McConnell patellar taping on postural control of women with patellofemoral pain syndrome: randomized clinical trial

Introduction: The effects of McConnell patellar taping on the postural control of women with patellofemoral pain syndrome (PFPS) are controversial. Objective: To evaluate the effects of McConnell patellar taping on the static one-leg stance postural control and during squatting in women with PFPS. Method: A randomized, blinded clinical trial that comprised 40 women with PFPS, aged between 18 and 35 years. The study sample was allocated to two groups: McConnell patellar taping group (MPTG) and Placebo taping group (PTG). The analysis included the one-leg static support and squat on the lower limb with PFPS. The center of pressure (CoP) displacement parameters recorded by a force platform were analyzed using two-way ANOVA and Cohen’s d. Results: For the static postural control, no significant differences were found between the groups in terms of time or interaction (p>0.05); with small effect size. For the postural control during the one-leg squat, significant differences were found regarding the time of intervention for both groups, with reduced CoP parameters after the application of taping. However, the MPTG demonstrated a large effect size in frequency of oscillation and medium effect size in speed of oscillation, both during the squat exercise. Conclusion: McConnell patellar taping and placebo taping improved postural control during the one-leg squat. It should be observed that the changes and effect sizes determined for the MPTG were significantly higher compared to the PTG, emphasizing its clinical importance in the treatment of individuals with PFPS, during dynamic activities

Efeitos de uma abordagem multi-profissional sobre variáveis antropométricas e de perfil alimentar de adolescentes com sobrepeso ou obesidade

Introduction: To investigate the effects of a multiprofessional approach on anthropometric parameters and body composition and the level of food processing in adolescents. Methods: Twelve overweight/obese male adolescents between 13-17 years old participated in a series of 12-week multiprofessional interventioms led by physical education, nutrition and psychology professionals. The participants were assessed before the intervention as well as at 6 and 12 weeks into it. Anthropometric assessments were performed, including body weight, stature and body mass index; body composition, with fat mass (FM), body fat (%BF), skeletal muscle mass (SMM) and resting metabolic rate (RMR) and by filling in a three-day food record, in order to calculate the ingested foods, by the level of processing of the food: fresh, minimally processed, processed and ultra-processed.  Results:  No differences were observed for the anthropometric parameters performed at different stages (p>0.05). Reductions for FM and %BF and increases in SMM and RMR (p<0.05) were identified, all after 12-week of the intervention. There was an increase in the consumption of natural foods/g, and an increase in the caloric consumption of processed foods/kcal, after 12-week of interventions (p<0.05). Conclusion: The model resulted in decreases in FM and %BF, an increase in SMM, RMR, natural foods/g and processed foods/kcal.Introdução: Investigar a qualidade nutricional de adolescentes com sobrepeso ou obesidade é substancial para orientar estratégias de alimentação saudável. Objetivo: Avaliar os efeitos de uma abordagem multiprofissional sobre os parâmetros antropométricos, de composição corporal e o nível de processamento de alimentos em adolescentes. Método: Doze adolescentes do sexo masculino com sobrepeso/ obesidade, entre 13-17 anos participaram de uma série de intervenções multiprofissionais ao longo de 12 semanas, que foram conduzidas por profissionais de educação física, nutricionistas e psicólogos. Os participantes foram avaliados antes da intervenção, após 6 e após 12 semanas. As avaliações antropométricas foram realizadas, incluindo o peso corporal, a estatura e o índice de massa corporal; para a composição corporal foram incluídas: a massa gorda (MG), percentual de gordura corporal (%G), massa muscular esquelética (MME) e taxa metabólica basal (TMB), bem como o preenchimento do registro alimentar de três dias, para avaliar os alimentos ingeridos, via nível de processamento: in natura, minimamente processado, processado e ultraprocessado. Resultados: Não foram observadas diferenças significativas nos parâmetros antropométricos realizados nas diferentes etapas (p>0,05). Reduções na MG e %G e aumentos na MME e TMB (p<0,05) foram identificados após 12 semanas de intervenção. Houve um aumento do consumo de alimentos in natura/g e aumento do consumo calórico de alimentos industrializados/kcal, após 12 semanas de intervenção (p<0,05). Conclusão: O modelo proposto resultou em uma diminuição da massa gorda e percentual de gordura corporal, aumento da massa muscular esquelética, taxa metabólica basal, consumo de alimentos naturais/g e alimentos processados/kcal

