Asian Journal of Sports Medicine
Volume:12 Issue: 4, Dec 2021

The pre-participation physical evaluation (PPE), which includes a musculoskeletal system evaluation, identifies factors that may be a risk for athletes while practicing sport. Thus, the Sport Readiness Questionnaire Focused on Musculoskeletal Injuries (MIR-Q) was developed to screen athletes at risk of future injuries or worsening pre-existing injuries during training or competition. However, the criterion-related validity and reliability of the MIR-Q have not yet been analyzed.

To test the criterion-related validity and reliability (internal consistency and test-retest) of the MIR-Q.

One hundred and twenty adult athletes from different sports (17 women) completed the MIR-Q and underwent a physical orthopedic examination (POE) performed by an orthopedic physician. At least one affirmative answer on the MIR-Q, as well as one positive finding on the POE, was considered “a risk factor for sport injury”. The validity was assessed from sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy measurements. Internal consistency was obtained through the KR-20 test. Reliability was measured using the test-retest method in a 7-14 day interval with a sub-sample (n = 41) and verified by the Kappa index.

Eighty-one (67.5%) questionnaires contained positive responses. The sensitivity of the MIR-Q against POE was high (84.4%), while specificity and accuracy were considered moderate, with values of 42.7% and 58.0%, respectively. Internal consistency was moderate (KR-20 = 0.57), and test-retest was weak (K = 0.30; P = 0.02).

The MIR-Q was associated with high values of validity and low values of reliability. The questionnaire may be an alternative tool for musculoskeletal screening during PPE in limited medical settings (sports OR orthopedic physician) conditions. Future studies should investigate the predictive validity of the MIR-Q, and psychometric properties of the questionnaire with younger athletes.

Hand grip plays a fundamental role in most daily and athletic activities of the upper extremities.

The study compared the effect of various methods of forearm Kinesio-taping (KT) on the hand grip strength and endurance of Iranian elite squash players during their sporting activities at different times.

Thirty-three female squash players were assigned to a quasi-experimental study, and KT was applied on their dominant forearm (on the flexor area, on the extensor area, and placebo taping). Grip strength was evaluated before, immediately, 30, and 60 minutes after KT, and grip endurance was also assessed before and 60 minutes after KT using MIE digital grip analyzer. Friedman and Kruskal-Wallis tests were used to analyze the results of grip strength, and ANOVA and the sample t-test were applied to analyze the grip endurance data.

The findings revealed no significant differences within the grip strength at different phases (P > 0.05). However, p values for the outcomes of KT on the flexor area‎, KT on the extensor area‎, and placebo mode were respectively 0.145, 0.178, 0.065 in each phase of the evaluation. A significant difference ‎among KT groups and the LSD test revealed a significant increase in grip endurance in the mode of KT on the extensor area, whereas there have been no significant differences in grip endurance in KT on flexor (P = 0.785) and extensor (P = 0.457) areas.

There was no obvious superiority of the various methods of forearm ‎ KT ‎ on grip strength at different times; nevertheless, KT was an efficient method for retaining grip endurance in squash players with no significant differences between the flexor and extensor locations.

The use of autografts originating from either hamstring tendons or peroneus longus tendons is a surgical option in anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction.

This research aimed to compare the tensile strength between the hamstring tendon and the peroneus longus tendon in ACL reconstruction. The hypothesis of this study was: Peroneus longus grafts have tensile strength equal to hamstring grafts based on living donor patients.

This cross-sectional study was a biomechanical study examining means and standard deviations (SD) by comparing the tensile strength of peroneus longus tendons and hamstring tendons when used as autograft donors in ACL reconstruction.

In this study, 51 patients with reconstructive ACL were enrolled. The mean diameter of the hamstring tendon was 7.86 with SD ± 0.69, while the mean diameter of peroneus longus tendon was 7.67 with SD ± 0.63. The mean diameter of the peroneus longus graft was not significantly different. The mean displacement on the hamstring tendon was 2.44 with SD ± 0.42, while the peroneus longus tendon was 2.06 with SD ± 0.14. The peroneus longus tendon had significantly more tensile strength compared to the hamstring tendon.

Diameter of the peroneus longus graft was not significantly different from the hamstring graft. However, the peroneus longus graft had more tensile strength than the hamstring graft based on living donor patients.

The effect of aqua training on human body composition still causes inconsistency.

This study was set to identify the effects of WATERinMOTION (WiM) as a water-based exercise on anthropometric and body composition variables without dietetic supervision in overweight/obese, sedentary elderly men.

Participants (n = 70; age: 70.5 ± 4.4 years) derived by purposive and accessible selection were randomly distributed to either a one-month WiM aqua training group (n = 35, two weekly sessions each included 55 minutes on WiM aqua training) or a control group (n = 35, at the same time in sitting state). Anthropometric measures (height, weight, and waist circumference [WC]) and body composition variables (body mass index [BMI], fat mass [FM], total body water [TBW], and free fat mass [FFM]) were evaluated pre/post-study.

Upon analysis, statistically significant changes (P ≤ 0.05) were set on weight, BMI, and FM by comparing pre/post study for the WiM group. Furthermore, comparing groups at post disclosed a significant change in anthropometric measures (weight and WC) and body composition variables (BMI, FM, TBW, and FFM).

