Publications by authors named "STEARNS R"

Background: Exertional heat stroke (EHS) is a leading cause of secondary school sport-related death; however, a longitudinal analysis on observed trends is lacking. Our purpose was to describe EHS deaths in United States secondary school athletes since the 1982/1983 academic year.

Hypothesis: EHS deaths will be primarily represented by football athletes and have a stable or increasing trend across a decade-by-decade analysis.

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Background: Exertional heat illnesses (EHIs), specifically exertional heat stroke (EHS), are a top cause of nonaccidental death among U.S. laborers.

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Context: California is the only state that does not regulate the athletic training profession, allowing unqualified personnel to be hired and call themselves athletic trainers (ATs). The benefits of employing a certified AT in the secondary school setting are numerous, but efforts to push regulation legislation continue to fail in California.

Objective: To describe the availability of certified ATs in California secondary schools and explore factors influencing AT employment.

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Background: Maximal oxygen uptake (VO) is an important determinant of endurance performance. Heat acclimation/acclimatization (HA/HAz) elicits improvements in endurance performance. Upon heat exposure reduction, intermittent heat training (IHT) may alleviate HA/HAz adaptation decay; however, corresponding VO responses are unknown.

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Context: Little information exists regarding what exertional heatstroke (EHS) survivors know and believe about EHS best practices. Understanding this would help clinicians focus educational efforts to ensure survival and safe return-to-play following EHS.

Objective: We sought to better understand what EHS survivors knew about EHS seriousness (eg, lethality and short- and long-term effects), diagnosis and treatment procedures, and recovery.

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Article Synopsis
  • Chicken products can harbor dangerous pathogens like Salmonella and E. coli, posing risks to food safety, particularly in West Virginia's poultry industry.
  • A study evaluated the microbial safety of broilers processed in a mobile poultry processing unit, highlighting the need for effective control measures during processing steps, especially after evisceration.
  • Results indicated that while chilling carcasses with chlorine was more effective for reducing bacteria, Salmonella levels spiked after evisceration, suggesting that rigorous washing and improved chilling strategies are crucial for enhancing food safety in poultry processing.
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Context: A high number of exertional heat stroke (EHS) cases occur during the Falmouth Road Race.

Objectives: To extend previous analyses of EHS cases during the Falmouth Road Race by assessing or describing (1) EHS and heat exhaustion (HE) incidence rates, (2) EHS outcomes as they relate to survival, (3) the effect of the environment on these outcomes, and (4) how this influences medical provider planning and preparedness.

Design: Descriptive epidemiologic study.

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Introduction: The recommended treatment for exertional heat stroke is immediate, whole-body immersion in < 10 °C water until rectal temperature (T) reaches ≤ 38.6 °C. However, real-time T assessment is not always feasible or available in field settings or emergency situations.

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Background: Athletes training in heat experience physiological and perceptual symptoms that risk their safety and performance without adaptation.

Purpose: We examined the changes in environmental symptoms, assessed with the Environmental Symptoms Questionnaire (ESQ), during heat acclimatization (HAz), heat acclimation (HA), and intermittent heat training (HT).

Methods: Twenty-seven participants (mean ± standard deviation [M ± SD], age of 35 ± 12 y, VO of 57.

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Laborers are particularly vulnerable to exertional injuries and illnesses, as they often engage in heavy physical work for prolonged hours, yet no studies have examined the top causes of catastrophic exertional injuries and fatalities among this population. The purpose of the investigation was to characterize the top causes of exertional injury and fatality within open access, Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) reportable data. A secondary analysis of OSHA reported injury and fatality data was performed through open access records from OSHA Severe Injury Reports (2015-2022) and OSHA fatality inspection data (2017-2020), respectively.

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Assessing the adaptation of rectal temperature (T) is critical following heat acclimatization (HAz) and heat acclimation (HA) because it is associated with exercise performance and safety; however, more feasible and valid methods need to be identified. The purpose of this study was to predict adaptations in T from heart rate (HR), sweat rate (SR), and thermal sensation (TS) using predictive modeling techniques. Twenty-five male endurance athletes (age, 36 ± 12 y; VO, 57.

