Seasonal changes in selected physical and physiological variables in male handball players

© 2018 Ljubomir Pavlović et al., published by Sciendo 2018. Literature search shows that there is a shortage of studies that have investigated the relationships between the physical conditioning markers monitored over the course of a season and the quantitative assessments of training and competition in elite handball players. Thus, the aim of our work was to follow changes in speed, strength, power and endurance of elite male handball players during an entire season. The study was performed within a group of 14 elite male senior handball players who were tested four times during season (T1, T2, T3, T4). The testing consisted of the following procedures: 1) measuring anthropometric characteristics (body height, body weight, body fat, % of fatty tissue), 2) measuring motorical (physical) capabilities (maximal muscle force and power, speed, explosive strength), 3) measuring physiological characteristics (anaerobic capacity, cardiorespiratory endurance). Explosive strength decreased at the end of season compared to the first part of season (T1 vs T4: p = 0.00, T2 vs T4: p = 0.00), as well as the total work done on modified Wingate test (T1 vs T4: p = 0.01). In contrast, blood lactate levels after the third (T1 vs T2: p = 0.00, T1 vs T3: p = 0.02; T1 vs T4:p = 0.00) and fourth (T1 vs T3: p = 0.02) stage of endurance test were the highest at the beginning of the season. Our results suggest that anaerobic capabilities of players were the ones mostly affected by long season and inadequate training program, while on the other side, aerobic capabilities improved by the end of season. Explanation for such results may be found in insufficient strength training or interference of endurance training with strength development

THE EXPLOSIVE POWER OF THE LOWER LIMBS IN BASKETBALL AND HANDBALL PLAYERS

Basketball and handball are sports which require almost the same physical abilities. Since horizontal jumps and vertical jumps are the predominant elements of the game in both sports, their successful realization depends on the explosive power of the lower limbs. The aim of this research was to determine the significance of the differences of the explosive power of the lower limbs in basketball and handball players. Thirty participants took part in the research, 15 basketball and 15 handball players, all from Niš. A set of six variables was applied for evaluating the horizontal (3 Hop Test, One Leg Triple Jump and Standing Long Jump Test) and vertical jump (Bosko-Abalakov Jump- CMJ, Vertical Jump - run up and single leg take off and Squat Jump - SJ). The results of the univariate analysis of a single variable (ANOVA) show that basketball players achieved statistically better results in the vertical jump tests, whereas handball players did better in the horizontal jump tests

Sublinear scaling of country attractiveness observed from Flickr dataset

The number of people who decide to share their photographs publicly increases every day, consequently making available new almost real-time insights of human behavior while traveling. Rather than having this statistic once a month or yearly, urban planners and touristic workers now can make decisions almost simultaneously with the emergence of new events. Moreover, these datasets can be used not only to compare how popular different touristic places are, but also predict how popular they should be taking into an account their characteristics. In this paper we investigate how country attractiveness scales with its population and size using number of foreign users taking photographs, which is observed from Flickr dataset, as a proxy for attractiveness. The results showed two things: to a certain extent country attractiveness scales with population, but does not with its size; and unlike in case of Spanish cities, country attractiveness scales sublinearly with population, and not superlinearly.Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology (SMART)Accenture (Firm)Air liquide (Firm)Coca-Cola CompanyEricsson (Firm)Volkswagen Electronics Research LabUber (Firm)MIT Senseable City Lab Consortiu

Mastering the Best Practices:A Comprehensive Look at the European Guidelines for Cardiopulmonary Bypass in Adult Cardiac Surgery

The successful outcome of a cardiac surgery procedure is significantly dependent on the management of cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB). Even if a cardiac operation is technically well-conducted, a patient may suffer CPB-related complications that could result in severe comorbidities, reduced quality of life, or even death. However, the role of clinical perfusionists in perioperative patient care, which is critical, is often overlooked. Therefore, the European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery (EACTS), the European Association of Cardiothoracic Anaesthesiology (EACTA), and the European Board of Cardiovascular Perfusion (EBCP) have agreed to develop joint clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) for CPB due to its significant impact on patient care and significant variations in practice patterns between countries. The European guidelines, based on the EACTS standardized framework for the development of CPGs, cover the entire spectrum of CPB management in adult cardiac surgery. This includes training and education of clinical perfusionists, machine hardware, disposables, preparation for initiation of CPB, a complete set of procedures during CPB to help maintain end-organ function and anticoagulation, weaning from CPB, and the gaps in evidence and future research directions. This comprehensive coverage ensures that all aspects of CPB management are addressed, providing clinicians with a standardized approach to CPB management based on the latest evidence and best practices. To ensure better integration of these evidence-based recommendations into daily practice, this review aims to provide a general understanding of guideline development and an overview of essential treatment recommendations for CPB management.</p

