Η αγωνιστική ισορροπία στο πρωτάθλημα υδατοσφαίρισης

Ο όρος «αγωνιστική ισορροπία» σχετίζεται με την ισόρροπη ανάπτυξη των ομάδων μίας αθλητικής λίγκας και στην ομοιογένειά τους ως προς την αθλητική τους ικανότητα. Σκοπός της παρούσας μελέτης ήταν η διερεύνηση του επιπέδου και της διαχρονικής εξέλιξης της αγωνιστικής ισορροπίας στην Α1 κατηγορία ανδρών στο άθλημα της υδατοσφαίρισης για την περίοδο από το 1996/97 έως και το 2019/20 και η σύγκριση με το αντίστοιχο πρωτάθλημα της χειροσφαίρισης. Η εργασία επικεντρώθηκε στη διάσταση της αγωνιστικής ισορροπίας σε επίπεδο αγωνιστικής περιόδου με τη χρήση ανάλογων δεικτών. Από τα αποτελέσματα προκύπτει ως το επίπεδο της αγωνιστικής ισορροπίας είναι εξαιρετικά χαμηλό για το άθλημα της υδατοσφαίρισης, ενώ παράλληλα αποδεικνύεται το χαμηλό επίπεδο της αγωνιστικής ισορροπίας ως προς την διαχρονική της εξέλιξη. Συγκρίνοντας το επίπεδο και τη διαχρονική εξέλιξη της αγωνιστικής ισορροπίας μεταξύ υδατοσφαίρισης και χειροσφαίρισης, διαπιστώθηκε αν και παραμένει σε χαμηλά επίπεδα, η αγωνιστική ισορροπία στη χειροσφαίριση παρουσιάζεται βελτιωμένη σε σχέση με την υδατοσφαίριση.Competitive Balance is a term correlated to the balanced development of teams that constitute a Sport League. The specific term is also related to the homogeneity of these teams regarding their athletic ability. This study aims to investigate both the level and the timeless evolution of the competitive balance, as regards the A1 category of the male championship from 1996/ 97 to 2019/ 20, in comparison to the corresponding handball championship. The study focuses on the seasonal dimension of competitive balance, with the use of equivalent indicators. According to the results, both the level of the competitive balance and the timeless evolution are significantly low as far water polo is concerned. Comparing the level and the timeless evolution of the competitive balance between these two sports, we can infer that the competitive balance is more evolved in water polo, than in handball, although it remains low

Osteoprotegerin, Soluble Receptor Activator of Nuclear Factor- κ

Aims. To evaluate carotid intima-media thickness (cIMT) and biomarkers of the osteoprotegerin/receptor activator of nuclear factor-κB ligand (OPG/RANKL) system in type 1 diabetes (T1DM) children and adolescents and controls. Subjects and Methods. Fifty six T1DM patients (mean ± SD age: 12.0 ± 2.7 years, diabetes duration: 5.42 ± 2.87 years and HbA1c: 8.0 ± 1.5%) and 28 healthy matched controls, were studied with anthropometric and laboratory measurements, including serum OPG, soluble RANKL (sRANKL) and cIMT. Results. Anthropometric, laboratory, and cIMT measurements were similar between T1DM youngsters and controls. However patients with longer diabetes duration (>/7.0 years) had indicatively higher cIMT (cIMT = 0.49 vs 0.44 mm, P 0.072) and triglyceride levels than the rest of the patients (93.7 vs 64.6 mg/dl, P 0.025). Both in the total study population (β 0.418, P 0.027) and among T1DM patients separately (β 0.604, P 0.013), BMI was the only factor associated with cIMT. BMI was further associated with OPG in both groups (β −0.335, P 0.003 and β −0.356, P 0.008 respectively), while sRANKL levels were not associated with any factor. Conclusions. BMI was the strongest independent predictor of cIMT among the whole population, and especially in diabetics, suggesting a possible synergistic effect of diabetes and adiposity on atherosclerotic burden. BMI was overall strongly associated with circulating OPG, but the causes of this association remain unclear

Pre-Exercise Maltodextrin Ingestion and Transient Hypoglycemia in Cycling and Running

International Journal of Exercise Science 13(2): 1691-1704, 2020. This study examined the phenomenon of transient hypoglycemia and metabolic responses to pre-exercise carbohydrate (CHO) maltodextrin ingestion in cycling and running on the same individuals. Eleven active males cycled or ran for 30 min at 80% maximal heart rate (HRmax) after ingestion of either 1g/kg body mass maltodextrin (CHO-Cycle and CHO-Run respectively) or placebo (PL-Cycle and PL-Run) solutions. Fluids were ingested 30min before exercise in a double-blind and random manner.Blood glucose and serum insulin were higher before exercise in CHO (mean CHO-Cycle+CHO-Run) (Glucose: 7.4 ± 0.3 mmol.l-1; Insulin: 59 ± 10 mU.l-1) compared to placebo (mean PL-Cycle+PL-Run) (Glucose: 4.7 ± 0.1 mmol.l-1; Insulin: 8 ± 1 mU.l-1) (p\u3c0.01), but no differences were observed during exercise among the 4 conditions. Mean blood glucose did not drop below 4.1 mmol.l-1 in any trial. However, six volunteers in CHO-Cycle and seven in CHO-Run experienced blood glucose concentration \u3c 3.5 mmol.l-1 at 20min of exercise and similar degree of transient hypoglycemia in both exercise modes. No association was found between insulin response to maltodextrin ingestion and drop in blood glucose during exercise. Blood lactate increased with exercise more in cycling compared to running, and plasma free fatty acids (FFA) concentrations were higher in placebo compared to CHO irrespective of exercise mode (p\u3c0.01). The ingestion of maltodextrin 30min before exercise at about 80% HRmax produced similar glucose and insulin responses in cycling and running in active males. Lactate was higher in cycling, whereas maltodextrin reduced FFA concentrations independently of exercise mode

