Effects of open (Racket) and closed (running) skill sports practice on children’s attentional performance

Aims: The first aim of the study was to examine the attentional performance of children (8–13 years of age) who practiced two different sport disciplines: Open skill sport – racket and closed skill sport – running and also to investigate the acute effects of these two specific training sessions on children’s immediate and delayed attentional performance. The second aim of the present study was to verify gender differences in attentional performance. Eighteen children+ (8 girls and 10 boys; age = 10.6 ± 1.5 yrs; height = 144.3 ± 12.2 cm; weight = 44.2 ± 12.5 kg; BMI = 20.8 ± 2.7 kg/m2) engaged in a racket sports and eighteen children (9 girls and 9 boys; age = 9.9 ± 1.2 yrs; height = 142.4 ± 9.5 cm; weight = 40.0 ± 8.6 kg; BMI = 19.6 ± 2.4 kg/m2) engaged in running were enrolled. Methods: Children’s training and experience with these activities averaged 2.3 (± 1.0) years. Children’s attentional capacity was measured before, immediately after and 50 minutes after each specific training session by the d2 test of attention. This paper-and-pencil letter cancellation test evaluated concentration and sustained attention under stress induced by a fixed executing time. A 2 (Sport: open vs closed skill) x 2 (Gender: boys vs girls) x 3 (Time: pre vs 0’ post vs 50’ post) repeated measures ANOVA for time was used to compare the effect of an open skill session and a closed skill session on the individual attentional variables. Results: Children of open skill sport showed higher attentional scores (higher processing speed-TN, higher concentration performance-CP and lower percentage of errors-E%; p < 0.01), improved CP from pre to 0’ post intervention (p = 0.01) and maintained this improved performance at 50’ post intervention (50’ post vs pre; p < 0.01), and decreased E% from pre to 0’ post intervention (p = 0.01) and maintained this improvement at 50’ post intervention (50’ post vs pre; p < 0.001). Children of closed skill sport significantly decreased their CP from pre to 50’ post intervention (50’ post vs pre; p = 0.001 and 50’ post vs 0’ post; p < 0.0001) and worsened their E% across the time (50’ post vs pre; p = 0.001 and 50’ post vs 0’ post; p < 0.0001). Boys showed significantly higher TN values than girls only in closed skill sport (p = 0.023). Finally, all girls of both open and closed skill sports significantly improved their CP from pre to 0’ post intervention (p = 0.04). Conclusion: Results of the study showed that open skill sport practice and training session positively affects children’s attentional performance

Recurrence quantification analysis of heart rate variability to detect both ventilatory thresholds

Aims of this study were: To verify if Recurrence Quantification Analysis (RQA) of Heart Rate Variability (HRV) time series could determine both ventilatory thresholds in individuals with different fitness levels, and to assess the validity of RQA method compared to gasexchange method (GE). The two thresholds were estimated in thirty young individuals during incremental exercise on cycle-ergometer: Heart rate (HR), Oxygen consumption (VO2) and Workload were measured by the two methods (RQA and GE). Repeated measures ANOVA was used to assess main effects of methods and methods-by-groups interaction effects for HR, VO2 and Workload at aerobic (AerT) and anaerobic (AnT) thresholds. Validity of RQA at both thresholds was assessed for HR, VO2 and Workload by Ordinary Least Products (OLP) regression, Typical Percentage Error (TE), Intraclass Correlation Coefficients (ICC) and the Bland Altman plots. No methods-by-groups interaction effects were detected for HR, VO2 and Workload at AerT and AnT. The OLP analysis showed that at both thresholds RQA and GE methods had very strong correlations (r >0.8) in all variables (HR, VO2 and Workload). Slope and intercept values always included the 1 and the 0, respectively. At AerT the TE ranged from 4.02% (5.48 bpm) to 10.47% (8.53 Watts) (HR and Workload, respectively) and in all variables ICC values were excellent (≥0.85). At AnT the TE ranged from 2.53% (3.98 bpm) to 6.64% (7.81 Watts) (HR and Workload, respectively) and in all variables ICC values were excellent (≥0.90). Therefore, RQA of HRV time series is a new valid approach to determine both ventilatory thresholds in individuals with different physical fitness levels, it can be used when gas analysis is not possible or not convenient

Peritoneal carcinosis of ovarian origin

Epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) is the second most common genital malignancy in women and is the most lethal gynecological malignancy, with an estimated five-year survival rate of 39%. Despite efforts to develop an effective ovarian cancer screening method, 60% of patients still present with advanced disease. Comprehensive management using surgical cytoreduction to decrease the tumor load to a minimum, and intraperitoneal chemotherapy to eliminate microscopic disease on peritoneal surface, has the potential to greatly improve quality of life and to have an impact on survival in ovarian cancer patients. Despite achieving clinical remission after completion of initial treatment, most patients (60%) with advanced EOC will ultimately develop recurrent disease or show drug resistance; the eventual rate of curability is less than 30%. Given the poor outcome of women with advanced EOC, it is imperative to continue to explore novel therapies.

