The effect of the return of serve on the server pair’s movement parameters and rally outcome in padel using cluster analysis

Purpose: The pressure exerted on racket sports players by the service has been well documented. Whilst the return of serve has been suggested through qualitative interviews as being of similar importance there is a dearth of quantitative data to support this contention. This study analyzed time, speed, and distance parameters related to the outcome of the return of serve (ROS) in Padel, a sport similar to tennis but played on a court bounded by walls and played in doubles format only. Methods: Matches (n = 18) at two tournaments, sanctioned by the Valencian Federation, in 2012 were recorded and processed using Tracker software. ROS shot type (flat or lob), ball location, players’ positions on court and movement parameters between the ROS and the third shot of the server were captured 25 times per second. Results: Both lob and flat ROS produced six main clusters, as well as a small proportion of shots deemed outliers. The clusters differentiated shots played by two different level players (National and Regional), whether the ROS was played following a first or second serve, whether the serving pair adopted a conventional or Australian formation and whether the rally ended in a short number of shots (seven or less) or not. Conclusion: It was suggested that the aim of the ROS in Padel was to prevent the serving pair winning the rally quickly, since the advantage of the serve diminished after around 6 to 8 shots. This was best achieved by good depth on lobs, regardless of the direction, and pace on low shots, predominately aimed toward the server. This approach should be further modified to include the time between serve and ROS and consideration could be given to classifying attacking and defending positions

Aplicación del modelo alternativo de diagnóstico de Trastorno de la Personalidad DSM-5 para valorar la evolución de una paciente adolescente: caso clínico

La quinta edición del Manual Diagnóstico y Estadístico de Trastornos Mentales, en su Sección III, presenta un modelo alternativo para el diagnóstico de los Trastornos de la Personalidad que intenta eliminar algunos de los problemas que aparecen con el modelo oficial presentado en la sección II del manual. Es de considerable interés la posibilidad que ofrece este modelo, cuyos ejes son el funcionamiento de la personalidad y los rasgos de la personalidad, de poder caracterizar con precisión a un paciente que cumple criterios de varios trastornos de la personalidad o no cumple criterios de uno concreto. También se contempla la posibilidad de utilizarlo como herramienta para la valoración de la funcionalidad de un paciente y el diseño de un plan terapéutico en función de su personalidad. En este artículo se presenta a una paciente con alteraciones del comportamiento, se caracteriza su personalidad según este modelo y se observa su evolución.The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fifth edition, presents in its Section III an alternative model for diagnosing Personality Disorders, which tries to amend some of the problems of the official model, included in Section II. Is it of remarkable interest the possibility that this model, whose main axes are the personality functioning and the personality traits, brings us of being able to characterize with precision a patient that meets criteria of more than one personality disorders or does not fully meet criteria for a single one. The possibility of using it as a tool to evaluate the functioning of a patient and designing a specific treatment plan according to his or her personality is also contemplated. In this article is present a patient whose behaviour is altered, her personality is characterised according to this model and he evolution is observed

Are there differences in acute phase inflammation markers regarding the type of heart failure?

This study aimed to determine if there are differences in inflammatory markers in the acute phase between systolic heart failure and heart failure with preserved systolic function. One hundred and thirty-one patients with acute heart failure were recruited consecutively. At admission, plasma fibrinogen, C-reactive protein, sialic acid, von Willebrand factor, vascular endothelial growth factor, interleukin-6 and NTproBNP were all evaluated. If the ejection fraction was 45% or over patients were included in the HF-PSF group; the remaining patients were included in the SHF group. The HF-PSF patients were older (72±10 vs 63±12 years, P<0.001), presented a higher rate of atrial fibrillation (56.1 vs 21.3%, P<0.001), and had a lower rate of hemoglobin (12.2±2 vs 13.3±2.1 g/dL, P<0.01). No significant differences were observed in the inflammation markers analyzed among SHF and HF-PSF groups. In the acute phase of heart failure there is a marked elevation of inflammatory markers but there are no differences in the inflammatory markers analyzed between the two different types of heart failure