Objective: The Huntington’s Disease Quality of Life Battery for Carers (HDQoL-C) is used to evaluate caregiver quality of life. This study aimed to develop and validate the Korean version of the HDQoL-C (K-HDQoL-C) to assess the burden on Korean caregivers of Huntington’s disease (HD) patients. Methods: A total of 19 HD caregivers (7 females, mean age 55.4±14.6 years) participated in this study. The K-HDQoL-C, a translation of the English version, consisted of demographic information, caring aspects, life satisfaction, and feelings about life. It was administered twice, 2 weeks apart. Internal consistency was evaluated using Cronbach’s α, and test-retest reliability was assessed with intraclass correlation coefficients. The relationship with the Zarit Burden Interview-12 (ZBI-12) was analyzed. Results: The internal consistencies of the K-HDQoL-C were 0.771 (part 2), 0.938 (part 3), and 0.891 (part 4). The test-retest reliability ranged from 0.908 to 0.936. Part 3 was negatively correlated with the ZBI-12, and part 4 was positively correlated with the ZBI-12 (r=-0.780, 0.923; p<0.001). Conclusion The K-HDQoL-C effectively evaluates the challenges faced by HD caregivers, particularly in terms of care aspects and life satisfaction.

Objective: The Huntington’s Disease Quality of Life Battery for Carers (HDQoL-C) is used to evaluate caregiver quality of life. This study aimed to develop and validate the Korean version of the HDQoL-C (K-HDQoL-C) to assess the burden on Korean caregivers of Huntington’s disease (HD) patients. Methods: A total of 19 HD caregivers (7 females, mean age 55.4±14.6 years) participated in this study. The K-HDQoL-C, a translation of the English version, consisted of demographic information, caring aspects, life satisfaction, and feelings about life. It was administered twice, 2 weeks apart. Internal consistency was evaluated using Cronbach’s α, and test-retest reliability was assessed with intraclass correlation coefficients. The relationship with the Zarit Burden Interview-12 (ZBI-12) was analyzed. Results: The internal consistencies of the K-HDQoL-C were 0.771 (part 2), 0.938 (part 3), and 0.891 (part 4). The test-retest reliability ranged from 0.908 to 0.936. Part 3 was negatively correlated with the ZBI-12, and part 4 was positively correlated with the ZBI-12 (r=-0.780, 0.923; p<0.001). Conclusion The K-HDQoL-C effectively evaluates the challenges faced by HD caregivers, particularly in terms of care aspects and life satisfaction.

Objective: The Huntington’s Disease Quality of Life Battery for Carers (HDQoL-C) is used to evaluate caregiver quality of life. This study aimed to develop and validate the Korean version of the HDQoL-C (K-HDQoL-C) to assess the burden on Korean caregivers of Huntington’s disease (HD) patients. Methods: A total of 19 HD caregivers (7 females, mean age 55.4±14.6 years) participated in this study. The K-HDQoL-C, a translation of the English version, consisted of demographic information, caring aspects, life satisfaction, and feelings about life. It was administered twice, 2 weeks apart. Internal consistency was evaluated using Cronbach’s α, and test-retest reliability was assessed with intraclass correlation coefficients. The relationship with the Zarit Burden Interview-12 (ZBI-12) was analyzed. Results: The internal consistencies of the K-HDQoL-C were 0.771 (part 2), 0.938 (part 3), and 0.891 (part 4). The test-retest reliability ranged from 0.908 to 0.936. Part 3 was negatively correlated with the ZBI-12, and part 4 was positively correlated with the ZBI-12 (r=-0.780, 0.923; p<0.001). Conclusion The K-HDQoL-C effectively evaluates the challenges faced by HD caregivers, particularly in terms of care aspects and life satisfaction.

Objective: This is the first prospective cohort study of Huntington’s disease (HD) in Korea. This study aimed to investigate the caregiver burden in relation to the characteristics of patients and caregivers. Methods: From August 2020 to February 2022, we enrolled patients with HD from 13 university hospitals in Korea. We used the 12-item Zarit Burden Interview (ZBI-12) to evaluate the caregiver burden. We evaluated the clinical associations of the ZBI-12 scores by linear regression analysis and investigated the differences between the low- and high-burden groups. Results: Sixty-five patients with HD and 45 caregivers were enrolled in this cohort study. The average age at onset of motor symptoms was 49.3 ± 12.3 years, with an average cytosine-adenine-guanine (CAG)n of 42.9 ± 4.0 (38–65). The median ZBI-12 score among our caregivers was 17.6 ± 14.2. A higher caregiver burden was associated with a more severe Shoulson–Fahn stage (p = 0.038) of the patients. A higher ZBI-12 score was also associated with lower independence scale (B = -0.154, p = 0.006) and functional capacity (B = -1.082, p = 0.002) scores of patients. The caregiving duration was longer in the high- than in the low-burden group. Caregivers’ demographics, blood relation, and marital and social status did not affect the burden significantly. Conclusion HD patients’ neurological status exerts an enormous impact on the caregiver burden regardless of the demographic or social status of the caregiver. This study emphasizes the need to establish an optimal support system for families dealing with HD in Korea. A future longitudinal analysis could help us understand how disease progression aggravates the caregiver burden throughout the entire disease course.

