Association of the Yips and Musculoskeletal Problems in Highly Skilled Golfers: A Large Scale Epidemiological Study in Japan

The yips are a set of conditions associated with intermittent motor disturbances that affect precision movement, especially in sports. Specifically, skilled golfers suffer from the yips, although its clinical characteristics and pathophysiology have not been well-studied. We surveyed skilled golfers to characterize their yips-related symptoms, to explore potential confounding factors associated with the yips. Golfers’ demographic information, golfing-career-related history, musculoskeletal status and manifestations of the yips are surveyed. Among the 1576 questionnaires distributed, 1457 (92%) responses were received, of which 39% of golfers had experienced the yips. The median age and golfing careers were 48 and 28 years, respectively. Golfers who had experienced the yips were older and had longer golfing careers and more frequent musculoskeletal problems than those without experience of the yips. The multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that a longer golfing career and musculoskeletal problems were independent factors associated with yips experience. More severe musculoskeletal problems were associated with higher odds of experiencing the yips. A positive association between the yips and musculoskeletal problems was also observed. The yips have similar characteristics to task-specific movement disorders, with a detrimental effect caused by excessive repetition of a routine task. These findings support the notion that the yips are a type of task-specific dystonia

Solute carrier transporters, reduced folate carrier 1 and equilibrative nucleoside transporter 1, as immunohistochemical markers for high-grade malignancy in bladder cancer

Clinicopathological parameters derived from initial transurethral resection of bladder tumor (TUR-Bt) have limitations in predicting tumor progression in bladder cancer. Reduced folate carrier 1 (RFC1) and equilibrative nucleoside transporter 1 (ENT1) are solute carrier (SLC) transporters supporting cellular uptake of endogenous bioactive substances and anti-cancer drugs. The aim of this study was to elucidate the role of SLC transporters in bladder cancer and investigate the potential of RFC1 and ENT1 expression as immunohistochemical markers for high-grade malignancy. We compared T-stage with the immunohistochemical expression of RFC1 and ENT1 and other clinicopathological parameters; moreover, we also used multiple logistic regression model to assess relative contributions for T-stage in bladder cancer (n=130). Concurrently, 57 TUR-Bt-derived imprint cytological samples were stained to evaluate the implication of cytological analysis. Elevated expression levels of RFC1 and ENT1 were significantly correlated with higher T-stage (p < .0001) and efficiently predicted tumor progression, compared with other clinicopathological parameters (RFC1, p = .0325; ENT1, p = .0171). Independent variables of optimal model for predicting T-stage were gender, age, histological grade, expression levels of RFC1 and ENT1. Cytological analysis was consistent with immunostained-tissue data. We reveal RFC1 and ENT1 as potential immunohistocytochemical markers for high-grade malignancy in bladder cancer