Training apparatus and training method using the same
The training device and method for shoulder periarthritis allow patients to perform isometric contraction therapy at home, addressing the limitations of current treatments by promoting reciprocal innervation and enhancing shoulder mobility through independent rehabilitation.
Patent Information
- Application Number
- JP2024129268
- Authority / Receiving Office
- JP · JP
- Patent Type
- Applications
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Filing Date
- 2024-08-05
- Publication Date
- 2026-02-18
AI Technical Summary
Current treatments for shoulder periarthritis, such as physical therapy and painkillers, focus on symptomatic relief and require prolonged waiting periods, leaving patients with limited opportunities for active participation in their recovery, leading to severe pain and restricted shoulder movement.
A training device and method utilizing isometric contraction therapy, allowing patients to perform self-rehabilitation at home by using a belt with adjustable stoppers and rings to support the forearm at varying heights, combined with a protractor for angle measurement and a Borg scale for pain assessment, promoting reciprocal innervation to alleviate pain and increase shoulder joint mobility.
The device enables patients to manage their symptoms independently, reducing pain and improving shoulder joint mobility through isometric exercises, facilitating faster recovery by actively engaging the antagonist muscles and providing a visual record of progress.
Smart Images
Figure 2026026850000001_ABST
Abstract
Description
[Technical Field]
[0001] The present invention relates to an improvement in training techniques, and more specifically to a training device and training method using the same that allows patients to carry out self-rehabilitation at home by themselves while keeping track of changes in their symptoms in their daily lives, to alleviate the severe pain and limited movement of the shoulder joint seen in the muscles that primarily lift the upper arm in periarthritis of the shoulder, mainly the deltoid muscle that covers the upper part of the shoulder joint. [Background technology]
[0002] Shoulder periarthritis (also known as "frozen shoulder" or "frozen shoulder") is a condition in which severe pain and limited movement of the shoulder joint are observed in the muscles that work to lift the upper arm (mainly the deltoid muscle that covers the shoulder joint), and it is said that the symptoms are related to contracture of the muscles around the shoulder joint due to lack of exercise rather than mechanical overload on the shoulder joint. The muscle belly of the deltoid muscle is divided into anterior, central, and posterior parts, which encase the shoulder joint from above and form a triangle as a whole, pointing downward and attaching to the humerus (see Figure 9).
[0003] Medical institutions treat shoulder periarthritis with general physical therapy, exercise therapy, physical therapy, surgical therapy, etc., but the time it takes to recover varies greatly from person to person, and it is said to take at least five months to two years.
[0004] Conventional treatments tend to focus on symptomatic treatment, leaving patients with few opportunities to actively participate in improving their symptoms. Patients are often prescribed compresses and painkillers, and are forced to wait patiently for natural recovery after undergoing a freezing period, contracture period, and remission period. During this treatment period, patients experience severe pain and limited range of motion in their shoulder joints, making life difficult.
[0005] Therefore, it is thought that increasing patients' awareness of changes in their own symptoms and activating the physical functions that they inherently possess ("reciprocal innervation" of skeletal muscles) is important in accelerating symptom improvement.
[0006] The muscles involved in human joint movement are controlled by reciprocal innervation between the agonist and antagonist muscles, so that they function efficiently. As shown in Figure 10, when pulling up the upper arm, the deltoid muscle, which is the agonist, shows a significant discharge due to activating stimuli from the brain. On the other hand, the muscles that pull down the upper arm, which are the antagonist muscles for pulling up (pectoralis major and latissimus dorsi), show almost no discharge due to signals that suppress tension.
[0007] This "reciprocal innervation" (also known as "antagonistic muscle inhibition") was proposed by the British physiologist Sir Charles Scott Sherrington in 1897, and is considered to be the basis for smoothly executing physical movements, making it an important concept in basic and clinical neurology.
[0008] In <Non-Patent Document 1>, Hayashi Norio and Kato Akira treated shoulder joint contracture seen in periarthritis of the shoulder with a control group (Group C, 16 people) that mainly received stretching therapy and an isometric group (Group I, 17 people) that mainly received isometric contraction therapy, and compared Group C and Group I after 5, 10, and 20 treatment sessions. They reported that Group I showed a significant improvement in range of motion (ROM) regardless of the number of treatment sessions (see Figure 11).
