Dynamic balance and ankle injury odds: a prospective study in 196 Dutch physical education teacher education students

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to investigate whether dynamic balance, measured with the anterior component of the Star Excursion Balance Test (SEBT-ANT), is a risk factor for ankle injuries in physical education tea

Shining on others, I burn myself: time to disagree with Hippocrates

After 2 years of varying forms of lockdown, working (mostly) from home or under intense pressure, we have returned to in-person meetings. Yet, this transition was more intense and demanding than we considered. Yet is this true? Might it be that the pandemic revealed a deeper issue we face in academia, and unravelled a tremendous mismatch between work and personal life? We proudly say that as academics, we can work anywhere and anytime. More so, we do, and we are likely proud of it. Is this how we want to spend the rest of our careers and be role models for future generations

Virtual sports deserve real sports medical attention

In recent years, virtual sports or 'eSports' have grown exponentially both recreationally and at the professional level. eSports comprise several regulated video games played competitively, using electronic platforms. Some eSports competitions present a structure comparable to traditional sports, and eSports players, even with major skills and mental focus, need preparation and training to thrive. However, little is known about the demands of eSports competitions and continuous training. As the popularity and stakes rise, concerns about the health and emerging risks of eSports participation might arise. Indeed, in the absence of proper descriptive data about the specific characteristics of the eSports population (including factors such as screen time, physical activity, overuse injuries or training environment), effective prevention and care cannot be developed nor provided. Therefore, quality healthcare and prevention strategies are needed. In the current viewpoint, we argue that those involved with Sports Science and Medicine should lead the discussion and reflect on the health effects of eSports participation, providing scientifically-based arguments to better answer to the current eSports professionalism.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Preventing injuries among recreational adult volleyball players:Results of a prospective randomised controlled trial

The objective was to evaluate the effectiveness of an exercise-based warm-up programme ("VolleyVeilig") on the one-season occurrence of musculoskeletal injuries among recreational adult volleyball players. A prospective randomised controlled trial was conducted over the 2017-2018 volleyball season. Recreational adult volleyball players were allocated either to an intervention or control group. The Dutch version of the Oslo Sports Trauma Research Centre questionnaire was used to register and monitor acute and overuse injuries. A total of 672 volleyball players were enrolled: 348 in the intervention group (mean age: 30) and 324 in the control group (mean age: 27). The incidence rate of acute injury was 21% lower in the intervention group, namely 8.9 versus 11.3 per 1,000 h in the control group (Cox mixed effects crude model: hazard ratio = 0.82 [95%CI: 0.69-0.98]; Cox mixed effects adjusted model: 0.85 [95%CI: 0.71-1.02]). No significant difference in mean prevalence of overuse injury was found between the intervention (4.8%) and control (4.2%) groups. The severity of injuries was not significantly different between groups, while injury burden was slightly lower in the intervention group. The exercise-based warm-up programme led to a trend in less acute injuries among recreational adult volleyball players

Trends in Australian knee injury rates : An epidemiological analysis of 228,344 knee injuries over 20 years

Background Acute knee injuries are a key predisposing risk factor for knee osteoarthritis. Public health interventions require in-depth epidemiological evidence to determine which knee injuries are problematic in critical age and sex demographics. Methods Descriptive epidemiological analysis of longitudinal data on knee injuries (July 1998 – June 2018) from the National Hospital Morbidity Database in Australia were studied. The main outcomes where the population-related knee injury frequency, incidence per 100,000 and annual growth rate (%) over the 20-year observation period. Age-group and sex differences were also studied to determine demographic-specific trends. Findings 228,344 knee injuries were diagnosed over the 20-year analysis period. Significantly rising annual incidences were observed for total knee injuries, anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries and knee contusions in males and females. Posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) injuries and knee dislocations were also rising in females, but not males. Greater annual growth rates were observed for females compared to males for total knee injuries, knee contusions, PCL injuries and knee dislocations. Demographic analysis revealed that the highest annual growth rate in injury incidence (10.4%) was observed for ACL injuries in females aged 5–14 years old. Interpretation Increasing annual incidence of knee injuries was observed over the 20-year period. Males have a higher incidence of knee injury per capita than females, but the gap appears to have narrowed over the 20-year analysis period. Younger Australians show a precipitous rise in the annual number of ACL injuries, particularly for females aged 5–14 years. These trends warrant urgent intervention. Funding None

