Influence of Age on Firefighters\u27 Physical Activity Level and Training Load

BACKGROUND: Regular participation in exercise is critical to enhance occupational readiness and decrease risk of sudden cardiac events among firefighters. Age is associated with decreased occupational performance and risk of cardiac event due to decreased cardiorespiratory fitness, however, this decline may be attenuated with exercise participation. There is a lack of research evaluating the influence of age on firefighters’ exercise behaviors. Therefore, the purpose of this investigation was to determine if age relates to the proportion of firefighters meeting American College of Sports Medicine physical activity (PA) guidelines and reported endurance (ET) and resistance training (RT) loads. METHODS: A convenience sample of 126 (118 male, 7 female, 1 not provided; Age: 40.4±9.3 yr) career structural firefighters volunteered to complete an anonymous online survey describing the typical ET and RT frequency, duration, and perceived intensity. Session training load (SL) was calculated as: Session duration x rating of perceived exertion (0-10 category-ratio scale). Weekly training load (WL) was calculated as: SL x weekly training frequency. Achieving PA guidelines equated to performing ≥2 RT sessions per week and ≥75 vigorous or ≥150 moderate intensity minutes of ET per week. Age was stratified into quartiles. Cross-tabulation analyses examined the age-stratified proportion of firefighters meeting PA guidelines for ET and RT independently and collectively. The effects of age on SL and WL for RT and ET were determined via one-way ANOVA. Significance was set at p\u3c0.05. RESULTS: 23% of firefighters met global PA guidelines, 39% of firefighters met RT, and 34% met ET guidelines. Age strata was not associated with status of meeting the PA guidelines for ET (n=122, χ2=0.48, p=0.923), RT (n=124, χ2=0.97, p=0.808), or global guidelines (n=122, χ2=1.76, p=0.625). There were no differences between age strata for SL (ET: n=97, 159±133 AU, p=0.961, η2=0.003; RT: n=81, 230±178 AU, p=0.500, η2=0.031) or WL (ET: n=97, 490±562 AU, p=0.953, η2=0.004; RT: n=81, 871±989 AU, p=0.450, η2= 0.034). CONCLUSIONS: Age was not related to achievement of PA guidelines and the majority of firefighters were not meeting ACSM PA guidelines due to a lack of ET. Therefore, fire department PA initiatives should facilitate participation in ET throughout the career span

IMPACT OF AN ACADEMY TRAINING PROGRAM ON AEROBIC AND ANAEROBIC PERFORMANCE AMONG LAW ENFORCEMENT CADETS

BACKGROUND: Law enforcement requires adequate fitness levels to optimize occupational readiness. Law enforcement academies are responsible for developing a foundation of physical readiness by targeting relevant biomotor abilities, such as anaerobic and aerobic endurance. However, there is limited research evaluating the effectiveness of academy physical training (PT) programs to improve these outcomes. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to assess the efficacy of a law enforcement PT program on anaerobic and aerobic endurance in cadets. METHODS: 58 cadets (43 males, 15 females; Age: 26.2 ± 6.4 yr; Height: 175.0 ± 10.2 cm; Body mass: 90.3 ± 24.5 kg) completed the 30:15 Intermittent Fitness Test (30-15 IFT) and timed 500 m row as measures of aerobic and anaerobic capacity, respectively, prior to and at the completion of an 11-week training academy. The PT program was designed by a certified strength and conditioning practitioner. Specifically, cadets completed 5 sessions per week composed of circuit resistance training, mobility exercises, plyometrics, and interval running. Paired samples t-tests, effect size (Cohen’s d), and relative change scores ((% change = posttest - pretest / pretest) x 100) were used to compare pre vs. post-academy changes in performance outcomes. Significance was set to p \u3c 0.05. RESULTS: The PT program significantly improved 30-15 IFT (t (57) = -11.96, p \u3c 0.001; d = -1.57; MD: 1.04 ± 0.66 s, 5.3% increase) and 500 m row performance (t (57) = 6.81, p \u3c 0.001; d = 0.89; MD: -8.6 s, 6.4% decrease). CONCLUSION: These data indicate that an 11-week PT program elicited desirable aerobic and anaerobic fitness responses among law enforcement cadets. Law enforcement training academies are encouraged to employ certified strength and conditioning practitioners to design and implement appropriate PT programs to enhance cadet readiness

