Comparison of Two Different Stretching Interventions on Glenohumeral Range of Motion of Overhead Athletes

The baseball throwing motion repetitively creates large forces on the shoulder and elbow as the arm dynamically moves through susceptible end-range positions. Many retrospective studies have demonstrated relationships between a decrease in shoulder ROM and shoulder injuries, such as labral tears and impingement syndrome. In collegiate baseball players, poor shoulder ROM increases the likelihood of experiencing overuse symptoms during the season. The question often asked by coaches is how to best improve shoulder ROM in players that have had prior problems with overuse injuries. Understanding the differences between dynamic and passive flexibility routines have on improving shoulder mobility within a single intervention may help coaches and athletes choose appropriate exercises to efficiently increase shoulder mobility. The objective of this study is to compare dynamic mobility and passive stretching in the upper extremities to determine which may be a better intervention

Joint Laxity is Predictive of Injury in Women’s Collegiate Soccer Players

Joint laxity assessment has been purported to be a valid and reliable screening tool for injury prediction in multiple populations. PURPOSE: The purpose of this investigation was to assess relationships which may exist between joint laxity and injury rates throughout a women’s NCAA Division II Collegiate Soccer season. METHODS: Twenty-eight women (age 19.7±1.6 yrs, height 1.6±0.5 m, mass 63.4±7.9 kg) were assessed using the Lachman, anterior drawer of the ankle, medial and lateral talar tilt, and Thessaly’s tests prior to a competitive season. Injury rates, types, and time lost from participation were tracked throughout the season. Injury information was coded and categorized each week in the following: acute vs. chronic; soft vs. hard tissue; upper vs. lower body; specific anatomical location; contact vs. non-contact; week of injury occurrence; practice days missed from injury; and games missed from injury. Association was measured via a Spearman\u27s rank correlation coefficient and a stepwise linear regression was performed for any variables which showed significant correlation to determine predictive relationships which may exist. Joint laxity tests were evaluated independently by multiple raters and inter-rater reliability was high (Cohen’s Kappa = 0.901-1.0, p=0.001). Statistical significance was set a priori at p≤0.05. RESULTS: Significant correlation and prediction were observed between joint laxity as assessed via the anterior drawer of the ankle test and injury (r=0.57, p≤0.05; Y=2.6-0.80(X), p=0.001). CONCLUSION: The main finding of this investigation is that joint laxity as assessed via the anterior drawer of the ankle test was associated with joint and ligament injuries in women’s collegiate soccer athletes through the course of a competitive season. Additional investigations should explore mechanisms behind this relationship. In addition, sports medicine professionals and coaches may wish to consider the use of this test as a potential screening tool for injury risk as well as interventions to enhance joint stability for athletes who are suspected of being positive on this test

Joint Range of Motion is Associated With Injury Risk in Women\u27s Collegiate Soccer Players

Range of motion as a predictor for injury in athletic population is controversial. Despite this, it is common to see strategies to improve ROM included in strength and conditioning, rehabilitation, and on-field warm up protocols. PURPOSE: The purpose of this investigation was to assess relationships, which may exist between joint-specific ROM and injury rates, throughout a women’s NCAA Division II collegiate soccer season. METHODS: Twenty-eight women (age 19.7 + 1.6 years, height 1.6 + .5 m, mass 63.4 + 7.9 kg) were assessed using a battery of ROM tests prior to a competitive season. Injury rates, types, and time lost from participation were tracked throughout the season. Injury information was coded and categorized each week in the following: acute vs. chronic, soft tissue vs. hard tissue; upper vs. lower body; specific anatomical location; contact vs. non-contact; week of injury occurrence; practice days missed from injury; and games missed from injury. Association was measured via a Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient, and a stepwise linear regression was performed for any variables which showed significant correlation to determine predictive relationship, which may exist. ROM was evaluated independently by multiple rater and inter-rater reliability was high (ICC = 0.995, 95% CI upper and lower = 0.996-0.995, p=0.000). Statistical significance was set a priori at p \u3c 0.05. RESULTS: Tests of hip extension and external rotation (ER); knee flexion and extension; and ankle plantarflexion (PF), dorsiflexion (DF), and inversion showed moderate to strong correlation with injury (range r = 0.48-0.72). Prediction equations were developed for ankle dorsiflexion (Y=2.6-0.45(X), p=0.002); left thoracolumbar rotation (Y=2.45-0.2(X), p=0.002); left hip ER (Y=0.86-0.75(X), p=0.02); and left ankle PF (Y=1.89-0.03(X), p=0.02) CONCLUSION: The main finding of this investigation is that multiple assessments of ROM showed association with subsequent injury in women’s collegiate soccer players. While previous research on this has been less supportive, it is possible that there is a range which is appropriate for this population below which rate of injury may increase. Future investigations may wish to explore this relationship, to include potential mechanisms which may be influential in addition, while relationships between ROM and injury were not joint specific, it is possible that there are relationships of regional interdependence that may exist

Change of Direction is Associated with Non-Contact Injuries in Women\u27s Collegiate Soccer Players