[0009] In addition, in the isometric treatment group conducted by Hayashi et al., as shown in Figure 12, the patient was in a supine position with the elbow joint flexed at 90 degrees, and the therapist used a method to induce isometric contraction in the patient by fixing the patient's forearm with his left hand and the elbow with his right hand, and had the patient repeat this several times.
[0010] However, no training equipment has been proposed that applies this isometric contraction therapy for shoulder joint muscles to treat shoulder periarthritis, allowing the user to perform the therapy themselves without relying on a therapist, and that allows the user to elicit isometric contraction while standing or sitting in a chair, or a training method that can be performed at home. [Prior art documents] [Non-patent literature]
[0011] [Non-Patent Document 1] Norio Hayashi and Akira Kato; Shoulder Joint ROM Training Using Isometric Contraction - Comparison with Stretching - Physical Therapy, Vol. 17, No. 5, pp. 485-489, 1990. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]
[0012] The present invention was made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems in the prior art, and its purpose is to provide a training device and a training method using the same that allows patients to carry out self-rehabilitation at home by themselves while keeping track of changes in their symptoms in their daily lives, to alleviate the severe pain and limited movement of the shoulder joint seen in the muscles that primarily pull up the upper arm in shoulder periarthritis, mainly the deltoid muscle that covers the upper part of the shoulder joint. [Means for solving the problem]
[0013] The means adopted by the present inventor to solve the above technical problems will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.
[0014] That is, the present invention is a training device for alleviating pain in contracted muscles around the shoulder joint and increasing the range of motion of the shoulder joint, A stopper 2 is provided on the upper end side of the longitudinal belt body 1, and this stopper 2 is fixed to a vertical wall so that the belt body 1 can be suspended. The training device is completed by adopting a technical means in which three or more rings 3 into which the user's forearm can be inserted are provided on the lower end side of the belt body 1, and the forearm can be supported by the rings 3 of different heights.
[0015] Furthermore, in order to solve the above problems, the present invention can also adopt, in addition to the above means, a technical means of providing multiple stoppers 2 and making the height of the ring 3 adjustable by the fixed positions of the stoppers 2 on the vertical wall, if necessary.
[0016] Furthermore, in order to solve the above problems, the present invention can also adopt, in addition to the above means, a technical means of integrally molding the stopper 2 by folding back a portion of the belt body 1 and fixing it thereto, as needed.
[0017] Furthermore, in order to solve the above problems, the present invention can also adopt, in addition to the above means, a technical means of integrally molding the ring 3 by forming a part of the belt body 1 into a ring shape and fixing it thereto, as needed.
[0018] The present invention also provides a training method using the training apparatus described above, comprising: A first step is to adjust the central ring 3 of the device to be at approximately shoulder height of the user, and fix it to a standing wall by the stopper 2 and hang it down; a second step in which a sheet-like protractor 4 for angle measurement is attached to the surface of a standing wall from which the belt body 1 is suspended, the user stands in front of the wall with the position of the shoulder aligned with the center of the protractor 4, and slowly lifts the upper arm within the frontal plane; a third step of stopping the lifting of the upper arm when shoulder pain is felt, measuring the armpit angle at that point with the protractor 4, and recording whether the pain was felt in the anterior, middle or posterior part of the deltoid muscle, and the armpit angle at which the upper arm can be lifted without shoulder pain; A fourth step involves recording the subjective pain level felt in the third step numerically based on the simplified Borg scale; a fifth step of, during the second step, supporting the elbow with the forearm through the ring 3 one level lower than the height at which pain was felt, and pulling down the ring 3 with maximum force within the range where pain is not felt in the shoulder, if pain is felt in the anterior part of the deltoid muscle during the second step, pulling down the ring 3 slightly backward, whereas if pain is felt in the posterior part of the deltoid muscle during the second step, pulling down the ring 3 slightly forward; A sixth step is to remove the forearm from the ring 3, relax the muscles around the shoulder joint by rotating the shoulder several times without exerting force; a seventh step of repeating the second to sixth steps three to five times, and then measuring and recording the armpit angle at which the upper arm can be raised without feeling pain in the shoulder and the simplified Borg scale; The training method was perfected by adopting the technical means of including and structuring it.
