THIGH MUSCLE INJURIES IN TRACK AND FIELD: PRELIMINARY HQR COMPARISON AND IMPLICATIONS FOR INJURY RISK ASSESSMENT

K. Wiegand, O. Buchholz Eastern Washington University, Cheney, WA Thigh muscle injuries are common in athletes, with the hamstrings to quadriceps strength ratio (HQR) considered a potential risk factor. While consensus is lacking on the predictive accuracy of HQR for injury occurrence, some studies suggest potential utility in monitoring injury and performance metrics. PURPOSE: To provide a preliminary comparison of HQR values among injured and uninjured track and field athletes. METHODS: Thirty male and female Division-I track and field athletes representing all events events participated in the study prior to the start of pre-season training. After a self-selected warm up, an isokinetic dynamometer was used to assess the peak concentric torque production of the hamstrings and quadriceps. The protocol included 5 repetitions at 60°/s to measure strength, 20 repetitions at 180°/s to measure endurance, and 15 repetitions at 300°/s to measure speed-strength. Injury incidence data were provided from the sports medicine team after 3 months and during the indoor season. Qualitative differences in HQR values at all speeds were compared between athletes who sustained thigh muscle injuries and uninjured peers matched by sex, height, mass, and event. RESULTS: Mean HQR data are presented in Table 1. Five athletes (2 females) sustained injuries involving the hamstrings or quadriceps. On average, the uninjured matched pairs had greater HQR, except at 300°/s of the left leg. CONCLUSION: During this initial phase of a continuing longitudinal study, it appears that HQR may be considered when assessing thigh muscle injury risk. Further research is needed to validate these findings and explore the potential integration of HQR assessments into comprehensive injury prevention strategies for athletes

Absenkung der Warmwassertemperatur in Trinkwasserinstallationen zur Erhöhung der Energieeffizienz von Wärmepumpen im Gebäudesektor

Die Warmwasserbereitung senkt die Wärmepumpeneffizienz. Hohe Systemtemperaturen sind zur thermischen Desinfektion gegen pathogene Mikroorganismen gefordert. Über einen empirischen Datensatz wird die Hypothese aufgestellt, dass die Ultrafiltration eine Absenkung der Warmwassertemperatur zulassen kann, wenn zusätzliche Einflussfaktoren eingehalten werden. Beispielsweise muss der hydraulische Abgleich vorliegen, was den Anteil kontaminierter Trinkwasserinstallationen um rund 12% senkt. Zudem scheint Wasser vorwiegend in den Endleitungen zu stagnieren. Dadurch wird mikrobiologisches Wachstum gefördert und lokale Kontaminationen entstehen. Durch Verhindern dieser mikrobiologischen Ausschläge, z.B. durch automatisierte Hygienespülungen, wird der Anteil kontaminierter Installationen um rund 22,4% verkleinert. Eine Erhöhung des Ablaufvolumens auf 3-5 L bei der Probenahme könnte Abhilfe schaffen

A MEASUREMENT OF THE POSITIVE pi- Mu DECAY LIFETIME

The lifetime for the decay of a {pi} meson into {mu} meson and neutral particle was first measured by Richardson and later by Martinelli and Panofsky. The method was the same in both cases: The fraction of {pi} mesons surviving various times of flight is measured by placing photographic detectors at various path lengths from the target. In the experiment reported here we observe the time lag between the two bursts of fluorescence due to mesons decaying in a scintillation crystal. The first burst is due to the stopping of the entering {pi} meson, the second to the {mu}-meson. As is shown in Fig. 1, a particle penetrating the first and into the second crystal starts the sweep (10{sup -8} sec/mm) of an oscilloscope. The pulses in the second crystal are delayed 0.5 x 10{sup -6} sec to allow the sweep to start and brighten and are then photographed. If the responsible particle is a {pi}{sup +} meson which stops in the crystal, it undergoes {pi}-{mu} decay and two pulses appear on the trace. The {mu}{sup +} meson has a range of only 2 mm in the crystal. If its decay electron is detected some time (.5-2.5 x 10{sup -6} sec) later; a neon light flashes and is photographed together with the scope trace. Only such marked traces are measured. Of these marked traces, 650 or roughly one-half, show the two pulses of the {pi}-{mu} event. Five percent are calculated to be due to random delayed coincidences, and another 3 percent due to {pi} mesons which have decayed in flight and come to rest in the second crystal as {mu} mesons. The remaining traces are due to {pi}{mu} decays which are too fast to be resolved. The sweep speed of the oscilloscope is calibrated periodically with an oscillator of known frequency

