Selected Musculoskeletal Issues in Adolescents.

Musculoskeletal care of the adolescent patient involves unique knowledge of their rapidly changing physical and psychological health. In this article, the importance of preventing early sports specialization is elucidated, and an encouragement of the safety and necessity of resistance training in adolescents is undertaken. It also explores two common conditions, one affecting the immature skeleton (apophysitis), and one affecting the improperly developed muscular system (patellofemoral syndrome), both of which are diagnosed clinically, and require little advanced imaging.

Handgrip strength in cardiac rehabilitation: normative values, interaction with physical function, and response to training.

Purpose: To determine normative values for handgrip (HG) strength at entry into cardiac rehabilitation (CR) and to examine the relationship of HG strength with self-reported physical function and the response of HG strength to exercise training.

Methods: HG strength was measured in 1,960 patients with coronary heart disease. Other measures obtained included oxygen consumption/ unit time (peak VO2), body composition, physical function and depression questionnaires, and assessment of comorbid conditions.