[0019] Furthermore, in order to solve the above problems, the present invention can also adopt, in addition to the above means, a technical means of clamping the stopper 2 to the top of the door and then fixing it to the vertical wall by closing the door, if necessary. [Effects of the Invention]
[0020] The training device of the present invention has a simple structure and low manufacturing costs, making it inexpensive and widely available. It can also be easily fixed to a vertical wall such as a door using a stopper, and since it has three or more rings, the user's forearms can be inserted and supported by rings of different heights, making it easy for the user to use it alone at home without assistance.
[0021] Furthermore, by using the training device of the present invention and having the user regularly train based on the isometric (static) contraction training method for pulling down the upper arm, users with symptoms of periarthritis of the shoulder can avoid having to rely solely on outpatient treatment, and can instead perform rehabilitation through isometric exercises for the contracted muscle groups of the shoulder joint by themselves in their daily lives while always being aware of their symptoms, thereby alleviating pain in the muscles around the shoulder and increasing the range of motion of the shoulder joint.
[0022] We then developed a training device that maintains a constant distance between the forearm and the top of the door, eliciting an isometric (static contraction in which a constant muscle length is maintained) contraction when the user pulls down their upper arm. By using reciprocal innervation of the antagonist muscle when pulling down the upper arm, we were able to actively promote relaxation of the deltoid muscle, which is the agonist muscle for pulling up the upper arm and is the main cause of shoulder pain.
[0023] In this way, by applying the reciprocal nerve innervation that humans naturally possess and promoting relaxation of overly tense muscles around the shoulder joint (especially the deltoid muscle), pain in the deltoid muscle above the shoulder joint can be alleviated and the range of motion of the shoulder joint can be increased.
[0024] Furthermore, the device and training method can be safely and easily applied as exercise therapy in rehabilitation at medical institutions.
[0025] Furthermore, by using the training method of the present invention, training history can be visualized, allowing patients to feel the improvement in their symptoms by comparing the recorded values, which also contributes to motivation to continue training.It is expected that by increasing the number of treatments that allow patients to participate in treatment and opportunities for rehabilitation in daily life, more rapid improvement will be possible. [Brief explanation of the drawings]
[0026] [Figure 1] 1 is an overall perspective view showing a training device according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 2] 1 is an explanatory diagram showing a method of using the training device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] 1 is an explanatory diagram showing a method of using the training device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] 1 is an explanatory diagram showing a method of using the training device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 5] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram illustrating a user measuring an armpit angle by using the protractor according to the embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 6] 1 is an explanatory diagram showing a state in which the training device according to the embodiment of the present invention is used; [Figure 7] 1 is a simplified Borg scale according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 8] 1 is an electromyogram showing reciprocal innervation of muscles around the shoulder joint due to isometric contraction when pulling down the upper arm in an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 9] This is a schematic diagram showing the three muscle bellies of the deltoid muscle that are primarily painful. [Figure 10] This is an electromyogram showing reciprocal innervation of the muscles around the shoulder joint during arm lifting. [Figure 11] 1 is a graph showing experimental results of conventional isometric contraction treatment. [Figure 12] This is a photograph of a conventional treatment technique for eliciting isometric contraction. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0027] An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Figures 1 to 8. In the figures, reference numeral 1 denotes a belt body, reference numeral 2 denotes a stopper, reference numeral 3 denotes a ring, and reference numeral 4 denotes a protractor.
[0028] The present invention is a training device for alleviating pain in contracted muscles around the shoulder joint and increasing the range of motion of the shoulder joint. In constructing the device, first, as shown in Figure 1, a stopper 2 is provided on the upper end side of a longitudinal belt body 1.