A short-run, non-diet-supervised WiM program suggests supporting a loss in weight, FM, and BMI in overweight/obese, sedentary elderly men.

The study aimed was to investigate the relationship between physical activity (PA) levels and muscle markers in healthy children and adolescents.

This cross-sectional study was conducted in 2020 among school students from Isfahan, Iran. Using cluster sampling, 159 students aged 7 to 18 years were selected. In addition to the physical examination, the PA level was assessed using a valid questionnaire. The serum levels of aspartate aminotransferase (AST), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), creatine kinase (CK), and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) were measured. Statistical analysis was performed using the Pearson correlation test.

The samples included 79 girls and 80 boys with a mean age (standard deviation) of 12.72 (3.06) years and a mean body mass index of 18.30 (3.70) kg/m2. The mean AST and CPK were significantly higher in boys than in girls (P < 0.05). Participants with higher PA levels had significantly lower LDH and ALT than other participants (-0.20, P = 0.003, and 0.044 P = 0.295, respectively). There was no significant relationship between PA level and muscle enzyme levels.

The findings of this study indicated that higher PA level was associated with lower serum muscle markers other than LDH. This suggests that the best types of PA for children and adolescents are those activities with rest sets to prevent muscle damage.

Flow-mediated dilation (FMD) is a noninvasive approach to examine endothelial function.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of 12 weeks of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) on FMD and circulating levels of adropin and nitric oxide (NO) in females with type 2 diabetes.

Thirty females with type 2 diabetes were randomly assigned into two equal groups of HIIT and control. The exercise program consisted of three sessions a week for 12 weeks. Each training session included 4 × 4-minute running intervals at 85 - 95% of maximal heart rate (HRmax) with 3-minute active recoveries at 50 - 60% of HRmax. Circulating levels of adropin, NO, glucose, HbA1c, insulin, HOMA-IR, as well as lipid profile, and body composition parameters were measured before and after the intervention.

A significant increase of FMD% was observed after the intervention in the HIIT group (P = 0.001). In addition, the circulation levels of adropin and NO enhanced as a result of HIIT (P = 0.012 and P < 0.001, respectively). There were also significant positive effects on the levels of lipid profile (except for HDL), FBS, and HbA1c; as well as on the insulin resistance and the body composition variables. There were no significant changes in the control group except an increase in the total cholesterol levels (P < 0.01).

The results showed that 12 weeks of the HIIT program could improve the endothelial function, glucose-related indices, lipid profile, and body composition variables in females with type 2 diabetes.

Various training protocols have been used in combat sports, including Taekwondo (TKD), to rapidly improve performance and to avoid injury by balancing the exercise intensity and the athletes’ metabolic tolerance and hormonal response. However, little is known about such metabolic responses in previously-trained individuals.

To investigate the effects of a concurrent TKD plus resistance (RT) training program on post-exercise blood biomarkers of physiological stress in previously-trained individuals.

Twenty-eight (16 males: 12 females) previously-trained individuals aged 20 - 26 years were matched by gender and randomly divided into either moderate- to vigorous-intensity exercising group (MODG) or a high-intensity exercising group (HIG). The MODG performed TKD training at a target training intensity of 55 - 70% (weeks 1 - 2) and 70 - 85% (weeks 3 - 4) maximum heart rate (HRmax) and RT training for four sets of 10 - 15 repetitions for each of the 13 whole-body RT exercises. The HIG performed TKD training at a target training intensity of 85 - 100% (weeks 1 - 2) and 95 - 100% (weeks 3 - 4) HRmax and RT training for five sets of 10 - 15 repetitions for each of the 13 whole-body RT exercises. A structured taekwondo tasks (sTT) test was conducted before and after the training period.

Significant post-exercise improvements were found for total testosterone (P = 0.02), free testosterone (P = 0.01), C/T ratio (P = 0.03) and lactate (P = 0.03) in the mixed gender HIG. With regards to the specific gender effects, post-exercise improvements were found in S-CPK in the male MODG and HIG, with improvements in uric acid only in the male HIG. In turn, post-exercise improvements were found for total testosterone, testosterone binding globulin, free testosterone in the female MODG and HIG, with post-exercise improvements in S-CPK and uric acid in the female HIG only.

This study demonstrates that even a short period of concurrent taekwondo and resistance training improves adaptation and post-exercise responses to physiological stress, and such adaptation may even be more marked in previously-trained female athletes. Thus, this mode of training may provide a novel exercise training modality to rapidly improve an individuals’ capacity to exercise, especially in situations of plateau, while avoiding overtraining and an increased concomitant chance of illness and musculoskeletal injury.

COVID-19 has stricken the world since the beginning of 2020. The pandemic is not controlled yet, and also the new variants of the virus are rapidly spreading. To reduce the virus's person-to-person transmission rate, health authorities and the government applied limitations to all activities (including sports activities). As a result, all football matches and team training worldwide were suspended for a limited period until a reduced infection risk was recognized. Even though training and competitions were gradually resuming worldwide, no spectators were allowed to attend any matches. After the successful experience of resuming football matches and tournaments following tight restrictions in keeping the players, staff, and organizers safe, it is time to let the spectators back in the stadiums and establish the needed guidelines. This commentary will highlight the most important aspects and issues that need to be addressed if the football federation and associations decide to let the spectators back into the stadiums, as football will lose its enthusiasm and financial turnover.