Relationship between functional hamstring: quadriceps ratios and running economy in highly trained and recreational female runners.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between running economy (RE), functional hamstring:quadriceps peak torque ratios (f-H:Q), and flexibility among female runners. Seven highly trained (HT) female runners (age: 25.7 ± 4.

Kicking performance in relation to balance ability over the support leg.

Balance control is presumed to be a fundamental constraint on the organization of skilled movement. The current experiment explored whether single-leg balance ability predicted kicking performance on the other leg. Thirty-eight participants ranging widely in skill kicked a soccer ball with the right and left legs for maximum accuracy and velocity and performed single-leg balance on a force plate for 30 s with the right and left legs.

The architecture and contraction time of intrinsic foot muscles.

Although critical for effective human locomotion and posture, little data exists regarding the segmentation, architecture and contraction time of the human intrinsic foot muscles. To address this issue, the Abductor Hallucis (AH), Abductor Digiti Minimi (ADM), Flexor Digitorum Brevis (FDB) and Extensor Digitorum Brevis (EDB) were investigated utilizing a cadaveric dissection and a non-invasive whole muscle mechanomyographic (wMMG) technique. The segmental structure and architecture of formaldehyde-fixed foot specimens were determined in nine cadavers aged 60-80 years.

Accuracy of an infrared LED device to measure heart rate and energy expenditure during rest and exercise.

The purpose of this study was to examine the accuracy of the ePulse Personal Fitness Assistant, a forearm-worn device that provides measures of heart rate and estimates energy expenditure. Forty-six participants engaged in 4-minute periods of standing, 2.0 mph walking, 3.

Ultrasound tissue Doppler imaging reveals no delay in abdominal muscle feed-forward activity during rapid arm movements in patients with chronic low back pain.

Study Design: Cross-sectional study.

Objective: Comparison of the timing of onset of lateral abdominal muscle activity during rapid arm movements in patients with nonspecific chronic low back pain (cLBP) and back-pain-free controls.

Summary Of Background Data: Rapid movements of the arm are normally associated with prior activation of trunk-stabilizing muscles in readiness for the impending postural perturbation.

Test-retest reliability of the IDEEA system in the quantification of step parameters during walking and stair climbing.

The aim of this investigation was to evaluate the inter- and intra-session reliability of spatio-temporal gait variables collected during walking and stair climbing with the Intelligent Device for Energy Expenditure and physical Activity (IDEEA) accelerometer-based system. Eighteen healthy subjects (10 men, 8 women) completed a standardized indoor circuit comprised of walking and stair climbing. Intra-and inter-session reliability was investigated for several pertinent spatio-temporal gait variables using intraclass correlations [ICC (3,1)].

Muscle thickness changes during abdominal hollowing: an assessment of between-day measurement error in controls and patients with chronic low back pain.

Spine stabilization exercises, in which patients are taught to perform isolated contractions of the transverses abdominus (TrA) during "abdominal hollowing", are a popular physiotherapeutic treatment for low back pain (LBP). Successful performance is typically judged by the relative increase in TrA thickness compared with that of the internal (OI) and external (OE) oblique muscles, measured using ultrasound. The day-to-day measurement error (imprecision) associated with these indices of preferential activation has not been assessed but is important to know since it influences the interpretation of changes after treatment.

Concurrent validity and intrasession reliability of the IDEEA accelerometry system for the quantification of spatiotemporal gait parameters.

The aim of this pilot study was to evaluate concurrent validity and intrasession reliability of the IDEEA (Minisun, Fresno, CA) accelerometry system (and associated software) with force plate measurements for spatiotemporal gait variables recorded during normal walking. Ten healthy individuals were asked to walk at a self-selected comfortable speed, over five multicomponent force plates embedded into the walkway floor. For each trial, spatiotemporal gait parameters (single support time, cadence, speed, step and stride length) obtained by the force plates were compared to those recorded by IDEEA.

Lateral meniscus repair in a professional ice hockey goaltender: a case report with a 5-year follow-up.

Study Design: Case report of a professional ice hockey goaltender who underwent an arthroscopically assisted lateral meniscus repair.

Background: Rehabilitation of isolated meniscal repairs is not well documented in the literature. There is little knowledge about the healing time and the choice of rehabilitation exercises to be applied to a repaired meniscus.

Joint laxity and isokinetic thigh muscle strength characteristics after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction: bone patellar tendon bone versus quadrupled hamstring autografts.

Objectives: To analyze ligamentous stability and isokinetic strength of knee extensor and flexor muscles after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction using 2 different autografts with identical fixation.

Design: This study implements a comparative case series design.

Setting: Schulthess Clinic, Switzerland.