Physiological and biomechanical evaluation of a training macrocycle in children swimmers

Physiological responses related to 400-m front crawl performance were examined in a 11-week training macrocycle in children 11.6 ± 1.2 years old. Fourteen girls and twenty-nine boys completed a maximum intensity 400-m test, at the beginning (T1) and at the end of four weeks of general preparation (T2), four weeks of specific preparation (T3), and three weeks of the competitive period (T4). Blood lactate (La), blood glucose (Glu) and heart rate were measured post effort. Stroke rate (SR), stroke length (SL) and stroke index (SI) were measured during the test. The 400-m time was decreased at T2, T3, and T4 compared to T1 by 4.2 ± 4.9, 7.5 ± 7.0, and 8.6 ± 7.3% (p < 0.05) and at T3 and T4 compared to T2 by 3.1 ± 4.3 and 4.2 ± 4.6%, respectively (p < 0.05). La was not different between tests (p > 0.05) and Glu was decreased at T3 compared to other testing moments (p < 0.05). SR, SL, and SI were higher at T3 and T4 compared to T1 (p < 0.05). SL and SI were also increased at T4 compared to T2 (p < 0.05). Performance changes from T1 to T2 were related to SL and SI changes (r = 0.45 and 0.83, p < 0.05), and subsequent changes between T2 to T3 were related to SR, SI, La, and Glu changes (r = 0.48, 0.68, 0.34, and 0.42, p < 0.05). Performance change from T3 to T4 was related to SL, SI, and La modifications (r = 0.34, 0.70, and 0.53, p < 0.05). Performance gains may be related to various biomechanical or physiological changes according to training macrocycle structure. © 2019 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

Behavioural variability and motor performance: Effect of practice specialization in front crawl swimming

The aim was to examine behavioural variability within and between individuals, especially in a swimming task, to explore how swimmers with various specialty (competitive short distance swimming vs. triathlon) adapt to repetitive events of sub-maximal intensity, controlled in speed but of various distances. Five swimmers and five triathletes randomly performed three variants (with steps of 200, 300 and 400m distances) of a front crawl incremental step test until exhaustion. Multi-camera system was used to collect and analyse eight kinematical and swimming efficiency parameters. Analysis of variance showed significant differences between swimmers and triathletes, with significant individual effect. Cluster analysis put these parameters together to investigate whether each individual used the same pattern(s) and one or several patterns to achieve the task goal. Results exhibited ten patterns for the whole population, with only two behavioural patterns shared between swimmers and triathletes. Swimmers tended to use higher hand velocity and index of coordination than triathletes. Mono-stability occurred in swimmers whatever the task constraint showing high stability, while triathletes revealed bi-stability because they switched to another pattern at mid-distance of the task. Finally, our analysis helped to explain and understand effect of specialty and more broadly individual adaptation to task constraint.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

A noninterventional study to monitor patients with diabetic macular oedema starting treatment with ranibizumab (POLARIS)

Purpose: Antivascular endothelial growth factor agents are increasingly used in diabetic macular oedema (DME); however, there are few studies exploring their use in DME in real-world settings. Methods: POLARIS was a noninterventional, multicentre study to monitor 12-month outcomes in patients starting ranibizumab treatment in routine practices. The primary outcome was mean change in visual acuity (VA) from baseline to month 12 (last observation carried forward approach). Other outcomes included mean change in central retinal thickness (CRT) and resource utilization. Visual acuity (VA) outcomes were also stratified by country, baseline visual acuity score (VAS), sex, age and injection frequency. Results: Outcomes were analysed from all treated patients (n = 804) and from first-year completers (patients who had a visual acuity assessment at 12 months; n = 568). The mean (SD) baseline VAS was 59.4 (15.9) letters, and the mean change in visual acuity was 4.4 letters (95% confidence interval: 3.3–5.4) at month 12 (study eye; first-year completers). The mean number of injections (study eye) was 4.9, and the mean number of all visits (any eye) was 10 (58% were injection visits) over 12 months (first-year completers). The mean (SD) baseline CRT was 410.6 (128.8) μm, and the mean change in CRT was −115.2 μm at month 12 (study eye; first-year completers). Visual acuity (VA) outcomes were generally comparable across most countries and subgroups and were greatest in patients with the lowest baseline VAS (≤60 letters). Conclusion: POLARIS showed that real-world outcomes in DME patients starting treatment with ranibizumab were lower than those observed in clinical studies, in spite of extensive monitoring. © 2018 The Authors. Acta Ophthalmologica published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Acta Ophthalmologica Scandinavica Foundation