Ambulatory blood pressure trajectories and blood pressure variability in kidney transplant recipients: a comparative study against chronic kidney disease patients

Background Hypertension is a major cardiovascular risk factor in both kidney transplant recipients (KTRs) and patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM) is considered the gold-standard method for hypertension management in these subjects. This is the first study evaluating the full ambulatory blood pressure (BP) profile and short-term BP variability (BPV) in KTRs versus CKD patients without kidney replacement therapy. Methods Ninety-three KTRs were matched with 93 CKD patients for age, sex, and estimated glomerular filtration rate. All participants underwent 24-hour ABPM. Mean ambulatory BP levels, BP trajectories, and BPV indices (standard deviation [SD], weighted SD, and average real variability) were compared between the two groups. Results There were no significant between-group differences in 24-hour systolic BP (SBP)/diastolic BP (DBP) (KTRs: 126.9 ± 13.1/79.1 ± 7.9 mmHg vs. CKD: 128.1 ± 11.2/77.9 ± 8.1 mmHg, p = 0.52/0.29), daytime SBP/DBP and nighttime SBP; nighttime DBP was slightly higher in KTRs (KTRs: 76.5 ± 8.8 mmHg vs. CKD: 73.8 ± 8.8 mmHg, p = 0.04). Repeated measurements analysis of variance showed a significant effect of time on both ambulatory SBP and DBP (SBP: F = [19, 3002] = 11.735, p < 0.001, partial η2 = 0.069) but not of KTR/CKD status (SBP: F = [1, 158] = 0.668, p = 0.42, partial η2 = 0.004). Ambulatory systolic/diastolic BPV indices were not different between KTRs and CKD patients, except for 24-hour DBP SD that was slightly higher in the latter group (KTRs: 10.2 ± 2.2 mmHg vs. CKD: 10.9 ± 2.6 mmHg, p = 0.04). No differences were noted in dipping pattern between the two groups. Conclusion Mean ambulatory BP levels, BP trajectories, and short-term BPV indices are not significantly different between KTRs and CKD patients, suggesting that KTRs have a similar ambulatory BP profile compared to CKD patients without kidney replacement therapy

Sensitivity of Colorectal Cancer to Arginine Deprivation Therapy is Shaped by Differential Expression of Urea Cycle Enzymes

We thank Polaris Pharmaceuticals and Bio-Cancer Treatment for providing drugs and reagents. This work was supported by the Cancer Prevention Research Trust, with assistance from the Wellcome Trust Institutional Strategic Support Fund [097828/z/11/B], and Cancer Research UK in conjunction with the Department of Health as part of an Experimental Cancer Medicine Centre grant [C325/A15575]. C.A. was funded by a PhD fellowship from the Cancer Prevention Research Trust, S.S.A. was funded by a studentship from the Iraqi Government. We are thankful to John Bomalaski and Sara Galavotti for their critical reading of the manuscript and insightful suggestions. Finally, we are profoundly indebted to Professor Andreas Gescher for his constant support during the execution of this project and the writing of this manuscript.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Functional aplasia of the contralateral A1 segment influences clinical outcome in patients with occlusion of the distal internal carotid artery

Background: The importance of an A1 aplasia remains unclear in stroke patients. In this work, we analyze the impact of an A1 aplasia contralateral to an acute occlusion of the distal internal carotid artery (ICA) on clinical outcomes. Methods: We conducted a retrospective study of consecutive stroke patients treated with mechanical thrombectomy at 12 tertiary care centers between January 2015 and February 2021 due to an occlusion of the distal ICA. Functional A1 aplasia was defined as the absence of A1 or hypoplastic A1 (>50% reduction to the contralateral site). Functional independence was measured by the modified Rankin Scale (mRS ≤ 2). Results: In total, 81 out of 1068 (8%) patients had functional A1 aplasia contralateral to distal ICA occlusion. Patients with functional contralateral A1 aplasia were more severely affected on admission (median NIHSS 18, IQR 15–23 vs. 17, IQR 13–21; aOR: 0.672, 95% CI: 0.448–1.007, p = 0.054) and post-interventional ischemic damage was larger (median ASPECTS 5, IQR 1–7, vs. 6, IQR 3–8; aOR: 1.817, 95% CI: 1.184–2.789, p = 0.006). Infarction occurred more often within the ipsilateral ACA territory (20/76, 26% vs. 110/961, 11%; aOR: 2.482, 95% CI: 1.389–4.437, p = 0.002) and both ACA territories (8/76, 11% vs. 5/961, 1%; aOR: 17.968, 95% CI: 4.979–64.847, p ≤ 0.001). Functional contralateral A1 aplasia was associated with a lower rate of functional independence at discharge (6/81, 8% vs. 194/965, 20%; aOR: 2.579, 95% CI: 1.086–6.122, p = 0.032) and after 90 days (5/55, 9% vs. 170/723, 24%; aOR: 2.664, 95% CI: 1.031–6.883, p = 0.043). Conclusions: A functional A1 aplasia contralateral to a distal ICA occlusion is associated with a poorer clinical outcome