Mastering the Best Practices:A Comprehensive Look at the European Guidelines for Cardiopulmonary Bypass in Adult Cardiac Surgery

The successful outcome of a cardiac surgery procedure is significantly dependent on the management of cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB). Even if a cardiac operation is technically well-conducted, a patient may suffer CPB-related complications that could result in severe comorbidities, reduced quality of life, or even death. However, the role of clinical perfusionists in perioperative patient care, which is critical, is often overlooked. Therefore, the European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery (EACTS), the European Association of Cardiothoracic Anaesthesiology (EACTA), and the European Board of Cardiovascular Perfusion (EBCP) have agreed to develop joint clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) for CPB due to its significant impact on patient care and significant variations in practice patterns between countries. The European guidelines, based on the EACTS standardized framework for the development of CPGs, cover the entire spectrum of CPB management in adult cardiac surgery. This includes training and education of clinical perfusionists, machine hardware, disposables, preparation for initiation of CPB, a complete set of procedures during CPB to help maintain end-organ function and anticoagulation, weaning from CPB, and the gaps in evidence and future research directions. This comprehensive coverage ensures that all aspects of CPB management are addressed, providing clinicians with a standardized approach to CPB management based on the latest evidence and best practices. To ensure better integration of these evidence-based recommendations into daily practice, this review aims to provide a general understanding of guideline development and an overview of essential treatment recommendations for CPB management.</p

VARIATIONS OF MUSCULAR STRENGTH AND POWER IN MALE HANDBALL PLAYERS DURING AN ENTIRE SEASON

Competition performance in handball depends on various individual skills and interaction with teammates. Technical and tactical efficiency are probably the most influential factors, while physical characteristics represent the prerequisite to attaining high level of competition performance. The purpose of the study was to determine the variations of muscular strength and power in male handball players during an entire season. The study was carried out on a sample of14 male handball players, members of the handball club, the participant of the Serbian male handball league during the 2014/2015 season. Measurements were taken four times during the period between the 6th and the 18th round of the handball league. The investigation protocol consisted of anthropometric measurements, determinations of the one-repetition maximum and assessments of muscular power. The obtained data indicate that no significant variations of muscular strength and power in male handball players occur during a competitive season. Besides, this study showed that players who compete in the Serbian male handball league have similar anthropometric characteristics, but significantly lower values of muscular strength and power when compared to top level European male handball players, and that it is necessary to pay much more attention to resistance training during the preparation period. Low values of the first measurement, which was the closest to the preparation period, are the probable reason for the non-existence of major variations during the competitive season

Immunomodulatory components of Trichinella spiralis excretory-secretory products with lactose-binding specificity.

The immunomodulatory potential of Trichinella spiralis muscle larvae excretory-secretory products (ES L1) has been well documented in vitro on dendritic cells (DCs) and in animal models of autoimmune diseases. ES L1 products possess the potential to induce tolerogenic DCs and consequently trigger regulatory mechanisms that maintain immune homeostasis. The use of ES L1 as a potential treatment for various inflammatory disorders proved to be beneficial in animal models, although the precise immunomodulatory factors have not yet been identified. This study aimed at the isolation and characterization of ES L1 components that possess galectin family member properties. Galectin-1-like proteins (TsGal-1-like) were isolated from ES L1 based on the assumption of the existence of a lactose-specific carbohydrate-recognition domain and were recognized by anti-galectin-1 antibodies in Western blot. This TsGal-1-like isolate, similar to galectin-1, induced DCs with tolerogenic properties and hence, the capacity to polarize T cell response towards a regulatory type. This was reflected by a significantly increased percentage of CD4+CD25+Foxp3+ regulatory T cells and significantly increased expression of IL-10 and TGF-β within this cell population. Proteomic analysis of TsGal-1-like isolate by mass spectrometry identified nineteen proteins, seven with annotated function after blast analysis against a database for T. spiralis and the UniProt database. To our surprise, none of the identified proteins possesses homology with known galectin family members. Nevertheless, the isolated components of ES L1 possess certain galectin-1 properties, such as specific lactose binding and the potential to elicit a regulatory immune response, so it would be worth further investigating the structure of sugar binding within isolated proteins and its biological significance

Cost-effectiveness of the Perioperative Pain Management Bundle a registry-based study.

