• The Journal of Korean Medicine
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• v.43 no.4
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• pp.1-7
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• 2022

Objectives: This study aimed to determine whether comparing the pressure pain threshold (PPT) with an algometer before and after treatment for functional dyspepsia is of diagnostic value and investigate a possible correlation between PPT measured using an algometer and symptom improvement before and after treatment. Methods: A total of 99 patients with functional dyspepsia symptoms admitted to the OO Korean Medical Hospital from April 14, 2020 to January 21, 2021 were investigated. On the 1st and 14th days of hospitalization, the pressure of the first pain complaint at acupuncture points Juque (巨厥, CV14), Shangwan (上脘, CV13), Zhongwan (中脘, CV12), Xiawan (下脘, CV10), Guanuan (關元, CV4), Tianshu (天樞, ST25), and Daju (大巨, ST27) was measured using the algometer, and the visual analog scale (VAS) scores for patient's symptoms were evaluated. The algometer PPT and patient-symptom VAS scores were compared by repeated measures corresponding to the sample t-test to analyze the changes after treatment. A correlation analysis was performed to identify the correlation between patient-symptom VAS scores and algometer PPT. Results: The PPT measured using the algometer significantly increased after treatment in the 99 patients. The patient-symptom VAS score decreased significantly in most cases as treatment progressed. Analysis of the correlation between algometer PPT and patient-symptom VAS scores revealed some notable negative correlations. Conclusion: The algometer can help to set the diagnostic and treatment baselines for patients with functional dyspepsia.

• Physical Therapy Korea
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.62-69
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• 2008

The purpose of this study was to measure intrarater and interrater reliability of a portable digital pressure algometer. Fifty healthy subjects were recruited for this study. Pressure pain thresholds of splenius capitis, levator scapular, and upper trapezius muscles were measured using by FPK algometer and portable digital pressure algometer. Three trials were done on each subject by two examiners. Intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) were used to determine the reliability of each measure. The intrarater reliability of the FPK algometer was good and excellent (ICC .63~.79) and the interrater reliability was poor and good (ICC .15~.57). The intrarater reliability of a portable digital pressure algometer was excellent (ICC .75~.86) and the interrater reliability was poor and good (ICC .35~.61). This result suggests that the intrarater reliability and interrater reliability of a portable digital pressure algometer were better than an FPK algometer.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.32-36
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• 2001

Background: There is no reliable objective test for the diagnosis of myofascial pain syndromes. The aim of this study was to evaluate the usefulness of a pressure algometer for the diagnosis of the trigger points and for the evaluation of the treatment in myofascial pain syndromes (MPS). Methods: Twenty female patients with clinical MPS of shoulder were included in this study. Pressure pain thresholds were measured by a pressure algometer at three different sites including the trapezius, supraspinatus and infraspinatus before, and then the 1st, 3rd and 7th days after TPI. Results: Mean pressure pain thresholds were lower in patients with MPS in than normal volunteers in all the examined skeletal muscles. Mean pressure pain thresholds in patients with MPS were increased significantly after TPI in all the examined skeletal muscles. Conclusions: Pressure algometer can be used as relatively objective diagnostic tool for locating trigger points and to quantify the effect of TPI in MPS. However, more investigation is necessary.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.235-242
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• 2016

A system for measuring the electrodermal activity (EDA) signal occurring at the sweat glands in the left palm and left finger of the human body was implemented in this study. The EDA measurement system (EDAMS) consisted of an algometer, a biopotential measurement system (BPMS), and a PC. Two experiments were performed to evaluate the function and clinical applicability of EDAMS. First, an experiment was carried out on the linearity of the voltage and the pressure that comprised the output signals of the algometer used for applying a pressure stimulus. Second, the amplitude of the EDA signal acquired from the electrode attached to the left palm or finger was measured while increasing the pressure stimulus of the algometer. When the pressure stimulus of the algometer applied to the left scapula was increased, the amplitude of the EDA signal increased. The amplitude of the EDA signal at the left palm was observed to be greater than that at the left finger. The amplitude of the EDA signal was observed to increase in a relatively linear relation with the intensity of the pressure stimuli. In addition, the latency of the EDA signal acquired from the electrode attached to the left palm or finger was measured while increasing the pressure stimulus of the algometer. When the pressure stimulus of the algometer applied to the left scapula was increased, the latency of the EDA signal decreased. The latency of the EDA signal at the palm was observed to be less than that at the finger. The latency of the EDA signal was observed to decrease nonlinearly with the pressure stimuli.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine
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• v.43 no.1
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• pp.1-5
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• 2022

Objectives: Using algometer, measure the pressure pain threshold (PPT) of the epigastric pain(心下痞硬) and calculate the cut-off value, and this can serve as the basis for prognostic diagnosis of functional dyspepsia so we would like to evaluate its diagnostic value. Methods: We investigated 353 patients with functional dyspepsia symptoms who admitted Gangnam Weedahm Oriental Hospital from February 1, 2021 to February 27, 2021. At the time of the patient's visit, an oriental medical doctor measured the pressure at the first pain point on the Algometer of (CV14), twice each, at 1minute intervals. The ROC (receiver operating characteristic) curve and the optimal cut-off value derived through the diagnosis of the (CV14) PPT value for epigastric pain(心下痞硬) and the gold standard of oriental medical doctor, it was evaluated through. Results: In 353 patients, the area under the ROC curve (AUC) was 0.909 (p=0). In addition, the optimal cutting value was 10.05 (kg/cm2), which was statistically significant. Additionally, the sensitivity of the Algometer's PPT measurement was 0.704 and the specificity was 0.884. As a result, if the PPT value of the Algometer exceeds 10.05 (kg/cm²) in terms of the optimal cutting value, it can be seen that epigastric pain(心下痞硬) is lost. Conclusion: Algometer's PPT value measurement can be a reliable test method for quantification of epigastric pain(心下痞硬) diagnosis and can be useful as an objective indicator.