Injury rates have been reported between men and women soccer athletes. PURPOSE: The purpose of this investigations was to assess relationships which may exist between performance in a change of direction (COD) test and injury rates throughout a women’s NCAA Division II Collegiate Soccer season. METHODS: Twenty-eight women (age 19.9±1.6 yrs, height 1.6±0.5 m, mass 63.4±7.9 kg) were assessed using the Soccer Specific Agility test prior to a competitive season. Injury rates, types, and time lost from participation were tracked throughout the season. Injury information was coded and categorized each week in the following: acute vs. chronic; soft vs. hard tissue; upper vs. lower body; specific anatomical location; contact vs. non-contact; week of injury occurrence; practice days missed from injury; and games missed from injury. Association was measured via a Spearman\u27s rank correlation coefficient and a stepwise linear regression was performed for any variables which showed significant correlation to determine predictive relationships which may exist. Statistical significance was set a priori at p≤0.05. RESULTS: Soccer Specific Agility times were 7.04±0.36 sec. A moderate correlation was seen between agility performance and non-contact injuries (r=0.47, p≤0.05). DISCUSSION: The main finding of this investigation is that performance on the soccer specific agility test showed association with non-contact injury rates throughout a women’s collegiate soccer season, with lower time being associated with smaller injury rates. Future investigations should attempt to explore whether improvements in COD, which may be assessed using the SSA, can lead to meaningful reductions in injury rates. Sports medicine professionals and coaches may wish to adopt strategies to improve COD in an effort to reduce rates of non-contact injuries in their athletes

The Relationship Between Landing Mechanics and Injury Risk in Women\u27s Collegiate Soccer Players

Mechanical performance in landing related tasks has been suggested to be related to injury in athletic. PURPOSE: The purpose of this investigations was to assess relationships which may exist between performance in landing mechanics and injury rates throughout a women’s NCAA Division II Collegiate Soccer season. METHODS: Twenty-eight women (age 19.7±1.6 yrs, height 1.6±0.5 m, mass 63.4±7.9 kg) were assessed using the Landing Error Scoring System (LESS) test prior to a competitive season. Injury rates, types, and time lost from participation were tracked throughout the season. Injury information was coded and categorized each week in the following: acute vs. chronic; soft vs. hard tissue; upper vs. lower body; specific anatomical location; contact vs. non-contact; week of injury occurrence; practice days missed from injury; and games missed from injury. Association was measured via a Spearman\u27s rank correlation coefficient and a stepwise linear regression was performed for any variables which showed significant correlation to determine predictive relationships which may exist. The LESS test was evaluated independently by multiple raters and inter-rater reliability was high (ICC=0.824, 95% CI upper and lower = 0.917-0.657, p=0.001). Statistical significance was set a priori at p≤0.05. RESULTS: No significant correlations were determined between LESS test performance and injury and the LESS score did not add strength of association to any predictive variables. DISCUSSION: The main finding of this investigation is that performance on the LESS test did not show significant association with injury rates in women’s collegiate soccer players. LESS test performance has previously been suggested to be a valid and reliable clinical assessment tool, and claims have been made regarding its utility as a screening tool for identification of persons who may be at risk for subsequent injury. Landing mechanics may still be a valid predictor of injury risk. However, the results of our investigation do not support the use of the LESS test as a screening tool for injury risk in women’s collegiate soccer athletes

A seven square degrees survey for galaxy-scale gravitational lenses with the HST imaging archive

We present the results of a visual search for galaxy-scale gravitational lenses in nearly 7 square degrees of Hubble Space Telescope (HST) images. The dataset comprises the whole imaging data ever taken with the Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) in the filter F814W (I-band) up to August 31st, 2011, i.e. 6.03 square degrees excluding the field of the Cosmic Evolution Survey (COSMOS) which has been the subject of a separate visual search. In addition, we have searched for lenses in the whole Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) near-IR imaging dataset in all filters (1.01 square degrees) up to the same date. Our primary goal is to provide a sample of lenses with a broad range of different morphologies and lens-source brightness contrast in order estimate a lower limit to the number of galaxy-scale strong lenses in the future Euclid survey in its VIS band. Our criteria to select lenses are purely morphological as we do not use any colour or redshift information.The final candidate selection is very conservative hence leading to a nearly pure but incomplete sample. We find 49 new lens candidates: 40 in the ACS images and 9 in the WFC3 images. Out of these, 16 candidates are secure lenses owing to their striking morphology, 21 more are very good candidates, and 12 more have morphologies compatible with gravitational lensing but also compatible with other astrophysical objects. It is therefore insensitive to cosmic variance and allows to estimate the number of galaxy-scale strong lenses on the sky for a putative survey depth, which is the main result of the present work. Because of the incompleteness of the sample, the estimated lensing rates should be taken as lower limits. Using these, we anticipate that a 15 000 square degrees space survey such as Euclid will find at least 60 000 galaxy-scale strong lenses down to a limiting AB magnitude of I = 24.5 (10-sigma) or I = 25.8 (3-sigma).Comment: 13 pages, 12 figures, Accepted for publication in MNRA

Rotation Curve of Galaxies by the Force Induced by Mass of Moving Particles

We suggest that there is a novel force which is generated by the mass of relatively moving particles. The new force which we named Mirinae Force is a counterpart of the magnetic force operating between electrically charged moving particles. Instead of using the conventional dark matter, we applied the mirinae force to a particular model system of the spiral galaxy in which most of the galaxy's mass is located within the central region where some portion of the inner mass is in revolving motion at a relativistic speed. The calculation yielded three important results that illustrate the existence of mirinae force and validate the proposed model: First, the mirinae force in this model explains why most of the matters in the galactic disk are in the circular motion which is similar to cycloid. Second, the mirinae force well explains not only the flat rotation curve but also the varied slope of the rotation curve observed in the spiral galaxies. Third, at the flat velocity of 220 Km/s, the inner mass of the Milky Way calculated by using the proposed model is 6.0\times10^11 M\odot, which is very close to 5.5\times10^11 M\odot (r <50 Kpc, including Leo I) estimated by using the latest kinematic information. This means that the mirinae force well takes the place of the dark matter of the Milky Way