INTRODUCTION The Perioperative Pain Management Bundle was introduced in 10 Serbian PAIN OUT network hospitals to improve the quality of postoperative pain management. The Bundle consists of 4 elements: informing patients about postoperative pain treatment options; administering a full daily dose of 1-2 non-opioid analgesics; administering regional blocks and/or surgical wound infiltration; and assessing pain after surgery. In this study, we aimed to assess the cost-effectiveness of the Bundle during the initial 24 h after surgery. MATERIALS AND METHODS The assessment of cost-effectiveness was carried out by comparing patients before and after Bundle implementation and by comparing patients who received all Bundle elements to those with no Bundle element. Costs of postoperative pain management included costs of the analgesic medications, costs of labor for administering these medications, and related disposable materials. A multidimensional Pain Composite Score (PCS), the effectiveness measurement, was obtained by averaging variables from the International Pain Outcomes questionnaire evaluating pain intensity, interference of pain with activities and emotions, and side effects of analgesic medications. The incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) was calculated as the incremental change in costs divided by the incremental change in PCS and plotted on the cost-effectiveness plane along with the economic preference analysis. RESULTS The ICER value calculated when comparing patients before and after Bundle implementation was 181.89 RSD (1.55 EUR) with plotted ICERs located in the northeast and southeast quadrants of the cost-effectiveness plane. However, when comparing patients with no Bundle elements and those with all four Bundle elements, the calculated ICER was -800.63 RSD (-6.82 EUR) with plotted ICERs located in the southeast quadrant of the cost-effectiveness plane. ICER values differ across surgical disciplines. CONCLUSION The proposed perioperative pain management Bundle is cost-effective. The cost-effectiveness varies depending on the number of implemented Bundle elements and fluctuates across surgical disciplines

Kerogenization of Asphaltenes by Air Oxygen: The Heimar (bold Petroleum Seepage) Sandstone from the Dead Sea Basin (Israel)

443-449Kerogen-like material was generated during a laboratory heating experiment with asphaltenes in the presence of air oxygen. Asphaltenes were extracted from a Heimar (A recent seep) and IPRG sandstones (Dead Sea Basin, Israel) impregnated by heavy/asphaltic crudes and heated at 100-200 °C for 1-12 d. The (pseudo*-)activation energy (Ea) is calculated to be ca. 10 kcal mol-1 K-1. Therefore, half-life t1/2 (i.e.) the time of conversion of 50per cent of Heimar A asphaltene into artificial kerogen is estimated to be ca. 2000 d (0oC); 700 d (15 oC); 400 d (25 °C); 150 d (35 °C); and, 100 d (50 °C). These results suggest the possible occurrence of low temperature (≤100°C) kerogenization by air oxygen of the Dead Sea asphaltenes as one of the formation pathways of kerogen-like material associated with the Heimar sandstone (Bold petroleum seepage location) impregnated with a heavy crude

Changes in the muscular outputs of young judoists during resistance exercises performed on unstable equipment: A case study

Background and Study Aim: Resistance exercises under unstable conditions have gained popularity among athletes. The aim of the study was to investigate the changes in muscular outputs (peak power and velocity of movement) during bench presses and squats under unstable conditions in comparison to the outputs under stable conditions. Material/Methods: A total of 20 participants, divided into two groups, took part in the study The first group consisted of 9 top-level young male judoists, while the second group consisted of 11 students. All of the exercises were performed once 70% of one-repetition maximum (1RM) was determined. Results: The analysis showed a significant reduction in muscular outputs during squats under unstable conditions (the BOSU ball) in comparison to stable conditions for the group of judoists. However, there was no significant reduction in muscular outputs during the bench presses under unstable conditions (the Swiss ball) compared to the stable flat bench. For the group of students, the analysis showed a significant reduction in muscular outputs during the bench press under unstable conditions when compared to the stable flat bench. In addition, for this group the muscular outputs were significantly lower during squats under unstable in comparison to stable conditions. Conclusions: The bench press as a resistance exercise performed on a Swiss ball with reduced training load cannot be recommended as an effective training model for judoists. Nevertheless, the squat with reduced training load under unstable conditions provided sufficient challenges to the neuromuscular system and could be incorporated into training programs. © ARCHIVES OF BUDO|SCIENCE OF MARTIAL ARTS