Dynamic motor imagery mentally simulates uncommon real locomotion better than static motor imagery both in young adults and elderly

A new form of Motor Imagery (MI), called dynamic Motor Imagery (dMI) has recently been proposed. The dMI adds to conventional static Motor Imagery (sMI) the presence of simultaneous actual movements partially replicating those mentally represented. In a previous research conducted on young participants, dMI showed to be temporally closer than sMI in replicating the real performance for some specific locomotor conditions. In this study, we evaluated if there is any influence of the ageing on dMI. Thirty healthy participants were enrolled: 15 young adults (27.1\ub13.8 y.o.) and 15 older adults (65.9\ub19.6y.o.). The performance time and the number of steps needed to either walk to a target (placed at 10m from participants) or to imagine walking to it, were assessed. Parameters were measured for sMI, dMI and real locomotion (RL) in three different locomotor conditions: forward walking (FW), backward walking (BW), and lateral walking (LW). Temporal performances of sMI and dMI did not differ between RL in the FW, even if significantly different to each other (p = 0.0002). No significant differences were found for dMI with respect to RL for LW (p = 0.140) and BW (p = 0.438), while sMI was significantly lower than RL in LW (p<0.001). The p-value of main effect of age on participants' temporal performances was p = 0.055. The interaction between age and other factors such as the type of locomotion (p = 0.358) or the motor condition (p = 0.614) or third level interaction (p = 0.349) were not statistically significant. Despite a slight slowdown in the performance of elderly compared to young participants, the temporal and spatial accuracy was better in dMI than sMI in both groups. Motor imagery processes may be strengthened by the feedback generated through dMI, and this effect appears to be unaffected by age

Effect of a quality improvement program on compliance to the sepsis bundle in non-ICU patients: a multicenter prospective before and after cohort study

ObjectiveSepsis and septic shock are major challenges and economic burdens to healthcare, impacting millions of people globally and representing significant causes of mortality. Recently, a large number of quality improvement programs focused on sepsis resuscitation bundles have been instituted worldwide. These educational initiatives have been shown to be associated with improvements in clinical outcomes. We aimed to evaluate the impact of a multi-faceted quality implementing program (QIP) on the compliance of a “simplified 1-h bundle” (Sepsis 6) and hospital mortality of severe sepsis and septic shock patients out of the intensive care unit (ICU).MethodsEmergency departments (EDs) and medical wards (MWs) of 12 academic and non-academic hospitals in the Lombardy region (Northern Italy) were involved in a multi-faceted QIP, which included educational and organizational interventions. Patients with a clinical diagnosis of severe sepsis or septic shock according to the Sepsis-2 criteria were enrolled in two different periods: from May 2011 to November 2011 (before-QIP cohort) and from August 2012 to June 2013 (after-QIP cohort).Measurements and main resultsThe effect of QIP on bundle compliance and hospital mortality was evaluated in a before–after analysis. We enrolled 467 patients in the before-QIP group and 656 in the after-QIP group. At the time of enrollment, septic shock was diagnosed in 50% of patients, similarly between the two periods. In the after-QIP group, we observed increased compliance to the “simplified rapid (1 h) intervention bundle” (the Sepsis 6 bundle – S6) at three time-points evaluated (1 h, 13.7 to 18.7%, p = 0.018, 3 h, 37.1 to 48.0%, p = 0.013, overall study period, 46.2 to 57.9%, p < 0.001). We then analyzed compliance with S6 and hospital mortality in the before- and after-QIP periods, stratifying the two patients’ cohorts by admission characteristics. Adherence to the S6 bundle was increased in patients with severe sepsis in the absence of shock, in patients with serum lactate <4.0 mmol/L, and in patients with hypotension at the time of enrollment, regardless of the type of admission (from EDs or MWs). Subsequently, in an observational analysis, we also investigated the relation between bundle compliance and hospital mortality by logistic regression. In the after-QIP cohort, we observed a lower in-hospital mortality than that observed in the before-QIP cohort. This finding was reported in subgroups where a higher adherence to the S6 bundle in the after-QIP period was found. After adjustment for confounders, the QIP appeared to be independently associated with a significant improvement in hospital mortality. Among the single S6 procedures applied within the first hour of sepsis diagnosis, compliance with blood culture and antibiotic therapy appeared significantly associated with reduced in-hospital mortality.ConclusionA multi-faceted QIP aimed at promoting an early simplified bundle of care for the management of septic patients out of the ICU was associated with improved compliance with sepsis bundles and lower in-hospital mortality

Motor proficiency and physical activity in preschool girls: a preliminary study

Physical activity during preschool age promotes sports learning and the acquisition of fundamental and complex movement skills. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of three different four-month physical and/or pre-sport activity programmes on preschool children’s motor proficiency. Twenty-five girls, aged between four and six years, were involved in the study, 10 practising physical activity, six practising dance (classical), nine practising swimming. Girls’ motor proficiency was assessed before and after the intervention period by means of the BOT-2 Bruininks–Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency-Short Form (BOT-2 SF). Differential effects of interventions emerged in fine manual control and coordination and in running speed and agility. A playful and highly varied physical activity intervention conducted by a specialized teacher was more effective for the development of preschool girls’ motor proficiency

Linking co-ordinative and fitness training in physical education settings

To assess whether an enrichment of the co-ordinative demands of physical education (PE) during the curricular time may more efficiently improve co-ordinative abilities than the traditional PE program. One hundred and fifty-two middle school students aged 11-12 years were randomly assigned either to an experimental (n=77) or to a traditional (n=75) PE program lasting 5 months. The experimental intervention was structured in different modules focused on co-ordination abilities. Pre- and post-intervention tests assessed students' fitness (1 mile run-walk, curl-up, flexed arm hang, trunk lift, sit and reach, 30 m run, standing long jump, basketball forward throw) and motor co-ordination abilities (four field tests of kinesthetic discrimination and response orientation ability). After the intervention period, both groups showed a significant increment in most fitness tests. However, only the experimental group showed a significant improvement or a significantly more pronounced improvement than the control group in co-ordinative performances. The results show that both experimental and traditional PE interventions lead to increase physical fitness levels, but only the experimental one also improves co-ordinative abilities. Thus, focusing on a multivariate PE approach linking co-ordination and fitness training seems to add quality to students' experiences without reducing their effectiveness in terms of physical fitness. © 2009 John Wiley & Sons A-S