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Background: Participation in high school cross-country and track has increased over the last few decades. At the same time, the rate of pedestrian-involved motor vehicle crashes (MVCs) has also increased. In the context of organized sport, pedestrian safety among runners is often not highlighted, despite the risk of catastrophic injury.

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This study compares kinetic parameters of Salmonella and surrogate Enterococcus faecium in mash broiler feed during thermal inactivation. Two-gram samples of mash broiler feed were added into a filtered sample bag and inoculated with nalidixic acid (NaL, 200 ppm) resistant S. Typhimurium or Enterococcus faecium, followed by vacuum-packaging and heating in a circulated thermal water bath at 75°, 85°, and 95°C for 0 to 180 s.

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The purpose of this study was to examine the changes in metabolic heat production (Hprod), evaporative heat loss (Hevap), and dry heat loss (Hdry), following heat acclimatization (HAz) and heat acclimation (HA). Twenty-two male endurance athletes (mean ± standard deviation; age, 37 ± 12 y; body mass, 73.4 ± 8.

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Context: Coaches play a role in streamlining care, especially by directing student-athletes in need of further medical attention to the athletic trainer (AT). The AT-coach relationship holds great potential for incorporating collaborative care, and yet, little is known about coaches' perceptions and knowledge of ATs.

Objective: To investigate coaches' perceptions of athletic training and their knowledge regarding the roles and responsibilities of ATs in secondary schools.

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Context: Parents have unique roles in advocating for their child's health and safety. Such advocacy can improve student-athletes' access to athletic trainers (ATs), yet few researchers have investigated the perceptions of student-athletes' parents regarding athletic training.

Objective: To explore parents' perceptions of athletic training and evaluate their knowledge regarding the AT's role.

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Abstract: This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of a hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and peroxyacetic acid (PAA) mixer delivered by conventional garden spray (GS), electrostatic spray (ES), and dip methods to inactivate Listeria monocytogenes on apples. Organic Honeycrisp, Fuji, and Pink Lady apples were dip inoculated with L. monocytogenes (two strains, serotype 1/2b), which were then kept untreated (control), sprayed with water only, or treated with the H2O2-PAA mixer (0.

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The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic underscores the importance of developing reliable forecasts that would allow decision makers to devise appropriate response strategies. Despite much recent research on the topic, epidemic forecasting remains poorly understood. Researchers have attributed the difficulty of forecasting contagion dynamics to a multitude of factors, including complex behavioral responses, uncertainty in data, the stochastic nature of the underlying process, and the high sensitivity of the disease parameters to changes in the environment.

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Heat tolerance testing (HTT) has been developed to assess readiness for work or exercise in the heat based on thermoregulation during exertion. Although the Israeli Defense Forces protocol has been the most widely used and referenced, other protocols and variables considered in the interpretation of the testing are emerging. Our purpose was to summarize the role of HTT after exertional heat stroke; assess the validity of HTT; and provide a review of best-practice recommendations to guide clinicians, coaches, and researchers in the performance, interpretation, and future direction of HTT.

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Objectives: To examine the efficacy of weekly and bi-weekly heat training to maintain heat acclimatization (HAz) and heat acclimation (HA) for 8 weeks in aerobically trained athletes.

Design: Randomized, between-group.

Methods: Twenty-four males (mean [m ± standard deviation [sd]; (age, 34 ± 12 y; body mass, 72.

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Background: The purpose of this study was to investigate effects of heat acclimatization (HAz) followed by heat acclimation (HA), and intermittent heat training (IHT) on time-trial performance.

Hypothesis: Time-trial performance will improve after HA and will further improve with twice a week of IHT.

Study Design: Interventional study.

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The purpose of this consensus document was to develop feasible, evidence-based occupational heat safety recommendations to protect the US workers that experience heat stress. Heat safety recommendations were created to protect worker health and to avoid productivity losses associated with occupational heat stress. Recommendations were tailored to be utilized by safety managers, industrial hygienists, and the employers who bear responsibility for implementing heat safety plans.

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