OBJECTIVES: The present study aimed to investigate high school students' sugar intake behaviors, the status of consuming sugary processed foods, the awareness of sugar, and the experience and interest in sugar-related education based on the level of sugar-related nutrition knowledge. METHODS: In this study, five high schools were selected in Seoul, Korea, and a survey was conducted in 400 students on the level of sugar-related nutrition knowledge and sugar intake status. A total of 349 questionnaires were used for the final analysis. For statistical analysis, descriptive statistics was performed; a t-test, χ2 test, and Friedman test were used for comparative analysis. RESULTS: The study results showed a positive association between the knowledge level of sugar and the appropriate sugar intake behavior and sugary food choices. The group with more nutrition knowledge on sugar was found to have good eating habits and to eat less sugary food. The main sources of sugar were beverages, confectionary, and bakery goods in the corresponding order, irrespective of the level of nutrition knowledge related to sugar. A significant difference was found in the groups' awareness of the sugar content of the drinks with 89.4% for the higher-knowledge group, and only 81.5% for the lower-knowledge group (p < 0.05). Results also showed that 43.9% of the higher-knowledge group and 36.4% of the lower knowledge group were interested in participating in education on sugar. CONCLUSIONS: This study result indicated the need to help adolescents to avoid excessive sugar intake from only certain favorite foods. Therefore, it is necessary to seek a systematic foundation for participatory education in order for them to maintain a low sugar intake in daily life and lead healthy eating habits by increasing their level of sugar-related information and knowledge.
Adolescent ; Beverages ; Eating ; Education ; Humans ; Korea ; Seoul*

Intrathecal baclofen (ITB) therapy has been proven to reduce severe spasticity in cerebral palsy (CP). However, few results reported the objective gait pattern change after ITB bolus injection in adult ambulatory CP. We therefore evaluated observational and kinematic gait patterns at different ITB bolus injection doses. We performed a test trial of 3-day ITB bolus injections at doses of 12.5 microg, 25 microg, and 50 microg in ambulatory CP. We evaluated modified Ashworth scale, visual analogue scale, observational gait scale, and kinematic gait analysis after ITB bolus injection. Intrathecal administration of low-dose baclofen 25 microg was successfully used not only for the treatment of spasticity but also for the treatment of gait disturbance, whereas the higher dose baclofen 50 microg induced foot drop and deteriorated gait pattern. We experienced dose-dependent changes in gait pattern confirmed by the observational and kinematic gait assessments after ITB bolus injection in adult ambulatory CP.
Adult* ; Baclofen* ; Cerebral Palsy* ; Foot ; Gait* ; Humans ; Muscle Spasticity

OBJECTIVE: To investigate immediate changes in hyolaryngeal movement and swallowing function after a cycle of neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) on both submental and throat regions and submental placement alone in patients with dysphagia. METHODS: Fifteen patients with dysphagia were recruited. First, videofluoroscopic swallowing study (VFSS) was performed before NMES. All patients thereafter received a cycle of NMES by 2 methods of electrode placement: 1) both submental and throat regions and 2) submental placement alone concomitant with VFSS. The Penetration-Aspiration Score (PAS) and the NIH-Swallowing Safety Scale (NIH-SSS) were measured for swallowing function. RESULTS: During swallowing, hyolaryngeal descent significantly occurred by NMES on both submental and throat regions, and anterior displacement of hyolaryngeal complex was significant on submental placement alone. NMES on submental placement alone did not change the PAS and NIH-SSS. However, NMES on both submental and throat regions significantly reduced the NIH-SSS, although it did not change the PAS. Patients with no brainstem lesion and with dysphagia duration of <3 months showed significantly improved the NIH-SSS. CONCLUSION: Immediate hyolaryngeal movement was paradoxically depressed after NMES on both submental and throat regions with significant reductions in the NIH-SSS but not the PAS, suggesting improvement in pharyngeal peristalsis and cricopharyngeal functions at the esophageal entry rather than decreased aspiration and penetration. The results also suggested that patients with dysphagia should be carefully screened when determining motor-level NMES.
Brain Stem ; Deglutition Disorders* ; Deglutition* ; Electric Stimulation* ; Electrodes ; Humans ; Hyoid Bone ; Larynx ; Peristalsis ; Pharynx

