Pre- and Post-Activity Stretching Practices of Collegiate Soccer Coaches in the United States

International Journal of Exercise Science 13(6): 260-272, 2020. Current pre- and post-activity stretching guidelines are designed to optimize performance and reduce injury risk. However, it is unclear whether soccer coaches adhere to these recommendations. The purpose of this study was to determine if collegiate soccer coaches’ perceptions and practices align with current scientific recommendations. A total of 781 questionnaires were electronically distributed to soccer coaches from NCAA Division I and III universities.The questionnaire obtained demographic, professional, and educational information, as well as stretching practices. Statistical analysis consisted of computing frequency counts and means where applicable. Pearson\u27s Chi-square tests were performed to assess the potential differences in stretching perceptions and practices among the cohort of soccer coaches. Results suggest that soccer coaches are choosing some forms of stretching more frequently than other coaches (χ2= 342.7, p\u3c 0.001). Further analysis failed to determine significant associations between stretching type and coaching certification, level, sex, years of experience, and age. Of the 209 respondents, 84.9% believed pre-activity stretching to be of greater than average importance on a seven-point Likert scale. Dynamic stretching (68.7%) or a combination of static and ballistic stretching (18.0%) prior to athletic events was the most typical stretching prescribed. Current post-activity practices demonstrate that most coaches (95.4%) are using some form of a general cool-down following practice or competition. This study is an important assessment of the extent to which collegiate coaches administer appropriate stretching techniques. Most coaches adhere to current recommendations; however, they should continue to evaluate their practices against ongoing research and the practices of their peers

Eighteen years of experience with Acinetobacter baumannii in a tertiary care hospital

To characterize the descriptive and molecular epidemiology of Acinetobacter baumannii in our hospital. Longitudinal analysis of electronic microbiology laboratory records and isolates. A 1,500 bed public teaching hospital in the Miami area. Consecutive patients with A. baumannii from January 1994 to December 2011. None : Data on all A. baumannii isolates were clustered at the patient level, and the first isolate per single patient was determined. Yearly trends were analyzed based on carbapenem susceptibilities and originating units for all first isolates and first blood isolates per unique patient. Additionally, carbapenem nonsusceptible isolates frozen in the microbiology laboratory since 1998 were retrieved and evaluated using polymerase chain reaction and randomly amplified polymorphic DNA techniques. A total of 9,334 A. baumannii isolates were detected, of which 4,484 isolates (48%) were identified as first positive isolates per unique patient. Most of the burden of disease was located in the ICUs (odds ratio, 2.64 [95% CI, 2.17-3.22]; p < 0.0001) and in the adult wards (odds ratio, 3.867 [95% CI, 2.71-5.52]; p < 0.0001). Respiratory specimens constituted the most frequent source (49%; odds ratio, 1.619 [95% CI, 1.391-1.884]; p < 0.0001). Of the 4,484 first isolates, 846 isolates (18.9%) were carbapenem nonsusceptible and 3,638 isolates (81.1%) were carbapenem susceptible. Over the years, the number of carbapenem nonsusceptible isolates increased, whereas the number of carbapenem susceptible decreased (p < 0.0001). The trauma ICU had the highest burden of carbapenem nonsusceptible first isolates (205 of 846; 24.2%). Seven clones were discovered among 144 carbapenem nonsusceptible isolates; one of these clones was found from 1999 to 2005. OXA-23 and OXA-40 were identified in 96 and 13 isolates, respectively. One isolate harbored a novel CTX-M-115 enzyme. This constitutes the largest experience with A. baumannii reported to date from a single center. Half of all isolates were respiratory specimens and were from adult ICUs, especially trauma. Even though this was a polyclonal process, a single clone was identified in the hospital through a 6-year span

Nutritional, lifestyle and environmental factors in ocular hypertension and primary open-angle glaucoma: an exploratory case-control study

PURPOSE: To evaluate known and potential risk factors, including nutritional, lifestyle and environmental factors, differentiating patients with high-tension primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) from control subjects with ocular hypertension (OHT). METHODS: In 2006-2007, 111 French ophthalmologists prospectively enrolled 339 cases of POAG and 339 age-matched controls with OHT. After a clinical examination with assessment of ocular risk factors, the ophthalmologist filled, during face-to-face interview, a detailed questionnaire developed by nutritionists and epidemiologist on lifestyle and environmental risk factors, including socio-demographic variables, dietary habits related to omega-3 fatty acids intake, smoking and alcohol drinking and professional exposure to pesticides and other chemicals. Associations of POAG with risk factors were estimated using conditional logistic regression, with adjustment for age, gender and duration of disease. RESULTS: In the final multivariate model, by comparison with OHT, POAG was significantly associated with more frequent use of pesticides during the professional life [OR = 2.65, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.04-6.78, p = 0.04] and with low consumption of fatty fish (OR = 2.14, 95% CI: 1.10-4.17, p = 0.02) and walnuts (OR = 2.02, 95% CI: 1.18-3.47, p = 0.01). POAG was also associated with higher frequency of heavy smoking (40 pack-years or more, OR = 3.93, 95% CI: 1.12-13.80, p = 0.03) but not with moderate (20-40 pack-years) and light smoking (<20 pack-years). CONCLUSIONS: These exploratory observations suggest a protective effect of omega-3 fatty acids and a deleterious effect of heavy smoking and professional exposure to pesticides in POAG. This will need to be confirmed in future studies