PSYCHOMETRIC PROPERTIES OF A FUNCTIONAL BALANCE TEST FOR STRUCTURAL FIREFIGHTERS

BACKGROUND: Firefighting is a dangerous occupation as more than 60,000 injuries are incurred annually by United States fire personnel. Musculoskeletal injuries associated with strain, sprain, or muscular pain are the most common type of injury on the fireground and are often induced by slip/trip/fall mechanisms. These injuries cost the United States $1.6-5.9 billion, place overtime burden on backfill personnel, and are responsible for substantial pain and suffering. Unfortunately, there is a lack of research on applicable assessments to evaluate a firefighters’ risk of slip/trip/fall injuries. Identifying a valid and reliable injury risk assessment will provide a metric to evaluate the efficacy of injury prevention interventions. Therefore, the purpose of this proposed study is to refine an existing occupationally relevant functional balance test (FBT) and establish the instrument’s face validity, criterion-related validity and test-retest reliability in structural firefighters. METHODS: 30 apparently healthy career structural firefighters (Age: 18-55 yr) will be recruited from a local fire department to complete 3 testing sessions of identical procedures. 6 trials of the FBT will be performed while wearing full personal protective equipment and carrying equipment. The FBT requires the firefighter to walk on a 3.7 m plank while stepping over and bending under obstacles of standardized height as fast as possible, similar to maneuvering on a structural fireground. Time and technical errors are accounted for to produce a Performance Index score. Force plates will be used to assess criterion measures of neuromuscular function including postural sway, single-leg drop landing, and isometric mid-thigh pull assessments. Face validity will be assessed with a questionnaire inquiring about the firefighters’ perception regarding the occupational relevancy of the FBT. Criterion-related validity will be assessed with Pearson Product Moment correlations between FBT vs. force plate balance outcomes. Finally, Cronbach’s alpha will be used to assess the level of intra- and inter-session test-retest reliability of the FBT. The level of significance will be set at p\u3c0.05. ANTICIPATED RESULTS: It is hypothesized that the FBT will demonstrate acceptable levels of face validity, criterion-related validity (r\u3e0.8), and reliability (r\u3e0.9)

EFFECT OF SHIFT SCHEDULE ON FIREFIGHTERS’ SLEEP QUALITY AND QUANTITY

BACKGROUND: Obtaining adequate amounts of sleep is critical for optimal health and physical performance. Firefighters’ sleep patterns are often disrupted due to emergency responses. Fire agencies utilize a variety of shift schedule configurations. Unfortunately, there is a lack of research investigating the impact of shift schedules on firefighters’ sleep quality and quantity. Evaluating sleep outcomes by shift schedule will guide fire agencies in implementing appropriate on-duty interventions (eg, scheduled napping, sleep hygiene education) and guide work schedule configuration. Therefore the purpose of this proposed study is to descriptively compare sleep quantity and quality outcomes between fire agencies utilizing different shift schedules. METHODS: An international sample of fire departments utilizing different shift schedules and a control group composed of law enforcement officers working day shift will be recruited to participate in this study. The firefighter shift schedules will include 24/48 (24 hr on-duty, 48 hr off-duty), 48/96 (48 hr on-duty, 96 hr off-duty), Swing Shift (SS; 2 day shifts (10 hr), 2 night shifts (10 hr), 4 days off; n=50), and a control group including a police department day-shift (10 hr) schedule. Demographic data will include sex, age, occupational experience, second job status, call characteristics, use of sleep medication and alcohol use, exercise level, body mass index, sleeping conditions, smoking status, caffeine intake, and diagnosed sleep disorders. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) will be utilized to assess sleep outcomes. Specifically, 7 components of sleep outcomes will be scored on a 0-3 scale (aggregate range: 0 (“no difficulty”) to 21 (“severe difficulty”)) including subjective sleep quality, latency, duration, efficiency, disturbances, medication use, and daytime dysfunction. An electronic survey will be distributed via agency listserv. Kruskal-Wallis one-way ANOVA will be used to compare PSQI outcomes between shift schedule cohorts, utilizing covariates as necessary. Post-hoc analyses will be conducted using pairwise Mann-Whitney tests with Bonferroni correction. ANTICIPATED RESULTS: It is hypothesized that firefighters will report inferior sleep outcomes compared to non-shift workers and that the SS schedule will yield inferior sleep outcomes compared to other firefighter shift configurations potentially due to greater circadian rhythm disruption