[0029] The stopper 2 is fixed to a standing wall, allowing the belt body 1 to be hung. As a specific example, the standing wall may be a room door, and the belt body 1 can be easily fixed by clamping it to the top of the door, making it easy to use at home. In this embodiment, three stoppers 2 are formed, allowing it to be adapted to the height of the door and the user's height (sitting height).
[0030] In this embodiment, the stopper 2 can be integrally formed by folding back a portion of the belt body 1 and fastening it (by sewing, etc.), thereby improving strength and reducing the number of parts and manufacturing costs.
[0031] Furthermore, three or more rings 3 into which the user's forearm can be inserted are provided on the lower end side of the belt body 1. In this embodiment, three rings 3 are formed. In this embodiment, the arm support portion 3 can be integrally formed by forming a part of the belt body 1 into a ring shape and fastening it (by sewing, etc.), which can improve strength as described above and also reduce the number of parts and manufacturing costs.
[0032] The device is configured so that the forearm can be supported by rings 3 of different heights, and the ring through which the forearm is inserted can be changed depending on the training, while the position of the device remains fixed.
[0033] Next, a training method of the present invention using the training device constructed as described above will be described.
[0034] <First step> The device's central ring 3 is adjusted to approximately shoulder height of the user, and is then fixed to a standing wall using the stopper 2. In this embodiment, a room door is used as the standing wall, and the device is clamped to the upper edge of the door and closed to secure it in place. Here, the "central ring" is intended to mean that at least either the upper or lower ring 3 can be used.
[0035] As a specific method for fixing to a standing wall, as shown in Fig. 2, with the door open, place the upper end of the belt body 1 on the upper edge and align it with the desired position of the stopper 2, and then close the door as shown in Fig. 3. Then, by pulling the belt body 1, the stopper 2 can be hooked on the back side of the door and clamped to the upper edge (see Fig. 3).
[0036] <Second step> A sheet-like protractor 4 for measuring angles is attached to the surface of the standing wall from which the belt body 1 is suspended, and the user stands in front of it (or sits on a chair) with their shoulder aligned with the center of the protractor 4, and slowly lifts their upper arm within the frontal plane (see Figure 5). The protractor 4 has its origin at a position thought to be approximately the center of the user's shoulder joint, and can be set to 0 degrees below vertical, 180 degrees above, and 90 degrees horizontally.
[0037] <Third Step> If pain is felt in the shoulder, stop lifting the upper arm and measure the armpit angle at that point using the protractor 4. Record whether the pain was felt in the anterior, central or posterior part of the deltoid muscle, and the armpit angle at which the upper arm can be lifted without feeling pain in the shoulder.
[0038] <Fourth step> The subjective pain level felt in the third step is recorded as a numerical value based on the simplified Borg scale shown in Fig. 7. The original Borg scale is a scale of 6 to 20, but the simplified (new) scale of this embodiment is a simplified version of the scale from 0 to 10.
[0039] <5th step> During the second step, support your elbow by placing your forearm on the ring 3 one level lower than the height at which you felt pain, and pull down the ring 3 with maximum force within the range where you do not feel pain in your shoulder.If you feel pain in the anterior part of your deltoid during the second step, pull down the ring 3 slightly backward, whereas if you feel pain in the posterior part of your deltoid, pull down the ring 3 slightly forward.
[0040] As mentioned above, Figure 10 is an electromyogram (EMG) recording showing reciprocal innervation of the shoulder joint muscles during arm lifting, with strong discharges observed only in the deltoid, the primary agonist of arm lifting. On the other hand, Figure 8 is an EMG recording showing reciprocal innervation of the shoulder joint muscles during isometric contraction using this training device during arm lowering. While significant discharges are observed throughout the movement in the pectoralis major and latissimus dorsi, almost no discharge is observed in the antagonistic deltoid. Thus, the active sites during arm lifting and arm lowering are clear. By actively performing isometric exercise in the opposite direction to the movement that causes pain, the inherent reciprocal innervation in humans can be utilized to reduce pain and increase the range of motion of the shoulder joint.
[0041] <Sixth Step> Remove your forearm from ring 3, relax, and rotate your shoulder several times to relax the muscles around your shoulder joint.
