in this study. To evaluate the effects of motor learning, the participants conducted a tracking task for visuomotor coordination. The accuracy index was calculated for each trial. Both groups received repetitive tracking task training of metacarpophalangeal joint for 50 trials. The stroke group performed a tracking task in the upper extremity insi-lesional to the damaged hemisphere, and the normal elder group performed the upper extremity matched for the same side. RESULTS: Two-way repetitive ANOVA revealed a significant difference in the interactions (time×group) and time effects. These results indicated that the motor skill improved in both the stroke and normal elder group with a tracking task. On the other hand, the stroke group showed lesser motor learning skill than the normal elder group, in comparison with the amount of motor learning improvement. CONCLUSION: These results provide novel evidence that stroke survivors with unilateral brain damage might have difficulty in performing ipsilateral movement as well as in motor learning with the ipsilateral upper limb, compared to normal elderly participants.
Aged ; Brain ; Brain Injuries ; Hand ; Humans ; Learning ; Metacarpophalangeal Joint ; Motor Skills ; Stroke ; Survivors ; Upper Extremity

BACKGROUND: Hand injuries caused by chain saws, electric saws, and hand grinders range from simple lacerations to tendon injuries, fractures, and even amputations. This study aimed to understand the distribution of various types of hand and upper extremity injuries caused by power tools, in order to help prevent them, by investigating the incidence and cause of power tool injuries treated over a 4-year period at a single institution in Korea. METHODS: We reviewed the medical records of patients who visited a single institution for power tool-induced injuries from 2011 to 2014. The distribution of sex, age, injured body part, type of injury, and mechanism of injury sustained by patients who received hand and upper extremity injuries from using an engine saw, electric saw, or hand grinder was evaluated. RESULTS: Among 594 subjects who were injured by power tools, 261 cases were hand and upper extremity injuries. The average age was 53.2 years. Tendon injury was the most common type of injury. An electric saw was the most common type of power tool used. More injuries occurred in non-occupational settings than in occupational settings. CONCLUSIONS: In this study, power tool-induced hand and upper extremity injuries were mostly caused by direct contact with electric saw blades. More injuries occurred due to non-occupational use of these tools, but the ratios of amputations and structural injuries were similar in the non-occupational and occupational groups.
Amputation ; Arm Injuries ; Epidemiologic Studies ; Hand Injuries ; Hand ; Humans ; Incidence ; Korea ; Lacerations ; Medical Records ; Occupational Groups ; Tendon Injuries ; Upper Extremity

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) on neurological and functional recovery in patients with central cord syndrome (CCS) involving the upper extremities between the treated and non-treated sides of the treated group and whether the outcomes are comparable to that of the untreated control group. METHODS: Nineteen CCS patients were treated with high-frequency (20 Hz) rTMS over the motor cortex for 5 days. The stimulation side was randomly selected, and all the subjects received conventional occupational therapy during the rTMS-treatment period. Twenty CCS patients who did not receive rTMS were considered as controls. Clinical assessments, including those by the International Standard for Neurological Classification of Spinal Cord Injury, the Jebsen-Taylor Hand Function Test, and the O'Connor Finger Dexterity Test were performed initially and followed up for 1 month after rTMS treatment or 5 weeks after initial assessments. RESULTS: The motor scores for upper extremities were increased and the number of improved cases was greater for the treated side in rTMS-treated patients than for the non-treated side in rTMS-treated patients or controls. The improved cases for writing time and score measured on the Jebsen-Taylor Hand Function Test were also significantly greater in number on the rTMS-treated side compared with the non-treated side and controls. There were no adverse effects during rTMS therapy or the follow-up period. CONCLUSION: The results of the application of high-frequency rTMS treatment to CCS patients suggest that rTMS can enhance the motor recovery and functional fine motor task performance of the upper extremities in such individuals.
Central Cord Syndrome ; Classification ; Fingers ; Follow-Up Studies ; Hand ; Humans ; Motor Cortex ; Occupational Therapy ; Spinal Cord Injuries ; Task Performance and Analysis ; Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation ; Upper Extremity ; Writing

Intravenous pyogenic granuloma (IVPG), also known as intravenous lobular capillary hemangioma, is an extremely rare form of vascular tumor which derives from the lumen of a vein of the head and neck and upper extremities. The treatment of choice is complete local excision of a small portion of the vein. Since first report in 1979, IVPG has been reported in no more than 60 reports abroad. To our knowledge, IVPG originating in the external jugular vein has never been reported in Korea but has important clinical implication. Accurate preoperative diagnosis of neck mass originating in jugular vein is important to plan operative procedures to avoid vascular injury, excessive bleeding, or incomplete excision. Preoperative radiologic examinations such as ultrasonography, computed tomography are useful as first-line diagnostic tools for differential diagnosis of movable neck mass. With a review of literature, the author reports a case of IVPG arising from the left external jugular vein in a 31-year-old male who complained about a palpable neck mass. This patient was successfully managed by ligation and excision of the vein without any complication and no recurrence was found after 6 months.
Adult ; Diagnosis ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Granuloma, Pyogenic ; Head ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Jugular Veins ; Korea ; Ligation ; Male ; Neck ; Recurrence ; Surgical Procedures, Operative ; Ultrasonography ; Upper Extremity ; Vascular System Injuries ; Veins

PURPOSE: This study was to compare the upper extremity muscular function and cross-sectional area (CSA) between wheelchair users and a pedestrian group and to observe how the changes in the muscle CSA affected upper extremity muscle function. METHODS: The study was conducted on 10 patients with spinal cord injury (SCI) who were divided into two groups based on whether they used wheelchairs (wheelchair using [WU] group and pedestrian [PS] group). The Mann-Whitney U-test was used to analyze the data and determine whether there were significant differences between the groups. RESULTS: Muscle mass in the WU group was significantly lower than in the PS groups (p < 0.01), while body fat percentage in the WU group was significantly higher than in the PS group (p < 0.05). The peak torque of shoulder external and right internal rotation was higher in the WU group than in the PS group (p < 0.05). Wrist muscle function was not significantly different for either group. In addition, the CSA of the right wrist extensor carpi radialis longus and left extensor digitorum communis was higher in the WU group than in the PS group (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Using a manual wheelchair may benefit upper extremity function by increasing CSA and muscle function in patients with SCI despite having a negative effect on body composition. However, there is an increased risk of injury with SCI associated with upper extremity overload; thus, an effective exercise protocol is needed to prevent muscle imbalance and injury.
Adipose Tissue ; Body Composition ; Humans ; Shoulder ; Spinal Cord Injuries* ; Spinal Cord* ; Torque ; Upper Extremity* ; Wheelchairs* ; Wrist

The elbow and shoulder in young baseball players are prone to injuries. The internal factors of sports injuries are the fragility of the bones and joints of growing children and adolescents. The main external factors of injuries are the competition and eagerness of adolescent players and the motivation of hard-work. Baseball injuries have many causes, including fast rotation and movement of a load from the trunk to arm, repetitive incorrect placement of the arm in the throwing position, too-many throwing practices, etc. Orthopedic surgeons have generally focused on surgical procedure to cure, but it is time to consider and share the methods of injury prevention.
Adolescent* ; Arm ; Athletic Injuries ; Baseball* ; Child ; Elbow ; Humans ; Joints ; Motivation ; Orthopedics ; Shoulder ; Surgeons ; Upper Extremity*