A four-season prospective study of muscle strain reoccurrences in a professional football club

The aim of this investigation was to characterise muscle strain reinjuries and examine their impact on playing resources in a professional football club. Muscle strains and reoccurrences were prospectively diagnosed over four seasons in first-team players (n = 46). Altogether, 188 muscle strains were diagnosed with 44 (23.4%) of these classed as reinjuries, leading to an incidence of 1.32 strain reoccurrences per 1,000 hours exposure (95% Confidence Interval [CI], 0.93–1.71). The incidence of recurrent strains was higher in match-play compared with training (4.51, 95% CI, 2.30–6.72 vs 0.94, 95% CI, 0.59–1.29). Altogether, 50.0% of players sustained at least 1 reoccurrence of a muscle strain, leading to approximately 3 days lost and 0.4 matches missed per player per season. The incidence of recurrent strains was highest in centre-forwards (2.15, 95% CI, 1.06–3.24), peaked in May (3.78, 95% CI, 0.47–7.09), and mostly affected the hamstrings (38.6% of all reoccurrences). Mean layoff for nonreoccurrences and recurrences was similar: ∼7.5 days. These results provide greater insight into the extent of the problem of recurrent muscle strains in professional football

Introduction: anthropology's queer sensibilities

This special issue addresses vital epistemological, methodological, ethical and political issues at the intersections of queer theory and anthropology as they speak to the study of sexual and gender diversity in the contemporary world. The special issue centres on explorations of anthropology’s queer sensibilities, that is, experimental thinking in ethnographically informed investigations of gender and sexual difference, and related connections, disjunctures and tensions in their situated and abstract dimensions. The articles consider the possibilities and challenges of anthropology’s queer sensibilities that anthropologise queer theory whilst queering anthropology in ethnographically informed analyses. Contributors focus on anthropologising queer theory in research on same-sex desire in the Congo; LGBT migrant and asylum experience in the UK and France; same-sex intimacies within opposite gender oriented sexualities in Kenya and Ghana; secret and ambiguous intimacies and sensibilities beyond an identifiable ‘queer subject’ of rights and recognition in India; migrant imaginings of home in Indonesian lesbian relationships in Hong Kong; and cross-generational perspectives on ‘coming out’ in Taiwan and their implications for theories of kinship and relatedness. An extensive interview with Esther Newton, the prominent figure in gay and lesbian and queer anthropology concludes the collection

A Hypergraph Dictatorship Test with Perfect Completeness

A hypergraph dictatorship test is first introduced by Samorodnitsky and Trevisan and serves as a key component in their unique games based \PCP construction. Such a test has oracle access to a collection of functions and determines whether all the functions are the same dictatorship, or all their low degree influences are $o(1).$ Their test makes $q\geq3$ queries and has amortized query complexity $1+O(\frac{\log q}{q})$ but has an inherent loss of perfect completeness. In this paper we give an adaptive hypergraph dictatorship test that achieves both perfect completeness and amortized query complexity $1+O(\frac{\log q}{q})$.Comment: Some minor correction

HGF Mediates the Anti-inflammatory Effects of PRP on Injured Tendons

Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) containing hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) and other growth factors are widely used in orthopaedic/sports medicine to repair injured tendons. While PRP treatment is reported to decrease pain in patients with tendon injury, the mechanism of this effect is not clear. Tendon pain is often associated with tendon inflammation, and HGF is known to protect tissues from inflammatory damages. Therefore, we hypothesized that HGF in PRP causes the anti-inflammatory effects. To test this hypothesis, we performed in vitro experiments on rabbit tendon cells and in vivo experiments on a mouse Achilles tendon injury model. We found that addition of PRP or HGF decreased gene expression of COX-1, COX-2, and mPGES-1, induced by the treatment of tendon cells in vitro with IL-1β. Further, the treatment of tendon cell cultures with HGF antibodies reduced the suppressive effects of PRP or HGF on IL-1β-induced COX-1, COX-2, and mPGES-1 gene expressions. Treatment with PRP or HGF almost completely blocked the cellular production of PGE2 and the expression of COX proteins. Finally, injection of PRP or HGF into wounded mouse Achilles tendons in vivo decreased PGE2 production in the tendinous tissues. Injection of platelet-poor plasma (PPP) however, did not reduce PGE2 levels in the wounded tendons, but the injection of HGF antibody inhibited the effects of PRP and HGF. Further, injection of PRP or HGF also decreased COX-1 and COX-2 proteins. These results indicate that PRP exerts anti-inflammatory effects on injured tendons through HGF. This study provides basic scientific evidence to support the use of PRP to treat injured tendons because PRP can reduce inflammation and thereby reduce the associated pain caused by high levels of PGE2. © 2013 Zhang et al

Maternal Literacy, Facility Birth, and Education Are Positively Associated with Better Infant and Young Child Feeding Practices and Nutritional Status among Ugandan Children