A search for ultra-high-energy photons at the Pierre Auger Observatory exploiting air-shower universality

The Pierre Auger Observatory is the most sensitive detector to primary photons with energies above ∼0.2 EeV. It measures extensive air showers using a hybrid technique that combines a fluorescence detector (FD) with a ground array of particle detectors (SD). The signatures of a photon-induced air shower are a larger atmospheric depth at the shower maximum (X$_{max}$) and a steeper lateral distribution function, along with a lower number of muons with respect to the bulk of hadron-induced background. Using observables measured by the FD and SD, three photon searches in different energy bands are performed. In particular, between threshold energies of 1-10 EeV, a new analysis technique has been developed by combining the FD-based measurement of X$_{max}$ with the SD signal through a parameter related to its muon content, derived from the universality of the air showers. This technique has led to a better photon/hadron separation and, consequently, to a higher search sensitivity, resulting in a tighter upper limit than before. The outcome of this new analysis is presented here, along with previous results in the energy ranges below 1 EeV and above 10 EeV. From the data collected by the Pierre Auger Observatory in about 15 years of operation, the most stringent constraints on the fraction of photons in the cosmic flux are set over almost three decades in energy

Study on multi-ELVES in the Pierre Auger Observatory

Since 2013, the four sites of the Fluorescence Detector (FD) of the Pierre Auger Observatory record ELVES with a dedicated trigger. These UV light emissions are correlated to distant lightning strikes. The length of recorded traces has been increased from 100 μs (2013), to 300 μs (2014-16), to 900 μs (2017-present), to progressively extend the observation of the light emission towards the vertical of the causative lightning and beyond. A large fraction of the observed events shows double ELVES within the time window, and, in some cases, even more complex structures are observed. The nature of the multi-ELVES is not completely understood but may be related to the different types of lightning in which they are originated. For example, it is known that Narrow Bipolar Events can produce double ELVES, and Energetic In-cloud Pulses, occurring between the main negative and upper positive charge layer of clouds, can induce double and even quadruple ELVES in the ionosphere. This report shows the seasonal and daily dependence of the time gap, amplitude ratio, and correlation between the pulse widths of the peaks in a sample of 1000+ multi-ELVES events recorded during the period 2014-20. The events have been compared with data from other satellite and ground-based sensing devices to study the correlation of their properties with lightning observables such as altitude and polarity

Extraction of the Muon Signals Recorded with the Surface Detector of the Pierre Auger Observatory Using Recurrent Neural Networks

We present a method based on the use of Recurrent Neural Networks to extract the muon component from the time traces registered with water-Cherenkov detector (WCD) stations of the Surface Detector of the Pierre Auger Observatory. The design of the WCDs does not allow to separate the contribution of muons to the time traces obtained from the WCDs from those of photons, electrons and positrons for all events. Separating the muon and electromagnetic components is crucial for the determination of the nature of the primary cosmic rays and properties of the hadronic interactions at ultra-high energies. We trained a neural network to extract the muon and the electromagnetic components from the WCD traces using a large set of simulated air showers, with around 450 000 simulated events. For training and evaluating the performance of the neural network, simulated events with energies between 1018.5, eV and 1020 eV and zenith angles below 60 degrees were used. We also study the performance of this method on experimental data of the Pierre Auger Observatory and show that our predicted muon lateral distributions agree with the parameterizations obtained by the AGASA collaboration