title: Korean guideline development for the evaluation of permanent impairment of the spine: proposal by the Korean Academy of Medical Sciences Committee.
abstract: The criteria for the evaluation of spinal impairment are diverse, complex, and have no standardized form. This makes it difficult and somewhat troublesome to accurately evaluate spinal impairment patients. A standardized guideline was studied for the evaluation of spinal impairment, based on the American Medical Association (AMA) Guides and the McBride method. This guideline proposal was developed by specialty medical societies under the Korean Academy of Medical Sciences. In this study, the grades of impairment were assessed by dividing patients into three different categories: spinal cord impairment, spinal injury impairment and spinal disorder impairment. The affected regions of the spine are divided into three: the cervical region, the thoracic region, and the lumbosacral region. The grade of impairment was differentially evaluated according to the affected region. The restricted range of motion was excluded in the evaluation spinal impairment because of low objectivity. Even though the new Korean guideline for the evaluation of spinal impairment has been proposed, it should be continuously supplemented and revised.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Chung-Ang University, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Young-Baeg
authors.initials: YB
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Sang-Gu
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Chan-Woo
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Park
authors.forename: Dong-Jun
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Youn-Kwan
authors.initials: YK
authors.lastname: Park
authors.forename: Nak-Jung
authors.initials: NJ
authors.lastname: Sung
authors.forename: Sang-Ho
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Ahn
authors.forename: Jae-Sung
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Ahn
authors.forename: Hee-Suk
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Shin
authors.forename: Bum-Suk
authors.initials: BS
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Jin-Hyok
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Chang-Hoon
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Jeon
mesh_terms: D004185:Disability Evaluation; D006801:Humans; D007723:Korea; D016730:Program Development; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013119:Spinal Cord Injuries / Q000145:classification / Q000175:diagnosis; D013122:Spinal Diseases / Q000145:classification / Q000175:diagnosis*