Analysis of bacterial communities in a municipal duck pond during a phytoplankton bloom and isolation of Anatilimnocola aggregata gen. nov., sp. nov., Lacipirellula limnantheis sp. nov. and Urbifossiella limnaea gen. nov., sp. nov. belonging to the phylum Planctomycetes

Waterbodies such as lakes and ponds are fragile environments affected by human influences. Suitable conditions can result in massive growth of phototrophs, commonly referred to as phytoplankton blooms. Such events benefit heterotrophic bacteria able to use compounds secreted by phototrophs or their biomass as major nutrient source. One example of such bacteria are Planctomycetes, which are abundant on the surfaces of marine macroscopic phototrophs; however, less data are available on their ecological roles in limnic environments. In this study, we followed a cultivation-independent deep sequencing approach to study the bacterial community composition during a cyanobacterial bloom event in a municipal duck pond. In addition to cyanobacteria, which caused the bloom event, members of the phylum Planctomycetes were significantly enriched in the cyanobacteria-attached fraction compared to the free-living fraction. Separate datasets based on isolated DNA and RNA point towards considerable differences in the abundance and activity of planctomycetal families, indicating different activity peaks of these families during the cyanobacterial bloom. Motivated by the finding that the sampling location harbours untapped bacterial diversity, we included a complementary cultivation-dependent approach and isolated and characterized three novel limnic strains belonging to the phylum Planctomycetes

Betriebliche Hürden für die Installation von Wärmepumpen: Eine explorative Analyse

Insbesondere die Umrüstung von Bestandsgebäuden auf Wärmepumpen schreitet unzureichend voran, um die Energiewende umzusetzen. Eine explorative Analyse wurde anhand von qualitativen Experteninterviews und einer anschließenden quantitativen Befragung an Fachunternehmen des Sektors durchgeführt. Es wurden Hürden für den Wärmepumpeneinsatz aufgedeckt, die Fachunternehmen daran hindern könnten, diese einzuplanen. Beispielsweise kann der Umsatz von Wärmepumpen für einige Heizungstechnikunternehmen unterschiedlich finanzielle Bedeutung haben. Generell wurden mit Wärmepumpen gute Erfahrungen gemacht, allerdings ist der Fachkräftemangel in allen Branchen bereits deutlich wahrnehmbar. Es scheint, kaum planerische Hürden für Wärmepumpen zu geben. Lediglich Schallschutzbedingungen und Abschaltzeiten, die auf Wärmepumpentarife zurückzuführen sind, könnten künftig an Relevanz gewinnen

Impact of two rounds of praziquantel mass drug administration on Schistosoma mansoni infection prevalence and intensity: a comparison between community wide treatment and school based treatment in western Kenya

AbstractThis study compared the effectiveness of the community-wide treatment and school-based treatment approaches in the control of Schistosoma mansoni infections in villages with ⩾25% prevalence in western Kenya. Stool samples from first year students, 9–12year olds and adults (20–55years) were analyzed by the Kato–Katz technique for S. mansoni eggs. After two rounds of treatment, S. mansoni prevalence and intensity levels significantly declined in both treatment approaches. Prevalence comparisons between the two approaches did not show any significant differences following treatment. However, infection intensity levels in the 9–12year old school-attending pupils were significantly higher in the community-wide treatment arm than in the school-based treatment arm. Nevertheless, significant reductions in S. mansoni infection prevalence and intensity levels were achieved among school-age children regardless of the treatment approach used

Cultivation-Independent Analysis of the Bacterial Community Associated With the Calcareous Sponge Clathrina clathrus and Isolation of Poriferisphaera corsica Gen. Nov., Sp. Nov., Belonging to the Barely Studied Class Phycisphaerae in the Phylum Planctomycetes

Marine ecosystems serve as global carbon sinks and nutrient source or breeding ground for aquatic animals. Sponges are ancient parts of these important ecosystems and can be found in caves, the deep-sea, clear waters, or more turbid environments. Here, we studied the bacterial community composition of the calcareous sponge Clathrina clathrus sampled close to the island Corsica in the Mediterranean Sea with an emphasis on planctomycetes. We show that the phylum Planctomycetes accounts for 9% of the C. clathrus-associated bacterial community, a 5-fold enrichment compared to the surrounding seawater. Indeed, the use of C. clathrus as a yet untapped source of novel planctomycetal strains led to the isolation of strain KS4T. The strain represents a novel genus and species within the class Phycisphaerae in the phylum Planctomycetes and displays interesting cell biological features, such as formation of outer membrane vesicles and an unexpected mode of cell division