International Journal of Sport Studies for Health
Volume:6 Issue: 1, Apr 2023

 The Knee Injury Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS) is a widely used patient-reported questionnaire to evaluate individuals with knee osteoarthritis or a history of knee injuries.

 The aim of this study was to evaluate the responsiveness and establish the minimal important change (MIC) for the Arabic version of KOOS in Iraqi individuals with knee osteoarthritis following physiotherapy intervention.

 Fifty volunteers (13 male and 37 female, mean age: 59.3±9.6 years old) with an orthopedic diagnosis of knee osteoarthritis participated in this study. The Arabic KOOS was completed by the participants once before the intervention and once after completing a 4-week physiotherapy treatment program. A seven-item global rating of change scale was used as an external anchor to assess the participants' opinion about the treatment and its possible changes. Responsiveness was evaluated by calculating the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve, and the MIC was established by identifying an optimal cut-off on the ROC curve.

 All subscales of the Arabic KOOS showed an area under the curve > 0.70. The MICs reflecting the values required by the participants to feel the improvement were 15.5, 14.5, 11, 11.5, and 12.5 for the pain, symptoms, activities of daily living, sports and recreation, and quality of life subscales, respectively.

 All subscales of the Arabic KOOS are responsive to physiotherapy treatment. Therapists and researchers can use the MIC values to evaluate whether their prescribed treatment was satisfactory and effective from their patients' point of view.

 Undiagnosed eating disorders may lead to a life-threatening condition, then a validated and reliable tool that lets health providers use it for effective screening is a mandatory need.

 This study aimed to assess the validity and reliability of the Persian version of the Eating Disorder Inventory-3 Referral Form (EDI-3 RF).

 In this cross-sectional study, 452 university students and employees were recruited by convenience sampling from the Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. The content validity was assessed using the five specialists, and then the content validity index (CVI) and content validity ratio (CVR) was calculated separately. The reliability was measured with Cronbach’s alpha and test-retest.

 Overall, 260 participants filled out the questionnaire completely. The mean age of participants was 22.34 ± 4.18 years. The mean weight was 64 kg (range: 40 - 115). This version of EDI-3 RF yields acceptable content validity and item correlation. According to the expert’s opinion, CVR was more than 0.99 for all inquiries. Also, the CVI for each item was greater than 0.79, which indicates the acceptable value of this index for different items in terms of relevance, clarity, and simplicity. Also, the face validity was approved according to participants’ and experts’ opinions. Cronbach’s alpha for measuring the three subscales of an eating disorder were acceptable (drive for thinness (DT) = 0.76 and 0.77, bulimia (B) = 0.71 and 0.72, and body dissatisfaction (BD) = 0.77 and 0.71, respectively). The correlation coefficient between two questionnaires was 0.48 (P < 0.01). The coefficient between the subscales and whole parts of this questionnaire was 0.58, 0.53, 0.66, 0.48, 0.34, and 0.43, respectively (P < 0.01).

 This questionnaire would be a beneficial self-response questionnaire, and because of its abbreviated format, it can be used as a screening and referral tool in the Persian population.

 In recent years, coaches and athletes have increasingly used observation as a tool for teaching and learning sports skills.

 The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of modeling, using internal and external attentional focus strategies, on the acquisition and retention of free throw shooting in basketball.

 Forty-five female beginner basketball players (aged 21.62 ± 3.08 years, with a BMI of 23.48 ± 0.99 kg/m2) voluntarily participated in this study. Based on their pre-test scores using the ABBA method, they were divided into three groups: One group received modeling with an internal attention focus strategy, another group received modeling with an external attention focus strategy, and a control group. A video demonstrating the correct throwing technique was used to teach the attention-focusing strategies, and the groups did not receive any physical training. After watching the video, participants performed their own throwing attempts. Following group allocation, the participants entered the acquisition phase, which consisted of six sessions, with each session including two sets of ten attempts and a 2-minute rest period between sets. One-way analysis of variance was used for both immediate and delayed recall tests, and data analysis was conducted using SPSS 20 software.”

 The study found a significant difference in free throw performance between the three modeling groups (internal attention focus, external attention focus, and control) during both the acquisition and delayed retention stages (P ≤ 0.05). Additionally, there was a significant difference in basketball free throw performance between the three modeling groups during the recall test (P ≤ 0.05).

 Overall, the results suggest that observational learning, combined with attentional focus strategies, is an effective method for improving skill acquisition and retention in basketball.

 Futsal is a high-intensity team sport taxing both the aerobic and the anaerobic pathways. Thus, this sport requires the development of some specific physical capacities such as: Sprinting, jumping, agility and endurance.

 Examine the effect of three months specific training on physical capacities (speed, explosive strength, agility and endurance) of Iraq futsal players.

 Twenty males’ professional futsal players (age: 19.73 ± 1.1 years, height: 172 ± 4.2 cm; body mass: 55.3 ± 8.9 kg) were divided into an experimental group (EG; n = 10) and a control group (CG; n = 10). Participants were selected from a first division team in Iraq. Before and after three months of specific training (at the pre-season phase), 5m and 15m sprint, counter movement jump (CMJ), change of direction [505 agility test (CODA)] and futsal intermittent endurance (FIET) tests were realized. During the three months, the CG continue their usual training and the EG used plyometric as well as technical and physical exercises.