• The Transactions of the Korean Institute of Electrical Engineers D
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• v.52 no.11
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• pp.657-661
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• 2003

In this paper, we designed a portable digital pressure algometer which not only can measure the pain level objectively and quantitatively, but also is able to do RF communication. This system consists of pressure sensor for pain measurement, analog signal analysis, digital hardware based on PIC16C73B, RF communication and display. To evaluate the performance of the developed system, we measured pressure threshold using commercial analog PA(Pressure Algometer) and the proposed system, and then evaluated the correlation and confidence. Using linear regression analysis, standard deviation of 0.1731 and R-square value of 99.3% were obtained. In conclusion, the above results showed good performance and its usability in measuring the pain clinically.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.36 no.3
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• pp.100-104
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• 2022

The purpose of this study is to observe the effectiveness of the Korean medical complex treatments for functional dyspepsia (FD). And we observed NDI-K (Nepean dyspepsia index-Korean version) and algometer on acupoints to confirm the treatment effectiveness. In this retrospective study, we investigated 77 patients with FD symptoms who admitted to 00 Korean Hospital for 2 weeks from April 14, 2020 to March 31, 2021. All patietns were treated with herbal medicines, acupuncture, pharmacopuncture, moxa treatment, aroma therapy, So-jeok and So-jeok II therapy. On the day of admission and discharge, NDI-K, algometer on acupoints (CV12, CV10, ST25, ST27, SP14) were examined twice. Among the NDI-K values, all 14 items except for poor breathing were decreased statistically significantly. The algometer values were increased statistically significantly in all acupoints (CV12, CV10, ST25, ST27, SP14). These results suggest that Korean medical treatment can be useful in the treatment of FD.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.363-367
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• 1996

Background: Recently postoperative pain control with continuous epidural analgesia has been increased. This study aimes to evaluate backpain following continuous epidural analgesia by pressure threshold meter (algometer). Methods: After informed consent, 50 ASA physical status I or II patients undergoing elective gynecologic surgery were selected. After placing epidural catheter, patients received morphine 0.05mg/kg with 0.25% bupivacaine 5 ml followed by continuous infusion of 0.125% bupivacaine 100 ml with morphine 4 mg for 48 hours. backpain was measured by pressure algometer over lumbar paraspinalis at the L4 level, 5 and 7 cm from the midline on preoperative, operation day, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th postoperative days. Results: Postoperative mean pressure thresholds of were higher than preoperative value (p<0.05). Conclusion: The continuous epidural analgesia dose not provide or aggravate postoperative backpain, but it must be evaluated for long term follow-up.

• Physical Therapy Rehabilitation Science
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.1-7
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• 2019

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the validity and reliability of using static surface electromyography (sEMG) on persons with neck pain and in healthy adults. Design: Cross-sectional study. Methods: Twenty-two female participants with neck pain and thirty healthy adults in the age group of 20-65 years were recruited in this study. To evaluate the validity and reliability of sEMG in subjects with neck pain, the subjects'characteristics were recorded and the Visual Analog Scale (VAS) and Neck Disability Index (NDI) were examined in addition to sEMG and algometer tests being carried out on the subjects. The site for using the sEMG and algometer was the upper trapezius. sEMG test-retest reliability was measured by intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs). Independent t-tests were used to analyze the differences in the dependent variables between subjects with neck pain and healthy adults. The Pearson correlation coefficient was used to examine the linear relationship between measured variables. Results: sEMG and algometer tests were reliable according to the test-retest reliability results in subjects with neck pain and healthy adults (ICC=0.815-0.979). The results of this study showed that there were significant differences in respect to age, VAS, sEMG and algometer tests between persons with neck pain and healthy adults (p<0.05). The VAS and NDI were statistically correlated with sEMG and algometer results (p<0.05). Conclusions: In this study, we investigated the clinical usefulness of the static sEMG test in evaluating the pain scale of persons with neck pain with high reliability and validity.

• Korean Journal of Acupuncture
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• v.40 no.3
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• pp.99-108
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• 2023

Objectives : The aim of this study was to assess the quantitative characteristics of pressure pain threshold (PPT) and pressure depth (PD) at the abdominal conception vessel (CV) acupoints according to subjective digestive status and digestive discomfort levels, accomplished by comparing a large group of healthy men and women, using the modified digital algometer. Methods : A total of 1,504 healthy adults aged 19 years or older participated in this study. A questionnaire was administered to evaluate participants' digestive status and discomfort. PPT (kgf/cm²/s) and PD (mm) measurements were obtained at CV14, CV12, and CV4 acupoints using a modified digital algometer. General characteristics were analyzed using the chi-square test, and differences in PPT and PD were assessed using two-sample t-tests and ANCOVA. Results : Significant difference in PPT was found based on digestive status at CV14 and CV12 for both sexes, and in PD at CV14 for women. Women exhibited significant difference in PPT based on digestive discomfort at CV14, CV12, and CV4, while men showed significant difference at CV14 and CV12. Significant difference in PD was observed at CV14 and CV4 among women. Even after adjusting for age and body mass index, significant difference persisted in PPT based on digestive discomfort at CV14 and CV12 for both sexes. PD exhibited significant differences at CV14, CV12, and CV4 among women. Conclusions : Using the modified digital algometer, this study showed the significant difference of pressure pain threshold at the CV14 and CV12 acupoints for subjective digestive discomfort levels in healthy men and women.