Examination of a pre-exercise, high energy supplement on exercise performance

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of a pre-exercise high energy drink on reaction time and anaerobic power in competitive strength/power athletes. In addition, the effect of the pre-exercise drink on subjective feelings of energy, fatigue, alertness and focus was also explored.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Twelve male strength/power athletes (21.1 ± 1.3 y; 179.8 ± 7.1 cm; 88.6 ± 12.1 kg; 17.6 ± 3.3% body fat) underwent two testing sessions administered in a randomized and double-blind fashion. During each session, subjects reported to the Human Performance Laboratory and were provided with either 120 ml of a high energy drink (SUP), commercially marketed as Redline Extreme^®or 120 ml of a placebo (PL) that was similar in taste and appearance but contained no active ingredients. Following consumption of the supplement or placebo subjects rested quietly for 10-minutes prior to completing a survey and commencing exercise. The survey consisted of 4 questions asking each subject to describe their feelings of energy, fatigue, alertness and focus for that moment. Following the completion of the questionnaire subjects performed a 2-minute quickness and reaction test on the Makoto testing device (Makoto USA, Centennial CO) and a 20-second Wingate Anaerobic Power test. Following a 10-minute rest subjects repeated the testing sequence and after a similar rest period a third and final testing sequence was performed. The Makoto testing device consisted of subjects reacting to both a visual and auditory stimulus and striking one out of 30 potential targets on three towers.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Significant difference in reaction performance was seen between SUP and PL in both average number of targets struck (55.8 ± 7.4 versus 51.9 ± 7.4, respectively) and percent of targets struck (71.9 ± 10.5% versus 66.8 ± 10.9%, respectively). No significant differences between trials were seen in any anaerobic power measure. Subjective feelings of energy (3.5 ± 0.5 versus 3.1 ± 0.5) and focus (3.8 ± 0.5 versus 3.3 ± 0.7) were significantly higher during SUP compared to PL, respectively. In addition, a trend towards an increase in average alertness (p = 0.06) was seen in SUP compared to P.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Results indicate a significant increase in reaction performance, with no effect on anaerobic power performance. In addition, ingestion of this supplement significantly improves subjective feelings of focus and energy in male strength/power athletes.</p

Breath biomarkers in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis:A systematic review 11 Medical and Health Sciences

Background: Exhaled biomarkers may be related to disease processes in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) however their clinical role remains unclear. We performed a systematic review to investigate whether breath biomarkers discriminate between patients with IPF and healthy controls. We also assessed correlation with lung function, ability to distinguish diagnostic subgroups and change in response to treatment. Methods: MEDLINE, EMBASE and Web of Science databases were searched. Study selection was limited to adults with a diagnosis of IPF as per international guidelines. Results: Of 1014 studies screened, fourteen fulfilled selection criteria and included 257 IPF patients. Twenty individual biomarkers discriminated between IPF and controls and four showed correlation with lung function. Meta-analysis of three studies indicated mean (± SD) alveolar nitric oxide (CalvNO) levels were significantly higher in IPF (8.5 ± 5.5 ppb) than controls (4.4 ± 2.2 ppb). Markers of oxidative stress in exhaled breath condensate, such as hydrogen peroxide and 8-isoprostane, were also discriminatory. Two breathomic studies have isolated discriminative compounds using mass spectrometry. There was a lack of studies assessing relevant treatment and none assessed differences in diagnostic subgroups. Conclusions: Evidence suggests CalvNO is higher in IPF, although studies were limited by small sample size. Further breathomic work may identify biomarkers with diagnostic and prognostic potential

Treatment of Systemic Sclerosis–related Interstitial Lung Disease: A Review of Existing and Emerging Therapies

Although interstitial lung disease accounts for the majority of deaths of patients with systemic sclerosis, treatment options for this manifestation of the disease are limited. Few high-quality, randomized, controlled trials exist for systemic sclerosis–related interstitial lung disease, and historically, studies have favored the use of cyclophosphamide. However, the benefit of cyclophosphamide for this disease is tempered by its complex adverse event profile. More recent studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of mycophenolate for systemic sclerosis–related interstitial lung disease, including Scleroderma Lung Study II. This review highlights the findings of this study, which was the first randomized controlled trial to compare cyclophosphamide with mycophenolate for the treatment of systemic sclerosis–related interstitial lung disease. The results reported in this trial suggest that there is no difference in treatment efficacy between mycophenolate and cyclophosphamide; however, mycophenolate appears to be safer and more tolerable than cyclophosphamide. In light of the ongoing advances in our understanding of the pathogenic mechanisms underlying interstitial lung disease in systemic sclerosis, this review also summarizes novel treatment approaches, presenting clinical and preclinical evidence for rituximab, tocilizumab, pirfenidone, and nintedanib, as well as hematopoietic stem cell transplantation and lung transplantation. This review further explores how reaching a consensus on appropriate study end points, as well as trial enrichment criteria, is central to improving our ability to judiciously evaluate the safety and efficacy of emerging experimental therapies for systemic sclerosis–related interstitial lung disease

Personalized Medicine in Systemic Sclerosis: Facts and Promises

The concept of personalized medicine has led to a paradigm shift in recent years. It integrates multiple clinical and biological levels of investigation aimed at offering the best possible and patient-tailored healthcare. This holds great potential in a rare and heterogeneous disease such as systemic sclerosis (SSc). The development of validated clinical screening algorithms and the identification of predictors for disease outcomes can help in stratifying patients according to their individual risk of progression. The ongoing search for biomarkers and key pathogenic molecules has brought valuable insights into molecular networks operative in SSc. In parallel, genetic and genomic studies have revealed new SSc susceptibility loci and validated gene expression profiles that might identify patients benefiting from specific therapies. In this review, we focus on recent findings relevant for the concept of personalized medicine in patients with SSc