 For the sprint performance, although no-significant difference was reported between pre- and post-training for the 5 m sprint, the 15 m sprint performance was better at post- compared to pre-training (P < 0.05) for the EG. For jumping performance, CMJ was higher at post- compared to pre-training (P < 0.05) for the EG. Likewise, for agility and endurance, CODA performance and peak velocity during the FIET test were better at post- compared to pre-training (P < 0.05) for the EG. However, except a better performance for 15m sprint and peak velocity during the FIET test for the EG compared to CG at post-training (P < 0.05), no-significant differences were reported between pre- and post-training for the CG and between the two groups at pre- and post-training.

 In the light of these data, results have shown that improvement in physical capacities take into consideration the characteristics of futsal during training.

Context: 

The subject of "Sport During Ramadan" focuses on the impact of fasting during the holy month of Ramadan on athletic performance and physical activity. Muslims around the world fast from sunrise to sunset during this month, abstaining from food, drink, and other physical needs. Our hypothesis suggests that during Ramadan, the fasting period can cause particular problems for athletes and people involved in sports and physical activities that require a lot of stamina and energy.

Evidence Acquisition: 

A systematic review of the literature was conducted using the search equation "sport during Ramadan" in the PsycInfo, PubMed and ScienceDirect databases, in order to identify the 40 articles on the subject up to the year 2022.

 Taking into account the similarities of the contents of the 40 targeted articles, 24 articles were selected. During the fasting period of the month of Ramadan, engaging in sports and exercise during Ramadan can have numerous benefits for physical and mental health. However, physical activities that require a lot of endurance and energy can pose physical health risks, including dehydration, hypoglycemia, muscle cramps, fatigue and delayed recovery.

 Participating in sports and exercise during Ramadan can have many benefits for physical and mental health, as well as spiritual awareness and community engagement. During this time, uncontrolled physical exertion can have detrimental effects on health. Proper hydration combined with a rich and balanced diet during the non-fasting period and quality sleep can help overcome the risks associated with exercising during Ramadan. It is important that Muslims prioritize their health and well-being during this time and consult a physician if necessary before engaging in physical activity.

 The popularity of Tunisian tennis is on the rise, due to emerging players gaining global recognition, leading to growth and evolution in the sport. In order to optimize training and performance, coaches need valuable information on physical fitness and player profiling.

 The study aimed to investigate the physical profile of Tunisian tennis players in different age groups ranging from 7 to 17 years.

 One hundred and one tennis players from the same team were assigned to six age groups (U9-U18); U9 (7.89 ± 0.32), U10 (8.88 ± 0.34), U11 (9.78 ± 0.43), U12 (10.81 ± 0.4), U14 (12.3 ± 0.73), and U18 (14.69 ± 0.95) and were assessed for standing long jump (SLJ), countermovement jump, medicine ball throw (MBT), various sprint distances, agility drills, 20m Shuttle run (20mSRT), and Sit and reach tests.

 The results showed that U14 and U18 age groups demonstrated better performance than U9 and U10 in jump tests, while U18 and U14 outperformed only U9 in the MBT test. U11 showed better performance than U9 and U10 in sprints, sideways shuffle, and spider drill tests. U9 and U10 had lower performance than U12 in SLJ, 20m sprint, sideways shuffle, and zigzag tests, and U11 outperformed U9 in the SLJ test. U18 and U14 had higher VO2max than U10 and U11, while U12 was higher than U11 only. No difference in flexibility was reported. The centile estimates of physical performances among Tunisian tennis players provide a means to compare individual player test results with the standard performance levels of the group.

 In conclusion, this study found that 11–17-year-old players exhibited greater physical performance than 7–10-year-old players. However, no age effect was found for flexibility.

 Hamstring injuries are common in sports that involve rapid, forceful lengthening of the hamstring muscles, such as sprinting, jumping, and kicking. This type of injury is more likely to occur in team sports such as football and handball.

 The purpose of this study was to investigate chronic effects of proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF) stretching on muscle strength and neuromuscular activity of the hamstring muscle.

 Six male team sports players (age: 24.38 ± 1.94 years; height: 180.73 ± 6.05 cm; body-mass: 80.23 ± 10.42 kg) were recruited for this study. Participants completed a 2-month rehabilitation program that included three sessions per week of contract-relax (CR) PNF stretching. Neuromuscular activity and strength were evaluated by electromyography (EMG) and force sensor before and after 8 weeks of CR-PNF stretching.

 The neuromuscular activity of the medial and lateral hamstring muscles was significantly different between pre-and post-training for the apex and area of muscle (P < 0.01). Similarly, there was a large difference between pre- and post-training for hamstring muscle strength (medial and lateral) in the contract and relax positions (P < 0.001).

 Eight weeks of contract-relax proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF) stretching is effective in increasing neuromuscular activity and muscle strength in the hamstring muscles.