Quantifying Joint Coordination Variability in Anterior Cruciate Ligament-Reconstructed Individuals During Walking

The knee is the second most common joint to sustain injury. An estimated 200,000 anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) ruptures occur each year in the United States alone, and about 100,000 ACL reconstruction (ACLR) surgeries are performed annually. There is a significant risk of developing osteoarthritis of the knee after incurring an ACL injury, and the incidence of ipsilateral or contralateral injury is six times greater in individuals who have a surgically repaired ACL. Past studies have analyzed kinetic and kinematic characteristics of individual lower extremity joints to reveal differences between subjects with and without ACLR. Despite reports of altered kinematic performance in individuals with ACLR compared to healthy controls, most of the analyses did not evaluate coordinative function, and thus neglected to consider how the lower limb acts as a linked chain. Therefore, the present study used a method based on dynamical systems theory to quantify coordination and account for the interaction between joints in the lower extremity. The purpose of the study was to quantify and compare joint coordination variability and joint coordination patterns between individuals with ACLR and matched controls. Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval was obtained prior to data collection, and all subjects signed an informed consent form. Twenty subjects (nine females, eleven males; body mass index (BMI) 25±3.5 kg/m2) who had undergone unilateral ACLR (thirteen right, seven left) and been cleared to return to full activity were compared to twenty control subjects matched by gender and BMI (nine females, eleven males; BMI 22.4±2.4 km/m2). Kinematic and kinetic data during walking were collected in the UTHSC Motion Analysis Laboratory. A vector coding technique was used to calculate coupling angles for six joint couplings involving the hip, knee, and ankle across four periods within the stance phase. Joint coordination variability was defined as the standard deviation of the coupling angle between trials within a subject, and joint coordination patterns were based on coupling angle magnitude. Individuals with ACLR exhibited increased joint coordination variability and altered joint coordination patterns compared to the matched controls during the stance phase of walking. These results suggested that coordinative function may not be fully restored in individuals with ACLR following rehabilitation. Increased coordination variability from a normal, or optimal amount as well as altered coordination patterns may result from a deficit in sensorimotor control, and represent risk of re-injury. Further investigation that is prospective, focuses primarily on hip-knee coupled motion in frontal and transverse planes, and includes assessment of EMG in addition to kinematics may contribute relevant information for improving ACL injury prevention and rehabilitation

Services Provided For Sexually Abused Children In Staffed Emergency Children\u27s Shelters In the Metro Area

This research work investigates what types of services are being provided to address the needs of sexually abused children in emergency shelters located in the metropolitan area of Minneapolis and St. Paul. The study was done in order to determine if the children\u27s shelters are serving the needs of sexually abused children who are removed from their homes. This study surveyed directors of children\u27s emergency shelters in the metropolitan area on what services are provided by their shelter to this population of children. The results of the survey showed that the services provided for this specific population of children are minimal and mostly inconsistent with what research has shown is greatly needed to help sexually abused children develop into normal and healthy individuals

Leading otherwise: using a feminist-poststructuralist and postcolonial lens to create alternative spaces for early childhood educational leaders

This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in International Journal of Leadership in Education on 13 August 2014, available online: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/13603124.2014.943296CopyrightThe recognition of the importance of quality programmes and services for very young children is evident in the political agendas of many countries around the world. This focus has been accompanied by increasing recognition that effective leadership in early childhood programmes makes a positive difference to the outcomes for children, families and communities. Research into early childhood leadership, however, has not kept pace with the changes that are occurring within the field. In this paper, we argue that characteristics of the field including the feminized nature of the field, diverse settings, staffing, policies and purposes of early childhood education require a different conceptual framework than what currently exists. Because we live and work within highly gendered and raced discourses, it is difficult to find a space to reflect on the meaning(s) of leadership for contemporary early childhood educators that is not informed by existing (and often Western masculine) knowledge(s) about who a leader is and what a leader does. This paper draws from the work done by feminist poststucturalist and postcolonial theorists and seeks to further discuss how dominant constructions of educational leadership can be troubled and reconceptualised in ECE contexts

A Grounded Theory of Sport Injury-Related Growth

Although previous research has shown that experiencing an injury can act as a catalyst for self-development, research that has examined the concept of sport injury-related growth (SIRG) remains largely descriptive. This study aimed to address this by developing a substantive theory to explain the processes through which injured athletes experienced SIRG. Using Strauss and Corbin’s (1998) variant of grounded theory, 37 injured athletes competing in a range of sports and competitive levels participated in qualitative interviews. Interviews (N=70) and data analysis were conducted over a period of 24 months. Transcripts were analyzed using open, axial, and selective coding. Quality criteria used were fit, relevance, workability, and modifiability. The grounded theory produced (i.e., Theory of Sport Injury-Related Growth) suggests a number of internal (i.e., personality, coping styles, knowledge and prior experience, and perceived social support) and external factors (i.e., cultural scripts, physical resources, time, and received social support) enable injured athletes to transform their injury into an opportunity for growth and development. The mechanisms through which this occurs are meta-cognitions, positive reappraisal, positive emotions, and facilitative responses. This theory offers a number of exciting avenues for future research, and provides medical personnel and practicing sport psychologists with a detailed explanation of how sport injury can lead to growth experiences