Background: Understanding maternal factors that influence child feeding is necessary to inform intervention planning in settings in which mothers experience substantial social vulnerabilities. Objective: The purpose of this study was to assess maternal sociodemographic factors that may constrain women\u27s caring capabilities and subsequent child nutrition in Uganda. Methods: We analyzed data from the 2006 and 2011 Uganda Demographic and Health Surveys to model the associations between maternal sociodemographic factors, child feeding practices, and anthropometry with multivariate logistic regression models. Results: The proportion of children fed according to recommended guidelines declined in Uganda from 2006 to 2011. Mothers who lacked literacy skills were less likely to achieve recommended complementary feeding indicators; however, literacy was not associated with breastfeeding practices. Mothers in the upper 60% wealth percentile were more likely to meet minimum meal frequency, diversity, and adequacy indicators. Mothers who gave birth at health facilities (2006 OR: 0.49; 95% CI: 0.26, 0.91; P \u3c 0.05) and who were in the upper 60% wealth percentile (2011 OR: 0.43; 95% CI: 0.21, 0.69) were less likely to exCIusively breastfeed until 6 mo. There were no significant associations between age at first pregnancy, maternal education, and infant and young child feeding practices. Women with a formal education had children with lower stunting and underweight probabilities in both time periods (OR range: 0.43-0.74). Women who delivered in childbirth facilities were less likely to have a child with low weight-for-age, length-for-age, or weight-for-length z scores (OR range: 0.59-0.82). Marital status, the age at first child birth, not accepting domestic violence, freedom to travel away from home, and involvement in household and reproductive decisions were not associated with child anthropometry in either time period. Conclusions: Mothers with low literacy skills, who deliver their children at home, and who lack formal education are particularly at risk of poor child feeding and represent a group that may benefit from enhanced interventions that address their particular vulnerabilities. Factors that contribute to improved maternal feeding capabilities but may impair breastfeeding practices need to be better understood

Organizing Shared Digital Reading in Groups: Optimizing the Affordances of Text and Medium

Children develop their language when they explore and talk about literary texts. In this study, we explore the design of shared digital reading as a basis for critical reflection on the reading situation in an institutional context with its given opportunities and limitations. We examine six videotaped readings of one specific picture book app, with a focus on the strategies used by teachers in early childhood education and care institutions to control children’s access to the medium and the types of verbal engagement (about the story and about the medium) that are generated by these different strategies. We use qualitative and quantitative analysis of video data. A qualitative categorization of the readings reveals the strategies Show, Show & Share, and Share. In analyzing the participants’ verbal and multisensory engagement, we find that the Show strategy generates more utterances, especially about the story, as well as more time spent on dialogue.publishedVersio

More support for mothers: a qualitative study on factors affecting immunisation behaviour in Kampala, Uganda

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The proportion of Ugandan children who are fully vaccinated has varied over the years. Understanding vaccination behaviour is important for the success of the immunisation programme. This study examined influences on immunisation behaviour using the attitude-social influence-self efficacy model.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We conducted nine focus group discussions (FGDs) with mothers and fathers. Eight key informant interviews (KIIs) were held with those in charge of community mobilisation for immunisation, fathers and mothers. Data was analysed using content analysis.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Influences on the mother's immunisation behaviour ranged from the non-supportive role of male partners sometimes resulting into intimate partner violence, lack of presentable clothing which made mothers vulnerable to bullying, inconvenient schedules and time constraints, to suspicion against immunisation such as vaccines cause physical disability and/or death.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Immunisation programmes should position themselves to address social contexts. A community programme that empowers women economically and helps men recognise the role of women in decision making for child health is needed. Increasing male involvement and knowledge of immunisation concepts among caretakers could improve immunisation.</p

Treatment After Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injury: Panther Symposium ACL Treatment Consensus Group

© The Author(s) 2020. Treatment strategies for anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries continue to evolve. Evidence supporting best-practice guidelines for the management of ACL injury is to a large extent based on studies with low-level evidence. An international consensus group of experts was convened to collaboratively advance toward consensus opinions regarding the best available evidence on operative versus nonoperative treatment for ACL injury. The purpose of this study was to report the consensus statements on operative versus nonoperative treatment of ACL injuries developed at the ACL Consensus Meeting Panther Symposium 2019. There were 66 international experts on the management of ACL injuries, representing 18 countries, who were convened and participated in a process based on the Delphi method of achieving consensus. Proposed consensus statements were drafted by the scientific organizing committee and session chairs for the 3 working groups. Panel participants reviewed preliminary statements before the meeting and provided initial agreement and comments on the statement via online survey. During the meeting, discussion and debate occurred for each statement, after which a final vote was then held. Ultimately, 80% agreement was defined a priori as consensus. A total of 11 of 13 statements on operative versus nonoperative treatment of ACL injury reached consensus during the symposium. Overall, 9 statements achieved unanimous support, 2 reached strong consensus, 1 did not achieve consensus, and 1 was removed because of redundancy in the information provided. In highly active patients engaged in jumping, cutting, and pivoting sports, early anatomic ACL reconstruction is recommended because of the high risk of secondary meniscal and cartilage injuries with delayed surgery, although a period of progressive rehabilitation to resolve impairments and improve neuromuscular function is recommended. For patients who seek to return to straight-plane activities, nonoperative treatment with structured, progressive rehabilitation is an acceptable treatment option. However, with persistent functional instability, or when episodes of giving way occur, anatomic ACL reconstruction is indicated. The consensus statements derived from international leaders in the field will assist clinicians in deciding between operative and nonoperative treatment with patients after an ACL injury