[0042] <7th step> Repeat steps 2 to 6 three to five times, and then measure and record the armpit angle at which the patient can raise their upper arm without feeling pain in the shoulder, as well as the simplified Borg scale. It is effective to gradually aim to raise the armpit angle up to 180 degrees.
[0043] It is recommended that you perform this set about three times a day. By doing so, you can achieve sustained relief of shoulder pain and improve range of motion while being aware of changes in your pain level and range of motion in your daily life.
[0044] In this way, with the training apparatus and training method of this embodiment, a user who feels pain in the deltoid muscle, which is the agonist muscle when raising the upper arm, can actively isometrically (statically) contract the agonist muscle group that works to pull down the upper arm, which is the antagonist muscle of raising the upper arm (teres major, teres minor, pectoralis major, latissimus dorsi, etc.), thereby promoting relaxation of the painful muscle group, contributing to relaxation of the shoulder muscles and improving the extensibility of the entire contracted joint tissue, and making it possible to increase the range of motion of the shoulder joint without feeling shoulder pain.
[0045] The present invention is generally configured as described above, but is in no way limited to the illustrated embodiment, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the claims. For example, by providing a buckle or the like on the belt body 1 and fastening it with the buckle, the overall length can be made expandable and the height of the ring 3 can be adjusted.
[0046] Furthermore, the stopper 2 is not limited to being clamped to the door, but may be formed into a hook shape for hanging, or may be attached by other fastening means such as adhesive, screws, pins, or magnets.
[0047] Furthermore, the ring 3 is not limited to being formed as a single piece, but may be formed by fixing a plurality of separate ring-shaped members, and any of these falls within the technical scope of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]
[0048] 1 Belt body 2 Stopper 3 Rings 4 protractor
Claims
1. A training device for reducing pain in contracted muscles around the shoulder joint and increasing the range of motion of the shoulder joint, A stopper is provided on the upper end side of the longitudinal belt body, and this stopper is fixed to the vertical wall so that the belt body can be hung. This training device is characterized in that the lower end of the belt body has three or more rings into which the user's forearm can be inserted, and the rings are of different heights so that the forearm can be supported.
2. 2. The training device according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of stoppers are provided, and the height of the ring can be adjusted by changing the fixing positions of the stoppers on the standing wall.
3. 2. The training device according to claim 1, wherein the stopper is integrally formed by folding back a portion of the belt body and fastening it thereto.
4. 2. The training device according to claim 1, wherein the ring is formed by forming a part of the belt body into a ring shape and fastening the part to the belt body.
5. A training method using the training device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, a first step of adjusting the central ring of the device to be at approximately shoulder height of the user and fixing it to a vertical wall by the stopper and hanging it; a second step in which a sheet-like protractor for angle measurement is attached to the surface of a standing wall from which the belt body is suspended, the user stands in front of the wall with the center of the protractor aligned with the position of the shoulder, and slowly lifts the upper arm within the frontal plane; a third step of stopping the lifting of the upper arm when shoulder pain is felt, measuring the armpit angle at that point with the protractor, and recording whether the pain was felt in the anterior, central or posterior part of the deltoid muscle, and the armpit angle at which the upper arm could be lifted without shoulder pain; A fourth step of recording the subjective pain level felt in the third step as a numerical value based on the simplified Borg scale; a fifth step of, during the second step, supporting the elbow with the forearm through the ring one level lower than the height at which pain was felt, and pulling down the ring with maximum force within the range where pain is not felt in the shoulder, and if pain is felt in the anterior deltoid muscle during the second step, pulling down the ring slightly backward, while if pain is felt in the posterior deltoid muscle, pulling down the ring slightly forward; A sixth step is to remove the forearm from the ring, relax, and rotate the shoulder several times to relax the muscles around the shoulder joint; a seventh step of repeating the second to sixth steps three to five times, and then measuring and recording the armpit angle at which the upper arm can be raised without feeling pain in the shoulder and the simplified Borg scale; A training method comprising:
6. 6. The training method according to claim 5, wherein the stopper is clamped to the upper part of the door, and then the door is closed to fix the stopper to the standing wall.