Electroencephalographic Changes after a Marathon at 4300 M of Altitude

Running at altitude is gaining greater popularity but it may expose participants to the risk of acute mountain sickness (AMS). The study investigated electroencephalographic (EEG) changes and eventual symptoms suggestive of AMS in 5 well-trained lowland native male runners (average age, 38.2 \uf0b1 4.6 years; VO2 peak 61.4 \uf0b1 2.7 mL\ub7kg\u20131\ub7min\u20131 at sea level; best marathon performance at sea level under 3 hours), who completed a marathon at 4300 m altitude. EEG, per-centage of peripheral arterial oxygen saturation (% SpaO2) and heart rate (HR) were recorded during wakefulness at rest (supine position) and in comfort: 1) at sea level; 2) at 3600 m after 32 - 38 hours of acute acclimatization; 3) at 4300 m after 145 - 153 hours of chronic acclimatization; and 4) at 4300 m immediately after a marathon race. Symptoms of AMS were evaluated with the Lake Louise questionnaire before any ECG recording. There was a significant decrease in low-voltage high-frequency activities at rest after acute hypoxic-hypobaric exposure at 3600 m as compared to sea level. After six days of acclimatization at 4300 m there was a significant increase in the power of low-voltage high-frequency activities, particularly beta and gamma, indicating an aroused waking state and an integrated activity across widely dis-tributed cortical regions. An increase in the power of low-voltage high-frequency activities over the entire cortex was observed, particularly after completion of the marathon at 4300 m. The increase in the high-frequency activities was probably due to direct and indirect reflex activation of the forebrain and reticular activating system involved in behav-ioral and metabolic integration of autonomic control and arousal and due to residual activation of the somatomotor and parietal cortex after the end of the marathon. Lake Louise score always resulted lower than 3, indicating no signs of AMS in all the runners. The results of this study indicate that in well-trained and acclimatized athletes, arousal has a protective role in preventing excessive oxygen deprivation also after an endurance exercise performed at high altitude. The absence of AMS fond in our study bear out that well trained and acclimatized runners, can safely participate in a marathon at high altitude that gives rise to temporary EEG changes without inducing paroxysmal phenomena

Inflammatory and Adipose Response in Solid Organ Transplant Recipients After a Marathon Cycling Race

Abstract Background Organ transplant recipients frequently have chronic inflammation, with a weighty impact on cardiovascular risk. These patients can benefit from exercise, although the role of intense training is unclear. We evaluated the effect of a 130-km cycling race on inflammatory cytokines and adiponectin levels in transplant recipients. Methods Circulating interleukin (IL)-6, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, interferon (IFN)-γ, and adiponectin were assayed in 35 healthy subjects vs 19 transplant recipients (10 kidney, 8 liver, 1 heart), matched for sex, age, body mass index, and preparation workout. The determinations were performed before the race, at the end, and after 18 to 24 hours. Baseline values of 32 sedentary transplant recipients also were evaluated to explore the possible chronic impact of lifestyle. Results All cyclists had 6- to 8-fold increased IL-6 levels after the race that decreased, without returning to baseline, the day after. Conversely, serum TNF-α and IFN-γ showed a progressive increase starting during physical performance and enduring for the next 18 to 24 hours in healthy subjects, whereas they were unchanged over time in cyclists with transplants. In transplant recipients who did not perform exercise, all of the analytes were significantly higher in comparison to basal levels of physically active subjects. Conclusions Our data suggest that clinically stable and properly trained transplant recipients can safely perform and progressively benefit from exercise, even at a competitive level. The changes in inflammation parameters were temporary and parallel with those of the healthy subjects. The comparison with sedentary transplant recipients revealed an overall amelioration of inflammatory indexes as a possible effect of regular physical activity on systemic inflammation

Reference centile curves for screening body mass index and body postural stability in football players aged 8-18 years

Introduction and purpose: Since birth, children grow up in terms of height and body weight, and subsequently in terms of the maturation of the nervous, endocrine, muscular, and cardiovascular systems. These adaptations lead to alterations in neuromuscular performances (3). The increase of body mass index (BMI) can cause a reduction in the postural stability and then increase the risk of falls, particularly when combined with low muscular mass which can generate biomechanical failure of muscular responses and loss of stability mechanisms (2). The aim of this study was to analyse the body mass index (BMI) and body postural stability (BPS) in football players across childhood and adolescence, thus developing reference centile curves, and to investigate their relationship. Methods: 512 males from 8 to 18 years were recruited from Italian football teams. It was performed a cross-sectional study. BMI was calculated measuring height and weight [body mass (kg) / height (m2)]. BPS were taken by means of a Libra seesaw balance board. Reference centile curves were created by lambda-mu-sigma (LMS) method. To assess the difference among ages, Kruskal Wallis test was performed. The correlation between BMI and BPS was evaluated by Pearson correlation coefficient controlled by age (partial correlation). In addition, a stepwise multiple regression analysis was used to determine the effect of age and BMI on BPS, and the effect of age and BPS on BMI. Finally, Pearson correlation coefficient or Sperman Rho were performed in order to detect the correlation between BMI and BPS in each age group. The assumption of normal data distribution was verified by Shapiro-Wilks\u2019 Normality test. Results: Significant improvement in BMI (\u3c72(1,10)=106.383, p0.251, p<0.05) except for football players of 11, 14, and 15 years old. Conclusion: The football players increase BMI and improve their BPS during the growth. The reference centile curves provided in this study could help trainers to assess the levels of their football players. Previous studies found that the accumulation of fat tissue can reduce postural stability and contribute towards falls (1). Accordingly, we found a direct relationship between BPS and BMI across childhood and adolescence. The lower is the BMI, the better is the body postural stability during the growth, because high BMI demands more neuromuscular control to maintain postural stability (1). However, our results showed improvements on BMI and BPS were mostly affected by the body development during growth and barely affected by their relationship. A greater limitation of this investigation is that this study have a cross sectional design. Future longitudinal study is needed to better investigate this topic. References 1. Greve, J., Alonso, A., Bordini, A.C.P.G., & Camanho, G.L.. Correlation between Body Mass Index and Postural Balance. Clinics 62, 717\u201320 (2007). 2. Maffiuletti, N.A., Agosti, F., Proietti, M., Riva, D., Resnik, M., Lafortuna, C.L., & Sartorio, A. Postural Instability of Extremely Obese Individuals Improves after a Body Weight Reduction Program Entailing Specific Balance Training. Journal of Endocrinological Investigation 28, 2\u20137 (2005). 3. Roemmich, J. N. & Rogol, A. D. Physiology of growth and development. Its relationship to performance in the young athlete. Clinics in Sports Medicine 14, 483\u2013502 (1995)

Pepsinogens: physiology, pharmacology pathophysiology and exercise

Human gastric mucosa contains aspartic proteinases that can be separated electrophoretically on the basis of their physical properties into two major groups: Pepsinogen I (PGA, PGI); and Pepsinogen II (PGC, PGII). Pepsinogens consist of a single polypept

I rischi dell\u2019alta montagna

In chi non \ue8 acclimatato l'alta quota provoca disturbi che vanno da prestazioni atletiche ridotte, modeste alterazioni del sonno e cefalea a edemi polmonari e cerebrali che mettono a repentaglio la vita

Kinematic Analysis of three Fencing hits

Calgary, Canad