Can we explain running-related injury preventive behavior? A path analysis

Background: Behavioral and social science theories/models have been gaining attention in sports injury prevention. Objective: To investigate the potential of the Theory of Planned Behavior in explaining running-related injury preventive behavior. Methods: Six-month prospective cohort study based on data gathered from a randomized controlled trial. From a total of 1512 invited trail runners, 232 were included in this study. Preventive behaviors and their determinants were assessed at baseline and two and six months after baseline. Five-point Likert scales were used to assess the determinants of preventive behavior. A Bayesian path analysis was conducted applying mixed models and mediation analysis. Results: A 1-point increase in intention, attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control predicted an increase of 54% (95% Bayesian credible interval [BCI]: 38, 71) in the rate of performing running-related injury preventive behavior, explaining 49% (R-2 0.49; 95% BCI: 0.41, 0.56) of the variance around preventive behavior. Intention and perceived behavioral control predicted running-related injury preventive behavior directly, while 40% (95% BCI: 21, 61) and 44% (95% BCI: 20, 69) of the total effect of attitude was mediated by intention and perceived behavioral control, respectively. Attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control predicted intention. Conclusions: The Theory of Planned Behavior may have the potential to explain half of the variance around running-related injury preventive behavior and intention. Therefore, such theory may be considered a relevant and useful tool in developing, investigating, and/or implementing programs aimed at preventing running-related injuries. (C) 2021 Associacao Brasileira de Pesquisa e Pos-Graduacao em Fisioterapia. Published by Elsevier Espana, S.L.U. All rights reserved

How to optimise the fidelity of exercises in an unsupervised golf injury prevention programme? A pilot study

Background:Golf is an individual sport that is usually done without the supervision of a trainer or coach. Therefore, an injury prevention programme in golf will primarily be performed without supervision and feedback. However, the effectiveness of any preventive exercise programme is determined by exercise fidelity. Objective:To investigate the different instruction options of an injury prevention programme on exercise fidelity in individual golfers. Methods:We randomly assigned golfers to one of three groups receiving different exercise instructions. One group received only instructional cards (A), one received only instructional videos (B) and a third group (C) received both instructional cards and videos. The golfers were allowed to familiarise themselves with the exercises based on the provided instruction option, after which we recorded their exercise execution on video. Two authors independently scored each exercise’s fidelity from these recordings. Results: In total, 18 golfers (12 women and 6 men, average age of 61.94 years) were equally divided across the 3 study groups completed 108 exercises. In group A 73.7% of exercises were executed as intended, in group B 88.6% and in group C 86.3%. Significantly more exercises were conducted correctly in groups B and C compared with group A (p&lt;0.05). Conclusion:Golfers who received instructions that included a video explanation had a higher exercise fidelity when compared to only written instructions.</p

The Association Between the Acute:Chronic Workload Ratio and Running-Related Injuries in Dutch Runners: A Prospective Cohort Study

Objective To investigate the association between the acute:chronic workload ratio (ACWR) and running-related injuries (RRI). Methods This is a secondary analysis using a database composed of data from three studies conducted with the same RRI surveillance system. Longitudinal data comprising running exposure (workload) and RRI were collected biweekly during the respective cohorts' follow-up (18-65 weeks). ACWR was calculated as the most recent (i.e., acute) external workload (last 2 weeks) divided by the average external (i.e., chronic) workload of the last 4, 6, 8, 10 and 12 weeks. Three methods were used to calculate the ACWR: uncoupled, coupled and exponentially weighted moving averages (EWMA). Bayesian logistic mixed models were used to analyse the data. Results The sample was composed of 435 runners. Runners whose ACWR was under 0.70 had about 10% predicted probability of sustaining RRI (9.6%; 95% credible interval [CrI] 7.5-12.4), while those whose ACWR was higher than 1.38 had about 1% predicted probability of sustaining RRI (1.3%; 95% CrI 0.7-1.7). The association between the ACWR and RRI was significant, varying from a small to a moderate association (1-10%). The higher the ACWR, the lower the RRI risk. Conclusions The ACWR showed an inversely proportional association with RRI risk that can be represented by a smooth L-shaped, second-order, polynomial decay curve. The ACWR using hours or kilometres yielded similar results. The coupled and uncoupled methods revealed similar associations with RRIs. The uncoupled method presented the best discrimination for ACWR strata. The EWMA method yielded sparse and non-significant results

Effect of unsupervised home based proprioceptive training on recurrences of ankle sprain: randomised controlled trial

Objective To evaluate the effectiveness of an unsupervised proprioceptive training programme on recurrences of ankle sprain after usual care in athletes who had sustained an acute sports related injury to the lateral ankle ligament