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of treadmill walking exercise as a treatment method to improve gait efficiency in adults with cerebral palsy (CP) and to determine gait efficiency during overground walking after the treadmill walking exercise. METHODS: Fourteen adults with CP were recruited in the experimental group of treadmill walking exercise. A control group of 7 adults with CP who attended conventional physical therapy were also recruited. The treadmill walking exercise protocol consisted of 3-5 training sessions per week for 1-2 months (total 20 sessions). Gait distance, velocity, VO2, VCO2, O2 rate (mL/kg.min), and O2 cost (mL/kg.m) were assessed at the beginning and at the end of the treadmill walking exercise. The parameters were measured by KB1-C oximeter. RESULTS: After the treadmill walking exercise, gait distance during overground walking up to 6 minutes significantly increased from 151.29+/-91.79 to 193.93+/-79.01 m, and gait velocity increased from 28.09+/-14.29 to 33.49+/-12.69 m/min (p<0.05). Energy efficiency evaluated by O2 cost during overground walking significantly improved from 0.56+/-0.36 to 0.41+/-0.18 mL/kg.m (p<0.05), whereas O2 rate did not improve significantly after the treadmill walking exercise. On the other hand, gait velocity and O2 cost during overground walking were not significantly changed in the control group. CONCLUSION: Treadmill walking exercise improved the gait efficiency by decreased energy expenditure during overground walking in adults with CP. Therefore, treadmill walking exercise can be an important method for gait training in adults with CP who have higher energy expenditure.
Adult* ; Cerebral Palsy* ; Energy Metabolism ; Gait* ; Hand ; Humans ; Walking*

PURPOSE: The purpose of our study was to investigate the effect of gait training with rhythmic auditory stimulation (RAS) on both kinematic and temporospatial gait patterns in patients with hemiplegia. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Eighteen hemiplegic patients diagnosed with either cerebral palsy or stroke participated in this study. All participants underwent the 4-week gait training with RAS. The treatment was performed for 30 minutes per each session, three sessions per week. RAS was provided with rhythmic beats using a chord progression on a keyboard. Kinematic and temporospatial data were collected and analyzed using a three-dimensional motion analysis system. RESULTS: Gait training with RAS significantly improved both proximal and distal joint kinematic patterns in hip adduction, knee flexion, and ankle plantar flexion, enhancing the gait deviation index (GDI) as well as ameliorating temporal asymmetry of the stance and swing phases in patients with hemiplegia. Stroke patients with previous walking experience demonstrated significant kinematic improvement in knee flexion in mid-swing and ankle dorsiflexion in terminal stance. Among stroke patients, subacute patients showed a significantly increased GDI score compared with chronic patients. In addition, household ambulators showed a significant effect on reducing anterior tilt of the pelvis with an enhanced GDI score, while community ambulators significantly increased knee flexion in mid-swing phase and ankle dorsiflexion in terminal stance phase. CONCLUSION: Gait training with RAS has beneficial effects on both kinematic and temporospatial patterns in patients with hemiplegia, providing not only clinical implications of locomotor rehabilitation with goal-oriented external feedback using RAS but also differential effects according to ambulatory function.
Acoustic Stimulation/*methods ; Aged ; Ankle Joint/physiopathology ; Biomechanical Phenomena ; Cerebral Palsy/*diagnosis/physiopathology ; Female ; Foot Joints/physiopathology ; *Gait ; Gait Disorders, Neurologic/etiology/physiopathology/*rehabilitation ; Hemiplegia ; Humans ; Knee/physiopathology ; Knee Joint/physiopathology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Stroke/*diagnosis/physiopathology

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between metabolic syndrome and cognitive functions among chronic schizophrenia patients. METHODS: The survey participants were 105(40 metabolic syndrome and 65 non-metabolic syndrome) chronic schizophrenia patients at Yang-san Hospital. Each score of cognitive test(A Korean version of the Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer's Disease Assessment Packet, stroop test), Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale, Hamilton rating scale for Depression were assessed. Statistical analysis of the relationship between various tests of A Korean version of the Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer's Disease Assessment Packet and metabolic syndrome were performed using ANCOVA and logistic regression. RESULTS: Schizophrenia patients with lower score on construction praxia were likely to be included in Metabolic syndrome group. However, there were no significant relationships in other tests between the two groups. CONCLUSION: This study found metabolic syndrome caused cognitive decline in chronic schizophrenia patients, especially Construction praxia. This study could be a basis to show metabolic syndrome has to be treated appropriately in schizophrenia patients and suggests the necessity of following longitudinal designed study.
Alzheimer Disease ; Depression ; Humans ; Logistic Models ; Schizophrenia*