Sport Psychology Consultants’ Perspectives on Facilitating Sport Injury-Related Growth

Despite recent conceptual, methodological, and theoretical advancements on sport injury-related 26 growth (SIRG), there is no research on sport psychology consultants’ (SPCs) experiential 27 knowledge of working with injured athletes to promote SIRG. Toward this end, this study examined 28 SPCs’ perspectives on facilitating SIRG to provide an evidence-base for professional practice. 29 Participants were purposefully sampled (4 females, 6 males; Mean of 19 years’ applied experience) 30 and interviewed. Transcripts were thematically analyzed. Methodological rigor and generalizability 31 were maximized through self-reflexivity and eliciting external reflections. Five themes were 32 identified: Hear the Story, Contextualize the Story, Reconstruct the Story, Live the Story, and Share 33 the Story. Findings offer practitioners a novel approach to working with injured athletes. Rather than 34 focusing on returning to preinjury level of functioning, the findings illustrate how SPCs can work 35 with injured athletes to help transform injury into an opportunity to bring about positive change

A Systematic Review of Interventions to Promote Growth Following Adversity

Background: Athletes experience adversity across many aspects of their lives. Challenging the dominant idea that adversity is just a negative experience, a significant body of research in sport has demonstrated that these adverse events can also act as catalysts for positive change (Howells, Fletcher, & Sarkar, 2017). Yet, a limited number of researchers have focused on how to promote growth following adversity in sport. To support this line of inquiry our aim in this study was to facilitate knowledge transfer from other psychology disciplines by systematically reviewing intervention studies that aim to foster growth following adversity. Methods: We conducted the systematic review using PRISMA guidelines. Following inclusion and exclusion criteria, we appraised the studies using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (Pluye & Hong, 2014). Results: Thirty-six studies were included in the review. We synthesized the studies in relation to participant characteristics (i.e., sample size, age, gender, ethnicity, adversity), study characteristics (i.e., design, content, duration, delivery, outcome measures), intervention outcomes (i.e., statistical significance, effect size, qualitative indicators of growth), antecedents (viz. mediators, moderators), and quality appraisal. Conclusion: In the discussion we critically consider the lessons sport and exercise psychology researchers can learn from published intervention studies from other fields of research (e.g., the use of meaningful metrics, that there are different trajectories of growth, growth is a multidimensional phenomenon). Future researchers should seek to build on findings to advance knowledge and understanding in the most significant and meaningful ways

Systematic review and network meta-analysis with individual participant data on cord management at preterm birth (iCOMP): study protocol

Introduction Timing of cord clamping and other cord management strategies may improve outcomes at preterm birth. However, it is unclear whether benefits apply to all preterm subgroups. Previous and current trials compare various policies, including time-based or physiology-based deferred cord clamping, and cord milking. Individual participant data (IPD) enable exploration of different strategies within subgroups. Network meta-analysis (NMA) enables comparison and ranking of all available interventions using a combination of direct and indirect comparisons. Objectives (1) To evaluate the effectiveness of cord management strategies for preterm infants on neonatal mortality and morbidity overall and for different participant characteristics using IPD meta-analysis. (2) To evaluate and rank the effect of different cord management strategies for preterm births on mortality and other key outcomes using NMA. Methods and analysis Systematic searches of Medline, Embase, clinical trial registries, and other sources for all ongoing and completed randomised controlled trials comparing cord management strategies at preterm birth (before 37 weeks’ gestation) have been completed up to 13 February 2019, but will be updated regularly to include additional trials. IPD will be sought for all trials; aggregate summary data will be included where IPD are unavailable. First, deferred clamping and cord milking will be compared with immediate clamping in pairwise IPD meta-analyses. The primary outcome will be death prior to hospital discharge. Effect differences will be explored for prespecified participant subgroups. Second, all identified cord management strategies will be compared and ranked in an IPD NMA for the primary outcome and the key secondary outcomes. Treatment effect differences by participant characteristics will be identified. Inconsistency and heterogeneity will be explored. Ethics and dissemination Ethics approval for this project has been granted by the University of Sydney Human Research Ethics Committee (2018/886). Results will be relevant to clinicians, guideline developers and policy-makers, and will be disseminated via publications, presentations and media releases